This week, though, he’s simply taking in his Wimbledon victory, in a junior final that featured two Americans for the first time since 1977. Rubin had to win eight matches to capture the championship. “It’s just one of the accomplishments that keep me going forward,” he said. “It’s a little surreal now.”

The final was reportedly an exciting match to watch. “Rubin and Kozlov’s styles made for an extremely evenly matched contest,” wrote Matt Trollpe on Wimbledon.com. “Both relatively undersized counter-punching baseliners, they are slightly more potent off their forehand wings but possess rock-solid backhands.”

Wimbledon junior champions do not earn prize money. They do, however, receive exquisite silver trophies and worldwide media exposure.

On Monday, Rubin was back in Merrick, looking exhausted from his early-morning flight from London’s Heathrow Airport to JFK. He was greeted by his mom, Melanie Siegel Rubin, a special-education teacher in the Rockville Centre School District, and family friends with balloons in hand. Noah said he was starving, so he stopped at La Piazza for a pie on the way home.

“I’m so proud,” his mom said. “I’m proud of the way he played, but mostly I’m proud of how he handled himself, the composure on the court.”

Noah’s parents are divorced. Melanie watched her son’s Wimbledon final via an Internet live stream at home with her daughter, Jessie Rubin, who was a Division I tennis player at Binghamton and is now a VH1 social media coordinator. Noah’s dad, Eric Rubin, who lives in Rockville Centre and has been one of Noah’s coaches since he was a child, was courtside at the All England Club. Noah’s girlfriend, Alex Lipps of Roslyn, was in London for much of the tournament but could not stay for the final.

Noah said he wanted to thank his family for their support, along with his coach, Lawrence Kleger, who is the McEnroe academy’s director, and McEnroe himself.
Rubin said he takes tennis one tournament at a time. “We’ll see about next year –– a little bit at a time,” he said.