FAREWELL TO MY BELOVED PUMA/ESTUSA BECKER

 

How hard is to let something (someone) you love, go. You may think I’m crazy, but as some fictional TV character once said: “My mom got me tested… I’m not crazy”; same applies to me.

 

My romance with PUMA started back in 1985 when I saw a young teenager take over the Wimbledon Championship. Of course I’m talking the redheaded German Panzer, Boris Becker. He then played with a 1984 Puma Guillermo Vilas model, re-branded after his win as Boris Becker Winner. The upraising star was under Vilas-Tiriac management. Becker’s racket was 50% graphite composite and 50% fiberglass, which made it stiffer than the average frames at the time, even though it was less for the version on the market that contained only 30% graphite.

 

The following year Becker would move on to his truly own Puma Boris Becker Super (still Vilas’ development with the German company). This particular frame was exactly the same in composition, but now the vast majority of the amateur players would be able to use the same specs: 50% graphite, which made a whole lot of a difference versus the prior version and with new more appealing cosmetics (red and blue). Before the end of the ’88 season Puma quit Becker contract; but Boris kept playing with them until 1990 without the official logo. In March 1990 the Taiwanese firm Estusa got a contract with the native from Leimen, and started developing a copy of the Puma BB Super. It took them about a year of testing and trials until they were able to cook a frame that pleased the German. Estusa brought a few evolutions to the original frame that added more stiffness without changing much the fantastic balance and maneuverability that made them so famous.

 

 

Personally, I got my eye on a Puma Becker back in 1987 when I was playing at the Asociación Alemana de Cultura Física de Quilmes. There was this cute blond girl that was hitting with great ability from the back of the court beside. I absolutely loved it. I was too shy to ask her permission to examine the racket but after a few weeks I had the opportunity of playing a doubles against her and had my chance. Her brother, Patricio “Pato” Durrels was a great junior player, once ranked #1 in the country, and was using the same frames. When he decided to move to another brand he put his on sale, something I would not miss. Got one for me and started experiencing an explosion in my arm. My service was like a catapult and my backhand improved a thousand times its previous form. The Puma became an extension of my arm. Played with it from ’88 to back end of ’89 when I realized, after a training session, that the frame had started to give in. I was devastated, no chance to get another one in Argentina. Back then you had to travel abroad to get that kind of products. Nobody was importing them anymore and I was forced to switch the following year to Yonex.

 

Pato’s former racket was carefully stored as it deserved. Waiting like Excalibur to be awaken when it would be needed the most…

 

Years went by, rackets I flirt with as well… Yonex R-50, Dunlop Revelation, Pro Kennex Kinetic 15g,… but none felt remotely like the Puma. Until one day in 2003 when I found the Estusa frames (already discontinued) at Tennis Warehouse. What a blast from the past! I got 3 of them and loved them from the start, had to tweak the balance a little bit but other than that they were awesome to strike the ball thru, yet less forgiving than the Kennex due to head size.

But the best was that I got someone with enough knowledge to attempt a repair to the old Puma. And it succeeded… sort of. The balance and weight now were out of scale, but still manageable and good enough for a fourth racket. By now, 2004 I was in fact hitting on a regular basis with Pato as part of my in-court training. One day I brought the old frame to our session, there was a spark in the corner of his left eye. A very emotional moment. “That was one of the best frames I’d ever played with” there was this light on his face...we were kids once more…

 

But time takes a toll both on materials and players and we have to accept the fact that the frames will be less responsive with time as our body also slows down (even a fraction). In my quest to try to extend the lifetime of my rackets, I started purchasing any available frame on eBay. Got 2 Becker Winners in pristine condition from Holland, but were the earlier models and the stiffness was very low so to match the rest of the frames, a lot of lead had to be added to their heads. Yet they became lovely to use on clay courts. Got a Estusa ProVantech from someone in Texas. Another Puma BB Super from Germany, also in excellent condition. I worked hours to match all the frames and be able to use them without much thought. I played and compete successfully for a few more years. Very happy years. But with time running out of those frames I started years ahead trying different choices and see how eventually replace them. Wilson n-Code 95, Volk Catapult V-10, yet nice frames and much more forgiving for my body, but none could not match the German artillery.

