5/12/17:
"Kris-Suresh, W2 Semi part of 22 at C.G. as Samara hosts!":
GTA Friday Night Tennis at The Cedar Grove Courts was hosted by "Hollywood" Frank Samara and the session ended up being an epic one...both in terms of important matches and the overall turnout of players over the course of one continuous session - 22 official competitors!
One of those two important matches actually got started prior to Samara's arrival as usual Cedar Grove host, "The K Man" Kris Srinivasan took on his good buddy "Sure Thing" Suresh Poosala in a full 2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match as Suresh was also making his official GTA Return.
The other one of those two important matches was the scheduled W2 Women's Doubles Tournament Semifinal Match between the top seeded team, "The Marathon Woman" Doinks Srinivasan and "Killer Kat" Kathy Sheldon faced the only team with a win under their belt in this tourney thus far, "C.A.T." Christine Toth and "Laidback" Laurie Boughton.
Coming into this night, Samara's primary concern was noting the points (and helping out with the score and/or calls, if necessary) of the W2 Semi.
Samara pulled up to the courts at 6:50pm (much better than his anticipated 7:30 arrival). As he got out of his car, he saw that Court One was vacant. Court Two had "The Ambidextrous Machine" Herb Reiner hitting against his pal, "Mirav" Miroslav Glavic.
On Court Three, Kris and Suresh were still in the 2nd Set of their full Challenge Match. And on Court Four, "The Vin Man" Vinnie De Benedetto and "Bravo" Brenda Jordan were warming up the tandem of Kathy and Doinks. They eventually played an unofficial 10-Point Super Tiebreak just to get the feeling of some score points rather than solely hitting the ball.
Given the fact that it was a nice and sunny day (albeit a bit on the cool side, but also slightly warmer than some other days earlier this week), the temps had dropped somewhat precipitously as it had become quite a chilly night (many of the GTA faithful later said they grew used to it during the course of this week which felt more like mid-March than mid-May!).
The good news was the fact that as the night progressed, the entire scene of all four courts was all GTA...and that's the way it would stay for the entire evening (which helped us avoid having many logjam situations).
At 6:55, both Toth and Boughton arrived separately. They soon took the place of De Benedetto and Jordan on Court Four as they then hit against their soon-to-be opponents, Sheldon and Srinivasan (the match would officially get underway at 7:15).
Five minutes later, "Ice Berg" Scott Bergenfeld made his way toward the courts. We initially told him to practice alone on Court One in order to hold it. But then Kris and Suresh finished their Singles match and were now looking to play Doubles. So that meant Scott had to then shift over to Court Three while Vin left the bench (where Frank and Brenda still sat) to go make it a foursome.
Jordan, in fact, was eager to play as she would have to leave at 8pm. It seems that Kris may have overheard this and asked if she wanted to take his place, but Brenda insisted that it remain the four guys and she would take a shot at the fact that more players should soon be on the way.
At 7:10, "Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli pulled into the parking lot and then he found a spot on the bench next to Frank and Brenda alongside Court Four. When both GTA Champion: "King Crush" Chris Chiaro and "Big George" Jorge Solano arrived separately ten minutes later, the two of them were then joined by Spin and Brenda for Doubles on Court One.
It was somewhere around this time that "The Webmaster" Senthil Kumar sent a text message to Samara to see if it was already a logjam situation at the courts. Frank's reply was "not yet" and Senthil then responded he should arrive around 8pm.
At 7:40, four players all arrived at the same time - "Latino Heat" Jose Gonzales, Tito "Touch" Castolo, "Drill Instructor" Don Moya and "J-Wow" Janice Wang. The team of Gonzales/Castolo would soon see action against Chiaro/Solano on Court One. And then Moya and Wang did not have to wait much longer as they split up to get some Doubles with Bergenfeld and Poosala on Court Three.
True to his word, Senthil arrived at 8pm and he once again brought his cousin, "Diligent" Dinesh Vishanathan. Their timing was perfect as Herb and Miroslav were just leaving Court Two at that time. So Martinelli and De Benedetto then joined Kumar and Vishanathan over there for some Doubles.
They got that Doubles One-Setter underway at 8:05 just as "The Lumberjack" Ryan Pienciak arrived. So he had to sit on the bench with Samara for a while before getting a chance to play. Five minutes later, "The Levitator" Levy Lorenzo pulled into the lot and then joined them on the bench to watch the W2 Semi.
And at 8:20, "2 Tall" Dave Zhu did the same, but chose to check out the scene on Court One instead. He was the last official arrival of the night (as far as actual competitors go).
But at 8:50, "Coach" Dino Celis rolled into the lot to make an extended cameo appearance.
Enough chit chat, let's get to the scores!
The Cedar Grove Results:
2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match:
Kris Srinivasan over Suresh Poosala, 7-6 (7-4), 6-0, to successfully defend his # 15 Rank in the Intermediate Division! In the process, Poosala made his official GTA Return and also returned to the I-M Division as the New # 41 Ranked Player. No Aces.
