Week 49 - ITF M15 - Antalya, Turkey (clay)

paulisi · Tennis legend

RE: Week 49 - ITF M15 - Antalya, Turkey (clay)

JonH comes home · Tennis legend

paulisi wrote:
wales1994 wrote:
Where has this form come from? Does anyone know how he plays? And, what his ceiling likely is?
I saw him play at Shrewsbury a couple of years ago. He looked an average 15k player then. He had a decent serve, but inconsistent on groundstokes. Not seen him play live or Internet for a while.

it looks like he has played a lot of clay and seems to be grinding out those wins, perhaps that is what has changed, consistency and developing a match brain and match tightness to make the most of his abilities.

He plays a lot - from what I can tell from a quick look, singles and doubles together he has played 104 matches this season (and that excludes UK Pro League and British Tour, where he has played a fair few more and still has British Tour Masters to come), Cam has also played 104 I think, no one has played more than those two. So he has honed his game, got consistent, earned some money at those UKPL events, and got smart about playing the same Turkish/Greek venues week after week, and got his rewards.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

paulisi wrote:
wales1994 wrote:
Where has this form come from? Does anyone know how he plays? And, what his ceiling likely is?
I saw him play at Shrewsbury a couple of years ago. He looked an average 15k player then. He had a decent serve, but inconsistent on groundstokes. Not seen him play live or Internet for a while.

Exactly what I'd have said too from seeing him - good power but slightly dodgy movement etc which means he used to make way too many errors in his groundshots. I watched him this week but the wind was so bad it was difficult to get a good impression. But it's all a question of balance, and if he's figured out a better percentage, and worked on his footwork a little, then no reason not to make big improvements. He's about at peak age so this is when it should all be coming together.

JayKayFulham · Social player

Billy has had a fantastic end to the year. Impressive and great to see. Id love to see him step up a level in the new year and make his bid in higher level tournaments, so I hope he enters those now with his improved ranking. Its also been great to see Billy, and several other British players, doing well on clay. Looking forward to more of this in the coming years, with so many clay tournaments on our doorstep.

Bob in Spain · Tennis legend

paulisi wrote:
wales1994 wrote:
Where has this form come from? Does anyone know how he plays? And, what his ceiling likely is?
I saw him play at Shrewsbury a couple of years ago. He looked an average 15k player then. He had a decent serve, but inconsistent on groundstokes. Not seen him play live or Internet for a while.

I have obviously seen Billy play a lot and 'inconsistent' is absolutely the right way to describe his game. When his game is 'on' he has a big game, but he sometimes goes missing for periods in matches and that has stunted his progress. I think for Billy it may well be (or hopefully, was - past tense) a mental problem. I always felt there was a lack of self belief that he could actually start winning some of these tournaments. I have watched live matches where he has gone out at the QF stage, for example, despite having MPs against players that would go on to win the tournament. So the game has always been there.

I am sure that finally getting the first title under his belt has been a huge mental boost for him and he now seems to be believing much more in himself. Reaching Top 500 was also a mental milestone that he has had in his mind for a long time. It will be interesting now that he has achieved that, to see how he structures his schedule for next year. Will he set new challenges for himself or is he happier in his own comfort zone ?

How far can he go ? That will be very difficult to determine until we see him transition to 25k and perhaps Challenger events - if that is his plan. The danger is that any success at those levels may be hampered by similar doubts that he had a 15k level until his recent breakthrough.

-- Edited by Bob in Spain on Tuesday 14th of December 2021 07:39:58 AM

paulisi · Tennis legend

I'm sure he will play the UK 25ks and will have half a chance at a seeding as I suspect the events will have restricted guests due to Australia schedule and travel restrictions