11/5 Results.

11/5/16:

"Monk Memorial Final part of 16 at C.G.!:

There was just one session of GTA Saturday Night Tennis: the usual later session up at The Cedar Grove Courts.  The K Man" Kris Srinivasan acted as host along with assistance from Dennis "The Menace" Cabanatan as The Main Event was The Monk Memorial Men's Doubles Tournament Final Match featuring "The Lumberjack" Ryan Pienciak and "Chito" Nick Inciong taking on "The Sultan of Swing" Raj Shah and "Kaboom" Raj Boddu.  Also, "The S Bomber" Genalin Capan and "Holy Moly" Mike Mole reported their results directly. 

Let's first go to the results as reported by Dennis, Gen and Mike in no certain order (but my best guess, chronologically speaking) before we let Kris take over the report.

The Cedar Grove Results:

T.J. Shah/Rajan Shah tied with Dennis Cabanatan/Matias Dioses, 2-2 (Incomplete when Matias had to leave with his mother)!  No Aces (apparently).

Mike Mole/Jose Gonzales over Dennis Cabanatan/Natalia Sout, 6-2!  No Aces (apparently).

Dennis Cabanatan over Mike Mole, 6-4!  No Aces.

2 out of 3 Sets Mixed Doubles Match:
Dennis Cabanatan/Natalia Sout over Mike Mole/Genalin Capan, 6-2, 0-6, 10-4 (STB), as both teams entered the Mixed Doubles Division as the New # 48  and # 49 Ranked Teams respectively!  No Aces.  Gen said that she had initially only went there to hit and then watch the Monk Memorial Final, but she ended up in this match which was played from 6:45 to 7:50.

Dennis Cabanatan over Andrew Troung, 6-2!  No Aces.

Mike Mole over Andrew Truong, 6-2!  No Aces.

Samara's Notes: I thank Dennis, Gen and Mike for their timely reporting.  We now let The K Man take it away!

The Monk Memorial Final Match:
Ryan Pienciak/Nick Inciong over Raj Shah/Raj Boddu, 6-1, 6-2, to become the 2016 Monk Memorial Champs and the New # 2 Ranked Team in the Doubles Division (i.e. the next Top Contenders)!  No Aces (apparently).

The highlight of the night was certainly the Monk Memorial Men's Doubles Tournament Final featuring Shah and Boddu against Ryan and Nick.  This match was scheduled for a 7pm start, but the tennis session started much earlier (somewhere close to 4pm, I believe).

Jose Gonzales, Natalia Sout and Brenda Jordan were amongst the early birds.  Players drifted in and out at various times to engage the courts right through the night.

Samara's Notes: I did not receive any results from them, so whatever they participated in will have to remain unofficial.  We now go back to Kris for his thoughts on the Monk Memorial Final.

An unsettled start for Team Raj would permeate the entire match.  All the players were at the tennis courts on time except for Boddu who, after an hectic day, had completely forgotten about the match.  Sipping a cup of tea after a marauding day, he was bombarded with messages from all quarters as to when he when he was coming.  A rushed man and one who has not played much this season (especially recently) became the perfect foil for the team of Ryan and Nick.

Ryan and Nick executed their strategy brilliantly which was for Ryan to attack at the net and Nick to man the baseline.  Furthermore, they singled out Boddu as he jumped into the match right away, given it had started more than an hour late start and without any warm-up as he was feeling guilty for coming late.

This was not an ideal start and one can certainly sympathize for Boddu.  Not Ryan and Nick.  They were relentless and played in tandem perfectly.  Ryan could afford to err at the net as Nick was rock-solid from the baseline.  I got to watch some of Nick's play.  He was brilliant and it was a delight to watch his free-flowing shots.  What impressed me also was his ability to run down some of the balls.  Boddu started to get back his groove somewhat, but was under the knife all the time.  Ryan and Nick managed to dismantle him mentally, keeping Shah in abeyance as he would be just a spectator for pretty much all the time.

A solid win, indeed, for Nick and Ryan.  They will now challenge Chiaro and Shah (one that Raj Shah can't wait to play).  Yes, he is salivating and most certainly bullish on the prospects of his team's win, buoyed by the fact that he will be teaming with "speed merchant" Chiaro.  He has already sounded out the bells of war to Ryan …J.

Samara's Notes: Ryan and Nick deserve a hearty congratulations for such a dominant victory in this match which, on paper, seemed like it would be much closer. 

I must also chime in with my opinion here, even if it does ruffle some feathers.  Even though either recent tournament winning team, The M2 Champs: Chiaro/Shah or Monk Memorial Champs: Pienciak/Inciong, are entitled to the next Title shot at the reigning GTA Doubles Champions: Norman Taclob/Tito Castolo…I would prefer to see Ryan and Nick get that shot first as the league truly needs Raj Shah to prioritize his Grove Cup Final Match against Nathan Fernandes first as the scheduling of that match has dragged on long enough.

And I now turn this report back over to Kris.

Ryan Pienciak/Nick Inciong over Raj Shah/Raj Boddu, 6-1!  No Aces (apparently).

Well, Nick and Ryan put one final nail in the coffin of Team Raj.  But then Shah was ready to throw it away anyway as he saw Moka waiting on the sidelines to play Singles with him.

Moka Pathan/Natalia Sout over Kris Srinivasan/Doinks Srinivasan, 6-3!  No Aces.

Natalia gave superb support to Moka and , of course, I take full credit for our team's loss. A pathetic performance by me didn't upset Doinks surprisingly as she just tried to focus on her play…J.

Moka Pathan/Doinks Srinivasan over Kris Srinivasan/Edwin Ortega, 6-2!  No Aces.

Doinks came up with the goods as she played freely with Moka who was encouraging her to go for her shots.  Edwin was a big moral support for me as he shared with me on many of the plenty of unforced errors that we dished out.  A true partner...J.

Kris Srinivasan/Edwin Ortega leading Ryan Pienciak/Doinks Srinivasan, 5-4 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm)!  No Aces.

Edwin found his game and so did I.  We were ahead from the get-go, but it was one of those nights where we were meant to go winless as the last game that was never completed had us leading Love-40 (to break) only to go to Deuce and after another Match Point to go back to Deuce again. C'est la vie!

Raj Shah over Moka Pathan, 6-3!  No Aces (apparently).

Moka was not yet ready to move well for Singles, but that would change in the next set that got cut off from its completion.

Moka Pathan leading Raj Shah, 3-1 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm)!  No Aces (apparently).

Shah was happy to have a go and play a fast-paced game.

All in all, it ended a great day of GTA Tennis.  Earlier, Dennis, Brenda, Jose, Kevin, Gen and Natalia were in action, (some of which was already reported by Dennis).  It was good to see Gen in action here.  After losing the 1st Set, they were able to reverse the result convincingly against Dennis and Natalia.  But then they were taken out in the STB.  It was also really good to see Nick and I truly missed out on his presence in Cedar Grove this season.  Cheers!

Samara's Notes: I thank Kris for always being so willing to host up at Cedar Grove when I cannot make it there and then provide us with his colorful and comprehensive reports. 

Best wishes,
Frank Samara

11/4 Results.

11/4/16:

"Samara hosts 17 at C.G.!:"

There was just one session of GTA Friday Night Tennis: the usual later session up at The Cedar Grove Courts hosted by "Hollywood" Frank Samara (with some assistance from the usual host there, "The K Man" Kris Srinivasan). 

