What everyone else would consider impossible even in their
wildest of dreams, Chris Surapol has made a reality for himself.
The redshirt senior is coming off a performance that had almost
everyone other than himself surprised ““ a run to the round of
16 at the Polo Ralph Lauren All-American Tennis Championships.
Surapol entered the tournament unseeded and needed to win three
matches in the qualifying round before even advancing to the main
draw. Unfazed, the Whittier native began to defeat players seeded
in the 20s and 30s at the NCAA level, earning himself a bid against
the top-seeded player in the tournament, John Isner of Georgia.
Though Surapol lost in straight sets to end his tournament run, the
implications of his performance ““ given the road he has
traveled to even get the chance to play opponents of that caliber
““ are far more tremendous.
The development Surapol began his UCLA career
in the shadows of several great players, and his greatest
competition was often against his teammates, who were all shooting
for spots on the starting roster. “When Chris first came
here, he was a counter-puncher with good speed but not many
weapons,” assistant coach Jason Sher said. “But his
game has changed a lot and now he’s developed a huge forehand
and knows when to come in to the net.” Surapol’s vast
improvement quickly led to a more consistent spot in the lineup and
a greater contribution to the team. Soon, the Bruins began to
advance to the NCAA Championship finals at what appeared to be a
consistent rate. In 2004, the Bruins watched as Baylor defeated
them in the final and took what would’ve been the
Bruins’ first national championship in men’s tennis
since 1984. Just one year later, UCLA was in exactly the same
position against Cal, this time with Surapol on the sideline after
he injured his ankle and redshirted the season. “It was tough
to just watch, but it was a good learning experience,”
Surapol said. This year however, Surapol has the chance to
contribute to a national title in a more direct manner and hopes to
do just that.
The grind After the 2006 season, Surapol found
himself suffering from a number of minor injuries, none of which he
allowed to hold him back. “I was really beat up,”
Surapol said. “I had tendonitis in both shins, both knees and
my elbow and my shoulder.” But after a one-month visit to his
parents’ native country of Thailand, the senior was
well-rested and ready to start training once again. “I
thought the trip was really helpful for me in terms of getting away
from tennis,” Surapol said. “I came back here and I
felt like my body was really well-rested.” But the time away
from the game he loves only made him more hungry. While most of his
teammates had traveled back home or were competing in tournaments
around the world, he sought out a hitting partner over the summer.
Surapol began practicing with a fellow member of the 2005 national
championship team, Kris Kwinta, who had clinched the title for the
Bruins. Soon, however, Kwinta began summer school before returning
to his home in Poland, leaving Surapol without a hitting partner
once again. All that would quickly change in the coming days when
he was approached by UCLA coach Billy Martin with a opportunity.
“One day coach just asked me if I was available the next day,
and I told him probably,” Surapol recalled. “Then he
asked me if I had someone to hit with the next day and I said
I’d probably try to find someone. “He’s like,
“˜Well my buddy Pete wants to play.’ “And I go,
“˜Pete who?’ “Then he’s like,
“˜Sampras.'” Surapol quickly jumped at the chance,
even though he felt as though he wasn’t quite back into his
groove. Since the courts at the Los Angeles Tennis Center were
occupied, Surapol made the five minute drive to Sampras’
house to play with him for the first time. “I played really
well and a couple days later he invited me back,” he said.
“When I came back to practice, everyone’s balls seemed
so slow. I thought if I keep practicing with him, everything is
going to look like it’s in slow motion.” From that
point on, Surapol had found his most consistent hitting partner of
the summer, but the effects of practicing with Sampras went far
beyond just his abilities on the court. “He now really
believes he cannot only compete, but actually beat some of the top
players,” Sher said. “A lot of it is mental.”
Hitting with a former No. 1 player and winner of 14 grand slams,
Surapol reached a great epiphany. “It put everything in
perspective for me,” Surapol said. “Before I was so
focused in on college rankings. But then when you play against the
No. 1 player in the world, and arguably the greatest player ever,
it’s kind of like, “˜so what if he’s No. 20 in the
country in college.'” But Sampras has not been the only
player who has brought out the best of Surapol. In fact, the senior
doesn’t need to look much further than his teammates to find
one of the best hitting partners in college tennis: top-ranked
Benjamin Kohlloeffel. Following in Kohlloeffel’s footsteps as
captain of the Bruin squad, Surapol will guide the team to one goal
““ a national championship.
The drive In his last year as a Bruin, Surapol
has already begun to receive recognition and credit, while reaping
the benefits of four years of hard work. “I started working a
lot harder to the end of last season,” he said. “Jason
(Sher) kept reminding me that it’s an ongoing process.
It’s not just you started playing good so you cap off;
everyone else is getting better also.” Realizing the reality
of his coach’s statement, Surapol took steps in order to
benefit both himself and his team. Surapol’s success in the
All-Americans has brought the Bruins to yet another realization
““ if one of their fellow teammates who had been playing No. 4
last year was having such great success, they could have a good
chance at running the tables this year. “Hopefully the other
guys on the team can look at Chris as a role model and see how
he’s able to take it to another level in terms of beating the
top guys,” Sher said. “We’re a deep team this
year and any of our guys has a good shot against the top players
from other schools.” Though it is unclear whether or not the
Bruins can actually pose a threat to these top players, Surapol has
showed that he is capable of hanging with some of college
tennis’ biggest names before the season has even kicked off.
“Chris is really ready to step up his senior year,”
Sher said. “He realizes what a great chance we have as a team
to win the whole thing.”