Tennis Acumen

Rinky Hijikata: CROWD SUPPORT

Tennis Acumen at the  Columbus Fall Challenger 2022. And we are here with Rinky Hijikata, from Australia.

(photo credit: Adelaide Now)

Tennis Acumen: Rinky, players tell me that the crowd support at college tennis is incredible and the stands are almost empty when you come into Futures and Challengers, right? .

Rinky Hijikata: Yes, that's definitely tough to adjust to, you know? Yes, it's easy to get up for a college match because you've got hundreds of people there cheering you on or even harassing you a little bit. So, either way, it's, it's quite easy to get up for a college match. I feel like it's always high pressure. It  always means a lot. You want to represent your college well. You don't want to let your teammates down. When you come out here, especially in lower levels, it's not always easy to get yourself up for a match when there's two people in the crowd But I guess everyone's got to earn their stripes and once you get to higher levels there are the crowds and great atmospheres and that's where I want to get to, hopefully.

Tennis Acumen: Absolutely. Now, do crowds affect you or do you just block it out?

Rinky Hijikata: I play better with bigger crowds. I think that's always the way I've been wired. I love the bigger moments. I love the pressure situations. It's always been like that ever since I was a kid. You know, the more people that were there, the bigger the crowd, the bigger the moment, the more I enjoy it, the more I want to play. And, usually, the better I perform. So hopefully I can get there and play great tournaments week in and week out.

(This exclusive interview has generated seven ‘quick read’ excerpts, to be posted at tennisacumen.com over time.)

NICK CHAPPELL: THE JOURNEYMAN

This is one of twelve excerpts from an exclusive interview with Nick Chappell at the 2022 Columbus Fall Challenger.

They will be posted over time in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Tennis Acumen: Would you describe yourself as a journeyman? Is there a better term for a road warrior like yourself?

Nick Chappell: I don't know if there's a better term (laughs). I think just “a very good tennis player” is a better term. People don't understand how good guys ranked 100 or 200 or even 300 are.

Tennis Acumen: I was Talking to Tennys Sandgren yesterday he said the difference between college and the pros is not so much the skill, the strength or the stamina. It's mental focus.

Nick Chappell: Yes. I would agree with that.

Tennis Acumen: Does that make sense to you ?

Nick Chappell: I see it all the time now. I'm practicing with TCU whenever I'm home. And they're very, very good. Last year, they were number one, the country's top program. They have some high highly regarded players, good recruits. When I'm practicing with them, I can't really tell the difference between them and the guys I'm competing against here on the Challenger tour. But mental stamina, I think is the big difference.

Tennis Acumen: You certainly have some focus. Just watching you play today, you have incredible variety to your shots and, pretty well spot on consistency. It was fun watching you out there.

Rinky Hijikata: COLLEGE TENNIS

Tennis Acumen at the  Columbus Fall Challenger 2022. And we are here with Rinky Hijikata, from Australia.

(photo credit: University of North Carolina)

Tennis Acumen: So how did you get recruited into college and how did you make the decision to go, Rinky?

Rinky Hijikata: My old coach from Sydney, David Moore, had a lot of connections with the US colleges and he was the one that steered me that way. He put me in contact with some of the schools. My sister was a college swimmer, so she had that background and recommended it to me. My mom thought it was a good pathway for me, because I hadn't been doing great in juniors for a couple of years there and I was struggling a little bit physically. I was getting hurt quite a bit. So, it was a good choice, a way to get a few years of good training and good physical conditioning as well and try to improve as a player and a person. And it was probably the best choice for me. .

Tennis Acumen: Wonderful. And coming out of college and going on to the Futures and Challengers, what were the changes and what was the same?

Rinky Hijikata: The travel is a massive part of it. Yes. It's not easy, going week in, week out and playing every week, being in a different place every week. You will not have your teammates there to get around you and pick you up when you're down. When you're in college, it's a lot easier I think, because you've got ten other guys who are there to push you and make sure you're doing the right thing. I think that's one of the biggest differences.

(This exclusive interview has generated seven ‘quick read’ excerpts, to be posted at tennisacumen.com over time.)

