Daianne Hayashida is used to pressure. 

Not only has the Iowa tennis freshman represented her native Peru as a tennis player since she was 11 years old, but she has also played in hostile environments. 

Hayashida played the 2021 Pan American Games in Columbia the year before she arrived at Iowa. Competing against a Columbian player, the crowd at center court was not exactly on her side. 

“I just had my teammates and my parents go to the tournament,” Hayashida said. “So, I had like six people for me. I missed one serve, and people were saying things like, ‘Miss again.’ It was very tiring.” 

Despite heckling from fans, Hayashida won the match in straight sets, finishing the singles tournament with a bronze medal.

Growing up in Lima, Peru, Hayashida participated in running and swimming. Hayashida played her first tennis tournament at 8 years old and said the sport appealed to her because of the game’s chess match style.

“A match is like two hours, and I’m alone in the court, and I have to think, ‘No one can help me,’” Hayashida said. “When I swim or run, one minute and it’s over. So, tennis I found more interesting because I have to think about strategies and all those things.” 

Tennis’ analytical approach allows Hayashida to stay calm throughout a match regardless of the score. In fact, Hayashida said she didn’t even celebrate earning a point two years ago.

“I can focus easily; outside things are not very distracting for me,” Hayashida said. “Also, I’m not very mad when I miss. I can be losing 5-0, and I’m like, ‘Ok, let’s keep going.’ Sometimes, girls are 4-0 down or 3-0 down and they’re just like, ‘I don’t want to play anymore’ or smash their racket.”

One such outside influence is the flurry of Instagram direct messages to Hayashida’s account before and after international tournaments. She described how Peruvians would often shower her with praise before a match but would then criticize her if she lost.

“It’s a lot of pressure because it’s not just me, it’s all my country,” Hayashida said. “All the Peruivan people texting me, ‘You can do it,’ ‘You’re the favorite.’ I remember I didn’t look at my phone until 8 p.m. the night before the match. And when I lost, people would text me sh*t.”

To keep her focus ahead of a match, Hayashida listens to Spanish music and practices yoga.

“I love to do yoga. I think that helps me a lot with breathing when I play,” Hayashida said. “When I’m excited to finish a match or finish a point, that helps me to focus again.” 

Accompanying this focus is the constant support she provides her teammates. Sophomore Marisa Schmidt described Hayashida as a comforting presence, especially after someone loses a match.

“She is super nice. I feel like she will never talk bad about someone,” Schmidt said. “She is always supportive. After I lost, she came to me and gave me a hug.” 

Even at the national and collegiate level, Hayashida has a desire to enjoy the game she’s played since she was 5 years old. While that enjoyment was obscured at times due to nerves, her goal remains to have a good time.

“I think that I’m now more nervous than I was when I was 11. It’s crazy.” Hayashida said. “Because at that age, I didn’t know about favorites and pressure. At that age I just played for fun. So, now I’m always trying to have fun. I play tennis because I enjoy playing tennis.”

Hayashida had a right foot injury before she committed to Iowa. While she sat out for four months, she debated whether or not to take the professional route and join the Women’s Tennis Association. Ultimately, she chose to attend Iowa, where she majors in psychology. Though Hayashida plans to try going pro after she graduates, her head coach Sasha Schmid is happy with her right where she is. 

“Such a wonderful combination of somebody who is a wonderful teammate, generous in so many ways with such a good heart, but is very, very competitive and really fights for herself in a really healthy way when she plays,” Schmid said. “I love seeing somebody who can balance those two things out, that can balance out respecting their opponent and being a good teammate and also really giving to yourself, pushing yourself, believing in yourself.”