FIRST DAY OF PLAY AT INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN A HUGE HIT FOR PLAYERS AND FANS

Written by: Staff on 7th April 2014

FIRST DAY OF PLAY AT INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN A HUGE HIT FOR PLAYERS AND FANS |

Kalman Boyd

FIRST DAY OF PLAY AT INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN

A HUGE HIT FOR PLAYERS AND FANS

You can count Kalman Boyd as a fan of the ASICS Easter Bowl venue switch to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.

“This is unreal,” said Boyd, the Boys’ 18s No. 8 seeded player from Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., who for the second straight year eliminated Charlie Adams of Wayzata, Minn., from this event in a 6-2, 6-1 first-round victory on Monday. “It’s crazy being here. It’s almost like a dream. To be here and playing on the courts where the pros play. I don’t know if anyone else is enjoying it as much as me, but I think it’s amazing.”

The sentiment was carried out throughout the day from the players, to parents, to officials and tournament directors: the setup at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden was all first-rate.

“We did have a great first day,” said ASICS Easter Bowl tournament chairman Lornie Kuhle. “Everyone seems really excited to be here and the venue and Indian Wells Tennis Garden staff has been amazing to work with.”

It may have taken a little less than 360 days, but the bad taste of an ASICS Easter Bowl finals lost may have finally left Boyd. One year ago in the final of Boys’ 16s, Boyd fell to top-seeded Sameer Kumar without winning a game, 6-0, 6-0.

Kalman Boyd l Photo by Davis Kenas / ASICS Easter Bowl

“Yeah, I think I’m just trying to make this a brand new tournament,” Boyd said. “I was so nervous in that final. A couple months later I beat Sameer in a practice match. I just think it was all the pressure of being in a final at this level.”

Boyd was forced to withdraw from last week’s Carson USTA International Spring Championships because of a long illness suffered while he was playing ITF events in South America.

Boyd is working part-time with the USTA and has spent time training in Boca Raton, Fla., this spring. He has been working primarily with Tommy Haas’ former coach Christian Groh and former ATP touring pro Guy Fritz.

Boyd said his ITF junior rank got to No. 120 before he got sick, but has fallen to No. 138. “Now I feel like I’m playing better than I was before I got sick,” he said. “I had a very busy start to the year. I went to Costa Rica then straight to Boca Raton to train. From there I went to Bolivia, Chile and then Argentina to play Grade 1 ITF events. That’s when I got really sick in Paraguay and had to pull out of tournaments there, two in Brazil and Carson.”

Local player Austin Rapp of Rancho Mirage, Calif., had his ASICS Easter Bowl singles career ended on Monday as he fell to Cameron Klinger of Elk Grove, Calif., in three sets, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3. “It was a tough match and could have gone either way,” said Rapp, who is headed to UCLA in the Fall on a full-ride scholarship. “I didn’t play my best but should have been used to the conditions and the heat. This is my hometown, and I wish I would have been able to pull out a win.”

Rapp will play with Henry Gordon in doubles on Tuesday.

Fourteen-year-old Kelly Chen of Cerritos, Calif., opened up play on Monday in the Girls’ 18s with a solid 6-2, 6-0 win over Sydney Riley of Dallas. Chen advanced all the way to the semifinals of the 18s at the recent Carson USTA International Spring Championships last week losing to eventual champion CiCi Bellis.

Chen said she was used to the venue having played the BNP Paribas pre-qualifying two months ago and losing in the second round to Anne-Liz Jeukeng.

“My feet were burning out there,” Chen said of her match on Monday.

Chen next faces top-seeded Sophia Kenin on Wednesday if she wins her first-round match as expected.

Reilly Opelka of Palm Coast, Fla., was named the winner of the daily ASICS Sportsmanship Award. Opelka beat Catalin Mateas of Braintree, Mass., 6-4, 7-5.

Reilly Opelka of Palm Coast, Fla., was named the winner of the daily ASICS Sportsmanship Award. Opelka beat Catalin Mateas of Braintree, Mass., 6-4, 7-5. Photo by Davis Kenas / ASICS Easter Bowl

Sponsors include: ASICS, Laurel Springs School, Indian Wells Tennis Garden, the Taylor Dent Junior Academy, Tennis Warehouse, TennisPlayer.net Digital Magazine, the tennis website 10sBalls.com, USTA, The Old Spaghetti Factory, SCTA and Mind Matters.

To keep up with all the ASICS Easter Bowl news, visit the website at www.easterbowl.com and check out the tournament on Facebook (www.facebook.com/EasterBowl) and Twitter (@easterbowl). For more information on ASICS, check out: www.ASICSAmerica.com and follow on Twitter @ASICSAmerica.

