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Qualifying rd1: C Fleming v J Vacek [Cze][8]
Wimbledon wildcard playoff [Raynes Park] [grass]:
QF: C Fleming lost to A Parmar 6-7, 3-6
Rd2: C Fleming bt L Childs [GB] 7-6, 7-5
Rd1: C Fleming v bye
Surbiton 25K+H Challenger [grass]:
Doubles rd1: C Fleming/J Murray lost to M Fish/J Morrison [USA] 4-6, 5-7
Report: Despite losing in straight sets this was an encouraging performance from Colin and Jamie and it was definately a match which could have gone either way. Speaking afterwards exclusively to this site, Colin said "It was a close match but we missed several chances, especially in the 1st set when we were 3-1 up with a break. We played a couple of bad games and they took advantage and took it 6-4. In the 2nd set we played really well but at 5-5 we missed a couple of chances on their serve which turned out to be decisive as in the next game they played some really great shots to break and take the match. It was good experience playing against such a quality pairing like that as Fish has been close to the top 10 in singles and Morrison has been top 100.
Doubles preview: Colin and Jamie make their much anticipated return to doubles action as a pairing on their favourite surface. Last year they reached a semi and final in grass-court futures. However, if they are to repeat the 2005 success of the British twins Richard and William Barker in reaching the Surbiton final, they will have to produce some of the best performances of their career. As Surbiton is traditionally the opening of the grass court season, some of the best exponents of serve-volley tennis gather here for the singles and doubles tournaments. Their round 1 opponents, Mardy Fish and Jeff Morrison, may not have played together before but they're world class doubles players, both having been ranked well inside the world's top 100. Fish has been as high as no 17 in the world in singles and is a former runner-up at the ATP event in Nottingham on grass. If Fleming/Murray reach the quarter-finals then top seeds Jordan Kerr and Jim Thomas are likely to lie in wait.
Qualifying singles rd1: C Fleming [GB] lost to N Bamford [GB] 2-6, 6-3, 4-6
Report: Colin was below par in this match and was edged out by on-form compatriot, Hertfordshire's Neil Bamford. Throughout the match Colin wasn't able to find his normal fluency and timing and made too many unforced errors from the back of the court. He raised his game after the 1st set to take it to a decider but ultimately Bamford proved too consistent. Speaking after the match Colin said "I was pretty inconsistent today, making too many errors. Jamie and I had a good week of practise on the grass courts at Roehampton last week but it was mainly doubles stuff. I need to get more singles practise on grass. Adjusting to the grass courts has been quite easy, I like the surface as it suits my game."
Rd1 preview: Colin faces Neil Bamford for the 2nd time this year, in rd1 qualifying for the Surbiton 25K+H Challenger. Colin won 6-1, 6-3 in February in rd1 of the masters week of the GB 4 satellite and went on to win that tournament. However, it's likely to be a much closer match this time round as after an indifferent start to the season Bamford found his form on the fast outdoor hard courts of Greece in May, reaching 2 singles semi-finals and winning two doubles titles with Jim May. The winner is likely to face 2nd seeded Frenchman Gregory Carraz in rd2 qualies. This is a tough draw as the big-serving Carraz is a classic grass-court specialist looking to attack the net at every opportunity. Colin is also partnering Jamie Murray in the doubles which starts later this week.
Colin's schedule: Colin
is now taking 3 weeks off to prepare for the grass-court season. He
will return to tournament action in the Surbiton 50K Challenger at the
beginning of June. Colin's points from the GB 2 satellite this time
last year have now dropped off resulting in his ranking dropping a few
places to 372. His doubes ranking is 214.
GB F8 [Edinburgh] [15K] [clay]:
Rd1: C Fleming [GB] lost to L Childs [GB] 5-7, 1-6
Report: Colin was undone in this
match by 5 or 6 very bad line calls at crucial times right at the end
of the 1st set. These poor calls meant that he lost his serve in the
12th game and with it, the set. Colin was understandably furious with
the line judge about this and lost his concentration. Unfortunately he
wasn't able to regain his focus in the 2nd set until it was too late
and Childs won the set easily. Colin isn't playing doubles in this
tournament as there's no point. He'd need to win the tournament for the
points to count as one of his top 12 tournaments and neither of his
regular doubles partners [Jamie Murray and David Corrie] are playing
here this week.
GB F7 [Bournemouth] [15K] [clay]:
QF doubles: C Fleming/D Corrie[1] lost to D Brewer/M Lowe [GB] 4-6, 6-3, 3-6
Report: A
shock loss for Fleming and Corrie who had been expected to reach the
final this week. However, they were off form against the Scottish
pairing of David Brewer and Matt Lowe. Brewer has been on top form on
the Bournemouth clay, winning the British tour event last week. Colin
heads to Edinburgh now where he had been hoping to team up with his
regular doubles partner Jamie Murray. However, Jamie has opted to spend
an extra week in the USA playing challengers so it's likely than Colin
will team up again with David Corrie.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/D Corrie [1] bt R Haase/S Korteling [Hol] 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
Report to follow
Rd1 doubles preview: Colin
and Corrie open their clay campaign against the Dutch pairing who
aren't regular partners. They have a combined ranking of 997, which is
much inferior to Colin and Corrie's ranking. However both of the Dutch
players have reached futures finals this year and Korteling reached the
final of the Lanzarote Challenger last week. So this match is evenly
poised between two teams, one is statistically superior while the
other is on form.
Rd1 singles: C Fleming [3] lost to M Crugnola [It] 4-6, 3-6
Report: A straight
sets defeat for Colin against the Italian clay-court specialist. It was
always going to be a difficult match as the conditions in Bournemouth
have been overcast and wet slowing the courts down considerably.
Speaking after the match Colin felt that he "played some good stuff but
got bogged down in the heavy conditions." Crugnola is a very consistent
baseliner, he doesn't make many errors so it was going to be hard for
Colin to hit through him. Colin will next be in singles action in the
15K futures event in Edinburgh next week.
Rd1 preview: Colin
has been practising for a week on the Bournemouth clay courts and he'll
be hoping that the hard work will pay dividends when he comes up
against Italian clay-court specialist Marco Crugnola in rd1. Crugnola
may be ranked 85 places below Colin at 453 but he's played almost
entirely on clay in 2006, he's reached the semis of two futures events
and won a round in the recent Chiasso Challenger on clay courts. If
Colin wins he will face a British wildcard in rd2, either Alex
Slabinsky or Sean Thornley. Colin is seeded to face 5th seeded
Frenchman Trystan Meniane in the quarters. Fleming v Crugnola is first
on corut 1 at 10am on Tuesday.
Entry list info: Colin
makes his return to tournament action on the clay courts of Bournemouth
after a fortnight's break. This will be Colin's first tournament on
clay since June 2005. Last year he enjoyed reasonable success on the
surface, reaching a final in week 2 of the GB clay court satellite in
May. Having been competing on indoor courts, Colin will have to adapt
to longer rallies and the much slower pace of the courts and he'll have
to mix up his game more. Colin is 4th on the entry list behind
compatriots James Auckland, Matt Smith and Sweden's Marcus Sarstrand.
If Colin reaches the semis in this tournament he will move into the
world's top 350.
Colin's Davis Cup experience:
Colin felt that the whole experience was extremely motivational. During
the training sessions the week before the tie, many spectators felt
that he matched Auckland and Parmar and were impressed especially when
he creamed his first return of Rusedski's serve straight past him with
a double-handed backhand. The Davis Cup captain Jeremy Bates is also
believed to have been impressed with Colin which is promising for
the future. However Colin feels that from now on he'll only join
up with the squad if he's selected as part of the 4-man team. Although
the experience of being around class players such as Murray and
Rusedski is extremely beneficial for Colin, he misses out on two weeks
worth of points. He will of course play if selected as part of the
4-man squad from now on.
Colin's schedule for April-May: Colin's
original plan was to play the qualifying for the Lanzarote Challenger
before joining up with Jamie Murray for 3, 15K futures events in
Greece. Colin felt that these events would offer a good chance for him
to really boost his ranking as the fast, bouncy hard courts would suit
his game. However, in the last couple of days Colin has revised his
schedule. He has decided to miss the Lanzarote Challenger and take a
rest week instead, to practise on the clay courts of Bournemouth in
preparation for the 15K futures event there at the beginning of May.
After that Colin will play another clay-court futures event, in
Edinburgh. After Edinburgh, Colin will take three weeks off to practise
on the grass courts and fine-tune his game ahead of the Surbiton 50K
Challenger at the beginning of June.
Cardiff 25K + H Challenger [indoor hard]:
Doubles main draw:
Quarter-final: Fleming/D Corrie [GB] lost to P Petzschner/A Peya [Ger]/[Aut][1] 6-7[3], 3-6
Rd1: Fleming/D Corrie [GB] bt G Lugassy/J Pequery [Fr] 6-3, 6-4
Qualifying rd1: C Fleming [5] lost to E Corrie [GB] 4-6, 3-6
Report: A
shock loss for Colin against 18 year old unranked Ed Corrie. Corrie is
one of Britain's best 18 year olds and was awarded a wildcard into the
qualifying but he wasn't expected to win a set off Colin. Colin felt
that he was lacking in match sharpness and on the fast, indoor hard
courts this cost him. He hadn't been in tournament action since the end
of March. Colin is in the doubles main draw with Ed's older brother
David Corrie, Colin will be next in singles action in GB F7, a clay
court futures event in Bournemouth at the beginning of May.
Rising Scottish star sets his sights on Wimbledon:
From the Scotsman: http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport.cfm?id=564102006
FROM East League tennis with Edinburgh's Blackhall club to this summer's men's singles at Wimbledon in five years is a remarkable journey by any standards - but is very much the goal of latest Scottish tennis sensation Colin Fleming. To say the Linlithgow-based 21-year-old is a rising star of the serve and volley scene just doesn't do his advance justice.
For, in many ways Fleming is a throwback to a
different, perhaps more genteel, era of tennis in that he opted to
complete a university degree rather than chase the world in search of
ranking points. Until now.
"He wanted to go down the university route and then have a go. He wanted to take time to mature and then decide his future with the benefit of a degree to fall back on," says coach Euan McGinn to no discernible objection from the prodigy himself sitting across the table.
Having more or less completed his Economics and Finance degree course at Stirling University Fleming - "I think I've put together enough work to justify my degree without recourse to honours" - is intent on making up for lost time as shown by the fact his singles world ranking has rocketed 72 places from 444 to 372 in the past three months.
In addition he has been causing heads to turn even more as one half of a doubles partnership involving fellow Scot Jamie Murray, brother of British No.1, Andy.
And the good news is that with a first assault on the British tournament season just about to be rolled out Fleming has barely started on his sojourn up the ratings hence the possibility of a Wimbledon wild-card.
"By my reckoning Jamie and I could be good enough for a direct entry to the doubles if things go well.
"Singles-wise if I could get myself up to around 275 in the world rankings that might meet the criteria for earning a British wild-card although a play-off system is in place for that form of entry," says the son of a West Calder assistant head teacher and businessman (he explains patiently his tennis-playing dad, Martin, has just moved on from a gas maintenance business and is looking around for his next opportunity).
If the season continues as it has begun then why not especially with Fleming drawing heavily on his experiences attached to the British Davis Cup squad in Glasgow last week as "the fifth man" in a four-strong team?
Such an opportunity to practise and train with the squad that included boyhood friend Andy Murray and former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski, pictured below right, has put a fresh spring in British No.16 Fleming's stride.
He says: "I learned an enormous amount from just being around the squad, Rusedski in particular.
"It wasn't so much what Greg said as observing the good habits of someone who has been on the pro. tour for 15 years and who has been as high as No.4 in the world.
"That has left me keen to get going in Cardiff next week followed by a tournament in Lanzarote before I probably bypass a clay court tournament in Edinburgh for one in Greece because the faster surface abroad suits my game better.
"After that I'll look to pick up ranking points from the likes of the Surbiton tournament and maybe qualify for the big pre-Wimbledon Stella Artois event at Queen's Club."
Clearly, Fleming knows where he is going geographically and sitting in the Scottish National Tennis Centre at Stirling this week it is obvious he is equally switched on when it comes to planning his approach.
Impressing as ultra level-headed and down-to-earth Fleming, nevertheless, knows the importance of developing mental toughness while remembering to pay tribute to those who have helped instil in him all-important self belief.
Down to earth? Aside from being a committed supporter of Partick Thistle, perhaps the most impressive aspect of Fleming off court - on it he nominates a backhand down the line as his "killer" shot - is his attitude to sport psychology in getting ethereal matters firmly in perspective.
"I have done a little bit of work with a sports psychologist but I sometimes find it hard to get my head around it and really use it in the line of fire.
"I find it easier to work out for myself what works and what doesn't; it has to come from within" says the former Scottish junior champion whose stint at Blackhall, aged 17, came while being coached by Edinburgh's Brian Barnet.
As for those who have pioneered the way for a new wave of Scottish tennis who will perhaps go on (without the same extensive indoor facilities) and emulate those ranks of Swedes who hit the international circuit in the 1970s and 1980s.
"Seeing Andy Murray, whom I have hit with since he was seven years old, climb the rankings has helped convince me I can do the same while playing doubles with Jamie and beating players I might otherwise have backed off from has given me new found confidence in singles.
"Whereas I once might have rolled over I now look to match the resolve of my opponents," says Fleming.
All of which is said with an air of informality rather than the in-your-face aggression that is too often the trademark of the modern sportsman.
With that the modest Fleming pulls on the one obvious trapping of his current rise - a British Davis Cup jacket gifted to him in recognition of support work provided last week at Braehead Arena.
Today, a supporting role - tomorrow, could it be the "Linlithgow Laser" who is setting the pace and calling the
shots?
Week 10th-14th April:
Colin had planned to play the Valencia 25K+H Challenger in the USA this
week but due to the Davis Cup tie he wasn't able to play singles
qualifying and missed the sign-in to play the doubles with Jamie
Murray. He has decided not to fly back to South America but will
instead play the Cardiff 25K+H Challenger next week. It's not yet known
whether he will get a wildcard or whether he'll have to play
qualifying.
Davis Cup bulletin [10/4/2006]:
Andy Murray recovered from his ankle injury and fever and so was able
to play the doubles rubber in the tie against Serbia and Montenegro.
This meant Britain didn't need to call up a replacement player and so
Colin wasn't promoted from hitting partner to an actual place in the
squad. Unfortunately Britain lost the tie 3-2 but it was still a
fantastic opportunity for Colin as he got to practise with Murray and
Rusedski, both world-class players.
