11/30/17:
"Samara hosts 5 at C.G., then 18 at Bubble!":
There were two sessions of GTA Thursday Night Tennis: the usual one at The Cedar Grove Courts with "Hollywood" Frank Samara acting as host and then the Night Owls session up at The Wayne Bubble organized by "The Riz" John Rizzo.
We will now detail how the Cedar Grove session unfolded and then report the results. After that, we head up to The Bubble to list those scores as well.
Samara once again arrived at 6:45, but he was not the first one into the parking lot as that honor went to Natalia "Nitro" Sout. And then pulling in soon after Frank did was the GTA Champion: "Nate the Great" Nathan Fernandes.
The three of them soon took Court Three and had a lengthy hitting session where they varied combinations of which two were hitting to the other one.
Earlier in the evening, usual host "The K Man" Kris Srinivasan had sent a text message to Samara stating that they would be at a high school orientation for their younger son Sairaj and would hope to return not long after 7:30.
At 7:20, however, the fourth player to arrive would be Muhammad "Muha" Haque and he would earn a better moniker later in the evening. This led to a four-way hitting session of a little over ten minutes long.
Samara then proposed the idea of Fernandes and Sout once again teaming together while Frank would pair with Muhammad. This would lead to back-to-back One-Setters featuring this match-up.
Just as they were switching up the teams for a third One-Setter, Kris and his wife Doinks (aka The Marathon Woman) did a drive-by at 8:30 to survey the situation (it should also be said that two guys had taken Court Two for some Singles action from 7:55 to 8:45). Kris asked if he was needed and Frank said that it really didn't matter…he should just come over and eventually take Samara's place.
Kris made it back over to the courts at 8:40 and watched that third One-Setter until it finished at 9:10. He wanted Samara to stay out on the court, but Frank insisted that he take his place…and so he did. And that led to a fourth One-Setter and fell short of a fifth one getting fully finished.
As we speak of the word "fifth," it was Kris who was the fifth and final official competitor of the session.
Let's get to the scores!
The Cedar Grove Results:
Nathan Fernandes/Natalia Sout over Frank Samara/Muhammad Haque, 6-0! No Aces. It went like this: Nathan held at Love as he started off with an un-returned serve and then Frank blew a volley to set up Triple Break Point, Frank was broken (started off with a near ace to which Nate made a great get on returning it only to have Frank rush to a short and sharply angled shot for the get/winner combo for a 15-Love start only to then slide straight to Double Break Point as Nate made an incredible get/drop shot winner combo along the way, but then Natalia blew a volley in the next point to make it Break Point and then came the break), Natalia held (Nate hit a winning volley for 15-Love and then it went point for point to Game Point as Natalia blew a volley and Nate made a superb get/passing shot winner combo along the way, but then it went to Deuce where Frank blew a volley to make it Game Point once again where an un-returned serve secured the hold), Muhammad was broken (Love-15 and then back-to-back Double Faults set up Triple Break Point, it was then Double Break Point where Natalia hit a winning drop shot return for the break), Fernandes held again (an un-returned serve for 15-Love, a Double Fault to make it 15-All and then the next point was the best rally of the match and it ended with a winning volley from Nate as it was then on the way to Double Game Point, then came Game Point and the hold) and Samara was broken again (the second best rally of the match led to Love-15, then it was Love-30 where Natalia blew a volley to make it 15-30, but then it went to Double Break/Match Point) as it only took twenty minutes for this bagel to be served up on Court Three (7:33 to 7:53). We then decided to play a Rematch One-Setter.
Nathan Fernandes/Natalia Sout over Frank Samara/Muhammad Haque, 6-0! No Aces. Here's how it went down: Nathan again opened the set with a Love hold as Natalia got things started with an emphatic Backhand Volley winner, then Muhammad blew a volley, Natalia hit another winning volley and then an un-returned serve secured the hold, Frank was broken (back-to-back blown volleys by Muhammad for Love-30, then it was Triple Break Point where Muhammad finally scored with a very effective Drop Shot Volley winner to make it Double Break Point which his where Nate came through with a precise passing shot return winner for the break), Natalia held in an incredible battle (back-to-back un-returned serves for a 30-Love start, then it was Triple Game Point where Frank hit a net-cord-aided winner that seemed to shift the momentum as it then went to Deuce…and from here forward, I had to stop trying to remember the winners…at least until the very last one that closed out the game, as it went back to another Game Point, 2nd Deuce, Double Fault for Break Point, 3rd Deuce, Break Point, 4th Deuce, Game Point, 5th Deuce, Game Point, 6th Deuce, Break Point, 7th Deuce, Game Point, 8th Deuce and Game Point again where Natalia finally put the stamp on it with an inspired winner for the hold), Muhammad was broken at Love as he started off with back-to-back Double Faults and then Nate hit a winner to set up Triple Break Point, Fernandes held again (an un-returned serve for 15-Love and then a shift to 15-30 as Natalia blew a volley and Muhammad scored with an impressive passing shot return winner, but then he badly blew what should have been an easy overhead and then another un-returned serve locked in the next shift to Game Point, then it was Deuce where Frank hit a passing shot winner to make it Break Point where Muhammad blew a volley to bring it back to 2nd Deuce and then Frank blew a volley to have it go back to Game Point where Muhammad blew a volley to allow the hold) and then Samara was broken again (Natalia blew a volley and then an un-returned serve made it 30-Love which was where Muhammad once again badly blew an overhead attempt and then it went to 30-All before going to Game Point where Frank blew an overhead to make it Deuce and then he repeated that feat to set up Break/Match Point where Muhammad then blew a volley to allow the break and take the loss) to eat his second bagel of the night! This one was also played on Court Three and was much more competitive despite the same score as it lasted from 7:55 to 8:25.