The Skinny: Not sure when this one began or ended on Court Three, but it was good to see Suresh back in the mix. Whenever we see a contrast of set scores like this, we can almost always rightfully assume that the guy who ate the bagel simply ran out of gas.
W2 Women's Doubles Tournament Semifinal:
Doinks Srinivasan/Kathy Sheldon over Christine Toth/Laurie Boughton, 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, to successfully defend their # 4 Rank in the Women's Doubles Division plus advance to the Finals of the GTA W2 Women's Doubles Tournament! No Aces.
1st Set: Laurie held serve (Love-15 where Christine hit a winning Backhand Volley for 15-All, then it went to 30-15, Double Game Point and the hold), Kathy was broken (30-Love, 30-15 where Christine hit a winner to make it 30-All and then Laurie hit a vicious volley winner...many of her volleys are best described as semi-Overhead Smashes and she almost always brings them downward onto the court at an angle to then hopefully send them off the court...to set up Break Point and then came the break) and Christine held (an un-returned serve made it 15-Love, it then went to 30-Love, 30-15, Double Game Point and the hold) as her team jumped out to a somewhat surprising 3-0 lead! Then, Doinks held at Love after starting off with three consecutive un-returned serves, Boughton was broken (Love-15, 15-All and then onto Double Break Point right after Doinks hit a nice passing shot winner to set up Double Break Point where Kathy then hit a winning lob for the break) and Sheldon held (an un-returned serve made it 30-Love, but then a Double Fault cut that lead to 30-15 only to have it go to 30-All which was where Laurie blew a volley to set up Game Point where another un-returned serve secured the hold) to level things at 3-3! But from there, Toth held again (Laurie blew a volley for Love-15, but then it shifted straight to Double Game Point right after Laurie scored with another one of those venomous volley winners only to then have her blow another volley to cut the lead to Game Point where possibly the most truly un-returnable serve of the entire match locked down the hold), Srinivasan was broken (started with a Double Fault, 15-All, another Double Fault for 15-30 and then Christine hit an awesome Backhand Volley winner to set up Double Break Point where Laurie then hit what has to be described as a volley into a roller over the net winner for the break) and Boughton then held at Love after getting things started with a winning volley as this initial set ended on Court Four at 7:45 (they had begun the match at 7:15).
2nd Set: Kathy was broken (Triple Break Point where an un-returned serve cut it down to Double Break Point, then it went to Break Point, Deuce, another Break Point and then the break) and Laurie held serve (15-Love, 15-All and then onto Double Game Point with an un-returned serve along the way, but then a winning lob by Doinks cut it to Game Point where the best rally of the match thus far...and possibly for the entire contest...led to a hold of serve) as her team got up 2-0 in this set. But then Doinks held in a struggle (a very well-executed passing shot winner by Doinks for 15-Love, but then she blew a volley for 15-All only to then go up Double Game Point to then have that reduced to Deuce where Laurie hit a winning volley for Break Point and then another excellent rally led to 2nd Deuce where Doinks made a great get/passing shot winner combo for Game Point only to have Laurie hit a winner to bring it to 3rd Deuce which was where Doinks hit another winning lob to set up another Game Point which was where Laurie whipped out another winning volley to make it 4th Deuce, but them came Game Point and the hold) and Christine was broken (un-returned serve for 15-Love and that was where Doinks hit yet another winning lob for 15-All which was where Doinks hit an aggressive Overhead Smash winner to make it 15-30 and then it shifted to Game Point, but then came Deuce and another extended rally to set up Break Point where yet another marathon rally eventually led to the break!) to tie things up at 2-2! Sheldon was then broken again (off to a Love-30 start where Kathy then hit a winning Backhand Volley for 15-30, then it went to 30-All and then Break Point where Christine hit a vengeful volley winner for the break), but then Boughton was also broken (Doinks blew a volley for 15-Love, but then Christine blew a volley for 15-All, it then went to 15-30, 30-All and Break Point where Doinks delivered a scorching return winner for the break) to even things up again, this time at 3-3! Srinivasan held again (started with a Double Fault, 15-All, 15-30 where an un-returned serve made it 30-All, then it was Break Point where Doinks hit a winning lob to bring it to Deuce and then she hit an amazing passing shot winner to set up Game Point which she finished off with another un-returned serve for the hold), but Toth held as well (Kathy hit a whopper of a return winner for Love-15 which was where Laurie hit a volley/drop shot winner combo for 15-All and then Laurie hit another one of her victorious volley winners for 30-15 which was where Christine hit a winner of her own to set up Double Game Point and then came the hold) to knot the score once more at 4-4! Killer Kat was then broken yet again (15-Love, 15-All where another extended rally led to 15-30, then came Double Break Point and the break) to fall to 4-5, but Laidback Laurie was also broken again (Doinks was now the one to score with the volley into a roller over the net for the winner combo much like Laurie did earlier and that set up a Love-15 start which was where Christine then blew a volley for Love-30, it went to Triple Break Point, then down to Double Break Point before the break came) to keep this match alive at 5-5! The Marathon Woman then held yet again (Christine hit a winning roller over the net for Love-15, it was then Love-30 where Doinks hit another sizzling passing shot winner for 15-30 and then she scored with an emphatic Overhead Smash winner for 30-All which she then followed up with an excellent get/winner combo to set up Game Point which she again capped with an un-returned serve for the hold) to put her team up 6-5 and then C.A.T. was broken and it would be at Love as Doinks hit another wicked passing shot winner to start things off and then Laurie blew a volley to set up Triple Break Point which is where the break then came at 8:46 (this set had gotten underway at exactly 7:47)!
