Tokyo Trip

Today was my second full day in Japan and it feels like I have been here for a week already. The incredible culture and many quirky nuances in everyday life make me feel like I am constantly learning something new, and I feel this Japan trip has almost been overwhelming in terms of experiences and reflections.

Where to begin?

I first ventured into Tokyo on the train from Narita airport at about 9:00pm and upon stepping out into the crisp night air, I was astounded how similar to Vancouver that Tokyo appeared. The temperature was exactly what I would expect in Vancouver, and there was even traces of snow-ice left over from the previous night. The skies were clear and the air lacked the humidity found in Hong Kong and Guang Zhou. Lastly, even though I was in central Tokyo, the streets were relatively spacious and the view was quite unlike the skyscraper-dominated landscape of Hong Kong.

After interacting with my friend Hiroya's family, as well as various people on the street and in shops, I was greatly impressed by the service and humility of the Japanese. Japanese culture is built on a foundation of respect and hierarchy cultivated through thousands of years, and this clearly shows in the interactions between shopkeeper and customer, hostess and guest. I also find the fashions of the Japanese to be the most diverse of any country I have visited. They have developed some styles that are truly unique - the flamboyant, casual, and professional are mixed well and this leads to many outfits that warrant a double-take.

The application of technology here is also very different. A few examples include:
- Electric toilets that clean you as you do your business
- Electric mattresses to combat the freezing temperatures of winter
- Vending machines that disperse meal tickets for you to take into a restaurant (so you don't have to flag down a server later)
- Heat packs you apply on your body before you go outside

Yesterday I roamed mostly on my own through the Ueno and Asaksa districts. I tried to get the obligatory museums and cultural places out of the way, while Hiroya was at school. Although I do not find art and culture extremely interesting, I enjoyed wandering and taking as many artistic photos as I could. I also dined in Japanese cafe for lunch where for the price of $2 you can order an appetizer and get as many glasses of soft drinks/juice as you want. I met with Hiroya and two of his friends in the evening for some real Japanese sushi, and while the portions were not particularly large, I did try a lot of meats not commonly available in Vancouver: whale, horse, supremely fatty sashimi. Wasabi in Japan comes squeezed in the sushi itself, which was a small difference that I almost forgot about before eating. We went afterwards to Donkihote, a department store known for selling unusual novelties. Aside from viewing the 18+ section (where the majority of the dirty jokes were made), I was amused to find that Shakeweight is attempting to build itself into Japan's next workout sensation.

Today I followed Aji, one of Hiroya's friends from the previous night, to Yokamoto, one of the newer districts in greater Tokyo. The highlight of that area was definitely the Cup Noodle museum, which while unassuming on the outside, housed a Noodle Factory (where you create and customize your own of cup of instant noodles), a Noodle Bazaar (food court with ramen/noodles from 8 different countries), a Noodle playground (for young kids to play in a noodle-themed playground), as well as noodle history exhibits, and optical illusions with prominent noodle themes. Only in Japan...

Dinner took place at Enoshima, in a seafood restaurant two trains away from the already-far Yokamoto. Enoshima is right beside the ocean, and features an incredible view of the mountain ranges as well as Mount Fuji in the background. Aji and I were lucky to arrive right before sunset to catch the sun dip below the mountains and fade away. Hiroya later joined for dinner, and we decided to visit a hot spring on the way home. Japanese hot springs are most different from their North American equivalents in one key area: everyone gets buck-naked. I got over the nudity relatively quickly and quite enjoyed the experience overall. The outdoor springs were by far the most satisfying - when your lower body is submerged, you feel you are just exuding heat everywhere on your body, and you are completely immune to the 0 degree wind attacking your torso. The spring experience, and the accompanying sauna, exhausted me for reasons I still do not understand, and I am glad that I am back in bed over an electric mattress ready to sleep.

Online Sports Betting - An Example

Here is a statistics and reasoning problem about tennis that's been bugging me lately.

