July 2, 2025 • 24 mins
🎙️ This week on the Functional Tennis Podcast, I’m joined by Dasha Vidmanova, the former US College #1 player and 2024 NCAA singles, doubles, and team champion.
Born in Moscow and raised in Prague, Dasha’s journey through tennis has been anything but linear. From nearly walking away from the sport to becoming a dominant force in college tennis, she now has her sights set on making waves on the pro tour.
We chat about:
📍 How college tennis reignited her passion for the game
🎓 Why she initially didn’t plan to turn pro
💪 Learning to lose as part of going pro
🧠 The mindset shift that led to major improvements
🇺🇸 What it’s like being the best female college player in the US
🎯 Her short-term and long-term goals on tour
💼 And why she majored in finance, just in case tennis didn’t work out
Whether you’re a parent, coach, or young player weighing up college vs pro tennis, Dasha offers refreshing honesty and insight into both paths.
Enjoy, Fabio
This podcast is sponsored by ASICS. ASICS is a Japanese company founded in 1949 to give more people the opportunity to experience how sports and movement can have a positive impact on mental well-being.
To learn more about ASICS visit their website here: https://www.asics.com/nl/en-nl/sports/tennis/
Find us on Social Media:
Instagram: Instagram.com/FunctionalTennis
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:25):
Welcome to the FunctionalTennis Podcast. I'm your host, Fabio
Molle, and I bring youinsights and lessons from players,
coaches, parents and expertswho are ingrained in the world of
high level tennis. This week,I'm joined by US College's number
one female player, DariaVidmanova. Daria has won the NCAA
(00:46):
singles titles, doublestitles, team titles. She had an amazing
college tennis career. She wasborn in Moscow, raised in Prague,
and Daria shares her path fromjunior tennis to dominating college
tennis and now steppingconfidently into life as a professional.
We dive into how the collegeenvironment shaped her game, the
challenge of transition to thepro level, and what keeps her motivated
(01:09):
as she chases her next goal ontour. Before we get started, a shout
out to our podcast partners,asics. I should actually be in London
today with Asics.Unfortunately, I couldn't make it.
But Asics today we'relaunching their gel challenger 15
shoe. It's not a shoe I'veworn before, even mentioned here
(01:30):
before. I've seen it recentlyin photos. It looks great, which
is always a good start, butit's meant to be highly comfortable
shoe aimed at the amateurplayer and at a slightly cheaper
price point also. Hopefullysoon I'll get a pair. I'll try one
out. I'll provide somefeedback here, but if you want to
know more right now, head overto asics.com to check it out or head
over to the Asics TennisInstagram page. Okay, here's Daria.
(01:53):
Dasha. Welcome to theFunctional Tennis Podcast. How are
you?
Thank you. Yeah, I'm good.Doing pretty well.
Great to be speaking to. Ithink my first question to ask you
is, I need to know your secretto becoming the singles champ, doubles
champ, team champ of the NCAAita. What's your secret? How did
you do it?
(02:15):
I don't know if there's asecret, really, but I was just. I
got better in college. I mean,I practiced a lot and I think the
environment helped me a lot inGeorgia. The coaches and I mean,
we had a really great team allfour years that I was there. So just
the people that I practicewith every day, it was a good environment
(02:37):
to get better. And then incollege, obviously every weekend
we play two matches. So it wasa lot of practice, a lot of matches.
So it was just a goodenvironment to grow as a tennis player
and get better. And I did.
You did. You definitely did.And just going back just before you
(02:58):
went to Georgia, was it alwayscollege tennis for you or did you
want to go pro? Was that aneasy decision or hard Decision?
No, I actually wasn't going togo to college. But my last year of
juniors, I started playing thepro tournaments and I guess I realized
I wasn't like fully ready. Ithink I was, I don't know, I was
(03:19):
17 and I got all thosewildcards in check for the bigger
tournaments and I wasn't doingthat well. So it got a little routine,
I guess. So I started lookingto colleges and then I committed
very quickly. It was kind of alast minute decision. I visited a
few schools and then within afew days I committed. And then I
(03:43):
came actually earlier than Iwanted to initially. I came in January.
So.
Yeah.
And from college, what wasyour long term goal from day one
in college? Was it then to gopro at the end of this or was it
we'll wait and see?
No, when I went to college myfirst two years, I wasn't sure completely.
(04:08):
I was looking for internships.I was thinking that maybe like I
should work and find a jobafter college. So tennis was more
like. I didn't really like it,to be honest. It just got very. It
was like a lot. But playingwith the team, for the team, it became
more fun again. So I kind ofstarted enjoying it again. And after
(04:32):
my junior year, that summer Istarted playing a few tournaments
and then I got my ranking. Andthen after that I was kind of okay,
might as well try it again forreal this time. Play for a few years
after college. So ever sincemy junior year I kind of wanted to
play after. But before that,not really.
So did you start winning morematches and then you realized I'm
(04:53):
actually liking this again ordo you remember the act was an actual
day where you said, okay, Iactually want to play tennis after
this?
