Singapore University Games Update

Dear SMU,

We would like to congratulate Kamil on his excellent win over #1 seed, Marc. Against an opponent like Marc, a win was always a difficult task. Even when Kamil had some service breaks, Marc was always in the game and whenever he looked like he was about to self-destruct, Marc would always find his game and sometimes even bring it up a notch. Lesser beings (like Jason and myself for example) would usually be overwhelmed by the sudden energy and lose composure. However, Kamil was able to react accordingly, not get flustered and persevere with his typical “using-everything-to-get-the-ball-back” game.

Our other finalists, Josh and Vijay are also equally deserving. Against a very tough pair, they showed their mettle. Vijay, in particular, was outstanding throughout apart from a momentary flare up over a contentious call. Josh, possibly the most accomplished doubles player in the competition, brought his usual reliable game to court and that put the pressure perpetually on the opponents. Nonetheless, there should be no underestimation of Gerald and Eric. The underdogs have defeated two doubles pairings who were both expected to win. Although the scoreline for both was a mere 9-8, it shows if anything, the volatility of doubles and the conclusion is never known till it happens.

To our two girls doubles pairing of Sheryl and Clarissa, Jacintha and Ili, it was really a case of tough luck again. Not only were their opponents very very competent, the long weekend break removed some of the momentum generated last Friday. Even so, all 4 displayed tremendous grit and determination to get to every ball. Jac and Ili in particular were mentally impregnable and were simply the unlucky victims, as is the case for the losing pair for most if not all tennis tiebreaks.

Apart from Kamil, the only other player who had the unfortunate task of playing a national player was Charlene. Tamsyn is no doubt a player of the highest quality and as such, losing to her is anything but a disgrace. I am sure Charlene did everything she could to give Tamsyn a good fight and that is all that matters.

To all of you who remain in the singles and doubles competition, kudos for helping SMU obtain a medal, regardless of colour. You have achieved more than many others and you should be proud of yourself. Do your best in your remaining matches and good luck.

SUNIG aside, let me give you reasons why you should not vote for Josh (Clar and Jac) for SSU.

1) They are hardworking and dedicated

2) They are good-looking

3) They bring life and spirit to the people around them

What is SSU? Excellent question! I have no idea what SSU does. I have not seen them before, and aside from processing some claims for court bookings, have not heard of the scope of their roles and responsibilities. Unless you wish to see a drastic change in this ghost, faceless, apparently useless association to one with life and spirit, gorgeous faces and individuals committed to the improvement of sports in SMU, please do not vote for Josh (Clar and Jac) only for them to put their time and talent to waste.

15 days later

The handing over ceremony of the mantle of "top tennis player in the world" will take place on August 18. Despite capitulating to the world no.3 who shall not be named here, Nadal will assume the post Federer has occupied comfortably for the past 234 weeks. Nadal should have no problems getting accustomed to the seat as Federer had been warming it for him since the French Open drubbing. SMU Tennis will most likely hold a closed-door conference to decide on our direction in light of this earth-shattering change. Though we are currently Federer's no.1 fan, it is pointless to flog a dead horse; even more to wholeheartedly support a has-been. The only has-been who deserves a permanent atrium in our hearts is 14-time Grand Slam winner, the hairiest professional tennis player of all time, Pistol Pete Sampras. Nonetheless, we will notify you in due course whether Federer survives our collective voting.

We thank you for the increased readership we have been witnessing since the blog was updated. To make it even more interactive and vibrant, we have decided to add a tag board! *Cheers* We face a minuscule problem though - none of us know how to insert a tag board. Thus, we would really appreciate if someone steps forward and volunteers his knowledge and skills in helping set up our first ever tennis tag board. Apart from a special mention and a few days, maybe a week, of gratitude, we are unfortunately unable to provide any other remuneration.

Please contact Nick if you possess this prized skill and are willing to harness it to SMU Tennis's benefit.

Demise of the RF reign?

Dearest Roger,

Awake your senses, for you be the better judge;
Mirka Mirka, she's ruining your touch.
First Novak, then came Nadal;
Simon, Karlovic and co. are queuing to claim your scalp.

Losing Wimbledon was a big blow no doubt,
But you have to regain your clout.
Your 235 weeks as No.1 is slowly coming to an end,
Not unless you believe your destiny is solely in your hands.