NICK CHAPPELL: PLAYING COLLEGE TENNIS

This is one of twelve excerpts from an exclusive interview with Nick Chappell at the 2022 Columbus Fall Challenger.

They will be posted over time in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Tennis Acumen: How did you get recruited into college and make the decision to go to college?

Nick Chappell: Well, it was interesting cause I wasn't really looking at TCU. I was looking at a lot of Big Ten schools, including UCLA and North Carolina. Texas Christian wasn't really on my radar. I hadn't really even heard of the school, to be honest. And then my brother transferred there during my sophomore year of high school. The TCU coach, David Rodito, who is still the head coach, took over my senior year of high school. For me, the decision was a last-minute thing. My senior year of high school, I was ready to commit to Georgia. I surprised the recruiters when I went to visit TCU and that swayed me, having my brother there.

In college, they take their practice very seriously. Everything is arranged and scheduled, so you just go out and do it. But it's a little different when you're on the road and you have to do it yourself and you have to do it week after week after week. Maybe one of them could have a good result one time, but to get ranked 200 in the world, you have to have 15 good results. You have to do it repeatedly. It is mental stamina, to not just have the level, but to be able to repeat it over and over.

Tennis Acumen: Okay. I'm hearing the same thing from both you and Tennys Sandgren.

Nick Chappell: Yes, definitely.

COLLEGE TO THE PROS (PART TWO OF TWO)

Tennis Acumen had an exclusive interview with Tennys Sandgren at the Columbus, Ohio Fall 2022 Challenger.  Here’s part of that conversation.

(photo credit: Karl Corbett)

TA:  The business aspect, the logistics, going from college, where everything is done for you, to going out completely on your own. How did that work for you?

Tennys Sandgren: At college, they take care of everything. They take care of the travel arrangements, hotel, food,  training times. All your schedules are laid out for you.. It suits my personality that I take responsibility for those things and to not lose your way. But it's an added burden. You've got to think about that stuff. It's not fun to lose on a Tuesday, then try to make travel arrangements to go play in the next tournament. And sometimes there are difficult travel arrangements and it's challenging and it's not fun.

TA: Did you get used to it fairly quickly?

Tennys Sandgren: As a pro? Well, my first three or four years, a lot of it was in the States, so a lot of it was driving, a lot of it. I used to get in the car and go drive to the next match, which is nice. I like to drive. So, it's, it's not a bad thing. I would much rather drive than fly, that's for sure. Interesting.

TA: Moving from college to the pros, and the experience of being part of a team versus all of a sudden going out on your own, what was that transition like?

Tennys Sandgren: Actually, the tour is easier for me. I like playing on a team, but one of the things that I love about tennis is that it is just you, on your own. And so, it's more natural for me to play this sport on my own, but team sports are great. And playing tennis when it's in a team format is great. But I like the solace of playing tennis on your own, on your own side and doing your own thing.

TA: Interesting. And talk about crowds in terms of college, I imagine you have more audience than you do in the Futures and the Challengers. How is that different, to step out and make the change and there's no support there.

Tennys Sandgren: It's a challenge to pick yourself up day in, day out without much of the crowd you are accustomed to. You might have three or four hundred people watching your stream, but that's not people, being there, eyes on you. When something is observed, it changes, the thing literally changes. And so, when you're being observed and observed by a lot of people, it changes how you go about things on the court. And here at the Challengers, everybody knows it's being streamed, but it's not the same thing.

This interview is broken into four different ‘quick reads’ that will be posted here over time.

FROM COLLEGE TENNIS TO THE PRO TOUR (PART ONE OF TWO)

Tennis Acumen (TA): Tennis Acumen here at the Columbus Fall Challenger 2022 with Tennys Sandgren.

(photo credit: Karl Corbett)

TA: Sang, it has been a while. Nice to see you again. I'm doing I'm doing a series on college players that turn pro. So, I would like to ask you to just step back in your memory. Give me anything you can about the differences between the college and the professional tour. You know, just hold forth on the transition. I'd love to hear it.

