Self-applied pressure, nagging elbow pain and one tough opponent combined to eliminate a local favorite from the USTA Southern Closed 16s Championships at Rebsamen Tennis Center on Tuesday.
Brandon Freestone, 15, of Roswell, Ga., rolled from the start in his Round of 16 match with Max Mendelsohn, 15, of Little Rock. He led 6-0, 2-0 when Mendelsohn retired with an elbow injury.
"I played out of my mind today," Freestone said. "I have to play well when I play him, because he is a very good player."
"He was just playing really well," Mendelsohn said. "I wasn't doing anything special, but he was playing well."
Mendelsohn began the tournament as the No. 3 seed, Freestone was No. 9, but Freestone broke Mendelsohn's serve in the first game and Mendelsohn trailed 3-0 after Freestone's second break.
"You're so tight," said Mendelsohn to himself, loud enough for all to hear.
Afterward, Mendelsohn said he felt the pressure, being from Little Rock and holding the No. 3 seed.
"I came out a little nervous and tight," he said. "I wasn't making the shots I normally make. I just wasn't converting or executing."
Mendelsohn said he knows most of the pressure he feels is self-imposed. He has expected much from himself since he moved into the USTA Top-20 rankings as a 12-year-old. He was ranked second in the U.S. as 14-year-old last year.
"This is a big event, and I'm the 3 seed, so I'm expected to do pretty well," Mendelsohn said. "It's a big tournament, and being in Little Rock, that definitely adds to the pressure."
Even though Mendelsohn is from Little Rock, the tournament is a homecoming for him.
He was a student at Pulaski Academy through the eighth grade, but at the end of last summer moved to College Park, Md., to train at the USTA Training and Development Center. He said he practices four hours a day and spends another two on fitness.
"There's not that much free time," Mendelsohn said. "It's a lot of hard work and sacrifice, and a lot of pressure to do well."
It is part of the reason Mendelsohn aspires for great success in tennis. He said he dreams of games played someday in major tournaments, of a Top 10 world ranking, and easily justifies his belief that those goals might materialize.
"I work extremely hard," Mendelsohn said. "I train year-round, and I just want it. It would be awesome. I love tennis, and to be the best at something would be awesome, and to maybe get paid for doing something you love, that would be pretty awesome."
Mendelsohn said he was unsure about his elbow pain, but he suspects it might be tendinitis.
"Over time, it's just gotten worse and worse," Mendelsohn said. "This morning it started hurting, and it got to a point that I just couldn't swing as fast as I wanted to. It affected my play."
He nevertheless seemed unconcerned.
"I'll be fine, hopefully," Mendelsohn said. "I'm just going to get back and train, and work hard so I can get this out of my head."
Sports on 06/18/2014