International Tennis Trophy 3 [IC|NSTT]

[Mattijana]

"Well good evening everyone and welcome to this roundup of tie 4 at the International Tennis Tournament in Cenial. We're here outside the National Racquets Centre itself, centre court behind us looking rather resplendent in the evening sunshine. Daniella Jarama is away doing interviews tonight, so I'm afraid you're going to have to put up with me tonight. I'm Henri Blomann, I'm joined by the wonderfully talented Julian Slazic and I'm pleased to say we have the captain of the Mattijanan team herself with us tonight and that is Mariana Kunisevic. A very warm Welcome to you both.
We are going to be bringing you highlights of the final day's events in just a couple of moments, but first to wrap up the action from a thrilling encounter on centre court, it will be Matej Burgismann."

"Thank you Henri. It's been a rather fitting end to this tie between Electrum and Mattijana here on centre court this afternoon. Maria Julenic was shown faith by Mariana Kunisevic and her team going into these tricky couple of ties against Neu Engollon and Electrum and I really don't think she expected to be embroiled in probably the most important match in Mattijanan tennis history that went down to a fifth set. Even that seemingly didn't want to finish, but at the age of just 18, she has seen Mattijana through to the quarter finals of the ITT with a late break of serve leading to a 7-5 victory. She was serving first in that set, managed to keep the pressure on her opponent Andrew Simmons and he eventually cracked. He was understandably gutted after losing following a highly impressive comeback from the Electrumites having been two down after the first day, but you can't take anything away from Maria Julenic because she really did play brilliantly and she's once again managed to take the plaudits. The Mattijanan fans were thrilled, as were the neutral supporters and at the end of the day, they've also withessed a huge moment in Mattijanan tennis history. Mattijana go top of group B, they've won all 4 of their matches and they won't be topped in this stage of the tournament. They'll likely face Tobiasia in the quarter final as they secured second spot in group C, but are not going to catch New Gelderland in first and I doubt the team will be too displeased with that either."

"Thank you indeed Matej. Well I think it's only fair to start with you Mariana and you must be feeling absolutely magnificent."

"I am, it's been an amazing day, you really couldn't even have imagined it this morning and we thought that it might not be our day when Dominika lost her match this morning in such unfortunate fashion, but we've got multiple players with great talent in our squad and Maria did brilliantly to see us home. But we came here with confidence in our players and our ability, we've punched above our weight and we've got even more than what we expected."

"And of course you have a bye for the final tie of this group stage, so you can sit back in your deckchairs with a glass of champagne and watch everyone scrap around for the final few places."

"Yeah, it's nice not to have to have that last-minute panic. We're planning to go and watch the juniors as they've got an important tie coming up against Buddharia and we'll need to keep ourselves in shape, but on the other hand we haven't sampled much of the local brew yet and now is as good a time as any."

"I can't imagine you've been thinking ahead to the quarter finals, but you must have a surprisingly pleasent headache on your hands."

"We do. Dominika and Maria have been brilliant for us, but Mattias Burges won't want to be left out and he's a fantastic player, so it'll be a really tough decision for the Tobiasia match. We're juat happy to be here though and so are the players, so that's just a nice luxery for us."

"And Julian of course you've played your part as well. You must be feeling absolutely brilliant too."

"Of course yes. I think it's one of the greatest achievments in Mattijanan sport. We came into the tournament in pot three, we weren't expected to get anywhere near Neu Engollon or Electrum and now we're in the quarter finals and it's wonderful to be a part of that."

"And we couldn't really go five minutes without mentioning the match today. What was it like watching that from your point of view?"

"It was terrifying to be honest, especially that fifth set, but we all believed and we could see that it was Maria who looked like she was pushing for the win, so it could have been worse. It was a massive relief when she managed to pouch that volley though."

"Well it was rather a wonderful shot in the end given the circumstances. And what a delight we have now. Maria Julenic has decided to join us fresh from her on-court exploits. How are the muscles?"

"A little sore. I think I was out there for about 5 hours and my legs and arms are telling me now. The adrenaline still hasn't worn off though so I'll probably turn into a plank when it does. It's a really happy moment for me and the team though."

"I think you had us all wanting to jump onto the court ourselves, but we're absolutely delighted for you. We'll let you get off for your ice bath or whatever you're up to and we'll play you the highlights. Thank you so much everyone for joining us in Cenial and we'll be returning for the quarter final matches in a few days time. Goodnight."

[Bojikstan]

B.S NETWORK: YOUR TRUSTWORTHY SOURCE
ITT 3: SHAMEFUL DISPLAY!
Posted by Grace Luna

The Bojikstani tennis community is reeling after the Rushmori Bojikstan based team was knocked out of the ITT after having a seemingly safe lead going into the last two series. They had started 2-0, and if they took a series from either Britonisea or Mercedini, they would secure their place in the next round. Britonisea already clinched the series earlier, but with the official end of the group stage, the Bojikstani team is finally eliminated. Trey Engard was able to pull out another win, as the reliable face of the team, but it was Fen Li who folded this time and bascially disappeared for the last set.

It didn't matter, anyway. A win by Fen Li would have resulted in a 3-2 series loss instead of one by a 4-1 margin, and the difference doesn't matter for anything other than pride. For Li, this marks the end of a tournament that started well but was affected by things that have little to do with what happened on the court. Ever since joining Yanzhu Huang in accusing Smoke Sports of regional discrimination in their sponsorship practices, her form hasn't been the same. It may be psychological, or it may have to do with the way that her remarks broke the bond between her and the fans and media. Later in the tournament, she would go to battle with the media and would refuse to answer questions for reporters, showing up to a press conference in a tee shirt designed to look like a prison jumpsuit.

