Barbados’ number one seed Xavier Peter-Gooding was the pick of the local players on Monday when the Barbados Cup J4 Tournament made a return to the National Tennis Centre in Wildey, St Michael.
Peter-Gooding secured safe passage into the second round with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 win over his Dominican Republic opponent Giancarlo Rosario on Court One.
As the match wore on, Rosario struggled with the heat and needed regular water breaks. That is to take nothing away from Peter-Gooding’s quality though as he looked every inch the player of his ranking. He combined his serve and volley game with some decadent drop shots as he raced away with the next two sets in a comfortable victory.
Next up for him today is Canada’s Lucca Benoit who won his clash with Aruba’s Hugo Fidler’s 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-2.
The match of the round was on Court two as Aidan Clarke won a marathon three setter against his sparring partner Xzavier Hastick 6-7 (2), 7-5, 7-5. The Canadian-born Hastick resides in Barbados and usually gets the better of Clarke in their bouts, but lost on this occasion due to an error-prone service game letting him down in the crucial moments of this three hours and twenty one minutes clash.
Adam King, Barbados’ second seed, easily overcame his Trinidadian opponent Jace Quashie 6-2, 6-2 on Court One. King was ruthless, peppering crosscourt shots to give his helpless opponent the run around. Quashie suffered an injury early in the first set as his ankle buckled underneath him while returning a forehand down the line, with the score then 3-2. After the match, he had to seek medical attention.
In the other boy’s results of the day, Aruba’s Gijs Fidler made light work of Barbadian Neil J B King 6-2, 6-0 as the latter’s technical proficiency was no match for the speed and power of the former, who towered over him in stature.
Justin Atkins failed to register a single game against Canadian Lawrence Ivanow, losing in straight sets 6-0, 6-0 and Kai Owen lost 6-3, 6-1 to American Kristoger Brkic.
There were no winners for Barbados’ female players as Shante Sargeant lost 6-2, 6-4 to American Tina Kintiroglou. Jolie Philips lost in straight sets to Rebecca Fielder who hails for the United States of America.
The Barbados Cup J4 Tournament is part of the Caribbean Cup Tennis Series. Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc., along with the Barbados Tennis Association and Sports Travel Experts have partnered to promote tennis and tourism on the island. It is the first time it is being held in three years because of restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. (JC)