I think I just. That summerwhen I started playing the pro tournaments,
I realized that the level likethat I have is good enough to play
those pro tournaments becauseI haven't played a tournament like
three years. But I kind ofrealized that like the college level
(05:15):
is good. Like the people thatI'm playing in college and then the
people that I'm playing in prois. There's not like big difference.
So the first tournament that Iplayed, it was a 15k in Dominican
and I made the final and Ialready had like the 10 points to
start the ranking. So I waslike, okay, like, you know, like
might as well play the summerand see. And the summer went really
(05:36):
well. I got it up to like 3,300. So I was like, okay, like if
I can do it in five months,then maybe like if I Keep playing
for at least couple years andgive myself, like, this time to really,
like, train and play. Then,you know, just see where it goes.
Do you put down playing thepro tournaments, getting your ranking
up, and, you know, playingplayers who are, you know, they're
(05:57):
not. They're playing for theirlife on the pro tour. They're not
playing for fun. Or do you putthat experience and your college
tennis together to why youbecame a successful college tennis
player?
Yeah, I think even the, like,the college itself, all the matches,
it's like everybody is tryingvery hard because it's a little bit
(06:18):
different when you play, like,for the team. Like, even if, like,
you're injured or you're inpain, like, sometimes you just gotta
still play because there's,like, other people that are kind
of, like, counting on you. SoI guess that experience and then
there's a lot of, like,moments in college tennis, especially
when it's like, three all andyou're like, last match on. There's
a lot of pressure. And inAthens, we have a lot of people that
(06:39):
come watch. So I feel likethose big moments in college, like,
really help you prepare forthe pro tour, where obviously, when
you're playing more foryourself, but it's also, like, pressure,
and then it's a kind ofdifferent kind of pressure, I guess.
But I guess the experiencefrom college is really helpful for
the pro tour. But also, yeah,I guess they complement each other
(07:02):
because they're a little bit different.
We had. Our last guest wasAlex Kochevic, who was a successful
college player. Now he's,what, top 80 in the world? And he
talks. He talked a lot aboutour main point, about how, you know,
when you hit the pro tour, yougot to get used to losing. You were
probably winning every week.Multiple times a week you were winning,
and all of a sudden you hitthe pro tour. And plus, you don't
(07:25):
have those crowds there. Soyou're in the middle of nowhere playing
that you're probably lucky.You're probably in the more in challengers,
where there's a few morepeople there. But how have you adjusted?
Yeah, I guess that's true.You're also by yourself a lot more
than obviously, in college. Soyou go to, yeah, like a random 75
(07:46):
somewhere in America. And thenif you don't do well and you lose,
you either have to go back orgo to the next one. And it's definitely
different than college in thatway, I think. Well, I'm just, like,
starting still. I haven't evendone, like, a full year yet. So I
haven't really, I guess,experienced, like, when you, like,
(08:08):
lose three weeks in a row,first round. But I'm sure I will
at some point. I mean, it'sinevitable, unfortunately, because
it does happen. I do think I'mprepared for that mentally, but,
I mean, I wouldn't know untilit happens, obviously. But, yeah,
I guess until I do, like afull year at least, I couldn't really
(08:31):
talk on that.
We report back in a year andare you going to get, like. Do you
have in your head. I'm goingto give pro tennis, like, two, three,
four years or it's like, look,let's just take it, like, month by
month or year by year.
No, Yeah, I mean, definitely,like, at least few years in my mind,
but there's, like, goals thatI would want to, like, achieve, like,
(08:52):
every year, and then to kindof, like, progress somewhere. But,
I mean, so far it's beenpretty good. I mean, I've been moving
up the ranking pretty quickly,and I know it's not going to go up
like that all the time becausenow I also have some points to defend
from last year. But, I mean,last year, in five months, I went
up, like, so quickly. And sojust, I guess for each year, I'm
(09:18):
like, this year I want tomake, like, quality, so Grand Slam
and, like, next year, maybetop 150. So just like. Yeah, take
it week by week, tournament bytournament, and see. But obviously,
if, like, I'm not gonna. IfI'm not 150 by the end of the year,
I'm not gonna, like, quit.Yeah, yeah, I understand that. Yeah.
The process, it can take,like, different times, so at least
(09:41):
few years and. But I alsodon't want to be, like, 26, still
playing, like, 15Ks. That'sdefinitely not what I want.
So that. That. Some peoplelove that, though. That is tough.
And do you speak to any ofyour Czech mates from similar age
group? Did any of them go proinstead of go to college tennis?
Would we know of anybody?
(10:02):
Yeah, there's definitely a lotof people that are, like, either
one year or two years youngerthan me, but they didn't go to college,
like Bara Polizova orShalkova, you know, but they're all,
like, around my age, but alittle bit younger. They're all around,
like, 100 something right now.Yeah, it's not like we really talk,
(10:27):
but I obviously follow and Iknow what they play. I know they
made the Slams, and, yeah,they're doing pretty good.
Yeah. Okay. Nice. Yeah. It'sjust interesting it gives you a target
as well. Tell me, from yourlevel of college tennis, so from
being a champion there to the,to the lower levels, what's the main
(10:48):
difference? Do you see if youplay somebody who's, I don't know,
60, 70 in their level, what doyou do better than them?
