Written by: David Arthur Powell
Edited by: Angelina Grace Pandiman
Photos by: Eusoff Works
Emerging from the preliminary stages with only 1 match lost out of their 10 played, the Eusoff male tennis team was raring to earn their spot in the finals. Their opponent today was RH, and our tennis players were not about to let them break our winning streak. With warmup concluding, the first singles and second singles match, played by Timothy and Bobby respectively, were about to begin concurrently.
With his opponent starting service, Tim took the first game easily after two steady forehand returns and several service faults from RH. It was now Tim’s turn to serve, and he unleashed a series of his signature monster serves which allowed him to take a flawless game. Making minimal mistakes on defence and completely butchering his opponent on offence, Tim rose to a comfortable lead and took the first set without dropping a single game. Mixing up his gameplay with unpredictable volleys and unreceivable overhead smashes, Tim took game after game, and the difference in speed between Tim’s balls and RH’s balls was apparent as RH repeatedly struggled to reach Tim’s powerful returns and serves. Even when facing a two-point disadvantage, Tim maintained his composure and brought the game back, denying RH any chance of taking a game. It was just a matter of time before Tim’s terrifying service aces and incredible returns won him the match, and Tim finished the first singles with two flawless sets.
First singles: Timothy 6-0, 6-0 (W/W)
Bobby’s match looked like a mirror of Tim’s, as he got off to an identical 5-0 start after some beautiful serves and deft slices just over the net. It seemed as though Bobby and Tim were racing to see who could close out their game faster, but a series of chokes and unfortunate balls swung the race in Tim’s favour as Bobby did not manage to capitalize on quite a few set points. It was not until the 7th set point that Bobby took the first set at 6-4, but he seemed to have regained his footing after that, outplaying his opponent with slice after slice. With momentum now piling up for Bobby, he rose into the lead with a much more convincing showing and managed to reach set point at 5-2. This time however, he made sure not to repeat any past mistakes, and he only conceded one more point before taking the game, set, and match.
Second singles: Bobby 6-4, 6-2 (W/W)
The first doubles featured seniors Divakar and Siheng, who were no strangers to the court. Despite finding themselves down in the first game, they remained unaffected by the scoreline and fought hard to bring the game back in their favour. The first game reached deuce, where our pair came out on top after a great overhead smash from Div that RH did not anticipate. Now serving, Div took off his cap to unleash his true powers, which surprisingly worked as his serves netted them another game with minimal response from RH. The senior pair only dropped one game to their opponents at 2-1 before they completely ran away with the set. Finding themselves at 1-1 in the next set, Div and Siheng stuck to what had been working: quick volleys and overhead smashes near the net and steady, consistent returns from the player at the back. The pair seemed to be having fun as Div snuck in a cheeky smile after a service ace put them on match point, and one point was all it took for them to close out the second set 6-1 as well.
First doubles: Div and Siheng 6-1, 6-1 (W/W)
From the start of his third singles match, Shaoxuan found himself locked in a battle of endurance against his opponent. Every point was hard-earned by either side as they engaged in long rallies and numerous deuces, where both players refused to let up. Every deuce was a never-ending rollercoaster of emotion as both sides took turns to take the advantage, only to find themselves back at deuce after the other player evened the score. It was a set of incredible runs and returns from both players, but Shaoxuan fell just short of the game multiple times and RH took the first set 6-2. Determined not to let RH off easy, Shaoxuan gave his all in every rally, even prevailing in most of them to reach 4-1 in games. Some intense rallies and unfortunate balls later, Shaoxuan lost the lead to RH, but he fought valiantly to the end despite how tiring the match was. The second set ended up going to RH as well, with a score of 6-4.
Third singles: Shao Xuan 2-6, 4-6 (L/L)
I could almost feel the air change as Han stepped onto the court for the second doubles match. His partner today was Yichen, who was itching to redeem himself after choking in his previous match. And indeed he did, as Yichen played spectacularly by nailing most returns and executing his services well, and he even pulled off some fancy backhand returns to prove that Han was not the only star on court today. But nobody could quite match up to Han, who sent balls into RH’s court with such monstrous force that they almost seemed scared to receive them. The only thing that seemed like a challenge to Han was getting some good pictures in, as he exclaimed in dismay after EW didn’t capture his jumping overhead smash. No worries though, as Han made sure to do it again for the camera (even though the ball went out). Breezing through the first set 6-1, Yichen felt left out and chipped in with an overhead smash to deny Han a moment of glory, making the team go wild. But perhaps they were having too much fun, as they conceded the second set 3-6, but the pair were not about to give up much more to RH as they continued their dominating ways in the third set. With dark clouds overhead and a downpour imminent, Han was looking to close out the third set quickly by way of his specialty deadly serves, and his reliable partner Yichen kept up with consistent returns of his own. The pair closed out the last set 6-2.
Second doubles: Han and Yichen 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 (W/L/W)
Another victorious day for the Eusoff tennis guys as they won with an overall score of 4-1. Hoping to continue their win streak, the team looks to the finals next Sunday, where they will be sure to give their best effort once again. Be sure to catch them in action and show your fullest support!
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