Someone landed a great shot at the McKinnon Family Tennis Center, the home courts for Lobo tennis, but there wasn’t a primal scream or even a fist pump. In fact, things stayed pretty quiet, despite the ball catching just enough of the end line to win the point.
One of the players slowly started walking back to the baseline, staring at her racket for several seconds, and it seemed clear that she was processing information and in deep thought.
It was difficult to tell whether she was happy with the way the previous point just played out — and it doesn’t even matter if it is one that she lost — but Rachana Bhat saw something in the exchange and she just filed it away in her memory bank. It is something that she will recall as the match progresses as she waits to implement it in her game plan.
Bhat, a senior on the New Mexico women’s tennis team, is probably one of the most cerebral players a tennis fan could go out and watch compete.
At 5-feet-4-inches, she doesn’t have an overpowering first serve or a net game that stymies her opponent. But she is a consistent, multi-tool player that finds ways to win with arguably her greatest weapon — her intellect.
Former New Mexico head coach Kelcy McKenna described Bhat as a thinker on the court and said she uses her experiences to work her way through a match, something the new Lobo head coach, Stephanie Wooten-Quijada, echoed.
Wooten-Quijada said Bhat was steady throughout the season, and someone the team has been able to rely and lean on.
Kirtana Bhat, Rachana’s sister, is also a collegiate athlete, playing tennis for Central Oklahoma. She said her sister has always been very good at sizing up opponents, identifying strengths and weaknesses almost instantaneously.
“I think she is really good at strategy; she’s a good thinker,” Kirtana Bhat said. “She can think through points and figure out what she needs to do moving forward.”
Kirtana said her sister’s attention to detail is something she has applied to in several aspects of her life and it is part of what makes her successful.
She said whether Bhat is building a relationship, completing school work or focusing on something else, she tries to take the time to make sure she understands what she is doing before attempting to complete the task.
Many people might view Bhat as shy, or an introvert — she even agreed, letting out a quiet laugh when she was told some of her teammates used those words to describe her.
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In many cases, relationships that take a little longer to forge are stronger as a result. And one would be hard-pressed to find a group of women that are closer than those on the UNM tennis team.
Bhat is one of five seniors that started the season, three of whom she has been in the program with since she was a freshman. Going into her final season, she said the biggest goal for her was simply to have fun.
She said she wasn’t used to being around other women and living together, but they appear to be inseparable now. From practicing to hanging out off the court, the team does nearly everything together.
“Every year I think we’ve gotten closer and closer, and I’ve felt more comfortable opening up,” Bhat said.
McKenna said Bhat may have taken some time to let her guard down, but she is friends with everyone and has a big impact on the people she reaches.
“She is definitely one of those ‘one-in-a-million people,’” the former Lobo head coach said. “She’s super shy, but once you get to know her, you wonder how you were ever able to function in your life without her.”
Bhat has emerged as one of the leaders on the team. She has led by example with her attitude and play on the court, but said it is also important for her to help others when they need it.
The desire to help is something Bhat and her sister, who are from Arizona, have taken part in for several summers, teaching tennis in Lake Tahoe when she goes home to visit during the break.
Even though she also considers her sister more of an introvert, Kirtana said she sees Bhat, a business major at UNM, working with and helping a lot of people after her collegiate tennis career.
Kirtana said she has enjoyed doing the camp with her sister, and Lake Tahoe helped them find new activities to enjoy as well. She said sometimes it is hard to get Bhat out of her comfort zone without a little push, but she really took an interest in water sports.
She described her sister as being a natural athlete and has picked up paddle-boarding and kayaking. Kirtana said one thing she enjoys doing is running for off-season conditioning. Ironically, she said despite being in cross-country in high school, running is one thing Bhat is not a fan of.
Some might also be surprised to find out Bhat’s musical tastes. She and several of her teammates and coaches revealed that she is a big fan of rap music. Bhat said she listens to a little bit of everything and likes a wide variety of artists.
Bhat said another aspect that has brought the team together is food. The eight players on the roster call five different countries home, which probably yields a variety of options when deciding what to eat.
McKenna said two things stood out for her when she recalled some past trips to restaurants. She said Bhat often orders from the kid’s menu, especially when the team ate at Pei Wei.
She said it is also funny when Bhat gets coffee from Starbucks. McKenna said the tennis star rarely gets caffeine, so it makes her really hyper for the rest of the day.
Energy is something Bhat brought to the tennis court, regardless of whether she had a latte that day or not, throughout her career. She currently ranks number seven on the school’s all-time win list, with 92 victories.
Bhat went out in style by earning the clinch point in each of her final two home matches of the regular season. The senior won a thrilling tiebreaker and cruised to a straight set victory to secure one team victory over Utah State.
She followed that performance by avoiding a tiebreaker picking up another team win, fittingly on Senior Day, defeating Boise State 4-3.
In typical fashion, Bhat remained humble and said it just meant her match went a little bit longer, and she was happy her team won.
Her senior season ended on Friday, April 28 in the quarterfinal round of the Mountain West Tournament. She helped get the Lobos out to a 2-0 team lead by contributing a win in her singles match, but UNM ultimately fell 4-3 to San Jose State.
Though the season wasn’t capped with a championship, she no doubt achieved her goal of having fun. Bhat said she will start pursuing a master’s degree in sports administration in the fall from the University of Oklahoma.
It would be a safe bet that she will start a career that will allow her to continue impacting lives soon after. It is something that she filed away in her memory bank, and she is just waiting for the time to come to put that game plan into action.
Robert Maler is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers football and men’s and women’s tennis. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.
