Amritraj Cousins Ready for Reunion in the Easter Bowl
For the first time in months, Prakash and Stephen Amritraj will not be separated by a couple of continents.
Or even a net cord.
Prakash, a junior at Harvard- Westlake High, and Stephen, a sophomore at Crespi, will play doubles in the boys’ 18’s division at the prestigious Easter Bowl Junior Tennis Championships beginning today and continuing through April 22 at the Riviera Resort and Racquet Club in Palm Springs.
The event marks the first time the cousins have seen each other since Prakash and his father, Vijay Amritraj, left for a tennis-playing tour of International Tennis Federation tournaments in Asia two months ago. They returned on Thursday.
Prakash and Stephen’s match today will be their first competing as a team at the highest level of the U.S. Tennis Assn. junior circuit. It will also be the first time they have played together since winning the boys’ 14 Southern California sectional championship in 1997.
They expect the partnership to be a lasting and successful venture.
“I always wanted to play with Prakash,” Stephen said. “We’ve been planning it. This is something that’s been a dream of ours for a long time.”
A focus on singles play and a sixth-month difference in their ages usually prevented the 16-year-olds from playing together.
Prakash, the older of the two, has always been a year ahead of Stephen on the junior circuit.
Prakash is in his first season of competing in 18’s, while Stephen is a 16’s player.
Stephen needed a waiver to compete in Easter Bowl doubles 18’s while still retaining his 16’s status in singles. Clearance was granted based on Stephen’s considerable success in doubles.
Though rated No. 38 nationally in 16 singles, Stephen is more recognized than Prakash for his doubles play.
Stephen teamed with Sam Warburg of Sacramento to win the Easter Bowl 16 doubles title last year. He was granted the waiver to play with Prakash on the basis of an 18 championship won with Ryan Haymond of Bakersfield at the Southern California sectional tournament in Fountain Valley in October.
Stephen and Warburg also advanced to the championship match of the U.S. National Hardcourt Championships’ 16 doubles final in August, and they lost in the third-place match at the U.S. National Clay Court Championships in July.
Stephen teamed with K.C. Corkery of Manhattan Beach to win the 16 U.S. National Indoor Championships doubles title in November, and he won an 18 International Tennis Federation event with Derrick Bauer of Marina del Rey in October.
“I’ve always considered myself more of a doubles player than a singles player,” Stephen said. “I kind of like the team aspect of it, and I think it’s the most fun.”
Prakash, rated No. 5 nationally in 16’s at the end of last season, is noted for singles play but is no slouch in doubles. He teamed with Corkery to advance to the 16 final of the U.S. National Clay Court Championships in July, and he won a doubles tournament in Manila on his recent trip to Asia.
“He’s a very, very solid solid doubles player,” Stephen said of his cousin. “He can hold his own. I’m looking forward to playing with him.”
The Amritrajes’ partnership will continue a family tradition. Vijay and Stephen’s father, Anand, are brothers who formed a long-time Davis Cup doubles team for their native India from 1972-89.
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While Philip Sheng is the highest-seeded player from the region in boys’ 18 singles at the Easter Bowl, Prakash Amritraj is seeded No. 17 in the division.
Nick Weiss of Calabasas High, the Southern Section runner-up to Sheng last season, also is playing in 18’s, and Jieun Jacobs of Hart is the only girls’ player from the region in the division.
The boys’ 16 division has the most players from the region with 18. Lester Cook of Calabasas is seeded highest in boys’ competition at No. 7, Stephen Amritraj is seeded No. 12 and Robert Yim, a freshman at Glendale High, is No. 24.
Justin Montgomery of Channel Islands Harbor, ranked No. 6 nationally in boys’ 14’s, is playing up in 16’s.
The girls’ 16 division includes No. 8 Brooke Borisoff of Agoura High and three Harvard-Westlake High players--Stephanie Berg, Jessica Leck and Alexandra Maclennan.
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When Simi Valley defeated Thousand Oaks, 10-8, in a Marmonte League match April 7, the Pioneers snapped a 67-match losing streak against the Lancers that dated to 1969.
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The Top 10
Rankings of boys’ tennis teams from the region
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RK School (League) Rec. 1 Harvard-Westlake (Mission) 17-3 2 Westlake (Marmonte) 14-0 3 Burbank (Foothill) 11-1 4 Thousand Oaks (Marmonte) 11-4 5 Rio Mesa (Pacific View) 11-0 6 Crespi (Mission) 13-4 7 Granada Hills (West Valley) 11-1 8 El Camino Real (West Valley) 11-1 9 Glendale (Pacific) 8-3 10 Camarillo (Pacific View) 8-3
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