Well, college ranking, it's,it's a, it works very like in a strange
way because you only get theranking if you beat someone who is
already ranked. So it's notreally by points or anything, it's
just the wins that you have.So if you play one and two, it's
(11:10):
easier to get the rankingbecause you play those people all
the time. If you're playinglike three, four or five, then usually
don't play people that areranked. So it's kind of a little
bit. I don't think it's veryaccurate necessarily. But I mean
to answer your question, yeah,it's just a lot that goes into that
(11:31):
ranking. Like if you do wellin the fall, like when I won NCAS
in the fall, I'm probably notgonna anywhere even if I lose just
because like I want NCAs. Soit's just the, their ranking is like
really hard to say. But Imean, yeah, you have the opportunities
to play rank people all thetime. So it's just.
(11:54):
So if you go in as one or twoor in, in your team, if you can get
up there in second in, in yoursecond, third year university, then
you have a much higher chanceto get in the rank and if you get
some good wins rather than ifyou play four all the time, you're
never going. It's imp to get ahigh ranking, is it?
Well, it's not impossible,it's harder definitely. It's more
like if you play in the fall,the individual college tournaments
(12:16):
like All Americans or the NCAAtournament, that's when you kind
of can get the ranking. Andthen even if you play lower in the
season, then like you stillare going to have that ranking. But.
Okay. And are you going toconcentrate on some doubles on the,
on the pro tour?
Yeah, I think I'm going toplay some tournaments. Doubles, not
(12:36):
all the time because it gets alot, especially if I do well in singles.
Rather not have another matchthe same day, but definitely for
a few, I will. Yeah.
Nice. And during your time incollege, was there any time you particularly
saw a big jump in your levelor was it all consistent? Was it
(12:58):
just constant improvement orwas there, can you look back and
go, oh, there was a big jumpthere? And this is why yeah, kind
of.
Every year was like a little.Some small improvements, but I think
the biggest one was from myjunior year to my senior year. My.
Yeah, so my junior year Iended the year ranked. I think I
was top five in college andthat's when I started playing the
(13:20):
pro tournament. So I kind ofhad like the confidence from the
season going into thetournaments. So I had some like momentum
going and then I did reallywell in the pros and then coming
back for my senior year, kindof carried it on by winning ncas
and then having a good season.So from. But I think it was more
(13:40):
a shift of a mentality for mebecause at that point I knew that
I was gonna do it aftercollege. So I was taking it like
more seriously. Like I waspracticing more and I was kind of
more mindful about like what Ido on the court when I am practicing
and what I'm working on. So Iguess those two years was like the
biggest kind of improvement.
(14:01):
So when you became more. Whenyou committed to the game, you saw
the improvement. So guyscommit to the game. And what would
you tell like a 14 year olddasha now if you could speak to her.
Fully, like, keep going. Idon't know, it's going to work out
eventually. Like because Iremember when I was younger I wasn't
(14:26):
really like 10, like I enjoyedtennis but I was never like, it was
never like my dream to playbig tournaments. Like it was like
I was good, I was doing likewell in my age group, but it never
was like tennis is what I wantto do. Like it was like always like
(14:46):
were.
You a talented junior? Likeone of those. Probably didn't work
so hard and was just a bitmore natural.
Yeah, you know, I mean Ipracticed, I played well in juniors.
I was like top 20, I playedthe slams, but I wasn't like number
one in the world. So it wasn'tlike, you know, but it was pretty
good.
What was your best junior slam memory?
(15:08):
Slam memory probablyAustralian Open. I think it was second
or third round we played, itwas like a little bit bigger course
so there was like a biggercrowd and I. We played third set
tiebreaker and it wasn't until10 like it was 10 point breaker,
(15:29):
but I didn't know that. Ithought it was seven point breaker.
My opponent thought it wasseven point breaker. So she was up
like seven four and shethought she won the match but then
she didn't because it wasstill 10 and then I won 10, eight
I think or something. So thatwas sweet.
That's Sweet. And you'resaying if you weren't, let's say
(15:49):
you didn't play tennis, whatwould you actually be doing? What
do you think? What did youmajor in, by the way?
I majored in finance, but if Ididn't play, I would probably still
play some other sport, maybebasketball or something. I just started
playing tennis when I wasyoung, but I definitely think I will
(16:10):
be doing some other sportbecause I don't see myself just sitting
or just going to school anddoing nothing active. So maybe basketball
or something.
Sitting at a desk all day canbe tough work. College tennis, who
should it be looking out for?Who's next on the rise?
(16:33):
On the rise? Well, definitelysome of my teammates, probably, Probably.
First one who comes to mind isNastya Lapada. She, she's already
doing, I mean great. She madefinal of NCAAs and yeah, she played
two last year. She, she is agreat player. I, I think she could
(16:57):
play pro too if she wanted to.Don't know if she wants to. Her,
some of my other teammateslike ice. She did really great last
year and she's going to be ajunior next year. She has two more
years, so I think she can dovery, very well. So yeah.
