Coming off last night, all the advantages should be mine. I am in better shape, I felt like I had regained my form, and was ready for tonight.
Game one started slow. Very slow. After 20 minutes it was 6-5.
We were both doing the lob serves. On the one hand, it was good...it led to a lot of volleys. On the other hand, it has a very detrimental effect on me.
When I know the serve is going to be a high, slow thing I can pick my nose, tie my shoe, check out the girls on the treadmill and then move into position and blast the ball, I lose focus. I stop getting into position. I stop hustling after balls that are extremely gettable.
Worse, when I am in position and set up, I am still not in rhythm, and as a result I start mis-hitting.
It showed up repeatedly. When I had to run and work to get to a ball I made some great plays...but then a lollipop would come my way and at best I would hit a poor shot, bouncing it off the side wall and into his happy zone...and those were my GOOD shots.
My bad shots were...well, I would set up in position, wait for the ball to drop into my happy zone and...miss it by 3 feet. I mean, I was not within a baseball bat distance of the ball. I cannot figure out what was going on.
The angles were not tough to read, the shots were easy to get to...I just was missing by three and four racket lengths. It is the most bizarre thing i have eve experienced athletically.
Anyway, I was up about 10-9 and he ended up winning about 15-12 or 15-13. That game was low-hanging fruit and I turned it south. Not to take anything away from him...he played better than I did...but I just gave that game away. It should have been an easy win and I lost.
Game two I served legit maybe three or four times, he served legit a couple times, then we went back to the lob serves.
Again the games were poorly played. I was whiffing on easy shot after easy shot. My corner kill shots were so bad they were rebounding to mid court right about waist high...it was like when I was first learning the game.
I would like to say he was moving me around the court and I was just getting a racket on it allowing him to put away point after point. The truth is I was muffing easy shot after easy shot. This was about as poorly as it is possible for me to play.
My passing shots were over hit so badly they came off the back wall all the way to mid court. Barring that, they hit off the side wall and bounced to center court. My corner kills hit the front wall first, then the side wall, resulting in easy shots for him time after time.
The only saving grace is I was getting to everything he hit and he started rushing his shots trying to beat me and mis-hit a fair few shots himself. In a game of who wants it less, I prevailed about 15-10 or so.
Frustrated, after breaking his serve, I started serving legit. He was returning them, so it was good. And bearing down on the serve improved every part of my game. My passing shots died before the corner, stayed off the walls, and scored. I stopped trying the ineffective pinch shots. I jumped out to a quick lead...and then scored a couple points when he could not return my serve.
Feeling guilty about the "cheap" points I went back to the lob serve.
I kept my intensity for a couple points, but it started to wane. My once huge lead shrunk. Soon it was a real game, but I did close him out about 15-9.
By this time, we had played such long games at such a deliberate pace we only had 15 minutes left.
I quickly broke his serve and, using lob serves, jumped out to a 5-0 lead.
And just like that the switch flipped. I stopped hustling. Shots I could have gotten to I stood and watched. My passing shots went back to being long or off the wall. I repeatedly attempted corner shots that were so bad they bounced off TWO walls and he stood in center court killing them.
Still, we had a couple of great volleys where I got to impossible shots. In a couple of instances I got to three attempted front wall kills in a row, then when he was forced into bad shots set up in short middle court, waiting for the ball to drop to my forehand, shifting my weight properly and...completely missing the ball twice, skipping the ball a half dozen times in those situations. It was ridiculous.
He went up 10-6. Yes, he went on a 10-1 run. 14-7. 15-7.
It was as bad as I have played this entire year. He deserved both wins he got because he hit fewer bad shots than I did and hit more winners in any given game than I did all night.
I still cannot explain why I missed the ball completely so many times. That bothers me. But I will be back. I will be better.
one thing i know is I absolutely must use legit serves to keep my focus.
Showing posts with label 2012 Racquetball Record. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2012 Racquetball Record. Show all posts
Thursday
1533 The Racquetball Chronicles
When TA and I get a chance to play, we pretty much always do. Tonight I was fortunate enough to have an early court time so off we went.
I had a few minutes to practice and worked on keeping my shot low and hitting the proper angles to keep the ball off the wall and thus into mid-court. It would pay off as I hit the ball well all night.
Typically in the first game he exclusively does lob serves. As I mentioned a couple of posts back, we are similarly skilled, though at this point in time I believe I have a few advantages. Well, if I am serving low, hard and nasty and he is lob serving...it is seldom going to be a game.
So I determined to engage in lob serves myself.
At first it was a good, solid, competitive game. he actually held a 5-3 lead and I was struggling to score. Then the switch came on.
Suddenly everything was clicking; for a couple weeks, I have been waiting for the ball to drop, then mis-hitting. Tonight the ball would drop and I would put away a winner. Forehand, backhand, ball high, ball low...did not matter. And the game turned into a rout. I was up 14-5 before he scored again. He ended up with 7 or 8, but the game was not close once I started playing well.
Game two he was serving to score but my returns were nails. He could not get much past me. But he was winning rallies as he was hitting winners when they were presented. He took a 2-0 lead, I stormed back to tie it, then took a 6-2 lead...then he scored 8 straight.
I could not do anything. I was returning every serve, but poorly, and he was not missing. I missed a couple serves. I missed a passing shot. he got to a couple of good shots. It was soul-crushing...
Then the switch flipped again. I started using ceiling shots, seizing the middle, hitting kill shots, hitting good passing shots, getting to every shot he hit.
With him playing well I ran off 9 straight points. He took his last lead at 11-10, he tied it at 12, and then I ran off 30 straight points.
That is not a typo. I won the last three points, then skunked him 15-0. It did not matter what he did. If he hit a ceiling shot, I hit one in return until he hit one a little too soft. If he hit a passing shot, I returned the favor. If he hit a kill shot I got to it and hit a better one.
I was hitting sidewall pinches, front wall pinches, passing shots...my court awareness, my position, my shot planning, my execution were superior. He could not score, he could not stop me from scoring.
After the 15-0 rout, I jumped out to a 12-0 lead. By this point I was junk ball serving to get rallies because even when he was returning my tough serves I was just taking the return and putting it away. It is as well as I have ever played.
He scored 6 or 8 points, but it was not that close and was never in doubt.
Game 5 was more respectable but still not close...another 12 or 13 point lead. We decided to play one last one.
I jumped out to a 3-0 lead and it was looking grim. Then he stepped it up. He was playing at the top of his game and I was playing well. He built a 6-3 lead. I took an 8-6 lead. He took a 9-8 lead. I took a 10-9 lead. 10-11.
Most of the points by both of us were earned. These were not the cheesy "I set up for a kill shot, have an easy shot and just muff it". The closest to that was my speed and ability to get to ball after ball after ball was making him adjust his play; if I over hit and he had a shot close to the wall, he had a tough choice; if he hit it soft, I was getting to every one and then he was out of position. If he hit it hard, I was running down most of those unless he hit it perfectly. So he mis-hit a lot of those, and when he did not, I scored...so it was a no-win situation for him.
This, by the way, is almost exclusively a function of my conditioning. I can run, run, run and am quick enough to cover almost the entire court.
Anyway, we were tied at 14. I broke his serve with about as good a return as I have ever hit. We then had a spectacular rally where both of us thought we had hit winners only to see the other guy return it somehow someway. Finally I hit a beautiful cross-court passing shot that eluded his racket by a quarter inch. 15-14.
Whereas typically this ends the game, he likes to play win by two.
We had a good rally that ended in a hinder.It was probably advantageous to me as I had hit a poor attempt at a corner kill but he felt he had been in my way, then I stumbled into him from my over swing.
The last serve was nasty, he got a great return, I had to plaster it off the back wall. I do not want to say i have mastered a defensive shot there, but I have certainly gotten very good at it. I hit it so hard and at the right angle to force him to the back wall and it comes off soft so he cannot generate power or a kill. He tried a ceiling shot, it was a tough attempt but all he could do.
It bounced moderately high just pass mid-court, I waited, dropped low, timed it, and hit what would have been a great passing shot if it had not bounced twice within 6" of the front wall. Great finish to a great game.
I had a few minutes to practice and worked on keeping my shot low and hitting the proper angles to keep the ball off the wall and thus into mid-court. It would pay off as I hit the ball well all night.
Typically in the first game he exclusively does lob serves. As I mentioned a couple of posts back, we are similarly skilled, though at this point in time I believe I have a few advantages. Well, if I am serving low, hard and nasty and he is lob serving...it is seldom going to be a game.
So I determined to engage in lob serves myself.
At first it was a good, solid, competitive game. he actually held a 5-3 lead and I was struggling to score. Then the switch came on.
Suddenly everything was clicking; for a couple weeks, I have been waiting for the ball to drop, then mis-hitting. Tonight the ball would drop and I would put away a winner. Forehand, backhand, ball high, ball low...did not matter. And the game turned into a rout. I was up 14-5 before he scored again. He ended up with 7 or 8, but the game was not close once I started playing well.
Game two he was serving to score but my returns were nails. He could not get much past me. But he was winning rallies as he was hitting winners when they were presented. He took a 2-0 lead, I stormed back to tie it, then took a 6-2 lead...then he scored 8 straight.
I could not do anything. I was returning every serve, but poorly, and he was not missing. I missed a couple serves. I missed a passing shot. he got to a couple of good shots. It was soul-crushing...
Then the switch flipped again. I started using ceiling shots, seizing the middle, hitting kill shots, hitting good passing shots, getting to every shot he hit.
With him playing well I ran off 9 straight points. He took his last lead at 11-10, he tied it at 12, and then I ran off 30 straight points.
That is not a typo. I won the last three points, then skunked him 15-0. It did not matter what he did. If he hit a ceiling shot, I hit one in return until he hit one a little too soft. If he hit a passing shot, I returned the favor. If he hit a kill shot I got to it and hit a better one.