Tennys Sandgren: Well, the level of play isn't much different. There's a couple of things that I always notice when I practice with the  college guys at MTSU (Middle Tennessee State University). The Tennessee State guys are good. They're not highly ranked college players and they're good players. But do they  know what happens when the points get going? One difference between college and the tour is court position. In college, court position stays pretty deep in the court. Nobody's particularly great at taking the angles by moving forward....   and second, there's  just the level of drop off in matches. You see ebbs and flows in matches and you see college players, when they're not at their top form, and stay off track for a game or two. With the high-level pro guys, there are only very small windows, maybe just a minute here and there, and they are back to top form. College guys can take a set hiatus, they can go down a break in the first set, and that might be the day. So, it's just that mental flexibility,  bend but not break and it's all about that level of concentration. You know, everybody has different levels of ability. And you're out there for 2 hours, 3 hours. It's a long time to stay focused. It's a long time to keep your mental energy up, to stay energized. It's a skill in and of itself: How well can you actually stay focused on the task at hand and how long does your mind drift? Do you get negative? Do you not believe in yourself? How long does that happen? Because you're not at your best when that's happening. So that's another thing that’s just different from the tour. It's not like the level of play is worse. It's just little factors that come into play when you're playing matches that really make a big difference.

This interview is broken into four different ‘quick reads’ that will be posted here over time.

Evan King: College to Pro Tennis

In 2021, Tennis Acumen interviewed American Evan King at the Champaign Challenger tournament. Here is a part of that conversation:

Photo credit: University of Michigan

Tennis Acumen: Making the change from college to professional. I've heard guys say that first off, the level of play and competition goes up and the crowd size and support goes down. Is that your experience?

Evan King: I wouldn't so much say about the level of play. If you play near the top of your lineup in college, that's more or less the same levels as Futures. Unless you have a bunch of wild cards going in, you're going to start at Futures. Crowds are different, certainly. At the University of Michigan matches, you will have more than just tennis fans. You'll have fans of the university that want to support Michigan athletics. The same person will go watch tennis, softball, hockey, volleyball just because they love University of Michigan. For people to go out to these tournaments (Challenger level), they have to love tennis or a specific player to come out. So, it's two interesting dynamics. When you're playing in college, you're playing for university, your teammates and coaches, the people that you're practicing with every day. You have the bigger crowds behind you. When you turn pro, you're playing for yourself. As you go up to the Challenger circuit, the level of play is better than the college level, for the most part. Beyond that, you have the ATP circuit. When you're out as a professional, you have to muster up your own energy. You have to back yourself because unless you have the money to hire a coach or physio or a team behind you, you're out there alone. I would say that's the most difficult part. You have to hold yourself more accountable because there's not a coach on you. You're not representing the other six people on your team. If I lay an egg during a college match, I affect everybody else. The university, the coaches, the athletic department, everybody. I'm letting a whole bunch of people down. If I lay an egg on the pro circuit, I'm only letting myself down. So, it's a different kind of energy, different pressure and a high enough standard where, letting yourself down is the same as letting other people down.

 

More of this exclusive interview is available at Tennis Acumen. Go to the interviews category, shown on the upper right hand side of the screen.

Tags: @EvanKingChicago

Aleks Vukic: College tennis to the Pro Tour

In 2021, Tennis Acumen interviewed Australian Aleks Vukic at the Champaign Challenger tournament. Here is a part of that conversation:

Tennis Acumen: And making the transition to playing as a pro. What's the same about the game? What's different?

Aleks Vukic: It's SO different. I think it's a lot more mentally tough because in college, you're very comfortable. In college, you have everything you need. You have coaches. You have everything set up and then you show once or twice a week and play a match. On the pro tour, you're alone, you're traveling from place to place. Depends on the place, but it might not be so nice. You have to do that for thirty weeks of the year! Sometimes you go through spells where you don't win a match or just win a few matches in a few months, and you need to bounce back. It's a lot more mentally challenging, and it's not for everyone. But I think if you find ways to love it, it's unreal.

 

 

Tennis Acumen: So, what was the best thing about the college experience and what are some of your best memories there?

