Making a mark on the competition

Playing in the 18s division, Nikki Yanez, 12, competes against the next wave of collegiate and international talent.

The competition hits the ball harder. They are more consistent. And they have a plethora of shots at their disposal. 

But Yanez isn't intimidated.

“They’re losing to a 12-year-old,” Yanez said with a smile. 

Yanez, a Sarasota resident, started playing in the 18s division about a year ago as a way to improve her consistency and make her a better overall player. 

It didn’t take long for Yanez to get a handle on the competition. She won her first Girls’ 18 singles title this past June at the Sarasota RC Summer Classic. Since then, Yanez has won four additional Girls’ 18 singles titles, including the Lee County CTA Jan. 30 through Feb. 1. 

“I didn’t have anything to lose because the girls were all older than me,” Yanez said. “I just played how I play, and I ended up winning the tournament.” 

But it’s the tournaments Yanez hasn’t won that have aided her the most. Whether it’s an opportunity to improve her serve or her backhand or learning how to rally the ball to get back into the point, Yanez makes a mental note of what went wrong and makes it a point to focus first and foremost on those aspects in practice. 

“I learn more from my mistakes,” Yanez said. “They’re older, so it’s much easier for them because they already know every shot whereas I’m still learning.” 

A year ago, Yanez was competing in a Girls 12 singles Level 5 tournament. Two weeks ago, Yanez, who is the top-ranked player in the state and third-ranked player in the nation for the Class of 2022, competed in a Girls 18 singles Level 5 tournament. 

“She’s playing phenomenal at the moment,” Yanez’s coach Denys Maasdorp said. “She has a bright future. There are not many girls her age that can compete with her.” 

Over the past year, Yanez, who won her first national title at the USTA Girls 12 National Championships in August, has improved her physicality, allowing her to hit the ball harder and with more fluidity. 

Yanez hits the court for two hours a day practicing with Maasdorp, whom she began working with when she was 10, or her older brothers, Vincent, 14, and Anthony, 18, who both play tennis as well.

With every training session, Yanez spends time working multiple areas of her game, including her serve, court presence and aggressiveness at the net, with the goal of gaining the ability to win points no matter what style of opponent comes along. 

“When you start playing internationally, you can’t be one-dimensional,” Maasdorp said. 

 In addition, Yanez also spends up to three hours conditioning with gymnastics or other sports.

“She works really hard and that’s what it takes to excel at this game,” said Paul Yanez, Nikki Yanez’s father. 

It’s a a game plan Yanez hopes will propel her onto the International Tennis Federation circuit once she turns 13 years old. 

But Yanez knows she can’t get ahead of herself. There are aspects of her game she still needs to improve, such as her serve and her backhand, and she still has three major tournaments remaining in her 12s career. 

Yanez will compete in the Girls 12 singles division of the Easter Bowl in April, in California, followed by the Clay Court National Championships in July, in Florida, and the Hard Court National Championships in August, in Georgia, where she will seek to defend her national title. 

“I just want to think about this year,” Yanez said. “I’m going to keep playing 18s so that when I compete in the national tournaments in my age division, I’m ready for it.”