I went into This week's Tennis session with out optimal preparation and feelin some effects of cold and wrist pain. I got in a little bit early hoping to get some warmup. I did warm up for 10 minutes on elliptical but i would love to hit a little bit. As I looked at the draw there were few cancellations and they readjusted it. Basically i am supposed to play 2 sets against the same opponent (Paul). I didnt like the format for two reasons.
A) If there is a mismatch, it would be unfair for the loser as there is no way he can make up any points.
B) I played this guy before (Nov 5, Opponent #3) and i lost to him 5-2. basically he is a 7 pm level player.
There isnt much i could do about the format.I had my friend (who played in 7 pm league) just finishing up and i went into his court to warm up with him. It didnt last too long as the 0830 players for that court arrived. I moved onto my assigned court and my opponent is already there waiting for me. My friend was watching us play from the comfort of the Visitors lounge.
After a very short warmup, we started the match. I won the toss and chose to recieve. This way i will have less pressure on my serve because even if i lose the first game (which is on opponents serve) it isnt a big deal as we are still On serve. I remembered our previous encounter with this opponent. Basically he has a wicked spin on his first serve. Once the ball hits the ground, Spin kicks off and there isnt a lot to predict.
The match went on serve until 2-2. I had some trouble holding my serve while my opponent was able to hold it much easier than i did. However i observed something that i thought i could use. My friend , watching from visitor lounge also gave some tips. His presence actually helped me and reminded me of sticking to the basics. I also play a little better when someone is watching. This opponent has a wicked spin on his serve no doubt. But it always moves to my right. Basically his serves had a pattern. First serve wide towards my body\forehand. Second serve slow towards my backhand. His ground game isnt that great and i would say i have a slight edge if my game is on. Armed with that pattern, I broke him on game 5 and i went up 3-2. He tried to put pressure on my serve by attacking my second serve. My second serve, though slow, kicks up high, spins occassionally and not easy to hit. However he couldnt match my ground strokes. I am seeing the ball fairly well at this time and controlling well. There were some key points in the next few games. He put pressure on me by coming to the net but i was able to hit some "outstanding" passing shots especially in the game that won me the set 6-2. The topper was an Inside-In forehand winner that blazed past him.
After a very short drink break, we started the second set with my opponent serving again. I quickly raced to a 2-0 lead thanks to some good defense on my part. My opponent was hitting very aggressive shots all across and i am still not sure how i dug myself out. However he held the serve on his next game and broke my serve to make the score 2-2. This is when i decided to make another adjustment and take the first cut on any ground stroke. He made a double fault to start the game and two whipping forehands on his second serve got me break points and i only needed one. Up 3-2, i started serving. I knew this is a key game because 3-3 could mean a lot of things. I varied the pace on my serve. I served slow and allowed him to attack but whenever i got the chance, i hit some big shots. He had a break point on my serve. I went big on that serve and he was expecting a slow one. Deuce. I hit another big serve with lots of kick and i am up 4-2. I promptly broke his serve again to go 5-2 and then served big to go 40-15. One would think that i should have closed the match right then. Wrong. He went all in and hit some scorching forehand winners to go deuce. Because of No ad what it means is i have the match point while he had a break point. I served a slow one purposefully (as a missed first serve would put too much pressure on my second serve) and he kept the ball in play. Longest rally of the match and finally ended with me hitting a very powerful forehand that my opponent couldnt get enough racquet.
Final score 6-2,6-2. Score board doesnt do much justice here as the match was a lot closer than the final score.
After the match, i had a friendly chat with my opponent. He clearly was surprised because he didnt expect me to play the way i did based on our last meeting. He gave some high marks to my serve and forehand. I liked his spin serve and He indicated how he improved his serve with some coaching from one of the coaches at our club. I am seriously considering having a session with that coach to work on my serve and add a SPIN component , get a decent backhand. I will finalize something in the next few days.
Btw today My backhand isnt bad either. I actually figured out a technique and i think i can hit a better backhand now. we will see if this stands test of time.
Some key take aways
1) Neutralize opponents serve (if possible) by searching for some patterns in their game.
2) Hit ground strokes to the middle of the court until you pull the trigger. This forces opponent to do more on his replies and also cuts off some angles.
3) Vary the pace and placement on the serve. This will keep opponents guessing.
4) Go for some winners.
Though result is in my favor, and in general long matches are to my liking, in this system where # of games won matters, it is probably better to play multiple opponents because it can neutralize mis matches. If i am playing outdoors and all that counts is # of sets, i would always play best of 3 set matches without No-ad scoring. But in this ladder , # of games won is the key and it helps to play some weaker opponents.
I had little bit of time left and i started practing some serves. Thats when i realized something. I have some potential in the serve department if i can harness it. I tried some spin serves and was able to get some serious spin, though inconsistently by altering ball toss. As you play higher up, it is very important to not to have any visual cues , especially on serve. So i am definitely inclined to hiring a pro for a session. The importance of serve cannot be stressed enough at any level of play and it is particularly important at recreational levels and even more important for someone like me who cant generate much offense from backhand wing.
I felt good about my performance as i can see my game coming back. I am not sure if this is a good enough result to move me into 7 Pm slot but i am positive i will be probably very close to the top of 0830 Ladder. Depending on how the other results go , i may play my friend next week at 0830.
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