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18 August 2023 | Tennis West

Australian 14-and-under girls’ team performed strongly at the prestigious 2023 ITF World Junior Tennis Finals in the Czech Republic.

Renee Alame from New South Wales, Victorian Koharu Nishikawa and Western Australia’s Sara Nikolic proudly donned the green and gold in Prostejov.

The Aussie team won three ties, including two against seeded nations.

After progressing through the round-robin stage, Australia lost to hosts, and eventual champions, Czech Republic in the quarterfinals.

ITF World Junior Tennis Finals
14-and-under girls, results
Round Result
Round robin [1] Romania d Australia 3-0
Round robin Australia d [8] Paraguay 3-0
Round robin Australia d Brazil 3-0
Quarterfinals Czech Republic d Australia 2-1
5-8th semifinals Australia d [7] Korea 2-0
5th place play-off [1] Romania d Australia 2-0

Former pro and West Australian Jessica Moore, who retired at Australian Open 2020 after achieving career-high rankings of No.132 in singles and No.52 in doubles, accompanied the team as captain.

“I’m very proud of our Aussie girls,” said Moore, who is now a National Development Squad Assistant Coach at Tennis Australia.

“It’s always a privilege to represent our country and I know this week created memories and learnings that will last a long time.

“I look forward to seeing what’s next for our girls.”

WA’s Sara Nikolic was impressive, finishing the event with four wins and two losses.

ITF World Junior Tennis Finals
Australian team, individual results
Player Age Match win-loss record Set win-loss record Game win-loss record
Koharu Nishikawa 14 4-5 11-11 109-103
Sara Nikolic 13 4-2 10-6 70-47
Renee Alame 14 3-2 7-4 54-46

Australia’s 16-and-under girls team has qualified for the 2023 Junior Billie Jean King Cup Finals, which will be held in Spain from 6-12 November.