Let's now recap all that transpired up at Cedar Grove.

Samara pulled into the parking lot at 7:10 just as "The Rainmaker" Richard Reicht, "The Webmaster" Senthil Kumar and "Latino Heat" Jose Gonzales were all doing the same thing.

Only one of the four courts were occupied as out on Court Four there was Mixed Doubles action featuring Tito "Touch" Castolo and "Killer Kat" Kathy Sheldon going up against "Kevlar" Kevin Doyle and "Dominant" Dawn Peterson as the reigning GTA Mixed Doubles Champions: Castolo/Peterson decided to split up for this one.  They estimated that they got things started around 6:45.

In the parking lot, "J-Bach" Jordan Bachvaroff was talking to "Big Returns" Ralph Bernard.  Ralph then told Frank that he had just finished playing three sets of Singles against his friend, "Steppin' to the AM" Anish Mehta.  It was never intended to be a match for the GTA as they chose to keep it unofficial.  But since Ralph took two of the three, perhaps next time these two get together it will be an official 2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match.  Bernard was tired and left soon after.

Kris came across the street at 7:20 soon after Jordan had joined Senthil, Jose and Richard out on Court Three that soon became a Doubles One-Setter at 7:25.

"Nate the Great" Nathan Fernandes arrived at 7:30.  First, he spent some time near the bench where Frank and Kris were sitting as they all talked tennis for a bit.  Five minutes later, they decided to go out onto Court One to begin a hitting session with Samara and Srinivasan hitting against Fernandes.

At 7:45, two guys took over Court Two (thankfully, one brought a broom to sweep away the leaves).  I believe one or both of them play tennis with Bachvaroff from time to time.  They were there until 9:15.  Having just three of the four courts was never much of an issue anyway.

At 8pm, "2 Tall" Dave Zhu arrived.  His services were needed on Court One so that some official Doubles could be played there.

Dennis "The Menace" Cabanatan arrived at 8:10.  Ten minutes later, he was able to take the place of Reicht out on Court Three as Richard left at that time after having played just one lengthy Doubles One-Setter.

Also at 8:20, "The Sultan of Swing" Raj Shah pulled into the parking lot.  Arriving hot on his heels were the other two Shahs: "Teej" T.J. and "Ragin" Rajan. 

At 8:35, "The Marathon Woman" Doinks Srinivasan came across the street.  She ended up becoming the last official competitor making it 17 for the night.  And at 8:40, "Coach" Dino Celis arrived but it would only be for an extended cameo appearance.

It was a strong turnout given the fact that the temps were dropping from the 50 degree range into the upper 40's as the evening grew older.

The Cedar Grove Results:

2 out of 3 Sets Mixed Doubles Match:
Tito Castolo/Kathy Sheldon over Kevin Doyle/Dawn Peterson, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, as both teams entered the Mixed Doubles Division as the New # 46 and # 47 Ranked Teams respectively!  Tito: 1 Ace on Dawn in the 1st Set.  This was played on Court Four from 6:45 to 8:25 with the 1st Set ending at 7:15 and the next one starting a minute later.  The 2nd Set finished at 7:54 and the final set got underway four minutes after that.

Senthil Kumar/Jordan Bachvaroff over Jose Gonzales/Richard Reicht, 7-5!  Jose: 3 Aces (2 on Senthil and 1 on Jordan)!  This one took place on Court Three and lasted from 7:25 to 8:15.

Frank Samara/Kris Srinivasan over Nathan Fernandes/Dave Zhu, 7-5!  No Aces.  It went like this: Frank held serve (Kris blew a volley for Love-15, but then it shifted to 30-15 as Kris hit back-to-back winning volleys, but then came a shift to Break Point as first Dave hit a drop shot winner followed by a winning drop shot return by Dave as well and then it went to Deuce, Break Point, 2nd Deuce, Game Point, 3rd Deuce, Break Point, 4th Deuce, Game Point and then Dave blew a volley to allow the hold...and I likely forgot some of the winners along the way in that one), Dave held at Love as he hit two winners on the way to Triple Game Point where Kris blew a volley to allow the hold, Kris held (15-Love where Dave hit a vicious winning volley for 15-All, but then it was on the way to Double Game Point with an un-returned serve along the way) and Nathan held at Love as Frank blew an overhead to set up Triple Game Point where Dave hit another emphatic volley winner to secure his partner's hold as all were on serve at 2-2!  Samara was the first to be broken (an un-returned serve and then a blown overhead by Dave made it 30-Love, but then it shifted straight to Break Point where Nate hit an awesome return winner for the break), but Zhu held again (Kris hit a winning return for Love-15, it shifted to 30-15, then it went to 30-All, Game Point, Deuce, Game Point again and then the hold) to go up 4-2.  Srinivasan was broken (Nate blew an overhead to make it 15-Love, but then it shifted to 15-30 only to shift again to Game Point as both Dave and Nate each blew volleys, but then Frank blew a volley to make it Deuce and then it was all Game Points until 4th Deuce...and I definitely forgot the winners along the way there...which was where a Double Fault set up Break Point, but then it went to 5th Deuce, Break Point where Dave hit such a precise winner at the baseline that it had Kris spin his way out of his sneaker and go down with what was the equivalent of a blowout!) to fall to 2-5!  But then Fernandes was also broken (15-Love then point for point until 30-All...and Dave had blown a volley along the way there...and then Kris hit a drop shot winner to set up Break Point where Nate blew an overhead to break himself) and Hollywood then held (Frank hit a winning Overhead Smash which he then followed with another winner for 30-Love, but then Frank blew a volley to make it 30-15 and then it went to 30-All where Nate blew an overhead to set up Game Point which ended with an un-returned serve) to pull to 4-5!  2Tall Zhu was then broken at Love after hitting a Double Fault to set up Love-30 and then The K Man held (Frank hit a winning volley and then an un-returned serve made it 30-Love, it then went to 30-15 and Double Game Point where Kris made an awesome get/lob winning combo for the hold) to take the lead for his team at 6-5!  And then Nate the Great was broken again, but this time it was at Love as Dave blew a volley to set up Triple Break/Match Point which was where Kris hit a mishit winning volley for the win!  We played this one on Court One from 8:08 to 8:58!

The Skinny: This One-Setter was a lot of fun, but was also quite competitive.  It was not looking good for Samara and Srinivasan once they were down 2-5.  But each of them cleaned up their game just enough (and perhaps also got a tad more aggressive) and it ended up paying dividends.  Meanwhile, the opposite seemed to happen to the opposition as Fernandes and Zhu started off playing with many clean finishers until errors crept into their game as the match grew older.

Dino did see a little bit of hitting action after this one as he tried out a new racquet (which may have been Nate's, but I cannot remember for sure).

Senthil Kumar/Jordan Bachvaroff over Jose Gonzales/Dennis Cabanatan, 7-5!  Jose: 2 Aces on Senthil!  The Kumar/Bachvaroff tandem was now 2-0 for the night, but Jordan seemed somewhat envious of Jose's rapidly increasing Ace count.  This battle was fought on Court Three from 8:20 to 8:55.

Raj Shah/Dawn Peterson over T.J. Shah/Rajan Shah, 6-0!  No Aces.  Court Four became Blowout City as this one only lasted from 8:30 to 8:47!

Raj Shah/Doinks Srinivasan over T.J. Shah/Rajan Shah, 6-4!  Raj: 5 Aces (3 on T.J., 2 on Rajan and two of them were in the same game)!  This one also took place on Court Four and it lasted from 8:50 to 9:30.