I was hitting sidewall pinches, front wall pinches, passing shots...my court awareness, my position, my shot planning, my execution were superior. He could not score, he could not stop me from scoring.
After the 15-0 rout, I jumped out to a 12-0 lead. By this point I was junk ball serving to get rallies because even when he was returning my tough serves I was just taking the return and putting it away. It is as well as I have ever played.
He scored 6 or 8 points, but it was not that close and was never in doubt.
Game 5 was more respectable but still not close...another 12 or 13 point lead. We decided to play one last one.
I jumped out to a 3-0 lead and it was looking grim. Then he stepped it up. He was playing at the top of his game and I was playing well. He built a 6-3 lead. I took an 8-6 lead. He took a 9-8 lead. I took a 10-9 lead. 10-11.
Most of the points by both of us were earned. These were not the cheesy "I set up for a kill shot, have an easy shot and just muff it". The closest to that was my speed and ability to get to ball after ball after ball was making him adjust his play; if I over hit and he had a shot close to the wall, he had a tough choice; if he hit it soft, I was getting to every one and then he was out of position. If he hit it hard, I was running down most of those unless he hit it perfectly. So he mis-hit a lot of those, and when he did not, I scored...so it was a no-win situation for him.
This, by the way, is almost exclusively a function of my conditioning. I can run, run, run and am quick enough to cover almost the entire court.
Anyway, we were tied at 14. I broke his serve with about as good a return as I have ever hit. We then had a spectacular rally where both of us thought we had hit winners only to see the other guy return it somehow someway. Finally I hit a beautiful cross-court passing shot that eluded his racket by a quarter inch. 15-14.
Whereas typically this ends the game, he likes to play win by two.
We had a good rally that ended in a hinder.It was probably advantageous to me as I had hit a poor attempt at a corner kill but he felt he had been in my way, then I stumbled into him from my over swing.
The last serve was nasty, he got a great return, I had to plaster it off the back wall. I do not want to say i have mastered a defensive shot there, but I have certainly gotten very good at it. I hit it so hard and at the right angle to force him to the back wall and it comes off soft so he cannot generate power or a kill. He tried a ceiling shot, it was a tough attempt but all he could do.
It bounced moderately high just pass mid-court, I waited, dropped low, timed it, and hit what would have been a great passing shot if it had not bounced twice within 6" of the front wall. Great finish to a great game.
Tuesday
1531 Racquetball Chronicles
2-5 has been sick, but TA stepped into the gap and we got to play about an hour and 45 minutes tonight.
The first game started both well and poorly; well because the game was close, poorly because that is how we were playing. We were both skipping easy shots, muffing easy set-ups...two or three times I commented, "That rally was who wanted it less."
As usually, though, it was my game to lose. He traditionally does a lot of lob serves...well, okay, does lob serves exclusively the first game.
Not that I kill every lob serve..I do not. But when we are playing similarly bad, me getting points off serves and him not turns an otherwise close game into something that looks like a rout, about 15-6 or so.
It was not a game either of us should be proud of, though. A handful of points were earned...most were off the opponent's unforced errors.
Game two he started doing real serves and sure enough, a couple times he reeled off 4 or 5 consecutive points. My return was off and it was a struggle. He scored about 8 points off his serve and at one point was ahead 10-4.
I fought back to make it respectable, but still he won handily 15-8.
It shows how important the serve is. Again I feel neither of us played very well...but he scored off his serve and I did not off mine.
Finally, game 3 was the one we have been looking for.
His serve was ON, but so was my return. My serve was nasty, so was his return.
In fact, both of us returned sidewall pinch serves multiple times each.
I was moving very well both side to side and front to back. I actually got a half dozen kill shots and several successful passing shots. So did he.
And we had several rallies of me trying to blast it past his backhand while he tried to get an opposite wall passing shot while we were both in center court. Numerous times I was able to chase down passing shots and hit such good shots off the back wall they served as solid ceiling shots, changing our positions.
Meanwhile, he was making effective use of the ceiling shot and the passing shot.
He scored first. I scored the next two. He took a 4-2 lead, I reeled off 4 straight to take a 6-4 lead. He returned the favor, going up 8-6. We tied at 8. I took a 10-9 lead. Tied at 10. Every point was a war, every shot important. It was awesome.
Sure, there were a couple service exchanges and points off unforced errors, but the bulk of the points were won off the serve or off hitting winners.
Finally I closed him out about 15-12. It was an excellent, excellent game.
The next game started super bad for me. Suddenly I could not handle his serve. He had 4 points before I got in a return.
We had a couple service exchanges and he still led 4-0.
Then it was like a switch flipped. I was up 10-4, 12-4, 14-4...it was a rout. He scored a couple, but there was no chance I was losing that one.
I have no idea what happened. I went from not able to handle ANY serve to returning everything in such a way I was able to seize advantageous court position and, while my passing shots were still poor, and I was not hitting a lot of good kill shots, I was able to move him around enough that my mediocre passing shots were better because of position.
There was also a slight improvement in them. All night my cross-court passes were coming off the wall too far to center court. This game I kept them down the line. Made all the difference.
Anyway, we were going to play one more to 11.
Again he jumped out to an early lead, but I tied it at 6 and took the lead 7-6. We decided it was such a good game we would go to 15. Big mistake.
Suddenly serves he had returned all night were aces or winners. My poor shots he was hitting winners off were returned poorly enough I was able to get to them...and while he scored a couple late in the game, it was something like 13-6 and then 14-8. He got to I think 10 but it was not that close.
All in all a very fun evening. I need to get back to working on my positioning. I was getting up front, trusting my reflexes, jumping back to position, and hitting EVERYTHING. When he did get one by me at the wall, I generally had time to at least get to it and keep it in play.
I do need to work on my low pass shot and my kill shots...they have regressed markedly. But 3 of the 5 games were great games, lots of fun. It was a good night.
The first game started both well and poorly; well because the game was close, poorly because that is how we were playing. We were both skipping easy shots, muffing easy set-ups...two or three times I commented, "That rally was who wanted it less."
As usually, though, it was my game to lose. He traditionally does a lot of lob serves...well, okay, does lob serves exclusively the first game.
Not that I kill every lob serve..I do not. But when we are playing similarly bad, me getting points off serves and him not turns an otherwise close game into something that looks like a rout, about 15-6 or so.
It was not a game either of us should be proud of, though. A handful of points were earned...most were off the opponent's unforced errors.
Game two he started doing real serves and sure enough, a couple times he reeled off 4 or 5 consecutive points. My return was off and it was a struggle. He scored about 8 points off his serve and at one point was ahead 10-4.
I fought back to make it respectable, but still he won handily 15-8.
It shows how important the serve is. Again I feel neither of us played very well...but he scored off his serve and I did not off mine.
Finally, game 3 was the one we have been looking for.
His serve was ON, but so was my return. My serve was nasty, so was his return.
In fact, both of us returned sidewall pinch serves multiple times each.
I was moving very well both side to side and front to back. I actually got a half dozen kill shots and several successful passing shots. So did he.
And we had several rallies of me trying to blast it past his backhand while he tried to get an opposite wall passing shot while we were both in center court. Numerous times I was able to chase down passing shots and hit such good shots off the back wall they served as solid ceiling shots, changing our positions.
Meanwhile, he was making effective use of the ceiling shot and the passing shot.
He scored first. I scored the next two. He took a 4-2 lead, I reeled off 4 straight to take a 6-4 lead. He returned the favor, going up 8-6. We tied at 8. I took a 10-9 lead. Tied at 10. Every point was a war, every shot important. It was awesome.
Sure, there were a couple service exchanges and points off unforced errors, but the bulk of the points were won off the serve or off hitting winners.
Finally I closed him out about 15-12. It was an excellent, excellent game.
The next game started super bad for me. Suddenly I could not handle his serve. He had 4 points before I got in a return.
We had a couple service exchanges and he still led 4-0.
Then it was like a switch flipped. I was up 10-4, 12-4, 14-4...it was a rout. He scored a couple, but there was no chance I was losing that one.
I have no idea what happened. I went from not able to handle ANY serve to returning everything in such a way I was able to seize advantageous court position and, while my passing shots were still poor, and I was not hitting a lot of good kill shots, I was able to move him around enough that my mediocre passing shots were better because of position.
There was also a slight improvement in them. All night my cross-court passes were coming off the wall too far to center court. This game I kept them down the line. Made all the difference.
Anyway, we were going to play one more to 11.
Again he jumped out to an early lead, but I tied it at 6 and took the lead 7-6. We decided it was such a good game we would go to 15. Big mistake.
Suddenly serves he had returned all night were aces or winners. My poor shots he was hitting winners off were returned poorly enough I was able to get to them...and while he scored a couple late in the game, it was something like 13-6 and then 14-8. He got to I think 10 but it was not that close.
All in all a very fun evening. I need to get back to working on my positioning. I was getting up front, trusting my reflexes, jumping back to position, and hitting EVERYTHING. When he did get one by me at the wall, I generally had time to at least get to it and keep it in play.
I do need to work on my low pass shot and my kill shots...they have regressed markedly. But 3 of the 5 games were great games, lots of fun. It was a good night.
Monday
1515 Racquetball Chronicles XIII
Something strange happened. For the first time in weeks I took proper rest. I did nothing Saturday or Sunday. Before the game tonight I did do my regular weights, but I was fresh and ready to roll.
25 started slowly. The first game was quick, efficient and brutal, a 15-4 maiming. And part of it was the freshness. I was relaxed, smooth, not straining to get to the ball and thus was able to blast perfect passing shots, strong pinch shots, and my serve was blistering.
Game two I relaxed the serve and we had numerous spectacular volleys. How spectacular? Other guys between games were coming by to watch our games and applauding after volleys. 25 was getting to everything and so was I. Strong passing shot...he retreats and hits a fantastic ceiling shot. I wait for it, hit a pinch shot...which he somehow gets to, and hits one of his own. Somehow I get to that and hit a long passing shot. he scrambles back, hits a ceiling shot. I retreat, ceiling shot of my own. He tries to hit it low, I lunge and think my pinch shot wins it...but he gets to it, only this time I hit a passing shot winner.
