See highlights of the 5.0 Final here - 5.0 Final - Nida Siefferman vs. Axel Franco
Nida started the year by winning the Indoor Singles Playoffs, defeating 2020 5.0 Champion Alex Duering in the final. She then went undefeated in the outdoor regular season and won her division to qualify her for the playoffs. Nhan Tran is the only player to have taken a set off of her all year, and he matched up with her again in the semifinals. After Nida won the first set 6-1, the two of them played a very close 2nd set. Nida got a little tight, but tried to stay relaxed, kept her feet moving, and decided to play it safer and avoid making mistakes. Taking the safe route paid off as Nhan had some unlucky misses, and the match was decided by a few crucial points in the tiebreak to determine the set and match. Nida then defeated Axel Franco in the final to finish as 5.0 Champion.
Nida’s Story: Nida played a number of sports from a young age- Golf, tennis, swimming, baseball, basketball, and soccer. By the time she entered high school and narrowed her focus down to tennis, she was a well-rounded athlete.
High School highlights at Hinsdale Central HS:
Freshman: Illinois State Doubles Champion
Sophomore: Illinois State Doubles Champion
Junior: 2nd place in Illinois for singles
NCAA highlights at Northwestern University:
2011 - All American at #1 doubles, made final 8 in NCAA national tournament.
2012 - #2 ranking in the country for doubles.
Since graduating from Northwestern, Nida taught at 5 Seasons and now teaches at SCORE. She really enjoys teaching and being on the court, and intends to teach as long as she can.
Nida learned about Gladiator Tennis when searching for tournaments on UTR. “I like the flexible scheduling format, the competition is strong, and everyone is very nice. It’s not overly competitive, and it’s a great way to get matches, meet new players, and play hard.”
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Nathan had the upper hand throughout the regular season with a 14-5 record. But he turned it up a notch higher in the playoffs, taking out players in straight sets who had played him close earlier, including a 6-0,6-0 demolition of league coordinator Steve Hess
. The stiffest test was in the semifinals against Eric Dobrzynski. This was a rematch of their regular season match that had gone the distance in 3 sets. This time Nathan was able to win 2 close sets, 6-3, 7-5. Nathan finished his playoff run with a win in the finals against Eddie DelaCruz.
Nathan’s story: I was a rambunctious kid, and my mother needed me to burn off some of my excess energy. She told me to go to the local rec center in Seattle and find a sport to play. That’s where I discovered the game of tennis when I was 12 years old. My neighbor had some old wooden rackets and a t2000 (Jimmy Connors’ racket). I used the T2000 until I got my own racket, hit with my neighbor, and basically lived at the rec center. This kept me out of trouble and kept me from beating up my sister at home :) I noticed that girls played tennis too, an extra perk that paid off in an ultimate way years later when I met my wife playing tennis in college!
High School: Our local high school had never had a winning record, the guys on teams from previous years smoked in between sets, and the school had a thuggish reputation among the other high schools. The players didn’t even have uniforms. That all changed when my coach at the local rec center that I learned to play at took over the team. He spent his own money to get us uniforms and get our racquets strung. He trained us very well, and by the time we got to our junior year, we were shocking everybody in the area by finishing in the top 8 in the state. We repeated that feat in our senior year. Our school had never had a winning team in any sport, so to celebrate the occasion, the school gave all of the students a half day off and bussed them over to see the state finals. Some of the kids had never seen tennis before in their lives, and thought it appropriate to loudly cheer during points as you would at a football or basketball game.
College: Huntington College in Indiana:
After College:
That was the last time I played tennis until I popped into the Gladiator Open in 2017 and played in a Gladiator Doubles event. After 9 years off I decided to play in the league this year and dove in feet first, playing singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. Our kids are now old enough and I am finally free to play some tennis again!
In Gladiator Tennis, the flexible scheduling works for me, and the opportunity to promote to a higher skill level motivates me to elevate my game. I also like how the results are integrated with UTR.
