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WTT Washington Kastles

Kastles Win Unforgettable Match to Go 3-0

August 3, 2016 - World TeamTennis (WTT)
Washington Kastles News Release


Kastles Win Unforgettable Match to Go 3-0; Paes, Jensen and Brengle Lead Heroic 23-14 Victory
Kastles Win Unforgettable Match to Go 3-0; Paes, Jensen and Brengle Lead Heroic 23-14 Victory
(Washington Kastles)

In one of the most amazing, unforgettable matches in Kastles history, Coach Murphy Jensen and Leander Paes were the unexpected heroes of the Kastles victory over the New York Empire. The doubles legend Paes was thrust into action in men's singles after an injury to Mardy Fish, and consequently, Coach Murphy was unexpectedly forced to partner with Paes in men's doubles. It was a shocking twist to a night that turned out to be one of the most unexpectedly entertaining matches in WTT history.

Facing Guido Pella, Mardy Fish rolled in his first service game, acing Pella twice and blasting two forehand winners. After forcing a break point in the second game, Fish heard a pop in his foot and hobbled to the bench with a season-ending injury. That left Coach Jensen with only one option, his Captain Leander Paes. While Paes has been a doubles legend on tour for years, his his last singles appearance in the singles draw of a professional event was in 2008 at an ITF tournament. His last appearance in an ATP Singles event was in 2005 in India. Since then, Paes turned to dominating the doubles and mixed doubles tour. Ironically, last night's singles match came one day before the 20th anniversary of his winning the singles bronze medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

Leander Paes had not played an ATP singles event since 2005. Photo: Kevin Koski

Forced to unexpectedly get off the bench to play singles against the world's #49 ranked player in Pella, the 43 year old Kastles Captain used his experience and unique skills in today's game to stun his opponent. On his first point, Paes blocked Pella's serve into the center of the court and rushed the net behind it. The caught his opponent completely off-guard and set up an easy volley winner for the break and 2-0 lead. Paes raised his hands and screamed "Come On!" which brought the entire stadium to its feet.

From that point on, Paes used his doubles prowess to throw Pella off his game, fearlessly serving and volleying or immediately charging the net on return points to keep the points short and capitalize on some the best volleying skills the world has ever seen. This chip-and-charge tactic confused Pella, as he looked over at New York Coach Patrick McEnroe in confusion multiple times. In his first service game, Paes faced two break points but he held his ground to go up 3-0.

Pella, an experienced singles player and 17 years Paes' junior at 26, then adjusted his tactics to maneuver around the doubles legend with more topspin and consistency. Pella won the next two games to get back on serve at 2-3. The match seemed to be turning in the Empire favor, but Paes quickly jumped to a 3-1 lead forcing three break points on Pella's serve. Continuing to execute his aggressive strategy Paes couldn't convert any of those chances including a drop volley attempt that fell just short and enabled Pella to pull even at 3-3.

In the next game Paes continued grinding out points, battling to 2-2 in the game when Coach Jensen called timeout. The brief rest worked, and Leander won the next point and boomed the next serve to go up 4-3. With the crowd firmly behind Paes, Pella was able to maintain composure and hold serve to force a tiebreak at 4-4.

Both players played several gutsy points in tiebreak, with Pella once again sneaking a forehand past a charging Paes at 2-2. In the end, Paes finally faltered as Pella boomed several tough serves to take the tiebreak 5-2.

Though he lost, Paes had fired up the home crowd by almost surprising the young Argentine and keeping the Kastles firmly in the match, down only 5-4.

Madison Brengle was up next in women's singles. After blowing away world no. 58 Christina McHale 5-2 on Sunday night in New York, the players faced off again last night. With New York holding a surprising 5-4 lead, the stage was set for a battle between the two gritty baseliners, though Brengle decided to follow her own script. With a rocking Kastles Stadium crowd behind her, Brengle took no prisoners in a 5-0 victory over McHale. After taking the first game in dominant fashion, Brengle broke McHale in her first service game. As she did Sunday night, Brengle pushed McHale around the court, ending long rallies with several impressive up-the-line shots that were out of McHale's reach. Brengle broke again to go up 4-0, then served out the set.

Madison Brengle pumps her fist as she won her second straight 5-0 match. Photo: Kevin Koski

The set marked Brengle's second straight 5-0 set, as she blanked Pauline Parmentier on Monday against Springfield. In 17 games played so far this season, Brengle has won 15-2 and has proven to be the superstar of the young Kastles season.

