Day Two

I picked up Renee at the bike shop this morning to head over to Pensacola for a great day of tennis. I was so excited that we were going to be playing in a tournament together again! When she came out of the bike shop to get in my car with a box of tissues, I knew we were in trouble. She woke up in the night with a throbbing headache, sneezes, sniffles and over all body fatigue. You all know her as well as I do, she thought she'd be okay. We get to the Pensacola Racquet Club and she warmed me up for about 15-20 minutes. I asked her how she felt and she said everything hurt. By the time we got back to the porch of the club, Retsy (our good friend who lives about 2 blocks from the club) took Renee to her house so she could sleep on her couch during my singles match, in hopes of feeling better for later. My singles match started at 11:00, and in my usual tough match fashion, I finish two and a half hours later with a 7-5, 7-6 win. I knew that Vesna would be a tough opponent. She hit balls that didn't allow me to find my rhythm, but some how I fought hard and won. The points and games were long and grueling, just like my last match in Houston. It was very warm and humid with fog early on, then the sun burned through the last 30-45 minutes of the match. I had a few flashbacks to that difficult match in Houston where I cramped, but quickly changed my focus to the present and persevered. I needed this win for my confidence. As soon as I got off the court, we checked on Renee, who could hardly lift her head up. Luckily I didn't get much argument out of her, when I suggested we withdraw from the doubles and go back to Destin. There was no need for her to even try to be on the court in the shape she was in. She laid the seat back and rested the 90 minute ride home. I play in the semifinals tomorrow against Renata, the number one seed. She is a phenomenal player and I'm looking forward to this match. I have absolutely nothing to lose, and plan to play loose, smart and with high energy. I threatened Renee within an inch of her life if she even tried to get out of her house tomorrow. I cancelled her few lessons she had scheduled, and Jerry and John Wieck will cover the shop for us tomorrow. She and I will have other opportunities to play. I only hope she kept her germs to herself!