Senthil Kumar/Jordan Bachvaroff over Dennis Cabanatan/Tito Castolo, 6-4!  No Aces.  Senthil and Jordan were now 3-0 for the night as each opposing team grew more impressive and ended up more impressed!  This was played on Court Three from 8:57 to 9:30.

Nathan Fernandes/Dave Zhu over Kris Srinivasan/Jose Gonzales, 6-1!  No Aces.  This was contested on Court One from 9:03 to 9:40.

Dennis Cabanatan/Tito Castolo leading T.J. Shah/Rajan Shah, 5-1 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm)!  No Aces.  When the two previous One-Setters on Courts Three and Four each ended at 9:30, Raj Shah suggested having the Court Three winners shift over to Court Four while their losers would then go over to Court Three to face the other losers.  The Shahs narrowly avoided a third official loss for the night!  This one got underway on Court Three at exactly 9:33.  They decided to forego changeovers in an attempt (albeit ultimately futile) to get this one done in time.

Raj Shah/Doinks Srinivasan leading Senthil Kumar/Jordan Bachvaroff, 5-3 (Incomplete when the lights went out at 10pm)!  No Aces.  Raj and Doinks were up 3-1 before it got leveled at 3-3.  They then won the next two games, but could not get the job done on time.  And, thus, Senthil and Jordan were able to keep their undefeated streak for the evening intact.  This one got underway on Court Four also exactly at 9:33.  They also decided to forego the changeovers.

Nathan Fernandes/Kris Srinivasan leading Jose Gonzales/Dave Zhu, 3-1 (Incomplete when they all agreed to end it after the conclusion of the fourth game which was at 9:58...they had begun this one on Court One at exactly 9:42)!  No Aces.  Also, there were no changeovers.

All in all, it was another awesome session of GTA Friday Night Tennis at Cedar Grove.  While the temps may have dipped into the chill zone, the action remained red-hot right until the end! 

Best wishes,
Frank Samara

11/3 Results.

11/3/16:         

"Kris hosts 12 at C.G.!":                                          

GTA Thursday Night Tennis took place at The Cedar Grove Courts and was hosted by "The K-Man" Kris Srinivasan. 

Earlier in the day, "Hollywood" Frank Samara nicknamed the day as "Tricky Thursday".  It actually turned into Turbulent Thursday with high winds and rapidly dropping temperatures throughout the evening.  Thankfully, that did not diminish the turnout or the enthusiasm of those who participated in the session.

We now turn this report over to The K Man!

It was yet another lovely night to play tennis with relatively warmer temperatures despite it being a bit windy.  The rains that might have possibly affected the possibility of us playing tennis ended up not being a factor as the courts remained completely dry.  The Public Works Department worked hard to clear the debris and leaves in the area except for the tennis courts, but it was not too bad on Courts 3 and 4.

The Cedar Grove Results:

Nathan Fernandes/Doinks Srinivasan over Kris Srinivasan/Dan Martinelli, 7-5!  Spin: 2 Aces on Nate!

It turned out to be a close match staying even at 3-All with everyone holding their serves before I was broken.  Soon we were down 3-5 and a fired-up Spin saved a Match Point against us with a bullet-like Ace on the sideline.  This was his second Ace and a sweet one on many counts.  Nate was warned before he was dished out one and, for an agile sprinter like Nate, he didn't get to move as the lightning-speed serve was in and out in a flash.  It was a good point for us to win to stay in the set and go further to win the game, following up with another game under our belt to tie it 5-All.  It was then that I messed up two punching volleys to spoil all the hard work. 

Doinks was pretty good as she played her shots freely, but it was her serve that she held with such ease that its rankling me…:-).  Spin was equally effective on his first two services holding both at Love.  The bitter fight was in the second half, but there really were some plays that had many shots played by all the four players in tandem making the atmosphere that much more exciting.

On the adjacent court, Jordan Bachvaroff was very nice to play with Herb Reiner.  After a hitting session, they did play Singles, but lost count of the score.  Jordan was leading 5-3 or something like that, but he did go a little easy on Herb.  Herb, for his part, looked sharp and it was good to see him play again like old times.

Nathan Fernandes/Kris Srinivasan over Raj Shah/Jordan Bachvaroff, 7-5!  No Aces.

It was another good match where Nate almost single-handedly won it all for us.  Raj was aggressive and played a solid game.  Jordan played very well when the ball was on his forehand side, but Nate dealt with him beautifully with his slices and net play that gave very little time for Jordan to react.  I was the weakest link, but it helped that I held in all my service games.

Dave Zhu/Levy Lorenzo over Abhilash Gadi/Doinks Srinivasan, 6-1!  No Aces (apparently).

It was a warm-up for Abhi.  But the aggressive play of Dave combined with Levy's steady hand was a bit too much for Doinks and Abhi as the errors they made proved to cost them games and the set.

Dave Zhu/Abhilash Gadi over Levy Lorenzo/Doinks Srinivasan, 6-4!  No Aces (apparently).

They mixed the teams up and this match turned out to be close and exciting.  All the players looked happy having given a good accounting of themselves.

Kris Srinivasan/T.J. Shah over Dennis Cabanatan/Rajan Shah, 6-2!  No Aces.

This match could have been even a lot tighter if Dennis and Rajan had broken us on a couple of occasions.  Despite the score, it was a well-played match.  Teej did miss his racquet (the one he broke the strings on the other night), but still he was his usual self most of the time.  It was the slices that he couldn't get right.  Dennis was amazing, but missed out on some crucial points.  So was Rajan who had lovely shots, but had some weak backhand misses. 

With 24 minutes left, Raj Shah decided to play a Singles One-Setter against Nate to get an idea as to how to deal with him in the Grove Cup Finals.  The "idea man" was almost quickly swept off the court by Nate before seeing a revival.  Upon the stroke of 10pm, Raj lost his serve after having a Game Point just a   moment earlier to put Nate in the driver's seat…but the match would remain incomplete.

Nathan Fernandes leading Raj Shah, 5-3 (Incomplete at 10pm)!  No Aces (apparently).

Overall, it turned out to be a good session…somewhat subdued by a relatively lesser crowd, but made up for big-time by the boisterous Spin.  A good chat after the session amongst 6 remaining players highlighted a good coverage of Spin's cats and Tinder!  Cheers!

Samara's Notes: Oh boy!  Is Spin picking up more cats via Tinder?  Or perhaps it is a different type of feline he is looking for?  ;-)  In any event, I appreciate all that Kris does for the GTA up at Cedar Grove…especially on the evenings where I cannot be present.

Sincerely,

Frank Samara

 

11/2 Results.

11/2/16:         

"M2 Final part of 20 at C.G.!":                                          

GTA Wednesday Night Tennis took place at The Cedar Grove Courts with "Hollywood" Frank Samara acting as host, but also getting assistance from the usual host, "The K-Man" Kris Srinivasan.  The Main Event was the M2 Men's Doubles Tournament Final Match between the teams of "Super Mario" Marijus Kuzavas/"Big Kaz" Mike Kazlauskas (aka M&M, aka The Lanky Lithuanians) versus GTA Champion: "King Crush" Chris Chiaro/"The Sultan of Swing" Raj Shah (aka The One-Two Punch, aka the Still Undefeated Former Champs).

Samara pulled into the parking lot at 7:10, a little later then expected.  On Court One, he saw Kuzavas and Kazlauskas already hitting against one another to get warmed up for the big match.  Court Two (aka The Lethal Leafy Zone) was vacant.

