The Team (Based on Rankings Friday 1st May)
- Charlotte Russell 103133081 5.1
- Regi Ristic-North 105042862 6.2
- Olivia Rook 105644714 6.1
- Isabella Nunez 106623966 6.1
- Lizzie Udale 103882765 6.2
- Sophie Rees 107366038 6.2
Saturday 2nd May
Essex v Gloucestershire (3-1)
Singles 1 Annali Olivelle (4.1) lost to Charlotte Russell 6-1 6-4
Singles 2 Andre Lukosiute (5.1) beat Olivia Rook 6-1 6-1
Singles 3 Ashlie Hale (5.1) beat Isabelle Nunez 6-2 6-1
Singles 4 Winworth Goldman (5.1) beat Regi Ristic-North 6-1 6-3
A really tough match for the girls but great performances all round. On paper these are the best team. Charlotte Russell had an outstanding win against a higher rated opponent. She played an incredible first set and managed to hold her nerve to close out the second. The rest of the team fought hard. However their more experienced opponents were bigger and stronger.
Sunday 3rd May
Oxfordshire v Gloucestershire 1-5
Singles 1 Holly Sheeran-Hall (6.2) lost to Charlotte Russell 6-1 6-2
Singles 2 Alice Wilkinson (6.2) lost to Olivia Rook 6-2 6-0
Singles 3 Saffy Gujral (7.1) lost to Isabella Nunez 6-2 6-2
Singles 4 Hannah Craig (7.2) lost to Regi Ristic-North 4-6 6-1 7-5
Doubles 1 Sheeran-Hall and Gujral lost to Russell and Rook 4-6 6-1 1-0 (9)
Doubles 2 Wilkinson and Craig beat Udal and Rees 6-4 6-4
Essex v Gloucestershire 5-1
Doubles 1 Olivielle and Hale beat Nunez and Udal 4-6 7-5 1-0 (3)
Doubles 2 Lukosiute and Goldman beat Ristic-North and Rees 6-1 6-3
Overall match scores
Essex 5-1 Gloucestershire
Oxfordshire 1-5 Gloucestershire
The tennis played by all members of the team was fantastic. All the singles players won. Regi managed to win a long match which was vital to the team. She showed great mental strength to get past an awkward opponent. She won 11 points in a row from 5-4 down in the third set and eventually won the match.
Isabella and Olivia both played patiently and consistently and grew in confidence as the matches progressed. They both won comfortably. Charlotte yet again proved what a good player she is by disposing of a flashy opponent.
The doubles matches began with Oxfordshire and we won one and lost one. Sophie Rees and Lizzie Udal played well but lost 6-4 6-4. In the first set we lost four sudden death juice points which was tough on the girls.
Our top doubles paring played a long match which was played in tough blustery conditions. After a poor first set, Olivia and Charlotte battled back to take the second set 6-1. A very tense champion’s tie break followed. We were 8-5 down and managed to claw it back to 9-9 and then went ahead for the first time and finally close the match out on their first match point. This put us 5-1 up overall in the Oxfordshire match and a victory for Gloucestershire!
We then played doubles against Essex where we lost both but fought for every point. Isabella and Charlotte played a great first set and built a lead in the second only for the Essex girls to come back strong and take the tie break. This made the overall score with Essex 5-1 and put us in second place in the group of three.
Monday 4th May
3rd / 4th Play Off
Gloucestershire v Wiltshire 2-4
Singles 1 Charlotte Russell lost to Neve Townsend (4.2) 2-6 6-4 6-3
Singles 2 Olivia Rook lost to Amelia Bissett (6.1) 6-1 7-5
Singles 3 Isabella Nunez beat Jessica Doerr (6.1) 6-4 6-4
Singles 4 Lizzie Udal beat Beatrice Watts (7.2) 6-0 4-6 6-4
Doubles 1 Russell and Nunez lost to Townsend and Eyles 7-6(5) 3-6 1-0 (4)
Doubles 2 Rook and Ristic-North lost to Bissett and Doerr 6-1 6-0
The matches were very close but we ended up losing 4-2 overall. Great wins for Lizzie and Isabella. Lizzie dug deep and won a two and a quarter hour match which had very long rallies and by the end both girls looked exhausted. Isabella grew in confidence as the tournament went on. She put in a very disciplined performance and made it very difficult for her opponent to control points. The best performance of the day!
Olivia Rook had a very tough match and although she didn’t win there were lots of positives. She played determinedly and by changing her tactics she got back in the match and almost got a set.
Charlotte’s match was very entertaining; she started quickly and flew through the first set. Her opponent regrouped and came back strong and unfortunately the match turned and Charlotte lost.
The second doubles pair of Regi and Olivia got overpowered by the two Wiltshire girls. The Wiltshire pair have played together lots of times and won lots of competitions they were just too good.
The last match of the event was a long one and ended with Gloucestershire losing to Wiltshire first pair. After having chances to win the first set we lost it on a tie break but managed to win the second set. The tie break followed with the Wiltshire girls playing very solid tennis and taking it 10-4.
Overall
Finishing 4th was a good effort as we finished 5th last year. The target is to finish higher next year. The girls behaved very well and were a pleasure for myself and Pete to be captain. They needed a bit of prompting when supporting but other than that they got on pretty well as a team. They performed very well and showed some determination in all their matches. If they continue to work hard we have a similar team next year and a higher position is well within reach.
Mark Lunn