Darian King, as his name suggests reined supreme adding another title to his belt as he won the men’s open division of the Barbados National Bank Tennis Championships on Sunday. The #1 seed showed why he is the brightest talent for many years on the tennis scene as he beat Davis Cup veteran Bernard Frost 6-3, 6-1.
Frost having a great tournament taking out two ranked juniors Seanon Williams in the first round and Devard Wharton in the quarterfinals, then going on to beat Davis Cup competitor Ryan Moseley in the semis, found the going much tougher against the all round game and athleticism of King. The match produced some high level tennis with long rallies and King had to concentrate to overcome the experience of Frost but Frost’s usual serve and volley game was no match for King’s decisive passing shots.
In ladies doubles Sherry Belle continued her winning form teaming up
with daughter Kareike Wharton to win the semis against Rosie Roach and junior Cherese Slocombe winning the match 6-2, 6-2. She is also in the final of the ladies 35’s singles against Rosie Roach and will play Gabriella Lopez in the open final.
Dr Raymond Forde and partner Julian Baird had their second consecutive win over junior doubles pairs emerging victorious over Jackson Kerr and Mykell Reifer. In the first round they took out Yannick Hooper and Devard Wharton by the same score. They now meet the #1 seeds Darian and Christopher King in the semi-finals.
The ‘Courtesy Garage Top 8’ also served off as the top 8 players for the year are invited to play off for the title. This year’s invitees match up with Darian King versus Hassani Stewart, Mykell Reifer will play Seanon Williams, Ryan Mosley has an encounter with Devard Wharton and the last match will be between Bernard Frost and Duncan Evanson.
