6/14/17:
"Hwang-Bobila, W2 Final part of 28 (1 return) at C.G.!":
There was one epic session of GTA Wednesday Night Tennis at The Cedar Grove Courts with "The K Man" Kris Srinivasan acting as host and featuring the last of the GTA Intermediate Invitational Quarterfinal Matches…this one between "The Voice" Dan Hwang and William "Bombs Away" Bobila. Dan and Kris both provided commentary for this consequentially monumental encounter.
But because Kris was so preoccupied with the battle above, we have additional scores (some duplicated) submitted by "The Argentine Machine" Fernanda Toker, "Dominant" Dawn Peterson, "Stealth" Omar Santos, "The Levitator" Levy Lorenzo, Dennis "The Menace" Cabanatan, "The Webmaster" Senthil Kumar and GTA Champion: "King Crush" Chris Chiaro.
We now turn this report over to Kris (with all additional results inserted where appropriate).
It was certainly an epic night of GTA Tennis which was well predicted by Frank earlier in the day. The turnout was incredible, but the woes of a prolonged Singles Challenge Match bring the agony of an extended wait on the bench.
Was it worth it? Absolutely…for we got to watch one of the best GTA matches that I have seen from two outstanding players who gave their all and more! It is one for the books and deserves to be nominated as the Singles Match of The Year thus far.
William Bobila was the first to come and was well-prepared with chair and the works. I did come with a chair as well, but ended up standing throughout the night. Dan Hwang apparently was running late. I hurried to play a quick set as I had planned to watch the Men's Singles Match. Quick it was, indeed (my game…:-)!
The W2 Women's Doubles Tournament Final had already started on Court 1. We had some non-tournament GTA matches happening throughout the night on Courts 2 and 4 and later on Court 1 after the Women's Doubles Tourney Final. The Men's Singles Match would occupy Court 3 for the entirety of the night, having started around 7:15 and getting wrapped up just in time at 9:55.
I am not aware of many of the scores with many teams in the mix and a constant stream of players moving in and out of the various courts. The atmosphere was electric and reverberating in tennis theatrics. We had a standout crowd with quite a few who didn't even get to play.
To my knowledge, I didn't see Dan Martinelli (aka Spin), Genalin Capan and a few others who did not play for the night. It was a stadium-like atmosphere, with spectators sprawled over the East, West and Northern sides. There was a small contingent of spectators on the West side bench rooting for Bobila. It could be easily called his "box" in the stands. It was one of those nights that saw the most Filipinos, with Bobila having his own "Entourage." We can safely say it was "Little Manila"...hahaha!
The Cedar Grove Results:
Tito Castolo/Dawn Peterson tied with Joe Rodrigues/Vinnie De Benedetto, 4-4 (Incomplete when Tito had to leave to pick up his wife)! No Aces (apparently).
Tom La/Dawn Peterson over Kris Srinivasan/Vinnie De Bendetto, 6-3! No Aces.
W2 Women's Doubles Tournament Final:
Fernanda Toker/Anna Mazur over Doinks Srinivasan/Kathy Sheldon, 6-1, 6-0, to win the 2017 W2 Women's Doubles Tournament plus become the New # 2 Ranked Team (i.e. Top Contenders) in the Women's Doubles Division! No Aces.
The Consequences: Toker/Mazur are now entitled to the next Title shot at the reigning GTA Women's Doubles Champions: Laura Gawley and Sally Pillay.
Jordan Bachvaroff/Marie Salamon over Jay Phoenix/Sairaj Srinivasan, 6-3! No Aces.
Chris Chiaro/Mike Kazlauskas over Joe Rodrigues/Jonathan Hegarty, 6-0! No Aces. It was the official GTA Return of Jonathan Hegarty.
Mike Sindler/Jonathan Hegarty over Levy Lorenzo/Marie Salamon, 6-3! No Aces.
Chris Chiaro/Tom La over Jordan Bachvaroff/Ralph Bernard, 6-0! No Aces.
Senthil Kumar/Omar Santos over Tito Castolo/Natalia Sout, 6-3! No Aces.
Omar Santos/Dennis Cabanatan over Senthil Kumar/Natalia Sout, 6-3! Omar: 1 Ace on Natalia.
The Stealth Report: There were multiple Deuce games seesawing between Game Points and Break Points!
Chris Chiaro/Tom La over Jordan Bachvaroff/Ralph Bernard, 6-1! No Aces.
Tommy Reszkowski/Laurie Boughton over Fernanda Toker/Anna Mazur, 6-2! No Aces.
Tommy Reszkowski/Laurie Boughton leading Fernanda Toker/Anna Mazur, 5-3 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm)! No Aces.
Omar Santos/Dennis Cabanatan leading Senthil Kumar/Natalia Sout, 1-0 but serving at Break Point (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm)! No Aces.
