End of 2018 Recap

To finish the year I played 3 $15K Futures in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The tournaments were held at the national tennis center and they had 10 newly resurfaced courts. It was hot during those few weeks with highs in the mid-80s and humidity around 80%. The court speed was fairly slow as the courts were new, although they were high-bouncing.

I played my first singles match Sergio Ramirez from Columbia. He was ranked #1050 and was a consistent baseliner. He had solid groundstrokes and moved well. I broke him in the 1^st game of the match after playing a few good points and hitting some solid returns. In the next game at 30-15 my opponent came to the net and I hit a backhand passing shot down-the-line and he tweaked his knee reaching for the volley. He took a medical timeout at 2-0. I broke him in the next game to go up 3-0. He had to retire as he had difficulty moving. It was strange situation as you don’t want to win a match like that.

In doubles I partnered up with Dusty Boyer (USA) who played college tennis at Nebraska. In the first round we played the team of Mohanty/Mohanty. We broke at 3-all to get the first break of the match after my partner and I returned well in that game. We held to go up 5-3 in the 1^st set. They held and then broke us on the No-Ad point to even it at 5-all. We broke right back to go up 6-5 and then closed out the first set 7-5. In the 2^nd set we weren’t serving well and were making a low percentage of 1^st serves. We got broken to go down 1-3. We broke back at 2-4 to cut their lead to 3-4. However we got broken again which made it 3-5. Our opponents held on the No-Ad point to take the 2^nd set 6-3. In the 10-point tiebreak it remained close throughout. The first four points went to the server. At 2-all we hit a good return to go up 3-2. We switched ends with a 4-2 lead. They raised their level and came up with a few good shots to make it 4-all. Both teams won their next service points and the tiebreak was tied at 6-all. At 6-7, they hit a great return to go up 8-6. We then cut their lead to 8-7. However, they won the last two points on their serve to take the match 7-5, 3-6, 7-10. This was not a great match from my partner and I as we both played poorly. It didn't help that it was our first time playing together.

In my next singles match I played the #1 seed, Baptiste Crepatte from France. He was ranked #280 and was the highest ranked player that I’ve played against. He has a great serve and hits his spots very well. He also has good groundstrokes and can defend well while mixing in some offense. I got broken at 2-3 in the 1^st set after making two unforced errors and my opponent hit a few good shots. He held to take a 5-2 lead. I held in the next game before he served out the first set 6-3. I only had two break points on his serve and I wasn’t able to get into his service games. In the second set he played a good game to break me at 2-3 to take a 4-2 lead. He held for 5-3. I came back from 0-30 down in my next service game to get a big hold for 4-5. I then played the best game of the match as I hit three winners and finished two points at the net. I played very aggressive to break him for the first time to even it at 5-all. I hit two aces in my next service game to take a 6-5 lead. My opponent then responded with a hold to send it to a tiebreak. I jumped out to an early mini break lead at 2-1. However, he hit a backhand passing shot winner at 3-2 to get it back on serve. The next few points were won fairly easily by the server as we were both serving well. I was up 5-4 in the tiebreak and my opponent hit a forehand winner to make it 5-all. He then hit an unreturnable serve to go up 6-5. I responded with an ace to save his first match point and even the tiebreak at 6-all. On the next point we played a long point and I just missed a forehand wide to give him a 7-6 lead. He hit a service winner on match point to take the match 6-3, 7-6(6). I thought I played a pretty decent match, but he played the big points a little better. He also served very well which was the difference in the match.