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Kyle navigated a minefield of close calls and dangerous challengers to win the 4.5 title. In the round of 16, he faced off against Peter Roberts who had beaten him twice in the regular season. Peter had shared with Kyle that his mindset was “If I win it’s fine, if I lose it’s fine”. Kyle decided to adopt the same mindset and felt liberated me to play better tennis. He defeated Peter in a close 3 setter. The quarterfinals was against Robert Fishman, who has the distinction of being the top level playoff champion in the very first year of Gladiator Tennis back in 2007. Kyle fought back from 5-3 down in the first set against Fishman, but found himself down again in the tiebreak with 3 set points against him. One nail biting point at a time, Kyle was able to fight his way back and win that set, then the match, 7-6, 6-3. The Final against Daylen Davis was also very tight and could have gone either way, but the crucial points mostly went Kyle’s way and he closed it out with a 7-6, 7-5 victory.
Kyle’s story: Mom and Dad got me into the sport when I was 6 year old. I played tournaments as a kid, then played high school tennis. I kept playing as an adult except for a 1 year layoff when I moved from Columbus to Naperville. That’s when I found Gladiator Tennis in 2017. I’ve since moved to the city, and 2021 is the first year where I felt like the group was full of quality players at 4.5 (Peter Roberts, Sylvain Marliac, Mark Abellera, Julian Garcia, Paul Amiri).
What keeps me coming back is the flexibility, and the guys I have made friends with who I also hit with outside of the league too. I also was setup with a good mixed doubles partner named Abigail Kirkman. She is really good and we have a lot of fun playing together.
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Carrie and the other women in the 4.5 draw spent the regular season mixed in with different men’s divisions throughout the Chicagoland area. Carrie compiled a 13-5 regular season in the 4.0 and 4.25 levels of the men’s league. She swept through the playoffs witbhouyt losing a set, defeating Lara Phillips in the final. This is the 4th time Carrie has finished as playoff champion:
Carrie’s Story: I first started playing tennis in 2009, after I saw a Gladiator Tennis flyer at a local Jimmy Johns. Throughout my childhood, I played competitive soccer and eventually went on to play soccer in college. After graduating college and working for a few years, I decided to pursue a law degree and thought tennis would be a great outlet. I joined Gladiator Tennis while in law school and started out in the 3.0 Division. After my first Gladiator season, I became hooked on tennis and started taking lessons from Leandro Martins at Wheaton Sports Center to develop my game. I eventually moved my way up to the 3.5, 4.0 and 4.5+ Gladiator Divisions. I also joined USTA teams after a fellow Gladiator introduced me to the league. I like Gladiator because of the flexibility and getting to know the other players in the league. I’m so grateful that Gladiator introduced me to this awesome sport
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Out of the 6 matches Khalil won during his playoff run, 4 of them went 3 sets. Khalil pulled off the greatest comeback of the 2021 Playoffs in the semifinal vs. 2 time playoff finalist Adithya Puskoor. Down 7-1 in the 3rd set Super Tiebreak of the semifinals, Khalil won 9 points in a row to take the tiebreak and the match, and advance to the finals. The final was started only 90 minutes later, and Khalil pulled off another comeback after losing the first set, outlasting Vinay Repudi, 2-6,7-5,6-2.
Khalil’s Story: When I came to the US 5 years ago, I was looking for ping pong competition. But I noticed there were many courts for tennis. It’s like a bigger version ping pong, so I decided to try it out and joined a group of friends who were hitting together each week. I learned a lot from them, and began playing everyday during the summer. My friend Vinoth told me about Gladiator, so in 2018 I joined the league - it was the first organized competition I ever participated in. Since then I have been a student of the game and committed myself to continuous improvement, and this has led me to move up from the 3.0 level all the way to 4.25 this year. I also play doubles with Vinoth Kirupakaran, and we made it to the 4.5 semifinals this year.
Gladiator Tennis gives me the opportunity in match play to see other areas of my game that I can improve. I enjoy the strategic aspect of the game, and like chess, I like to anticipate my opponents’ moves, and develop a winning strategy as I go along in the match with each player.
