Land Ahoy Me Hearties!

Published: 05 Aug 2006 - 17:43 by raystrach

Updated: 05 Aug 2006 - 17:44

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The demented pirate (?, see here) is finally approaching dry land as I am close to being able to really play again. This week was another stepping stone in that process an as I see here after a coaching stint lasting 5 hours I can be reasonably satisfied although I am barely about to move.

Fortunately, the soreness I have is good soreness, not that which comes from injury, but that of having run too much.

Having not quite fully recovered from this calf injury, I was a little slow in getting going against my old adversary, Brian. I was doing too much thinking about what I was going to do and not enough of the doing bit. In my last blog I spoke of him steam rolling me, and that is exactly what was happening. This was especially true in the second game where I never looked like getting a point. It really was slaughter. Too much short stuff and failing to build pressure.

Worse still, the team was a game down going into my match and if I lost in 3, it was all over for us. On this occasion I was able to sum up the mental strength to start getting back into the match. Although my mobility was not 100%, I was moving much better than the previous week. When I was able to hit better length I was able to exert some pressure.

Little by little I managed to bring the match on to a even keel. As a result, he became a little more tentative and played a little more conservatively. I was lucky enough to nod my head in front on the line to take the third game. This gave the team a chance to win as long as I got a few points in the fourth. I kept fighting throughout an although he was playing better than me, I tried to hang in as long as possible.

He had beaten me so many times recently I had learnt a lot about what I needed to do to survive. and although he had a match point late in the fourth game, I managed to survive that take it to a fifth. I was fortunate that he became a little negative during that game which game me just enough breathing room.

In the fifth, it was again my aim to hang in as long as possible to maximise my points. There was absolutely no thought of winning. I was quite surprise that I managed to stick with him and as the game wore on, I even felt that I was on top. Late in the game I knew that I had to be very positive but patient and disciplined to win.

I had been in this situation before and lost as he reads the play so well. I was pleased I made the right tactical choices near the end which got me to match point. I played only my second backhand drop for the night to win. Because he is a left hander is very deceptive in that part of the court, I try to keep it away from that area. He knew that and covered another option I had been going to regularly.

It was a good feeling to have that unexpected option up my sleeve, and unlike many other times, I produced it at just the right time on this occasion. Overall, I think that if he had attacked a little more, I would not have had the take off speed to respond, and he would have won the match. It just shows that winning a tight contest is a very fine line to tread.

If ha wasn't enough,I got a call from my Thursday team to play the following night and although I won in five, it could not have been more different. I was very stiff from the previous night and struggled to stay motivated. Luckily he was not a strong player and so I survived to limp another day.

Now I have to concentrate on a recovery so that my match against Peter next Wednesday is a competitive one and not a thrashing.