In the 2^nd tournament in the Dominican I played the #2 seed, Oscar Gutierrez (Brazil). He was ranked #386 and plays solid tennis from the baseline and likes to attack with his forehand. He has a pretty good 1^st serve but his 2^nd serve is attackable. In the 1^st set we both broke each other a few times as we were both were returning well. I also wasn’t making a high enough percentage of 1^st serves. At 4-all, I broke him again and would serve for the 1^st set. I hit a few good serves and closed out the first set 6-4. To start the 2^nd set I saved a few break points in my first two service games. My opponent also started to serve better and hit his spots better. He broke me at 2-3 to go up a break 4-2. I had a few break points at 3-5 but my opponent closed out the 2^nd set 6-3. In the 3^rd set I raised my level and started to serve the best I had all match. I saved two break points at 2-all and got a big hold. Both of us had a few break points on each other’s serve but no one was able to convert. We both continued to hold serve. I had two match points on my opponent’s serve at 4-5 with him serving at 15-40. He came up clutch and hit a winner and played a good point on the other point. At 5-all I fought off 3 break points on my serve by finishing some points at the net. I went on to hold to take a 6-5 lead. I then played a few solid points and went up 15-40 on his serve again. He saved the 1^st one and then on the next one I played a good point before he missed a backhand. This was solid win for me to take the match 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 and was the highest ranked player that I’ve beaten.

In the 1^st round of doubles my partner and I faced off against Butsch and Richmond. This was a solid team as they both are good doubles players. One of them played college tennis at Virginia and the other played at LSU. We got broken in our first service game and were down 0-3 right away. It wasn’t the best start from us but we responded and broke back and then held on the No-Ad point to make it 3-all. At 4-4 my partner and I played a good return game to go up 5-4. We served out the 1^st set in the next game to take it 6-4. We continued our momentum in the 2^nd set by breaking early after continuing to return well. We held for 2-0. Both teams held their next few service games which made it 4-3. We saved two break points in this game to get a big hold and go up 4-3. We broke at 30-40 in the next game after my partner hit a return winner on match point. We took a good 6-4, 6-3 win as we played a lot better than last week. We returned better and also took care of our serves.

In the Round of 16 in singles I faced off against Jorge Panta (Peru). He was ranked #850 and has a career high ranked of #512 in 2015. He was a solid baseliner who liked to rip his forehand from the middle of the court and also had a good backhand-down-the-line. The first set started out with a few holds as both players were serving well. At 3-all, I had two break points on his serve but he saved both of them. Those were the only break points in the whole first set. At 5-all, we both held our next service game to send us to a tiebreak. I started off strong and playing aggressive. I went up a mini-break 3-1. We changed ends and I was leading 4-2. I hit a few good 1^st serves to go up 6-3. Then I closed it out with a solid approach shot to take the first set 7-6(3). There were no breaks of serve in the 1^st set. I got broken in the first game of the 2^nd set after hitting two double faults. Ironically there were four straight breaks of serve to start the 2^nd set. We both started to return a little better and weren’t serving as well. My opponent broke me at 3-4 to take a 5-3 lead in the 2^nd set. I played a solid game to break back and get it back on serve. I got a good hold to take a 6-5 lead. My opponent held to send it to a 2^nd set tiebreak. It remained close as both of us were winning our service points. I took a 4-3 lead in the tiebreak. He then won both of his service points with a few good points to go up 5-4. I hit a big serve to make it 5-all. Then my opponent hit a forehand winner to go up 6-5. I responded with a solid return to even it at 6-all. He then won the next two points to take the 2^nd set 7-6(6). In the 3^rd set I got broken in my first service game which put me in an early 3-0 hole. My opponent raised his level and was playing very well from the baseline. I got broken again to go down 0-4. I had two break points in the next game but couldn’t convert. At 0-5, I got a hold to make it 1-5. Then played a solid return game to make it 2-5. I held for 3-5 but my opponent served out the match in the next game to take it 6-7(3), 7-6(6), 6-3. This was a tough match to lose as I was very close to winning. I thought I played a solid match but I need to focus when serving to open sets as I got down early in the 2^nd and 3^rd sets.