After her loss to end her tournament, she finally broke the silence with the press. 'You want to know why I stopped talking to the press? It's because there's no winning. My hometown, my home island, those are places that are important to me. Even with all my talk about leaving, those places will always be in my heart. And I can stand up for them and push this issue about our treatment by the central government and by Bojikstani companies, but will turn you all against me. So I don't talk about it, but you still keep asking me about this, about what my teammate has said. There's no way I win, unless I quit playing the game. That's what I did. I stopped playing, and I might never play that game again.'

There is something for Bojikstani fans to look forward to, though. The Junior ITT has been going great for the islands, with the team of young prodigies Jorge Palacios, Yanzhu Huang, and Yi Sun taking their group after walking through some of their opponents easily. It's impossible to predict tournaments like this, but Palacios could even be considered one of the favorites on this side of the tournament, after putting on multiple dominant performances and proving himself consistently.

[Ceni]

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CENI OFF TO A WINNING START IN ITT

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With the third edition of the International Tennis Trophy well under way at the National Racquet Center in the heart of thriving Cenial, the Cenian national team is off to a winning start, emerging victorious in all 3 matches they have played so far and securing advancement to the quarterfinals for the third time in a row in the International Tennis Trophy. As the host nation and top seeded team, with the best possible ranking of 4, they were placed in Group A and have been one of the early favorites to win the whole tournament - so far, they have not disappointed after dispatching their first three opponents with ease.

Ceni faced its toughest opponents in its first tie against Eastfield Lodge, who were seeded second in the group, but the team was the worst Pot 2 side, so there was expectation that Eastfield Lodge would put up a fight before capitulating in the end. Johmer Vales made light work of his opponent, Estela Fenton-Millington, the Lodger number one player ranked number 38 in the world. She didn't play like that, though, with Vales, a Grand Slam finalist with lots of experience for his young age of 22, winning the first set 6-1. Fenton-Millington stepped up her game in set 2, holding serve for five straight games before ultimately being broken thanks to some splendid returning from Vales. The last set was almost a repeat of the first, with Fenton-Millington unable to compete with Vales' serve-volley strategy. Kika Dovan, the Cenian number 6 and number 15 overall, and a Grand Slam champion to boot, had a bit of a tougher time against Giorgio Irani, who constantly pushed Dovan with a solid return game. He won the first set 6-3 before losing the next three, all decided by only one or two breaks though.

Perger and Ricpeer Rianor, a doubles team with lots of experience and several titles to their names, looked out of their prime, as they have been throughout the year, in their match against Harvey and Letif, ranked only one spot below them in the doubles rankings. The opposition pairing quickly took the first set 6-0, with the Rianors looking weak in their net game, Harvey and Latif firing several down the line winners. The Rianors held it together in the second set, winning it 7-5 with a Harvey double fault in the crucial 12th game, and steamrolled over the Lodger pairing in the third, winning that 6-1 with solid returning. Harvey and Latif fought back in the fourth, forcing a tiebreak, but the Rianors won that 7-5 thanks to some big serving to clinch the tie for Ceni. In the dead rubbers, Vales and Dovan both had trouble with their opponents - Vales made it through in five, while Dovan lost in a fifth set tiebreaker. Both looked like they didn't want to be out on court, with the tie already won.

As it turned out, though, Fenton-Millington would claim the only rubber that Ceni lost throughout the three matches they have played so far. Natanians and Nosts hardly posed a threat: Vales swatted aside their #2 player Rog Ion Tralito, outside the top 100 at number 164, in straight sets, hardly looking troubled by his opponent, while Dovan barely looked troubles in her straight sets victory over their #6, Maria Claudia Amulio, a player barely inside the top 200 at world no. 196. The Rianors had a bit more trouble in their match, conceding the second set, but that was only a momentary relief for the Natanian pair, which looked cobbled together at the last minute as Alencastro and Enderssen-Moura didn't have much chemistry on the court. In the two dead rubbers, Dovan and Vales again didn't put forth their best efforts, conceding one set apiece, but they ultimately won as the Natanian competitors could not compete.

Their next opponents, Romaian, would likely be easier than Natanians and Nosts, as both of their players, Georgios Sevos and Theodora Patrikiou, as well as their doubles team, were unranked heading into this tournament. It seemed to be a competition between Vales and Dovan to see who could concede less games, as Vales defeated Sevos with two 6-4 sets sandwiching a bagel set. Dovan, though, not to be outdone, defeated Patrikiou for the loss of only 6 games across three sets, beating out her compatriot Vales by two games. The Rianors looked a little rusty, conceding yet another set, this time to an unranked doubles team, but they held it together for long enough to clinch the tie with a four set victory. In the doubles, Vales and Dovan again had a little competition as they both routed their opposition. Yet again, Dovan won the competition: Vales broke only once in each set for a 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 win over Patrikiou, while Dovan conceded just eight games in her victory against Sevos. The win clinched advancement for the team into the quarterfinals of the Tennis Trophy, for the third time out of the three instances of the tournament.

The team still has one more match to play, against Novacoras, which doesn't have anything to play for, considering they have been eliminated without winning a single rubber, even against their fellow unranked team Romaian. As a result, the Cenian Tennis Federation chose to substitute out Vales and Dovan, the hardworking pair they are, and replace them with Noah Damaris and Marisa Maradona, two lower-ranked players who saw ITT action last year, to give these lower-ranked players a chance for some action, as well as some rest for Vales and Dovan. They also chose to replace the Rianors with Coosal Darlcheri and Gyrachor Rentos, another experienced team that has seemed to fall on harder times lately, falling down to #17. Nonetheless they will be happy for a chance to represent their country. With Ceni's advancement secure as well, the team will look to face one of Britonisea or Mercedini in the quarterfinals, who have secured advancement from a tight Group D and will be in action as well to fight for the #1 status.

