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Heo pitted against seeded foe in Japan
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Posted on Sep 04 2008
CNMI’s Ji Hoon Heo had a tough opening assignment in the Hyogo International Junior Tournament 2, as he squared off with boys’ singles No. 5 seed Shoki Hachiya.
Heo and Hachiya collided in the first round of the 16-player draw singles competition, but results of the match were unavailable at press time.
Hachiya is only 15 years old and is currently ranked No. 600 in the world. His highest rank was at No. 548. This year, he has a 9-8 record in singles and 12-8 in doubles. The right-handed Japanese holds a career singles record of 11-10 and 15-10 in doubles.
Heo, who made to the world ranking only this year, is currently at No. 1561 after losing his first match in the Hyogo International Junior Tournament. His best ranking was at No. 1425 in June this year. Heo competed in tournaments in Australia early this year to start getting ITF Junior ranking points, and also joined a competition in Korea.
The 16-year-old netter has a 1-4 record in singles this year and 2-3 in doubles. Overall, Heo holds a 1-7 record in singles and 2-6 in doubles.
Heo’s debut in Japan resulted in a loss, as he bowed to Shintaro Imai in straight sets, 1-6, 3-6, last week.
The CNMI bet was playing hurt, as injuries on his ankle and legs have yet to heal. He sustained the injuries while playing in New Caledonia, two months ago and they were aggravated in Fiji when he competed in the 2008 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships.
Heo also played in the doubles competition in Hyogo 1 and he and partner Issei Okamura lost to top seeds Yusuke and Kaisuke Watanuki in the first round, 1-6, 4-6.
The Watanuki siblings eventually won the doubles event and Kaisuke prevailed in the singles division.
The tournaments in Japan are Grade 5 events. This type of event offers the least ranking points and is used as an introduction to the ITF Junior Circuit. Grade A (including four Grand Slam events) tournaments has the most points. Grades B and C are for regional championships and international competitions, respectively.
