Cairns semi-finalist makes most of Chinese detour
VICTORIAN Jacob Grills likes to look at the silver lining of a bad situation.
The 23-year-old is in the Far North this week by accident, after travelling to China to compete in three Challenger tournaments did not exactly go to plan.
The right-hander landed in China for the first event but because of the strong nominations for the field, he missed entry, forcing him to find somewhere new to play.
That is where the Cairns Tennis International came into the equation.
The seventh-seed in Cairns advanced to today’s semi-finals with a convincing 6-2 6-1 victory over American Dusty Boyer yesterday in their quarter-final match-up.
Grills, who is coached by Wayne Arthurs, says that he is feeling positive heading into the business end of the tournament.
“I have been pretty focused and training hard recently,” Grills said.
“I was only in China for a few days. I planned to plan in three tournaments but everyone that showed up was ranked ahead of me.
“I expected to get in and play, but that is how it is, you can’t get too disappointed because I am pretty lucky I was entered here.”
Grills faces fellow Australian Jayden Court today for a spot in tomorrow’s final.
In the ladies’ side of the draw, fourth-seed Astra Sharma and Kaylah McPhee won.
Tomorrow’s finals start from 11am at Cairns International Tennis Centre.