Special from
Zoo Tennis
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WIMBLEDON - The 2022 Wimbledon Junior Championships were out of the ordinary in two ways: no ITF points were awarded for competing and not a drop of rain fell during the eight days of the tournament.
Americans blossomed in the abundant sun, with top seed Liv Hovde claiming the girls singles title, unseeded Michael Zheng dropping a close match to Croatia's Mili Poljicak in the boys singles final, and the unseeded team of Sebastian Gorzny and Alex Michelsen hoisting the boys doubles trophy.
Wimbledon Girls Singles Champion Liv Hovde
© Paul Ballard
Both the US titles entailed saving match points. Hovde's escape is now a part of junior lore, with the Hawkeye Challenge system her savior in the third round against No. 13 seed Kayla Cross of Canada. Serving at 6-4, 5-4, 40-30, Cross heard the baseline judge call out on Hovde's forehand, and began celebrating her victory. Although many junior courts did not feature it, Hovde had access to the Hawkeye Challenge system on Court 8, so she asked that her shot be reviewed. The animation showed the ball on the line, Hovde was awarded the point, and after a drop shot winner and a double fault from Cross, the score was 5-all.
"I was hoping I had another challenge and I did," said the 16-year-old from McKinney, Texas, who went on to claim a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory. "It was crazy that the ball ended up being in after it was called out, so it was very fortunate. It's crazy to think about if I was on a court without [Hawkeye]."
