With the regular season over and done with, the UCLA men’s
tennis team now has two weeks to relax and prepare until the first
round of the NCAA Championship. But competition is not off their
agenda just yet, as the Bruins will compete in the Pac-10
Championships this weekend. The tournament will be held in Ojai and
will be the players’ first individual tournament since the
Sherwood Collegiate Cup in January. “Other conferences play
the championship as a team event, but we feel it could be redundant
to play teams for, in most cases, the third time this
season,” UCLA coach Billy Martin said. The outcome of the
Pac-10 Championships does carry some weight, however. The
individual winner of the Pac-10s will automatically get a bid at
the NCAA individual championships. As the Davis Cup shows at
professional level, playing as a team can create added pressure
compared to the environment of individual matches. The Bruins
(17-5, 6-1) will be able to concentrate on their game and ranking
without having to worry about the fourth point they could bring to
the team this weekend. “I think it will be less stressful for
the coaches and the players,” Martin said. “It gives
them a chance to play for themselves and have fun.” There
will be a total of eight Bruins in Ojai this weekend, with four
players in the main draw and three in the invitational draw, as No.
1 player Benjamin Kohlloeffel will only compete in the doubles draw
along junior Philipp Gruendler. “I think it is good for the
lower-ranked guys like the No. 3s, 4s or 5s who will get a chance
to play in the main draw.” Martin said. “It will make
up for some interesting matches between 2s and 4s and we should see
a few upsets.” The invitational draw of the championships,
which junior Chris Surapol won two years ago, will give a chance to
players who usually sit out dual matches to get a taste of the
competition. “It is the first time I play there, and I am
excited to get a chance to compete,” sophomore Jaysen Chung
said. “I am going to do as well as can be expected from
someone who has not competed in a while.” And for Southern
California natives, such as Surapol or junior Aaron Yovan, taking
part in the Pac-10 Championships as college players has added
flavor. Both Bruins have played tennis in the conference since age
12 and used to watch the main draw hoping they would eventually get
there. “This is the only draw I have not played in
yet,” Yovan said. “I have played four dual matches and
one tournament this year, so I am very excited to be playing, I
can’t wait.”
LOOK OUT: Due to a minor injury, freshman
Michael Look has had to pull out of the Pac-10 Tournament. Look
will rest for a few days and will take advantage of the two-week
window until the beginning of the NCAA Championships to come back
healthy. Freshman Haythem Abid will not be competing this weekend
either, as the freshman will be traveling back home to Tunisia.
Abid received a wildcard for the ATP challenger tournament to be
held in his hometown of Tunis on May 1.