The fifth-ranked men’s tennis team spent its southeastern road trip blowing away the competition, taking out No. 37 Georgia Tech 7-0 Saturday and No. 19 Clemson 5-2 Sunday.
Duke (15-2, 5-0 in the ACC) extended its winning streak to nine and has yet to drop a match during the outdoor season.
After playing some of his best tennis Saturday, Ludovic Walter, ranked fifth in the nation, lost to No. 18 Nathan Thompson 6-3, 6-3 and fell in doubles with partner Jason Zimmermann.
The Blue Devils grabbed their first point in a hurry against Georgia Tech (9-7, 1-4), as Walter and Zimmermann won 8-4 at No. 1 doubles, and Stephen Amritraj and Peter Shults crushed their opponents 8-2. Jonathan Stokke and Peter Rodrigues completed the doubles sweep with a 9-8 (4) triumph in the No. 2 slot.
Walter highlighted the afternoon by winning with relative ease against No. 21 Jose Muguruza 6-4, 6-3. The Frenchman overwhelmed Muguruza with a lethal combination of power and accuracy on the way to the straight-set victory.
“Ludovic was the player that really stood out in that match if I had to pick someone,” Duke head coach Jay Lapidus said. “I really thought that Ludovic played the best tennis of the day out of all the guys.”
Stokke also won in straight sets at the No. 3 position, blanking his opponent in the first set and getting the critical break in the second to secure a 6-0, 6-4 victory. The freshman duo of Charles Brezac and Ned Samuelson each held down the fort at No. 5 and No. 6, winning 6-4, 6-2 and 6-2, 6-4, respectively.
Completing the sweep did not come as easily for Amritraj and Rodrigues. Playing No. 2, Amritraj lost a tough battle in the first set before taking over the match. Rodrigues also dropped the first set before pulling away from his opponent, winning 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.
The next day’s match against Clemson (21-7, 3-3) was not as much of a cakewalk as the previous day’s, but a Duke victory was never in jeopardy as the Blue Devils built up a 5-0 lead.
In the doubles competition, Walter and Zimmermann took a rare defeat at the top spot, losing 9-8. At No. 3, Amritraj and Shults steamrolled their opponents 8-1, and Rodrigues and Stokke brought home the doubles point with an 8-6 win.
In singles, Duke demonstrated its strength at the bottom of the lineup, as the No. 3 through No. 6 positions breezed through their Tiger counterparts. Stokke won by the count of 6-1, 6-4, continuing his strong play at the No. 3 position. At No. 4, Rodrigues cruised to a 6-0, 6-4 triumph, and Brezac won at No. 5 by the same score. Shults continued his successful comeback season with another easy victory, winning 6-2, 6-1.
“Depth has definitely been big for us, as we can go 10 or 11 deep,” Lapidus said. “When you have guys at the three, four, five and six positions who can compete with your top guys, it definitely gives you an edge, particularly as we go down the stretch of the season.”
Duke did wear down at the top two positions, as Walter lost for the second time in one day and Amritraj succumbed to defeat in a third set decided by a tiebreak.
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