The Problem

From 2005 - 2012, Rafael Nadal has dominated the French Open, winning 7 titles in 8 attempts. His odds to win the event as dictated by online bookkeepers ranged from about 30% - 70%, and let's say for simplicity's sake, his average odds were 50% each year. How then, has Nadal lifted the championship trophy 7 times? 

There are two possibilities:

Either bookkeepers' odds are inaccurately low - this meaning that online sports betting is highly exploitable, and you can bet on Nadal profitably if bookkeepers continue to offer 50%

Or Nadal has been extraordinarily lucky - essentially flipping a coin and calling the result correctly 7 times out of 8?

My Take

The most straightforward answer would be to say that yes, Nadal was probably a bit heavier of a favourite than than the bookkeepers gave, and luck played a moderate role in the final outcome. Any French Open betting odds given for Nadal are reasonably accurate, and the system is not exploitable.

However, I do not believe that this is a complete answer, since it implies Nadal is still an easy positive EV bet in future French Opens. 

Let's look at a few other scenarios:

Nadal's record at the Monte Carlo Masters is an all-time record, where he is the first player in history to have won the same event 8 times in 8 consecutive years. He was a strong favourite every year after his first win but was never more than 3 : 1 (75%) against the rest of the field.

After seeing this more extreme example, the complete answer becomes more apparent. Nadal's true odds to win the Monte Carlo Masters are clearly not 100%, just like how his true odds to win the French Open are not 87.5%. The odds of a player winning an event are based on more factors than than his win percentage at that event. To put it differently, the past results of one event alone give almost no indication of present odds due to its small sample size.

Nadal's odds are determined by his win rate on clay across hundreds of matches, including his losses from outside Monte Carlo and Paris. They depend on his opponents and his current physical condition. The odds also consider that Nadal may retire from the tournament due to injury or play poorly due to some other issue. 

Given all this information, would an average 50% win rate for the French Open make sense for Nadal?

Nadal's career win percentage on clay is 93%. 0.93 to the power of 7 (the number of matches in the tournament) is just over 60%. Once you consider the fact: that Nadal's win percentage counts only matches Nadal did not withdraw from, Nadal is the most susceptible to injury and pull-outs of the top players, and that the field at the French Open is tougher than at smaller clay court tournaments, it would be reasonable to give Nadal a 50% chance to win the French Open.

Conclusion: bookkeepers are correct, market economics work, and Nadal has been fairly lucky to avoid injury during the clay season.

HK Recruitment

These past few weeks I have been in Hong Kong applying for jobs, and so far the most comprehensive process I have gone through was for the Management Associate position with D Bank.

The program has been around for quite a few years but recently it was revamped as part of D's growth, and its strategy to improve its internal training and work culture. The bank has also started to build a stronger brand internationally, which explains why it was one of the two Management Programmes posted on the Sauder career website.

The application process consisted of 4 rounds and I'll describe my experience in each one:

Online Application

Very standard application that involved a few paragraph responses as to why you want to join D and what your career aspirations are. Extremely straightforward

I was invited to the next round almost immediately after the application deadline. I believe they skim every online application very briefly for a few indicators: education, GPA, work experience, and then shortlist so long as the candidate is minimally qualified.

Round 1: Online Aptitude Tests

The two online tests examined my logical reasoning and numerical reasoning skills. The logical reasoning test required me to respond to paragraphs with a Yes, No, or Cannot Say, and was fairly straightforward. I was asked to use a calculator and pen for the numerical test, but I chose to open an Excel window beside my browser and quickly analyze data that way. I later discovered I would have been faster using pen and paper, but luckily the test was easy enough for me to finish with a minute to spare.

I have always wondered how HR departments deal with online aptitude tests. The method that makes the most sense to me would be to invite the top X percentage of test takers to the next round. It's always unclear what the percentage is, and I have often been very surprised that I passed, or I failed.

Round 1.5: Phone Conversation

I don't believe that this was officially a round, but almost a month later, I was contacted for a telephone chat to confirm my qualifications. The HR manager assured me she only had a few questions and that the call wasn't an interview. Nevertheless, I dug up as much information about D as I could and prepared my answers to basic questions.

