Oklahoma State University Athletics
The Rise to No. 1: How Cash and Kadhe Became College Tennis’ Top Tandem
September 15, 2016 | Cowboy Tennis
STILLWATER – It has been 356 days since Julian Cash and Arjun Kadhe played their first doubles match together, and in that short time the duo has become an integral part of Oklahoma State men's tennis history.
Last season, Cash and Kadhe won a staggering 34 matches together, took home the prestigious Pacific Coast Doubles title, were finalists in the doubles draw of the ITA Central Regional and earned NCAA and ITA All-America honors after their run to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Doubles Championship.
They did all that in their first season together, and now they're No. 1.
The road that Cash and Kadhe took to becoming the top-ranked doubles team began in Lafayette, Louisiana. The duo began their partnership in the opening round of the 2015 Cajun Classic, defeating the host school's Vlad Kramarov and Michael Kritzinger in straight sets, 6-2, 6-1.
A tough loss followed the triumphant first victory, but Cash and Kadhe weren't derailed. The pair moved on to the ITA All-American Championships, where they began an eight-match winning streak that carried Cash and Kadhe to the finals of the ITA Central Regional.
Riding the momentum of their successful fall slate, Cash and Kadhe cracked the top 10 of the ITA's doubles rankings for the first time, coming in at No. 9 in the January 5 edition. From there the wins began to pile up as the duo won 18 of their first 19 matches of the spring season, including a stretch of 13 straight from February 2 to March 6.
Cash and Kadhe's consistent performances and success on the court was validated when the duo was ranked No. 5 in the February 10 edition of the ITA Rankings. The No. 5 ranking marked the third-highest ranking achieved in OSU doubles history, with Kadhe and his former partner Jakob Sude setting the record mark after reaching No. 3 in 2015.
At the back end of Cash and Kadhe's longest winning streak came the historic Pacific Coast Doubles Championship in La Jolla, California. OSU had found success at the event the year prior with Lucas Gerch and Nicolai Ferrigno taking the title, and Cash and Kadhe would make it back-to-back titles for the Cowboys.
They rattled off seven consecutive wins, including a 7-6 (1), 6-4 win over Stanford's Tom Fawcett and Maciek Romanowicz in the finals, to join the likes of John McEnroe and Arthur Ashe as champions of the prestigious event.
Cash and Kadhe's stretch run to conclude their season was filled with some of the toughest competition imaginable as 11 of the pair's final 14 opponents were ranked by the ITA with six of those foes being ranked inside the top 30. The duo wouldn't be stopped as they continued to be a tremendous asset to the Cowboys, specifically in Big 12 play when they helped secure the doubles point in OSU's wins over No. 10 Texas Tech and No. 37 Baylor.
In the NCAA Tournament, Cash and Kadhe added to more ranked opponents to their list of impressive wins when they defeated Florida State's senior duo of Benjamin Lock and Marco Nunez, who were ranked No. 17, as well No. 40-ranked Filip Vittek and Jordan Angus of San Diego in the Round of 16.
The duo was bested by UCLA's second-ranked pair of Mackenzie MacDonald and Martin Redlicki in the next round, ending their historic season in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. But even with a tough ending, Cash and Kadhe's first season together will go down as one of the greatest in Oklahoma State men's tennis history.
Now, heading into the 2016-17 season, they have a chance to top last season's success.
Cash, a native of Brighton, England, can earn his third All-America honor this season if he and Kadhe continue to succeed after he previously achieved the feat last year as well as during his freshman season while at Mississippi State.
For Kadhe, his senior campaign is an opportunity to cement himself as one of the best players in Oklahoma State history.
Kadhe currently sits with Oleksandr Nedovyesov and his former doubles partner Sude as the only three-time All-Americans in team history, but this season provides him with a great opportunity to become the first Cowboy to achieve that feat four times. His 67 career doubles wins also has him in sixth place on OSU's all-time list and needing just 25 to tie Charlier Laster for the school record.
One year ago not many would've projected that an Oklahoma State doubles duo would sit atop the ITA Rankings, let alone a duo that had never played together before. But here we are one year later, with the fall slate of matches underway, and the duo of Julian Cash and Arjun Kadhe are the top doubles team in college tennis.
