MELBOURNE, December 17, 2018 (Press Release)
The 2018 December Showdown has come to a close, with more than 400 players taking part in 1416 matches during the 16 day event which ran from December 1 to 16.
Last week Gabriella Da Silva-Fick (NSW) and Rinky Hijikata (NSW) won the 18/u Girls’ and Boys’ titles and Talia Gibson (WA) and Derek Pham (WA) took out the 14/u Australian championships.
Yesterday, Sunday 16 December, the 16/u and 12/u champions were crowned, with Canberra young gun Charlie Camus claiming the 12/u Boys’ title and Japan’s Mayu Crossley in the 12/u Girls’ final.
Camus enjoyed a memorable day at the December Showdown, winning both the singles and doubles titles at the 12/u Australian Championships.
“I just had to stay focused and keep fighting and not give up,” said Camus, who served for the match at 5-4 in the final set before re-focusing in the tiebreak.
“I was a bit tired towards the end … I just played my game, got a lot of first serves in and stayed positive.”
Tai Sach
Junior Fed Cup and Davis Cup representatives, Anastasia Berezov (NSW) and Tai Sach (Qld) won the 16/u Australian Championship Girls’ and Boys’ titles, also winning the chance to test themselves against the world’s best junior players with wildcards into the Australian Open Junior Championships.
“I was really excited to get the win… I’m a bit speechless at the moment actually but really proud of how I played, I just kept believing in myself throughout the tournament and taking it one match at a time,” Berezov said after her match.
“It was a very good match, I felt a bit nervous at the start of this match, I knew Enzo was a good player so I knew I had to bring my best game out there,” Sach said after claiming the title.
December Showdown hosted 1416 matches played across 16 days and 23 courts at Melbourne Park and, at times, indoor courts at the National Tennis Centre due to unpredictable weather.
Kimberly Birrell
More than 400 players competed across the three week festival of tennis, including a record 53 players from Asia and the Pacific. A total of 3,035 setsand 24,133 games were played, using more than 700 dozen of the new Dunlop Australian Open balls.
December Showdown is the nation’s pinnacle junior tennis event, with Australia’s best young players descending on Melbourne to battle it out for national titles in the 12/u, 14/u, 16/u and 18/u age championships at the annual event.
The event culminated with the Australian Open 2019 Play-off, with Kimberly Birrell (Qld) and James Duckworth (NSW) earning the coveted wildcards into the years’ first Grand Slam.
December Showdown 2018 results
Singles
18/u Girls’ Final
[1] Gabriella Da Silva Fick (NSW) def. [4] Olivia Gadecki (Qld) 6-3 6-2
18/u Boys’ Final
[2] Rinky Hijikata (NSW) def. [7] Alexander Crnokrak (Qld) 4-6 6-1 6-4
16/u Girls’ Final
[2] Anastasia Berezov (NSW) def. [1] Olivia Gadecki (Qld) 6-3 7-5
16/u Boys’ Final
[2] Tai Sach (Qld) def. Enzo Aguiard (Vic) 6-3 6-3
14/u Girls’ Final
[3] Talia Gibson (WA) def. [1] Charlotte Kempenaers-Pocz (SA) 6-2 6-7(2) 6-4
14/u Boys’ Final
[7] Derek Pham (WA) def. [8] Shogo Sanada (JPN) 6-7(4) 6-3 6-2
12/u Girls’ Final
[4] Mayu Crossley (JPN) def. [2] Ayuna Nakazato (JPN) 6-2 6-1
12/u Boys’ Final
[2] Charlie Camus (ACT) def. [4] Yuta Tomida (JPN) 6-7(4) 6-2 7-6(4)
Doubles
18/u Girls’ Doubles Final
[2] Amber Marshall (SA) / Annerly Poulos (ACT) def. [1] Lisa Mays / Ivana Popovic (NSW) 6-7(3) 6-1 [10-6]
18/u Boys’ Doubles Final
[1] Tristan Schoolkate (WA) / Dane Sweeny (Qld) def. Jayden Court (Qld)/ Michael Shepheard (Vic) 6-4 4-6 [10-8]
16/u Girls’ Doubles Final
[2] Roopa Bains (Qld) / Natasha Russell (SA) def. Anastasia Berezov (NSW) / Tina Smith (Qld) 7-6(4) 1-6 [10-6]
16/u Boys’ Doubles Final
[1] Alex Bulte and Cooper White (Vic) def. [2] Tai Sach and Haru Sonton (Qld) 6-3 6-4
14/u Girls’ Doubles Final
[5] Ayaka Koga / Yukina Kubo (JPN) def. Shanelle Iaconi (WA) / Cassidy Mataia (Qld) 6-4 7-6(3)
14/u Boys’ Doubles Final
[1] Derek Pham (WA) / Edward Winter (SA) def. [7] Billy Bougoure and Kanika Jayathilake (Qld) 6-0 6-0
12/u Girls’ Doubles Final
[1] Sarah Rokusek (NSW) / Sasha Situe (NZL) def. [7] Tegan Genockey (NT) / Ella Idzikowski (Qld) 6-3 6-1
12/u Boys’ Doubles Final
[1] Charlie Camus (ACT) / Pavle Marinkov (NSW) def. [2] Jack Chapman (NZL) / Yuta Tomida (JPN) 6-1 6-4
2018 12/u & 14/u Australian Teams Championships: Full results available here
