8/7/16:
"Z-Flax in F.L., Rob-Frank at RHP, Dino-Anish part of 9 at HP, 7 play at C.G.!:
"Hollywood" Frank Samara announced he would be hosting GTA Sunday Tennis at the old stomping grounds of Robin Hood Park in Clifton rather than Holster Park (also in Clifton) as he would be competing in a Grove Cup Round of 16 Match against "Double R" Rob Ryan.
There were two reasons for this: RHP is right across the street from Ryan's house and it was also known that "Coach" Dino Celis and "Steppin' to the AM" Anish Mehta would be playing their Grove Cup Round of 16 Match at HP, beginning at 9:30am at Holster Park.
Rather than have a logjam, Rob and Frank decided to just run it at the original home base of the GTA: RHP!
Samara pulled up to the curb at RHP at 9:25. He saw that all three courts were vacant. He was happy to then take Championship Court for his upcoming match.
At 9:55, Barbara "Bobbie" Grass arrived at 9:55. Luckily, she brought a friend with her as Frank soon explained that he would be busy in his match with Ryan. The two of them took the Entrance Court and hit there from 9:55 to 10:20.
"Nik@Nite" Nik Agharkar arrived at 10:15 only to leave fifteen minutes later to go to HP as it was quickly becoming clear there would be no other players coming to RHP.
Except that was not entirely true as "Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli hit the courts at 10:40 to make a short cameo before heading back home and then to HP after that.
At 10:45, "Holy Moly" Mike Mole arrived at the exact same time that "Z-Man" Dave Zapusek did as well. First, the two of them spoke with Spin. Then, Mole decided to finally head up to RHP at 11:05.
Meanwhile, Zapusek reported the score of a full match he played against his buddy, "The Flax Machine" Mike Flax at TJ Field in Fair Lawn. That result will be reported before all the others.
Backtracking a bit, Ryan came over to the courts at 10am and immediately stated hitting with Samara. By 10:08, the match was underway.
The TJ Field Result:
3 out of 5 Set Challenge Match:
Dave Zapusek over Mike Flax, 6-2, 6-4, 8-6, to successfully defend his # 29 Rank in the Intermediate Division! No Aces. The 3rd Set was done old school style - play out the games with no Tiebreak.
The HP Result:
Grove Cup Round of 16 Match:
Rob Ryan over Frank Samara, 6-1, 6-4, to successfully defend his # 6 Rank in the Advanced Division while advancing to the Quarterfinals of The Grove Cup Tournament! No Aces.
1st Set: Frank was broken (a lengthy rally ended with a drop shot winner from Rob for Love-15 and then Rob hit another winner for Love-30, it then went to Triple Break Point and the break came on Double Break Point) and Rob held serve (it was a winning drop shot return from Frank for Love-15, but then it went right to Double Game Point with an un-returned serve on the way, but then Frank hit a winner to cut that lead to Game Point, yet then came the hold) for a 2-0 lead. Samara held (un-returned serve for 15-Love, 15-All and then it went straight to Double Game Point with another un-returned serve and a big winner from Frank but then another extended rally brought it Game Point where Frank secured his own hold with a winning Overhead Smash, but Ryan held again (two un-returned serves led to 30-Love, it was then 30-15, Double Game Point where a winner earned the hold) for 3-1. Hollywood was broken at Love as Rob started things off with a winning Overhead Smash and finished them with a winning return and Double R held again (it went 15-Love then point for point to Game Point, but along the way Frank hit a winner and made a great get that forced an error and then on that Game Point it was Frank hitting another winner to make it Deuce, but then came Game Point again and an un-returned serve secured the hold) to take a commanding 5-1 lead! Frank was then broken once more (un-returned serve for 15-Love and then point for point until 30-All as Frank had hit a winner along the way, but Rob hit a drop shot winner to set up Break/Set Point which is where this set ended) to drop the set. This one got started on Championship Court at 10:08 and the set was over by 10:35. After a three minute break, the next set got underway.
