JOHN Chin of Hillel Academy defeated Daniel Azar also of the same school 4-3 in the final of the 10-and-Under singles at the

Hi-Lyte/Russell Tennis Academy Tournament held at the Russell Tennis Academy, situated at Campion College last week Sunday.

The tournament which should have been a one-day event on Saturday, was pushed back to the following day as a result of rain.

Winners of their first round-robin singles qualified for the second stage as they were grouped into two sections with the players finishing with the most points meet in the final, while the others played for places in the consolation final.

The singles was played on half of the usual regular courts for these young players as part of the international rule. Azar took a 2-1 lead after three games before Chin won the fourth to draw level at 2-2.

Both Chin and Azar produced exciting shots with smooth low returns over the net. The scores were again level at 3-3 with the player reaching four games first coming out champion. They played to a deuce with Chin gaining the advantage as Azar’s return went wide to give Chin a 4-3 win.

Both Chin and Azar are nine and seven-years-old, respectively.

Meanwhile, the consolation singles final was won by Kristina Munroe who beat Matthew James 4-1.

The round-robin doubles final was won by the pair of Chin and Azar who defeated Johnothan Jameson and Daniel Roberts 6-3 to finish on top of the standings with 18 points to their opponents’ 16 points.

According to Russell, a former Jamaica Davis Cup player, and who has the distinction of defeating the late great Arthur Ashe in an international tournament, the programme is an ongoing one for the development of tennis in the island for Prep Schools tennis at the Academy.

“We planned to have 15 tournaments next year and a much bigger participation from the kids,” the former Jamaica professional tennis said.