At this point, the two teams had a decision to make. They could either play a full 3rd Set or opt for a 10-Point Super Tiebreak to determine who would advance to the Finals (in this scenario, the Women's Doubles Division rank of Sheldon/Srinivasan would no longer be on the line). Much to the approval of the onlookers, all four ladies decided this one should go the distance...so a full 3rd Set got underway at 8:48!
3rd Set: Doinks was broken (Double Fault set up Triple Break Point, an un-returned serve cut that down to Double Break Point, then came Break Point and the break), Laurie was broken in a battle (Christine blew a volley for Love-15, then it went to Love-30, 15-30 where Doinks hit a winning volley to set up Double Break Point where Christine hit a winning volley to make it Break Point which was where she then followed up with a winning Backhand Volley for Deuce, it went to Break Point again, then 2nd Deuce, Game Point where Doinks score with a Backhand Volley winner for 3rd Deuce and then an un-returned serve set up Game Point once again, then it went to 4th Deuce, Game Point yet again, 5th Deuce where Doinks hit a winner for Break Point and then came the break) and then Kathy was the first to hold serve in this set (Love-15 and then an un-returned serve for 15-All, 15-30 where Christine blew a volley for 30-All and then Doinks hit a winning lob to set up Game Point and then came the hold) to go up 2-1. Christine was broken and again it was at Love as Kathy hit a winning return for Love-15 and then Doinks hit a winner to make it Love-30 which was where Kathy then hit a winner to set up Triple Break Point only to have Doinks hit yet another one of her patented topspin lob winners for the break and now a 3-1 lead! Srinivasan was then broken again (started with a Double Fault and then Laurie hit a winning volley for Love-30, it then went to 15-30, Double Fault for Double Break Point where an un-returned serve cut it to Break Point, then it went to Deuce and then another Break Point which was where Kathy blew a volley for the break) to have her team's lead cut to 3-2, but Boughton was also broken again and this time it was at Love as Laurie blew a volley for Love-15, it was then Love-30 where Doinks hit another winning lob to set up Triple Break Point where Doinks hit yet another winner for the break and to put her team up 4-2! Then, Sheldon held again (it was a 30-Love lead, then 30-15, then Double Game Point where Kathy hit a winning lob to secure her own hold) and Toth was broken again (Love-15 where Doinks hit a wicked winner for Love-30 and she then followed that with an equally walloping winner to set up Triple Break/Match Point, then it went to Double Break/Match Point where Laurie hit a winning volley to cut it down to Break/Match Point where the rally led to Christine being set up for a winning volley and she took a swing at the ball while it was still on the fly only to then wonder where it went! The ball had just firmly wedged itself in the triangular-shaped hold that separates the racquet head from the handle...a hole in one! While that may be good in golf, that ends up being a blown volley in tennis. Laurie took the racquet from her partner's hands, walked up to the net and then poked it out for the would-be winner as she was half-jokingly stating that it had never hit the ground and was therefore still in play. But it actually was no longer in play once the momentum of the action had stopped. This match ended in such strange fashion, but it did not diminish the fine effort that all four ladies had just put forth...as this battle (despite the somewhat lopsided 3rd Set score) was one for the ages! The match officially finished at 9:28!
The Skinny: While all four competitors had their shining moments, it was Doinks who was the true difference-maker (aka MVP) in this epic contest. Many of those on the sidelines watching the match marveled at her technique...especially the hybrid topspin forehand that she hits that veers somewhere between being a low lob and a high-arching passing shot winner. She burned both Christine and Laurie with that shot several times while they were up at the net. The way she always held serve in that pivotal 2nd Set while her partner Kathy could not...though it should be noted that the holding pattern between those two partners then reversed itself in the 3rd Set. And even though that final set lacked some of the drama of the one that preceded it, this match is still the one to beat this season for Women's Doubles Match of The Year.
The Consequences: The top-seeded team in this tourney, Srinivasan/Sheldon, now finds itself in the Finals where they may have to wait a while as there is still a Quarterfinal and then a Semifinal to be played in the W2 before the other team will arrive in the Finals. The Quarter features "The Argentine Machine" Fernanda Toker teaming with "Automatic" Anna Mazur as they face "Stay-Cay" Stacy Casais and "LP" Lena Pyatski. The winner of that match will then advance to the Semis where they will meet "Super Trooper" Sue Koziol and Gail "Storm" Schrimmer who got there via a bye once Brenda backed out of the Quarterfinal due to injury issues (she was scheduled to team with her usual partner, "Dominant" Dawn Peterson). The eventual 2017 W2 Champs will then be the next Top Contenders to the reigning GTA Women's Doubles Champions: Laura "The Aura" Gawley and "The Smackdown" Sally Pillay.
