Under the Lights at Indiana Hardcourts

The courts are beautiful. They’re immaculate. Whoever decided on this shade of purple knew exactly what they were doing. I’m not sure if it was just my extreme tiredness, but I felt that my first night at the Indiana Hardcourt Championship was an A+ spectacle.

It had everything: late breaks, a final set tie break, and umpire warnings for French swearing.

I walk in late because of an extensive heat delay. The second my foot touches the grounds, I can hear the action. As far as a tournament site goes, the venue for the tournament is quite small. It doesn’t feel that way, though. The organizers have done a wonderful job mapping out the space. Among their great ideas is a rooftop terrace of sorts where fans can take in all of the tennis on offer from one spot.

I really only made it to two matches, but they were both firecrackers. First, I watched Jack Pinnington Jones, a 23 year old Brit and 2026 Wimbledon wildcard, topple David Jorda Sanchis in straight sets.

(Apologies for the lack of commentary on the matches. Again, my tiredness is limiting my reporting to mostly vibes today.)

The second match I watched, between Frenchman Felix Balshaw and American wildcard Daniel Milavsky, was a real show. It had everything: late breaks, a final set tie break, and umpire warnings for French swearing. Ed Brune Court, where the match took place, was a spectacle itself. The way they’ve built the courts gives Ed Brune a sort of sunken garden vibe. It made for an exceptionally dramatic showing deep in the night, and also felt exceedingly grand and romantic. I’m excited for future matches here.

[Ed Brune Court] felt exceedingly grand and romantic.

What a night! I cannot wait to return to the Indiana Hardcourt Championships. I really do feel that they’ve done an exceptional job with this event. I’m sure it was a rough first day for the organizers with the heat delay and play finishing up around midnight. Still, I believe they’ve fulfilled their mission of bringing world-class tennis back to the Indianapolis area.

Jack Pinnington Jones played with a Defyer 98 Pro in the Python paint with what looked like 4G. Personally, I prefer this paint job to the bright red. David Jorda Sanchis used an Ezone 98 that looked like the current mold to me. Daniel Milavsky used a TF-40, and Felix Balshaw a CX-line racquet from Dunlop.

As always, all of my best pics from tonight are on Glass. Just click “More Photos” above to get to them. :)