[Vers-Gelderland]

NEW GELDERLAND'S PERFECT START IN THE ITT

New Gelderland's tennis squad in the International Tennis Trophy, consisting of world number 3 Liam Penderyn and number 9 Andrew Lamar in singles, as well as the doubles world number 2 pairing of Mark Southgate and Megan Elliott. They have enjoyed some success in their first outing to the ITT, winning their first three matches and securing a spot in the quarterfinals. Ranked number two in the competition, only behind perennial powerhouses and Terranean neighbors Cen, they have been cited by some as one of the favorites for the title - and they have lived up to expectations with their three dominant wins.

Qasden would be a challenging first opponent, as the highest ranked Pot 2 team, with world #14 Ty Kanelious and world #36 Paisley Brazzos ready to do battle. Those two players have had fairly good performances over the course of the season, especially Kanelious, who won the Keystone Bastion Open, beating Penderyn in the finals. Penderyn was ready for a rematch, representing his country, wanting to get revenge for his third-set tiebreaker loss in the close final in Bastion. However, it wasn't as close as one would have liked, as Penderyn breezed past Kanelious in straight sets, with some strong service games and a powerful forehand denying Kanelious any routes into the match. Paisley Brazzos gave Lamar a run for his money, taking two sets in the heart of the match before ultimately losing in five. It was an auspicious start for the Gelders, but the Qads would be out in force in the crucial doubles match. Reben and Mellows took the first set against Southgate and Elliott, the Olympic gold medalists and Grand Slam champions, but after that, the Gelderlish pair showed their class, rattling off the next three sets with only five games lost. In the dead rubbers, Brazzos felt like she had a chance, taking the first two sets. However, Penderyn soon regrouped, taking the next three sets and the match. Kanelious, meanwhile, put up no resistance to Lamar, who won in straight sets.

The Gelders' next opponents, Tobiasia, didn't put up a fight in singles action, with both Penderyn and Lamar winning fairly easily in straight sets. In the doubles, though, Chinra and Sanders pulled off one of the shocks of the tournament, defeating world #2 team Elliott and Southgate in five closely contested sets. That didn't deter Penderyn and Lamar in the next day of singles action, however: Lamar beat Alex Sanders in straight sets, albeit three close sets as each one was taken to extra games. Liam Penderyn won the first set in a tiebreaker after an error-strewn set and conceded the second set to Paul Chinra but quickly regained his confidence for the remaining two sets, winning each easily, 6-2. In the Gelders' tie against Islana Lunigo, Liam Penderyn dispatched Dodger Predator in straight sets. Andrew Lamar's rubber with Kula Na'ia was a little closer, the first three sets going to extra games, but Lamar pulled away to win the fourth, and the match, 6-4. Southgate and Elliott sealed up the tie in straight sets in dominant display against Islana Lunigo's Sanchez sisters. Penderyn quickly defeated Na'ia in straight sets, while Lamar took five to beat predator.

With New Gelderland's three wins, they have qualified for the quarterfinals on their first visit to the ITT, in first place no less (they are assured to finish ahead of Tobiasia on head-to-head standings), where they will face either Neu Engollon, Electrum, or Jiyon, who are all fighting for the one remaining spot in Group B. But first, the Gelders must face Buddharia, a team with a lot of confidence and one that has been a thorn in the side of the other teams in the group. Amberly Mosier and Conrad Fox may be threats to Lamar and Penderyn, but we're confident that they will give New Gelderland glory.

[Ceni]

GROUP A
Ceni vs Novacoras

Noah Damaris (CEN)                 6   6   6
Rollo Logarson (NOV)               3   1   3

Marisa Maradona (CEN)              6   6   6
Floki Evenson (NOV)                3   3   3

Eastfield Lodge vs Romaian

Estela Fenton-Millington (EFL)     5   3   7   6   7
Theodora Patrikiou (ROA)           7   6   5   3   5

Giorgio Irani (EFL)                6   7   7
Georgios Sevos (ROA)               4   6   5

GROUP B
Neu Engollon vs Jiyon

Marla Gerard (NEG)                 0   6   6   6
Karl Danvers (USJ)                 6   3   2   3

Felice Mareux (NEG)                6   4   6   7
Polly Harris (USJ)                 4   6   2   6

Neu Engollon vs Nombiliad

Andrew Simmons (ETM)               4   3   1
June Fisher (NMB)                  6   6   6

Greg Meares (ETM)                  6   6   6   3   6
Edmond Stevens (NMB)               3   7   3   6   3

GROUP C
New Gelderland vs Buddharia

Liam Penderyn (NGD)                6   5   4   6   7
Amberly Mosier (BUD)               2   7   6   0   5

Andrew Lamar (NGD)                 4   6   6   7
Conrad Fox (BUD)                   6   1   4   6

Qasden vs Islana Lunigo

Ty Kanelious (QAD)                 4   7   7   3   6
Dodger Predator (ILO)              6   5   6   6   4

Paisley Brazzos (QAD)              6   7   6   7
Kula Na'ia (ILO)                   4   5   7   6

GROUP D
Mercedini vs VS&UO Island

Cracik Almeronovic (MRC)           7   7   6
Ceci Lloyd (VSI)                   5   6   3

Mei Jokek (MRC)                    6   6   6
Donovan Fields (VSI)               3   3   3

Britonisea vs Bortonania

Leo Garry (BRI)                    6   3   6   6
Anwyl Ó Dubhghaill (BOR)           4   6   3   1

Derek Dubrovnik (BRI)              6   3   6   6
Hagen Hamundarson (BOR)            0   6   0   1

