Ranch's Mohanty twins earn state titles

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Arnav Mohanty felt an extra dose of motivation when he stepped onto the court for the finals of the team doubles tournament at the Class 3A state tournament.

It was there, two years ago, that the then-sophomore, who was competing in his first state tournament, watched the title slip away, after he and his partner, Cooper Maxwell, who were up a set and a break and were two games away from winning, lost to Barron Collier’s Brett Clark and Alex Robles in three sets.

Knowing it was his final chance to win a state championship, Mohanty wasn’t about to let history repeat itself.
With his twin brother, Arsav, by his side, Arnav defeated Clark and Robles’ younger brother, Austin, 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-4 to win the team doubles title and help lead the Mustangs to a second-place finish in the team standings.

The Mohantys also captured the overall doubles championship with a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Tallahassee Leon’s Alberto Ayala and Josh Record.

“It’s obviously really satisfying,” Arnav said. “Brett Clark is No. 4 in the nation, and Cooper and I played him two years ago and were up a set and a break and lost. So it’s even more special to beat them.

“Having my brother there, that made it easier, too,” Arnav said. “I knew we could win if we played well.”
Arsav also won the No. 2 singles title.

“I had a great tournament,” Arsav said. “I was pretty nervous (at first), but it all worked out great, and I played well.”

The Mohantys, who finished with a combined seven medals, walked off the court following their final state tournament appearance not quite sure how to react.

“We still haven’t really understood what that means yet,” Arnav said of knowing their high school tennis career is over.

“Our goal was to win states and do the best that we could,” Arsav said. “We’re definitely sad knowing we’re not going to see our teammates next year. We’ve had a really good time these last four years of high school tennis.”

The Mohantys may have closed their high school tennis careers, but their days playing tennis are far from over.

On April 11, the brothers inked their national letters-of-intent to play tennis for Mercer University in Georgia.
The boys chose Mercer over the University of Central Florida, Furman and Wake Forest because of the location, the coaching staff and most importantly because they could go together.

“They offered us both full rides,” Arnav said. “A lot of the big-name schools only had one spot. We were always going together. I think the state doubles championship proves that.”

Brotherly love
The Mohantys began playing tennis when they were 12 years old, after their parents, both avid tennis fans, handed each of them a racket.

The two quickly developed a knack — and a love — for the game.

“It’s so unpredictable on any given day,” Arnav said. “You have to have that fight. Even when you’re not playing well, you still have to fight.”

Arsav agreed.

“The different shots you can hit — there are so many different things,” Arsav said. “It’s amazing. You can fool your opponent with a variety of shots. I definitely enjoy the competition and the excitement of trying to beat other people.”

Over the past five years, Arnav and Arsav have led the Mustangs to three consecutive state tournament appearances and currently are both ranked in the top 45 in the Florida USTA U18 rankings.

The two enjoy playing singles and doubles, as long as they aren’t playing against one another. Typically, the two brothers ask to be on opposite halves of the draw, so they won’t play each other until the finals. Then, the two brothers will battle it out.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work out that way. But in those cases, the two take turns deciding who will advance.

“If it’s a final, it’s good,” Arsav said. “If we have to play each other before the finals, then one withdraws, because you waste energy. We just take turns pulling out.”

The two brothers have faced each other six times, with Arnav holding a 5-1 advantage over his brother. But does that make Arnav, who is ranked a few points higher than his brother a better tennis player? Or is Arsav, who has both individual and state championships to his name the better player?

“You tell us,” Arnav said with a laugh. “We’re pretty equal.”

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].