News

23/06/13

18th Smrikva Bowl 2013 players final registration process was concluded today...

Yesterday we started the registration process for the 18th Smrikva Bowl 2013 edition…

... and today the registration process was concluded in the afternoon…

... the trophies are ready… and the players arrived to Smrikve from 36 countries and all the continents for the 18th annual…

They reached the ancient Roman town… famous for its Arena… that at the time was the town of Hercules ;)...

it was another long day… and the first opportunity to meet this year Smrikva Bowl tennis talents…

... and as per tradition every player to register for the tournament has to bring a book representing the culture of the place he or she is coming from thus contribute to create the Smrikva Bowl Library.

This year is the year of biographies… and some great great books arrived with this year SMRIKVA BOWL generation…

During the Ambassadors nomination ceremony on Tuesday the book they brought will be exchanged with their Ambassadors’ certificates :)...

During the final registration process the players get the final instructions and tips that should help them in understanding the weekly program… to remember to wear the t-shirt and cap they get for the opening ceremony that is scheduled for tomorrow morning 8:30 AM…

... and not to forget the racket during the Ambassadors’ nomination ceremony when they will plant their Olive Tree… :)

Every book that they bring is signed… thus the special Smrikva Bowl library is the library with names… the little talent names that will have the opportunity to exchange ideas on talents on the Smrikva Bowl Forum that will be held on Wednesday evening before the Smrikva Bowl game IGRA starts :)

The courts were full of talents that were tasting Smrikva Bowl clay courts… for some of them coming from far away it is the first experience on clay thus something to remember… :)

Please visit www.smrikve.com to learn more about Smrikve, Istria from Smrikve, Smrikva Bowl, one of the most important under 10 tennis tournaments in the World, and Villa Smrikve, for your accommodation with swimming pool in Stinjan (Pula – Pola) if you decide to spent your holiday in Istria, Croatia.

20/06/13

Donna VEKIC's surprise gift to the 18th Smrikva Bowl 2013 generation reached Smrikve yesterday :)...

Donna Vekic, Smrikva Bowl player, from Croatia, born in 1996, reached her best ranking last week #64 on WTA list...

Over six months ago, by virtue of reaching 2012 Tashkent final, was the youngest player to reach a WTA final in six years… and people started to note Donna’s dedication towards her tennis talent development…

I am pleased to share just few Donna’s pictures from her Smrikva Bowl… because these days she made a special gift to this year Smrikva Bowl generation…

I still remember Donna as a cheerful child with radiant smile and a Ledo ice-cream T-shirt, always accompanied by her family, father Igor, mother Brankica and younger brother Bruno.

Donna played Smrikva Bowl various times and is remembered as one of the youngest Smrikva Bowl entrants... and her smile is still the same…

On the picture below you can see her while planting her century old olive tree during the Smrikva Bowl Ambassadors nomination cerimony in 2005 :)...

It was 28th of June 1996 when the first round of the Smrikva Cup was played… and on the same day Donna Vekic was born too… thus if you wish to imagine Smrikva Bowl event in terms of human age just „google“ Donna’s name ;)…

16/06/13

In a week time the 18th Smrikva Bowl 2013 edition will start... and Alberto Orso, last year Smrikva Bowl player, with his father and many tennis friends is spending a week time in Smrikve...

Alberto Orso, 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012 player, his father Stefano, and many tennis friends from Italy are spending a vacation tennis week in Smrikve :)…

In a week time the 18th Smrikva Bowl annual will start I am pleased to recall the story of the Ambassadors’ old olive trees, the circle of life story… and to do that I am pleased to help me with the Lion King cartoon :)…

Few weeks ago I placed the stone inscription with the roman number XVIII nearby the 18th Smrikva Bowl 2013 generation olive tree and the below story, as Rafiki would say, is worth saying again ;)….

The Lion King cartoon is an artwork to me, and most of the life messages that one can find in it are in line with the Smrikva story…

There are in line with the message of the Ambassadors’ Olive Tree; there are in line with the values of friendship and love; there are in line with empathy…

Love, friendship and empathy are all Cosmopolitan values per excellence, as far as people and humanity are concerned…

The relationship between Mufasa, Sarabi and Simba reminds me of both: parents and family love, but also the intergenerational responsability.

Timon, Pumbaa and Simba relationship reminds me about love between friends. Pumbaa also makes me think about empathy, intuition and loyalty.

The relationship between Simba and Nola reminds me again about the importance of love. Rafiki, the wise old baboo, with his many centuries old tree reminds me about the importance of knowledge and experience of the older.

There are many other particular moments that every person on its own, based on his or her own life experience, discover by watching these artworks.

You might be interested to know that most of the characters’s names in this cartoon have a particular meaning in Swahili language: Simba means “lion”…

Nala means “gift”, and love is for me one of the greatest gifts that people can receive and give during their life…

Sarabi means “mirage”; Pumbaa means “dull-witted” or “stunned”; and Rafiki means “friend” :).

These names with their meanings make me think of the American Indians and the way they used to give the names to their people.

Every person is born without knowing anything about life on this earth and it is the responsibility of every generation to understand and to learn, to preserve all that each of us is born with…

When Mufasa was explaining to Simba that is not easy to be the King… because a good King should know that everything around us lives in a delicated equilibrium and with intelligence we should try to understand it and respect it.

The intergenerational responsibility alone allows future generations to enjoy the beauty of life, the sunsets and the seasons of the earth…

I am pleased to repeat words of a Nobal Prize for Peace who was guest speaker to one of Ambrosetti’s Young Leader Group meetings. It is a tradition that every guest dedicate few words to the Group and he wrote down the following

“The future is always in a minority. Yet the history of the future is more important than the history of the past. It is for the old to remember the past. It is for the young to build the world of tomorrow…”

Everything around us lives in a delicate equilibrium and with intelligence we should try to understand it and respect it…

It is true that every generation face new challenges but there are many examples in the past how the old generations managed and solved particular problems and this is why knowledge, human curiosity and will to learn are important.

14/06/13

Donna Vekic and Ajla Tomljanovic at AEGON CLASSIC 2013 USD 220,000 WTA Tournament in Birmingham: Donna Vekic reached the finals

Donna Vekic, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, born in 1996, currently ranked #*89 on WTA list* and, Ajla Tomljanovic, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 semifinalist, from Croatia, born in 1993, currently ranked #*155 on WTA list* were both on AEGON CLASSIC 2013 WTA Tournament in Birmingham and made important victories!

Donna’s and Ajla’s detailed results at AEGON CLASSIC 2013 are the following:

1st round: Donna Vekic – Camila Giorgi (Ita) 7:6, 6:3
2nd round: Donna Vekic – Urszula Radwanska (Pol) 6:3, 6:2
3rd round: Donna Vekic – Maria Sanchez (USA) 4:6, 6:2, 6:2
Quarterfinals: Donna Vekic – Sorana Cirstea (Rou) 6:2, 6:1
Semifinals: Donna Vekic – M. Rybarikova (Svk) 7:6,1:6,6:3
Finals: Donna Vekic – Daniela Hantuchova (Svk) 6:7, 4:6

…while the ranking of the players is the following:

Camila Giorgi (Ita) – # 92 WTA list
Urszula Radwanska (Pol) – # 38 WTA list
Maria Sanchez (Esp) – # 119 WTA list
Sorana Cirstea (Rou) – # 24 WTA list
Magdalena Rybarikova (Svk) – # 47 WTA list
Daniela Hantuchova (Svk) – # 60 WTA list

1st round: Ajla Tomljanovic – Melanie Oudin (USA) 6:3, 6:1
2nd round: Ajla Tomljanovic – Kirsten Flipkens (Bel) 6:4, 4:6, 5:7

Melanie Oudin (USA) – # 80 WTA list
Kirsten Flipkens (Bel) – # 20 WTA list

12/06/13

Daria Solovyeva - Dasha is back at "La Bottega" di Smrikve :)... ... last week she played the finals of an ETA under 14 tournament and won doubles...

La Bottega di Smrikve is a natural development of the story started in 1996 when the Smrikva Bowl tennis talents story began…

During the Renaissance period La Bottega (the art and craft workshop) was the nursery site for the formation of the artists… and was probably the source of the Renaissance itself…

Inside La Bottega we can imagine pupils, still children, that began to take their first steps into the world of art… growing their talent side by side with the greatest artists that later on made history…

... and the Renaissance workshop was not limited to being a fine school of design (the same as our tennis school is not a simple fine school of tennis) but has served as a cultural center in which the philosophy and scientific knowledge merged with the artistic technique…

Dasha opened this summer “La Bottega” season of the tennis Smrikve friends visits…

and I have to say that I enjoyed Dasha’s training this morning with my father and the conclusion of it…

Here below is Miro’s last week preparation match with Deni Zmak for the German and Croatian league he’s been playing this week… and this serve is just a bit over 200 km/h… and Dasha is getting closer and closer month after month… ;)...

