June League Update

Wednesday 30 June

Men’s O55 Veterans played their final match on Wednesday evening against Windsor in Division 1.  This had been postponed from the end of April because of rain and the Crows side were hoping to get their first points of the season.  They won by a single game 39-38 in an eventful match, however, with 2 teams likely to be relegated they’re still likely to end up in Division 2 for next season, which should mean the team will be more competitive and avoid Maidenhead for a change!

It was a close match but Jim Hawes/David Stone at number 1 played well in their first rubber, winning 6-4 6-4 in a very tight encounter.  Steve Stow/Andy Stone at 2 lost theirs 3-6 3-6 so the result would depend on the round 2 rubbers.  With 8 successive service breaks, Hawes/Stone found themselves at 4-4 against two left-handers before they held on to take the first set 7-5 and the second 6-1.  Meanwhile on the other court, Stow survived a nasty fall, getting off the ground to continue an eventually losing rally only to lose the rubber 4-6 4-6 to bring the result down to a count of games.

Sunday 27 June

It was a difficult morning for Boys 18U 1 who travelled to Latika to play their A team in Division 1 and found themselves facing Jacques Edwards, our 2020 Men’s Singles champion who had chosen to play matches for Latika.  His brother Sebastian, however, was playing for Crowthorne along with Josh Furneaux, Jonathan Snyman and Oliver Walker.  The best result in the singles was from Snyman who beat Robert Newman 6-4 6-2 with the other rubbers all going to the strong Latika team to make it a 5-1 win for the home side.

There was no more success for Boys 18U 2 who faced Latika B at home in Division 2.  George Loverdos won his singles 6-3 6-4 against Oliver Horman while Peter Swan was losing 0 & 1 to Matej Burgess and the pair lost their doubles 2 & 0 to make the score a 2-1 win for Latika.

Saturday 26 June

Men’s 1 were at home to Caversham 3 in Division 3B of the Berkshire Men’s Doubles League needing a couple of points to keep them away from the relegation zone.  They achieved this with a 2-2 winning draw and are even in with a chance of promotion with Bracknell 3 and top team Twyford 1 yet to play.

John Phillips/Jasper Richardson gave the Crows a good start with a 6-1 6-1 win against Gerben Van San/Duncan Ross and Russell Finch/Simon Usher were looking good having won the first set 6-0 against Kevin Byrne/Chris Wood.  But they lost the next set 0-6 and missed out in the deciding tiebreak to give the Crows a slender lead by a set at the halfway point.  Phillips/Richardson ensured at least 2 points with a 6-2 6-1 win over Byrne/Wood but Finch/Usher were unable to make it 3 as they lost 3-6 5-7 to Van San/Ross.

Men’s 2 were away to Royal Berkshire 1 in Division 3A and Men’s Captain Russell Finch had juggled his squad to put out a strong team in an attempt to gain points in this tough division.  In the event, the home first pair were too strong for both Crows pairs and although Andy Sayer/Luke Tearall beat second pair Antony Foster/Stuart Felton 7-6 6-2, Matt Paxton/David Stone just failed in their attempt, losing 1-6 7-6 0-1 to make it a 3-1 win for the home side.

Men’s 3 faced Shinfield 1 at home in Division 5B and they achieved their first point with a losing 2-2 draw.  Shinfield’s first pair Michael Childs/Peter Bechtoldwere too strong for both Crows’ pairs winning both rubbers in straight sets but Andy Stone/Steve Stow won a close match 7-5 6-4 against John Dunford/Kyle Butler before Andrew Morrison/Jim Hawes won 6-2 7-6 against the same pair to secure the point.

Our Boys 14U 1 team travelled to Windsor to play their 1sts in Division 1 and finished with a 5-1 win after some close matches.  William Long at no.1 beat Jaiden Man 6-4 6-4 while no.2 Joshua Date was losing 3-6 3-6 to Matthew Byrnes.  However, with David Kruger winning 6-1 6-1 against Alex Calver and William Maynard beating Henry Byrnes 6-2 6-3, the Crows team had a 3-1 lead after the singles.  In the doubles, Maynard/Date won a close 7-5 7-6 match against Man/M.Byrnes while Kruger/Maynard won 6-1 6-3 against Calver/H.Byrnes to secure the 5-1 win.

