Champions crowned: 2024 ITF Masters World Individual Championships

The 2024 ITF Masters (65-90+) World Individual Championships in Antalya, Turkiye, came to an exciting conclusion on Saturday at the Ali Bey Club.

Finals day saw a mixture of Masters stalwarts and new contenders going for glory. The M65 singles final exemplified the theme of the day, as Tour legend Glenn Busby defeated the less experienced Javier Molina Ramos in a gripping 7-6 6-3 win.

Another gladiatorial contest was promised between Carolyn Nichols and Susan Wright in the final of the W65 singles. The American duo, who won gold together in the Teams competition the week before, have played numerous times in the past.

This time, it was the turn of Nichols to claim victory. The Californian romped to a 6-3 6-3 victory over her friend and compatriot – securing her second World Championships singles title in the process.

Pauline Fisher could not retain the W70 singles trophy she won in Mallorca as the Brit lost to Australian Sally Van Rensburg. Van Rensburg put in an impressive performance, defeating Fisher 6-2 6-3.

Meanwhile, Frenchman Marc Renoult overcame older brother Bruno on his way to a gold medal in the M70 singles. Renoult, who beat his sibling in straight sets in the semi-final, continued his fine form during the week to seal a 6-1 6-3 victory over Dutchman Frits Raijmakers.

The 75+ division saw both singles titles remain firmly in the grip of the 2023 winners. Marjory Love of Great Britain won a nail-biting encounter with Kerry Ballard 3-6 6-4 6-4 to claim the W75 gold. Meanwhile, Spaniard Jairo Velasco Ramirez proved too strong in the final set for Canadian Tim Griffin, taking the decider 6-1 to defend the title won in 2023.

Jimmy Parker overcame doubles partner Fred Drilling to win the M80 singles. Parker, who also won the gold medal with Drilling in the M80 doubles, rallied strongly for a come-from-behind 3-6 6-0 10-7 victory.

In the W80 category, Michele Bichon exacted revenge for her 2023 semi-final defeat to Frances MacLennan in yet another thriller. The Frenchwoman beat the Brit 6-7 6-4 10-7 to clinch the title in a high-quality match.

The W85 singles saw an all-German final as Irmgard Gerlatzka made her mark in her first year in the 85+ division. Gerlatzka defeated compatriot Liselotte Mueller, 6-3 7-5, in a nervy encounter. Another German, Horst Haetti, took home gold with an impressive 6-3 6-3 win over Swede Rolf Westman.

More success for Germany followed in the MS90 competition, as Herbert Althaus created his own slice of history. The German won all three events entered in across two age divisions – the MS90, MD90 and XD85 – to claim a rare triple gold medal haul. Althaus beat American Chuck Nelson in the final to seal the treble.

Finally, Brit Pamela McGrath went one better in the WS90 than the silver medal earned with 100-year-old Henry Young in the XD90 event. McGrath capped an excellent week by winning all three matches in her round robin draw - the highlight of which was a 12-10 match tie-break victory over runner-up Odile Niox Chateau.

After a breathless week of entertaining tennis in Antalya, attention now turns to the ITF Masters 50-55-60 World Team and Individual Championships in Mexico City, Mexico, which runs from 28 April - 11 May.

You can find the full results here: 65-90 World Individual Championships Draws and Results