Master U: The double problem
“It’s simple, we do not prepare it! Christophe Millard, Deputy National Director, smiled at the evocation of the doubles matches. “We have been here for two days. The coaches have made the duos work to the maximum to find affinities. ”
He does not hide it, two days is very short, especially when the format of the competition (in the best of the seven games with first four single games and then three doubles) often make them decisive encounters for the qualification. “During matches, it is the communication with the coach that allows players to gradually find their marks on the field. ”
But France is not the only nation lacking preparation. The Irish are also confused: “We talk a lot before the game,” says Odhran O’Sullivan in a mixed doubles with Sarah Curran. What is your favorite side, how do you prefer to serve, that kind of thing but otherwise we never really played together.
His meeting did not have any real importance on the sporting level. The Irish, defeated in the first four singles against the United States, are already eliminated. The Americans are, for Christophe Millard, the references of the tournament on this format of matches. “I think they have a real double culture, unlike us,” he says. It is surely for this reason, that they trust the title for 5 years. “France can not do any more. “We always have very short meetings. Except during the summer preparation, we do not really have time to further work this discipline. ”
The solution to this double problem seems simple. Winning all his matches in individual at the risk of offering some cold sweats.