W. tennis tag team teases doubles opponents - Bhamidipati and Elamir shut down opponents as tennis starts conference schedule unbeaten

"Basically, we're the best doubles team ever," sophomore tennis player Yasmine Elamir says. Her partner, junior Anita Bhamidipati, laughs but doesn't disagree.

Neither do I. The two girls have won five matches this season, including a victory over Ursinus on Saturday. After sweeping past Muhlenberg, Washington College, Mary Washington and Flagler College, Elamir's statement doesn't seem like much of a long shot.

What makes this duo so strong? Elamir, the chattier of the two, elaborates: "I knew you were going to ask about that. And I've thought about it and decided that Anita's got the talent and power, but I'm the brains behind the operation."

"I agree," Bhamidipati says. "I'm no strategist."

Though Elamir might think she doesn't have the power, and Bhamidipati agrees that she doesn't have the brains, their performances on and off the court show otherwise. Elamir has shown quite a bit of individual talent in her singles matches. On Saturday she didn't lose a single individual game to Ursinus and currently holds the record for most consecutive matches won in a single season with 19. As for Bhamidipati's "brains," take a look at her transcript and decide for yourself about the intelligence of this neuroscience pre-med student!

Balance, though, is the key to their success. As two well-rounded individuals, Bhamidipati and Elamir are unstoppable when they're put together. "The more you play with someone, the more you realize what they are and are not capable of. Like, I know that Yasmine can hit a good drop shot or angle, and I can depend on her to do that." One of the people who saw their potential early on was their coach, Chuck Willenborg.

"Our coach just put us together, to try it out," Bhamidipati explains. "It ended up working out."

Willenborg, a former NCAA champion from the University of Miami, "should be coaching Division I, but came to Hopkins because his wife lives in Baltimore. We're really lucky to have him," Elamir says. Bhamidipati thinks that compared to her freshman year, Willenborg "views the team differently now. Before we wouldn't have really considered going to nationals. He's been recruiting and building the team up."

Elamir and Bhamidipati are definitely a large part of this build-up. Part of it is their chemistry on the court, but quite a bit depends on their psychological strength as well. The two support each other in mental rituals before and during the game. Elamir always makes sure Bhamidipati has her pre-game power bar. "I have a weird psychological issue where I have to eat a power bar before each match. If I don't, then ... I don't know," Bhamidipati admits. "She also can't use the same ball twice," Elamir adds. For Elamir, Bhamidipati patiently waits during matches while she bounces the ball "six times on the first serve, four times on the second."

Aside from superstitions, the two share a never-give-up attitude that has earned them more victories than other doubles teams. "We don't get down if we lose a game," Elamir says. "We're feisty." The two also take pride in their ability to stay relaxed and commuinicate during matches - even if they're not talking about tennis. "Sometimes you just need to talk, or else you get too stressed out," Bhamidipati says. During easier matches, the two will talk about the weather, their weekends or anything else to keep themselves at ease. "You don't need to stress out all the time," Bhamidipati advises.

Bhamidipati and Elamir's success is truly unbelievable when you consider the vast differences in where they're from. Elamir is from northern New Jersey, and Bhamidipait is from southern New Jersey. "It's basically like being from two different countries," Elamir says.

Luckily, the two have overcome this culture gap and "get along really well," according to Bhamidipati. The highlight of their relationship on the court, so far, was beating Mary Washington the other week.

"They've been a big rival of ours," Bhamidipati explains. "They have one of the best facilities I've ever seen, they host nationals - they have everything we don't. We've lost to them every time we've played them."

Elamir elaborated on the more personal side of the match. "We played this really annoying girl. She always barks at the ball. She's just mean. To beat her was awesome."

"It was a great feeling," Bhamidipati agrees.

Convinced that the two really are the best doubles team ever? See for yourself at their next home match on Tuesday.