31.05.2013, 5.00pm
After a 7 hour drive, a big group of us arrived in Kalgoorlie around 6pm in the afternoon where we were met by Dianne who is the tournament organizer. From here we were dispursed around to different billets and houses. I am staying with mr Grant who used to play a bit of squash before, but not such much anymore. My billet is not much into internet, I have no wifi here, so boredom is my friend. I got a bowl of soup when I arrived, so the first thing I did the next day was going foodshopping. Most of you know that I do not really function well without enough food :P
Being in Perth in the sun for the last weeks has spoiled us through and through, so it was a bit of a reality check to drive through the cats and dogs from the sky and into a land where weather changes like socks. At the YMCA squash centre there are 5 courts, where today it was frrrrrrreeeeeezing on the courts. Qualifying is over and it looks quite strong.
Kalgoorlie is a mining town with a long history and the main thing to check out here is the "Super pit" which is a massive goldmine right next to the city centre. Its about 4*2km and 500m deep. It takes you 1 hour to drive up from the pit from the bottom. I was up there on my second day here to check it out. see under:
After a 7 hour drive, a big group of us arrived in Kalgoorlie around 6pm in the afternoon where we were met by Dianne who is the tournament organizer. From here we were dispursed around to different billets and houses. I am staying with mr Grant who used to play a bit of squash before, but not such much anymore. My billet is not much into internet, I have no wifi here, so boredom is my friend. I got a bowl of soup when I arrived, so the first thing I did the next day was going foodshopping. Most of you know that I do not really function well without enough food :P
Being in Perth in the sun for the last weeks has spoiled us through and through, so it was a bit of a reality check to drive through the cats and dogs from the sky and into a land where weather changes like socks. At the YMCA squash centre there are 5 courts, where today it was frrrrrrreeeeeezing on the courts. Qualifying is over and it looks quite strong.
Kalgoorlie is a mining town with a long history and the main thing to check out here is the "Super pit" which is a massive goldmine right next to the city centre. Its about 4*2km and 500m deep. It takes you 1 hour to drive up from the pit from the bottom. I was up there on my second day here to check it out. see under:
How I keep myself entertained at the casa... bought 5 dvds :P
Tomorrow the main draw starts, and I am on at 3.15pm against the third seed from Bermuda, Micah Franklin. He used to train with us in Amsterdam a few years ago, and I know it will be a good match.
I started off my match controlled, working out my length and width first of all, ridding any remaining nerves. I did not have to do much, but play it tight and steady. The points started racking up. I think I was 10-5 up, when I had a bit of a tactical blackout. I lost the next 4 points by playing stupid shots, but luckily learned from my last tournament what not to do, so I closed it out 11-9. The coming games, I stuck better to my gameplan and took the sting out of a frustrated opponent. I won in 3 games to 0, which was a very good win for me :)
03.06.2013
, 4.11pm
In the
quarter final of the tournament I faced Adam Auckland of England, who is an
unseeded player on his way up the ranks. As many others, he starts off his
career playing the Australian tour. He is a very talented player, who can play
winners and shots from any position of the court. He has produced some
impressive results over the last weeks beating top seeds and making finals. I
knew this one would be very tough. Not giving away too much, I can still say
that I had a good tactics in place for the match. However, matching myself
against a player of that caliber, I really had to try to outsmart him, and even
if I played flawless, it would still be hard.
The first game was tight
all the way and my game plan worked. I stayed disciplined for 90% of the time,
and those remaining 10% actually made me lose the game 9-11. I was 9-8 up, and
playing well, but believe me, it is so so so difficult to stick 100% to a
gameplan. But speaking for myself, I have never been this disciplined in my
entire life. My opponent was affected by it as well, as he was stripped of
options and his natural style of play. Still, his skill won him a few more
points than me. Skill over mind….
The
remaining 2 games followed the same pattern, and you can probably compare the
score to my level of discipline and how well I stuck to my game plan. Next
game: 6-11, 60% discipline, next game: 7-11, 70% discipline. I lost in 3, but
still the best match I ever played tactically. I was very relaxed and moving
well. I am hitting the ball ok, but still have a long way to go when it comes
to adding spin to the ball, taking it early and controlling the ball well at
all paces. It is good to have something to work on, but as mentioned earlier, I
am glad I can finally play international tournaments at the level I know I can
play. I got a lot of positive feedback after my match, which I really
appreciate. People did not think I would
score many points in this match. My opponent keeps a top 100 level when
he is playing well, and being able to match such a player right now, is ahead
of my schedule, but a very positive sign
We are now
on our way back from Kalgoorlie to Perth to depart from Perth off to Adelaide
tomorrow afternoon. Here I will play the remaining tournaments of this years
tour.
