Franklin Regional’s Nadesan gears up for tennis test at WPIALs

By: Karen Kadilak
Sunday, April 14, 2019 | 5:59 PM

Franklin Regional sophomore Anup Nadesan breezed through the section but will have his work cut out for him at the WPIAL Class AAA boys tennis singles championship tournament starting Monday at the Oxford Athletic Club in Pine.

“He sees four or five athletes (who) he would have the toughest challenge with,” Franklin Regional coach Howard Fisher said.

Nadesan said: “It will take a lot to win it all and probably some of my best tennis to consider a shot at the title.”

As the Section 1-AAA champion, Nadesan will face Chartiers Valley’s Ethan Estatico, the Section 4-AAA fourth-place finisher, in the first round. Top finishers advance to the finals Tuesday.

Nadesan said a low seed brings less pressure.

“I want to make it to the second round or even the semis,” said Nadesan, who lost in the first round last season. “I am preparing by practicing a lot on my physical and mental game.

“I will be playing a lot during these upcoming days as I get my game ready.”

A deep run will qualify him for the PIAA championship in May.

With one regular-season match remaining, Nadesan is 6-0, 5-0 in singles for the Panthers (8-0, 7-0), who are closing in on their second consecutive section title. Nadesan won four more matches at the section singles tournament, where he shut out Latrobe’s Dominic Robinson in the final.

Last season, he was section singles runner-up to Penn-Trafford’s Turner Price, a standout freshman on the Pitt-Greensburg men’s team.

He ranks 13th in Pennsylvania among college prospects in his class by the Tennis Recruiting Network.

Fisher said Nadesan has a lot going for him.

“Anup has developed a no-nonsense approach, uses a variety of shot-making options and has a quiet demeanor that gives his opponents little to exploit,” Fisher said. “He has control and consistency of solid ground strokes, flat and slice serve accuracy, exceptional net game with touch, quickness afoot and with hands, knowledge of court positioning, plus solid game strategies.

“(He) has set a high standard for not only the players on his team and throughout the section, but throughout Westmoreland County.”

Tags: Franklin Regional