Great performances by I Tennis Foundation athletes in the last international event of the 2023/2024 Intesa Sanpaolo Assicura Little Tennis Champions program. In fact, in the fantastic scenario of the Foro Italico, the Tennis Europe Grade 1 “Internazionali d’Italia Under 16” was staged and our talents confirmed the progress of the last two years confronting each other on equal terms against the best European age group peers.
After the qualifications played at Due Ponti Sporting Club (where an excellent Mattia Cona was stopped in the decisive round), the I Tennis Foundation team presented 7 young tennis players at the start of the men’s and women’s main draw: Mattia Cappellari, Matteo Gribaldo, Carlo Paci, Mattia Bille, Alessandra Fiorillo, Francesca Galli and Martina Cerbo.
Truly extraordinary was the path in the men’s singles of the Tuscan, class of 2008, Matteo Gribaldo, able to reach, as a qualifier, the very final and without losing a set. In the decisive match she surrendered head-to-head against the other Italian Raffaele Ciurnelli, who had previously eliminated the No. 1 seed. Very unfortunate instead was Mattia Cappellari, credited with the second seed but defeated at the debut in a match in which he could not fight because he was limited by a stomach virus.
Cappellari, paired with Mattia Bille, however, made up for it in the doubles draw, where the “Matty Boys” (already winners of a Tennis Europe Grade 1 in 2022 in Emilio Sanchez’s Academy in Barcelona) managed to climb all the way to the semifinals.
Great performance in the women’s main draw by Alessandra Fiorillo. The Palermo native, born in 2008 and supported by I Tennis Foundation since 2021, also gave a great performance at the Foro Italico, reaching a splendid semifinal. Here she succumbed, struggling, to the number 3 on the scoreboard, Poland’s Barbara Kostecka.
Alessandra, paired with Francesca Galli (the two are reigning Italian Under 15 champions in the specialty), made their way into the doubles tournament. After defeating the No. 1 pair on the scoreboard in the semifinals, Alessandra and Francesca were defeated only at the third-set tie break by the other Italian duo Proietti-Zocco.
Looking forward to the third edition, there was really no better way to end a magical year of our fantastic scholars, who collected during the two editions of the Intesa Sanpaolo Assicura Little Tennis Champions charity program 21 victories in international tournaments, 20 finals and 28 semifinals.