Your no.1 fan,
SMU Tennis

(http://www.tennisweek.com/news/fullstory.sps?inewsid=6615122)

Kamil injures himself in charity attempt

For those of you who know Kamil Ghazali, you would know he is a tough cookie with a kind heart. It is this very heart that made him run 120 rounds of a 400m track in the recently concluded trilympics fundraiser. That he ran 48km is itself a feat that not many others can proclaim to have completed for charity. What is more noble is the fact that he hurt his ankle in the process. Knowing Kamil, he would still have done it all over again even if it means getting injured again.

For those of us who did not lift a finger or foot to help out in charity this holidays, the least we can do is to give Kamil our sincere prayers. With less than a month to the all-important competition, the anchorman of the SMU Tennis Team is deeply missed. Although considered one of Singapore's brightest talents ever, being out of action for even a couple of weeks can amount to significant loss of match fitness and sharpness and this may prove decisive in our quest for SUNIG glory.

Let us combine our well-wishes and hope for a speedy recovery for our very own "Speedy Gonzalez"!

Dead or Alive?

To our pious followers, we would like to assure you that the tennis team is very much alive and kicking! The blog has been dormant as we have been involved in many other external activities such as Jason and Kamil's overseas CIP to Guangzhou, Jac and Clarissa's summer school in Switzerland and tour of Europe, Vijay's jetsetting lifestyle; Nick backpacking Vietnam; Josh going Down Under and many more.

However, as SUNIG nears once again, we are putting our hearts, minds, souls and bodies into preparations to defend and hopefully surpass our silver achieved last year. There is some rumour that SIM and NTU have many talented freshmen in their guys stable this year but we believe that with the dedication of our current batch, we will still be able to give them and the defending champions NUS a run for their money. There is quiet optimism in our girls team that this could be their year. With a few freshwomen strengthening the squad, there is every possibility that we can improve on last year's 2nd place finishing. Nevertheless, the new format of the competition - team + singles/doubles - will ensure a very close competition. Watch this space for more details on competition dates, venues and timings.

On a side but very important note, we are deeply saddened by Roger's sudden lack of form. We agonise with him over his heartbreaking loss to Rafael in the finals of Wimbledon and we hope that our combined prayers will help mend his broken spirit. We are still ardent fans of his game - a fusion of immaculate grace and technique - and we hope that he can find in himself the air of confidence and invincibility he once exuded. Only then will he stand a chance against the bull of Pamplona, Rafael. You notice that we talk mostly about the world no.1 and no.2 and not many others, and for very good reason. There is a consensus amongst the guys, at least, that Novak has the poorest attitude and doesn't deserve any praise on this very special blog which is meant only for the greatest of greats.

School begins in 3 weeks but for our dearest fans who cannot wait to catch a glimpse of us, we have regular trainings at Anglo Chinese Junior College between 730 am - 930 am. We will oblige with autographs and pictures for anyone who makes the superhuman effort to come down at such ungodly hours. Yes, inhumane training conditions can do nothing but improve our game.

Till then,
SMU Tennis

P.S. For the girls who disagree with our assessment of Novak because you are mesmerised by his "good looks" (it cannot possibly be his game), it is time to look closer to home, to the green green courts of ACJC, especially on Saturday mornings.

We're back!

To our dearest supporters and fans, it is with great pleasure that SMU Tennis announces its return!

After arduous weeks of mugging in the library, countless sleepless nights and a pack of shiity grades, we traded our books for rackets and hit the bright and sunny courts of Kallang Tennis Centre for 2 hours of intensive matchplay.


Matchup 1:
Men's Doubles - Kamil/Nick vs Jason/Josh

In a repeat of the clash of the titans, this doubles was again anything but heart-stopping. Jason, who had been keeping fit by playing hours of cage soccer, was eager to prove that their win in Laguna was anything but a fluke. Nick, who was deeply sore about the previous loss, was out to prove the point that the court surface was crucial factor in the last tie. The match began with Jason opting to serve first and although he had almost all his first serves in, he just could not hold serve. A combination of solid service returns and slick volleying ensured that Jason's first serves were neutralised. However, Nick went on to double fault thrice in the next game to hand the advantage back to Josh and Jason on a platter.

