Sacramento 75K challenger

Sheddie · administrator

Sacramento 75K challenger

johnnylad · Tennis legend

What surface is this played on?

What are Jamies chances?

Sheddie · administrator

This is on outdoor hard courts, similar to the surface used at the US Open, medium paced and bouncy. Should suit Jamie's game, I reckon he's got a good chance of qualifying as he's almost certain to be seeded and that'd gain him 3 points.

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Jamie is second up on Court 1 which starts at 9 AM in Sacramento, California. They must be getting two q rounds in today.

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Match before Jamies is finsihed on MTF.

No news of Jamie B as yet.

Drew · Oct 7, 2006

Jamie Baker (GBR) def Yoo 7-6(5), 7-6(6)

Madeline · Admin:Moderator + Tennis Legend

How many qualy rounds are there?

Drew · Oct 7, 2006

Madeline wrote:

How many qualy rounds are there?

3 rounds.....Jamie will play Nikita Kryvonos (RSA) in QR2....WR453 has a futures win and a final this year. (Highest ranking 214 in aug 04....is 26 yrs old).

Jamie should make it to QR3....where he could meet the 8th See Wesley Whitehouse (USA) (WR356)...has made 1 futures QF but has won 2 futures doubles titles.

-- Edited by Drew at 21:35, 2006-10-07

Niall · Pro player

Qualy Draw

Jamie's section:

(3)Jamie Baker (GBR-304) vs Daniel Yoo (Kor-503)
(WC)Ruben Gonzales (USA-1558) vs Nikita Kryvonos (USA-453)
Sunil Kumai Sipaeya (IND-526) vs Ishav Hadash (ISR-609)
Leslev Joseph (USA-376) vs (8)Wesley Whitehouse (RSA-356)

steven · Tennis legend

Drew wrote:

3 rounds.....Jamie will play Nikita Kryvonos (RSA) in QR2....WR453 has a futures win and a final this year. (Highest ranking 214 in aug 04....is 26 yrs old).

Kryvonos also knocked Jamie out of RG juniors 2 years ago, so a good chance for revenge!

goldenboy · Club Coach

Jamie lost 7-5 6-2. Disappointing, like most of his challenger attempts to be honest! I think he seems to be very much in the middle of futures and challenger level – do others agree?

I think however he does have the mental fortitude to succeed, and perhaps just needs one good run at a challenger – maybe even a quarter final – to set him off.

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Really disappointing indeed.

He'd be better starting with the 25K challengers to get his confidence level and expectations up as he would certainly be top seeded in qualifying if not a main draw candidate for those tournaments.

Once he has reached the later rounds of these and played at the level more consistently he will be ready to step up again.

As you say Jamie is clearly very good at futures level having won tournaments all over the world. It will come, but it seems we need to be more patient with him than we thought we ay have to!

johnnylad · Tennis legend

At other challengers this week Jamie would have been:

Rennes: Seeded 2 in qualifying on hard courts. He would probably have qualified here.

Barcelona: Seeded 1 in qualifying on clay. He would probably have qualified here.

Medellin: Seeded 2 in qualifying on clay. He would probably have qualified here.

I understand he was seeded three in Sacramento but the general quality of players appears to have been a lot stronger there.

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Quite randomly (probably for match practice)

Jamie teamed up with Brendan Evans to play doubles qualifying.

They beat top seeds Kuznetsov/Oudesma 67(2) 76(1) 10-5 in the semis and face

(2)Scott Jenkins/Nikita Kryvonos (USA) for a place in the main draw.

Sheddie · administrator

That's a disappointing result for Jamie, I really expected him to win this one though a final qualifying round match against Wesley Whitehouse looked tough.

However, Kryvonos definately seems to be at his best in North America, he's had some great results on the hard courts over there this year. In comparison, they don't seem to suit Jamie so much, through the summer he hasn't been able to find his best form on them. Even when he had his great run in futures in the USA in 2005, he wasn't playing
at his best, just doggedly grinding out tough matches in the heat where his superior fitness levels paid dividends.

I'm puzzled by this as you'd think that the slow, bouncy hard courts would suit Jamie's game - he hits with loads of topspin and he has a typical clay-courter's forehand.

Jamie's best result in a challenger, was reaching the quarters of a 25K in Tasmania in February, he came very close to making the semis. However, admittedly the field there was more like a very strong 15K. His other best results in challengers have been winning rounds in Aptos and Binghampton.

I agree with goldenboy, that he's currently between futures and challengers. It's a big jump up but at each stage on the senior tour he's been able to successfully up his level so I have every confidence that he'll start to get results regularly in challengers next year. The training sessions which he's planning to have with Brad Gilbert in the off-season will definately help.

I think that Jamie's probably keen to avoid fast, indoor courts when he can as his game doesn't naturally suit them even though he's done very well in indoor futures in the past so that's why he didn't go for Rennes. Oddly enough, he doesn't play many clay tournaments, not since June 2005. 25Ks challenger would be best, but even for those, the fields are so strong in Europe at the moment.

Brendan Evans is a big friend of Jamie's from the juniors.

Next up after the doubles in Sacramento is the Calabasas challenger. Jamie will be one of the top seeds in qualifying which begins on Saturday.