Deni Zmak, 4th and 5th Smrikva Bowl runner up, former under 16 European Champion, just arrived from the USA few weeks ago where he is playing tennis and studying…

He did a great year in the US… their team won the season and his form is very good… it was a pleasure to enjoy that training match :)

12/06/13

Top Smrikva Bowl and "Little Mo"/Smrikva Bowl players on ATP, WTA, ITF and European under 14 and 16 ranking lists (update June 2013)

Former top Smrikva Bowl players that reached certain results on the professional ranking list are mentioned below and the top Smrikva Bowl players that are still competing…

As of 10th of April 2013 the ranking summary of the very TOP former Smrikva Bowl boys and girls is the following:

• 4 players TOP 200 WTA

Donna VEKIC – 2003-2005 player – #89 WTA
Petra MARTIC – 2001 winner – #147 WTA
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC – 2002 runner up – 2003 semif.- # 155 WTA
Tereza MRDEZA – 2000 winner – #164 WTA

• 4 players TOP 500 ATP

Javier MARTI – 2002 winner – #219 ATP
Dominic THIEM – 2003 winner – #276 ATP
Dino MARCAN – 2001 runner up – #394 ATP
Gianluigi QUINZI – 2006 winner – # 401 ATP

• 6 boys and 8 girls… in total 14 players are in TOP 100 ITF

BOYS:

#2 Nikola MILOJEVIC

#4 Laslo DJERE

#6 Borna CORIC

#7 Gianluigi QUINZI

#36 Franko MIOCIC

#62 Matteo DONATI

GIRLS:

#1 Belinda BENCIC

#2 Ana KONJUH

#16 Christina MAKAROVA

#17 Nina STOJANOVIC

#32 Katie BOULTER

#42 Ilka CSOREGI

#72 Giulia PAIRONE

#85 Jana FETT

• 2 girls are in TOP 10 ETA under 16 – (Ana KONJUH #1, Belinda BENCIC #2)

• 3 boys and 1 girl are in TOP 10 ETA under 14 – (Samuele RAMAZZOTTI #2, Miomir KECMANOVIC #4, Alexei POPYRIN #10; Andreea Amalia ROSCA #8)

IN 1996 SMRIKVA BOWL GATHERED TOP PLAYERS FROM ISTRIA AND KVARNER (1st Smrikva Bowl)... IN 1997 TOP PLAYERS FROM CROATIA gathered on the 2nd Smrikva Bowl... IN 1998 3rd SMRIKVA BOWL STARTED TO GATHER FIRST FOREIGN PLAYERS...

BOYS
Vilim VISAK, 1st Smrikva Bowl 1996 winner, from Croatia. Vilim’s best ranking was #612 in March 2006.

GIRLS
Ivana LISJAK, 2nd Smrikva Bowl 1997 winner, from Croatia. Ivana’s best ranking was #95 on WTA list in June 2006.

Astrid BESSER, 4th Smrikva Bowl 1999 winner, from Italy. Atrid’s best ranking was #356 on WTA list in March 2009.

Tereza MRDEZA, 5th Smrikva Bowl 2000 winner, from Croatia, is currently ranked #164 on WTA list.

2001 – 6th Smrikva Bowl was the last year with dominance of the top national players…

BOYS
Marin DRAGANJA, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 winner, from Croatia, is ranked #562 on ATP ranking list.
Dino MARCAN, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #394 on ATP ranking list.

GIRLS
Petra MARTIC, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 winner, from Croatia, is ranked #147 on WTA list. Petra’s best raning is #42 on WTA list as of June 2012.
Indire AKIKI, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #736 on WTA list.

IN 2002 SMRIKVA BOWL STARTED TO BE A EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP

2002 – 7th Smrikva Bowl and 1st”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Javier MARTI, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 winner, from Spain, is currently ranked #219 on ATP list.
Federico GAIO, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002, from Italy, is currently ranked #594 on ATP list*.

GIRLS
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #155 on WTA list; best ranking was #145 on WTA list in November 2011.
Martina CAREGARO, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 winner, from Italy, is ranked #705 on WTA ranking list; her best ranking was #370 on WTA list in October 2010.
Ema BURGIC, ranked 3rd on 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, best ranking was #505 on WTA list in July 2010.

2003 – 8th Smrikva Bowl and 2nd”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Dominic THIEM, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 winner, from Austria, is ranked #276 on ATP ranking list.
George MORGAN, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 runner up, from Great Britain, is ranked #948 on ATP ranking list.
Ciprian PORUMB, ranked 3rd on 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003, from Romenia, is not ranked on ATP ranking list.

GIRLS
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC, ranked 3rd on 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003, from Croatia, is ranked #155 on WTA list* best ranking was #145 on WTA list in November 2011.
Silvia NJIRIC, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #859 on WTA list.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Emmett EGGER, played 2nd “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked yet on ATP list.

2004 – 9th Smrikva Bowl and 3rd”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Miki JANKOVIC, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 runner up, from Serbia, is ranked #761 on ATP ranking list.
Filip VEGER, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 semifinalist, from Croatia, is ranked #760 on ATP ranking list.
Danil ZELENKOV, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 player, from FYR Macedonia, is ranked #1698 on ATP ranking list.

GIRLS
Saska GAVRILOVSKA, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 winner, from Serbia. Her best ranking was # 559 on WTA ranking list in June 2012.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Mitchel POLNET, played 3rd “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, not ranked on ATP ranking list.

Blair SHANKLE, played 3rd “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, is ranked #836 on WTA ranking list

IN 2005 SMRIKVA BOWL GATHERED TOP PLAYERS FROM 3 CONTINENTS

2005 – 10th Smrikva Bowl and 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Matteo DONATI, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 winner, from Italy, is ranked #982 on ATP list.
Laslo DJERE, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up, from Serbia, is ranked #4 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked 869 on ATP list.
Gianluigi QUINZI, ranked 3rd on 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005, from Italy, is ranked #7 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked #401 on ATP list.
Nikola MILOJEVIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 Consolation tournament winner, from Serbia, is ranked #2 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF).
Borna CORIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #6 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked #748 on ATP list.
Luka ILIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Serbia, is ranked #1253 on ATP ranking list.
Franko MIOCIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #36 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF).

GIRLS
Saska GAVRILOVSKA, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 winner, from Serbia. Her best ranking was # 559 on WTA ranking list in June 2012.
Olga IANCHUK, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up, from Ukraine, is ranked #426 on WTA list.
Irina Maria BARA, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Romania, is ranked #964 on WTA ranking list.
Donna VEKIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #89 on WTA list.
Iva MEKOVEC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #572 on WTA list.
Camilla ROSATELLO, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Italy, is ranked #764 on WTA list.
Jana FETT, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005, from Croatia, is ranked #85 on ITF ranking list.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Jeffrey SCHORSCH, played 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.
Jose GRACIA, played 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.
Yale GOLDBERG, played 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.

Dorothy TANG, played 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.

2006 – 11th Smrikva Bowl and 5th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Gianluigi QUINZI, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner, from Italy, is ranked #7 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked #401 on ATP list.
Andre BIRO, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 semifinalist, from Hungary, is ranked #144 on ITF ranking list.

GIRLS
Eleanor DEAN, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner, from Great Britain, is ranked #334 on ITF ranking list.
Ilka CSOREGI, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 semifinalists, from Romania, is ranked #42 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF)
Dea HERDZELAS, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 quarterfinalists, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, is ranked #185 on ITF ranking list.
Belinda BENCIC, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006, from Switzerland, is ranked #1 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF)
Giulia PAIRONE, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006, from Italy, is ranked #72 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF)
Nina STOJANOVIC, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006, from Serbia, is ranked #17 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF)

“Little Mo” TEAM
Daniel MAESE, played 5th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.
Aries WONG, played 5th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is still not ranked on ITF ranking list.

Christina MAKAROVA, played 5th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #16 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF), and is ranked #938 on WTA ranking list.
Gabriella UMOQUIT, played 5th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked #344 on ITF ranking list.

2007 – 12th Smrikva Bowl and 6th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Sacha MERZETTI, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 winner, from Italy, is ranked #320 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Bogdan BORZA, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 runner up, from Romania, is ranked #132 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #492 on ITF ranking list.
Gonzalo MORELL, ranked 3rd on 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007, from Spain, is ranked #208 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Sergiu BUCUR, ranked 4th on 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007, from Romania, is ranked #827 on ITF ranking list.