Josh - fresh from his victory in the Intermediate tournament - went on to dish out a service masterclass and held his game to love. With the score at 2-1, it was left to Kamil to even things out. Alas, inspired returning and cool heads at the net allowed Josh and Jason to break the Kamil serve and at 3-1, the tie seemed destined to end in double J's favour. Again, Lady Luck refused to smile on Jason and Nick and despite good service percentages, both failed to hold serves. It was no surprise then at 5-2, after Josh had held his serve again, that Kamil and Nick were in a do-or-die situation. Thankfully, solid nerves prevailed and at 5-3, hope of a comeback appeared in the distant horizon. The turning point finally arrived in a thrilling point in which there were no less than 2 brilliant "gets" by Nick. The first was when Jason hit a short crosscourt forehand which evaded Kamil at the net. Nick, showing that he was still up to speed, dashed a good 10m to the ball and just managed to flick a high looping return. The point was kept alive but moments later, another short ball threatened to end the point and Nick was again on hand to rescue it; this time, he stretched forward and nicked it (no pun) just above the flailing arms of Josh. Jason, covering the baseline, sprinted across to the other side and somehow contrived to keep the ball in play. However, it was not enough as Kamil soon ended the most exciting point of match with a sublime volley at the net.

This was enough to ensure Kamil and Nick remained in the game and they rode their momentum and went on to win the next 4 games to win the match with a score of 7-5. Jason could be heard muttering loudly (as usual) about how his footwork was off, his forehand was a huge letdown and how he wanted to quit tennis (for the 831509183651th time).


Matchup 2:
Mixed Doubles - Casimir/Clar v Josh/Jac

The 2 girls who turned up for training were visibly lonely while the guys were having the duel of their lives in the above doubles. Clar and Jac, in matching pink Yonex tops and carrying red water jugs, were contented to simply chill and play with Belly Button Quad-ry and had to be cajoled into stepping into the court and hit some balls. They lazyingly obliged but in typical slothy fashion, slugged their way around court. All this changed when Casimir arrived. Wielding his Prostaff 6.0 having ditched N-Code, Casimir appeared to be in great form as he offered to spar with the girls. Despite the numerical disadvantage, he peppered the girls with blistering groundstrokes that had the effect of getting the girls all worked up and excited about tennis! Josh then offered to play a mix doubles and the game got going after an unusually long warmup.

The misconception that mixed doubles was anything but fun was laid to rest once the game began. Josh, who was showing no mercy to his female teammates, pounded his huge serve not just at Cas, but at Clar too. The double Cs, however, were not overawed by the booming serves and carved out some brilliant returns that left Jac, the slow-mo, stunned at the net. Outstretched arms and desperate dives from Jac was not enough as she was passed repeatedly at the net. Josh was determined to make his opponents pay for bullying Jac and seized every opportunity to rush to his favourite zone - the net. Once there, his silky touches caused pandemonium in C&C's court and they looked like mice scurrying around looking for cheese as they scrambled after angled volleys.

Threatening Mails received

SMU Tennis is seeing the beginning of a fierce rivalry between 2 unnamed players who will be called J and N for anonymous purposes. Below is the letter of intent that was sent by J:

There is one thing I cannot approve in this life, simple code my life lives by, ego above all. We will settle it in the next tennis session, call it the duel of fates, obi wan kenobi vs darth maul. You may be backed by the power of the darkside, but you are evil, a monstrosity, a force to be destroyed ever so swiftly. I feel the force, the Jedi force, call it Yoda or Anakin spirits churning, the forces will collide, and you will fall, fall hard like an egg hitting the fan...you can call it shit hitting the fan too.

Editor's note: There was a query from another worried member of the tennis team. Essentially, how does an egg FALL and hit the FAN? Perhaps J may wish to clarify the nature of his magic FAN, or EGG for that matter.

J is not one to mince his words and N will most certainly be taking this seriously. SMU Tennis wishes to advice both parties to recognise and respect the sanctity of sportsmanship; there is more to life than winning a tennis match 6-2, 6-1 - having a GPA of 4.3 could possibly be one such reason. Nevertheless, this promises an exciting future and both players will challenge themselves to the maximum to maintain their pride. This bodes well for SMU Tennis.