Kris Srinivasan/Vinnie De Bendetto over Scott Bergenfeld/Suresh Poosala, 6-2! Scott: 1 Ace on Vin (a cheap one as it was a soft slice after a series of previous blasts); and Kris: 1 Ace on Suresh! They played this one on Court Three from 7:15 to 7:45 (it mirrored the 1st Set of the W2 Semi).
Chris Chiaro/Brenda Jordan over Dan Martinelli/Jorge Solano, 6-0! No Aces. Court One saw this one get done in just 15 minutes (7:28 to 7:43)! Brenda said she had to go by 8pm and her partner Chris obliged her wishes.
Jose Gonzales/Tito Castolo over Chris Chiaro/Jorge Solano, 6-4! No Aces. Court One also hosted this one. It lasted from 7:50 to 8:35.
Don Moya/Suresh Poosala over Scott Bergenfeld/Janice Wang, 6-3! Scott: 1 Ace on Don (another cheap slice by Scott's own admission). This took place on Court Three as it started exactly at 7:53 and finished precisely at 8:28.
Dan Martinelli/Vinnie De Benedetto over Senthil Kumar/Dinesh Vishanathan, 6-3! Spin: 1 Ace on Dinesh on Match Point! Score one for Spin and Vin (self-described as "The Old Guys") as this one was contested on Court Two from 8:05 to 8:33.
Ryan Pienciak/Janice Wang over Levy Lorenzo/Don Moya, 7-5! Don: 1 Ace on Ryan. This took place on Court Three from 8:32 to 9:17.
Kris Srinivasan/Dave Zhu over Senthil Kumar/Dinesh Vishanathan, 6-4! No Aces. Court Two hosted this one from 8:38 to 9:16.
Jose Gonzales/Jorge Solano over Tito Castolo/Suresh Poosala, 6-2! No Aces. They got this one done on Court One as its duration was from 8:40 to 9:10.
Jose Gonzales/Tito Castolo over Don Moya/Janice Wang, 6-1! No Aces. This one took place on Court Three as it lasted from 9:20 to 9:49.
Senthil Kumar/Jorge Solano over Ryan Pienciak/Dinesh Vishanathan, 6-3! No Aces. Contested on Court One from 9:22 to 9:52.
Levy Lorenzo/Dave Zhu over Kris Srinivasan/Suresh Poosala, 6-4! No Aces. These four faced off on Court Two from 9:23 to 9:58.
Samara thought he was not going to get to be a part of the official action on this particular evening as the W2 Semi did not finish until 9:28. But Doinks wanted him to get involved and she was willing to play. So was Laurie. Frank questioned who would be the fourth. Sitting right next to him on the bench, Spin pondered aloud: "What am I? Chopped liver?!?!"
Samara wrongfully assumed that The Doc would be homeward bound to make sure there would be a timely feeding of his seven cats. But Martinelli decided that his family of felines could wait just a bit longer so that he could accommodate his buddy and try to get a One-Setter in before the clock struck ten to dash the lights precisely at that time!
Doinks wanted to team with Spin and we decided to forego the changeovers in the hopes of getting this one done in time. Frank went into it with no warm-up hitting whatsoever. Would we get it in on time?
Frank Samara/Laurie Boughton leading Dan Martinelli/Doinks Srinivasan, 4-3 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm...we got it going on Court Four at 9:35)! Spin: 1 Ace on Laurie. Going off of memory immediately after the lights went out, here's how the flow of the games were going until we were so rudely interrupted: Frank held (Love-15 shifted to 30-15 shifted to Break Point, Deuce, Game Point and the hold), Spin held (started with a slow and low Ace against Laurie, then 15-All before being onto Double Game Point and the hold), Laurie held (Triple Game Point lead cut down to Game Point, but then the hold) and Doinks held (Love-15 shifted to 30-15, 30-All, Game Point and the hold) as we were all on serve at 2-2. Samara held again (15-Love, 15-All then onto Double Game Point and the hold), but Martinelli was the first to be broken (15-Love then went straight to Double Break Point which then shifted to Deuce, Game Point, Double Fault for 2nd Deuce, Break Point and the break) to fall to 2-4! Boughton was also broken (15-Love also went right to Double Break Point, but then came the break) to have her team's lead cut to 4-3. Srinivasan went up 15-Love, then it was 15-All and then it was lights out!
The Skinny: It was a shame we could not get this one done as we were all having a lot of fun. Still, Spin and Doinks were happy to avoid a loss. And, actually, that should not even have been a foregone conclusion as this one seemed like it could have been heading for a Tiebreak in a prolonged struggle that could have gone either way. Despite the incomplete conclusion, it still seemed to be a fitting way to end an epic session.
