As Rianne furiously pounded the balls that Josh was patiently feeding to her at training, she decided it was time to let go of all the foolishness and concentrate on her upcoming fourth round match. She had just received the news that she was deliberately scheduled onto centre court tomorrow night, being the only Australian woman to reach past the fourth round. That was the organiser's way of putting pressure on her to do well, as they invariably did to any Australian player who did remotely well in their own Grand Slam event. But Rianne highly doubted she would be able to make it through to the quarters, especially against an experienced campaigner like Laura Martinez, ranked third in the world. Nevertheless Rianne was full of determination, particularly against the odds, and would strive to bring out her best for the match. The most important thing for her to do now was to stay focused on her goal and let go of any other distractions which might plague her between now and the match.

After the session she was ordered to go to bed at a decent hour by Josh, who resolutely maintained a strict control over his charge. He wanted her to feel refreshed and ready to play her best tennis under the lights. Rianne didn't mind. She was exhausted after an hour and a half of flat out training anyway. At the end of the day she thankfully collapsed onto her bed, her last thoughts drifting onto the most important match of her career to date.

****

Rianne stared into her plate of pasta, absently twisting the loose strands of spaghetti around her fork. It was two hours before her match, and she was much too anxious to eat at the moment. Every time she tried to force some food into her mouth she felt nauseous, but if she didn't eat anything she wouldn't have enough energy for her match.

"Having trouble eating?" Josh asked with concern.

Rianne nodded reluctantly.

"Relax." He adjusted his cutlery as the waiter set his plate on the table. "Look, I know just how you feel. All you have to do is get your mind off it. You've been dwelling on it so much it's starting to make you sick. These two hours, you should drag someone to sit with you and do something to take your mind off tennis. Listen to some music, watch TV, anything! There's no way you can go out onto the court and perform your best in the state you're in right now, okay?" he smiled encouragingly.

"All right. I'll try." Rianne returned Josh's smile with a feeble offering of her own. After he left the table, she was wondering just how she was going to relax when she saw a familiar figure walking out of the elevator.

"Lucinda?!" The girl turned around and quickly approached Rianne. "What are you doing here?!" Rianne could not contain her excitement. Lucinda was one of her best friends from high school, and Rianne hadn't seen her since she started on the tour.

"I came down to see you! What else?! I can't believe it! You are truly the most talented girl on earth!" Lucinda gave her a big suffocating bear hug. "Tell me what's new! What is it like to crack the big time? Hey, have you seen any cute guys around?" Rianne couldn't help laughing. This was the same old Lucinda.

"I have got heaps to tell you! I met a guy-"

"What?!!! You met a guy? What's his name? What does he look like? Where is he from? How did you meet him? Is he absolutely gorgeous?" Rianne recalled Lucinda had the talent to blurt out all her questions in quick succession without pausing for breath.

"Well, OK. His name's Nick-"

"Markonikov the tennis player? You're kidding, right? No way!!!"

"Way! He's got blond hair, from Russia-"

"Stop! I know what he looks like! He is the most gorgeous guy on earth... well, for a tennis player anyway. How did you guys meet? Have you met anyone famous yet?"

"Oh, hey! Do you want to get some ice cream or coffee? I'll tell you everything then. By the way, I met Toby Linberg!"

"Really? Your favourite tennis player? The one that you've been obsessed with since Yr. 8? Is he as not-gorgeous as he is in your pictures?!" Rianne gave her a friendly punch. Ever since she can remember, Lucinda had been teasing her about him.

Talking with Lucinda relieved and calmed Rianne in time for her big match. By the time she stepped out onto centre court and heard the cheers, she had her pre-match nerves well under control and was determined to give it her best.