Monday 28th November 2011
2 wins out of 3 today in the main draw but it was the loss that really hurt as Jack struggled against his nemesis from last week.
For all three players it was an early start today with breakfast at 6.40am before we were on court warming up at 7.40am. Everyone’s matches were scheduled after 11.30am but if we wanted to hit on the match courts then we had to do it before the courts were closed for matches at 8.30am. The warm ups were good and everyone was feeling confident going into their 1st round matches.
After practice Jack felt as though he needed a good meal inside him to boost his energy so we walked the short distance down the road to “La Fantasia” Italian restaurant where he got a big bowl of Spaghetti Bolognaise (not sure I could have handled that at 9.30am but it did smell good!).
When we came back we had some time to prepare before Julia took to the court at 12.30pm to take on Megdalene Mutua from Kenya. We knew this was going to be a straightforward match as Julia and Mia had played against her in doubles last week but Julia was still a little nervous as she really wanted some singles points on the board! After taking the first game (1st goal achieved – Julia said she never wins the first game in matches!) the rain came down heavily and play had to be abandoned. This lasted around an hour and a half and play resumed just after 2.30pm when Jack also took to the court to face the boy he lost to last week in three tight sets.
Jack and Julia were on courts almost directly behind each other so it made it a little easier to keep track of the scores. After Julia took a very comfortable 1st set 6-0 I knew she wasn’t going to be troubled so I then spent the majority of the time watching Jack.
After taking a 3-1 lead in the first set and looking in complete control Jack just let his concentration slip a little which allowed his opponent a foot in the door as he broke back – 3-2*. Jack then lost the next 2 games but managed to get the set back on serve with another break of his own as he levelled it at *4-4. By this stage his opponent was soaking up Jacks pace and not really giving him much back that he could attack which lead to Jack making a lot of unforced errors. Jack was then broken again at 5-5 and Andriatokiana held to take the first set 7-5.
By list stage Julia had won her match 6-0, 6-0 and she came straight over to cheer Jack on while Mia went onto Julia’s court for her first round match. Jack again had a good start to the next set going 2-0 up but again struggled with his serve allowing the Madagascan back into set. Jack went from *2-0 to 2-3* down but a break and hold at this stage settled himself down again. At 5-4* up my money was on Jack to break and take the set but his opponent was just too consistent resulting in a hold and break to lead 5-6*. I was still sure Jack would break back to take it to a tie-break and he had a point to do so but in the end his opponent held to take the match 7-5, 7-5. Another tough loss for Jack in round 1 but I believe he’s learnt a lot from his singles matches in the last two weeks and now the focus is straight on to doubles tomorrow.
Mia had been playing for a while and despite looking a little worried in the warm up (I think was shocked when the girl made a few balls in a row!) she was in full control and tried hard to improve her game throughout the match against a weaker opponent. In the end Mia had a comfortable 6-2, 6-2 win and the experience she’s gaining out here against all of her opponents, strong and weak, will really help her develop as a person and a player.
As soon as Mia finished she wanted to stay on court to train so Julia and I joined her for a really good hours training. As a coach you can tell when I player’s not happy with a match performance even if they say they are and it’s great when they ask to do more training rather than you suggesting it. Mia really worked hard and her focus was superb which resulted in her best training session since we’ve been away. Julia was also happy with her level and so at 5.30pm we ended the session and moved over to the side of the court for Mia to go through her core exercises and Julia to stretch out.
After waiting for our taxi driver to turn up for 20 minutes we decided that again tonight wasn’t going to be the night to go to the beach for dinner and instead had it in the hotel. The waiting time for food is turning into an ongoing joke with all of the players and coaches – tonight it was an hour and a half! However we were entertained with a dance ceremony by a local tribe which is part of a big East African Community Council meeting that is going on at the hotel this week. The performance was amazing and something that you might only see once in a lifetime.
Due to weak internet to view the photos / videos please go to the ITC Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ITCtennis1
Schedule for tomorrow:
(1) Lynn Kiro (RSA) (146) vs Julia Weisel (USA) (1051)
Mia Smith (GBR) (UNR) vs (5) Janet Koch (RSA) (632)
Stephen Bleach (RSA) & Ted Sindabizera Ntwari (BDI) vs Jack Large (GBR) & Jack Oswald (GBR) – 6th match after 9am
Mia Smith (GBR) & Julia Weisel (USA) vs Lesedi Jacobs (NAM) & Elizabeth Kapari (GHA) – 6th match after 9am