All the best,
Frank Samara
gtasamara5@gmail.com
862-596-3354
"Kris-Suresh, W2 Semi part of 22 at C.G. as Samara hosts!":
GTA Friday Night Tennis at The Cedar Grove Courts was hosted by "Hollywood" Frank Samara and the session ended up being an epic one...both in terms of important matches and the overall turnout of players over the course of one continuous session - 22 official competitors!
One of those two important matches actually got started prior to Samara's arrival as usual Cedar Grove host, "The K Man" Kris Srinivasan took on his good buddy "Sure Thing" Suresh Poosala in a full 2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match as Suresh was also making his official GTA Return.
The other one of those two important matches was the scheduled W2 Women's Doubles Tournament Semifinal Match between the top seeded team, "The Marathon Woman" Doinks Srinivasan and "Killer Kat" Kathy Sheldon faced the only team with a win under their belt in this tourney thus far, "C.A.T." Christine Toth and "Laidback" Laurie Boughton.
Coming into this night, Samara's primary concern was noting the points (and helping out with the score and/or calls, if necessary) of the W2 Semi.
Samara pulled up to the courts at 6:50pm (much better than his anticipated 7:30 arrival). As he got out of his car, he saw that Court One was vacant. Court Two had "The Ambidextrous Machine" Herb Reiner hitting against his pal, "Mirav" Miroslav Glavic.
On Court Three, Kris and Suresh were still in the 2nd Set of their full Challenge Match. And on Court Four, "The Vin Man" Vinnie De Benedetto and "Bravo" Brenda Jordan were warming up the tandem of Kathy and Doinks. They eventually played an unofficial 10-Point Super Tiebreak just to get the feeling of some score points rather than solely hitting the ball.
Given the fact that it was a nice and sunny day (albeit a bit on the cool side, but also slightly warmer than some other days earlier this week), the temps had dropped somewhat precipitously as it had become quite a chilly night (many of the GTA faithful later said they grew used to it during the course of this week which felt more like mid-March than mid-May!).
The good news was the fact that as the night progressed, the entire scene of all four courts was all GTA...and that's the way it would stay for the entire evening (which helped us avoid having many logjam situations).
At 6:55, both Toth and Boughton arrived separately. They soon took the place of De Benedetto and Jordan on Court Four as they then hit against their soon-to-be opponents, Sheldon and Srinivasan (the match would officially get underway at 7:15).
Five minutes later, "Ice Berg" Scott Bergenfeld made his way toward the courts. We initially told him to practice alone on Court One in order to hold it. But then Kris and Suresh finished their Singles match and were now looking to play Doubles. So that meant Scott had to then shift over to Court Three while Vin left the bench (where Frank and Brenda still sat) to go make it a foursome.
Jordan, in fact, was eager to play as she would have to leave at 8pm. It seems that Kris may have overheard this and asked if she wanted to take his place, but Brenda insisted that it remain the four guys and she would take a shot at the fact that more players should soon be on the way.
At 7:10, "Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli pulled into the parking lot and then he found a spot on the bench next to Frank and Brenda alongside Court Four. When both GTA Champion: "King Crush" Chris Chiaro and "Big George" Jorge Solano arrived separately ten minutes later, the two of them were then joined by Spin and Brenda for Doubles on Court One.
It was somewhere around this time that "The Webmaster" Senthil Kumar sent a text message to Samara to see if it was already a logjam situation at the courts. Frank's reply was "not yet" and Senthil then responded he should arrive around 8pm.
At 7:40, four players all arrived at the same time - "Latino Heat" Jose Gonzales, Tito "Touch" Castolo, "Drill Instructor" Don Moya and "J-Wow" Janice Wang. The team of Gonzales/Castolo would soon see action against Chiaro/Solano on Court One. And then Moya and Wang did not have to wait much longer as they split up to get some Doubles with Bergenfeld and Poosala on Court Three.
True to his word, Senthil arrived at 8pm and he once again brought his cousin, "Diligent" Dinesh Vishanathan. Their timing was perfect as Herb and Miroslav were just leaving Court Two at that time. So Martinelli and De Benedetto then joined Kumar and Vishanathan over there for some Doubles.
They got that Doubles One-Setter underway at 8:05 just as "The Lumberjack" Ryan Pienciak arrived. So he had to sit on the bench with Samara for a while before getting a chance to play. Five minutes later, "The Levitator" Levy Lorenzo pulled into the lot and then joined them on the bench to watch the W2 Semi.
And at 8:20, "2 Tall" Dave Zhu did the same, but chose to check out the scene on Court One instead. He was the last official arrival of the night (as far as actual competitors go).
But at 8:50, "Coach" Dino Celis rolled into the lot to make an extended cameo appearance.
Enough chit chat, let's get to the scores!
The Cedar Grove Results:
2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match:
Kris Srinivasan over Suresh Poosala, 7-6 (7-4), 6-0, to successfully defend his # 15 Rank in the Intermediate Division! In the process, Poosala made his official GTA Return and also returned to the I-M Division as the New # 41 Ranked Player. No Aces.