The Skinny: This second one was a lot of fun. The 8-Deuce service hold from Natalia was the highlight and it is a shame I could not remember the winners in that game as there were so many. We joked afterward that Muhammad and I must have been allergic to winning a game because every time we came close, we found a way to make hideous errors to ensure that such a win would go far away…LOL! It was also in this one where Haque earned a new moniker – "Diver Down!" On multiple occasions, he willingly tossed his body to the ground a la Boris Becker in his prime in order to try to make the shot. While it was rarely (if ever) successful, his competitive spirit in taking those dives was admirable. And his steady improvement after now going up against some steadier competition was truly starting to show in this second One-Setter.
Nathan Fernandes/Muhammad Haque over Frank Samara/Natalia Sout, 6-3! Muhammad: 1 Ace on Natalia! The dirty lowdown: Nathan was somewhat shockingly broken at Love as he had a rare misfire and blew a volley to make it Love-30 and then Frank had a winning return on Triple Break Point to lock in the Love break, but Frank was broken yet again (an awesome rally led to Nate finally ending it with an emphatic Backhand Volley winner for Love-15, then an un-returned serve for 15-All only to then have it go to Double Break Point as Muhammad hit a drop shot winner along the way and then Nate scored with an awesome passing shot winner to earn the break) as was Muhammad (started with a Double Fault, it shifted to 30-15 where an excellent rally than reversed the momentum to Break Point, it went to Deuce where Natalia hit a stunning return winner to set up Break Point where Muhammad then blew a drop shot attempt to break himself) and Natalia was also broken and it was at Love as nobody could hold serve at 2-2! Fernandes held in the second greatest struggle of the night (Nate hit a winning volley to make it 30-Love which was where Frank then scored with a vicious volley winner that served to shift the momentum as Nate then blew a volley and Natalia came thru with an awesome passing shot winner to make it Break Point and now again…once it goes to Deuce, I can no longer remember who hit what winners…and then it went back to Break Point, 2nd Deuce, Game Point, 3rd Deuce, Game Point, 4th Deuce, Break Point, 5th Deuce, Break Point, 6th Deuce, Game Point again and finally the hold) while Samara was broken once more (Love-30 where Nate hit a winning drop shot return to set up Triple Break Point, an un-returned serve made it Double Break Point only to have Nate hit another winning drop shot return for the break) as his team fell to 2-4. Haque was also broken again (started with a Double Fault, 15-All only to then have it go straight to Double Break Point and then an out-of-nowhere sideline Ace against Natalia to cut it to Break Point, but then came the break) to have his team's lead cut to 4-3, but Sout was also broken again (Nate hit a winning volley to make it Love-30 and that was where Frank could at least get some measure of satisfaction for the evening after hitting a walloping Windmill Overhead Smash winner for 15-30, but then it went to Double Break Point where Nate scored with a drop shot winner for the break) and then The Champ held again (Nate executed an excellent passing shot winner for 15-Love and was then off and running to Triple Game/Match Point where Frank hit a winning return to survive just a little bit longer as it was now Double Game/Match Point, but then came the hold and the victory) to get the win! This was played on Court Three from 8:30 to 9:10.
The Skinny: Like the previous One-Setter, this was both competitive and fun. Having only missed the first ten minutes of it, Kris was still quite entertained in watching the balance of it. At Samara's insistence, Srinivasan then took the court and had very little warm-up before diving right into the next one.
Nathan Fernandes/Muhammad Haque over Kris Srinivasan/Natalia Sout, 6-1! No Aces. The basic breakdown: Natalia was broken, Nate held in another struggle (Double Game Point reduced to Deuce, Game Point, 2nd Deuce, Game Point, 3rd Deuce, Game Point, 4th Deuce, Game Point, 5th Deuce, Game Point and finally the hold), Kris was broken (Double Break Point with a bounce back to Deuce, Break Point again, 2nd Deuce, Break Point and the break) and Muhammad held at Love for a 4-0 lead! Sout held (Double Break Point with a rise to Deuce, Game Point and the hold) to get her team onto the scoreboard at 1-4! But from there, Fernandes held again (Triple Game Point, Double Game Point and the hold) and Srinivasan was broken again (Game Point, Deuce, Break/Match Point, 2nd Deuce, it ended on the 2nd Break/Match Point) to get the "L!" This was played on Court Three from 9:13 to 9:42 and they decided to forego the changeovers in order to get it done in time.
