Update: Australia and SoCal Futures
After a few more weeks of training my next trip was to
Australia to play two $25K Futures. They were held in smaller towns a few hours
North of Melbourne. These tournaments were unique as they were played on grass.
There are only a few tournaments that are played on grass throughout the year
with most of them being held in England in the weeks leading up to Wimbledon. This was a
new surface for me as I had never competed on it before. Grass is a lot
different as the ball stays very low and the courts play fast. I flew into
Melbourne and then took a 4 hour train ride to the first tournament. It was held in
Albury, Australia at an amazing club that had 26 grass courts. I arrived four
days early so I could practice and get used to the grass. The courts were very
soft as you couldn’t even bounce the ball before you serve. You had to almost throw the ball at that ground for it to bounce up normally. It was difficult to play from
the baseline as most of the points were only a few shots.
My first match was in doubles when we faced off against the
Australian team of Michael Look (UCLA) and
Matthew Romios. I played with Nick Chappell who is a lefty who played college
tennis at TCU. In the 1st set I was serving at 1-2 and we had to
save three break points to get a solid hold. It was not easy to get many looks
on the return with our opponents making a high percentage of 1st
serves. They got an easy hold to go up 4-3. We started to find a good rhythm in
our service games and held to make it 4-all. Both teams held again to even it at 5-all. They held for 6-5. Then there was a No-Ad point on our serve but we
saved it with a good 1st serve. We would play a tiebreak to decide
the 1st set. Both teams held their first few service points. Our
opponents went up a mini-break 4-2 after they hit a great return off a good 1st serve from us.
We held our next service point to make it 3-4. I then hit a good return but
they hit a tough half volley to go up 5-3. They followed that up with an
unreturnable serve. We lost a tight first set 6-7(3). At 1-all in the 2nd
set we came back from 15-40 down to get a big hold to go up 2-1. They continued
to serve well and held for 2-all. At 3-all, they broke us on a weird point on
the No-Ad point to go up 4-3. They held for 5-3. We got a hold to make it
4-5. My partner and I had our best look of the match as we went up 0-30 on their serve. Unfortunately
they hit a few good 1st serves and closed out the match. We lost 6-7(3),
4-6 in a match that only had one break of serve. But they served very well and
made 79% of their 1st serves which made it difficult for us to
break.
In my 1st round of singles I played the #3 seed
from India, Arjun Kadhe. He played college tennis at Oklahoma State and is
ranked #380. He is an aggressive player who likes to rip his forehand and he is
pretty good at everything. I started off the match serving and got a hold right
away. He followed it up by holding with a few service winners. I was playing a
lot of serve and volley on the grass and looking to go to the net as much as I could.
Both of us got a few more holds which made it 3-all in the 1st set. He
then hit a few good returns and hit a passing shot winner to break me to go up
4-3. He held for 5-3. I then held to force him to serve out the set. It was the
first time I managed to get the game to Deuce but I was unable to break him as
he took the 1st set 6-4. I wasn’t able to get enough quality hits on
1st serve returns. At 1-all in the 2nd set he played a good
game to break me. He consolidated the break to go up 3-1. I held to cut his
lead to 3-2. He continued to serve well and make a high percentage of 1st
serves as he held for 4-2. I then got down 0-40 on my serve before bringing it
back to Deuce. However, I still ended up getting broken as he took the game to
go up 5-2. I finally had my first break points of the match in the last game. I
had two break points but he saved both of them with good serves. He ended up holding
and I lost the match 4-6, 2-6. I thought I played an ok match, I needed to
serve a little better in a few games. It was tough to return well with
the way that he was serving.
The 2nd tournament was held in Mildura, Australia.