Aleks Vukic: I think it is developing the game, having time to develop the game with the coaches. I mean, this is an unbelievable program, so the coaches really helped me here, but it gives you time. You look at the top 20 guys in college, they're all ranked inside the top 400. You're playing those guys and you're building a game. So, it's a really great experience. You also develop as a person. There's more to life than tennis. You can tell sometimes who's gone to college and who hasn't on the tour.  You can see guys whose whole life is tennis. They think a little differently than the guys that have gone to college and have seen other things..

 

 

Tennis Acumen: And I've heard people say one of the differences is this: coming into the Challengers, you can be playing on Monday afternoon and there's absolutely nobody in the stands, but in college, you do get a lot of fan support, right?

Aleks Vukic: Yeah, you do. Everyone loves playing to the fans. Obviously, it depends on the tournament. Some Challengers, actually, they get quite a good crowd, so it depends on the week. But every week is different.

 

 

Tennis Acumen: How sensitive are you to the crowd when you're in a match? Does the crowd affect you?

Aleks Vukic: A little bit? But I'd rather the crowd be against me, than to have no crowd, to be honest. I would rather have 10,000 people cheering against me than to have zero people in the stands. It just makes for a better atmosphere.

 

 

More of this exclusive interview is available at Tennis Acumen. Go to the interviews category, shown on the upper right hand side of the screen.

Tags: aleks.vukic, Vuki_SMASH23

J. J. Wolf - Goals and Dreams

Jeffrey John "J. J." Wolf (born December 21, 1998) is an American professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of120 in September 2020. Wolf played collegiately at The Ohio State University, where he was the #1 ranked player in college tennis. J. J. sat with Karl Corbett of Tennis Acumen at the Knoxville Challenger in November, 2019.  Here is part of that exclusive interview. 

Karl: What sort of goals and dreams do you have, J. J.?

J.J.: I want to reach my ceiling. The main thing for me? I don't have a. specific numerical goal in mind. I just want to see how good I can get. You know I'm not quite sure what that is, but I'm hoping it's high.

 

Karl: John Millman is a friend. I asked him: “How do you know when you're done with tennis?” He said: “When I'm not getting any better.” That's exactly what you're saying. It’s when you reach that ceiling.

J.J.: And I remember my grandpa told me something huge. He's 93 now. Maybe three or four years ago, I asked him: “Is your body deteriorating,  anything like that?”  He said: “I used to think about it like that.” He'd do his leg lifts and all his workouts every day. And I asked: “Will you know when you start not being able to do your reps (repetitions of an exercise)?” He said: “I'm not thinking about it like that .I'm still increasing my reps.” So, I'm thinking, the harder you can go…. If he's not slowing down his 90’s, I'm not going to slow down in my late 30s, so I and not worried about the end coming too soon.

 

Karl: So, you'd mentioned Federer. Any other heroes growing up or people whose style you emulate?

J.J.: I try to emulate a right-handed version of my dad, when he played. I always liked the American guys. Andy Roddick, I’m a big fan of his.  Guys like John Isner, Sam Querrey, obviously taller than me, but I like watching them a lot. Andre Agassi...... I always liked how he returned and how he moved.  Andre’s style is funny sometimes. I had a mullet earlier in the year that looked like his a little bit. Not as long, but... I kind of did that for the boys at Ohio State.  

 

Karl: That’s brilliant, really. Tell me, when you're on the road, who do you keep in touch wit, and how?.

J.J.: I've got a lot of great childhood friends and college friends besides my family. I've got a couple buddies that I lived with last year. They go to Ohio State. One plays football and one is very smart and driven, works a lot. Both of them are very good about keeping in touch. We will do FaceTime, just talk and kind of keep up. Makes me feel like I'm at home a little bit. Those two, in particular keep, me grounded.

 

Karl: It’s good to have friends. I love that. Hey, great interview, J.J. sure we will be seeing you in Cincinnati. That's my home base.

J.J.: I hope so

 

Karl: Now, as the interviewer always says,  good luck in the next round, J.J.

J.J.: I appreciate it. Thank you.

College Tennis - Alexander Cozbinov

Alexander Cozbinov (born 28 April 1995) is a Moldovan tennis player. Cozbinov has a career high ATP singles ranking of 743 achieved on 2 March 2020. Cozbinov played college tennis at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas between 2015–2018. He won the Mountain West Conference Tennis Player of the Year in 2018. In 2020, Alex sat for an exclusive interview with Tennis Acumen, and talked about his experience at UNLV.