GIRLS
Ana KONJUH, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #1 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and #2 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and # 550 on WTA list.
Nina POTOCNIK, ranked 3rd on 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007, from Slovenia, is ranked #121 on ITF ranking list.
Ivana JOROVIC, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 player, from Serbia, is ranked # 714 on WTA list.
Jazzi PLEWS, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 player, from UK, is ranked #127 on ITF ranking list
Bianka BEKEFI, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 player, from Hungary, is ranked #101 on ITF ranking list

“Little Mo” TEAM
Eduardo NAVA, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #771 on ITF ranking list.
Tommy PAUL, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #152 on ITF ranking list.

Ndindi NDUNDA, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #620 on ITF ranking list.
Domonique GARLEY, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.

IN 2008 SMRIKVA BOWL GATHERED TOP PLAYERS FROM 5 CONTINENTS AND TURNED INTO A WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

2008 – 13th Smrikva Bowl and 7th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Luka PANIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 winner, from Switzerland, is ranked #707 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Mihnea TURCU, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 runner up, from Romania, is ranked #1018 in Europe in under 16 european ranking list.
Grega KOKALJ, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Slovenia, is ranked #513 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Andrea GUERRIERI, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Italy, is ranked #427 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.

GIRLS
Katarina JOKIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 winner, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, is ranked #291 on ITF ranking list.
Maia LUMSDEN, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 runner up, from Scotland, is ranked #372 on ITF ranking list.
Viktoria KUZMOVA, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Slovakia, is ranked #200 on ITF ranking list.
Estela Perez-Somarriba, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Spain, is ranked #1224 on under 16 european ranking list.
Olga FRIDMAN, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from Ukraine, is ranked #135 on ITF ranking list.
Nikolina JOVIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from Serbia, is ranked #270 on ITF ranking list.
Gabriella Patricia TAYLOR, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from UK, is ranked #201 on ITF ranking list.
Marija CURNIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from Croatia, is ranked #564 on ITF ranking list.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Justin LEE, played 7th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.
William BLUMBERG, played 7th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #264 on ITF ranking list.

Ingrid NEEL, played 7th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.
Paulina FERRARI, played 7th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.

IN 2009 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 6 NEW COUNTRIES AND 1 NEW CONTINENT THUS REACHED THE TOTAL OF 40 COUNTRIES AND 6 CONTINENTS THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION

2009 – 14th Smrikva Bowl and 8th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Alvaro REGALADO PEDROL, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 winner, from Spain, is ranked #142 in under 14 european ranking.
Samuele RAMAZZOTTI, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 runner up, from Italy, is ranked #2 in under 14 european ranking (TOP 10 ETA U14).
Karlo SUEVICH, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Slovenia, is ranked #72 in under 14 european ranking.
Alejandro DAVIDOVICH, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Spain, is ranked #404 in under 14 european ranking.
Miomir KECMANOVIC, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 quarterfinalist, from Serbia, is ranked #4 in under 14 european ranking (TOP 10 ETA U14).
Alexei POPYRIN, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 Consolation Draw
winner, from Australia, is ranked #10 in under 14 european ranking (TOP 10 ETA u14).
Max STEWART, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from UK, is ranked #12 in under 14 european ranking.

GIRLS
Katie SWAN, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 winner, from United Kingdom, is ranked #44 in under 14 european ranking.
Jovana VUKOVIC – JOKA, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 runner up, from Serbia, is ranked #33 in under 14 european ranking.
Inci OGUT, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Turkey, is ranked #43 in under 14 european ranking.
Arianna CAPOGROSSO, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Italy, is ranked #23 in under 14 european ranking.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Noah SCHACHTER, played 8th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.
Alex GEE, played 8th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.

Michaela GORDON, played 8th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.
Ashley LAHEY, played 8th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.

IN 2010 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 9 NEW COUNTRIES AND REACHED THE TOTAL OF 49 COUNTRIES THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION

2010 – 15th Smrikva Bowl and 9th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Nicola KUHN, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 winner, from Spain, is ranked #66 in under 14 european ranking.
Karlo SUEVICH, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #72 in under 14 european ranking.
Yshai OLIEL, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Israel, is ranked #13 in under 14 european ranking.
Andrei Taica RADU, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Romania, is ranked #248 in under 14 european ranking.

GIRLS
Jovana VUKOVIC, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 winner, from Serbia, is ranked #33 in under 14 european ranking.
Paula ARIAS MANJON, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 runner up, from Spain, is ranked #390 in under 14 european ranking.
Neli SUNJIC, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Croatia, is ranked #147 in under 14 european ranking.
Kristina NOVAK, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Slovenia, is ranked #373 in under 14 european ranking.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Max MOTLAGH, played 9th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.

Claire LIU, played 9th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.
Alexa BUTERA, played 8th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.

IN 2011 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 4 NEW COUNTRIES AND REACHED THE TOTAL OF 53 COUNTRIES THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION

2011 – 16th Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Duje AJDUKOVIC, 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011 winner, from Croatia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Mihailo POPOVIC, 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011 runner up, from Serbia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Alejandro SERRANO OSOBA, ranked 3rd on 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011, from Spain, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Stipan MADZAR, ranked 3rd on 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011, from Croatia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.

GIRLS
Olga DANILOVIC, 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011 winner, from Serbia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Ksenija TMUSIC, 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011 runner up, from Serbia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Emilija KOJCIC, ranked 3rd on 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011, from Serbia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Betina TOKAC, ranked 3rd on 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011, from Turkey, is too young for under 14 european ranking.

IN 2012 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 4 NEW COUNTRIES AND REACHED THE TOTAL OF 57 COUNTRIES THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION... and for the first time in the quarterfinals there were still five continents represented: AFRICA, ASIA, AMERICA, OCENIA and EUROPE

2012 – 17th Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Goran ZIVOTIC, 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012 winner, from Serbia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Sebastian GIMA, 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012 runner up, from Romania, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Viktor JOVIC, ranked 3rd on 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012, Serbian origin living in UAE, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Ajdin MUHAREMOVIC, ranked 3rd on 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, is too young for under 14 european ranking.

GIRLS
Himari SATO, 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012 winner, from Japan, is too young for ITF ranking.
Luisa MEYER AUF DER HEIDE, 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012 runner up, from Germany, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Pia LOVRIC, ranked 3rd on 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012, from Slovenia, is too young for under 14 european ranking.
Zoe KRUGER, ranked 3rd on 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012, from Republic of South Africa, is too young for ITF ranking.

03/06/13

12 Smrikva Bowl players were in the Main Draws of the Junior Roland Garros 2013; Belinda BENCIC (1997) is the WINNER; Borna CORIC (1996), Nikola MILOJEVIC (1995) and Ana KONJUH (1997) reached semifinals while Gianluigi QUINZI (1996) quarterfinals...

There were several Smrikva Bowl players that I recognized competing in the Main Draw of this year Junior Roland Garros 2013… five boys and seven girls… :)...

In the first round there were 12 Smrikva Bowl players out of 128 (9,4%)

In the second round there were 9 Smrikva Bowl players out of 64 (14%)

In the third round there were 7 Smrikva Bowl players out of 32 (21,9%):

In the quarterfinals there were 5 Smrikva Bowl players out of 16 (31,3%): Borna CORIC (1996 age group), Gianluigi QUINZI (1996 age group), Nikola MILOJEVIC (1995 age group), Ana KONJUH (1997 age group) and Belinda BENCIC (1997 age group).

In the semifinals there were 4 Smrikva Bowl players out of 8 (50%): Borna CORIC, Nikola MILOJEVIC, Ana KONJUH and Belinda BENCIC.

... and Belinda BENCIC qualified for the finals and obtained the VICTORY!

