adminBENJAMIN LOCK took a giant step towards realising a childhood dream of working in the banking sector after recently graduating with a Finance degree at Florida State University in the United States.
The United States’ vast banking sector is yearning for young talent such as Lock with the institution he was attached to for a year “calling every day” to enquire about his next move.
However, the 24-year-old does not want to don a suit and tie just yet. He prefers the shorts and T-shirts of the tennis court.
“I want to play professional tennis,” said Lock, a member of Zimbabwe’s Davis Cup team.
Lock leaves FSU with the honour of being only the third player in the institution’s history to make it into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-Star team. The Zimbabwean’s 180 wins put him third on the FSU roll of honour.
“My time at Florida State University was really special,” Lock told this publication from Mozambique where he is playing on the Futures tour. “I grew so much as a player and a person. I really enjoyed playing in the team environment. FSU as a whole was great experience on and off the court.”
In his last season, during which he was FSU Seminoles’ top player, Lock finished with a 25-14 record, with 16 of the wins coming against ranked opponents. He also reached the second round of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament and played in the doubles draw for a second consecutive season.
Lock helped his team to a 14th-consecutive NCAA Tournament berth, a maiden win over top ranked North Carolina and a school-record nine ACC wins.
“All those achievements give me a huge amount of confidence because I was successful in college tennis and college tennis is at a really high level right now. It shows that with hard work and dedication one can achieve all that they set out to do,” he said.
With the Finance degree safely locked up at home Lock is ready to take to the trenches of professional tennis.
“I have always loved finance, the stock market and dealing with numbers. Investment banking and private equity management are areas I would definitely like to work in at some point in the future. However, for now I am a full time professional and 100 percent dedicated to achieving my goals on the tennis court.
“Moving from college to pro is never easy, there are no guarantees but I am ready for the challenge. I will be based in Florida at FSU working with the university coaches.”
Lock is also aware that a massive test awaits the Zimbabwe Davis Cup team when they visit Georgia for a Europe/Africa Group II relegation tie from July 15 to 17.
“The tie will be tough, especially because we are playing away, but we are confident that we will get the job done. Georgia is a good team, but they will get our absolute best effort,” he said.
Online Reporter