Tennis Acumen: How did you come to play tennis at UNLV, University of Nevada Las Vegas?

Alexander Cozbinov: Well, I was playing at future events in Romania. One of the coaches there used to be assistant coach at UNLV. He asked me if I'm planning on going to college, and I said: “Yes.” He came to watch one of my matches and then he told the head coach at UNLV about me. The head coach contacted me and that's how I went to UNLV.  

 

Tennis Acumen: That had to be a big decision.

Alexander Cozbinov: Yes, it was. But there weren’t a lot of options for me. After I graduated from high school, my family didn't have money to support my tennis, because it's very expensive. So, I basically had a choice: stop playing or going to college and play tennis and study. I had only four months to decide. So, when UNLV offered me a scholarship. I took it right away and went to UNLV.

 

Tennis Acumen: J.P. Smith told me that playing in college, everything is very structured. You have your food and meals and hotels and your travel. Everything's arranged. Was it difficult to make the transition where you have to do it all by yourself?

Alexander Cozbinov: Oh yeah. It was very difficult to do it on my own. I almost quit at some point.  You have to find financial support. You have to pay for all expenses on your own, which makes it very difficult to keep playing and stay on the tour. You have to always keep finding ways to keep coming back. So, it's way more difficult once you decide to play professional tennis on your own.

 

Tennis Acumen: What's the difference between playing tennis as part of a team in college, compared to being out solo on the tour?

Alexander Cozbinov: Well, the tour is more individual. You're trying to build your ranking on your own. College is more about the team. It's more fun, more exciting. You travel as a team. You do everything as a team which I kind of enjoyed a lot in college.

 

Tennis Acumen: OK. So, do you still keep in touch with people you played with?

Alexander Cozbinov: I have friends, I am still friends with my teammates and I still keep in touch with the coaching staff, too.

 

Tennis Acumen: It's really interesting, your experience. One thing I'd heard is this:  in college, you get fairly large audiences. When you come out the Futures and Challengers, there's nobody there. Can you compare the audience for college tennis to the audience at this level?

Alexander Cozbinov: Yes. In college it’s much louder. I liked it. Here, it's way calmer and quieter. I enjoyed the crowds. Some people don't like it because it interrupts the game. I was OK. Here, not many people come out and it's not as exciting. I guess because it’s about only one player, not about the team.

 

For more in our series on college tennis, select the 'College Tennis' category, upper right. 

 

College Tennis - John Patrick Smith

John  Patrick Smith, from Australia, attended the University of Tennessee from 2007 through 2011, where he was a four-time All-American and made it to the college No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles. Tennis Acumen talked with JP in early 2020. Here's one part of that exclusive interview. 

Tennis Acumen:  We are talking with John Patrick Smith. J.P., how did you first get started in tennis?

J. P. Smith: As a kid, growing up, I was into many different sports. Swimming was my first sport. I swam from ages 6 to 12 and then I started tennis around 8. Tennis complemented my swimming, but after a point, tennis was full time, as far as my main focus . I still was into other sports, well into high school.

 

Tennis Acumen: How did your family play into sports activity, and your decision to play tennis?

J. P. Smith: My family was great, in the sense that they were pretty open to what I did and supported my choices. That's why I played many sports, just because they're pretty chill. My family is very relaxed, so whatever I wanted to do they were very supportive. It was good.

 

Tennis Acumen: That’s a brilliant thing. You played college tennis. How in the world did you come to play college tennis in the USA, growing up halfway around the world?

J. P. Smith: We have a big Australian connection at the University of Tennessee. So. It's been an Australian on the team since 1987. So every year there’s this kind of pedigree that comes through. There's gonna be at least one Australian coming through. I think we’ve got three on the team right now at Tennessee. So, we've got a few and it's kind of cool gong back there and training. Always nice seeing an Aussie there. It's very nice, very unique.

 

Tennis Acumen: Now you've played a lot on the tour since college. How would you describe the tennis experience as a player at college?

