Meet the Gophers
March 10th, 2004
By Archived Story
When Aleksey Zharinov came to the United States three and a half years ago from his native Russia, he had few expectations and a great deal of questions. But he did know the United States had prominent tennis competition and, of course, his beloved Metallica.
Zharinov, often called “The Tank” or “Russia” by his teammates and friends, is a senior sports management major from the city of Novosibirsk, Russia, roughly four hours from Moscow. Though many wouldn’t consider Russia’s frigid climate to be ideal for tennis, Zharinov developed into one of the best talents in the central part of the country for his age, he said.
He met and became friends with a businessman from Minnesota who thought Zharinov should test his tennis talent against superior competition in the United States. Tennis players in Russia focus on their professional careers and don’t have any idea what college tennis is about, Zharinov said. After a visit with Gophers tennis head coach David Geatz, Zharinov accepted a scholarship to the University of Minnesota and his talent would soon be put to the test. Let’s just say he passed.
Zharinov is the Gophers No. 1 player which means he faces the best player on each team in every match. “The Tank” has compiled a 4-2 singles record and beat the 38th ranked player in the country from Harvard. He also lost a tough match against the 25th ranked player from the University of Virginia.
Zharinov hopes to compete in the NCAA Singles Championships to avenge his first-round ousting in the 2002-2003 season; but he has to be one of the top 50 players in the country to be invited. Along with the Championships, Zharinov wants to improve his ranking for the possibility of playing for Russia in the Davis Cup, a tournament where players represent their countries by competing in a world-renowned tournament.
No matter what happens for the rest of the season, “The Tank” will enjoy his time in the United States. After all, Metallica would never hold a concert in Novosibirsk; but Minneapolis, now that’s another story.