And do you get asked, dojuniors ever ask you for advice?
(17:18):
What do you tell them? I'msure being a champion, people are
more inclined to come up andask for a bit of advice. So what
do you tell a young Czechjunior that comes up and says they
want to be like you?
Nobody really asked me foradvice, to be honest.
No?
No, just maybe some peoplelike to ask like generally like about
college, what to expect, butnot really for like advice. And I
(17:39):
don't think I'm, I should begiving any advice because there's
still like a lot that I wantto do. Obviously I'm like 200, which
is like good, but it's notlike, you know, up there still. So
I, I think I need some advice still.
Well, we can get you that. Butno, I think there's still like, I'm
sure even the college questionthing is a, is a big question that
(18:00):
many parents, especiallyparents ask where they don't know
whether their kid should go tocollege, play college tennis or not.
But do you see, is there anycut off line where a player should
clearly not go to collegetennis or the player should go play
college tennis? Do you haveany cut off line in your head?
(18:22):
Yeah, I mean that's a toughquestion because it's different for
everybody and like everybody Ithink has a different age where they're
like, fully ready to play profor years. So if you're 17 and you're
done with juniors and you'realready like, at a point where you're
almost making Grand Slams,then, I mean, there's definitely
no point of going to college.But I mean, if you're maybe struggling
(18:46):
a little bit on the, on thepro tour, it's getting harder, it's
getting a lot. Then also youdon't have to go to college for the
full four years. I mean,there's always a way to go for a
year or two. And even doinglike a full year, you can still play
pro tournaments for half ofthe year. So I don't think it's bad
to like, have. Go for at leasta few years and just to have that
(19:10):
kind of degree that you canfinish anytime. And that experience
with kind of a little bitdifferent way of tennis where it's
like a team sport, I thinkit's a very unique experience and
it's. It really, like, helpsprepare you for other things and
for pro tour or whatever youwant to, like, do. I think college
is a great step, but I mean,definitely, if you're already like,
(19:35):
making or at least being closeto Slams, then I mean, then probably
it's not worth it.
Yeah, it's tough tellingparents that, you know, tough telling
kids that would just want tobe pro. They want to go on the tour
now, but it must, I think,college tennis given players a good
base. You can work on yourfitness, your strength, you can work
on everything. And yourconsistency, whatever you need to
(19:57):
work on. Then obviously, ifyou killed in college tennis in year
one or two and you're beatingeverybody, then you say, okay, well,
you're a certain level. Like,if you're doing that, so you should
be okay. It's. Yeah, it. It'sdefinitely. And what about payment?
Payments? Were you, you know,Pete, the nail stuff where players
(20:18):
now can get paid fortransfers, and that must make it
more exciting where you comeout of college tennis and you could
be positive in a cash way thatthen you can use to finance a bit
of your career.
Yeah, it's definitely. And Ithink that's why there's a lot of
more, a lot more players nowthat go to college that already have
the pro ranking. Like peoplethat are 2, 3, 400 and like, maybe
(20:42):
normally wouldn't go tocollege, they do now because they
get paid, which I think isgood. Because, yeah, as you said,
it can definitely help for thepro tournaments and the pro career
that you need to Finance,because you need a lot of money for
that. And when you're around300, you're not really making anything.
So going to college for a yearand getting some money, but also
(21:06):
some experience. I think it's great.
It's good. And a couple morequestions. Forehand. Where did technique
come from? It's quite a bit.It's quite a unique technique. It's
not one we, you know, not. Andit always gets some good comments
I find on Instagram with anyvideos we've posted.
So you mean my forehand?
Your forehand?
(21:27):
Don't really know my. Myforehand, it looked different. It
was kind of changingthroughout my like career for some
reason. It always was likeadjusting a little bit. But it is
what it is now. It wasn't likethat on purpose, but it works. I
mean, sometimes.
Yeah, no, it's great. But wereyou inspired by anybody growing up?
(21:51):
No, not really.
Just your own natural. That's cool.
When I was younger, my coachactually, he wanted it to look very
different than it looks now.And it did. But then kind of just
playing tournaments and whenyou're playing for a longer period
of time and not reallypracticing, it kind of changes a
little bit. So it did. Andthen, I mean, when you're 20 already,
(22:11):
it's kind of late to changeanything. So it is what it is at
this point.
It's done you well up untilnow. So what's next on the cards?
So, yeah, there is next weekthere's a tournament here in America,
100K. And then just kind ofdepends on where I get in because
with the WTAs and ITF's, it'slike very last minute sometimes.
(22:35):
So I'll try to play somehigher tournaments, some 125s, maybe
250s if. But if I get in. Butyeah, I think I might go back to
Europe for a few weeks andthen come back here and just play
whatever is here around here.
So yeah, you have a good basein Florida. And finally U.S. open.
(22:57):
Do you get a wild card intoQualities or Maine? No, no. Was that
not a thing before? Where NCAA champs.
But it's only for Americans.
Oh, is it? So only if you'rean American and win the ncaa, you
get a wild card. That's prettybad, isn't it?
