▎People

“I finally defeated my inner demon in my thirteenth challenge. In the match deciding our advance from the quarter-finals to the semifinals, I scored nearly 20 Deuce and survived at least 10 break points. At that moment, I heard the final obstacle inside me being released. The voice in my head said, I made it,” declared Cheng-Han Yang of the Graduate Institute of Interdisciplinary Legal Studies, now champion of the 2022 NTU Cup.

Every year, the NTU Men’s Tennis Team recruits new members through the NTU Freshmen Cup and NTU Cup. Those aspiring to join the varsity team have at least eight opportunities to enter the team tryouts during their 4 years as university students and can possibly play more matches as graduate students at NTU. Some tennis players who have played tennis since childhood succeed in their first tryout, while others make the team only after several tries.

Founded in 1975, the NTU Men’s Tennis Team has nearly 5 decades of history. After Associate Professor Yu-Hui Lien was named Head Coach in 2000, he introduced training concepts of physical fitness, tactics, and psychology used by professional players. From 2001 through 2009, the team won 8 gold medals and 1 bronze medal in Grade B of the National Intercollegiate Tennis Championships. In 2008 and 2009, the team ascended to the top 8 and entered Grade A. In 2022, the NTU Men’s Tennis Team joined the Rendy International Tennis Academy and recruited Ti Chen as the consultant for the tennis team of the College of Medicine. This innovation created many opportunities for young varsity players to practice with professional players. The high-intensity training not only reaffirmed the team members’ passion for tennis but also prepared them to rack up record-breaking scores. Every team member has a love story with tennis. With their diverse backgrounds, techniques, and styles, the Men’s Tennis Team is certainly one of the varsity teams at NTU that many students aspire to join.

At first, there were only two clay courts on NTU campus. In 2005, the Xinsheng tennis courts were opened with lighting, allowing the team to practice in evenings, thus avoiding peak class hours and regular lessons. Voluntary practice sessions and physical training are held in the team members’ spare time. In 2022, the hardcourts were redone in the colors of the US Open, offering a superior training venue for every NTU student and the NTU Tennis Teams.

Besides their training and matches, the team gathers regularly for meals, off-site training, and trips combined with matches. The team has visited NTU’s partner universities in Japan and Beijing. The Alumni Cup is hosted each year as part of the team’s teambuilding effort. The NTU Tennis Team also recruits talented players recommended by the Ministry of Education and the Bachelor Program of International Sports Affairs. Through such efforts, NTU hopes to not only attract more talented players to join the team, but also train every team member to become a confident, resilient tennis player striving to make contributions to the University and society.