Real Tennis: Real-ly Good

Captain Emily Brady reports on a flying start in for the Real Tennis Ladies

The Cambridge Ladies Real Tennis squad scored a decisive victory in its first competitive outing of the season at Newmarket on Sunday, with the four completed matches all going Cambridge's way. Immy Whittam got the day off to a cracking start with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over her opponent.

Number 1 seed Emma Samia-Aly took her match 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, and Emily Brady (Captain) completed the hat-trick with a decisive 6-3, 6-0 win. Karen Pearce, playing in her first ever real tennis match, rose triumphantly to the challenge and she too won in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.

It was up to Kate Kirk, last year's number 4 seed in the Varsity match, to complete the whitewash. In a departure from the script, she soon found herself 1-5 down in the first set, but after getting to grips with her opponent's game, she pulled the score back to 5-5. Unfortunately, that's where the match ended. A tricky shot and an awkward turn put Kate out of the game, with a knee injury that might scupper her chances of representing Cambridge at the end of February.

Emily Brady