Well, this year they actuallychanged it a little bit and they
actually, even if Americanwanted, they wouldn't give them the
(23:20):
wild card. They had like alittle playoff thing where they chose
like four best people fromcollege and they had to play for
the winner would get a maindraw in the club. The finalists,
the Qualys won. So that's whatthey did this year, only. Only for
Americans also.
Oh, that's so bad. Like, youknow, you're. You're kicking ass
over there and. Yeah, well,look, hopefully, you know, you won't
(23:43):
have to worry about that fortoo much longer.
Yeah.
Yeah. Thanks. Thanks forjumping on. And that's it.
Thank you, Sam.
Welcome to the FunctionalTennis Podcast. I'm your host, Fabio
Molle, and I bring youinsights and lessons from players,
coaches, parents and expertswho are ingrained in the world of
high level tennis. This week,I'm joined by US College's number
one female player, DariaVidmanova. Daria has won the NCAA
(00:46):
singles titles, doublestitles, team titles. She had an amazing
college tennis career. She wasborn in Moscow, raised in Prague,
and Daria shares her path fromjunior tennis to dominating college
tennis and now steppingconfidently into life as a professional.
We dive into how the collegeenvironment shaped her game, the
challenge of transition to thepro level, and what keeps her motivated
(01:09):
as she chases her next goal ontour. Before we get started, a shout
out to our podcast partners,asics. I should actually be in London
today with Asics.Unfortunately, I couldn't make it.
But Asics today we'relaunching their gel challenger 15
shoe. It's not a shoe I'veworn before, even mentioned here
(01:30):
before. I've seen it recentlyin photos. It looks great, which
is always a good start, butit's meant to be highly comfortable
shoe aimed at the amateurplayer and at a slightly cheaper
price point also. Hopefullysoon I'll get a pair. I'll try one
out. I'll provide somefeedback here, but if you want to
know more right now, head overto asics.com to check it out or head
over to the Asics TennisInstagram page. Okay, here's Daria.
(01:53):
Dasha. Welcome to theFunctional Tennis Podcast. How are
you?
Thank you. Yeah, I'm good.Doing pretty well.
Great to be speaking to. Ithink my first question to ask you
is, I need to know your secretto becoming the singles champ, doubles
champ, team champ of the NCAAita. What's your secret? How did
you do it?
(02:15):
I don't know if there's asecret, really, but I was just. I
got better in college. I mean,I practiced a lot and I think the
environment helped me a lot inGeorgia. The coaches and I mean,
we had a really great team allfour years that I was there. So just
the people that I practicewith every day, it was a good environment
(02:37):
to get better. And then incollege, obviously every weekend
we play two matches. So it wasa lot of practice, a lot of matches.
So it was just a goodenvironment to grow as a tennis player
and get better. And I did.
You did. You definitely did.And just going back just before you
(02:58):
went to Georgia, was it alwayscollege tennis for you or did you
want to go pro? Was that aneasy decision or hard Decision?
No, I actually wasn't going togo to college. But my last year of
juniors, I started playing thepro tournaments and I guess I realized
I wasn't like fully ready. Ithink I was, I don't know, I was
(03:19):
17 and I got all thosewildcards in check for the bigger
tournaments and I wasn't doingthat well. So it got a little routine,
I guess. So I started lookingto colleges and then I committed
very quickly. It was kind of alast minute decision. I visited a
few schools and then within afew days I committed. And then I
(03:43):
came actually earlier than Iwanted to initially. I came in January.
So.
Yeah.
And from college, what wasyour long term goal from day one
in college? Was it then to gopro at the end of this or was it
we'll wait and see?
No, when I went to college myfirst two years, I wasn't sure completely.
(04:08):
I was looking for internships.I was thinking that maybe like I
should work and find a jobafter college. So tennis was more
like. I didn't really like it,to be honest. It just got very. It
was like a lot. But playingwith the team, for the team, it became
more fun again. So I kind ofstarted enjoying it again. And after
(04:32):
my junior year, that summer Istarted playing a few tournaments
and then I got my ranking. Andthen after that I was kind of okay,
might as well try it again forreal this time. Play for a few years
after college. So ever sincemy junior year I kind of wanted to
play after. But before that,not really.
So did you start winning morematches and then you realized I'm
(04:53):
actually liking this again ordo you remember the act was an actual
day where you said, okay, Iactually want to play tennis after
this?
I think I just. That summerwhen I started playing the pro tournaments,
I realized that the level likethat I have is good enough to play
those pro tournaments becauseI haven't played a tournament like
three years. But I kind ofrealized that like the college level
(05:15):
is good. Like the people thatI'm playing in college and then the
people that I'm playing in prois. There's not like big difference.
So the first tournament that Iplayed, it was a 15k in Dominican
and I made the final and Ialready had like the 10 points to
start the ranking. So I waslike, okay, like, you know, like
might as well play the summerand see. And the summer went really
(05:36):
well. I got it up to like 3,300. So I was like, okay, like if
I can do it in five months,then maybe like if I Keep playing
for at least couple years andgive myself, like, this time to really,
like, train and play. Then,you know, just see where it goes.
