San Diego is one of the best locations in the world to play tennis.
Given the year-round weather conditions, it should not come as a big surprise that many up-and-coming tennis players call San Diego home.
That said 15-year-old Pacific Beach resident Zach Svajda (will turn 16 in late November) has had quite a year to date.
Recently, Svajda pulled off a big surprise while playing on the Stadium Court at the Claremont Club Pro Classic, a $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit Futures event. It was there that the local wild-card entry topped the world’s 601st-ranked player, Joao Lucas Reis Da Silva of Brazil 6-3, 6-4. In doing so, Svajda captured his first ATP World Tour ranking point.
In comments at the time, Svajda noted, “I didn’t know what was going to happen out there because I don’t play many tournaments and he’s the one-seed, but I went out there and stayed positive and I got it. I skipped juniors for three or four years and trained really hard. And now I’m starting back and going to be entering some Futures events.”
Home schooled and coached by his father, Tom Svajda, a teaching pro at the Pacific Beach Tennis Center near Mission Bay who is originally from Texas and played Kalamazoo as a junior, the younger Svajda is now in Texas playing in his third USTA Pro Circuit Futures tournament. This tournament is his first at the $25,000 level and his first trying to qualify. Svajda was awarded a main-draw wild card in the two SoCal events at Claremont (where he upset the No. 1 seed) and then Laguna Niguel the following week where he lost in the first round 6-4, 6-2 to a player who once ranked No. 238 in the world.
“I’ve tried not to change too much in my game since my last tournament,” Svajda commented. “I’ve been talking to my coach and we’ve been tinkering with just some small technical stuff on the serve, but nothing major. The serve is the big thing for me right now.”
With 2018 winding down and the New Year around the corner, Svajda has his sights set on even bigger things.
“I want to get my ranking inside the Top 500 in the world,” Svajda said. “That will make things easier for me getting into more pro events in 2019.”
Given this young man’s drive and talents; look to see his name on the men’s tennis circuit for years to come.
