Working Crosswords

I had to really put my mind into my USA Today crossword to keep my nerves down.

Phil and I had a great warm up this morning at Bitsy Grant. No one really knew who his opponent was and thought it'd be a routine first round. The weather was sunny and very warm. After a routine warm up the match started and I started my crossword. Phil started the match serving, and was broken right off. My head stayed down and I knew the score of every game, but I tried to focus on solving clues at the same time. Phil broke back right away and after that they both held to get to six all. Chris was serving bombs, had an unpredictable drop shot, and could slap shot winners off his forehand. Phil played well and served well in spurts. He was by far the better player, but it not having played many competitive matches lately was showing a little. Phil was able to get some mini breaks in the breaker to win the tiebreaker and take the first set.

I relaxed a little as I saw Phil's confidence grow. He broke early and was leading 3-1 in the second set. Chris seemed to be wilting and Phil was rolling....and the answers to the crossword were becoming clearer to me. Then Phil was broken and Chris picked his game back up and played well enough to win the second set 7-5. I could see Phil was deflated a little, having let the second set slip away. After the short break, and ready to start the third, Chris came back to the court, said he had a conference call that he had to be on and couldn't reschedule and had to default the third set. It was a bittersweet victory for Phil. He was ready to play and finish the match strong, but I guess a win is a win.

On to tomorrow now. Phil plays Tom, his doubles partner, in the quarters. It will be a very tough match, but I think Phil will be more mentally prepared to play. I think the level of his competitor today took him a little by surprise. Tomorrow will be no surprise. Doubles will follow in the afternoon. All the quarterfinal matches in the 55's are great match ups. I'm looking forward to another fun day of practice, watching and cheering.