Matthew Segura, the great-nephew of International Tennis Hall of Famer Pancho Segura, played his first career main draw match in a USTA Pro Circuit “Futures” Wednesday at the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships. Unfortunately for him, it only last one hour and 16 minutes.
Segura, the 17-year-old from Apopka, Fla., was defeated in the event’s first round, falling to Nicolas Mejia of Colombia 6-1, 6-2 at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club.
Segura had become a fan favorite in Vero Beach after he won a special “wild card” tournament at the Sea Oaks Beach & Tennis Club to earn an entry into the tournament. Segura’s tennis family lineage, as well as his ambidextrous playing style, also added to his following among Vero Beach tennis fans.
Despite his loss Wednesday, Segura said the experience he gained while winning the event last month at Sea Oaks and his match Wednesday will serve him well as his tennis career evolves.
“I think it was a good experience. The wild card tournament helped a lot,” Segura said. “It was kind of the first time playing in front of a crowd and getting used to it. I feel like I won the tournament (at Sea Oaks) feeling more comfortable playing in front of a crowd.”
There was another large crowd on hand at the Stadium Court at Grand Harbor, but Mejia, an 18-year-old from Colombia, was too good.
“Today was just one of those days. Things didn’t go my way today,” Segura said. “He played really well for the most part, he was not missing. I just couldn’t find the answers today.”
For Mejia, the win earned him his first ATP point, and he will now enter the ATP World Tour rankings in two weeks. This win wasn’t his first over Segura, as he remembered playing him in the qualifying stages of a Futures tournament in Tampa last spring.
“I was ready for a battle,” Mejia said, recollecting his three-set battle with Segura last year. “I think it was a tough match today even though the score doesn’t say so.”
Mejia is currently the No. 7 junior player in the world and is still focusing some of his tennis on that circuit for now. This is the last year that he is allowed to play on the junior circuit, and he is looking forward to bringing home some hardware.
“I’m still going to play the biggest events on the juniors circuit like the French Open and Wimbledon,” Mejia said.
“I think it’s going to be a really exciting year and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Another player who won on Wednesday and is looking to continue his success on the juniors circuit is Nicolas Hardt of the Dominican Republic. Hardt, a member of the Dominican Republic’s Davis Cup team, defeated American wild card Alexander Rotsaert of Boca Raton, Fla., in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1.
“I played a really good match, a really solid match,” Hardt said, before stating that winning four matches in qualifying for a key for him going into today’s match. “I was pretty confident because of those matches in the qualies.”
Hardt said that he and Rotsaert have been playing against each other since they were 13 or 14 years old and are now good friends.
Hardt had previously been ranked in the ATP World Tour rankings after reaching the quarterfinals of a futures event in the Dominican Republic in December of 2015. He had since fallen off the rankings, but the win will earn him another ATP ranking point.
“It’s really big to have the first ATP point again after two years,” Hardt said. “I’m really happy for it and hopefully I can get more ATP points here.”
When Hardt is done playing in Vero Beach, he will also travel over to Europe to play in two of the biggest junior events of the year, the junior French Open and junior Wimbledon. Hardt has set some lofty expectations for those tournaments.
“I’m in my last year of juniors. Hopefully I can win a slam this year,” he said.
Another player who came through qualifying to earn their first ATP point was Juan Alejandro Hernandez Serrano of Mexico. After grinding through four qualifying rounds, including overcoming a three-set battle with the No. 13 seed Julian Bradley in the final round, Hernandez had a much easier day on Wednesday.
Hernandez advanced after his opponent, Adam El Mihdawy, retired from the match after dropping the first set 6-1.
“I didn’t expect to win like that,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez was proud to earn his first ATP point at this tournament specificially because of how difficult he felt his road has been to this point.
“It feels good. I think this is one of the hardest to get your first ATP point,” Hernandez said. “All the guys play really well.”
Hernandez had the opportunity to play in the junior U.S. Open and junior Wimbledon last year, and he feels like those are some of the best memories of his young career.
“Those Grand Slams are amazing,” Hernandez said. “When I first stepped on the Wimbledon courts, the grass courts, it was something unbelievable. Like, no words.”
