"Chiaro-Fernandes part of 8 at C.G.!":
GTA Thursday Night Tennis only took place at one location: The Cedar Grove Courts. The session was surprisingly hosted by "Hollywood" Frank Samara as he had a change of plans and informed "The K Man" Kris Srinivasan late in the afternoon of his change of plans. Due to some remaining level of uncertainty, he did not announce these plans to the league.
The scheduled Main Event was GTA Champion: "King Crush" Chris Chiaro putting his Title on the line against 2016 Grove Cup Champ: "Nate the Great" Nathan Fernandes.
When both of them got there by 7pm, Kris informed them that Frank would be coming to note their match…but also that he was running a bit late.
They were nice enough to extend their hitting session long enough for Samara to arrive. Frank got there at 7:15 and he once again had his daughter Angeliz and son Dante with him. Once again, much thanks to Kris and The Srinivasan family for hosting them in their warm and cozy home while their dad performed his duties for the league.
Upon their arrival, not only were Kris, Chris and Nate all in attendance…so was "Big Kaz" Mike Kazlauskas who was sitting on the bench alongside Court One watching Chiaro and Fernandes trading shots in their hitting session.
Unfortunately, Courts Three and Four were already occupied by outsiders. Court Two was vacant as that was the most leaf-ridden of all four courts…though it would not remain that way for long.
At the same time of the arrival of The Samara family, both "Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli and "The Natural" Natalie Guzman pulled up to the courts separately.
This led to Kris, Mike, Spin and Natalie taking Court Two for some Doubles action. But first (and thankfully), The K Man came back with a broom to sweep the leaves off of that court.
Ironically, this meant that the Chiaro-Fernandes match would now be taking place on the worst court of the four in terms of how many leaves were on it.
They got the match officially underway at 7:20. Meanwhile, the Doubles One-Setter on the adjacent court officially started at 7:46 and was able to shift over to Court Four at exactly 8:01 after the two guys who had been on it left at 8pm.
At 8:05, "J-Bach" Jordan Bachvaroff arrived to make an extended cameo appearance as he was in street clothes and sat down on the bench alongside Court One to watch the GTA Championship Match.
At 8:20, "Teej" T.J. Shah and "Ragin" Rajan Shah arrived together. They took Court Three which was vacant at this time. Ten minutes later, "The Lumberjack" Ryan Pienciak arrived and joined their hitting session. But Ryan never got involved in any official action at Cedar Grove as he left at 9pm to go play in The Wayne Bubble (where, once again, no official GTA scores were reported from).
By 9pm, The Shahs would eventually get to play some official Doubles against Kris and Spin. This meant we ended up with a total of eight official players for the session. Not too bad when you consider how cold it ended up being, the draw of The Wayne Bubble and the fact that if we had much more…we would have had a logjam situation until 8pm.
All's well that ends well.
The Cedar Grove Results:
GTA Championship Match:
Chris Chiaro over Nathan Fernandes, 7-6 (12-10), 6-1, to complete his third successful GTA Championship defense of his second reign! No Aces.
1st Set: Chris held at Love as he started off with a winning Overhead Smash, followed that with another whipping winner, then backed that up with a vicious Backhand Volley winner and then finished the game off with a drop shot that forced the error from Nate, but Nathan responded with a Love hold of his own as an extended rally led to 30-Love and another marathon rally ended the game. Chiaro was the first to be broken (Love-30, 15-30 where Chris blew a volley to set up Double Break Point and then came the break), but Fernandes held again (Chris hit a sizzling winner for Love-30 and followed that with a drop shot winner to set up Triple Break Point, but then back-to-back un-returned serves brought it to Break Point and then it went to Deuce where Chris blew a volley to set up Game Point and then came the hold) to go up 3-1. King Crush held (Love-30, 15-30 where Nate blew a volley for 30-All, then it went to Break Point, Deuce where Nate blew another volley to set up Game Point, then it was 2nd Deuce where an un-returned serve set up Game Point once again, it went to 3rd Deuce where Chris hit a venomous volley winner for Game Point and then he hit a passing shot winner for the hold), but Nate the Great held yet again (Chris hit a monster Overhead Smash for Love-15, but then he blew an overhead for 15-All which was where Nate made a great get that led to 30-15, but he paid the price for it as he slipped on a leaf down in the valley between Courts One and Two and he subsequently twisted his ankle in the process…he asked for a two-minute timeout which Chris