Championship Week
Kypson Rebounds from Surgery to Claim 16s Title
by
Colette Lewis, 13 August 2015
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A ruptured appendix just two months ago isn't exactly ideal preparation for the major national summer tournaments, but Patrick Kypson's rapid recovery was in evidence when he sailed through the draw without dropping a set to capture the USTA Boys 16 National Championship at Kalamazoo College's Stowe Stadium. The 15-year-old from Greenville, North Carolina, seeded third, defeated No. 4 seed Alexandre Rotsaert 6-3, 6-3 in the championship match.
En route to an ITF tournament in Guatemala in June, Kypson suffered appendicitis while on the plane, with the pain and an infection keeping him in a Miami hospital for 12 days.
"It was the worst 12 days of my life," said Kypson, who tried to come back for the 18s Clay Courts, but had to retire with a knee injury. "Basically when I was in the hospital, all I wanted to do was play tennis. I guess it made me want it more, appreciate it. I've always like playing tennis, so I'm just lucky to play."
After just one week of serious training, Kypson set out for Kalamazoo, believing that, despite his recent health scare, he was capable of winning his second USTA gold ball in singles.
"I'm playing well, and physically, I'm almost a hundred percent," the 14s Winter Nationals champion said after his fourth round victory, having lost only eight games in his first three matches. "I'm hitting the ball well, I like Kalamazoo and I want to go all the way. I want to win this year."
The rain-free, mild and occasionally breezy conditions stretched into the final weekend, with three of the top 4 seeds advancing in singles.
The only Top 4 seed failing to reach the semifinals was second seed Jake Van Emburgh, who went out to unseeded Keenan Mayo in the fourth round. Eighth seed Kyrylo Tsygura reached the semifinals from Van Emburgh's quarter, falling to Rotsaert 6-3, 6-4, while Kypson took out top seed JJ Wolf by the same score.
Sunday's final, played under cloudy skies, was well attended, a continuation of the excellent crowds the tournament had drawn all week. Both players admitted to feeling nervous, but Kypson, who had needed big comebacks in his previous two wins over Rotsaert, was determined to get off to a good start.
"I was always on the offensive in the first set," said Kypson, who will be 16 in October. "I broke him at 3-2 and took that momentum and pretty much ran through the rest of the match, didn't really let him dictate. If you let him dictate, it's a lot harder, so I was happy with the way I played. That was the biggest thing. I won the first set. And I knew after I broke him in the first game of the second, all I had to do was hold serve and that'd be that match."