Junior ITT

GROUP A
Buddharia vs Mattijana

Shane Fuller (BUD)          0   3
Dan Ljukanić (MTJ)          6   6

Rodney Vega (BUD)           4   2
Julia Marelika (MTJ)        6   6

Romaian vs Qasden

Manouil Nomikos (ROA)       3   3
Prada Nicorio (QAD)         6   6

Eleni Romanou (ROA)         7   6
Wesley Bajerman (QAD)       5   2

GROUP B
Eastfield Lodge vs Rushmori Bojikstan

Rufus Steward (EFL)         6   4   6
Yazhu Huang (RUB)           2   6   7

Novia Ortiz (EFL)           1   1
Jorge Palacios (RUB)        6   6

Nombiliad vs VS&UO Island

Kindall Whittauch (NMB)     6   5   3
Paul Nixon (VSI)            4   7   6

Rod King (NMB)              6   4   5
Kelli Windsor (VSI)         3   6   7

[Tobiasia]

Paul China and Alex Sanders have had a phenomenal run. A win against Isula Lingo and Buddharia meant the Tobiasian duo have secured a second place in their second ever ITT. New Gelderland was a different story. The singles matches were despondently poor, yet in the doubles Chinra and Sanders took on and beat the world number twos in a tantilizingly close match.

[Mercedini]

International Tennis Trophy
@ National Tennis Centre - Cenial, Ceni

Good afternoon and welcome back to our coverage of the International Tennis Trophy coming to you from Cenial, the capital of Ceni. With the Mercedinian Open on the horizon and the ITT Group Stages coming to a close, we thought we would look at where our teams stand and whether they have a chance at qualifying for the knockout stages and perhaps a shot at the title. Let's start with the senior team, who are playing their final game against VS&UO Island over the next couple of days.

ITT

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Group D table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Britonisea              3    3   0    11    4   +7
2 Mercedini               3    2   1    10    5   +5
3 Rushmori Bojikstan      4    2   2    13    7   +6
4 VS&UO Island            3    1   2     5   10   −5
5 Bortonania              3    0   3     1   14  −13

Three and a bit matches in and Mercedini are guaranteed of a spot in the ITT quarter finals, winning two and losing only one match against Britonisea, with a +5 match differential. They sit second in the group and could have only come into trouble if they lost to VS&UOI by five matches to nil, which would force a head-to-head tiebreaker which the Islanders would win, they have avoided that by already going 2-0 up against their opponents, removing any doubt of qualification at this point. They originally looks in trouble as they were 0-1 while both Britonisea and Bojikstan sat at the top of the pile at 2-0, but the players battered hard against lower ranked opposition which included a hard fought win over nearest rivals Rushmori Bojikstan. They advance to the quarter finals with a bit of a struggle, but go on to face plenty of tough competition in the quarter-finals. If they are to win the ITT, they will have to play fifteen matches and hope to win three out of every five to claim Mercedini's first senior tennis trophy.

Junior ITT

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Group A table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Mattijana               3    3   0    12    3   +9
2 Mercedini               4    3   1    15    5  +10
3 Buddharia               3    2   1    10    5   +5
4 Romaian                 3    0   3     2   13  −11
5 Qasden                  3    0   3     1   14  −13

Similarly, the junior team had a rough time of it in the beginning, but soon found their feet to record a very respectable three win and one loss record which sees them sit comfortably in second place, having played all of their matches. They haven't made it through just yet, as Buddharia could still spring a surprise who beating current table toppers Mattijana for a spot in the semi-finals, although it would mean that the teams would all be tied on three wins each so match difference will certainly come in as a factor should Buddharia get a surprise win against Mattijana. It will continue Mercedini's 100% knockout record for the junior's who won the one and only other competition last year. Again, it will be tough to see whether Mercedini can repeat their successes with confident looking Britonisea and Bojikstan already through in the other group. If Mercedini and Mattijana can make it through then it is sure to be a blockbuster semi-final draw between the four nations. Mattijana have already gone 2-0 up against Buddharia so that line-up looks set to be confirmed tomorrow if Mattijana can win their doubles match. All the junior side can do is watch on as they hope to make it to their second successive semi-final and potentially beyond on the outer courts in Cenial


So, that's all we have for you in Cenial, Mercedini are looking rather confident with both teams all but through to their respective knockout phases. We will back over the next couple of days to give you all the coverage of Mercedini's quest for ITT silverware, plus the best of the rest between the other nations in action around the grounds. Don't forget to follow us on all of the social media platforms, but from Cenial, goodnight!

[Ceni]

GROUP A
Ceni vs Novacoras

Kyle Larsson/Stuart Larsson (NOV)          6   3   2
Coosal Darlcheri/Gyrachor Rentos (CEN)     7   6   6

Romaian vs Eastfield Lodge

Mihail Rigas/ Eirini Phanou (ROA)          6   2   0   7   3
Phoebe Harvey/Berat Latif (EFL)            4   6   6   5   6

GROUP B
Neu Engollon vs Jiyon

Mattias Doerwald/Macro Vrient (NEG)        6   6   6   1   6
Harry Lands/Jim Lands (USJ)                4   7   1   6   3

Nombiliad vs Electrum

Claudia Madison/Michael Okonnal (NMB)      4   1   2
Sonya Gredello/Rosa Levinsky (ETM)         6   6   6

GROUP C
New Gelderland vs Buddharia

Mark Southgate/Megan Elliott (NGD)         6   6   6
Alex Ramos/Danielle Ramos (BUD)            1   3   3

Islana Lunigo vs Qasden

Leo Sanchez/Lea Sanchez (ILO)              7   6   7   6
Terry Reben/Icy Mellows (QAD)              6   7   5   3

