Tennis trio: California-based brothers Riki (left) and Ben McLachlan with Queenstown coach Lan Bale (centre)
California-based tennis hotshots Riki and Ben McLachlan are back in Queenstown where it all began.
It’s a beautifully sunny January day at the Queenstown Gardens tennis courts and the brothers just finished a training session with their mentor and Queenstown-based pro coach Lan Bale.
They’re sitting on the club deck overlooking its four courts full of youngsters who are pelting balls back and forth, many no doubt hoping to emulate the pair. The McLachlans started hitting on these very courts more than a decade ago when Riki was nine and Ben just six.
Since then they’ve played all four junior Grand Slam tournaments with Ben earning his highest rank of 45 in the world for under-18s in 2010. Riki made it to number 46 in 2009. Both are now on lucrative tennis scholarships at the prestigious University of California, known as Berkeley.
They’ve certainly come a long way – and so it seems has junior tennis in Queenstown.
Ben, surveying all the yongsters, observes wryly: “It’s hard for us to get a court now when we come back.”
Riki chips in: “When we were playing here you could always get a court. All four courts were free. Not anymore.”
The pair have led the Wakatipu’s tennis charge as the first graduates of the elite Queenstown Tennis Academy which aims to at least give its students a pathway to a tennis scholarship at a US college.
Fellow academy graduate Louise Oxnevad, 18, has recently confirmed her own tennis scholarship to the California Polytechnic State University where she’s planning to major in architecture.
Louise is ranked in the top 400 for under-18 year olds and last week played qualifying for the Australian Open juniors, but lost in the first round.
Ben, reflecting on his first year playing college tennis, says despite a busy schedule of gym work, study, tennis practice and matches on the road, his tennis has improved plenty.
“You’re playing in a lot of tough situations and practising with nine or 10 others guys on the team. Everyone plays different so it’s great to have that variety.”
Riki adds: “We’d always just practised by ourselves – now we have nine or 10 guys so they’re quality practice sessions and quality matches.”
The pair helped their California Golden Bears team to its best finish in eight years last season, coming 14th out of more than 200 college teams.
They also say the frenzied atmosphere created by supporters at matches is like nothing they’ve ever experienced and toughens you up mentally.
“Something that Kiwis aren’t used to is the college sport team atmosphere. It’s crazy over there,” Riki says.
Just about anything goes as far as cheering – and heckling is standard practice. It’s commonplace at some colleges to ply people with beer if they turn out to support their team.
Riki: “There’ll be drunk people. They’re all 20 years old and coming out to support their mates. You need a thick skin.
“I remember my first year I went down to Texas and there was a big crowd and amongst it were these three to four guys who looked really old, like 70 to 80, and they were going nuts heckling us.
“I couldn’t believe what was happening – but they were just diehard Texas alumni.”
Ben adds: “College fans will do anything to get their team to win. It took a bit of getting used to.”
The pair have since returned to California and played their first match for 2012, taking down Oklahoma’s University of Tulsa on the road. Riki, 20, has one and a half years of college to go. Ben, 19, has two and a half left.
Back in the Gardens, Ben likes what he sees for the future of tennis out of Queeenstown.
“The kids coming through, they all look good too, they’re definitely going to be good players.”