In January, in Australia, Ana KONJUH won her first Grand Slam too… Junior AUSTRALIAN OPEN…

Photo by Daniel Munoz

... and today Belinda BENCIC Junior ROLAND GARROS…

... both Belinda and Ana are 1997 age group…

In the following you can read more detailed results related to former Smrikva Bowl players on this year Junior Roland Garros 2013 played in Paris this week:

Girls:

Belinda Bencic(SUI) – 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 player
1st round: Belinda Bencic – Alice Matteucci (ITA) 6:2, 7:5
2nd round: Belinda Bencic – Fiona Ferro (FRA) 6:3, 6:0
3rd round: Belinda Bencic -Beatriz H.Maia (BRA) 6:3, 4:6, 6:1
Quarterfinals: Belinda Bencic -Taylor Townsend (USA) 2:6,6:2,9:7
Semifinals: Belinda Bencic – Louisa Chirico (USA) 7:5, 3:6, 6:3
Finals: Belinda Bencic – Antonia Lottner (GER) 6:1, 6:3

Ana Konjuh (CRO) – 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 runner up
1st round: Ana Konjuh – Katie Boulter (GBR) 6:2, 6:4
2nd round: Ana Konjuh – Jamie Loeb (USA) 7:5, 6:4
3rd round: Ana Konjuh – Petra Uberalova (SVK) 6:7, 6:4, 6:4
Quarterfinals: Ana Konjuh – Darya Kasatkina (RUS) 3:6, 7:6, 6:4
Semifinals: Ana Konjuh – Antonia Lottner (GER) 0:6, 1:6

Ilka Csoregi(ROU) – 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 semifinalists
1st round: Ilka Csoregi – Anett Kontaveit (EST) 6:4, 7:6
2nd round: Ilka Csoregi – Estelle Cascino (FRA) 7:6, 7:6
2nd round: Ilka Csoregi – Kristina Schmiedlova (SVK) 6:7,6:3,6:4

Jana Fett(CRO) – 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player
1st round: Jana Fett – Sara Tomic (AUS) 7:5, 6:3
2nd round: Jana Fett – Taylor Townsend (USA) 5:6, 2:6

Katie Boulter (GBR) – 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 player
1st round: Katie Boulter – Anna Konjuh (CRO) 2:6, 4:6

Nina Stojanovic (SRB) – 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 player
1st round: Nina Stojanovic – Jamie Loeb (USA) 6:7, 3:6

Christina Makarova (USA) – “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl 2006
1st round: Christina Makarova – Chiara Grimm (SUI) 1:6, 3:6

Boys:

Borna Coric (CRO) – 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player
1st round: Borna Coric – Mazen Osama (EGY) 6:4, 6:0
2nd round: Borna Coric – Maximilian Marterer (GER) 6:3, 6:3
3rd round: Borna Coric – Johan Sebastien Tatlot (FRA) 5:7,6:0,8:6
Quarterfinals: Borna Coric – Guillermo Nunez (CHI) 6:2, 6:3
Semifinals: Borna Coric – Christian Garin (CHI) 5:7, 2:6

Nikola Milojevic (SRB) – 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 consolation draw winner
1st round: Nikola Milojevic – Omar Jasika (AUS) 6:1, 6:1
2nd round: Nikola Milojevic – Naoki Nakagawa (JPN) 6:4, 6:4
3rd round: Nikola Milojevic – Lucas Gomez (MEX) 6:1, 6:0
Quarterfinals: Nikola Milojevic – Gianluigi Quinzi (ITA) 7:6, 6:2
Semifinals: Nikola Milojevic – A.Zverev (GER) 5:7, 1:6

Gianluigi Quinzi (ITA) – 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner
1st round: Gianluigi Quinzi – Alexandre Favrot (FRA) 1:6, 6:1, 6:4
2nd round: Gianluigi Quinzi – Stefan Kozlov (USA) 3:6, 6:1, 6:4
3rd round: Gianluigi Quinzi – Albert A.Ivorra (ESP) 6:2,3:6,6:2
Quarterfinals: Gianluigi Quinzi -Nikola Milojevic (SRB) 6:7,2:6

Laslo Djere (SRB) – 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up
1st round: Laslo Djere – Pedro Cachin (ARG) 6:4, 6:4
2nd round: Laslo Djere – Jorge Brian Panta (PER) 6:7, 6:2, 7:5
3rd round: Laslo Djere – Christian Garin (CHI) 6:3, 3:6, 2:6

Matteo Donati (ITA) – 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 winner
1st round: Matteo Donati – Seong Chan Hong (KOR) 6:0, 6:0
2nd round: Matteo Donati – Johan Sebastien Tatlot (FRA) 4:6, 4:6

31/05/13

18th Smrikva Bowl 2013 edition... "Smrikve theatre stage" is entering the phase of final preparations...

... When I think of Smrikva Bowl I try to imagine it as a theatre where every year we work hard to set the stage where the world’s talents can gather… Every year we gather all this different actors, great talents, very special kids, arriving from different cultures, having different dreams,...

We set the stage and later on they are in charge with their will, dreams and hard work… they are the ones who write the most different stories…

Smrikva Bowl is still very young tournament but I would like to think that some of these kids will write… inspiring stories in most different professional fields.

I also know that according to the statistics only few of the kids participating Smrikva Bowl will make it to become top professional tennis players, but I like to think that they will make it in other professional fields they choose in their lives.

I read Andre Agassi’s book and throught the whole book he was repeating to friends and people meeting… that he doesn’t like tennis thus it seems to me that he never had the option to choose, but in end he ended up being the Champion and according to Luke Jensen a person with big heart and very good friend.

I will never know how many kids playing Smrikva Bowl are playing it because their parents would like them to become professional tennis players and how mutch of them play it because they enjoy the game.

What I do know is that any kind of sport can help kids in their growth and I also know that people that do excel in any field require total dedication and a lot of sacrifice to reach the excellence.

When I think of Andre’s words of not loving what he was doing for most of the time of his life I start thinking of other 90% of people around the World that make for living doing jobs they do not like, but “La vita e’ bella” Roberto Benigni would say and tennis helped Andre to grow up.

There is one part in the book that I liked a lot… it is about inspiration, faith and what does it mean to be a good coach... to have the right word in the right moment… this part is related with Gil… and is about people that do beleive in other people and help them to write their life stories and to write their own one…

Here are Gil’s words reported by Andre in his book when he accepted to caoch him:

“I’m not one of those people who expresses or articulates feelings very well, but from now on, just know this: It’s on, man. It is on.

You know what I’m saying? We’are in a fight, and you can count on me until the last man is standing. Somewhere up there is a star with your name on it. I might not be able to help you find it, but I’ve got pretty strong shoulders, and you can stand on my shoulders while you’re looking for that star. You hear? For as long as you want. Stand on my shoulders and reach, man. Reach.”

In every life there are people that influence what we do and how we do it.

The Smrikva Bowl festival would like to inspire its players and Ambassadors to beleive in their dreams and work hard to reach them.

Sport and music are in general good educators and the vision of sport prefered in Smrikve is the one Nelson Mandela once said:

“Sport has the power to change the world, the power to inspire and the power to unite people in a way little else can – it is an instrument of peace.”

27/05/13

Belinda Bencic, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 player, won the prestigious 54th edition of TROFEO BONFIGLIO 2013 played in Milan, while Djere Laslo, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up, reached the finals

Trofeo Bonfiglio is one of the most prestigious under 18 tournaments in the World played at Tennis Club Milano Alberto Bonacossa in Milan – Italy… and Belinda Bencic, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 player, won the 54th edition of TROFEO BONFIGLIO 2013 edition, while Djere Laslo, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up, reached the finals…

Ivan Lendl, Guy Forget, Jim Courier, Goran Ivanisevic, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Gabriela Sabatini, Anna Kournikova are just some of the illustrious names on the honour role of the Italian Open, Trofeo Bonfiglio…

Last year, Gianluigi Quinzi, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner, won the 53rd edition…

There were several former Smrikva Bowl players in the Main Draws:

BOYS:
Nikola Milojevic (quarterfinals), Borna Coric (3rd round), Gianmarco Moroni (1st round), Matteo Donati (1st round)...

GIRLS:
Giulia PAIRONE (3rd round), Nina STOJANOVIC, (2nd round), Ilka CSOREGI (2nd round), Christina MAKAROVA (2nd round), Katie BOULTER (1st round), Silvia CHINELLATO (1st round), Jana FETT (1st round)...

The road of Belinda BENCIC towards the victory of the 54th edition of TROFEO BONFIGLIO 2013 is the following:

Belinda BENCIC (Sui) – 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner
1st round: Belinda Bencic – Yan WANG (Chn) 6:1, 6:0
2nd round: Belinda Bencic – D GONZALEZ (Ecu) 6:1, 6:1
3rd round: Belinda Bencic – V RODRIGUEZ (Mex) 6:0, 6:2
Quarterfinals: Belinda Bencic-V KUDERMETOVA (Rus) 3:6,6:4,6:2
Semifinals: Belinda Bencic – E KULICHKOVA (Rus) ret
Finals: Belinda Bencic – D KASATKINA (Rus) 7:5, 6:0

The road of Djere LASLO towards the finals of the 54th edition of TROFEO BONFIGLIO 2013 is the following:

Djere LASLO (Srb) – 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up
1st round: Djere Laslo – Siyu LIU (Chn) 6:4, 6:4
2nd round: Djere Laslo – Antonio MASSARA (Ita ) 6:3, 6:1
3rd round: Djere Laslo – Hannes WAGNER (Ger) 5:7, 6:1, 6:1
Quarterfinals: Djere Laslo – Enzo COUAUCAUD (Fra) 6:2, 6:1
Semifinals: Djere Laslo – M HAMOU (Fra) 7:6, 6:1
Finals: Djere Laslo – A ZVEREV (Ger) 6:7, 7:5, 5:7

19/05/13

SMRIKVE LOUNGE new videos - A Home Away from Home...

