On the evening of Wednesday October 8th The New York Racquet and Tennis Club hosted the first National League match of the season against the combined team of Tuxedo and Philadelphia. With generous sponsorship from The USCTA, The Jesters and Harrow as well as fantastic support from the U.S. based clubs, the stakes are higher than ever.
The first match pitted Josh Dodgson against Barney Tanfield. Dodgson jumped out to an early 2/0 lead in the first set with a series well-crafted points. Tanfield regrouped and fought to take the next six tightly contested games. The second set was nip and tuck throughout but Dodgson fought hard and rewarded himself with several set points at 5/4. Tanfield managed to narrowly maneuver himself off the brink and won the set and match 6/5.
Next up saw Tim Chisholm against James Stout. The pair has had some extraordinary battles over the last few seasons. Chisholm came out playing his legendary hyper aggressive style, heavily cutting angles and smashing targets. He was successful in his execution and won the first set 6/2. The two exchanged games throughout most of the second set until Stout was able to gain the edge at 4/4 with some timely targets. He took the second set 6/4 and continued his momentum into the short third set, which he also won 6/0 (3/0).
The final match of the evening was an eight game set of doubles between Tanfield/ Stout versus Chisholm/ Dodgson. Chisholm and Dodgson got out to a sizeable 5/1 lead playing at a high pace whilst forcing racquet errors and loose balls from their opponents. Tanfield and Stout managed to settle down and pull back to 6-all, before Chisholm took over the court (due to Dodgson cramping) and won the match 8/6.
The match was well attended by upbeat spectators from both clubs. Before the match, several R&T members gathered for an exciting skills competition called “The Dedan Challenge”. Numerous characters tested their accuracy whilst contending with the torment of their peers. Special thanks go out to Neil Smith for excellent marking, Zach Sacks for helping coordinate the event, the Racquet and Tennis Club staff for hosting and the sponsors and spectators for their overwhelming support.
