Alex Topchishvili is a sophomore on the NYU men's tennis team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout the 2010-11 season.
Posted October 7
As any tennis player will tell you, it hurts much more to lose 7-6, 7-6 than to lose 6-0, 6-0. Losing to an opponent you know you could have beaten is the worst, and unfortunately, that was largely the sentiment after our 6-3 loss to Vassar College on Wednesday.
Vassar has a great team and deserved their win. But we were right there with them to the end, fighting till the last ball was struck. It was certainly an improvement over our 9-0 loss to them last year.
I thought a couple of people on our team played really well and deserve a shout-out. Connor Witty gave it all he had in his match against Vassar’s first singles, which he lost 7-6 in the third set. Freshman Steve Wu clinched his first official collegiate victory when he won his match at fifth singles in straight sets.
The man of the hour, however, was Raphael Namias, who won both his singles and his doubles matches. His singles match came down to the wire, as well, as he took out Vassar’s second singles 7-6 in the third set in just over three hours. It was a highly emotional match since it was the last match still being played and both teams were rooting hard for their player.
I’m sure there are plenty more wins for these guys on the horizon.
Personally, I played a decent doubles match with my partner Dan Kil. We started out slow, but got significantly better as the match went on. I felt like I let my partner down with some sub-par volleying, but otherwise it was a fun match with some flashes of brilliance. I cannot wait to play these guys again.
Traveling to Vassar was a huge change of atmosphere for us city-slickers. They have a beautiful campus, with flowing green lawns, and cozy looking buildings. The slowly approaching sunset made way for some awesome scenery throughout the match. Even the air there tasted better. That being said, I still would not want to be stuck there in the middle of nowhere (for me, two hours away from the city is considered the middle of nowhere.).
I’ll take my concrete jungle over green lawns any day.
Alex Topchishvili is a sophomore on the NYU men's tennis team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout the 2010-11 season.
Posted September 30, 2010
Hello all! I am quite happy to be debuting the 2010-11 NYU men’s tennis team blog
Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Alex Topchishvili, but almost everyone refers to me as the quintessential “Tops.” I hail from a little country called Georgia, just south of Russia. I moved to New York at the age of 10, and for better or for worse, spent a majority of my teenage years in Brooklyn, NY.
It has always been a dream of mine to attend NYU, and another dream of mine to play college tennis, both of which I’ve managed to accomplish. I am a sophomore at the Steinhardt School and this is my second year on the team.
Our team is certainly one of a kind. We have some huge personalities and characters, every person bringing something unique to the table. We come from different backgrounds and cultures, which makes for some very interesting bus rides. Aside from being teammates, we are friends off the court. It’s nice to know you have a group of guys who are always there for you.
Joining our ranks this year is a handful of talented freshmen who have already shown a great deal of promise for the future. Our first match of the year was an exhibition against Princeton’s JV team this past weekend. I’m proud to say that we all played well and gave those Ivy Leaguers more than they could handle. With the exception of one singles match, NYU swept the Princeton team. It felt so great to be back on the court, competing and fighting for every point under the hot September sun.
The match started out with the doubles. I partnered with Dan Kil, a talented young freshman, to win our doubles match 8-3. Playing doubles with Dan was great, as we have contrasting styles and complement each other well. He is the definition of a powerhouse, with a huge lefty serve and an even bigger forehand. We made some uncharacteristic errors in the first few games, but eventually stepped up to win the last four games of the match.
The doubles win made way for a successful singles outing for both Dan and I, as we both won our matches in straight sets. I played a tall lefty guy from North Carolina. I don’t know why I always get stuck playing lefties. I won the first set fairly easily, 6-2, but the second set was much more of a struggle. My opponent decided to stop missing shots and kept pinning me behind the baseline. We got to 6-6, so a tie-break would decide whether I win the match or we go into a third and decisive set. It was the all-too-familiar sensation of playing close tie-breaks. Your racket all of a sudden feels 20 pounds heavier and you forget how to hit shots you can make nine out of 10 times in practice. Luckily, my serve won me a couple free points, which gave me confidence to step in and play more aggressively. I won the tie-break 7-1, shook my opponent’s hand, and went to join my teammates. I found the guys to be in good spirits, as they too had successful outings.
To celebrate, we went to Hoagie Heaven and stuffed ourselves with giant sandwiches. My sub was called “The Heart Stop.” It was your typical Italian sub with a Philly cheese steak, fresh fries, mozzarella sticks, and eggs. Needless to say, the ride back to NY was no fun, as my stomach was turning and churning from devouring that sandwich.
Our next match is Wednesday, October 6, against Vassar College. We lost to them 9-0 last year, and we are all hungry for revenge. Wish us luck!
