Doubles Pair Stands on Brink of Ivy League Perfection

One is a self-confessed serve-and-volley player preparing for life after Harvard. The other, in the opinion of the first, possesses “one of the best returns in the country.” For the tennis tandem of senior Ashwin Kumar and junior Sasha Ermakov, however, it is the perfect combination.

With a near telepathic understanding on court and an irresistible combination of power and flair, the duo has established itself as one of the strongest partnerships in the country—at one point, climbing to No. 14 in the national rankings.

“Ashwin’s one of the most gifted volleyers in the country, and Sasha’s serve is very strong—with his strength and his groundstrokes he hits the ball very sharply,” says Harvard Coach Dave Fish ’72.

The No. 1 pairing in the Harvard (14-6, 6-0 Ivy) doubles lineup, the pair’s partnership has blossomed in conjunction with the team’s success. Boasting a formidable 15-2 record at the top position and currently on an 11-game winning streak, the two have played an integral role in the Crimson’s dominant Ivy League winning campaign.

In the view of Kumar, the doubles partnership is reaping the rewards of work spent honing their skills.

“Both of our strengths have grown over the past few years,” Kumar says. “I’ve tried to improve from the baseline and his serve and volleys have improved tremendously, and now we don’t have too many holes in our game. He covers the ground-stroke returns and I cover the net, so that really compliments our games.”

The success of the duo has not been an overnight phenomenon. Having been a prominent fixture of the doubles lineup for the past two seasons, Kumar and Ermakov have gained All-Ivy Doubles honors and qualified for the NCAA Tournament, in addition to reaching No. 15 in the national rankings. But with patchy records over the past two years, consistency has eluded them—until now.

“In the past, they’ve struggled with inconsistency, because they would be brilliant one moment and careless the other, but they’ve really stabilized in the last month,” Fish admits. “That’s certainly given us a huge edge in the Ivy League.”

“Our results have been a little sporadic over the past two seasons,” Kumar reiterates. “But this is the first year we’re both healthy, and we’re really playing a high level of doubles this year.”

What exactly is the secret to their success? To answer that question, one has to go back to Texas—the land where their partnership was forged.

“'Sash’ and I both grew up in Texas, so we’ve known each other since we were 12 and 13 years old, just playing tournaments,” Kumar recalls. “Since we’ve known each other since our youth, we go way back.”

Fast forward to Massachusetts, following recruitment at Harvard and the harsher environment of varsity tennis. As a fledging freshman-and-sophomore partnership competing against more established opponents, their on-court chemistry was instant.

“Sasha and I just clicked right away, and we got off to a great start,” Kumar says. “We actually won the UVA Invitational Tournament in the Fall of 2006—we were then the team that was top five in the country, and that gave us the confidence to say, ‘Hey, we could be a pretty good team.’”

“The stability Ashwin and I have had has given me a good amount of confidence going into singles,” Ermakov says. “My doubles skills have definitely stepped up over the years.”

Despite Kumar’s impending graduation set to split this acclaimed double act next season, the duo intends to end its college tennis career on a high.

“We are still driven to do well in the NCAA tournament,” Kumar stresses. “And we’ve both been on kind of a mission to get into the All-American team again, so we’d love to have a great outing there.”

Unfortunately, however, the continuation of their doubles partnership seems a distant dream—for now.

“We probably won’t be playing professionally together,” Kumar admits. “But who knows, if something really amazing comes up, we’ll see where that takes us.”

For now though, the talented pair is poised to end its relationship as Ivy League champions and aspiring NCAA competitors. In the opinion of Fish, however, it may not be the last honor that they achieve in the twilight of their college years.

“Ashwin’s a really special talent to watch in doubles, whether he makes his shots or not, and Sasha is very understated, but hugely dangerous,” Fish says. “When his confidence is up, he can crack a winner from anywhere.”