BLAISE Bicknell of Jamaica defeated Andrew Mariados of the United States of America in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3 to capture the 2018 Group Four International Tennis Federation (ITF) Trinidad Trinity Cup Tournament at the National Racquet Sports Centre in Trinidad and Tobago last Saturday.

Bicknell, seeded at number one in the 18 and under juniors singles, dominated as he went through without losing a set. Mariados was seeded seventh.

Speaking to the Jamaica Observer from Florida where he is currently based, Bicknell said he was very pleased with his performance.

“I am currently playing some great tennis and my games have improved tremendously over the months, as it was hard work and training that brought me success,” Bicknell said.

He said he will continue to work hard as he was looking towards playing in one of the Junior Grand Slams this year, and that it could be at the US Open Championships to be played in August. To play in the Grand Slam, he would have to be ranked at least number 128, and currently he is at number 187 in singles in the world.

“From this win, I am feeling very confident and hoping to win more tournaments where I have been playing against players who are much older than me, and are also rated much higher in the rankings,” he added.

Bicknell is now back in training and preparing to compete in three back-to-back tournaments later this month in Florida, starting with the Delray Beach Tournament, followed by the Coral Gables Tournament, and the Plantation Tournament.

These three tournaments are expected to have the world’s leading juniors.