Melbourne, Australia, 8 December 2022 | Darren Parkin

Rain and wind has not deterred some of Australia’s finest young talent from putting on a show in the December Showdown.

With players from all across Australia locking horns, we got a great glimpse of the future with some excellent matches in the 14/u Australian Invitational Masters quarterfinals today.

Victoria’s Daniel Jovanovski was outstanding in a 6-2 6-0 victory over Ymerali Ibraimi.

“I just had to stay calm,” said Jovanovski of dealing with rain delays.

“You could tell it might happen throughout the match, so I just had to regroup when that came.”

The 13-year-old can’t help but dream big as he goes deep in the December Showdown.

“I’d really love to win this,” he said. “Such a great atmosphere here. I was really nervous coming in but overall I’m feeling great.

“It’s great warming up the courts for the pros. I always look up to the big boys.”

Jovanovski will take on top seed Cooper Kose in an all-Victorian semifinal, after Kose won 6-2 6-2 today against Jeffrey Strydom of South Australia.

The other semifinal is an all-Western Australia battle between Cam Burton and Nemanya Savic, with both scoring straight-set quarterfinal wins today.

> View draws and results from the 14/u Australian Invitational Masters

In the girls’ singles competition, Ava Beck handled windy conditions well to defeat fellow Victorian Ruby Ward 6-4 6-2.

“The conditions were really tough,” said the 13-year-old.

“(It was) very windy and we had the rain delay come when I had set point, so I had to think about that for a long time. I had to just stay composed and do my thing.”

Beck is enjoying the lessons she is learning from this week’s December Showdown, which is being played for the first time since 2019.

“It’s been a challenge playing every day, but it’s great to have umpires and ball kids and to get the full experience,” she said.

Beck now faces the top seed, South Australia’s Diana Badalyan, in the semifinals. Badalyan won her quarterfinal in straight sets against Victorian Eva Trinity Crawford today.

New South Wales’ Natalie Gaft and Western Australia’s Sara Nikolic will meet in the other semifinal.

14/u Australian Invitational Masters

TODAY’S RESULTS
Boys’ singles, quarterfinals
[1] Cooper Kose (Vic) d [4] Jeffrey Strydom (SA) 6-2 6-2
[3] Daniel Jovanovski (Vic) d [7] Ymerali Ibraimi (Vic) 6-2 6-0
[5] Nemanja Savic (WA) d Ari Lewis-Kelly (SA) 6-0 6-4
[2] Cameron Burton (WA) d Nikolas Baker (Vic) 6-2 6-3

Girls’ singles, quarterfinals
[1] Diana Badalyan (SA) d Eva Trinity Crawford (Vic) 6-4 6-2
[5] Ava Beck (Vic) d Ruby Ward (Vic) 6-4 6-2
[4] Natalie Gaft (NSW) d [6] Kalina Stefanov (SA) 6-7(4) 6-3 6-2
[2] Sara Nikolic (WA) d Scarlett Dattiki (Vic) 7-5 4-0 ret.

COMING UP
Boys’ singles, semifinals
[2] Cameron Burton (WA) v [5] Nemanja Savic (WA)
[1] Cooper Kose (Vic) v [3] Daniel Jovanovski (Vic)

Girls’ singles, semifinals
[1] Diana Badalyan (SA) v [5] Ava Beck (Vic)
[4] Natalie Gaft (NSW) v [2] Sara Nikolic (WA)

> View live scores from the December Showdown

The December Showdown, with more than 150 of Australia’s most promising junior athletes competing for national titles, continues at Melbourne Park until 17 December. Entry is free for spectators.

Book online, play today: Visit play.tennis.com.au to get out on court and have some fun!