2nd Set: Rob held (un-returned serve for 15-Love, Frank hit a winner for 15-All, but then it was straight to Double Game Point with another un-returned serve along the way, but then Frank hit a winner to cut that lead to Game Point which was where Rob made an incredible great/get winner combo up near the net to secure the hold), Frank was broken (Love-15 where Frank hit an amazing winner for 15-All, but then it went right to Double Break Point and the break) and Ryan held again (15-Love where Frank hit another scorching winner for 15-All, but then it went straight to Double Game Point and the hold) to jump out to a 3-0 lead! Samara held in a struggle (a nice return winner from Rob for Love-15, then an un-returned serve for 15-All, but then Rob hit a winning Overhead Smash for 15-30, then Double Break Point got cut down to Deuce, Break Point where Frank hit a winner for 2nd Deuce where Rob hit a blistering winner for Break Point, but then Rob blew an overhead to make it 3rd Deuce, then came Game Point, 4th Deuce and then the Game Point and the hold) and Double R was broken (Triple Break Point cut down to Break Point where a winner from Frank got the break) to have his lead cut to 3-2. The Wood held again (a drop shot winner from Frank for 15-Love, then it was 15-All where Frank hit another winner for 30-15, then it was 30-All where a winner by Rob made it Break Point, but then Frank hit another winner to make it Deuce, Break Point where Frank hit another winner to bring it to 2nd Deuce and then it was Game Point where Rob made another absolutely amazing get/winner combo to bring it back to 3rd Deuce, it was Game Point again where Rob hit another winner for 4th Deuce, but then came Game Point again and finally the hold) to level the set at 3-3! Rob held (Rob hit a winning Overhead Smash for 30-Love, but that shifted to 30-All where Rob hit a winner for Game Point, but then Rob blew an overhead to make it Deuce and then it was all Game Points until 3rd Deuce...with Rob often hit winners when he was at the Deuce to go back up Game Point...and then he got back-to-back winners to seal the deal on this service) and Frank was broken (Love-15 where Frank hit a winner for 15-All, but then Rob hit back-to-back winners on the way to Double Break Point which was where Rob blew an overhead to make it Break Point, but then came the break) for 3-5. Ryan was broken (15-Love,15-All and then right to Double Game/Match Point where Frank went for broke with a risky winner to get it to Game/Match Point and that was where Rob blew an overhead to make it Deuce, Break Point where Rob hit a winner for 2nd Deuce, Break Point again where Rob hit a winner for 3rd Deuce, Break Point again where Frank hit the winner for the break) to have his lead cut to 5-4, but Samara was also broken (15-Love and then straight to Double Break/Match Point with a winner from Rob along the way and then Frank hit a winning volley to cut it to Break/Match Point but then that was where the break finally came!) to take a tough loss as this one ended exactly at 11:39.
The Skinny: Going into this match with just three and a half hours was not wise on Samara's part, yet it likely had little effect on the outcome of this match as Frank still managed to bring energy to this match. Samara came into this battle with a different strategy - play aggressive rather than defensive. The consistency in shot-making was not there in the 1st Set, but this tactic came close to working in the 2nd Set. In the end, Ryan's game was just too clean....just too good. He strikes the proper balance between aggressive offense and comprehensive defense. I congratulate him on his win and wish him well in the rest of the tourney. He is definitely a heavy favorite from here forward.
After a bull session with Rob that ran until 12:10 (and saw "MC" Mike Carucci do a drive-by around 11:50 wondering where the action would be...Samara sent him over to Holster Park), Frank did the same as he drove over to HP and got there by 12:15.
Upon his arrival, he saw Dino and Spin together on the bench alongside the Entrance Court where Jay "The Rising" Phoenix and Mike Mole were doing battle with one another in a Singles One-Setter.
On Center Court, "The Legendary" Chazz Weldon was facing Mike Carucci in a similar One-Setter.
And on Championship Court, "Nate the Great" Nathan Fernandes was continuing his streak of dominance versus "Lean" Dean Delgado.
Dino Celis had already sent his result via text to Samara, but there was still much info to collect from HP. Some earlier scores were given and we will go to those first.
In non-GTA action, "The Vin Man" Vinnie De Benedetto was going to leave at 9:30 once he realized Celis and Mehta would be in a full match. But he was called over by three other guys (Zoltar and crew, perhaps?) to be their fourth.