I was lucky I did. The call ended up taking about 20 minutes asking about my motivations to join the bank and my leadership experiences. After the conversation, the HR manager informed me that I would be notified  if a phone interview was appropriate.

I suppose that the short phone call is supposed to verify that you were being honest in your online application, although I can't imagine many candidates failing this area.

Round 2: Phone Interview

I received my invitation to the phone interview a few days after and began to prepare more thoroughly. The interview itself was actually extremely similar to my phone conversation - it was just a bit more behavioural-focused and lasted 30 minutes instead of 20. My interviewer, the same HR manager, loosened up a lot after I started speaking in Cantonese, and she took a few minutes at the end to go over the entire timeline of the Programme and its application process.

I have a theory about interview performance and it is that in each round of an interview, you either have to stand out in a positive way, or merely qualify, to advance to the next stage. A round where you have to stand out positively means that the organization is looking for a reason to hire you, whereas a qualifying round means you only have to avoid by looking bad. More desirable positions, and those with less openings available, will have at least one stand-out round and many will have two. These rounds truly determine whether the organization really wants you. The qualifying rounds filter the applicant pool to make this round more straightforward.

I felt I delivered a strong response to every question in my D phone interview, and I was quite confident that it was a stand-out round, so I was quite happy going forward. 

Round 2.5: Video

This barely counts as round but I thought it was very interesting. I was invited to the D Assessment Centre in Hong Kong, but before that, HR wanted me to send in a 30-second video introducing myself and explaining why I wanted to join the Programme.

It took me over 2 hours to produce a one-minute video of myself dressed professionally in front of a plain background (this format was specified). The reason it took me so long was because I ended up memorizing a script and re-shooting until every vocal tone and facial expression was perfect. I thought it would be too embarrassing to get eliminated based on an awkward video, and I hope no one did.

Round 3: Assessment Centre

I was notified about my AC a month in advance, but there was not much I could do to prepare for it. Although I had done case discussions with other firms before, I knew that the D one would be more comprehensive. I researched as much as I could online but I couldn't find anything that would give me a good idea of what to expect. I later learned that candidates are explicitly told not to spread any details about the AC online.

The day started at 9:00am, in the office tower right beside my place in Taikoo. There were 7 candidates in my group: a mix of locals and foreign-educated Chinese. Everyone was Asian, and for the most part, fluent in Cantonese or Mandarin.

Networking & Refreshments

A few D representatives enthusiastically greeted us at 9:00am and whisked us off to the cafe. The cafe could have passed for an outside coffee shop, which was quite impressive considering that it was only used by D. There were also fruit platters, scones, sandwiches, and beverages laid out on a table, but I don't think anyone had the chance to touch the food. A few more people from the office came in and soon every candidate was paired up with someone from D to talk to. I was surprised to learn that one of the representatives who was so enthusiastic at the beginning was the COO - and I talked for a while with her and another person. A short 15 minutes later, we were shown to the training room for our first assessment. 

I dropped my passport in the cafe, which one of the HR managers later handed to me in the training room. Not the ideal start, but I thought I presented myself fairly well otherwise.

Case Discussion

As a group, we were asked to read a series of printed emails, and organize a movie screening and after-party fundraiser for a fictional company. Our table was surrounded by four assessors in different corners, as well as a few junior staff sitting in front of us. The planning exercise went well - I started off quiet as everyone tried to get their ideas in and I started to pick up by pitching suggestions to make existing ideas better. My strategy was to avoid controlling discussion and getting bogged down in minor details such as budget calculations. I focused on recommendations that would raise more revenue, save on costs, or contribute to increasing the value of the event. The only time I took the lead was when I reminded the team we were running out of time and I would work with someone to write down our presentation points on the flip chart, while the rest of the team finishes the budget. 

After the activity concluded, we were split up into two smaller groups, and I went with two others into a separate room.

Role-Play

The assessment involved reading background information about a bank branch. I was a new Account Manager who had to deal with a complaint by a client who was overcharged. I was extremely familiar with this situation through my TD experience so I couldn't help smiling as I read the opening paragraph.

