Everyone knew it. They knew it. The moment the Long Island Nationals ended and rumors about them playing together became a fact, it was like Superman playing with Superman and kryptonite does not exist. How can anyone beat Johan du Randt and Mark Parsons? No one has the answer, and if they do, no one is telling.
Today at the Indian Trial Club, Johan du Randt and Mark Parsons won the 2013 APTA Men’s Nationals and added their second national crown to their resume and their first one together as a team. In the semis they defeated Juan Arraya and Lennart Jonason 7-6, 7-6. In the final, they took care of business with their win over Jon Lubow and Steve DeRose by 7-6, 6-3.
In the first semis, du Randt-Parsons took the first set in a close tie breaker. In the second set, Arraya-Jonason had a 4-0 40-15 lead but when Arraya stepped on his partner’s foot and sprained his ankle, things took a wrong turn for them. du Randt-Parsons came back to win the set in another tie breaker and were now one match away from a golden (undefeated) season.
The second semis featured the 2012 defending champs Drew Broderick and Chris Gambino versus the home team, and probably the most likable team of all: Jon Lubow and Steve DeRose. At 5-4 and set point for DeRose-Lubow, Broderick called a ball out that was overruled by the umpire. They replayed the point and DeRose-Lubow took the first set. In the second, the match continued to be very close. A 7-5 score for Jon and Steve placed them in a well deserved final match vs the Supermen.
In the final the action seemed to be all at the net. Both teams won most points when they closed in the net, either with spin and/or drop shots or when their opponents missed drives. The pressure than both Parsons and du Randt put on their opponents made the difference and the title was theirs. Can anyone beat them? Well, now everyone has seven months until the next NRT: the 2013 Patterson Club Open… and plenty of time to go back to the drawing board.
