News from Israel

= News from Israel =

As the year and the tennis season come to an end, players, coaches and supporters alike have been able to enjoy the beautiful sunshine of Israel. The warm days and the Tel Aviv night scene, have made it an exciting place to be while much of the rest of Europe is suffering with the cold winter days.

Three weeks of tournaments for both Men and Women have been held, each offering prize money of $10,000. The action began in Ashkelon, before moving to the Israel Tennis Centre in Ramat Hasheron, with the final week at the Municipality Tennis Center in Raanana.

Players from a wide range of countries have all descended on Israel for the last tournaments of the year, all trying to end the season on a high. This makes it a truly international series of events, with representatives from over 20 countries all taking part, along with many local players.

Historically, players such as Greg Rusedski, Kenneth Carlsen,Domink Hrbaty, Justine Henin-Hardene and Kim Clijsters have played in these events in Israel and made valuable points in the early stages of their careers.

Will the talented players in action, such as Robin Haase (NED) and Sharon Fichman (CAN), who have enjoyed success here in Israel, then go on in the future and further their tennis careers?

At Israel F1, Haase overcame the local favourite Dekel Valtzer 61 36 62, but the following week he was to only reach the semi finals. The final was played between Lazar Magdincev (MKD) and Aleksandar Nedovesov (UKR). In a closely fought encounter, Magdincev took the title 76(3) 76(2).

In the doubles, the title at F1 was taken by the Czech pair of Michal Navratil and Roman Kutac, who defeated the Dutch duo of Robin Haase and Igor Sijsling 76(2) 36 62. The local crowd had something to cheer at the F2 event though, with the local doubles pair of Victor Kolik and Sela Dudi overcoming Nedovesov and Pavlovs 63 63.

In the women’s section, Sharon Fichman from Canada, defeated the Turkish player Pemra Ozgen 61 61 at Ashkelon $10,000. The following week, Fichman made it to the final again, but was unable to get past Margalita Chakhnashvili from Georgia, losing in straight sets 63 76(4).

These events are a golden opportunity for the Israeli players to make vital points while enjoying the support of local fans and the home environment.