Sights Set On Sectionals....Maybe

It is hard to be very excited about the prospect of Sectionals with a hurricane forecast to hit the coast and more than likely drop rain down on Alamo Town but like it or not, sectionals will take place this weekend. Let's start off with the 4.5s. I had to blink a couple of times to make sure I was seeing the right draw because you would think Sectionals would boast the strongest or at least 2nd strongest draw (next to Gallery, aka "The Coke") of the year but that will not be the case. No Alfonso is pretty much the equivalent of no Nadal at the French Open....meaning someone will win this tournament who really doesn't deserve to be Sectional's Champion. And it does look to be a rather wide open draw, especially in the top half. There is probably a dark horse in there I have not heard of, but from the names I know, I do not see a winner coming from this half. From the players listed in this half, I would have to go with Yien Zheng to steady, backboard his way to the finals. Bottom half at least has some degree of fire power with #2 Alejandro Sanches joined by non-seeds Jason Kern, Juan Dekruyff (righty or lefty this time?, who knows), Greg Schmucker (if he has been hitting and if he bothers to show) and Guillermo Del Campo (who is in a rather tough quarter). Haven't seen much of Casas this year so don't know how he has been hitting but I have no doubt he will show up with his usual abundance of flair, gamemanship, and outright bad line calls, so he could always be a factor up to the semis. Taking a wild stab at it, I will go with Alejandro to win over Yien in straight sets in the finals. Though I think this tournament rightfully belongs to Alfonso Rodriguez so I hope he has a good reason for missing it.

5.0s - Wow. Another massive draw. 13 guys this time. I hope the winner can still walk on Monday after all that tennis. How about Brian Smith over Reader in the finals in a repeat of the "The Coke" finals. Also, look for an exciting semi between Amit Garg and Smith in another repeated matchup from "The Coke". Where are you Dibuas? A Dibua or two thrown in the mix would have added a little extra excitement, but oh well, it is what it is. At this point, I am starting to develop more of an interest in 4.0 than 5.0....

But not enough to bother looking at the draw and make a prediction or two. 128 Draw and probably 120 names I have never heard of. Outside my comfort zone to comment.

Open - I wish I knew these guys well enought to comment. Adrian Valdez is always a favorite, as are the Jejede ( I am sure that is misspelled) brothers and that Brian Wooten guy if he plays. Of course, Brian Smith could have also been a factor in Open. Maybe next year he will decide to give these guys a run for their money and let Reader have control of the 5.0s, with a still solid Tim Green nipping at his heels.

Here's to hoping all you guys get the chance to play, and play real tennis at that, not the 2-2, No-add BS that I am sure is already being planned.