Last season, Cash and Kadhe won a staggering 34 matches together, took home the prestigious Pacific Coast Doubles title, were finalists in the doubles draw of the ITA Central Regional and earned NCAA and ITA All-America honors after their run to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Doubles Championship.
They did all that in their first season together, and now they're No. 1.
The road that Cash and Kadhe took to becoming the top-ranked doubles team began in Lafayette, Louisiana. The duo began their partnership in the opening round of the 2015 Cajun Classic, defeating the host school's Vlad Kramarov and Michael Kritzinger in straight sets, 6-2, 6-1.
A tough loss followed the triumphant first victory, but Cash and Kadhe weren't derailed. The pair moved on to the ITA All-American Championships, where they began an eight-match winning streak that carried Cash and Kadhe to the finals of the ITA Central Regional.
Riding the momentum of their successful fall slate, Cash and Kadhe cracked the top 10 of the ITA's doubles rankings for the first time, coming in at No. 9 in the January 5 edition. From there the wins began to pile up as the duo won 18 of their first 19 matches of the spring season, including a stretch of 13 straight from February 2 to March 6.
Cash and Kadhe's consistent performances and success on the court was validated when the duo was ranked No. 5 in the February 10 edition of the ITA Rankings. The No. 5 ranking marked the third-highest ranking achieved in OSU doubles history, with Kadhe and his former partner Jakob Sude setting the record mark after reaching No. 3 in 2015.
At the back end of Cash and Kadhe's longest winning streak came the historic Pacific Coast Doubles Championship in La Jolla, California. OSU had found success at the event the year prior with Lucas Gerch and Nicolai Ferrigno taking the title, and Cash and Kadhe would make it back-to-back titles for the Cowboys.
They rattled off seven consecutive wins, including a 7-6 (1), 6-4 win over Stanford's Tom Fawcett and Maciek Romanowicz in the finals, to join the likes of John McEnroe and Arthur Ashe as champions of the prestigious event.
Cash and Kadhe's stretch run to conclude their season was filled with some of the toughest competition imaginable as 11 of the pair's final 14 opponents were ranked by the ITA with six of those foes being ranked inside the top 30. The duo wouldn't be stopped as they continued to be a tremendous asset to the Cowboys, specifically in Big 12 play when they helped secure the doubles point in OSU's wins over No. 10 Texas Tech and No. 37 Baylor.
In the NCAA Tournament, Cash and Kadhe added to more ranked opponents to their list of impressive wins when they defeated Florida State's senior duo of Benjamin Lock and Marco Nunez, who were ranked No. 17, as well No. 40-ranked Filip Vittek and Jordan Angus of San Diego in the Round of 16.
The duo was bested by UCLA's second-ranked pair of Mackenzie MacDonald and Martin Redlicki in the next round, ending their historic season in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. But even with a tough ending, Cash and Kadhe's first season together will go down as one of the greatest in Oklahoma State men's tennis history.
Now, heading into the 2016-17 season, they have a chance to top last season's success.
Cash, a native of Brighton, England, can earn his third All-America honor this season if he and Kadhe continue to succeed after he previously achieved the feat last year as well as during his freshman season while at Mississippi State.
For Kadhe, his senior campaign is an opportunity to cement himself as one of the best players in Oklahoma State history.
Kadhe currently sits with Oleksandr Nedovyesov and his former doubles partner Sude as the only three-time All-Americans in team history, but this season provides him with a great opportunity to become the first Cowboy to achieve that feat four times. His 67 career doubles wins also has him in sixth place on OSU's all-time list and needing just 25 to tie Charlier Laster for the school record.
One year ago not many would've projected that an Oklahoma State doubles duo would sit atop the ITA Rankings, let alone a duo that had never played together before. But here we are one year later, with the fall slate of matches underway, and the duo of Julian Cash and Arjun Kadhe are the top doubles team in college tennis.
Players Mentioned
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
Friday, June 05
Friday, May 29
Wednesday, May 27
Monday, May 18