On Court Three, "J-Bach" Jordan Bachvaroff was just entering into a Singles Match with someone that Samara did not recognize.  It turned out to be "J.P." John Paul Landi who has competed in some Doubles action with us in the past.  The would-be full match ended at one and a half sets when they cut it short for Doubles with Arvind D'Cunha and someone that I think Jordan said was named Naseem.  Anyway, Jordan reported that first set with J.P. as just a One-Setter for the GTA.

And on Court Four and also getting underway at that time was a Mixed Doubles One-Setter featuring "Kevlar" Kevin Doyle and "Bravo" Brenda Jordan versus "Instant" Moka Pathan and "Dominant" Dawn Peterson.  Afterward, Moka reported an earlier One-Setter where he teamed with "The Ambidextrous Machine" Herb Reiner (instead of Dawn) against Doyle/Jordan.

"Latino Heat" Jose Gonzales had pulled up at the same time that Samara did and then ended up riding the bench alongside Court Four with Frank for awhile.

"Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli arrived at 7:20 and he was the next one on the bench.  None of the three were eager to go out onto the leaf-fest known as Court Two.  In fact, Samara was just hoping to take notes of the M2 Final which was set to start at 7:45.

Kris came across the street five minutes later just as "Nate the Great" Nathan Fernandes was arriving.  The K Man is always good at coaxing people to play, so Martinelli and Gonzales got off the bench and headed out to Court Two with Srinivasan and Fernandes. 

Chiaro was the next one to arrive at 7:30.  He headed out onto Court One to hit with his soon-to-be opponents.

Five minutes after that, "Eddie O" Edwin Ortega and "Coach" Dino Celis both arrived at the same time.  They had to occupy the bench with Samara for a while before finally getting out onto Court Four after that Mixed Doubles One-Setter ended at 7:47.

Just as that One-Setter was ending, "The Marathon Woman" Doinks Srinivasan came from across the street.  In fact, she just completed a marathon down in Virginia this past weekend.  So kudos to Doinks!

Shah, who was running late from work, pulled into the parking lot at 7:55.  Still in his work clothes, he did a quick "presto change-o" in his car and emerged like Clark Kent turning into Superman ready for action.  Knowing that time was of the essence, he only hit briefly as they got the M2 Final underway on Court One at exactly 8:02. 

Samara had shifted from the bench alongside Court Four to the bench alongside Court One to take proper notes.  Various players would sit with him along the way as they were in-between official action.  Frank never did play.

Natalia "Nitro" Sout was the next to arrive at 8:05.  Five minutes later, J-Bach versus J.B. on Court Three then became a foursome when those other two guys arrived.  During the Doubles, Jordan hurt his knee again and had to bow out early.  The other three held that court for the rest of the evening, but we never really needed it anyway.

"The Webmaster" Senthil Kumar was the last of our competitors to arrive at 8:15 and so we ended up with an impressive total of 20 official players.

The conditions were absolutely amazing for the second day of November as the temps were still in the lower 70 degree range (likely dropping down into the upper 60's as the night progressed) and there was no wind. 

The Cedar Grove Results:

Moka Pathan/Herb Reiner over Kevin Doyle/Brenda Jordan, 6-4!  No Aces.  Not sure of the start or stop times, but this One-Setter did take place on Court Four.

Jordan Bachvaroff over John Paul Landi, 6-4!  Jordan: 1 Ace.  This one got started at 7:10 on Court Three.  Not sure when it ended as it went into a would-be 2^nd Set and then that was cut short halfway through in favor of Doubles with those two other guys (which was not included as a GTA result).

Moka Pathan/Dawn Peterson over Kevin Doyle/Brenda Jordan, 7-5!  No Aces.  They opted not to do the changeovers in order to save time.  Kevin and Brenda were up 5-2 only to allow Moka and Dawn to come back by winning five straight games to the finish!  This took place on Court Four and lasted from 7:10 to 7:47.

Nathan Fernandes/Dan Martinelli over Kris Srinivasan/Jose Gonzales, 6-3!  No Aces.  Nate and Spin were down 1-3 before they took five straight games to finish this off on Court Two at 8:17 (they had gotten it underway at 7:42)!

Edwin Ortega/Doinks Srinivasan over Kevin Doyle/Dawn Peterson, 7-6 (7-5)!  Edwin: 1 Ace on Kevin.  Court Four hosted this lengthy battle from 7:55 to 8:45.  Afterward, Edwin and Doinks had a hitting session with one another.

M2 Final Match:

Chris Chiaro/Raj Shah over Marijus Kuzavas/Mike Kazlauskas, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, to win the 2016 M2 Tournament and become the New # 2 Ranked Team in the Doubles Division (aka The Next Top Contenders)!  Marijus: 2 Aces on Raj (1 in the 1^st Set and 1 in the 2^nd Set); Mike: 1 Ace on Raj in the 1^st Set; and Raj: 1 Ace on Marijus in the 3^rd Set!  They got it going on Court One at 8:02.

1^st Set: Mike held serve (15-Love where Marijus blew a volley for 15-All, then an un-returned serve made it 30-15 where another blown volley by Marijus made it 30-All, then another un-returned serve set up Game Point and then Marijus scored with a winning Backhand Volley to secure his partner's hold), Chris held (Marijus hit a winning volley for Love-15, then it was Love-30 when an un-returned serve made it 15-30 and then a winning Backhand Volley by Raj made it 30-All where another un-returned serve set up Game Point, but then a blown volley by Raj made it Deuce where Raj rebounded with a winner for another Game Point, but then Raj blew another volley to make it 2^nd Deuce which was where Marijus came thru with a monster Overhead Smash for Break Point, but then it went to 3^rd Deuce, Game Point and the hold), Marijus held (15-Love, Double Fault for 15-All where Mike hit a whopper of an Overhead Smash for 30-15, then it was 30-All where an un-returned serve set up Game Point which was where Mike hit a winning Backhand Volley to secure his partner's hold), but Raj was the first to be broken (an excellent rally led to Love-15, then it was Love-30 where Raj hit a winner for 15-30, then it went to Double Break Point where Chris hit a crushing winner to bring it to Break Point only to have Marijus score with a scorching return winner for the break) to fall to 1-3.  Kazlauskas held again (Mike hit a blast of an Overhead Smash for 30-Love where he then scored a corner Ace on Raj to set up Triple Game Point, it went to Double Game Point and then came the hold) to go up 4-1, but Chiaro also held again (15-Love where Marijus hit another sizzling return winner to make it 15-All, then it went to 30-15 and 30-All where an un-returned serve set up Game Point, then it went to Deuce, Break Point, 2^nd Deuce where Chris hit a winner to set up Game Point again and then Mike blew a volley to allow the hold) to pull to 2-4.  Kuzavas held again and this time it was at Love as he started with a sideline Ace on Raj and then Mike hit a winning Backhand Volley for 30-Love and they were off and running from there to a somewhat commanding 5-2 lead!  And then Shah was broken again (an un-returned serve for 15-Love followed by another for 30-Love and then Mike blew a sure overhead to set up Triple Game Point, but then it went to Double Game Point where Marijus hit a net-cord winner to make it Game Point and then it went to Deuce, Break/Set Point and the break) to drop the set at 8:30.  One minute later, they were onto the next one.

