Tennis mixed doubles matches kick off
Although girls’ and boys’ sports teams are often separated, the NPHS tennis teams come together for a friendly mixed doubles tournament every year. Mixed doubles is an opportunity for both teams to bond after the girls’ season ends and before the boys’ season starts. Players split up into pairs of one player from both the boys’ and girls’ team, and all of the pairs are split up into two teams, Team A and Team B. Pairs from both the large teams face off against each other, each competing in at least 2 matches, with the winner being determined by the most overall wins in the tournament.
Since the tournament took place just before boys’ season started, many players did not have much experience playing competitively. Ronak Santhosh, senior and team captain of the boys’ team, believes that mixed doubles provided that necessary introduction. “A lot of the people on the boys and girls team don’t have the experience in competitive situations in tournaments in general. This casual environment allowed people to get the match feeling and the adrenaline involved,” Santhosh said.
Beyond the competitive aspect, mixed doubles allows the players on both the girls’ and boys’ to interact. Grace Pei, senior and team captain of the girls’ tennis team helped to officiate the mixed doubles tournament. “I don’t know many of the boys, the team, or the players on the boys’ team. So it was interesting being able to meet new people,” Pei said.
For the players familiar with the other team, mixed doubles offers an opportunity to settle rivalries and compete against different opponents. Karthik Tholudur, junior, finds mixed doubles as a way to compete with his sister. “My sister is on the girls’ team. So it’s always kind of fun to compete between the boys and the girls,” Tholudur said.
The tournament was split into two teams, each led by two captains. “Team A was led by captains [Santhosh] and Makayla Hu, while Team B was led by captains Grace Pei and Rachel Hu,” Santhosh said. The overall winner of the tournament was Team A, receiving a trophy, and together with Team B, they celebrated with food and snacks afterwards. Mixed doubles was an opportunity for people from both of the tennis teams to come together and have an enjoyable and competitive experience.
