Two previous attempts to run this tournament post-Covid were canceled due to unfavorable weather, however, third time lucky, the Nations Cup went ahead (Saturday September 30th from 9am to 2pm) much to the delight of the tennis members involved. The weather was super kind to us. Twenty players were involved, making up four teams each with five members:
Team World: Koji, Kartik, Kim, Peter, Aiko (Captain)
Team Europe: Thomas, Mika (Captain) Beat, Christopher, Kaz U
Team Asia: Miki (Captain), Dennis, John (Yu), Mami, Eddie
Team Japan: Makiko (Captain), Nobu, Sakai, Akihisa, Craig
Team Japan tournament winners (Left to Right; Makiko, Akihisa, Nobu, Craig and Sakai-san)
It was certainly a fun, entertaining and enjoyable occasion with lots of pre-match banter to whet the appetite and highlight the occasion. Some great tennis was played during the 18 thirty-minute matches, with participants playing either three or four games throughout the tournament. In the spirit of the occasion, everyone was a winner – joining in and giving time to this long standing traditional event. Thank you all! And with Team Japan winning all of their matches (9 in total), they were pronounced tournament champions at the Awards gathering. Hearty congratulations Team Japan! Team Europe came in 2nd and Team Asia 3rd.
Well done to everyone for the genuine effort given, the camaraderie shown and for helping to make it a fun day. We extend huge thanks to the ground staff for all the court preparations, to the Sports Management for their unrelenting support and to our catering staff who provided tasty lunch boxes. It certainly was a YC&AC team effort. We look forward to more events during this tennis calendar year.
Warmest wishes, arigato gozaimashita.
The Tennis Committee
Makiko Ueshima, Miki Watanabe, Neo Yoshinobu, Ken Bergenthal, Dennis Stanworth