Despite a lackluster spring season in which the men's tennis team lost several key players, the expectations remain high for this year's team, as the Jumbos return several important members to the roster this fall.
Tufts got off to a hot start this year at the Middlebury Invitational, where seven of the nine Jumbos who competed advanced to the semifinals, two of whom advanced to the final round, a positive sign for a team that struggled with consistency throughout its roster last season.
Perhaps the most exciting part of the tournament, though, was the return of junior Nik Telkedzhiev, who teamed up with freshmen Rohan Gupte and Griffin Brockman, sophomore Brad Wong, junior co-captain Rob Jacobson, senior co-captain Brian Tan and three other players to compete in one of the most difficult invitational tournaments of the fall season.
These invitational tournaments differ significantly from regular season matches, as players compete in tournament-style brackets as they move through rounds of play.
Telkedzhiev began his attempt at his first invitational tournament win with an impressive 6-4, 6-4 win in the first round of the A-flight, but found the level of competition increasingly difficult.
In the quarterfinals, Telkedzhiev faced off against sophomore Chris Ellis from Bates. He took the first set 6-3 before dropping the second by the same score. With tactical play and careful shot selection, Telkedzhiev managed to eke out a third set super-tiebreaker win by a score of 10-8, but he was later unable to make it out of the semifinals.
The disappointing result notwithstanding, Telkedzhiev attributes the team's success to hard work and dedication.
"The first few matches of the season are always tough especially when we haven't played competitively for more than three months," Telkedzhiev said. "However, I think the team's performance this weekend made it clear that each one of us has been working very hard during the last few weeks."
Jacobson played in the same bracket as Telkedzhiev, and though he lost a round earlier, Jacobson played clean tennis to win the closest match of the tournament in the first round. The match featured three suspenseful tiebreakers, but Jacobson maintained his composure to pull through in the third set.
After a first set tiebreak loss, Jacobson stuck to his game plan, committing fewer errors to win the second set tiebreak. In the third set super-tiebreak, Jacobson focused on one point at time and ultimately took the match 6-7(2), 7-6(4), (10-8). In the quarterfinals, Jacobson lost to junior Ari Smolyar of Middlebury.
"What makes tennis really unique and exciting is that there is no game clock, so even though I was down a set and a break in my first round match, I was able to fight back and win," Jacobson said. "I knew that if I kept playing my game, all the hard work I put in up to that point would pay off and I’d be able to capitalize on my chances when they came."
The success was not limited to the top flights, as three of the four semifinalists in the D-flight were from Tufts.
Freshmen Zain Ali and Danny Coran competed against each other for a spot in the finals, while junior Nick Cary played freshman Ted Berkowitz of Skidmore. Ali’s trip to the semifinals in his first collegiate outing was straightforward, with 6-1, 6-2 and 6-3, 6-2 wins in the first two rounds.
In doubles play, Tufts sent two pairs to compete in both the A doubles flight and the B doubles flight each. Telkedzhiev and Ali played in the A doubles flight alongside Jacobson and Gupte. Brockman and Wong competed in the B doubles flight with Cary and Tan.
Although the individuals who comprised the teams in the A doubles flight had impressive singles victories, both teams lost in the opening round of the doubles tournament.
Cary and Tan advanced to the second round in the B flight before losing to Middlebury freshmen Noah Farrell and Timo van der Geest. Brockman and Wong made a semifinal appearance, taking out teams from Bates and RPI along the way.
As the fall season progresses, Tufts will mix up teams in hopes of pairing the right players up for the spring season.
"Our doubles line up is expected to change a lot throughout the fall season, which is pretty typical for all the teams in the region," Jacobson said. "We are experimenting with different combinations to see which guys click with each other, and once we hit the end of the fall season, we will have a better idea of what our pecking order is going to look like."
Moving forward, veteran players like Jacobson and Telkedzhiev will lead the team as they move deeper into the fall season, but rookies like Ali and Coran must continue to show strong results in order for the team to progress as a cohesive, competitive unit.
Next Friday, the team will travel back to Middlebury to compete in the ITA Regional Championships. Telkedzhiev will seek at least a semifinal berth, the round that he reached last year at the Championships.
"Last spring my schedule didn't allow me to spend as much time on tennis as I wanted," Telkedzhiev said. "I have always loved the game. I'm really pumped up that I'm back now."
