Finally had a USTA match tonight, after being on vacation, a bye and two weeks missed because of the sinus infection. What a disaster it was. Lost 2-6, 0-6. Maybe that's me being harsh, because most games went to deuce or at least 30-40. It felt at times like it could go the other way, but it didn't.
I'm trying to cut myself a little slack, because I've played one actual match in my four months of tennis experience, and even that was against Diana, not total strangers. I kind of expected this outcome, because I just haven't played enough outside of lessons. I think a part of me just thought I might get away with more. I suppose not touching a fuzzy ball in about a month doesn't help things either.
I felt bad for my partner, who has been playing a lot longer, and gets out with his wife to play a few times a week. He has the benefit of being retired, which sure helps. We held our own pretty well through a lot of points, but I never hit a solid rhythm from the base line.
It's the weird shit that I'm good at. We gave up two high returns ripe for overhand destruction, and in both cases, I snagged the balls out of the air to return them. That's the volleyball reflex, I would think. The problem is that crazy stuff, while exciting and crowd pleasing (if there were a crowd watching), isn't particularly useful without the basics down.
I have to accept that I'm probably going to be slightly miserable with my skill level for awhile. I want more, faster, and obviously you can't just shortcut experience. I've gotta figure out how not to beat myself up over that.
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