New York Buzz vs. Philadelphia Freedoms
by Christopher Gerby
Embarking on their tenth season of World Team Tennis, the New York Buzz return half of the roster that
managed a disappointing 4-10 record last year. South African lefties Justin Bower and Shaun Rudman are
the holdovers, joined by promising 15-year-old Viktoriya Kutuzova and Sydney, Australia native Bryanne
Stewart. The ageless Martina Navratilova will join the Buzz late in the season, but the squad isn't
terribly imposing on paper without her. Fortunately, their opponents in the 2004 home opener also came
in short-handed. The absence of Lisa Raymond (off preparing for her Fed Cup duties alongside Navratilova)
left Philly with a couple doubles specialists (Josh Eagle and Elena Tatarkova) and a pair of largely
unproven young Americans (John Paul Fruterro and Ansley Cargill). The Freedoms, like the Buzz, suffered a
season-opening loss on Monday night. This wouldn't be a terribly star-studded affair, but it was one that figured to be
competitive and important for both teams' long-term aspirations.
It's worth noting at the top that the Buzz's most vocal fans -- a handful of ruffians who managed to amuse
even Andy Roddick with their spirited antics last year -- were in attendance. I took to referring to them
as The Back Row Rowdies, but team owner Nitty Singh has a couple other nicknames for them. "They're the Buzz
Boys, the Buzz Brigade from Amsterdam." She meant a neighboring city in upstate New York, but it's likely the
boys would have their share of fun in that legally lenient part of the Netherlands. "Some of them work at Home
Depot," Singh added. "I didn't recognize them with their clothes on." That was, I assure you, a reference
to the rowdies' fondness for writing B-U-Z-Z on their bare chests. At any rate, the Brigade was in full
voice right from the start, welcoming Justin Bower back with a "Bower Power" chant. Justin looked up at their
corner of the stands and replied, "I love you guys!" The Freedoms, meanwhile, found themselves on the
receiving end of taunts like "go back to Philly!" and "fly away Eagle!"
First set: mixed doubles: Bower/Stewart vs. Eagle/Tatarkova
The match got off on an ominous note for New York, as Bower had his serve broken at love. A series of holds
saw Philadelphia extend that lead to 3-2, but semi-retired Josh Eagle found trouble in Game 6. In the fast
paced no-ad scoring of World Team Tennis, deuce brings up a winner take all game point. That was the scenario
here and it was Bower taking advantage, sending a backhand return down the line for a clean winner, tying
the set at 3-3. Bryanne Stewart's second love hold of the evening gave the Buzz their first lead at 4-3. Tatarkova
saved a pair of set points in Game 8, but the Buzz momentum would not be denied. Stewart cracked a winning
cross-court forehand return on game point to claim the break and the set. Duly impressed, Bower gave his new
teammate an "I'm not worthy" bow.
OVERALL SCORE: BUZZ 5, FREEDOMS 3
Second set: women's doubles -- Kutuzova/Stewart vs. Cargill/Tatarkova
Viktoriya Kutuzova and Bryanne Stewart have relatively big shoes to fill in Schenectady, replacing rising
star Shenay Perry and crowd favorite Nannie de Villiers. They didn't make a brilliant first impression as
a doubles tandem, looking helpless at times against Ansley Cargill and Elena Tatarkova. The turning point was
Game 4, which saw young Kutuzova double fault on break point. The Ukranian teen seemed to be rushing and looked a
bit out of sorts. Cargill, on the other hand, was happy and relaxed, playing well and appearing to enjoy the
running commentary from the Buzz Boys. She and veteran Tatarkova dropped only three points on serve in an
impressive 5-2 win of the set.
OVERALL SCORE: FREEDOMS 8, BUZZ 7
Third set: men's doubles -- Bower/Rudman vs. Eagle/Fruterro
"Whose house is this!?!" shouted Justin Bower during a closely contested set of men's doubles. He and Shaun
Rudman (dubbed "Shauny McNasty" by the Buzz Boys) came out serving well, but struggled to win return points
against Philadelphia's solid duo. The set went with serve rather uneventfully to 4-4, forcing a first-to-five-points
tiebreak. Bower got it off to a fine start for New York, knocking off an unreturnable volley and whipping a
forehand winner on the dead run for a 2-0 lead. Fruterro took care of his service points, staying on level
pegging at 2-2. Rudman then opened the door for the Freedoms, double faulting to 2-3. He reached 3-3 with a
service winner, but that's when John Paul Fruterro took over. The 23-year-old showed power with a forceful
overhead smash and deft touch with a winning drop volley, clinching a 5-3 win of the tiebreak.
