Delius Diaries

Friday night and Saturday morning Connor played in a tournament with his school’s tennis team against a British school from London. The original plan was to play at a tennis club outside, but Mother Nature said we needed rain, so the team played inside his school’s tennis bubble. He played a total of 6 doubles matches. His doubles partners are other international students from Japan, Australia, Spain and Austria. He’s having a blast and excited to be back on the court.

I must say I am impressed with his dedication. Practice is 7am during the week! When I learned of the early morning practice, I was worried he may say “thanks but no thanks.” But Connor has risen to the occasion. He is up on his own at 6am every day, showers, eats breakfast and is ready to go. Never late and so far hasn’t forgotten anything! Last Spring he was playing on his middle school tennis team and loving it. But the broken ankle skiing sidelined him and he was really upset about not playing tennis. It’s been fun to see him back on the court.

As an advanced beginner, he is commanding at the net (height definitely helps) and his serve is excellent. He learned really great skills and strategy at home and I can see how that effort last spring is now helping. We are looking for a 1:1 instructor to help him advance. He wants to get selected for the 6-boy roster at the end of the season that plays in The Hague. Love that he has a goal in mind.

Few notes about bubble tennis. First, at 7am it is not warm, it takes a few hours to heat up. We are already getting 40+ degree temps in the morning, chilly! Second, the surface is nothing I have ever seen. It is kind of like a carpet, but super thin fabric. We are accustomed to clay courts outside year round. This is very different, but we are glad to have it! While I like the clay courts at home, I don’t miss the clay mess after playing.

Few pics in his uniform. He LOVES the uniform and is proud to wear it. While he still misses his hometown team, the Warriors, he is happy for now as a Raider!