The HP Results:
Grove Cup Round of 16 Match:
Anish Mehta over Dino Celis, 6-3, 7-5, to become the New # 5 Ranked Player in the Advanced Division while advancing to the Quarterfinals of The Grove Cup Tournament! Anish: 1 Ace in the 1st Set. Now that Mehta is in The Top 5 of The Advanced Division, he has become overqualified for competition in the Intermediate Division and will be removed from it.
This one got started around 9:30 and ended by 11:55.
The AM Report: It was a tough match and Dino is a great player. He has a big forehand, so I focused on placement rather than hitting hard and giving him ammunition. I was able to break him early in the first game which was the main factor leading me to get the 1st Set. I did the same in the 2nd Set and that helped me survive later in the set. We got to 5-4, 40-15 (Double Game/Match Point) when I choked and hit two Double Faults in a row! I was getting increasingly over-defensive and he made me pay for that and broke me to even it out. I thought we were heading for a Tiebreak and possibly a 3rd Set, but I was able to snap out of it and I broke him back. I then served it out at 6-5.
From The Coach's Clipboard: Great match and a good win, Anish! Good luck in the rest of the tournament.
Samara's Notes: It sounds like it was quite the straight-set battle. And congratulations to Anish not only on the impressive victory, but also for making the jump out of the Intermediate Division.
Chazz Weldon/Mike Mole over Jay Phoenix/Nik Agharkar, 6-2! No Aces. This result had occurred earlier in the session.
Mike Mole over Jay Phoenix, 6-1! Mike: 2 Aces. Not sure when this one got started on the Entrance Court, but it ended at 12:20.
Chazz Weldon over Mike Carucci, 6-0! Chazz: 1 Ace. Not sure when this one began on Center Court, but it ended exactly at 12:39.
Nathan Fernandes over Dean Delgado, 6-0! No Aces. Not sure when they got this one underway on Championship Court or when it finished because they went right into this next one.
Nathan Fernandes over Dean Delgado, 6-0! No Aces. Down 0-5, Dean was on serve and had Game Point only to see it go to Deuce, Break/Match Point and the break! This one got finished at 12:48.
Frank, Spin and Dino had been sitting on the sidelines for the above One-Setter. Nate and Dean joined them afterward for a bull session that ran until around 1:10/1:15.
Jay Phoenix over Mike Mole, 7-6 (7-4)! Mike: 3 Aces! This one was contested on the Entrance Court from 12:23 to 1:08.
After this one concluded, everyone left the courts except for Nate and Jay. Nate sent the following via text.
Nathan Fernandes over Jay Phoenix, 6-0! No Aces. It took place on Championship Court.
We now head up to Cedar Grove to let Papa K take it away!
The Cedar Grove Results:
Kris Srinivasan/Senthil Kumar over Scott Bergenfeld/Dan Martinelli, 6-2! No Aces.
Kris Srinivasan/Senthil Kumar over Scott Bergenfeld/Sairaj Srinivasan, 6-2! Scott: 2 Aces (one on each)!
Senthil Kumar/Sairaj Srinivasan over Scott Bergenfeld/Kris Srinivasan, 6-2! No Aces.
Dino Celis/Senthil Kumar over Kris Srinivasan/Dave Zhu, 6-1! No Aces.
Kris Srinivasan/Dave Zhu over Dino Celis/Senthil Kumar, 6-1! Dave: 2 Aces (one on each)!
The Say from Papa K: It was a quiet night that was sparked by the presence of Spin who had half a dozen winners both from the baseline and some aggressive approach shots. Senthil played with the fewest errors and his net play was top notch. After a disastrous start on serves, Dave got his groove back. Dino was superb on both forehand and backhand shots and it was good to see him running to the net to keep up the pressure. It was a mixed bag for Scott, but he sure had a good hitting session in the beginning. Cheers!
Samara's Notes: Sounds like it was a nice session to close out another big weekend of GTA Tennis. I thank Kris for always hosting and providing us with his reports.
