No. 11 ASU Men’s Tennis Cruises in Opening Day of Diablos Invitational

Photo courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics

Photo courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics

TEMPE — After being ranked on the cusp of the top-10 in the latest ITA rankings on Feb. 24 following a 4-3 win over No. 16 Clemson, No. 11 Arizona State men’s tennis had a sluggish start to its afternoon.

The Sun Devils lost the doubles point, in what has become a consistent pattern over the past month, but ASU (11-3) validated its ranking with a handful of decisive singles victories that downed Tulane (3-3) 4-1.

Doubles

Tulane won 6-4 (1), 5-6 unfinished (2), 6-4 (3)

Despite the 11-3 record and numerous ranked wins, the Sun Devils’ Achilles heel throughout the season has been the doubles pairings, and today’s outing was no different.

At doubles No. 1, the duo of senior Shu Matsuoka and junior Bor Artnak were up-and-down from the start. Artnak’s aggression on return was a mixed bag, firing a few winners into the open court but giving away numerous free points with unforced errors.

Despite a couple of breaks, the Sun Devils’ top pair never looked totally comfortable when dealing with the pace and serves of their Tulane adversaries. Serving to stay in the set at 5-4, Matsuoka tightened up, allowing two huge return winners from Tulane and gifting them the point with two double faults.

Senior Roi Ginat and sophomore Niels Villard battled at doubles No. 3 but a similar outcome ensued, with ASU taking the match deep before failing to close it out at the end.

At doubles No. 2, redshirt senior Kristof Minarik and sophomore Ofek Shimanov battled back from a 5-2 deficit to knot the set at five-apiece but ultimately went unfinished.

Dating back to Jan. 23 against then-No. 8 USD, ASU has now lost the lone doubles point in seven of its eight matches, with its singular win coming over Clemson.

“We feel like we have the right combinations now with partnerships,” head coach Matt Hill said. “Now it’s okay getting some reps with those new partners … It’s still going to take a little bit, and we’re okay with that.”

Singles

Losing the doubles point meant ASU was once again in a quick deficit it had to crawl out of but Artnak, who’s been in and out of the lineup due to his time playing Challenger events, set the tone from the start on court one.

Facing a familiar face in junior Daniel Phillips, Artnak’s former doubles partner for the past two seasons before transferring this past year to Tulane, the Slovenian native felt as if he knew each one of his old teammates’ moves.

“I’ve played DP so many times in practice, so I know every shot he’s ever made,” Artnak said. “I knew what the games would be, (he’s) the type of player that I really like, a big hitter, gives me a lot of pace to work with. But I think I’m a way better athlete (and) get so (much) more out of every point.”

Phillips consistently generated power from the back of the court, pulling Artnak from one corner of the court to the other, but the Sun Devils No. 1 player’s knack for retrieving balls behind the baseline came in handy on numerous occasions. With Phillips threatening to break on deuce at two-apiece in the first set, Artnak switched things up mid-rally and threw in a forehand drop shot.

The ball hit the top of the tape and gently rolled over. Phillips could only give a hopeless effort to reach the ball, while Artnak let out a roar and sheepishly grinned towards the ardent ASU supporters onlooking the match.

Up 5-4 in the first and Phillips serving to stay in the set, Artnak felt his opponent would get tight in clutch situations. In the second point of the game up 15-0, Phillips approached the net and hit a soft forehand volley whose backspin forced its momentum towards the net.

Artnak sprinted ahead and, on a near-split, flicked a backhand pass crosscourt for the winner. The shot wasn’t just a highlight from the match but stirred memories of Artnak’s around-the-post winner against Grand Canyon as a freshman.

“I think this one was a little bit better,” Artnak said, comparing the two winners. “That one was good execution and good court knowledge but this one was just pure athleticism.”

The point injected life into Artnak, who sealed the opening set 6-4 with a massive crosscourt forehand and let a group of heckling fraternity students know immediately.

The second set followed a similar pattern – Phillips and Artnak held their nerves until yet again, Phillips was serving at 5-4 but this time to stay in the match.

Artnak ripped a pair of winners, a backhand down the line to get to 15-15 and a forehand behind Phillips to force a match point on deuce, before capitalizing on an incorrect line call to complete a straight set 6-4, 6-4 win, and give ASU a commanding 3-1 lead.

The first motion after that win? A finger to his lips shushing Phillips’ supporters, who constantly chanted, yelled and attempted to provoke Artnak during the match, with shouts of “He’s scared!” and chest-thumping after every point.

“If it would be anyone else but DP, I would enjoy this match so much because I love people against me, especially fraternities,” Artnak said. “It’s fun to see a little engagement going, but DP is one of my closest friends.”

On the other side of the courts, the Sun Devils had already collected two singles points, with sophomore Milos Mikovic putting ASU on the board with a 6-4, 6-0 demolition on court No. 6 and Shimanov coming through with a commanding 7-5, 6-1 victory on court No. 3.

Down 5-3 in the first set, Shimanov needed a quick break to stay in the set, and Hill’s words of wisdom at that junction of the match turned the momentum on its head.

“Just got to elevate our physicality, he wasn’t feeling his tennis and the best way to try to elevate your tennis is to get yourself going more physically,” Hill said. “It was super impressive to see him just go to another gear, and he’s got other gears to go to.”

Hill’s advice? Positioning on the AD-side, where Tulane had a great kick serve and forced Shimanov to cut off the court and create angles.

To close out the first, the sophomore won 16 of 18 points and was dynamic on return, with return winners flying off his racket and a heavier ball coaxing errors out of his opponent. From that moment on, Shimanov dropped only one game the rest of the match to seal ASU’s second point.

With courts No. 2 and No. 4, featuring redshirt senior Mathis Bondaz and Villard respectively, going to a deciding set, junior Jelani Sarr had the opportunity to secure the match for the Sun Devils on court No. 5.

A gritty tiebreaker saw the Maryland native gain a lead he would never relinquish but it was his style of play that helped Sarr cruise to the win. After spending much of the first set retrieving balls from the back, Sarr began to dictate points from within the baseline.

“I saw him inside the blue a lot more than back behind the court passing,” Hill said. “When J’s controlling the court with his forehand and coming forward, he can beat anybody in the country.”

Holding a 5-2 lead in the second, Sarr enticed a pair of groundstrokes into the net from his opponent before clinching a 7-6(5), 6-2 win with a flat forehand down the line, and closing out a 4-1 Sun Devils win.

With the tournament still underway and a potential final matchup against in-state rivals No. 29 Arizona looming, ASU isn’t even worried about its fitness.

“I always say you can’t be tired of a two and a half hour match,” Artnak said. “We practice five to six hours a day so … after this, give us another one. We’re ready for it.“