KCL Tennis team dominate at Varsity

The KCL tennis team was truly on fire on Saturday, defeating UCL with the remarkable result of 6-1.  The KCL players left their hearts on the court and with the praise-worthy support of the KCL family, no other outcome was remotely conceivable.

The event began with 1^st team men’s and women’s singles. During their chaotic match on the greasy court at Lee Valley, both men were evidently nervous and equally relentless.  Eventually, displaying a superior level of skill, KCL’s Ben Zuckerman brought it home with a 7-6(5) 3-6 10-8 win against Tromp.

And God said ‘let there be champions’. Then he created KCL.

The women’s match was the only win of the day for UCL, with Buzelan beating Albina Yanko 6-4 6-3. In the second set of singles we secured two more points with Tom Gill winning 6-4 6-4 against Jesaibegjans and Sabrina Nicoli’s 6-1 2-6 10-7 victory over Scemama.

Triumph was irrevocably ours’ after the doubles’ matches. UCL’s men were faced with King’s duo Shaakir ‘Sharky’ Sawar and Tom Gill, whose serves are ‘god’s creation’, resulting in a 6-4 4-6 10-6 win. After a tough start for the women, Eva Giannopolou and Aurelie Zoetelief Tromp managed to find their rhythm, vanquishing their opponents Daly and Drake 6-4 6-0. Finally, in the most monumental match of the day, Hassan ‘Hassassin’ Morad stood up to the mark alongside Laura Sahyoun, who embodied the spirit of KCL tennis, fighting to the end despite a number of setbacks. With the support of the other team members, Hassan and Laura managed to crush opponents Wolf and Ignatavicute with a brilliant 6-4 3-6 10-7 win.

Though the Varsity series may be considered by some a cheaper version of Wimbledon, our crowd was definitely louder. The KCL crowd, that is. At the start of the academic year, a decision was made that KCL tennis was making a comeback and we have delivered. Society President Chalini Lankage who, along with the UCL President Jamal Rizvi organized yet another thrilling event. We also deployed our infamous social sec and professional megaphone handler, Jimmy Schofield, as we united in belting out our masterfully composed chants.  The men’s 1^st team captain, Armin Fardanesh, reflected upon the attitude of the team, which differs significantly from last year; “Last year we met up at the Dover Castle, this year we arrived two hours beforehand, we were acclimatised, we were prepared, we were ready to dog UCL.”

Undeniably, tensions were high with 4 matches ending in championship tiebreaks, but ultimately there is no glory in winning against an unworthy opponent, so good effort, UCL. Over the course of the day, KCL proved that although we may lose some battles, we win the wars. We were not only better on the day, we are better EVERY day. Looking forward to next year and more hotly contested matches.

#sorrynotsorry

#bleedred

#luuuuuusssssshhhhh