Bicknell looking to represent well at Jamaica Open, Tennis star hopes to topple higher-ranked foreign reps at ATP Challenger event

Jamaica’s number one tennis player Blaise Bicknell is confident he can produce his best tennis at next week’s inaugural Jamaica Open Tennis Championships, an ATP Challenger tournament.

It is the first time an ATP Challenger event of this magnitude has been staged in the English-speaking Caribbean, and it is scheduled for August 16-29 at Liguanea Club in New Kingston.

The tournament has attracted a strong field, including several players ranked inside the world’s top 150.

Bicknell, who has been Jamaica’s top-ranked player for the past decade and is ranked 373 in the world, noted that playing before his home crowd could provide him with an advantage.

BIGGEST COMPETITION

“I am feeling good going into this tournament because this is the biggest competition in the English-speaking Caribbean ever, and so it is really a landmark event for us here in Jamaica and also for the Caribbean,” said Bicknell.

“My preparations have been good. I have been competing against some top players in the world every week, and I have been putting in the work with my team, and so I am feeling confident going into this tournament,” he said.

“I know that the home crowd is going to come out and support me, and I am going to use that to my advantage at this tournament.”

Bicknell says he will enter the tournament in a good mood, after overcoming several injuries that have affected him over the past months.

“I was struggling with some injuries in the last two or three months, but I have put in the work with my team, and I am back healthy again, and so I am really looking forward to this tournament,” he said.

The tournament will be headlined by France’s Valentin Royer, ranked 78th in the world, while other top-ranked players under 150 are Brazil’s Gustavo Heide, 134th, and Spain’s Pedro Martinez, 148th.

BEST TENNIS

With those players in the line-up, Bicknell shared that he will have to produce his best tennis to make a deep run in the tournament.

“It is going to be a very tough tournament, but I am going to back myself because I always play my best tennis in Jamaica, and I am confident that it is going to be a great tournament for me,” he said.

“These players are very tough, and so it is not going to be easy. You can’t get overconfident, and so you just have to stay within yourself and go out there and give your best,” Bicknell pointed out.

Also, he underscored that there will be a lot of pressure on him, but noted that he is ready to embrace the occasion.

“There will be pressure, but pressure is a privilege; and so I would not want it any other way, because this is truly one of the best opportunities for me to put on an excellent showing for my country.”