We must have had 6 or 8 volleys like that. He actually led 13-12 before finally bowing 15-13. We then had a similar game that ended 15-12.
As we were taking a water break, a guy asked if we wanted to play cut throat, but neither of us did...but that simple question put 25 off his game. The next 4 games were all 15-7 or 15-8.
We practiced his serve a bit, working on getting it lower and faster. It was starting to get nasty, but in the game he shifted his aiming point. The final game was another massacre, about 15-4 or so.
The thing is, I was hitting better shots tonight. It did not really matter that he played better...the extra spring in my step helped me get to every ball hit and the relaxed way I was playing meant I was scoring at will.
Learning from tonight; the casual wrist-flick seems to automatically put the right pace on the ball, whereas when I set up and swing fundamentally, my touch is poor. Something to think about.
25 started slowly. The first game was quick, efficient and brutal, a 15-4 maiming. And part of it was the freshness. I was relaxed, smooth, not straining to get to the ball and thus was able to blast perfect passing shots, strong pinch shots, and my serve was blistering.
Game two I relaxed the serve and we had numerous spectacular volleys. How spectacular? Other guys between games were coming by to watch our games and applauding after volleys. 25 was getting to everything and so was I. Strong passing shot...he retreats and hits a fantastic ceiling shot. I wait for it, hit a pinch shot...which he somehow gets to, and hits one of his own. Somehow I get to that and hit a long passing shot. he scrambles back, hits a ceiling shot. I retreat, ceiling shot of my own. He tries to hit it low, I lunge and think my pinch shot wins it...but he gets to it, only this time I hit a passing shot winner.
We must have had 6 or 8 volleys like that. He actually led 13-12 before finally bowing 15-13. We then had a similar game that ended 15-12.
As we were taking a water break, a guy asked if we wanted to play cut throat, but neither of us did...but that simple question put 25 off his game. The next 4 games were all 15-7 or 15-8.
We practiced his serve a bit, working on getting it lower and faster. It was starting to get nasty, but in the game he shifted his aiming point. The final game was another massacre, about 15-4 or so.
The thing is, I was hitting better shots tonight. It did not really matter that he played better...the extra spring in my step helped me get to every ball hit and the relaxed way I was playing meant I was scoring at will.
Learning from tonight; the casual wrist-flick seems to automatically put the right pace on the ball, whereas when I set up and swing fundamentally, my touch is poor. Something to think about.
Wednesday
1512 The Racquetball Chronicles XI
My second time playing TA. This time he knew my growing talent. He came ready, if a bit sore...and I proceeded to step my game up.
My first serves were strong...they were low, fast, and right to the backhand corner. But i was also doing a good job of mixing them up...a little slower and higher, faster and higher, slower and low...mix in an occasional blast to the forehand, the occasional lob serve.
The thing is, I was moving the ball location, speed, and height so he could not just sit on one serve.
My shots during volleys were good, too. My passing shot was sizzling but not going long, my pinch shots were hitting correctly more often.
Quick 15-1, 15-3 games followed.
Then he got a bit of a serve down, my volleys climbed a foot or so and started missing easy returns, trying to hit them too fine. He responded with his best game of the night. When it was 13-10 I consciously thought, "Do not tense up. Relax, play your game and put the ball where you want to. You are, at this point, still better."
And with my game relaxed, I ran it out for the 15-10 win.
We were resting 4 or 5 minutes between games as he works his way back into shape. But it also gave me time to think about what I was doing. So I was consciously working on my footwork and correct racket position.
We had a couple really good volleys. I had about a dozen roll out shots tonight to go with 20 missed kill shots. He still does not have his shot back so he struggles to score, but I can see the skeleton of a really strong game and when he starts hitting it properly and reducing the mis-hits, I foresee some pretty close games.
Even as it is he is forcing a slight reassessment to my beloved fore court game as several times he hit beautiful passing shots I simply could not get to. But I still think giving him that slim margin for error is advantageous so I Will keep playing there. Maybe a step back.
Tonight, however, i closed out the last two games something like 15-6 and 15-8 or so.
Good time, good exercise.
My first serves were strong...they were low, fast, and right to the backhand corner. But i was also doing a good job of mixing them up...a little slower and higher, faster and higher, slower and low...mix in an occasional blast to the forehand, the occasional lob serve.
The thing is, I was moving the ball location, speed, and height so he could not just sit on one serve.
My shots during volleys were good, too. My passing shot was sizzling but not going long, my pinch shots were hitting correctly more often.
Quick 15-1, 15-3 games followed.
Then he got a bit of a serve down, my volleys climbed a foot or so and started missing easy returns, trying to hit them too fine. He responded with his best game of the night. When it was 13-10 I consciously thought, "Do not tense up. Relax, play your game and put the ball where you want to. You are, at this point, still better."
And with my game relaxed, I ran it out for the 15-10 win.
We were resting 4 or 5 minutes between games as he works his way back into shape. But it also gave me time to think about what I was doing. So I was consciously working on my footwork and correct racket position.
We had a couple really good volleys. I had about a dozen roll out shots tonight to go with 20 missed kill shots. He still does not have his shot back so he struggles to score, but I can see the skeleton of a really strong game and when he starts hitting it properly and reducing the mis-hits, I foresee some pretty close games.
Even as it is he is forcing a slight reassessment to my beloved fore court game as several times he hit beautiful passing shots I simply could not get to. But I still think giving him that slim margin for error is advantageous so I Will keep playing there. Maybe a step back.
Tonight, however, i closed out the last two games something like 15-6 and 15-8 or so.
Good time, good exercise.
Friday
Racquetball Chronicles IX
Tonight was playing a guy I was introduced to through a mutual friend. I was very upfront about my playing ability...sort of. See, when we first planned this, it was a week ago...and I have played thrice since then.
I get better every time I play. Much better.
Anyway, he said something along the lines of, "Oh, it's okay...I will play left-handed to make it a game."
Sure enough, adjustments had to be made to make it a game. When I was ahead about 10-3 I severely relaxed my game. The funny thing is...my game was not particularly "on" tonight. I was not hitting strong kill shots or spectacular passing shots.
I was simply getting to every single ball. Hit it high off the ceiling? I drift back, hit a rocket that made him hit a defensive shot. Hit it low off the front wall? I return the favor and move you side to side. Get caught on one side of the court and out of breath? Even a mediocre passing shot to the far corner will either score a point or a side out.
The problem is...I am not yet a skilled player, just an energetic one. So taking my foot off the gas turns me from a dominating player into a mediocre player. And he turned it into a real game, scoring I think 13 before we were done.
Once I slowed my frenetic pace I could not turn it back on that game.
Second verse, just like the first...I rushed out to a commanding lead, started experimenting...I tried developing a z-serve but was struggling with my placement. I tried (and missed) kill shot after kill shot.
He crept back into it and again scored a lot. At one point we were deadlocked at 11-9 for probably 10 minutes. It was ridiculous.
In the end, it was a relatively comfortable win, he might have scored 10 or 12 points but I always believed I could get the serve back and put him away.
By game three he was totally gassed. I was deliberately taking my time between serves and points to make sure we both had energy for the points, but as the game went along he let more and more shots he would have hit earlier get to the floor.
But before that, we exchanged service breaks three or four times apiece at nothing apiece. We then had an awesome rally. I blistered a strong serve, low to the backhand corner. He scraped the floor with his return. I punched it to the forehand corner. He hit a ceiling shot. I hit a ceiling shot. He went for a kill shot. It was a great shot but a spectacular lunge and flick of the wrist led to a passing shot down the far side of the court. He somehow got to it and hit a passing shot on me that I somehow plowed off the back wall. he had another kill shot that I not only got to, I hit a passing shot that scored the point.
No kidding, we probably played that point for at least a minute with several great shots and spectacular saves by each of us. Loved that volley.
I smiled, laughed, slowly extended my forefinger. "One. That is all that counted for. One."
And served a nasty ace that pinched the side wall and bounced twice before the safety line. "Two."
Soon it was 6-0...though in reality I had scored about 9, but we were both a bit tired and I had no interest in a skunk. He ended up scoring about 8 in the game (2 of which I added to his score when he was not looking) but it was not that close.
Overall it was extremely fun. I can tell when he shakes the rust off and gets in a little bit of shape he will be a tough match up. For now I consider it a quality win over a quality opponent.
And I can feel myself improving not just every night but often enough every single game. And I love it.
I get better every time I play. Much better.
Anyway, he said something along the lines of, "Oh, it's okay...I will play left-handed to make it a game."
Sure enough, adjustments had to be made to make it a game. When I was ahead about 10-3 I severely relaxed my game. The funny thing is...my game was not particularly "on" tonight. I was not hitting strong kill shots or spectacular passing shots.
I was simply getting to every single ball. Hit it high off the ceiling? I drift back, hit a rocket that made him hit a defensive shot. Hit it low off the front wall? I return the favor and move you side to side. Get caught on one side of the court and out of breath? Even a mediocre passing shot to the far corner will either score a point or a side out.
The problem is...I am not yet a skilled player, just an energetic one. So taking my foot off the gas turns me from a dominating player into a mediocre player. And he turned it into a real game, scoring I think 13 before we were done.
Once I slowed my frenetic pace I could not turn it back on that game.
Second verse, just like the first...I rushed out to a commanding lead, started experimenting...I tried developing a z-serve but was struggling with my placement. I tried (and missed) kill shot after kill shot.
He crept back into it and again scored a lot. At one point we were deadlocked at 11-9 for probably 10 minutes. It was ridiculous.
In the end, it was a relatively comfortable win, he might have scored 10 or 12 points but I always believed I could get the serve back and put him away.
By game three he was totally gassed. I was deliberately taking my time between serves and points to make sure we both had energy for the points, but as the game went along he let more and more shots he would have hit earlier get to the floor.