 

Last December, after I finished training and evaluating what to do to move up that next step in terms of level, I decided it was time to give up the old frames and look for a modern, yet classic new weapon. Talked a lot with Maher Diab and did even more research… and again more trials, and testing, and playing, and analyzing… until we got a winner, the Head Prestige MP. This is a frame used by many pro players on tour for quite some time now, it is the right choice for me, gives me plenty of head speed, comfort, control and power, and let’s face it… is more forgiving than the Puma frame. Transition has been smooth, the results support this decision.

 

I wanted to give my racket an honorable farewell… and certainly did so. Got the Fall Double league at Parc Jarry in December and Semis at Boucherville in January. Everywhere I played, they were praised and admired… and feared.   

 

Haven’t hang my Puma/Estusa frames to the wall yet, still hesitant… they are still in a tennis bag, ready to go if I need them. But like when King Arthur ordered one of his knights to throw Excalibur back to the lake… I’m sure that day will come and will be emotional. And I will be a kid once more.

 

See you in the hunt.

 

 

Iron Gaucho

BALANCE OF THE FIRST PART OF THE YEAR

Have to admit that I'm very pleased with how things have unravelled so far this season. After deciding to come back to active competition in the senior tournaments last year, I took a hard look on what I needed to improve and have a reasonable chance to winning again. Months of training on and off court, painful hours at the gym and following a diet to loose those extra pounds that hurt my knees started to pay off by the end of 2012.

In December we got a great boost of energy with the winning of the Fall Doubles League at Parc Jarry with my good friend Lloyd Mangahas, and that was such an unexpected achievement as it was the first time we paired as a double tennis team. Let me tell you, that feat raised the bar.

Back to training with Maher Diab and a pre-season workout in Argentina with Federico Melo, Alejandro Fusilier, Marcelo Costa and... Guillermo Vilas, the man himself, put me in a good vibe for what would come.

And the results speak for themselves. On the first stop of the vets tour in Quebec, made semifinals at Boucherville.

An indoor super fast orange carpet that allowed me to prove my tennis and at the same time give a decent farewell to my beloved Puma/Estusa Beckers. Got a couple of wins against lefties (among them Stéphane Chartrand, # 3 in the ranking) and a good match against the top player in the draw, Christian Breton, showing positive signs of the work we'd been doing so far.

Skipped the second tourney in Quebec city, and instead focused on two fronts: The National Indoor East Canada to be held at Côte-de-Liesse Tennis Club on American clay and the Winter Doubles League organized by Tennis Montreal at Parc Jarry.

Now armed with the new Head Prestige MP, I started working again on indoor clay courts. Maher was pushing me to the limit on every session with more success as the weeks went by. Tested my stamina training at good speed and playing a full one-day tournament at the same venue of the National. It went better than expected, winning the Top Gun tournament and finishing strong. Kept playing my doubles partner and good friend, the Moroccan marvel, Oussama Azizi; and also the die-hard Phil Chalabi (top ten player in my age group) from Brazil.

In the meantime, Lloyd and myself started the quest to defend our title in the doubles league. First part of the season was not so good. We lost our first 4 matches in tight games, a very frustrating situation for us. The first win came when we needed it most. Our last match of the first half of the season was defining who was going to keep the place in the group or who was going down to a lower level. After that, something clicked on us and went to storm on 8 consecutive games to claim the title once more. Believe we just dropped 3 sets in that swing.

 

Cannot say how much I love to play with Lloyd, he has the heart of a lion, hence his nickname. After our semifinals win, he gave me an Argentina soccer team jersey to use in the final. I was so tired during our last match, could barely hold my racket, but we made it. Very proud of it. Once again the team delivered on the hard courts at Parc Jarry. It suits our game, it feels like home.

