Love-Tennis
I am an avid tennis fan both on and off the court. Whether it’s scraping my way against someone at the Atkins Tennis Center on campus or watching an intense match up of the final game in a major tournament, there’s something about the sport that demands my total attention.
Unlike other local high schools such as Centennial, Central, and Urbana, Uni does not have a tennis program, which means I cannot play on a high school team. I therefore make the Atkins Tennis Center, where the men and women’s University of Illinois tennis teams are situated, my tennis haven. An excellent facility, Atkins is open to the public for classes and personal court times, as well as a chance to watch the U of I tennis teams play. If you’ve ever wanted to try out the machine that automatically shoots out tennis balls, this is the place for you.
I also closely follow pro and college level tennis. One of the biggest recent stories in sports would be Swiss tennis star Roger Federer’s capture of the Grand Slam title against Chilean Fernando Gonzalez without dropping a single set. The last time someone accomplished such a feat was in 1980, when Bjorn Borg defeated Vitas Gerulaitis to wn the French Open.
Although I don’t bring multiple rackets to every game I play or have posters of tennis stars on every wall in my room, I appreciate the game to the last point. Whoever says love means nothing to a tennis player seriously needs to play a match with me.
— Benjamin Fu