J. P. Smith: It's very structured, and it's a lot of fun. It's very well run. You know, you've had people doing stuff for you. Basically, all you have to do is play tennis and go to class. Everything else is taken care for you: the travel arrangements, the tournaments you are playing. That's all taken care of. All you have to do is study and play tennis. Obviously, when you leave college, it's a whole new beast . You have to find yourself. You have to schedule tournaments, schedule your training, schedule your workouts in the gym. It's a different level.

 

Tennis Acumen: Now, did you consider going straight to the tour?

J. P. Smith: No, never. I it was all about education. I've got my education now, so it takes a little weight off the shoulders. I don’t have to go back to school as mature age student.

 

Tennis Acumen: Right. And the experience of playing as part of a team, as opposed to singles or doubles on tour?

J. P. Smith: That’s the other unique factor about college tennis. You don't get that on the tour. It’s good to factor in those four years, where you can enjoy that, build on your game with your teammates. You make new friends and new memories there in college, memories you still talk about today, even.

 

Tennis Acumen: That's brilliant.

 

For more in our series on college tennis, select the 'College Tennis' category, upper right. 

College Tennis - J. J. Wolf

Jeffrey John "J. J." Wolf (born December 21, 1998) is an American professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 120 in September 2020. Wolf played collegiately at The Ohio State University, where he was the #1 ranked player in college tennis. J. J. sat with Karl Corbett of Tennis Acumen at the Knoxville Challenger in November, 2019.  Here is part of that exclusive interview. 

Tennis Acumen: We are with Jeffrey John Wolf talking about the college game.  J.J., when did you make the decision to play college tennis, as opposed to going straight on the tour?

J. J. Wolf: For me it was never an option to go straight onto the tour.  I always knew I was going to go to college. My parents raised me with that idea in my head and   I wanted to get a feel for the education. I also loved the team environment college provides. So, it was a great idea for me to go to college. It  helped my game a lot and I made some of the best friends I could ask for.

 

Tennis Acumen: Tell me about that team experience it's a bit different on the tour

J. J. Wolf: Yeah,   I'm pretty lucky. I've got one of my former teammates on tour with me right around the same ranking. So, we get to play the same tournaments, which is nice. I still get a little bit of that feel but I know a lot of these guys are out there on their own. That's not my personality. I'd rather have a team around me. S

 

Tennis Acumen: In college, it seems everything is pretty structured. Things are arranged for you:  food, meals, travel. All you have to do is play tennis and go to class, right? How would you describe that shock when you go on the pro tour and have to do everything yourself?

J. J. Wolf:  I've been lucky in this regard, also. I've had a lot of help from the agency I signed with, my coaches as well as my family, helping make that transition as smooth as possible. It is  definitely a little bit of a shock when you all you're thinking about is tennis. At school, I could socialize with my friends, went to classes, but   after   a month or two, I got used to it a little more. I kind of had a shaky start there, but   I'm getting accustomed to it.

 

Tennis Acumen: What was the biggest surprise making that transition?

J. J. Wolf: I don’t know if it was a surprise, but the biggest shock was just   how consistently high the  level of play was, with everyone. I just hadn't thought about it before     You make jumps and strides so quickly at all levels, up until the pros. This is, obviously, the last place you can go. After the first couple tournaments, you learn that  every match can be a hard one. You know it's a  privilege to play against a lot of these guys, so, I’m having fun.

 

Tennis Acumen: Excellent, JJ, thanks for sharing your experience with us.

J. J. Wolf: Thank you very much. I  appreciate it.  

 

For more in our series on college tennis, select the 'College Tennis' category, upper right. 

College Tennis - Aleksander Kovacevic - Part Two

American Aleks Kovacevic talked with Tennis Acumen at the Knoxville Challenger, November of 2019. This is part two of his thoughts on the college tennis experience.

Photo credit - The Daily Illini

 

Tennis Acumen:  So, you talk about team atmosphere. You've had a little taste of life in the pros, playing Futures and Challengers. What is it about college, the  team tennis environment that works best for you?

