Moscow or Washington?

Fall is a brief season here in Moscow. Back to school and before we know it the daylight hours are growing short and the night much longer. But before winter takes hold, we have tennis season!

This was my second time coaching MS Girls Tennis and I really enjoyed seeing the team evolve from young Grade 6s to a more mature, stronger team this year.

This past weekend we flew to Prague for our tournament. We were blessed with gorgeous weather and thrilled to encounter autumn in full swing! Yellow leaves and blue skies were a welcome reprieve from the Moscow grey. The girls wasted no time getting down to business.

We spent two days on the courts at the International School of Prague, trading points with students from schools in Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, and even Albania. The best part for me is the downtime between matches, when I see the girls playing four square with players they’ve just spent 60 minutes going toe-to-toe with in an 8-game pro set.

When my tennis players begin a match, the first question they ask is: “Moscow or Washington?”. As they spin their Wilson tennis rackets and determine who will serve first, that question seems so innocent.

We worked to defend last year’s title and were thrilled to place 2nd by only two games. It was an exciting weekend of ups and downs and I was proud of the girls for pulling this one out.

Tomorrow we celebrate as a team and pack our rackets away until next season, lessons learned and heads held high. It’s a highlight of my fall and of theirs, too, I hope 🙂