First league game ever tonight

[FriarTuck]

Hello...

I've been a lurker on this site for a while now and I thought I'd post since I'm playing my first league game ever tonight. I'm 28 yo male and I've played tennis recreationally for a while but I've never done anything competitive. I've primarily just hit ground strokes with a friend who is a strong 3.5/low 4.0 player. I'm playing in a 3.0/3.5 mixed men's singles summer league just to try to get used to actually playing games that matter (somewhat).

I've got a pretty good forehand (for this level), an okay backhand and a horribly inconsistent serve, mostly because all I've ever done is "hit" instead of play.

I'm playing a NTRP 3.0 guy tonight who has won about half of his matches in the past year. I'll probably have to hit a lot of dink 2nd serves just to keep the ball in play. I'd think against a 3.0 guy that should be my goal because he probably won't be able to kill me too consistently on weak serves, right?

Anyway... any feedback for a newbie playing competitive for the 1st time? I just got my Wilson nCode strung with RPM Blast and haven't had a chance to hit with it but I'm excited about my first match!

 

[johndagolfer]

Good luck. The key is to not worry about the result. Try and have fun. Stay relaxed and keep your eye on the ball and you will do well!

 

[AceKing]

Like john said. . . don't worry too much about the result. An experienced match player will hold a significant advantage over you even if he has a worse overall game. If you lose, think about the match & the reasons you lost.
Playing different people in competitive situations will help your game tremendously. . . far more than just hitting with the same person.

 

[Taxvictim]

It's too bad your first league match is singles, because it helps in the first match to have an experienced doubles partner.

The key to the first match is to just get through it. That said, you might feel more confident if you have a specific plan of attack instead of just hitting the ball wherever feels right at that moment. For example, in the first few games, just keep hitting deep to his backhand. Make that your plan, and your only real goal is to do that repeatedly and learn from doing that. If he wins consistently, try changing to a different plan that you already have in mind: serve and volley, for example, even on your dinky 2nd serve. Then learn from that. That way tomorrow you won't be thinking about whether you won or lost, but about what you learned about the difficulties or effectiveness in hitting repeatedly to someone's backhand, or where you're likely to get passed when you serve and volley, etc.

But mostly, just get through it, and don't let the guy mess with you.

 

[Mike2228]

I played my first match a couple weeks ago also. I lost but had a lot of fun. Don't let a lose get you down or you're missing half the purpose of playing the game.

 

[dizzlmcwizzl]

Good luck tonight. Nothing we say today will help you tonight.

Just remember ... you are playing a 3.0 so you wont be hit off the court. However, you will find USTA matches just feel different than recreational matches. There is just something about having your match results tracked, displayed for the world to view and evaluated by the USTA computers that just adds pressure. Because of this, I think, very few players have success in their early careers.

So expect some jitters, but play loose as you really have nothing to lose. No one will expect you to cary the team and in the grand scheme of things this is a very unimportant part of your life.

 

[FriarTuck]

Thanks for the replies! Yeah, I'm trying to focus on just hitting my strokes and playing well instead of focusing on the opponent. The problem is, I'm pretty competitive so I can't help but want to win!

I've really enjoyed reading all the threads on this forum; it has been really helpful. I need to video my serve and have you guys critique me more than anything. Actually, I need to spend the $50 for an hour with a pro.

 

[Cindysphinx]

I won my first-ever singles match, despite being horrible by any measure (I was a 2.5). Yeah, go ahead and picture it in your mind.

The advice I received (and that was responsible for my win) was to count. Have your goal to be to get three balls over the net, deep. That should be enough to win the match against a 3.0 guy.

If that doesn't work, then have fun with it!

 

[bodieq]

It's "3.0" dude. You can probably just wave your racquet around like a fly-swatter and if you can get enough balls over the net....you can win.

I recently hit with RPM strings myself, it's a good poly, but I'll stay with Pro Hurricane Tour. It's really not that different...at least for me.

 

[FriarTuck]

Alright, so my first match was a lot of fun, although I was disappointed on how it ended.

I played an older gentleman, probably 50 or so. He was the ultimate pusher... no pace, no spin unless he sliced, but he got to the ball and could place his shots pretty well. His lack of pace really threw me off and I started off hitting most of my forehands long or in the net and he took the first set 6-4.

In the 2nd set I found his weakness was net play and volleys so I started hitting a lot of short slices to bring him in. He'd either hit in the net or give me an easy passing shot. I went up 6-5 in the 2nd and he conceded because he was having stomach issues. I had won 3 games in a row when he conceded so I feel like I would've won the 7th game, but I was still disappointed that it ended like that.

Anyway, it was a lot of fun and I can't wait till my next match!

 

[mlktennis]

Great win! That's lame he quit like that. Couldn't give you the satisfaction of a win huh. Good and/or bad, the competitive nature of USTA players and captains takes gamesmanship to a whole new level.

 

[dizzlmcwizzl]

"stomach pains" are the oldest trick in the USTA book. Nice job on the win

 

[thejuice]

The stomach pains came from the taste of defeat to a first-timer. Made him sick to his stomach!!! Congrats on the win!!!

 

[Cindysphinx]

Nice adjustment. A win is a win, especially when you were winning and were going to win!

 

[ProgressoR]

well done.

But even if the other guy lost the 2nd set it would have gone to a first to 10 tiebreak? Dont understand why an experienced opponent wouldnt still figure he had a good chance to win the TB? Its not like a 3rd set - and it can swing very very quickly.

 

[Taxvictim]

Good job. It's impressive that you were able to keep your head in the game during your first match, and adjusted your play accordingly.

 

[thejuice]

well done.

But even if the other guy lost the 2nd set it would have gone to a first to 10 tiebreak? Dont understand why an experienced opponent wouldnt still figure he had a good chance to win the TB? Its not like a 3rd set - and it can swing very very quickly.

I think that rule is a local thing. We don't do that here in Atlanta. 3 sets unless both parties agree to a tiebreak.