I moved to a new room with two assessors and my client, the HR manager from my phone interview, walks in. They had definitely tried to make the situation as tricky as possible - the information I had in the beginning didn't give a complete picture of what happened so I had to ask about her experience too. I followed every bank protocol in the beginning, asking for ID again even after she ignored my first request, and checking her history before asking her questions. I resolved her dispute by reimbursing a reasonable amount, and fielding her questions about the branch's products. Strangely, she kept asking more details about products my bank could offer her business, when I only had information about business loans.

I think the interaction turned out fine in the end. I stumbled a few times throughout the interaction while trying to resolve the conflict, but I felt I made a fair reimbursement and got the important information across.

Written Exercise

This was a qualifying round to test our English written abilities. The question was what could Management Associates bring to D, and I jotted down a quick page about diversity and openness to learning. My response didn't flow as well as I would have liked, but I felt I wrote satisfactorily enough to qualify.

Case Presentation

This was the big one. Everyone was individually given an hour to read a case and prepare a recommendation to management. We were given flip chart paper and pens for our presentations.

The case involved devising recommendations to improve the performance of a medical salesperson. I was given his past sales performance, product offerings, environment, competitors, marketing costs. I broke down the presentation into four sections: summary of his products and past sales, sales opportunities and threats, recommendations, implementation and marketing budget for the next year.

The presentation part was fine. When I finished it in 8.5 of the allotted 10 minutes, my assessor asked if I wanted to add anything. I realized my recommendations didn't specifically address the threat of competitors and I spoke a bit more about that. 

The 10-minute Q&A portion was unbelievably stressful. The 10 minutes felt like 20 minutes, and I wasn't confident at all in how I answered some of the questions. The worst stretch was when the assessor kept asking if there were any other ways to improve sales performance, rephrased over and over. To be fair, she did give me new ideas to work with, such as getting support from corporate, but after a while I felt like I was repeating myself again and again. She ended her assessment with a faint smile and a handshake, and I was finished for the day.

At our debriefing, we were told that we would get a call later in the evening if we were shortlisted to the final round. The final panel interview would be held at the Central office the next afternoon. 

Round 4: Final Panel Interview

For the rest of the day I was in an anxious mood. If I hadn't messed up the final presentation, I would have felt a lot more confident. In the end, I received a call close to 8:00pm when I was having ramen with friends, and I booked it home to start preparing for the final panel interview.

My panel consisted of the lead HR from the assessment centre, the head HR for D Hong Kong, the head of Institutional Banking, and another top executive. The interview was scheduled for 15 - 20 minutes, and in my mind, it had to be a qualifying interview. The number of candidates progressing through to the last stage roughly matched the maximum number of positions, and they cannot expect to make a very informed hiring decision if I only spoke to them for 15 minutes. The offer was practically on the table.

And I messed up, in three ways.

• Cantonese - The interview actually started off very well in English. I was articulate, enthusiastic, confident, and I fielded their curveball question decently (What colour best represents your personality and career ambitions?). Halfway through, one of the assessors asked if I could speak Cantonese and I replied I could, with a disclaimer that I may have trouble expressing certain ideas in Chinese. If I could redo this, I would have said I know a little bit, and then started conversing in Cantonese to exceed their expectations. Stating upfront that I could speak set me up for a torrent of Cantonese interview questions that I stumbled trying to answer again and again. I didn't feel my responses were so bad that it warranted a request to answer in English (should I have?), but I continually paused during my responses, and sometimes substituted in entire phrases of English.

• The Banking Questions - As if expressing my passion for banking, learning, and accounting, wasn't hard enough in Cantonese, I was asked to assess the state of the banking industry in Asia. Looking back now, I cannot believe that I did not adequately prepare for this question. In English, I probably would have answered fine by thinking something up on the spot, but I simply could not do this while finding the words I needed to express my ideas in Chinese. One of assessors followed up by asking what I thought about the growth and potential of the China market, and I replied with almost no substance or facts.

