Costoulas and Nicod seal maiden Grade A triumphs at Offenbach
Belgium’s Sofia Costoulas and Jakub Nicod of Czech Republic not only lifted silverware but also received a significant rankings boost after claiming the biggest titles of their respective careers at JA Offenbach in Germany.
It was the first time that Offenbach had hosted a Grade A junior event – the highest classification – after being upgraded from a Grade 1 by the ITF last year, and it proved a winning setting for the two aspiring players.
Costoulas, who finished runner-up at the Australian Open Junior Championships in January, was the top seed in the girls’ draw and duly advanced to the final where she dispatched Czech Lucie Havlickova 6-4 6-2.
The 17-year-old also triumphed in the doubles alongside Havlickova, with Offenbach the third successive tournament at which she has topped the singles and doubles podium. She did likewise at J1 Vrsar and J1 Plovdiv last month.
Costoulas has now won 16 straight singles matches at junior events – all on clay – while she has continued to gain experience on the ITF World Tennis Tour Women’s and reached the semi-finals at W25 Guayaquil in March.
She remains No. 2 in the girls’ rankings behind Croatia’s Petra Marcinko, although, as she discussed with itftennis.com, has ambitions of Junior Grand Slam victory in 2022 which could well propel her to top spot.
Nicod, meanwhile, was seeded No. 12 in the boys’ draw but did not drop a set during the entire competition and proceeded to the final where he overcame Spain’s Pedro Rodenas 6-2 6-4.
It continues a promising season for Nicod, who claimed his first junior title at J2 Siauliai in February, while his latest success sees the 17-year-old jump 18 places in the boys’ rankings to No. 13.
He is now firmly in sight of the top 10 and will no doubt have designs on making further progress as the season unfolds, with a maiden Grade A title on the CV a solid base from which to grow.
“I want to say thank you to my sponsors and to my family because without them I couldn’t make it,” Nicod wrote on Instagram. “Also, congratulations to Pedro Rodenas for a great week. Thanks everyone for the support. Top 15!”
In addition to the Junior Grade Slams, Offenbach is one of seven Grade A events on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors calendar in 2022. The next on the schedule is the prestigious Trofeo Bonfiglio in Milan, which gets underway on 16 May.