GROUP D
Mercedini vs VS&UO Island

Jack Parminus/Adam Stratesimov (MRC)       2   6   7   6
Perry Everest / Denver O'Neil (VSI)        6   3   6   3

Britonisea vs Bortonania

Gauk Tostisson/Asulf Oswalsson (BOR)       4   1   6   1
Leo Garry/Elizabeth Quehall (BRI)          6   6   0   6

Junior ITT

GROUP A
Mattijana vs Buddharia

Dominik Kuhn/ Samira Ralic (MTJ)                  6   7
Naomi Myers/Stella Bridges (BUD)                  3   6

Qasden vs Romaian

Ellie Taylor/Arnswois Douvier (QAD)               6   4   7
Eustratios Galatis/ Eleni Protonotariou (ROA)     2   6  10

GROUP B
Eastfield Lodge vs Rushmori Bojikstan

Novia Ortiz/Charley Steel (EFL)                   2   3
Yazhu Huang/Yi Sun (RUB)                          6   6

VS&UO Island vs Nombiliad

Enid Fox / Siobhán Brooks (VSI)                   7   4   8
Charlotte Cordova/Peter Ash (NMB)                 5   6  10

[Bojikstan]

All of the pressure was on Yanzhu Huang. There was pressure not to fold like her mentor Fen Li had in the later parts of the group stage. Pressure to represent a proud hometown and a people that still considered themselves different from mainland Bojikstan. Pressure to keep up with Jorge Palacios, the prodigy who had earned a Smoke Sports contract at eighteen while she was left with nothing. Why did she make a big deal of that? It had helped nobody, and the saga was barely over despite happening near the beginning of the tournament. It had taken attention from the winning that had been done by the team, and now it had dragged Fen Li into this and had led to her getting into a drawn out battle with the press.

All because Yanzhu couldn't keep her mouth shut whwn something was on her mind.

She was contemplating all of it as she walked back to her hotel room, when she was stopped by a male voice behind her. 'Hey! Wait up. I have something for you, and a message.'

She turned around and saw a boy who had his face obscured by a pair of shades and a black baseball cap, which matched the rest of his black outfit. He had a backpack in hand, and thrusted it towards her as soon as she turned to face him. He couldn't be older than fifteen or sixteen, and he looked like he was from the same island as her. 'What is this?' she asked, but he was already turning to walk away once she took the backpack.

'There's a note inside to explain.'

And so he walked off, and she went into her room and set the backpack down, finding a note and a box. She read the note first, but found that there was no text. Just a time and a place. Namely, outside the hotel, at 12:00 PM tomorrow. The letter was signed not by a name, but with some strange symbol. She then opened up the box, and found a navy blue pair of tennis shoes with white trim, representing the colors of Rushmori Bojikstan. On the back, her initials were emblazoned in white. Maybe, she realized, she was going to get a sponsor after all.

[Ceni]

GROUP A
Ceni vs Novacoras

Noah Damaris (CEN)                 6   6   5   6
Floki Evenson (NOV)                2   1   7   1

Rollo Logarson (NOV)               4   5   2
Marisa Maradona (CEN)              6   7   6

Ceni wins tie 5-0

Eastfield Lodge vs Romaian

Estela Fenton-Millington (EFL)     4   2   6
Georgios Sevos (ROA)               6   6   7

Theodora Patrikiou (ROA)           2   4   4
Giorgio Irani (EFL)                6   6   6

Eastfield Lodge wins series 4-1

Group A table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Ceni                    4    4   0    19    1  +18
2 Eastfield Lodge         4    2   2    11    9   +2
3 Natanians and Nosts     4    2   2     8   12   −4
4 Romaian                 4    2   2     7   13   −6
5 Novacoras               4    0   4     5   15  −10

GROUP B
Neu Engollon vs Jiyon

Marla Gerard (NEG)                 6   7   6
Polly Harris (USJ)                 4   6   1

Karl Danvers (USJ)                 6   1   0   7   5
Felice Mareux (NEG)                4   6   6   6   7

Neu Engollon wins series 5-0

Electrum vs Nombiliad

Andrew Simmons (ETM)               4   6   6   6
Edmond Stevens (NMB)               6   4   4   4

June Fisher (NMB)                  4   6   4   7   0
Greg Meares (ETM)                  6   3   6   6   6

Electrum wins series 4-1

Group B table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Mattijana               4    4   0    16    4  +12
2 Neu Engollon            4    3   1    14    6   +8
3 Electrum                4    2   2    13    7   +6
4 Jiyon                   4    1   3     4   16  −12
5 Nombiliad               4    0   4     3   17  −14

GROUP C
New Gelderland vs Buddharia

Liam Penderyn (NGD)                6   7   4   4   4
Conrad Fox (BUD)                   4   5   6   6   6

Amberly Mosier (BUD)               6   1   5   1
Andrew Lamar (NGD)                 4   6   7   6

New Gelderland wins series 4-1

Qasden vs Islana Lunigo

Ty Kanelious (QAD)                 6   6   6   2   5
Kula Na'ia (ILO)                   3   7   3   6   7

Dodger Predator (ILO)              1   7   2   6   4
Paisley Brazzos (QAD)              6   5   6   3   6

Qasden wins series 3-2

Group C table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 New Gelderland          4    4   0    18    2  +16
2 Tobiasia                4    3   1    11    9   +2
3 Qasden                  4    2   2     8   12   −4
4 Buddharia               4    1   3    10   10    0
5 Islana Lunigo           4    0   4     3   17  −14

GROUP D
Mercedini vs VS&UO Island

Cracik Almeronovic (MRC)           6   3   6   6
Donovan Fields (VSI)               4   6   4   2

Ceci Lloyd (VSI)                   2   5   0
Mei Jokek (MRC)                    6   7   6