All the best,
Frank Samara
"Z-Flax in F.L., Rob-Frank at RHP, Dino-Anish part of 9 at HP, 7 play at C.G.!:
"Hollywood" Frank Samara announced he would be hosting GTA Sunday Tennis at the old stomping grounds of Robin Hood Park in Clifton rather than Holster Park (also in Clifton) as he would be competing in a Grove Cup Round of 16 Match against "Double R" Rob Ryan.
There were two reasons for this: RHP is right across the street from Ryan's house and it was also known that "Coach" Dino Celis and "Steppin' to the AM" Anish Mehta would be playing their Grove Cup Round of 16 Match at HP, beginning at 9:30am at Holster Park.
Rather than have a logjam, Rob and Frank decided to just run it at the original home base of the GTA: RHP!
Samara pulled up to the curb at RHP at 9:25. He saw that all three courts were vacant. He was happy to then take Championship Court for his upcoming match.
At 9:55, Barbara "Bobbie" Grass arrived at 9:55. Luckily, she brought a friend with her as Frank soon explained that he would be busy in his match with Ryan. The two of them took the Entrance Court and hit there from 9:55 to 10:20.
"Nik@Nite" Nik Agharkar arrived at 10:15 only to leave fifteen minutes later to go to HP as it was quickly becoming clear there would be no other players coming to RHP.
Except that was not entirely true as "Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli hit the courts at 10:40 to make a short cameo before heading back home and then to HP after that.
At 10:45, "Holy Moly" Mike Mole arrived at the exact same time that "Z-Man" Dave Zapusek did as well. First, the two of them spoke with Spin. Then, Mole decided to finally head up to RHP at 11:05.
Meanwhile, Zapusek reported the score of a full match he played against his buddy, "The Flax Machine" Mike Flax at TJ Field in Fair Lawn. That result will be reported before all the others.
Backtracking a bit, Ryan came over to the courts at 10am and immediately stated hitting with Samara. By 10:08, the match was underway.
The TJ Field Result:
3 out of 5 Set Challenge Match:
Dave Zapusek over Mike Flax, 6-2, 6-4, 8-6, to successfully defend his # 29 Rank in the Intermediate Division! No Aces. The 3rd Set was done old school style - play out the games with no Tiebreak.
The HP Result:
Grove Cup Round of 16 Match:
Rob Ryan over Frank Samara, 6-1, 6-4, to successfully defend his # 6 Rank in the Advanced Division while advancing to the Quarterfinals of The Grove Cup Tournament! No Aces.
1st Set: Frank was broken (a lengthy rally ended with a drop shot winner from Rob for Love-15 and then Rob hit another winner for Love-30, it then went to Triple Break Point and the break came on Double Break Point) and Rob held serve (it was a winning drop shot return from Frank for Love-15, but then it went right to Double Game Point with an un-returned serve on the way, but then Frank hit a winner to cut that lead to Game Point, yet then came the hold) for a 2-0 lead. Samara held (un-returned serve for 15-Love, 15-All and then it went straight to Double Game Point with another un-returned serve and a big winner from Frank but then another extended rally brought it Game Point where Frank secured his own hold with a winning Overhead Smash, but Ryan held again (two un-returned serves led to 30-Love, it was then 30-15, Double Game Point where a winner earned the hold) for 3-1. Hollywood was broken at Love as Rob started things off with a winning Overhead Smash and finished them with a winning return and Double R held again (it went 15-Love then point for point to Game Point, but along the way Frank hit a winner and made a great get that forced an error and then on that Game Point it was Frank hitting another winner to make it Deuce, but then came Game Point again and an un-returned serve secured the hold) to take a commanding 5-1 lead! Frank was then broken once more (un-returned serve for 15-Love and then point for point until 30-All as Frank had hit a winner along the way, but Rob hit a drop shot winner to set up Break/Set Point which is where this set ended) to drop the set. This one got started on Championship Court at 10:08 and the set was over by 10:35. After a three minute break, the next set got underway.
