SAN FRANCISCO – After putting together one of the best résumés of any male tennis player in USF history, Bernardo Saraiva chose to play professionally. After a four-year pro career, Saraiva retired in 2019. This week, he caught up with USF Director of Creative Video, Katie Morgan, to talk about his life both as a Don and after graduation.

Saraiva begins by recollecting what made he and his college doubles partner Nils Skajaa so effective, highlighting the oddity of spending nearly their entire careers as double partners and how their different playing styles meshed so well. 

He delves into earning a trip to the National Championships at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York alongside Skajaa after they won the regional at Stanford, and gives insight to what the journey was like. Afterwards, he reveals why being a Don meant so much to him, and how special the relationships with his peers and coaches still are to this day. 

Finally, Saraiva touches on going pro, a goal he'd pursued since his youth, and recounts both the first time he received a point in the professional rankings and winning the ATP Challenger Tournament. He concludes by laying out the differences between the collegiate and professional tennis lifestyles and recollects his difficult decision to retire from professional tennis.

You can see this, and all the previous Dons From Distance episodes, by visiting the USF Athletics Youtube Page.
 
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