KINGSTON young gun Zoe Hives is setting her sights on playing all four grand slams next year following a successful Junior Fed Cup world finals campaign.
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The 15-year-old tennis prodigy returned home on Wednesday after Australia’s fourth-placed finish at the titles in Barcelona, Spain.
Hives, who won four of her five matches at the tournament, said she was pleased with how she performed, and also with the team’s overall standing.
“I didn’t think we would even get that high, so I was happy that we finished there,” Hives said.
“I couldn’t have played much better.”
Junior Fed Cup captain Nicole Pratt was full of praise for Hives and her teammates.
“The girls gave everything they had this week and they should be proud of finishing fourth,” Pratt told Tennis Australia.
“They have improved, no question.
“This is Zoe’s first trip to Europe so for her to win four out of five matches was a fantastic achievement.
“Playing on clay requires patience and good decision making and that is an area the girls definitely improved upon.
“You cannot put a value on this experience as they are being exposed to their world peers, the best of the best are here.
“They have learnt many lessons both on and off the court and I hope that they take some of these lessons and execute further success in the future.”
Hives joined Brisbane’s Naiktha Bains and East Bentleigh’s Isabelle Wallace in the Australian side, which lost to Brazil in the third place play-off.
The youngster is now preparing for International Tennis Federation tournaments in Sydney next week and in Asia later this month, which she hopes will help her accumulate enough points to qualify for all junior grand slams next year.
Hives competed in the Australian Open this year and was beaten in the first round.
tim.oconnor@thecourier.com.au