But before that, we exchanged service breaks three or four times apiece at nothing apiece. We then had an awesome rally. I blistered a strong serve, low to the backhand corner. He scraped the floor with his return. I punched it to the forehand corner. He hit a ceiling shot. I hit a ceiling shot. He went for a kill shot. It was a great shot but a spectacular lunge and flick of the wrist led to a passing shot down the far side of the court. He somehow got to it and hit a passing shot on me that I somehow plowed off the back wall. he had another kill shot that I not only got to, I hit a passing shot that scored the point.
No kidding, we probably played that point for at least a minute with several great shots and spectacular saves by each of us. Loved that volley.
I smiled, laughed, slowly extended my forefinger. "One. That is all that counted for. One."
And served a nasty ace that pinched the side wall and bounced twice before the safety line. "Two."
Soon it was 6-0...though in reality I had scored about 9, but we were both a bit tired and I had no interest in a skunk. He ended up scoring about 8 in the game (2 of which I added to his score when he was not looking) but it was not that close.
Overall it was extremely fun. I can tell when he shakes the rust off and gets in a little bit of shape he will be a tough match up. For now I consider it a quality win over a quality opponent.
And I can feel myself improving not just every night but often enough every single game. And I love it.
Thursday
Racquetball Chronicles 8
I skipped reporting one session; we played two games of cutthroat and one singles game. In that, I played too passively in the first cutthroat game and the player I felt was the weakest of the three actually won.
In the singles game, I was against someone who has competed at a high level in the Oregon games and at least gave him a game, actually leading 13-12 before fading. He is too quick and I could not score off passing shots...which means I MUST develop an effective kill shot.
He did say he thought I was a really strong "C" level player so I feel good about that. He also strongly complimented my court positioning and ability to get to way more balls that I should.
The seco0nd cutthroat game I was ahead 14-8-4 when I stopped serving and started lob serving. This was residue of my game with T-mat. I never scored another point...
I am not a huge fan of cut throat. I do not go after the ball as aggressively and do not feel there is enough action. But I enjoy it enough to play again.
Anyhow, tonight I played Mr. J, the first guy I played.
The first two games showed just how far I have come. When I first started playing back on Dec 5th, scoring 6 points in a game was a great game for me.
Tonight I absolutely wrecked him in the first 2 games 15-3, 15-3...and neither one was that close.
First off, my serve is much, much better. I can consistently blast it down the wall into his backhand. Second, as he cheats further and further over, I just blast it into the opposite corner...his forehand, a right-handers backhand. And he is so far cheated towards the corner I typically serve to it is a virtually guaranteed ace.
Second, the serve that I initially could not return...low to my backhand corner...I returned every one including several outright winners and even the returns that were not winners drove him to the far back corner, allowing me to spring into my beloved mid court position.
Even when he hit solid shots that SHOULD have been winners, I was so quick I was getting to them and driving him to the back with passing shots wherever he wasn't. He was getting frustrated at his inability to get a ball past me.
So in serves, serve returns, court positioning and passing shots I was dominating. He hit more kill shots, but both games were absolutely devastating.
I could see he was getting down and that is not my intent so I did a couple things. First, I made sure to tell him a simple truth....he was inches away from every game being a competitive game. Hit the ball an inch lower and it is an impossible to return kill shot...hit it an inch closer to the ground from the back and I have to hit a defensive shot.
I also started experimenting...working on my z-serve, hitting fewer shots to the "ace" corner, etc. It is like practicing while playing a game. At one point I was ahead 12-8 and when he went to serve it was 8-11. I was okay with that. He scored one and at 11-9 we had about a half dozen service turns apiece.
He then scored a couple, I scored a couple...and relaxed thinking I could win the game at will. I did not use my advantages...speed, aggressiveness, and an attempt to get to every ball. He scored. He scored again. Suddenly it was 14-13, his lead. He served, I returned it, was set up to kill the point and win on my service turn when he hit his best shot of the night, a perfect kill shot.
Oops. Legitimately I should have won but got outplayed down the stretch when I relaxed and he took a hard-earned, well-deserved victory. Because the truth is, he tried harder and that is better play.
Also a lesson well learned.
All told it was a lot of fun and a great benchmark for me to see how far I have come.
In the singles game, I was against someone who has competed at a high level in the Oregon games and at least gave him a game, actually leading 13-12 before fading. He is too quick and I could not score off passing shots...which means I MUST develop an effective kill shot.
He did say he thought I was a really strong "C" level player so I feel good about that. He also strongly complimented my court positioning and ability to get to way more balls that I should.
The seco0nd cutthroat game I was ahead 14-8-4 when I stopped serving and started lob serving. This was residue of my game with T-mat. I never scored another point...
I am not a huge fan of cut throat. I do not go after the ball as aggressively and do not feel there is enough action. But I enjoy it enough to play again.
Anyhow, tonight I played Mr. J, the first guy I played.
The first two games showed just how far I have come. When I first started playing back on Dec 5th, scoring 6 points in a game was a great game for me.
Tonight I absolutely wrecked him in the first 2 games 15-3, 15-3...and neither one was that close.
First off, my serve is much, much better. I can consistently blast it down the wall into his backhand. Second, as he cheats further and further over, I just blast it into the opposite corner...his forehand, a right-handers backhand. And he is so far cheated towards the corner I typically serve to it is a virtually guaranteed ace.
Second, the serve that I initially could not return...low to my backhand corner...I returned every one including several outright winners and even the returns that were not winners drove him to the far back corner, allowing me to spring into my beloved mid court position.
Even when he hit solid shots that SHOULD have been winners, I was so quick I was getting to them and driving him to the back with passing shots wherever he wasn't. He was getting frustrated at his inability to get a ball past me.
So in serves, serve returns, court positioning and passing shots I was dominating. He hit more kill shots, but both games were absolutely devastating.
I could see he was getting down and that is not my intent so I did a couple things. First, I made sure to tell him a simple truth....he was inches away from every game being a competitive game. Hit the ball an inch lower and it is an impossible to return kill shot...hit it an inch closer to the ground from the back and I have to hit a defensive shot.
I also started experimenting...working on my z-serve, hitting fewer shots to the "ace" corner, etc. It is like practicing while playing a game. At one point I was ahead 12-8 and when he went to serve it was 8-11. I was okay with that. He scored one and at 11-9 we had about a half dozen service turns apiece.
He then scored a couple, I scored a couple...and relaxed thinking I could win the game at will. I did not use my advantages...speed, aggressiveness, and an attempt to get to every ball. He scored. He scored again. Suddenly it was 14-13, his lead. He served, I returned it, was set up to kill the point and win on my service turn when he hit his best shot of the night, a perfect kill shot.
Oops. Legitimately I should have won but got outplayed down the stretch when I relaxed and he took a hard-earned, well-deserved victory. Because the truth is, he tried harder and that is better play.
Also a lesson well learned.
All told it was a lot of fun and a great benchmark for me to see how far I have come.
Tuesday
The racquetball Chronicles VII
Another match with JJ. In the first game it looked like he had regressed...he could not get to my serves, I was winning all the volleys, his serve was setting up perfectly for me to spike it repeatedly. he did scratch out 5 points...but it was a squash.
Game two was more of the same. I lightened up my serve and was just crushing him. 15-4.
Game three something clicked for him and he was playing much better. He was hitting that corner serve i struggle with, he was returning my serves, and we got some spectacular volleys...kill shots were re-killed and the rekills turned into passing shots...
...then I rolled my ankle. It frightened me. It had started hurting at work for no apparent reason. Fortunately, when I felt it start to go i went with it and collapsed on the floor which probably saved me a really nasty sprain.
It was tender for 5 or 10 minutes which, counter-intuitively, was good for me...because I played solid position racquetball instead of counting on my athleticism. It was a close game before and after the ankle incident but I pulled it out 15-10 or so.
The next game started slow with several service breaks. The thing is...he was starting to play strong position and I was relaxing in the back court. So he was picking up a point here and there. When he was ahead 7-2 I started going all out.
But now he was getting to my nastiest serves, getting to my passing shots, and I could not get a kill shot down. He was consistently hitting solid defensive shots and getting into the forecourt.
I could not score off him. But he could score off me. 3-7. 3-9. 3-9. 4-9. 5-9. 5-10. 7-10. 7-11. 8-11.
And then the point that probably decided the game. I was serving, having scored 4 or 5 quick points and I laid out a nasty, low corner serve. He got a nice defensive return that drove me to the back wall. I got in a nice ceiling shot that drove him back while I sprang back to mid court. He tried a passing shot, I dodged left and hit a pretty good (for me) kill shot into the corner...that he got to and hit a passing shot of his own, but two deep. I got to it, another ceiling shot, I sprang back to forecourt, we traded a couple ceiling shots, then we both got to mid court and hit about 4 shots in succession while standing side by side...near kill shots, corner pinch shots, passing attempts...and then he got a perfect kill shot in.
All it did was give him the serve...and exhaust me. So instead of driving him back and going to mid court, I started playing from the back wall. 12-8. 13-18.
Second wind. I got to 10. I got to 12. And he got the serve and ran it out for his first win against me. Great game, lots of fun. Very glad he got a win in. I do not want him getting discouraged because I love playing against him. And that was a completely legit win...which is even more awesome.
Well, that changed everything. Now we were battling to see who could get to front court. He got to the majority of my passing shots and I was struggling to hit effective kill shots so scoring points was hard for me. He was up about 8-3 again and I was thinking things had flipped completely when I got the serve and went on an immense run.
I scored several aces and several serve winners, mixed in a couple volley wins.
I was working better on the passing shots...tonight I was seldom hitting the back wall, but they were almost too soft. Against a guy like JJ with excellent reflexes and a good read on the ball they are slow enough that he can get to them. So I need to figure out how to get them lower and quicker but still not off the back wall.
