The racquetball Chronicles x

My third week playing JJ, probably my favorite regular opponent. This is not meant or intended to be a slight on any of the others...simply an observation that we have more of the type of rally that is my favorite than any of the others.

He has excellent reflexes, good speed and the ability to read where the ball is going and get there. His shot selection is a little weaker than mine and his shot accuracy is pretty close to even.

I have three advantages over him;

1) I have a much, much stronger serve. He will occasionally hit one that gives me trouble, but it is seldom worth more than 2 or 3 points a game whereas when i bear down on my serve it is often worth 6 or 8 points, often even more.

2) I am just a hair quicker with longer reach...not much, but enough to make a noticeable difference.

3) I generally have better court position...though that is changing.

Anyway, game one was brutal. My serve was on, my return of his serve was on...he scored about 4 or 5 points but it wasn't that close. Did not even break a sweat.

Second game was more of the same. The funny thing is...he was actually doing a really good job of returning my serve but it left him out of position and usually gave me a good shot at either moving him side to side or else going for an outright winner.

As the third game was turning into a third demolition, I started experimenting with my serve...trying z-serves, varying the height and speed of my serve...and trying to set up rallies. I wanted it to be more of a game. And then I started getting sloppy in various areas of my game.

Instead of moving to the proper place to return serves I tried to reach for them. Instead of going after every ball I gave up on them if I did not think they would "get there" or if I thought I would not get there...when I lunge for those I get them as often as not.

And suddenly it was a dogfight. We tied at 13. We exchanged a couple service breaks. I got 14. He got 14. He served, i hit a beautiful return...and he somehow got to it and hit a perfect kill shot to win the game.

It made his night much better and the games got better after that as he scored about 10 or 12 points in each of the next two. Then I was up something like 4-2 and said, "Lets see if I can run this out."

Dropping low, stepping into the serve, angling it just so...the serves were low, fast and vicious. Every so often I would throw one to his forehand or hit one moderately high and off speed to throw him off.

Even when he returned them they were soft and perfectly positioned for either a pinch shot or a passing shot. I reeled off about 6 straight, he got a service break, I broke him back, went to about 14-2 and he scored a couple, then I served an ace.

Next game, more of the same. But he was discovering something. I love playing up by the wall. When he tries a passing shot, I leap sideways, usually reverse it to the far wall, and spring back to the center with a side shuffle leap.

He started hitting great passing shots beyond my reach. Some were perfect, bouncing twice before the back wall. Others I got to off the back wall, but now he had position and I had to hit defensive shots. More and more often, though, he did not let me get to them.

Still, it was another brutal beat down.

We decided to play one more.

He hit one of those trouble serves. 1-0.

He tried to sneak it to my forehand and I hit a perfect roll out to get the break.

My serve was low, hard, pinched the sidewall. 1-1. We then had a really fun side to side, back to the back wall, up to the front wall volley. He won it.

He went up 2-1. I tied it at 2. I started to creep away. 3-2. 4-2. 4-3. 5-3. 6-3.

The thing is, though, it was a point here, a couple service exchanges, a point there, a couple service exchanges...this was a tight, well played game.

We both were doing better at getting to the back wall in correct position and taking it off. We had a couple defensive ceiling exchanges. We had a lot of passing shot attempts. We had some cool kill shots.

8-8. It was tight. 10-8. 10-9. 11-9. 11-10.

This game was different. Usually when there is a game that is tied or close to it that late it is because I am in "cocky" mode where I just believe I can take the game and win it at any time, from any place. This time we were both trying extremely hard and he was playing as well as he has ever played.

But then my serve busted him twice. 13-10. A fun rally took it to 14-10. He broke me one last time with a beautiful passing shot return to my backhand off a nasty serve. I returned the favor.

I did a change of pace serve, he returned it, I moved him to back court with a decent passing shot, he tried a passing shot to my backhand which I turned into a night-ending corner pinch shot.

Overall, I think I had some solid improvement. My passing shots are more and more often bouncing twice before the back wall. My pinch shots are hitting the wall lower more often, being more difficult to return. I am doing a better job of reading where the ball will land, not where it will hit the wall. I am also selecting the correct shot more often instead of attempting low percentage shots.

But I am still hitting too many passing shots that go long, I misread a lot of shots as going to bounce off the back wall but not doing so, so being just a hair out of position, and I too often go for scoring shots from back court. So strategy will be a major working point the rest of the week.

And I will keep enjoying the game.