It was again held at a neat club with very well-maintained grass courts. These
courts were a lot different than the first tournament. They bounced a lot higher
and almost played like a really fast indoor hardcourt. You could play from the baseline
more than you could in the 1st tournament. In the first round of
singles, I played a Japanese player, Ryota Tanuma, who has a ranking of #518. He
was an aggressive baseliner who hit the ball fairly flat and had a good
forehand from the middle of the court. He returned well, although he didn’t
have the biggest serve. At 1-all in the 1st set he broke me after I
was up 40-love on my serve. He hit a forehand winner to break me. He then held
for 3-1 in the 1st set. I then got broken for a 2nd time
after I didn’t make a high percentage of 1st serves. He was hitting
the ball well and stretched his lead to take a 5-1 lead. I got one hold to make
the score 2-5. I had two break points in his next service game but he saved
both of them and then closed out the first set 6-2. I knew I needed to play
more aggressive because when he had time he was really good. So I started to play
more offensively early in the point and commit fully to attacking the 2nd
serve return. I got a good start to the 2nd set with a solid hold. I
then broke him for the 1st time in the match by hitting flatter and
more through the court especially on my backhand. I saved one break point in my
next service game before holding for 3-0. He held to make it 3-1. I started to
serve a little bit better and took a 4-1 lead. I broke him again in the next game
after hitting a few big 2nd serve returns. I served out the 2nd
set in the next game to take it 6-1. My opponent responded with a good return game to
break me to start the 3rd set. But I bounced right back with a break
of my own to even it at 1-all. Both of us held our next service games. At
2-all, I held for 3-2 after hitting some well-placed 1st serves. I
continued to return well and broke him at 30-40 in the next game to take a 4-2
lead. I was down 0-40 and saved the first two break points. I then serve and
volleyed with a good serve but hesitated on an easy volley that was probably
going out. So I got broken to put the set back on serve. He held for 4-all in
the next game. Both of us held our next service game to make it 5-all. I saved
one break point on my serve before getting a big hold to go up 6-5. I was up
0-30 on his serve before he came up with a few clutch points to hold for 6-all.
A deciding 3rd set tiebreak would decide the match. I went up an
early mini-break 2-1 after hitting a good approach shot. I then split the two points on my
serve after he hit a good return. At 3-2, he hit a backhand winner to even it
at 3-all as we switched sides. I went up a mini-break 4-3. I hit a good first
serve to take a 5-3 lead. Then he won a long point on my serve to make it 5-4. I
forced an error on the next point after hitting a solid forehand down the line.
I was up 6-4 with my opponent serving. He missed his 1st serve and
then I ripped an inside-out backhand return winner to take the victory 2-6,
6-1, 7-6(4)! It was a good comeback after my opponent played very well in the 1st
set.
In the first round of doubles my partner and I played the
Aussie team of Green/Hijatka. They both returned pretty well and had solid
volleys. At 0-1, we saved two break points on our serve before holding for
1-all. Both teams were holding fairly comfortably and making a high percentage
of 1st serves. At 3-all, on the No-Ad point I hit a good return and
my partner made a move at the net to give us the first break of the match. We held
our next service game to take a 5-3 lead. They then responded with a hold to
make it 5-4. I was serving for the set and we lead 40-15 on my serve but they
won the next two points which made it Deuce. On the No-Ad point I hit a good
first serve up the T and my partner put the volley away. We took the first set
6-4. They held to open the 2nd set. We held at love after starting
to get in a good rhythm on our serves. They held to take a 2-1 lead. We then
faced 2 more break points on our serve but saved them with some clutch serves. Both
teams held their next service game to make it 3-all. We had two break points on
their serve and they saved the first one with a good serve. But my partner hit
a great return down the line to give us the break. At 4-3, we got a solid hold
to take a 5-3 lead. Our opponents held to make it 5-4. We then served out the
match at 40-30 to take a well-played 6-4, 6-4 match. There were only two breaks
in the match and my partner and I played the big points a little better than
them.
In the 2nd round of singles, I again faced off
against Arjun Kadhe, the #3 seed. This was the same player that I lost to last week. I knew what to expect after just playing him. I had one
break point in his first service game but he saved it with a solid point. He
held for 1-0. I then played a long 10 Deuce game on my serve where I saved
multiple break points. Unfortunately I ended up getting broken after he hit a
forehand winner. He followed the break up with a hold and I was down 0-3. He
then played a really good return game and broke me again. He held for 5-0.
He came out playing at a very high level so I just tried to weather the storm.
I got one hold to get on the board to try and get some momentum for the 2nd
set. At 5-1, he continued to serve well and closed out the first set 6-1. This
set was a fresh start and I just wanted to take care of my service games. I got
a good hold to start the 2nd set to go up 1-0. Both of us held our
next few service games which made it 2-2. Then I faced two break points but I
saved them with a good 1st serve and I finished a point at the net.
