When looking at the roster of the men's tennis team, one immediately notices that this team is extremely talented but lacking in experience. On a team filled with underclassmen, one gets the impression that the leadership role would automatically go to Jordan Wile due to his seniority on the team.
But anyone who thinks he became the team captain by default should take a closer look at what Wile has meant to Duke's success the last three seasons.
The New Jersey native has made a tremendous impact on the Duke program with his versatility in both singles and doubles. Most importantly, Wile has experienced past success that has allowed him to set the standard for the rest of the team on continuing its dominance in the ACC.
"The most important thing Jordan has done is provide leadership for this team," said coach Jay Lapidus. "He provides a great influence for all of us with the way he approaches the game."
Although he realizes his added role on the team, Wile does not feel any burden being regarded as a leader.
"I realize as a senior that I'm going to be someone the other players are going to look to as a leader, but I don't go out there as a motivator," he said. "I haven't changed my approach this year so I just try to lead by example."
Wile has been able to settle in his role this year due to his experiences in college as well as high school.
A three-sport letterman at Chatahoochie High School in River Vale, N.J., Wile excelled in both baseball and basketball, but it was his tennis skills in singles and doubles that got the attention of the top Division I schools in the country. Wile was ranked No. 2 in the East region for boys in the 18-year-old age group.
After arriving at Duke, Wile was able to make an immediate impact on the team with his versatility. As a freshman, he was called upon to play anywhere from No. 3 to No. 6 in singles as well as teaming up with various members of the team in doubles play. He came out of the season with a respectable 18-11 overall mark that included a 9-6 tournament record and 5-2 mark in ACC play.
Wile attributes his immediate success to his experience against opponents he faced in high school.
"I knew I could do well right away since I was ranked in high school and I ended up being in the same talent pool as most of the guys I was going to face in college," Wile said. "The only transition was having to understand the team aspect since tennis is such an individual sport at the high school level."
Wile continued to improve his sophomore season, earning All-American honors in doubles with Doug Root. The tandem went 19-6 in dual matches and was 35-8 overall while qualifying for a spot in the National Indoors and NCAA doubles championship. The duo's impressive finish resulted in a No. 8 national ranking at the end of the season.
As a junior, Wile also started to get recognition for his play in singles. He went 20-13 playing primarily as Duke's fourth seed and worked his way into the singles rankings for the first time in his career, finishing the fall season at No. 77 in the country. Despite his achievement in singles, his doubles game did not falter as he and Root continued their domination in the ACC. The duo finished the season ranked 11th in the nation.
This year, however, has been frustrating for Wile. He has had to struggle with a nagging back injury that has hampered him throughout the fall. As a result, Wile had an early exit at the National Clay Court Championships and failed to qualify for the ITA All-American Championship
"It's been a tough season for Jordan," said Lapidus. "He has had to deal with a lot of nagging injuries such as his back and also having the flu."
And with the team being extremely deep with the addition of Pedro Escudero, Lapidus decided to pair the LSU-transfer with Root while teaming Wile with Dmitry Muzyka. Wile is looking forward to fully recovering from his injuries and teaming up with the fellow senior for the rest of the season.
"My back has given me a lot of trouble, especially in singles, because I didn't have as much mobility as when I'm healthy," said Wile. "But I'm getting better and hopefully I'll be healthy for the rest of the season, and I'm looking forward to playing with Dmitry because we've played well together in the past."
But with his collegiate career winding down, Wile still believes he can improve on his legacy at Duke with a strong showing this semester.
"I've been improving every year since I've been here," he said, "so I think I can do well the rest of the season because we have a team that is a legitimate contender to win the [NCAA Championship]."
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