Colin selected for Davis Cup squad [1/4/2006]:
Contrary to previous reports and rumours, it has now emerged that Colin
Fleming has been selected by Jeremy Bates as a hitting partner for the
tie against Serbia and Montenegro from 7th-9th April. The other hitting
partner is Colin's fellow Scot Jamie Baker. Colin accepted Bates' offer
last Friday. He is hoping that Jeremy might select him for the doubles
rubber if Andy Murray withdraws due to his ankle injury sustained
during his rd1 defeat in the Nasdaq 100 Open. This means that instead
of attempting to qualify for next week's Talahassee 50K Challenger,
Colin will be flown home by Bates to join up with the rest of the Davis
Cup squad this weekend after Cuba F2 has finished. After the tie has
finished Colin will fly back to the States to join up again with Jamie
Murray for the doubles main draw of the Valencia 25K+H Challenger.
Cuba F2 [La Habana][10K]:
Quarter-final: C Fleming[2] lost to J Garcia [Dom] 4-6, 4-6
Quarter-final preview: Colin
faces his first ever opponent from the Dominican Republic in Friday's
quarter-finals. Colin had been expecting to face the American 7th seed
Roman Borvanov but Borvanov lost 2-6, 6-2, 6-0 in rd2 to Jhonson
Garcia. Garcia is ranked 434 places below Colin at 805 in the world
which is a career high for him. So far in 2006 Garcia has been in good
form, producing a stunning sequence of results at a 10K futures event
in Guatemala in January to take the title and then reaching the
quarters of a strong 15K futures event in the USA in late Feburary.
With the 4th seed losing in rd2, the winner of Fleming v Garcia will
have a great chance of reaching the final as he will face either
Brazil's Tiago Lopes or America's Tim Neilly in the semis who are both unseeded.
Rd2: C Fleming [2] bt D Tavernier [Fr] 6-4, 7-5
Report:
A solid straight sets win over French jounrneyman David Tavernier saw
Colin through to the quarter-finals. There were some tense moments in
both sets but ultimately Colin was able to get the decisive breaks when
it mattered and secured a quarter-final match against Jhonson Garcia or
the Dominican Republic. Unfortunately Colin's fellow Scot Jamie Murray
lost in rd2 7-5, 6-0 to America's Tim Neilly.
Rd2 preview:
France's David Tavernier has a world ranking of 1234, with Colin being
ranked over 800 places higher he will be strong favourite to reach the
quarter-finals. In rd1, Tavernier beat an unranked Cuban wildcard 6-4,
6-2. However, although the scoreline suggests an impressive victory
this was Tavernier's first singles victory in a futures main draw. Last
week in Cuba F1, Tavernier qualified before losing 6-2, 6-3 in rd1 to
Uruguay's Martin Vilarrubi who's ranked 484. If Colin wins, he could
play American 7th seed Roman Borvanov in Thursday's quarter-finals.
Fleming v Tavernier will take place sometime on Wednesday evening GMT.
Fleming and Murray win Tennis Scotland award:
Colin and Jamie's superb doubles performances which have seen them
reach career high rankings of 190, were rewarded earlier this month
with a special team of the year prize at the annual Tennis Scotland
awards dinner. Colin's coach Euan McGinn also received an accolade, he
was presented with the Coach of the year award.
Rd1: C Fleming [2] bt A Haider-Maurer [Aut] 6-3, 7-6
Report:
An excellent straight sets win for Colin over the on-form Austrian.
Hopefully the confidence gained from Davis Cup selection will take him
through several rounds this week. Colin said before leaving Britain,
that he feels that the outdoor hard courts in North and South America
suit his game. This futures event is a 10K so Colin will gain 2 points
if he reaches the quarters, 4 points - semis, 8 points - runner-up and
12 points - winner. If Colin reaches the final he'll break into the top
350. In rd2, Colin will face France's David Tavernier.
Rd1 preview:
Colin is just competing in the singles this week as Jamie Murray is
attempting to qualify for the Talahassee Challenger this weekend and if
they entered the doubles he would miss the sign-in. Colin has recovered
from the illness which afflicted him last week and so with the
confidence of having been selected for the Davis Cup squad, hopefully
he'll be able to hit top form this week. He'll need to be at his best
if he's going to progress past the opening hurdle as he's been given a
nasty rd1 draw against Austria's Andreas Haider-Maurer who was
runner-up in Cuba F1 last week, beating Jamie Murray in straight sets
along the way. Haider-Maurer has a singles ranking of 910 but at 18
he's improving fast. He was ranked number 9 in the junior world
rankings last year but has taken time in translating that form to the
senior circuit as apart from Cuba F1, he'd only won 1 main draw futures
match in 2006. Fleming v Haider-Maurer will take place sometime on
Tuesday evening GMT. The winner will face France's David Taverner in
rd2.
Entry list info: Colin
plays his 2nd successive 10K futures event in La Habana and hopefully
he will have recovered from the illness which affected his singles
performance in Cuba F1 where he lost in rd1. Since winning the
Sheffield satellite in Feburary, Colin has only won 1 singles match. He
will be hoping for some good wins here to build up some momentum and
form on the outdoor hard courts going into the challengers in USA and
Mexico in April. Colin and Jamie Murray won't be playing the doubles
here as they are planning to try to qualify for the Talahassee 50K
Challenger at the weekend and if they played the doubles they would be
likely to reach the final which would prevent them from entering the
challenger qualies. Plus, there aren't many doubles points at stake
here so even if they won the event, they wouldn't move much further up
the rankings. Colin is 2nd on the singles entry list, behind
Venezuala's Yohny Romero. Fellow Brits Jamie Murray and Amadeus
Fulford-Jones are 13th and 15th respectively on the entry list.
Accolade for Fleming from Scottish national coach:
Along with fellow Scots Jamie Baker and Jamie Murray, Colin received
praise for his 2006 ranking progress from the Scottish national coach
Ellinore Lightbody. Speaking at a Tennis Scotland briefing Lightbody
said she was heartened by the rankings rise of several young Scots.
"Since Christmas Colin Fleming, Jamie Baker and Jamie Murray have all
moved their rankings forward over 100 places," she added.
Cuba F1 [La Habana] [10K]:
Semi-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray lost to R Chile-Fonte/S Martinez [Cub][4] 2-6, 7-5, 4-6
Quarter-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt L Cuellar/E Hernandez [Cub][WC] 6-1, 6-7[6], 6-1
Report: Colin
and Jamie eased into the semi-finals with a 3 set win over Cuban
wildcards Luis Cuellar and Edgar Hernandez. Colin is getting over his
illness and feeling a lot better now and he and Jamie played some
superb tennis in the 1st and 3rd sets. The Cubans upped their level in
set 2 and edged a close tiebreak 8-6 as Colin and Jamie lost their
concentration. However, the British pair got off to a flying start in
the 3rd set and cruised to victory. They face another Cuban pair in the
semis on Friday - 4th seeds Ricardo Chile -Fonte and Sandor Martinez.
Quarter-final preview:
Hopefully Colin is recovering from his bout of influenza as if so, this
should be another straightforward win for Fleming and Murray. Jamie is
in great form having reached the singles quarters beating the 3rd seed
along the way. The Cuban wildcards have only ever played two tournament
before Cuba F1 and those were way back in Feburary 2005. Cuellar is
unranked in both singles and doubles while Hernandez has singles and
doubles rankings but he is outside the world's top 1300. In round 1,
the Cubans had a relatively easy straight sets win but their opponents
had a combined ranking of 2910. In contrast Fleming and Murray's
combined ranking is 380. The match will take place sometime on Thursday
evening GMT.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray (GBR) bt Laurent Bondaz/Stefano Ianni [Fr] / [It] 6-3, 6-2
Rd1 singles: C Fleming lost to Luca Rovetta [q] 4-6, 5-7
Report: Not
a good result for Colin, however, his performance was affected by him
being ill. I believe he has caught influenza since arriving in Cuba and
this has drained his energy. When playing in scorching temperatures of
30 degrees celsius or more, your energy levels need to be 100% no
matter the ranking of your opponent. Colin will next be in singles
action in Cuba F2, a 10K futures starting next Tuesday.
Rd1 preview:
Colin opens his campaign in Cuba against Italian qualifier Luca
Rovetta. Rovetta is 19 and unranked and in his last event he lost in
qualifying for Mexcio F4. This all points to an easy victory for Colin
but Rovetta has the advantage of having already won 3 successive
matches in the scorching Cuban heat, never dropping more than 3 games
in total in any of his matches. However, none of Rovetta's opponents so
far in Cuba have had rankings and so Colin [who is in the world's top
400] will be a step up in class for the Italian. Colin's greater
experience and skill will hopefully see him through to rd2.
Update 1 [21/3/2006]:
The main singles and doubles draw have been released. Colin will have
to battle high temperatures again this week as it's around 30 degrees
celsius which will provide a rigorous test of his fitness and stamina.
Entry list info:
Colin is 2nd on the entry list for this event which starts on March
20th. The top seed will be Venezualan Davis Cup player Yohny Romero
who's ranked 285. The 3rd seed is Germany's Alex Satschko, a former
doubles partner of Colin. Also on the main draw entry list are Brits
Jamie Murray [no 14] and Amadeus Fulford-Jones [no 16]. The surface is
outdoor hard - similar to the surface at the Salinas 25K Challenger.
Salinas 25K Challenger:
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray[3] lost to A Ghem/A Simoni [Br] 7-6[5], 6-7[3], 11-13.
Report:
Colin and Jamie were very unhappy with this defeat to the Brazilian
pair of Andre Ghem and Alexandre Simoni. They felt that a string of
poor calls by the line judges had cost them victory. South American
tournaments are renowned for poor calling and bias from the officials
towards South American players, this is one of the many challenges
which makes South America the most difficult place to compete. Colin
and Jamie plan to play in the doubles main draw for next week's futures
tournament in Cuba but they will probably not play the doubles the week
after.
Rd1 doubles preview: Colin
and Jamie are the 3rd seeds this week and in rd1 they face the
Brazilians Andre Ghem and Alexandre Simoni. Simoni and Ghem are a
first-time pairing which should work in Colin and Jamie's favour. Andre
Ghem is ranked 193 in doubles and reached the doubles final of the San
Paulo Challenger on hard courts at the beginning of January, however
since then he has lost twice in rd1 in two clay-court challengers.
Simoni has a current doubles ranking of 491 though he has been as high
as 119 in 2002. He's reached two challenger doubles quarter-finals so
far this year, in San Paulo and Florianapolis. Colin and Jamie are
seeded to face the 2nd seeds Enzo Artoni [It] and Dusan Vemic [SCG] in
the semis. The rd1 match will probably be played on Tuesday.
Rd3 qualifying: C Fleming lost to D Veronelli [Arg] [8] 1-6, 2-6
Report:
A disappointing defeat for Colin which means that he won't be competing
in the singles main draw unless one of the competitors withdraws during
the next couple of days in which case, Colin is first in line for a
lucky loser spot. According to spectators, Colin made too many unforced
errors while his opponent was very consistent and Colin appeared to
tire early during the match which may have been a result of the intense
heat. After the match, Colin himself said that the heat had been very
exhausting and many South American players had been struggling with it
this week. If Colin doesn't get a lucky loser spot he will now be
competing in the doubles main draw this week with Jamie Murray. They
are the 3rd seeds and play their rd1 match on Tuesday. Then Colin and
Jamie will fly to Cuba for a futures event next week where Colin is
likely to be seeded 2 in the singles main draw.
Rd3 qualifying preview: This
will be a tricky match for Colin against the Argentinian clay-court
specialist Diego Veronelli. On paper it looks like Colin will have an
easy victory as Veronelli is ranked almost 800 places lower at 1130.
However, Veronelli once reached a ranking of 165 in the world in Jan
2004 before suffering an injury in November 2004 which kept him out
until July 2005. Veronelli then played a series of futures events
before a recurrence of the injury occurred in September. This will be
just his 2nd match in over 6 months. He shook off some of the ring-rust
in rd1 with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over unranked Ecuadorian wildcard Tito
Campos who was playing his first tournament. Veronelli's game is mainly
based around outrallying his opponent from the baseline but he does mix
this up with some net approaches. Fleming v Veronelli is 1st on centre
court at approximately 4.00pm GMT.
Rd2 qualifying: C Fleming bt G Sosa [Ecu] [WC] 6-1, 6-3
Report:
A good start for Colin to this 6 week long tour of North, South and
Central America. Sosa never really troubled Colin who cruised to an
emphatic victory. Colin's doubles partner Jamie Murray also progressed
to the final qualifying round. Colin now faces 8th seeded Argentinian
Diego Veronelli. The main draw has been released with 4 spots to be
filled by the qualifiers. The best draws would be against either Travis
Rettenmaier [USA] or Ben Dorsch [Ger] who are ranked 276 and 275 in the
world respectively. The hardest draw would be against 5th seed Hugo
Armando of the USA who's ranked 176 in the world. The doubles main draw
has yet to be released.
Fans views on Fleming v Sosa:
Bethan: "Well done Jamie Murray and Colin. I hope they both get through tomorrow, that would be marvelous news!!"
Rd2 qualifying preview:
Colin is the top seed for Salinas Challenger qualifying and in
Saturday's rd1 he faces unranked Ecuadorian wildcard Gregory Sosa.
Colin has now been in Ecuador for 4 days so he's had a good chance to
practise and get used to the courts and the altitude. As there weren't
enough players to completely fill the qualifying draw, Colin got a bye
through to rd2 as did Sosa. If Colin wins he is seeded to face
Argentina's Diego Veronelli in the final qualifying round. Fleming v
Sosa is 3rd on centre court at approximately 7.00pm GMT.
Update 1 [6/3/2006]:
Colin and Jamie Murray have taken a flight to Ecuador today, so tonight
they should arrive in Salinas. This means that they will have plenty of
time to overcome the jetlag and practise on the courts before singles
qualifying starts on Saturday. They will have to adjust to the higher
altitude which means that balls fly faster through the air and bounce
higher. Rallies are physically harder as there's less oxygen in the air.
Rankings update [6/3/2006]:
Colin's points from the GB 1 satellite have now been added on, he's
jumped over 50 places in 373 in the world in singles, a career high.
Colin needs a further 6 points to move into the top 350. If he reaches
the quarter-finals of the Salinas 25K Challenger next week, then he
will have achieved this. Colin has reached a career high in doubles
aswell, he's moved up to 190 in the world. He needs a further 84 points
to reach the top 150 in doubles.
