Seven junior Maltese tennis players returned from the UK earlier this month after competing in their fourth annual LTA rating tournaments in the UK.

The trip, partly sponsored by the Malta Tennis Federation (MTF), saw the players take part in both the Edgbaston Archery and Edgbaston Priory events. This year’s contingent consisted of two girls and five boys aged 13 to 18.

Both tournaments were staged in the Birmingham area. The team played well and achieved good results in each of their age-groups.

All the players reached finals in their respective categories with the biggest success being Raphael Sammut who won the boys Under-16 event after beating the higher-ranked UK player Luke Hammond.

The boys U-14 doubles partnership of Ben Farrugia and Luke Wilkinson narrowly lost in the final but showed great potential for the future.

The girls, Katrina Sammut and Lexi Cassar, also left a very positive impression. Sammut reached the U-14 and U-16 finals but was unable to clinch victory in either.

Cassar, competing for the first time in the U-18 event, contested the consolation finals at both venues but missed out on the title despite playing well.

Zach Ciappara and Robert Montanaro Gauci were also runners-up in the U-16 and U-18 consolation events.

Coach Robert Tarpey was very happy with the performances of his players who took in over 120 matches between them.

“The team’s results in general were very good and most importantly they gained valuable experience in competitive matches against some of the top UK juniors,” Tarpey said.

MTF president David Farrugia Sacco said the federation is committed to giving its young talents as much international exposure as possible.

The MTF thanked Gasan Mamo Insurance and Bank of Valletta for their continuous support.