Alex Dorato, the winningest (and losingest) tennis coach in Yale history, compiled a record of 344-286 over the course of his 27 years at the helm of the Yale men’s tennis program.

Dorato became Yale’s 5th men’s tennis coach in program history (the first coach, William Hinchliff, was hired in 1918). Before taking the reins, Dorato served in dual roles at Yale from the fall of 1985 through the spring of 1992; as the Associate Coach for the men’s tennis team, and as Assistant Coach for the women’s team.

Dorato’s teams and players have had tremendous success on the court. In his first year as head coach his team won an EITA co-championship and set the program’s record for most wins in a season at 19. It was Yale's first EITA title since 1967. His 2001 team tied the school record for most wins with an identical 19-5 record. Dorato led his 2002 team to its first ECAC Team Championship final since 1977. And, in 8 of his 27 years at the helm, Dorato has taken his No. 1 player to the NCAA Championships. In 2002, his top doubles duo also qualified for the NCAA Championships. In 1998, Jonathan Beardsley ‘99 stunned the ninth seed in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.  In 2001, Steve Berke ‘02 became the first and only unranked male player in history to reach the NCAA quarterfinals. From 2001 until his retirement, Dorato's top player has earned Ivy League Player of the Year recognition five times, the most of any Ivy League team (tied with Princeton).

Dorato received several coaching awards during his career including the USPTA New England Jack Barnaby College Coach of the Year and the Wilson/ITA Region I Coach of the Year.

In addition to success on the court, Alex's teams also produced an extraordinary academic record. His were the only Division I men's tennis squad in the country to receive the ITA All-Academic Team Award (3.2+ G.P.A. for the year) every year since its inception in 1996. His teams also lead the nation in the number of ITA Scholar-Athlete Award recipients (varsity players with a 3.5+ G.P.A. for the year) during that same period. In 2008 his team earned the prestigious Richard Brodhead Award for having the highest team G.P.A. of any varsity team at Yale. Alex's players have also won several international academic awards including a Fulbright Scholarship and two Rhodes Scholarships.

Three major initiatives were undertaken during Dorato’s tenure that will significantly impact Yale’s men’s and women’s varsity tennis programs for generations to come. The first is the establishment of an annual dinner at the Yale Club in New York City for the Yale Tennis Association (YTA) bringing together former players, current team members, parents, and community supporters in celebration of the historic Yale tennis tradition. Established in 2001 featuring keynote speaker Donald Dell ’60, these dinners fostered a closer community among generations of players from both programs. In fact, the first dinner led directly to financial support for the second major development, the building of the Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center (CHTC). Since its completion in the fall of 2008, the CHTC has brought the Yale tennis programs to regional and national prominence. Considered one of the finest collegiate indoor tennis centers in the country, Yale hosted the 2009 Men’s & Women’s National Indoor Intercollegiate Singles and Doubles Championships, the 2017 Women’s National Indoor Team Championships, and 10 men’s and women’s Regional Championships. The final major initiative of Dorato’s tenure was the Feed the Yale Bulldog Campaign to fully endow both the men’s and women’s varsity tennis programs which was completed in 2022 securing the financial future and growth of both programs in perpetuity.

Dorato was active in the tennis community on a local, regional/sectional, and national level. He chaired the United States Tennis Association New England Collegiate Committee from 2015-19 (a committee he served on since 2004). From 2009-2013 he was a member of the NCAA Men’s & Women’s Championships Committee (chair of the Men’s Sub-Committee in his final year), and from 2004 – 2012 he served on the board of directors of USTA Connecticut.

For his community outreach efforts, Dorato earned the 2011 USTA New England Joseph Deitz Bowl (given to the Tennis Professional who has done the most for tennis in New England), the 2009 and 2010 USTA/ITA Campus & Community Outreach Award/New England Section, and the 2005 U.S.P.T.A. New England Western Pro of the Year.

In 2018, Alex Dorato received Yale’s prestigious Seton Elm-Ivy Award (given to individuals and initiatives that have helped strengthen and expand town-gown ties in New Haven) for his involvement with New HYTEs (2018 National NJTL of the Year), a non-profit organization that provides tennis instruction, educational tutoring, and mentorship to inner-city youths in New Haven. Alex was a co-founder of New HYTEs’s flagship after school program and was a founding board member of New HYTEs. He has served as President of the Board since 2012.

A high school All-American at Albuquerque High School, Dorato went on to play for the University of New Mexico from 1978-1982 after redshirting in 1977-78. Dorato remained in Albuquerque for the next three years, first as the Head Tennis Professional at the Sierra Vista West Tennis Club and then as the junior coordinator at the Tanoan Country Club.

Dorato lives in Branford, CT with Kathleen, his wife of 37 years. They have two children, Jeff & Shannon, and two grandchildren Izzy & Cole.