What is UCLA men’s tennis coach Billy Martin’s favorite nursery rhyme?
“Rain, rain, go away.”
This may be only speculation, but come Saturday, Martin will be doing all he can to somehow discourage the rain from falling, in hopes that his Bruins can take the court against San Diego in what would be UCLA’s last match before they travel to Charlottesville, Va., for the National Team Indoor Championships.
“We need this match, I really feel, to get us ready for the National Indoors,” Martin said. “I’m praying that we’re not going to get the rain that’s expected tomorrow.”
But if the Bruins’ Saturday match is postponed, it will be for the second time in their young season, much to the chagrin of Martin, who has openly campaigned for years for a dome to be installed over the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
UCLA’s match against Boise State, originally slated to be the season opener on Jan. 26, had to be moved to March 31 because of storms throughout the week in the L.A. area.
Consequently, the Bruins have only been able to participate in two dual meets so far, and their chance at a third is greatly in jeopardy.
According to Martin, if his team is unable to take the court Saturday, playing Sunday is not an option. Martin said he would rather practice twice Sunday and play the match Monday.
Martin was visibly frustrated about the possibility of his team being rained out again, but he certainly is still in the process of preparing his team for what lies ahead in the Toreros, a team that UCLA has become progressively more familiar with over recent years.
“Well we’ve certainly seen a few of their players for the last few years,” Martin said. “We’ve played them the last two years I believe, and we see them at our regional championships and a few of the other tournaments. The bottom line is we know them pretty good. It’s not going to be like playing an unknown opponent.”
On a positive note, Martin’s squad has been impressive in the two matches the Bruins were able to complete so far on the season.
The Bruins defeated two top-50 teams, Hawai’i and Pepperdine, by scores of 4-1 and 4-0, respectively.
But although the Bruins are undefeated so far and have won both of their matches relatively easily, Martin still wants to see more from his players heading into the indoor tournament.
A lot more.
“I’m looking for us to play a little bit sharper than we did this last weekend, especially in singles,” Martin said.
He added that his team looked a bit rusty against Pepperdine, attributing it to not being able to practice that whole week.
Martin maintains that he’s never been one to complain and believes that no matter the weather, his team will be ready for the tough road quickly approaching.
Besides, dealing with weather over the years has versed Martin and his staff in a new talent.
“It’s not a great scenario, but you got to make do with what happens,” he said. “And boy, are we good at drying off courts.”