More than 90 youngsters from 26 countries will compete for world ranking points at the tenth Bank of Bermuda Foundation ITF Tournament at the WER Joell Tennis Stadium.

The annual tournament, which starts today, features about 20 Bermuda players including United States-based Tyler Smith, who is seeded No 5 in the girls’ under-18 division.

Smith won in the girls’ under-18 doubles final in last year’s tournament playing alongside Mingxiu Du of China. The 17-year-old, a former Caribbean under-13 champion, also claimed gold in the women’s singles at last summer’s NatWest Island Games.

Lambert, the Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association vice-president, is confident that Smith will be challenging again for honour this year.

“She will go into this year’s tournament with a girls’ doubles victory behind her,” Lambert said. “She should have a lot of confidence and she’s playing well. Last year, she also won the gold the Island Games and also held her own not too long ago at the Fed Cup in Puerto Rico. Hopefully she should have a good tournament.

“There are other good players in her division like Elysse Graci [of the United States] who is ranked 287 in the world and was runner-up last year.”

Other Bermuda youngsters involved in the tournament are Luke Sterling, Billy Boyle and Nick Lines, who will be competing in a boys’ under-14 division featuring 20 players, with eight girls taking part in the under-14 category.

There will be 32 players in each of the girls’ and boys’ under-18 divisions.

Coleridge Place, the Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association president, said that in the absence of the XL Open, which was last staged in Bermuda in 2008, the tournament was the biggest in the local calendar.

“It’s great to have a tournament like this right here in Bermuda,” he said. “For many of the youngsters coming from overseas this tournament will be a life-changing experience.

“And for many of our Bermudian players it will be their first taste of international world ranking exposure.”

“With Bermuda no longer having the XL Open this is by far the biggest tennis tournament held on the Island.”

The tournament’s opening ceremony will be held at 4pm on Sunday at the WER Joell Tennis Stadium.

Matches start each day at 10am with free admission for spectators.