Mercedini wins series 5-0

Britonisea vs Bortonania

Leo Garry (BRI)                    6   5   6   6
Hagen Hamundarson (BOR)            3   7   3   3

Anwyl Ó Dubhghaill (BOR)           4   1   5
Derek Dubrovnik (BRI)              6   6   7

Britonisea wins series 5-0

Group D table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Britonisea              4    4   0    16    4  +12
2 Mercedini               4    3   1    15    5  +10
3 Rushmori Bojikstan      4    2   2    13    7   +6
4 VS&UO Island            4    1   3     5   15  −10
5 Bortonania              4    0   4     1   19  −18

Quarterfinals draw
Ceni vs Mercedini
Mattijana vs Tobiasia
New Gelderland vs Neu Engollon
Britonisea vs Eastfield Lodge

Junior ITT

GROUP A
Buddharia vs Mattijana

Shane Fuller (BUD)          0   6   4
Julia Marelika (MTJ)        6   4   6

Dan Ljukanić (MTJ)          6   6
Rodney Vega (BUD)           0   3

Mattijana wins series 5-0

Romaian vs Qasden

Manouil Nomikos (ROA)       6   6
Wesley Bajerman (QAD)       2   4

Prada Nicorio (QAD)         6   6
Eleni Romanou (ROA)         7   7

Romaian wins series 4-1

Group A table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Mattijana               4    4   0    17    3  +14
2 Mercedini               4    3   1    15    5  +10
3 Buddharia               4    2   2    10   10    0
4 Romaian                 4    1   3     6   14   −8
5 Qasden                  4    0   4     2   18  −16

GROUP B
Eastfield Lodge vs Rushmori Bojikstan

Rufus Steward (EFL)         6   6
Jorge Palacios (RUB)        3   4

Yazhu Huang (RUB)           6   6
Novia Ortiz (EFL)           1   0

Rushmori Bojikstan wins series 5-0

Nombiliad vs VS&UO Island

Kindall Whittauch (NMB)     7   2   7
Kelli Windsor (VSI)         6   6   6

Paul Nixon (VSI)            1   7   0
Rod King (NMB)              6   6   6

Nombiliad wins series 3-2

Group B table

.                        Pld   W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Rushmori Bojikstan      4    4   0    19    1  +18
2 Britonisea              4    3   1    15    5  +10
3 VS&UO Island            4    1   3     7   13   −6
4 Eastfield Lodge         4    1   3     5   15  −10
5 Nombiliad               4    1   3     4   16  −12

Semifinals draw
Mattijana vs Britonisea
Rushmori Bojikstan vs Mercedini

Format, tables, and draws will come tomorrow... Quarterfinals ties start 9/14, about 48 hours from now.

[Bojikstan]

Yanzhu Huang sat down at the patio outside of the team hotel, with the backpack from earlier next to her and a man in a suit sitting across from her. The pair of shoes that she was given are in the backpack, and after spending a few minutes looking around, she's sure that this man is the one who is behind getting them to her. It's clever, in a way. Instead of selling her on something and hoping that she'll talk, just give her the finished product and wait for her to take the initiative to talk. That seemed to be the plan, and it had worked completely.

'So, you have a sponsorship that you want to talk about.'

'That depends. Do you like the product?' asks the man, smiling slightly. He has her interest and the leverage in the negotiations, and he's well aware of it.

'The shoes? Yeah. I like the colors, and I'm not going to complain about seeing my initials on an actual shoe. I never thought I would make it to that point, but that's always been something of a dream of mine,' Yanzhu states. 'Though, pipe dream is more accurate. I'm not as marketable as Jorge, so what made you decide to give me a shoe?'

'You're right, but Jorge is with Smoke, and even if you aren't him, we think that you're still pretty damn marketable. You're an underdog story, a small town girl who loves her hometown. People like that. People can identify with that. You'll get more mainland sales than you think, and frankly, we also believe that you're a good fit for us. We're both underdogs.'

'Who is we?'

'Golden Sports. The one sportswear company that you're going to find that has the same roots as you. Why not become our first athlete?'

'Your company is from Goldtown? You... Well, you have my interest now.'

[Mattijana]

A Tale of Two Juniors: Part 4

Two nights had passed since Samira Ralic's arrival in Pulnik. She'd had the weekend to settle in, had met the couple of hockey players, the Cricketer, Cyclist and one Handball player who had rooms in the same corridor and had generally had a fairly relaxing time.
She had tried on her new uniform the evening she arrived. The fit was reasonable, if not perfect. The jacket was a little on the large side, but Samira got the impression it was supposed to be like that.
She popped downstairs to snaffle some cereal before heading back up to her room. Her timetable had an hour's English lesson at nine, before her first tennis session between 10 and 12:30. Things would be a little hectic.
Having slipped on her uniform, she headed with Sanja, one of the hockey players, to her classroom for the lesson. It was the reverse route from after her arrival, back across the outdoor area and into a modern glass building. Weaving her way through the corridor, she spotted a sign for the languages classrooms and dived down the corridor to her left. Checking the room numbers along the corridor, she eventually settled on the one that matched her timetable and moved over in order to get out of everyone else's way.

The lesson itself was fairly quiet. The usual introduction to the course, reminders about homework and general start of year folder-filling. The main event for the morning would be the tennis session however, and that was coming up next.

she headed down to the indoor tennis centre via a short stop-off in the changing rooms and walked out onto the middle hard court. A few kids were already warming up in the service boxes on the surrounding courts. The hollow thump of tennis balls was beginning to echo around the huge space as she made it to the net.

A tall, dark haired man was standing with a notepad at the net. He appeared to be more interested in the warm ups, but shot a sideways smile at Samira to register her arrival.