Sunday 20 June

In the Men’s National League Division 2, Crowthorne 1 were at home against Maidenhead 3 in their final match with a chance to win the Division if all went to plan.  The result was a 10-4 win for the Crows which puts them level on points with top team Caversham Park 1 but below on rubbers won, giving them a possibility of promotion.    Jasper Richardson did what was expected of his 3.1 rating with a 6-0 6-0 win over Gareth Jackson.  Taki Hasegawa found life a good deal harder in his singles against Carl Friedman, losing 3-6 4-6.  At no. 3, John Phillips had a straightdorward 6-3 6-1 win over Robert Castignetti while, at no.4, Guy Smith-Bingham, new to CTC, lost 2-6 4-6 to John Black to make it 2-2 on rubbers with two doubles to play.   Hasegawa/Richardson won a close first set 7-6 before going on to win the second set 6-2 against Black/Jackson while Smith-Bingham/Phillips confirmed the win with a 6-0 6-1 victory over Castignetti/Friedman.

In Division 4, Crowthorne 2 were away against Wokingham 1 missing some players so Peter Walker and his son Ollie stepped into the breach.   They lost 0-12 but Matt Paxton and Russell Finch both came back from poor first sets in their singles to win the second 7-6 only to lose their deciding tiebreaks.  The other rubbers were lost in straight sets but it was good experience for the young Ollie who looks to be a good prospect for the future.

Saturday 19 June

Next for Ladies’ 1 was another strong side, this time from Riseley; they also were too strong for the Crows team who went down 0-4.  Tina Stern/Maggie Ingham did well to get 3 games in their first set against Kirsty Venter/Karen Holt but they couldn’t hang on and lost the second set 0-6.  Ravinder Norman/Jenny Sheppard also found their opponents too strong and lost 1 & 2 to Chris Nagpaul/Gill Stoney.   Stern/Ingham did a little better in the second round, losing 1-6 5-7 to Nagpaul/Stoney, while Norman/Sheppard were losing 1 & 0.

Ladies 2 had a trip to Caversham to play their 4th team in Division 6B, losing 1-3, although they nearly salvaged a point from with a 2-2 draw.  Neither Crowthorne pair could match the home 1sts, Nazia Van San/Sue Gold, Penny Hemingway/Alison Nicholson losing 3 & 3 in the first round while Jenny Partridge/Maddy Dunckley lost 2 & 1 in the second.   However, Partridge/Dunckley very nearly beat Tracey Hart/Tanya Pynn in the first round, only just losing 7-5 6-7 0-1.  In the second round Hemingway/Nicholson got their revenge, winning 1-6 6-3 1-0.

Saturday 12 June

Ladies’ 1 entertained Wargrave 2 in Division 3B and were unlucky not to win at least a set as they went down 0-4.  Jenny Sheppard/Ravinder Norman lost a very close rubber 4-6 5-7 against Janice Dobbin/Rebecca Salisbury-Beard but Penny Hemingway/Lorraine Fowler had no answers against Clare Belton/Elizabeth Hindley, losing 0 & 1.  They were unable to make any impact in their second rubber either, while Sheppard/Norman lost 4-6 2-6 against the visiting 2nd pair.

Ladies’ 2 had a trip to Twyford to play their 2nds in Division 6B and lost 1-3.  Alison Nicholson/Jenny Partridge played well against Sam Langer/Jane Shaker but lost 3 & 4 while Helen Hodgkinson/Wendy Miles lost 1 & 1 to Sioban Wilkinson/Alison Berry.  They did a bit better against Langer/Shaker, losing 3 & 1 while Nicholson/Partridge saved their best til last winning 1 & 3 against Wilkinson/Berry.

Boys 12U won their second and final match 6-0 against Latika B in Division 2  top the Division following their 6-0 win against Caversham B at the beginning of May.  Following the withdrawal of Bracknell’s team, they unfortunately only have two matches to play but they have won them both without losing a set.   Henry Evan-Hart started with a 6-1 6-3 win over Saharse Mane while Jake Walbancke beat Max Lewis 6-0 6-0.   The two then won a much closer doubles 7-5 6-2 to underline the win.   Misha Ordovas had played with Jake in the win against Caversham, so congratulations to Misha, Jake and Henry for their achievement.

Wednesday 9 June

Having already lost to Maidenhead B, our Men’s O55 team headed to Maidenhead with 3 changes to their side to play their A team in Division 1.   Steve Stow joined David Stone as the Crows’ 1st pair while Jim Hawes & Mike Smith came in as the 2nds.   Stow/Stone had no success at all against a very strong Gareth Jackson/Paul Brill pairing, winning just a single game.  However, after losing the first set 2-6, Hawes/Smith came close in the second against Mike Bottomley/David Reid, losing 5-7.  However, they fared just as badly as their first paor against Jackson/Brill, losing 0 & 1 before Stow/Stone lost 3 & 0 to make the final score 4-0 to Maidenhead.