Second round play in singles and doubles continues Thursday at noon at Grand Harbor. For more information, go to www.TennisVeroBeach.com
The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships is the USTA’s $15,000 Futures-level tournament played in Vero Beach since 1995 and regarded as one of the best entry-level professional tennis tournaments in the world. Proceeds from the event benefit the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, the non-profit tennis foundation benefiting children, named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, the former top 10 tennis star and a U.S. Davis Cup standout.
Tournament tickets and sponsorships are now on sale and can be purchased at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com Tickets for the qualifying rounds from April 20 – April 23 cost $10, while tickets for the main draw of singles and doubles from April 24 – 29 are $20, with “night session” tickets starting at 5 pm from April 24-27 costing $10. Season tickets that include both the qualifying and main draw events cost $100. Admission for children 18 and under is free. Approximately 3,000 fans annually attend the event, which is seen as one of the best-attended events in the world on the “Futures” level of professional tennis tournaments. More info on the event can be found at www.TennisVeroBeach.com
Some of the past competitors at the USTA Vero Beach Futures have gone on to succeed at the highest levels of professional tennis, winning major singles and doubles titles, Olympic medals and Davis Cup championships and earning No. 1 world rankings. Andy Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion who attained the world No. 1 ranking and helped the United States win the Davis Cup in 2007, competed in Vero Beach in 1999. Thomas Johansson of Sweden, who reached the second round of the Vero Beach Futures in 1995, won the Australian Open seven years later in 2002. Nicolas Massu, the 1998 singles runner-up in Vero Beach, won the singles and doubles gold medals at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, beating Fish in the gold medal singles match. Kyle Edmund, the 2013 champion in Vero Beach, helped Great Britain to the Davis Cup title in 2015. Other notable former competitors in Vero Beach include former world No. 2 Magnus Norman, former world No. 4 Tim Henman, 2016 Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic and most recently world No. 50 player and teen sensation Denis Shapovalov, who played in Vero Beach in 2016. Former Vero Beach competitors have combined to win 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Grand Slam tournaments. Six former Vero Beach players have gone on to play Davis Cup for the United States – Roddick, Fish, Taylor Dent, Jared Palmer, Donald Young and Ryan Harrison.
Sponsors for the 2018 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships are led by Presenting Sponsor PNC Bank and Grand Slam Sponsors Boston Barricade, George E. Warren Corporation, Jake Owen Foundation, Syde Hurdus Foundation / Fit For Life and Land Rover / Jaguar Treasure Coast, Backhand Sponsors Publix, Rossway Swan, Coastal Van Lines, White Orchid Spa, Foglia Contracting, Forehand Sponsors Steve and Karen Rubin, Willem and Marion de Vogel, Cravings, M&M Group – Keller / Williams Realty Vero Beach, Rosato Plastic Surgery, Riverside Café, Ocean Drive Elite Physiques, 14 Bones Barbeque, Gordon Food Service, Peter Bernholz, Swarovski, Soul Music, Minuteman Press and Elite Airways, Kit Fields Realtor / CharlotteTerry.com, Cabana Sponsors John’s Island, Gene Simonsen, Michael & Kathleen Pierce, William Barhorst CPA, Dan Holman, John Klein, Hadleigh Investments, TeamChristopher.com, Tom Collins, The Pitcher Family, Pene Chambers Group, Waldo and Candy Johnston, The Pappalardo Family, Mickey and Rob Stein, Lace and Bob Milligan and Drop Shot Sponsors Fresh Market, Brooklyn Bagel, Hutchinson’s Florist, Seaside Grill, A Pampered Life-Disney Spa, Avanzare, New Chapter Media, Smith & Company