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Gabriel sported a 14-5 regular season record and entered the playoffs as the #3 seed. He dropped only 1 set throughout the playoff run in a close quarterfinal match with longtime gladiator Jeremy Picciuca, the score 6-4, 4-6, 7-5. In the final, Gabriel survived another close match against former champion Marius Maries, winning 6-4,7-5.
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After an 18 month layoff due to an ACL injury, Kayla got back into tennis this summer and started off slow with a 2-4 regular season record. But she was rediscovering her game and getting her stamina back throughout those matches and it all came together for her during the playoffs. She was able to win all 4 matches in straight sets, with an especially close win over Christy McGovern in the final, 6-4,7-5.
Kayla’s Story: Kayla initially learned the basics of the game from her dad, then dabbled in lessons with different clubs around the Naperville/Aurora area until settling on Eola Tennis Academy where she took group lessons weekly and private lessons with John Mittvick. Her high school coach, Phil Galow, also taught her much about physical and mental fitness and she played varsity tennis all 4 years, culminating in winning the conference title in her senior year for Waubonsie Valley High School. Her plans to continue playing college tennis were halted by an ACL injury in February 2020. She is a sophomore in college and still hopes to play college tennis during her final 2 years.
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Malhar had a number of close calls during his playoff run, starting with his 3rd round match vs Karthik Raghu. Malhar won the first set and was cruising to victory, but let up for a second and allowed Karthik to get back into it and win the 2nd set. For the 3rd set, Malhar determined to reduce his unforced errors, and focus on serving well, and this approach helped him rebound for the win. In the semifinals vs. Kenneth Qian, Malhar served well and played well overall, but he was unable to finds a weakness in his game and the match went the distance to a 3rd set tiebreak which Malhar won 10-5. The final vs. Michael Hawks was worthy of a final - the two of them went back and forth all match, culminating in another 3rd set tiebreaker in which Malhar edged Michael 10-8. Michael’s attitude in the semis and finals liberated him to play his best tennis “I’m here now (the final Saturday) so what’s the worst that can happen, I’ve had a great experience”.
Malhar’s Story: My father played tennis recreationally in India, and as a child I would always go with him to watch and eventually got to play. We then moved to the States before I entered high school. I decided to play football instead of tennis for the first two years, then changed course and played tennis for the last 2 years I took a break from tennis in college, but after I graduated I started playing Gladiator in 2010 after finding it in an online search. It was an easy way to get back in the game. The league offers good competition, within mix of returning players and new players each season. The more I play the game of tennis and match up against other competitors, the more I learn about the game.
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Alexandra entered the playoffs as the #4 seed after a strong 12-5 record during the regular season. She then motored through the playoffs without losing a set. Her closest match was in the final against Hertiseen Bradley who took a lead on her ion the first set. Ali came back to win 6-4,6-2.
Ali’s Story: I started playing at our country club when I was very young and played all the way through high school. A highlight of my high school career was finishing 2nd in conference with my partner in doubles. I then took a break from tennis in college.
My dad (Gary Kagan) played in the Gladiator Tennis league and convinced me to join him as his partner for mixed doubles. We did that for a couple seasons before I decided to join the singles league this year. Gladiator Tennis is like a community - you get to travel to different neighborhoods and meet new people that enjoy your same hobby. It’s something you can fit into a busy schedule and a fun way to keep exercising.
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Edison entered the playoffs with a 1st round bye as the #3 seed, then won all 5 rounds after that without losing a set. But he did have a scare in the 3rd round against Peidi Wu. Peidi warmed up late and Edison got out to a quick 3-0 lead, but Peidi stormed back to 4-3. Then the two players went back and forth for the remainder of the match with Edison narrowly winning 7-6,7-5. Winning this match boosted Edison’s confidence for the rest of the tournament, enabling him to overcome another stiff challenge from Bhanuchandar Sadineni in the semifinals. Edison defeated Zaid Abbas in the finals to finish as champion in his first year in the league.