Monday’s Scores

Boys’ 18 Singles (Round of 64)

Hiltzik, Aron (Wilmette, IL) def. Lam, Kevin (Galloway, NJ) 6-1, 6-1

Gordon, Henry (New Braunfels, TX) def. Gealer, Daniel (Los Angeles, CA) 6-4, 6-4

Cargill, Christian (15) (Wesley Chapel, FL) def. Ross, Alex (Burr Ridge, IL) 6-4, 6-3

Klinger, Cameron (Elk Grove, CA) def. Rapp, Austin (Rancho Mirage, CA) 6-3, 2-6, 6-3

Smith, Logan (3) (Carlsbad, CA) def. Furman, Spencer (Woodinville, WA) 6-1, 6-1

Lin, Vincent (Schaumburg, IL) def. Staggs, Logan (Tracy, CA) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3

Garay, Christian (Columbus, GA) def. Zlobinsky, Julian (10) (Greenvale, NY) 6-3, 5-7, 6-0

Boyd, Kalman (8) (Rancho Santa Fe, CA) def. Adams, Charlie (Wayzata, MN) 6-2, 6-1

Levine, Robert (13) (Bedford, NY) def. Lorenzini, Michael (Clarendon Hills, IL) 6-2, 6-1

Opelka, Reilly (Palm Coast, FL) def. Mateas, Catalin (Braintree, MA) 6-4, 7-5

Paul, Tommy (12) (Coconut Creek, FL) def. Lebedev, Alexander (Island Park, NY) 7-5, 6-4

Restrepo, Javier (Miami, FL) def. Schalet, Myles (Montville, NJ) 6-4, 6-2

Ponwith, Nathan (Scottsdale, AZ) def. Douglas, Jake (Rolling Hills, CA) 6-0, 4-6, 6-0

Genender, Michael (Los Angeles, CA) def. Mautner, Kyle (Greenwich, CT) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3

Thirouin, Jean (Houston, TX) def. Janglin, Oscar (16) (Sarasota, FL) 6-2, 6-2

Madison, Jared (Medina, WA) def. Stalder, Reese (Costa Mesa, CA) 7-5, 1-0 Ret (inj)

Reinberg, Emil (Atlanta, GA) def. Tishman, Gabe (Bedford, NY) 6-2, 7-6(3)

Sweet, Alan (Naples, FL) def. Kaiser, Kial (Saratoga, CA) def. 7-5, 6-4

Lenhard, Rafael (Carlsbad, CA) def. Blanch, Ulises (9) (Deerfield Beach, FL) 2-6, 6-2, 6-3

Girls’ 18s Singles (Round of 64)

Daniell, Andie (Douglasville, GA) def. Moldovan, Bianca (Livonia, MI) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3

Altick, Helen (16) (Monroe, LA) def. Larner, Erin (Portland, OR) 6-1, 6-3

McCarthy, Kaitlyn (8) (Cary, NC) def. Miller-Krasilnikov, Ally (Delray Beach, FL) 6-0, 6-0

Chang, Sophie (Hvre De Grace, MD) def. Minor, Brienne (Mundelein, IL) 6-3, 5-7, 6-4

Shibahara, Ena (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA) def. Fahey, Katharine (Fair Haven, NJ) 7-6(5), 6-3

Chen, Kelly (Cerritos, CA) def. Riley, Sydney (Dallas, TX) 6-2, 6-0

Hauger, Olivia (5) (Tulsa, OK) def. Ndunda, Ndindi (Burke, VA) 6-1, 1-6, 6-1

Swan, Katie (11) (Wichita, KS) def. Letzt, Alexandra (Scottsdale, AZ) 6-2, 6-4

Golovin, Jessica (New York, NY) def. Ouellet-Pizer, Chloe (Chapel Hill, NC) 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(3)

Bourguignon, Madison (10) (Boca Raton, FL) def. Norris, Marie (Burdett, KS) 6-3, 6-4

Hamlin, Ellyse (14) (Fairfield, CT) def. Xepoleas, Meredith (Huntington Beach, CA) 6-4, 7-5

Ruder-Hook, Mira (Denver, CO) def. Horvit, Mia (Parkland, FL) 6-4, 6-2

Higuchi, Emma (15) (Los Angeles, CA) def. Friedel, Jenna (Mill Valley, CA) 4-6, 6-2, 6-0

Aney, Jessie (Rochester, MN) def. Wiktorin, Claudia (Davidson, NC) 6-2, 6-4

Lampl, Caroline (Bluemont, VA) def. Hart, Jada (Colton, CA) 7-6(1), 6-3

Kelley, Meghan (Falmouth, ME) def. Hampton, Samantha (Vancouver, WA) 6-2, 6-3

Nelson, Alexis (Saint Paul, MN) def. Zogg, Ellie (Dallas, TX) 6-2, 6-4

Tuesday’s Order of Play

About ASICS America: Anima Sana In Corpore Sano, meaning “A Sound Mind in a Sound Body,” is an old Latin phrase from which ASICS is derived and the fundamental platform on which the brand still stands. The company was founded more than 60 years ago by Kihachiro Onitsuka and is now a leading designer and manufacturer of running shoes, as well as, other athletic footwear, apparel and accessories. For more information, visit www.asics.com.

Topics: ASICS Easter Bowl, Atp, Charlie Adams, Indian Wells Tennis Garden, Itf, Junior Tennis, Kalman Boyd, Tennis, Usta

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10sBalls_com says:

April 7, 2014 at 9:41 pm

FIRST DAY OF PLAY AT INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN A HUGE HIT FOR PLAYERS AND FANS – http://t.co/GxjqBzZN7Y #IndianWells #tennis #ASICS