University of Tennessee Athletics
First Serve: Luis Valero
December 08, 2014 | Men's Tennis
By Amanda Pruitt
UTSports.com
With final exam season in full swing, tennis freshman Luis Valero is wrapping up his first semester with the Volunteers.
Valero, a native of Cali, Colombia, is one of three freshmen on Tennessee's roster this year. The 6-foot-1 right hander finished the fall competition with a 7-5 singles record, winning six of his final eight matches. He reached the round of 16 at the USTA/ITA Ohio Valley Regional Championships and the consolation semifinals of the SEC Fall Classic.
The spring season starts Jan. 17 against North Florida and Southern Illinois as part of the Tennessee Spring Invitational at Goodfriend Tennis Center.
Before leaving for the holiday break, Valero answers questions about playing style, his favorite food back home, economics and adjusting to life in Knoxville.
Q: We're at the end of your first semester here. How do you feel like it went for you?
A: I feel pretty good right now. At the beginning, I was in a rush. I had everything to work on and I had to put a lot of effort. Right now, it's fine. I learned how to manage time better than I did the first few months.
Q: School wise, is it about what you expected?
A: I'm waiting for a few finals, but I think I'm going to get a good GPA, which I kind of expected.
Q: You'd mentioned earlier you wanted to major in economics. Not every freshmen knows what they want to do right away. What has made you interested in that field?
A: I've always been good with numbers, so I wanted to look into a career that has something to do with it. Engineering and some other business majors will give me that, but with the stock market, I've been into it, playing some games with fake money. I really like it and enjoy it.
Q: You did a lot of global traveling this year with tennis before getting here. Where did you go and what did you do?
A: This year, I went to almost all of South America and I traveled a lot in Europe playing ITFs.
Q: Where was you favorite place to play?
A: Italy. I love the food. I love every single place in Italy because you can find something beautiful and some good place to eat wherever you go. So that's for sure my favorite place.
Q: You missed some time over the last year with a wrist injury. What was it like to finally get back on the court?
A: I had wrist surgery and went out about six months. I was just wanting to get back as soon as possible because in the juniors, you have until a certain age to do what you expect to do. I was on the right track but the wrist injury put me down some points and I couldn't play tournaments. My goal was to play the Grand Slams, but I couldn't play any of them until the U.S. Open. ... It was a bit of a hard time, but it's good that I can play now.
Q: When did you start playing tennis? Is it a family game or what?
A: No, we played soccer. I have three cousins that played soccer, and I played soccer with them in Spain. When I moved back at age eight, my mom really liked tennis, so I started playing and practicing two days a week. Soccer in Colombia can be very difficult to play, so started playing tennis more and more around 11 and 12. Then around 14, I just played tennis.
Q: What did you like about playing tennis that you stuck with it?
A: If I could watch some game, it would be a soccer game. If I could play a sport with some friends, we always have fun playing soccer. The difficulty of soccer in Colombia was something, but also that I was getting better and better in tennis, it kind of moved me toward that path and i've started enjoying it.
Q: You'd mentioned the weather difference, but how's it been adjusting to life in Knoxville?
A: Being far away from my family, even though I've traveled a lot and I'd usually go four weeks straight without seeing them, the actual thing of living in another place with a different culture, it's a big thing. The weather, the culture, the food is different. I miss the food back home so much. But I'm really enjoying it. I feel like I'm getting better in every aspect.
Q: You mentioned food, so what's the first thing you'll eat when you go back home?
A: For sure, I'm going to eat something that's called aborrajados. It's like a banana or a plantain but sweet. They put cheese inside and they just fry it. It's amazing.
Q: A lot of fans haven't seen you play yet since we did not have a home tournament this fall, so tell us about you game.
A: I like short points, even though I am a clay court player. I rely on my serve and my forehand. On my forehand, I just rip it. I'm working a lot on other aspects with my coaches, but my serve and my forehand are my strengths. ... I like to get control of the point fast, so I don't stay running and grinding. I'd rather hit a big shot and control the point.
Q: You've gotten to catch your first season of UT football. What's that been like?
A: On my visit, it was pretty nice because we beat South Carolina last year. It was a big game, I remember. All the guys were just so happy. It was pretty good. ... It's way different. Here you have 100 thousand people coming to see your college team. For me, that's insane. They go to watch Gran Madrid and the stadium has 60,000 people, and they are professional people. Here, you have 100 thousand people in the stadium, plus all the other people around campus tailgating, it's unbelievable.
Q: Since you're about to go back home for a few weeks, we'll wrap it up with this: tell us about your hometown.
A: It's not that big. Everybody knows everybody. It's amazing. The people are so happy. They will always welcome you. It's the capital of salsa, so we have very good parties. We dance a lot in Colombia. ... If you look it up on Google "Capital of Salsa", it will show up: Cali, Colombia.
Q: So, I'm guessing you also dance?
A: Yeah, I can dance, depending on who you compare me to.
Q: Well, where do you rank on the team?
A: (laughs) I think I will be the best. I don't think they can dance that much.
