Spazzing Out In Mid-Set

Sets 241-242:

My Mojo: Quick Flameout.

Stuart vs. S. at Harris Branch. Winner: S. 6-2, 6-2.

Both this time and the last time that I played this guy, I felt like I had a chance starting out. I warmed up feeling pretty good, and played really well my first three games, and was up 2-1. Then, typically, I went spazz. Nothing seemed to work right for me any more. I hit just a few too many weak returns, and let him get in position for blazing net games which he managed to control too well for me to even get anything going. My forearm was not giving me that easy roll that brings me fast, solid shots just over the net, placed well, with good topspin. No, I pretty much got the opposite of that after the first few games.

He seems like the type of player who "ramps up," too. The first few games, it seems like he was taking it a little bit easy and reading how I was going to play, and then coming in around game 5 with an edgier style of play that is custom tailored to my weaknesses. I think that is the mark of a lot of pretty good players. They take some time to test their opponents, and then adjust their style to what they see. And as he was ramping up, I was flaming out.

In the second set, though the score was the same, I felt much more outplayed. Many of the games were closer in the first set, whereas many of the games in the second set were blowouts. I also didn't feel like my serve was bringing me as many advantages in the second set. He honed in for easy kills, and though I did manage to eke out a couple of games, it wasn't as much because my play improved as because his error rate went up a little. Not a noble way to win games, and certainly not a noble way to lose a set.