27th March 2008

My first match on clay was against a local Spanish guy, it could have gone either way but I played really well on the big points and managed to break him at 4.3 in the first set to go on and win it 6.3, then in the second I was a break down but again played well on the important points to break him back then again straight away to win the match 6.3 - 6.4. I was struggling to move on the clay, I must have slipped over 3 or 4 times, but I was happy with the way I played and knew the movement will come to me soon.
In the next round I played another local, he was obviously one of the top kiddies other wise he wouldn't of got into the tournament, he was about 15 - 16 and was a real clay courter, he just sat 10 ft behind the baseline and rallied all day, so I started to pick up the pace a bit along with a few drop shots and he had no idea what to do. I won 6.3 - 6.4.
I was through to the last round of qualies. I stepped on court feeling good but within 30 minutes I had lost the first set 6.0. The guy was so fast, I couldn't get a ball past him, and he didn't hit winners so the points were lasting forever and I was breaking down... I was knackered, moving on clay takes it out of you more than anything, but even though I hadn't won a game yet I still felt in control because he was only winning from my mistakes. In the second set I started to come to the net a bit more to make him hit winners past me which is something he doesn't want to do...he started to miss and then I realised he was a mental head case, at 2.2 in the second he started to get angry and was talking to himself, I kicked into the next gear and ran away with the second set 6.3. I was really fired up after the second set as the guy tried cheating a bit towards the end of it and was saying stuff to me in Spanish, bottom line the guy was an idiot and I wanted to not just win for me but I wanted to beat him. The third set was on serve all the way to 5.6 my serve. In that game I have never seen anything so bad, he started of by taking a ball out of his pocket and rolling it on the court half way through the point when I was about to win it, then called a let which he cant do, the referee came on court and they were just speaking Spanish to each other and the reff said to play a let, I couldn't believe it, the guy had obviously planed this other wise he wouldn't of even had a ball in his pocket as it was my serve and he did it so quickly. I felt like hitting him. He went on to call a ball out then rubbed out the mark before I went round the net to see it, so again I called the referee down and made sure they both spoke English so the guy couldn't make me look like the bad guy to the reff, and the referee said as there's no mark it's his call and the ball stood as out. I was a right idiot and instead of taking my anger out on him I tried using it to hit the ball harder and win, this did not work and I lost 0.6 - 6.3 - 5.7. I can't play tense or fired up, I need to stay relaxed and focused on court, so I was disappointed that I didn't handle the situation very well, and basically let his plan work. I now know what to do if that situation ever comes up again, so at least I can take something away from the match, just a shame that it wasn't a win as I would have earned some money and got into the main draw if I had won.

I got a bye in the first round of the next tournament to put me in the second round against the number 5 seed, it was a really, really, windy day, and for the first time for as long as I can remember I was feeling ill. I played terrible in the first set, trying to play my game style by hitting it hard and finishing of the points quick, which was never going to be a winning tactic in this wind and in my physical state, so in the second set I completely calmed down and started to just float around the court hitting slice and drop shots. My opponent then tried taking the ball on like I was in the first set and then he started to miss to give me the second set 6.2. The third set was pretty funny, it was like we had both learned the hard way with how to play in these conditions and both of us were gliding around the court really relaxed just using angles and spin to win the point. It was really good tennis and it took us into a third set tie-break. Even with a huge head ache and clay blowing into my eyes, I was still feeling relaxed and in control which is when I play my best tennis, we both played really well then at 8.8 in the tie-break we had a really long rally, by this point of the match there was a crowd and I started to smile during the point as the crowd we're making the oooo ahhhh noises as the point was getting tighter and tighter, I hit a good deep forehand slice into his backhand corner and followed it into the net to make him hit a winner at 8.8 in the third set in the wind past me, and to his credit he did it with an angle cross court just out of my reach and right on the line. I had played the point well so all I could do was take my hat of to him. The following point was very frustrating though, a couple shots into the rally his ball hit a pile of clay in the middle of the court which died on me when I went to swing and lost me the match.
It was a great match though and I have never felt so composed in my life, that is definitely the way I mentally want to play every match. The only thing on my mind when I came off was "I cant wait until the next tournament"

It's been great staying with Oli, we've been training hard together at the courts right next to his house and in the gym, then been going down to the beach in the evening or just chilling and having a laugh. His mum and dad, Ann and Vince, are awesome, they've all made me feel at home and been helping me out with lots of little bits and bobs.
It feels great travelling to tournaments with Oli, we've had a couple good little road trips so far and we've got a big one coming up tomorrow when we go to Malaga which is 5 hours down south for two Futures.
Last week during the tournament we camped up in the tennis car park, had dinner, watched a movie then went to sleep. Then about an hour later we were woken up by someone knocking on my van and shining lights through the windows, we had no idea who it was and couldn't see outside so in a half awake daze we jumped out the van to see what the problem was.....we were surrounded by police, there were about 8-10 of them all with guns speaking Spanish to us, none of them spoke English so Oli and I got our rackets out to try and explain that we were there for tennis and the club had said it was ok to sleep there for the night. It ended up being all ok and we went back to sleep. I was saying to Oli how serious they must be over here to bring a whole group of them for just a parked van in a car park for one night, and how all of them were dead serious not smiling at all or anything. Oli then told me that they weren't the normal police but special force police that deal with all the drugs and things like that. So that was a interesting experience.

I have sorted out a schedule for the next couple of moths. I'm going to be staying in Spain with Oli playing 2 Futures in Malaga, then 4 in Barcelona, then 4 around Alacante and Valencia. After that it will be time for club tennis in Germany which starts on the 8th June until mid July.
I had a little bump in my camper the other day, I was in a car park and I didn't see a post behind me, unfortunately my camper doesn't have a bumper just a spoiler, which the pole cracked and made it fall off, so I'm probably going to have to get a bumper put on soon. Also my fridge broke for some reason the other week, but other than that it's all good, the engine is great and its been running smoothly.
Vince (Oli's Dad) has taught me how to re-string rackets and is letting me borrow his machine for when I'm travelling with Oli, which is a big money saver as I brake 1 or 2 rackets a day and it costs me 10 Euro a racket to re-string here. I'm hoping to try and get a stringing machine for when I'm not travelling with Oli so I will never have to pay for re-strings again, the problem is there about 450 Euro, but after 45 rackets you've earnt your money back, pluss it's a good way to make money while travelling by re-stringing other players rackets at tournaments.

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