The Deuce Club, 3.13
By Jackie, TW Social Director
Greetings, TWibe! As you probably already know, I'm auto-posting this since I'm nowhere near a computer at the moment. Remember? I'm in Indian Wells!
If you're also in IW and reading this as I speak, please be reminded that we're having a TW gathering at The Beer Hunter TONIGHT (Friday) at 9:30 PM. We'll be there for a while, so come whenever you can!
Last weekend, our beloved Patrick (better known as Master Ace) attended the U.S.-Switzerland Davis Cup tie in Birmingham, AL, and I suggested that he use this week's Deuce Club to tell us about his experience. He even got to meet up with Pete and some of the folks at Talk About Tennis; that's Patrick and Aedra from TAT up above. (Great photo, guys!)
Without further ado, here's Patrick's weekend write-up:
Friday, 3/6
I decided to make my way to the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Arena despite not purchasing tickets. I arrived at the site at 11:40 AM local time. First thing I noticed that a portion of the steps were painted with the Davis Cup trophy, which was neat. Also, there was a banner saying "Welcome to Davis Cup" with the Davis Cup trophy. The UAB pep band was playing music outside and spectators were taking pictures.Then, about 1:00 PM local time, I went home to watch the matches.On the way home, I received some good news - someone who knew I wanted to see the Davis Cup gave me tickets for the weekend.
Saturday, 3/7
Now armed with tickets, I arrived at the site at 11:18 AM local time hoping to get in touch with Pete. Pete returned my call but he could not see me because his schedule was busy so we decided to make arrangements for Sunday. Then, I decided to go inside and get to my seat. The flag ceremony was neat as all the countries were lined up; the World Group flags were lined up separately from the other nations.Then, the teams were introduced and national anthems were sung. After that, I looked up in the rafters and saw the Davis Cup championship banners with 1900 to 1949 on one sideline, 1950 to 2006 on the other sideline, 2007 on one baseline, and the US flag, Switzerland flag, and a picture of the Davis Cup trophy on the other baseline.
The atmosphere for a Davis Cup tie is very different than a normal tennis tournament as the crowd made a lot of noise. After the match was over, I walked around the arena and made my way to where the teams were sitting and got autographs from Thomas Blake, Bob Bryan, and Wayne Bryan. As I made my way out of the arena, the US team was having a practice session as Andy Roddick, James Blake, and the team came on the court.
Sunday, 3/8
I arrived at the site at 10:30 AM hoping to see Pete before he got too busy. Within 30 minutes of my arrival, I finally met Pete and we had a nice discussion, covering a number of topics. When Pete resumed his busy schedule, I was very appreciative that I talked to him longer than I originally had anticipated. Then, I decided to walk around the arena before I went to my seat. While walking, I saw fans getting their faces painted, guy on stilts juggling 3 racquets, talked to Wayne Bryan for about 2 minutes before someone got his attention, and looked at pictures in the picture gallery. Finally, I made it to my seat.
About 15 minutes before 1 PM local time, the flag ceremony started with only the World Group countries. The crowd was already loud and the anthems hadn’t been sung yet. At this point, I was anticipating that Andy Roddick and Stanislas Wawrinka was going to play at least 4 sets but Roddick showed us why he is one of the best in clinching a tie. When the dead rubber was played, I moved to the other side of the area and sat in a section next to the Swiss fans. Their fans would chant "Hop Suisse," their player’s name, and a little song they know. Also, I saw the NetHeads in action, who would bow down to James Blake whenever he made a good shot. After the tie was over, I got autographs from Carlos Bernardes and Pascal Maria and a ball they used for the matches.
Wrap-up
For all the tennis matches that I have seen over the years, this was the first time I have seen live tennis action. It’s very true that live tennis is different from seeing it on television.
Thanks for sharing, Patrick - what an exciting weekend!
And for everyone - what are your predictions for the DC quarterfinals?
(Remember, this is your OT space for the evening and the early part of the weekend. I'll return next week with loads of IW stories and pics, so make sure to stop by then!)