Liu Wins Crown After Bubka Fails To Clear Panaga Height
By Benny Ang

Seria - The top seed Liu Tai Wei from Chinese Taipei made sure that the seedings held true this time round as he defeated the Ukrainian Sergei Bubka to win the ITF Group 2 Junior Tennis Tournament held over last week at the Panaga Club in Seria.

Ranked number 23 in the world junior rankings, Liu held his nerve to overcome the media darling Bubka, whose famous heritage made him the centre of attention almost everywhere he went.

The final was held yesterday morning and after both boys fought out a closely contested first set, it was Liu that was able to race away eventually. The top seed edged the first set 6-4 but found the second set much more comfortable as he won 6-2 to claim the boy’s singles title in straight sets.

Bubka, who had already ousted one player from Chinese Taipei in the- semifinal when he accounted for the giant killer Yi Chu Huan, was unable to finish the tournament in style. Yet, the Ukrainian will be satisfied with his week's work, as will Liu who was a credit to his number 23 ranking in the world junior list.

Being the first group 2 tournament in Brunei, the tennis was of an incredibly high standard throughout the entire week and both finalists did not disappoint as they managed to enthral the audience at hand with some sublime tennis. Both Liu and Bubka will now be heading to Osaka, Japan where they will take part in a higher level group A junior tournament.

In the boys doubles final played yesterday afternoon, it was an all Chinese Taipei affair and proved to be a real thriller as the match went to three long sets. Eventually, it was the pair of Yi Chu Huan and Huang Chin Yu who triumphed over their compatriots Lee Hsin Han and Chang Huai En 7-5,5-7,7-6 to claim the title.

It was also an all Chinese Taipei affair in the girls singles final on Saturday, which saw Chan Yun-Jan overcoming Hsu Wen-Hsin for the title.

Yun-Jan, however, could not make it a double win when she and her partner Chang Mei-Chi conceded the game, as well as the girls' doubles title to the Thai pair of Nudnida Luangnam and Prim Buaklee after losing the first set 7-5. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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