April 10 2006 Compliments of the Barbados Advocate

Yohansey Williams Trinidad and Tobago's tennis star defeating in straight sets by Bahamian Jamal Adderley who emerged champion of the 2006 First Caribbean International Junior tennis tournament on Saturday,
Showing little flair but dogged on court, the 16-year-old Bahamian produced a steady game to win 6-2, 6-2 in the final and collected 40 crucial world-ranking points.

Adderley, the No. 2 seed, produced a solid game that Williams found difficult to counter.

Williams was under pressure from the first game, when he dropped serve, and was never allowed to control the match as his opponent hit a steady mix of top-spin and slices.

After taking the first set, Adderley pressed home the advantage in the second as he broke Williams in the fifth game to lead 3-2.

Before the start of the sixth game, Williams sought attention for an injured knee he earlier sustained while chasing an unreturnable forehand from the Bahamian.

However, Adderley was unfazed and held serve for a 4-2 lead before breaking his opponent again in the seventh game for a 5-2 lead.

Adderley, tall and slim, absorbed everything offered by the big-serving Williams in the seventh game and crushed his hopes with two well-placed, defensive backhands that ended sensational rallies.

The Bahamian then closed out the match on serve, following in the footsteps of compatriot Devin Mullings who won the Barbados tournament three years ago.

Another Bahamian Ryan Sweetning played in Barbados last year before going on to win the US Open junior championship. Both Adderley and Williams will again be in action this week in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, taking part in another ITF junior tournament.

Meanwhile, those who saw the match are still talking about the talent of 13-year-old Russian Valeriya Solovieva. She emerged winner of the girls Under-18 division. Solovieva defeated compatriot Margarita Edinarova 6-3, 6-1 to lift the title in an exciting baseline battle.

The Russian, who belied her age and stature, took a 4-2 lead in the first set and never surrendered control of the match. Edinarova, the No. 4 seed, saw her hopes of forcing a third set fade quickly as she was broken in the fourth game of the second set to give Solovieva a 3-1 lead.

She was broken again in the sixth game, after a brave effort to hold serve, and her younger opponent then served for the match and took it as Edinarova hit the match-point wide.

Edinarova often tested her compatriot in some lengthy rallies but Solovieva showed the character of a champion, winning the big points when it mattered most.

In the girls Under-18 doubles final, Edinarova ensured that she did not leave Barbados empty-handed as she teamed with Giulia Bruzzone of Italy to defeat Sarah Guzick of the United States and Roshni Luthtra of India 6-1, 5-7, 6-3.

Nathalie Hew of Suriname won the girls Under-14 division with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Nicolette Leacock of Trinidad and Tobago.

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