WA tennis aces have continued to prove their dominance on the national stage, with Taylah Preston and Zach Viiala claiming the under-14 singles titles at the recent Australian Grasscourt Championships hosted by Cottesloe Tennis Club.
Preston, of Hocking, played an impeccable tournament as the country’s top ranked Australian female born in 2005 and number one seed, dropping just one set in the final to claim victory over Queensland’s Zara Larke 6-1, 2-6, 6-1.
Viiala, of Claremont, had an equally impressive tournament as the country’s top ranked Australian male born in 2005, claiming the singles title 6-3, 6-3 over fellow West Australian James Newton, of Wembley.
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READ NOWPreston then teamed with Cottesloe’s Jessie Culley to claim the under-14 doubles title – the duo’s third consecutive title having claimed back-to-back wins at the South Australian Junior International and Adelaide Junior International events.
Viiala also teamed with fellow West Australian Alexander Despoja, finishing as finalists in the under-14 boys event, while Jake Dembo, of Yokine, and Queenslander Gautham Santhosh also finished as finalists in the under-12 boys draw.
Yuvna G Dass, of Willetton, also finished as a semi-finalist in the under-12 girls doubles event alongside Gaby Gregg of NSW, as did Lily Fairclough, of Winthrop, in the under-14 girls singles.
Other notable West Australian achievements included quarterfinals appearances for Scott Black, of Dianella, and Jake Dembo in the under-12 boys singles and Rhea Makesa, of Riverton, in the under-14 girls.
Tennis West competitions and tournaments manager Loretta Hughes said the tournament was a wonderful week of tennis for everyone involved.
“Hosting the Australian Grasscourts Championships at Cottesloe was a fantastic opportunity to witness some of the country’s most promising young players hit the courts right here in WA,” she said. “The week certainly didn’t disappoint with high level matches on display throughout the championships.
“It’s not often our players have the opportunity to play such prestigious competitions at home and the results clearly speak for themselves.”
Preston, who trains at Greenwood Tennis Club, will now head to China to represent Australia in the Women’s Tennis Association’s Future Stars event.
This event runs alongside the WTA finals in Shenzhen featuring top athletes including Serena Williams, Ash Barty, Samantha Stosur, Naomi Osaka, Karolina Pliskova and Petra Kvitova.
It follows her first International Tennis Federation singles title at the South Australian Junior International.
