Week 43 - WTA Tier 3 - Luxemburg

Drew · Oct 21, 2008

RE: Week 43 - WTA Tier 3 - Luxemburg

Madeline · Admin:Moderator + Tennis Legend

Well, she didn't win but that was surely an encouraging start to life on the big stage, taking an experienced player to 3 sets. If she is, as she says, content to take things slowly and concentrate on improving her game, the future looks bright.

Good luck in the AO juniors, Laura!

dougie · Club Coach

I think she tried to compete shot for shot too much and in the end made too many mistakes!Shes got the power.. just not the consistency to when playing her power game... i suppose that will come in time! All in all for 14.. its not a bad tour debut at all lol

kundalini · Specialist Reporter + Intermediate Club Player

Anyone watch the whole match?

I think her movement is what restricts her at the moment, that and the lack of penetration on her first serve; which surprised me.

helki · Futures qualifying

'Tis all experience to be garnered for future forays into the world of women's tennis. Well done to her for making it a three set match. smile

dougie · Club Coach

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7660640.stm

Nice wee article here on bbc sport.. ana ivanovic makes a few comments on laura! Obv us brits are the only ones to think she has great potential lol

DUSTY DICK · Club Coach

Well done to Laura for playing a decent match. Didn't think she would win this one but obviously still held her own. This all looks good for the future.

indiana · Tennis legend

When, I saw the first set, I was like wow !!!

OK, she lost in the end and will be disappointed but that lloks such an encouraging peformance that can only give her confideence to go back and work even harder, amd next time...

I am tempted to say that it might be a blessing in disguise to save her from too much hype, but you know I get the impression she's really well grounded, doesn't take everything too seriously and would cope with most things.

I just see it as onward and upward in the near future.

Longer term who knows, but just again that was so encouraging.

kundalini · Specialist Reporter + Intermediate Club Player

steven wrote:

There was something controversial in that last game but I couddn't tell what the argument was about.

I didn't understand it either as Laura appeared to be 15-40 down on serve. She saved 1 bp then lost the next point to a clear winner from Benesova yet the scoreboard had the score at 40-40. At that point I didn't have the sound on but according to posters on Tennisforum, the umpire got the score wrong, and not surprisingly, Iveta had a bit of a meltdown having been denied a break. Some posters said Laura cheated as she should have corrected the umpire. Instead she just continued to play to the score as called by the umpire.

I imagine Laura was just bewildered as to what was going on. And let Iveta and the umpire argue it out. I know players regularly challenge calls but when it gets to the point where they are challenging the score, you might suspect that there is probably a good reason why. But on this occasion the umpire was confident in her ability to keep track of how many points each player had won.

It didn't make much difference as Laura dropped serve that game anyway.

-- Edited by kundalini at 17:33, 2008-10-21

DavidC · Tennis legend

14 year-olds are always likely to be lacking in speed and stamina compared with seasoned pros, so this looks like a pretty good scoreline for Laura. Movement problems should naturally decrease with time.

Unfortunately Sarah and Courtney were hammered in 40 minutes by Cirstea/Erakovic 6-1 6-0

DavidC · Tennis legend

Wednesday's oop: Court 1 (11.30 start BST)

3. Errani vs. Cirstea
4. Dulko/Robson vs. Dushevina/Koryttseva

steven · Tennis legend

Neil Harman's article today perpetuates the myth that the BBC's been putting about for a few days that this is Laura's last senior tournament of the year. At least, I assume it's a myth because she's the 6th DA for Sunderland the week after next - I'd assumed the BBC had just get it wrong, but with Neil it's a bit more likely that he's found out something we don't know yet ...

wolf · Tennis legend

steven wrote:

but with Neil it's a bit more likely that he's found out something we don't know yet ...

Like what?

steven · Tennis legend

e.g. a question about this being asked at the press conference (assuming there was one)

steven · Tennis legend

You can tell that Aussie tennis is in a worse state than GB tennis when the top headline on Tennis Australia (spotted while checking for the Port Pirie results/OoP) is about Laura Robson. It starts ...

"Australian-born British starlet Laura Robson may have lost her debut match as a professional but French Open champion Ana Ivanovic had words of praise for the 14-year-old wild card.

Robson got off to a flying start at the WTA event here today but eventually went down 6-1 2-6 3-6 to Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic, a veteran at 25 years of age.

The Melbourne-born, England-based Robson, whose parents are both Australian, hit the headlines in July when she won the junior Wimbledon title, raising hopes that the long drought in women's tennis in Britain could be at an end."

Do you think they're a bit sore about losing her to the poms and still hoping she'll come back one day?