Little Harpeth

Things didn't go quite as hoped for this weekend, between storms, the humidity causing the shoulder to swell up and moving to the faster indoor surface, it was a struggle.

The first match was pretty standard- Amadeus was able to begin applying the new serve he has been working on, along with being more agressive at the net and took the first set 6-1. Then the matches went on a rain delay as severe weather made it's way through Williamson County. 2nd set was played indoors at the Williamson County Indoor Sports Center- faster courts, but he was able to pull out the win at 6-2.

The 2nd match was not to go as well. Despite his best efforts, he just couldn't wrap his head around how to combat his opponent. And, his opponent was hot, having watched Andy play since the boys were in the 10s and even watching him just a few weeks ago, something clicked and his game has jumped up about 10 levels. It was a fun match to watch but definitely have some things that need to be figured out this week.

Along with the faster surface, Ama once again, re-ignited his tendinitis and the shoulder was swollen- this is the part of the recovery process that we're not looking forwards to.

This week, he'll have an opportunity to train with one of his first coaches up at Summer Crest in Ridgetop to help him get ready for the clay tourney in Louisville this weekend.

More from the tournament.

Back from GA

It was a great weekend in Rome, GA- temperatures were actually pleasant and Amadeus had a fun birthday weekend. Saturday started off rough as he was pummeled in his opening singles match - it was one of those times where you see your player doing everything they can but not being able to comeback from an opponent who just hits winner after winner. On a positive note, Amadeus wasn't setting up most of the winners- the kid was just good.

Then, the part he enjoys most- playing doubles. We did luck of the draw and were very fortunate with the partner that Ama was given. The boys met Saturday afternoon for the first time, warmed up a bit and then played and won their first doubles match 8-3.

Sunday morning and doubles again at 8:00 a.m. this time against two players that Ama has known for year, including his former doubles partner. The opponents were seeded 9. Ama and his partner were underdogs. The boys had a strategy- applied it and after nearly 90 minutes (for an 8 game pro-set) they came out on top winning 8-7 (6). It was an exciting match and the boys all played at their peak. It was also fun for Ama -as his birthday present!

Singles didn't work out quite so well- I think the excitement of winning, along with a tweaked hamstring and he had enough.

Monday morning back to the round of 16 for doubles and the boys were outplayed by the 5 seeds but it was still a fun match.

Now, a 3 week break to train, finish up summer school and prepare for the fall. Oh, and work on those college applications!

More in a few weeks.

Training, Tournaments and Heat

You can almost feel the heat coming off the courts from the tournament last weekend. Several players went to Bowling Green, KY for the annual Hilltopper Classic- we went as this was the tournament that set off the interesting chain of events last year when Ama tore his cartilage during the quarterfinals. Our concern was getting past the psychological block that tends to exist when you return to the scene of an accident. Although he didn't play his best tennis he did make it through 3 rounds of singles and 2 rounds of doubles winning 1 singles match and 1 doubles match.

This was one of the hottest weekends we have had so far and while Amadeus had been hydrating all week, by his 2nd match he was already beginning to show signs of dehydration. Fortunately, he remembered what the symptoms were and took a bathroom break during his second match to run water over his hands and bring his temperature done. Unfortunately, a few other players weren't so lucky with two being taken by ambulance to the hospital when they collapsed.

Sunday, was the start of a new day and Ama began the match strong but by the second set the shoulder was not able to move and the hydration issues from the day before were also starting to kick in so he withdrew. It just isn't worth risking the shoulder at this point.

The "moral" of the story- drink several gallons of water prior to the match and drink plenty of water during changeovers. He's also working on strategies for keeping cool on court including keeping the Frog Tog wet and around his neck. We took this weekend off but will be heading for GA next week where the weather will be just as hot, I'm sure.

We also have been using Motor Tabs in the water to help keep potassium and electrolytes balanced but they are becoming hard to find so I'm starting to wonder if they have been discontinued. I've gotten recommendations for some other items as Gatorade and Powerade just don't sit well on his stomach.

More next weekend.

A short break from Tennis

Taking another short break from tennis, some self imposed (i.e. the surgeon said to rest the shoulder for about 10 days after the qualifier and no competition to the end of the month) and some due to weather (i.e. it's been raining off and on for the last week).

So, we did something fun instead. Last year, Ama was not able to have his Laser Tag party due to the shoulder surgery as a birthday present so this year we opted to have his party early both to celebrate his early completion of finishing his high school requirements and for his 17th birthday.

Several gathered together at the Drakes Creek Activity Center to have a 2 hour outdoor laser tag adventure. Based on their comments and the pictures from the event, a great time was had by all.

Now, if the weather holds up he'll be back on the courts playing at the Bison tournament this weekend.

See you on the courts!

