Daily Results
RUSSELL WINS 2010 HONOLULU CHALLENGER
Anderson and Deheart take the doubles title of this $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event at Patsy T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park
January 31, 2010 – American Michael Russell defeated Grega Zemlja of Sloveina 6-0 , 6-3 for the singles title in the inaugural Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, today.
No. 1 seed Russell of Houston, took the lead in the first set
“He made more errors and didn’t serve as well as he usually does,” stated Russell who is currently ranked No. 90 in the world, ”and some of it comes from playing a final where there are different pressures.”
“I made too many unforced errors and made it easy for him,” declared Zemlja, ”but in the second set I was trying to fight for every point and every game to make him play long rallys. We actually played a lot of long rallys but he just came out stronger.”
Zemlja of Slovenia, holds a current No.169 singles rank and most recently lost in the second round of the Australian Open qualifying. Russell of Houston, is a USTA Pro Circuit veteran and the men’s all-time leader in career singles titles, now with 22. He has competed in all four Grand Slams, making five US Open main draw appearances. He most recently competed in Australian Open and fell to No. 4 seed Jan Martin Del Potro in four sets in the first round. His best showing at a Slam came at the 2001 French Open, where he lost in the round of 16 to eventual champion Gustavo Kuerten in five sets. His best ATP World Tour result was at Indian Wells in 2007, where he upset No. 12-ranked Tomas Berdych en route to the fourth round. Russell played one season for the University of Miami (1996-97), winning the ITA National Indoors.
“I think we were both nervous coming out,” admitted Russell who played Zemlja twice last year and now leads 2:1 head-to-head. Zemlja lost to Russell in the quarterfinals of the Calabasas Challenger last October. “Last time we played it was really tough so both of us knew that we had to play our best tennis in order to be competitive.”
Earlier today, Kevin Anderson and Ryler Deheart took the doubles final title by defeating Kyu Tae Im and Martin Slanar, 3-6 7-6 (2), 15-13. The doubles action became intense in the second set tiebreak.
“We were just trying to stay with them because they were playing really well and we figured if we just kept holding our serves then were going to have some chances,” said Deheart who was down 5-2 in the third set super tiebreak. The teams exchanged exciting points until Anderson and Deheart closed it out at 15-13.
“We were a little bit unlucky at the end and I’m a little bit sad, but the final is nice,” said Slanar. “We played well in all of the matches before today and I think the spectators enjoyed it.”
“It was very exciting,” exclaimed Deheart. “We stayed positive and Kevin came up huge with some big serves so we were lucky to take it in the end.” Anderson, from South Africa and Deheart, Kauai-born, Illinios native, were both teammates at the University of Illinois. This is their third $50, 000 Challenger win together and Deheart’s seventh career doubles title overall.
Anderson, ranked No. 164, cracked the Top 100 in 2008 after advancing to the final at the ATP World Tour event in Las Vegas and defeating Novak Djokovic en route to the third round at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. He also won the $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger in Champaign, Ill., and went 5-1 in Davis Cup for South Africa. In 2009, Anderson qualified and advanced to the second round at Queen’s Club on the ATP World Tour, won a Challenger in San Remo, Italy, and reached the final at the $50,000 Challenger in Binghamton, N.Y., on the USTA Pro Circuit. At the University of Illinois, Anderson won the 2006 NCAA doubles title with Ryan Rowe, and the duo made a return trip to the final again in 2007. Anderson also finished the 2007 collegiate season ranked fourth in singles.
Ryler DeHeart, ranked No. 341 was a two-time All-American at the University of Illinois and finished his college career as the all-time winningest singles player in Illini history. He was also a member of the 2003 NCAA championship team that included current ATP World Tour pros Amer Delic and Rajeev Ram. In 2008, DeHeart reached the second round of the US Open as a qualifier, losing a night match to top seed Rafael Nadal. Arthroscopic surgery cost DeHeart the remainder of 2008. He returned to competitive play in March 2009 and, just three months later, won the $50,000 Challenger in Yuba City, Calif., for his first title on the USTA Pro Circuit since 2007 and his third singles title overall. He also won his sixth career doubles title at the $50,000 Challenger in Lexington, Ky., in 2009, with partner Kevin Anderson.
