Super-sized 14-year-olds move on from 3rd round

FORT LAUDERDALE — Quite often size disparity doesn’t matter on the tennis courts. Take the recently concluded Wimbledon, when a 6-foot-10 Jon Isner was chopped down by 5-8 Dudi Sela in the second round.

On one occasion, Sela literally dragged a chair up to net so he could reach Ivo Karlovic, his 6-11 vanquisher, for a post-match hug.

However, the Davids of the junior world were unable to topple their Goliath opponents in two separate boys’ 14 third-round matches Tuesday at the USTA National Clay Court Championships at the Lauderdale Tennis Club.

First, fifth-seeded Evan Wen, who at 13 is already 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds with size-14 sneakers, used his powerful serve and booming forehand to edge the feisty, 5-foot, 95-pound Ryan Colby 7-6 (4), 6-3.

On a nearby court, Grant Durham, 14, whose 6-foot-3, 200-pound frame seems more suited for a football field, bullied past 13th-seeded Noelle Andrey Ampong of Chicago 6-4, 6-3.

Wen, whose mother is from Taiwan and father is Austrian, was born and raised in Morristown, N.J. He won the National Clay Court 12s title last year, where he also had to get past Colby of College Park, Md., who trains at the same tennis club that 62nd-ranked Francis Tiafoe honed his game.

“Sometimes my size is an advantage, but when you’re this tall you don’t move as well,’’ Wen said. “This kid was getting everything back, and I was having a little trouble because it takes a lot more effort for me to hit one ball than it does for him to hit three balls.’’

Wen’s coach Clay Bibbee said his disciple has a few traits that can’t be taught.

“He’s got attributes you can’t teach in terms of his size, and he’s intuitive,’’ Bibbee said.

It didn’t hurt Wen that he was able to call upon a couple of 120 mph aces in the first-set tiebreaker, while Colby spins his serves in at about 75 mph. Whereas Wen has his mind set on the pros and reaching the loftiest heights (“I want to be close to Roger Federer’s level.”), Durham is more realistic.

“I just want to play high college tennis,’’ said Durham, who played hockey and soccer in Madison, Wis., before moving to Hilton Head, S.C., to train at the Smith Stearns Tennis Academy three years ago. “If I end up being better than I think I can, I’ll turn pro. Tennis isn’t really my sport and singles isn’t my strong suit. Doubles is.’’

Besides his powerful lefthanded serve and gargantuan forehand, Durham loves to attack the net, often punctuating a winning shot with a gutteral, roar of ‘Come on!’’ He was so loud Tuesday a parent from a nearby court complained to a roving referee, who then told Durham to tone it down.

“I just like winning and that’s how I win, by outyelling them,’’ Durham boasts. “It’s intimidating for sure. I can get in their heads. It’s really easier when they get angry and start to lose focus.”

In a more gentile match, the top-seeded Aryan Chaudhardy of Santa Clara, Calif., also used a sizable height advantage to scrape past Hudson Rivera of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., 7-5, 6-4.

It was a mixed bag for legendary ESPN college basketball announcer Dick Vitale who was in the stands and felt the pain of his ninth-seeded, hobbled grandson Connor Krug of Sarasota in a 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5) loss to Hudson Beaudoin of New York.

However, Connor’s twin brother Jake, 14, stunned seventh-seeded Samir Banerjee of Baskin Ridge, N.J., 6-3, 6-2.

Also, Vitale’s 12-year-old grandaughter, Ava Krug, ranked first in Florida, advanced to the round of 16 in the girls’ 12 National Clay Court Championships at the Polo Club with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Maeve Thornton of Brentwood, Tenn.

“I developed an incredible love of tennis,’’ said Vitale, whose two daughters Sheri and Terri both played tennis for Notre Dame on scholarships.