Roman Venger eyes professional ranking during strong season

Roman Venger said he can’t remember his life without tennis. Venger started playing at age six, joined the Ukrainian National Team at 14 and is in his second season playing for Utah State University.  

His next goal is a professional ranking, and according to USU Men’s Tennis head coach Aaron Paajanen, he’s close.  

“I think he’s got a good shot at it this summer,” Paajanen said.  

According to Paajanen, only one USU player, Jakub Medved, currently holds an Association of Tennis Professionals world ranking. These rankings determine which players qualify for professional matches and seed players in tournaments. 

“It’s not something that’s easy to do, but it’s something that’s definitely possible for him,” Paajanen said of Venger.  

Venger said he’s training as hard as he can to prepare and that practicing and competing on a collegiate level has helped him grow as an athlete.  

“I will go back home in summer and just try to compete as much as I can,” Venger said.  

Paajanen said despite obvious talent from the start, Venger has grown significantly during his time at Utah State from his serve to his ability to keep up with the pace of college tennis.  

“The exciting thing as a coach is being able to help somebody develop and remembering where they were when they got here and where they’re at now,” Paajanen said. 

Paajanen said his goal for his players is improvement on and off the court.  

For Venger, Paajanen’s advice to stay focused and ready on and off the court has been instrumental in helping him navigate the demands of collegiate tennis. Beyond practicing, competing and traveling for the tennis team, Venger is also studying finance.

“I feel like everyone can get lost sometimes, but you need to know why you’re doing it and why it’s important for you,” Venger said. “I would say my goal keeps me motivated.” 

Venger said his goal for the last 15 years has been to play professionally.  

As a teenager, he represented Ukraine, where he said he played against the best junior players from around the world. At Utah State, he’s learned to play with a team. 

Eliot Nobel has played as Venger’s doubles partner for the last seven matches of the season. According to Nobel, Venger wasn’t previously on the doubles lineup but requested to play doubles so he could contribute more to the team.  

“He went to Aaron’s office and then just asked if he could play doubles,” Nobel said. “He asked if me and him could play because he thought that we were a good fit.” 

In a recent match against Grand Canyon University, Nobel and Venger won their match 6-4, helping clinch a share of the Mountain West Conference title. 

Nobel attributes their success to on-court chemistry, two years on the same team and their shared European background.  

“We always have a lot of fun when we go out and play matches,” Nobel said.  

Nobel said they have the same goals on the court and that playing with Venger helps to alleviate pre-game nerves.  

“I usually get very nervous during the matches or especially before the matches,” Nobel said. “He calms me down a little bit and makes me think that this is just a tennis match. It’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t go our way.” 

For Venger, that sense of camaraderie is a welcome change from junior tennis. 

“It’s my first time playing college tennis,” Venger said. “All my life, I’ve been doing it alone, and here with the team, with all of my teammates, it’s so much more fun. It’s more competitive.” 

Paajanen said Venger’s value extends beyond strong forehands and backhands. His teammates trust him.   

“I think the guys know that they can rely on him to get us a point,” Paajanen said. 

In a game where only four points are needed to win a match, Paajanen said this reliability is important.  

“When you win alone, it feels good, but when you win as a team, it feels so much better,” Venger said.