GO RED ROCKET

The personal blog of Jamie Mackenzie | Tennis player

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Rafa Nadal 12/u Madrid

After successfully qualifying for the main draw Jamie struck the 4th seed in the first round.

A very experienced 12 year old who has played and won many events.This would be a true test for Jamie.

A great start to the match with a 26 ball rally and an early break to Jamie but Luis Garcia Páez was in for the long haul. All the way to 3-3 these boys played fantastic tennis , long rallies and lots of physical and mental effort being applied. 3/4 down Jamie was up 40-15 but Luis fought back to take the game and it broke Jamie’s spirit a bit and he lost the next game to surrender the set 3/6.

In 32 deg heat Jamie created many chances early in the second set but couldn’t capitalise on the game points he earned. A well deserved win to his opponent 6/3 6/1 and lots of learning for Jamie.

The standard is remarkable and I am sure Jamie will work hard back home and given the opportunity will come back again.

It’s been a long trip away from home for Jamie with many hurdles to adapt to, like the heat , travel , hotels , restaurants not opening till 815pm in Spain,but he has done so remarkably well. I forget he is only 10 yrs old sometimes.

Thank you to the amazing friends and team from BTT , you have been so supportive. Also a massive thank you to everyone back home for all the messages fromof support.

We will enjoy a few days in Barcelona before we take the long flight home again.

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Week 3- Training and Rafa Nadal tournament in Madrid

After a great week in Germany and a few days off relaxing with my amazing German families ( watching lots of World Cup football as well) we headed off to Barcelona and the BTT training academy. We hadn’t even left Düsseldorf when we ran into one of my former coaches and now Oceania Head coach Gilles De Guoy

Arrived back to BTT and was like walking back into a family for Jamie , coaches and players back from all over the World back training again.

I was given a job for the week too coaching which was an awesome experience working with talented kids- 6 hours per day on 34 deg was getting a bit tough though.

Jamie had a really solid week training with 14 year olds, great to also have 5 other kiwis here , 3 from our club.

Always great to have top 40 player and BTT graduate Joao Sousa turn up to inspire the Kids at the academy.

Took the hi Speed (300 kph) train to Madrid on Friday to get ready for the world famous Rafa Nadal junior tournament here in Madrid.

A great group of kids from USA, China , Thailand and their parents are here with us and coaches from the Academy.

Jamie plays tomorrow in last round of qualifying. Will be very tough against 12yr olds in 35 deg heat and Madrid being elevated the balls fly !

Will keep you all posted !

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Barchen Cup- Munster Germany

After a quick trip from Belgium to Munster,Germany the next big task lay ahead of Jamie. Taking on the best in Europe 2 yrs older than him on their favourite surface.

A fantastic professional event laid on for the kids with amazing accomodation in the Park Hotel.

Jamie played a German Wildcard first round and had an easy 6/0 6/0 win. He is starting to show real maturity to maintain a good level throughout his matches. An easy doubles win first round was had with a partner he found on the bouncy castle !

Next up was the German number 3 twelve yr old Nikolai Barsunov, A big hitting strong boy whom I thought would just have too much power and size for Jamie.

2 yrs younger Jamie started a bit passive and lost the first set 6/3, he stepped up and started to take the game to his opponent and raced to a 4/1 lead in the second set.

The battle continued till 6/6 was reached and a tiebreak was to be played.

Jamie raced to a 6/2 lead with some brave shot making. Nikolai didn’t lie down and hit 5 winners to go up 7/6 then 8/7 ( 2 match points ) , my nerves were shot as a parent !

Then Jamie produced three remarkable points to steal the second set 7/6.

By now a crowd had gathered of around 50 people as word spread this young guy from NZ was even with the one of the top ranked Europeans.

Jamie fought to go up 4/3 in the last set and had 3 break points to go 5/3 but the Nikolai held tough saved them and went to a 5/4 lead eventually. Jamie save two more match points at 4/5 but eventually succumbed in 28 degree heat after 2.50 hours

I couldn’t be prouder of his efforts .

Lost the doubles today to two strong German players.

We leave for Düsseldorf to rest and train for 3 days before we go to Barcelona for the final leg.

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Finals Day-Ten Pro Belgium

After battling a long flight, new country , getting used to the clay again , Jamie produced two solid performances to win both the 10/u and 11/u events this week. Down 2/4 in the first set in the 11/u final and looking very nervous , Jamie started hitting through the nerves to beat top Danish 11YR old Christoph Thielson 6/4 6/0. Onto the 10/u final vs Belgium boy Cyril Lienge and Jamie just had too many guns and won 6/1 6/0.

A fantastic warm up for the big boys in the 12/unders in Europe next week.

Had to miss the official prizegiving as had to get on the road to sign in for next tournament in Munster, Germany

Thank you all for your support!

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Semis Saturday

After a long day yesterday at the red dirt office, Jamie was feeling a bit tired as he started the day off in the 10/under semis vs boy from Belgium. He again got down to work early hitting huge forehands that so far the Kids can’t seem to handle.

An easy win eventually 6/0 6/0

Next up was a very good player from France in the 11/unders with a big forehand who moves well.

Jamie peppered his one hand backhand till he was so frustrated he threw the towel in basically .

