Tennis Tournament - Fort Worth, TX (7/25-7/27)

7/25/2008

First Match - Main Draw

Lost: 1-6, 0-6

AWFUL! This was my first tournament since the beginning of May 2008, and I haven't been playing a lot of singles in preparation for tournament. I played a half set the Tuesday before, but nothing more. My serve was really off, my forehand was horrible, and I don't want to even mention my backhand. It was hard to concentrate on the match because during the change-overs the guy I was playing was hitting on me. He was 19 years old and in the Army. While cute, he was not my type -- too young and too thin.

Second Match - Consolation Draw

Won: 6-3, 6-2

I was more warmed up and my game started to click. My first serve was more consistent, and my second serve was much better. I only double faulted 2 times compared to the 8 times the previous match. The guy I played had a very inconsistent backhand so I took advantage of that. The guy also didn't have a good serve so I pounced on his weak second serves. It was 99 degrees during this match (not sure of the on-court temp), but I didn't feel any affects from it. I drank a lot of ice water and I didn't feel tired.

7/26/2008

Third Match - Consolation Draw

Won: 6-4, 6-0

At the very beginning of the match neither I or my opponent could hold serve. It wasn't until 3-3 where I broke his serve, and then held mine for 5-3 ... only to be broken again. I broke his server giving me the first set. I wasn't happy with my performance and decided to step it up a notch. My ground stroke and serve improved dramatically during the second set and I bagel'd my opponent.

Fourth Match - Consolation Draw

Lost: 2-6, 6-3, 8-10 (super tie-breaker)

Again my serve and ground strokes were off and I couldn't get it together the first set. I used my frustration to focus for the second set, where I improved and won 6-3. The last set, which was a super tie-break (first person to 10 points), I was up 6-1 and I got ahead of myself and lost focus and made many errors. I ended up losing 6 straight points and ultimately the match. I began to think about the next day's match instead of closing out the current match. I tend to loss focus a lot when I play, because, for me, it is just a game so I don't ultra competitive. I would like to win all my matches, but if I lose, it is not a big deal. Each match you learn how to improve for the next match.

I really didn't think I would do this well consider my recently health issues, but the past 6 weeks in the gym helped me out tremendously. I feel fit and healthy again for my next tournament starting on Aug 8th.