Week 16 - ITF ($50K) - Dothan, USA Clay

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

RE: Week 16 - ITF ($50K) - Dothan, USA Clay

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

It's a pretty sizable test up next in the form of the top seeds, the ever reliable USTA doubles stalwart, Asia Muhammad, and a seemingly somewhat rejuvenated Taylor Townsend, who is an excellent doubles player.
QF: Moore/Perrin (GBR/SUI) [4] defeated Cako/Lao (USA/USA) 6-3 6-4

SF: Moore/Perrin (GBR/SUI) [4] vs. Muhammad/Townsend (USA/USA) [1]

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

Team Taco just warming up for their SF, live on the USTA stream

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

Couple breaks early on, mostly routine holds thereafter. Early on the plan seemed mostly to be: keep the ball away from Taylor as much as possible. They've gone to her more as the set wore on.
Tara serving to get to the TB.
*5-6

And does so.
6-6

*4-2 at the change.
*6-4 on Conny's serve... Rally mostly between Conny & Taylor. Conny had a simple Sunday morning social routine kill at the net for the set... and netted.
6-6 at the second change.
*6-7 Conny redeemed with a good overhead to save the SP
7-8
7-9

from 5-2 up, they really let that one get away from them
6-7(7)

-- Edited by insomniacfolder on Friday 22nd of April 2016 11:56:32 PM

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

Tara's serve broken. Not as much fizz as yesterday in the general play from TaCo.
We might not be here for too much longer.
6-7(7) 1-2*

If only Conny had a decent lob in her game, she could've cleaned up today, as both Americans come in too close to the net, too quickly and would've been susceptible to any half way passable lob on a couple of dozen occasions. But, it seems she doesn't.
Hope fading as rapidly as the Alabama sun now.
6-7(7) 1-4*

Tara at least holds to ask the question of Asia, to close it out.
6-7(7) 2-5*

-- Edited by insomniacfolder on Saturday 23rd of April 2016 12:20:50 AM

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

The failure to clinch that first set seemed to knock all the stuffing out of them.
They were little more than shadows on the court from that point on.

SF: Moore/Perrin (GBR/SUI) [4] lost to Muhammad/Townsend (USA/USA) [1] 6-7(7) 2-6

insomniacfolder · Challenger level

Aw well. We'll always remember the moment, at 15:30 in the stream, of one of Tara's less choice serves.

Michael D · All-time great

Thanks for all these accounts, ISF, I enjoyed reading them, especially your speculation on the mystery that is Tara smile It's really good she is a great sense of humour - fairly essential to her survival I would think! She has plenty of talent, but not sure I'm holding breath. Suspect that rather like Naomi she needs a person like Fitzy who can really help her sort out her serve and make it more reliable and into a real weapon. If she could do that, then would expect her to progress. Exactly like Naomi too, though, the constraint is her (in)ability to hire a coach, I would think...

indiana · Tennis legend

Ah pity about the result, but thanks for all the commentary on these matches, ISF.

The net 14 points ( 29 - 15 ) added should push Tara's doubles ranking a few notches closer to the top 150. Be great if Taco could really push on higher, but I would also like to see Tara really getting it together in singles.

I imagine like most people I really don't think she should be ranked outside the top 300, and the serve has a lot of the blame for that. Her general play does look very competitive against higher ranked players, and some of her play simply looks too good for her current ranking. If more confident in her serve and the further confidence that would I imagine give her more generally then she could certainly be at least top 200 again. But singles must leaving you feeling very much a single when things aren't going well.

Yes, like Michael, I think a good coach would have a great player to work with there, given so much possible upside.

paulisi · Tennis legend

Tara has had plenty of coaching in the past. She was working with Jeremy Bates and Jane O'Donoghue before LTA dropped her funding two years ago(?)

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

paulisi wrote:
Tara has had plenty of coaching in the past. She was working with Jeremy Bates and Jane O'Donoghue before LTA dropped her funding two years ago(?)

Absolutely. And that says everything. If she'd had a 'decent' coach, she would have been top 100 by now.

indiana · Tennis legend

Coup Droit wrote:
paulisi wrote:
Tara has had plenty of coaching in the past. She was working with Jeremy Bates and Jane O'Donoghue before LTA dropped her funding two years ago(?)

Absolutely. And that says everything. If she'd had a 'decent' coach, she would have been top 100 by now.

Whatever, whenever, it wasn't so much more than two years ago, august 2013, that she reached her CH 183 having just turned 21. Drop back a bit and 'drop' seems the operative word from whatever type of LTA coach confuse If you've got the talent she has showed in the past and still at times often shows, it remains there ready to be brought out rather more than a never had it, never showed it.

Agree that she could have been / could be at least close to the top 100.