In the quarterfinals of doubles, my partner and I played Jorge Montero and Alejandro Tabilo. They are both from Chile and have been ranked in the top 450 in doubles. This was a lefty/righty team with one fo them more comfortable at the net and his partner setting him up from the baseline. We didn’t get a good start in the match as we got broken in our first service game. We found ourselves in a 0-3 hole. We had two break points in the next game but they saved them with good serves. At 1-4, my partner and I got broken on the No-Ad point. They served out the 1^st set in the next game and took it 6-1. We held for 1-0 to start the 2^nd set. Our opponents continued to serve well and made a high percentage of 1^st serves. We took a 3-2 lead in the 2^nd set after saving a break point. At 4-all, we got broken on the No-Ad point after they hit a return winner down the line. They served out the match in the next game at 40-30 and won 6-1, 6-4. Credit to our opponents for playing a good match, although my partner and I could have served better. We also were unable to break them and were 0 for 5 on break points. For making the 2^nd round of singles and the quarterfinals of doubles, I earned $354 for the 2^nd tournament in the Dominican Republic.

In the 3^rd week, I teamed up with JP Fruttero who is ranked #270 ATP and has been in the top #100 in doubles. We played our first match against the Colombian team of Gomez/Urrea. They were both clay court guys who are solid from the baseline but not as comfortable as net. We were trying to take over the net and be aggressive. Both teams held their first few service games. We had a couple break points early but we weren’t able to convert. At 3-all, we broke them to get the first break of the match. We got a solid hold and consolidated the break to take a 5-3 lead. We closed out the first set 6-4 with only break. We served well and were winning a high percentage of our first serve points. In the 2^nd set, both teams were holding their service games and the returners weren’t getting many looks. We had one break point at 3-all in the 2^nd set but they saved it with a good serve. At 4-5, we saved one break point to get a big hold and make it 5-all. We then broke them at 30-40 in the next game to go up 6-5. We served out the match at 40-15 and took a solid 6-4, 7-5 victory. I thought we served pretty well, but we could have returned a little bit better. Still great to advance to the quarterfinals again.

In singles I faced off against Baker Newman, who played college tennis at Florida. He now represents the Bahamas and is ranked #1370. He is a retriever who defends well and moves well although he lacks big firepower. I got off to a good start by breaking him at 1-all by returning well and attacking the 2^nd serve return. I held for a 3-1 lead. He held his next service game to cut it to 3-2. I saved one break point in the next game before getting a good hold to go up 4-2. I then broke him again by playing solid tennis to take a 5-2 lead. I played a poor service game and I ended up getting broken at love. He then won his next service game which made it 5-4. I was down 15-40 in my next service game and saved those two break points. There was a long game on my serve before I ended up getting broken after he hit a passing shot winner. We both held our next two service games to send it to a 1^st set tiebreak. I made a few unforced errors in the first couple points and found myself in a 1-4 hole. He won the next point and we changed ends with my opponent leading 5-1. My opponent won his next service point to take a 6-1 lead. I won my two service points to cut it to 3-6 but he hit a good forehand to take the first set 7-6(3). I was up 30-0 in my first service game of the 2^nd set but ended up getting broken. I had two break points in his service game but he saved them both and held for 2-0. I got broken again after some poor serving and solid returning from my opponent. He went on to hold for 4-0. I got broken again and then my opponent closed out the match 7-6(3), 6-0. This wasn’t my best tennis as I struggled with my serve and also made a lot of unforced errors.

