Martin Redlicki was frustrated at himself.
Not because the junior lost his service game, but because he did not break his opponent and win the second set 6-0.
That’s the intensity coach Billy Martin said his team was missing.
“I was not happy with our singles play (Saturday),” Martin said. “There really hasn’t been, in my opinion, the sense of urgency that we need. We just looked a little flat and wasted so many opportunities on break points. But we talked about it a little bit and the guys came out with more fire today.”
With Redlicki winning both of his matches at No. 2 singles, sixth-ranked UCLA men’s tennis (4-0) brought the fire in its two matchups during the ITA Kickoff Weekend. The Bruins swept both New Mexico (1-4) and Lamar (3-2) to qualify for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in mid-February.
After losing the doubles point to UCSB, UCLA took both of them this weekend behind Redlicki and freshman Evan Zhu at court one. The duo won each of its doubles matches and they said they focused mainly on returning serves and reducing service faults in practice.
[Related: UCLA defeats UCSB despite doubles adjustments]
“We were definitely returning and closing well,” Redlicki said. “We came out returning really well and we broke two times to start the set. From 4-0, the other guys started serving well – we couldn’t get another break, but we were holding.”
Zhu carried the momentum from doubles into his singles match Sunday. In what Martin called the freshman’s best dual match performance of the year, he cruised past Lamar’s Jeandre Hoogenboezem 6-2, 6-3. Four matches into Zhu’s collegiate career, he said he can still work on gaining confidence in himself.
“It was definitely better than the last couple of matches, but it’s still not where I want to be,” Zhu said. “I think (I can improve on) trusting my shots. In the last couple of matches, I don’t think I have been, and I’ve had a little hesitation on some.”
[Related: Zhu looks to be a valuable asset to UCLA men’s tennis]
The freshman came into this weekend after losing his previous match against UCSB’s Simon Freund, but Martin said Zhu looked much more relaxed, a result of him adjusting at UCLA.
Junior Austin Rapp also continued his strong play in the spring, remaining unbeaten as he defeated New Mexico’s Sean Baklini and Lamar’s Logan Powell in straight sets. With sophomore Max Cressy out again with a left thumb injury, Rapp helped solidify the bottom of UCLA’s singles lineup.
Moving forward, Martin said the schedule gets much tougher.
“From here on in, we don’t really have an easy match,” Martin said. “We have probably eight to 10 unbelievably tough opponents, whether it’s on the road or (at home). We have to be playing at our highest level to have a chance to win any of these next matches.”
The Bruins’ upcoming opponents will be No. 5 Georgia and No. 11 Florida in Gainesville, Florida, next weekend as part of the Pac-12/SEC showdown.