Bicknell

Eleven-year-old Blaise Bicknell turned in a scintillating performance to capture the Under-12 Orange County Fall Sectional competition at Lake Cane Tennis Centre in Orlando, Florida, yesterday.

Bicknell thrashed Nicholas Garcia of the United States 6-1, 6-0 to secure the title. He booked his spot in the final with an easy 6-2, 6-2 win over Theo Winegar in the semi-final. Bicknell was very impressive en route to the final as he blazed through the full 32 draw, which consisted of the top players in the US.

Blaise told Star Sports in an interview from his base in Florida yesterday that he was very delighted with his performance.

"I feel pretty good," said Bicknell. "My confidence was high because I was very prepared for the championships and I was always confident that I was going to do well."

"The guy was pretty good because he was very aggressive, and so I had to move him around and when I had the opening, hit the ball through the court," he said.

Blaise added: "I really got excited when I saw the trophy before the final because it very big and it also looks very good.

Blaise is currently the second ranked Florida player on the United States national list at 40. However, his victory in this tournament is expected to move him up to 33 in the rankings. He will next compete in the USTA Regional Under-12 tournament in Georgia from October 25-27.

Bicknell, who is a student at Hillel Academy, hopes to eventually become the number-one player in the world and emulate his idol, Roger Federer.