In the quarterfinals of doubles we played the American team of Butsch/Richmond. This is another lefty/righty team that plays solid doubles and volleys well. At 0-1, my partner and I came back from 0-40 down in our first service game to get a big hold. Most of the games were fairly easy holds as both teams were serving well. At 4-all, we had two break points but they managed to save both of them. We both held our next few service games to send it to a 1^st set tiebreak. It remained tight throughout as it was tied at 3-all. We then went up a mini-break 4-3 after winning a tough point. We won our first service point to go up 5-3. Then they hit a good return to make it 5-4. Our opponents hit two good serves to go up 6-5. Then we lost a weird point and ended up losing a close first set 6-7(5). We got broken in the first game of the 2^nd set after they hit a few good returns. They maintained their break lead and held to go up 3-1. Both teams got a hold to make it 2-4. We then saved two break points to make it 3-4. We followed it up with a good return game to break back for 4-all. Both teams held their next two service games to send it to another tiebreak. We got an early mini-break after hitting a solid return to go up 3-1. They won the next point to make it 3-2. We then held both of our service points to go up 5-2. We split the two points on their serve to take a 6-3 lead. We closed out the 2^nd set 7-6(3). The first few points went to serve. At 2-3, they hit a big 2^nd serve return to take a 4-2 lead. We won the next point to make it 3-4. They won their two service points to take a 6-3 lead. My partner and I hit two good serves to cut the lead to 5-6. They made a high percentage of 1^st serves in the 10-pointer and went up 8-5. We split the points on our serve which gave them a 9-6 lead. They hit a solid serve to take the match 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 10-6. Obviously a difficult match to lose as it was only a few points difference. But they played the big points a little bit better and that was the difference.

2018 Recap:

That concluded my 2018 season. I finished the year ranked #800 in singles and #480 in doubles. This was a big improvement as I started the year ranked #1701 in singles and #1555 in doubles.

I was very happy with the progress that I made and felt that I improved a lot in the last 12 months. Obviously it’s nice to have the rankings to show for but the biggest thing is just to constantly get better and the results will take care of themselves. I played 25 Futures tournaments in 7 different countries. I made 6 Futures doubles finals with 4 different partners. Of those 6, I won my first two professional doubles titles as I won the $25K Iowa City and $15K Kuwait Futures. I also made my first singles final in $15K Kuwait and the semifinals of the $25K Champaign Futures. In my 2^nd to last tournament of the year I defeated the first top 400 player of my career in singles.

I have learned a ton about what it takes to be a professional day in and day out. It’s not for everyone as it takes a special person to not get discouraged by the losses. I lost 38 matches on the year. I went 35-22 in singles and I went 31-16 in doubles on the year. One of the hardest things is when you lose early one week and you have 5 or 6 days before you play again. Everyone else is still in the tournament and you are just there practicing and trying to get a little better for the next match. It’s not easy because all you are thinking about that last loss and you can’t go out there and redeem yourself right away.

I have been fortunate to have met a lot of players who have been out there for awhile and I have learned from them and gotten tips on what has worked for them. I think the biggest thing is having a purpose every-time you step on the court, even if you are just warming up for a match. Some players don’t even treat it as a warmup, they treat is as a 30 minute practice and are trying to get better during that time.  And after many weeks if you continue to work on specific details then you will be catching up. It’s a different mindset because many players will just go out there and mindlessly hit balls, a few cross-courts and volleys and serves. But everyone out there can hit a forehand and a backhand. But very few players are working on specific things that will help their game. The margins are small so if you can get  1% better at putting away a mid-court ball or hitting a forehand angle you will see significant improvement. And if you do that everyday for a month or two then you will see progress.

There are no quick fixes and you won’t magically develop a skill overnight. It takes time and getting in the reps everyday. A common mistake is trying to work on too many things at one time instead of focusing on 1 or 2 things. If you try to work on too many things then you won’t see progress and won’t think you are getting better. But if you do those 1 or 2 things every single day and track them from day to day, then after a few weeks you realize how much you have improved that shot.

It’s also so important to surround yourself with the right people and those that want to improve and get better. If you are the average of the 5 people that you spend the most time around then you better be practicing and staying with people who are motivated and positive. If you spend too much time around players that are negative and making excuses then you will find yourself doing that subconsciously. All those things matter and they add up over a year.  

Upcoming Schedule

February 4 – February 10 – Claremont, California $15K Futures

February 11 – February 17 – Tucson, Arizona $15K Futures

“If you consciously measure the outcome of an action then it will matter more, “What gets measured gets managed.” -Kyle Eschenroeder