Aberdeen mens 1st team vs. Edinburgh mens 2nd team Robert Ainsley, Cammy Nicol, Rickard Strand and Podaru Mihai faced off against the always formidable Edinburgh 2s in what was coincidentally our first league match since we played them away on 6th November. It was a crunch match for both sides, with Edinburgh still habouring an outside, but realistic, chance of winning the division, and us looking to convert games in hand to points, so that we could overtake both Edinburgh and Strathclyde. It was a disappointment that the original lineup of Pawel Safuryn, Matt Stout, President Merry, and Pete Sampras didnt show up. Cammy considered calling up the irrepressible womens number 1 Robyn Graham for the tie, as Pistol Pete wouldnt have got anywhere near to her reverse swing serves to his backhand on an astro court. Cammy was so confident in this tactic that he considered installing a wicketkeeper, 3 slips and a gully from our resting mens 2nd team on the court boundary. Edinburgh arrived slightly late with: 1st team ringer (and Rickards mate from Dubai), Pranav Walia; Mikhail Youzhny impersonator, Niall Hope; Andrew Merry on an emotional final trip to Aberdeen for a BUCS match; and clean-hitting 3rd team number 1, Rupert McCreery. I was looking forward to some light-hearted banter at the expense of Edinburghs tardiness, but everyones favourite tournament referee Mike Ross (pretending to watch the rugby, but most definitely ogling the womens lacrosse teams) beat me to it by informing us that we were within our rights to claim the opening rubbers, whilst dismissing Merrys claims that they had let us off in the past (that is irrelevant). Classic stuff from the big man! Before play commenced, both sides formed a guard of honour for Merry, a man who divides opinion (unless youre at Strathclyde, in which case you want to kill him), but is unquestionably an asset to Edinburgh and Scottish Student Tennis. Anyway, before I start welling up, to the match itself: Cammy and I opened against Pranav and Niall. After a strong start that put us 4-1 up, we stuttered when Cammy had a mental breakdown after shepherding a shot down the line and missing 2 volleys. Still, it was tough playing into the sun and breeze; even I taped a volley at breakpoint down. We found ourselves at 4-4 and the situation was getting to Cammy. He loves Aberdeen 1s so much and is so determined we reach tier 1 that he was distraught that his only poor 10 minutes of doubles in 4 months might cost us the tie. Tell me what to do Rob, he sobbed after missing a 1st serve. After some words of reassurance (and a telling off that a volley he missed would have ended up in Butchart car park, well, someone had to nag him with Mummy Nicol not around), some crackerjack serving, and a forehand that nearly punctured Pranavs lung, we held to go 5-4 up. Now just have a swing this end, I said. It worked, as we broke Pranav from 40-0 up to take the set 6-4. Cammy was now purring and we swept to a 6-1 victory, with Cammy confidently predicted a game of aces to finish (he made 2). 6-4 6-1. 1-0 Meanwhile, Rickard was embroiled in a gritty battle with Merry. It was a beautiful contrast of classical ball striking from the Swede against Merrys Santoro-like variety and cunning. If he werent playing against us, Id have been rooting for Merry, due to such a nuggetty performance. However, Rickards class shone through, winning 6-2 7-5. 2-0 Mihai had the toughest match of the day, against a relentless McCreery, who hasnt won all of his tier 4 matches for no reason. I discussed his only defeat of the season against Strathclyde number 1 Ryan Wesson later at The Bobbin, although it appears I remember the details more clearly than he does, despite not being there. The match was a brutal, bludgeoning affair, with Mihai sneaking home 7-6 (4) 7-6 (5). Mihai remains unbeaten at singles. Why oh why wasnt he selected in the 1st semester of his 1st year? 3-0 With a half time lead, I was hoping to seal the win against Pranav. He has won in tier 1 this season, so it was potentially my hardest match since beating Heriot-Watts Mexican-gunslinging and Futures-playing Gerardo Suarez. As it was, I played classic Ainsley tennis: nothing fancy, but virtually no unforced errors, and worked the court like a chess player. Not only that, my forehand was on song! Pranav looked bewildered as Merrys pre-match briefing of, hit everything low to his forehand, failed to bear fruit. I served and rallied my way to a 6-3 6-1 win. 4-0 With the match won, the remaining rubbers were technically dead, but rubber difference could yet be crucial, so Rickard and Mihai were fighting for every point. Sadly, Merrys away swinging slice serve and tidy volleys coupled with McCreerys savagely effective 1990s take-no-prisoners style swung the match 6-3 6-4 in their favour. This wassealed with the biggest forehand down-the-line I have ever witnessed, courtesy of McCreery; Richard Krajicek eat your heart out! 4-1 Cammy had the 2nd toughest match of the day, against Niall. Niall recovered well from double faulting 3 times in the opening game to hang in and still be in with a realistic chance of winning the match at 4-6 6-6. Both players had played some big points, putting plenty of hurt on the ball. At 6-6 all in the tiebreak, after Cammy had saved a set point, Niall had plenty of time to reflect upon the upcoming point. Unfortunately, as he revealed to me later, he spent it thinking, dont double fault. Never a good sign, he promptly double faulted, at which point Cammy bellowed, COME ON! This shocked Walia even more than my prowess on the forehand; he was appalled. I agreed: if youre going to have a dig at the opponent, it has to be in the form of light-hearted, such as a quip about James Ward and Sam Querrey. Anyway, its a good job Pranav hasnt met Scott Barclay, a man (of sorts) who draws the line at the death of an opponent when deciding whether or not to raucously celebrate winning off an unforced error. Anyway, Cammy closed it out next ball to win 6-4 7-6, a carbon copy of their previous scoreline. 5-1 So, another glorious victory sadly was not matched by the quality or quantity of food at The Bobbin. As someone who enjoys equal measures of both, it was upsetting to say the least. Nonetheless, the company of faces old and new just about made up for it. Merry quizzed me on each of his teammates playing histories and finally stumped me on Pranavs results against Finlay Hutchison, and I could only give a vaguely correct answer. I guess I just saw that hed lost in straight sets to Finlay and figured that he couldnt be much of a threat (this is light-hearted banter in light of Finlays claims that he can take me, according to Merry). Merry gave a rousing farewell speech and departed with his comrades, leaving everyone misty-eyed. Our next game is at home to St. Andrews 2nd team on Saturday at 1pm. Stick around after the club session to support us! May tennis be with you and in thine spirits, amen.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Feb 2014 20:09:47 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015