First doubles crown, first tiebreak at the top

The Road to THE TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP 2023

May 20 - USTA Junior Circuit Orange

May 21 - USTA Boys' and Girls' WTN (Rankings 28-34, 34-40)

May 21 - UTR Doubles 14U presented by The Beach

For the first time, a TCJC championship came down not just to record, nor to sets, nor to games, but to the third tiebreaker. It turns out that Deniz Ozenci's opening round win at the WTN Coed over Sumaer Sarangal, the first match of the day, proved to be the de facto final.

Ozenci won 7-5, but later lost in the same fashion to Julian Rinaldi. Meanwhile, every game mattered as Sarangal was busy closing out Socrates Gaunt 6-0. Sarangal did all he could relying on Rinaldi's help, but Deniz's fifth game won clinched the title for him by virtue of that earlier head-to-head victory.

The two finished with exactly the same record (3-1), sets record (3-1), and games record (24-17). Not only have we never seen it, we've never even encountered a tie for first. "Usually in these round robins, one player excels too much for a lower-ranked player to win when the silver medalist couldn't," said Tour director Michael Augsberger. "That shows the strength of the field at this tournament."

It may never be seen again. But those can also be famous last words.

Solomon Ravitz cleaned up his side of the draw without as much fanfare, but there was one thing in common with the mirrored group---the championship came down to the morning's first match. And it was a dramatic classic. Ravitz prevailed over Jon Ozenci in a tiebreak that went 11-9. That's all that came between them for first and second place.

"The bureaucrats like me love the tiebreaking paperwork finish," Augsberger said. "It's like Formula 1. But everyone loves the decisive match where they go toe to toe like Solly and Jon did."

Two girls' champions emerged from two groups at the Girls' WTN. Paisley Fromer reeled off a dominant performance, dropping only one game (to Maya Feinberg) in three matches. Cornelia Touw needed only one win to take Group A.

Despite the championship drama, the belle of the ball this weekend might rather have been the 14U UTR Doubles, at which sixteen players competed in eight teams. It was the Tour's first doubles event, a smash for team play and competitive fun. The team of Braden Walter and Nathan Shay won the title after a tight second set.

The tournament that proved most influential on the Tour Rankings, though, was Saturday's USTA 10U Orange event, a round robin that saw Shiloh Auzoux top Group A after his 6-3 win over Ethan Sank. The tournament championship propelled him to first place in the 10U Tour Rankings. Devin Leung, who won Group B's championship with only Lara Dabney forcing him to cough up any games, took an Olympic-sized high jump 43 places up to 11th.

Walter's doubles crown took him all the way up to 14th in the 12U and 16th in the 14U Rankings. "It was a conscious decision to make doubles worth as much as singles," Augsberger said. "As we hope to prepare kids for high school tennis, it's an easy incentive in the rankings." His doubles partner, Shay, made the largest improvement, a whopping 142 places.

William van Horne had the chance to defend some points at 16U in his doubles performance this weekend, but it wasn't enough to stay Jon Ozenci from claiming the No. 1 spot. Ozenci's second place finish at the WTN puts him 26 points ahead of Benjamin Constantino. He's also second in 14U and 4th in 18U, where there was less movement. Van Horne climbed into the Top 10 there despite falling to 6th at 16U.

Remember the newly added feature to the rankings: the Plus / Minus, which will tell you how far up or down the player has moved within the last week.

Champions

5/20 USTA 10U Orange: Shiloh Auzoux, Devin Leung

5/21 USTA WTN Coed: Deniz Ozenci, Solomon Ravitz

5/21 USTA WTN Girls: Cornelia Touw, Paisley Fromer

5/21 UTR 14U Doubles: Nathan Shay and Braden Walter

The full tables now look like this.

Each weekend this spring and summer, Tennis Central is bringing you USTA and UTR tournaments at Holton-Arms School. Earn points for advancing through each round, just like on the pro tours, and qualify for the TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP at season's end.

Bigger events offer more points, with the TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP offering the most, as well as prizes.

Check here for updates each week to the Tennis Central Tour Rankings, a 52-week points system based on the pro tours, as well as recaps of all the action and photos.

2023 Tour Schedule

March

Mar 18: USTA L7 Boys and Girls 12U

Mar 19: USTA L7 Boys and Girls 14U

April

Apr 8: UTR 14U - Sweet Spotter Open

Apr 16: USTA L7 Boys and Girls 12U

Apr 16: USTA L7 Boys and Girls 14U

Apr 23: UTR 14U and 16U - Potomac Spring Tennis Festival Open

Apr 29: 15U UTR - Teen World Open Classic

Apr 30: 12U UTR - Anguilla Service Trips Open

Apr 30: 10U Green Dot UTR - Anguilla Service Trips Open