Exclusive Interview with Iran’s Hottest Tennis Prospect

Samii attended Collin College in Dallas TX in the fall of 2005 to play for the men's tennis team and pursue his academic career. In his sophomore year, he earned a place in the semi-finals in singles, and finals in doubles of the national tournament, ending with a final season record of 42-15. Samii's national ranking for the 2006-2007 season was #15 in singles and #3 in doubles. By earning a place in the finals of the national tournament in doubles, Samii received the All-American prize. He also wrote history for Collin College by being the highest ranked player they ever had in the nation.

NM: Tell us a bit about your tennis career?

Saman Samii: I started playing tennis when I was nine years old. I always liked the sport and I started to become more serious at the age of fourteen. After a couple of years, I realized that I was good enough to go to the United States to play tennis at a high level and study. At the moment, I am transferring from Collin College to Cameron University in Lawton to play tennis on a full scholarship.

NM: How many practice sessions do your team have per week and how do you practice?

Saman Samii: We practice 5 days a week; every session is about 2.5 hours. The practices aim to improve us as a team but also as individuals so both aspects are considered. However, we mostly practice on different match situations and tactics on the court. We have 15 guys on the team, so the competition is very tough. The facilities at my College is tremendously good, we have 12 nice tennis courts which makes it easy to have a good workout. We normally don't share courts with others.

NM: What do you know about Iranian players?

Saman Samii: I know that there are some good players on the ATP tour. The highest ranked player is Shahgholi on #859 in the world. After him I know there are some players under #1000 in the world. Obviously, if you have ATP points you must be a good tennis player but they have probably been playing futures and challengers in the Middle-East area and West Asia, which does not have the same tough competition as there is in Europe and USA.

Iran has had a few good tennis players, not to mention Bahrami who is a legend in the sport. He had an amazing career as being one of the best doubles players in the world, and players in Iran should try to learn from him. He is an excellent role model for younger children. I have actually spoken to him when he came to Sweden and he is a very nice guy. Right now Rezai is of course doing very good in the women's tennis.

NM: Would you take one of the spots in their Davis Cup team?

Saman Samii: I really don't know yet because I have seen very little of Iranian tennis. I think I have to play some of their players to be able to judge, but I would love to try. It has always been a dream for me to play in Iran's Davis Cup team because I am originally Persian. But I think my chances are very good, definitely.

NM: Would you consider an invitation to play for the national team?

Saman Samii: If I got the invitation right now, I would see that as I dream come true, so yes.

Note: The National tournament involves teams that qualified for the event by winning their regional tournaments. There are 6 different flights in singles and 3 in doubles, each team places their top line up starting from flight #1 and continue down. Normally, there are about 45 teams coming to the event. The last two years, Nationals has been held at Collin College.