The Original Article Published On The Jerusalem Post
“The Jerusalem Post” spoke to tennis star Madison Brengle about her first round of the US Open and religion.
NEW YORK – With Shahar Peer’s retirement in February after reaching a career high No. 11 tennis ranking in 2011 and Julia Glushko’s fall from a high of 79 in 2014 to her current slot at 252, Jewish tennis fans are left to wonder just how many women occupy the top 100.
American Madison Brengle No. 81 spoke to The Jerusalem Post about her 6-2, 6-3 loss to Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium in the first round of the US Open, and about religion. Asked about being the only Jew in the top 100, she quickly interrupted.
“Isn’t Giorgi? She is in the top 100? There is a Jewish reporter who hunts down me and Camila [Italian Camila Giorgi No. 69], so I just assumed…”
Other top 100 players with unconfirmed Jewish roots include Ukrainian Elina Svitolina (4) and Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland (28).
Brengle, born and raised in Dover, Delaware notes that her mother is Jewish and her father is not.
“My brother and I feel like we kind of double dipped – we just did a bit of everything – we called it double dipping.”
While she and her brother “went to a little bit of religious school,” travel and tournaments got in the way of celebrating bat mitzva. Brengle reports, “We do Hanukka, but we are super casual.”
Brengle has not yet been to Israel, though she is good friends with Julia Glushko. We have been friends since age 10. We have known each other forever. She is really cool.”
Perhaps Brengle can help her good friend climb back in to the Jewish Top-100 club.