Bicknell pleased with Costa Rica ITF title

Jamaica’s top tennis player Blaise Bicknell crowned himself in glory after capturing the ITF M15 Championship title in San José, Costa Rica, yesterday.

Bicknell, who has been enjoying an outstanding season, delivered a commanding 6-2, 6-4 victory over Nick Hardt of Mexico in a final that lasted just over an hour. The 24-year-old Bicknell secured the fourth ITF men’s singles title of his career and impressively went through the entire tournament without dropping a set.

“I am feeling good because this is my first title of the year,” said Bicknell.

“I played very well in this tournament because I didn’t drop a set and so I can really use this confidence going forward to keep getting better at my tennis.”

The win for Bicknell was also important because of who is opponent was.

“He is a tough player, but he is just coming back from injury and he has been the number-one ranked player in our region for a while and so for me to get the win over him is huge for me,” Bicknell said.

Currently ranked 463 in the world, Bicknell is expected to make a significant climb in the ATP rankings following the victory, further strengthening his status as one of the region’s leading players.

He also shared that this victory will give him a lot of confidence going into his upcoming tournaments because he is now in excellent form.

“Now I am the number-one player in the Caribbean and Central America and so my ranking will improve and I think that I will keep getting better because I have been improving with my team and so things have been great,” said Bicknell.

“For the whole week, I have been very focused because I played solid throughout and so I am just very happy that I got the win,” he said.

Bicknell also added that his victory is huge for the country and its tennis as he continues to climb the ATP international rankings.

“A lot of the top players in our region were here in this tournament and so for me to come out on top is massive for Jamaica on the world stage. I am healthy now and so I am looking to make a big push this year towards the Grand Slam tournaments,” he said.