As the season hits its halfway mark, the Alabama men’s tennis team has a chance to evaluate its progression as a whole and the results have produced mixed reviews. Alabama raced out in the beginning of the year with a promising 5-2 record, but since then things have begun to fall apart. The team has dropped seven of its last eight matches including scoring one point or less in a match twice.
It is difficult to pinpoint the struggles for a team that has come up with little to no answers in the past weeks against their opponents. From doubles play to singles play, the Crimson Tide has looked disheveled and in disarray. With every arduous situation does come moments or learning, and a possible remedy for the struggle.
“The biggest struggle right now with the team as a whole is doubles play. We really aren’t far from these other teams talent wise we believe we are right there with them. It is just that we haven’t been able to capitalize on opportunities. Been unlucky,” said Mazen Osama, a sophomore from Cairo, Egypt.
Being the youthful team they are, leadership is one of the key components needed to turn the ship back into the right direction. The words spoken by Osama with confidence may be just what they need: a leader to lean on.
“Yeah, we are in a tough position with the upcoming schedule but hopefully this great competition will make us better,” Osama said. “We will need to work harder and focus even more and if we do that I believe we will have a good chance.”
Sitting at 6-9, Alabama is in the middle of its toughest stretch of the season with multiple opponents ranked in the top 16. Overall, the SEC boasts six teams in the top 25 rankings, proving once again that it may be the most competitive conference in the nation. Going against such stiff competition can either bring out the good or bad in a team, Osama is hoping for the former.
“Yeah, we are in a tough position with the upcoming schedule but hopefully this great competition will make us better. We will need to work harder and focus even more and if we do that I believe we will have a good chance.”
After losing to Mississippi on Thursday, the team will travel to Auburn, Alabama to take on the Auburn Tigers on Saturday. Play will begin at