Aleks Kovacevic:  Well, there's a lot of adversity you have to face here (on the pro tour). It's very different in college. For example, you'll have huge crowds showing up for our matches. We have a really big fan base for Illinois tennis. You don't really see that, not at this level in the pros (the Challenger tournaments). You see maybe one or two guys come out to watch you and cheer for you, but it's not like you have a whole city behind you, in a way. That’s really cool, but it can also be stressful when you're on the road and you have a crowd of people chirping at you.

And the way that college tennis is structured with no ad points, it's just a lot more of a stressful situation when you're on the court. There's a few ways look at it. Some people love that. What's been interesting is this: I used to really, really love that stress.  I always thrived in that. And this summer, I came out to  some of these Challenger matches and there was no one there. I struggled, because I was thinking: “Where's everyone to boost me or even just chirp at me?”. I wanted people that get me going somehow, and I had to find new internal motivation. I got so used it here that when I came back to college it was a shock to my system. It was so much noise that I kind of  wanted it to be quiet again. It can be good and it could be bad. It depends on the player and your mindset about how you look at it. A lot of things.

 

Tennis Acumen:  Quite interesting. That's quite interesting. And you're a couple of months away from graduation.

Aleks Kovacevic:  I don't know if I'll finish my schooling, but iIn terms of like my tennis eligibility I'll be done.  My fourth year, I'll be done.

 

Tennis Acumen:  So, Aleks, are you putting together a team to support you, to keep you on the road:   your trainer or physio, flight arrangements, all of that?

Aleks Kovacevic:  That's one thing that I'm trying to work on. It hasn't really come together as much as  I thought. mean. Some of those things, I worry about a lot. My plan after college in terms of where I am going to train. Who’s going to travel with me. It's pretty sad, in a way, because I'm gonna miss being in college with my friends all the time. I'll be on my own, in a way. But I think those kind of things will figure themselves out as I get on the pro tour. I meet a lot of people that can put me in touch with with whoever I need. I haven't had really that pro experience, where I'm going week to week, out there by myself.  Right now, I'm playing this pro tournament, and I'm driving back to school right away. I'm going back to see my friends. So, it's a lot different when you're playing Challengers and pro tournaments while you're in college than it will be playing strictly pro so. Some things, I might have to adjust to.  I'm looking forward to it, but I'm also very anxious about it. You know life is gonna be different and I know I’ll miss college.

 

Tennis Acumen:  Well you will have to create your own structure. It’s all there for you right now, all provided.  But you're sharp. I know you’ll figure that out. Last question. Where would you like to be in one year.

Aleks Kovacevic:  In one year? I want to be able to crack the top 200 I guess. That's a fairly reasonable goal. I'm going to be ranked around 490 next week. My goal right now is to set myself up for this summer in terms of getting into these Challengers on my own ranking. I've gotten a lot of wild cards and I think I've used them pretty well. But I'd like to kind of push into that 300 to 400 range soon, sooner rather than later so I can kind of just consistently  play at the Challenger level, and peck away  at the higher level. That’s the plan.

 

Tennis Acumen:  Thank you very much Aleks. This really is fascinating. People love this stuff. See you soon.

 

For more in our series on college tennis, select the 'College Tennis' category, upper right. 

College Tennis - Aleksander Kovacevic - Part One of Two

American Aleks Kovacevic talked with Tennis Acumen at the Knoxville Challenger, November of 2019. This is part one of his thoughts on the college tennis experience.

photo credit - The Daily Illini

 

Tennis Acumen:  February 26, 2020. Columbus, Ohio. Tennis Acumen sits down with Aleksander Kovacevic. Aleks, at what point did you decide you were going to play tennis in college as opposed to go on the tour.

Aleks Kovacevic:  I didn't see it as that big of a choice. I was honestly looking at going to Ivy League schools, but I decided not to,  which is not saying anything against Ivy League schools. It's just, for me, if I went to an Ivy League school, I'd be more focused on the school and  after that, somehow  find my tennis. My dad was always a scholar. He was a Ph.D. in computer science at UCLA. So, my parents were kind of pushing me to go the elite school route. I had the SAT scores and all that. Then, by the very end of my high school tenure,  I started doing better and better and started competing with the guys that were top in  the nation. My ranking  was in the top 20.  