OVERALL SCORE: FREEDOMS 13, BUZZ 11
Fourth set: women's singles -- Viktoriya Kutuzova vs. Ansley Cargill
Having abandoned the juniors scene at the tender age of 15 to pursue her WTA Tour dreams, Viktoriya Kutuzova
does not lack for ambition. With her confident walk and long blonde braided ponytail, she could evoke comparisons
to Anna Kournikova (who will be in town to face the Buzz on Thursday night). There are definite similarities
in their games: Kutuzova is a hard-hitting baseliner who, at this stage of her career, lacks consistency and
modulation. Ansley Cargill seemed content to keep the ball in play while Kutuzova forced the action, aiming for
the lines and often missing by a mere inch or two. Before long, the American southpaw had eased her way to a
3-0 lead. Kutuzova did hold serve to 1-3, but Buzz coach Jolene Watanabe was still eagerly giving
her instructions, even following her out to the court after the changeover.
Cargill staved off a couple break chances in Game 5, holding when
Kutuzova's lunging volley found the net. Game 6 also went to deuce and Cargill appeared to have the set on
her racket as he struck a nice forehand approach. Kutuzova had the answer, though, lacing a forehand pass
down the line to hold for 2-4. After a slow start, Viktoriya was showing real flashes of potential. A
beautiful running forehand winner in Game 7 earned her another break opportunity. Cargill, however, held firm. She put away a smash to bring up game point and
promptly launched a service winner to wrap up the 5-2 set. Good stuff from Ansley, who's scheduled to be
back in Schenectady a couple weeks from now for a USTA $50k women's challenger tournament.
OVERALL SCORE: FREEDOMS 18, BUZZ 13
Fifth set: men's singles -- Justin Bower vs. John Paul Fruterro
Looking very David Wheaton in a stars-and-stripes headband, John Paul Fruterro aimed to close out what by now
seemed like an inevitable Freedoms victory. Justin Bower had the colors of the South African flag on his own
headband, though, and had plenty of fight left. On game point at 1-1, Bower rifled a sizzling forehand and
began skipping around like the dwarf in the "Safety Dance" video. A more subdued Fruterro was quietly playing
great tennis, backing up his heavy serves with well-timed net approaches and penetrating groundstrokes. Seven
games went into the books without either man losing serve. Needing to win this set to force overtime, Bower
asked the fans, "You guys wanna see a comeback, don't you?" They answered in the affirmative, of course, and
Justin did his best to appease them. Down 40-30 in Game 8, he sent a lovely backhand winner down the line and
celebrated with a full on Tiger Woods fist pump. Alas, Fruterro came right back with a service winner.
Deadlocked at 4 games
apiece, it was tiebreak time.
JB serving: A nice rally ends when a Bower backhand sails long -- 1-0 FRUTERRO
JB: Forehand winner for Bower -- 1-1
JPF: Fruterro places a forehand volley in the corner; Bower can't run it down -- 2-1 FRUTERRO
JPF: High kick serve from Fruterro overwhelms Bower -- 3-1 FRUTERRO
JB: Fruterro is long with a defensive lob -- 3-2 FRUTERRO
JB: Bower smacks a service winner -- 3-3
JPF: Fruterro comes up with a sparkling backhand drop volley winner -- 4-3 FRUTERRO
JPF: Clutch backhand return by Bower draws an errant Fruterro volley -- 4-4
JPF: Fruterro follows a good serve with a cross-court forehand winner -- 5-4 FRUTERRO
FINAL SCORE: FREEDOMS 23, BUZZ 17
If nothing else, Justin Bower did put on a show for the home crowd. "I've always been animated and I love the
fans," he said after the loss. Midway through that last tiebreak, Bower motioned to the Buzz bench, searching
in vain for an answer to his opponent's sterling play. "I'm asking for his weakness, 'cause I can't figure it
out," he explained. Indeed, it had been a surprisingly strong showing by the Philadelphia Freedoms, particularly
John Paul Fruterro and Ansley Cargill. Nevertheless, it must be viewed as a missed opportunity for the Buzz.
"We'll just have to keep playing hard and find a way to get a win," said Jolene Watanabe, smiling ruefully after
her team's second defeat in as many nights. Things aren't about to get any easier, with the defending World
Team Tennis champion Delaware Smash (who routed the Buzz 24-12 in the season opener) coming to Schenectady on
Wednesday.
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Last updated 26 September 2015
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