The Skinny: Not sure when this one began or ended on Court Three, but it was good to see Suresh back in the mix. Whenever we see a contrast of set scores like this, we can almost always rightfully assume that the guy who ate the bagel simply ran out of gas.
W2 Women's Doubles Tournament Semifinal:
Doinks Srinivasan/Kathy Sheldon over Christine Toth/Laurie Boughton, 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, to successfully defend their # 4 Rank in the Women's Doubles Division plus advance to the Finals of the GTA W2 Women's Doubles Tournament! No Aces.
1st Set: Laurie held serve (Love-15 where Christine hit a winning Backhand Volley for 15-All, then it went to 30-15, Double Game Point and the hold), Kathy was broken (30-Love, 30-15 where Christine hit a winner to make it 30-All and then Laurie hit a vicious volley winner...many of her volleys are best described as semi-Overhead Smashes and she almost always brings them downward onto the court at an angle to then hopefully send them off the court...to set up Break Point and then came the break) and Christine held (an un-returned serve made it 15-Love, it then went to 30-Love, 30-15, Double Game Point and the hold) as her team jumped out to a somewhat surprising 3-0 lead! Then, Doinks held at Love after starting off with three consecutive un-returned serves, Boughton was broken (Love-15, 15-All and then onto Double Break Point right after Doinks hit a nice passing shot winner to set up Double Break Point where Kathy then hit a winning lob for the break) and Sheldon held (an un-returned serve made it 30-Love, but then a Double Fault cut that lead to 30-15 only to have it go to 30-All which was where Laurie blew a volley to set up Game Point where another un-returned serve secured the hold) to level things at 3-3! But from there, Toth held again (Laurie blew a volley for Love-15, but then it shifted straight to Double Game Point right after Laurie scored with another one of those venomous volley winners only to then have her blow another volley to cut the lead to Game Point where possibly the most truly un-returnable serve of the entire match locked down the hold), Srinivasan was broken (started with a Double Fault, 15-All, another Double Fault for 15-30 and then Christine hit an awesome Backhand Volley winner to set up Double Break Point where Laurie then hit what has to be described as a volley into a roller over the net winner for the break) and Boughton then held at Love after getting things started with a winning volley as this initial set ended on Court Four at 7:45 (they had begun the match at 7:15).
2nd Set: Kathy was broken (Triple Break Point where an un-returned serve cut it down to Double Break Point, then it went to Break Point, Deuce, another Break Point and then the break) and Laurie held serve (15-Love, 15-All and then onto Double Game Point with an un-returned serve along the way, but then a winning lob by Doinks cut it to Game Point where the best rally of the match thus far...and possibly for the entire contest...led to a hold of serve) as her team got up 2-0 in this set. But then Doinks held in a struggle (a very well-executed passing shot winner by Doinks for 15-Love, but then she blew a volley for 15-All only to then go up Double Game Point to then have that reduced to Deuce where Laurie hit a winning volley for Break Point and then another excellent rally led to 2nd Deuce where Doinks made a great get/passing shot winner combo for Game Point only to have Laurie hit a winner to bring it to 3rd Deuce which was where Doinks hit another winning lob to set up another Game Point which was where Laurie whipped out another winning volley to make it 4th Deuce, but them came Game Point and the hold) and Christine was broken (un-returned serve for 15-Love and that was where Doinks hit yet another winning lob for 15-All which was where Doinks hit an aggressive Overhead Smash winner to make it 15-30 and then it shifted to Game Point, but then came Deuce and another extended rally to set up Break Point where yet another marathon rally eventually led to the break!) to tie things up at 2-2! Sheldon was then broken again (off to a Love-30 start where Kathy then hit a winning Backhand Volley for 15-30, then it went to 30-All and then Break Point where Christine hit a vengeful volley winner for the break), but then Boughton was also broken (Doinks blew a volley for 15-Love, but then Christine blew a volley for 15-All, it then went to 15-30, 30-All and Break Point where Doinks delivered a scorching return winner for the break) to even things up again, this time at 3-3! Srinivasan held again (started with a Double Fault, 15-All, 15-30 where an un-returned serve made it 30-All, then it was Break Point where Doinks hit a winning lob to bring it to Deuce and then she hit an amazing passing shot winner to set up Game Point which she finished off with another un-returned serve for the hold), but Toth held as well (Kathy hit a whopper of a return winner for Love-15 which was where Laurie hit a volley/drop shot winner combo for 15-All and then Laurie hit another one of her victorious volley winners for 30-15 which was where Christine hit a winner of her own to set up Double Game Point and then came the hold) to knot the score once more at 4-4! Killer Kat was then broken yet again (15-Love, 15-All where another extended rally led to 15-30, then came Double Break Point and the break) to fall to 4-5, but Laidback Laurie was also broken again (Doinks was now the one to score with the volley into a roller over the net for the winner combo much like Laurie did earlier and that set up a Love-15 start which was where Christine then blew a volley for Love-30, it went to Triple Break Point, then down to Double Break Point before the break came) to keep this match alive at 5-5! The Marathon Woman then held yet again (Christine hit a winning roller over the net for Love-15, it was then Love-30 where Doinks hit another sizzling passing shot winner for 15-30 and then she scored with an emphatic Overhead Smash winner for 30-All which she then followed up with an excellent get/winner combo to set up Game Point which she again capped with an un-returned serve for the hold) to put her team up 6-5 and then C.A.T. was broken and it would be at Love as Doinks hit another wicked passing shot winner to start things off and then Laurie blew a volley to set up Triple Break Point which is where the break then came at 8:46 (this set had gotten underway at exactly 7:47)!
