Doubles partnership a hit on court

YOUNG tennis star Jarrod Joyce is smashing his way through a string of International Tennis Federation tournaments.

The 17-year-old Damascus College year 11 student won the recent ITF J60 Gold Coast International title for doubles players under 18 with his tennis partner, and friend from Queensland, Marcus Schoeman.

“It was so much fun,” he said. “We snuck through in the final. We were down a set but we fought back and won in the end which was pretty exciting.

“It’s an international tournament, and in the final we played a guy from Türkiye. You get a lot of Europeans coming down to play.

“It was an awesome tournament, and it’s always nice weather to play in.”

Joyce and Schoeman also played together at last week’s Queensland Junior International.

“Marcus and I have been playing together for a while now,” Joyce said. “We just decided to play with each other, and are competing for Australia, and ourselves at the same time.”

But Joyce isn’t just getting on court with his partner, he’s playing singles as well.

“I lost in the semi-final of the Queensland Junior International singles, six-four in the third set,” he said.

Joyce has two more ITF tournaments coming up in Sydney, and has played in Melbourne and Canberra in recent months.

“In the tournament in Melbourne, I won the doubles and lost in the final of the singles,” he said.

With a dad that’s a tennis coach, Joyce has been playing the sport his whole life, whether in the backyard or on court.

“I’ve had a racket in my hand since I was born,” he said. “I train every day pretty much.

“I train at home with dad, at Buninyong Tennis Centre, and I go down to Melbourne to train at the National Tennis Centre.

“I love competing, getting out there, being in pressure situations… I love the game so much.”

Joyce is aiming to get his ranking points up to play at the junior Australian Open 2024, and more Grand Slams.