Hard To Mold Players On Clay: Washington Post

The USTA National Clay Court Championships started Sunday in several locations, with this article surfacing in the Washington Post as the Boys' 18s & 16s divisions begin play in Rockville Maryland and other clubs in suburban DC. The discomfort that clay produces in U.S. players isn't going to be solved in a few column inches, but it is always useful to hear the opinions of people who have been thinking about the problem.

Last year was my first experience ever with a national level clay court event when I spent the entire duration of the tournament in Rockville. Although the heat and humidity made it decidedly uncomfortable, I was enthralled by the tennis, and by the physical and mental toughness the surface and the conditions demanded. This year I'm not going until Wednesday, which means I'm hoping all the best players are still around. No singles seeds played on Sunday, the tournament's first day, so there were no upsets today, but several are sure to fall on Monday.

Two rounds of doubles are played the first day, and due to the heat, the third set was reduced to a tiebreak. I wasn't aware this was an option at a Level 1 National, but the USTA's Lew Brewer assures me it is, so with that ATP-style resolution, a few more upsets could happen in doubles. With the results incomplete as of this posting, I don't know if they have, but I'll be checking the ustaclay.com site often in the next two days.