Sunday 6 June

Boys 14U 1 found themselves up against a strong Riseley team in Division 1, losing 1-5.  With only Jonathan Snyman able to take any points with his 6-0 6-1 win over Tom Harris,  William Long, Josh Date and David Kruger all found themselves up against much stronger opposition in their singles matches and were unable to win more than a handful of games between them.  In the doubles, Snyman/Long almost took the first set but eventually lost 5-7 2-6 while Date/Kruger lost 2 & 0.

It was a similar tale for Boys 14U 2 against Caversham in Division 2 as they lost 0-3.  Austin Bowker won the Crows only games as he lost 3 & 2 against William Brasher while Ben Walker was beaten 0 & 0 by a much higher rated opponent.  With no restriction on ratings this season, this was inevitable with the bigger clubs gaining the benefit.

 

Saturday 5 June

Men’s 1 had a tough start to the month in Division 3B entertaining Wargrave 1 at St.Sebs.  They won 2-2 by the smallest of margins, a single game, finishing 5 sets apiece and 39 games to 38, showing how important it is to fight for every game in a close match.  Jasper Richardson/Matt Paxton lost a close first set 6-7 against Max Branet/Tim Janisch and then lost the second 3-6.  However, James Brennan/Andy Sayer came back well after losing their first set 2-6 to John Winston/Jeremy Morgan to take the second decisively 6-0 and win the deciding tiebreak.  Richardson/Paxton won their second rubber by a solid 6-4 6-3 against Winston/Morgan to put the hosts in the lead but Brennan/Sayer had had another poor start, losing 2-6 before recovering to take the second set 7-5 before the visitors clinched the tiebreak.

Places must be booked in advance via the Members’ Area and selections will then be confirmed on the morning or evening before the event.  Please do not turn up if you have not been selected as you will be turned away. Players are selected on a first come first serve basis usually in multiples of 4 players.  Note that none of these sessions is suitable for beginners.

  • Note that the Committee tries to accommodate the wishes of members, within the constraints of time and 4 courts, but a session for each ability level is the guiding principle.
    • The Friday session is for recreational and higher players and runs from 6pm to 8pm
    • The Thursday 5:30 session is for intermediate players and runs from 5:30pm to 7:30pm.
    • The Thursday 7:30 session is for intermediate and advanced players including potential team players and runs from 7:30 to 9:30pm.
    • The Tuesday session is for advanced players and runs from 7pm to 9pm. 
    • In all cases you must commit to the full two hours.
  • Before the session you will have been told by the organiser your starting court, your partner and your opponents.
    • These will take into account each player’s normal playing standard with the best players starting on court 1 and, with 16 players, the least able players on court 4.  However, the organiser may occasionally decide to organise it differently such as a “lucky dip” for starting court & partner.
    • In addition, for the Thursday 7:30 session, the organiser will take into account any pairings for matches at the coming weekend.
  • Play is split into 3 rounds lasting 40 minutes each.  Play 1 set with normal deuce scoring.  If you finish early either carry on or mix in your 4.
    • If you haven’t finished the set after 40 minutes and the scores are level, play a sudden death point
  • At the end of the 40 minutes the winners of the first set played move up a court, the losers move down a court (court 1 is the top court). Winners on the top court stay, as do the losers on the bottom court. If you didn’t finish your set then the pair winning at the time moves up.
  • Pairs then split partners with the pair joining them and you play a second round.
    • Partners are selected by spinning rackets or using common sense to try to get a balanced 4.
  • Exactly the same happens for the third round.

Drop-In club nights are, as the name implies, more informal sessions than the bookable ones and you can arrive and leave when you like.  Those attending organise themselves, changing who plays with whom after most present have completed a set, although there’s often a more senior member present who  will take charge if needed.

We are currently running 2 Drop-In  sessions for all levels from Starter upwards…

  • The Tuesday session has recently been rebranded for All Levels and runs from 5:00pm to 7:00pm.  If you want to sit out and watch, maybe with a drink, you can do that too.  If you’ve arrived early for the 7 o’clock session, you’re also welcome to join in.
  • The Wednesday session is for all levels of player including beginner and usually runs from 7:30pm to 9:30pm.
    • You can expect members attending adult coaching to join in.
  • The Sunday session is for All levels and runs from 3:00 – 5:00pm.

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