Misjudging an opponent

[Cypo]

Last night was a wipe out ! In my singles match I played a woman who has so much experience she was one step ahead of me the entire match !!!

The first game I won to love. She hit nice balls to my strike zones and I hit base line winners. Mentally, I'm telling myself stay in the match, it's going to be a fight, but I don't really believe it. Then she broke, but I thought she got lucky, everyone has trouble with my serve. Then I misjudged her completely, and thought she'd gone to pushing - I was so sure from that first game that I was a lot better that her - but what she was doing she was hitting high forehands that were jamming me (letfy spin). She kept it up, I got worse and worse, frustrated that I was missing these 'easy' balls. But where I really missed the boat, was not appreciating that she was also mixing things up and placing the ball well. She was so successful with these jamming shots I thought it was all she could do.

In the last few games the lights finally went on. I started bring her to net, that was her only real weakness, but it was too little, too late. She couldn't volley, but the shot bring her in had to have a lot of slice or she punished it.

I hope I get to play her again.

[marc tressard]

Cypo I feel your pain. The turtle often beats the hare. I have lost to a managerie of "inferior" players. Noah could fill an ark with the likes of creatures I have fallen to. For a time it was partly the result of gettin brave with too demanding a racket and with strokes that may look good but not suited to actually winning points. It took me a time to understand that when I lost it may have meant that the opponent was actually better! What I came to understand was that placement is about 20 times more important than pace and that winners are a truly bad way to earn one's points. A really bad tactic. Patience my dear Cypo is the key to hangin with most opponents. If your serve doesn't generate free points you simply must wait and master consistency. Where I play the best intetioned players are defeated by impatience and inflated self-evaluation.

[@wright]

"I have lost to a managerie of "inferior" players. Noah could fill an ark with the likes of creatures I have fallen to..."

Poetry, man, poetry.
Are you saying they were animals?

[Cypo]

Actually in this case it was plain and simple stupidity. Even my team mates were telling me she wasn't pushing, but I couldn't get that first game out of my head and just refused to see what she was really doing. I found out later that she's been playing for 45 years - I would love to have seen her in her prime !