Warwickshire's men suffer another County Week defeat

WARWICKSHIRE men slumped to their second County Week defeat in a row, losing out to East of Scotland on day three of the Aegon Inter-County Tennis Championships at Hunstanton, writes Sally Jones.

Stratford TC coach Steve Lee partnered Cameron Malik, a former Stratford coach, at second pair and and they found the going tough, gleaning only nine games in their first two rubbers.

County captain Nathan Rooney paired up with junior international Bjorn Thomson and won the side’s only rubber, beating the East of Scotland thirds in straight sets.

The defeat leaves the newly-promoted Midlanders out of the promotion zone and with just one victory under their belts, they need to win their last two matches to ensure their survival.

“This has been a tough match," said Rooney.

"For the older players, three hard-fought matches in a day takes its toll on their bodies.

"It’s a great learning curve for our teenagers and we’re determined at least to stay up in Group 4 and bid for promotion next year when, fingers crossed, we have more of our big names to pick from."

The county women’s side enjoyed contrasting fortunes, scoring their first win of the week in Group 1 at Eastbourne as they took an unassailable 5-0 lead over newly-promoted Norfolk to keep their hopes of survival alive.

Once again, former Stratford coach Natasha Hillyer and her partner Soumeya Anane kept their nerve, beating the gritty Norfolk second pair after dropping the opening set and then out-thinking the powerful Norfolk firsts in straight sets.

The arrival of big-serving county stalwart Lucy Wood strengthened the side as she partnered 14-year-old Tamara Malazonia to her first win of the week, beating their opposite numbers, the Norfolk thirds, for the loss just four games.

“It’s a great victory,” said captain Katie Shaw.

“We’ve had bad luck with injuries, but everyone's kept battling and our new youngsters have learnt a lot about teamwork and matchplay in this tricky, swirling wind.

"We need to keep winning if we're going to stay up in Group 1."