• The Offer Questions - This was a truly cringe-worthy moment. By this time, I had dealt with enough Cantonese questions to know that the interview was not going well as I had hoped. I wasn't panicking but my anxiety had affected my thinking process. The questions flowed in this order:
• Are you applying to other Management Associate Programmes?
• Even though I wanted to avoid this question, I had already said in my phone interview I had applied to H, so I replied in the affirmative.
• Which ones?
• I was committed. I said H.
• What stage are you in for your H application?
• I had literally one second to think whether I should answer this question, and what I should say. The truth was I had applied to H but my last response was almost a month ago. They hadn't outright rejected my application like they had to other people I know, but it was also unlikely I would be moving forward. 
• Should I say I don't want to disclose that information? 
• Should I say I finished my online assessments 
• Should I add it was unlikely for me to move on the next round?
• I felt that option 1 was too cold, and option 3 was showed too much weakness. I decided to go with the partial truth and said I had completed my online aptitude assessments.
• If you were to receive an offer from H and D, which would you take?
• I said I didn't know. Facepalm. One of the interviewers actually laughed and said out loud that I was too honest.
• Truthfully, I had not done any research into H's MA program so I could not compare the two at all. I suppose in English I could have stated again the benefits of D's program, its structure and network, its supportive culture and people, but in that split second I did not think I could effectively elevate D over H in Cantonese, especially since the first time I even met anyone from the firm in person was at the AC the previous day.
• So I blurted out the most honest response in Cantonese, and I learned a valuable lesson. 

The interview concluded after a short exchange where I asked the interviewers my own questions, and I met my HR manager who escorted me out. I had taken about half an hour inside the room, which is bad news for a qualifying round. I found out later from another candidate that she had kept within her 20 minutes.

I find out my results 'within Feburary'. Hopefully it goes well.

DBS Update:

I did end up receiving the offer from DBS, after I almost lost hope. The recruiter was very careful in the beginning of the conversation, asking what are my career plans were for the future and where I planned to work.

This confused me at first but when it occurred to me they wouldn’t ask these questions to reject me, I was elated.

Hong Kong 2012 - First Weekend

Hey,

I got into Hong Kong last Thursday night and it feels like a lot has happened already. Life here if definitely more face-paced than in Vancouver, and with my parents around it's much more difficult for me to procrastinate and waste time. The fact that I don't have data on my HK cell phone (iPhone 3GS) also helps since I'm not constantly checking Facebook or reading news.

Highlights of the trip so far:

- I was upgraded to the Premium Economy cabin on my flight in with Cathay Pacific. My entertainment system had technical sound issues and it turns out the Premium cabin was practically empty. I took over a row all for myself and watched 4 movies throughout the 13-hour flight. I still cannot believe how a few more inches of wiggle room and a bit less noise could make the trip so much more bearable.

- I woke up at 6:00am on my first day and went for a run. I haven't ran for a while and I paid for it by getting sore ankles and blisters on my feet after a half-hour excursion. I actually haven't ran outside since I gained weight so that may explain why my ankles hurt so badly

- The rest of my first day involved shopping - I picked up two casual dress shirts from H&M, a new pair of Uniqlo jeans (to replace my existing torn ones), and a sweater and grey hoodie, also from Uniqlo. I tried a pair of $1700 HKD Calvin Klein jeans that were incredibly comfortable and good-looking, but I just can't justify spending that much on a pair of pants. I made a mental note to pick a pair up next time I visit the US outlets.

