Steven. Wrote a similar Qualifiers summary to yours and posted it a few minutes after yours as a new thread (didn't check)! Will now figure out how to delete my earlier posting. Here's the commentary.

If rankings prevail, Liam needs to beat WR 444 then Mitchell Krueger to qualify!

Once again James is drawn in the same section as another Brit, this time with Luke. If rankings prevail, after they play each other in Q3, the winner would need to beat WR 518 to qualify!

If rankings prevail Kyle would need to beat WR 736 in Q3 (which is tough as he's still in QF MD action this week, so should work out better with alternate), then WR 566 to qualify! Having played 6 matches in 7 days already, to qualify would mean 10 matches in 11 days, with 9 wins, for 1 ranking point, and then the prospect of 1 point per win for his next 2 matches.

Looks like only James is staying on for the week 5 tournament (which would be the 4th in the series).

I know it's more about the "process", the experience, and the learnings for all 4 boys at this stage, but ranking points DO also matter as part of the overall objectives for them in 2013 - from both a confidence and a "qualifiers avoidance later in the year" perspective you'd think that it would be important for them all to come away with more than 1 or 2 points each from 3 or 4 weeks. At this point, even that could be tough for some.

We shall see!

korriban - to delete a post, you click on the More dropdown on the top right of the post then click Delete, but possibly only mod can do that (I just have)

Thanks for your summary of possibilities in the later rounds - I didn't have time to do it when I posted the QR1 pairings and yours is a lot better than mine would have been anyway

Bob - I've also had the problem you mentioned on the deleted thread (i.e. threads remaining bold after you have read them) this morning - in fact, for about half an hour it was even showing there were updates then not showing me the posts concerned when I clicked into the thread. It has happened a couple of times before then sorted itself out so I think it is just a temporary problem this time too.

I agree with both of you that while this might be giving them good experience, in the end the need for ranking points can't just be dismissed. Then again, given a choice between this event and AO juniors for Kyle, if he had gone to AO juniors, he would get no ATP points at all, so compared to that, playing here is better on both counts, i.e. both in terms of potential points and experience.

steven wrote:

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I agree with both of you that while this might be giving them good experience, in the end the need for ranking points can't just be dismissed. Then again, given a choice between this event and AO juniors for Kyle, if he had gone to AO juniors, he would get no ATP points at all, so compared to that, playing here is better on both counts, i.e. both in terms of potential points and experience.

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 I trust that you did not mean to phrase it like this.  The comparison on potential points is factually correct but any attempt to assess experience can only be made subjectively. Playing Futures and the Australian Open juniors both give experience which may be helpful for a Pro career, and while you can assert that you think one to be more valuable than the other, it is an opinion rather than a fact

I hope the Liam situation isn't serious. He seems to be picking up a few injuries at the moment.

Good battling wins from the others, particularly Luke - seems like a real nail biter. A potential Luke v Marzi match up in the 3rd round qualies ? I also notice that the other seed in Kyle's section went out yesterday.  Let's hope he is in for another long week.

-- Edited by Bob in Spain on Saturday 12th of January 2013 07:26:02 PM

And here I was thinking Bob was no longer in Spain. :)

QR2: Luke Bambridge WR 797 lost to Moritz Buerchner (GER) UNR 3-6 1-6
QR2: (q12) James Marsalek WR 616 beat Zhang Zhizhen (CHN) WR 1853 6-3 6-3
QR2: (q9) Kyle Edmund WR 571 beat Christian Langmo (USA) UNR 6-3 6-3

QR3: (q12) James Marsalek WR 616 vs Moritz Buerchner (GER) UNR
QR3: (q9) Kyle Edmund WR 571 vs Lukas Koncilia (AUT) 1120

So that's now 2 through, and 2 out with 2 further rounds of qualifying left!

Luke took a bit of a hiding from the scoreline.

Kyle took his 7th straight set win in 8 matches over 9 days for just 1 ranking point!! This is starting to annoy me now.

Its worth putting Kyle's playing level into perspective.......Crivoi, who beat him in 3 sets on Thursday in the L16 at Plantation has now reached the final. As mentioned on the Plantation thread, Crivoi was significantly under-ranked at 276, given he had missed over 2 months at the start of 2012 with injury. He had a number of wins over top 200 players throughout 2012 in both Challenger and ATP level events, also winning his last 3 futures tournaments in a row (incl 2 $15ks) before another injury retirement in late November. A win in Plantation, therefore, would effectively be 4 tournament wins in his last 4 completed futures.

If Kyle does get through qualies again, let's have Crivoi on the other side of the draw please!!!!

-- Edited by korriban on Saturday 12th of January 2013 10:39:38 PM

I have a feeling Alex will end up missing this one as well. Haven't heard for sure tho