Wolfsburg 25K+H Challenger:
Doubles quarter-finals: C Fleming/J Murray[3] lost to F Moser/S Rieschick [Ger] 7-6[4], 1-6, 8-10
Quarter-final preview: Colin
and Jamie face the long-standing German pair, Frank Moser and Sebastian
Rieschick for a place in the semi-finals. The respective rankings of
the two pairs suggest a comfortably victory for Fleming/Murray as their
combined ranking is 434 compared to the Germans' combined ranking of
570. However, Moser/Rieschick actually have a lot more experience at
challenger level last year and were just as successful as
Fleming/Murray in futures events. Moser/Rieschick won the Sunderland
Challenger and reached quarter-finals in Lubeck, Helsinki etc aswell as
winning and reaching finals of many futures level doubles events.
Sebstian Rieschick reached an ATP doubles semi-final last July. On home
soil they will be a very dangerous pair. The match takes place at
approximately 2.00 pm GMT.
Doubles rd1: C Fleming/J Murray [3] bt N Ciric/B Novkovic [Ser] [WC] 6-2, 6-1
Report:
Colin and Jamie had little trouble in securing a quarter-final spot in
the doubles, dispatching Serbain wildcards Nikola Ciric and Bojan
Novkovic for the loss of just 3 games. Colin and Jamie were both
satisfied with their performance, both commenting "we won easily,"
after the match. This is a surprisingly easy challenger doubles main
draw and it represents an excellent opportunity for Colin and Jamie to
win some more points and rise even further into the top 200 doubles.
They are the 3rd seeds and so unsurprisngly had too much class for
Ciric/Novkovic of whom, only Ciric had a world ranking for doubles. In
the quarter-finals on Wednesday, Colin and Jamie face either the German
pair: Frank Moser and Sebastian Rieschick or Goran Tosic [Ser] and
Stefan Wauters [Bel]. That rd1 match takes place on Tuesday. Colin and
Jamie are seeded to face the 2nd seeds Pavel Snobel [Cze] and
Aisam-Ul-Uaq [Pak] in the semis.
Qualifying singles rd1: C Fleming lost to M Raditschnigg [Austria] 1-6, 4-6
Report:
Colin was rather below-par for this singles qualifying match and
struggled against some powerful baseline play from the left-handed
Raditschnigg. Colin had only been able to check into a hotel in Germany
late on Friday night and that didn't help his play. In the Sheffield
satellite final on Friday he'd been struggling with a cold at first and
come Saturday afternoon he was still feeling under-the-weather.
According to onlookers Colin didn't serve as well as he can and his 1st
serve percentage wasn't high enough and the Raditschnigg punished this.
Apparently Colin made too many errors particularly on the forehand side
which let him down in both sets.Colin will next be in singles action in
two weeks time for the Salinas 25K Challenger.
Rd1 singles preview:
Colin is up against left-handed Austrian Max Raditschnigg in his first
challenger match of 2006. Colin only arrived in Germany late last night
after winning the week 4 leg of the GB 1 satellite yesterday morning
and so he will have had little time to practise on the indoor carpet
courts. His opponent is a clay-court specialist and is not a big fan of
playing indoors - having had a torrid start to the year winning just 1
out of 5 matches in 2006 on indoor surfaces. Colin will have to adjust
to the faster paced indoor carpet as in the GB 1 satellite he's been
playing on slower indoor hard. He should still probably be slight
favourite as his big serve and tactics of attacking the net will suit
the courts. One of the key factors will be how tired Colin is from his
exertions in singles and doubles over the past week. If Colin wins this
match he's likes to face former world junior no 1, Germany's Sebastian
Rieschick [7th seed in qualifying] in rd2. In the final qualifying
round, he would probably face 2nd seeded Czech Jan Masik. Fleming v
Raditschnigg is the 6th match on court 1 at approximately 5.30pm GMT.
Update 1:
Colin and Jamie Murray are going to play singles qualifying and doubles
main draw for this event. The singles qualifying starts on Saturday and
the doubles begins on Monday. After winning the singles final in
Sheffield for week 4 of the GB 1 satellite Colin will now catch a
flight this evening from Newcastle to Hanover.
Colin said that as his first match in Wolfsburg will be tomorrow he'll try and catch up on some sleep on the flight.
Report on the Sheffield satellite final from the Scotsman:
Colin Fleming, the Linlithgow player who is forging a formidable doubles partnership with Jamie Murray, proved yesterday that he also possesses a good singles game.
The Stirling University student won the Satellite Masters event in Sheffield yesterday, overcoming compatriot and British Davis Cup player Alan Mackin 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 in the all-Scottish final.
"I've never played Alan before and it was an unbelievable win for me," said the unseeded Fleming. "He's very good from the back of the court, so I new I had to serve unbelievably well to beat him. And it happened, I served loads of aces which kept me in and I luckily managed to break him in the third set."
Fleming admitted the first event of the four-week Satellite circuit had been a struggle. But a well-timed visit from his coach, Euan McGinn, set him on the right track.
"Euan came down for the second week and helped me and built my confidence," said the 21-year-old. "I made the quarter-final of the second week, then I just kept improving and getting more confident after that. I've never made a Masters final before so to win is a big result. I've earned 21 points, which should hopefully put me up to around 380 in the world."
The Fleming-Murray doubles partnership should also move inside the world's top 200 when the new rankings are announced next week. With Great Britain's Davis Cup tie against Serbia & Montenegro in Glasgow looming closer the timing could not be much better for Scotland's tennis players.
McGinn said: "Colin is obviously very keen to be selected for Davis Cup and this week he has shown the standard of play which would deserve a place on the squad."
Article found here: http://sport.scotsman.com/tennis.cfm?id=292062006
Scotsman website: http://news.scotsman.com/
Colin's schedule for March-April update: After
the Wolfsburg Challenger, Colin and Jamie Murray are heading back to
Scotland for a rest week and practise. After that they head to Ecuador
for the Salinas Challenger and a 10K futures event in Cuba followed by
some challengers in Mexico and the USA. Looking ahead to this tour
Colin said "I'm really looking forward to it. I feel the courts out
there should suit my game, they take a bit of getting used to at first
as the ball really flies because of the altitude and it moves about
quite a bit. It'll be tough to get used to at first but once I do, I
feel I have a chance of doing well." To view the full list of
tournaments Colin will play go to the "2006 schedules" page on this
site.
GB 1 satellite: week 4 [Sheffield] [indoor hard]:
Final singles: C Fleming bt A Mackin [GB] 3-6, 7-5, 6-3
Report:
Colin caps a fantastic week with the 2nd singles title of his career,
coming through a tight 3 set match to defeat fellow Scot Alan Mackin.
The win was made even more impressive by the fact that Colin had been
feeling unwell prior to the match. Speaking after the final Colin said:
"Before the match I knew I had to serve well to have a chance against
Mackin. He managed to break me early on in the first set and then saved
2 break points to hold his own serve. Throughout the first set, I was
just holding on and he took it pretty comfortably. In the 2nd set I
started to serve really well which was crucial as I was able to put him
under enough pressure to break him at 6-5. That was the turning point
of the match, I served out the set for 7-5 and then went on to take the
3rd quite easily. I'm really happy with the win." Colin's ranking will
now move up 65 places to 367 when the ranking list is updated on 6th
March.
Fans views on Fleming v Mackin:
Heather: "Well done Colin "
Nodd: "An excellent win considering Mackin's greater match experience"
Bethan: "Super news, great for Colin, onwards and upwards is all I can say!!!"
James: "Wow...Go Colin!!! "
Drew: "Great win for Colin !"
Final preview:
It will be the battle of the Scots for the week 4 masters title.
There's a lot of stake for both these players [who incidentally are
training partners up at Stirling University], if Mackin wins he will
become the overall satellite winner which will give him a valuable
extra 10 ranking points, and if Colin wins he will move further into
the top 400, up to about 367 in singles. Both have contrasting game
styles, Mackin is the doughty, determined counter-puncher who will look
to grind his opponent down both mentally and physically from the
baseline through metronomic consistency and speed around the court.
Fleming is the flair player, looking to attack from the baseline with
his double-handed backhand, in particular down-the-line and he will try
to approach the net as often as possible. Both have big serves,
Fleming's being slightly quicker. The
final starts at 10.30 GMT on Friday.
Semi-final singles: C Fleming bt L Recouderc [Fr][2] 6-0, 6-0
Report: Colin
reached his first final since last August and broke into the world's
top 400 for the 1st time in his career, with a slightly controversial
double bagel of the French 2nd seed Laurent Recouderc. The controversy
was due to Recouderc's on-court behaviour as the Frenchman didn't
appear to be trying and seemed to be almost letting Colin win. Midway
through the 2nd set, he was warned by the tournament referee that if he
didn't
start trying a bit harder he'd get defaulted from the
tournament which would mean losing all his ranking points gained in
week 4. Recouderc started to play harder but at this point Colin was
well in control at a set and 2 breaks up and he finished off the match
in fine style to secure the 2nd double bagel win of his professional
career and his first against a player ranked in the top 1000. It later
emerged that Recouderc had assumed that Alan Mackin would lose in
semi-final against Martin Lee which would ensure that he took 1st place
overall in the 4 weeks of the satellite. Moreover, Recouderc is
competing in the qualifying for the Cherbourg Challenger this weekend
and thought he'd return to France early to practise on the courts.
Other players were understandably extremely unhappy at this behaviour,
in particular Dave Sherwood who'd lost to Recouderc yesterday in the
quarter-finals.
Fans views on Fleming v Recouderc:
Adam: "Would you believe it, Colin Fleming beats Laurent Recouderc 6-0, 6-0. Good effort, huge result !"
PI: "Well done to Colin and Alan Mackin. They really appear to be having a great time! "
Ria: "A double bagel from Colin is very impressive."
Rob:
" That fantastic result means that Colin gets at least 14 points from
this satellite which will take him from 431 to the low 390s."
Niall: "Wow, Colin Flemming scores a double bagel "
Steve:
"I feel Recouderc probably should be fined unless he comes up with a
decent excuse. Losing on purpose is extremely unprofessional."
Quarter-final singles: C Fleming bt P Mayer-Tischer [Ger] 6-4, 6-3
Report:
A superb quarter-final win for Colin against the German Peter
Mayer-Tischer. In rd2, Mayer-Tischer had thrashed Phillip Marx [Colin's
conqueror in week 3] 6-1, 6-3 in a very bad-tempered match so
Mayer-Tischer was clearly on top form. Colin adapted his game well to
the low-bouncing Sheffield courts, looking to attack the net using
slice and making it difficult for the German to pass him. After the
match, Colin was clearly delighted to reach his first singles
semi-final of the year, "Got it," were his words. Colin has secured a
new ranking next week of around 402, a career high and a jump of 30
places. If he wins his semi-final he will break into the top 400.
Fans views on Fleming v Mayer-Tischer:
Waterboy: "OK so now Fleming to take out Recouderc for an all GB final. Great win for Fleming peaking in the Masters week."
Final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray lost to M Lee/D Sherwood [GB][1] 5-7, 4-6
Doubles final preview: A
6th final out of 7 tournaments in 2006 for the prolific Fleming/Murray
partnership. This will be their last doubles match in a satellite for
some time now with both looking to make a step up to playing challenger
main draws regularly. Their opponents are predictably, Martin Lee and
Dave Sherwood for the 3rd time in this satellite and the 4th time in
2006. Colin and Jamie will be wanting revenge after being outclassed
and outpowered in last Friday's week 3 doubles final. The courts suit
the styles of Martin Lee and Colin Fleming particularly well so the
performances of those two players could be key to the result. As ever,
there is little to chose between the pairs looking at results leading
up to the final. Both have dropped sets but Fleming/Murray only allowed
Bamford/May 5 games in total in the semi-final while after a 1st set
wobble Lee/Sherwood allowed Goodall/Irwin just 4 games. The final will
be 3rd on court 3 tomorrow at around 1.30 GMT, straight after Colin
Fleming's singles quarter-final.
Rd2 singles: C Fleming bt S Bubka [Ukr] [8] 7-6, 6-2
Report:
A superb win from Colin over the world no 806 and former world junior
number 4 from the Ukraine. Speaking after the match Colin's coach Euan
McGinn said "Colin played well, he had a good game-plan but he wasn't
able to execute it well at the start of the match." Colin was 4-1 down
in the 1st set with Bubka having a double break but Colin was able to
recover and won the next 4 games to lead 5-4 and then both players held
serve to take the set into a tiebreak which Colin took 8-6. Colin then
cruised through the 2nd set, winning it comfortably 6-2. Speaking after
the match Colin said: "It was a good win against a very powerful
player. Bubka has a big serve so I blocked a lot of my returns,
concentrating on taking the pace off the ball which worked well and he
got very frustrated. That was my best performance in this satellite."
Fans views on Fleming v Bubka:
Bladetiger:
"Colin Fleming played 'his best game of the series' today by his own
admittance coming back from 2 breaks of serve down in the first set
(4-1) to draw level and take a close tiebreak 8-6, he then strolled to
the second set 6-2 as Bubka struggled with Fleming taking the pace of
the ball and using the low skiddy Sheffield courts well."
Rd2 singles preview: Colin
faces a tough test against the 19 year old former world junior number
4. The name of Sergei Bubka may be currently more revered in athletics
than in tennis circles but Bubka jnr is well on the way to becoming as
well-known as his famous father. Last year he reached the latter stages
of the Australian and French Open juniors before concentrating on the
senior circuit in the latter half of the year, raising his ranking by
several hundred places. Bubka's big strength is his speed around the
court and athleticism but Colin will look to keep him on the back foot
by serving and attacking the net aswell as he did in rd1 against Neil
Bamford. Fleming v Bubka is first on court 1 at 10.00am GMT. Speaking
yesterday, Colin's coach Euan McGinn, described this match as "tough
but winnable."
Semi-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt N Bamford/J May [GB] [4] 6-1, 6-4
Report: An
excellent performance from the 2nd seeds who out-thought and
out-manoeuvered their compatriots today, in fine style. Both Colin and
Jamie had a high percentage with their towering serves and their
accurate returning caused Bamford/May many problems. Colin and Jamie's
level dropped in the 2nd set for a while but they recovered to close it
out and secure a place in another final.
