Sheng Digs Deep When It Counts

Philip Sheng has won a lot of big tennis matches in his blossoming career.

None have meant as much to him as a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 victory over Paul Warkentin on Saturday in the boys’ high school singles final of the Ojai tennis tournament at Libbey Park.

Sheng, a junior from Thousand Oaks High, reached the final of the boys 16s division in 1997 and lost in the semifinals of the high school division last year. After winning the Southern Section singles title last year and the boys 18s title at the Fiesta Bowl in December, Sheng’s primary goal this year was to win at Ojai.

“Winning [the Southern Section championship] as a sophomore was big for me, but this means even more because of the tradition,” said Sheng, seeded No. 1 in the 32-player draw. “When you think of all the great professional players of the past who have won here, it’s exciting to know that my name will be added to that list.”

Despite not playing up to his capabilities, Sheng lost only one set in four matches en route to the final. But Warkentin appeared to seize the momentum after leveling the match with an ace and Sheng had to rely on his improved serve to carry him through the winner-take-all third set.

“This is the toughest match I’ve had, but also the best I’ve played here,” said Sheng, who is two weeks shy of his 17th birthday. “Paul and I go way back. It’s funny, he owns me in high school where it’s just one set. But I seem to beat him when we play in tournaments. He’s a great player and we have a lot of respect for each other.”

Anticipating that they would meet in the final, Sheng and Warkentin warmed each other up prior to their semifinal matches earlier in the day.

Sure enough, four hours later they found themselves on opposite sides of the net once again.

“I’m disappointed I lost but I’m happy for him,” said Warkentin, a junior from San Marcos High. “I know I have to play very well to beat him.”

Sheng defeated Tres Davis, the No. 1 player in the nation in boys’ 18s, 6-7 (9-7), 6-3, 7-5, in the backdraw of the Easter Bowl in Palm Springs a week before Ojai and had only three days to rest before his first-round match Thursday.

“When I first started working with him in August, he was winning on talent alone,” said Sheng’s private coach, John Hilton. “Now, he’s doing it with conditioning. He’s the hardest working kid I’ve ever coached and the two things he’s really improved on these last few months are his serve and his backhand passing shot.

“This was his second straight week playing a major tournament and his heart and stamina are what won it for him.”

With Warkentin serving at 4-5, Sheng painted the sideline on a backhand pass, then won the first set when his opponent sprayed a forehand long.

But the third-seeded Warkentin broke Sheng to take a 6-5 lead in the second set, then held serve to level the match at one set apiece.

Sheng fought off three break points to hold serve in the first game of the third set and later pointed to that game as the turning point.

“Mentally, I was a little down because I had just lost the second set and I wasn’t hitting my forehands well, which is my bread-and-butter shot,” Sheng said. “But my serve was 100% better than it was in my other matches and it won me a lot of free points.

“Once I got through that game and sat down at the changeover, I got myself together.”

When he needed it most, Sheng’s vaunted forehand returned to produce three consecutive winners to earn him triple break point in the eighth game of the third set.

Warkentin double faulted to give Sheng a 5-3 lead.

Sheng served out the match in impressive fashion. He opened the game with an ace down the middle, followed with a service winner wide and cracked another ace on match point. He served eight of his 14 aces in the third set.