Wake Forest Athletics
Deacon Sports Xtra: All About the Love
3/24/2021 12:15:00 PM | Men's Tennis, Gold Rush
Rrezart Cungu, a senior from Montenegro, continues to impress on the tennis courts for the Deacons.
There are 5,030 miles separating Ulcinj, Montenegro from Wake Forest's campus in Winston-Salem, though time and distance can't keep senior Rrezart Cungu away from the tennis courts.
His journey in tennis has always involved logistical hardship, even in the early days.
That drive and dedication helps fuel his success, appreciation and love for a sport filled with personal challenges and plenty of pressure, which not only includes his career as a Demon Deacon, but also as a member of Montenegro's Davis Cup Team for several years.
"That's a different kind of pressure altogether," Cungu said. "Because in Davis Cup, you are not playing for yourself. You are playing for your country, and it makes you so proud to do that."
When Cungu first picked up a tennis racket, there was a 60-minute commute, one way in his home country, to find the nearest courts.
"My mother made a lot of sacrifices when I began playing at the age of 10 to take me to and from the courts every day," Cungu said. "It was an hour there and an hour back, and she did this for two years so I could practice and play because we didn't have any courts in my hometown. I would go practice tennis every morning and then go to school in the afternoons. I was a busy child, but I won the very first tournament I ever played in. I think it was worth it."
So does head coach Tony Bresky and the Wake Forest tennis team.
Since arriving as a freshman in January of 2018, Cungu has been a steady presence and force for the Deacons, including playing a vital role for the team that won every major event that season, including ACC and NCAA Championships.
Cungu posted an 11-5 record as a freshman, despite admittingly taking a lot of time to adjust to being in the United States, but especially adapting to the new surfaces he had to play on.
"In Montengro and in other tournaments I would play in in Europe, everything was played on clay," Cungu said. "And when I came here, it took me some time to get used to playing on hard surfaces. I had to learn how to adjust my game and play faster. My freshman year, I don't think I played my best tennis because of that. But we won everything in sight, and that was extremely helpful to be around that kind of atmosphere and to see what college tennis was all about."
Cungu wasn't sure what to expect when he was first approached by associate coach Chris Eaton at a tournament in Montengro in 2017 about playing for Wake Forest.
"I didn't even know what college tennis was or how competitive it was," Cungu said. "I thought that it was maybe some kids playing part of the time and not taking it so seriously. My focus was always on becoming a professional player. But I also talked to a good friend of mine who was on the team at Wake Forest, Borna Gojo. He and I trained a lot together when we were younger, and he gave me a lot of good information that got me interested. And when I came to visit the team and saw how good the competition was, I knew it would be the right decision for me."
Bresky said that Cungu came in with some culture shock but that he figured things out rather quickly and blended in perfectly with the team.
"I think that having Borna talk to him really helped Rrezart make up his mind that this would be beneficial to him for his development as a player, not to mention the benefit of getting a college degree," Bresky said. "He was on the court a lot for us as a freshman. He's fast, super-fit and just a great kid. Once he figured out how to adjust his game to the hard courts, his confidence soared. He has been a great contributor for us and is also tremendous under pressure."
Both Bresky and Cungu pointed to one match that served as Cungu's launching pad during his freshman year.
It was at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in Chicago. Wake Forest was struggling to put away Columbia in its first-round match, and Cungu had lost the opening set against his opponent and was facing two match points in the second set before he fought his way back, won the set in a tiebreaker, and then pulled away in the third set to win his match and clinch the win the Deacons.
"All the guys were screaming and running up to me, and Coach (Bresky) ran up to me and grabbed me and said, 'Welcome to college tennis,' " Cungu said. "That was a special feeling to win that match, and it really gave me a lot of confidence the rest of the season. That's a moment that I will never forget."
The momentum from his freshman season carried over for his sophomore campaign, as Cungu finished won 27 singles matches and helped the Deacons to another ACC Championship before losing in the finals of the NCAA Tournament.
"That was a disappointment because we had so many great players back on that team," Cungu said. "To come up just short like that, especially because we won it the year before. We were so close to doing it again."
As a junior, Cungu had things rolling again by winning 11 of his first 15 matches and didn't lose a set during ACC play before COVID-19 shut down the season last March.
Cungu went home to Montenegro and did his best to train to keep his fitness levels up since he couldn't practice and play every day.
"That was a struggle at first, before things settled down and I could go out to the courts, because when you play at this level you need to practice and you need to play in matches to continue to get better," Cungu said. "And I needed to do that because tennis is such a big part of who I am. It was exceedingly difficult to adjust to that. I was just hoping that everything would be back to normal so I could at least start playing again."
Cungu wasn't allowed to travel outside of his country for several months because of the pandemic. He remained in Montenegro when the fall semester resumed but eventually discovered a series of exhibition tournaments in neighboring Serbia that he could play in during the month of December.
"I talked about it all with Coach Bresky, and we agreed that it would be best for me to stay in Montenegro and try to play as much as possible," Cungu said. "I played in about 15-20 matches, which was beneficial to me, and then I returned to campus on Jan. 2 to begin my senior year."
Cungu brought his game and confidence back to Winston-Salem with him. Through the team's February matches, Cungu remained unbeaten.
"Right now, I'm in a great position," he said. "My goals are extremely high and I'm looking forward to a great season again. It's funny how this has all worked out, since playing in college was never really part of my plan. Now, I'm so glad I have had the experience of doing this."
Not yet a subscriber or know someone who would like to receive these stories in their email inbox? Click here for the DSX subscription link - share it with your friends!
Players Mentioned
