Each of my tennis leagues presents its own unique challenges. In my just-ended Saturday league, we endured the get-our-butts-kicked-every-week challenge. In spring league, we need to adapt to outdoor conditions. For my fall/winter DBH league, there’s the administrative hassles of being captain.

My summer USTA league presents two challenges for me. The first is playing at night. As a ridiculously early riser–Hello, 4 a.m.!–starting a match at 8 p.m. seems crazy. Unfortunately, no one has asked my opinion about the schedule.

The other challenge is getting partnered with people I haven’t played with before. This seems to happen more in USTA than in my other leagues, probably because the evening hours attract a different subset of players than I normally see. Continue reading “Getting in a Groove with a New Partner” →