WTT Washington Kastles

Kastles 28-Match Winning Streak by the Numbers

Published on July 27, 2012 under World TeamTennis (WTT)
Washington Kastles News Release


The Kastles finished their home schedule with a 27-match winning streak, which they have since upped to 28.

0 - Washington Kastles Losses

1 - Team to finish a season undefeated in 37-year WTT history

2 - Matches attended by Michelle Obama at Kastles Stadium at The Wharf

3 - 2011 WTT Award Winners (Murphy Jensen, Leander Paes, Arina Rodionova )

4 - Supertiebreakers won

5 - WTT Championships won by Rennae Stubbs

6 - Games Venus Williams rallied the Kastles from behind Saturday vs. New York

7 - Overtimes won

8 - Hours it took Kastles to win 2011 WTT Championship, spanning 3 rain delays

9 - Match Points needed by Bobby Reynolds to clinch 2011 WTT Championship

10 - Match Points saved by the Kastles during the streak in 3 different matches

11 - Matches closed by Reynolds in final set during Kastles' perfect 2011 season

12 - Sets played by Serena Williams in 2011; she won 9

13 - Sets won last season out of 20 by 2011 Rookie of the Year Arina Rodionova

14 - Victories at Kastles Stadium at The Wharf

15 - Games won by Serena in one match (WAS def. BOS 25-10 on 7/7/11)

16 - Victories during the Kastles' perfect season in 2011

17 - Largest margin of victory in franchise history (WAS def. KCE 25-8 on 7/22/12)

18 - Age difference between 2011 Kastles' partners Stubbs and Arina Rodionova

19 - Games won by MVP Arina Rodionova out of 29 during 2011 WTT Finals Weekend

20 - Mixed Doubles sets won out of 26 by Paes and 4 different partners

21 - Men's Doubles sets won out of 26 by Paes and Reynolds

22 - Matches in which the Kastles have led entering the final set

23 - Games won in 2011 WTT Championship match (WAS def. STL 23-19 on 7/24/11)

24 - Games lost by Paes out of 72 in men's doubles during the 2012 WTT season

25 - Maximum games that can be won in a match, accomplished 5 times by Kastles

26 - Second-longest winning streak in major U.S. pro sports history before the Kastles

27 - Aces hit by Bobby Reynolds in men's singles this season

28 - Washington Kastles Victories

Washington Kastles at Kansas City Explorers Preview

Washington Kastles (12-0) at Kansas City Explorers (4-8)

Friday, July 27, 2012 at 8:35 pm

Live Scoring: WashingtonKastles.com

Real-Time Analysis: Facebook, Twitter

All-Time: Explorers lead Kastles 3-2

Last Meeting: Kastles def. Explorers 25-8 on July 22, 2012 (Home)

Only two matches separate the Washington Kastles from a second consecutive perfect regular season: tonight's road encounter against the 4-8 Kansas City Explorers and tomorrow's versus the 4-8 Springfield Lasers.

In spite of their sub-.500 records, the Explorers and Lasers still have plenty to play for in the competitive Western Conference. Both teams trail first-place Orange County by two matches and second-place Sacramento by one, meaning a playoff spot is still a real possibility for Kansas City and Springfield.

The Explorers will also be keen to put on a better performance in front of their home fans than they did in DC on Sunday. The Kastles crushed Kansas City 25-8 five days ago for the most lopsided victory in Washington franchise history.

Leander Paes, Anastasia Rodionova and Venus Williams each won two sets in that match, but are now in London for The Olympic Games.

Their replacements -- Treat Huey, Edina Gallovits-Hall and Raquel Kops-Jones -- made major contributions in the Kastles' 21-16 victories over Philadelphia on Tuesday and New York on Wednesday.

Follow live scoring of tonight's match at 8:35 pm DC time on WashingtonKastles.com as the Kastles play for their 29th consecutive victory.

Men's Singles

After being blitzed by Bobby Reynolds 5-0 on Sunday, Nick Monroe of the Explorers may not get the opportunity for a rematch. World No. 12 doubles player Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi has emerged as a steadier singles player for the Explorers. But the Kastles' closer's powerful passing shots could counteract Qureshi's serve-and-volley style. No matter whom he plays tonight, Reynolds is a heavy favorite to win his fourth straight singles set.

Women's Singles

On Sunday, the Explorers started women's singles with 19-year-old Chanel Simmonds before substituting in Tetiana Luzhanska. Neither made a mark on Williams, who won the set for Washington 5-1. Simmonds is three one-thousandths of a point ahead of New York's Marina Hingis atop the WTT women's singles rankings. Washington's Gallovits-Hall has never met Simmonds before, but the Kastle did defeat another southpaw, Philadelphia's Kristyna Pliskova, 5-3 on Tuesday.

Men's Doubles

Far-and-away the most entertaining set in Sunday's Kastles' rout of Kansas City was men's doubles. Monroe's instincts and speed around the net were a strong complement to Qureshi's doubles prowess, but Reynolds and Paes still prevailed with a late service break 5-3. The strong-serving Huey's insertion into the Washington lineup hasn't slowed the Kastles down a bit. He's 3-1 in four sets played overall this season.

Women's Doubles

After a shaky debut together at home on Tuesday, Gallovits-Hall and Kops-Jones won a pivotal women's doubles set against New York on Wednesday 5-2. That's trouble for the Explorers' duo of Simmonds and Luzhanska. Though she's ranked at the top of the league in singles, Simmonds is dead-last in doubles with Luzhanska. The Kastles' newcomers should be able to maintain the momentum they found in New York.

Mixed Doubles

Did you know? Through two sets in mixed doubles, Kops-Jones and Huey have won a higher percentage of games than Paes did this season (0.625 to 0.623). Their experience playing together at Wimbledon has served them well in World TeamTennis. As was the case Sunday, Luzhanska will be the weak link on the court when she teams with Qureshi.

KEY FOR THE KASTLES - PLAY AT YOUR LEVEL

Without a doubt tonight's match will be closer than Sunday's meeting between these same two teams in DC. Kansas City will feel more inspired competing at home, while Washington brings three new players to the mix.

But by no means should the result be any different. Washington will be favored in four of five sets, with only the Simmonds vs. Gallovits-Hall singles set presenting problems on paper.

One of the underlying themes of the Kastles' historic 28-match unbeaten run is that the team consistently plays at its level, and not that of its opponent. If that trend continues tonight, so shall the streak.

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World TeamTennis Stories from July 27, 2012


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