Rockville Centre’s Noah Rubin will miss an astronomy and creative writing class Tuesday at Wake Forest, where he is enrolled as a freshman on a tennis scholarship.
“I think they understand,’’ Rubin told The Post. “It’s the U.S. Open.’’
Indeed it is. The tennis career of the 18-year-old Rubin, the pride of Long Island, has been streaking like a comet the past two months, and he will make his Open debut Tuesday on Court 13 at approximately 2 p.m. vs. Argentine lefty clay-courter Federico Delbonis, ranked 66th in the world.
The speedy but diminutive Rubin knows his way around Flushing Meadows.
“My parents took me here every year since I was a baby,’’ Rubin said. “It’s been my dream to play at the Open — a spectacular opportunity to show what I’ve been working toward my whole life.’’
Rubin, who trains primarily out of the John McEnroe Tennis Academy in Randalls Island, won the Wimbledon junior title after going through qualifiers. Then he captured the USTA 18-and-under national championship three weeks ago in Kalamazoo, Mich., to earn a direct berth into the main draw of the Open.
The hype for Rubin has grown, partly because of the sad state of American men’s tennis.
Rubin has a favorable first match, and thinks he has a real chance for his first pro victory before he begins college. Rubin, who grew up in Merrick, attended Bellmore-Kennedy High as a freshman before going the home-school, online route to focus more on tennis.
“The draw wasn’t awful but I still have to play good tennis to beat [Delbonis],’’ Rubin said. “There’s so many other players I could’ve played other than a clay-courter. My game will match up well to him. I enjoy playing lefties. It’s definitely an opportunity to take advantage. It’s not the worst draw. I wouldn’t be shocked to win.’’
Rubin is 5-foot-9, 150 pounds. What he lacks in stature and bulk, he makes up for in speed.
“I’m faster than most guys on the main tour,” he said, “obviously not as much as [Gael] Monfils, but if I ever get to that level, I’ll be one of the speediest.’’
His style is comparable to a Lleyton Hewitt or Michael Chang.
“He’s a smart player,’’ said Patrick McEnroe, the general manager of USTA Player Development. “Obviously he’s extremely quick and has got a great tennis IQ. The message got through to him — my brother hopefully had a part — you got to win some big tournaments.’’
Rubin benefited by practicing with the U.S. Davis Cup Team last January in San Diego.
“He’s starting to get more comfortable with what he can and cannot do,’’ John McEnroe said. “He’s learned over the past couple years how to utilize his advantages more and cut down on what he doesn’t do as well. He’s become more consistent mentally, so the progress is there. It’s a good sign for him in the future.’’
Rubin plans to be attending classes at Wake Forest by Labor Day. But he may be one-and-done, especially if he wins the NCAA title. Patrick McEnroe said Rubin is making the right decision to play college tennis for at least a year or two, believing “98 percent’’ of his prospects should go to college.
“If I feel good after a year and prepared enough to go pro, I’ll take my game to the next level,’’ Rubin said. “There would be nothing stopping me.’’