In 1996 I founded an under 10 tennis tournament for kids that over the years has grown in one of the most important tennis talents gatherings in the World…

Since its foundation gathered tennis talents from 57 countries and with this year 18th annual it is expected to reach 63rd country…

When I think of Smrikva Bowl I try to imagine it as a theater where every year we work hard to set the stage where the world’s talents can gather… Every year we gather all these different actors, great talents, very special kids, arriving from different cultures, having different dreams,...

We set the stage and later on they are in charge with their will, dreams and hard work… they are the ones who write the most different stories…

And the place you can see in the attached videos was built thinking on the seeds of the Legends who played on Smrikve courts at age of 10…

Their home away from home…

Various elements I had opportunity to learn are part of the following…

CLASSIC VERSION

HOVERING TOUR VERSION

17/05/13

Andjela Skrobonja, 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011, and Himari Sato, 17th Smrikva Bowl 2012 winner, double partners in Turkey and Croatia...

I am pleased to share just few pictures received from Himari Sato from Japan and Andjela Skrobonja from Serbia who played doubles together in a TE tournament in Turkey…

... and again at TE under 12 tournament in Cakovec :)... on the picture below there is another Smrikva Bowl girl with Himari and Andjela, Iva Zelic… one of the most talented girls in Croatia in her age group.

Thank you for sharing… and hope to see you both in Smrikve this summer again… visiting Smrikva Bowl or La Bottega di Smrikve ;)...

14/05/13

Matic PODLIPNIK, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 player, reached the finals of the Slovenian National Indoor Championship, while Kristina NOVAK, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 semifinalist, crowned herself the under 14 National Champion

La Bottega di Smrikve is a natural development of the story started in 1996 when the Smrikva Bowl tennis talents story began…

... and the following are few pictures of the story written by Matic Podlipnik and his friends a year ago… Jan Vehovec, Žan Gorenec Diemat, Blažka Tratnik, Luka Miklavčič and Gašper Topčič...

From time to time Matic like to come with friends… and in Otocec (Slovenia) the Slovenian Indoor National Championship under 14 was played this week and Matic Podlipnik reached the finals, while Jan Vehovec and Mark Mesarič the semifinals.

In doubles: Luka Miklavičič and Žan Gorenec Diemat played in the finals with Matic Podlipnik and Jan Vehovec :)

... scientists agree that to create long term memories you need to do things with heart and combine them with emotions… thus Rovinj… pizza at Sergio restaurant in the old downtown… Smrikve courts… and all the actors present at their second workshop were helping to add little things that may help our little talents in their growth… there is a say that the seeds of today may be the flowers of tomorrow… ;)... you never know… :)

When I look at the above picture taken on our road to Sergio Restaurant… the mind can create infinitive thoughts… kids looking at the same direction… sharing similar dreams… being and developing friend(SHIPS)... and among infinitive thoughts I decided to take out a saying…

“If you want to build a (friend)SHIP, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea…” and growing one can learn and agree that… “”love does not consist of gazing at each other but looking outward in the same direction”... :)

... at Sergio Restaurant… kids hearts were with Barcelona and mouths enjoyed Sergio’s pizza :)... while jokes shared by Gašper were more than funny for everyone ;)...

... we try not to miss the ice cream on Brioni seaside… the spring… the wind… the sun… and after the walk… the ice cream seems increadibly good :)...

... exploring… and going towards the limit is something each of us does while we try to learn something…

... and on the courts each of them had the role… or part… Blažka was runing this part…

... and here would be hard to gues what Žan was doing… that was practicing some cawboys dancing steps :)...

Couple of years ago me and Miro started to share periodically our time with Matic and his friends… and the above pictures are from the second workshop dedicated in adding some new little building blocks identified for each student during their first stay… and elements that are valid for all of them…

On the pictures above you can not see Mark Mesarič, this year under 14 semifinalist, because he was injured but he returned to Smrikve with Matic during the summer…

and for “krompirjeve počitnice” :)...

Matic PODLIPNIK’s road towards the finals was the following:

1st round: Matic Podlipnik – Topčič Gašper 6:1, 2:6, 6:3
2nd round: Matic Podlipnik – Aleks Grlj 6:1, 6:1
Quarterfinals: Matic Podlipnik – Nick Cmager 6:1, 6:7, 6:2
Semifinals: Matic Podlipnik – Mark Mesarič 6:4, 6:3
Finals: Matic Podlipnik – Anže Arh 6:7, 3:6

There were several other Smrikva Bowl and La Bottega di Smrikve players I recognized in the boys Main Draw: Jan Vehovec (semifinals), Mark Mesarič (semifinals), Tim Tekavec (quarterfinals), Luka Miklavčič (2nd round), Tom Ašič – Kovač (2nd round), Žan Gorenec (2nd round), Aleks Grlj (2nd round), Jan Kupčič (1st round), Filip Jeff Planinšek (1st round), Gašper Topčič (1st round).

I was pleased to read that another Smrikva Bowl girl – Novak KRISTINA reached the top of the Draw and obtained her victory in the girls Draw. Her road towards the victory was the following:

1st round: Kristina Novak – Maša Perica 6:2, 6:4
2nd round: Kristina Novak – Nika Radišič 4:6, 6:1, 6:4
Quarterfinals: Kristina Novak – Veronika Erjavec 6:1, 6:2
Semifinals: Kristina Novak – Anja Gal 6:2, 5:7, 6:3
Finals: Kristina Novak – Kaja Juvan 6:2, 2:6, 6:1

Other Smrikva Bowl girls results in the Main Draw were the following: Anja Gal (semifinals), Tina Cvetkovič (1st round), Lian Benedejčič (2nd round), Živa Falkner (1st round).

13/05/13

Nicolas ALVAREZ VARONA, 16th Smrikva Bowl 2011 quarterfinalist, won Mutua Madrid Open under 12 defeating in the finals Daniel SALAZAR, another Smrikva Bowl player...

I’ve just received the news from Nicolas Alvarez Varona’s father that Nicolas won the Mutua Madrid Open under 12.

In the finals Nicolas Alvarez Varona played with Daniel Salazar, another Smrikva Bowl player :)

Mutua Madrid Open under 12 finals was played at the same time when also Rafael Nadal was playing his final against Wawrinka. The difference was that Rafa was playing on the Central court Manolo Santana while Nicoalas Alvarez Varona and Daniel Salazar were playing at Stadium 3.

There were 16 top under 12 Spanish players competing this important competition and Nicolas road towards his victory was the following:

1st round: Nicolas Alvarez – Alejandro Garcia (Esp) 6:0, 6:4
Quarterfinals: Nicolas Alvarez – Julio Crespo (Esp) 6:2, 6:1
Semifinals: Nicolas Alvarez – Alejandro Serrano (Esp) 6:1, 6:1
Finals: Nicolas Alvarez – Daniel Salazar (Esp) 6:1, 7:6

There were four other Smrikva Bowl players I recognized in the Draw and various played with Nicolas: Daniel Salazar (finals), Alejandro Serrano (semifinals), Julio Crespo (2nd round), Miguel Briega (1st round)

The prize for the winner consisted in a wild card for the Mutua Madrid Open 2018 – subject to being top 10 at the Spanish Tennis Federation ranking list…

Congratulations!

13/05/13

Miomir KECMANOVIC, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 quarterfinalist, reached the finals at BOHEMIA CAFEX CUP - Cat 1 under 14 TE Tournament

Miomir Kecmanovic, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 quarterfinalist, is one of the best players in Europe in his age group… and this week he reached the finals at BOHEMIA CAFEX CUP just concluded in Czech Republic.

Miomir’s road towards the finals at BOHEMIA CAFEX CUP 2013 was the following:

1st round: Miomir Kecmanovic – Emil RUUSUVUORI (Fin) 6:1, 6:0
2nd round: Miomir Kecmanovic – Jakub PATYK (Cze) 7:5, 6:2
3rd round: Miomir Kecmanovic – Niklas SCHELL (Ger) 6:4, 6:2
Quarterfinals:Miomir Kecmanovic-Alexei POPYRIN (Aus) 6:3, 6:4
Semifinals:Miomir Kecmanovic – Ergi KIRKIN (Tur) 6:0, 6:0
Finals:Miomir Kecmanovic – Jurij RODIONOV (Blr) 4:6, 4:6

There were several other Smrikva Bowl players that I recognized in the boys Main Draw: Alexei POPYRIN (quarterfinals), Nicola KUHN (3rd round), Yshai OLIEL (3rd round), Tomas MACHAC (2nd round), Patrik RIKL (2nd round), Anthony POPYRIN (1st round), Karol PALUCH (1st round).