2^nd Set: Mike was broken (an un-returned serve for 15-Love followed by another for 30-Love, but then Marijus blew a volley to make it 30-15 and then it shifted straight to Break Point, then Deuce, then Break Point again where an un-returned serve brought it to 2^nd Deuce and then Mike blew a volley to bring it back to Break Point once more and then came the break), Chris held (an un-returned serve for 15-Love, then it was 15-All where Mike blew a volley to make it 30-15 where Raj then made a great get/winner combo for Double Game Point, then came Game Point and the hold), Marijus was broken (Mike blew a volley for Love-15, then it was Love-30 where an Ace up the T against Raj make it 15-30 only to then have it go to Double Break Point where Raj hit an awesome passing shot winner for the break) and Raj finally held (Chris hit a winner for 15-Love where what was the best rally of the match up until that moment ended with a winning volley by Marijus for 15-All, but then there was an un-returned serve for 30-15, then it went to Double Game Point, Game Point where Mike hit a winning volley to bring it to Deuce where a truly un-returnable serve set up Game Point once more and then another un-returned serve secured the hold) to jump out to a 4-0 lead!  Kazlauskas held (15-Love where a rally even greater than the last noteworthy one was finished by an even better winning volley by Marijus to make it 30-Love only to be followed up by an equally impressive winning volley by Marijus to set up Triple Game Point, but then came a Double Fault for Double Game Point where a truly un-returnable serve secured the hold) to get his team on the scoreboard in this set, but then Chiaro held again (Raj hit a big-time Overhead Smash for 15-Love and then Marijus hit a laser-like passing shot winner for 15-All where Raj then hit a winning volley for 30-15 which was where Mike responded with a killer Overhead Smash for 30-All where an un-returned serve set up Game Point and then Raj hit a winner to secure his partner's hold) and Kuzavas was broken again (started with two consecutive Double Faults to get off to a Love-30 start where an un-returned serve then made it 15-30 only to have Mike blow a volley to set up Double Break/Set Point which was where Raj blew a volley to make it Break/Set Point, but then came the break for the set) to level the match at exactly 8:57!  One minute later, they were onto the next one.

3^rd Set: Raj held (Love-15 where Raj hit a winning volley for 15-All where Mike then blew a volley to make it 30-15, then it was 30-All when Marijus scored with a winning Backhand Volley to make it Break Point which was where Chris made one of his usual spectacular get/winner combos to bring it to Deuce which then was where Chris scored with an awesome passing shot winner as he bellowed a "come on!" as it set up Game Point and then came the hold) and then Marijus and Mike switched up their service sides with Marijus now going on serve (15-Love where Mike blew a volley for 15-All where he then redeemed himself with an amazing winning volley for 30-15 where a truly un-returnable serve set up Double Game Point where then another un-returned serve secured the hold) to make it 1-1.  Chris held (back-to-back un-returned serves for 30-Love and then Chris hit a winner to set up Triple Game Point, it went to Double Game Point and then came the hold), but so did Mike (Marijus hit an impressive winning volley for 15-Love and then Raj blew a volley for 30-Love, it was then Triple Game Point where Raj hit a blistering winner for Double Game Point, but then came the hold) as all were on serve at 2-2.  Shah held again and this time it was at Love as Chris made another amazing get/winner combo for 15-Love and then an Ace up the T against Marijus made it 30-Love and then on Triple Game Point it was another un-returned serve to secure the hold to go up 3-2.  Kuzavas was then broken (Mike blew a volley to make it Love-15 and then it was Love-30 where Raj hit a missile-like return winner to set up Triple Break Point which was where Marijus made an awesome get/winner combo for Double Break Point and then it went to Break Point only to have Chris hit a winning return for the break) to go down 2-4.  Chiaro held again (Raj hit a winning volley for 15-Love, then it was 15-All where Marijus blew a volley to make it 30-15 where an un-returned serve set up Double Game Point and then an excellent extended rally led to the hold) to go up 5-2 and then Kazlauskas was broken (Mike hit an impressive Backhand Volley winner for 15-Love, it was then 15-All where Marijus followed up what his partner had done two points earlier with one of the most impressively angled Backhand Volley winners ever seen to make it 30-15 which was where Raj hit a bomb of an Overhead Smash to make it 30-All and then came Break/Match Point where Marijus blew what looked to be a certain overhead as it sailed long past the baseline as Chris let out one more "come on!" as a release responding to the fact that this hard-hitting war had just ended at 9:23!

The Skinny: It was truly a seesaw battle as the big boys from Lithuania came out on fire in the 1^st Set and it seems like they caught Chiaro and Shah somewhat off-guard.  From the sidelines, we overheard Raj tell Chris that he "had an idea" as they were about to enter into the 2^nd Set.  We never heard exactly what that idea was, but it obviously paid off as they were able to reverse the momentum in that set and level the match.  The 3^rd Set started off even as all four held serve through to 2-2.  It seemed like it may be the set where both tandems fought right until the very end and possibly head to a Tiebreak.  Instead, Kuzavas and Kazlauskas lost some of the accuracy on their attempted overheads (they did manage two beautiful volley winners at the net late in the set, however) while both Chiaro and Shah sharpened their focus and made sure to finish off their opponents before the clock struck ten.  It was definitely an impressive outing for all involved as the spectators were often wowed by the velocity of the shots and the agility of the get-making…even from the big men.  All around, good stuff…kudos to all…and a hearty dose of congratulations goes to Chris and Raj for a hard-fought victory!

The Consequences: The Chiaro/Shah tandem is now the Top Contending Team to the reigning GTA Doubles Champions: "Stormin" Norman Taclob and Tito "Touch" Castolo.  They can get that shot prior to a winner emerging from the Final of the Monk Memorial Men's Doubles Tournament (that Final is now set for this coming Saturday night).  Or we can have a scenario after that Final where there are two teams waiting in line for a shot at The Champs. 

From there, whatever four players can get together to get the match scheduled can lead to which challenging team gets the first shot.  Also, per the stipulations of each tournament, when The Monk Memorial Champs emerge from the Final…they will actually leapfrog into the # 2 rank/spot in the Doubles Division.   But each team will deserve a shot before any other teams are entitled to one.

And if the reigning Champs lose that first match, then as Former Champs they will be entitled to an immediate Rematch before the second team can get their shot.  I'm sure much (if not all) of this will carry over into the 2017 Season…which gives us an interesting cliffhanger ending to this season, for sure.

Senthil Kumar/Kris Srinivasan over Nathan Fernandes/Natalia Sout, 6-4!  No Aces.  Court Two hosted this one from 8:23 to 8:54.

Kris Srinivasan/Jose Gonzales over Dino Celis/Edwin Ortega, 6-4!  No Aces.  These four faced off on Court Four from 9pm to 9:45.

Nathan Fernandes/Natalia Sout over Senthil Kumar/Doinks Srinivasan, 6-3!  No Aces.  They got this one underway on Court Two at 9:20.  At 9:26 (while still in the first game), they shifted over to Court One once they realized it was available after the M2 Final had finished.  By 9:27, it was only 1-0.  At 3-3, none of the four had held serve!  From there, Nate was the first to hold and then Doinks was broken at Love after hitting a Double Fault to set up Triple Break Point!  Then, Natalia held after Senthil blew an overhead (rare for his steady hand at the net) to set up Double Game/Match Point and then came the hold at 9:55!

All in all, it was yet another exciting and impactful session which also was a lot of fun.

Sincerely,

Frank Samara

 

11/1 Results.