Tennis Clinic Grand Finale

Just as all good things usually come to an end, the SMU Tennis Clinic met its end last Saturday at ACJC. The turnout was good, as it has been throughout the 4 weeks, and the weather was perfect for optimum training until about 10 minutes from the end, when the Heavens shared the sadness of the coaches and the participants at the end of the Clinic and shed her tears.

SMU Tennis certainly enjoyed imparting our skills and knowledge of the game to our eager learners. We sincerely hope that we have not disappointed anyone and if we have, we apologise unreservedly. We hope to organise more of such events for even more learners in future to spread the joy of tennis.

Once again, thanks to all the participants for being so sporting and enduring all our nonsense! Hope to see you around and again soon! :)

Team Photo:
Front Row: Mens and Ladies Team
Second, Third and Fourth Rows: Participants

Saturday Training: Singles Report

Training for the Mens Team this week was at the famous ACJC courts, home turf of 6 time gold medallists, Kamil and Josh (the Ladies Team was having a gruelling training with Lela at her condominium).

Atendance was perfect, for the 2nd time in a week and the 6 guys proceeded to play 2 matches - 1 singles and 1 doubles. In the singles, Jason "Blake" Poh took on Nick "Dugong" Poon. It was billed by Kamil as the clash of schools - Econs v. Law. Previously in this duel, Nick barely triumphed with a 7-5 win. This time, the factors leading up to the match were quite different. Jason, who had been busy with school the whole week, as well as physical training which had left him reeling from muscle aches for 3 days since Tuesday, was not in the best shape to take on the 11.30am heat and the quick, skiddy surface of the ACJC courts.

Nick on the other hand appeared fresher, more eager to repeat his feat and he took the match very seriously from the word "go". The intensity of the match was evident from the very first point, and Jason unleashed a pinpoint forehand to clinch the tight deuce which threatened to break his service game. Unfortunately, those forehands were few and far between. Jason's errors began to pile up faster than the typical law student's assignments and Nick was contented to allow Jason to self-destruct. Tension reached boiling point and at one stage, Jason even tossed his racket into the tree cover 10m above. Luckily, he did not cause any physical damage to the tree. The set was over quickly with another of Jason's shot failing to clear the net. The score read 6-2 in Nick's favour. An unfortunate tennis ball had to bear the brunt of Jason's ire and promptly found itself out of the court.

The 2nd set began almost in the same fashion as the first one ended. Nick was clearly on a roll and pounded his famed forehand, one after another, to Jason's frustration. That frustration was compounded by his errors, ironically the usual trademark of Nick. The set ended again in Nick's favour with a score of 6-1. Jason, clearly pissed with himself, sent another ball out of the court and promptly threatened his racket that he was close to smashing it - such was his irritation. Probably overwhelmed by the physical exertion, Jason was later found taking a nap at the nearby stadium benches.

By Popular Request

It had been brought to our attention that our collage of players was lacking in the "ogling" aspect. We apologise for the lack of good-looking members of our LADIES TEAM.

We hope that this picture is sufficient compensation.

SMU Tennis is chipping in to capture the ISD Most Wanted

History was made today

Today marked the day that SMU Tennis Mens Team registered PERFECT attendance for our weekly physical session. Our Guest-of-Honour, Jason (2nd Lieutenant) Poh was kind enough to grace the occasion. More than that, Jason was punctual, wore a totally nondescript adidas shirt (the rest wore SMU Tennis jerseys) and a pair of tight OCS shorts showing his sexy, but overflowing butt cheeks. However, his presence more than made up for all these shortcomings.

The run began as per normal, taking us through the bustling street towards Raffles City and the Padang. As with previous weeks, the ladies team ran 3 rounds around the Padang (approximately 600-700m each round), whilst the guys ran 5 rounds in the opposite direction.

The guys started off with a blistering pace set by #1 tennis player, Kamil. By the end of the first round, most of the guys were visibly short of breath. Jason courageously stepped up to lead the 2nd round. He too, tried to maintain the fast tempo but by the end of the 2nd round, Jason was showing signs of lack of physical fitness.

The first sign of trouble arrived in the form of Vijay (Singh) Krishna suffering from shoulder pains and having to reduce his speed. The team slowed the pace to accommodate Vijay. As Joshua likes to say, "We start as a team, we end as a team."

