THREE juniors due to represent Great Britain at the world-renowned Les Petits As tournament in France next week have warmed up at a competition in Bolton.

Sam Ferguson, Jay Clarke and Tiran Sanghera were all entered into the boys under-14 main draw at the AEGON Junior International Teen Tennis event.

The trio, all 13 and from Derbyshire, will travel to Tarbes, in south-western France, for Les Petits As – where previous competitors have included the world's top four men's players, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray, when they were juniors.

In the Tennis Europe tournament, at Bolton Arena, Sanghera lost 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 in the first round to Spanish qualifier Ignacio Pinedo Tejada.

Clarke, seeded 10th, received a bye in the opening round and won his second-round match against another Spanish qualifier, Alex Dominguez Soto, 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-2.

But he missed out on a spot in the quarter-finals when losing 6-4, 6-4 to William Blumberg, of America.

Ferguson – who, along with Clarke, has been nominated for the boys' player of the year at the Derbyshire Tennis Awards next month – was the ninth seed and also given a first-round bye.

He then beat Frenchman Louis Tessa 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-2 and, in the third round, enjoyed a 6-2, 6-4 victory over fellow Brit Alexis Canter.

But Ferguson was unable to reach the semi-finals, losing 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to third seed Michael Mmoh, of America.

The three will now join 128 boys from 51 nations competing at Les Petits As – which is considered the European equivalent of the famous Orange Bowl, in Florida. It runs from January 23-29.