Crimson Enters Pool of Unclear Champs

The race for the Ivy League title begins this weekend for the Harvard men’s tennis team, as it opens its season against Cornell and Columbia.

The Crimson (5-7), which has placed third in Ivy play for the past two years, will be pitted today against No. 66 Cornell, who ended its pre-season with a 12-4 record.

However, the No. 72 Lions of Columbia may provide tougher competition for Harvard tomorrow, as they sport a 10-3 overall record and pulled out a close victory over Cornell this past weekend (5-2).

“Columbia’s probably one of the most energetic teams out there,” said junior Ashwin Kumar, who plays at the No. 4 spot.

Kumar named the Lions as one of the key teams to watch out for, along with Brown.

Senior co-captain Gideon Valkin believes that every team in the league will put up a fight for the championship this season.

“It’s a very deep and strong Ivy League this year,” Valkin said. “Anything can happen.”

Valkin, who was a member of the 2004 Ivy championship team, usually plays No. 5 singles.

“On any given day, anyone can beat anyone,” Kumar added.

Coach Dave Fish ’72, also has this feeling of uncertainty as his team enters Ivy competition, likening the anticipation to that of a roller coaster ride.

“You just strap yourself in and you get ready to go down the hill and go up the hill,” Fish said. “I don’t think there’s a coach in the league that doesn’t feel that this is just one of those roller coaster ride leagues where we have no idea what’s going to happen.”

The Crimson currently enters the conference season with the lowest overall winning percentage in the league at 0.416, closely following Yale at 0.461 This may be misleading, however, as Harvard played many top-notch teams throughout its fall and spring terms.

“We compete against some of the best teams nationally,” Kumar said. “All of us are comfortable and we’ve gained a lot of experience.”

Another advantage for the Crimson comes from the return of many veteran players. 10 members of the 2005-2006 team are with Harvard again this year, giving the Crimson the asset of familiarity with Ivy play, as well as a chance to build on the foundation set by last year’s squad.

“This year we have pretty much the same team we had last year,” said sophomore Chris Clayton, who leads Harvard at No. 1 singles. “We’re stronger, we’re closer as a team.”

The Crimson is also extremely deep this season. Especially notable at singles are Kumar and Valkin’s records at No. 4 and No. 5 of 4-0 and 8-1, respectively, and the consistency of Harvard’s doubles play. However, the Crimson will draw on more than sheer skill to overcome the competition.

“This is the most driven team I’ve been a part of,” Kumar said. “We’re hungry and we want to win the Ivy League title.”

Harvard will definitely be put to the test on its home courts this weekend, but for Clayton, an Ancient Eight championship seems certain.

“We’re going to win it,” Clayton said. “I definitely think we’re ready to go and shake and bake out there.”

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