Rahim Esmail is in his first year with the Colonel coaching staff after spending the last three years playing professional tennis. Esmail has reached the finals of three professional tournaments, once in singles and twice in doubles. He has posted wins over top ATP Tour players such as Tommy Robredo, Feliciano Lopez and John Isner.
At Eastern Kentucky, Esmail is responsible for on-court coaching, handling administrative tasks and executing miscellaneous duties off the court. Esmail is also working towards completing his master’s degree in sports administration at EKU.
Esmail attended the University of Kentucky from 2001-04 where he played No. 4 singles and No. 1 doubles for the Wildcats. In 2002, Esmail went 31-4 in singles and 23-2 in doubles to help Kentucky climb to No. 4 in the national rankings. The native of Coquitlam, British Columbia, served as a Wildcat team captain in his junior and senior seasons.
As a junior player, Esmail was a six-time Canadian National singles finalist and a three-time junior Davis Cup team member. Esmail competed in both the 1999 junior French Open and junior U.S. Open.
Off the court, Esmail enjoys all sports especially hockey. He hopes to someday become a collegiate athletics director.
