Week 12 - ITF $15000 - Sunderland - Hard

indiana · Tennis legend

RE: Week 12 - ITF $15000 - Sunderland - Hard

indiana · Tennis legend

On the other hand, paulisi, I certainly wouldn't deem it a "success" ( meant sarcastically ? ) if we get 3 through from that draw and Tara to at least the QFs.

That would be about my minimum expectation ( again assuming Tara reasonably OK ). Anything less, really disappointing.

steven · Tennis legend

korriban wrote:
Q2: BROWN, Lucy (GBR) 14 684 beat KAWA, Katarzyna (POL) 1 414 7-6 (1) 6-2
Q2: BAMBURAC, Sabrina (GBR) 16 829 lost to MELANDER, Hilda (SWE) 2 428 4-6 2-6
Q2: WEBLEY-SMITH, Emily (GBR) 3 435 lost to GOLUBIC, Viktorija (SUI) 13 610 5-7 2-6
Q2: WINDLEY, Jade (GBR) 4 442 lost to BELZUNCE-CROMPIN, Ana (ESP) UNR 2-6 2-6
Well done Lucy!
Straight set losses unfortunately for the others girls this time. Jade lost to an unranked overseas player, however statistically unlikely that might be!
Good luck all the Brits for the MD

Sad that only one Brit qualified, though good to see Lucy upsetting Kawa again and to read Phil's comments.

Belzunce-Crompin isn't really a 'typical' unranked player - she reached a career high 670 in 2009 when she was 19 but stopped playing on the ITF pro circuit in March 2010 and apart from one 25K qualifying draw last November, only started playing on the circuit again in the middle of last month, beating a top 600 player in straight sets in her first tournament back, qualifying then going out to players in the 500-700 range in her next two events and then beating a top 600 player then Jade to qualifying here.

So it's still a dispappointing loss for Jade, but perhaps not as big a shock as it appears at first sight.

indiana · Tennis legend

Thanks, Steven, for putting some context to Jade's loss. Still disappointing and generally certainly not doing as well as she promised when she came back from injury last year.

Peter too · Tennis legend

I blame today's losses on those who kept saying you never get unexpected results in lady's tennis. We got lots of unexpected results today, mostly higher ranked GB girls losing to lower ranked players from elsewhere

blob · All-time great

Peter too wrote:
I blame today's losses on those who kept saying you never get unexpected results in lady's tennis. We got lots of unexpected results today, mostly higher ranked GB girls losing to lower ranked players from elsewhere

This still had me chuckling 5 minutes after I first read it

indiana · Tennis legend

Sorry, Peter, but maybe we could stick more to what some people were actually saying, i.e. that comparative to men's tennis, you very rarely get wins in women's tennis from very lowly ranked / unranked players over decently ranked playets such as 400s to 600s.

Lucy's win and Emily's loss certainly don't qualify in what was suggested as such rare upsets.

Jade's loss does, although as Steven, indicates probably not quite as bad as it looks.

And losses to very lowly ranked / unranked top juniors and very underranked previously injured playets will also occur. But, personally, I absolutely stand by what I was saying about very lowly ranked / unranked players in general and not just GB women.

indiana · Tennis legend

So, I am taking no blame LOL !

Peter too · Tennis legend

indiana wrote:
So, I am taking no blame LOL !

With Amanda and Heather also falling to lower ranked players it was certainly not our finiest hour but perhaps our remaining players will produce the right kind of shocks

Josh · Challenger level

Lost 7-5 6-2, pretty bad loss even if Belzunce-Crompin isn't a 'typical' unranked player.

I wouldn't say it's expected Paulsi. Steven's indicated the Spaniard was competitive in the 400-600 range and Lisa is definitely a cut above that and seemed to be in decent form last week, comfortably beating Sam in Round 1 before a tight loss to similarly ranked player. Of course she went on to win the doubles title too, so going out tamely in the 1st round this week is pretty disappointing.

