Brooksby wins Orlando Open on USTA Pro Circuit

Jenson Brooksby won his second ATP Challenger title of 2021 by defeating Denis Kudla in Sunday's all-American final at the Orlando Open presented by Nemours, held at the USTA National Campus. The 20-year-old's 6-3, 6-3 victory in the title match completed a statement week in which he won all 10 sets he played, without the need for a single tiebreak.

In addition to knocking off the No. 5-seeded Kudla in the title match, Brooksby upset No. 7 seed Jason Jung of Chinese Taipei in Round 1, giving him two ATP Top-150 scalps on the week. The young American moves into the ATP's Top 200 himself with the result, up to a career-high of No. 194. 

"I knew going in that [Kudla] is a very good player. But I was feeling confident and staying physical to the forehand," Brooksby told ATPTour.com after the final. "I tried to move him around and keep the ball low. He likes to attack as well, but I think I did a good job of stopping him today. He wasn't in rhythm and I think I caused that."

Brooksby missed the entire 2020 season with a toe injury—including the pandemic-shortened spring NCAA Division I season, during which he was on the Baylor University men's roster, but never competed. After starting the 2021 season outside the Top 300, a February Challenger victory in Potchefstroom, South Africa, got him back on track. In March, he reached the final of the Cleveland Open, another USTA Pro Circuit event, before notching a first-round qualifying victory at the Miami Open, defeating another Top 150 player in Switzerland's Henri Laaksonen.

Despite just cracking the Top 200, Brooksby has already competed at the US Open twice. In 2018, he earned a spot in the men's singles main draw by winning the USTA Boys' National Championships in Kalamazoo, Michigan. In 2019, he made the most of a qualifying wild card, winning three matches to get into the main draw and then scoring the win of his young career by defeating former world No. 4 Tomas Berdych in Round 1.

After such an eventful start to his career, Brooksby's return to form has many wondering anew how far he can go. But behind the scenes, the Sacramento, California, native is staying grounded with the help of his team, which is headed by coach Nick Bezzubchenko.

"The mindset I have and the mindset of my team is not looking at the ranking. We don't read into any of that stuff," Brooksby told ATPTour.com. "It's just about taking it day-by-day and doing what's in my control to get better. The results will take care of themselves. I'm happy with the year so far and I'm happy to make such big progress, especially after a tough 2020 for me. I'm focusing on the right things consistently and I know I'll keep getting better."

In the Orlando doubles tournament, Jack Sock and Mitchell Krueger defeated Christian Harrison and Dennis Novikov, 4-6, 7-5, [13-11], in the final on Saturday. The champions did not drop a set in three victories en route to the final. Roles were reversed in the singles quarterfinals, where Harrison defeated Sock, 7-6, 6-3, before falling to Brooksby in the semis.

For complete scores and draws from the Orlando Open, visit the Pro Circuit men's calendar page.