- Yesterday (Saturday) was my first day of meeting people. First I went out for lunch with Yiqi in Causeway Bay, then a walk around the shopping areas. My ankles were killing me, since I had the clever idea of going for another run earlier that morning. After heading home for a few hours, I came back out to Causeway to meet up with Ian and the rest of the dodgeball team for karaoke. It turns out I've actually improved my singing a bit,  especially in Chinese, though that may be a difference in perception from drinking white wine at karaoke. I never anticipated that karaoke places would offer 4-course meals with drinks. The price was phenomenal too (only $174). Afterwards, we went to a high-rise bar in Causeway and downed 4 bottles of European white and red wine before staggering home

- Today I woke up much later than the previous two days. I quickly Skype with Hiroya before heading to meet Shadow, Richard, and Karen, at Tai Wei for biking. My bike was incredibly uncomfortable to sit on after an hour - I wonder if it's just me, or the bike itself. I also seem to have neck and shoulder aches while riding, due to hunching over to grab the bike handles, and by wearing a backpack. Maybe biking isn't my thing. After the cycling adventure, Shadow and I rendevouzed with Carmen at Sha Tin and searched/waited for about an hour before finding one restaurant that could seat and feed us. It felt like date night at the mall - there were so many teenage couples wandering around, and the mall balcony was decorated into a light garden called "Starlight Romance".

Humbled - Richmond Open Day 4

My opponent today was Mooshon, who beat the number two seed 6-1 6-2. I checked out his past tournament stats before the match started and he played a lot of 4.0 in past years but never made it past the first round. I felt I was going up against a guy who was clearly overrating himself, and expected an easy match.

The first warning sign occurred during warm-up when he literally would not miss a shot. Volleys, baseline rallies, overheads.. he seemed to be able to hit everything. Then he started serving with a very inefficient motion, and I was relieved that he had at least one weakness I could attack.

The match started well and I got up to 40-15 in the first game. At that point, he stopped making errors and began to roll through the set. I was doing a great job serving, returning his first serve, and blasting his second serve deep to his backhand, but Mooshon would always find a way to neutralize the rally. I would lose almost every rally unless I hit one or two outstanding shots. Almost every one of my approach shots were countered by well placed lobs, and I was seriously doubting my chances for the first set after he broke twice.

At 0-3 I focused on targeting his one-handed backhand, and we settled into many long backhand-to-backhand rallies. I think that he eventually realized my backhand was my more consistent side, and started slicing to frustrate my forehand, as well as to draw me up to the net. By this time I was out of ideas and patience, and played a lackluster game at 0-5 to receive my first tournament bagel ever.

I was pumped to start the second set and started hitting more forcefully to Mooshon's backhand. We traded breaks before he caught on and started just retrieving most of my paced balls. My strategy yielded a lot of short returns, but I could not reliably put the ball away. I hit my approach shots deep but they were also too high and gave Mooshon plenty of options to return it. I would almost always follow with an insufficient volley that would result in a lob or force me to hit a bad stroke from the middle of the court (no man's land). At 3-1, Mooshon settled into a rhythm and I grew increasingly desperate. I went for low-percentage shots from the baseline and began to rush my service motion. Even though I told myself I was only a break or two away from levelling the match, I subconsciously felt the match was unsalvageable. Monshoon finally hit an uncharacteristic winner to end the match 6-0 6-1, and I was left to wonder what exactly I could have done to beat him.

He had no discernable weak strokes besides his second serve, and even my best returns could not penetrate him at the baseline. I don't feel I played below my normal level today, but I am now aware of what I have to practice - to construct points through disciplined approach shots and volleys. Perhaps the match would have been different if I won the first game of first set, perhaps not, but I'll really have to capitalize on the mental advantage of serving first (and having a stronger serve) in the future.

Through the Rain - Richmond Open Day 3

Richmond Open Day 3 wasn't exactly just a day since a rain delay split up the match between Monday and Tuesday.


I met my opponent Wesmond for the first time in over a year - we used to both play in Steveston but recently he was affected by an illness that seriously impaired his balance. Luckily it has mostly subsided, and he was finally able to play tennis again.

My match against Wesmond was my second time ever playing a seeded player (after my 2-6 4-6 disaster against Rick) and a win against a red player would have made my run through 3.5 more meaningful. As usual, I bombed my warm-up but served and hit surprisingly well during the first set. I felt I had to put on an especially good show due to a group of my friends spectating the match, and didn't let up on my strokes. I raced to a 4-0 lead before Wes finally found his rhythm and stood his ground with a hold. I held for one more game, and Wes stepped up his play to take the next three games and bring the set to 5-4. The light drizzle turned into heavy rain at the start of the 5-4 and I sensed Wes's urgency to to get off the court. I hit 4 good serves in a row to take the first set, although I feel my opponent wouldn't have let me off so easily if it wasn't raining.

