Men’s team Middlesex League match v Sports Hive Actonians match report

On Friday 31 May the Chiswick team headed to Old Actonians sports ground next to Gunnersbury Park to play the Sports Hive Actonians team. 

Once again, the skipper spent a lot of time on the blower trying to round up 6 CTC members available to play their favourite sport (the phrase “herding cats” springs to mind for some reason), but eventually managed to entice, cajole and persuade his men away from evenings at the boozer/ club championship matches/ Britain’s Got Talent on the telly, and felt quite proud to put out a stonkingly strong team (Chiswick’s got talent, in fact):

• 1st pair: Barnaby and Ed

• 2nd pair: Callum and Yasser

• 3rd pair: Riccardo and Scott

Having said that, the first round didn’t go too well. I blame the worn out thin astro courts, but whatever the reason, we lost all 3 sets in the first round (one on a tiebreak).

But in the second round, we won 2 out of the three sets, so we were back in contention at 4-8 down.

In the final round, Scott and Riccardo shared the points in a very close match against Keith and Eddie 7-6, 5-7. Barnaby and Ed also had a close match against Leo and Ko 6-2, 2-6. But Callum and Yasser, making his first appearance for the team this season, had a great last round against Simon and Toni, winning 6-4, 7-5.

So the final score was a draw, 12-12.

The team headed inside for pizzas (salad for the celiac), our hosts were very welcoming, and the hospitality was very good, and it was quite late by the time we made it back to South Chiswick.

This was a good close match (2 sets went to tiebreaks, 6 were just decided by 2 games), and a better performance, and hopefully puts us back on track. Make no mistake, we have some tough opponents to play next, but I feel we’re now headed in the right direction.

Talking of performances, Barnaby’s serves and forehands down the line were top quality; Callum and Yasser both served very well too, important on a fast surface like this. I’d like to comment on Scott and Riccardo’s performance too, but the truth is they were playing on a court miles away and finished at the same time as me, so I’m just guessing but I reckon they played great too! 

My nomination for Man of the Match is Yasser, not only for his great play but also for agreeing to reschedule his Club Champs doubles match: well played Yasser and thanks!

Men’s team National League match v David Lloyd Acton Park

On Sunday, David Lloyd Acton Park came down to leafy Chiswick with a strong team. For us, Ed had to rule himself out at the last minute, having hurt his back helping  a stranger carry their suitcase up some stairs at a tube station the day before (the Stairway to Heaven is just opposite the Highway to Hell, apparently), but was able to call up new member Peter to make his debut for the club, lining up alongside Nat, Scott and Riccardo.

In the singles round, Steve (Scott’s opponent) and Ben (Peter’s opponent) were very consistent and used slice quite a lot to create angles and space. Riccardo’s opponent, Andrew, was an attacking player with a big forehand, and their match was particularly entertaining to watch. Riccardo served well and played some excellent approach shots to create chances but was less clinical at the net than his opponent. The best first round match, however, was Nat’s match against Sam. Sam started very well, moving Nat around well and forcing errors; but Nat went into beast mode in the second set, getting everything back and wearing his opponent down. It went to a tiebreak, which Nat won 10-8, a great result and fantastic effort.

Nat and Scott started extremely well and went ahead in the first set of the doubles against Sam and Andrew, but their opponents came back and the opposition ended up winning both doubles rubbers.

Final score 2-10.

The team headed to the clubhouse for smoked salmon and spinach quiche with salad, followed by watermelon, which went down well, and the players discussed the French Open and who was going to win the men’s singles (we’ve got no idea basically). The dishwasher was apparently not working so we did the dishes by hand before heading home.

Well done everyone for a top effort against a strong team. In particular, top marks to Nat for his excellent Man of the Match performance in the singles.