Edison’s Story: I used to play basketball, but when we immigrated to the U.S., I shagged balls for my uncle while he played tennis matches. One day he invited me to play with him and started teaching me. In 2010 I started really liking the sport and taking it more seriously and I bought my own racket. For the next 4 years, I played with my uncle and cousins and then found more friends to play with. In 2018, a friend (Al Martinez) mentioned Gladiator Tennis, showed me the app, and kept encouraging me to join until I finally did in 2020. I enjoy the competitiveness, friendly people, and quality of the competition.
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Jacquie won her Summer season division with a 5-2 record, and then motored through all 5 matches of the 3.5 playoff draw without dropping a set. Congratulations Jacquie!
Jacquie’s Story: I started playing tennis around the age 7, with a lot of fun drills growing up and attended camps when I was young. My parents both played so it quickly became a family sport for me. Then I played in high school and at Loras College.
In my adult life, I have played USTA on the 3.5 40+ team for many years. It’s been a lot of fun!
Some tennis friends told me about Gladiator tennis and I decided to play this summer. It’s a great program with so many nice people who love tennis. Win- win! I like the rules and the easy scheduling piece. Using the app is super convenient when you are on the court. I would highly recommend Gladiator to anyone.
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Jesse fought through the draw of 64 with a lot of determination plus composure in some very tight situations. In a 3rd round match with #6 seed Kyle Coates, Jesse had just gotten back from out of town on a red eye flight, and lost the 1st set 6-0. Jesse just wanted to at least get on the board in the 2nd set, and managed to pick up a few games, but still fell behind 5-3 and down a couple match points. At this point, Jesse dug in like a bulldog and determined to “make no mistakes and fight for every point”. He was able to claw his his way back in that game, win the set in a tiebreaker, and ultimately the match 0-6,7-6,6-4. The Final against Rohit Yalavarthi was another nail biter that was very difficult because Rohit played an excellent defensive game and got everything back. Jesse managed to win a tiebreak in the first set, but Rohit fought back to win the 2nd and had some momentum. Jesse had tried to counter Rohit’s defensiveness by generate a little more pace into the rallies and moving him from side to side. This appeared to catch up to Rohit in the 3rd set as he started cramping up a little bit. Jesse prevailed in the tiebreak for a 7-6, 3-6, 10-6 victory.
Jesse’s story: I took some tennis lessons when I was 10 years old, but did not play again until 2016 when I joined some advanced beginner drills at Oak Brook Tennis Center. Sal Abbasi was one of the other players in that class and he recommended that I try out Gladiator Tennis. I have been playing in the league now for 3 years. I enjoy meeting players with different techniques at my skill level that live near me. Every matchup is different - you never know what you are going to get.
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Eileen established a 9-8 regular season record in the very competitive northwest region of the league, then won her first 3 rounds of the playoffs without dropping a set. The semifinal match vs. Lauren Morley proved to be the toughest challenge. Despite being outplayed by Lauren for stretches in the match, Eileen was able to eke out the win by taking a close 1st set, then making a comeback when down a few points in the 3rd set tiebreak for the win 6-4, 1-6, 10-6. Eileen finished her playoff run with a win over another strong opponent, Nicole McNamara, in the finals 6-4, 6-4.
Eileen’s Story: Gladiator Tennis is the only organized tennis competition that I have ever played, and I was referred into it by my husband in 2018. I was a complete beginner in my first season, and started at 3.0 because there was no 2.5 in our area. My first season I lost every match, but after sticking with it for 4 seasons I finally was able to win often enough to move up to 3.25. Now that I have won the playoffs st this level, I’m ready for the challenge of 3.5 next year. I really enjoy the challenge that the league presents where I can keep making improvements in my ranking and skill level. I was just recruited by a couple players to join a USTA team for this winter. Gladiator is a fun way to get better, meet more players who are competitive with me, and get connected to the tennis community in Chicagoland.
