British Tour - 2020

JonH comes home · Tennis legend

British Tour - 2020

the addict · Tennis legend

Andre Lukosiute wink

She's the girl that Emily Appleton just managed to get past in a third set tie-break at Chiswick last year for her first W25 main draw win.

She beat Millie Bissett in qualifying to get there.

the addict · Tennis legend

the addict wrote:
Andre Lukosiute
She's the girl that Emily Appleton just managed to get past in a third set tie-break at Chiswick last year for her first W25 main draw win.
She beat Millie Bissett in qualifying to get there.

I do Emily an injustice. She beat Beth in a first round match at Woking back in 2015. Lost about 20 in a row before the next win though.

And funnily enough, I was watching that tiebreak at Chiswick with Beth

the addict · Tennis legend

Round-up of today's results (in draw order)

Lily Miyazaki [1] def Arabella Moen 6-3 6-0
Annali Olivelle def Danielle Daley 6-1 6-1

Holly Staff def Andre Lukosiute [4] 7-5 7-6(9)
Amelia Rajecki def Indianna Spink 6-1 6-4

Katherine Barnes def Sally Pethybridge 7-5 6-2
Emma Wilson def Anna Popescu [3] 6-4 7-6(5)

Grace Piper def Charlotte Russell 6-0 6-2
Victoria Allen [2] def Jessica Dawson 6-4 6-2

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Friday's OOP:

Centre Court from 11am
Amelia Rajecki vs Holly Staff
Victoria Allen (2) vs Grace Piper

Court 1 from 11am
Lily Miyazaki (1) vs Annali Olivelle
Emma Wilson vs Katherine Barnes

I'm happy because the two matches I'm most interested in, particularly the first one, are on Centre, so that'll mean commentators, better cameras, and post match interviews.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

OK, Amelia to beat Holly
Grace to beat Vic (for an upset?)
Lily to beat Annali
and no idea about the last one....

Add: But I'll go for Emma, coz otherwise it's a copout ....

-- Edited by Coup Droit on Friday 24th of July 2020 10:14:34 AM

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Grace and Vic were pretty much 50/50 betting wise, both are under 2, so both odds on. I think I also like Grace in that one.

Lily was like 1/50, so a bit of a mismatch. I'd also back Emma to win after reaching the final last week.

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Holly came from behind to take the first set 6-4.

Just watching these 2, results-wise, these seem 2 of our better 17/18 year olds. Emma is an obvious stand out, and Marni is proving to be a different level as well, but outside of that, these 2, along with Millie B are up there. Now that Katie and Jodie have turned 21, and Emily Ap in a couple of months, there's hardly any 19/20 year olds in the rankings. You can't blame anyone for wanting to go to US college and getting an education, making friends, and getting some great life experience, but from an LTA perspective, might they be a bit disappointed that these 2 are going college in the coming months/year?

In most cases, outside of a couple of summer events you won't really see them until they're like 23, and outside of the odd American (who'll get more home events and opportunities), looking at collegetennisranks, there's not too many non Americans who'll get to 300/400 level, so if these 2 are going to college, then in like 3 or so years when most of the current early twenties group are mid - later (Katie B, Harriet) twenties, there's going to be minimal 20-22 year olds in the periphery of the slam qualifying ranking positions.

Now if someone doesn't really have obvious top 300/400 potential then there's not too much you can do, but if these 2 are some of your better teens, then they'd probably have more chance of pushing on and doing something tennis wise (obviously college opens up other external opportunities) if they were backed financially, and with all the other LTA resources, they'd have more chance of getting to those higher positions, and at least making the landscape look more healthy from a national governing bodies perspective in the coming years.

-- Edited by Ace Ventura on Friday 24th of July 2020 11:29:00 AM

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

I've kind of written a lot there, for not saying a great deal, ha, but anyway, into a MTB after Amelia took the second set 6-1, and it's 3-3 at the first changeover.

Holly 6-4 1-6 10-5.

Holly vs top seed Lily tomorrow - they've had contrasting respective time on court thus far.

-- Edited by Ace Ventura on Friday 24th of July 2020 11:39:58 AM

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

OK - got that one wrong - again

And, yes, Holly and Millie R might be two of our 'next best' players in their cohort - but can't really see either making top 300 though..

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Yeah, the bar's not too high unfortunately. I was kind of more thinking from my perspective. As I say, I can't blame anyone for wanting to go to college and getting external opportunities, especially if they are unlikely to get to circa 400, but when I see someone head to college, they kind of go off my radar and I sort of automatically don't really see them as a proper tennis player anymore if that makes sense (without wanting it to sound harsh). That's one of the main reasons why I want Emily Ap to succeed. Many thought she'd be better off going to college, but as a pure tennis fan, mainly interested on what goes on on the court than someone getting a top degree from Harvard, and probably never hearing from them again, I'd rather follow someone's progress on the lower ITF circuit, and giving it a good go, but if the potential or talent isn't there, then it could be more of a lost cause.

There are a few WTA success stories like Brady, Collins, Ahn to a lesser extent, but most of these are American, I can't get on to collegetennisranks on my phone at the moment, but I think the likes of Sharma and Perez are among the more successful non Americans, but it's pretty few and far between stuff.

Just a bit disappointing that there doesn't seem many UK 16-19 year olds likely to make an impact on the top 300 or so in the coming years when they're early 20s, but then I suppose, this batch aside, that's probably been a common trend over the years.

indiana · Tennis legend

Coup Droit wrote:
OK - got that one wrong - again

And, yes, Holly and Millie R might be two of our 'next best' players in their cohort - but can't really see either making top 300 though..

Yes, I'm afraid that does look very unlikely based on progress to date even allowing for surges forward. While it would be nice to see more of them in the UK, US college does seem a very understandable choice for these two.

All the best to them.

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

I've enjoyed the fixed SGH streams on YouTube, and really appreciate them, but it's so good actually seeing like proper TV camera work, close ups, and different angles. Great stuff.

Grace in a strong position here, 6-2 *1-0.

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

I think Vic's another one who has stalled looking at her results over the past year or so. I thought she may have been a half decent prospect in early 2019, and she played quite well when I saw her at Sunderland that year, but it's been pretty modest stuff since, last week included.

Grace 6-2 *5-0.

Grace 6-2 6-0, Emma 6-2 6-1, so they meet tomorrow in the other semi final, in a rematch of last week's final.

Holly vs Amelia seems the only competitive women's match out of the four here (although I didn't actually see any of the other court)

-- Edited by Ace Ventura on Friday 24th of July 2020 12:57:29 PM

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Yes, only saw the first set of Holly v Amelia R but it was very competitive - indeed, Millie 'should' have would (although I do realise that I might be talking my book )

But she was in control, it was on her racket, and - next year, say, - if they carry on the same path, she certainly will (indeed, she could next week if they replayed, but then so could Holly again, so that;s not saying much) but the AR's curve seems steeper than HS's.

Add: agree re Vic Allen - she was one of my 'US college' group that really don't seem to have made any progress, like Nell Miller, in fact, quite the reverse.

-- Edited by Coup Droit on Friday 24th of July 2020 01:33:19 PM