Landscaping, Center For Advanced Eye Care, Cast Electric, Citron of Vero Beach, Amerigas, Central Window of Vero Beach, Bill’s Audio and Video Innovations, ML Engineering, Capt. Bob’s Airboat Adventure, Busy Bee Lawn & Garden Center, Complete Restaurant Equipment, Wilco Construction, Nozzle Nolen, Southern Plumbing, Treasure Coast Sotheby’s, Jack’s Complete Tree Service, Complete Electric, Statewide Condominium Insurance, Abco Garage Door, O’Hair, Quinn, Casalino, Chartered, Rick’s Custom Care, Rich-Look Lawn Care, White Glove Moving & Storage, Coastal Comforts @ The Village Shops, Jimmy’s Tree Service, Thompsons Remodeling & Home Repairs, Summit Construction, Colton Williams & Reamy, Sunshine Furniture, Malesardi, Quackenbush, Swift, Aluma Tower Company, Alex MacWilliam, Inc., Charlotte Terry Real Estate, Ken’s Pool & Spa Repair, Vero Beach Orthopedics, Barker Air Conditioning & Heating, Treasure Coast Financial Planning, Engineered Services, Peter Bernholz, Deborah Benjamin, John & Faith Parker, Duke & Betty Foster, Paul & Linda Delaney, Timmy Wood Gary and Beth Williams, Don Moyle, Chuck Pollard, Stewart Dunn, Leslie London – LL Vinyl Designs, Dara, Hunter and Thom Morgan
Results from April 25
First Round Singles
(1) Marcelo Tomas Barrios Vera, Chile d. Isaiah Strode, United States 6-4, 7-5
Junior Alexander Ore, United States d. (Q) Richard Torres, United States 7-6(5), 6-4
(6) Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna, Argentina d. Tyler Mercier, United States 6-1, 4-6, 6-2
(3)(Q) Matias Zukas, Argentina d. (Q) Axel Nefve, United States 5-7, 6-3, 6-1
Ricardo Rodriguez, Venezuela d. (WC) Christian Alshon, United States 6-0, 6-4
(Q) Jordi Arconada, United States d. Collin Johns, United States 6-2, 6-4
Eduardo Agustin Torre, Argentina d. (7) Jorge Montero, Chile 6-4, 6-2
(Q) Nick Hardt, Dominican Republic d. (WC) Alexander Rotsaert, United States 6-1, 6-1
(Q) Juan Alejandro Hernandez Serrano, Mexico d. Adam El Mihdawy, United States 6-1, 1-0 ret.
(5) Juan Benitez, Colombia vs. Pablo Irigary Guarne, Spain 6-1, 4-6, 6-1
(Q) Ryan Goetz, United States d. Raleigh Smith, United States 7-6(6), 7-6(2)
(Q) Nicolas Mejia, Colombia d. (WC) Matthew Segura, United States 6-1, 6-2
(2) Samuel Bensoussan, France d. Nick Chappell, United States 6-0, 7-6(2)
First Round Doubles
(4) Junior Alexander Ore, United States/Miles Seemann, United States d. Nick Hardt, Dominican Republic/Nicolas Mejia, Colombia 1-6, 6-2, 10-8
(WC) Boris Kozlov, United States/Karl Poling, United States d. Adam El Mihdawy, United States/Collin Johns, United States 6-1, 6-4
Schedule for April 26, Matches Starting at Noon
Stadium
(2) Samuel Bensoussan, France vs. (Q) Nicolas Mejia, Colombia
Not Before 1 p.m.
(8) Alejandro Tabilo, Chile vs. (Q) Nick Hardt, Dominican Republic
Not Before 3 p.m.
(1) Hunter Johnson, United States/Yates Johnson, United States vs. (WC) Tim Kopinski, United States/Tam Trinh, United States
Not Before 7 p.m.
(Q) Ryan Goetz, United States vs. (5) Juan Benitez, Colombia
Grandstand
(Q) Jordi Arconada, United States vs. Eduardo Agustin Torre, Argentina
Not Before 1 p.m.
(3)(Q) Matias Zukas, Argentina vs. Ricardo Rodriguez, Venezuela
Not Before 3 p.m.
(4) Strong Kirchheimer, United States vs. (Q) Juan Alejandro Hernandez Serrano, Mexico
Not Before 5 p.m.
Julian Bradley, Ireland/Isaiah Strode, United States vs. Ricardo Rodriguez, Venezuela/Eduardo Agustin Torre, Argentina
Court 2
(1) Marcelo Tomas Barrios Vera, Chile vs. Harrison Adams, United States
Not Before 1 p.m.
(6) Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna, Argentina vs. Junior Alexander Ore, United States
Not Before 4 p.m.
(4) Junior Alexander Ore, United States/Miles Seemann, United States vs. (WC) Boris Kozlov, United States/Karl Poling, United States
Court 3
Not Before 4 p.m.
(2) Harrison Adams, United States/Nick Chappell, United States vs. Samuel Bensoussan, France/Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna, Argentina
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