British Tennis Forum - Celebrating 20 Years!

JonH comes home · Tennis legend

RE: Week 38 – ITF W35 Wagga Wagga, Australia - Hard

B00thy · Club Coach

There's some interesting comments about Katie's level. In my view she is easily capable of beating those ranked between 200-250. This is her level. However, her ranking is well below her level because she is gaining points slowly. This has not been bad idea as she has been able to build her core strength and match fitness. But only by playing better players will she build her game.

Her strategy quite rightly appears to have been low risk .. slow and steady. But soon, when she feels confident her body is holding up well, I expect she will play higher level tournaments to rise up the rankings to where her playing level is.

foobarbaz · Club Coach

B00thy wrote:
There's some interesting comments about Katie's level. In my view she is easily capable of beating those ranked between 200-250. This is her level. However, her ranking is well below her level because she is gaining points slowly. This has not been bad idea as she has been able to build her core strength and match fitness. But only by playing better players will she build her game.

Her strategy quite rightly appears to have been low risk .. slow and steady. But soon, when she feels confident her body is holding up well, I expect she will play higher level tournaments to rise up the rankings to where her playing level is.

The problem is that trying to focus on higher level tournaments (without the possibility of a wildcard entry) too soon, from a low tally of ranking points, means having to play qualifying matches first, with very little time to recover before the main draw matches begin. Playing more matches only increases wear and tear, and from past experience that's not good. There's really not any alternative other than to play the tournaments in which the MD equates to the current ranking points tally, and try to gain the most ranking points for the fewest matches (and fewest sets) played, until such time as the next tournament MD level is unlocked. It seems to be working at the moment.

emmsie69 · Top national player

foobarbaz wrote:
B00thy wrote:
There's some interesting comments about Katie's level. In my view she is easily capable of beating those ranked between 200-250. This is her level. However, her ranking is well below her level because she is gaining points slowly. This has not been bad idea as she has been able to build her core strength and match fitness. But only by playing better players will she build her game.

Her strategy quite rightly appears to have been low risk .. slow and steady. But soon, when she feels confident her body is holding up well, I expect she will play higher level tournaments to rise up the rankings to where her playing level is.
The problem is that trying to focus on higher level tournaments (without the possibility of a wildcard entry) too soon, from a low tally of ranking points, means having to play qualifying matches first, with very little time to recover before the main draw matches begin. Playing more matches only increases wear and tear, and from past experience that's not good. There's really not any alternative other than to play the tournaments in which the MD equates to the current ranking points tally, and try to gain the most ranking points for the fewest matches (and fewest sets) played, until such time as the next tournament MD level is unlocked. It seems to be working at the moment.

There is a W100 in Wrexham 20th October and a W75 the following week in Glasgow. You'd like to think that she'd get a MDWC into atleast one of those and they fit in quite well with her current play 2 weeks have a week off. She needs roughly 150 more points to make AO qualifying so potentially she could be there by the end of October subject to staying fit but if not, back to Oz for the Sydney W75 in November. There's not much in the US that would be suitable and what there is would probably require playing qualifying, something that she really does need to avoid if at all possible.

PaulM · Tennis legend

If she wants to spend a few months playing, and hopefully mopping up, these events in Oz and spending plenty time with Alex in the process all power to her. I see no reason why at her age and with her injury background she should have to play up or take the harder route to getting her ranking back.

Plenty of time for tough events and tough draws once she's back in the top 250. Just get there in one piece first

foobarbaz · Club Coach

Either way, I think we're all on the same page, the fewer matches played whilst winning them as quickly as possible, and retaining match fitness from week to week, in order to maximise the accumulation of ranking points, and perhaps be in a position to have a go at something big in January.