In the girls Main Draw there were two Smrikva Bowl girls: Lucie KANKOVA (quarterfinals) and Arianna CAPOGROSSO (quarterfinals).

10/05/13

Top Smrikva Bowl and "Little Mo"/Smrikva Bowl players on ATP, WTA, ITF and European under 14 and 16 ranking lists (update May 2013)

Former top Smrikva Bowl players that reached certain results on the professional ranking list are mentioned below and the top Smrikva Bowl players that are still competing…

As of 10th of April 2013 the ranking summary of the very TOP former Smrikva Bowl boys and girls is the following:

• 4 players TOP 200 WTA

Donna VEKIC – 2003-2005 player – #78 WTA
Petra MARTIC – 2001 winner – #110 WTA
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC – 2002 runner up – 2003 semif.- # 149 WTA
Tereza MRDEZA – 2000 winner – #156 WTA

• 4 players TOP 500 ATP

Javier MARTI – 2002 winner – #211 ATP
Dominic THIEM – 2003 winner – #258 ATP
Dino MARCAN – 2001 runner up – #359 ATP
Gianluigi QUINZI – 2006 winner – # 460 ATP

• 6 boys and 8 girls… in total 14 players are in TOP 100 ITF

BOYS:

#2 Nikola MILOJEVIC (TOP 5)

#3 Gianluigi QUINZI (TOP 5)

#4 Laslo DJERE (TOP 5)

#5 Borna CORIC (TOP 5)

#23 Franko MIOCIC

#51 Matteo DONATI

GIRLS:

#1 Ana KONJUH (TOP 5)

#6 Belinda BENCIC

#11 Christina MAKAROVA

#17 Nina STOJANOVIC

#28 Katie BOULTER

#36 Ilka CSOREGI

#70 Giulia PAIRONE

#97 Jana FETT

• 3 girls are in TOP 10 ETA under 16 – (Ana KONJUH #1, Belinda BENCIC #3, Olga FRIDMAN #9)

• 3 boys and 1 girl are in TOP 10 ETA under 14 – (Samuele RAMAZZOTTI #2, Miomir KECMANOVIC #2, Alexei POPYRIN #9; Andreea Amalia ROSCA #2)

BOYS
Vilim VISAK, 1st Smrikva Bowl 1996 winner, from Croatia. Vilim’s best ranking was #612 in March 2006.

GIRLS
Ivana LISJAK, 2nd Smrikva Bowl 1997 winner, from Croatia. Ivana’s best ranking was #95 on WTA list in June 2006.

Astrid BESSER, 4th Smrikva Bowl 1999 winner, from Italy. Atrid’s best ranking was #356 on WTA list in March 2009.

Tereza MRDEZA, 5th Smrikva Bowl 2000 winner, from Croatia, is currently ranked #156 on WTA list.

2001 – 6th Smrikva Bowl was the last year with dominance of the top national players…

BOYS
Marin DRAGANJA, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 winner, from Croatia, is ranked #553 on ATP ranking list.
Dino MARCAN, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #359 on ATP ranking list.

GIRLS
Petra MARTIC, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 winner, from Croatia, is ranked #110 on WTA list. Petra’s best raning is #42 on WTA list as of June 2012.
Indire AKIKI, 6th Smrikva Bowl 2001 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #725 on WTA list.

IN 2002 SMRIKVA BOWL STARTED TO BE A EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP

2002 – 7th Smrikva Bowl and 1st”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Javier MARTI, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 winner, from Spain, is currently ranked #211 on ATP list.
Federico GAIO, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002, from Italy, is currently ranked #598 on ATP list*.

GIRLS
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #149 on WTA list; best ranking was #145 on WTA list in November 2011.
Martina CAREGARO, 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 winner, from Italy, is ranked #878 on WTA ranking list; her best ranking was #370 on WTA list in October 2010.
Ema BURGIC, ranked 3rd on 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, best ranking was #505 on WTA list in July 2010.

2003 – 8th Smrikva Bowl and 2nd”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Dominic THIEM, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 winner, from Austria, is ranked #258 on ATP ranking list.
George MORGAN, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 runner up, from Great Britain, is ranked #885 on ATP ranking list.
Ciprian PORUMB, ranked 3rd on 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003, from Romenia, is ranked #1768 on ATP ranking list.

GIRLS
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC, ranked 3rd on 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003, from Croatia, is ranked #149 on WTA list* best ranking was #145 on WTA list in November 2011.
Silvia NJIRIC, 8th Smrikva Bowl 2003 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #856 on WTA list.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Emmett EGGER, played 2nd “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked yet on ATP list.

2004 – 9th Smrikva Bowl and 3rd”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Miki JANKOVIC, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 runner up, from Serbia, is ranked #770 on ATP ranking list.
Filip VEGER, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 semifinalist, from Croatia, is ranked #752 on ATP ranking list.
Danil ZELENKOV, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 player, from FYR Macedonia, is ranked #1671 on ATP ranking list.

GIRLS
Saska GAVRILOVSKA, 9th Smrikva Bowl 2004 winner, from Serbia. Her best ranking was # 559 on WTA ranking list in June 2012.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Mitchel POLNET, played 3rd “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, not ranked on ATP ranking list.

Blair SHANKLE, played 3rd “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, is ranked #835 on WTA ranking list

IN 2005 SMRIKVA BOWL GATHERED TOP PLAYERS FROM 3 CONTINENTS

2005 – 10th Smrikva Bowl and 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Matteo DONATI, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 winner, from Italy, is ranked #962 on ATP list.
Laslo DJERE, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up, from Serbia, is ranked #4 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked 913 on ATP list.
Gianluigi QUINZI, ranked 3rd on 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005, from Italy, is ranked #3 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked #460 on ATP list.
Nikola MILOJEVIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 Consolation tournament winner, from Serbia, is ranked #2 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF).
Borna CORIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #5 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked #762 on ATP list.
Luka ILIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Serbia, is ranked #1446 on ATP ranking list.
Franko MIOCIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #23 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF).

GIRLS
Saska GAVRILOVSKA, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 winner, from Serbia. Her best ranking was # 559 on WTA ranking list in June 2012.
Olga IANCHUK, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 runner up, from Ukraine, is ranked #452 on WTA list.
Irina Maria BARA, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Romania, is ranked #876 on WTA ranking list.
Donna VEKIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #78 on WTA list.
Iva MEKOVEC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, is ranked #540 on WTA list.
Camilla ROSATELLO, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Italy, is ranked #1014 on WTA list.
Jana FETT, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005, from Croatia, is ranked #97 on ITF ranking list.

Dorothy TANG, played 4th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.

2006 – 11th Smrikva Bowl and 5th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Gianluigi QUINZI, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner, from Italy, is ranked #3 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and is ranked #460 on ATP list.
Andre BIRO, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 semifinalist, from Hungary, is ranked #129 on ITF ranking list.

GIRLS
Eleanor DEAN, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 winner, from Great Britain, is ranked #263 on ITF ranking list.
Ilka CSOREGI, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 semifinalists, from Romania, is ranked #36 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF)
Dea HERDZELAS, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006 quarterfinalists, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, is ranked #180 on ITF ranking list.
Belinda BENCIC, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006, from Switzerland, is ranked #6 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF)
Giulia PAIRONE, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006, from Italy, is ranked #70 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF)
Nina STOJANOVIC, 11th Smrikva Bowl 2006, from Serbia, is ranked #17 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF)

Christina MAKAROVA, played 5th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #11 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100 ITF), and is ranked #865 on WTA ranking list.
Gabriella UMOQUIT, played 5th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked #331 on ITF ranking list.

2007 – 12th Smrikva Bowl and 6th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Sacha MERZETTI, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 winner, from Italy, is ranked #137 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Bogdan BORZA, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 runner up, from Romania, is ranked #112 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #467 on ITF ranking list.
Gonzalo MORELL, ranked 3rd on 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007, from Spain, is ranked #146 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Sergiu BUCUR, ranked 4th on 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007, from Romania, is ranked #390 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #1003 on ITF ranking list.

GIRLS
Ana KONJUH, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #1 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and #1 on ITF ranking list (TOP 10 ITF) and 862 on WTA list.
Nina POTOCNIK, ranked 3rd on 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007, from Slovenia, is ranked #146 on ITF ranking list.
Ivana JOROVIC, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 player, from Serbia, is ranked #127 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100) and 742 on WTA list.
Jazzi PLEWS, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 player, from UK, is ranked #123 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100)
Bianka BEKEFI, 12th Smrikva Bowl 2007 player, from Hungary, is ranked #148 on ITF ranking list (TOP 100)

“Little Mo” TEAM
Eduardo NAVA, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #646 on ITF ranking list.
Tommy PAUL, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #239 on ITF ranking list.

