©Colette Lewis 2024--
Plantation FL--
Saturday's conditions, with sustained winds of 20 mph and gusts to 35 mph, proved challenging for players and spectators of the Orange Bowl 16s finals and the J500 semifinals and doubles finals, with rain delays before the start and during the first round of matches adding even more complications.
Yet the champions' bowls of oranges were distributed as scheduled, and the participants in the 18s singles final were determined by late afternoon at the Veltri Tennis Center.
Sunday's boys final will feature two unseeded players, but they are by no means surprises. Seventeen-year-old Andres Santamarta Roig of Spain, who defeated No. 14 seed Nathan Trouve of France 6-2, 6-2 to close out Saturday's action, won the
J300 last week in Bradenton, while 15-year-old Moise Kouame of France had already made a name for himself as a quarterfinalist at the Roland Garros Junior championships this year. Kouame defeated No. 13 seed Jack Kennedy, the last American still in contention for a title, 7-5, 6-3.
Santamarta said his motivation for playing these past two weeks was not related to the ATP Accelerator Program, with Top 20 in the year-end rankings earning Challenger wild cards, but rather just setting himself up for a push in 2025, his final year in juniors.
"I don't think about the rankings, I just play and that's it, said Santamarta currently at a career-high 29 in the ITF junior rankings after his title last Sunday. "Some boys follow the rankings every single day, but I don't. It's not the most important part of tennis. Me and my coach thought we could have a better ranking for Futures and those kind of tournaments, but I don't know, we came here to do our best and we're doing really good and I'm happy."
Santamarta, who will join Thiago Tirante(2019), Miomir Kecmanovic(2016) and Dominic Thiem(2011) as back-to-back Eddie Herr/Orange Bowl champions should he win Sunday, admitted that the conditions since Thursday have not been conducive to high level tennis.
"The past three days have been really bad for tennis," said Santamarta, who agreed he was playing some the best tennis of his life in this 11-match winning streak. "It's tough to play tennis like that, I tried to play not so strong, with more margin I think. There's nothing key or special to do, just focus and play. But I'm just happy and really excited to play in the final tomorrow."
Kouame trailed Kennedy 3-1 in the second set, but didn't consider that as a reason to anticipate a third set.
"I tried to stay in the moment, tried to stay in the present, not focusing on 'I'm losing, I'm winning,'" said Kouame, who had been on the road since competing in the Junior Davis Cup in Turkey November 11-17. "Just focus on my game, on my serve, on my return, on my forehands and it worked, and I hope tomorrow it will work also. He's a very good opponent, but I know what I am capable to do and it's going to be a good fight, and I will enjoy it."
Should he win on Sunday, Kouame will be the youngest Orange Bowl champion ever, eclipsing Francis Tiafoe, who was 15 years 11 months old when he claimed the title in 2013. Kouame, who turns 16 in March, said he is happy to have a chance at that record.
"It matters of course, because I want to break records," Kouame said. "But I don't want to focus too much on that. I want to focus on being happy on the court, playing my game, and we will see tomorrow."
Santamarta is not the only player in Sunday's final to have had two grueling weeks, with No. 8 seed Tereza Krejcova of the Czech Republic, who lost in the J300 Bradenton final, earning a second chance this week with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 win over defending champion Hannah Klugman of Great Britain.
Krejcova had defeated Klugman 6-4, 6-4 in the second round of the US Open Junior championships in September.
"Hannah is a very good player, but the wind was crazy today," said Krejcova, who somehow managed to serve effectively in the final set despite every ball toss being an adventure. "I tried to play aggressive. That's my game, so I just keep playing it."
Krejcova faces the J500 Merida champion Elizara Yaneva of Bulgaria, who played the toughest match of her 11-match winning streak today against unseeded 15-year-old Ksenia Efremova of France, pulling out a 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-6(3) victory in just under three hours.
The match's duration probably exceeded that of her first three matches, in which she lost just two games, but then the skies opened.
"I started really well and then it rained," said the 17-year-old, who led 6-1, 1-0 when the brief but drenching rain made the courts unplayable for around 35 minutes. "She started playing better, I missed a few balls and then the match got tighter. It was really close, long points, but I think we both played really well."
