While American teenagers Jack Kennedy and Keaton Hance both lost quarterfinal singles matches Friday, the exciting duo was able to advance to the doubles final to be played third on Stadium (approximately 4 pm) on Saturday at the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club at Timber Ridge.
Kennedy, 16 from Huntington, N.Y., and Hance, 17 from Torrance, Calif., defeated Blu Baker of Britain and Andrew Fenty of Washington, D.C., 7-6 (3), 7-6 (0) in a riveting encounter early evening Friday to advance to the doubles final where they will meet Peter Bertran of the Dominican Republic and Jesse Flores of Costa Rica in the final. Bertran and Flores beat Americans Strong Kirchheimer and Karl Poling 6-4, 1-6 (10-8) in the other semifinal.
Watch Kennedy and Hance speak after their win, which they said was fueled by local Vero Beach tournament DJ Edmund Nalzaro here:
Kennedy, at 16 years old and standing only five-foot-six, was defeated by Baker in the quarterfinals of singles 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, while Hance lost to former Baylor University standout Ryan Dickerson of Marlton, N.J. by a 6-1, 6-0 scoreline.
Watch Blu Baker’s post-match interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY2TL4ezk4Y where he discusses how winning a record 13 titles at the “Battle of Boca” tournaments in Boca Raton, Fla., has given him so much added confidence.
Tomas Luis of Portugal was the first player to advance into the semifinals Friday beating Preston Brown of Boca Raton 6-4, 6-3.
William Grant, a member of Florida’s 2021 NCAA Championship winning team, defeated Fenty 6-4, 7-5 to advance to the Mardy Fish semifinals for a second straight year.
Saturday’s singles semifinals will showcase Baker vs. Luis at Noon followed by Grant vs. Dickerson, followed by the doubles final.
Read Harvey Fialkov’s daily coverage from Friday here: Britain’s Blu Baker cooks up a quarterfinal win in Mardy Fish tennis championships – Yahoo Sports For advance daily tickets for $30, go to www.MardyFishChildrensFoundation.org ($40 at the door) and for the complete draws and schedule of play, go to https://www.usta.com/en/home/pro/pro-tennis-events/usta-mens-competitive-pathway.html
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