Why was my two-hour drive to SPT Evopros Masters in Helsingborg a quiet one?
A) It was 6:00AM on a Sunday morning (in reality 5:00AM due to time change)
B) Visibility on the road was next to zero due to fog
C) My company was a 16 year-old constantly dozing off in the passenger seat
D) There was no pre-match pep talk due to 9:00AM mother-daughter rivalry match
Alexandra and Antonette - on their way to the battle.
Answer: All of the above
So, I have entered a new phase in my role as padel mother. I’ve managed to pull my daughter into the addictive lovable game of padel and last year we played our first tournament together as a team. Yesterday, we played our first match against each other.
This new phase obviously causes a stir of mixed feelings. My maternal instincts make me a proud mother watching her daughter bloom, while my competitive instincts don’t allow for anything but wanting to win.
There were rumors of me wanting to ditch her at home and drive to the tourney on my own and also of me not paying for her player registration fee. Don't believe them. Although, the first rumour did actually cross my mind #hehe and I do like the idea of tough love, I’m not into cruel love… Despite the conflict of feelings, I realized that this is a win-win situation — whoever wins probably deserves it and I will be happy either way since one of us Andersson’s will make it to the next round.
Me and my partner Rebecca Nielsen.
Together with my partner Rebecca Nielsen, the older and wiser ended up winning this time and later on reached the finals. My daughter was frustrated, disappointed and a little envious, but I assured her that she will soon be beating me up and it will be hard to turn that around. Anyhow, she got over it just fine. We binge-ordered at the closest hamburger joint and then tried singing along to 90s hip-hop all the way back to Gothenburg…
As for my reflections as a player, I’m happy with our results. My elbow held up ok, but it is definitely not 100% and I am really looking forward to it being completely pain-free #crossingfingers.
My partner, Rebecca is quite new to the game and held up very well against the pressure of being the new kid on the block. Together, we beat two stable teams both of which consisted of at least one national player and we also gave favorites Ebba/Anna a tiny bit of a struggle in the second set of the finals.
In short, I enjoyed my Sunday — mother-daughter time, success with yet another “new” partner and catching up with all the friendly padel faces. Thanks Padel Crew for doing what you do so well and Padelfeber for keeping us updated and entertained.
Next month, things will start picking up for me. National team training, Sportcenter Syd Open and the start of this Spring’s Camp Padel are all awaiting…
Until then I hope you all have a Happy Easter!
Antonette
