UP TO 300 local tennis fans will get the opportunity to see Liverpool’s up and coming double act the Skupskis at Wavertree Tennis Centre this evening on first come first serve basis.
Brothers Ken and Neal Skupski, from Mossley Hill have soared up the ATP rankings since forming a doubles partnership last year-and they will play a special exhibition tonight to launch the first ever International Tennis Federation event to be staged in Liverpool
Qualifiers for the Aegon Junior International ended last night and the tournament proper started this morning and will continue all week.
More than 550 players from 43 different nations applied to be part of the event which gives junior players an opportunity to gain valuable ranking points, and the potential to qualify for grand slam junior events at the Australian Open,Roland Garros, Wibmledon and the US Open.
“Ken and Neal started as juniors in Liverpool,” said tournament director Anders Borg.”It’s really appropriate that they’re going going to be playing an exhibition at the launch of this landmark event.
“We can only accommodate 300 spectators on a first come first served basis but we’d be delighted to welcome anyone who wants to come along and see a doubles pairing who really could make a significant impact on the circuit next year.”
Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for culture and tourism, Wendy Simon said:”It’s a great coup for the city to host this event, which will give younger players the opportunity to hone their skills and potentially qualify to play in some of the world’s most famous competitions. “The facilities at Wavertree are first-class and it’s exciting to think it could play a key role in producing future tennis champions”