GTA Intermediate Invitational Quarterfinal:
William Bobilla over Dan Hwang 5-7, 6-2, 6-4, to become the New # 13 Ranked Player in the Advanced Division and the New # 2 Ranked Player in the Intermediate Division while advancing to the Semifinals of The GTA Intermediate Invitational Tournament! Dan: 1 Ace in the 2nd Set!
The Voice speaks: Time of the match was from 7:15 to 9:55. William played a consistent game. His lethal backhand and solid running kept him in many points and also dictated many more. The match felt well-paced and of high quality. Unfortunately, I made a few key errors in the middle of the 2nd Set and late in the 3rd Set and William did well to capitalize on the situation.
Overall, I am pleased with the quality of this match. Of course, a win would have felt better. :-) Nonetheless, he played well in the key points. Kudos and good luck to William in the next round!
The K has his say: This was a classic match that had a treasure trove of amazing serves, terrific shots and placements. This was a very high quality match that showcased the superior skills of both the players. They went toe to toe and literally had to be on their toes in every point.
I got to watch the match after the first few games once I finished my match in a hurry. William was serving up 3-2 having just gotten a break. William got to hold in a very tight game. Down 2-4, Dan came up with one of the best service games to stay close in the set. Bobila had another excellent hold despite a solid fight from Dan, pushing him close to clinching the set at 5-3! To Dan's credit, he played fearlessly and had a comfortable hold of his own, forcing Bobila to close the set. It was a tough game in which Dan prevailed and, with a sudden burst of momentum, he then secured the next two games to seal the 1st Set…but not without having to fight for every point! There were some moments of frustration for Bobila.
The first point of the 2nd Set was an intriguing gesture on the part of Bobila who seemed to throw away the point without making any effort. It sure threw Dan off and me off wondering if he was going to throw away the game. But then, he stayed in the points somewhat relaxed without throwing in everything like he did in the 1st Set. This was a classic move upon reflection as it certainly had an effect in Dan's subconscious mind. After a couple of relaxed games, Dan took his pedal off the accelerator. It was at this time when Bobila made his aggressive move and the subtle dynamic of the force coming off his demeanor had the right effect. He got the break and Dan started making quite a few unforced errors. The result was the shift in momentum and its imploding effects.
The 3rd Set was on an even keel with both players holding their own. We got to see scintillating shots, serves like missiles from Bobila, nice kick serves from Dan, superb topspin shots by Bobila countered effectively by slices and thumping forehand shots by Dan. The match was riveting and it saw an incredible number of winners, excellent rallies and superior volleys. This match brought the best of both the players where only the 2nd Set proved to be an aberration from the entirety of the match in having produced the most errors. Save for that, this match was won by both players on their own merits. So how did Dan end up losing? It was in the crucial game after the match was tied 4-All in the 3rd Set where he blew the first two points after having constructed both so beautifully. For the first time, he was somewhat defensive and that cost him a dear point. Still, this fella was gutsy and gutted it out hard to Deuce…but then it was such a strain mentally. He was absolutely calm the entire match. So was Bobila who stayed mentally tough as well. But then, he was well supported by his Entourage who were encouraging and goading him constantly. They were probably a bit too talkative at tines and that likely distracted Dan, but then he took it in the stride. He was a perfect gentleman and a fair play/straight shooter…to the point that he potentially lost a crucial point that cost him the game and the match to some extent. He was serving and his second serve was a fault that Bobila did not call out but instead played. Dan simply hit out Bobila's return of serve. This gave the break to Bobila to go up 5-4 in this deciding set. These two guys acted classy and the best gesture came when Dan hugged Bobila after the match, a true gesture of genuine respect for each other. Hats off to both the guys for their exemplary attitude, game and sportsmanship! On a lighter note, Bobila was looking desperately for Ben Gay after the 2nd Set.
Overall, it was an outstanding match with two winners in tennis. These guys each belong near the top of our Advanced Division and they both have enhanced the stature of our league. They will end up contributing more to the improved performance of our other players by elevating their games to keep up with them. Dino Celis got to enjoy the match alongside me for the latter half and was able to see their solid plays and misses at close quarters. I generality like to play, but it was a privilege to watch the match.
Congratulations to both the players and to Bobila on his win! He looks pretty strong to go all the way. But then, he has already proven that he belongs in the Advanced Division. Cheers!
Samara's Notes: Kudos to both players on their extraordinary effort! Congratulations to William on such a hard-fought victory! And thanks to Dan for his excellent commentary.
Bobila now advances to face Jay "The Rising" Phoenix in the Semifinals where the other Semi will feature "The Annihilator" Nihar Panda taking on "Tailor Made" Raj Tailor.
As always, I thank Kris for hosting GTA Tennis up at Cedar Grove and then following it all up with such a colorful and comprehensive report. I also thank everyone else who contributed to this report.
Sincerely,
Frank Samara
862-596-3354
No comments:
Post a Comment