Andre Forrest Shares His Experience as U.S. Open Ball Boy

For most of us, the U.S. Open is something we watch from the comfort of our couches, or maybe, if we’re lucky, from the stands at Arthur Ashe Stadium. For senior Andre Forrest, it was something entirely different — he has spent his last two summers working alongside the world’s top tennis athletes as a ball boy for the U.S. Open. 

Andre has been playing tennis for what he can only recall to be his entire life. He explained, “I played when I was a kid, and I used to play with my dad” and then “did camp for a few years before I started taking it seriously in eighth grade, where I played junior varsity.” Given that he was named after tennis legends Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal, it only seems fitting that he would eventually find himself working at the U.S. Open. 

The opportunity came along when he saw the application online and decided to take advantage of it. After the online portion, Andre had to attend what he described as a “really intense tryout” where some people had been “training for weeks.” There, “they asked [him] to do sprints and roll the ball back to each other,” and “they would hit tennis balls against the net, and if you didn’t grab them on the first try, you wouldn’t get accepted.” He described that the role requires serious “hand-eye coordination, speed, and [tennis ball] rolling abilities,” which is how he ultimately secured the spot as ball boy. 

Once accepted, he attended training clinics to prepare for the event, where he learned everything from tennis ball rolling techniques to strict rules on and off the court. He noted that before entering the court, “you’d have to be in a straight line, and you’d have to go on in a group of ten people.” On the court, not only was there no talking allowed, but “during match point you’d just have to sit there and not move,” which once became a problem when the ball came right towards a fellow ball boy who had to break the rules and move during the match point.

Andre was lucky enough to work on some major courts like Louis Armstrong and even got assigned to high-profile matches including players like Naomi Osaka, Aryna Sabalenka, Holger Rune, Andrey Rublev, and many more. “Some friends got to meet [Novak] Djokovic,” and “I saw Stephen Curry, I got some pictures with Penn Badgley, … M.I.A, and Pope from Outer Banks,” Andre noted.

However, not all interactions were positive. One moment stood out to Andre when an American player, Mackenzie McDonald, snapped at him. “He was looking at me, but sometimes it’s hard to tell when [players] want the ball tossed to them. So he kind of looked at me and I wasn’t sure if he wanted the ball, so he just said ‘Pass me the f***ing ball.’” Although Andre attributes this moment to “a bad mood that day,” in another instance, Andre recalled a player who “would just hit the balls and make the ball boy run for it,” and the player eventually had to apologize. Moments like this serve as a reminder of the true intensity of the tournament and offer a more raw look at the players under immense pressure. 

What surprised Andre most about the Open wasn’t the players or the fans in the stands, but how many people are on staff. He found the court maintenance to be “really intense,” noting “we had eight to ten ball boys on each court… and then there’s people for the players and supervisors, so it’s around 20 or 22 people on the court at once.” He even had to adjust to being in front of 14,000 people at once: “at first it was nerve-wracking, but towards the end I realized they’re not really watching me… I got used to it.” 

Reflecting on his experience, many moments stuck out to him as exciting or noteworthy, but one was especially memorable. In 2024, Andre was the ballboy for a player in the U18 doubles boys finals, and he recalls that “the next year, I saw him play a quarter qualifier match where all three sets went to tiebreakers and thousands of people were watching.” Being able to see the player’s progression was both surreal and inspiring for Andre. 

Beyond the unforgettable matches and player interactions, the experience also taught Andre some valuable life lessons. He emphasized that from his two summers at the U.S. Open, he was able to grow socially and “learn to communicate in an environment that’s very overwhelming… which is something that will translate to college in the future.” Ultimately, what started as a love for tennis turned into a once (or twice, in his case) in a lifetime opportunity that Andre Forrest will never forget.