I ended up holding for 3-2. He was still serving well and I wasn’t getting many
looks on his serve. I held to go up 4-3. We both held our next service games
fairly comfortably. At 5-all I again was forced to save two break points before
holding. I then played the best return game of the match. I hit a backhand
winner and a good return. At 15-40, he was serving and he hit a good approach shot but I hit a running forehand crosscourt passing shot to take the 2nd
set 7-5. However, I got broken right away in the 3rd set after he
played some smart tennis and returned well. He then held for 2-0. I got on the
board for 1-2, but he held his service game to go up 3-1. I held for 2-3 with some good
serving. I had one break point on his serve but he saved it with an ace. He
then held for 4-2. There was another long game on my serve with him eventually
breaking me again. He then served out the match in the next game to take the victory
6-1, 5-7, 6-2. I thought I played a pretty good match as I served well in the 2nd
set. But I needed to serve at a higher percentage in the 3rd set and
also return better as I only broke one time.
In the quarterfinals of doubles, we played the #1 seeded
team of Klein/Puodziunas. They are a good team and have a lot of doubles skills
as both have been ranked in the top 250 in doubles. They held to start the
match. Then we got broken on the No-Ad point after one of them hit a great
return off a good 1st serve. At 0-3, we held to make it 1-3. They
were serving well to start the match and got another hold to go up 4-1. We were
up 40-30 in the next game until they came back and broke us again on the No-Ad
point. At 1-5, we had two break points on their serve but we were unable to
convert. We lost the first set 6-1 and we were 0/3 on No-Ad points. We held to open
the 2nd set to go up 1-0. The held to make it 1-all. We then saved
two break points in the next game before getting a big hold to go up 2-1. Both
teams held their next service game. At 3-2, we broke them at 15-40 after my
partner hit a lob winner to give us our first break of the match. We
consolidated the break to go up 5-2. We then were up 0-30 on their serve in the
next game until they won the next four points to make it 5-3. I was serving up
30-15 in that game when we lost a weird point where they made an incredible get
after we thought we won the point. We ended up getting broken on the No-Ad
point so they got it back on serve after they hit a solid return. Both teams
held their next service game to make it 6-5. We then had one more break
point/set point but they saved it with an unreturnable serve. We went up an
early mini break 2-1 after my partner hit a great volley where he crossed. We split
the two points on our serve which gave us a 3-2 lead. They won both of their
service points which put us down 3-4. I hit two good first serves here to give
us a 5-4 lead. We got the mini-break after both teams hit a few volleys before
we finally put it away. They hit a good 1st serve to make it 6-5. With
us serving, they hit a good 2nd serve return and the returner’s partner
crossed to even it at 6-all. We took a 7-6 lead after a good serve from my
partner. Our opponents saved another set point with a good body serve. They hit
another good serve to take a 8-7 lead. We then lost 1-6, 6-7(7) after our
volley just missed wide. We had a lot of chances in the 2nd set but
they game up with pressure points.
After returning home from Australia, I had a quick
turnaround with the next tournament in Southern California starting two days
later. This was a 15K Future that was held in Arcadia, California. In doubles I
played with Alexander Cozbinov who played college tennis at UNLV. We played
against the team of Bellier (SUI)/Botezan (ROU). Our opponents were a
lefty/righty team with one of being better at the net and the other more
comfortable from the baseline. At 2-all, we got broken on the No-Ad point after
they hit a good return. At 3-4, we broke them back after we converted the break
point at 30-40. Both teams held their next service game. At 5-all, we got a big
hold after my partner hit a good 1st serve on the No-Ad point. At
6-5, we went up 0-30 on their serve after two good returns. They won the next
two points to bring it to 30-all before we won the following two points to take
the 1st set 7-5. In the second set, they broke us at 1-all after they
played a good return game. They were serving well and making a high percentage
of 1st serves while consolidating the break for 3-1. We didn’t get
any chances until 3-4 when we had one break point. We weren’t able to convert
as they held for 5-3. We held to make it 4-5, but they closed out the 2nd
set with some strong serving to take it 6-4. The 10-point tiebreak was close to
start out. Both teams held their service points to make it 2-all. We got the
first mini break to go up 3-2. However, they hit a good return to make it 3-all.
We went up 4-3 and then they held both of their service points to take a 5-4
lead. We hit two quality 1st serves to take a 6-5 lead. My partner
and I won a tough point to go up a mini-break 7-5. They held their service
point to make it 7-6. My partner won both of the points on his serve to put us
up 9-6. They cut the lead to 9-7. Then we closed out the match on a big return
to take it 7-5, 4-6, 10-7. It was our first time playing together and we pulled
out a close match.