2nd Set: Rob held (un-returned serve for 15-Love, Frank hit a winner for 15-All, but then it was straight to Double Game Point with another un-returned serve along the way, but then Frank hit a winner to cut that lead to Game Point which was where Rob made an incredible great/get winner combo up near the net to secure the hold), Frank was broken (Love-15 where Frank hit an amazing winner for 15-All, but then it went right to Double Break Point and the break) and Ryan held again (15-Love where Frank hit another scorching winner for 15-All, but then it went straight to Double Game Point and the hold) to jump out to a 3-0 lead! Samara held in a struggle (a nice return winner from Rob for Love-15, then an un-returned serve for 15-All, but then Rob hit a winning Overhead Smash for 15-30, then Double Break Point got cut down to Deuce, Break Point where Frank hit a winner for 2nd Deuce where Rob hit a blistering winner for Break Point, but then Rob blew an overhead to make it 3rd Deuce, then came Game Point, 4th Deuce and then the Game Point and the hold) and Double R was broken (Triple Break Point cut down to Break Point where a winner from Frank got the break) to have his lead cut to 3-2. The Wood held again (a drop shot winner from Frank for 15-Love, then it was 15-All where Frank hit another winner for 30-15, then it was 30-All where a winner by Rob made it Break Point, but then Frank hit another winner to make it Deuce, Break Point where Frank hit another winner to bring it to 2nd Deuce and then it was Game Point where Rob made another absolutely amazing get/winner combo to bring it back to 3rd Deuce, it was Game Point again where Rob hit another winner for 4th Deuce, but then came Game Point again and finally the hold) to level the set at 3-3! Rob held (Rob hit a winning Overhead Smash for 30-Love, but that shifted to 30-All where Rob hit a winner for Game Point, but then Rob blew an overhead to make it Deuce and then it was all Game Points until 3rd Deuce...with Rob often hit winners when he was at the Deuce to go back up Game Point...and then he got back-to-back winners to seal the deal on this service) and Frank was broken (Love-15 where Frank hit a winner for 15-All, but then Rob hit back-to-back winners on the way to Double Break Point which was where Rob blew an overhead to make it Break Point, but then came the break) for 3-5. Ryan was broken (15-Love,15-All and then right to Double Game/Match Point where Frank went for broke with a risky winner to get it to Game/Match Point and that was where Rob blew an overhead to make it Deuce, Break Point where Rob hit a winner for 2nd Deuce, Break Point again where Rob hit a winner for 3rd Deuce, Break Point again where Frank hit the winner for the break) to have his lead cut to 5-4, but Samara was also broken (15-Love and then straight to Double Break/Match Point with a winner from Rob along the way and then Frank hit a winning volley to cut it to Break/Match Point but then that was where the break finally came!) to take a tough loss as this one ended exactly at 11:39.
The Skinny: Going into this match with just three and a half hours was not wise on Samara's part, yet it likely had little effect on the outcome of this match as Frank still managed to bring energy to this match. Samara came into this battle with a different strategy - play aggressive rather than defensive. The consistency in shot-making was not there in the 1st Set, but this tactic came close to working in the 2nd Set. In the end, Ryan's game was just too clean....just too good. He strikes the proper balance between aggressive offense and comprehensive defense. I congratulate him on his win and wish him well in the rest of the tourney. He is definitely a heavy favorite from here forward.
After a bull session with Rob that ran until 12:10 (and saw "MC" Mike Carucci do a drive-by around 11:50 wondering where the action would be...Samara sent him over to Holster Park), Frank did the same as he drove over to HP and got there by 12:15.
Upon his arrival, he saw Dino and Spin together on the bench alongside the Entrance Court where Jay "The Rising" Phoenix and Mike Mole were doing battle with one another in a Singles One-Setter.
On Center Court, "The Legendary" Chazz Weldon was facing Mike Carucci in a similar One-Setter.
And on Championship Court, "Nate the Great" Nathan Fernandes was continuing his streak of dominance versus "Lean" Dean Delgado.
Dino Celis had already sent his result via text to Samara, but there was still much info to collect from HP. Some earlier scores were given and we will go to those first.
In non-GTA action, "The Vin Man" Vinnie De Benedetto was going to leave at 9:30 once he realized Celis and Mehta would be in a full match. But he was called over by three other guys (Zoltar and crew, perhaps?) to be their fourth.
