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I had a 2-day Super Champ tournament on Saturday, May 12, 2018. It was called the DTA Spring Super Champ level 4. It was played in Dallas, TX. This was my second Super Champ tournament. A chance to do better than the last. I was in the B-draw last time. This time, I am in the A-draw, a tougher challenge. Was I nervous? Yes. Was I excited? Yes. Was I going to fight on through? Yes!
We went there on Friday so I can practice a little before the tournament. We went to Wagon Wheel Tennis Center to practice and to get used to the condition. The condition was a warm but windy that afternoon. I rallied and played points with my friend, Roshin Kamath. We had a great practice and I was really motivated after the practice for some reason. Let's hope that motivation gets me through the tournament this weekend.  Michelle Li & I always having fun. My first opponent was Juliana Creel. She out powered me with most of her shots winning many points. Her shots caused clean winners and my errors. I tried getting in a really aggressive state of mind. I was able to to hold my serves, and hung in there with her, but it was not enough in the first set. I lost 5-7. In the second set, I though to refocus and concentrate a bit more to fight back, but my mental and physical energy were draining slowly. I could not keep up, I lost the match 5-7, 3-6. My motivation level dropped quite a bit. I felt like I disappointed a lot of people, but especially myself. I know I could had play better. I had to, and I could. What could I do differently?  Warming up... My second opponent was Emma Allen. Emma had a game that was really impressive because she hit hard. I had no other choice but to stay in the point with what defensive skills I got. I outlasted the rally with her from the baseline. I won a lot of points because of this, so I kept on doing it. I made a lot of errors as well, but they weren't a lot. In short, I just weathered the storm, I won 6-3, 6-3. That was my last singles match for Saturday. Not for the tournament, however. My next event was my doubles match, with my partner, Michelle Li.
Me and my partner Michelle Li were playing against Karla Brown and Sneha Manikhandan. We out rallied them to win most points. But, sadly, we weren't consistent enough to win the crucial points. We lost 4-8 (pro set). But not all was lost, I still had my singles match to look forward to. I just wanted to play and compete. I was ready for the singles match tomorrow. I was ready to fight. I was ready to play.
My third opponent was Mya Bowe. Mya was really consistent and had great defense. Mya had a game style that would frustrate most players, including myself. Her defense and forehand slice defense lobs gave me a difficult time to put away with overheads or volleys. Mainly, it was her defensive skills that got to me, made me lose my confidence to commit to my shots, to finish the point. It was hard for me to win points because of that, and my usually unforced errors. So, I lost 5-7, 1-6.
This tournament motivated me to practice harder. I am not letting this loss push me back. I am going to let it guide me up to the next level and where I needed to be. Live and learn, Karina Zaharieva |
Karina ZaharievaI'm an aspiring junior tennis player. My goal is to play professional tennis. This is my journey. I hope you enjoy my website and follow my progress. Categories
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