January 28, 2010 – Kevin Anderson took out No. 2 seed Kevin Kim, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 in today’s quarterfinal match in the Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, January 23 - 31.
“I had a lot of confidence coming into the match,” said Anderson who has a 3:0 head-to-head against Kim. “I haven’t played him for a year and a half, so it definitely took me a few games to get used to playing his style of tennis.”
Kim from Newport Coast, California peaked at No. 63 after advancing to the third round of the 2005 Australian Open. Last year, he qualified for the ATP World Tour events at both Indian Wells and Miami, reaching the second round in Miami before losing to Roger Federer. He was an All-American at UCLA and led the Bruins to a USTA/ITA National Team Indoor title and the NCAA semifinals.
“He got up an early break in the beginning,” reported Anderson, “but I was able to settle down and get back that break in the second set. I felt confident about my service games and thought I had already gotten off to a great start. I started feeling better as the match went on.”
Anderson from Johannesburg, South Africa holds a No. 148 rank and in 2009, Anderson qualified and advanced to the second round at Queen’s Club on the ATP World Tour, won a Challenger in San Remo, Italy, and reached the final at the $50,000 Challenger in Binghamton, N.Y., on the USTA Pro Circuit. At the University of Illinois, Anderson won the 2006 NCAA doubles and also finished the 2007 collegiate season ranked fourth in singles.
“I am happy with the way the match ended and now I’m going to put some time to rest up and get ready tomorrow,” said Anderson who will take on Grega Zemlja of Slovenia in tomorrow’s semifinals.
No.1 seed Michael Russell battled No.8 Ryan Sweeting to win a hard-fought three set quarterfinal match, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 today. Russell of Houston, Texas is currently No.90 in the ATP. He recently competed in Australian Open and fell to No. 4 seed Jan Martin Del Potro in four sets in the first round.
“He played a good game and I played a little sloppy at 4-4,” confessed Russell. “In the second set, I started off pretty well with a break, then unfortunately I let him back in; it was a see-saw the whole match going back and forth. The last set was more of a mental battle between the both of us with our serves, but I stayed with it and luckily I was able to come out on top in the end.”
No. 166 ranked Sweeting, from Fort Lauderdale, Florida is a former junior US Open champion, a practice partner for the U.S. Davis Cup team and played in the US Open singles main draw each of the last four years. He was an ATP World Tour doubles finalist in 2009 at the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships with partner Jesse Levine, where the duo faced world No. 1 Bob and Mike Bryan. Sweeting also qualified for the 2009 Olympus US Open Series event in Los Angeles, advancing to the round of 16 before losing to eventual champion Sam Querrey.
“Hopefully, I can be mentally and physically prepared and play really well tomorrow,” said Russell who will face either Donald Young or No. 4 seed Robert Kendrick. Young and Kendrick’s evening match took a halt at 4-4 due to rain. Play resumes tomorrow at 10 a.m.
Young an Atlanta, Georgia native currently holds a No. 194 rank. Young competed in the main draw of all four Grand Slam events for the first time in 2008 and is a two-time junior Grand Slam tournament champion by 2005 US Open, 2007 Wimbledon.
Kendrick of Orlando, Florida ranked No. 138, Kendrick competed in all four Grand Slams in 2009, advancing to the second round at both the French Open and US Open. In college Kendrick earned All-America honors at the University of Washington in 1999 and Pepperdine University in 2000.
January 28, 2010 – Americans Michael Russell and Donald Young earned a quarterfinal spot in the Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, January 23 - 31.
“Feel like I’m playing well,” said No. 1 seed Russell who walked over Roko Karanusic of Croatia, 6-1, 6-0 in less than an hour. “Fortunately for me my opponent didn’t and the match was pretty quick which is always nice to get off the court, rest and get ready for the next match.”
Russell of Houston, Texas will face No. 8 seed Ryan Sweeting from Fort Lauderdale, Florida in tomorrow’s quarterfinal match.
