Tuesday 2nd April 2013
It was a very long day today as we arrived on site at just after 7.30am and didn’t get the bus back to the hotel until 8pm. However, good performances from both Georgie and Alex definitely made the day worthwhile.
Even though we had managed to book a practice court for this morning there was still difficulties with the players who had priority for first round matches – I think the referees have finally realised that they need to monitor who are booking the courts rather than just put the practice sheet out for anyone to write on!! Mia, Georgie and Alex had a good practice session from 8-8.30am to warm up for their matches and then Alex managed to stay on for a further 30 minutes to train with one of the other main draw players.
As Georgie was playing third match off site at Summerhayes tennis club we had to wait until the first match was completed before we could get the transport over. When we did get there at around 11.30am the second round match was at 2-1 in the first set but it wasn’t long before 6th seed Caroline Turner took a 6-4, 4-1 lead. As the match was looking like it was coming to an end, Georgie went through her pre-match warm up and we spoke about her tactics and goals for the match. All of this was a little premature though as Jenna Friedel started her comeback after being 5-1 down in the second set. After levelling the match 6-4, 5-7 Jenna eventually went on to take the third set 6-1 and Georgie finally went on at around 2.15pm.
Georgie was playing number 2 seed Mira Ruder-Hook from America today and even though there was a difference of over 300 ranking places between them, it was not obvious on the court. After a slow and uneasy start Georgie broke the tall American at 0-2* to get the set back on serve but then struggled in her own service game at *2-3 and was broken. Unlike at the National Tennis Centre the wind at Summerhayes was blowing directly down the court which made it difficult from both ends. Because of this Georgie found it difficult to find the balance between playing aggressive tennis and maintaining consistency but at *2-5 down she started to find an excellent level. She held serve well and if it wasn’t for Mira’s accuracy of serving in the next game I think Georgie would have got the break back. Unfortunately she didn’t and Mira went on to take the first set 6-3.
Georgie continued to improve her level in the second set and from the start she had definitely found a better aggressive balance in her game. After being broken at *2-2 Georgie broke back at 3-4* but then was broken straight back which allowed Mira to serve for the match at 4-5*. The next game was definitely one of Georgie’s best as she reeled off 5 winners including 2 off Mira’s serve while only making 2 unforced errors to level the set again at *5-5. Unfortunately by this stage Georgie was finding it easier to dictate points when returning rather than when she was serving and after Georgie was broken in the next game Mira went on to take the match 6-3, 7-5.
It was a close match throughout and Georgie definitely had the game to beat her higher ranked opponent (Georgie’s stats in both sets were actually better than her opponent’s!) but a few lose games at the end of both sets cost her. There were still loads of positives to take from the match though and it’s a match we can definitely build on for next week in Guadeloupe.
We arrived back at the National Tennis Centre at 5.15pm to find that Alex (who was scheduled for 4th match after 9am) had just started his doubles match. Alex and Christian took a 2-0 lead in the first set before their opponents got a game back. They then went on to take the first set convincingly 6-2 with some very confident play both from the back of the court and at the net.
The second set was much closer and the local support really seemed to motivate the Barbados players. The set went with serve until *3-4 despite Alex and Christian having a couple of sudden death deuce points on their opponent’s service games. Alex was then broken in the next game and the pair from Barbados held serve to win the set 6-3 much to the delight of their supporters!
As I’ve said before match tie-breaks can often be a bit of a lottery as a few cheap points can result in the match being over very quickly. At *0-3 down Alex and Christian looked a little shell shocked but they fought back well to level the tie-break at 3-3 and then looked in complete control as they went on to take the match 6-2, 3-6, 10-5. Both players were disappointed and felt as though they should have played better but they got the win and now have a chance to improve in the next match tomorrow.
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Night matches at the National Tennis Centre!
Following Alex’s doubles match we were told that we would have to wait to see if Georgie and Mia would go on before the cut-off time of 9pm. We were all a little surprised by this as Alex’s match was the 4th round and Georgie and Mia’s was scheduled for 8th round on the same court!! Fortunately the referee saw sense at just before 8pm and cancelled the remaining doubles matches for the day.
We got back to the hotel at just after 8.15pm and after a quick shower and change we walked down the road to the Barbados Beach Hotel for dinner. It was then straight back to the hotel to get an early night after a long and tiring day.
Schedule for tomorrow:
Simon D’Alfonso (USA) & Jorge Vargas (COL) vs Alex Hagon (GBR) & Christian Haushammer (USA) – 5th match after 9am (not before 1pm)
Abigail Altick (USA) & Jenna Friedel (USA) vs Georgie Axon (GBR) & Mia Smith (GBR) – 6th match after 9am (not before 2pm)
Winner of Georgie & Mia’s match to play again after rest.