At this point, the two teams had a decision to make. They could either play a full 3rd Set or opt for a 10-Point Super Tiebreak to determine who would advance to the Finals (in this scenario, the Women's Doubles Division rank of Sheldon/Srinivasan would no longer be on the line). Much to the approval of the onlookers, all four ladies decided this one should go the distance...so a full 3rd Set got underway at 8:48!
3rd Set: Doinks was broken (Double Fault set up Triple Break Point, an un-returned serve cut that down to Double Break Point, then came Break Point and the break), Laurie was broken in a battle (Christine blew a volley for Love-15, then it went to Love-30, 15-30 where Doinks hit a winning volley to set up Double Break Point where Christine hit a winning volley to make it Break Point which was where she then followed up with a winning Backhand Volley for Deuce, it went to Break Point again, then 2nd Deuce, Game Point where Doinks score with a Backhand Volley winner for 3rd Deuce and then an un-returned serve set up Game Point once again, then it went to 4th Deuce, Game Point yet again, 5th Deuce where Doinks hit a winner for Break Point and then came the break) and then Kathy was the first to hold serve in this set (Love-15 and then an un-returned serve for 15-All, 15-30 where Christine blew a volley for 30-All and then Doinks hit a winning lob to set up Game Point and then came the hold) to go up 2-1. Christine was broken and again it was at Love as Kathy hit a winning return for Love-15 and then Doinks hit a winner to make it Love-30 which was where Kathy then hit a winner to set up Triple Break Point only to have Doinks hit yet another one of her patented topspin lob winners for the break and now a 3-1 lead! Srinivasan was then broken again (started with a Double Fault and then Laurie hit a winning volley for Love-30, it then went to 15-30, Double Fault for Double Break Point where an un-returned serve cut it to Break Point, then it went to Deuce and then another Break Point which was where Kathy blew a volley for the break) to have her team's lead cut to 3-2, but Boughton was also broken again and this time it was at Love as Laurie blew a volley for Love-15, it was then Love-30 where Doinks hit another winning lob to set up Triple Break Point where Doinks hit yet another winner for the break and to put her team up 4-2! Then, Sheldon held again (it was a 30-Love lead, then 30-15, then Double Game Point where Kathy hit a winning lob to secure her own hold) and Toth was broken again (Love-15 where Doinks hit a wicked winner for Love-30 and she then followed that with an equally walloping winner to set up Triple Break/Match Point, then it went to Double Break/Match Point where Laurie hit a winning volley to cut it down to Break/Match Point where the rally led to Christine being set up for a winning volley and she took a swing at the ball while it was still on the fly only to then wonder where it went! The ball had just firmly wedged itself in the triangular-shaped hold that separates the racquet head from the handle...a hole in one! While that may be good in golf, that ends up being a blown volley in tennis. Laurie took the racquet from her partner's hands, walked up to the net and then poked it out for the would-be winner as she was half-jokingly stating that it had never hit the ground and was therefore still in play. But it actually was no longer in play once the momentum of the action had stopped. This match ended in such strange fashion, but it did not diminish the fine effort that all four ladies had just put forth...as this battle (despite the somewhat lopsided 3rd Set score) was one for the ages! The match officially finished at 9:28!
The Skinny: While all four competitors had their shining moments, it was Doinks who was the true difference-maker (aka MVP) in this epic contest. Many of those on the sidelines watching the match marveled at her technique...especially the hybrid topspin forehand that she hits that veers somewhere between being a low lob and a high-arching passing shot winner. She burned both Christine and Laurie with that shot several times while they were up at the net. The way she always held serve in that pivotal 2nd Set while her partner Kathy could not...though it should be noted that the holding pattern between those two partners then reversed itself in the 3rd Set. And even though that final set lacked some of the drama of the one that preceded it, this match is still the one to beat this season for Women's Doubles Match of The Year.
The Consequences: The top-seeded team in this tourney, Srinivasan/Sheldon, now finds itself in the Finals where they may have to wait a while as there is still a Quarterfinal and then a Semifinal to be played in the W2 before the other team will arrive in the Finals. The Quarter features "The Argentine Machine" Fernanda Toker teaming with "Automatic" Anna Mazur as they face "Stay-Cay" Stacy Casais and "LP" Lena Pyatski. The winner of that match will then advance to the Semis where they will meet "Super Trooper" Sue Koziol and Gail "Storm" Schrimmer who got there via a bye once Brenda backed out of the Quarterfinal due to injury issues (she was scheduled to team with her usual partner, "Dominant" Dawn Peterson). The eventual 2017 W2 Champs will then be the next Top Contenders to the reigning GTA Women's Doubles Champions: Laura "The Aura" Gawley and "The Smackdown" Sally Pillay.