Back from the Qualifier

It was another hot weekend in Tennessee this past week with temps soaring into the high 90's (pretty unusual for the first week of June). With a new shoulder, a new attitude, and a new strategy, Amadeus took the court for his last year in the 16s. The goal was to "make it to Monday" and he did.

Doubles started out on a rough note, even though the guys had been training together for a few weeks, mentally they weren't prepared and ended up losing in the Round of 16 2-8. With several more tournaments on the horizon, I feel confident they will get it together.

Singles began on Saturday with Ama getting lucky and not having to play until 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon. The match was fun to watch and he was able to pull off the win 6-0, 6-0. Not having to play in the Rnd of 128 was also a plus as it gave him time to rest his shoulder.

Sunday morning dawned hot and sunny and the day started with an 8 a.m. match against one of the seeds. While Amadeus was playing well, he needs to find a way to combat near perfect shot selection and placement by the opponent. In addition, his opponent was a heavy hitter and both the coach and I were a little concerned about how this would impact the shoulder. Final score 0-6, 2-6.

Moving into the backdraw, Ama played one of the few local players (most of his opponents this year ended up being from Memphis). The coach and Ama discussed strategy for the match, which included trying to get off court as quickly as possible to preserve the shoulder for Monday, Ama was able to do that and in true fashion, frustrated yet another player, who, by the end of the match was yelling out things like "Why am I here?" and "Why do I play tennis?"- the players on the other courts seemed to get a smile from that as well as everyone has probably experienced that level of frustration at one time or another.

Next match was Monday morning at 8 a.m. - a tough player with more high level tournament experience- had good depth of shots but Ama was able to take that match 6-2, 6-1. By the middle of the match, you could see that he was in quite a bit of pain and the shoulder was not going to hold up much more. After the match ended, the trainer came to take a look, said the stability was good but the swelling could be a problem. Ice, NSAIDs and rest (at least as much as possible before the next match 2 hours later).

The 2nd Monday morning match was the end of the run, losing to another seeded player 1-6, 1-6 you could tell that Ama was doing everything he could to stay in the match but the shoulder wasn't cooperating- footwork was great and so was his stamina. The ref was surprised he was even still on court.

Finished the match, came off court and the shoulder was swollen to about 3x it's normal size. Headed home and a call to the surgeon - right now he's on a regimen of ice 4x a day, anti-inflammatories, no practice until next week and no tournaments until July. Luckily, most tournaments won't see him playing 7 matches in 3 days and as the shoulder continues to heal that should be eliminated.

Next updates as we continue the re-hab process.

Countdown to the Qualifier

It's hard to believe another year has come and gone and the qualifier is less than a week away. Last year was such a time of change with the qualifier signifying lots of changes and loss on our end. This year, we're looking forward to it as a time of fresh starts.

Because of the surgery and the very long and slow rehab process, Ama and his coach have decided that playing in the 16s is better than the 18s, even though the points won't matter since he ages up July 1, playing more high quality matches is the goal right now- the focus is to move back up to his former level of play (and ranking level) by August and that will be done through a process of selecting the right tournaments (and not over doing it), proper training, and continued work with his P/T and our doctor. The shoulder is strong and healing but there are still issues with swelling, especially on cold and damp days. Plus there is also the mental side of the game- after losing so much time, learning how to win again is a key element.

This year, he'll be playing doubles with a new partner and so far, it seems like a promising partnership. The boys have similar personalities and their games complement each other. If things go well next weekend, the plan is to try a few more tournaments and see what happens.

This week, the focus is on match play and fine tuning some elements of each boys game. First matches take place Friday night so we'll see what happens (and keep our fingers crossed that the rain stays away).

Time for a Tennis update

It's been a busy several months around our house, Ama continues to rehab his shoulder and battles with tendinitis- although no where near as severe as last summer. He's been working on his footwork and we're starting to see some major improvements to his game with those changes.

It's been a somewhat frustrating road to recovery for him as each positive change in a stroke or strategy still requires several hours and lots of practice matches to ingrain. He had a great trip down to Florida in April and had a chance to work with his former coach for a week along with a former top 150 pro player who's making a comeback on the Challenger level. Both David and Joe had some great things to say about Ama's game and David was very impressed with how much he has improved in the last year. He also made a very astute observation- between injury and not knowing anything about tennis, for all practical purposes Ama has only played seriously for 3 years- with that in mind, the fact that he is ranked where he is, is a testament to his drive to succeed. The next year will be a big challenge as Ama works to get back to his former form and ranking.

In addition to the Florida trip, he's played a few local tournaments and ran into some mental roadblocks, we've got a plan in place for that as well.

On a non-tennis note, he was inducted into the National Society for Leadership and Succes last month and has just about completed all of the credits he needs to graduate from high school. He'll be finishing up at Vol State and then we'll see where he lands.

Weather permitting, the next 10 days will be spent training for the qualifier and working on his doubles game with his new doubles partner. More as time and tennis permit.