Again this season we got the invaluable help of Shiho Sumitomo (played with her one of the first round robin matches) and Oussama Azizi (also played one of my best doubles matches ever with him on the second part of the season) on our weekly training, both ready to help and practice all kind of drills and disguise their game to the ones we were going to face in competition. Our gratitude to such wonderful friends. They are a big part in the final victory.

Coming back to the Nationals, the balance was exactly what I expected. Won the matches I had to win, lost (regrettably) against the guys I know I'm still behind. Got a couple of good wins against hard hitters with good serves, but lost in the quarters against a train... Alexandre Blaettler (2nd seeded), from Switzerland, my personal favorite player in the tour. He was plain and simple too much for me. I started too conservative, and at no point I was able to damage him. Alex was simply superb along the two sets, not giving me a chance to score... not once. Believe I got probably 12/14 points in the whole match. Only one game point in the whole match. Not much to say. I was disappointed, but have to accept that he plays in a league of its own, as Benjamin Woo told me last year: ''Alex is probably the best player in Canada when he is on fire, no one can beat him''. It will require a lot of extra work for me to be able to challenge him. The bar has raised again.

That loss moved me to the Consolation round, which is exactly a parallel tournament for those who loose up to the quarters on the main draw. The objective is to rank the players final positions as there are only two national contentions that count for the Canadian ranking as per Tennis Canada, one indoor (east or west) during the spring and one outdoor (that changes location every year) during summer time. That was among my expectations, so far so good... what I... what nobody expected was to see the 1st seeded, Olivier Borlee (Canadas # 1 in 35s, top 30 at Open level) also eliminated by the eventual tournament champion Andrew Oxner from Nova Scotia, in the quarters.

Being eliminated in quarters, gives one the advantage to start the consolation at the same stage. Won two matches and got to face Olivier in the final.

This time around I went out there and put as many balls deep and hard as possible. Served strong and attacked at every opportunity. I went down so to speak with my boots on. As a General Custer, knowing that he had all on his side, put some good tennis to give him a run for his money. I missed a couple of chances to get closer in the score, but cannot complain. I was satisfied with the performance. Playing Alex on Thursday in the 40s and a very good doubles match in the 35s with Oussama against multi champions Brojde-Guigère on the Friday before the finals helped me to be ready for that extra speed these top players have. Oussama as usual helped me warm up in the morning of the match and as he knows my game back an forth, gave me some sound advice that added to the strategy discussed with Maher the day before. His cheering during the match felt like a roaring crowd in a Grand Slam. So much appreciated. 

 

So to sum up, played 3 singles tournaments (4 if you count the consolation round in the Nationals as a separate tourney) with 1 win, 1 final, 1 semifinals, and 1 quarters. On the doubles front, 1 win (with Lloyd Managahas, and 2 semifinals (with Oussama Azizi) at Boucherville and at the Nationals.

 

Time to regroup with my coach Maher, keep working for the outdoor season, and see if I can break into the top ten when the new ranking is published in the next week or so.

 

See you in the hunt.

 

Yours,

 

Iron Gaucho

MATS WILANDER HEADING TO QUEBEC CITY

 

Former world No. 1 Mats Wilander is heading to Canada this summer, as he is bringing his popular Wilander on Wheels program to the Montcalm Tennis Club in Quebec City on August 3 and 4.

Wilander on Wheels offers tennis fans the chance to hit with the seven-time Slam champion right in their own hometown or local tennis club.

 

Wilander, who won three Australian Opens (1983, 1984, 1988), three French Opens (1982, 1985, 1988) and one US Open (1988) throughout his illustrious career, successfully made his first visit to Quebec with Wilander on Wheels last year, and is now readying to make a return visit.

Only 48 players can register for the event at Montcalm Tennis Club, located near the St. Lawrence River in Quebec’s capital city. The program includes 90 minutes of play, one-on-one coaching and high energy drills, plus a private lunch with Wilander following the on-court action.