Meanwhile, I really got better at using the strategy of ceiling shots to drive him deep and seize position. I just need to hit the kill shots to become much more effective.
Anyway, I ended up winning about 15-10, then won the next one about 15-8.
Then we had one of "those" games where I just obliterated him 15-1. Cannot even say what either of us did different.
We elected to play one more 10 minute game...our allotted court time...which ended up going to 15 minutes.
It took about 5 minutes for him to build a 4-2 lead as we were exchanging service breaks. Then he stayed deep for a couple of points, I hit a couple of aces and it looked like I would break it open. He fought back to make it 11-7, I ran it up to 14-7, he scored a couple to make it respectable and I won about 15-11.
Looking back on the night, I know I am improving every session. The ceiling shot was effective for getting position. I successfully served a z-serve to the right hand back hand corner for the first time. I hit several "tough" shots...not kill shots, but shots where he was deep behind me and I hit it softly off the front wall.
I did a good job of moving him up and back, side to side and mixing up my serves.
I also did a better job of waiting for the ball to drop and driving it low...I just need to get my racket angle down to make those very good shots.
At the same time, I took several points off...he would hit a shot, I would assume it would land where I could not get it and not even try...only to realize I could not only have gotten to it, I could have gotten to it in time to put together a pretty strong shot.
Overall tremendous fun and great exercise.
Game two was more of the same. I lightened up my serve and was just crushing him. 15-4.
Game three something clicked for him and he was playing much better. He was hitting that corner serve i struggle with, he was returning my serves, and we got some spectacular volleys...kill shots were re-killed and the rekills turned into passing shots...
...then I rolled my ankle. It frightened me. It had started hurting at work for no apparent reason. Fortunately, when I felt it start to go i went with it and collapsed on the floor which probably saved me a really nasty sprain.
It was tender for 5 or 10 minutes which, counter-intuitively, was good for me...because I played solid position racquetball instead of counting on my athleticism. It was a close game before and after the ankle incident but I pulled it out 15-10 or so.
The next game started slow with several service breaks. The thing is...he was starting to play strong position and I was relaxing in the back court. So he was picking up a point here and there. When he was ahead 7-2 I started going all out.
But now he was getting to my nastiest serves, getting to my passing shots, and I could not get a kill shot down. He was consistently hitting solid defensive shots and getting into the forecourt.
I could not score off him. But he could score off me. 3-7. 3-9. 3-9. 4-9. 5-9. 5-10. 7-10. 7-11. 8-11.
And then the point that probably decided the game. I was serving, having scored 4 or 5 quick points and I laid out a nasty, low corner serve. He got a nice defensive return that drove me to the back wall. I got in a nice ceiling shot that drove him back while I sprang back to mid court. He tried a passing shot, I dodged left and hit a pretty good (for me) kill shot into the corner...that he got to and hit a passing shot of his own, but two deep. I got to it, another ceiling shot, I sprang back to forecourt, we traded a couple ceiling shots, then we both got to mid court and hit about 4 shots in succession while standing side by side...near kill shots, corner pinch shots, passing attempts...and then he got a perfect kill shot in.
All it did was give him the serve...and exhaust me. So instead of driving him back and going to mid court, I started playing from the back wall. 12-8. 13-18.
Second wind. I got to 10. I got to 12. And he got the serve and ran it out for his first win against me. Great game, lots of fun. Very glad he got a win in. I do not want him getting discouraged because I love playing against him. And that was a completely legit win...which is even more awesome.
Well, that changed everything. Now we were battling to see who could get to front court. He got to the majority of my passing shots and I was struggling to hit effective kill shots so scoring points was hard for me. He was up about 8-3 again and I was thinking things had flipped completely when I got the serve and went on an immense run.
I scored several aces and several serve winners, mixed in a couple volley wins.
I was working better on the passing shots...tonight I was seldom hitting the back wall, but they were almost too soft. Against a guy like JJ with excellent reflexes and a good read on the ball they are slow enough that he can get to them. So I need to figure out how to get them lower and quicker but still not off the back wall.
Meanwhile, I really got better at using the strategy of ceiling shots to drive him deep and seize position. I just need to hit the kill shots to become much more effective.
Anyway, I ended up winning about 15-10, then won the next one about 15-8.
Then we had one of "those" games where I just obliterated him 15-1. Cannot even say what either of us did different.
We elected to play one more 10 minute game...our allotted court time...which ended up going to 15 minutes.
It took about 5 minutes for him to build a 4-2 lead as we were exchanging service breaks. Then he stayed deep for a couple of points, I hit a couple of aces and it looked like I would break it open. He fought back to make it 11-7, I ran it up to 14-7, he scored a couple to make it respectable and I won about 15-11.
Looking back on the night, I know I am improving every session. The ceiling shot was effective for getting position. I successfully served a z-serve to the right hand back hand corner for the first time. I hit several "tough" shots...not kill shots, but shots where he was deep behind me and I hit it softly off the front wall.
I did a good job of moving him up and back, side to side and mixing up my serves.
I also did a better job of waiting for the ball to drop and driving it low...I just need to get my racket angle down to make those very good shots.
At the same time, I took several points off...he would hit a shot, I would assume it would land where I could not get it and not even try...only to realize I could not only have gotten to it, I could have gotten to it in time to put together a pretty strong shot.
Overall tremendous fun and great exercise.
Thursday
The Racquetball Chronicles Round 5
Tonight I was matched up against T-mat, a guy from work who used to play regularly but took about a three year sabbatical. I figured I would score a few points but probably lose handily.
I was also a little concerned because when I set it up, I had forgotten he said he used to regularly plunk guys in the back who set up in position.
Well, the first game started out with him jumping out to a 3-0 lead as I played the back court and got spanked for it. Then I started working the mid court and got the serve, reeled off a bunch of points and was up by a comfortable 10-3 or so.
We then exchanged serves a couple times, but I was not worried because I was winning the volleys and he was struggling with his serve.
I finished off the game with a convincing 15-3 win and was feeling pretty good. Maybe I have improved that much. Sure, it was hard for him to score since his first serve was long the vast majority of the time, allowing me to get serve after serve I could handle. Regardless, I was winning most of the volleys.
Game two, he got his serve down. He was using a drive serve that was actually not legal as it screened me but I was complacent, thinking I would win anyway, and thought it would be good for me to work on my return game.
He was mixing up his serve well between drives down the forehand wall, drives down the back hand wall, and drives that just ate me up right into my chest. Even when I did get a return, it was a week one that consistently had him taking shots from scoring position.
When I tried pinch shots I angled them poorly, thus bouncing right back up waist high to his forehand and when I tried passing shots, I over hit them, allowing him to stay at mid court and hit kill shots.
Only my speed and agility allowed me to keep a lot of balls in play and his rust had him miss a few easy shots so it was a respectable score...something like 15-10, but he won. It was a really fun game because we had several rallies that included multiple points where we both had shots it seemed like we had put away for a winner, only to see the other guy hit an even better shot that we somehow returned...I loved, loved, loved it.
As the set wore on, I noticed an error I kept making. I have been working on using the walls more to create angles to make my shots harder to read. However, he is so good at reading them that all I was doing was giving him to set up in the mid court and blast perfect shots...but I kept hitting that shot. I really need to work on my in-game adjustments.
The third game was really back and forth. He built a 4 or 5 point lead, I fought back to tie it, he scored a couple, I took a small lead, he took a small lead, tie, I took a 10-9 lead, he took a 12-10 lead. I then scored 4 straight.
We were both gassed. It had been an incredibly tense game. I was sweating so bad that three times the racket came out of my hand. This new racket has a grip that gets super slick. I will either have to purchase a glove or regrip the racket. I NEVER had that problem with the old racket.
Anyway, at 14-12, I hit a gorgeous serve that bounced about an inch past the service line and bounced a second time short of the receiving line...a perfect ace. He flipped the ball back to me like you do when the ball is short so I shrugged and went back to work.
Unfortunately, I had assumed the game was over and, my head not on straight, served up a lollipop. He hit a kill shot, I went to return it...and the racket came completely out of my hand.
He then served an ace of his own, another point, then served an ace.
I started to go and he said, "this ain't tennis. You gotta win the last point on a rally."
Aha. Now I get it. My serve HAD been good but he had a house rule that I was not aware of. Fair enough.
Still, could not get my head back in it, and did not even go after one shot in the next rally that was not only eminently hittable, it was well set up for me to hit my most effective shot...a backhand pinch shot to the far corner.
He just outworked me after I thought the game was over. Even without that, he is a better player than me all around...he has a stronger serve, better kill shots, better position...so I feel good about the games and best of all, worked my tail off for an hour.
Also, it was good because I learned more about the game. My regular playing partner hits it to the same corner, but his shots tend to bounce off the side wall and/or back wall. So I was setting up to return those.
T-mat, however, keeps them scraping the side wall or bouncing dead at the back wall, so where I was setting up to play the rebound, there was none so I was out of position. So I need to read the ball angle better.
Then B showed up and we played. I fell into some bad habits because I was trying to keep it interesting. Instead of working on my shots, I was trying to set up rallies.
Even so it is such a mis-match that I wrecked him 2 games in about 15 minutes.
I then started serving more seriously which, counter-intuitively, he seemed to have an easier time returning than the lollipops I was serving earlier and suddenly we started getting a few rallies going. I still won pretty handily, but it was a better game.
We still had 25 minutes to go or so, so I took out a few minutes to help him work on his serve.
And he promptly serves time and again that I struggled to get to. Unlike some of my games with him, every point he got in this game was legit...I simply could not return those.
We had several good rallies, he was up 11-9 and serving many I could not handle...probably 9 of his points were off serves I could not return. I was winning most of the rallies and losing to his serve.
We closed out with a handful of good rallies and I walked off a 15-12 winner in the last game.
I need to remember to work on my ball control when I play B...not just try to get rallies, but work on hitting passing shots hard enough to get by the opponent, not so hard they bounce off the back wall. I need to work on the kill shots. The angles.
