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Bhambri, Boserup win Dunlop Orange Bowl 18s titles

By Andrew Labovitz, special to USTA.com

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- While this year’s Dunlop Orange Bowl has been a coronation of sorts for many of America’s top junior players, India’s Yuki Bhambri reminded everyone that there’s still an enormous amount of international talent to be reckoned with, as he stormed to the Boys’ 18s on Sunday at the Crandon Park Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, Fla. Meanwhile, 17-year-old wild card Julia Boserup of Boca Raton, Fla., displayed some overpowering tennis as she took the Girls’ 18s singles title.

Bhambri, a talented 16-year-old, became the first player from India to ever win the Dunlop Orange Bowl, as the No. 2 seed exhibited remarkable consistency in defeating 18-year-old Jarmere Jenkins of College Park, Ga., 6-1, 6-3. Jenkins - who’d been an incredibly hot player entering the match and at times this week left the impression that there wasn’t a shot he couldn’t hit - was unable to find any sort of rhythm against Bhambri, the No. 4 player in the ITF World Junior Rankings. Bhambri, known as extremely heady player, demonstrated incredible shot-making ability, as he executed a wide variety of baseline winners, drop shots and lobs to keep Jenkins off balance.

“It feels really great, and it’s an honor to be the first player from India to win this title,” said Bhambri, who also won an ITF Grade A event in October at the Osaka Mayor’s Cup in Japan. “Jarmere’s played some unbelievable tennis this week, and he’s so quick on the court that I just needed to execute my shots and try my best to keep him off balance.”

Both Bhambri and Jenkins were also contesting the doubles final, as Bhambri attempted to sweep the Boys’ 18s singles and doubles titles for the first time since Mariano Zabaleta of Argentina in 1995. Jenkins, however, wasn’t about to let that happen, as he and partner Devin Britton of Jackson, Miss., pulled out a very tight first set against Bhambri and Chase Buchanan of New Albany, Ohio, and then rolled to victory, 7-6(9), 6-2. It was the second international title in as many weeks for Britton and Jenkins, who also won the Boys’ 18s doubles title at the Eddie Herr International last week.

In the Girls’ 18s draw, Boserup survived an incredibly topsy-turvy matchup against a fellow wild card, 16-year-old Christina McHale of Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 6-4, 2-6, 6-3. The close match was not surprising to many, as the two girls train together at the USTA Player Development Facility in Boca Raton, Fla., and know each other’s games very well. Boserup unleashed her trademark powerful groundstrokes and ran McHale all over the court. But McHale, who’s quickly developing a reputation as a fighter, displayed unyielding defense and even some power of her own as she roared back to take the second set. But Boserup restored order just as quickly, scoring an early break to go up 2-0 in the third set and then rolling to the victory, her first in international competition. It was the first time two Americans had met in the Girls’ 18s final since 1975, when Lynn Epstein defeated Sheila McInerney

“This is such an incredible feeling, I don’t want to put this bowl of oranges down,” exclaimed Boserup afterwards. “Christina’s so strong mentally, and I have such respect for her and her game. I just tried to pick my spots and go for the angles when I had an opening. This is really special for me, being my first ITF win, and for it to be at a Grade A at the Orange Bowl… It’s just an awesome feeling.”

In the Girls’ 18s doubles final, 17-year-olds Lauren Embree of Marco Island, Fla., and Asia Muhammad of Henderson, Nev., controlled the match from start to finish to defeat 16-year-olds Brooke Bolender of Delray Beach, Fla., and Beatrice Capra of Ellicott City, Md., 6-3, 6-2. Embree and Muhammad were dominant at net, and Bolender and Capra were never really able to force their opponents back toward the baseline. Embree and Muhammad hadn’t played together in well over a year, but the pairing continues to be a success. The last time they paired together, they reached the final of the USTA Girls’ 18s National Championships in August, 2007.

But the story this week was unquestionably the success of the Americans, who captured six of the eight contested titles here this week, led by the American girls, who took all four titles at the Dunlop Orange Bowl. While one can’t predict the future, this week’s results certainly bode well for the outlook of American tennis.

62nd Annual Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships
Crandon Park Tennis Center
Key Biscayne, Florida
December 7-14, 2008

Final Results

Boys’ 18s Singles – Final
(2) Yuki Bhambri, India, def. Jarmere Jenkins, College Park, Ga., 6-1, 6-3

Girls’ 18s Singles – Final
WC-Julia Boserup, Boca Raton, Fla., def. WC-Christina McHale, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 6-4, 2-6, 6-3

Boys’ 18s Doubles – Final
(7) Devin Britton, Jackson, Miss., and Jenkins, def. (1) Bhambri and Chase Buchanan, New Albany, Ohio, 7-6(7), 6-2

Girls’ 18s Doubles – Final
Lauren Embree, Marco Island, Fla., and Asia Muhammad, Henderson, Nev., def. Brooke Bolender, Delray Beach, Fla., and Beatrice Capra, Ellicott City, Md., 6-3, 6-2

Boys’ 16s Singles – Final
(1) Denis Kudla, Arlington, Va., def. (12) Mitchell Frank, Annandale, Va., 6-0, 6-2

Girls’ 16s Singles – Final
Chanelle Van Nguyen, Miami def. (3) Madison Keys, Boca Raton, Fla., 6-3, 5-7, 6-4

Boys’ 16s Doubles – Final
(4) Diego Acosta and Roberto Quiroz, Ecuador, def. (1) Kudla and Junior Ore, Gaithersburg, Md., 6-3, 6-2

Girls’ 16s Doubles – Final
Lauren Herring, Greenville, N.C., and Grace Min, Lawrenceville, Ga., def. (2) Marianne Jodoin, Canada, and Emi Mutaguchi, Japan, W/O

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