Semi-final doubles preview:
It's probably fair to say that these 4 players are becoming sick of the
sight of each other. This will be the 6th time in 2006 that they've met
in either singles or doubles. Although Bamford/May are the only pair
who've stopped them reaching a tournament final this year,
Fleming/Murray lead 2-1 on head-to-heads. Crucially, Fleming/Murray won
the last meeting in the semis of week 3 - 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 and Fleming
comfortably beat Bamford 6-1, 6-3 in singles yesterday. If Colin and
Jamie win they are likely to face Lee/Sherwood for the 3rd time in this
satellite, in the final. Fleming/Murray v Bamford/May is last on court
1 today at around 1.00pm GMT.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt P Marx/E Scherer [Ger] 6-7[4], 6-4, 6-4
Report to follow
Rd1 doubles preview:
There are only 8 entrants for this week's doubles so the competition
will be shorter than usual, running from Monday to Wednesday. This is
good news for Colin and Jamie as they are playing Wolfsburg Challenger
qualies this weekend. While there is still the possiblity of Colin
being in action in the singles final on Friday, he would still be able
to catch an afternoon flight to Wolfsburg on Friday. Marx/Scherer are a
new pairing but Colin and Jamie have had a doubles win over Marx
already in this satellite: they beat Marx/Klier 6-4, 6-3 in week 1
quarters. This rd1 match will be an opportunity for Colin to gain
revenge for his rd2 singles defeat to Marx in week 3. If Fleming/Murray
win they are likely to have another match against number 4 seeds
Bamford/May.
Rd1 singles: C Fleming bt N Bamford [GB] 6-1, 6-3
Report: A
superb win for Colin to kick-start the final week of the satellite.
This is very important for Colin with so many points on offer. The
courts in Sheffield are very low bouncing and Colin turned this to his
advantage with some impressive tactics against Bamford. Colin
consistently attacked the net using a lot of slice keeping the ball
very low and making it extremely difficult for his opponent to pass
him. Bamford was not up to the challenge and Fleming's athletic and
accurate volleying combined with superb net coverage saw him romp romp
to victory, breaking serve 3 times in total. Colin was very happy with
his game plan and felt that he had played consistently well throughout
the whole match and didn't give his opponent many cheap points.
Rd1 singles preview:
Colin has been given a very nice draw for the masters week, facing
out-of-form Brit Neil Bamford in rd1 and then he has the lowest of the
seeds - 8th seed Sergei Bubka awaiting in rd2 and then a possible
rematch with Phillip Marx in the quarters. Hertfordshire's Bamford beat
Jamie Murray in 3 sets in week 1 of the satellite and Colin will be
hoping to gain revenge for his doubles partner. Colin hasn't been too
happy with his serving and feels he's not been aggressive enough in
some of his matches in this satellite but hopefully things can click
for this masters week as there's extra ranking points on offer and
Colin can crack the top 400 if he reaches the final.
Ranking points update:
After
week 3 of the GB 1 satellite, Colin has so far accumulated 11 circuit
points for singles which is the equivalent of 3 entry points. This
means he's guaranteed an increase of up to 422 from 436. This week is
the week 4 Masters in Sheffield and so there are more circuit and entry
points at stake.
Singles ranking possibilities:
[1] If Colin loses in rd1 - 4 entry points, ranking increase to 420
[2] If Colin loses in rd2 - 6 entry points, ranking increase to 415
[3] If Colin loses in the quarters - 7 entry points, ranking increase to 410
[4] If Colin loses in the semis - 9 entry points, ranking increase to 404
[5] If Colin loses in the final - 14 entry points, ranking increase to 394
[6] If Colin wins week 4 - 23 entry points, ranking increase to 362
GB 1 satellite: Week 3 [Leeds]:
Final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray lost to M Lee/D Sherwood [GB][2] 4-6, 5-7
Fan's report [Alex]:
It was an interesting match, I think ultimately Murray and Fleming were a bit overpowered, Sherwood and Lee appear to have more imposing physiques. There were quite a lot of times when Lee or Sherwood made unreturnable serves or aces and it didn't happen too often the other way round.
By the end of the second set I think Murray and Fleming were getting a bit frustrated with themselves and shouting out things in random.
Overall it was an interesting match, i think once murray and fleming bulk out a bit they'll be looking to take a step up but its a great result to get to the final, and great to see an all british final.
Final preview: These pairs meet for the 3rd time this year with Colin and Jamie confident of extending their winning head-to-head record against Martin and Dave. The winner of this match will take number 1 seeding in the week 4 masters next week in Sheffield. With each of the players possessing a big serve, breaks are usually few in matches between these pairs. They met in the semis of GB F2 in January with Colin and Jamie winning in 3 sets, Colin later described this encounter as very tight, it could have gone either way and was very tense. The 2nd encounter, in the final of week 1 of this satellite was more comfortable for Colin and Jamie who won 6-4, 6-4 - Colin rated this as a high quality performance. This match takes place on Friday, 2nd on court 1 at around 12.30 GMT approx.Semi-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 N Bamford/J May [GB][4]
Fans views:
Drew: "Great result for the Scottish Pair..."
Semi-final preview:
Colin and Jamie get a chance to avenge last week's shock semi-final
doubles defeat to Britain's Neil Bamford and Jim May - both top doubles
players for their respective counties. Bamford in particular was a
revelation for Hertforshire last summer when they won the county cup.
The head-to-head between the pairs this year is currently 1-1 with
Colin and Jamie having beaten them in straight sets in the semis of GB
F1. Looking ahead to the match Jamie Murray said that they felt they
were playing well and were hopeful of securing a place in the final.
Quarter-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt P Mayer-Tischer/B Knittel [Ger] 6-2, 6-2
Report: Colin
and Jamie repeated their semi-final win over the Germans in week 1 with
a fine performance to ease through to the semis of week 3. It was a
very solid performance with Colin and Jamie being never troubled and
breaking serve 4 times overall - twice in each set. Colin suffered a
nasty injury in his rd2 singles defeat to Germany's Phillip Marx -
twisting his ankle badly and it looked like it might really hamper his
movement in the doubles. However, Colin wore his ankle brace for the
doubles match and according to Jamie Murray it seemed to be ok. Jamie
was confident on their chances in the doubles this week, saying that
they were both pretty focused.
Quarter-final preview: Colin
and Jamie are seeded 2nd in the doubles and have the opportunity to
avenge their singles defeats against German opposition as they face
lower ranked German pair. Peter Mayer Tischer and Bastian Knittel in
the quarter-finals this afternoon. Peter and Colin have just undergone
gruelling 3 set losses this afternoons so the doubles will be a test of
stamina for them. These pairs have already met once in this satellite -
in week 1 semis when Fleming/Murray won easily 6-0, 6-7, 6-1. Hopefully
there will be a repeat result. Unfortunately, during Colin's singles
loss this afternoon he had to take an injury timeout on his ankle, it
is not yet known how serious this injury is or how it will affect his
play in the doubles.
Rd2 singles: C Fleming lost to P Marx [Ger][3] 6-7[2], 6-4, 3-6
Report to follow
Rd2 preview:
Colin faces 23 year old Germany Phillip Marx for a place in the
quarter-finals. Marx is one of the on-form players in this satellite
having won week 1 and reached the quarters of week 2 losing a tight 3
set battle to Britain's Alan Mackin. On facing Marx, Colin said: "If I
can be solid with a little more aggression tomorrow I have a good
chance. Also I feel I can serve better than I did in round 1."
Rd1 singles: C Fleming bt M Smith [GB] 6-7[1], 6-0, 6-2
Report: A
stunning performance in sets 2 and 3 from Colin saw him move into rd2
of the Leeds satellite. Despite a ranking difference of over 100 places
Colin now leads Matt Smith 3-0 in the head-to-heads, having beaten Matt
twice in the GB 3 satellite last year both times in 3 sets. Speaking
after the match Colin said: "I didn't play great in the 1st set, the
turning point in the match was when I held serve from 15-40 down in the
1st game of the 2nd set. I played very solidly from there onwards."
Fans views:
Frank the tank: " What about this for a turnaround.... Colin Fleming beats Matt Smith 6-7, 6-0, 6-2!"
Rd1 preview:
Both these players would normally be seeded in a satellite main draw
but in week 3 of a satellite performance in weeks 1 and 2 is used to
determine seedings, instead of rankings. Both Colin and Matt have
performed identically so far, reaching 1 quarter-final and a losing in
round 1. Matt Smith has lost to Ian Flanagan both weeks in straight
sets so he will be relieved not to be playing him. Although Smith is
ranked around 100 places higher, neither player has shown much form in
singles so far in 2006 so it's likely to be a very tight contest. It
will be a contrast of styles with Colin playing an attacking game -
looking to approach the net at every opportunity while Matt plays
predominantly from the baseline, looking to take control of the rallies
with deep and well-placed groundstrokes. The winner is likely to face a
tough test in round 2 against 3rd seeded German Phillip Marx who won
week 1 in Jersey. Fleming v Smith is first on court 2 at 10.00am GMT.
To comment on Colin's chances and progress in singles and doubles of this satellite, click on this link:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901&action=viewTopic&commentID=5829972&topicPage=
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray received a bye
Info: Only
8 pairs entered for week 3 doubles so all 8 pairs have been awarded
byes into the quarter-finals which will take place on Thursday. Colin
and Jamie are seeded 2nd because week 3 of a satellite is based on
performance in weeks 1 and 2 and Martin Lee and Dave Sherwood have a
greater number of points having 1 title and 1 runner-up place while
Colin and Jamie have 1 title and 1 semi. Colin and Jamie face the
German pair Bastian Knittel and Peter Mayer-Tischer in the quarters.
GB 1 satellite: Week 2 [Sunderland]:
Semi-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray lost to N Bamford/J May [GB] 6-7[7], 6-7[4]
Fans report [Madeline]:
From what I saw of this semi-final, it was a very exciting match. I
joined it with the score 2-1 in favour of Bamford/May, and from there
there were no breaks of serve right through to the tiebreak, though
there were many long rallies. The tiebreak itself had at least 5
minibreaks, with Bamford/May coming out the eventual winners 9-7. Again
the second set had no breaks of serve and went to a tiebreak, with
Bamford/May taking an early lead to 4-0 and going on to take it to 4
points, taking the match 7-6 (7) 7-6 (4). With the difference in
ranking one would have expected an easy win for Colin and Jamie. That
did not happen. Colin seems the more solid of the pair, with Jamie too
often going for the big shot (and missing).
Semi-final doubles
preview: Bamford and May knocked out the 3rd seeds in rd1 in 3 sets
thus preventing a repeat of last week's semi-final with Fleming/Murray
winning 6-0, 6-7, 6-1. Both Colin and Jamie are now out of the singles
having both lost in Thursday's quarter-finals and will be keen to make
amends in the doubles. Both pairs have already played indoors this
year, in rd2 of GB F1 at the beginning of January. Colin and Jamie won
comfortably, 6-3, 7-6. The match is 3rd on court 4 today.
Comment on Colin's progress this week in singles and doubles here:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901&action=viewTopic&commentID=5755361&topicPage=
Quarter-final singles: C Fleming lost to J Adaktusson [Swe][1] 2-6, 3-6
Report to follow
Preview:
A very tough match for Colin with Adaktusson being ranked at 230 in the
world. The Swede's favouite surface is outdoor hard, this showed when
he came through a difficult section to qualify for the Aussie Open
earlier in Jan. In Colin's favour is that fact that he prefers the
indoor surface in Sunderland much more than Adaktusson who has
struggled slightly on it in both week 1 and week 2. In week 1, he came
through a 3 set match with Britain's Neil Bamford in rd2 before losing
to a much lower ranked French qualifier Laurent Recouderc in 3 sets in
the quarters. So far in week 2, he's had long 3 set matches and
yesterday had to recover from losing the first set 6-1 before going on
to beat talented Ukrainian Sergei Bubka in rd2. Speaking about the
quarter-final match Colin said "I'm looking forward to it, I don't know
much about him but I'll get stuck in." The match is 2nd on court 3
today.
Quarter-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt S Bubka/J Reister [Ukr/Ger] 6-3, 6-4
Preview:
Colin and Jamie today open this week's doubles campaign looking to
repeat last week's success. They face new pairing Bubka and Reister who
won their round 1 match when their unranked opponents retired at 6-4,
4-1 down. It should be a fairly comfortable victory for Colin and Jamie
as their opponents lost in straights last week to German pair Klier and
Marx who then lost to Colin and Jamie in straights in the quarters.
The match is last on court 2 today.
Rd2 singles: C Fleming bt A Kennaugh [GB] 7-6[5], 7-6[11]
Report:
Colin moves on to a quarter-final meeting with the top seed from Sweden
after edging through a tight clash via the tiebreaks. The 2nd breaker
could hardly have been closer, Colin winning it 13-11. Speaking after
the match, Colin said "It was quite a scrappy match with no breaks of
serve. I was happy to win when not at my best, am looking forward to
the quarters tomorrow."
Fans views:
The MacDad: "This match confirms Colin's nickname as the tiebreak king, obviously not afraid!"
Niall: "Wow, great week so far for the tartan army. Maybe they were inspired by the rugby on Saturday !"
Rd2
preview: Colin faces 18 year old Andy Kennaugh, 4th on court 3 today.
Kennaugh secured his 1st victory of 2006 yesterday with a 6-3, 7-5 win
over Switzerland 's Dominic Stoeckler, a qualifier. This ended a 4
match losing streak for him. Colin will be favourite for this match as
although Kennaugh is at a career high of 732 in the rankings, he's
ranked around 300 places lower. If Colin wins there's the intriguing
possibility of a quarter-final match-up with top seeded Swede, Jacob
Adaktusson if he can overcome Ukraine's Sergei Bubka in rd2.
Rd1 singles: C Fleming bt R Irwin [GB] 6-4, 6-4
Report:
Colin moved smoothly into round 2 of the Sunderland event with a
straight sets win over compatriot Richard Irwin. Speaking after the
match Colin said "I broke his serve in the 1st game but he broke me
straight back. After that I broke him midway through the 1st set and
served pretty well so wasn't really in any danger of getting broken
again so it was pretty comfortable. Irwin has a good serve but it's not
massive so I was able to get into his service games." This was a really
good win for Colin as he's been struggling a little bit with confidence
in his singles game lately while his doubles game has been spot on. In
rd2 Colin faces another Brit, Andy Kennaugh who beat Swiss qualifier
Dominic Stoeckler in straight sets in rd1.
Fans views:
Bladetiger: "A good return to form for Colin, lets hope his doubles success has given him a boost for the singles."
Comment on Colin's rd1 win here:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901&action=viewTopic&commentID=5755361&topicPage=
Tournament
preview: Colin is seeded 7th in singles and has been drawn to face
fellow Brit and occasional doubles partner Richard Irwin in rd1 . Irwin
is ranked 740 in the world and has won 1 out of 4 matches so far this
year, also losing in rd1 of week 1 last week. Colin and Jamie Murray
are top seeds in the doubles and have received a bye into the
quarter-finals. They will then face either unranked Swiss pair Dominic
Stoeckler and Patrick Eichenberger or Sergei Bubka [Ukraine] and Julian
Reister [Germany.
