Can MEP Defeat a USTA 4.5 Division 2 College Player?

MEP (Most Exhausting Player - white strings) is 12-8 in singles competition (line 1 and 2) in the USTA 4.5 league for 2021-2022. He may be second to Federer for YouTube popularity.

D2 [4.5] was recently bumped up to USTA 4.5 level. He graduated from a Division 2 college in 2021 where he played on the college tennis team. He started tennis at age 16.

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#TennisTroll

[automaticsweetheart]

Was showing up at his house a joke that MEP was in on? Unless it was set up for the cameras, that whole exchange made me uncomfortable.

[meinsouza]

I love that when MEP first appeared on this channel people were bashing him and now everyone mostly respect him a lot and understand that it is a pain to defeat him

[ql]

There are two things MEP does that a common, average "pusher" can't:
1. MEP puts underspin on his ball. Underspin makes the ball harder to attack. An average pusher simply pushes the ball with no spin. Even on pro tour, Monica Niculescu makes a lot of her opponents crazy with her underspin.
2. MEP has great control on his placement. He can place one shot deep to one corner then the next shot short to the other corner. This maximizes the diagonal distance his opponent has to move. The average pusher doesn't have such control, they usually just place the ball in the middle of the court.

A novice may not be able to tell the difference. But once you play someone like MEP, you'll find out it's much more difficult than it looks at first.

[gustavor]

4:28 serve was in as well, hard call but still, ball was good (:

[mosssuratchananon]

I've seen MEP played for 2 matches and. I noticed that he doesn't make any unforce error. That's the reason why he wins. Also, he places the ball well tho.

[Maelkes]

Moral of the story:

Never make bad calls or tennis troll will come knocking at your door.

[vectorthurm]

Ben is very smart and careful with his strokes. I never had fun playing that way myself. For me it’s more important to “go for it” and let go. No matter what level you are at, the no. 1 rule is to have fun! Love ❤️ 🎾

[SeireaTennis]

20:47 I had to stop and play this a few times. It's just poetry. Dialed spot on the pass, and the ANTICIPATION on the next shot, into a perfectly measured mid-court volley. Purely controlled, totally balanced. I want to make a grand, sweeping statement about what this says about him as a tennis player, but for now I'll settle for a "I saw and appreciated that very much, Ben."

[samurai]

Solid play. D2 could take this next time with 3 tweaks:
1. Get a flat serve with some mphs.
2. Footwork (but that is for all tennis players).
3. Loosen up. He is almost too measured and tries to guide the ball instead of striking (esp on the BH)

[savage_seahawkseahawk]

Personally I find it a bit comical that MEP manages to beat a very solid 4.5 D2 player who seems to be quite athletic but loses to a nationally ranked (top 40) 12s player. No knock on MEP by any stretch of the imagination, just a bit of an interesting dynamic.

[PeterFreemantennis]

we all think you are insane MEP but that is why we LOVE you

[jaykraft]

Have seen a number of these MEP matches now. His strengths obviously very good defense, steadiness and placement, putting pressure on opponents with fast dying slices and drop shots. The aggressive games are beating him, i.e. unload on those weak setup slices, advance to the net. Surprised most of the "4.5s" cannot do the first part, i.e. unload on the ball. It's a good thing to practice, you need a putaway or near-putaway (high pressure) shot in the game of tennis.

[sdfswords]

MEP forced him to play his game, couldn't really reply with consistent pace and depth, too busy retrieving and running. Just goes to show, the guy with control who can shape the points, no matter how unusual the hitting style, WINS! Ben knows how to take what looks like a defensive floater and turn it offensive by constantly moving his opponent, a kind of genius really. He also takes big opponent blasts and turns them into neutral balls super-effectively, and forces the opponent to go for too much, which then makes him increasingly cautious. You'll never beat Ben playing his game.

[joemellow]

Great movement Ben. Incredible defense. Made him hit shot after shot after shot. Nice match!

[rsmith]

Great match and nice job, Ben. D2 came in in crosscourt approaches too many times (or returned short angled shots crosscourt) which made him very easy to pass. I'd like to see more intentionality with the approach shots and it's okay to slice them and force MEP to hit up. The forehand was also unstable with lots of arm and not much body in the motion. MEP's game is made to take advantage of such inherent inconsistencies and he did well at exposing it here.

[andrewlee]

OMG the volley at 13:20 at 16:00. MEP what an improvement from his previous play.

[cbockiii]

MEP did an awesome job recovering and taking that first game. That's why he's good.

[aimfreakify]

5:27 haha I love this! Would love these little snippets to show your personality more :D

[dennisthegreek]

D2 could have finished many points much earlier if he attacked the net, esp 1st set. Maybe he lacks confidence in his volleys. He also uses a lot of topspin in his forehands and seems to underuse flat ones; he runs around his BH so often, giving the impression that BH is his strong side!

[randymarcum]

Great play Mep and Divi2 Nice angIes and movement
I found MEP's apology insincere to Josh. One bad call in over 100 matches is totally unacceptable. Maybe a large Troll Tennis association fine and loss of a few major corporate endorsement would help. Once you become a star the ego takes over😂