Week 38 - Futures F6 ($15K) - Darwin, Australia

alex03maccy · Grand Slam Champion

RE: Week 38 - Futures F6 ($15K) - Darwin, Australia

indiana · Tennis legend

Another impressive result from Jamie B, he's on a roll.

Now do unto Smeets what you did unto him last week, Jamie smile

Count Zero · Tennis legend

Crush Him

indiana · Tennis legend

Jamie is now actually unbeaten against top 500 players over his last 5 tournaments .

He has beaten 8 of them ( 3 in the top 400 ).

Smeets by the way is now ranked 486 in this week's rankings smile

He has a win / loss record over these tournaments to date of 18 /3 with his 3 losses to ranks 511, 517 and 779.

Smidster · Challenger level

Well done again Jamie - Scoreline does show what a false ranking he has due to the illness.

Bit of a shame he has to climb back through the rankings so slowly and without the help of 'friendly' tournament organisers.

Mervatron · Masters Series Champion

Great stuff. Hes got his game going again which is great. Hope he can go all the way to the title.

steven · Tennis legend

True, but he had only won two Futures main draw matches this year up to the end of June, it's only really been the last couple of months that he's seemed to have got back to his old self again. You have to admire his perseverance, it must have been very tough.

indiana · Tennis legend

Yes, anyway the really great thing is that he has got it going so well recently over a period of 5 successive tournaments.

Clearly he struggled for much longer than folk anticipated to get back to anything like his old self and his results until recently were, as Steven indicates, very poor ( for whatever reasons ) compared to what one would previously have expected of Jamie.

Indeed the vast bulk of his fall in his rankings was a fairly continual fall after his return. In thse circumstances, to be honest, I don't know what help could be expected from any "friendly tournament organiser", since the indications are he would have got smashed if he had say been wildcarded into a challenger.

But some things have clearly clicked lately and these results must be doing so much for Jamie's confidence.

He's looking now like a top 400 player again.

I still think he has a way to go to get back to where he was but after a tough year things are positive.

I would like to think that this time next year he will be more looking at challegers again rather than futures.

-- Edited by indiana on Friday 25th of September 2009 07:40:00 PM

-- Edited by indiana on Friday 25th of September 2009 07:56:26 PM

-- Edited by indiana on Saturday 26th of September 2009 06:57:10 AM

indiana · Tennis legend

Jamie's in the final smile

SF : (8) Jamie Baker WR 645 defeated (6) Robert Smeets (AUS ) WR 486 7-6 (2) 7-6 (7)

F : (8) Jamie Baker WR 645 VS (1) John Millman (AUS ) WR 345

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

indiana wrote:

Jamie's in the final

SF : (8) Jamie Baker WR 645 defeated (6) Robert Smeets (AUS ) WR 486   7-6 (2) 7-6 (7)

F :   (8) Jamie Baker WR 645   VS   (1) John Millman (AUS ) WR 345

Terrific news to log on to!

Well done, Jamie. biggrin

Different opponent in the final this week. Wonder how he'll handle playing the top seed...

Edit: Just checked the head-to-head. They've never played one another before.

-- Edited by Stircrazy on Saturday 26th of September 2009 08:47:20 AM

steven · Tennis legend

indiana wrote:
Yes, anyway the really great thing is that he has got it going so well recently over a period of 5 successive tournaments.

Clearly he struggled for much longer than folk anticipated to get back to anything like his old self and his results until recently were, as Steven indicates, very poor ( for whatever reasons ) compared to what one would previously have expected of Jamie.

Indeed the vast bulk of his fall in his rankings was a fairly continual fall after his return. In thse circumstances, to be honest, I don't know what help could be expected from any "friendly tournament organiser", since the indications are he would have got smashed if he had say been wildcarded into a challenger.

But some things have clearly clicked lately and these results must be doing so much for Jamie's confidence.

He's looking now like a top 400 player again.

I still think he has a way to go to get back to where he was but after a tough year things are positive.

I would like to think that this time next year he will be more looking at challegers again rather than futures.

I agree with all this and, like SC says, terrific news to log on to biggrin

- there's a good chance that this win will see him back in the top 500 on Monday week, or possibly a couple of places outside.

While Millman hasn't played Jamie before, he lost 4 & 3 to the Wardinator on clay in March and 2 & 2 in February, though why he went to Spain and Italy to play on clay early this year is a mystery because his results on that surface were abysmal.

Off clay, he thrashed Myles Blake 4 & 0 on hard in AUS about a year ago, but that doesn't tell us much.

I see the organiser has been having fun, putting pics of the finalists on the drawsheet and pics and short notes on the OoP. Does it look to anyone else like Jamie has lost a fair bit of bulk since last year? Maybe that's the illness taking its toll and might explain why it's taken him quite so long to regain his stamina.

Anyway, one title, two more Finals and two more SFs in the last 6 weeks - I think he's well and truly back! biggrin

helki · Futures qualifying

Let me be the third person to write "terrific news to log on to". wink

I'm not usually around at this time of day, but thought I'd make an exception. Would love him to take out another Aussie in the final.

indiana · Tennis legend

steven wrote:
there's a good chance that this win will see him back in the top 500 on Monday week, or possibly a couple of places outside.

There were 7 Brits in the top 500 before the US Open.

If Jamie were to enter on Monday week ( and a win in the final would no doubt make absolutely sure ) that would mean there were 12 ( !! ) Brits now in the top 500 on Monday week.

Dan Cox wold have chosen the easiest method by letting other folk fall below his points total smile

But Morgan Phillips, Dan Smethurst, Chris Eaton and now Jamie would have positively moved into the top 500 based on results with big moves by Morgan, Dan and Jamie.

I knmow I am one to moan on about how many results are "just" futures and how sadly we compare with the likes of Spain, France and Germany. But it is absolutely clear, even to a curmudgeonly soul like myself, that real progess has been made by a number of different players in the last 2 or 3 weeks ( and also on the women's side and doubles smile

)

Let us hope that these are stepping stones to ongoing advancements.

Madeline · Admin:Moderator + Tennis Legend

Amen to that.

Mikeduke · County player

Finally an update. I've been waiting all day.

Its a good one

Jamie won 6-4 2-6 6-3.

Congratulations!!