Irish Teen Eoghan Jennings Powers Towards Junior Australian Open Main Draw

Mayo teenager Eoghan Jennings is one match from the main draw of the Junior Australian Open after he stormed back to beat Polish opponent Jan Sadzik in his qualifier semi-final on Wednesday. Jennings, a native of Westport, is aiming to become the first Irish junior to make the first round proper since Simon Carr in 2017. The 17-year-old only made the cut for the tournament after several other players dropped out, but he is looking to seize his opportunity with both hands. He suffered a nightmare start against Sadzik, who breezed to a 6-0 win in the opening set. However Jennings showed serious grit to win the next two sets (6-1, 6-2) and progress to a showdown with Greece's Odysseas Geladaris. Geladaris was impressive in his win against Australian opponent Evan Vassiliadis 6-0, 7-6 (2) in the first round of qualifying. He's ranked No 77 in the ITF Juniors world rankings, while Jennings is 133rd. The qualifiers are bing played in the city of Traralgon, with the main draw to be held at Melbourne Park (24 January to 1 February).