Do you put down playing thepro tournaments, getting your ranking
up, and, you know, playingplayers who are, you know, they're
(05:57):
not. They're playing for theirlife on the pro tour. They're not
playing for fun. Or do you putthat experience and your college
tennis together to why youbecame a successful college tennis
player?
Yeah, I think even the, like,the college itself, all the matches,
it's like everybody is tryingvery hard because it's a little bit
(06:18):
different when you play, like,for the team. Like, even if, like,
you're injured or you're inpain, like, sometimes you just gotta
still play because there's,like, other people that are kind
of, like, counting on you. SoI guess that experience and then
there's a lot of, like,moments in college tennis, especially
when it's like, three all andyou're like, last match on. There's
a lot of pressure. And inAthens, we have a lot of people that
(06:39):
come watch. So I feel likethose big moments in college, like,
really help you prepare forthe pro tour, where obviously, when
you're playing more foryourself, but it's also, like, pressure,
and then it's a kind ofdifferent kind of pressure, I guess.
But I guess the experiencefrom college is really helpful for
the pro tour. But also, yeah,I guess they complement each other
(07:02):
because they're a little bit different.
We had. Our last guest wasAlex Kochevic, who was a successful
college player. Now he's,what, top 80 in the world? And he
talks. He talked a lot aboutour main point, about how, you know,
when you hit the pro tour, yougot to get used to losing. You were
probably winning every week.Multiple times a week you were winning,
and all of a sudden you hitthe pro tour. And plus, you don't
(07:25):
have those crowds there. Soyou're in the middle of nowhere playing
that you're probably lucky.You're probably in the more in challengers,
where there's a few morepeople there. But how have you adjusted?
Yeah, I guess that's true.You're also by yourself a lot more
than obviously, in college. Soyou go to, yeah, like a random 75
(07:46):
somewhere in America. And thenif you don't do well and you lose,
you either have to go back orgo to the next one. And it's definitely
different than college in thatway, I think. Well, I'm just, like,
starting still. I haven't evendone, like, a full year yet. So I
haven't really, I guess,experienced, like, when you, like,
(08:08):
lose three weeks in a row,first round. But I'm sure I will
at some point. I mean, it'sinevitable, unfortunately, because
it does happen. I do think I'mprepared for that mentally, but,
I mean, I wouldn't know untilit happens, obviously. But, yeah,
I guess until I do, like afull year at least, I couldn't really
(08:31):
talk on that.
We report back in a year andare you going to get, like. Do you
have in your head. I'm goingto give pro tennis, like, two, three,
four years or it's like, look,let's just take it, like, month by
month or year by year.
No, Yeah, I mean, definitely,like, at least few years in my mind,
but there's, like, goals thatI would want to, like, achieve, like,
(08:52):
every year, and then to kindof, like, progress somewhere. But,
I mean, so far it's beenpretty good. I mean, I've been moving
up the ranking pretty quickly,and I know it's not going to go up
like that all the time becausenow I also have some points to defend
from last year. But, I mean,last year, in five months, I went
up, like, so quickly. And sojust, I guess for each year, I'm
(09:18):
like, this year I want tomake, like, quality, so Grand Slam
and, like, next year, maybetop 150. So just like. Yeah, take
it week by week, tournament bytournament, and see. But obviously,
if, like, I'm not gonna. IfI'm not 150 by the end of the year,
I'm not gonna, like, quit.Yeah, yeah, I understand that. Yeah.
The process, it can take,like, different times, so at least
(09:41):
few years and. But I alsodon't want to be, like, 26, still
playing, like, 15Ks. That'sdefinitely not what I want.
So that. That. Some peoplelove that, though. That is tough.
And do you speak to any ofyour Czech mates from similar age
group? Did any of them go proinstead of go to college tennis?
Would we know of anybody?
(10:02):
Yeah, there's definitely a lotof people that are, like, either
one year or two years youngerthan me, but they didn't go to college,
like Bara Polizova orShalkova, you know, but they're all,
like, around my age, but alittle bit younger. They're all around,
like, 100 something right now.Yeah, it's not like we really talk,
(10:27):
but I obviously follow and Iknow what they play. I know they
made the Slams, and, yeah,they're doing pretty good.
Yeah. Okay. Nice. Yeah. It'sjust interesting it gives you a target
as well. Tell me, from yourlevel of college tennis, so from
being a champion there to the,to the lower levels, what's the main
(10:48):
difference? Do you see if youplay somebody who's, I don't know,
60, 70 in their level, what doyou do better than them?
Well, college ranking, it's,it's a, it works very like in a strange
way because you only get theranking if you beat someone who is
already ranked. So it's notreally by points or anything, it's
just the wins that you have.So if you play one and two, it's
(11:10):
easier to get the rankingbecause you play those people all
the time. If you're playinglike three, four or five, then usually
don't play people that areranked. So it's kind of a little
bit. I don't think it's veryaccurate necessarily. But I mean
to answer your question, yeah,it's just a lot that goes into that
(11:31):
ranking. Like if you do wellin the fall, like when I won NCAS
in the fall, I'm probably notgonna anywhere even if I lose just
because like I want NCAs. Soit's just the, their ranking is like
really hard to say. But Imean, yeah, you have the opportunities
to play rank people all thetime. So it's just.