The 5-0 victory gave the Kastles a 9-5 overall lead and some breathing room going into men's doubles. Because of the injury to Fish, the Kastles were down to one male player (Paes), a thought that was on the minds of many Kastles fans after Brengle's victory. Though in a surprising twist, the Coach of a WTT team is allowed to list himself or herself as an available player on the roster in case of injury. Though this WTT caveat is rarely necessary, it exists so teams don't have to forfeit a set due to injury. Coach Jensen was listed as a Kastles sub, but he did not expect to have to suit up, and he certainly did not expect to have to suit up with Paes to form an over-40 duo. Paes also did not expect to line-up with the man who coached him for all of his eight years on the Kastles. Jensen's last tour event was in 2006 with his brother Luke in San Jose, the same year he retired. His opponents, Neil Skupski and Guido Pella of the Empire, were 15 years old then. Skupski and Pella were also toddlers when Coach Jensen won the French Open in 1993.

So for the first time in the Kastles nine year history, a mid-match injury forced the team to go to the alternate and as the 47 year old Coach Jensen teamed up with Leander Paes. The combined age of the duo was 90 years old compared to the 52 years combined age of their opponents.

Paes was unbelievable in the first game, booming several big serves to keep the Empire duo at bay. Coach Jensen was proving that age is just a number, finishing off some impressive volleys at the net.

The unexpected doubles team of Murphy Jensen and Leander Paes fire up the crowd. Photo: Rich Kessler

After Skupski held serve, the Kastles coach loosened himself up before his first service game by admitting he was "nervous" to the crowd, causing Paes to run back and give him a supporting hug. Coach Jensen proceeded to rally the crowd into a frenzy by booming two aces to hold and put him and Paes up 2-1. Though facing a hostile and boisterous Kastles Stadium crowd, Skupski and Pella held their composure, breaking Paes at 2-2 to grab a 3-2 lead. Having already surprising many by getting two games, the Kastles duo could have coasted and waited for Hingis and Rodionova to get the Kastles back into the match the following set. But the unlikely team dug deep the next game. At 2-3 in the game on the Skupski serve, Coach Murphy tracked down a ball deep in the corner and lobbed it over the head of Pella to give him and Paes a break point. On the deciding point, the team decided to reward Jensen's hustle and strong play by having him return the deciding point. Off a good first serve, he smacked a screaming backhand which the Empire couldn't reach and the Kastles had evened the set at 3-3. The home town crowd was going crazy getting behind the beloved Jensen and Paes.

The next game, Coach Jensen held serve to go up 4-3 when Paes finished off two impressive overheads. All of Kastles Stadium was on their feet, encouraging on the duo as they improbably tried to take down the much-younger Empire duo.

Pella held serve to force another tiebreaker. After battling back from being down a service break, Paes and Coach Murphy finally ran out of magic, falling to Pella and Skupski 5-3 in the tiebreak and the set 5-4. As they walked off the court, the entire stadium rose to their feet for a rousing standing ovation in appreciation for the incredible and inspiring effort by Jensen and Paes. The close set enabled to Kastles to maintain a 13-10 lead and ended a wild chain of events like nothing ever seen before.

Anastasia Rodionova and Martina Hingis had the task of following up the impressive men's doubles set in women's doubles against McHale and Irigoyen. Rodionova showed she was up to the challenge, putting on an absolute clinic at the net, poaching several overheads off the Hingis serve, and finishing some slick drop shots. After breaking McHale to start off the match, Rodionova and Hingis did not look back, taking the set 5-1 to increase the Kastles lead to 18-11.

Hingis and Roionova were dominant in their doubles match. Photo: Kevin Koski

To close out an epic evening, legendary mixed doubles duo of Martina Hingis and Leander Paes came out for the last time this regular season. Paes will play men's and mixed doubles tonight before boarding his flight to Rio and both players will play for the Kastles if they make the WTT Finals on August 26th in New York.

Facing Irigoyen and Skupski, the Kastles duo applied pressure early, getting a break in the fourth game of the set. As they have many times in the past, Hingis and Paes fearlessly attacked the net, as Irigoyen and Skupski tried in vein to get balls past them. In the fifth game, Paes ended a wild exchange at the net that saw him and Hingis block back multiple groundstrokes from Skupski.

In the end, the duo proved too much and closed out the match 5-2. In what can only be described as one of the the craziest and most exciting nights in WTT history, the Kastles took home the win 23-14 to put them at 3-0 for the season. It was a night that everyone in the stadium will never forget.

Washington Kastles vs. Philadelphia Freedoms Preview

Kastles Take On Philly in Rematch of 2015 Eastern Conference Final

Match Start Time Moved to 6:30 PM

Washington Kastles (3-0) vs. Philadelphia Freedoms (3-0)

Wednesday, August 3 at 6:30 PM

Tickets: Ticketmaster.com, Box Office

Live Scoring: WashingtonKastles.com

Social Media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram ( #WSHvPHIL, #RefuseToLose)

The Kastles will conclude their three-match homestand tonight against the Philadelphia Freedoms. In addition to being a matchup of WTT's two undefeated teams, teams, this could be a key regular season match as the two teams with the best records will make the finals on August 26th in NYC

The night is also the Kastles Military Appreciation Night, where the Kastles honor the Armed Forces. All retired and active duty military members and their families receive a discount on general admission tickets. A valid military ID is required at the door. The first 1,000 fans in attendance will get an amazing Refuse To Lose hat with Camo detail courtesy of JP Morgan.