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Raj has played a lot of Gladiator Tennis over the past 6 years, but mostly doubles and mixed doubles. This year with kids grown up, he had enough time to add singles into his schedule also. 2021 turned out to be a very successful year in the league for him as he became the 3.0 singles champion plus the 3.0 Doubles Champion with Anand Purushothaman. “I enjoy meeting new players through the league. It’s competitive but very friendly as well.”
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Nicole played in the competitive northwest region of the league and concluded the regular season with a strong 14-5 record. She was the #1 seed for the 3.0 playoffs, but was nearly knocked out in the quarterfinals by Kristin Adams. The two of them were very evenly matched, and went the distance of 3 full sets, taking 3 1/2 hours! In the 3rd set, Kristin took the lead 4-2. in the 3rd, but Nicole competitive nature would not allow her to give up, and she was able to battle back to win the next 4 games to take the match. Nicole summarized the match saying “It truly could have gone either way, and I got lucky on some important points that made a difference. We were both happy and sad at the end, knowing that we both deserved to win. It was the hardest match I played all season, and the most fun. We made a great connection and plan on playing each other for fun”. Nicole was able to move through the semis and finals without dropping a set to win the playoffs.
Nicole’s story: I was a basketball player in college, and I was looking for something that would enable me to continue competing but was easier on me physically. My family bought me tennis lessons in 2020 at the Heritage Club in Arlington Heights. One of the players in the tennis lesson mentioned Gladiator Tennis, and I decided to try it this year.
What I really liked about it was being matched up with people at my skill level in the beginner level. I like the informality of it - the league is friendly and not overly competitive, with people who just love to play. I like the opportunity to move up as you improve. No one likes to get whooped on or be whooped, so the skill levels are measured very well. Evenly matched competition really enabled me to get better, where that would not have happened if the competition was lopsided.
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Mark entered the playoffs as the #1 seed, after compiling a 15-5 regular season record. October weather can be unpredictable with rain and cold, and played some havoc with his 3rd round match against Alex Hanga. After playing 15 minutes it began to rain and they were able to reserve a court nearby at Rush-Copley in Aurora. Unfortunately they were unable to finish the match on time as it went into the 3rd set, but it had stopped raining and they went back outside. Then the lights went out at 10pm. Finally, 4 days later, they were able to finish the 3rd set outdoors. That’s 4 locations over 4 days to complete a match! Kudos to them for their determination. Mark was able to adjust with all of the interruptions and survive the 3 setter 6-3,6-7,6-3. The semifinal against Josh Burnette also went to 3 sets and this time required some adjustment in strategy. After winning the first set 7-5, Josh stormed back to take the 2nd set 6-2. Josh liked to charge the net and apply pressure each point. For the 3rd set, Mark changed strategy and began to lob over Josh’s head more often. This was effective and led to a 6-1 3rd set win. Mark was able to reduce doubles faults significantly during the playoffs and credits an improved 2nd serve with his this year’s success.
Mark’s Story: I played tennis with friends growing up. As an adult, I started hitting with a friend and did that for 6 months until I found a Gladiator flyer in Buona Beef in 2013. I have played almost every season since then. I enjoy all the different players in the league with their unique approaches to the game.
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Andrea won the 2.5 playoffs for the 2nd year in a row, eding out perennial rival Annese Piazza in an epic final (See her description of the match below). Congratulations again, Andrea!
Andrea's Story: I joined Gladiator Tennis in the summer of 2019--my first experience with match play after years of taking group lessons. Since joining Gladiators, I’ve enjoyed meeting so many players, being outside the last three summers, and traveling to new towns and courts.
In this year's playoffs, I had two tough, very competitive matches leading up to the final against Annese Piazza. Annese and I had played each other a number of times the prior two summers when I still lived in Oak Park and we were in the same Gladiator league; in fact, she won our overall series (3-2) in our last summer of playing each other (2020). Our final did not disappoint--both sets were very close, and we had to go to a tie-breaker for the third set, which went past 7 points! Throughout the match, we had some long, exciting (to me) rallies and/or interesting points or shots. Annese is quite the shot-maker! Whatever the result would have been, it was just very satisfying to play that kind of match, and I loved being on court with her.
