Week 19 - ITF $25K La Marsa, Tunisia Clay

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

RE: Week 19 - ITF $25K La Marsa, Tunisia Clay

Happycynic · Pro player

According to Twitter, Tara has been ill for the last few days.

Strongbow · All-time great

Too strong a field for Amanda. She can still advance playing some 10k events given the 2's and 3's etc she's got.

No need to do it all at once.

Jaggy1876 · Grand Slam Champion

Amanda ceiling appears to be the equivalent of Marcus Dan S and Cox in that they are too good for 10k but not good enough for challengers.

indiana · Tennis legend

Cmon, Strongbow, got to have some ambition and Mandy has had some pretty good results at 25K levels on occasion.

She is now a pretty experienced player so I really don't anyway see her as trying to do it all at once or running before she can walk or whatever.

The srrange thing to my mind would be Mandy NOT giving it a go at this level.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Tara and Nik have lost the first set 3-6

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Nik and Tara lost 6-3 7-5

Strongbow · All-time great

Mandy has been improving for about 6 months.

Generally speaking she plays in a zone. She deals well with weaker opponents and gives a good fight to players around her level up to +50.

Hence her recent sucesseses. As she gets better the zone moves.

She could still get 30-40 places given her lower scores, Also a useful buffer if she has 2's 3's she not using.

At some point she will have play at this level all the time - no need to do it all at once - that's what I meant

-- Edited by Strongbow on Thursday 14th of May 2015 09:32:11 PM

wimdledont · Challenger level

On the year to date, Mandy has won 20, lost 4...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/players/player/profile.aspx

Were she French, Italian, or American, with a record like that, she would not now be battling through qualifiers at 25k level, with a 1 in 4, or a 1 in 8 chance of even making the main draw. She would be getting wildcards to 50k+ MDs, on her clearly preferred surface, clay.

Unfortunately for her, the LTA is [censored] and [censored], and [censored]ly incompetent, and does not see fit to organise any such events.

She has now withdrawn from the doubles here; is a late withdrawal for next week; and may miss her only chances of a significant wildcard this year, on the UK grass.

Though to judge by the first entry list to emerge, Eastbourne...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/tournaments/women's-tournament/info.aspx

...where WR200 doesn't make qualifying, that might be a good thing.

There will be some withdrawals in the interim, but that's a tough field. At next week's ITF 50k in Korea, WR200 would be MD No2 seed...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/tournaments/women's-tournament/info.aspx

It's almost as if the LTA is now deliberately scheduling all of the women's calendar to provide the minimum advantage to any UK player, in the hope that they will all retire, unless of course they have won a Grand Slam before they've left kindergarten.

Which leaves none.

Hurray! Comfy sofas all round.

Strongbow · All-time great

wimdledont wrote:
On the year to date, Mandy has won 20, lost 4...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/players/player/profile.aspx

Were she French, Italian, or American, with a record like that, she would not now be battling through qualifiers at 25k level, with a 1 in 4, or a 1 in 8 chance of even making the main draw. She would be getting wildcards to 50k+ MDs, on her clearly preferred surface, clay.

Unfortunately for her, the LTA is [censored] and [censored], and [censored]ly incompetent, and does not see fit to organise any such events.

She has now withdrawn from the doubles here; is a late withdrawal for next week; and may miss her only chances of a significant wildcard this year, on the UK grass.

Though to judge by the first entry list to emerge, Eastbourne...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/tournaments/women's-tournament/info.aspx

...where WR200 doesn't make qualifying, that might be a good thing.

There will be some withdrawals in the interim, but that's a tough field. At next week's ITF 50k in Korea, WR200 would be MD No2 seed...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/tournaments/women's-tournament/info.aspx

It's almost as if the LTA is now deliberately scheduling all of the women's calendar to provide the minimum advantage to any UK player, in the hope that they will all retire, unless of course they have won a Grand Slam before they've left kindergarten.