Leander Paes will return for one more night to lead the Kastles, directly before boarding a plane to represent India in the Summer Olympics. Madison Brengle, who is currently ranked second in WTT women's singles play with a .882 game-win percentage, will look to continue her dominant year against the Freedoms' Samantha Crawford. Brengle has played 17 games so far this season, and has won 15 of them. Andreja Klepac will be making her Kastles debut, as the doubles world no. 29 comes in to replace Anastasia Rodionova, who was called on Monday to represent Australia in the Rio Olympics. The Slovenian reached the doubles quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the US Open in 2015 and has won four WTA Doubles titles in her career. She reached a career high doubles ranking of no. 23 earlier this year. JP Smith will also make his Kastles debut. The tall, lefty Australian is a former top-ranked NCAA singles and doubles player and has played WTT for Orange County but will play in Kastles Stadium for the first time as a Kastle. The rising young Australian has won nine titles on the ATP Challenger titles.

The Kastles have made a habit out of beating Philadelphia in recent years, including a 22-9 drubbing in last year's Eastern Conference Final. Philadelphia reloaded during the off-season, looking to finally dethrone the Kastles. Lukas Lacko and young American

Samantha Crawford will headline the Freedoms. Philadelphia comes into match with a 3-0 record, having defeated Springfield twice and New York once.

Set-By-Set Projection

MD- L. Paes/ J.P Smith (WSH) vs. L. Lacko/ F. Martin (PHL)

JP Smith will look to use the serve that has brought him nine ATP Challenger Titles, as he teams up with Paes. The combination of Smith's serve and Paes' hands at the net could form a lethal combination. Lacko and Martin will be a formidable team, as Martin is a top doubles specialist ranked no. 35 and having a great year. Though Lacko's consistent groundstrokes are better for singles and his lack of doubles experience could be advantageous to Paes and Smith.

MX-L. Paes/ A. Klepac (WSH) vs. F. Martin/ N. Broady (PHL)

One of the newest Kastles, and one of the most seasoned Kastles will team up, as Paes and Klepac take on Broady and Martin of Philadelphia. Klepac reached the semifinals of the Australian Open Mixed Doubles draw earlier this year, and reached the quarterfinals of the Mixed Doubles draw at Wimbledon just a few weeks ago. Though it's their first time playing together, Paes and Klepac could prove to be a very tough team. Broady and Martin will be a stiff test however, as Broady reached the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon Mixed Doubles draw in 2014.

WS-M. Brengle (WSH) vs. S. Crawford (PHL)

Brengle owns a 5-1 career record against Crawford, with four of those wins coming on hard court. Crawford's lone win against the young Kastles star was back in 2012. The player last met earlier this year on clay, with Brengle dominating her fellow countrywoman 6-1, 6-0. The last three singles sets for Brengle have ended in scores of 5-2, 5-0 and 5-0. WTT has had a hard time keeping up with Brengle's tenacity and consistency, as she has been a rock for the Kastles through the first three matches. Crawford will have to be patient and avoid errors if she hopes to change her luck against Brengle.

WD-M. Brengle/ A. Klepac (WSH) vs. N. Broady/ S. Crawford

Brengle will team up with Klepac in women's doubles to face Broady and Crawford, in what could be a crucial set in determining the outcome of the match. While Brengle's game is better suited for singles, she has had success in doubles, most recently making the third round of this years French Open Doubles draw. The combination of Brengle's consistency and Kelpac's doubles experience could prove to be the difference in this set.

MS-J.P Smith (WSH) vs. L. Lacko (PHL)

Lacko has a reputation as being one of the grittiest players on the ATP Tour, using consistency and a heavy topspin forehand to become a headache for anyone who plays him. Although Lacko is a difficult player to face, JP Smith's big serve and groundstrokes make it difficult for players to be defensive against him. Smith will try to gain control of points using his big strokes, and will try to prevent Lacko from establishing any sort of rhythm.

WTT Standings

Team MP W L PCT

WSH 3 3 0 1.000

PHIL 3 3 0 1.000

SD 3 2 1 .667

OC 3 1 2 .333

NY 3 0 3 0.000

SPR 3 0 3 0.000

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Kastles Win Unforgettable Match to Go 3-0; Paes, Jensen and Brengle Lead Heroic 23-14 Victory
Kastles Win Unforgettable Match to Go 3-0; Paes, Jensen and Brengle Lead Heroic 23-14 Victory
   

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