Oklahoma State University Athletics
New Year, New Opportunities: Oklahoma State Alumnus Julian Cash Enters 2023 with Main Tour in Sight Following Dynamic Doubles Play
December 29, 2022 | Cowboy Tennis
From America's Brightest Orange to tennis' brightest stages – Oklahoma State alumnus Julian Cash was nothing short of money on the pro trail in 2022.
A 2018 graduate of OSU, Cash opened the year in singles and doubles play, pairing with a bevy of tournament teammates, including former OSU teammates Lucas Gerch and Arjun Kadhe.
However, the 26-year-old's recent pairing with Henry Patten has ignited impeccable results on the pro scene, emerging from a steady riser at the year's onset to becoming one of the fastest climbers in doubles rankings.
Now, nine months later, Cash and Patten have ascended up the ATP rankings, holding No. 70 and No. 69 doubles rankings, respectively, while putting themselves in position for major upcoming events in the sport.
Puzzle Pieces
Both born in the United Kingdom, Cash, a Brighton native, and Patten, a Colchester native, crossed paths over 15 years ago in the British junior circuits. In college, Cash held the No. 1 doubles slot with the Cowboys, while Patten carried a stint at No. 1 in singles and doubles at UNC Asheville. Based on timelines, the two were, in some ways, intertwined. However, the puzzle pieces for a pairing hadn't aligned to that point.
Due to shoulder rehab, which cost Cash upwards of a year of competition, and a secluded tennis scene during COVID-19 lockdowns, the two connected at the Pro League in one of the United Kingdom's first events post-lockdown, planting the initial seeds of a partnership.
However, with both men set on singles, their schedules were seldom on the same page. That changed in Nottingham.
"There were four weeks in Nottingham," Cash said. "We both were going to be there, mainly for singles, but we always played doubles as well."
"We agreed to play those, kinda with the grass in the back of our minds – knowing that an all-British pair, if we were going up the rankings, there would potentially be opportunities going into those weeks on the grass. It was just back-of-our-mind stuff at the time, but it worked out pretty well."
With a perfect 3-0 record in Nottingham, the two opted to split paths following the World Tour matches. However, their separation was a brief one.
The Wild Card
The sign-in time for June's ATP Challenger had passed. Cash and Patten heard nothing.
Five minutes later – Cash was slated for his Challenger debut. Patten was scrambling to find a flight back to the U.K.
A week later, the pairing had netted their first ATP Challenger title and cemented their status as a pair. It nearly never came to be.
"We actually didn't know we were gonna get in until basically the draw came out. There were a few wild card decisions to be made, and it was all quite last minute. I think the sign-in closed at 12 and we found out at like 12:05 that we were going to get one of the wild cards," Cash said.
"Henry was actually in the states at the time, so our preparation was horrific. He got back on the Monday and we were supposed to play Tuesday. Luckily, it rained and ended up getting a Thursday start, which was quite important to how the week ended up going."
"That week, we took each match in our stride. There were no expectations. Those tournaments on the grass are notoriously strong. They're the biggest Challengers there are, and going into Wimby, there aren't many options to play on the grass. So, that's where everyone ends up."
"[We] Just went in swinging, having fun, and taking the title at the end of it was a pretty surreal feeling. It was a lot of fun."
Diamonds
The underdog status between Cash and Patten had been stripped by June. In its place, the stakes of success began to amass on a weekly basis. The pairing blocked out the noise throughout the year.
"Now, there are more expectations, externally, also internally," Cash said. "But I think we have done a really good job keeping our heads down. We've had a target rankings-wise. Part of why we had such a long trip in the states was to have a possibility of going to Australia in January. It started to become a bit more of a reality. Where we were in the year, there was only 'X' amount of weeks we had on the calendar. In many ways, that added pressure. It was like, 'If we are staying. We have to win a lot.' That was our goal."
When faced with pressure, Cash and Patten made diamonds.
The duo has fulfilled their goal since taking home their first ATP Challenger title in June. Since June, the tandem has accrued a 14-1 record, doing so across five countries, bolstering their trophy case in the process.
With 2022 in the rearview mirror, the duo set the ATP Challenger record for titles won in a year, netting their 10th title on Dec. 4 in Maia, Portugal.
For Cash, he cites their hard court title at Granby as a major confidence boost for the year.
But, even with a jam-packed schedule and high stakes attached – he has found a deep appreciation for the process.
"Each week has its own nugget of why it's a bit more special or different to other places," Cash said. "Each week is a lot of fun. I'll never get tired of winning, and that's for sure."
The Next Set: 2023
2022 sparked a seismic shift for Cash and Patten.
Twelve months ago, Cash carried an ATP ranking of 564 in doubles and 888 in singles. Patten entered the year with an ATP ranking of 771 in doubles and 702 in singles.
Now, Cash and Patten are all in on doubles, ranking 70 and 69 in the category, respectively.
While this past year has been a significant one for the pair, their placement in rankings will keep their schedules up in the air to begin the year.
But with the goal of a top-50 ranking in sight – and with the pairing's first ATP 250 match secured – there's reason to believe more opportunities are on the way.
"It's a tough question [our goals for 2023] to answer just because where we sit in the rankings. We're not cemented on the main tour where we are. Let's say we stay at 70 for the full year – we'd get to play a lot of 250s, but there would definitely be weeks where we still have to play some Challengers. So I think our first goal is to get out of Challengers every week, which is somewhere around the 50 mark. Then we can get onto the main tour and expose ourselves to the level and opportunities week in and week out.
"The start of our year is a little bit uncertain in a way. We just got into the first 250 of the year. So, that's good. We're actually going out to India. I think Arjun [Kadhe] will be there.
