[ViennaCalling]

Congrats Niki Now win this!

[Natalicious]

come on niki! win the final

[TheBoiledEgg]

Niki won the title 75 63

well done Niki

[Derek.]

Niki.

It's been a very good tournamnet!

Congrats!

[Vaidisova]

Niki

[Dexter]

HOF-TASTIC!

[Xian]

yeah Niki

[-sugi-]

Niki

[Natalicious]

congrats niki!!

[Vaidisova]

Hofmanova, Luncanu Win Orange Bowl Singles Titles

Romania’s Alex Luncanu and Austria’s Nikola Hofmanova won the boys’ and girls’ singles titles at the 60th Annual Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships at the Crandon Park Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, Fla., Sunday becoming the first players from their countries to win their respective divisions.

No. 3 seed Luncanu, 17 from Bucharest, defeated No. 1 Nicolas Santos, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, ending the Brazilian’s 11-match winning streak. Hofmanova, who will turn 16 in February, upset No. 2 seed Ksenia Milevskaya, 7-5, 6-3.

“Last year I was looking at the girls in the 18s and thought ‘oh my God. They are so good’,” said the Czech-born Hofmanova, who lost in the third round of the Girls’ 16s here last year as the No. 2 seed. “Now I’m the Orange Bowl 18s champion. Wow.”

Hofmanova started off strong and took a 5-2 lead before Milevskaya leveled the first set a five games apiece. After holding serve, Hofmanova broke serve to win the first set.

“At 5-2 in the first, I stopped playing my game and she started to be more aggressive,” said Hofmanova, who trailed 1-3 in the second set before winning five straight games to finish the match. “I slept for the first three games of the second set.”

itftennis.com

[Vaidisova]

Hofmanova and Luncanu Make History at the Orange Bowl


©Colette Lewis 2006--
Key Biscayne, FL--

Austria's Nikola Hofmanova and Petru Alexandru Luncanu of Romania claimed upset victories at the Orange Bowl Sunday morning, getting historic victories for their countries in the prestigious Grade A ITF event.

The Czech-born Hofmanova, seeded ninth, defeated No. 2 seed Ksenia Milevskaya of Belarus 7-5, 6-3 in a topsy-turvy match at the Crandon Park courts on Key Biscayne, to become the first Austrian girl to win a title in the tournament's sixty years.


Hofmanova ran out to a 5-2 lead in the first set, but Milevskaya countered, winning the next three games. Serving at 5-6, however, the 16-year-old from Minsk played a loose game, and unforced errors cost her the set.

"I wasn't confident today at all, I don't know why," said Milevskaya, who lost to Hofmanova in the first round of Wimbledon this year. "After the first set, I was getting mad at myself, and didn't play well."

Hofmanova gave Milevskaya an opening, losing her serve at love in the first game, after Milevskaya had returned from a trip to the restroom, and twice more down a break, at 2-1 and 3-2, But as Milevskaya observed after the match, being down a break isn't unusual.

"Girls tennis is not about serves, it's about how you're playing," she said. "If you serve good it helps you a lot, but not too many girls can do it."

"In the beginning (of the second set), I only looked at how she's playing," said the 15-year-old, who has been playing tennis for 11 years. "But then I started to play my game again."

Asked to describe her game, Hofmanova, whose family moved to Austria when she was two, was quick to respond. "I'm playing aggressive, taking the balls early, and try to make the point, not waiting for the opponent to make the mistake. Normally I try to play more from the net, but that didn't work so much today."

Hofmanova managed to win the Orange Bowl without playing her best tennis in the final, and she spoke with amazement at how far she had come in a year's time, when she was seeded second in the 16s and lost in the quarterfinals.

"Last year I was looking at the 18s girls that were playing, 'thinking oh my god, they are so good', so it's a great feeling."

When asked how she would celebrate, she spoke of waiting until she returns to Austria on Sunday to celebrate with her family, but after thinking a moment, another idea came to her.

"I'm going to the Dolphin Mall shopping this afternoon," she said. "If I see something and I like it, I'm going to get it, no matter what."

zootennis.com

[Derek.]

[georgekuo1017]

congrats!!!!!!

[Vaidisova]

The girl's final was a more toned down affair, as Nikola Hofmanova (9) stormed to a 5-2 lead before her opponent, Ksenia Milevskaya (2) found her footing. Ksenia fought back to 5-games-all by winning a string of three games. However Nikola won the next two for the first set. She came back herself in the second set, after falling behind 1-3, by winning five straight games to be the first champion from Austria.

"I slept in the first three games of the second set, but I won the important game for 3-all," said the Czech born player. "She was a bit angry and put the ball everywhere. When I was 5-2 up I stopped playing my game and she started to play more aggressive and tried to play more from the net, but I broke her so much today."

Her opponent had to agree with her. "I was not confident today," Ksenia said. "After I lose the first set everything changed. I was getting mad at myself and I didn't play well."

Meantime, 15 year old Nikola is overjoyed and overwhelmed with her win. "It was a great feeling to be in the final and win the whole tournament," she said. "Last year I was looking at the 18s girls and I was thinking, 'oh my God, they are so good.'"

Now she will go back to Austria for the holidays and celebrate with her family. "We celebrate on the 24th in the evening and not like USA in the morning," she said. "We will cook Potato Salad and Schnitzel and soup and then we will open the presents."

[ViennaCalling]

Originally Posted by Vaidisova

Now she will go back to Austria for the holidays and celebrate with her family. "We celebrate on the 24th in the evening and not like USA in the morning," she said. "We will cook Potato Salad and Schnitzel and soup and then we will open the presents."

Congrats Niki
Enjoy the Schnitzel