18U Girls 12 Counties Championships Report
Mia got the girls off to an incredible start against a strong opponent from Beds. Her trademark backhand line was on form and she moved her opponent skilfully around the court winning the match 4.0 4.1.
Sophie then followed suit again facing a strong opponent who didn’t miss many balls. The first set was very hard fought which she took 4.2. Her wide slice serve on the deuce side was really effective and her backhand was firing well too as she went on to take the second set 4.2 to secure a strong start for Notts.
Next to play was Rebeka whose opponent had a very strong start taking the first set 2.4. This called for a strong response which Rebeka gave, really upping her game in the second set and fighting hard for every point. With some great net approaches she managed to fight back saving three match points! Rebeka then went on to show great composure and good power to win the match tie break 10/3.
Finally, it was Naomi’s turn who gave a master class with a serve plus one with a very effective attacking game style to take the last match for Notts 4.0 4.1. This set the team off to a great start.
Next they faced Herts and Mia again got them off to a very strong start against a skilful opponent. She showed why she has just won an ITF title with clever attacking shot patterns and great defensive slices, as well as excellent speed around the back of the court which enabled her to completely dominate a good opponent 4.0 4.0.
Sophie then showed excellent resilience in a very hard fought match securing the match tie break 10-5 again using her wide serve really effectively as well as being very brave when it mattered. Rebeka then fought hard in her match against a strong opponent narrowly loosing out 2.4 2.4 and finally Naomi put in another very strong performance again overwhelming her opponent with the power of her serve and also lots of excellent second serves winning her match 4.1 4.1 to secure the win over Harts.
The final matches of the day saw the girls face Bucks and Mia faced a very strong number 1 seed. She was impressive by keeping her concentration and not letting anything phase her during the match to win 4.1 4.0. This was an excellent performance as her opponent played well and fought for everything. Sophie also fought for every point against another very strong opponent. Every game was so close and there were lots of deuces as they battled it out. She kept working hard for every point narrowly loosing out 2.4 1.4. Rebeka faced an opponent who had not dropped a single game all day but was not phased and got off to a strong start. She was in every game loosing out 2.4 1.4 but impressed with her powerful serves and really got her forehand going strongly during the match. Finally, Naomi battled it out late into the afternoon as the last match on court. Her opponent was very strong and went up 2.4 in the first set. Naomi once again used her serve and aggressive third ball combination to stage an excellent fight back taking the second set in a real battle 5.3. Every point was hard fought in the match tie break but she stayed locked in on every point and managed to tie things up at 2 games all against Bucks with a 10-6 victory in the match tie break.
Overall, the girls placed second on the day to Bucks who just edged it based on their overall number of wins on the day. Every player gave their all and had a great attitude. It was a great warm-up for the County Cup next week and I would like to thank all the parents and players for a really enjoyable day and for representing Nottinghamshire in a very positive light.
Alastair Weir
