Overview
Duke repeated its success from a year ago with another trip to the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament. The team steadily improved from the start of the season, and its veteran leadership and stellar doubles play shone through in the latter stages of the year.
The Blue Devils opened the season with a tough non-conference schedule, including five losses in eight games in February. Many of these were on the road and in difficult environments, but Duke still struggled to find his footing.
But head coach Ramsey Smith’s squad bounced back in conference play to post a 9-3 record in a tough ACC. The Blue Devils were much better in doubles, consistently winning the deciding doubles point to start the matches.
Redshirt senior Garrett Johns and sophomore Pedro Rodenas led the team throughout the season, with elite play on the top doubles line — rising to No. 1 in the country — and anchoring the top two singles lanes. Graduates Michael Heller and Andrew Zhang, who have played doubles together for five years, overcame injuries from last season to develop into a strong team on the second doubles line.
In addition, Smith noted that senior Faris Khan played some of the best tennis of his career in both singles and doubles, especially late in the season.
Duke lost to Virginia in the ACC Tournament for the second year in a row, but positioned itself well to host an NCAA Regional again. The Blue Devils breezed through their regional, losing just one game in wins against UNC Asheville and Alabama.
However, Duke was swept by TCU 4-0 in a tough round of 16 game. The Horned Frogs went on to win the national championship, making it two straight champions to defeat the Blue Devils in the Sweet 16. Johns and Rodenas also qualified for the NCAA Individual Championships, winning two matches before falling in the quarterfinals. – Ranjan Jindal
Results in relation to expectations
It’s hard to say if Duke lived up to its lofty expectations—virtually no one expected the Blue Devils to be realistic contenders for a national championship, but it felt like if the team didn’t make it to the third round, the year would be a disappointment . In terms of how far this talented roster went in the NCAA Tournament, Duke fell just short of par. But there’s no doubting some milestones the Blue Devils wanted to achieve.
The first and most notable missed opportunity was beating Virginia. The Cavaliers are a tennis powerhouse, and Duke has yet to crack their code. After dropping three games against Virginia last year, the Blue Devils lost both of their games against the Cavaliers in 2024, including in the ACC Tournament semifinals.
Individually, Johns excelled once again on Duke’s first court, and Rodenas remained steady but did not make a second-place leap on court two. As a pair, the two formed Duke’s top doubles team that rose to equal the top-ranked pair nationally, far exceeding expectations. Zhang, the Blue Devils’ third singles player, picked up victories in five of his last six completed matches.
In 2024, Duke gained valuable experience and played in countless high-stakes games. Still, it failed to bypass the round of 16 and capture a conference title. From that perspective, the Blue Devils likely fell short of their own expectations, but overall the season has to be seen as a success. – Garrett Spooner
Best profit
When looking for this team’s best win, it’s hard to look past the April 12 game at Wake Forest. Duke entered the afternoon riding a five-game winning streak, and the seventh-ranked Demon Deacons were the next victim to fall.
Heller and Zhang topped Wake Forest’s second doubles pairing of Matthew Thomas and Filippo Moroni to start the match. Next, then no. 3 doubles by Johns and Rodenas took down the first pair of Holden Koons and Suresh Ekambaram 7-6 to secure the doubles point for the Blue Devils. On the singles side, Johns picked up one of his biggest wins of the season by defeating No. 29 Moroni 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, and Rodenas added an impressive score himself, defeating No. 69 Ekambaram in straight sets. Freshman Alexander Visser notched another point on level five after defeating Koons in three sets. In the end, it was Duke who beat their counterparts from Winston-Salem 4-1.
The Blue Devils took down a string of top-25 opponents during the regular season, so the win against Wake Forest may not have gotten much attention right away; however, the Demon Deacons ended up making it to the Final Four before falling to Texas 4-2. Outside of Virginia, Wake Forest may have been Duke’s toughest test all year, and it responded with a decisive, resume-building win. – Rodrigo Amare
MVP: Garrett Johns
John’s illustrious Duke career may have ended this season, but his time with the Blue Devils won’t soon be forgotten. Playing on Court 1 and thus every opponent’s best player throughout the year, the Atlanta native excelled, finishing with a 16-7 overall record with wins over nine nationally ranked players. For the fourth year in a row, Johns earned All-ACC Singles honors, fully cementing her legacy as one of the best singles players in Duke tennis history.
However, the two-time team captain was arguably even more impressive in doubles. Johns and Rodenas formed one of the most dynamic duos in the entire country, earning 22 wins and just five losses in 2024. The pair steadily climbed the ITA rankings before earning the top spot in the nation on April 16, receiving the no. 1 seed in the NCAA Doubles Tournament. While Johns and Rodenas ultimately fell to Louisville in the NCAA quarterfinals, the two were still named ITA Men’s Tennis Doubles All-Americans to cement their status as a historic partnership. – Spooner
Awards
The aforementioned Johns led the way for the Blue Devils in the trophy case, as he was named to the All-ACC Singles First Team, All-ACC Doubles First Team and as an ITA Men’s Tennis Doubles All-American. John’s partner Rodenas took home plenty of hardware of his own, as he was named to the All-ACC Singles Second Team, All-ACC Doubles First Team and also as an ITA Men’s Tennis Doubles All-American. The duo finished the season ranked No. 2 in the nation and spent three weeks at No. 1. -Love
Key departures
Johns is headed to play professional tennis, and both Heller and Zhang have exhausted their eligibility. Khan and Andrew Dale, two seniors who have seen significant time in the singles lineups during their careers, will also advance.
But Smith has already made some incredibly big splashes in the transfer portal — like freshman Cooper Williams out of Harvard — that should make next year a reloading season rather than a rebuild. -Jindal
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| Sports editor
Ranjan Jindal is a Trinity junior and sports editor for The Chronicle’s 120th volume.
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