"Every time we play it is a battle,” said Russell who has a head to head of 1:2 against Sweeting. He’s a great player who serves well and has powerful ground strokes. I’m going to have to play well in order for it to be a competitive match.”
Sweeting advanced to the next round by defeating Peter Polansky of Canada, 6-4, 6-2. Sweeting is a former junior champion, has played in the US Open singles main draw each of the last four years.
Rising tennis star, Young earned his place in the quarterfinals by trumping Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov, 6-4, 7-6 (2) today. After taking the first set, Young got down 4-2 in the second.
“I tried to weather the storm and keep balls back,” said Young about his come-back strategy, “just wanted to keep him from hitting a lot of balls and not give him a bunch a free points unless he earned it with an ace or something. I got aggressive on one return and got a break point. I was serving pretty well today and that helped out. ”
Young an Atlanta, Georgia native currently holds a No. 194 rank. Young competed in the main draw of all four Grand Slam events for the first time in 2008 and is a two-time junior Grand Slam tournament champion by 2005 US Open, 2007 Wimbledon. Young will take on No. 4 seed Robert Kendrick of Orlando, Florida in tomorrow night’s featured night match, starting at 5:00 p.m. Kendrick earned his spot by beating Andre Begemann of Germany 7-5, 6-1 today. Currently ranked No. 138, Kendrick competed in all four Grand Slams in 2009, advancing to the second round at both the French Open and US Open. In college Kendrick earned All-America honors at the University of Washington in 1999 and Pepperdine University in 2000.
No.2 seed Kevin Kim outlasted Leo Rosenberg from University of Hawaii 6-2, 6-4 for his quarterfinal spot.
“I started off well the first four games,” mentioned Rosenberg, a wild card entry, “I was serving consistently, stepping in the court and attacking short balls. Then I started going for lines and made too many careless mistakes. He started putting pressure and I got really tight.”
Kim will challenge No. 5 seed Kevin Anderson of the Republic of South Africa at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow. Also schedule to play is Grega Zemlja and Lester Cook.
January 27, 2010 – American phenom Donald Young overcame Tim Smyczek 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 in his first round main draw match at the Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, January 23 - 31.
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“He started playing better,” stated Young about the second set. “There was only one break that separated us. He played well, I missed a few shots, all credit to him he played well.”
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Donald Young from
Atlanta, Georgia is holds a No. 194 rank. Young competed in the main draw of all four Grand Slam events for the first time in 2008 and in 2009 qualified for the US Open main draw and winning his fourth career USTA Pro Circuit singles title at the Challenger in
Calabasas, Calif. A two-time junior Grand Slam tournament champion (2005 US Open, 2007
Wimbledon), Young in 2005 became the youngest-ever year-end world junior No. 1.
“Definitely looking forward to playing another round,” said Young about tomorrow’s match against Grigor Dimitrov, “and hopefully getting through.”
Earlier today, Dimitrov of
Bulgaria upset No. 6 seed Michael Yani 6-2, 7-6 (3). Dimitrov was the No. 2 seed in the Qualifying Draw and is currently ranked No. 268 in the world. In 2008 he was the No. 1 ranked junior in the world as well as, Junior US Open and
Wimbledon champion. Michael Yani of
Durham, North Carolina, is currently ranked No. 165. The former Duke University standout qualified for the Wimbledon and US Open main draws in 2009 and posted a series of impressive final and semifinal results on the USTA Pro Circuit over the summer.
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Tsung-Hua Yang of
Taipei upset the No. 3 seed Jesse Levine in a hard-fought three set match, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 7-6 (6). Yang is currently ranked No. 356 and got into for the main draw by upsetting No. 1 seed Daniel King-Turner in the Qualifying Draw. He takes on American Lester Cook who defeated King-Turner, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. King-Turner got into the main draw as a Lucky Loser.
 
Another qualifier, Nikola Mektic of
Croatia advanced when Johnathan Dasnieres de Veigy retired after losing the first set, 3-6. Mektic will take on No. 5 seed Kevin Anderson in the next round.
