Getting to Know Men's Tennis Newcomer Chris Cha
9/30/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Sept. 30, 2009
For his collegiate tennis debut, it's safe to say the odds were stacked against Michigan freshman Chris Cha.
After battling flu-like symptoms for nearly a week, Cha was scheduled to face-off with Cal's Zach Gilbert during the morning session of the Land Rover Napa Valley Invitational on Friday, Sept. 18. Due to his illness, Cha was not permitted to travel with the rest of the team, and arrived in California at 1 a.m. that morning after being cleared by the doctor.
Lack of rest. Check.
He also had not practiced in the six days prior to the tournament.
Lack of preparation. Check.
After arriving at the complex, Cha's match with Gilbert got underway shortly after 10 a.m. and the temperature outside was hovering around 100 degrees.
Let's just say, Cha's first collegiate set didn't go the way he wanted to. He lost the first set, 6-0.
"I felt like I was going to die," Cha said.
Head coach Bruce Berque was aware of Cha's physical state. Between the end of the first set and the start of the second, Berque took Cha aside to give him some advice.
"Are you nervous?" Berque asked.
"Yes," Cha replied.
"That's alright," Berque said. "Most people are when they are playing their first college match. Chris [Madden] lost his first 10 games to start his career. You've only lost six. You are ahead of his pace."
"He told me I get a fresh start in the next set," Cha recalled. "He didn't even mention the stat. He told me to stop thinking about the first set and start thinking about what I can do to win the match."
Berque's playful pep talk seemed to strike a chord. Despite being on extremely short rest, the illness, the lack of practice time and the nerves of his debut, Cha stormed back to take the next two sets, 6-3, 6-4, and the match over Gilbert, his first win as a Wolverine.
What changed?
"My mentality," Cha said. "Mind over matter. I kept thinking of how sick and tired I was in the first set and how I wasn't feeling well. Then my focus shifted, I stopped thinking and started playing."
Cha finished with a 4-2 record that weekend, earning two wins in singles and another two in doubles (both coming with senior Mike Sroczynski). Outside of the first set of his first match, Cha's debut yielded pretty positive results.
Finally healthy and back to practicing with his teammates, the 18-year old Cha is taking the necessary steps to prepare himself for the long road ahead in his first season with the Wolverines. This past Monday, Cha had a closed-door meeting with Berque and associate head coach Sean Maymi where they discussed his goals for the season, the norm for all players during the fall.
"He wants to win as many matches as he can," Berque said. "He obviously wants to play as high up in the lineup as he can, but he also wants to help the team. He's about as on-top of things as a freshman can be and he's really got a mature attitude towards the whole college experience so far."
Cha was born in California but grew up in St. Louis, Mo. He began playing tennis when he was just three years old and it has been his focus ever since, though he dabbled with hockey and swimming, briefly. At six years old, he began taking lessons from Craig Sandvig, his first real coach and the man who taught Cha the game. They still talk today.
Sandvig took Cha as far as he could. At age 10, Cha began to bounce around to a number of different coaches with less-than-stellar results. Something needed to change.
With that, he moved to Kansas City and took his game to a whole new level. While Cha did not play for his high school tennis team, he was able to travel the country and play against some of the nation's top amateur players.
"Before in St. Louis, I didn't know if I could push myself to the limit," he said. "I was just going through the motions. I had to make a choice if I wanted to play tennis recreationally or seriously."
The gamble paid off and Cha made his choice. His future was with a tennis racket.
He immediately started to get recognized. He was rated as a five-star recruit and the No. 46 amateur prospect in the country by tennisrecruiting.net. Earlier this summer, prior to his arrival at Michigan, Cha won the ITA Summer Regional at the University of Kansas and was doubles champion at the ITA Summer Regional at Washington University (St. Louis).
He chose Michigan over Stanford, Notre Dame and Princeton, among offers from others. Like fellow freshman Evan King, Cha chose the Wolverines because of the relationship he developed with Berque, Maymi and his teammates.
"They were huge in making me feel that this is where I needed to be," Cha said. "I can make the most of myself as a student-athlete here and be the best that I can be."
"I hope there's not a day that goes by where I don't enjoy Michigan," Cha added. "I embrace it every day. The last couple weeks have done nothing but reinforce my decision as the right one."
Speaking of King, Cha has formed quite a bond with his teammate. Their relationship goes back as far as last year, when they took their official visit to Ann Arbor on the same weekend.
The two are rooming together this year and are the only freshmen on the team. Yet, despite all the attention and success King has received in his amateur career, Cha doesn't feel overshadowed by his teammate - he feels encouraged.
"He's such an accomplished player," Cha said. "I can bounce ideas off of one of the best players in the world. We talk a lot about what we can do to improve our games. When he does well, it's only going to push me harder."
Berque has also taken notice of the pair's apparent chemistry, but despite pleas from both players, don't expect to see the two in doubles competition much this year.
"They get along with each other real well," Berque said. "Their chemistry is very apparent to whoever is around the two of them. They hit it off well on their visit last year and here they are."
Cha and King have never crossed paths on the court, though he hopes it will happen someday. But who would win the matchup?
"I would, obviously," Cha said with a smile.
Contact: Brad Rudner (734) 647-4237
Players Mentioned