The HP Results:
Grove Cup Round of 16 Match:
Anish Mehta over Dino Celis, 6-3, 7-5, to become the New # 5 Ranked Player in the Advanced Division while advancing to the Quarterfinals of The Grove Cup Tournament! Anish: 1 Ace in the 1st Set. Now that Mehta is in The Top 5 of The Advanced Division, he has become overqualified for competition in the Intermediate Division and will be removed from it.
This one got started around 9:30 and ended by 11:55.
The AM Report: It was a tough match and Dino is a great player. He has a big forehand, so I focused on placement rather than hitting hard and giving him ammunition. I was able to break him early in the first game which was the main factor leading me to get the 1st Set. I did the same in the 2nd Set and that helped me survive later in the set. We got to 5-4, 40-15 (Double Game/Match Point) when I choked and hit two Double Faults in a row! I was getting increasingly over-defensive and he made me pay for that and broke me to even it out. I thought we were heading for a Tiebreak and possibly a 3rd Set, but I was able to snap out of it and I broke him back. I then served it out at 6-5.
From The Coach's Clipboard: Great match and a good win, Anish! Good luck in the rest of the tournament.
Samara's Notes: It sounds like it was quite the straight-set battle. And congratulations to Anish not only on the impressive victory, but also for making the jump out of the Intermediate Division.
Chazz Weldon/Mike Mole over Jay Phoenix/Nik Agharkar, 6-2! No Aces. This result had occurred earlier in the session.
Mike Mole over Jay Phoenix, 6-1! Mike: 2 Aces. Not sure when this one got started on the Entrance Court, but it ended at 12:20.
Chazz Weldon over Mike Carucci, 6-0! Chazz: 1 Ace. Not sure when this one began on Center Court, but it ended exactly at 12:39.
Nathan Fernandes over Dean Delgado, 6-0! No Aces. Not sure when they got this one underway on Championship Court or when it finished because they went right into this next one.
Nathan Fernandes over Dean Delgado, 6-0! No Aces. Down 0-5, Dean was on serve and had Game Point only to see it go to Deuce, Break/Match Point and the break! This one got finished at 12:48.
Frank, Spin and Dino had been sitting on the sidelines for the above One-Setter. Nate and Dean joined them afterward for a bull session that ran until around 1:10/1:15.
Jay Phoenix over Mike Mole, 7-6 (7-4)! Mike: 3 Aces! This one was contested on the Entrance Court from 12:23 to 1:08.
After this one concluded, everyone left the courts except for Nate and Jay. Nate sent the following via text.
Nathan Fernandes over Jay Phoenix, 6-0! No Aces. It took place on Championship Court.
We now head up to Cedar Grove to let Papa K take it away!
The Cedar Grove Results:
Kris Srinivasan/Senthil Kumar over Scott Bergenfeld/Dan Martinelli, 6-2! No Aces.
Kris Srinivasan/Senthil Kumar over Scott Bergenfeld/Sairaj Srinivasan, 6-2! Scott: 2 Aces (one on each)!
Senthil Kumar/Sairaj Srinivasan over Scott Bergenfeld/Kris Srinivasan, 6-2! No Aces.
Dino Celis/Senthil Kumar over Kris Srinivasan/Dave Zhu, 6-1! No Aces.
Kris Srinivasan/Dave Zhu over Dino Celis/Senthil Kumar, 6-1! Dave: 2 Aces (one on each)!
The Say from Papa K: It was a quiet night that was sparked by the presence of Spin who had half a dozen winners both from the baseline and some aggressive approach shots. Senthil played with the fewest errors and his net play was top notch. After a disastrous start on serves, Dave got his groove back. Dino was superb on both forehand and backhand shots and it was good to see him running to the net to keep up the pressure. It was a mixed bag for Scott, but he sure had a good hitting session in the beginning. Cheers!
Samara's Notes: Sounds like it was a nice session to close out another big weekend of GTA Tennis. I thank Kris for always hosting and providing us with his reports.
All the best,
Frank Samara
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