graciously gave him and then came Nate got back on the court to face another victorious volley winner from Chris for 30-All only to have it go to Game Point and the hold) for 4-2. The Champ held again (Chris blew an overhead for a Love-15 start, but then hit another villainous volley winner for 15-All and it was then 15-30 where Chris hit a drop shot winner for 30-All and then he hit a whopper of an Overhead Smash winner to set up Game Point where another lengthy rally led to Deuce, then it was Game Point where another crushing Overhead Smash winner secured the hold), but The Lord of The Cup held yet again (15-Love where Chris hit a winner for 15-All which was where Nate hit a missile-like passing shot winner for 30-15 and then Chris blew a volley to set up Double Game Point and then Nate hit an even more impressive than the last one laser-like passing shot winner for the hold) for 5-3. Chris held once more (30-Love, 30-15 where an un-returned serve set up Double Game Point, but then Chris blew an overhead to cut it to Game Point, then it was Deuce where Chris hit a winning Overhead Smash to set up Game Point once again, it went to 2nd Deuce where Chris hit a net-cord-aided winner to get back to Game Point, it went back to 3rd Deuce which was where Chris hit a winning volley to set up Game Point yet again and then a marathon rally ended in his favor for the hold) and then Nathan was broken (Chris hit a winning volley for Love-15 and then repeated the same feat for Love-30, it went to Triple Break Point where another extended rally led to Double Break Point, but then came the break) to level the set at 5-5! Chiaro held (Chris blew a volley for Love-15, 15-All where the best rally of the match up until that moment ended with an equally impressive Overhead Smash winner by Chris for 30-15, it was then 30-All where Chris hit an awesome passing shot winner to set up Game Point and then came the hold) to go up 6-5 which was his first lead since opening the set at 1-0! But Fernandes also managed a hold (another enduring rally led to Love-15, it was then 15-All where a rally featuring multiple and successive great gets by Nate frustrated Chris into badly blowing what should have been a surefire overhead and that made it 30-15 which was where an un-returned serve set up Double Game Point and then Chris hit a killer Overhead Smash winner to cut it to Game Point, but then came the hold) to force the Tiebreak. The time was now 8:15 and the set was 55 minutes old (it had begun at 7:20). Without any hesitation, they went right into the Breaker.
Tiebreak: An absolutely awesome rally to open it and it led to a big-time Overhead Smash winner by Chris to hold his lone serve, but then Nathan held both of his serves to go up 2-1. Chiaro held both of his serves as each point ended with emphatic volley winners as he reclaimed the lead at 3-2! Fernandes was broken on his first serve when Chris hit a passing shot winner for 2-4 at the changeover. He was then broken on his second as well to fall to 2-5. King Crush was broken on his first to have his lead cut to 5-3, but then he held his second to go up 6-3 and set up Set Point! Nate the Great held his first serve to pull to 4-6, but it was now the 2nd Set Point. Chris then blew an overhead which allowed Nate to hold again and pull to 5-6. Still, it was the 3rd Set Point with service returning to The Champ. He dramatically blew what should have been another sure overhead to make it 6-6 at the second changeover! Chris then blew a volley on his second service and now found himself down 6-7 as the 4th Set Point was the first opportunity for The Lord of The Cup who was now going back on serve! He was broken on the first of his two serves to make it 7-Up, but then he held his second for an 8-7 lead which led to it being the 5th Set Point and the second in his favor. Service came back to Chris who ended his first service point with a scorching passing shot winner which inspired his first famous "c'mon!" as it was now 8-8! He followed that up with a similarly impressive passing shot winner to go up 9-8 and it was now the 6th Set Point and fourth in his favor. Service returned to Nathan who held the first of his two serves with a volley winner for 9-9 which led to the third changeover. He then held again and was now up 10-9 to set up the 7th Set Point which was the third in his favor. Chiaro was back on serve now and when he was able to end yet another point with a walloping passing shot winner to make it 10-10, he bellowed a bold "c'mon" once again! He then held his second service for 11-10 to now set up the 8th Set Point and fifth for his advantage. Fernandes was then broken on his first serve when The Champ ended it with a blast of an Overhead Smash winner to finally secure the epic 1st Set which ended exactly at 8:31…which meant it was one hour and eleven minutes long! Just two minutes later, they were onto the next one.
