News & Features

by Colette Lewis, 19 December 2024

Special from Zoo Tennis

PLANTATION, Fla.–Jordan Lee and Xiaotong Wang traveled from the IMG Academy International Championships in Bradenton to the Orange Bowl in Plantation with completely different perspectives, but both emerged with the winner's crystal bowl of oranges last Saturday at the Veltri Tennis Center.

Floridian Lee completed the junior version of the Sunshine Double, capping his fortnight with a second straight title, the first boy to accomplish that since Sam Riffice in 2014. In contrast, Wang had lost her first round match to eventual champion Hanne Estrada in Bradenton, but didn't drop a set in securing the first Orange Bowl title for a player from China.

Seeded No. 2, Lee picked up right where he left off, winning his 12th consecutive match in straight sets with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Californian Ford McCollum, the fifth seed, in the final. McCollum had advanced to the championship match with a 6-3, 4-1, retired decision over top seed and doubles partner Zavier Augustin, while Lee defeated No. 9 seed William Zhang 6-4, 6-2 in the other all-USA semifinal.

The third consecutive day of winds over 20 mph made every shot an adventure in the championship match, but Lee was able to adjust, both mentally and physically. The wind was particularly strong on Veltri's two show courts, with the tents for spectators groaning and flapping in a particularly fierce gust.

"Conditions were much worse today than all the other days," said the 14-year-old from Orlando. "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 focusing on his footwork helped 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 a 35-minute rain delay, which came when he was serving at 1-1, 30-40 in the second set, might 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. "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 championship felt like a routine match, but he admitted to nerves on Friday night.

"I got 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," said Lee, who led the USA's 14-and-under team to the ITF World Junior Tennis title in August. "It was just strengthening my mental side. I just had to keep working. And I 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.

Girls champion Wang trains in Barcelona and China, so her first encounter with Florida's green clay was the loss to Estrada in Bradenton. The No. 4 seed proved a quick study, especially heading into the weekend, taking 20 straight games to conclude her semifinal with No. 9 seed Sophie Triquart of Germany and start her final with unseeded Kaia Giribalan of the United States.

Wang trailed Triquart 5-1 before posting a 7-5, 6-0 victory, then went up 6-0, 3-0 in her 6-0, 6-1 win over Giribalan in the final.

Giribalan had gone on a run of her own after taking out top seed Estrada 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 in the quarterfinals, and blanking unseeded compatriot Sarah Ye in the first set of her 6-0, 6-2 semifinal win.

Wang made almost no unforced errors in the opening set, while Giribalan was struggling to reach a game point. That didn't mean the points were short however, with the first two games taking 17 minutes due to the lengthy rallies.

Giribalan took a bathroom break after the 40-minute set, but that didn't faze Wang, who took the opportunity to take some serves while Giribalan was away from the court. The first game of the second set had not concluded 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, with Wang closing out the championship on serve as the wind roared.

"At the end I was so nervous," said the 15-year-old Wang."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 a return trip to Florida 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 weather.

"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."

DOUBLES

Both Orange Bowl 16s doubles champions started their partnerships off with a bang, capturing the coveted title in their first tournament as a team.

Top seeds McCollum and Augustin defeated No. 2 seeds Samim Filiz of Turkey and Jerrid Gaines Jr. of the United States 6-4, 6-2 to take the boys title.

"This was probably our best match today," said McCollum, noting that they had advanced in their previous three matches by winning match tiebreakers. "We probably could have closed out those matches a little better, but we played well in the breakers."

Augustin attributed their success in Friday's final to effective serving.

"We served really, really well," said Augustin, a 16-year-old from New York. "We did not miss a first serve. We also stayed in our cross rallies really well, so we let the baseline guy do his job."

"We definitely played better together as a team than the other days," McCollum said. "Trusting each other better and allowing ourselves to play our shots rather than rushing points."

"I loved playing with Ford, it was really fun, and it's something I'll never forget," said Augustin, who had retired in his singles semifinal match with Ford earlier in the day. "We weren't stressed out and I enjoyed every moment. But I'm very, very tired, exhausted, and I really want to just rest."

No. 4 seeds Montserrat Marron of Mexico and Nicole Okhtenberg of the United States earned their winner's bowl of oranges with a 2-6, 6-2, 10-7 victory over No. 3 seeds Giribalan and Isabelle DeLuccia of the United States, with the 16-year-olds making the most of their last-minute partnership.

"We decided to play doubles like a day before the tournament," said Okhtenberg, who knew Marron only as a fellow competitor in ITF tournaments. "Both of our partners had canceled."

"It was just meant to be," said Marron.

The match tiebreaker in the final was the third in their five victories, so they were comfortable under that pressure.

"It helped that we had played a few tiebreaks before," said Marron. "So the nervousness, it wasn't a new feeling, and we were able to come through."

"We were laughing most of the time, happy, so that helped," Okhtenberg said.

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About Colette Lewis

Colette Lewis has covered topflight U.S. and international junior events as a freelance journalist for over a decade. Her work has appeared in Tennis magazine, the Tennis Championships magazine and the US Open program. Lewis is active on Twitter, and she writes a weekly column right here at TennisRecruiting.net. She was named Junior Tennis Champion for 2016 by Tennis Industry Magazine.

Lewis, based out of Kalamazoo, Michigan, has seen every National Championship final played since 1977, and her work on the tournament's ustaboys.com website led her to establish ZooTennis, where she comments on junior and college tennis daily.