Hayman delivers with national doubles title

Emma Hayman was in good form in Albany. Photo/File

Wanganui's teenaged tennis stars were not able to continue their success from the New Zealand Under-18 championships when they stepped out on to the big stage of Pascoes the Jewellers New Zealand Tennis Championships in Auckland over the weekend.

However, their older compatriot did not leave Albany empty-handed.

Emma Hayman teamed up with Auckland's Abigail Guthrie as the No1 seeds in the women's doubles and claimed the national title with three victories each day from Friday to yesterday.

As third seed in the women's singles, Hayman made it to the semifinals before being knocked out on Sunday morning.

Wanganui's new national U18 singles champions, Kyle Butters and Paige Hourigan, were eliminated in the second round and quarter-finals respectively of the senior men's and women's draws.

Butters won his opening match against Jack Heslin 6-1 6-4, but on Friday lost to top seed Rubin Statham 6-1 6-2.

Both Hourigan and Hayman received byes in the opening round of the senior women's draw, then sixth seed Hourigan beat Annabel Ellis 6-2 6-1 and Hayman accounted for Tuscany Hamel 6-3 6-0.

However, Hourigan's run came to an end in the quarter-finals against the fourth seeded Guthrie, losing 6-3 7-5 on Saturday morning.

Hayman continued her form by beating fifth seed Leela Beattie 6-1 6-3, but that meant she drew top seed Sacha Jones in the semifinals and lost 6-0 6-2.

Nonetheless, Hayman and Guthrie were on top in the women's doubles where after a bye in the first round they won through to yesterday afternoon's final against Hourigan and her partner Kelly Drew, the fourth seeds.

Hayman and Guthrie claimed the title with a 6-2 6-1 win.

Butters and his partner, Alexander Calder, had a bye in the first round of the men's doubles, won their second round match, but lost in the quarter-finals 6-1 6-2 to No1 seeds Adam Lee and Finn Tearney.