After a lot of doubt and speculation (do we have a contract, do we not), we finally got confirmed to be the medical help for the ATP Tennis. That involves the doctors and nurses doing their thing and then us Physios doing ours. As this is my 4th year and I have been seeking some more leadership opportunities, I was in charge of it from the physio standpoint :-). This was pretty much the scheduling between my clinic and the other clinic that we usually work with, Aviation Club. Both of us were happy to work with each other because this is our 4th year together and we know how to collaborate and together well, so that just made it easy.
1st we had a unofficial seminar by the main ATP therapist of the "Manual Pelvis" which he had done last year but it was a lot of new and different info and pretty much all of us knew one part and the other part were a bit lost, so now it is all clarified and we learned some really useful info. Then we took Hugo and the other ATP physio, Johan, out to a nice Lebanese dinner to welcome them to Dubai.
On to ATP week.... even going into it I felt super relaxed and calm. When I look back, I didn't know what to expect the 1st year and was just starstruck and in a daze. The 2nd year was also nervous and in a daze. Last year was a bit better and comfy and got all my glamour shots with the BIG stars (Novak, Roger, etc). So after that, just felt plain o relaxed and wanted to just enjoy the experience of being there. It's always such a cool experience to see the players relaxed and themselves, versus in the media and "showy." Like Roger, I never realized how LOUD he is! Before he did goof around a bit, but this time, several times, he was so loud in his talking and bantering, it almost annoyed me (then remembered it was Roger Federer, one of the greatest players of all time and let it slide, hhehe). Luckily, had a few "off" nights so I got to watch a few matches...
I had some umm... let's say, highlight moments with #4 ranked Thomas Brdych, so I am a new crazed fan! Let's just say there is nothing left to hide with him, ha ha. Actually, he's super nice as well as Murrey, got opportunities to chat with both of them. Unfortunately, no Novak this year.. .meaning he didn't come into the training room.
Another fun thing is that I got to see the ATP physios on TV! Pretty much seeing them in person, them being called to court, and then seeing them on TV a few seconds later. Kinda cool!
Johan (South African) in action!!
Then Hugo in action (Novak just got his finger)!
Then got to see the finals, Novak vs Federer! Unfortunately, Novak lost, but it was still a good match:
Above: Doubles runners up, Pakistani Alsam Ul-Heq Qureshi and fellow Serb Nenad Zimonjic
In the blue top next to the guy in red, Boris Becker!
Got some snaps of the doubles runner up, fellow Serb Zimo and his partner (after a massage), Qureshi:
Here is our great Physio Team!!!
Sally Ann and I with the ATP physios, Hugo and Johan
And da da dum, I have to save the best for last. Stopped in the clinic after Novak won against Brydch (sorry Brdych) and guess who was just sitting there? Good 'ol Boris Becker! It was just him and Hugo (the guy int he green above, the Head ATP Physio) and my other colleague Allie. So we were all just talking and he asked for some neck treatment which Hugo and Allie provided (I was off duty, I swear!). What a funny guy! For example, when Allie was working on him, she was making conversation and saying how her mother-in-law is his biggest fan, etc etc. He looked up at her and said, "wow, times have changed. It used to be the daughters, now I am attracting the mother-in-laws." Hahahha. We all had a good laugh. Fortunately, unlike after he lost to Federer in the finals, he was in good spirits and was more than happy to take a snap with myself and then Allie:
That was definitely a highlight of the tournament! I then became obsessed and read up on his bio and all his tennis accomplishments since the age of 17 when he won Wimbledon! Quite a few ups and downs and some personal drama's, but overall, a very accomplished player and a legend. Poor guy has a horrible hip and majorly limps when he walks, so hope he gets that taken care of.
So alas, am totally suffering from post-Tennis blues. Especially since it was fun to back off of training and eat.... well, fun stuffs and not worry about it! Think I got it out of my system, I hope. I can't say enough what a fun experience this is, to have VIP access to parking, go to any matches, be 1-1 with these players and also learned a lot professionally! Hugo giving us that Seminar on the ever complex pelvis and then watching them in action and seeing what they do was a great learning experience. I will definitely take home what they have taught and practice. It was also nice because this is just a 500 point tournament, Indian Wells next week is the big one, so the guys were totally relaxed, too relaxed? So again, nice to see them in a non-stressful environment.
Well, who knows what will happen next year, but having done this for 4 years in row is quite special and I will hold these memories with me forever!!
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