The intensity in Nielsen Tennis Stadium was palpable.
There was no joking around, no chatting and certainly no tolerance for mistakes. Rather, there was merely the sound of swinging rackets, with the bellowing voice of head coach Danny Westerman filling the arena. Within minutes of observation, it was evident these players were living a life many others wouldn’t dare to: the life of a Division I tennis player.
It soon became clear not all Division I tennis players are playing for the same reason. Some, like Belgian Alexander Kokorev, enjoy the chance to play at a high level and get a first-class education—something that is not always possible in Europe.
Others, like sophomore Lamar Remy of Roslyn, N.Y., play to hone their skills with the goal of reaching the professional level.
What players like Kokorev, Remy and their teammates do share, however, is an unwavering commitment to their sport.
Kokorev and Remy practice six days per week, perfecting their skills on the tennis court while also spending time in the weight room and improving their conditioning. Off the court, their commitment to tennis remains steadfast.
Kokorev says he spends 80 percent of his time off the court with his teammates and coaches, and also described the team’s diet plan, designed to help players recover and maintain their physical conditioning.
“Playing tennis requires you to have a stricter diet than a normal student,” Kokorev said. “We need more hydration, and more calorie intake, because we spend three hours per day on the courts and in the weight room. So it’s a bit different. You have to eat more carbohydrates and more protein so your body recovers faster.”
While becoming a Division I tennis player obviously requires a supreme amount of athletic ability, the mentality required—as shown by Kokorev’s comments—is also extremely significant.
It’s probably not easy for a sophomore like Remy to reject the temptations of partying, junk food and complacency—many of his classmates don’t, after all.
But as the New York native spoke, it was obvious all of those things were genuinely meaningless to him. All he wants is one thing: to go pro.
“As I was growing up, I’ve always thought about trying to be a professional tennis player,” Remy said. “I left New York after middle school to go to a high school in Florida called IMG Academy. They wanted me to reach that professional level, but thought that I couldn’t go straight from high school to professional. So they thought college would be the next best way to go, as a stepping stone.”
While Remy’s goal is a lofty one, he feels that it is attainable if he keeps training hard and listening to his coaches. And though his playing ability is a subject only the most qualified could accurately speak to, it is easy to recognize his unbelievable passion and focus.
As players like Remy and Kokorev enjoy the intensity and structure varsity tennis gives them, club tennis players like Ralph Allen look to escape those exact things.
“We’re a very social club,” Allen said. “Fun is the main focus.”
Allen has played tennis since his childhood, and believed he had the ability to play at the Division I level. But after playing (and losing) his last high school tournament in Cleveland, Ohio, he became disheartened with the extreme commitment of varsity college tennis and decided he would be content playing at the club level.
Sitting in College Library, Allen seemed extremely relaxed and at ease with his decision to play club tennis. He claims practices, also at Nielsen Tennis Stadium, are pretty laid back, as they simply play sets, and the club is as much about socializing as it is about tennis. Allen and his teammates (there’s around 50 on the team) giddily anticipate tournaments in Miami, Fla., and South Carolina for months, and weekends are spent hanging out with his friends, both on and off the club tennis team.
But as he reminisced about his high school tennis days, the tone of the conversation changed. Tennis wasn’t always as enjoyable for him.
“I didn’t like the stress,” Allen said. “It was a pretty stressful experience. A lot of those kids will do anything to win. They’ll cheat, they’ll pull some crazy antics.”
While a lack of stress and pressure allows Allen to focus more on his social life and schoolwork, the same pressure is precisely what drives Remy and Kokorev to succeed.
Both players are hoping to end the season with All-Big Ten honors, and help their squad reach the NCAA Tournament as well. Kokorev admits he has his off days, but believes overcoming that adversity is key to making himself a better player.
“Unlike in other team sports, in tennis you’re alone on the court and you have to figure out your problems by yourself,” Kokorev admitted. “And it’s really really tough mentally, especially when you’re struggling and you can’t find a shot. You’ve hit the same shot billions and billions of times, and for some reason if you’re not feeling it that particular day it can really upset you and drive you crazy. But it’s handling those tough situations that makes you a good player.”
While Kokorev admits his college experience would be less stressful without tennis, he makes sure to concede that it would also be far less fun, and that he’s immensely enjoyed his decision to play tennis at Wisconsin.
Remy and Allen, with their differing commitment levels, both share no regrets about their respective experiences.
In the end, the stories of Kokorev, Remy and Allen are all a product of something familiar to them on the tennis court: being an individual.
Kokorev had to boldly decide to continue his academics and athletics in America. Remy had to keep faith in himself and delay his professional career. And Allen had to decide that club tennis, rather than Division I, was what would make him happiest.
Ultimately, their days playing singles matches are finite. But there’s no reason they can’t be individuals in their lives thereafter.
