Today I think I began to lose my mind. Not really, but to about 14 guys it probably appeared so. To explain this let me say that we won and it was a big win. The guys on this team have amazing heart and in the big moments they have been able to call it up. Winning big matches is always fun and they have special feeling when they are conference, regional, and revenge matches all wrapped up in one. Last year, the team we defeated today snuck past us with a 5-4 victory after a great comeback by us that just came up a little short. Fast forward to this year and the guys were ready to exact revenge for the hard loss. Doubles was intense as always with us gaining a 2-1 advantage after it was over. All anyone ever sees is the line score but there is so much that happens within the matches that helps shape the overall win or loss. Number 3 doubles was the first to get a win. They broke serve early and maintained that lead until they were serving at 6-5 in the race to 8. The best player on the court was serving so as a coach you have a sense of calm. It was disturbed abruptly when he was broken to tie the score at 6-6. After both teams held the score was 7-7. Our team played a great game and took advantage of some opportunities to gain the break back to go up 8-7 and serving for the match. Derek and Jose closed it out to get the first point for FSC. Number 2 doubles was next. They had been down a break of serve the entire match and were down 5-6. Playing patiently and making the other team create opportunities versus giving away points played a brilliant game to break and tie the match 6-6. They held serve and had their first lead when they changed sides at 7-6. After another great game, they broke serve to take the win and give FSC a 2-0 lead with only number 1 doubles still playing. Number 1 doubles was not having a great day. They were down two breaks of serve for most of the match but Miguel and Laurent are gritty if not always pretty while playing. They got one break back midway through the match and just kind of hung around until 5-6. The other team was serving and the guy serving had been tough as nails through the match so far. Pressure is a funny thing, it can cause the easy to become hard and the normal to feel extraordinary. It also goes both ways. Opportunities don’t come often and that is exactly what the number one team had. An opportunity to break serve and tie it up. As I said, pressure goes both ways and this time the other team prevailed. We held serve so changing sides we had one more shot being down 6-7 and the other team with the pressure to serve it out. Again, we fought and had two more opportunities to break serve but in the end, could not answer the bell, shook hands and defeat, and took a 2-1 lead heading into singles
When your team has a lead heading into singles that is usually a good thing. You either must win two singles matches of the six or three of the six. Today, with a 2-1 lead we needed to split the singles and get three of them in our favor to come out victorious. I felt confident that we had the talent to make that happen. In short order, I became very nervous that I had overestimated the ability on this particular day. We were dominating at number 1 and number 3 but the other matches were not going in our favor. They were not going in our favor quite decisively. Number 1 and 3 won in straight sets to give us four of the five overall match points we needed. Soon after the two victories our number 6 was decidedly beaten so it was 4-2 in overall score. Looks good on paper, but this is where being inside tells much more. Number 2 had easily lost the first set and was in a battle in the second set. At the same time number 4 and five were also losing easily but still battling. Here is where heart and the will to win comes into play. All three of these guys got real gritty and fought like hell to make sure we didn’t lose. I had perched myself on the number 5 court with a view of the number 2 match. I did not have a view of number 4 at all and kept trying to keep tabs on what was happening across the bleachers. My number 5 was down a break in the second and was playing poorly. Not only was it not going his way he was letting me know how badly it was going and that he just couldn’t figure it out. My words to him were simple, “Grind out each point and just keep putting the ball back in play and let’s see what happens.” Remember, I spoke about pressure not too long ago. Well, you never know when it is going to rear its ugly head. Miguel just kept staying alive and fought his way back to even at 5-5 in the second set. He then immediately got broken and was back under the gun. Pressure is a damn cruel thing and once again it played into Miguel’s favor and he again tied the set at 6-6 and he and his opponent would now duel in a tiebreak for the set. Miguel jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the breaker and things were looking good then suddenly it was 5-5. Two points from defeat or a defining third set. The point began and the grind ensued. Miguel hit a poor shot and found himself multiple feet off the court on the dead run scrambling to get to a backhand. He laced a backhand up the line passing his charging opponent. Winner, and a 6-5 lead in the breaker. He won the next point and life reentered his body.
While all of this was transpiring, Jose was struggling through his second set. The ebb and flow was positive to negative and everything in-between. Again, we entered a tie break but Jose made sure that it was a test of wills. After multiple back and forths Jose finally got the upper hand and finished off the set with a flurry of aggressive shots and a 9-7 victory in his second set tiebreak. Again, life has been blown back into our lungs. Across the bleachers, Laurent was serving for his second set at 5-4. I relaxed a bit thinking that we were surely on our way to a third set there as well. Pressure, that damned word and its damned effects, popped up once again. Laurent dropped his serve and then went down 5-6. He squared up his match and once again we had another tiebreak. Laurent dominated his breaker so we entered our third three setter of the day. The match was far from decided but we just needed one of the three to clinch the overall victory.
Here we go, I thought silently while I paced around the Wynee Warden facility. Miguel jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Jose jumped out to a 4-1 lead and Laurent was fighting and was up 3-2 when I glanced over. Miguel’s opponent had a flurry of good play and closed the gap to 3-2 but leveled off and Miguel again got two quick games to be within one game of clinching. Jose also had inched away and was playing dominating tennis against an opponent that had given his all and was wilting under the constant pressure. Miguel became a man possessed and closed out his third set 6-2 and therefore clinching the overall victory for FSC. We were ahead 5-2 but as a coach I want to win them all. Jose also was up 5-1 and looked ready to close out his as well. At 5-1 he had a match point, lined up a backhand down the line, let it rip and……missed it. Oops, door open and closed. This had a relaxing effect on the opponent and he played brilliantly for the next two games and closed the gap to 5-3. Jose, undeterred finished out the match with a 6-3 victory in the third to give us a 6-2 lead. Now we just needed to cheer Laurent on to finish off this match and get our 7-2 victory. It is funny and amazing to me that a team sport can at times be so individual. Athletes with personal pride are fun to watch and I appreciate the effort more than most will know. Laurent’s opponent was playing strictly for personal pride. The team had lost, he had battled with the hope of being needed, and now he was fighting for an empty victory. Let me tell you, he fought and fought and gave Laurent everything he had. Laurent, also playing for personal pride and only to help the cause gave his everything as well. The two players played high level and didn’t allow the few mistakes they made lower the quality of the match. Each had opportunities and the opponent was able to put his together to pull out the victory. I hate losing even when we win and so do most of the guys on the team. When you are keeping score, you want to win. Laurent was not happy getting beat and I like that.
We won the match 6-3 and I was so proud of the heart the team showed in such a tough match. I mean, we won three tiebreaks just to save the opportunity to win the match and then won two out of the three three set matches that were contested. I was upset that we needed to go that deep to pull out the match and even had a few players ask if I was happy or angry. I told them that I was both. This is where I feel I am losing my mind. How can you be angry when you win? All I can say to that is that I feel I have a superior team and expect them to play the way I feel about them. To tell you the truth, I think they do. They played with heart and passion and did what I always ask. They fought for every point and played until the end. It is confusing at times but I will never discredit a win. They are hard to come by and are hard earned in the world we compete. Thanks guys, keep being what you are.
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