Slowly, Jason too displayed ominous signs of falling out. However, upon the urging of his teammates, especially Kamil who could be heard yelling out names like "Natalie Hiong" and "Debbie" and phrases like "SB1 is better than SG1", Jason became like a man possessed and ran through the exhaustion barrier.

The ladies team decided to adopt a different approach: Adeline, the fastest runner in the team, elected to run alone so as to challenge herself to improve upon her personal best. Alicia partnered with Sheryl; Clarissa with Jac. This partnership proved very effective as the girls egged their partners on and finished the run without much fuss.

As with all runs, our tour of Padang ended about 30 minutes after it began. We took a slow leisurely walk back to the gym where our second round of physical awaited. Today, instead of the usual 15-minute death-inducing skipping, we decided to do some plyometric exercise that involved us jumping laterally, front and back over a cone. This took the steam out of the players and even the more seasoned ones like Kamil and Joshua were crying out loud by the end of the exercise.

In the end, it was a fruitful physical session once more - calories were burnt, psychological barriers defeated, pain endured and much more. We can only hope that our superstar, one of the top Economics student, will grace our mortal training a little more often, with a little more enthusiasm. As it is, after the physical, at least 3 of the guys headed straight for the library, 4th floor to be precise, to bury our heads in our books, or laptops for some.

Life just would not be the same without mugging.

Federer loses twice in a row

PARIS : Roger Federer lost in the first round of a tournament for the first time in three-and-a-half years when he was beaten by Andy Murray, the 20-year old Briton who was a revelation with his cool attitude and his counter-attack.

The unseeded player's 6-7 (6/8), 6-3, 6-4 win means that the world number one has not yet won a tournament this year, having lost in the semi-finals of the Australian Open to Novak Djokovic of Serbia.

He lost the last time he played Murray too, 19 months ago in Cincinnati, when he could claim he was tired from his previous week's efforts.

This time there was no such explanation, though Federer is short of match play, and when the match got tight was not able to unleash his customary ability to produce overwhelming tennis.

"It was nothing to do with his game," insisted Federer.

"It was a tricky game for both of us. One of the big guys had to go out.

"It's difficult but it could have been worse. It wasn't a bad match but that's the only positive I can take from tonight.

"I thought I was missing forehands by two or three metres. That's awful. You have it lined up and suddenly it's out which comes as a shock."

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_sports/view/332675/1/.html

Is it Kamil's turn to lose twice in a row?

Watch this space for the upcoming report on the next round of doubles featuring our very best!

Overseas Tennis Training Trip

SMU Tennis is looking forward to the end of the school term as that marks the beginning of our proposed overseas trip!

After a relatively successful season in 2007, we are eager to challenge ourselves and develop our game even further. A trip to Gold Coast or HK/Shenzhen is on the cards to meet this objective. However, we are short of funds despite organising the largely popular and successful tennis clinic. (More on that in another post)

As such, we are appealing to EVERYONE to make our trip possible. We accept all forms of sponsorship: cash, kind, goods, services. We are confident of energising and increasing the appeal of your product and be worthy ambassadors!

For other suggestions on how we can raise funds for this trip, do not hesitate to contact us!

Tennis Coaches

The ladies team is currently training with former Singapore national player, Lela Zainal. Lela is undoubted one of the most talented female players to have represented the country but she comes with a heavy price tag. For confidentiality reasons, we are unable to disclose the exact sum.

The guys team had a trial session with Lela but are still on the lookout for others. Some of those under consideration are Frank from Savitar at Swissotel and Daniel Heryanto, national coach of Singapore. The more illustrious ones are Brad Gilbert, Andy Roddick's former coach, and Tony Roche who was sacked by Federer after he failed to win the French Open.

Interested parties who believe they have what it takes to bring the team to the next level may apply at tennis@sa.smu.edu.sg. Please send in your full CV and an application fee of $1000.

Match Report 02/03/2008

Match Report: 02 March 2008

On a morning with the sound of rain pattering incessantly against the window accompanied with the smell of the fresh dew, most people would be either still in bed or in church. Not Kamil or Nick. They took to the neighbour of the famous Arsenal JSSL academy - Kallang Tennis Centre - to begin the first of a series of exhibition friendlies. Kamil had just completed a set of 9 games prior to the friendly at the Padang, and was clearly more ready at the go than the sheepish and still somewhat lumbering Nick who could still feel the Al-Ameen prata consumed late last night somewhere in his digestive tract.