The Skinny: Ably supported by Fernandes, Haque had a burst of confidence and it showed in his play. Meanwhile, Sout was still impressive while Srinivasan just did not have ample time to warm up properly. Eager for at least an ounce of redemption, Kris insisted upon launching into another one…and so they did (again without changeovers)!
Nathan Fernandes/Muhammad Haque leading Kris Srinivasan/Natalia Sout, 3-2 (Incomplete at 10pm)! No Aces. Here's how it was going: Nate held and Kris was broken for 0-2. Muhammad was broken and Natalia held for 2-2. Fernandes held again to go up 3-2 and then Srinivasan was on serve and had hit a Double Fault to set up Double Break Point before bouncing back to Deuce when the lights went out at ten (they had begun this one within the same minute of finishing the prior one…at 9:42)!
The Skinny: Right around 9:50, a faint drizzle started…but it was not nearly enough to stop the play of the enthusiastic players. They were all fighting to get this one done in time but, alas, it was not to be.
After a brief group convo, Samara left the lot at 10:05 to head up to The Wayne Bubble. During that drive, the faint drizzle increased to a light but steady rain and the roads became slick. Nonetheless, he pulled into the parking lot at The Bubble at 10:20.
We now head up to The Wayne Bubble for those scores. They are a combination of court-by-court reporting with some semblance of chronological order along the way. Samara never played (although he was invited to do so quite a few times) and they still ended up with an impressive total of 18 players.
The Wayne Bubble Results:
Chris Chiaro/Rich Liu over Ryan Pienciak/Frank Hohorst, 6-4! Chris: 1 Ace on Ryan. This was played on Court One and went right into this next one.
Ryan Pienciak/Frank Hohorst over Chris Chiaro/Rich Liu, 7-6 (7-2)! No Aces. They would then start what would have been the 3rd Set to make this a full match, but midway thru it…Rich took a bathroom break that ended up becoming quite the extended one! We'll get back to that situation later in this report.
2 out of 3 Sets Doubles Match:
Dennis Cabanatan/Pranav Sinha over Syed Rashid/Mike Sindler, 6-4, 6-0, to become the New # 28 Ranked Team in the Doubles Division! No Aces. This one finished on Court Two at 10:33. They then switched up the teams for a One-Setter which we will report further along in this report.
Senthil Kumar/Joe Rodrigues over Arthur Fontanilla/Nick Caputo, 6-2! Nick: 2 Aces on Senthil! This was played on Court Three and they then played a Rematch One-Setter.
Arthur Fontanilla/Nick Caputo over Senthil Kumar/Joe Rodrigues, 6-1! Nick: 1 Ace on Senthil. This one finished on Court Three at 10:30. At that time, Art had to leave and John Rizzo would end up taking his place for the next One-Setter…which we will get to later.
2 out of 3 Sets Doubles Match:
Paul Daddio/Ryan Sherry over Tony Shiao/Tom La, 6-3, 6-3, as both teams entered the Doubles Division as the New # 121 and # 122 Ranked Teams respectively! Ryan: 1 Ace on Tony; and Tony: 1 Ace on Paul! This one was finished on Court Four at 10:47. Afterward, La invited Samara to take his place, but Frank deferred to Don Moya doing so instead.
Senthil Kumar/Joe Rodrigues over John Rizzo/Nick Caputo, 6-3! Joe: 1 Ace on Nick (an emphatic one in the final game)! This was contested on Court Three from 10:34 to 10:58. Rizzo had undergone a medical procedure earlier in the day that involved anesthesia and was still somewhat in a sleepy mode as a result.
Chris Chiaro/Rich Liu leading Ryan Pienciak/Frank Hohorst, 3-1 (at Deuce and Incomplete as Rich took a bathroom break somewhere around 10:50, but did not return to the court until 11:05 as he had gotten sick while he was away…Nick Caputo also felt somewhat under the weather earlier in the session and then seemingly shook it off)! Chris: 1 Ace on Ryan.
Dennis Cabanatan/Syed Rashid tied with Pranav Sinha/Mike Sindler, 3-3 (Incomplete when they stopped this on at 11pm on Court Two…they had started it at 10:35). No Aces.
Tony Shiao/Don Moya leading Paul Daddio/Ryan Sherry, 4-3 (Incomplete when they stopped this one at 11:07 on Court Fourt…they had started it at 10:50)! Tony: 1 Ace on Paul.
From what I had the chance to see, there was solid action on all four courts and everyone seemed to have a really good time.
Sincerely,
Frank Samara
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