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The Team Ah yes, it’s time for another season of tennis… They have been together for years, the girls, on the same team, lolling through the seasons—such a pleasant way to socialize and at the same time get some exercise. The perfect excuse for lunch and a glass of wine afterward. But this season, there seems to be a slight fly in the ointment. There is a new member on the team who, ridiculous as it may seem, wants desperately to win…at any cost. And damn, the team has made the colossal mistake of electing her captain. Halfway through the season, the girls can see that they might have to take matters into their own hands. They might even have to take the law into their own hands. |
Author's Comment
Certainly a novel about tennis is a departure for me. I have often wondered why I was drawn to the sport as an adult. I didn’t play as a child—not from a lack of effort on my father’s part. He loved the game. For me, it’s not the skill. I certainly was never a star, and quite frankly I’m not thrilled about sitting for hours watching the stars play. (Born in the South, it’s a sin to get a thrill out of watching anything other than football.) So why, then?
I think because of the socializing aspect. Over the years, tennis has afforded me lifelong friendships. You can’t beat sharing with your doubles partner and your team—mixed doubles, women’s, seniors, whatever—the fun of an afternoon in the sun.
Also, because it’s wonderful exercise—not too much, not too little, appealing to my innate laziness. You can play doubles for a couple of hours and then be about other things. And of course age is not a prohibiting factor. You can play at some level almost forever.
As a sport, it’s remarkably adaptable. In my volunteer hours with the USTA, I have started tennis programs for children in the inner city, for an elementary school in a small town, and in a women’s prison facility in Alabama. I’ve helped organized league play for adults all over the Southeast.
More than anything, for me it’s such a wonderful place to people watch. The characters in The Team all come to realize that the way they play the game is a reflection of how they live their lives. Are all games that way? Yes, to some extent, but after all is said and done, tennis, as one of my children said many years ago, “It’s just a good ol’ game.”
I think because of the socializing aspect. Over the years, tennis has afforded me lifelong friendships. You can’t beat sharing with your doubles partner and your team—mixed doubles, women’s, seniors, whatever—the fun of an afternoon in the sun.
Also, because it’s wonderful exercise—not too much, not too little, appealing to my innate laziness. You can play doubles for a couple of hours and then be about other things. And of course age is not a prohibiting factor. You can play at some level almost forever.
As a sport, it’s remarkably adaptable. In my volunteer hours with the USTA, I have started tennis programs for children in the inner city, for an elementary school in a small town, and in a women’s prison facility in Alabama. I’ve helped organized league play for adults all over the Southeast.
More than anything, for me it’s such a wonderful place to people watch. The characters in The Team all come to realize that the way they play the game is a reflection of how they live their lives. Are all games that way? Yes, to some extent, but after all is said and done, tennis, as one of my children said many years ago, “It’s just a good ol’ game.”