Despite the drizzle, the match began and a combination of blistering shots from Kamil and patently common unforced backhand errors by Nick resulted in a demolition of 9-0 in record time - all of 25 minutes. Although there were 3 games of deuces, there was never any doubt that Kamil was able to find his rhythm faster and maintained it longer. Nick had ostensibly left his, if any, in the SMU library. Kamil was visibly intent on avenging his startling defeat to Nick just a couple of days ago when he lost numerous tie-breaks, including an 11 point tie-break in which he was 10-6 up. Then, as was now, Nick demonstrated just how fast he was and could be, much to the surprise of Kamil who realised that he had to do that little bit more to win the point. Nevertheless, ever the strategist, Kamil's guile and consistency was sufficient to deconstruct Nick's game into nothing more than mere frustration. In a set where winners by both players could be counted by one hand literally, it boiled down to who made more forced and unforced errors. No prizes for guessing the winner in that contest.

With a bit of time remaining before the hour was up, the pair embarked on a second set. However, the rain would have none of it and the game was interrupted with the score at 2-1. Nick, who seemed to have found his game somewhat was disappointed that the game could not continue. With the mid-term break ending, his concern of lack of games was justified. Kamil though, was contented to end the day with this resounding defeat and added salt to injury by telling his opponent that he had a lot of work cut out for him. He even went so far as to instruct Nick to come up with his SMART goals. ******** was the immediate response.

The pair adjourned for a quick lunch at the popular shopping mall of Leisure Park and promptly headed back to school for some respite and mugging. When asked about his thoughts on the rivalry, Nick would only say this, 'he (kamil) may have the better of me on the court right now, but off it, in the confines of the library, I'm still the one he seeks help from. So God is fair.' Perhaps the tables can be turned around one day where Nick may be the winner on the court and Kamil, off the court. Till then, it's back to studying.

Match Report 08/02/2008

In the 1st event of the SMU Tennis Master Series, the pairing of Joshua "Federer" Woshie and Jason "James Blake" Poh upset reigning champions Kamil "Tsonga" Ghazali and Nick "Davinder Singh" Poon 7-5, 7-5. In so doing, Josh and Jason ended their 2-match losing streak in front of a boisterous home crowd.

The scoreline accurately reflected the tight match. Under tough sunny conditions in the Laguna synthetic courts, familiarity with the courts proved to be the deciding factor. While the other 3 struggled to deal with the pace and uneven bounces on the court, homeboy and crowd favourite Jason displayed impeccable form and reliability, pounding forehand and placing slices to pin-point accuracy. To put things in perspective, Jason ended the game as the only one who held all his service games. It would be an understatement to say that the rest of them were astonished at this feat which just last month, was given the odds of 100000000000000000-1 of happening by Ladsbrokes. There could be some lucky but courageous millionaires out there now.

During the match where points could have gone either side, Nick's prolific wastefulness at the net and his unstable backhand was exploited to the fullest. Even the usually reliable Kamil admitted after the match that he was not up to his usual standard and could have done more with this service returns and service games, which he surprising lost the most out of all four players. In a close and even match like this, Josh's clinical volleying and Jason's consistent serving proved just sufficient to tilt the score in their favour.

Everyone is now turning their attention to the upcoming leg of the SMU Tennis Masters Series. Although the competition is expected to be tough, both pairings are odds on to reach the finals for the 4th consecutive time. This time, however, Nick is confident that the result won't be the same.

He issued what seemed like a challenge, "On Jason's favourite surface, that slight advantage was all you needed. But back on the hardcourt, you will have no such luck!"

In all fairness, there is some truth to that statement. On the hardcourts, Kamil and Nick have exercised near total dominance over their perennial rivals. Will Jason's consistent serving and Josh's exquisite touch hold up or will the ghost of the hardcourts come back to haunt them? When asked of his opinion on their upcoming duel, Kamil remained coy about his chances but let slip a cocky jibe, "I am Kamil Gazali. I never lose twice in a row."

We shall wait with abated breath.

Creation of the Next Biggest Thing in SMU

The SMU Tennis Blog is officially launched! Watch out for the most exciting news coming out of the local tennis scene featuring the brightest talents of our university!