In singles I drew my doubles partner, Alexander Cozbinov, in
the first round. He is a good player who has solid groundstrokes and a big
serve. He does everything pretty well as he can return at a high level too. Both
of us got a hold to start the match. At 1-2, he broke me to take a 3-1 lead in
the 1st set. He consolidated the break to go up 4-1. I then held to
make it 2-4. I followed up my hold with a good return game by playing
aggressive and attacking the 2nd serve return. At 3-4, I didn’t make
enough 1st serves and got broken to go down 3-5. He served out the 1st
set after a long Deuce game on his serve to take it 6-3. Unfortunately I got broke
right away in the 2nd set after my opponent continued to play good
tennis. He held for 2-0. I then saved two break points before holding to make
it 1-2. He consolidated the break and then broke me again to go up a double
break 4-1. At this point I just tried to compete and hang in there. I played tough
and got one break back to make it 2-4. I then got a big hold to make it 3-4. He
held to take a 5-3 lead. I saved one match point before holding to make it 4-5.
I saved two more match points in the next game before breaking him to even the
set at 5-all. I was down 0-40 in my next service game before winning the next 4
points. However I couldn’t capitalize and I eventually got broken and lost my
momentum. He closed out the match in the next game by holding to take the
victory as I lost 3-6, 5-7. I thought I did well to come back in the 2nd
set but it was a little too late. Credit to my opponent for playing a good
match and earning the victory.
In the quarterfinals of doubles we faced off against the team
of Freund (UC Santa Barbara)/Friberg. The Swedish duo was good doubles team who
had good hands at net and also returned well. They broke us in the first game of
the match to go up an early break. With us down 0-2, we lost a No-Ad game on my
serve after they hit a solid return. We had two break points in the next game
but were unable to convert. We got broken again on another No-Ad point. And to lose
the first set we lost a 4th No-Ad point to go down 0-6. Our
opponents came out playing at a high level and we lost all the big points. We
got a hold to start the 2nd set and get on the board. At 2-1, we
broke them to go up an early break in the 2nd. Unfortunately we got
broken right back. They held to even it at 3-all. Both teams held their next
service game. They played a solid game to break us to go up 5-4 and serve for
the match. We came up with some clutch points to break them and even it at
5-all. Both teams held to send it to a 2nd set tiebreak. We got down
an early mini-break 1-3. My partner and I held our service point to make it
2-3. Then our opponents won both of their service points. At 2-5 we hit two
good 1st serves to bring it to 4-5. They went up 6-4 and had two
match points. We saved the first with a good return and then saved the 2nd
with a unreturnable 1st serve. At 6-all we changed ends. We then
with 7-6. They evened it at 7-all. My partner hit a great return to put us up
8-7. Then we closed out the 2nd set breaker 9-7. We got off to a
poor start in the 10-point tiebreak as we fell behind 1-4. We switched sides
with them up 5-1. We won the next two points to bring it to 3-5. Then they won the
next two which made it 3-7. We cut their lead to 5-7. They were serving well in
the tiebreak and went up 9-5. We saved the next one with a good 1st
serve. We then both points returning to make it 8-9 before we lost. I thought
we competed well to comeback after a flat start. So we lost 0-6, 7-6(7), 8-10 in the quarterfinals in sort of a strange match.
My next tournament was a $25K Future held in Calabasas,
California. This was as tough tournament with a lot of good players. I didn’t
get into doubles as my partner and I were the 1st alternate. In singles
I was in the Qualifying and played Govind Nanda who is playing college tennis at
UCLA. He is a good player who can defend at a high level while also having an
all-court game and can finish points at the net. I had two break point in his
first service game of the match but I was unable to convert. Both of us held
our first two service games of the match. At 2-all, I played a good return game
to break him to go up a break 3-2. However, I couldn’t consolidate and got
broken right back. We each held our next service game which made it 4-all. I had
one break point in the next game but he saved it with a well-placed serve. At
4-5, I ended up getting broken after he played some solid tennis. I didn’t
serve quite as well towards the end of the 1st set. I got off to a good
start in the 2nd set where I went up an early break 2-0. However, he
raised his level and broke me back to make it 2-all. Both of us held our next
few service games which made it 4-all. He held in a long Deuce game on his
serve where I had a few chances. At 4-5, I made three unforced errors to lose
the match. This was disappointing as I was up a break in both sets but couldn’t
sustain my momentum.
Upcoming Tournament Schedule:
April 16-21 - Yonex Cup - Torrance, California $6K Prize Money
April 23-28 - Ojai, California $30k Prize Money Open
"If you have the same priorities and goals you had last year, then you didn't learn very much in the past 12 months." -Benjamin Hardy
Comments
Post a Comment