Information from Colin's coach Euan: Colin's
medium term goal is to get selected for the Davis Cup squad, ideally
playing doubles with Jamie Murray. Andy Murray has stated that he'd
like Colin to play doubles with Jamie at Wimbledon and it's thought
that Judy Murray will be happy with that outcome.
Schedule
update: After the satellite Colin and Jamie are heading to the
Wolfsburg 25K+H Challenger from Feb 27th-March 5th. They are going to
play singles qualifying and main draw doubles so they will be playing
for greater points which will give them the opportunity to move faster
up the rankings .
GB 1 Satellite: Week 1 [Jersey]:
Final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt M Lee/D Sherwood [GB][2] 6-4, 6-4
Report:
Having reached their 4th straight final, Colin and Jamie secured their
2nd title of the year with a comfortable straight sets win over 2nd
seeds Martin Lee and Dave Sherwood who had dropped just 1 game in their
semi-final. Speaking after the match Colin said: "We played Lee and
Sherwood earlier in the year [GB F2 semis] and that was a really good
match and quite tense. I wasn't such a good quality match this time but
we served well and broke them once in each set so it was quite a
comfortable victory."
Preview: This is a rematch of the GB F2
[Barnstaple] semi-final a couple of weeks ago. That day Fleming/Murray
progressed after a tight 3 setter before losing the final to
Goodall/Hutchins. Speaking after winning the doubles semi, Dave
Sherwood commented on his official website: "We expect to be playing
Fleming & Murray in the final, which will be a real tough game, but
we want revenge after our defeat to them in Devon and so we'll be
looking for a good result." If Colin and Jamie win they'll be well on
their way to the points required from this satellite for a place in the
top 200 doubles.
Semi-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt B Knittel/P Mayer [Ger][3] 6-0, 6-7, 6-1
Preview:
Colin and Jamie plays the on-form German pair, Knittel and Mayer. Last
week they won the Germany F4 doubles title on indoor carpet and so far
this week they've had 2 emphatic wins over Kallias/Recouderc in rd1 and
Flanagan/Smith in the quarters, not dropping a set in the process.
Although ranked around 100 places below Colin and Jamie, Knittel and
Mayer are both approaching places in the doubles top 300 and could
provide a real test. If Colin and Jamie win they are likely to meet
British 2nd seeds Martin Lee and Dave Sherwood in the final
Quarter-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt P Marx/D Klier [Ger] 6-4, 6-3
Preview:
This could be Colin and Jamie's first real test of the tournament
though their experience as a pairing and recent form should give them
the edge. Although they are a first-time tournament pairing, they've
reached 3 finals so far on indoor hard in German futures so far this
year with different partners. Marx has reached 2 back-to-back and Klier
has reached one. Phillip Marx has faced Colin and Jamie before, though
not with David Klier. In week 1 of the Sweden/Denmark satellite last
March he was playing with Italy's Matteo Volante and they lost to Colin
and Jamie 6-2, 4-6, 6-3.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt N Mishra/S Mishra [Ind][LL] 6-3, 6-2
Report:
Colin and Jamie eased into the doubles quarter-finals dropping just 5
games against the Mishras. They were not at their best but didn't need
to be with a comfortable win never really being in doubt. They had too
much power on serve for the Indians to make any real headway and on
these fast courts their quick hands on volleys and agile net coverage
makes them extremely difficult to pass. In the quarter-finals they're
up against the unseeded Germans David Klier and Phillip Marx.
Rd1
doubles preview: Colin and Jamie were due to face the British pair of
Andy Kennaugh and Tom Rushby in round 1. However, Rushby suffered a
rather bad injury during the 1st set of his round 1 defeat against top
seed Jacob Adaktusson and so was forced to withdraw from the doubles.
They are replaced by the unranked Indian lucky losers Nishank and
Shivang Mishra. The Mishras lost in the final round of qualifying to 15
year old Daniel Cox and his Dutch partner Amaury Van Haelen. Based on
recent form, Colin and Jamie should win comfortably as they've just
reached a challenger doubles final last week beating top class
challenger level opposition on the way while the Mishras have been
losing in satellite qualifying and have never made the top 1000 in the
world. Neither Colin or Jamie were at their best during their round 1
singles defeats yesterday so hopefully the doubles will see a return to
last week's form in Wrexham. Colin and Jamie can break into the top 200
doubles if they win 3 of the satellite titles in the next 4 weeks -
they could do it if they win 2 titles but that would depend on how they
do in singles aswell in the next 4 weeks.
Rd1 singles: C Fleming lost to S Roberts [GB] 4-6, 6-4, 6-7[5]
A
very disappointing result for Colin who is now just in contention for
the doubles title this week. Colin was seeded 8th and so favourite for
this match but became the 2nd seeded player to fall after 6th seed Josh
Goodall had lost earlier in the day. Speaking after the match, Colin
said: "This wasn't a good match for me, I didn't play particularly
well, I could have lost in straight sets. I kept fighting and nearly
turned it around but he played well in the 3rd set. I had a matchpoint
at 5-4 in the 3rd but he saved that with a great pass down the line. It
came down to one or 2 points in the deciding tiebreak. However, if feel
that if I play well I should win these sort of matches."
Rd1
preview: Colin is seeded 8th for this tournament and will be favourite
for this match against Britain's Simon Roberts who's ranked 750 in the
world. Colin has enjoyed some fantastic results in doubles so far in
2006 and he'll be looking to build on the confidence gained from the
doubles and really kickstart his season in singles this week. Roberts
has not done particularly well on indoor hard lately, losing in
straight sets to Ian Flanagan in his only match so far this year.
Roberts struggled in the GB 4 satellite in November 2005, winning no
main draw matches, he says he's more at home on clay.
Update
2: The main singles and doubles draws have been released. Colin is
seeded 8th in singles and faces fellow Brit Simon Roberts in rd1. If he
wins he will face either Brit Andy Kennaugh or German qualifier Eric
Scherer. Colin could possibly face 3rd seed Alan Mackin in the
quarter-finals. Colin and Jamie Murray continue their successful
doubles partnership which has brought them 1 title and 2 runners-up
spots so far this year. They are number 1 seeds in this event and face
Britons Tom Rushby and Andy Kennaugh in rd1.They are seeded to meet the
3rd seeds - German pair Bastian Knittle and Peter Mayer in the semis.
Main singles draw: http://www.lta.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/229D824C-4FE8-477E-945D-2749EDD94BF4/31433/GBR1JerseyDrawsMenMDD.pdf
Main doubles draw:
http://www.lta.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/229D824C-4FE8-477E-945D-2749EDD94BF4/31430/GBR1JerseyMenSmd.pdf
Update
1: Colin is 7th on the entry list for week 1. The entry list is fairly
strong with the top seed being Jacob Adaktusson of Sweden. Brits, Alan
Mackin, Martin Lee, Dave Sherwood and Josh Goodall are also seeded.
This week's tournament is being played on indoor hard at the Les Ormes
sports club. It's the same venue which was used for the futures event
last October where Colin reached the quarter-finals losing to Frenchman
Nicholas Tourte. Colin commented that the surface was lightning fast
and really suited big servers.
Comment on Colin's progress in this tournament here:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901&action=viewTopic&commentID=5647264&topicPage=
Wrexham 25K Challenger:
Main draw doubles:
Final: C Fleming/J Murray lost to J Bachelot/S Robert [Fr] 4-6, 5-7
Report:
Colin and Jamie's fantastic week eventually came to an end with a
straight sets defeat against the French pair Bachelot and Robert.
Robert in particular, has been in the form of his life and has
dominated the futures and challenger in Britain this month, having also
reached the singles final here. The final was a close match but it was
the excellent returning of the French pair which eventually made the
difference. Colin and Jamie have secured a sackload of points and
Colin's doubles ranking now moves up to 220. He is a couple of futures
title wins away from the top 200. Colin and Jamie now move on to Jersey
for week 1 of the GB 1 satellite. Comments from Colin to follow shortly.
Fans views:
Scotfan: "Brilliant effort this week from Jamie Murray and Colin."
Comment on the final result here:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901&action=viewTopic&commentID=5536664&topicPage=
Semi-final: C Fleming/J Murray bt F Cipolla/J Mertl [It]/[CZE] [3] 7-6[4], 6-1
Report:
Another brilliant result from the on-form Scottish pair who've knocked
out both the 2nd and 3rd seeds this week. Cipolla and Mertl hadn't
dropped a set in either of their previous 2 matches but were outplayed
by Colin and Jamie. The first set went to a tiebreak and Colin and
Jamie claimed a minibreak early on and with both serving well this
proved decisive and they took the breaker 7-4. The 2nd set was much
more comfortable, Cipolla/Mertl looking deflated after losing the 1st
set and Fleming/Murray stepped up a gear with some massive serving and
both players producing many cracking returns to break serve twice. They
are now through to their first ever challenger final to face French
pair Bachelot and Robert.
Fans views:
Niall: "It's fantastic to
see Colin and Jamie taking their futures form onto challenger level.
They have faced three foreign teams including the 2nd & 3rd seeds
and they are yet to drop a set. Very impressive."
M-j-d: "Colin and Jamie are on fire this week."
Semi-final
doubles preview: Another big test for Colin and Jamie in the
semi-finals against the 3rd seeds. Cipolla and Mertl have produced 2
fine performances so far, notably in the quarter-finals when they
overcame the power of big hitters Pless and Mankad with ease. Mertl and
Cipolla are playing together for the first tournament but both had
impressive 2005 seasons in doubles. Cipolla had a large amount of
success in clay-court challengers winning 3 and finishing runner-up in
2 aswell as winning a sackload of futures and satellite doubles titles.
Mertl played mainly on the futures scene and won several titles there.
If Colin and Jamie win, their doubles ranking will move up to about
220. This semi-final is last on court starting at around 5.30pm today.
Quarter-final: C Fleming/J Murray bt A Parmar/S Wauters [GB]/[Bel] 6-4, 6-2
Report
[more to follow]: Colin and Jamie moved into their first challenger
doubles semi-final with another straight sets win. They face 3rd seeds
Flavio Cipolla and Jan Mertl in the semis, who've also yet to drop a
set and have been impressive in their 2 victories so far. Colin and
Jamie have both earned 22 points for their doubles rankings so far this
week and if they reach the final they will have earned 35 points which
should take them well into the top 250. More to follow tomorrow.
Quarter-final
preview: The experienced pairing of Fleming/Murray will be the
favourites for this quarter-final clash against Britain's Arvind Parmar
and Belgium's Stefan Wauters. Parmar/Wauters won rd1 convincingly
6-4,6-2 but Fleming/Murray had an equally impressive straight sets win
over the 2nd seeds. Stefan Wauters is an experienced doubles player and
reached challenger doubles final in 2005 on clay and on hard. However,
he suffered a straight sets defeat to Fleming/Murray when partnering
Swede Bjorn Rehnquist at the Southampton Challenger in October, on
similar courts to those in Wrexham. This will be only his 2nd doubles
match with Arvind Parmar, in contrast to the long-standing
Fleming/ Murray partnership. The match takes place last on court 1 tomorrow after the singles matches.
To comment on Colin and Jamie's chances go to this link:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901
Rd1: C Fleming/J Murray bt E Butorac/C Drake [USA] [2] 7-6[5], 6-4
Report:
A great win for Colin and Jamie over the number 2 seeds in a
big-serving clash. They edged a tight 1st set 7-5 in the tiebreak and
then secured the decisive break midway through the 2nd set. They will
face Britain's Arvind Parmar and Stefan Wauters tomorrow in the
quarter-finals. Parmar and Wauters won 6-4, 6-2 in rd1. Colin said: "We
didn't play very well but we still won and it gives room for
improvement as the tournament goes on." Colin's not totally over the
virus which prevented him playing singles in this challenger, but he's
recovering.
Rd1 doubles preview: Colin and Jamie have been
looking to step up a level in doubles tournaments so they're playing
for higher points and so can rise up the rankings faster. They'll
certainly have to do that this week in the Wrexham 25K Challenger as
the draw hasn't been kind. They're paired with 2nd seeded Americans
Eric Butorac and Chris Drake who are both ranked around 100 places
higher. All 4 players have strong serves which promises a close
contest. Like Fleming/Murray, Butorac and Drake enjoyed a large amount
of success in futures events last year winning titles in USA, Mexico
and reaching finals in Britain and France. Last autumn they stepped up
to the challenger tour with dramatically varying results. They lost
early in Orlando, Helsinki, Boston, Eckental and Southampton but
produced some stunning performances to win the Luxmenbourg 50K title.
Fleming/Murray aim to make the Wimbledon main doubles draw in June and
this tournament will provide a good indicator of where they are right
now. Hopefully Colin will have made a full recovery from his illness by
the time this match is due to be played, on Wednesday.
To comment on Colin and Jamie's chances go to this link:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901
Update
4: Colin has a viral infection but he's decided to play in the doubles
main draw with Jamie Murray this week. He hopes that he's able to fully
recover before his first match. He was advised against playing singles
because that event starts a day earlier and so he would be unlikely to
have enough time to recover. The strain of playing both singles and
doubles when under the weather would have been too much.
Update
3: Colin was advised not to play singles so he can recover for week 1
of the GB satellite starting next week. This is a disappointment for
Colin as the challenger would have offered him a good chance to boost
his singles ranking.
Comment on this news item here:
http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=70449&subForumID=197901&action=viewTopic&commentID=5536664&topicPage=
Update
2 [20/1/2006]: Colin's not very well at the moment, he's just seeing a
doctor this morning about whether to play the challenger or not.
Update
1: Colin is a long way down the alternates list for the main draw so
it's likely that he'll have to qualify unless he receives a wildcard.
Rankings info [16/1/2006]:
Colin's
singles ranking now stands at 443. He will move up to around 435 when
his points from GB F2 are added next week. Colin needs a further 11
points to reach the top 400. 11 points is equal to reaching the final
of a 15K futures event.
Colin's doubles ranking now stands at 251, a career high. Colin needs a further 65 points to break the top 200 in doubles.
Sponsorship
info: Colin's recent progress has been recognised as he's obtained some
more sponsorship. He now has a clothes sponsor and a racket sponsor
which adds to his funding. Colin also receives funding from Tennis
Scotland and Sport Scotland aswell as being family funded.