An impressive big hitting display and focus display from Jamie . Winning 6/0 6/0

Great for the kids to have chair umpires.

Two finals tomorrow then off to Münster Germany to start Monday.

Thank you to my German families for making the trek over the last two days . The support has been fantastic

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1/4 finals day Ten Pro Kim Clijsters Cup -Belgium

A great day on the courts for Jamie today playing two tough opponents in two age groups.

The first in the 10/u vs number 1 from Hong Kong and played great to win 6/0 6/3 . A few speed wobbles in the second set when up 6/0 5/0 but was ok in the end.

Next up was the under 12s where he played the second seed, number 1 boy from Denmark and winner of last years tournament in the 10s

Started at 645 and was done fantastic shot making and clay court tennis by by the boys .

Jamie held his nerve and got there 6/3 6/2.

Was awesome dosed the boys hug after a real battle and the scoreboard does not reflect how tough it was. My Germsn host sister when I played Cosme to watch with her children so he had lots of support.

Great to see Jamie buy his opponent a drink after and discuss the match. Proud dad .

War on the court , besties off

Semis tomorrow vs two boys from Belgium

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Ten-Pro Kim Clijsters Cup

The tournament started off with a training camp on Tues with kids from over 40 countries all coming together for a great day of training and bonding. The concept of this tournament is fairness so any fist pumping in an intimidating manner , racket abuse , ball abuse is all dealt with harshly. Each court has a supervisor ( not umpire ) who helps the kids out as well as keeps them in check. Coaching by parents/coaches is allowed between sets to help them out.

The opening ceremony was amazing with all the different countries called up as groups with their national flags. I unfortunately didn’t read the memo well enough so jamie didn’t have one ! Bad Dad !

Got to meet 4 time grand slam champ and world number 1 Kim Clijsters ( held at her tennis academy )

A great start.

Jamie had a good first up win over a tough Swedish player 6-2 6-0 in the 12 and unders . He is also in the 10 and unders and will play Tomorrow.

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Düsseldorf Day

Was a great day to be back at my old club Rot Weiss TC and to be hitting on the same court with Jamie that I played on 25 years ago.

Then headed to Belgium to train in the avo. At the Kim Clijsters academy, amazing set up .

Training day with the academy coaches tomorrow before we kick off on Wednesday

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And it’s off to Europe we head. No matter how many times you may fly 17 hours is an awfully long time in a plane. Great to travel with this guy again. Will keep you all posted! Thank you to everyone for your support and to Tanoa Hotels and Herbalife for supporting so generously.

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As the dark clouds gather in the hills it’s our last full day at the BTT Academy. A huge thank you to Jordi, Alvaro and the team for the wonderful coaching and support of both of us while we were here. This is a world class set up with happy kids all training hard. A month ago we left to start this journey and it’s been amazing.Arriving here in Barcelona being asked ‘where are you from?’ to now being a major part of the BTT community. When it’s all said and done it’s about the people you meet on the way and from starting out as the kid all alone to making some very close friends from all over the world. We are sure we will see you all again soon on the other side of the net somewhere, sometime. Till then adios!

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After a great morning at tennis, an afternoon trip into Gaudis last work the amazing Basilica La Sagrada Familia. Started in 1882 and only 25% complete when he died it’s still a work in progress and hoping to be done in 2026 , 100 years after Gaudi died. He is buried in the crypt. Finished up with a nice Paella and Grappa at a local Spanish restaurant. Great day out with my travelling buddy

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when just hitting balls in 30 deg heat ain't enough ! introduce the resistance bands for leg strength...

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Afternoon training in 33 degree heat, but that’s ok when you get to train with a Spanish coaching legend like Jordi Vilaro. Captain of the 2000 winning Spanish Davis Cup team and coach to top 10 player Felix Mantilla for a decade as well as worked with Verdasco, López , Robredo and Dimitrov. Pushed the boys hard with some great drills and they responded. The boy Jamie trained with was 14 and his grandfather won junior Wimbledon then was a senior ¼ finalist years later. Some great pedigree players at BTT. Thanks Jordi for sharing your knowledge!

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Week 2 kicked off well and the great thing about kids all with the same goals in these academies is they make friends very quickly. No longer are they the outsiders who go off to train all the time they are the norm. Jamie has made good friends with kids from USA ,Egypt,Mexico,China,and Portugal. They push each other to be better and also help each other when they are struggling. Such a great vibe from some special kids. These memories will last awhile and I am sure Jamie will be back to reconnect in the future.

Two games I have found to be universal are football and the swimming pool game 'Marco Polo'

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As Sunday is traditionally the day of rest Jamie and I did our best. We put our Christopher Columbus hats on and went exploring Barcelona. A great learning experience for Jamie how to use the metro too. First stop was Park Guell. Guell had a dream to build a residential area for the wealthy around 1900 and get Gaudi the premier architect at the time to design it. It never was fully completed but it is now a world wide unesco heritage park. The designs and mosaic work is something to behold. Next stop was the famous main shopping street La Rambla ( also famous for pick pockets,buskers and stalls) Then off to heaving Barceloneta beach with the iconic W hotel in the background. Not sure the rocket knew where to look with all the topless sights! Back to the red dirt office tomorrow!

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The ride up