Ndindi NDUNDA, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is ranked #580 on ITF ranking list.
Domonique GARLEY, played 6th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is not ranked on ITF ranking list.

IN 2008 SMRIKVA BOWL GATHERED TOP PLAYERS FROM 5 CONTINENTS AND TURNED INTO A WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

2008 – 13th Smrikva Bowl and 7th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Luka PANIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 winner, from Switzerland, is ranked #656 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Mihnea TURCU, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 runner up, from Romania, is ranked #957 in Europe in under 16 european ranking list.
Grega KOKALJ, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Slovenia, is ranked #484 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.
Andrea GUERRIERI, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Italy, is ranked #613 in Europe in under 16 cathegory.

GIRLS
Katarina JOKIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 winner, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, is ranked #188 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #328 on ITF ranking list.
Maia LUMSDEN, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 runner up, from Scotland, is ranked #36 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #354 on ITF ranking list.
Viktoria KUZMOVA, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Slovakia, is ranked #22 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #250 on ITF ranking list.
Estela Perez-Somarriba, ranked 3rd on 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008, from Spain, is ranked #1157 on under 16 european ranking list.
Olga FRIDMAN, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from Ukraine, is ranked #9 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #126 on ITF ranking list.
Nikolina JOVIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from Serbia, is ranked #97 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #274 on ITF ranking list.
Gabriella Patricia TAYLOR, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from UK, is ranked #56 in Europe in under 16 cathegory (TOP 10 TE U14) and is ranked #196 on ITF ranking list.
Marija CURNIC, 13th Smrikva Bowl 2008 player, from Croatia, is ranked #104 in Europe in under 16 cathegory and is ranked #617 on ITF ranking list.

IN 2009 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 6 NEW COUNTRIES AND 1 NEW CONTINENT THUS REACHED THE TOTAL OF 40 COUNTRIES AND 6 CONTINENTS THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION

2009 – 14th Smrikva Bowl and 8th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Alvaro REGALADO PEDROL, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 winner, from Spain, is ranked #116 in under 14 european ranking.
Samuele RAMAZZOTTI, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 runner up, from Italy, is ranked #2 in under 14 european ranking (TOP 10 ETA U14).
Karlo SUEVICH, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Slovenia, is ranked #66 in under 14 european ranking.
Alejandro DAVIDOVICH, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Spain, is ranked #318 in under 14 european ranking.
Miomir KECMANOVIC, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 quarterfinalist, from Serbia, is ranked #3 in under 14 european ranking (TOP 10 ETA U14).
Alexei POPYRIN, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 Consolation Draw
winner, from Australia, is ranked #9 in under 14 european ranking (TOP 10 ETA u14).
Max STEWART, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from UK, is ranked #11 in under 14 european ranking.

GIRLS
Katie SWAN, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 winner, from United Kingdom, is ranked #31 in under 14 european ranking.
Jovana VUKOVIC – JOKA, 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009 runner up, from Serbia, is ranked #33 in under 14 european ranking.
Inci OGUT, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Turkey, is ranked #37 in under 14 european ranking.
Arianna CAPOGROSSO, ranked 3rd on 14th Smrikva Bowl 2009, from Italy, is ranked #38 in under 14 european ranking.

IN 2010 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 9 NEW COUNTRIES AND REACHED THE TOTAL OF 49 COUNTRIES THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION

2010 – 15th Smrikva Bowl and 9th”Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl

BOYS
Nicola KUHN, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 winner, from Spain, is ranked #57 in under 14 european ranking.
Karlo SUEVICH, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 runner up, from Croatia, is ranked #66 in under 14 european ranking.
Yshai OLIEL, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Israel, is ranked #20 in under 14 european ranking.
Andrei Taica RADU, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Romania, is ranked #216 in under 14 european ranking.

GIRLS
Jovana VUKOVIC, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 winner, from Serbia, is ranked #33 in under 14 european ranking.
Paula ARIAS MANJON, 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010 runner up, from Spain, is ranked #324 in under 14 european ranking.
Neli SUNJIC, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Croatia, is ranked #116 in under 14 european ranking.
Kristina NOVAK, ranked 3rd on 15th Smrikva Bowl 2010, from Slovenia, is ranked #375 in under 14 european ranking.

“Little Mo” TEAM
Max MOTLAGH, played 9th “Little Mo”/Smrikva Bowl, from the USA, is too young for the ITF ranking list.

IN 2011 SMRIKVA BOWL HAD 4 NEW COUNTRIES AND REACHED THE TOTAL OF 53 COUNTRIES THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE TOURNAMENT SINCE ITS FOUNDATION

2011 – 16th Smrikva Bowl

2012 – 17th Smrikva Bowl

05/05/13

A nice working week at "La Bottega" di Smrikve with various visits: Nejc, Klemen, Veronika and Lara... various talents at different age groups......

As I already wrote various times La Bottega di Smrikve is a natural development of the story started in 1996 when the Smrikva Bowl tennis talents story began…

.. AND TALENTED PLAYERS THAT WE ENJOY HOSTING DURING THE YEAR FOR SHORTER PERIODS OF TIME AS GUESTS OF OUR SCHOOL ARE MOSTLY LINKED TO THE SMRIKVA BOWL NETWORK…

and this week was characterized by several visits, departures and new tennis talents visits… let’s start a short week overview :)...

Nejc and Klemen Gorjanec are two tennis talents from Ljubljana… Nejc turned 9 while Klemen is at the beginning stage of his tennis talents development…

... it was the first time for me to meet them and I enjoyed their attitude on the court… and, in addition to that, we were honored to celebrate Nejc’s birthday in Smrikve :)...

... and here is Nejc… after the afternoon tennis hour with his new Smrikve friend Leki...

... another girl who is training and growing in Ljubljana, currently #1 under 14 in Slovenia, spend few days on our courts with her coach Ales Filipcic… Veronika Erjavec, from Idria, is one of the most talented girls in her age group in the Country… and the Friday afternoon she spent training with Silvia and Ari...

... a nice afternoon with some very nice points for the tennis lovers…

... and a very young girl from Belgrade Lara Stojanovski is spending her family vacation in Smrikve…

... and Lara is another girl with incredible love towards tennis game… and her tennis over the last few years keeps growing strongly :)...

... but Smrikve try not to be only tennis ;)... as you can see from the picture below :)...

In Smrikve is always a pleasure to spend some time with rising tennis talents…

28/04/13

Donna Vekic, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, born in 1996, is in the winner of 50.000 USD ITF worth tournament LALE CUP 2013 played in Istanbul...

Donna Vekic, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, from Croatia, born in 1996, currently ranked #82 on WTA list is in the winner of the LALE CUP 2013…

On the picture below you can Donna Vekic while planting the old olive tree during the Smrikva Bowl Ambassadors nomination cerimony in 2005 :)...

Donna Vekic by virtue of reaching 2012 Tashkent final, was youngest player to reach a WTA final in six years (at age 16 – youngest since Paszek won Portoroz title in September 2006 at age 15).

Her road towards the victory in Istanbul was the following:

1st round: Donna Vekic – Mayya Katsitadze (Rus) 6:2, 7:6
2nd round: Donna Vekic – Pemra Ozgen (Tur) 6:2, 3:6, 6:2
Quarterfinals: Donna Vekic – Kristina Kucova (Svk) 6:1, 6:0
Semifinals: Donna Vekic – Vera Dushevina (Rus) 6:4, 4:6, 6:3
Finals: Donna Vekic – Elizaveta Kulichkova (Rus) 6:4, 7:6

...while the ranking of the players is the following:

Mayya Katsidatze (Rus) – # 390 WTA list
Pemra Ozgen (Tur) – # 288 WTA list
Kristina Kucova (Svk) – # 301 WTA list
Vera Dushevina (Rus) – # 188 WTA list
Elizaveta Kulichkova (Rus) – # 445 WTA list

27/04/13

Borna CORIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, won Aegon GB Pro-Series Bournemouth 2013 ITF USD 10.000 worth tournament just concluded in Great Britain...