GB F2 [Barnstaple] [15K]:
Final:
C Fleming/J Murray lost to J Goodall/R Hutchins [GB][1] 6-7, 7-6, 6-7
Report:
Unfortunately Fleming and Murray could not repeat last week's success
in Exmouth in a serve dominated doubles final in Barnstaple. All 4
players powered down an incredible number of aces and service winners
making it difficult for either pair to get much chance on the return.
Ultimately it came down to the lottery of tiebreaks. Fleming/Murray
were a point away from defeat in set 2 but danger was averted and they
took it into a final set. In the 3rd set tiebreak, it was decided by
one good return from Goodall/Hutchins and that was the match. Both
pairs go forth to the doubles event in the Wrexham Challenger with
boosted rankings and confidence and they will be looking to take
advantage of the increased number of points at stake. Colin and Jamie
both said that they didn't play as well as they had done previously and
were very disappointed.
Semi-final doubles:
C Fleming/J Murray bt M Lee/ D Sherwood [GB] [4] 6-7, 6-3, 6-4
Report:
An extremely good win for Fleming/Murray who recovered from the
disappointment of a poor 1st set tiebreak by upping their level in the
remaining 2 sets and producing some good returning to break the
big-serving English pair. They face top seeds Goodall and Hutchins in
the final. The final is the same as last week in Exmouth when
Fleming/Murray won.
Semi-final doubles preview: This will be
Fleming/Murray 's toughest test of the week. Lee/Sherwood outrank both
of them comfortably in singles and in their first two matches here have
dropped just 5 games. However Lee/Sherwood are a new pairing and so do
not have the same on-court chemistry as Fleming/Murray. This match is
after the Baker-Robert quarter-final tomorrow.
Quarter-final doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt J Jordan/S Roberts [GB] 6-1, 6-1
An
easy win for Fleming/Murray against unranked opponents. They broke
serve 5 times overall and now face 4th seeds Martin Lee and Dave
Sherwood for a place in the final. Tomorrow morning, Colin's views on
the match will appear here.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray bt P Ivanov/J Stancik w/o
Fleming
and Murray's opponents withdrew due to injury so Fleming/Murray are now
in the quarter-finals against unranked British pair John Jordan and
Simon Roberts who won in 3 sets in rd1.
Rd2 result: C Fleming lost to F Nielsen [Den] 6-7[7], 3-6
A
not entirely unexpected loss for Colin as he was struggling with a
slight hamstring injury. Nielsen has a towering serve which suits
perfectly the fast indoor courts and as Martin Lee found to his cost in
rd1, it's difficult to get many chances to break. Colin will now
concentrate on trying to win his 2nd doubles title of 2006 with Jamie
Murray and will next appear in singles action in the Wrexham
challenger. Colin's views on the match to appear here tomorrow morning
Rd2
preview: Colin faces big-serving Frederik Nielsen for a place in the
quarter-finals. Nielsen disposed of Colin's victor last week, Martin
Lee in onimous fashion, winning 6-4, 6-1 in rd1. Last week, he reached
the second round of a futures event in Germany, losing a marathon clash
with another big server- Jan Masik in two tiebreaks, 9-7 being the
score in each win. Last year Nielsen won a futures title in Spain and
reached futures finals in Australia and Sweden. This match is second on
court 3 and straight after Colin plays his 1st round doubles match with
Jamie Murray. If Colin wins he will face either world junior no 1
Jeremy Chardy or Nicholas Renevand both of France.
Rd1 result: C Fleming bt M Kasiri [GB] 6-2, 5-7, 7-5
Report:
Colin said "I felt that I played a good 1st set but then I wasn't as
aggressive for the rest of the match and strained a hamstring at the
start of the 3rd set. I managed to tough it out and got a good result."
Rd1 singles [10/1/2006]: C Fleming v M Kasiri
Colin has
another tricky draw this week, with hard-hitting Kasiri in rd1 and if
he wins, last week's conqueror Martin Lee will probably await in round
2. Colin felt he should have won that match so would be looking for
revenge. Kasiri enjoyed a strong finish to last year, qualifying for
the Sunderland Challenger before beating a player ranked around 700
places above him in straight sets. Last week, Kasiri qualifyed and won
rd1 6-0, 6-2 before losing to on-form Scot Jamie Baker. Fleming v
Kasiri will be an interesting clash of styles, with Kasiri playing
predominantly from the baseline and Fleming looking to mix his game up
with frequent forays to the net.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray v P Ivanov/J Stancik
Colin
and Jamie will be hoping to continue their impressive march up the
doubles rankings this week. With both Fleming and Murray relishing the
fast courts and on a high after last week's futures win, Ivanov/Stancik
should provide few problems. This match should take place on Wednesday.
Doubles: Colin and Jamie are going to try and continue their
successful doubles partnership wherever their singles schedules permit.
Their main aim is to get into the Wimbledon doubles main draw and to
reach the top 100 in doubles this year.
Colin's schedule:
Colin will be playing tournaments in Britain for the first half of the
year and is aiming to rack up a good amount of points as he has none to
defend until April. Then in the second half of the year, he will look
to play some tournaments abroad to test his game against different
opponents
Training update: Colin has been training on local
indoor carpet courts with Jamie Murray in preparation for the first
quarter of the season. He's also currently working on muscle strength
and his nutritionist has changed his diet so that it's high in protein.
He was working out most days in December at Stirling university with
his personal trainer, working on strengthening his shoulder muscles.
GB F1 [Exmouth] [15K]:
Final doubles result: C Fleming/J Murray bt J Goodall/R Hutchins [GB] 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
Report:
Colin and Jamie secured another doubles title to add to their growing
collection beating top seeds Goodall and Hutchins in 3 sets. This will
raise both their doubles rankings even more as both look to break the
top 200 in doubles soon. An extremely good start to a year in which
both Colin and Jamie have high hopes - they are hoping to get into the
Wimbledon doubles main draw in June. Colin said "We both put in a
really big performance, played one slack game in the second set but
otherwise we were good. In the 3rd set we saved 4 break points to go
4-3 up and then broke next game. Jamie also thought we played well.
Bring on next week !"
Semi-final doubles result: C Fleming/J Murray bt N Bamford/J May [GB] 6-3, 7-6[3]
Report:
A good win for the 2nd seeds to take them through to the final. Jamie
Murray felt that Colin played very well - returning and volleying well.
Quarter-final doubles result:
C Fleming/J Murray bt G Lugassy/S Robert [Fr] 4-6, 6-3, 7-6[2]
Report:
A good start for Colin and Jamie, Lugassy and Robert proved tough
opposition despite being ranked lower. Colin felt that they played well
when it mattered and was especially pleased with the way he served in
the match.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming/J Murray [2]: bye
Rd1 singles [3/1/2006]: C Fleming lost to M Lee [GB][3] 6-1, 1-6, 4-6
Report:
Colin was disappointed with this result as he reckons he should have
won after such a storming first set. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to
maintain that standard and the experience of Lee [a top 100 player back
in 2001-2002] enabled him to come through in 3 sets.
Update 1:
Colin is entered for the 1st British futures event of the year and is
10th on the entry list. The line -up is very strong with in-form Brits
Richard Bloomfield, Matt Smith and Martin Lee heading the field. Dave
Sherwood is also in the line-up and will be looking to repeat so of the
success he has had in the past in British indoor tournaments. There are
several foreigners including big-serving American Phillip Simmonds who
made big progress in 2005 and also Gary Lugassy who has won several GB
futures and satellite titles. Young Latvian Andis Juska has also
entered as has Irish number 1 Conor Niland. Hopefully Colin will have
the best possible start to the year. Draw is on New Year's Day.
Training
update: Colin, Jamie Baker and Alan Mackin are currently training at
Stirling University in preparation for the new season. However, earlier
this month Jamie Baker was involved in a car crash, he's not believed
to have been badly injured but has been shaken and is taking it a
little easier. Hopefully, he recovers well.
Winter County Cup
[Nov 2005]: Colin had entered for his side North of Scotland but
withdrawn due to fatigue after his trip back from Mexico and the
Sunderland Challenger. He will now take a break before training in
preparation for 2006 when he will start in some 15K futures in Devon on
indoor courts. Colin's 2006 aims are to make the top 300 in singles and
the top 100 in doubles and he hopes to get into the Wimbledon doubles
main draw with Jamie Murray.
Sunderland 25K Challenger [Nov 2005]:
Bulletin 4: QF doubles:
Fleming/Corrie lost to C Kas and P Petzschner [Ger] [1] 4-6, 6-3, 3-6
View:
A good performance against the top seeds who went on to reach the
final. An upset looked on the cards after Fleming/Corrie dominated the
2nd set but an early break in set 3 ensured that the German pair were
always in control in the decider. Colin has withdrawn from the Winter
County Cup and will be training and putting in fitness work until the
new year.
Rd1 singles: C Fleming lost to M Granollers-Pujol [Sp] 2-6, 0-6
Report:
A jet-lagged Colin struggled through this match and understandably
didn't really play very well. Colin was seriously considering
withdrawing from the event but didn't think that would be right having
been offered a wildcard. He hasn't been sleeping very well as the hotel
in which he stayed had fire alarms every night. This meant that his
movement in the match was sluggish and his focus wasn't there. Both
players exchanged breaks at the start of the match and then held for
2-2. However, Granollers-Pujol then rattled off the next ten games to
take the match. After Colin dropped his serve at the start of set 2
there was effectively no coming back. This tournament is his last event
of a fantastic season and he is still in the doubles with David Corrie.
After this he is going to take a break and then begin on fitness
training in preparation for 2006 where his first goals are to step up
to the challenger tour and to break the top 300.
Rd1 doubles: Fleming/Corrie bt Kenshaw/Kodereich 6-0, 3-6, 6-3
Report:
A comfortable win for the new pair who looked on course to record a
whitewash win after set 1. They lost their focus in set 2 and both were
missing quite a few first serves and this resulted in them being broken
and losing the set. They managed to regain concentration just in time
to gain a crucial break in set 3 and eased to victory.
Bulletin
3: Colin is first on court 5 at 10.00am and is 4th on court 6 in the
doubles with David Corrie. Live score updates on the message board
Preview:
In rd1 Colin faces Spanish 19 year-old Marcel Granollers-Pujol ranked
289 in the world. Pujol is ranked more than 150 places above Colin. By
the time the main draw starts on Tuesday, Colin will have had 4 days to
rest and recover from his trip to Mexico. A good omen for Colin is that
is the last two challengers Pujol played [in Korea], he lost in the 1st
round both times and last week was competing in a Spanish futures event
where he lost in rd2 after having several matchpoints. If Colin wins he
could face Arvind Parmar in rd2.
Bulletin [19/11/2005]: Colin has been granted a wildcard into the main draw and has decided to accept.
Bulletin
[17/11/2005]: Colin is currently considering whether or not to withdraw
from the challenger after all his recent travelling.
Aberdeen
Cup info: It has been asked as to why neither Colin or Jamie were asked
to play for Scotland. However, I believe that neither of them wanted to
participate as it clashes with the Winter County Cup. Colin is
representing North of Scotland and Jamie is representing West of
Scotland.
Puebla 25K+H Challenger:
QF doubles [17/11/2005]: Fleming/Irwin lost to Armando/Noviski 4-6, 7-6[6], 6-7[5]
View:
Colin's 2nd defeat of the day to Armando but it could very easily have
gone the other way with just 2 points being in it at the end. All 3
sets were extremely closewith both pairs very evenly matched. Some good
returning and some awry volleying gave Armando/Noviski the 1st set but
Fleming/Irwin hit back to clinch the 2nd set tiebreak 8-6 despite
having been close to defeat. The 3rd set also headed to a tiebreak but
this time, Armando/Noviski were able to snatch the decisive minibreak.
So Colin now heads home for the Sunderland 25K Challenger next week
where he should receive a wildcard. From the trip he will have gained
experience of playing at altitude against different types of opposition
and he will have earned in total a 40 point ranking increase.
Rd2 singles [16/11/2005]: Colin Fleming lost to H Armando [USA] [3] 0-6, 2-6
View:
Colin was outplayed today by the more experienced American
clay-courter. Armando has enjoyed success recently in South America
reaching the latter stages of several challengers. On the clay court,
Colin struggled to make much impact on the American's game. Armando hit
a much heavier ball with lots of topspin and was able to drive Colin
back behind the baseline before attacking and taking control of the
rallies. Colin's serve was not as effective on the slow surface and he
was unable to have much effect at the net. Colin will be hoping for
revenge in the doubles quarter-final later when he teams up with
Richard Irwin against Armando and an Argentine player. Hopefully ,
Colin will have gained a lot from this experience in Mexico and I will
be able to find out more from him when he returns home next week.
Colin's ranking will also receive a good boost and he will be up to
approximately 445 in the new list.
Rd1 singles[15/11/2005]: C Fleming bt E Redondi [Arg] 6-2, 7-6[5]
View:
A fine win from Colin against a player ranked around 100 places higher.
Colin's troubles with the altitude and the surface look to be over
after some more training on the surface. Colin was in dominant form in
the 1st set attacking aggressively from the baseline and then following
his penetrating shots into the net. Redondi struggled to pass him and
made a few too many errors. The Argentine became more consistent in the
2nd set and he served better. Colin wasnt able to attack the net as
much as in the 1st set but he sealed the match in a tiebreak 7-5. He
will need to take this form into his round 2 encounter with American
Hugo Armando ranked 189, who also won in straight sets. Colin has been
wanting to test his game against this sort of opponent and now he gets
his chance with a lot of ranking points at stake.
LTA mini-report [15/11/2005]: There was also success elsewhere for Britain's Colin Fleming who came through his opening round of the $25,000 Challenger Britania Zavaleta in Puebla in Mexico with a 6-2, 7-6(5) victory over Argentinian Emilianc Rebondi and now faces third seed Hugo Armando of the USA
Rd1
preview: There are good points at stake in this challenger, Colin's 2nd
ever. Redondi is probably quite a good draw. The Argentine is ranked
375 and has only played on clay since May. He may struggle with the
conditions in Puebla having not experienced them since April and in
that match he lost 6-1, 6-1. The reward for the winner is a likely
match with the American Hugo Armando who is seeded and ranked about
190. Fleming v Redondi is the 1st match on court starting at around
15.00 BST. Result will be in on the official website as soon as the
match finishes.
Rd1 doubles [14/11/2005]: Fleming/Irwin bt Rodriguez/Varela 2-6, 7-6[7], 7-6[2]
View:
A dramatic win for the British pair in their first competitive match
together. Victory was sealed after 2h 25 min. In the 1st set,
Fleming/Irwin were outplayed by the Mexicans. In set 2 the standard of
serving from the Britons was much higher and they were more aggressive.