11/1/16:         

"Gawley-Toker part of 18 at C.G.!":                                          

GTA Tuesday Night Tennis took place at The Cedar Grove Courts with "Hollywood" Frank Samara acting as host, but also getting assistance from the usual host, "The K-Man" Kris Srinivasan.  The Main Event was the GTA Women's Championship Match between GTA Women's Champion: Laura "The Aura" Gawley and the heretofore undefeated Former Champ: "The Argentine Machine" Fernanda Toker.

Samara pulled into the parking lot at 5:55 and was happy to find all four courts vacant.  As he headed out onto Court Four (figuring he would hold that one…thought by most to be the best of the four…for the upcoming GTA Women's Championship Match), Gawley soon pulled into the lot as well.

Frank and Laura then had a hitting session in order to warm her up for the soon-to-be-played match (originally scheduled for a 6pm start, but Fernanda had informed Laura that she was running late…and Toker wanted me to note that it was all her boyfriend "T-Rez" Tommy Reszkowski's fault…LOL!).

Natalia "Nitro" Sout was the next to arrive at 6:05.  Soon she joined Frank's side in hitting against Laura.

Next onto the courts was "The Pilot" Greg Swierczek at 6:10.  Samara shifted to Gawley's side of the court to hit against Swierczek and Sout (so as not to completely exhaust Laura before her match).

Once Toker and Reszkowski arrived at 6:15, Greg and Natalia shifted over to Court Three to have their own hitting session while Frank stepped off to allow Laura and Fernanda to hit against each other.

Tommy took a place next to Frank at the sidelines (right near the net post, actually) and the ladies got their match officially underway at exactly 6:31.

At 6:35, Swierczek and Sout started a "Battle of The Sexes" One-Setter against one another.  But Kris arrived soon after that and headed over to their court.  Two games in, they decided to scrap it to make way for him and go back to hitting at 6:40.  Ten minutes later, it turned into Canadian Doubles (or perhaps King of The Mountain…I'm not sure).

"Rowdy" Rob Gawley arrived at 7:05 and joked about not being invited over to Court Three as their fourth player…until he was (Squash Boy is a sly fox…LOL!).  Five minutes after that, "Latino Heat" Jose Gonzales also went over to that court and was briefly the "fifth wheel" in a short hitting session until they decided that the first four on that court should be the first four to compete.  So now Jose ended up being the odd man out instead.

"Spin Doctor" Dan Martinelli arrived at 7:15.  Even though he looked dressed to play, he chose not to compete as he is still getting over the effects of a lingering head cold that shut him down for most of last week.

"The Lumberjack" Ryan Pienciak arrived at 7:25 just as "J-Bach" Jordan Bachvaroff made a drive-by cameo in the parking lot.  He stopped for a bit to check out the GTA Women's Championship Match (which was drawing the attention of many spectators at this point).

GTA Champion: "King Crush" Chris Chiaro was the next one to join the group near the fence at 7:30.  He would not have to wait for long as the ladies finished up their match at exactly 7:33.

Court Four then hosted a brief hitting session between Ryan and Tommy (Reszkowski was in slacks and dress shoes) and then Rob soon joined Ryan's side in hitting against the dapper T-Rez.

When Tommy and Fernanda left, Chiaro then stepped onto the court in hitting against Pienciak and Gawley.  As they needed a fourth, Samara joined The Champ and it soon led to a One-Setter.

At 7:50, "Mr. 500" Levy Lorenzo and Dennis "The Menace" Cabanatan each pulled into the parking lot at the same time.  They then walked out onto Court One together for a fairly lengthy hitting session.

Five minutes after that, "Coach" Dino Celis, "Super Mario" Marijus Kuzavas and "Spicy" Sally Pillay all arrived at the same time.

"The Webmaster" Senthil Kumar arrived at 8:20 and five minutes after that, so did "Teej" T.J. Shah.  The final official competitor to arrive was "The Accelerator" Abhilash Gadi (given that moniker as he soon proved that he is one of the fastest get-makers in the league) at 8:40.

We ended up with an impressive total of 18 official players…quite impressive for November 1^st.  We had all four courts (though we never used Court Two) all night long.

The conditions were quite nice for the first day of November as the temps were still in the lower 50 degree range and there was no wind. 

With the temps set to climb the next couple of days, it would make sense for many of our players to get to the courts early to take advantage of the favorable conditions and hopefully hold all the courts once more.

The Cedar Grove Results:

GTA Women's Championship Match:

Laura Gawley over Fernanda Toker, 6-3, 6-1, to complete her first successful GTA Women's Championship defense of her first reign!  No Aces.  They got it going on Court Four at 6:31.

1^st Set: Laura was broken (Laura blew an overhead for Love-15, but then she hit a passing shot winner for 15-All only to then blow a drop shot for 15-30, it then went to Double Break Point where she blew a volley to break herself), Fernanda was broken (Laura hit a passing shot winner for Love-15 and then an excellent rally led to Love-30, it then went to Triple Break Point, then Double Break Point where Laura hit an emphatic Overhead Smash for the break), but then Gawley was the first to hold serve (an un-returned serve made it 30-Love where Laura blew a volley for 30-15 where she then hit a truly un-returnable serve to set up Double Game Point, but then a Double Fault made it Game Point and then Laura blew an overhead to bring it to Deuce where another un-returned serve returned her to Game Point and then another extended rally led to 2^nd Deuce, Game Point, 3^rd Deuce, Game Point, 4^th Deuce, Game Point and finally the hold as most of those points were quite lengthy) to go up 2-1.  Toker then held as well (an un-returned serve for 15-Love, then it was 15-All where Laura hit a winning drop shot return for 15-30, but then another un-returned serve made it 30-All and then yet another marathon rally led to Game Point and then came the hold) to level it at 2-2.  The Aura held again and this time it was at Love after an un-returned serve had made it 30-Love, but The Argentine Machine was broken (Laura hit a winner to make it Triple Break Point, but then Laura blew what should have been a surefire overhead to reduce it to Double Break Point only to then redeem herself with a winning volley for the break) to fall to 2-4.  The Champ was broken (Laura blew an overhead for Love-15, but then she hit a winning volley for 15-All, it then went to Double Break Point where Laura hit an excellent Backhand Volley winner to cut it to Break Point and then she hit a winning volley for Deuce, it then went to Break Point again where one of the best rallies of the match ended with a winner from Fernanda for the break) to have her lead cut to 4-3, but then The Former Champ was broken again (yet another awesome rally, but this one was ended with an amazing get/lob winner by Laura which was much in the style that Fernanda often makes and this opened the game at Love-15 and then Fernanda made a get even more impactful than usual which led to it being 15-All, it was then 15-30 where another extended rally led to 30-All and that was where Laura laid down another pounding Overhead Smash for Break Point where she then got the break with a drop shot return winner) to fall to 3-5.  Laura then held and it was once again at Love as she hit an un-returned serve for 15-Love, a whipping and winning volley for 30-Love and then another un-returned serve to set up Triple Game/Set Point where the hold came at 7:11!  One minute later, they were onto the next one.