No. 4 seed Robert Kendrick battled American Alex Bogomolov in a contentious three set match, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (1). He will take on Andre Begemann of
Germany tomorrow. Begemann took down former top 20 in the world Jan Michael Gambill, 6-2, 6-3 today.
Main draw action continues tomorrow at 10 a.m. with No. 1 Michael Russell, No. 2 Kevin Kim, and No. 5 Kevin Anderson scheduled to play .
 
 
Leo Rosenberg from
University of
Hawaii to face the No.2 seed Kevin Kim. Rosenberg defeated former
Hawaii
Pacific
University player, Hendrik Bode, yesterday. The two claimed a singles main draw wild card berth by winning local designated tournaments prior to the Honolulu Challenger.
January 26, 2010 – No. 1 seed Michael Russell defeated Ryler Deheart 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in the first round the main draw of the Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, January 23 - 31.
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“I wasn’t serving great and he made some good shots,” said Russell about the second set. “I kinda let him back in the match, but luckily I pulled it out.”
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Russell of Houston, Texas is currently No.90 in the ATP. He recently competed in Australian Open and fell to No. 4 seed Jan Martin Del Potro in four sets in the first round. Deheart of Champagne, Illinois was a two-time All-American at the
University of
Illinois and was also a member of the 2003 NCAA championship team that included current ATP World Tour pros Amer Delic and Rajeev Ram.
“I try to focus on myself and not think about who I’m playing,” comments Russell about his strategy. ”If I can execute my own shots then obviously I’m going to play well, hopefully that can happen on Thursday.”
Russell will play Roko Karanusic of
Croatia in the next round. Karanusic defeated Igor Sijsling of the
Netherlands, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. Sijsling was the 2008 Honolulu Futures champion.
 
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Leo Rosenberg from
University of
Hawaii defeated former
Hawaii
Pacific
University player, Hendrik Bode, 6-4, 7-6 (3). The two were wild card entries that claimed a singles main draw wild card berth by winning local designated tournaments prior to the Honolulu Challenger.
“I was really nervous throughout the match,” admitted
Rosenberg. “It’s my first Challenger and my first opportunity to get some points.
“In the beginning of the set I couldn’t get the ball over the net because he serves big and was hitting really heavy,” explained Rosenberg, “In the tiebreaker, I saw that he was really tired and I became really confident because I knew that it’s very difficult to maintain such big serves when you aren’t conditioned for it.”
Rosenberg earns seven ATP points for advancing. He will face the No.2 seed Kevin Kim in the next round. Kim moves on to the next round after battling Tatsuma Ito of Japan, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (5).
No. 7 Jesse Witten fell in three sets to Go Soeda of Japan, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (5). As a qualifier in the 2009 US Open,
Witten knocked off then-world No. 30 Igor Andreev and No. 79 Maximo before falling to Novak Djokovic in four sets in the third round. The last remaining doubles matches were suspended due to rain.
 
Main draw action continues tomorrow at 10 a.m. with qualifier No. 3 seed, Jesse Levine, No. 4 seed Robert Kendrick, Donald Young, Jan-Michael Gambill, and Grigor Dimitrov are also scheduled to play .
January 25, 2010 – Four qualifiers have advanced to the main draw of the Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, January 23 - 31.
Tsung-Hua Yang of Taipei upset the No. 1 seed Daniel King-Turner of
New Zealand 6-3, 6-4, for a berth into tomorrow’s main draw.
 
“Today was a little disappointing and I didn’t play my best,” said King-Turner who has defeated Yang twice last year. “Sometimes that happens when you play as many matches.” King-Turner recently came from playing the Australian Open where he lost in the third round of the Qualifying Draw. Yesterday, King-Turner defeated
Hawaii
Pacific
University’s Daniel Luedi.
 
 
No. 2 seed, Grigor Dimitrov of
Bulgaria also advanced to the main draw by walking over American Brian Battistone, 6-1, 6-2. Dimitrov is currently ranked No. 268 in the world and was the 2008 Junior US Open and
Wimbledon champion. He is here with Peter Lundgren, who formally coached super stars, Roger Federer and Marat Safin.
