17 February 2020 | Tennis West

At just 15 years of age, rising WA tennis star and 2019 Newcombe Medal Female Junior Athlete of the Year, Talia Gibson (Alfred Cove), has been awarded a wildcard entry to the W25 Perth International Pro Tour event, which kicks off at the State Tennis Centre on Monday 17 February.

The wildcard entry sends Gibson directly into the main draw, where she will line up against a host of top ranked players from all over the world, including WA’s very own Maddison Inglis (Maida Vale) whose world ranking of 117, puts her as the number one seed for the event.

Gibson’s stellar 2019, saw the rising star claim three ITF titles including the J4 Brisbane, J4 Gold Coast and J2 Tweed Heads; alongside representing Australia in the Junior Fed Cup team and prestigious WTA Future Stars tournament in Shenzhen, China.

Finishing the year in sensational form, Gibson claimed dual titles at the 2019 December Showdown, winning both the 16/u Australian Championship Singles title and the 18/U Doubles title with Annerly Poulos (ACT).

With a remarkable 2019 win loss ratio of 31:8 and a current ITF junior ranking of world number 77, it’s no surprise that Gibson was named the 2019 Newcombe Medal Female Junior Athlete of the Year, receiving the award from world number one Ashleigh Barty.

Fellow Australians, Jamie Fourlis, Destanee Aiava, Belinda Woolcock and Abbie Myers, will join Gibson and Inglis in the main draw, alongside Great Britain’s Naiktha Bains and USA rising star, Asia Muhammad.

Tennis West Manager of Competitions and Tournaments and Perth International Tournament Director, Loretta Hughes says it’s exciting to see Gibson in the draw alongside a strong Australian line up who will be competing against top quality players from all over the world.

‘We have a strong list of Aussie girls named in the main draw, including 15 year old Perth local and 2019 Newcombe Medal Female Junior Athlete of the Year, Talia Gibson, who received a wildcard entry,’

‘It’s a truly wonderful Aussie line up, with the competition only strengthened by the large number of international athletes who have travelled from all over the world including France, Korea, Japan, Italy, Russia and the USA,’

The W25 Perth International #1, is the first of the back to back Perth swing, with the W25 Perth International #2 Pro Tour commencing on Monday 24 February. With a number of the world’s best placed rising talent set to battle it out for their share of the US$50,000 total prize pool, both titles promise to be hotly contested.

Sitting as the centerpiece to the back to back swings, the 2020 Festival of Tennis, will see 200 lucky youngsters take home a free ANZ Tennis Hot Shots racquet*, as part of the free family friendly event being held at the State Tennis Centre (Burswood) on Saturday 22 February.

Special guest Casey Dellacqua will join in the host of activities including fun tennis activities, a toddler ball pit, face painting, a bouncy castle, an animal farm and live music on stage from 10:00 am.  With plenty of food and beverage options available for purchase, including a sausage sizzle, soft serve ice-cream, coffee and healthy snack options, the 2020 Festival of Tennis promises to be a great day out for everyone.

All the action of the Perth International #1 Pro Tour event kicks off on Monday 17 at the State Tennis Centre, with the Singles finals to be played on Sunday 23 February. For more information head to: https://www.itftennis.com/en/tournament/w25-perth/aus/2020/w-itf-aus-04a-2020/overview/

The Perth International #2 Pro Tour event, follows the following week with play set from Monday 24 through to Sunday 01 March. For more information, follow here:

https://www.itftennis.com/en/tournament/w25-perth/aus/2020/w-itf-aus-05a-2020/

*One racquet, per child under 10 years of age. Children must be in attendance to receive the racquet.

Further information:

The Australian Pro Tour represents a series of 28 professional ITF World Tennis Tour and ATP Challenger tournaments held annually, in Australia, over 17 weeks between September and April. The Pro Tour calendar offers a total prize money pool of over US$1.1 million dollars annually, providing players with a competitive pathway; all-important earning opportunities, and ATP/WTA Tour world ranking points that facilitate a players livelihood as a professional player. The Calendar offers a range of different level tournaments to accommodate for professional players at different stages on the competitive pathway. More information can be found at https://www.tennis.com.au/tournaments/pro-tournaments/australian-pro-tour

Casey Dellacqua played professional tennis for 16 years, from 2002 until her retirement in 2018. She represented Australia in 21 Fed Cup ties and reached a career high, WTA singles ranking of world number 26 (September 2014), alongside an impressive career high WTA doubles ranking of world number 3 (February 2016).