The last order of play for the day was
(QF) Aspelin/Lindstedt vs Benneteau/Johansson. I was so very afraid that Thomas would blow off his doubles match after losing the way he did to Roddick in the first round. Plus, Benneteau lost in singles today, so I was on edge. Would this be my last close encounter of the Swedish kind?
We had to wait though a horrible women's doubles match that took for-friggin-ever; so much for an early end to the day, haha! I was also afraid they'd reschedule it to another court because the women were taking so long. But no. All we had to do was wait
Normie Chryst was in the chair, the second time we'd seen him that day. We're waiting for him to get one of the big, crowded night matches, so we were surprised to see him again.
The contingents come out in full force: some unknown French players were sitting almost on top of us, and Magnus Norman slipped in very quietly, with Sofia Arvidsson right on his tail. Her coach joined them, along with someone else I didn't recognize.
We reached out and found each other in the crowd, meeting gazes for a moment. (I wonder if he thinks I'm stalking him, hehe.) He's sitting in a very tough place for me to take a pic of him, though.
Let me tell you, he looks SO young. I think that's why it took me so long to realize who he was. He looks about 22 with dark hair, and has a very youthful body, too, especially when he's tucked into jeans and a sweatshirt, his attire of choice tonight.
LOL, we kept an eye on each other from opposite ends of the bleachers, can you tell?
Anyway, the doubles match was a lot of fun, and though it went the distance, it certainly didn't feel as long as the womens' doubles match that preceded it.
Lindstedt certainly has a good serve! He serves very hard, and moves in quickly. Not bad for a 30-year-old
Aspelin is no slouch himself, but his serve was the vulnerable one of that team.
Thomas was playing much, much better than last night. His serve was very strong, and he was slicing it very effectively. He had a lot of aces, even deep into the match. Magnus was watching him carefully, so whatever kind of chat they had after last night seemed to be very effective
Benneteau made Thomas do a lot of lifting in this match; his was the serve they constantly had to protect. They seemed to be having fun, though; if Thomas ever takes up doubles seriously, he needs a stronger partner.
The first set went to a TB, and Benneteau double faulted on set point to give Aspelin/Perry the first set, 76(5) in 48 minutes.
Benneteau/Johansson break almost immediately in the second set, for 2-1 on a no-ad point. They broke Aspelin's serve.
Not surprisingly, Aspelin/Lindstedt break back at 4-4 on a Benneteau double fault. Lindstedt quickly extended it to 5-4, and the end was in sight. I was taking pics like mad, trying to get as many good shots as possible...just in case.
Luckily, it's Thomas' turn to serve to stay in the match, and he does so emphatically, holding at love. They break for 6-5 on an Aspelin double fault, and suddenly Benneteau has to serve to level things. He finally hits some first serves, and they capture the second set, 7-5.
By this time, an hour and a half has elapsed, but it certainly doesn't feel that long
I was ready to go, though, since it was already after 8! So the match TB was welcome.
Unfortunately, on the changeover after the second set, Benneteau's chair collapses out from under him!! The Frenchies, there to support him, start laughing and stomping their feet as Thomas helps him up. He didn't see it; they were both standing to go back on court when it happened. So poor Benneteau has to dig the chair off his ass before he can play again.
It was unfortunate, because Aspelin/Lindstedt jump out to a big lead, 5-2, by directing their play to Benneteau, who keeps missing volleys into the net.
At 5-2, Thomas hit some very strong serves to get things to 5-4, and then it gets exciting. Benneteau's brain gets back into the match, and suddenly he's not missing anymore, and hits some good serves when its his turn to serve. Thomas levelled things at 7-6, and Benneteau hit a screamer of a down-the-line winner, then 2 good serves to put them up 8-7.
They play good returns on Aspelin/Lindstedt's serves, going up 9-8, and Thomas served it home for the very tough win!
I filmed their match point, and the Frenchies went wild.
So I guess he's not blowing off doubles, and boy am I ever glad!!
Thomas pics in next post; though yellow due to that bad lighting, they turned out relatively well.