"Samira?"

Samira nodded. "Yes."

The man turned away from his pad and the courts to look at Samira. "Hi I'm Martin Stefanovic, I'm the head of tennis here at Pulnik. I'm going to start you off on this court with Kara here just hitting some groundstrokes in the service boxes and then we're going to play a few doubles matches just so I can get a feel for the way everyone plays, so feel free to get going."

"Samira turned to start hitting. A few rusty-looking shots slipped through the net early on, but she soon began to work up a rhythm. A slappy backhand ended the rally, but by then she was starting to feel sharp. They moved back to the baseline, hit a few volleys and then knocked down some serves.

A few minutes later, Martin called the group over.
"I've made some pairings up already for the doubles, so we can get going now."

Martin read out the court numbers and the players on them, eventually getting to Samira. She would be with Dominik Kuhn, who very much sounded like he wasn't from Samira's part of the world.
Having spun up, the two pairs lined up for the first point with Samira and Dominik returning. A fizzing return from Kuhn put the server on the back foot and a weak return was punched into the gap by Ralic at the net. The next point was tougher, but eventually won by a smash from the mid-court by Kuhn. Ralic poked a good passing shot wide, but made amends with a drop volley before a backhand long sealed the game to 15.

Martin Stefanovic smiled from behind his notepad.

[Ceni]

Mattijana vs Tobiasia

Mattias Burges (MTJ)               6   6   6
Paul Chinra (TOB)                  4   1   1

Dominika Lisicki (MTJ)             2   6   6   3   4
Alex Sanders (TOB)                 6   2   3   6   6

Ceni vs Mercedini

Ardil Navsal (CEN)                 6   6   6
Cracik Almeronovic (MRC)           3   4   4

Botack Andiam (CEN)                1   7   6   6   6
Mei Jokek (MRC)                    6   5   2   7   3

New Gelderland vs Neu Engollon

Liam Penderyn (NGD)                6   4   3   6   6
Marla Gerard (NEG)                 2   6   6   2   3

Andrew Lamar (NGD)                 7   6   3   6
Felice Mareux (NEG)                5   3   6   4

Britonisea vs Eastfield Lodge

Leo Garry (BRI)                    4   6   6   6
Estela Fenton-Millington (EFL)     6   3   2   1

Derek Dubrovnik (BRI)              3   7   6   6
Giorgio Irani (EFL)                6   5   1   4

[Ceni]

Mattijana vs Tobiasia

Dominika Lisicki/Rikard Kampl  (MTJ)     6   1   4   4
Paul Chinra/Alex Sanders (TOB)           2   6   6   6

Ceni vs Mercedini

Val Korekal/Jac Iegis (CEN)              5   4   2
Jack Parminus/Adam Stratesimov (MRC)     7   6   6

New Gelderland vs Neu Engollon

Mark Southgate/Megan Elliott (NGD)       5   4   6   6   7
Mattias Doerwald/Macro Vrient (NEG)      7   6   2   0   6

Britonisea vs Eastfield Lodge

Leo Garry/Elizabeth Quehall (BRI)        3   6   6   4   6
Phoebe Harvey/Berat Latif (EFL)          6   0   4   6   2

[Ceni]

Mattijana vs Tobiasia

Mattias Burges (MTJ)               6   6   3   7   6
Alex Sanders (TOB)                 1   7   6   5   3

Paul Chinra (TOB)                  1   3   6
Dominika Lisicki (MTJ)             6   6   7

Ceni vs Mercedini

Ardil Navsal (CEN)                 7   6   7
Mei Jokek (MRC)                    6   4   6

Cracik Almeronovic (MRC)           2   6   4   4
Botack Andiam (CEN)                6   3   6   6

New Gelderland vs Neu Engollon

Liam Penderyn (NGD)                6   3   5   6   1
Felice Mareux (NEG)                2   6   7   2   6

Marla Gerard (NEG)                 4   4   3
Andrew Lamar (NGD)                 6   6   6

Britonisea vs Eastfield Lodge

Leo Garry (BRI)                    4   6   5   3
Giorgio Irani (EFL)                6   1   7   6

Estela Fenton-Millington (EFL)     7   6   4   2
Derek Dubrovnik (BRI)              5   7   6   6

Semifinals draw
Mattijana vs Ceni
New Gelderland vs Britonisea

[Mattijana]

Mattijana Dodge Bullet To Make ITT Semi-Finals
Wins for Burges and Lisicki enough for a 3-2 victory over Tobiasia

Mattijana won both their singles matches on the final day of their quarter final tie against Tobiasia to turn around a 2-1 deficit after the second day and set up a semi-final against defending champions and hosts Ceni.

Mattias Burges was first up, playing against Tobiasian number one Alex Sanders and looking to send the tie to a deciding match. He started strongly, using tactics more reminiscent of his clay-court upbringing to grind and drop-shot his way to a 6-1 victory.
Having been seemingly caught out by the unorthodox play from the other end, Sanders began to assert himself more on the match, pushing the Mattijanan back and forcing him to revert to a more conservative style to hold his serve. With the set going to a tie break, Burges began to attack more, forcing a series of forced errors before thrashing a backhand cross court to seal the second set.
Staring down the barrel of defeat, Sanders picked up further and started to play his own brand of thumping forehand winners that sent Burges scrambling to merely get anywhere near the ball.

With Sanders threatening to make a comeback, Burges stepped up another gear, targeting the Tobiasian's backhand and eventually forcing him to break down late in the set, enabling Burges to seal a 7-5 victory.

With Sanders disposed with and the tie at 2-2, the fate of the Mattijanan team would depend on Dominika Lisicki as she took on Paul Chinra in the deciding match. Having lost her opening match to Sanders, things were expected to be tight.