Borna CORIC, 10th Smrikva Bowl 2005 player, starting from qualifications, won Aegon GB Pro-Series Bournemouth 2013 ITF USD 10.000 worth tournament…

It is his first victory of a USD 10.000 worth tournament…

Borna is currently ranked #4 on ITF ranking list and is # 1423 on ATP ranking list… with this week victory he could significantly jump on ATP list …

Coric’s road towards the victory was the following:

Qualifications:
1st round: Borna Coric – bye
2nd round: Borna Coric – David Hodgetts (Gbr) 6:0, 6:1
3rd round: Borna Coric – Joshua Page (Gbr) 6:0, 6:4

Main Draw:
1st round: Borna Coric – Albert Alcaraz Ivorra (Esp) 6:4, 7:6
2nd round: Borna Coric – Jack Carpenter (Gbr) 7:5, 6:2
Quarterfinals: Borna Coric – Alessandro Bega (Ita) 6:2, 4:1 ret.
Semifinals: Borna Coric – Ashley Hewitt (Gbr) 6:3, 6:1
Finals: Borna Coric – Daniel Cox (Gbr) 6:7, 6:4, 6:3

Ranking of the players defeated by Borna at Aegon GB Pro-Series Bournemouth 2013 is the following:

David Hodgetts (Gbr) – n.r. ATP
Joshua Page (Gbr) – n.r. ATP
Albert Alcaraz Ivorra (Esp) – #607 ATP
Jack Carpenter (Gbr) – #780 ATP
Alessandro Bega (Ita) – #464 ATP
Ashley Hewitt (Gbr) – #717 ATP
Daniel Cox (Gbr) – #554 ATP

22/04/13

The Smrikve c Code story... is a story about virtue created by training and wish to learn... a story to celebrate 22nd of April - World Earth Day

Smrikve c Code was created a few years ago as a new section among the Smrikva Bowl Tournament sections…

The birth of this article was inspired by the Smrikva Bowl kids’ ability to use rackets and the Star Wars knights to use their lightsabers…

It is a kid’s story about virtue created by long hours spent in training and wish to learn… day after day… year after year… decade after decade…

Today is “Earth Day”... an annual day on which events are held worldwide to demonstrate support for environmental protection.

Earth Day is observed on April 22 each year… this date was designated as International Mother Earth Day by a consensus resolution adopted by the United Nations in 2009… and is celebrated in more than 192 countries every year… thus an opportunity to recall the story of the importance of training and learning to respect what we are born with…

Smrikve, October 2010

The Star Wars “Return of the Jedi” is the first film I remember seeing with my dad at the cinema… it was 1983 and I was 10… the cinema was named “Istra”… I was the same age as the Smrikva Bowl players we host every year in Smrikve :)…

In the introduction of this article I would just underline that I like the way Jedi use the lightsabers and I like the way Smrikva Bowl kids use their rackets :)... Smrikve c Code is a story about virtue created by training and wish to learn…

My dad was pilot and for me watching The Star Wars with him at the cinema was a particular experience … I had many questions and he, as usual, with smile and pleasure answered to each of my questions…

Dad used to take me with him on the airport when I was little… and I remember him entering the cockpit of the plane with pilot helmet watching towards me and giving me the sign that he was ready to fly… than he turned on the engine of the plane and watched towards me again with smile in his eyes…

I stayed about 100 meters from the airplane with his colleagues and watched him taking his plane towards runway…

From the place where I stayed only part of the runway was visible because of the wood and he took the plane in the area that was invisible to me to prepare for the takeoff… I was able to hear the force of the engine… and when the sound of the force started to increase I knew that my dad will be visible soon… his colleagues were telling me “be ready soon your dad will come”… and when he started to be visible on the back of the plane there was the fire… almost half length of the airplane had the fire extension formed by his engine and I just noticed his helmet in the cockpit and followed by my kids eyes his airplane reaching the sky…

The Jedi are characters in the Star Wars universe bound to a code of morality and justice and are trained in the use of the light side of the force. They learn to use the Force, and weapons, known as lightsabers, which emits a controlled energy flow in the shape of a sword, to serve and protect their Republic and the galaxy from conflicts or government instability…

Since long time ago I started to note the ability of Smrikva Bowl kids using the racket and thinking at the same time on Jedi’s ability to use the lightsaber :)…

Some of my students use Wilson’s ying & young damper… known as Tao sign… they like the symbol but are still too young to have an idea about it ;)… I will try to use this symbol to help me explain how little the difference could be in forming a balance in anything we do… every action has a reaction in our World… in the first classes of physics we learn Newton’s third law…

Tao is an abstract concept found in Taoism, Confucianism, and more generally in ancient Chinese philosophy and East Asian cultures.

While the word itself translates as “way”, “path”, or “route”… it is often used philosophically to signify the fundamental nature of the World we are used to living on Earth… it is often referred to as “the nameless”, because neither it nor its principles can ever be adequately expressed in words.

While the Tao cannot be expressed, Taoism holds that it can be known, and its principles can be followed. Much of Taoist writing focuses on the value of following the Tao – called Te (virtue) – and of the ultimate uselessness of trying to understand or control Tao outright. This is often expressed through yin and yang arguments, where every action creates a counter-action as a natural, unavoidable movement within manifestations of the Tao.

I used the above short explenation to introduce the Codes used in the Star Wars universe…

As in the Tao symbol there were knights trained to use the dark side of the force and the light side… this is the way how mankind functioned since the human written memory goes back…

For new ideas people have to go beyond… out of the known patterns by using their imagination… the kids are many times Master in this…

“Truly wonderful the mind of a child is.”... :)

DARK SIDE (The Sith Code)

• Peace is a lie. There is only passion.
• Through passion, I gain strength.
• Through strength, I gain power.
• Through power, I gain victory.
• Through victory, my chains are broken.
• The Force shall free me.

LIGHT SIDE (The Jedi Code)

• There is no emotion, there is peace.
• There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.
• There is no passion, there is serenity.
• There is no death, there is the Force.

The Jedi Code was rewritten by Grand Master Luke Skywalker upon reestablishing the Jedi Order:

• Jedi are the guardians of peace in the galaxy.
• Jedi use their powers to defend and to protect.
• Jedi respect all life, in any form.
• Jedi serve others rather than ruling over them, for the good of the galaxy.
• Jedi seek to improve themselves through knowledge and training.

Smrikve c code is the code…

...and… just one more thing…

... “La guerra no le hace a uno grandioso.”... ;)

I am pleased to close this article with Dire Straits and their Brothers in Arms song… starting with the sound of the thunder… The concert was made in 1988 to honour Nelson Mandela…

BROTHERS IN ARMS

These mist covered mountains
Are a home now for me
But my home is the lowlands
And always will be
Some day you’ll return to
Your valleys and your farms
And you’ll no longer burn
To be brothers in arms

Through these fields of destruction
Baptism of fire
I’ve whittnessed your suffering
As the battles raged higher
And though they did hurt me so bad
In the fear and alarm
You did not desert me
My brothers in arms

There’s so many different worlds
So many different suns
And we have just one world
But we live in different ones

Now the sun’s gone to hell
And the moon’s riding high
Let me bid you farewell
Every man has to die
But it’s written in the starlight
And every line on your palm
We’re fools to make war
On our brothers in arms

Miodrag Bozovic

20/04/13

Ajla Tomljanovic - 7th Smrikva Bowl 2002 runner up - won the finals at DOTHAN PRO CLASSIC 2013 (USA) - USD 50.000 worth tournament

Ajla Tomljanovic played Smrikva Bowl twice. In 2002 she reached the finals when she was 9 years old… and ranked 3rd when she was 10 in 2003. Today with Petra Martic, Donna Vekic, Ana Konjuh and Tereza Mrdeza is among the best Smrikva Bowl girls…

Ajla will turn 20 in less than two weeks and is currently ranked #171 on WTA ranking list…

A month ago in Miami at USD 5,185,625 worth tournament she reached the fourth round…

… and this week at DOTHAN PRO CLASSIC 2013 (USA) her road towards the victory was the following:

1st round:A.Tomljanovic – M. LARCHER DE BRITO (Por) 6:1,6:0
2nd round: A.Tomljanovic – Allie KIICK (Usa) 7:6, 6:0
Quarterfinals: Ajla Tomljanovic – Shelby ROGERS (Usa) 6:2, 7:6
Semifinals: Ajla Tomljanovic – Alison RISKE (Usa) 2:6, 6:4, 7:6
Finals: Ajla Tomljanovic – Shuai ZHANG (Chn) 2:6, 6:4, 6:3

The ranking of the players Ajla played is the following:

Michelle LARCHER DE BRITO (Por) – #131 WTA
Allie KIICK (Usa) – #323 WTA
Shelby ROGERS (Usa) – #220 WTA
Alison RISKE (Usa) – #199 WTA
Shuai ZHANG (Chn) – #135 WTA

For those who still did not have the opportunity to see Ajla I am pleased to embed the following short video registered during a practice session in Miami at the end of March…