Hello again from Hobart. Akiko lost her opening match against Gagliardi 4-6 6-7. I actually thought it was a good match from Akiko being her first match of the year. Had leads in both sets but giving Gagiardi credit, she competed very hard and played a very good match. Akiko took postives from the match with her movement and served pretty well.

We are playing in the doubles with Vladimira Uhlirova from Czech Republic. She is a very nice girl and a good doubles player as well. They will play against Eva Birnerova of Czech Republic and Anastasiya Yakimova of Bulgaria. The schedule has not come out yet, but I believe they will play the 1st round tomorrow. Hopefully it goes well and is a good opportunity to get some matches in before the Australian Open.

The last few days the weather has been very bad here in Hobart with non stop rain. Very different from the first 5 or 6 days we were here, where the weather was perfect. The tournament is trying to catch up, they had not completed most 1st round qualifying matches and today was scheduled for 1st round main draw to begin. They were using all courts today so its been tough to get some practice time in. Hopefully the weather will be fine for the rest of the week.

Since the weather has not been good, I have been working out in the gym. Today I am very sore but maybe Kotani son will be nice to give me a light massage...even the coach needs a massage right?? :). Aki wants a rematch from the set we played the other day, so I have to be ready. She wants revenge!!

I will update you later on how the doubles went. Wish us good luck again. Bye for now...

Hello! Hope all is well to everyone. Aki is playing her 1st round Qualifying here in Hobart tomorrow. She will play Emmanuelle Gagliardi from Switzerland 2nd match after 10 in the morning. Aki is very excited to play her first match of 2007 in preperation for Australian Open. Aki has played Gagliardi a couple times, once in 2004 US Open and in Eastbourne last year, Aki won both times so hopefully it will go her way tomorrow. The qualifying is very strong this year, would be a main draw in most WTA events, but will be good matches leading up to Melbourne.

Aki has had a great couple days of practice, actually we played a set yesterday. Aki and I are competitive and we always have a bet on the line. Our bets are usually for a drink, dinner, or sometimes money. This time we played for lunch...and I won 7-6 (7-5) in the breaker!! Was a really good set, very high quality. A very very good lunch....For me atleast!!!

Nakamura and Fuda both arrived yesterday from New Zealand and last night Aki and I went to dinner with Natsuki son. It was very nice to see Natsuki son since I haven't seen him since AIG in October.

Got some good news today when we found out Aki's trainer will be coming to Hobart on Saturday. Originally, Kotani son was going to arrive today but was very sick with a fever. I am excited for him to come down, he is such a great trainer and really takes care of Aki's body. I try to do my best with stretching Aki everyday and sometimes giving a massage, but Kotani son is the best!

Well, going to bed now. Looking forward to the match tomorrow and I will update you on how it goes. Wish us good luck!

Would like to first say Happy New Year to everyone. 2006 was a good year I believe for Akiko and I. Had a rough start with the injuries, but Akiko worked very hard and finished in the top 100 for the 4th straight year. Again, it has been a great off seaon and I believe that 2007 will be a fantastic year!

Well we arrived in Hobart on 30th, not before me making a mistake on what airline we were taking from Sydney to Hobart. We are standing in the line to check in at Virgin Blue and the lady is saying she doesn't see our names on that flight. There was no internet, so I couldn't show her our reservation number. Then she asks if I am sure we aren't on Quantas Airlines to Hobart, then lighting struck in my mind as I remembered we were actually on Quantas not Virgin Blue!! Luckily there was plenty of time to go to Quantas check in and we arrived on time in Hobart!

We have had a great few days of prctce. Since we arrived pretty early, not many of the players had arrived yet, so we could have the practice court for as long as we wanted. On New Years evening, Aki and I just went to dinner at a seafood restaurant and with Aki's new computer she has, we were able to watch Ultimate Fighting live from Japan. The new computer is unbelievable, I have to check if they have this system in the US, would be nice if I could watch some American channels on my computer!

Well thats all that is happening so far from Hobart. Sign in is on Thrsday and Aki will play 1st round Qualies on Friday. Will update you later this week. Wish everyone a wonderful 2007!

Hello my name is Billy Wilkinson. I am 26 years old from Delray Beach, Florida and I am the coach of Akiko Morigami. First, I would like to say Merry Christmas to everyone! I am going to start writing on the blog and I hope you enjoy some stories and experiences that happen while traveling the world on tour.
Right now, I am in Osaka getting Akiko ready for the new year. We are leaving this Friday, the 29th, for Hobart, Australia. Akiko is playiing one warm up tournament before the Austraian Open. It has been a very good "offseason" and believe it will be a great year for Akiko.
Well, I just wanted to introduce myself to you for now. I will next update you when I arrive in Australia. I really look forward writing to you and hope you had a wonderful Chrismas.

ただ今、テニス中です
もうしばらくお待ち下さい[すいません]