Rodriguez/Varela held a matchpoint in the 2nd set tiebreak but this was
saved by Fleming/Irwin who took the tiebreak 9-7. The 3rd set also
reached a tiebreak but Fleming/Irwin gained an early minibreak and
never looked back and sealed a quarter-final meeting with 4th seeds
Hugo Armando and Lionel Noviski. Armando/Noviski also struggled against
a Mexican pair coming back to win in 3 sets.This match will take place
on Wednesday
Doubles preview: Colin lost to this pair last
week with German partner Alex Satschko. Colin is travelling with an LTA
squad and Irwin is one of the members of that squad and Colin has
practised a lot with him lately hence them teaming up. I think they
will find the doubles match tough as Varela/Rodriguez are locals and
are experienced at playing on these surfaces. Irwin lost in qualifying
and this is his first competitive outing with Colin. This match takes
place today.
Puebla Challenger info [13/11/2005]: Colin
Fleming has made it into the main draw. He was quite low on the
alternates list but loads have withdrawn from the main draw making it
quite a weak field. I hope that Colin is starting to discover his form
on these courts because there are some big points at stake here as it's
a 25K+H making it equivalent to a 37.5K Challenger in terms of points.
If he can win a few matches he would really rise up the rankings.
Colin
now heads to Puebla in an attempt to qualify for the 25K + H Challenger
which takes place there next week. Qualifying is from Saturday 12th to
Sunday 13th.
Mexico F18 [Queretaro]:
Rd1 singles[9/11/2005] : C Fleming lost to A Sandbichler [Aut] 4-6, 7-5, 6-7[4]
Report to follow
Preview:
A tricky 1st round match for Colin against the 20 year old Austrian
from Schwaz. Sandbichler is a left-hander and so the tricky spins on
his forehand and serve will add to Colin's problems with the altitude.
Colin will have to cope with high bouncing balls swinging out wide to
his backhand. Sandbichler has spent some time in South America,
reaching the semis of a futures event in Venezuala. However, he has
also been struggling with the altitude difference in Mexico, going out
in straight sets in rd1 of Leon. He is a clay-courter ranked 683.
Rd1 doubles[8/11/2005] : Fleming/Satschko lost to Rodriguez/Varela 4-6, 6-3, 1-6
View:
The number 2 seeds were unfortunately undone by the greater consistency
and guile of the Mexican duo. Colin was still struggling with the speed
and bounce of the court and making too many errors. The Mexican pair
edged the 1st set 6-4 before Fleming/Satschko adopted a more careful
attitude in set 2, just getting the ball in play and trying to take
control of the net. They looked on course to win the match but in the
3rd set the Mexicans upped their game and the errors returned from
Fleming/Satschko who had no answer. So Colin's problems with the
conditions continue. Let's hope he enjoys greater success in the
singles.
Doubles preview: Colin embarks on the 2nd indoor hard
tournament of his tour in Queretaro. Hopefully several days of practise
will have made him more comfortable on the surface. He plays the
doubles with his German friend Alex Satschko. They are drawn for their
first two matches against Mexican players and then if they reach the
semis they are likely to face either the Brazilian 4th seeds or Britons
Irwin and Wire.
Mexico F17 [Leon]: Rd2: C Fleming lost to A Bassetti [It] 6-7[6], 2-6
Report to follow soon
Preview:
This will be a very difficult match for Colin against the 21 year old
Italian who is at a career high of 736 in the rankings. Bassetti has
already been on the Mexican futures circuit for 3 weeks and is
perfectly at home with the courts which suit his baseline game. He has
reached 2 semi-finals in the last 2 weeks including a 6-2, 6-0 win over
Britain's Richard Irwin. In contrast to Fleming's rd1 victory, Bassetti
moved into rd2 with the minimum of effort as his opponent [again
Richard Irwin] retired at 5-1 down in the 1st set. Fleming struggled in
his rd2 doubles match as well and he will need to up his level to
progress to the quarter-finals. He will be looking to attack the net as
much as possible to pressurize Bassetti.
Rd2 doubles: Fleming and Satschko lost to Ekman and Hansen 3-6, 4-6
View:
A disappointing performance from the number 1 seeds who didn't gel as
well together as in rd1. Ekman and Hansen are an experienced
combination and won the match pretty comfortably. Fleming is worried as
he is still having trouble getting used to the way the courts play and
the unusual conditions created by the high altitude.
Rd1: C Fleming bt C Avellan [Ecu] 2-6, 6-4, 6-2
Report:
Colin Fleming had a difficult 1st match in Leon against Carlos Avellan
of Ecuador ranked 712. Fleming struggled with the altitude and said
that the 1st set was awful and that he just gave it away. Fleming was
having a lot of trouble with his serve and making lots of groundstroke
errors. In the 2nd and 3rd sets he changed tactics and took the power
off his 1st serve to make sure he didn't double fault, in other words
hitting two 2nd serves. He concentrated on just making groundstrokes
and his shots were very pushy but he attacked the net whenever
possible. In Colin's words: "I won ugly." Colin will next face either
Britain's Richard Irwin or Arkady Bassetti of Italy on Thursday.
Rd1 doubles: Fleming and Satscko [1] bt Brage and Sato 6-2, 7-5
View:
Comfortable victory for the new pair who seem to combine well. They
face Sweden's Ekman and Hansen in rd2 later today at around 9.00 pm BST.
Preview:
Colin's Mexican adventure begins in Leon where he is the number 3 seed.
Colin opens against Ecuador's Carlos Avellan and could face fellow Brit
Richard Irwin in round 2. Colin could face talented American youngster
Jesse Witten who gave Andy Murray a good match in ATP Indianapolis
earlier this year. Colin is in the doubles main draw and has partnered
2nd seeded German Alex Satschko. They are the number 1 seeds. The
courts in Leon are very high bouncing and the balls shoot through the
air because of the altitude. It will be interesting to see how Colin
copes with this
Fleming heads for Mexican adventure: Colin Fleming has been speaking all summer of
the need to test his game on different surfaces against different types of opponents. In the
next 4 weeks he will realise those plans and play a series of futures and challenger
events in Mexico while travelling with an LTA squad. This is like fellow Scot Jamie
Baker who did the same across South America earlier this year except he played futures
and satellites. It is not yet known for certain whether Baker has decided to head for
Mexico as well or whether to compete in the 4 week British indoor satellite. Both are
thought to be planning to end their seasons with the Sunderland 25+H Challenger for
which they will require wildcards.
Southampton 25K+H Challenger:
Rd2 doubles: C Haggard & M Kohlmann [1] bt C Fleming & J Murray 7-6, 6-4
Good performance from Fleming & Murray against the top seeds. It was a very close
match and the 1st set could have gone either way. Colin was slightly disappointed that they didn't manage to win.
Rd1 doubles: C Fleming & J Murray bt B Rehnquist & S Wauters 6-3, 6-4
Report: Fleming and Murray really played well and this was an excellent win. Colin
Fleming didnt look particularly confident at the net but he really hits the ball well and
he's got a nice touch, Jamie Murray looks much more of a doubles player strong at the
net but more straight up and down than Colin.
Rd1: J Haehnel [Fr] [3] bt C Fleming [GB] 6-4, 6-2
Colin's
view: Colin was really pleased with his performance as having played a
top 100 player and knowing he could compete had really boosted his
confidence.
Fan's view on the match: One really bright spot of
the challenger was Colin Fleming, for a young lad I think he shows some
real promise, he didnt quite have the power to prevail but he hit the
ball really well and wasn't afraid to try out adventerous shots against
a guy that was ranked #84 a week ago. The Scots lads seem really
focused and there is more to come from them.
Report: Colin put up a good display against his more illustrious opponent. Despite being
broken very early on, Colin recovered, got into his hitting rhythm and broke back for 3-
3. Unfortunately Haehnel quickly asserted himself, breaking again and taking control of
the match. A double-break in the middle of set 2 put the result beyond doubt. Hopefully
Colin will have gained from the experience of playing someone in the top 100 as he
looks to make the difficult transition from futures to challenger level, often a very bumpy
ride.
Preview: Colin Fleming both received the wildcard he was hoping
for
but unfortunately the draw has been less than kind. He faces 3rd seed
Jerome Haehnel of France ranked no 82, over 400 places higher than
Colin and a few years back he beat a certain Andre
Agassi in straight sets at the French Open. Haehnel has had success indoors recently,
reaching the semis of strong Mons and Grenoble Challengers. Colin is
making his debuts on the challenger tour and he's certainly been thrown in at the
deep end. Colin is partnering Jamie Murray in the doubles main draw and they are
hoping for success as there is more prize money at stake in challengers.
GB F15 [Jersey] [10K]:
QF: N Tourte [2] [Fr] bt C Fleming [GB] 7-6[4], 6-2
View:
Colin is annoyed with himself after a disappointing loss to 2nd seed
Nicholas Tourte who he really had for the taking. Tourte beat Fleming
earlier in the summer but Colin looked to be well on the way to gaining
revenge, cruising to a 5-1 1st set lead with some sublime tennis.
However, Tourte started to up his game and managed to break back.
Tourte managed to recover to 5-5 and though Colin managed to take the
set to a tiebreak, Tourte edged this 7-4. After this Colin's head
really went down and he put up little fight in the second set. Colin
tends to play his best tennis when there are lots of people watching
and before Jersey he had played events in Glasgow and Edinburgh with
lots of supporters while in Jersey there were virtually none. To
continue his progress Colin needs to work out a way to get himself
pumped up when there are few supporters and he is having to fight out a
tough match. However, he did do this in rounds 1 and 2, it's just a
shame as he had a great opportunity to progress further in this
tournament.
Rd2: C Fleming bt B Stronkt [Ger] 7-6[6], 7-6[5]
View:
Great win for Colin and revenge for the defeat in Glasgow. Each set
could have gone either way but Colin played the crunch points just a
little bit better and will now face 2nd seed Nicholas Tourte or
American Eric Butorac in the quarter-finals. Hopefully he will gain
confidence from winning two very, very close matches and take that into
his quarter-final.
Preview of Fleming v Stronkt: Colin will be
hoping for revenge today having lost a close 3-setter to Stronkt in a
final set tiebreak a couple of weeks ago in Glasgow. There was just a
few points in it then and it is likely to be a similarly tight match
today as the German is on form and playing much better than his ranking
suggests. Stronkt is a difficult player to play against as he scrambles
well and chases down every single ball.
Rd1: C Fleming [GB] bt P Stolt [USA] 7-6[4], 7-6[3]
View:
Colin was made to work very hard on his return to action by American
qualifier Phil Stolt. Two matches in qualifying clearly aided Stolt's
play on the fast indoor courts while Fleming was not at his best. The
American was serving very well which made it difficult for Colin to
have any impact on the return. Colin produced some good tennis to edge
both tiebreaks and will now meet German Benedikt Stronkt who has been
in good form lately and continued by disposing of Britain's Neil
Bamford in rd 1. The draw has certainly not been kind to Colin as if he
gets past Stronkt he will probably face 2nd seed Nicholas Tourte in the
quarter-finals ranked around 100 places above Colin.
Rest week
for Colin Fleming: Colin has decided to take a rest week to recover
from a virus which hindered him in his quarter-final against Mark
Hilton in Edinburgh. He plans to play the Jersey 10K futures and is
hoping for a wildcard into the Southampton 25K Challenger. After that
he is planning to play a series of tournaments in Mexico to test his
game against a different style of players and on different types of
surface to the UK. Colin feels this is necessary to develop his game
further.
Baker and Fleming realise the need to travel: Both
murmur about needing to test their game elsewhere; thoughts, no doubt,
influenced by Andy Murray's development at a Spanish tennis academy.
Fleming says: "It's accepted that playing on a variety of surfaces against a variety of players is best for your game. At a tournament like this, I've pretty much played or at least watched everyone in the draw. It's difficult to get better. One thing we saw with Andy is that you need to vary it up."
Dilemma for Fleming: Jamie Murray's graceful net play makes him a strong doubles players, but his lack of mobility on the baseline and a weak forehand have caused him difficulties in singles.
In the past, the decision for such a player would be simple: carve out a career as a doubles specialist. But a recent rule change by the ATP tour specifying that only high-ranked singles players can play doubles has cast everything into doubt.
Jamie's best doubles partner -
since he and Andy split two years ago - is Colin Fleming. But while
Jamie's ranking has remained above 1000, Fleming has moved up to 509.
If this trend continues, the new rules mean the duo may soon not be
able to enter tournaments together. Colin is currently trying to decide
whether to step up to challenger level tournaments and leave Jamie
behind or persuade Jamie to forget singles for now and step up to
challenger doubles with him.
Colin Fleming and Jamie Murray promote London 2012:
Olympic tennis hopefuls Colin
Fleming and Jamie Murray were serving up lottery cards, instead of
aces, this week.For the lads were on hand to deliver news about the
National Lottery's latest Go for Gold scratchcard.
Colin (21), from
Linlithgow and Jamie (19), from Dunblane — ranked 522 and 1030
respectively in the world — took time out from training at the National
Training Centre for Tennis at Stirling University to promote the
scratchcards.
Go For Gold was the first game to help raise funding for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Since
launching on July 28, the cards have achieved sales of over £1 million
a week with over £2 million already raised towards the 2012 Games.
The
second edition of Go For Gold has £11 million worth of prizes —
offering players opportunities to strike gold while also raising funds
for the London 2012 Games.
National Lottery funding will contribute
up to £1.5 billion towards the costs of the London 2012 Olympic Games
and Paralympic Games, of which £750 million will come from a series
of dedicated lottery games.
Colin and Jamie have themselves
benefited from lottery cash as the tennis training centre received a
£500,000 grant last year from Sport Scotland to upgrade its courts.
GB F13 [Edinburgh] [10K]:
Quarter-finals: M Hilton [1] [GB] bt C Fleming [GB] 6-4, 6-2
View:
Colin's virus really weakened him and he didn't play a great match
against Hilton as a result. The combination of the illness and the
gruelling second round match from yesterday really affected Colin's
standard of play. Colin is obviously disappointed but he will now take
a rest week to fully recover from the virus and return to action in GB
F15 in Jersey.
Rd2: C Fleming [GB] bt T Holzmann [Aus] 7-6[7], 2-6, 6-4
View:
Despite suffering from the effects of a virus, Fleming somehow managed
to grind out a gruelling 3 set victory. The 1st set was serve dominated
but Fleming managed to edge the tiebreak 9-7. This seemed to take a lot
out of him as his standard dropped in set 2 and Holzmann looked on the
way to comfortable victory .