Which leaves none.

Hurray! Comfy sofas all round.

looked up last years tunis in itf stats - md cut 318 - she got to QF. This year a whole host of top 200 players.

Luck of the draw was involved this year - getting a top seed in R1.

I don't know enough about the entry process to know whether players know how strong the field is going to be - info please!

-- Edited by Strongbow on Thursday 14th of May 2015 10:04:12 PM

wimdledont · Challenger level

Hi Strongbow,

(We're at slightly cross-purposes, mainly I guess because I now see my links above, to the entry lists for Eastbourne and Korea have led to dead-ends. And I've allowed a bit of frustration to spill onto the wrong thread.)

The women players typically enter several tournaments, weeks in advance, and then withdraw from the ones where they don't fancy the quality of the opposition in the weeks until the commencement of hostilities. The entry lists for present upcoming tournaments may or may not be down the following link...

www.itftennis.com/procircuit/tournaments/women's-calendar.aspx

This year, the LTA has organised a very bleak calendar in the UK for women, with the exception of June grass tournaments; the first of which has attracted entries from every possible foreign entry to Wimbledon qualifiers; which means that almost all of our women won't get to play without wildcards, and face completely stacked fields, and have much smaller chances of gaining extra ranking points.

In the women's game, the ranking points on offer quadruple when you move from 10k level, to 25k level. So it is very, very hard to progress - unless you have a national association that will give you a wildcard to a higher level tournament. You have to do 4 times as well to catch up/keep pace with the women ahead of you.

Strongbow · All-time great

Amanda has withdrawn from Italy next week - but is in the entrance list for Eastbourne 50k - Hopefully some sort of WC.

As for tournaments - how many 10ks would the LTA's £40m hq have paid for?

The old order changeth not.

-- Edited by Strongbow on Thursday 14th of May 2015 11:19:56 PM

indiana · Tennis legend

I still most certainly maintain Mandy is much better at this stage to increasingly go for 25Ks rather than stick to 10Ks and steadily knock off her lower scoring counters against lower srandard oppisition. Sure she can increase her ranking a reasonable bit by doing that, but it it would be very short termist and not her longer term interests. And hey she could and has before got decent points in 25Ks. And whether that is by her own good play or beneficial draws, she will generally play better players.

In my opinion, just no way should she be concentrating on mopping up 10K points just because they are likely to add decent net ranking additions over her 16th best ( currently 2 points ). Looks to be doing the right thing to me.

I do certainly take wimdledont's points re the LTA's provision of tournaments and all the more reason that Amanda should look to good 25K opportunuties.

Indeed even say 50Ks, and for the short term ranking points obsessed that level does come with 5 points for qualifying ( 3 points for reaching the FQR ) apart from the clearly higher main draw points.

Strongbow · All-time great

indiana wrote:
I still most certainly maintain Mandy is much better at this stage to increasingly go for 25Ks rather than stick to 10Ks and steadily knock off her lower scoring counters against lower srandard oppisition. Sure she can increase her ranking a reasonable bit by doing that, but it it would be very short termist and not her longer term interests. And hey she could and has before got decent points in 25Ks. And whether that is by her own good play or beneficial draws, she will generally play better players.

In my opinion, just no way should she be concentrating on mopping up 10K points just because they are likely to add decent net ranking additions over her 16th best ( currently 2 points ). Looks to be doing the right thing to me.

I do certainly take wimdledont's points re the LTA's provision of tournaments and all the more reason that Amanda should look to good 25K opportunuties.

Indeed even say 50Ks, and for the short term ranking points obsessed that level does come with 5 points for qualifying ( 3 points for reaching the FQR ) apart from the clearly higher main draw points.

I generally agree, but as she is on the cusp between MD and Q the extra places would be handy. Also some unused 2 and 3 pts would a useful buffer.

We both want the same thing but differ slightly on how to get there. Only results will tell.