Reconnecting with the Joy of Tennis
Recently, I was lucky enough to compete for Australia at the World Teams Event in the 50 Age Group. This was my first international tennis tournament since I played in the qualifying for the 1997 US Open. Twenty-nine years is a long time to stay away from something you once loved.
The Event…
Our team competed in the 2026 Masters World Team Championships from July 5-10, 2026 in Rome, Italy, with 24 teams competing in the Women’s 50 age group. I had only met one of the team members before the trip and the Australian Team was as follows –
Playing Tennis…
From the moment I stepped on court, a number of old memories came flooding back. From the service routines to the fun of competing. Somewhere across those five matches, I found something I hadn’t expected: the joy I used to feel playing tennis as a young person, without the weight I used to carry around it.
Australia was drawn in Group B with the USA and Mexico. In the first match we played the USA. The results were as follows –
In the second match we played Mexico –
We finished 2nd in Group B, so we were playing off for position 9-16. Our first match was against Latvia, with the results –
Our second match was against the Netherlands –
And then our final match was for Position 9th and 10th –
So overall out of 24 teams we finished 9th.
Beyond the Court…
Beyond the tennis court, there were lots of wonderful experiences from getting to know new people to walking around the countryside and Rope Flow.
I was also lucky enough to do two tours, one throughout Rome on a Golf Cart and the other exploring the food culture of Roma with the team. You can see more pictures below on my instagram…
Memorable Experiences…
The week was packed with memorable experiences, from learning about and having fun with my teammates to the food (I love Italian food and even though I am a vegetarian, it was quite easy to navigate) to reconnecting to the parts of Rome I had experienced as a young person.
In relation to the tennis, I honestly didn’t know how I would go as it took a significant amount of effort and healing to even step back on the court. So representing Australia was another added layer. I was particularly grateful to Anna whom I played most of the doubles matches with as we created “have fun” as our team name. And we did have heaps of that – so thanks Anna!
Sincere Thanks…
This experience has been many years in the making, so those people (you know who you are) who supported me to get back on the court after so many years away and support in the healing of my body – thank YOU (you know who you are)! I am so grateful and you have absolutely been an important part in this process, so again, thank YOU all.
Over to You…
I hope this has given you some insight in to how the trip went. If you have any questions, please feel free to share below. What is something joyful that is calling for your attention? Is it time to try it? Feel free to share below.