Yaneva needed all her mental strength to find the right balance in the late stages of the third set, after she had served for the match at 5-4, but did not get to match point, saving the first break point but not the second. After two routine holds, the tiebreaker immediately went in Yaneva's favor, and she led 5-1 at the change of ends. After Efremova won the next two points, the girls engaged in a furious rally on penetrating ground strokes, with Efremova finally missing a backhand into the net to earn three match points. She converted the first, when Efremova's backhand went long.
"I told myself to play with, not too much risk, but not no risk," said Yaneva, who would be the first Bulgarian girl to earn an ITF Orange Bowl title if she wins tomorrow. "I'm happy at the end that I could win somehow."
Jordan Lee is also in rare company, joining Sam Riffice (2014) and Grigor Dimitrov(2006) in capturing both the Eddie Herr/IMG Academy and Orange Bowl boys 16s titles in the same year.
The 14-year-old from Orlando didn't drop a set in his 12 victories in the past 13 days, and he was at his most impressive in today's final against Ford McColllum, earning a 6-1, 6-2 victory.
The wind was particularly strong on the two show courts, with the tents for spectators groaning and flapping in a particularly fierce gust. Although he didn't appear fazed by it, Lee admitted that even after three days of these conditions, he wasn't prepared for this escalation.
"Conditions were much worse today than all the other days," Lee said. "It was probably one of the toughest matches I've played all year, because of the conditions. It was really tough to serve, to play honestly. It was nuts."
Lee said he focused on his footwork to try counteract all the havoc the wind was causing.
"I had to move my feet a lot more," Lee said. "Not necessarily being more intense, but more movement in general. And the serve. If you toss the ball too high, the ball's just going to go everywhere. I adjusted it to be a little lower, so I could get up on it quicker."
McCollum was hopeful that the rain delay, which came when he was serving at 1-1 30-40 in the second set, would change the tenor of the match.
"Props to Jordan on a very, very solid match the whole time," said the 16-year-old from Los Angeles, who claimed the 16s doubles title Friday. "Even with the rain delay, he was playing just as solid. I was down break point when the rain delay happened, so obviously I had to play a good point, and I thought maybe I could get a loose point to start. I actually thought I played a little bit better after the rain, but his level, he raised it and it was too good from him, I guess."
With appearances in eight finals this year, Lee could be forgiven if even the Orange Bowl feels like a routine match, but he admitted to nerves on Friday night.
"I get a lot of butterflies, especially last night," said Lee, who is coached by the USTA's Sylvain Guichard at the National Campus. "Last night I was really nervous, but the day of the match, as the match gets closer and closer, I just feel more relaxed. I know what I'm capable of doing and I trust myself on the court."
Since losing in the semifinals of the Junior Orange Bowl 14s last year, Lee said the major strides he has made since then have been more mental than physical.
"It was more a mentality thing, my game was there," Lee said. "It was just strengthening my mental side. I just had to keep working. And think that's something I really improved."
Lee, who is taking some time off before returning to the ITF Junior Circuit in 2025, will celebrate with his brothers and indulge in some ice cream, although it won't be his favorite flavor, Stracciatella, a gelato he discovered while on his European tennis trips.
"They don't sell it in the U.S., but here, I like strawberry," Lee said.
History was made in the girls final, with Xiaotong (Bella) Wang the first girl from China to claim an Orange Bowl title.
Wang won the last 11 games of her semifinal win over Sophie Triquart of Germany Friday and the first nine games in her 6-0, 6-1 win over unseeded Kaia Giribalan of the United States, leaving the memory of her first round loss last week at the IMG Academy tournament far behind.
Wang made almost no unforced errors in the opening set, while Giribalan was struggling to get even a game point. That didn't mean the points and games were short however, with the first two games taking 17 minutes, with lengthy rallies as the girls tried to gauge the wind.
