FURTHER evidence of the fact tennis has one of the most fiendish scoring systems ever devised arrived at the Scotstoun Sports Campus when two razor-tight matches involving aspiring young Scots had very different outcomes. Aidan McHugh, the 18-year-old who is signed to Andy Murray’s 77 Sports Management agency, was staring at one of the bigger wins of his young career when he led Germany’s Jeremy Jahn, the No 6 seed and a former top 200 player, 3-1 in the final set yesterday. Instead, his opponent capitalised on the Scot’s next service game, changing the momentum of the match and seeing out a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 win.
Thankfully for the home fans who took advantage of the free entry in the West of Glasgow yesterday, Maia Lumsden had the equal but opposite experience when she arrived on court afterwards. The 21-year-old, like Andy Murray a former winner of the prestigious junior Orange Bowl tournament, reached the final of this tournament 12 months ago but her hopes yesterday were hanging by a thread at 4-1 down to Jaqueline Cristan of Romania in the final set. She thanked the Glasgow crowd – along with a healthy contingent of family and friends – as she turned the match around to see things out 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. Next up, she faces Pemra Ozgen, the No 7 seed from Turkey, in tomorrow’s second round.
“It was a really hard game, it was a bit up and down and I wasn’t playing my best,” said a delighted Lumsden afterwards. “I was just trying to keep fighting. Especially third set, when I was 4-1 down. But the crowd was so good, particularly in the end there when it was really tight, really close. It definitely helped and I want to thank everybody for coming along.”
These are the hard yards for both these players but Lumsden and McHugh, both playing here on wild cards, are hopeful that a good next few months could put them into contention for a wild card into the Wimbledon main draw. McHugh in particular spent a colourful few days at the All England Club last year, whilst in his final year as a junior, as hitting partner of choice for Andy Murray and Roger Federer.
“There is a lot of good stuff I can take from it to be sure but also lots of stuff I think I can do better and learn from, especially from that third set,” said McHugh. “It is just a bit annoying. My service game at 3-1 up, I felt myself tiring a little bit.
“I will definitely be working for it [a wild card into Wimbledon],” said McHugh. “I don’t expect anything but I would definitely love that. I played junior Wimbledon three times – the first time I can’t really remember, amazingly. The second year I had the sunstroke – but I still got the win.”
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