Townsend Wins USTA French Open Wild Card Race; Latest Inside Tennis with The Koz

Brady, Polansky Win Florida USTA Pro Circuit Events; Townsend Wins French Open Wild Card

Jennifer Brady

Jennifer Brady beat Taylor Townsend 6-3, 7-5 in the all-American final of the $75,000 Revolution Technologies Pro Tennis Classic in Indian Harbour Beach, Fla., on Sunday, but there were actually two winners in the final.

Townsend, while on the losing end of the tournament final, earned enough points to capture the USTA’s USTA Pro Circuit Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge and will play in the main draw of the 2016 French Open. In addition to the Indian Harbour Beach final, she won the USTA Pro Circuit title in Charlottesville, Vir., and reached the final at Dothan, Ala.

Brady, in addition to raising the title, will see her ranking rise into the Top 150 and will have a good deal of confidence going into the qualifying at the French Open.

“The last game of the match was very tense,” Brady told Florida Today. “I wasn’t playing aggressive and she took advantage of that. I told myself I had to go after it and win it, and I did.”

Townsend’s ranking will rise into the Top 200. It will be her third appearance in the main draw at Roland Garros after reaching the third round in 2014, upsetting No. 21-ranked Alize Cornet, and falling in the first round last year.

In the doubles final Americans Jessica Pegula and Maria Sanchez fell to Julia Glushko of Israel and Alexandra Panova of Russia 7-5, 6-4.

Tampa and the Harbour Island Athletic Club & Spa hosted a $10,000 USTA Pro Circuit event last week, where Canadian Peter Polansky defeated Roberto Quiroz of Ecuador 7-5, 6-3 in the final, the 27-year-old’s first title since 2013.

Quiroz then teamed with countryman Gonzalo Escobar to win the doubles title, beating last week’s Vero Beach champions Jonas Luetjen of Germany and Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia 6-4, 7-6(4).

Get Up Close with Players on This Week’s ‘Inside Tennis with The Koz’

This week’s “Inside Tennis with The Koz” features the Miami Open and the USTA Pro Circuit event The Wilde Lexus Women’s Open at the Oaks Club in Osprey, Fla.

The show will also spotlight coaches and players Nick Bollettieri, Kei Nishikori, Jack Sock, Tim Smyczek, Aggie Radwanska, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Heather Watson, Madison Brengle, Lara Arruabarrena, Taylor Townsend, Asia Muhammad, Katerina Stewart, Louisa Chirico, Maria Skkari, Rebecca Peterson, Jamie Loeb and Ingrid Neel.

USTA Florida Director of Marketing & Membership Laura Bowen discusses junior tennis participation in Florida, and The Koz chats with tennis journalists Richard Evans, Bill Rompf, Jim Martz and Mic Huber.

Inside Tennis with The Koz presented by BMW of Sarasota airs every Saturday at 2:30 p.m. on SNN TV on the Suncoast of Florida, or watch the latest episode below.