(11:54):
So if you go in as one or twoor in, in your team, if you can get
up there in second in, in yoursecond, third year university, then
you have a much higher chanceto get in the rank and if you get
some good wins rather than ifyou play four all the time, you're
never going. It's imp to get ahigh ranking, is it?
Well, it's not impossible,it's harder definitely. It's more
like if you play in the fall,the individual college tournaments
(12:16):
like All Americans or the NCAAtournament, that's when you kind
of can get the ranking. Andthen even if you play lower in the
season, then like you stillare going to have that ranking. But.
Okay. And are you going toconcentrate on some doubles on the,
on the pro tour?
Yeah, I think I'm going toplay some tournaments. Doubles, not
(12:36):
all the time because it gets alot, especially if I do well in singles.
Rather not have another matchthe same day, but definitely for
a few, I will. Yeah.
Nice. And during your time incollege, was there any time you particularly
saw a big jump in your levelor was it all consistent? Was it
(12:58):
just constant improvement orwas there, can you look back and
go, oh, there was a big jumpthere? And this is why yeah, kind
of.
Every year was like a little.Some small improvements, but I think
the biggest one was from myjunior year to my senior year. My.
Yeah, so my junior year Iended the year ranked. I think I
was top five in college andthat's when I started playing the
(13:20):
pro tournament. So I kind ofhad like the confidence from the
season going into thetournaments. So I had some like momentum
going and then I did reallywell in the pros and then coming
back for my senior year, kindof carried it on by winning ncas
and then having a good season.So from. But I think it was more
(13:40):
a shift of a mentality for mebecause at that point I knew that
I was gonna do it aftercollege. So I was taking it like
more seriously. Like I waspracticing more and I was kind of
more mindful about like what Ido on the court when I am practicing
and what I'm working on. So Iguess those two years was like the
biggest kind of improvement.
(14:01):
So when you became more. Whenyou committed to the game, you saw
the improvement. So guyscommit to the game. And what would
you tell like a 14 year olddasha now if you could speak to her.
Fully, like, keep going. Idon't know, it's going to work out
eventually. Like because Iremember when I was younger I wasn't
(14:26):
really like 10, like I enjoyedtennis but I was never like, it was
never like my dream to playbig tournaments. Like it was like
I was good, I was doing likewell in my age group, but it never
was like tennis is what I wantto do. Like it was like always like
(14:46):
were.
You a talented junior? Likeone of those. Probably didn't work
so hard and was just a bitmore natural.
Yeah, you know, I mean Ipracticed, I played well in juniors.
I was like top 20, I playedthe slams, but I wasn't like number
one in the world. So it wasn'tlike, you know, but it was pretty
good.
What was your best junior slam memory?
(15:08):
Slam memory probablyAustralian Open. I think it was second
or third round we played, itwas like a little bit bigger course
so there was like a biggercrowd and I. We played third set
tiebreaker and it wasn't until10 like it was 10 point breaker,
(15:29):
but I didn't know that. Ithought it was seven point breaker.
My opponent thought it wasseven point breaker. So she was up
like seven four and shethought she won the match but then
she didn't because it wasstill 10 and then I won 10, eight
I think or something. So thatwas sweet.
That's Sweet. And you'resaying if you weren't, let's say
(15:49):
you didn't play tennis, whatwould you actually be doing? What
do you think? What did youmajor in, by the way?
I majored in finance, but if Ididn't play, I would probably still
play some other sport, maybebasketball or something. I just started
playing tennis when I wasyoung, but I definitely think I will
(16:10):
be doing some other sportbecause I don't see myself just sitting
or just going to school anddoing nothing active. So maybe basketball
or something.
Sitting at a desk all day canbe tough work. College tennis, who
should it be looking out for?Who's next on the rise?
(16:33):
On the rise? Well, definitelysome of my teammates, probably, Probably.
First one who comes to mind isNastya Lapada. She, she's already
doing, I mean great. She madefinal of NCAAs and yeah, she played
two last year. She, she is agreat player. I, I think she could
(16:57):
play pro too if she wanted to.Don't know if she wants to. Her,
some of my other teammateslike ice. She did really great last
year and she's going to be ajunior next year. She has two more
years, so I think she can dovery, very well. So yeah.
And do you get asked, dojuniors ever ask you for advice?
(17:18):
What do you tell them? I'msure being a champion, people are
more inclined to come up andask for a bit of advice. So what
do you tell a young Czechjunior that comes up and says they
want to be like you?
Nobody really asked me foradvice, to be honest.
No?
No, just maybe some peoplelike to ask like generally like about
college, what to expect, butnot really for like advice. And I
(17:39):
don't think I'm, I should begiving any advice because there's
still like a lot that I wantto do. Obviously I'm like 200, which
is like good, but it's notlike, you know, up there still. So
I, I think I need some advice still.
