 Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 15 Oct 2007 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 15 Oct 2007 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 15 Oct 2007 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 15 Oct 2007 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 15 Oct 2007 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 15 Oct 2007 |
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| 15 Oct 2007 - James McGurran | |
| Harrison & Nara claim titles in Osaka |
The huge crowds at Osaka’s Grade A Mayor’s Cup were treated to a thrilling week of upsets & success for Japanese players as Ryan Harrison (USA) and Kurumi Nara (JPN) claimed the singles titles. The tournaments singles events were characterised by victories for the underdogs as the top seeded players struggled to make the latter stages of the competition.
Unseeded in Osaka, Harrison defeated seeded players in every round of the competition, notably dispatching top seed Ricardo Urzua-Rivera (CHI) 75 62 in the second round. Harrison produced a series of excellent performances against his peers, dropping just one set all week to his seeded opponents, with that honour going to Mark Verryth (AUS) in their semifinal before Harrison won through to the final 63 67(2) 61.
With the second seed and last year's losing finalist Heliovaara (FIN) injured, Tsung-Hua Yang (TPE) and incredibly, Wild Card James Seal (USA), emerged as the dominant forces in the bottom half of the draw. After an excellent Junior Davis Cup by BNP Paribas in Italy last month, Yang was in great form, dispatching ninth seed Moriya 63 62, then sixteenth seed Siributwong (THA) 46 75 62. Meanwhile Seal, ranked 712 in the world, defeated Goffin (BEL), Somen (CRO) and Rungkat (INA), the twelfth, eighth and fourth seeds respectively, en route to a semifinal with Yang (TPE), who won through 62 75.
Harrison proved too strong in the final for the sixth seeded Yang, winning in straight sets 63 64. Harrison’s victory over Yang provided the third hard court title of the year for the fifteen year old and marked his breakthrough into the top tier of performers on the Juniors Circuit.
Not to be upstaged at home by the exploits of Seal and Harrison, Japanese Sho Katayama and Wild Card Hiromasa Oku also caused upsets in the early rounds defeating third seed Wachiramanowong (THA) and fourteenth seed Niall Angus (GBR) respectively, to the delight of the huge home crowds.
However the success of the Japanese players was epitomised by Kurumi Nara (JPN) in the girl’s singles. Having earlier dispatched eighth seed Jessy Rompies (INA), Nara then defeated second seed Ksenia Lykina (RUS) 26 76(1) 61 in the semifinal to set up an eagerly anticipated showdown with top seed Nikola Hofmanova (AUT). Hofmanova had dropped just one set all week as she looked for her second title of the year. However, Nara, with the support of the huge local crowd, claimed a 63 61 victory and her own second title of the 2007 Circuit.
The home crowd were treated to further Japanese success as Chinami Ogi & Kotomi Takahata claimed the girl’s doubles title. Once again Hofmanova was top seed, with partner Ksenia Lykina (RUS) and once again she found herself the losing finalist, as Ogi and Takahata claimed a closely fought 63 46 63 victory. In the boy’s doubles, Yang (TPE) with compatriot Cheng-Peng Hsieh, faced seventh seeds Sanders & Verryth. In a match that echoed the two nations semifinal play-off in the Junior Davis Cup last month in Italy, the pair from Chinese Taipei claimed the title with a 64 63 victory, providing Yang with a fitting consolation for his loss in the singles final.
Last week also saw the Pan American Closed ITF Championships in Tulsa USA. The GB1 tournament was won by the top seed Melanie Oudin (USA) who defeated second seed Gabriela Paz (VEN) 61 62 in the final to add another hard court title to the one won in Kentucky in September. In the boy’s event, unseeded Wil Spencer defeated tenth seed Raonic (CAN) and fourth seed Daniel (USA) on his way to playing top seed Jarmere Jenkins (USA) in the final. Spencer won the final 26 64 62 to claim his first title on the ITF Circuit. In the girls doubles Oudin paired up with Rebecca Marino (CAN) to take her second title of the tournament as they beat the Canadian pair of Dabrowski & Wowchuk 63 63. The fourth seed boy’s pair of Klahn & Van Overbeek (USA) defeated the pair of Chin (USA) & Ranoic (CAN) 57 75 64 to claim the boy’s doubles title.
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