The first set ignored those expectations. Lisicki started hitting deep from the off, pinning Chinra to the baseline and preventing him from stepping in and hitting hard returns.

With the Tobiasian unable to hit big, the errors, both forced and unforced began to flow and Lisicki started to claim the breaks, eventually taking the first set 6-1. Chinra would have work to do in the second to stay in the tie and managed to cause Lisicki some early problems, hitting the ball early and finding some rewards, putting the pressure back on the Mattijanan number 2. Lisicki adjusted though, mixing up her pace and spin and once again finding a couple of breaks, going 6-3 and two sets up.
One set away from Tobiasian defeat, Chinra went all out, suddenly cracking some forehand winners and despite a few wilder efforts, he was able to keep pace with the more measured Mattijanan. With the third set stalemate due to end in a tiebreak, Lisicki braced herself.

Getting off the mark early with anreturned serve, Lisicki went two up with a forehand cross court winner, before Chinra got one back as Lisicki flicked a stretching forehand into the net. A series of meandering points followed, but when Lisicki tucked away a backhand drop volley at 6-4 up, she couldn't quite believe it.

Mattijana will face familiar, but tough oposition in their semi final, coming up against Ceni, who ended their hopes in the ITT 2 group stage with a 5-0 whitewash. With Mattijana much improved this time round, there will be hopes of at least avoiding the large margin of defeat and maybe making a game of the tie. A final appearance may be optimistic even by Mattijanan standards, but even the chance to play Ceni in an ITT semi-final is a massive marker of Mattijanan progress.

Winning would be an even bigger achievement.

[Ceni]

Mattijana vs Ceni

Mattias Burges (MTJ)       2   1   5
Ardil Navsal (CEN)         6   6   7

Dominika Lisicki (MTJ)     4   3   6   6   6
Botack Andiam (CEN)        6   6   3   3   4

New Gelderland vs Britonisea

Liam Penderyn (NGD)        2   6   7   4   4
Leo Garry (BRI)            6   1   6   6   6

Andrew Lamar (NGD)         6   6   6
Derek Dubrovnik (BRI)      2   0   4

For some reason I forgot to copy the fifth set of the fourth Mattijana/Tobiasia rubber yesterday... the correct result has been edited in.

Junior ITT

Mattijana vs Britonisea

Dan Ljukanić (MTJ)           6   6
Norwich King (BRI)           3   1

Julia Marelika (MTJ)         6   6
Niltche Toriblesch (BRI)     3   4

Rushmori Bojikstan vs Mercedini

Jorge Palacios (RUB)         3   3
Monica Vinci (MRC)           6   6

Yazhu Huang (RUB)            6   6
Benjamin Kryoni (MRC)        3   4

[Ceni]

Mattijana vs Ceni

Dominika Lisicki/Rikard Kampl  (MTJ)     3   2   6   1
Val Korekal/Jac Iegis (CEN)              6   6   2   6

Mattias Burges (MTJ)       0   7   4   7   6
Botack Andiam (CEN)        6   5   6   6   7

Ardil Navsal (CEN)         2   5   6   4
Dominika Lisicki (MTJ)     6   7   2   6

Britonisea vs New Gelderland

Mark Southgate/Megan Elliott (NGD)       1   6   3   5
Leo Garry/Elizabeth Quehall (BRI)        6   3   6   7

Liam Penderyn (NGD)        5   7   6   6
Derek Dubrovnik (BRI)      7   6   2   4

Leo Garry (BRI)            6   6   6
Andrew Lamar (NGD)         7   7   7

Finals draw
Ceni vs New Gelderland

Junior ITT

Mattijana vs Britonisea

Dominik Kuhn/ Samira Ralic (MTJ)          7   6
Emma Benten / Jack Whealé (BRI)           6   2

Dan Ljukanić (MTJ)           6   6
Niltche Toriblesch (BRI)     1   2

Norwich King (BRI)           3   3
Julia Marelika (MTJ)         6   6

Rushmori Bojikstan vs Mercedini

Yazhu Huang/Yi Sun (RUB)                  6   6
Liam Prozzo/Anastasia Trajkovic (MRC)     1   3

Jorge Palacios (RUB)         6   7
Benjamin Kryoni (MRC)        3   5

Monica Vinci (MRC)           1   5
Yazhu Huang (RUB)            6   7

Finals draw
Mattijana vs Rushmori Bojikstan

[Ceni]

Ardil Navsal (CEN)       7   4   3   5
Liam Penderyn (NGD)      5   6   6   7

Andrew Lamar (NGD)       7   7   6
Botack Andiam (CEN)      6   5   4

Dan Ljukanić (MTJ)       6   6
Jorge Palacios (RUB)     3   1

Julia Marelika (MTJ)     4   6   2
Yazhu Huang (RUB)        6   3   6

[Ceni]

Sorry for the late results... but HERE THEY ARE!

Val Korekal/Jac Iegis (CEN)            6   6   6   6   5
Mark Southgate/Megan Elliott (NGD)     3   7   3   7   7

Ardil Navsal (CEN)       4   7   7   6   3
Andrew Lamar (NGD)       6   6   5   7   6

Liam Penderyn (NGD)      6   1   3   3
Botack Andiam (CEN)      3   6   6   6

New Gelderland blows out Ceni 4-1 in the final.

Dominik Kuhn/ Samira Ralic (MTJ)          4   3
Yazhu Huang/Yi Sun (RUB)                  6   6

Dan Ljukanić (MTJ)       4   6   4
Yazhu Huang (RUB)        6   2   6

Jorge Palacios (RUB)     5   6   7
Julia Marelika (MTJ)     7   4   5

Rushmori Bojikstan becomes the second Junior ITT champion.