Q&A with Jared Donaldson

18 year old Jared Donaldson claimed his maiden challenger titles two weeks ago in Maui, sweeping the Singles and Doubles (partnering fellow teen Stefan Kozlov).  And earlier this week, the American won his first career ATP match in Memphis (defeated Kozlov) before falling to compatriot and former Top 20 player, Sam Querrey.  The Rhode Island native was kind enough to give up his time to do a Question&Answer for us.  Continue reading to see what JD had to say about his game, memorable experiences, career approach and more!

Over The Weekend: Louisa Chirico, Andrey Rublev, Tim Smyczek

Over the weekend, 18 year old Louisa Chirico reached the $100K final in Midland.  The final was the biggest of her young career.  Prior to this, the teenager made three $25K finals (1-2) and won the $10K Sumter as a 16 year old.  Chirico defeated Maria Sakkari (GRE), Naomi Cavaday (GBR), Naomi Osaka (JPN) and Katerina Vankova (CZE) before falling to German No. 6 seed Tatjana Maria 6-2 6-0.  The veteran proved too experienced and crafty for the youngster at this time, but the American showed promise in her game.  With this result, Chirico is at a new career high of 149.

Louisa Chirico

February Rankings: Serena Claimed 19th Slam Title, New Career High For Keys and Donaldson

 ATP - Top 15 Americans

Notable Changes

•  Steve Johnson takes over the No. 2 spot from Sam Querrey.
• Jared Donaldson makes his debut on the Top 15 List at No. 15 with the aid of his maiden challenger title at the $50K Maui over fellow first-time American finalist Nicolas Meister (former UCLA Bruin).
• Ryan Harrison is back on the list at No. 11 with the Happy Valley Challenger title run.
• Alex Kuznetsov and Jarmere Jenkins are bumped off the list despite minimal changes from the January ATP rankings.

Jared Donaldson Wins First Challenger Title, Youngest American Winner Since Donald Young

Jared Donaldson, one of the Just Drop The Ball's 10 American teenagers to watch in 2015, wins his first career challenger title in Maui today to become the youngest American titlist since Donald Young in 2007 (Aptos).  At 18 years, 3 months, and 23 days old, the teenager is the 55th youngest challenger champion.  American Michael Chang holds the record at 15 years and 7 months when he captured the Las Vegas crown in 1987, roughly 9 years before Donaldson was born.