Well today was a beautiful day here in Celaya, Mexico.  The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and the ball was going in between the lines.  That last one is a key ingredient.  I won my singles 6-0 6-2 against Mauricio Astorga (MEX).  I played well and did the things I needed to do to get through.  Darian King and I also won our doubles 6-0 3-6 10-7 (super tiebreaker for the third set).  It was a pretty strange doubles match.  We came out pretty hot.  We were making every return and getting all the lucky breaks.  Then boom second set hit us like a sack of bricks.  Our opponent played a good return game at 0-1 to break.  Just like that the momentum shifted.  Momentum is a very fragile thing in tennis.  It is something you really have to take care of.  If not, then someone is always waiting to steal it from you.  We were luckily able to raise our level of play in the tiebreaker and get it done in the end.  My semifinals of singles will be at 11:00am and our doubles is not before 3:00pm.  So it will be another full day of tennis tomorrow. 

     One of the more funny things I have found at the futures here in Mexico are the practice balls (above).  In every other country that I have been to you get one new can of practice balls every day.  Here is a whole different story.  You have to give a deposit of fifty pesos in order to get four practice balls.  As you can see, the selection is stellar.  I would say fifty percent of the balls in the bucket are already popped or within two minutes of popping.  So you must choose your four very wisely.  I usually spend about five minutes shuffling through the bucket hoping to find a hidden gem somewhere.  Let me just confirm to you that it's not there.  During the matches we change balls every eleven and thirteen games.  So since I only played fourteen games, I shook hands with my opponent and the referee.  Then I jogged out to pick up the somewhat fresh balls on the court.  I threw them in my bag and went on my way.  I consider that a big win in itself.  It is the little things in life you know?

     On to the serious stuff.  This bad boy (above) aka the gym is where all the magic has been happening this week.  You should have seen the before picture.  I have pretty much left the gym in shambles.  You might notice a white piece of paper on the far treadmill.  Most likely says out of order due to over use.  You're welcome.  Seriously though.  It may not look like much, but it has everything you could possibly need minus a underwater treadmill (only joking, underwater treadmills aren't a necessity).  It is tough to really get a good work out in during the middle of a tournament.  So you have to get a little in here and there in order to stay on point with your fitness level.  I try to get some mini workout sessions in each day just to keep everything up to date.  So far it is working like a charm.  I am also a little bit superstitious (by a little I mean a lot), so if I do something one day and win.  You can expect me to do that same thing every day after until I lose.  Thus why I have had Subway for dinner every night before a match.  Like I said in my previous post. Us athletes are a strange breed. 

     Side not for the day.  Spanish speaking people really struggle with the name Devin.  I have been called David, Dave, and Davin up to this point.  It keeps me alert, that much is for sure.  I find it pretty entertaining myself.  It is always good to be called a few different names for a few weeks to keep things fresh. 

     Anyways, it is dinnertime.  I am off to Subway to get myself a foot long pechuga de pollo (grilled chicken).  There have been a few little problems with the comments section, but it should be all good now.  Some of your comments may have been lost in mix.  I promise they have not been forgotten though.  I hope everyone has had a great day and have an even better weekend.  I will post again tomorrow night after all the action is over with.  Thanks for hearing me out. 

All the best,

Davin