 
No. 5 seed Nikola Mektic of Croatia upset the No. 3 seed, American Tim Smyczek, 6-3, 7-6 (3) for his spot in the main draw. The No. 321 player also competed in the Australian Open where he lost in the qualifying round.
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Lastly, American Jan Michael Gambill advanced to the main draw by ousting Martin Slanar from
Austria, 6-3, 6-3.
“It was kinda close; there were a couple games that could have gone either way,” said Gambill, “All in all, I’m doing a good job at making him play every single point which, coming back, it’s hard. If I can my focus on every single game, winning or losing, that’s how to improve.”
Gambill, made his professional debut in 1996 and currently resides in
Kona, Hawaii. His highest singles ranking to date is World No. 14, which he first reached in 2001. He has defeated, among others, former World No. 1 players Roger Federer, Carlos Moya, Lleyton Hewitt, Pete Sampras, and Andre Agassi.
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Gambill is planning a comeback to the pro tour.
“That’s why I came here – for matches,” claims Gambill who has not played on the tour since 2005. “I know coming back it’s going to be hard. I need matches on this level with some pressure points; it’s really important.”
“I got a long way to go,” admits Gambill, “I’ve been there, none of these guys have so that’s in my favor.”
Main draw action begins tomorrow at 10 a.m. with local wild card entries, Leo Rosenberg from
University of
Hawaii taking on former
Hawaii
Pacific
University player, Hendrik Bode on center court. The two players claimed a singles main draw wild card berth by winning local designated tournaments prior to the Honolulu Challenger.
No. 1 seed, Michael Russell of Houston, Texas and No. 7 seed Jesse Witten from
Naples, Florida, are also scheduled to play tomorrow .
January 24, 2010 – Top seeds of the qualifying draw advanced in the inaugural Honolulu Challenger, a $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger event, at the Pasty T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park, January 23 - 31.
No. 1 seed Daniel King-Turner of New Zealand defeated Hawaii Pacific University’s Daniel Luedi 6-3, 7-6 (3).
Luedi battled against the top seed and at one point was down 4-2, 15-40 in the second set before bringing the match to a tie break.
"I’m happy I got back in the game against the No. 1 seed," said Luedi, "I feel like I played well." Earlier that day Luedi triumphed over former Sea Warrior standout, Mikael Maatta in a tight three-set match 7-5, 5-7, 6-1 and was the only local player to advance to the second round.
No.2 seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria beat Joel Lindner of Australia in a contentious three set match, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5. Earlier that day, Lindner took out local professional Ikaika Jobe of Honolulu 6-4, 7-6 (5). University of Hawaii’s Dennis Lajola fell to Pierre-Ludovic Duclos of Canada, 2-6, 2-6. Lajola was the 2007 Honolulu Futures champion and 16 doubles title and singles semifinals of 2005 USTA National Championships in Kalamazoo.
The remaining eight players will resume play tomorrow at 10 a.m. and are in contention for the four coveted main draw spots. Main draw matches are scheduled to begin on Tuesday, January 26 at 10 a.m.
No. 90 in the world Michael Russell of Houston, Texas, headlines the competitors for the 2010 Honolulu Challenger. Russell is one of eleven Americans in the main draw, along with Jesse Levine, the former University of Florida star who defeated then-world No. 24 Marat Safin and advanced to the third round of Wimbledon last year; Kevin Kim, the former All-American at UCLA standout who last year won the $50,000 Challenger in Charlottesville, for his ninth career singles title on the USTA Pro Circuit; and Donald Young a two-time junior Grand Slam tournament champion who qualified for the US Open main draw last year.
Singles and doubles wild card entries were earned by local players at two designated tournaments, the Hawaii Master’s Open played last October and the Honolulu Challenger Wild Card Tournament earlier this month. Leo Rosenberg from University of Hawaii and former Hawaii Pacific University player, Hendrik Bode claimed a singles main draw wild card berth by winning the two local tournaments, respectively.
Admission to the Honolulu Challenger is free.