I returned to Richmond Tennis Club the next day a bit relieved that the rain stopped Wes's momentum. I found my forehand was working spectacularly during warmup, and started the second set in a very calm state. I was shocked then, to lose the first 10 points of the set despite not making any significant mistakes. I tried to salvage the rest of the set, but Wes had already built up his confidence. Anything I hit to his backhand he returned with a sharper angle or a ridiculously low slice, and he was changing direction extremely easily on his forehand. In a mirror replay of the first set, Wes staged a 4-0 lead, but unlike the first set, I wasn't able to threaten a comeback and lost the set 2-6.

In the last few games of the second set, I stopped smiling and began to focus on hitting the ball properly. My concentration yielded better results as I split breaks and holds with Wes from the end of set 2 to the start of set 3. After losing another return game to Wes to trail 1-2, I somehow stepped up my game another gear. I'm not sure what exactly it was that clicked, but I felt my resolve strengthen and I realized that I was not going to lose this match. My serve suddenly became unreturnable and I was able to blast all the balls from my forehand wing, both high and low. In a symmetric finish to the start of the second set, I won 5 games straight to take the match. That last half of the match embodied the high that I play tennis for, and my goal is to be able to summon it for at least two sets in every tournament I play.

Richmond Open - Day 2

I started my Round of 32 3.0 match at noon today, and within 5 minutes I realized I wasn't going to able to put on my best performance. The midday sun in combination with the complete lack of shade on court whittled down my stamina, and even after the 7 minute warm-up I was panting to catch my breath.

My opponent Rick was a super friendly guy - I sense he works in business, and he played textbook old-person tennis integrated with club strategies. He pushed most shots to my backhand and stepped in to return my second serve, putting me under pressure in a lot of my service games. After being broken on my first service game, I fell to a demoralizing 0-3 and couldn't salvage the first set. My woes continued into the second and Rick nearly broke for the match at 5-2 but I managed to save a match point and fight until 4-5. Then, I squandered an opportunity to hold and got broken one last time. The final 6-2 6-4 score was extremely disappointing as I felt that was a match I really could have turned around. All the momentum was on my side, and a few undisciplined attempts at winners at the end cost me the match.

After grabbing some A&W Sirloin Sliders at Richmond Centre, I came back for my first 3.5 match against Andre. I saw this guy practicing at South Arm almost every time I was there, with practice partners and with a bucket of balls, and I knew he took his tennis seriously. Even though I felt I was probably an underdog, I was feeling extremely confident that I would be able to put in my maximum effort and play my best no matter what. Playing on Court 1, the show court in front of the club, also helped since I felt I played better with people spectating.

The first two games of the match summed up the first set. I hit 4 service winners and 2 double faults, and he followed up with 3 service winners, a double fault, and a rally that led to his backhand error. I was serving 70%+ and was nigh unbreakable for the first set. I faced one break point and erased that with an ace. On the other hand, Andre struggled with his service games more and had to fight off 3 break points on his way to hold to 4-4. Around that time, I figured out how to safely return both his first and second serves by standing 5 feet behind the baseline and was able to put that to use to break at 5-4 and steal a tight first set.

The second set started off almost the same but I managed to break for 3-1, only to get broken back for the first time for 3-2. I then realized that there was almost no way for me to lose this match and played with renewed confidence - the opposite thought crept into Andre's mind and he began to make more mistakes. I entered a level of tennis which I like to describe as full flight, and easily took the next four games to seal the match 6-4 6-2.

My two opponents played different styles (Andre was extremely aggressive) and I truly feel that Andre would win more against Rick if they played 100 sets. Today just proved to me once again that confidence and the mental state are key to securing the W in tennis.