-- Edited by Josh on Wednesday 20th of March 2013 12:14:26 PM

steven · Tennis legend

Turns out she wasn't injured, she was at college in the US - http://www.umterps.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/belzunce_ana00.html and after two years there, she now seems to be at Carlos Moya's academy.

-- Edited by steven on Wednesday 20th of March 2013 12:59:17 PM

korriban · Challenger level

Steven. A request, please don't tweet the specifics of this last result. I'm sure you wouldn't anyway, because you are Mr Class, as always. Noone would want that broadcast widely.

All that seems to happen these days is that Chris "TennisTalker" Goldsmith takes your tweets, rewrites them 5 minutes later (God I hate people that take the trouble to do that), with some unhelpful barbed comment attached in the hope that people notice him. Sorry to be specific, but for every 100 tweets he sends out (half a days worth?!), maybe 2 of them are not reworked from someone else, and maybe 2 have insight. Most are just questions or rehashes of other people's thoughts. If I had 5p for every time he accused people of tanking or throwing matches without even seeing the match, just the livescores............!!!

Yes he's annoying me immensely!

-- Edited by korriban on Wednesday 20th of March 2013 01:50:10 PM

korriban · Challenger level

Peter too wrote:
R1: FITZPATRICK, Anna (GBR) WC 788 v BORECKA, Martina (CZE) Q 596
R1: MOORE, Tara (GBR) 3 209 v GOLUBIC, Viktorija (SUI) Q 610
R1: WHYBOURN, Lisa (GBR) 281 v BELZUNCE-CROMPIN, Ana (ESP) Q UNR
R1: MURRAY, Samantha (GBR) 7 262 v DUNNE, Katy (GBR) WC UNR
R1: BROGAN, Anna (GBR) WC UNR v DE VROOME, Indy (NED) Q 580
R1: BROADY, Naomi (GBR) 361 v BREMOND, Iryna (FRA) 379
R1: SMITH, Anna (GBR) WC 986 v GEORGES, Myrtille (FRA) 6 251
R1: BROWN, Lucy (GBR) Q 684 v KIMMELMANN, Julia (GER) 355

-- Edited by Peter too on Tuesday 19th of March 2013 07:06:01 PM

In these 8 matches, the range of possible outcomes is 1 GB win (GB vs GB) to 8 GB wins. Rankings would suggest 4 wins. I actually think all the matches are tricky. Arguably even Tara's, especially if she's under the weather, because her opponent has qualified 2 weeks in a row and last week beat a top 300 player in the MD. 1 win could happen, please God it doesn't.

But I've noticed that we often context GB losses to lower ranked players (myself included - see above!) with plausible excuses or justifications. Its a very British sort of thing to do. But you can turn this on its head. It does work the other way round too!

So taking today's matches with lower ranked GB players against higher ranked overseas players, here's my more positive spin.

- Lucy trains under the LTA tutelage (including with Heather Watson out in Miami), has a CH of 540, and we can write-off an injury-savaged 2012 when she was expected to make big strides. She beat a 412 ranked player twice in straight sets in the last 2 weeks, and was very competitive with former 185 ranked Naomi Broady last week, so is playing well above her ranking. Be on your guard Julia.

- Anna S has a CH of 262, similar to her opponent, and has recently returned from a long period away from the game, with some impressive wins under her belt already against players in the 500s and a tight 3 set loss to top 200 player. Don't be fooled by her ranking in the 900s, Myrtille.

- Anna B is one of our most promising Juniors under the watchful eye of Judy Murray, and whilst her young opponent has had early success on ITF circuit, she has thrown in some very one sides losses in both pro and junior matches. Watch out Indy, she's on the up and up.

- Anna F is not in great form, but has a CH of 318, nearly 300 places above her opponent today, so should have the experience to make things very competitive. Not to be taken lightly Martina.

How does that sound? I'm more confident already.

indiana · Tennis legend

Hey, how revolutionary LOL

I'll stick to predicting 4 GB wins.

SMC1809 · All-time great

Lisa drops the first set 5-7