By Karen Bonnet
Faisal Mohamed of Lynbrook and Jonathan Bonnet of Oceanside captured championship status in the tournament, held at the Oxford Athletic Club in Monroeville, Pa.
The recent win at the National Open in Pennsylvania was Bonnet's biggest achievement in doubles, he said. The doubles champs upset the number-one-seeded team, Tony and Mark Piro, a duo they had played several times over the last two years.
I never won a National Open before this. It was a good feeling to beat the number one seeded team. We lost to them four straight times before that, Bonnet said.
Another turning point occurred during the doubles semi-finals, when Mohamed and Bonnet came back from two match points to clinch the match. According to Bonnet and Mohamed, the most memorable part of the tournament was the tie-breaker that would decide the semi-finals match. The match ended with a final score of 9-8, defeating T.J. Bellama of Virginia and Michael Coleman of Maryland.
Bonnet recalls a crucial moment in the game that turned the entire match around. I looked at my partner and he said, just go for it.' The opponent served me one to my forehand, I stepped in and crushed it in between the two players, right down the middle and that was the turnaround point for me. After that, I had a lot of confidence and knew we'd win the match, Bonnet said.
This was not the first time these boys have reached the finals in a USTA sponsored tennis event. Mohamed, 15, a sophomore at Lynbrook High School, has reached success at the Nationals five times over the last two years, qualifying with only four to eight other highly ranked players in the Eastern section in a two-year period. He began playing tennis when he was only five with his father, Shabir, a pro at Sportime in Lynbrook. The courts became more than a playground after he learned the competitive sport that was to become a big part of his life.
My dad didn't push me and we'd play games and he made it fun, Mohamed said. I learned a lot from him, and from watching Patrick Rafter. I like the way he comes up to the net. He has a serve and volley style.
Jonathan Bonnet, 16, a sophomore at Oceanside High School, has achieved success in tennis and other areas of his life, as well. He made all-county last year at the county championships where he and his doubles partner, Jared Berse of Oceanside, reached the quarterfinals. He took the gold award at the Empire State Games held last July, along with his doubles partner, John Russo of Great Neck.
Two years ago, the championship duo received the silver award at a National Open doubles tournament held at the USTA center in Flushing.
