Charmaine eyes semi-final spot at WTA Future Stars

SINGAPORE — After losing both her group matches last year and making an early exit, Singapore’s top-ranked female player Charmaine Seah is gunning for a better outing at this year’s WTA Future Stars tournament.

The student is eyeing a place in the semi-finals of this year’s U-16 competition, which begins today, and is optimistic of her chances this time.

The only Singaporean player to hold an International Tennis Federation (ITF) ranking, Charmaine, who is ranked 579th, believes that the experience gained from playing last year, as well as the progress she feels she has made this year, will stand her in good stead.

“I am excited to take part again,” said the 16-year-old, after yesterday afternoon’s draw ceremony at the Kallang Tennis Centre.

“I think I’ve improved over this past year and I think I can do better if I play with a good mentality and fight well in every match.

“I hope to be able to manage my emotions, stay on top and convert those important points.”

Seeded second in her group of five, Charmaine is also one of six Singapore players taking part in the annual event, which has two categories — U-14 and U-16. Her two compatriots in the U-16 category are 15-year-olds Lynelle Lim and Tammy Tan.

Like Charmaine, Tammy is making her second appearance in the WTA Future Stars.

The Raffles Girls School student, whose favourite player is Serena Williams, took part in the U-14 category last year, where she also lost both games. While she admitted that the step up to U-16 level will be “much higher”, she is looking forward to the challenge.

“I have been playing with players who are better and hit a lot harder,” she described of her preparations.

“I hope to win a few matches in my round-robin group.”

Both looked back fondly on their debut experiences last year, citing the exposure to highly-ranked opponents and opportunities to establish new friendships as highlights.

Meanwhile, debutants Clare Cheng, Trisha Mulani and Joelle Goh will be flying Singapore’s colours in the U-14 category. Cheng, 13, is the top-ranked local in the age group and is targeting a spot in the semi-finals.

“I think it’s a mix of nerves and excitement as I don’t really know what to expect, but I think there’s no pressure because a lot of the other players already have rankings but I am going in unseeded,” she said.

“I am just going to go in there, play my best and see what happens. I hope to be able to do well in my round-robin matches and try to come in first or second.”

Both the U-14 and U-16 categories will see four groups of five each, making for a record 40 participants this year, up from 24 in 2014 and 36 last year. Eighteen countries will be represented and the round-robin matches will be played today and tomorrow at the Kallang Tennis Centre. The semi-finals will be held on Friday, while both finals are on Sunday.

Singapore coach Daniel Heryanto believes the tournament will provide invaluable match experience for his trainees.

“Some of them (opponents) are ranked really high and our girls can see them and work towards that kind of benchmark,” he said.

“We have prepared them as well as we can, so hopefully everything goes well.”