No. 6 seed UCLA men’s tennis (12-9, 3-5 Pac-12) will take on No. 3 seed Utah (21-4, 6-2) in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 championships on Thursday at 6 p.m. Before the commencement of the postseason, take a look at how far the 2023 men’s tennis beat thinks the Bruins will make it in Ojai, California.

Jeremy Chen
Senior staff
Prediction: Pac-12 semifinalists

It’s not too often in collegiate tennis that you see the same opponent two matches in a row.

But the tennis gods want to be entertained.

Come Thursday, UCLA will be roaring back with a vengeance, taking on No. 19 Utah again after a heartbreaking 4-3 loss last Saturday.

While the result was ultimately crushing, there was a lot to like about the Bruins’ play, and I believe Saturday’s match was just the experience this inexperienced squad needed.

The No. 49 pairing of junior Timothy Li and sophomore Giacomo Revelli started doubles play looking sharp, and I expect them to come out with the same tenacity and aggressiveness. Such an attitude will be key to winning the doubles point, which is essential if the Bruins want to stand any chance at pulling this one out.

As for singles, freshman Azuma Visaya – who played an off game, according to coach Billy Martin – lost 6-3, 6-2, and I can foresee a bounce back match from him. Li looked outclassed by Patrik Trhac’s sheer power, and despite some signs of life in the second set, that contest was never competitive.

But even if Visaya and Li can’t pull through, the other four matches – likely featuring redshirt senior Patrick Zahraj, Revelli and freshmen Aadarsh Tripathi and Gianluca Ballotta – show lots of promise.

Zahraj and Ballotta outwitted, outplayed and outlasted their opponents Saturday, and Revelli and Tripathi were neck and neck with their respective foes until the very end.

Not everything will mirror Saturday’s results, and Martin will need to put on his tactician hat to respond to any adjustments the Utes make.

But the blue and gold has extra motivation, has gained experience with close matches and, most importantly, has a fresh scouting report to mold their gameplan around.

UCLA will survive its second bout against Utah, but that’s where its luck will run out.

A likely matchup against No. 14 Arizona does not bode well for the blue and gold, as the former routed the latter 4-0 in a Tucson tussle back in March.

The Bruins’ Cinderella story will end short-lived in the semifinals, but at least they’ll be able to enjoy their sweet dish of cold revenge.

Alexsia Drulias
Daily Bruin contributor
Prediction: Pac-12 semifinalists

The only force that can beat out hard work is the itch of revenge.

And it’s no question that vengeance is at the forefront of the UCLA agenda for Thursday when it will meet Utah on the court for the second time in six days.

A 4-3 loss to the Utes was the difference of only a handful of points, of which Tripathi grabbed none. Close counts in horseshoes, but not in men’s tennis.

Ultimately, I think the Bruins and Utes were very fairly matched on nearly all courts Saturday, which means that it’s going to come down to the wire once again. It doesn’t take a mathematician to know that, statistically speaking, with three freshmen in the starting lineup, there is a large chance it could come down to one of the youngsters yet again.

This time, however, it will come down to court five, and my money is on Ballotta.

After a Thursday match under the lights that will inevitably be grueling for all involved, No. 2 seed Arizona will conclude UCLA’s run of Pac-12 play. If the team is going to push past one match using all the tricks in their bag, I just don’t see the Bruins doing the same thing the following day, nor the day after if given the chance.

But crazier things have happened, so in the words of Martin, some “divine intervention” could bring the Bruins back to Westwood crowned in gold.

Jack Nelson
Assistant Sports editor
Prediction: Pac-12 quarterfinalists

Imagine Tripathi once again needing to clinch for the Bruins after failing to do so four times over.

Now imagine him having to do that against the same team, less than a week after his last misstep. It wouldn’t get much more poetic than that.

Well, the scriptwriters have been hard at work, and sure enough, the team that ended UCLA’s regular season in heartbreak is the same one that will oppose it for its first postseason match. The stakes should cause any collegiate tennis fan to salivate, even if a shot at redemption for Tripathi is statistically slim.

The rematch has all the makings of sweet revenge for the Bruins, and that’s why revenge will not be had.

UCLA is one of the Pac-12’s most consistent teams for all the wrong reasons. It was outscored 39-5 in nine matches against opponents that now sit in the top 30 of the ITA rankings, including seven shutouts. Granted, the blue and gold did score those five points against No. 23 Stanford and No. 19 Utah in the latter two of those nine matches, demonstrating a budding potential to compete.

But few teams in the conference have consistently underwhelmed more than the Bruins. Look no further than their trio of disastrous contests against the No. 10 Trojans, which marked the first time since at least 1981 that UCLA failed to notch a regular-season point against USC.

The way in which the Utes escaped last time out against the Bruins spotlighted the former’s deceptive record, padded with 10 wins against now-unranked mid-majors. But without star sophomore Alexander Hoogmartens and yet to show a clutch gene, I can’t see the young talents pulling through in their first postseason test. Utah will bring forth the level it played at in wins over Stanford, California and No. 14 Arizona, and it will simply be too much to handle.

The tennis fan in me craves an enthralling sequel – to see the decider, perhaps, come down to Tripathi once more.

The realist in me, however, says the Bruins will be lucky to even find themselves in a clinching position this time around.