2^nd Set: Fernanda was broken at Love as Laura hit another one of her killer Overhead Smashes to make it Love-30 and then Laura hit an equally impressive volley winner to set up Triple Break Point where she hit another winning Overhead Smash for the break and then Laura had another Love hold after a wicked Backhand Volley winner set up Triple Break Point where another winner would then secure the hold.  At this point in the match, The Champ had just won fourteen straight points!  Toker broke that streak when she went up 15-Love on her next service with an un-returned serve only to be followed by another un-returned serve for 30-Love, it then went to 30-15 where Fernanda then hit a winning lob to go up Double Game Point where yet another un-returned serve secured the hold and put her on the scoreboard in this set at 1-2.  But from there, Gawley got going once again with another Love hold as she scored with an un-returned serve for 30-Love where the then hit a whopper of a winner to set up Triple Game Point where the hold came for 3-1.  The Argentine Machine was broken (Laura hit another powerful Backhand Volley winner for Love-15 and then repeated the same feat for Love-30, it was then 15-30 where Laura hit a big-time Overhead Smash winner for Double Break Point and then came the break) and then The Aura held yet again (un-returned serve for 15-Love and it was straight away to Triple Game Point where Laura blew another seemingly sure thing overhead to cut her lead down to Double Game Point, but then she responded with another whiplash Backhand Volley winner to secure the hold) to take a commanding 5-1 lead!  And then Fernanda was broken once more (Fernanda hit a fast-paced passing shot winner for a fist pump and 15-Love lead only to have Laura respond with an un-reachable drop shot winner for 15-All and then it went to 15-30.  This is where things got somewhat unfortunate and then controversial.  A lengthy rally ended up being interrupted and becoming a Let situation as a ball from Court Three rolled onto Court Four over the baseline and creeping up on Fernanda.  It was hard to say who was in control of that point, but it was the type of marathon rally that Toker prefers.  The replay of the point ended with what just about everyone in attendance thought was a winner from Laura that skidded off the baseline.  That would have made it Double Break/Match Point.  Fernanda never called out the score as she headed into her next service where she then lost that point as well.  Toker was then lining up to serve again as if it was now Break/Match Point, but Gawley (and those watching) thought the match was now over.  The two women came to the net to discuss the situation with Samara and Fernanda seemed genuinely confused about the situation (this is why the server should always audibly call out the score before each and every point).  At this point, Frank gave her the option of either accepting the end of the match or holding to the notion that two points ago, Laura's baseline shot was out and not in.  Fernanda held to that latter option and another point was played.  It ended up being all for naught as a fired up Gawley saw to it to make sure to end the match right then and there (on Break/Match Point) and not open the door for a possible comeback effort from the always resilient Toker!  The time at the end of this match was 7:33 (the 1^st Set had taken 40 minutes to finish while the second was over in just 21 minutes…making the entire match just one hour and one minute long)!

The Skinny: All's well that end's well as the undefeated streak of Toker came to an end…and she did accept it in most gracious fashion.  She went to her bag to take out the GTA Women's Championship Medal (which was still in her possession) which Fernanda then wrapped around Laura's neck and then she gave The Champ a big congratulatory hug in the process.  It was a very impressive victory by Gawley.

In the 1^st Set, it seemed that Toker was getting Gawley to play her style of match as the rallies were going long and the lobs were flying high.  But late in that 1^st Set, Laura seemingly figured out Fernanda and was able to shift the match back to her style of play which was more hard-hitting and fast-paced.  That fourteen straight point run (which transitioned from the 1^st Set to the 2^nd Set) clearly shifted the momentum of the match and Toker seemingly never recovered.  But some measure of credit must also go to Fernanda who often weathered the storm of heavy, hard-hitting serves from Laura as she blocked many back which created some speedy returns as well.

The Consequences: Toker earned this shot with her GAH6 Tournament victory.  But she is still owed another shot (the next shot, actually) as she had been an undefeated Former Champ who had to forfeit her Title due to a serious off-court injury.  Gawley is not obligated to make that Title defense until April of 2017 if she so chooses.  But Fernanda does get the next shot before anyone else does.  If Laura wins that next one as well, then the shot after that is opened up to any lady who is in The Top 10 of The Women's Division at that time.  If Toker emerges victorious, then Gawley would get the first rematch as the Former Champ in that latter scenario.

Greg Swierczek/Kris Srinivasan over Rob Gawley/Natalia Sout, 6-1!  Rob: 2 Aces on Greg (the slicing drop shot style that Rob does so well)!  They played this on Court Three from 7:12 to 7:38.

Kris Srinivasan/Jose Gonzales over Greg Swierczek/Natalia Sout, 6-1!  No Aces.  Court Three hosted this one as well.  It lasted from 7:45 to 8:05.

Ryan Pienciak/Rob Gawley over Chris Chiaro/Frank Samara, 6-2!  No Aces.  It went like this: Ryan held serve (a truly un-returnable serve for 15-Love where Frank hit a winning return for 15-All, but then it went right to Double Game Point as Frank blew a volley and Ryan hit a drop shot winner along the way and then that lead got cut down to Deuce, it went to Game Point again, 2^nd Deuce, Game Point again and then the hold…I likely forgot the winners once it went to Deuce), Chris was broken (Frank hit a semi-Windmill Overhead Smash that Ryan could not return onto the court for a 15-Love lead, but then it went straight to Double Break Point where Ryan ripped a return winner for the break) and then Rob held (Frank blew a volley for 15-Love, but then Frank redeemed himself with an impressive return winner for 15-All only to see it once again go right to Double Game Point where Chris scored with a scorching return winner to cut that lead down to Game Point where Frank blew an overhead to allow the hold) to take a 3-0 lead!  Frank got his team on the scoreboard with a Love hold which started out with an un-returned serve, but then Pienciak held again (Frank blew a volley to set up Triple Game Point where Ryan then blew a volley to make it Double Game Point, but then rebounded with an un-returned serve to secure the hold) and then Chiaro was broken again (Frank blew a volley to make it Love-15, but then redeemed himself with a winning Overhead Smash for 15-All where Chris then blew an overhead to make it 15-30, it then went to Double Break Point, Break Point and then the break) to fall to 1-5!  Gawley was then broken (Chris hit a monster Overhead Smash and then Frank hit a winning return to make it Love-30, it then went to 15-30, Double Break Point and the break) to have his team's lead cut to 5-2.  But then Samara was also broken (Frank made a great get/winner combo which caused Ryan to blow an overhead and then an un-returned serve blazed the path to Triple Game Point and what seemed like an oncoming second straight Love hold for Frank only to have Ryan hit back-to-back winning Backhand Volleys on the way to Deuce where Chris blew an overhead to make it Break/Match Point where Chris then blew another overhead to suffer an upset loss) to get the "L" off of Court Four at 8:14 (we had started this one at 7:45)!

The Skinny: This is a perfect example of why matches are not played on paper, they are played on court.  As Samara stepped onto the court, he could have sworn he heard a comment from either Ryan or Rob along the lines of "now we have to play these two"…not in a negative complaint manner, but more in the spirit of this may be an uphill battle.  Surely it would seem that way on paper.  But Chiaro and Samara then proceeded to both wet the bed with mutually bad performances.  This is not to take anything away from Pienciak and Gawley who were both very steady throughout the set.  After this awful outing, Frank was prepared to stay on the sidelines the remainder of the evening.  But he would later be called back into the action…where he would only do marginally better.

Dennis Cabanatan/Levy Lorenzo over Jose Gonzales/Ryan Pienciak, 7-5!  No Aces.  Court Four also hosted this one which lasted from 8:18 to 9:03.  After this, Jose left…but the remaining three had a hitting session until they could eventually get back involved in some official Doubles action.