2nd Set: Nathan was broken (an un-returned serve set up Triple Game Point, but that was cut down to Game Point where Chris hit a winner to make it Deuce and then he hit an even more impressive winner to set up Break Point where Chris then earned the break with a drop shot winner), but Chris held serve (Chris hit a killer Overhead Smash winner for 15-Love and then hit a nasty Backhand Volley winner for 30-Love where a marathon rally ended with a whiplash winner from Chris to set up Triple Game Point, it was then Double Game Point where another extended and exciting rally was finished with yet another whopper of a winner by Chris for the hold) to get off to a 2-0 start. Fernandes was broken again (started up 30-Love, it was then 30-15 where Chris hit a winning Overhead Smash for 30-All, it was then Game Point where a great get by Nate was answered by a winning volley by Chris waiting at the net to make it Deuce and then Chris hit a lethal Overhead Smash winner for Break Point where he then followed up with a similar succinct Overhead Smash winner for the break) to fall to 0-3! Chiaro was finally broken (Chris hit another wizardly winner to go up 15-Love and then followed that with a winning volley for a 30-Love lead, it was then 30-15 where he blew an overhead to make it 30-All and then it went to Break Point where Chris then crushed another Overhead Smash winner to bring it to Deuce, but then it went to Break Point where perhaps the new best rally of the match ended with an equally amazing lob winner from Nate for the break) to finally allow his opponent onto the scoreboard at 3-1! But from there, Nate the Great was broken yet again (Chris blew a volley for 15-Love and then blew an overhead for 30-Love which was where Chris hit a wicked Overhead Smash winner for 30-15 and then scored with an out of reach winning drop shot return to make it 30-All which was where Chris then hit a passing shot winner to make it Break Point, but then an un-returned serve brought it to Deuce where another Godzilla-like Overhead Smash from Chris set up Break Point once again and then Chris hit his second net-cord-aided winner of the contest for the break), King Crush held (a crippling Overhead Smash winner set the table with a 15-Love start as it then went to 15-All where Chris hit another winner for 30-15 where he then blew a volley for 30-All, but then it went to Game Point where Chris hit a winning volley for the hold) and then Nathan was broken once more (Chris hit a victorious volley winner for Love-15, it was 15-All where Chris hit another winner to make it 15-30 where Chris then hit a blast of an Overhead Smash winner to set up Double Break/Match Point and then came the break) to drop the set in somewhat surprisingly lopsided fashion as The Chris Express got on a roll and just simply could not be stopped! The match ended exactly at 9:01 as this set was just 28 minutes long.
The Skinny: The 1st Set was one for the ages. Had it been a stand-alone One-Setter, it surely would be this season's One-Set Singles Match of The Year. Chris came out on fire in the opening game hitting three successive winners and a near fourth to finish his first hold at Love, but when Nathan responded with a Love hold of his own in his usual calm, cool and collected manner…it may have been a sign of thing to come. Chiaro continued to swing away with abandon, but when so many of those shots continued to sail back in his direction off the racquet of the seemingly always there Fernandes…the frustration began to set in and now The Champ found himself often pushing his shots long or pulling them wide in a failed attempt to keep them out of the challenger's reach. This is what Nate does to most opponents…get back shots that most others won't get to and it leads to a rash of unforced errors before said opponent even realizes what is happening to him. Of course, the reigning GTA Champion also brings out the same response from his opponents, but the points usually end in a much more succinct manner…not in the marathon rallies that Fernandes is so fond of and where he is so adept.
Along the way, Chris asked Frank to note just how many unforced errors he was making…but Samara only tracks the blown overheads and volleys. Still, if you look back at the 1st Set breakdown, you can see they were many. That kept the door open and actually allowed Nathan to lead the way for most of that opening set. Chiaro got his act back together just in time as he was finally able to close that door in an epic Tiebreak that lasted 16 minutes alone (I've seen some shutout sets end in the same amount of time)! Heading into that 2nd Set, The Champ was determined not to have a similar one hour plus set not take place. He committed himself to going for the winners whenever and wherever possible.
Fernandes had to be somewhat fatigued at this point (from constantly making gets to further extend rallies) and also a little mentally deflated to have come that close only to ultimately now be down a set rather than up a set. This led to King Crush having a much cleaner game in the 2nd Set and, despite a few more times where he made errors when the challenger pushed him to go just a little longer, he raised his percentage of successful winners just enough to blast past his opponent and race to the finish line!
Despite the lopsided score in the 2nd Set, Chiaro said afterward that it did not feel that way. And it certainly did not look that way from the sidelines either. But the points and games now fell in favor of The Champ's much more often than they did in that marathon 1st Set…and that was the difference!
Congratulations to Chris on a hard-fought victory, but also major kudos to Nate for a spirited effort.
The Consequences: Chiaro is now free to defend his GTA Championship against anyone in The Top 10 of the Advanced Division, but is also not obligated to do so until the month of April in the 2017 Season.
Also, I do believe that Former Champ: "Instant" Moka Pathan never cashed in on his immediate rematch as he decided to forego it (perhaps due to Ramadan) and let others challenge Chris first. I'll know better once I review the entire season as I do all the work necessary for the annual year-end GTA Achievement Awards. If that is the case, he can always exercise that option and take his shot before anyone else does.
Mike Kazlauskas/Dan Martinelli over Kris Srinivasan/Natalie Guzman, 7-5! Mike: 1 Ace on Natalie. This one got underway on Court Two at 7:46, shifted over to Court Four at 8:01 and did not end until 8:44 (just two minutes shy of being an hour long). It sounds like they had a lot of fun during this one. Even after they moved over to Court Four, we were still able to hear the frequent and jubilant outbursts of one Dr. Spin Doctor throughout this contest…LOL!
Kris Srinivasan/Dan Martinelli over T.J. Shah/Rajan Shah, 6-3! No Aces. Court Four also hosted this one which lasted from 8:59 to 9:28.
All in all, it was another fun session that featured an epic match as well.
Best wishes,
Frank Samara
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