THIRTEEN-year-old Emily Tinker claimed an upset win to push into the second round of women's singles qualifiers in Ballarat Open Gold ATM on Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Tinker's opening match was a big win for the Ballarat junior, coming back to win in three sets after losing the first to fellow Victorian Maddison Brackenreg, 4-6 6-4 6-3 at Ballarat Regional Tennis Centre.
Brackenreg was the number 12 seed in the qualifying draw.
Tinker then lost in straight sets to Victorian Elly Harnett, 6-2 6-1, but will play in a qualification draw consoliation match on Sunday morning.
The youngster entered the open-age tournament for experience against quality rivals.
Earlier, Ballarat juniors Ryan Bolton and Nick Powell were bundled out in the first qualifying round of the men's singles.
Bolton, aged 16, lost to Long Nguyen 6-1 6-2 while Powell, aged 18, lost to Samir Ali 6-3 6-3.
Ballarat Open Gold AMT main draw action starts on Sunday afternoon after the completion of qualifying rounds.
Leading Ballarat player Zoe Hives is seeded fourth in the women's singles and has a bye in the opening round of the main draw.
Hives will face the winner of West Australian Megan Kauffman and Shanghai Tennis Team qualifier Chunxi Xin. Read more about Shanghai Tennis Team's Ballarat campaign here