I also need to make him work harder because he plays better when I do.
Overall an exceptionally fun night of two hours of racquetball and I am spent.
I was also a little concerned because when I set it up, I had forgotten he said he used to regularly plunk guys in the back who set up in position.
Well, the first game started out with him jumping out to a 3-0 lead as I played the back court and got spanked for it. Then I started working the mid court and got the serve, reeled off a bunch of points and was up by a comfortable 10-3 or so.
We then exchanged serves a couple times, but I was not worried because I was winning the volleys and he was struggling with his serve.
I finished off the game with a convincing 15-3 win and was feeling pretty good. Maybe I have improved that much. Sure, it was hard for him to score since his first serve was long the vast majority of the time, allowing me to get serve after serve I could handle. Regardless, I was winning most of the volleys.
Game two, he got his serve down. He was using a drive serve that was actually not legal as it screened me but I was complacent, thinking I would win anyway, and thought it would be good for me to work on my return game.
He was mixing up his serve well between drives down the forehand wall, drives down the back hand wall, and drives that just ate me up right into my chest. Even when I did get a return, it was a week one that consistently had him taking shots from scoring position.
When I tried pinch shots I angled them poorly, thus bouncing right back up waist high to his forehand and when I tried passing shots, I over hit them, allowing him to stay at mid court and hit kill shots.
Only my speed and agility allowed me to keep a lot of balls in play and his rust had him miss a few easy shots so it was a respectable score...something like 15-10, but he won. It was a really fun game because we had several rallies that included multiple points where we both had shots it seemed like we had put away for a winner, only to see the other guy hit an even better shot that we somehow returned...I loved, loved, loved it.
As the set wore on, I noticed an error I kept making. I have been working on using the walls more to create angles to make my shots harder to read. However, he is so good at reading them that all I was doing was giving him to set up in the mid court and blast perfect shots...but I kept hitting that shot. I really need to work on my in-game adjustments.
The third game was really back and forth. He built a 4 or 5 point lead, I fought back to tie it, he scored a couple, I took a small lead, he took a small lead, tie, I took a 10-9 lead, he took a 12-10 lead. I then scored 4 straight.
We were both gassed. It had been an incredibly tense game. I was sweating so bad that three times the racket came out of my hand. This new racket has a grip that gets super slick. I will either have to purchase a glove or regrip the racket. I NEVER had that problem with the old racket.
Anyway, at 14-12, I hit a gorgeous serve that bounced about an inch past the service line and bounced a second time short of the receiving line...a perfect ace. He flipped the ball back to me like you do when the ball is short so I shrugged and went back to work.
Unfortunately, I had assumed the game was over and, my head not on straight, served up a lollipop. He hit a kill shot, I went to return it...and the racket came completely out of my hand.
He then served an ace of his own, another point, then served an ace.
I started to go and he said, "this ain't tennis. You gotta win the last point on a rally."
Aha. Now I get it. My serve HAD been good but he had a house rule that I was not aware of. Fair enough.
Still, could not get my head back in it, and did not even go after one shot in the next rally that was not only eminently hittable, it was well set up for me to hit my most effective shot...a backhand pinch shot to the far corner.
He just outworked me after I thought the game was over. Even without that, he is a better player than me all around...he has a stronger serve, better kill shots, better position...so I feel good about the games and best of all, worked my tail off for an hour.
Also, it was good because I learned more about the game. My regular playing partner hits it to the same corner, but his shots tend to bounce off the side wall and/or back wall. So I was setting up to return those.
T-mat, however, keeps them scraping the side wall or bouncing dead at the back wall, so where I was setting up to play the rebound, there was none so I was out of position. So I need to read the ball angle better.
Then B showed up and we played. I fell into some bad habits because I was trying to keep it interesting. Instead of working on my shots, I was trying to set up rallies.
Even so it is such a mis-match that I wrecked him 2 games in about 15 minutes.
I then started serving more seriously which, counter-intuitively, he seemed to have an easier time returning than the lollipops I was serving earlier and suddenly we started getting a few rallies going. I still won pretty handily, but it was a better game.
We still had 25 minutes to go or so, so I took out a few minutes to help him work on his serve.
And he promptly serves time and again that I struggled to get to. Unlike some of my games with him, every point he got in this game was legit...I simply could not return those.
We had several good rallies, he was up 11-9 and serving many I could not handle...probably 9 of his points were off serves I could not return. I was winning most of the rallies and losing to his serve.
We closed out with a handful of good rallies and I walked off a 15-12 winner in the last game.
I need to remember to work on my ball control when I play B...not just try to get rallies, but work on hitting passing shots hard enough to get by the opponent, not so hard they bounce off the back wall. I need to work on the kill shots. The angles.
I also need to make him work harder because he plays better when I do.
Overall an exceptionally fun night of two hours of racquetball and I am spent.
The 2012 Racquetball Chronicles Round 4
So tonight I was playing opponent B. A few things about B.
Whereas opponent a was indisputably better than me when we started and won 2 or 3 games by legit 15-1, 15-3 type scores, the me that started Dec. 5th would indisputably dominate B. It would not even be close.
And the me of today is 3-2 against A this year...which means I have gotten much, much better very very quickly but B is honestly not a challenge.
It says something about how I have grown the way I play B.
Whereas in my youth I would have "spotted" him or given massive advantages to him, then absolutely wrecked him anyway, the more mature me plays him straight up...I just play admittedly soft.
See, I think the "spot you 10 points and the serve, then win 15-10" guy is unintentionally being a jerk. He is saying I can give you any amount of advantage and still win because I am just that much better than you.
Well, we started playing and early on I was playing soft but practicing my serve to the backhand. Not the hard serve...just a high, defensive lob serve that I can use when I play right-handers. It will be months before I develop a solid serve to right-handers, but it is imperative I develop at least a defensive serve.
B was struggling with it and there were not many volleys. A quick 15-4, 15-1 demolition later, I switched up my strategy.
I wanted to work on a couple of shots. First, I want to work on the wall shot designed to be a passing shot. I typically hit it too hard...it rebounds off the back wall, giving them plenty of time to get to it. When I do not hit it too hard I hit it too soft and it becomes an easy mid-court shot for them. So I wanted to work on hitting it hard enough to get past them but soft enough to bounce twice before the back wall.
Second, I wanted to work on the corner kill shot.
The best way to do that is get into some rallies. So I started hitting high soft lobs to his forehand.
Unfortunately, I also got int he habit of not playing position. On the bright side we got in some volleys and he hit several nice winners. On the dark side, being out of position let me practice neither of the shots and I was playing too lackadaisically, not getting the workout I wanted.
He even led 10-7 in the third game, though there was no realistic danger of me losing. He ended the game with 10 by the simple expedient of me moving to center court and regaining my position. So it was good practice for that.
Game 4 was more of the same. I kept letting him have the front court and lounging in the back court. And here is where I figured out a valuable lesson.
Player A has a better kill shot than me. Not a massively better, but he hits say...30% kill shots when given the opportunity, and I hit maybe 20%.
Early on he had a much better serve. I struggled so much to return it his serve was often worth 10 points per game.
He also is slightly better on passing shots than me...lets say he hits 20% winners on those, I probably hit 15%.
So the edges he has are not all that many. I counteract many of them with superior speed and agility.
So why was he so dominate at first?
The same reason B scored 12 on me in the second game.
Position.
When one player is in the mid court and the other in the back court, it makes the player in the front court 50% or more better. They have the best scoring position, the best defensive position, and the biggest margin for error.
So when I allow myself to get distracted and stop moving to center mid court at every opportunity, I squander any advantage I have and suddenly small advantages for the opponent become huge advantages.
That is the single biggest shift in the outcomes of my games with A. Once I seized mid court I continue to hit a low percentage of winners via kill shot or passing shot...but I have many more opportunities.
A powerful lesson indeed.
It is one thing to read about the importance of position, another thing entirely to see the difference in live action.
At some point I will probably have a losing streak to A again, and I hope that when I do, I will return, read this, and reclaim the center mid court.
Meanwhile, I finished off the 4th game with a beautiful passing shot that was exactly what I wanted..low to the ground, lightning fast, bounced once inside the first service line and once just past the receiving line when I had driven him to the far side of the court...a great way to finish.
Whereas opponent a was indisputably better than me when we started and won 2 or 3 games by legit 15-1, 15-3 type scores, the me that started Dec. 5th would indisputably dominate B. It would not even be close.
And the me of today is 3-2 against A this year...which means I have gotten much, much better very very quickly but B is honestly not a challenge.
It says something about how I have grown the way I play B.
Whereas in my youth I would have "spotted" him or given massive advantages to him, then absolutely wrecked him anyway, the more mature me plays him straight up...I just play admittedly soft.
See, I think the "spot you 10 points and the serve, then win 15-10" guy is unintentionally being a jerk. He is saying I can give you any amount of advantage and still win because I am just that much better than you.
Well, we started playing and early on I was playing soft but practicing my serve to the backhand. Not the hard serve...just a high, defensive lob serve that I can use when I play right-handers. It will be months before I develop a solid serve to right-handers, but it is imperative I develop at least a defensive serve.
B was struggling with it and there were not many volleys. A quick 15-4, 15-1 demolition later, I switched up my strategy.
I wanted to work on a couple of shots. First, I want to work on the wall shot designed to be a passing shot. I typically hit it too hard...it rebounds off the back wall, giving them plenty of time to get to it. When I do not hit it too hard I hit it too soft and it becomes an easy mid-court shot for them. So I wanted to work on hitting it hard enough to get past them but soft enough to bounce twice before the back wall.
Second, I wanted to work on the corner kill shot.
The best way to do that is get into some rallies. So I started hitting high soft lobs to his forehand.
Unfortunately, I also got int he habit of not playing position. On the bright side we got in some volleys and he hit several nice winners. On the dark side, being out of position let me practice neither of the shots and I was playing too lackadaisically, not getting the workout I wanted.