Giribalan took a bathroom break after the 40-minute set, but that didn't affect Wang, who took the opportunity to take some serves while Giribalan was away from the court. They had not completed the first game of the second set when the rain shower delayed play, but Wang continued to minimize errors as Giribalan struggled to find her form. Giribalan got on the scoreboard with a hold for 3-1, but could not convert a rare game point serving at 1-4 and Wang closed out the championship as the wind roared.
"At the end I was so nervous," said Wang, a 15-year-old who trains in Barcelona and China, and was flying back to her home country after a few hours of sightingseeing in Miami. "Yesterday night I was so nervous too. But I just keep focus."
Wang was not aware that she was making history with her title, but is already planning to return to compete in the 18s in 2025.
"I am so happy to win the Orange Bowl," Wang said. "Next year I am coming back to play, for sure. My coach and family are very happy and we will celebrate, maybe eat together."
Giribalan acknowledged Wang's superior play, but admitted to being off her game due to the conditions.
"The conditions were definitely rough too," said Giribalan, a 16-year-old left-hander who trains at the Evert Tennis Academy. "It was definitely worse, and it was gusty all over the place. But credit to my opponent, she played extremely well. She had a good first serve and she's consistent with it. She's very consistent. Maybe it wasn't my best day, but I'll definitely come back and be stronger."
The rain delay also didn't help Giribalan with the nerves she had set aside after a few games.
"Stopping is never fun," said Giribalan, who also reached the doubles final this week. "But I tried to change my strategy to be a little bit more aggressive, but it wasn't really working for me today."
Giribalan is not playing the Winter Nationals later this month, taking a vacation before starting 2025 by competing in UTR Professional Tennis Tour events and traveling on the ITF Junior Circuit.
The ITF doubles finals also produced historic wins, with unseeded Deniz Dilek of Turkey and Beatrise Zeltina of Latvia not only stopping the winning streak of No. 2 seeds Jana and Alena Kovackova of the Czech Republic, but claiming the first Orange Bowl titles for their countries (doubles records go back only to 1993, not 1947, as with singles).
Dilek and Zeltina were aware that they were facing a team that had won their last four tournaments and 22-straight matches, and could not quite pinpoint how they were able to end that streak for a 2-6, 6-4, 10-6 win.
"I don't know how, but I think we were really positive on court' we were laughing on court, making fun jokes and playing point by point," said Zeltina, 17. "That's the key for the match, for the whole week, actually," added Dilek, also 17.
After breaking late in the second set, Zeltina and Dilek got off to a good start in the match tiebreaker, but the Kovackovas won four straight points from 6-2 to 6-all to seize the momentum
"It was a little bit panic," Dilek said, "when I'm hitting a second serve at 6-all."
But the next four points went to the underdogs, keeping their record as a team unblemished after winning a J200 in Switzerland in their only other tournament together.
"It's crazy," said Dilek. "We're going to play grand slams next year and we want to have these results." "This is a big tournament, a big win," Zeltina said.
Boys doubles champions Timofei Derepasko of Russia and Amir Omarkhanov of Kazakhstan have added a second J500 title in the past three weeks, with the Merida champions claiming the winners' bowl of oranges with a 3-6, 6-1, 10-1 victory over unseeded Henry Bernet of Switzerland and Denis Petak of the Czech Republic.
The No. 5 seeds got off to a slow start, but found their rhythm early in the second set.
"I was nervous and shaky in the first set," said the 17-year-old Omarkhanov. "He supported me and we started playing much better, how we were playing in previous days."
"We didn't play that aggressive, didn't have energy in first set, but still we have our chances," said the 17-year-old Derepasko, who has won three J500 doubles titles this year. "In the second set, we kept calm and more focused, and the result is here."
Once they found that level, it didn't drop, dominating the tiebreaker, the only one they played throughout the week.
"From the beginning until the last point, we were very focused, played very good," Derepasko said. "We were going to the net, returning perfectly, were serving perfect."
Omarkhanov and Derepasko, who reached the semifinals at Roland Garros this year, are looking forward to competing as a team in Australia next month.
Omarkhanov is the first Orange Bowl champion from Kazakhstan.
With a slight chance of rain in the forecast, the singles finals will be held concurrently at 10 a.m., on the two stadium courts of the Veltri Tennis Center.
Live scoring is here:
