OhioTennisZone.com Interview
MONDAY,
OhioTennisZone Interview of Mason's Vignesh Gogineni
The first OTZ interview of the season is with Vignesh Gogineni. Gogineni is a senior at Mason.
After being a State Doubles Finalist in 2019 [pdf] and a State Singles Finalist in 2021 [pdf], will this be Gogineni's year to be a Singles champion? That is certainly one of his goals, "[My] main goal for the season is to win a team state championship and an individual singles championship. [An] additional goal is to go undefeated this season and prepare myself for college." With a 10-0 dual match record, he is certainly headed in the right direction to be undefeated. After playing major roles in Mason's two previous State Team Championship, that goal will be tested soon when Mason plays St. Xavier and possibly Sycamore in the State Team Tournament. Mason has been beaten once already by Sycamore.
 |
Mason's Vignesh Gogineni - Click to enlarge |
Gogineni does not come from a tennis family. Both of his parents were athletes in India prior to coming to the United States for graduate school. His father, Rama, played cricket and his mother, Smitha, ran track. Gogineni started playing tennis at age four, but he also played basketball, baseball, and soccer, plus he swam. He started devoting his time to tennis in middle school.
In addition to Vignesh, the Gogineni's have 11 year-old twins - a daughter (Vibha) and a son (Vidur). Both his parents work in the information technology field -- Rama at Munic and Smitha at Anthem.
Gogineni has maintained a high ranking in his age group throughout his junior career that has ranged between 20th and 40th in the nation. He is currently ranked 30th by TRN, #2 on OTZ, and his UTR is 12.29. How has he done it? "[My] favorite shot is for sure the backhand volley. Both sides of my ground-strokes, serve, and net play are all strengths for me." His weapon is his inside-out forehand. He can crank his serve up to 110 mph.
As for his college choice, "I selected Yale because I felt a strong connection with Head Coach Chris Drake. I also felt that the guys on the team weren't just friends but they were a family. Obviously Yale's reputation as an Ivy League school speaks for itself, providing some of, if not the most, top notch education in the world. I considered every other Ivy League school along with Michigan, Northwestern, UCLA, Stanford, Berkeley, UNC, and Duke, along with other Big 10 and ACC schools, even a few D3." Yale has a young team with just one junior and one senior this year, but he hopes to play court three or four singles as a freshman. He stated, "What I like most about high school tennis is the memories that you make with your team." He will be able to continue that in college at Yale.
Gogineni had a rigorous curriculum at Mason where he took nine AP classes. His AP's were Human Geography, U.S. History, Biology, Psychology, Government, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Statistics, and Calculus. AP Micro was his favorite. He added, "When I was younger, I definitely associated myself as a math and science guy. However, as of recently, I have more of a passion for humanities and social sciences.' He plans to major in economics at Yale.
As for the obligatory question about OhioTennisZone usage, "[My] favorite thing on OTZ is to see how my friends from different teams across the state are performing."
 |
Gogineni at the 'Zoo in 2019 - Click to enlarge |
When asked about his service project, he shared that he "partnered with a nonprofit to aid rural villagers in India who do not have adequate access to healthcare. I did this because the COVID pandemic affected all of us in different ways and I felt the responsibility to assist people in need, especially when my grandparents are going through similar circumstances." His grandparents live in southeast India in Andhra Pradesh. He last visited them in 2016. More recent visits have been hampered by COVID-19 restrictions. His mother's parents are coming to the U.S. on May 17th and they will stay for a few months.
He plans to play the USTA National Championship B18's in Kalamazoo this year, and he hopes to hit with the pros again at the Western & Southern Open. He not only got to hit with the women, such as Ash Barty (who won the tournament) and Jil Teichmann (who was a finalist), but also the men, such as Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Jannik Sinner. "It was probably one of the best experiences that I have ever had." [Gogineni, who has far more experience with the W&S courts than Daniil Medvedev has, poses for a photo with Medvedev after hitting with him..]
His favorite social media vices are Instagram (@vignesh_gogineni) and Snapchat. Another thing that he likes to do is fish.
Mason coach, Mike Reid, added, "Vignesh is a complete player. His contributions to the Mason tennis program are immeasurable."
Best of luck to Vignesh (and everyone else) at Sectionals.