 

Will be fantastic to hit with Mats in such beautiful venue as the Montcalm Tennis Club. I'm thrill to be among the group of players. Surely will share some pics and anecdotes of the event. Quebec City here we come!

 

Yours,

 

Iron Gaucho

THE DAY I TRAINED WITH GUILLERMO VILAS

Early January, Vilas Club in Buenos Aires, and under a suffocating weather with temperatures of 38 Celsius and a humidity factor of 80%, I would watch Guillermo Vilas train hour after hour. I'm talking January 2013, not Jan 1978... Guillermo at 60 is still going strong. Believe me.

Anyways, at this early stage of the year, my own training schedule was cardio in the morning, gym right after, some rest and lunch time and couple of hours on court with drills to finish with some points. I was on my own world that afternoon. Have to say, hitting quite well for my standards. I'd just finished a forehand drill with Federico Melo and while picking up the balls I noticed this guy that projects a huge shadow on the court. "I've been looking for you" says the voice and when I look up, the sun hurt my eyes so I'm just able to see a human shape wearing a big towel and a hat... Couldn't believe it...it was Guillermo Vilas himself. First reaction was to look over my shoulder as I was positive he was talking to someone else. But there was none behind me. Was he actually talking to me?

"Yeah, I've been looking for you since yesterday... Nice shots, let's hit together later on, see ya in a few minutes" My day... my year, was already done (on Jan 3rd!!). GV was praising my game? Could that be possible? I tried to focus back on my training session, as Federico was already in position to make me work hard... again. We consumed another basket of balls when Vilas showed up with his bag and rackets. My legs melt down like butter and my knees started trembling with strange spasms... last time I was (almost) this nervous was on my wedding day.

"Watch out, he's going to aim for the lines... he likes putting pressure from the start" Those were the only words of advice from Federico. Guillermo asked for how long we had been training. Almost 2 hours under a scorching, almighty Sun. We did two-to-one drills against GV for about half an hour. Man... the speed and spin were un-be-lie-va-ble... and the accuracy... probably 7 out of 10 balls were in the 2 inch area around the lines. After that time, Fede departed to his next appointment and I stayed on a mano-a-mano with Guillermo. The "Gaucho de Hierro" vs. "Iron Gaucho"... cannot described it with words. Simply magic. After another 20 minutes GV said, "it's enough for today, you've been training a lot today, don't want you to burn out"

Vilas was playing the next day Jose Luis "Batata" Clerc in an exhibition match prior to Roddick - Del Potro... On hard... As a child I used to compare my game to Clerc and Lendl, tall guys with a very classic one-hand backhand, less top spin than most of the guys down under but with more power and trying to be as aggressive as possible from the baseline. Was he using me as a sparring? I didn't dare to ask...

 

 

We spent another hour exchanging concepts and he gave me invaluable tips and insights on my game that were absolutely fantastic. Praised my game again and congratulated the good work that my coach and friend Marcelo Costa did all those years back defining my style of play. He even thought I'd learned tennis in California... kind of an Elliot Telscher type of player. I was in cloud 9... I guess so did Marcelo when I told him all about it.

With all that excitement, I could barely sleep that night. The following day I couldn't move. Had no energy to hit the ball at my usual speed, I was completely drained from the experience itself. But the next day I was again back to normal and GV was training his daughter on the next court to us and stayed after to help me with my serve. I'd been struggling with my serve for the last two years, after an injury I suffered at the back end of 2010. Had to modify the toss of the ball and part of the motion and totally lost confidence in the shot. After a few seconds GV asked me to make some minor changes and voila! Speed started to pick up and by the end of the session I felt I had my weapon back... without the pain. Thanks Guillermo!

 

And the Gaucho de Hierro went on for another training session with Alejandro Fusilier "Fuchi", to keep working on a short-angled forehand..."Have all summer to figure it out, but it's going to be fantastic"... GV at 60, working on new shots... Still going strong... Under a scorching, ... almighty Sun. 

 

Yours,

Iron Gaucho