"We'll get lots of opportunities. I think it's our job to kinda take those in our stride and try and do as well as we can, make the most of them, and see how far up the rankings we can get."
A 2018 graduate of OSU, Cash opened the year in singles and doubles play, pairing with a bevy of tournament teammates, including former OSU teammates Lucas Gerch and Arjun Kadhe.
However, the 26-year-old's recent pairing with Henry Patten has ignited impeccable results on the pro scene, emerging from a steady riser at the year's onset to becoming one of the fastest climbers in doubles rankings.
Now, nine months later, Cash and Patten have ascended up the ATP rankings, holding No. 70 and No. 69 doubles rankings, respectively, while putting themselves in position for major upcoming events in the sport.
Puzzle Pieces
Both born in the United Kingdom, Cash, a Brighton native, and Patten, a Colchester native, crossed paths over 15 years ago in the British junior circuits. In college, Cash held the No. 1 doubles slot with the Cowboys, while Patten carried a stint at No. 1 in singles and doubles at UNC Asheville. Based on timelines, the two were, in some ways, intertwined. However, the puzzle pieces for a pairing hadn't aligned to that point.
Due to shoulder rehab, which cost Cash upwards of a year of competition, and a secluded tennis scene during COVID-19 lockdowns, the two connected at the Pro League in one of the United Kingdom's first events post-lockdown, planting the initial seeds of a partnership.
However, with both men set on singles, their schedules were seldom on the same page. That changed in Nottingham.
"There were four weeks in Nottingham," Cash said. "We both were going to be there, mainly for singles, but we always played doubles as well."
"We agreed to play those, kinda with the grass in the back of our minds – knowing that an all-British pair, if we were going up the rankings, there would potentially be opportunities going into those weeks on the grass. It was just back-of-our-mind stuff at the time, but it worked out pretty well."
With a perfect 3-0 record in Nottingham, the two opted to split paths following the World Tour matches. However, their separation was a brief one.
The Wild Card
The sign-in time for June's ATP Challenger had passed. Cash and Patten heard nothing.
Five minutes later – Cash was slated for his Challenger debut. Patten was scrambling to find a flight back to the U.K.
A week later, the pairing had netted their first ATP Challenger title and cemented their status as a pair. It nearly never came to be.
"We actually didn't know we were gonna get in until basically the draw came out. There were a few wild card decisions to be made, and it was all quite last minute. I think the sign-in closed at 12 and we found out at like 12:05 that we were going to get one of the wild cards," Cash said.
"Henry was actually in the states at the time, so our preparation was horrific. He got back on the Monday and we were supposed to play Tuesday. Luckily, it rained and ended up getting a Thursday start, which was quite important to how the week ended up going."
"That week, we took each match in our stride. There were no expectations. Those tournaments on the grass are notoriously strong. They're the biggest Challengers there are, and going into Wimby, there aren't many options to play on the grass. So, that's where everyone ends up."
"[We] Just went in swinging, having fun, and taking the title at the end of it was a pretty surreal feeling. It was a lot of fun."
Diamonds
The underdog status between Cash and Patten had been stripped by June. In its place, the stakes of success began to amass on a weekly basis. The pairing blocked out the noise throughout the year.
"Now, there are more expectations, externally, also internally," Cash said. "But I think we have done a really good job keeping our heads down. We've had a target rankings-wise. Part of why we had such a long trip in the states was to have a possibility of going to Australia in January. It started to become a bit more of a reality. Where we were in the year, there was only 'X' amount of weeks we had on the calendar. In many ways, that added pressure. It was like, 'If we are staying. We have to win a lot.' That was our goal."
When faced with pressure, Cash and Patten made diamonds.
The duo has fulfilled their goal since taking home their first ATP Challenger title in June. Since June, the tandem has accrued a 14-1 record, doing so across five countries, bolstering their trophy case in the process.
With 2022 in the rearview mirror, the duo set the ATP Challenger record for titles won in a year, netting their 10th title on Dec. 4 in Maia, Portugal.
For Cash, he cites their hard court title at Granby as a major confidence boost for the year.
But, even with a jam-packed schedule and high stakes attached – he has found a deep appreciation for the process.
"Each week has its own nugget of why it's a bit more special or different to other places," Cash said. "Each week is a lot of fun. I'll never get tired of winning, and that's for sure."
The Next Set: 2023
2022 sparked a seismic shift for Cash and Patten.
Twelve months ago, Cash carried an ATP ranking of 564 in doubles and 888 in singles. Patten entered the year with an ATP ranking of 771 in doubles and 702 in singles.
Now, Cash and Patten are all in on doubles, ranking 70 and 69 in the category, respectively.
While this past year has been a significant one for the pair, their placement in rankings will keep their schedules up in the air to begin the year.
But with the goal of a top-50 ranking in sight – and with the pairing's first ATP 250 match secured – there's reason to believe more opportunities are on the way.
"It's a tough question [our goals for 2023] to answer just because where we sit in the rankings. We're not cemented on the main tour where we are. Let's say we stay at 70 for the full year – we'd get to play a lot of 250s, but there would definitely be weeks where we still have to play some Challengers. So I think our first goal is to get out of Challengers every week, which is somewhere around the 50 mark. Then we can get onto the main tour and expose ourselves to the level and opportunities week in and week out.
"The start of our year is a little bit uncertain in a way. We just got into the first 250 of the year. So, that's good. We're actually going out to India. I think Arjun [Kadhe] will be there.
"We'll get lots of opportunities. I think it's our job to kinda take those in our stride and try and do as well as we can, make the most of them, and see how far up the rankings we can get."
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