Brilliant Bruins: The Former UCLA Stars Taking Indian Wells By Storm | ATP Tour

Maxime Cressy, Marcos Giron and Mackenzie McDonald have been simply metres from the BNP Paribas Open locker room on Wednesday afternoon once they cracked up whereas posing for a gaggle image. It was identical to outdated occasions.

This week, they’re all competing in the principle draw of the season’s first ATP Masters 1000 occasion, one of the prestigious tennis tournaments on the earth. However not way back, all three have been student-athletes on the College of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), slightly greater than a two-hour drive away.

“It’s fairly superb that now we have three guys within the Prime 75 from the identical college. We haven’t seen that shortly, I don’t suppose,” McDonald stated. “It’s fairly cool. We’ve slightly little bit of selection with Max being a really totally different participant than Marcos and I. I believe it exhibits how sturdy of a faculty UCLA is, but additionally how sturdy faculty tennis might be. I believe it’s an excellent route and I’m an enormous advocate for faculty tennis.”

There have been a number of months when the trio was on campus on the similar time. Within the spring of 2016, former NCAA singles champion Giron was a volunteer assistant coach for the staff whereas rehabbing from hip surgical procedure. McDonald was a junior, who went on to win the NCAA singles title that yr and Cressy was a freshman, who roomed with McDonald.

Now they’re all within the Prime 75 of the ATP Rankings and excited to placed on a present on acquainted turf in California.

There are many former faculty gamers on the ATP Tour, together with John Isner, Kevin Anderson and Steve Johnson. However having three gamers from the identical college who have been on campus collectively having fun with a lot success has been a particular expertise for the previous Bruins. In accordance with Giron, it was not essentially a given.

“It’s powerful to say. I knew that we have been good, I knew they have been superb in faculty. However to what degree we’d get to on the Tour, you simply don’t know,” Giron stated. “There’s so many guys from juniors that have been phenomenal — that you simply suppose they’re going to be like Prime 30 on the earth, no query — that didn’t make it.

“I knew the potential was there, however I didn’t know to what extent. And I nonetheless suppose the most effective is but to come back, to be sincere.”

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World No. 72 Cressy has intrigued the tennis world in latest months along with his aggressive serve-and-volley recreation, which helped him attain his maiden ATP Tour remaining on the Melbourne Summer Set, the place he performed Rafael Nadal.

However when he started his profession at UCLA, he was not instantly touted like Giron and McDonald. Cressy was on the very backside of the lineup his freshman yr.

“I used to be recruited to be a doubles participant. I used to be primarily enjoying doubles and most of the people noticed me as a contributor to the staff in doubles and never singles. Clearly I used to be not the one coaching on the larger courts, Cressy stated. “I used to be on the finish enjoying on the again courts, however I all the time had the willpower to get to the highest a part of the lineup. The fireplace inside me was all the time there.”

Giron and McDonald — in addition to different former UCLA student-athletes — have loved watching Cressy’s speedy rise.

“It’s fairly attention-grabbing. I believe it’s sudden for certain. All of us knew he had such a robust recreation. I keep in mind freshman yr, his athleticism was outstanding. However the way in which he’s mentally put issues collectively, discovered his approach, actually honed in on his abilities and brought his personal path is admirable,” McDonald stated. “He’s a really arduous employee, he’s all the time been a tough employee. To see him put all of it collectively and have the success he’s having now could be fairly superb.”

Whereas Cressy grew up in France, Giron and McDonald are each Californians. They have been additionally UCLA teammates when Giron was a junior and McDonald was a freshman. They continue to be shut buddies and competing at dwelling this week makes the expertise much more particular.

“I believe it’s actually cool for Marcos and I. I grew up enjoying tennis throughout California and touring to Southern California after I was tremendous, tremendous younger, and I all the time regarded as much as Marcos,” McDonald stated. “He went to UCLA earlier than I did, and I keep in mind being on the staff and actually wanting as much as him rather a lot after which watching him win NCAAs. That motivated me to do the identical, observe his path and go professional. I believe it’s so cool that we went by way of lots of the identical processes.”

Grant Chen was an assistant coach after which the affiliate head coach at UCLA throughout the time Giron, McDonald and Cressy have been on the college. And the present Southern Methodist College head coach stated that there’s an unstated bond on the skilled tennis circuit.

“I believe faculty tennis and staff tennis are in contrast to some other element of tennis, which is often such a person sport,” Chen stated. “I do know a few of Marcos’ biggest reminiscences are when he goes on the street in Europe and sees an outdated UCLA classmate at occasions on the market. I believe it’s good for these guys to have individuals whom they’re actually acquainted with and knew them lengthy earlier than they have been Prime 100 on the earth to know the way a lot they love this, how a lot they’ve wished this.”

Chen added there’s a UCLA tennis alumni WhatsApp chat that includes greater than 130 former student-athletes from the college, together with present doubles star Jean-Julien Rojer. The Bruins all help one another, which is one thing that has helped proceed to encourage right this moment’s stars.

“Whenever you go to UCLA you’re impressed. I believe we’re all impressed by the earlier UCLA generations, by the teaching employees. I believe additionally we push one another to succeed,” Giron stated. “Each time we see one other man do properly, we’re pleased for them and it makes us consider that we are able to do it additionally.”