In 2019, I was honored to be a part of an enormously successful USTA 4.0 men’s doubles team. We went to Nationals in Arizona and played our hearts out. I will remember that year of tennis for a long, long time. It was amazing. We kept winning by the skin of our teeth. Our captain (Ron Chan) was a strategic mastermind. Whenever I see a teammate from that year, we know we did something special.
Unfortunately, the reward for that terrific adventure was that we were all bumped up to the 4.5 level. You may not know that much about tennis, but I can tell you there is a major jump in skill and talent from 4.0 to 4.5. Check out my winning history in the USTA.
| Year | Matches | Wins | Losses | Winning % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 (4.5) | 12 | 4 | 8 | 33% |
| 2022 (4.5) | 35 | 6 | 29 | 17% |
| 2021 (4.5) | 12 | 6 | 6 | 50% |
| 2020 (4.5) | 8 | 2 | 6 | 25% |
| 2019 (4.0) | 62 | 44 | 18 | 71% |
| 2018 (4.0) | 51 | 37 | 14 | 72% |
| 2017 (4.0) | 55 | 37 | 18 | 67% |
| 2016 (4.0) | 22 | 12 | 10 | 54% |
| 2015 (4.0) | 18 | 14 | 4 | 77% |
| 2014 (4.0) | 23 | 10 | 13 | 43% |
You can see how I was doing very well in 2017-2019. Then Covid happened, so very few matches in 2020. In 2021-2023 though at 4.5, I was getting slaughtered. I was also playing fewer matches because team captains knew I wasn’t going to win, no matter how hard I tried.
I do think I was improving a little bit, but like I said, 4.5 is a lot harder than 4.0. After 3 years of losing, the league yesterday saw fit to change my rating back to 4.0. When I saw the update, my heart started glowing with happiness.
On the one hand, it’s not good. They are saying I stink. On the other hand, it means I will be much more competitive in future USTA matches. I don’t mind losing, but 17% win rate feels pretty frustrating. So all in all, it means I will play (and win) more matches starting now.
Already 4 different team captains have texted me asking if I can play in the upcoming season. I will likely play mixed 7.0, mixed 8.0, mens 4.0, and maybe an 8.5 combo.
I don’t know how many years I have left in me, but I hope I can play tennis for a long time. It is the one time my mind is not swirling with work stuff. I have a very noisy mind and tennis is the thing that clears the cruft from my soul.
Whatya think?