Aleks Kovacevic:  And nowadays, guys are making these decisions.  For example, my friend Axel Geller from Argentina. He was the number one junior in the world in 2017. He decided to go to college instead of go pro. So for me, seeing something like that, it was not even a question.  I wasn’t saying: “I don't think I can make it as a pro.” This was going to be a long way to go. It's tough out here. Tennis is a  tough sport to make money in. Mentally, it's just a tough sport. So I wanted to have a backup if tennis wasn't really going as well as I wanted it to.

 

Tennis Acumen:  And how did you decide which school then?  Specifically the University of Illinois? How did you end up there?

Aleks Kovacevic:   It's kind of a long story. I was looking at a bunch of schools before I decided on Illinois. And I did like those schools. I had nothing nothing against them. I liked all the schools. But for me, school was school… and I didn't really like school in general. It was kind of daunting.  I didn't want to do the actual school work. I'd much rather focus on tennis. I'm a lazy kid, in terms of school. Then, I played my now teammate Zeke Clark in the final round of qualifying in the Futures. I think it was in Little Rock, Arkansas. We had a grind of a match, and Zeke beats me 7-5 in the third set. I'm sitting on the sideline,  looking at flights on my phone, talking my dad about where I'm going to go next, drinking a Coke on the sideline. After the match, Zeke  comes out to me, saying: “Hey, man, you're a really good player. You should contact Brad Dancer. He’s  head coach at Illinois.”

Aleks Kovacevic:   I didn't really know Zeke, but he was one of the top players in the nation at the time. I had respect for him. So I thought: “Maybe I will.”  I reached out to Brad. I guess Zeke had talked to Brad in the meantime and Brad was excited to have me on campus. I came on a visit and fell in love with the team, fell in love with everything about the place. I don't really know why, because it's kind of different from where I’ve ever lived. A lot different from Boca (Boca Raton, Florida),  right? Illinois is a very different place,  but it clicked. I committed to school a few weeks before it started. I was a really planning to go in in January and take some time just to hang out. But then I visited, I loved it, and I said: “ Let's do it. Let's start now.” That's my story when it comes to Illinois.

 

Tennis Acumen:  So another player recruited you. Now your teammate, Zeke Clark.

Aleks Kovacevic:  Right. I think he's ranked around 700 right now. He’s good player. Greatest guy ever. I loved him  from the first day I met him and he's just an amazing person. He’s one of the top recruiters in college, as a player. In terms of  everyone that comes to visit Illinois, Zeke’s just been there, encouraging people. Everyone that comes on a visit there has just loved the team atmosphere.

 

Tennis Acumen:  Interesting, the way that works.

 

For more in our series on college tennis, select the 'College Tennis' category, upper right. 

Tempe $75K Challenger: Arizona's 1st Men's Pro Tennis Tournament Since 2005

PETE ZIEBRON in TEMPE

Tournament Director Gary Nees and Arizona Sports & Entertainment Chief Executive Officer Alan Young have been on-site from start to finish on the opening days of the tournament.  Charles Gabrean Photography

A little more than a month ago, the USTA Southwest Section sent out a tweet announcing the fact that men's professional tennis would return to Arizona in February.  The drought would finally be over for tennis fans in the Grand Canyon State - the last men's tournament departed following play in 2005 for Las Vegas.

Since that time, the Goldwater Women's Classic was held at the Phoenix Country Club from 2009-2012 and the Surprise Women's Tennis Classic has been played in the West Valley since 2008. 

Nicolas Jarry of Chile powers his way to the final round of qualifying.  Charles Gabrean Photography

Yesterday, play got underway at the Whiteman Tennis Center on the camps of Arizona State University.  The $75K Challenger features young American upstart Ernesto Escobedo as the #1 seed and 2014 Wimbledon doubles Champion Vasek Pospisil as the #4 seed in singles.

The plan will be to grow the tournament going forward.  Despite a very late start in getting the event on the ATP calendar, the first two days of qualifying have run smoothly.  Tennis aficionados in Phoenix have shown up to support the event over the weekend and larger numbers of spectators are expected throughout the week as the main draw gets underway.

The final round of qualifying gets underway tomorrow at 10 AM, followed by the opening round of the main draw at the Whiteman Tennis Center.