Rd1: C Fleming [GB] bt A Kennaugh [GB] 6-2, 6-4
View:
Fleming was just too good for Kennaugh today, the Scot dominating with
some powerful baseline play while 18 year old Kennaugh was too erratic
to cause Fleming many problems. Fleming goes on to face Austrian Thomas
Holzmann.
Tournament preview: Andy Murray's contemporaries
from the Scottish tennis scene are dreaming of a £715 winner's cheque
at an International Tennis Federation Futures event at Craiglockhart
tennis centre in Edinburgh. This is the side of pro tennis you don't
hear much about. No billboards, no grandstands, not even line judges in
the event's two qualifying rounds, in which the players make their own
line calls. The Scottish trio of Colin Fleming, Jamie Baker and Jamie
Murray can't even expect to recoup their expenses for the week. The
reward here is the opportunity to creep up the world rankings and chase
a dream. Colin Fleming has improved his world ranking this year by 800
places but he doesn't have sponsors. He buys his rackets from the local
pro shop in Linlithgow. Without funding from Tennis Scotland and the
Scottish institute of Sport most of Scotland's top pros would have to
stop playing.
GB F12 overview:
Colin Fleming: Colin
continued his recent momentum by beating promising youngster Faris
Khatib in straight sets in rd1 6-4, 7-6. However, Colin return to
Scottish soil fell flat in rd2 when he lost to lower-ranked but in-form
German Benedict Stronkt in a 3rd set tiebreak. Colin described Stronkt
as difficult to play against as he runs down every single ball and
makes weird grunting noises while playing.After the success in
Nottingham this result was a little bit disappointing but Colin will
have several days to recuperate and practise before his next event, the
Edinburgh futures.
Article on Colin Fleming: October 2005
Combining university education with life on the international tennis circuit is paying big dividends for Economics and Finance student, Colin Fleming, who this season more than halved his world ranking to land inside the world’s top 500.
The 21 year old from the historic town of Linlithgow, birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, has taken a very individual route into the world’s top 500. Realising that having left school he was not mentally or physically ready for the rigours of the full time game, he found the solution when nearby University of Stirling offered him the chance to study and play tennis. But three years in he reached a point where significant progress meant a full time application to the sport.
"I wasn’t majorly successful as a junior and I was nowhere near ready for senior tennis when I first came here. I was still a boy and I wouldn’t have known how to look after myself as a full time player," said Fleming, who is on for a First in the subject he describes as dry but interesting.
"But in my second year I found I was playing at a level where I had made a couple of ATP points and the option came up to take a year out after my exams in May 2004. Initially when I went full time I didn’t have much success, it was more a case of getting used to the lifestyle. But since this May I have had a good breakthrough."
Breakthrough is a word which surfaces regularly during a conversation with Scotland’s newest rising star. But if there was one career changing moment then it came this spring when he teamed up with Jamie Murray. Their near identical rangy physiques and joint wingspans made them a formidable duo and virtually impassable at the net. They won three doubles finals of the Swedish satellite in May and have since gone on to reach 11 doubles finals this year. Confidence gained on the doubles court rubbed off on Fleming’s singles ability.
"We decided to have a crack at Futures after playing County Week together for the last two years. We won 15 out of 15 matches there, we’ve got high expectations of each other and it brings out our best performances. We both cover the net well so if we get established it’s quite hard to get anything past us.
"The doubles success helped me feel like I belong on the same court as the top players in these tournaments. I came back home for the clay court satellite and made the final of week two at Newcastle. Then in the summer satellite on the hard courts I made another final and won a week at Wrexham."
In winning Wrexham, Fleming’s coach Euan McGinn believes he is the first Scotland-based Scot to win a senior singles final. A proud Scot, Fleming never saw the need to join his brethren who have moved to far flung corners to further their careers, when there was a base like Stirling just 18 miles up the road.
Steeped in history, with newly acquired city status, Stirling has since pre Roman times been the strategic heart of Scotland and a battleground for power. Its castle, the focal point for countless struggles, sits on a fist of volcanic rock atop the flat ‘carselands’ of the Forth Valley, close to the site of the fourteenth century battle of Bannockburn.
On a second volcanic outcrop, proudly stands the Victorian Gothic tower, the Wallace monument, commemorating Scotland’s greatest freedom fighter, Sir William Wallace. On the north side of this wooded hill lies the red shale of the picturesque Bridge of Allan tennis club, responsible for helping forge some of the country’s best players. To the south lies the powerful combination of Stirling University and the Central Scotland Institute of Sport, the chosen training base of five Athens Olympians.
"I had the option of training at Queens but I always wanted to stay in Scotland and I’ve always believed we had everything here to keep improving," said Fleming.
"The University and the
Central Institute both help me a lot and I get lottery funding from
sportscotland. Everything is specific to each player. The stuff going
on there in terms of coaching, training, nutrition and the physical
stuff is up there with any programme in Britain for a full time player.
They have always given me loads of court time and Euan has coached me
for four years. I have a Strength and Conditioning coach, Gail Niven,
and I’ve done a lot of work with the Nutritionist and the Psychologist
through the Institute."
McGinn is justifiably proud of what his Stirling University Tennis Scholarship Programme is achieving. He believes it rivals anything the American collegiate system has to offer in giving players the opportunity to prepare for and play world ranking events.
"I see the balance you get from university tennis as a springboard to the full time game," he said. "If your tennis isn’t going well then it’s just one part of your life that isn’t. You come off the court after a bad session and you can get over it quicker because you know you have to write a paper.
"The American uni set up is fantastic, but the competitive structure in college tennis out there doesn’t necessarily allow them to get away and play Futures, Satellites and Challengers.
"At Stirling we have a huge variety of players from world ranked to county level and it’s getting better every year. We have four players with world rankings (Fleming, Matthew Lott, Gary Thomson and Keith Meisner), ten scholarship players, and another five who aren’t far off. Colin’s success is not only fantastic for him but it inspires the rest our players to get better."
The LTA’s recent expansion of Futures and Satellite events has been a blessing for the university players. It means the students don’t now need to incur the significant costs of time and money travelling abroad to earn world ranking points.
"The argument for Stirling is that unless you are a super star at 18 or 19, then before going full time you should consider playing for three years whilst studying for a degree, just like Colin has done," said McGinn.
"When Colin started there weren’t that many Futures events in Britain but now there are tons of them and the uni players have got more opportunities. My aim is to put on a schedule to allow them all to compete more."
Whilst Fleming does not see his recent rankings leap resulting from drastic changes to his game, winning on a more regular basis has given him the all important belief that he can continue his success. In realising that a full time effort is now required to maintain momentum he recently signed for a second gap year.
"I’m not just happy with doing well at this level, I want to give myself enough time to have a good go at it. I want to play a few Challengers and make a breakthrough there, then I will re-assess," he said.
"The main difference is belief that I can beat the guy at the other end of the court, whereas before I was losing matches before I’d started them.
"I’m changing my style, being more aggressive and taking the game to my opponents, working on coming up the court and finishing points at the net. I can do it so I need to make the most of that."
Most of the eight or so players who Fleming grew up training and competing with have long since left the game. He acknowledges that when they were all competing he was by no means the best of his group, but his own gritty determination has brought success both on and off the court.
"The breakthrough I’ve had has been over quite a short period, just this summer, but it is the result of quite a few years of hard work and belief that I could do it," he said.
"Some people at 17 make full time tennis their goal but don’t really give themselves a chance. You don’t reach full strength until your mid twenties and if you’re not getting success it’s not enjoyable and you give up well before you’ve reached full potential. I doubt that many tennis players ever do reach their full potential.
"And it shows that if you want to play and you want to stay in Scotland then it can be done. It’s always been Scotland for me and now I’ve had some success here there’s no reason to change my plans and go elsewhere."
Factfile
Age: 21 (13/8/84)
Results:
reached 11 satellite doubles finals this year and won 6; made four
singles finals this year, winning his first at Wrexham
Family: The
Fleming family live a few minutes walk from Linlithgow Tennis Club
where his older brother is Head Coach. His sister and father both play.
Colin began short tennis with his brother aged four then played proper
tennis as an eight year old.
Fleming wins first satellite title: August 2005
Linlithgow tennis player Colin Fleming, finalist last week at Ilkley, the first leg of a four week satellite, won his first title in week two at Wrexham today (Sat 6 Aug).
A wild card, 20 year Fleming upset three seeded players, including tournament No.1 Joshua Goodall from England before putting out the third seed, Alun Jones from Australia 6-4 6-3 in today’s final.
Unlike the majority of his talented contemporaries who have chosen to base themselves at training squads in England and overseas, Fleming, a member of the Central Institute of Sport based at Stirling, is thought to be the first full time Scottish-based competitor to win an event at this level.
"I’ve been playing really well," said Fleming. "I haven’t been expecting too much of myself coming into it because I was a little bit injured and a little bit sick as well, so I’ve been really relaxed and playing quite well because of it.
"I knew I was capable of beating the players I have beaten but to do it all at once was a bit of a surprise to me. I’m happy to do it so hopefully I can keep it going.
"I’ll be No.1 see on the Satellite next week (Cumberland Club, London) and a bit of pressure will come with that but if I keep playing like I have been I should be OK."
Fleming is nearing the end of a gap year from Economics and Finance at Stirling University. In opting for Stirling University’s Tennis Scholarship Programme two and half year ago, Fleming has access to top level coaching combined with the support services of the Central Institute of Sport.
"At Stirling, there’s everything you would need to play full time sport. We’ve got a nutritionist, strength and conditioning coaches, psychologists, and good players for me to practice with. My coach Euan McGinn has helped me a lot, he’s a great coach, and I get to stay at home which is where I am happiest.
"It just shows that if you want to play and you want to stay in Scotland then it can be done."
Conscious of the new term looming, Fleming has just a handful of weeks to decide on whether to extend his gap year or return to university. Either way he has decided on continuing his tennis education in Scotland.
"It’s always been Scotland for me," he said. "I’ve never considered an option apart from Scotland for tennis and I’ve always believed it was possible to keep improving here."
"I’ll concentrate on finishing this satellite first and I have to decide in the next few week whether I stay full time or go back to studying and playing part time.
Coach, Euan McGinn believes Fleming is Scotland’s first Scottish-based tennis player to win a final at this level.
"This is a fantastic achievement for Colin and as far as I’m aware he’s the first home based person who has won a final of a Satellite event.
"At Stirling we run a programme for all of our players which full time players don’t get elsewhere. It just shows what people can achieve staying where they are in Scotland."
Fleming proves that Scottish system does work: August 2005:
Linlithgow tennis player Colin Fleming has proved that, contrary to the majority of his talented contemporaries who have opted to base themselves at training squads in England and overseas, being located in Scotland full time does work.
This weekend the 20 year old Stirling University student, currently mid way through a gap year from Economics and Finance to pursue his first love, reached the final of the LTA Satellite event in Newcastle. His coach, Euan McGinn believes Fleming is Scotland’s first Scottish-based tennis player to appear in a final at this level.
A month ago, Fleming teamed up with Dunblane’s Jamie Murray to win three doubles legs of the Swedish Satellite, halving his world ranking in the process. The experience gave him belief that he could replicate the same form on the singles court. In Newcastle this week he upset seeded English players, Tom Burn and Andrew Banks before losing in the final to second seeded Italian Flavio Cipolla.
"The doubles success helped me feel like I belong on the same court as the top players in these tournaments," said Fleming. "It paid off this week with two wins against well respected British players."
In opting for Stirling University’s Tennis Scholarship Programme two and half year ago, Fleming has access to top level coaching combined with the support services of the Central Institute of Sport.
"Everyone at Stirling, both at the university and the Central Institute, has helped me a lot," he said.
"The stuff going on there in terms of coaching, training, nutrition and the physical stuff is up there with any programme in Britain for a full time player. In addition to the coaching there are Strength and Conditioning coaches and I’ve done a lot of work with the nutritionist and the psychologist through the Institute.
"It just shows that if you want to play and you want to stay in Scotland then it can be done."
Said Head Coach of Stirling University Tennis Scholarship Programme, Euan McGinn: "This is a fantastic achievement for Colin and as far as I’m aware he’s the first person who has been a home based player to reach the final of a Satellite event.
"At Stirling we run a programme for all of our players which full time players don’t get elsewhere. It just shows what people can achieve staying where they are in Scotland."
Fleming will complete the four-week Satellite event in the Masters at Solihull this week. After that he will head to the India Satellite with two fellow Stirling students.
Conscious of the new term looming, he is weighing up the possibility of extending his tennis gap year. Either way he has decided on continuing his tennis education in Scotland.
"It’s always been Scotland for
me," he said. "I’ve never considered an option apart from Scotland for
tennis and I’ve always believed it was possible to keep improving here."
Interview with Colin Fleming: April 2005:
Combining further education with life on the international tennis circuit is paying dividends for Economics and Finance student, Colin Fleming who this month teamed up with Dunblane’s Jamie Murray to win three doubles finals of the Swedish Satellite.
Fleming, a Central Scotland Institute of Sport athlete from Linlithgow, has taken a gap year from studies to pursue his passion for tennis.
"I’m really enjoying it," said the Stirling University student, who is hoping for a wild card into next week’s Scottish Open in Edinburgh, starting on Tuesday.
"I love playing tennis and it’s a great life travelling and playing. I’ve got one more year at Stirling University but I’m giving the option of playing full time after that a lot of thought."
Until recently, Fleming had thought of himself as a singles-only player. But his recent partnership with Jamie Murray, older brother of British Davis Player, Andrew Murray, has convinced him he needs to concentrate fully on both aspects of the game.
"Jamie and I have been good friends for a long time, we’ve got high expectations of each other, we want to do well for each other and it brings out our best performances. In the Sweden satellite, we won the first three weeks. Jamie had a virus so we didn’t play the Masters, but we still won the circuit overall by a long way."
Fleming more than halved his doubles world ranking during his trip to Sweden. "That satellite has taken ranking from 1400 to around 670. I’m still concentrating on singles but looking to play a lot more doubles. Before if I’d lost in singles I wouldn’t have stayed to play doubles, but now I’m staying for doubles as well.
"The doubles is giving me a lot more confidence. Because we are beating the top players it has given me a lot more belief I can also beat them in singles."
This week in Bournemouth, the first of the four-week British Satellite, Fleming qualified for the singles main draw before overcoming the higher ranked Englishman, Tom Rushby in the first round proper. A virus hampered any further progress but next week, closer to home he hopes for a better result.
"It’s always nice to stay at home," he said. "Every time I’m back I can make use of the Central Institute physiotherapist and the nutritionist has helped me a lot. It makes a big difference playing in a tournament in Scotland so hopefully I’ll give it a good shot."
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