09-08-2024, 10:10 PM
(09-08-2024, 03:03 PM)Spiny_Norman Wrote: My point in highlighting the international players on the rosters of other top tennis teams was that recruiting statements such as "Stanford has commitments from 3 of the top 5 recruits" may not be as meaningful as if the rankings included international players.
When Bernard Muir hires a new head women's tennis coach, I hope that he gives consideration to their experience recruiting internationally.
That is an interesting point. Do international tennis players comprise more of the top collegiate players now than in years past? (I have no idea personally). We've been very successful historically in women's tennis, M/W water polo, and more distantly men's tennis, relying mostly on US players. Is part of the reason for our decreased success in men's tennis due to better international players playing in the US or our diminished recruiting prowess with US players? Is our current 5 year (and counting) gap in women's tennis championships for that same reason? We've been selectively successful in getting international women's tennis players over the years (Barnes, Zhao, Arbuthnott) who are key contributors to our lineup.