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| Friday, 23 April 2004 |
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Intense competition expected at Junior Davis Cup The Sri Lanka Junior Davis Cup team will attempt to emulate the recent achievements of their seniors when they compete in the Asia/Oceania Regional Qualifying event of the 2004 Junior Davis Cup by BNP Paribas. Eighteen countries in the April 27-May 2 ITF event conducted by the SLTA on the Green Path Courts will compete for four places in this year's World Group Competition. The top four nations of the Colombo event will join the qualifying-countries from the American, European and African continents to decide the world champion in the finals to be held in Spain, probably in July. Leading Sri Lanka's challenge is Royal College's Franklyn Emmanuel. The 16-year-old national champion made a significant contribution to Sri Lanka's Davis Cup Group. Three promotion a fortnight ago in Jordan, winning three of his four single matches. He is a seasoned campaigner having made his Davis Cup debut in 2003, a year after creating history by becoming the youngest ever to win the National Title, aged 14. Given such rich experience at the senior level, Emmanuel will carry much of Sri Lanka's hopes. N. S. Nishendiren, a 16-year-old Thomian, is considered second only to Emmanuel at the junior level. He is fresh from four months spent playing in the Asian junior circuit, which has earned him a world junior ranking of 269 going into next week's competition. The third player is Sashivarnan Sabanathan, a 16-year-old Royalist who has local junior ranking of three. He is reputed to have the best serve among the juniors and is considered a worthy investment for the future. Non-playing captain, Arjan Perera, International Sales Manger at NDB Stockbrokers, commenting on Sri Lanka's chances of qualifying for the World Group final says, "The one-word answer to our chances is: tough. After all, we will be up against the best junior of 18 countries, including Australia, India and Indonesia, all tennis giants. But I am hopeful. Having a junior as widely experienced as Franklyn (Emmanuel) is a significant advantage and if he can have an inspiring effect on Nishendiren and Sabanathan then the task is not beyond us." With places in the World Group final in Spain as prizes, the competition in Colombo is bound to be intense, as a large field of 18 countries indicates. Sri Lanka has been seeded eighth. |
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