VANOPEN SUCCESS
Evans wins ‘best ever’ tourney
Even with smoke hanging in the air, organizers of the Odlum Brown VanOpen are calling this year’s tennis event, which wrapped Sunday, their best-ever.
The tournament, played at West Vancouver’s Hollyburn Country Club, was named one of three ATP Challenger Tournaments of the Year for 2017.
Tournament director Rik de Voest, brimming with pride, said he felt this year’s event exceeded even last year’s high standard.
“We built off the buzz of last year,” he said Sunday. “And we have to thank the country club for being such great partners.”
He pointed to the high quality of the playing field this year as being a big factor in driving this year’s success, which was reflected in sellouts every day from Wednesday onward.
With so many courts running during the early rounds, about 1,200 tickets were sold mid-week.
As play narrowed down to just centre court on the weekend, about 900 people visited the tournament grounds each day.
“We need to put in more stands (for next year),” he said about how to take another step forward.
“Once people see how busy it is, they want to be here, it’s a selfreinforcing thing.”
Even the smoke from B.C.’s hundreds of wildfires didn’t cause problems, de Voest, a former Davis Cup player for South Africa, said.
“We haven’t had one complaint,” he said. “Speaking with the physios and players, it hasn’t bothered anyone.”
British qualifier Daniel Evans won the men’s title Sunday, winning a nail-biting marathon that went nearly three hours against fourth-seeded Australian Jason Kluber.
The 28-year-old Evans won 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (3).
Once ranked as high as No. 41, Evans is working his way back toward the top after serving a one-year ban for testing positive for cocaine.
He’s 9-9 in his career in Grand Slam play and has been a regular choice for the British Davis Cup team, including against Canada in 2017, when Great Britain won their round of 16 tie.
“It’s great,” Evans said of winning his first tournament in two years.
“It was just such a long match; to come through qualifying as well, it’s a great achievement. It’s something I’m immensely proud of and will be for a long time.”
In the women’s final, world No. 240 Misaki Doi defeated No. 127 Heather Watson 6-7 (4), 6-1, 6-4.
Like Evans, Doi came through qualifying to win her spot in the main draw. A former world No. 30, Doi sank into the 300s earlier this year, after having reached her peak just two years ago.
In Vancouver, Doi looked to have found her form of old: she lost just two sets all week and won three sets 6-0 along the way.
A British duo won the men’s doubles: Luke Bambridge and Neal Skupski beat a pair of Aussies, Marc Polmans and Max Purcell, 4-6, 6-3, 10-6.
American Desirae Krawczyk and Mexican Giuliana Olmos beat Ukraine’s Kateryna Kozlova and Holland’s Arantxa Rus 6-2, 7-5 to win the women’s doubles.