Tennis Loving Local Teens Land Coveted Ball Crew Jobs at US Open

As the U.S. Open gets underway in Queens, diehard tennis spectators will have much to contemplate, such as the shocking withdrawal of Jannik Sinner due to a knee injury—or whether to bring last year’s souvenir Honey Deuce cup to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Yet they may also take a minute to reflect on the precise work that keeps the Open from going off without a hitch, which is personified in the tireless ball crew that assists players during games. It’s a gig that requires a good deal of physical endurance, with crew members constantly coordinating to get stray balls off the court and into the hands of whoever is serving.

A total of 1,500 people tried out for the ball crew this year, the U.S. Tennis Association said, with just over 300 people making the cut.

Two such members of this year’s crew, 15-year-old Daria Isajeva and 16 year-old Jeremy Orlicki-So, happen to be both talented tennis players and students at prestigious Manhattan high schools; Orlicko-So attends the Trinity School on the Upper West Side, while Isajeva goes to NYC Lab in Chelsea.

Orlicki-So and Isajeva were connected with the opportunity via the New York Junior Tennis & Learning (NYJTL) Scholar Athlete Program, which asks for both discipline on the court and in the classroom. In separate interviews with Straus News, they stressed how a focus on academics translates easily to the sort of skills required of ball crew members.

“I’ve been to a lot of tennis programs,” Isajeva said, adding that the Scholar Athlete Program stood out for its emphasis on “life skills” and “self-confidence.”

Orlicko-So noted that the “mental aspect” of tennis, which is famously hard to master for beginners and storied Grand Slam champions alike, is strikingly similar to the work required of students. A coach recommended him for the NYJTL program, he said, which has improved his game “each and every day.”

As for what it takes to be a successful member of the ball crew, Orlicki-So says that approaching matches as a “systematic process” is essential, especially one that involves a high degree of collaboration.

He elaborated further, laying out a sort of ball crew’s creed: “In the moment, you have to be aware of everything going on...just being a really good teammate, stepping up when you have to. Being able to be there for your other teammates when they need you, while understanding that they’ll do the same for you.”

Isajeva echoed the sentiment, saying that the need to “help each other out” was all but a ball crew requirement. Yet she also offered a piece of advice that she considers just as important, which is making sure to “have fun,” which makes each four-hour shift on the court easier.

“A lot of people stress about it, including me, because a lot is going on,” she added. “You’re on court with the players. It’s exciting.”

Both Isajeva and Orlicki-So picked up tennis racquets for the first time as young kids. Like most tennis enthusiasts, they have favorite players, with Orlicik-So inspired by Roger Federer’s immortal run and Isajeva by Maria Sharapova’s.

“She has really great sportsmanship,” Isajeva said of Sharapova, who counts a U.S. Open win in 2006 as one of five Grand Slam wins that she accumulated before retiring in 2020. Federer, who won 20 Grand Slam singles titles (including five U.S. Open titles) by the time he retired in 2022, was described by Orlicki-So as somebody with a game defined by “fluidity” and “art.”

As of August 23, the two teenagers seemed thrilled at the opportunity to interact with the current generation of star players in Flushing. Indeed, they may anticipate coming face-to-face with them again one day—not as members of the ball crew, but as competitors with a chance at a championship-point rally and eternal glory, engraved in a sterling silver trophy.