Chris Chiaro/Dino Celis over Marijus Kuzavas/Sally Pillay, 6-2!  No Aces.  They played this on Court Three from 8:19 to 8:44.

Senthil Kumar/Kris Srinivasan over Frank Samara/T.J. Shah, 6-4!  T.J.: 1 Ace on Kris.  Here's how it went down: Senthil was broken (Frank hit a winning Overhead Smash for Love-15 where Kris hit a drop shot that led to 15-All, but then it was right to Double Break Point as T.J. hit a winning return and Senthil blew a volley along the way, but then an un-returned serve cut it down to Break Point where Kris blew a volley for the break), T.J. was broken (Frank blew an overhead for Love-15 and then a Double Fault made it Love-30, an un-returned serve made it 15-30 where an impressive Ace up the T against Kris then made it 30-All, then came Game Point where Kris hit a winner for Deuce, then came Break Point and the break), but Kris was the first to hold serve (an un-returned serve followed by a winning volley by Senthil set up 30-Love, it then went to 30-15 where Kris hit a whopper of a winner for Double Game Point and then came the hold) to go up 2-1.  Frank was broken (T.J. hit a winning Overhead Smash for 15-Love, but that went straight to Double Break Point as Frank blew an overhead along the way, it then shifted to Deuce where an un-returned serve set up Game Point, but then came 2^nd Deuce, Break Point and the break) to fall to 1-3, but then Kumar was broken again (Kris blew a volley for Love-15, it was 15-All where Frank hit a laser-like winner between the opposition which blazed the path to Double Break Point where Kris blew another volley for the break) to have his team's lead cut to 3-2.  Shah was broken again (it went 15-Love then point for point to Game Point as Senthil hit a winning volley and Frank hit a winning Overhead Smash along the way, but then Frank blew an overhead to set up Deuce, it then went to Break Point where a Double Fault caused the break) to fall to 2-4, but then Srinivasan was also broken (15-Love then point for point until 30-All where a Double Fault set up Break Point and then it went to Deuce and it would be all Game Points until 3^rd Deuce where it then went to Break Point where Frank hit a slice backhand that ended up becoming a net-cord-aided winner for the break…and I honestly could not remember any of the other winners in that lengthy game) to have his team's lead cut to 4-3.  Samara was broken again as perhaps the best rally of the match ended with an exchange where it looked like Frank would benefit from another net-cord winner only to have Senthil make a great get and then hit a winning volley that just caught the sideline for Love-15 and then it was off and running to a Love break to go down 3-5!  The Webmaster was then broken a third straight time (Frank hit a big-time Overhead Smash winner for Love-15 and then a Double Fault made it Love-30, but it then it would shift to 30-All as Kris hit a winning volley along the way, but then came Break Point where T.J. hit a winning volley of his own for the break) to have his team's lead cut to 5-4!  But then Teej was also broken a third straight time except unlike the first two where he was up Game Point, this one was not even close as it got started with a winning lob return from Senthil and ended up being a Love break when they went out quickly at Triple Break/Match Point!  We played this one on Court One from 8:46 to 9:21.

The Skinny: Samara stepped up his game somewhat, but was still out of rhythm and lacking any solid form of momentum.  All four players had moments to be proud of only to then have others where they had to shake their own heads.  Kris was dealing with racquet issues, I believe, as I remember hearing Greg state he thought it may be a cracked frame.  I'm not sure if The K Man was playing with that racquet or a borrowed racquet in this one.  Senthil may have been the steadiest of the four here, but even he had some rare volley misses which are his usual forte.  T.J. may have had the most shots for the highlight reel, but then often sailed some long to negate those other impressive winners.

Marijus Kuzavas/Sally Pillay over Chris Chiaro/Abhilash Gadi, 6-3!  No Aces.  This was contested on Court Three from 8:46 to 9:22.

Chris Chiaro/Senthil Kumar over Marijus Kuzavas/Sally Pillay, 6-1!  Marijus: 1 Ace on Senthil.  This was also played on Court Three sans changeovers as they sought to get this one done in time…and they did!  It lasted from 9:26 to 9:48, after which Marijus and Senthil had a hitting session that went to lights out at 10pm.

Ryan Pienciak/Levy Lorenzo over T.J. Shah/Abhilash Gadi, 6-2!  T.J.: 1 Ace on Ryan (up the T)!  Down 2-5, T.J. was broken in a multiple Deuce game that was starting to stretch so long, that a full and proper conclusion was starting to seem in doubt.  This one was played on Court Four as they also decided to forego the changeovers.  It began at 9:27 and ended at 9:56.

The Skinny: This was the battle that drew the attention of the remaining crowd.  It was a hard-hitting affair as all made an array of impressive shots and gets.  But the player that drew the most attention was Abhi who earned the moniker of The Accelerator as he made several speedy gets…many of which were rushes to the net to counter drop shots with whipping winners to end the points!  We hope to see more of "Oh My!" Gadi, as he displays much potential.

All in all, it was an exciting session which also had much impact on the league itself.

Sincerely,

Frank Samara

 

10/31 Results.

10/31/16:         

"Shiao-Mehta in Montclair, Dawn hosts 5 at C.G.!":                                          

GTA Monday Tennis took place in two locations: an early afternoon session at The Mountainside Park Courts in Montclair as Tony "Sure Shot" Shiao and "Steppin' to the AM" Anish Mehta got together for a full 2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match (as reported by both), and then the usual evening session up at The Cedar Grove Courts which was not hosted by "The K-Man" Kris Srinivasan.  Instead, it was "Dominant" Dawn Peterson who acted as host and sent in the scores.

Let's first go to the dual recap from Anish and Tony.

The Mountainside Park Result:

2 out of 3 Sets Challenge Match:

Anish Mehta over Tony Shiao, 6-3, 6-2, to become the New # 5 Ranked Player in the Advanced Division!  Anish: 1 Ace in the 2^nd Set.

The AM News: I've been spending a few months working on transitioning from a two-handed forehand to a traditional one-handed forehand - this is the first match where I've felt comfortable with the new shot. 

The match was tougher than the score indicates.  Tony was running down every ball again and again, always making me hit one extra ball in each rally.  In each set we traded breaks early, but I was able to hold more consistently at the end.

The Sure Shot from Shiao: Anish and I decided to meet at Mountainside Park to play an official rank defense match at noon.  It was a fun match and I tried my best.  Anish was on point and had a great mix of shots…deep baseline shots, angled topspin forehands, drop shots, and overhead smashes!  I got to the balls, but he was better at putting away the shots and kept me off-balance.

Dino Celis showed up for the 2nd Set when it was 1-1.  But unlike the last cameo that he made during my match with Chazz Weldon, he did not bring me any luck this time.  Good win, Anish!  I want a rematch!

Samara's Notes: I thank both Anish and Tony for his very timely reporting of this result and also congratulate Anish on an impressive victory. 

We now turn this report over to Dawn.

The Cedar Grove Results:

Richard Reicht/Dawn Peterson over Kevin Doyle/Natalia Sout, 7-5!  No Aces (apparently).

Richard Reicht/Natalia Peterson over Joe Rodrigues/Dawn Peterson, 7-6 (7-3)!  No Aces (apparently).

Samara's Notes: I thank Dawn for becoming the impromptu host of this session and sending in the scores. 

Kevin also reported that someone left behind a racquet which he will bring back with him to the Wednesday night session.  It is a Wilson MACH 3 with a black dampener.    

Sincerely,

Frank Samara

 

10/30 R&R: Photo shoot (Dino)