He even led 10-7 in the third game, though there was no realistic danger of me losing. He ended the game with 10 by the simple expedient of me moving to center court and regaining my position. So it was good practice for that.
Game 4 was more of the same. I kept letting him have the front court and lounging in the back court. And here is where I figured out a valuable lesson.
Player A has a better kill shot than me. Not a massively better, but he hits say...30% kill shots when given the opportunity, and I hit maybe 20%.
Early on he had a much better serve. I struggled so much to return it his serve was often worth 10 points per game.
He also is slightly better on passing shots than me...lets say he hits 20% winners on those, I probably hit 15%.
So the edges he has are not all that many. I counteract many of them with superior speed and agility.
So why was he so dominate at first?
The same reason B scored 12 on me in the second game.
Position.
When one player is in the mid court and the other in the back court, it makes the player in the front court 50% or more better. They have the best scoring position, the best defensive position, and the biggest margin for error.
So when I allow myself to get distracted and stop moving to center mid court at every opportunity, I squander any advantage I have and suddenly small advantages for the opponent become huge advantages.
That is the single biggest shift in the outcomes of my games with A. Once I seized mid court I continue to hit a low percentage of winners via kill shot or passing shot...but I have many more opportunities.
A powerful lesson indeed.
It is one thing to read about the importance of position, another thing entirely to see the difference in live action.
At some point I will probably have a losing streak to A again, and I hope that when I do, I will return, read this, and reclaim the center mid court.
Meanwhile, I finished off the 4th game with a beautiful passing shot that was exactly what I wanted..low to the ground, lightning fast, bounced once inside the first service line and once just past the receiving line when I had driven him to the far side of the court...a great way to finish.
Monday
The 2012 Racquetball Chronicles Round 3
My regular partner is planning to ski this weekend and wanted extra time to recover so asked if we could play earlier this week. I love to play...I would play pretty much every available day if I could find opponents, so of course I responded in the affirmative, booked the court and we were set.
When I got to the gym things started to go wrong. I forgot my towel and lock. That meant leaving my wallet with my grocery money in it and my I-phone in an open locker...not something my mind was at ease about.
Then I could not get into a rhythm with the weights and ended up doing weird sets...instead of 3 sets of 7 at 110, I did 3 sets of 20 at 80 on the preacher curl, for example. And they all felt weird.
Then on the leg kick it started to hurt. The bench press I dropped 20 pounds off my normal weight...and then could not even finish the third set. It was bizarre.
The leg extension I could not adjust the seat so cut the weight in half (!) and still struggled to complete the reps.
I quit. No sense pushing and hurting myself.
I went downstairs and watched basketball for a bit, then the racquetball court opened up so I headed on over and started working on controlling the location and speed of my shots for about 10 minutes.
Then my partner showed up and...had left his racquetball gear in his car. So we got off to a late start.
After warming up for a few minutes, he hit a horrible lag for serve. And I promptly hit an unbelievably bad one that did not even get to the front wall. Ouch.
He started out hot. His serves were perfectly placed for me to crush passing shots down the line to his forehand he could only possibly return if I hit them too high and so they went all the way to the back wall. Instead I mis-hit off my frame over and over until he was up 3-0.
I came back to take a 5-3 lead with a couple nice volley points where I seized center front court and ran him side to side until i could squeeze a pseudo-kill shot he was too winded to get to or else a passing shot he just missed.
Then he got a couple strong serves I could not handle and won a couple volleys off weak returns to go up 8-5.
We went at it pretty strong until he had a 10-7 lead and then something happened I could not believe.
I have had great wind for about a year now. Between biking with Fluffy the Cat and playing tennis at every opportunity, I developed tremendous stamina.
Until tonight when, inexplicably, I developed a side-ache and complete fatigue. I actually had to take a time-out.
Now getting to the ball was tough, and instead of using position and planning my shots, I just tried to get to them and wrist them away from him. I actually thought to myself, "He is winning this game because of my conditioning."
What a huge switch. Always before he has won with a better serve, return and better shots. My massive advantage was speed and endurance.
He built a 14-10 lead and had a tremendous serve that I somehow got to, he hit a kill that I somehow got to and it was my serve.
Ace. 11-14.
Perfect serve down the line he muffed. 12-14.
Great line serve, he returned weakly, corner kill. 13-14.
Perfect serve down the line he muffed. 14-14. Ace. Game.
I scarcely moved from 10-14 until I completed the 5 point comeback. What a great, back and forth game that he should have won. I was ecstatic...he was a bit disappointed. We both knew he should have won and said so.
After a quick break he came out on fire. He always gets very intense after he loses a game. He ran off 7 points and it was not close. I was muffing the easy serves and not even getting to the hard ones.
Part of it was strategy. Late in the first game I had gone for a shot I have been working on. He is to my right waiting for me to hit it down the line to his backhand. I am center back mid-court and the ball is belly button high to my backhand. I like to hit it about 5' from the corner off his back hand wall. It then squirts to the center of the center wall and pinches against the side wall, becoming almost a passing shot kill to the mid court and virtually impossible to return.
Except I mis-hit it and smashed him in the side of the face.
So now when his serve got passed me and I spun, waited and wanted to hit it to his backhand corner, I kept seeing him in the line of my shot. Instead of calling a hinder as I should have, I repeatedly altered my shot and hit a soft shot to his forehand that repeatedly let him smash kill shots.
Worse, when I did return one with a solid defensive shot, I failed to seize the center court forward position. I was playing fatigued and he was putting on an old-fashioned tail-kicking.
I got the serve, dropped an ace, a tough one he gave me a good set-up and I won on a passing shot, and another service winner to come back to 3-7.
Then I could not handle his serves again. 3-8. 4-8. 4-10.7-10.
he went on a run and got to game point, 14-7.Ugh. It was a whipping and no mistake.
So was he and I won a couple of quick serves to get to 10-14. "At least I hit double digits," I commented.
Then we developed a crowd. See, the racquetball court has a glass back wall. It is right next to the girls locker room. And about 6 of them stopped and watch a point. It was the perfect point to watch...
I smashed about as good a serve as I ever have, coming low and hard and would have bounced twice before the back wall, about an inch from the wall. He got to it and squirted it to the back-hand, low and left. I tried a passing shot to the far wall. He got to it and caught me leaning the wrong way, hitting a passing shot to my forehand. As I ran to the back wall, I saw people watching but still flicked a no look over the shoulder that was going to come off the front wall soft. He charged for the kill, I charged to center court. His kill shot skipped, I plowed it into the far corner, he got to it and I hit a beautiful passing shot down the line that was as pretty a shot as I have ever hit.
It was probably the best rally we have ever had, with both of us returning 2 or 3 almost sure-winners hit by the other. After that fantastic display, our audience left...and it was good that they did because he then muffed a poor serve, I put away a quick winner, we had a short, ferocious rally that ended when, in front of him, I leaped and hit the perfect overhead smash into the pinch corner and, at 14-14, won on a service winner.
Yep. I scored 8 straight points to win a game he had in hand.
Wow.
He does not like to leave on a loser, so we had just 10 minutes left, we were going to play to time (even though in reality I suspect he would be ahead and want to finish the game.)
Again and again I muffed cake serves...waist high, easy to read, 4' off the wall. He was winning 5-0 before I returned a serve. I quickly scored a couple, he then scored an ace on a great serve and garnered another point on a serve that pinched off the side wall straight into me...two very good serves in succession.
Then he served a nasty driving serve to my backhand corner which I got a good ceiling defensive return....but he pulled a muscle in his....well...lets just say posterior.
And it was over for the night.
Looking back I really can see how much I have improved but another huge weakness has developed.
I fell in love with a shot that bounces off this back-hand wall, off the center wall, off his forehand wall. But I was hitting it poorly and he was able to stand at center court and hit numerous winners off that. I hit it too high and too far back.
Second, when I got tired I played a lot of back-court instead of trusting my reflexes. Once I started bouncing it to the back wall and sprinting to the mid-court I dominated. It was tough for him to dislodge me from that position, tough for him to get a ball past me without resorting to a high lob off the back wall...which I had more than ample time to get into position to hit scorching passing shots which allowed me to seize the center mid-court.
I need to stop letting him jump to big leads and learn to handle those z-serves, particularly on a night like tonight when his serve was not nearly as strong as it normally is.
Still, I feel great about coming back from 4 and 7 points down to win in adverse circumstances.
I also am going to work on my wind. Back on the bike I go.
Great night, lots of fun.
When I got to the gym things started to go wrong. I forgot my towel and lock. That meant leaving my wallet with my grocery money in it and my I-phone in an open locker...not something my mind was at ease about.
Then I could not get into a rhythm with the weights and ended up doing weird sets...instead of 3 sets of 7 at 110, I did 3 sets of 20 at 80 on the preacher curl, for example. And they all felt weird.
Then on the leg kick it started to hurt. The bench press I dropped 20 pounds off my normal weight...and then could not even finish the third set. It was bizarre.
The leg extension I could not adjust the seat so cut the weight in half (!) and still struggled to complete the reps.
I quit. No sense pushing and hurting myself.
I went downstairs and watched basketball for a bit, then the racquetball court opened up so I headed on over and started working on controlling the location and speed of my shots for about 10 minutes.
Then my partner showed up and...had left his racquetball gear in his car. So we got off to a late start.
After warming up for a few minutes, he hit a horrible lag for serve. And I promptly hit an unbelievably bad one that did not even get to the front wall. Ouch.
He started out hot. His serves were perfectly placed for me to crush passing shots down the line to his forehand he could only possibly return if I hit them too high and so they went all the way to the back wall. Instead I mis-hit off my frame over and over until he was up 3-0.
I came back to take a 5-3 lead with a couple nice volley points where I seized center front court and ran him side to side until i could squeeze a pseudo-kill shot he was too winded to get to or else a passing shot he just missed.
Then he got a couple strong serves I could not handle and won a couple volleys off weak returns to go up 8-5.