Kris Srinivasan/Vinnie De Bendetto over Scott Bergenfeld/Suresh Poosala, 6-2! Scott: 1 Ace on Vin (a cheap one as it was a soft slice after a series of previous blasts); and Kris: 1 Ace on Suresh! They played this one on Court Three from 7:15 to 7:45 (it mirrored the 1st Set of the W2 Semi).
Chris Chiaro/Brenda Jordan over Dan Martinelli/Jorge Solano, 6-0! No Aces. Court One saw this one get done in just 15 minutes (7:28 to 7:43)! Brenda said she had to go by 8pm and her partner Chris obliged her wishes.
Jose Gonzales/Tito Castolo over Chris Chiaro/Jorge Solano, 6-4! No Aces. Court One also hosted this one. It lasted from 7:50 to 8:35.
Don Moya/Suresh Poosala over Scott Bergenfeld/Janice Wang, 6-3! Scott: 1 Ace on Don (another cheap slice by Scott's own admission). This took place on Court Three as it started exactly at 7:53 and finished precisely at 8:28.
Dan Martinelli/Vinnie De Benedetto over Senthil Kumar/Dinesh Vishanathan, 6-3! Spin: 1 Ace on Dinesh on Match Point! Score one for Spin and Vin (self-described as "The Old Guys") as this one was contested on Court Two from 8:05 to 8:33.
Ryan Pienciak/Janice Wang over Levy Lorenzo/Don Moya, 7-5! Don: 1 Ace on Ryan. This took place on Court Three from 8:32 to 9:17.
Kris Srinivasan/Dave Zhu over Senthil Kumar/Dinesh Vishanathan, 6-4! No Aces. Court Two hosted this one from 8:38 to 9:16.
Jose Gonzales/Jorge Solano over Tito Castolo/Suresh Poosala, 6-2! No Aces. They got this one done on Court One as its duration was from 8:40 to 9:10.
Jose Gonzales/Tito Castolo over Don Moya/Janice Wang, 6-1! No Aces. This one took place on Court Three as it lasted from 9:20 to 9:49.
Senthil Kumar/Jorge Solano over Ryan Pienciak/Dinesh Vishanathan, 6-3! No Aces. Contested on Court One from 9:22 to 9:52.
Levy Lorenzo/Dave Zhu over Kris Srinivasan/Suresh Poosala, 6-4! No Aces. These four faced off on Court Two from 9:23 to 9:58.
Samara thought he was not going to get to be a part of the official action on this particular evening as the W2 Semi did not finish until 9:28. But Doinks wanted him to get involved and she was willing to play. So was Laurie. Frank questioned who would be the fourth. Sitting right next to him on the bench, Spin pondered aloud: "What am I? Chopped liver?!?!"
Samara wrongfully assumed that The Doc would be homeward bound to make sure there would be a timely feeding of his seven cats. But Martinelli decided that his family of felines could wait just a bit longer so that he could accommodate his buddy and try to get a One-Setter in before the clock struck ten to dash the lights precisely at that time!
Doinks wanted to team with Spin and we decided to forego the changeovers in the hopes of getting this one done in time. Frank went into it with no warm-up hitting whatsoever. Would we get it in on time?
Frank Samara/Laurie Boughton leading Dan Martinelli/Doinks Srinivasan, 4-3 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm...we got it going on Court Four at 9:35)! Spin: 1 Ace on Laurie. Going off of memory immediately after the lights went out, here's how the flow of the games were going until we were so rudely interrupted: Frank held (Love-15 shifted to 30-15 shifted to Break Point, Deuce, Game Point and the hold), Spin held (started with a slow and low Ace against Laurie, then 15-All before being onto Double Game Point and the hold), Laurie held (Triple Game Point lead cut down to Game Point, but then the hold) and Doinks held (Love-15 shifted to 30-15, 30-All, Game Point and the hold) as we were all on serve at 2-2. Samara held again (15-Love, 15-All then onto Double Game Point and the hold), but Martinelli was the first to be broken (15-Love then went straight to Double Break Point which then shifted to Deuce, Game Point, Double Fault for 2nd Deuce, Break Point and the break) to fall to 2-4! Boughton was also broken (15-Love also went right to Double Break Point, but then came the break) to have her team's lead cut to 4-3. Srinivasan went up 15-Love, then it was 15-All and then it was lights out!
The Skinny: It was a shame we could not get this one done as we were all having a lot of fun. Still, Spin and Doinks were happy to avoid a loss. And, actually, that should not even have been a foregone conclusion as this one seemed like it could have been heading for a Tiebreak in a prolonged struggle that could have gone either way. Despite the incomplete conclusion, it still seemed to be a fitting way to end an epic session.
All the best,
Frank Samara
gtasamara5@gmail.com
862-596-3354
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