Well, we can get you that. Butno, I think there's still like, I'm
sure even the college questionthing is a, is a big question that
(18:00):
many parents, especiallyparents ask where they don't know
whether their kid should go tocollege, play college tennis or not.
But do you see, is there anycut off line where a player should
clearly not go to collegetennis or the player should go play
college tennis? Do you haveany cut off line in your head?
(18:22):
Yeah, I mean that's a toughquestion because it's different for
everybody and like everybody Ithink has a different age where they're
like, fully ready to play profor years. So if you're 17 and you're
done with juniors and you'realready like, at a point where you're
almost making Grand Slams,then, I mean, there's definitely
no point of going to college.But I mean, if you're maybe struggling
(18:46):
a little bit on the, on thepro tour, it's getting harder, it's
getting a lot. Then also youdon't have to go to college for the
full four years. I mean,there's always a way to go for a
year or two. And even doinglike a full year, you can still play
pro tournaments for half ofthe year. So I don't think it's bad
to like, have. Go for at leasta few years and just to have that
(19:10):
kind of degree that you canfinish anytime. And that experience
with kind of a little bitdifferent way of tennis where it's
like a team sport, I thinkit's a very unique experience and
it's. It really, like, helpsprepare you for other things and
for pro tour or whatever youwant to, like, do. I think college
is a great step, but I mean,definitely, if you're already like,
(19:35):
making or at least being closeto Slams, then I mean, then probably
it's not worth it.
Yeah, it's tough tellingparents that, you know, tough telling
kids that would just want tobe pro. They want to go on the tour
now, but it must, I think,college tennis given players a good
base. You can work on yourfitness, your strength, you can work
on everything. And yourconsistency, whatever you need to
(19:57):
work on. Then obviously, ifyou killed in college tennis in year
one or two and you're beatingeverybody, then you say, okay, well,
you're a certain level. Like,if you're doing that, so you should
be okay. It's. Yeah, it. It'sdefinitely. And what about payment?
Payments? Were you, you know,Pete, the nail stuff where players
(20:18):
now can get paid fortransfers, and that must make it
more exciting where you comeout of college tennis and you could
be positive in a cash way thatthen you can use to finance a bit
of your career.
Yeah, it's definitely. And Ithink that's why there's a lot of
more, a lot more players nowthat go to college that already have
the pro ranking. Like peoplethat are 2, 3, 400 and like, maybe
(20:42):
normally wouldn't go tocollege, they do now because they
get paid, which I think isgood. Because, yeah, as you said,
it can definitely help for thepro tournaments and the pro career
that you need to Finance,because you need a lot of money for
that. And when you're around300, you're not really making anything.
So going to college for a yearand getting some money, but also
(21:06):
some experience. I think it's great.
It's good. And a couple morequestions. Forehand. Where did technique
come from? It's quite a bit.It's quite a unique technique. It's
not one we, you know, not. Andit always gets some good comments
I find on Instagram with anyvideos we've posted.
So you mean my forehand?
Your forehand?
(21:27):
Don't really know my. Myforehand, it looked different. It
was kind of changingthroughout my like career for some
reason. It always was likeadjusting a little bit. But it is
what it is now. It wasn't likethat on purpose, but it works. I
mean, sometimes.
Yeah, no, it's great. But wereyou inspired by anybody growing up?
(21:51):
No, not really.
Just your own natural. That's cool.
When I was younger, my coachactually, he wanted it to look very
different than it looks now.And it did. But then kind of just
playing tournaments and whenyou're playing for a longer period
of time and not reallypracticing, it kind of changes a
little bit. So it did. Andthen, I mean, when you're 20 already,
(22:11):
it's kind of late to changeanything. So it is what it is at
this point.
It's done you well up untilnow. So what's next on the cards?
So, yeah, there is next weekthere's a tournament here in America,
100K. And then just kind ofdepends on where I get in because
with the WTAs and ITF's, it'slike very last minute sometimes.
(22:35):
So I'll try to play somehigher tournaments, some 125s, maybe
250s if. But if I get in. Butyeah, I think I might go back to
Europe for a few weeks andthen come back here and just play
whatever is here around here.
So yeah, you have a good basein Florida. And finally U.S. open.
(22:57):
Do you get a wild card intoQualities or Maine? No, no. Was that
not a thing before? Where NCAA champs.
But it's only for Americans.
Oh, is it? So only if you'rean American and win the ncaa, you
get a wild card. That's prettybad, isn't it?
Well, this year they actuallychanged it a little bit and they
actually, even if Americanwanted, they wouldn't give them the
(23:20):
wild card. They had like alittle playoff thing where they chose
like four best people fromcollege and they had to play for
the winner would get a maindraw in the club. The finalists,
the Qualys won. So that's whatthey did this year, only. Only for
Americans also.
Oh, that's so bad. Like, youknow, you're. You're kicking ass
over there and. Yeah, well,look, hopefully, you know, you won't
(23:43):
have to worry about that fortoo much longer.
Yeah.
Yeah. Thanks. Thanks forjumping on. And that's it.
Thank you, Sam.
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.