We went at it pretty strong until he had a 10-7 lead and then something happened I could not believe.
I have had great wind for about a year now. Between biking with Fluffy the Cat and playing tennis at every opportunity, I developed tremendous stamina.
Until tonight when, inexplicably, I developed a side-ache and complete fatigue. I actually had to take a time-out.
Now getting to the ball was tough, and instead of using position and planning my shots, I just tried to get to them and wrist them away from him. I actually thought to myself, "He is winning this game because of my conditioning."
What a huge switch. Always before he has won with a better serve, return and better shots. My massive advantage was speed and endurance.
He built a 14-10 lead and had a tremendous serve that I somehow got to, he hit a kill that I somehow got to and it was my serve.
Ace. 11-14.
Perfect serve down the line he muffed. 12-14.
Great line serve, he returned weakly, corner kill. 13-14.
Perfect serve down the line he muffed. 14-14. Ace. Game.
I scarcely moved from 10-14 until I completed the 5 point comeback. What a great, back and forth game that he should have won. I was ecstatic...he was a bit disappointed. We both knew he should have won and said so.
After a quick break he came out on fire. He always gets very intense after he loses a game. He ran off 7 points and it was not close. I was muffing the easy serves and not even getting to the hard ones.
Part of it was strategy. Late in the first game I had gone for a shot I have been working on. He is to my right waiting for me to hit it down the line to his backhand. I am center back mid-court and the ball is belly button high to my backhand. I like to hit it about 5' from the corner off his back hand wall. It then squirts to the center of the center wall and pinches against the side wall, becoming almost a passing shot kill to the mid court and virtually impossible to return.
Except I mis-hit it and smashed him in the side of the face.
So now when his serve got passed me and I spun, waited and wanted to hit it to his backhand corner, I kept seeing him in the line of my shot. Instead of calling a hinder as I should have, I repeatedly altered my shot and hit a soft shot to his forehand that repeatedly let him smash kill shots.
Worse, when I did return one with a solid defensive shot, I failed to seize the center court forward position. I was playing fatigued and he was putting on an old-fashioned tail-kicking.
I got the serve, dropped an ace, a tough one he gave me a good set-up and I won on a passing shot, and another service winner to come back to 3-7.
Then I could not handle his serves again. 3-8. 4-8. 4-10.7-10.
he went on a run and got to game point, 14-7.Ugh. It was a whipping and no mistake.
So was he and I won a couple of quick serves to get to 10-14. "At least I hit double digits," I commented.
Then we developed a crowd. See, the racquetball court has a glass back wall. It is right next to the girls locker room. And about 6 of them stopped and watch a point. It was the perfect point to watch...
I smashed about as good a serve as I ever have, coming low and hard and would have bounced twice before the back wall, about an inch from the wall. He got to it and squirted it to the back-hand, low and left. I tried a passing shot to the far wall. He got to it and caught me leaning the wrong way, hitting a passing shot to my forehand. As I ran to the back wall, I saw people watching but still flicked a no look over the shoulder that was going to come off the front wall soft. He charged for the kill, I charged to center court. His kill shot skipped, I plowed it into the far corner, he got to it and I hit a beautiful passing shot down the line that was as pretty a shot as I have ever hit.
It was probably the best rally we have ever had, with both of us returning 2 or 3 almost sure-winners hit by the other. After that fantastic display, our audience left...and it was good that they did because he then muffed a poor serve, I put away a quick winner, we had a short, ferocious rally that ended when, in front of him, I leaped and hit the perfect overhead smash into the pinch corner and, at 14-14, won on a service winner.
Yep. I scored 8 straight points to win a game he had in hand.
Wow.
He does not like to leave on a loser, so we had just 10 minutes left, we were going to play to time (even though in reality I suspect he would be ahead and want to finish the game.)
Again and again I muffed cake serves...waist high, easy to read, 4' off the wall. He was winning 5-0 before I returned a serve. I quickly scored a couple, he then scored an ace on a great serve and garnered another point on a serve that pinched off the side wall straight into me...two very good serves in succession.
Then he served a nasty driving serve to my backhand corner which I got a good ceiling defensive return....but he pulled a muscle in his....well...lets just say posterior.
And it was over for the night.
Looking back I really can see how much I have improved but another huge weakness has developed.
I fell in love with a shot that bounces off this back-hand wall, off the center wall, off his forehand wall. But I was hitting it poorly and he was able to stand at center court and hit numerous winners off that. I hit it too high and too far back.
Second, when I got tired I played a lot of back-court instead of trusting my reflexes. Once I started bouncing it to the back wall and sprinting to the mid-court I dominated. It was tough for him to dislodge me from that position, tough for him to get a ball past me without resorting to a high lob off the back wall...which I had more than ample time to get into position to hit scorching passing shots which allowed me to seize the center mid-court.
I need to stop letting him jump to big leads and learn to handle those z-serves, particularly on a night like tonight when his serve was not nearly as strong as it normally is.
Still, I feel great about coming back from 4 and 7 points down to win in adverse circumstances.
I also am going to work on my wind. Back on the bike I go.
Great night, lots of fun.
Saturday
The 2012 Racquetball Chronicles Round 2
One of the guys from work has been wanting to get into racquetball to get back into shape. This morning we had an 8 o clock game set up.
Before the game we hit it back and forth for a bit and a few things were readily apparent to me. One, he has lost a fair amount of his agility and ability to hit the ball but it will come back quickly. Two, if I went all-out this would not be much fun for either of us. So I resolved to set up rallies and work on my serve location to a right handed player since my normal playing partner is leftie.
I had him serve first and worked on serve position, shot selection, and shot execution. The ball was certainly coming back at slower speeds, but it gave me the time to think about where I wanted to be on the court.
I was doing a good job of moving into the aggressive fore-court position and my reflexes were letting me not just get to the ball but actually think about where I wanted to hit my return. When he lobbed it over me, i was able to get to the back wall, think about my next shot, and was doing a good job of playing a defensive shot instead of always trying for an offensive shot even when out of position.
I also was able to recognize how important it was to re-lob it to him. This allowed me to get off the back wall and back into my prime position in fore-court, ready to take any low shot off the wall and put it away for a point.
I did score a lot of points off serves close to either wall he struggled to return so I spent a lot of time working on lobs to either corner to experiment with where to serve to a right-hander.
This is not a knock on him. He has not played in nearly 30 years, I am younger, quicker, in better shape, and have been playing for over a month...I should and did badly outclass him. I was able to toy with him, work on my game and still completely dominate the match.
I won 15-4, 15-6, 15-6.
He then wanted to work on his back-hand. I offered to just hit it around but he wanted to play another game so we did. He jumped out to a 1-0 lead on one of those z-serves I struggle so much with. I then took a 3-1 lead. And then he had a string of serves and a couple volley put aways. I was working hard on hitting it to his back hand and forgot to play position. So he was in front of me and I was struggling to put away winners.
Once I remembered to get back in position I kept pounding his backhand and ran out the game 15-6. He broke my serve a couple times but could not score off me again once I remembered to seize center court forward.
Overall it was a great time. Even though I was never in danger of losing a game, it was a good workout and allowed me to work on several weaknesses much more than working on reinforcing any particular strengths.
We did have several fun rallies involving getting to shots it seemed impossible for either of us to get to and I thoroughly enjoyed those.
I also had a really fun shot that was tight to my backhand when I was at the dotted line just left of center court. I pulled it tight and low, garnering a pretty good kill shot in the low right corner that bounced twice within about 8" of the wall. Probably the best shot I have hit yet.
So overall a fun day that i think improved my game a lot.
Before the game we hit it back and forth for a bit and a few things were readily apparent to me. One, he has lost a fair amount of his agility and ability to hit the ball but it will come back quickly. Two, if I went all-out this would not be much fun for either of us. So I resolved to set up rallies and work on my serve location to a right handed player since my normal playing partner is leftie.
I had him serve first and worked on serve position, shot selection, and shot execution. The ball was certainly coming back at slower speeds, but it gave me the time to think about where I wanted to be on the court.
I was doing a good job of moving into the aggressive fore-court position and my reflexes were letting me not just get to the ball but actually think about where I wanted to hit my return. When he lobbed it over me, i was able to get to the back wall, think about my next shot, and was doing a good job of playing a defensive shot instead of always trying for an offensive shot even when out of position.
I also was able to recognize how important it was to re-lob it to him. This allowed me to get off the back wall and back into my prime position in fore-court, ready to take any low shot off the wall and put it away for a point.
I did score a lot of points off serves close to either wall he struggled to return so I spent a lot of time working on lobs to either corner to experiment with where to serve to a right-hander.
This is not a knock on him. He has not played in nearly 30 years, I am younger, quicker, in better shape, and have been playing for over a month...I should and did badly outclass him. I was able to toy with him, work on my game and still completely dominate the match.
I won 15-4, 15-6, 15-6.
He then wanted to work on his back-hand. I offered to just hit it around but he wanted to play another game so we did. He jumped out to a 1-0 lead on one of those z-serves I struggle so much with. I then took a 3-1 lead. And then he had a string of serves and a couple volley put aways. I was working hard on hitting it to his back hand and forgot to play position. So he was in front of me and I was struggling to put away winners.
Once I remembered to get back in position I kept pounding his backhand and ran out the game 15-6. He broke my serve a couple times but could not score off me again once I remembered to seize center court forward.
Overall it was a great time. Even though I was never in danger of losing a game, it was a good workout and allowed me to work on several weaknesses much more than working on reinforcing any particular strengths.
We did have several fun rallies involving getting to shots it seemed impossible for either of us to get to and I thoroughly enjoyed those.
I also had a really fun shot that was tight to my backhand when I was at the dotted line just left of center court. I pulled it tight and low, garnering a pretty good kill shot in the low right corner that bounced twice within about 8" of the wall. Probably the best shot I have hit yet.
So overall a fun day that i think improved my game a lot.
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