Time to flush that Bama travesty today....Ole Miss is decent, ranked 30. Shouldn't be as talented as UF, but that hasn't seemed to matter at times this year. Doubles underway, UF down a break on 1, on serve on 2, up a break on 3 Singles look like Braswell up to 3 and Nate down to 4....don't love that but they both have struggled regardless Orli remains at 5 and Tokac in at 6. Ironic since Greif played one of his best matches vs Bama. But I have been calling for Tokac since I think his upside is there. I just would have plugged him at 5 and see what happens. Interesting they didn't reinsert him into doubles with Nirundorn, they were a formidable duo this fall
Beaten badly on 1, easy win on 3, come back to win 3 straight games for a 6-3 clincher on 2. Pretty much been the doubles recipe....now we need some progress in singles
Looks like Nate has been removed from singles now, Orli up to 4, Tokac 5, Greif at 6. Nate was on that #2 doubles that just clinched, so I don't know if he came up gimpy somehow
So far so good Nefve loses a tight set 4-6 Grant 7-5 Braswell was up 5-1 and his guy retired Orli 7-6 Tokac cruising 6-3 3-0....think this kid has the talent Greif 6-1 Good sign to finally be winning some tough sets, need to avoid the Bama second set let downs
Nefve loses in straight sets Grant wins 7-5 7-5 Orli loses his second set and the mini TB....two matches in a row he started well and fell apart Tokac and Greif both win easily By and large a nice rebound. Curious if they just gave Nate a day off in singles. We aren't deep enough to move everyone up against elite teams
Tokac was absent from the lineup for the past three weeks for a reason. He earned his way back into the singles lineup by doing the right thing at practice. Hopes are that he will continue to earn and learn his way through the remainder of the season. Bonetto is in a slump that only he can dig himself out of. He is playing doubles with Nirundorn because he adds a left handed serve and superior net game to the number two doubles pair. As far as Olik is concerned I can tell you he is a very good tennis player. He was thrust into this collegiate situation only three months ago in January. He is very enthusiastic and committed to the University of Florida. I can tell you from experience that foreign students take some time to acclimate to the intense team atmosphere of collegiate tennis. Do not give up on him as I see him as a factor moving forward. Once he settles in permanently he will show just what kind of player he can be during his career as a Gator.
Great to hear Tokac has made strides and is back in the mix. Love the upside, but we know Coach has expectations that are what make the team special. I've honestly been pretty happy with Olik, I just prefer him at 6 (maybe 5 in spots) where he seems much more comfortable for now. I think he is actually undefeated playing 6 and winless at 5. Problem with dropping Nate out entirely is forcing everyone up a notch when we are already struggling somewhat. I'm not sure there is a simple solution, but I tend toward a sacrificial lamb at one position to keep others strong. Multiple ways that can be done of course....heck I might do the reverse and move Nate up and just let him swing away with no big pressure/expectations for him to produce a point. Braswell has been solid at 4 and struggled at 3.....Nate hasn't done well at either slot so not much gain by moving Jonah up. Of course much of this is Monday morning QB, but fun discussion points
