Bocconi Comes in Second at Roland Garros

The "Swiss curse" is following Italian tennis. This past September it was Switzerland's team led by Roger Federer who beat out Italy in the Davis Cup and more recently ETH Zurich blocked Bocconi's defending champions (Filip Kovacic, Matteo Lentini, Sara Terpin, Maria Carnovale and Lianne van Winsen) from taking the win.And this comparison is not just about who won and who lost, but also about where the two competitions were held. From 2 to 4 October, the 2009 edition of the HEC Tennis Tournament was held at the prestigious Roland Garros complex, the home of the most important tournament on a clay court in the world.Six universities were present, divided into two rounds, with Bocconi, Dublin's Trinity College and HEC playing together and Zurich, ESADE and Centrale Paris in the second group."In the first round we first played Trinity College and won 2-1," says Matteo Lentini, a 21-year-old Sicilian doubles player from Vittoria. "Then we played HEC, who we beat 2-1 as well. But apart from the tournament's technical challenges, which I'd rate as medium-high, the best thing about this experience is being able to play on the same courts that host the Grand Slam Tournament, change in those locker rooms and really feel the unique atmosphere of the place."Sunday, when the final was scheduled, was a bitter day, however. "Zurich crushed us 3-0," says Matteo, "but if it wasn't for Filip Kovacic's shoulder injury, at least one of our male singles would have won a match. Even if it probably wouldn't have been enough." Regarding the other activities in Bocconi Sport Team's Tennis section, a new initiative this year will be the Bocconi Tennis Tournament, a tournament for University students, faculty and staff which will take place in November. The tournament will be held at the Recreation Center on Via Bazzi, where an existing agreement gives a member discount.