Shoreham-Wading River’s Hidaka Brothers Capture Suffolk Doubles Title
Competing in his final season of high school tennis, Ray Hidaka paired with his younger brother, Kai, to win the biggest match of his high school career on Tuesday. The brothers from Shoreham-Wading River defeated another set of brothers, Smithtown West’s Ishaanth Guduru & Sreeyanth Guduru, 6-2, 7-5 in the finals of the Suffolk County Individual Championships at Smithtown East to capture the county title.
“It’s his last year, and we finally got to the finals, and won it, so it’s pretty indescribable,” said Kai.
The Hidaka’s came out firing in the championship, claiming the opening set before racing out to a 3-0 advantage in the second set. But the Guduru’s responded and would not go away quietly, rattling off the next four games to jump in front 4-3 in the second set.
“We tried to make sure we hyped each other up, if one of us is down, and we talk to one another in Japanese,” said Ray. “So we make sure to communicate a lot, even if we don’t use hand signals, and stay positive.”
It worked, as the Hidaka’s would rattle off three of the next four games to close out the set and the match, winning the Suffolk County doubles championship.
“It’s been one of the best years of my life. Before the season I told our coach that we were going to the county finals, so to actually do it is such a great feeling,” said Ray. “Doing it with my brother makes it even better; he’s the best doubles partner I could ask for. This is going to be a memory we keep for a long time.”
The Hidakas look to continue their run at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Individual Championships beginning on June 5 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. They will represent Suffolk County alongside the Guduru brothers, as will the Rocky Point pairing of Luke Mayola & Sena Donnelly, who won 7-6(4), 7-5 over Harborfield’s Boden Rudloff & Brody Surbeck in the third-place match.
“We’re excited for States, we know it’s going to be a challenge,” Kai added. “Last year we got to the second round and lost to the team that won the whole thing. But we’re confident heading into this year and hopefully we can do better.”
CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM THE FINAL ROUNDS OF THE SUFFOLK INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
