The North Carolina men’s tennis team is just weeks into its first season in four years without former top player Clay Donato, who graduated in May. But thus far, the Tar Heels have started off strong.
Sophomore Jose Hernandez is leading the way, reaching the round of 16 at the main singles draw of the D’Novo/ITA All-American Tennis Championships this week before falling to No. 13 Sanam Singh of Virginia on Friday.
Hernandez is North Carolina’s highest-ranked player this year. His No. 30 national ranking was enough to earn him an automatic slot in the tournament’s main draw. And he said he has improved substantially since last season.
“I have a lot more options in my game,” Hernandez said. “I’m better with my serve, with my volleys, with my ground strokes, and I’m stronger and faster.”
But he added he has a lot more work to do, especially in serving and transitioning from the baseline to the net.
Hernandez won his first two matches easily, defeating Peter Lucassen of defending national champion Southern California and Marcelo Arevalo of tournament host Tulsa without dropping a set. But he could not get past Singh in the third round despite winning the first set and the first four games of the second set.
“I was up 6-3, 4-0, so obviously, I was really disappointed to lose that match,” Hernandez said. “I played better than him. You could see I was the better player, but I lost focus, and it just got out of hand.”
It was Hernandez’s second time facing Singh. In the Tar Heels’ loss to Virginia last season, Hernandez, then ranked No. 78 as a freshman, upset then-No. 9 Singh in three sets.
Singh took the rematch also in three sets, winning 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
