Sela wins Canberra Challenger title
Israeli completes Australian Open preparation by winning final warm-up tournament.
Andrew Sherwood is the Jewish News Sport and Community Editor
Dudi Sela will go into Monday’s Australian Open full of confidence after he won the Canberra Challenger on Saturday.
The 31-year-old fought back from a set down, to beat the number one seed Jan-Lennard Struff 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 at the Canberra Tennis Centre.
The world number 87 picked up his 21st Challenger title from 27 finals, which also saw him pocket $10,800. He said: “It’s always nice to win a tournament but I felt like he played much better than me today, in the important points I was a bit lucky.
“The experience of this stage, that I have been at so many times before, has taught me a lot, and also, to close out the match.
“He played very well but somehow every time it got to 30-30 I played a really good point, I’m happy I won but I think next time he will beat me.”
Also commenting on the support he received, he said: “There were a few Israeli’s here and it’s nice to see the flag of your country all the way over here in Australia. It gives you something, if they were not here I’m not sure I could have the motivation to come back and win like I did today.”
Sela will next face the world no.37, Marcel Granollers in the first round of the Australian Open, which begins on Monday. He said: “I’ve never played him before, but it’s a tough draw because he’s been top 20 in the world and number one in doubles, he’s a very good player. But I’ve never gone into the Australian Open having just won a tournament so this would have to be the most confident I’ve been going in.” Sela has reached the third round in Melbourne on the past two occasions and will be playing on MOnday, scheduled to be fourth on Court 12.
Sela will be the only singles Israeli player in action, after Julia Glushko lost her second qualifier on Friday, Amir Weintraub was beaten in the first round of men’s qualifiers.
Elsewhere in the draw, and playing on Monday,American Noah Rubin won his three qualifiers and will take on compatriot Bjorn Fratangelo. In an all-South American clash, Argentine Diego Schwartzman meets the number 22 seed, Uruguyan Pablo Cuevas.
In the women’s draw, Italian Camila Giorgi faces a tough task when she takes on the 12th seed, Timea Bacsinszky.
In the men’s doubles, Jonathan Erlich is teaming up with Jewish American Scott Lipsky, they take on Russian duo Karen Khachanov and Andrey Kuznetsov.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
