Sun, November 08, 2009
CHENGDU, China, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- Finals are set after Saturday's play concluded the round robin competition at the inaugural Chengdu Open. Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia and Thomas Enqvist of Sweden, winners from the round robin Groups A and B, will compete in the finals after compiling 3-0 records in round robin play.
Pat Cash of Australia and Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia will play off for third place.
The third day ushered in the most anticipated match of the tournament as John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg faced off once again. The marquee match reignited one of the most classic rivalries in the history of sport, with Borg emerging the victor, 6-4, 6-4.
Much like the Sampras-Agassi and Nadal-Federer rivalries familiar to younger tennis fans, the McEnroe-Borg rivalry was exemplary because of the contrasts between the two players.
McEnroe, a left-handed serve and volleyer with seven singles Grand Slams, nine doubles Grand Slams, and one mixed doubles Grand Slam, ruled the net, while right-handed Borg, 11-time Grand Slam singles champion, preferred to stalk the baseline. The players lived up to their "Fire and Ice" reputations, referring to McEnroe's explosive temper and Borg's steely exterior.
The spectators were more invested in this match than any other throughout the tournament as the two legends played under the lights at the Sichuan International Tennis Center.
Borg pressured McEnroe, who was visibly stiffened from his stunning effort against Ivanisevic the night before, from the very first game onwards. Firing returns with just as much heat as McEnroe's serves, Borg's passing shots off both wings caught the serve-and-volleying American behind the service line. Borg broke in the first game, and served far too well to face pressure on his own serve.
In the second set, Borg again broke McEnroe in the first game. Just how good was Borg's serve in the second set? At 4-3, Borg served three consecutive aces up the T and then mixed in an ace out wide. The "Ice" of "Fire and Ice" smiled.
After the match, relaxing in stuffed striped chairs, the players held a joint press conference that felt more like a living room conversation between friends.
"It's always fun to walk on the court to play against John," said Borg. "It's something special and it's always going to be that way."
The players reminisced about the first time they played, reflecting on how they knew how special their rivalry would become.
"I remember John coming to Wimbledon the first time, in '77. He reached the semis. No one had heard about John before that," said Borg. "The year after, we played each other for the first time, at the Stockholm Open. We played in the semifinals and he beat me in two straight sets, so we knew that John was something special, that he was the next champion to come. And after that we played many great matches."
McEnroe replied that being able to rise to Borg's level was what excited him most, recalling from that first match the crowd, the court conditions, and the pressure on Borg to be invincible.
"For me, it was exciting obviously because Bjorn was the best player. He had this incredible following and aura already," McEnroe explained.
"But I think that as soon as we started playing...that I would be in the same league? You have to earn the top players' respect. It (usually) takes a few years at least, but I feel the first couple years that I was on the tour, that I earned his respect."
In the first match of the day, Croatian Goran Ivanisevic swept into the finals by defeating Australian Pat Cash, 6-4, 7-6 (3).
Because Ivanisevic tweaked his leg during the match, he focused on conserving himself for the finals. "I didn't want to make any tough movements," he said. "I didn't want to risk it too much."
In the second match of the day, Spaniard Sergi Bruguera stretched the current ATP Champions Tour South African Airways No.1, Thomas Enqvist to three sets 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(6) (Champions Tiebreak) in Enqvist's inevitable march to the finals. Having won every match that he has played on the ATP Champions Tour, Enqvist is now eleven-for-eleven. His competition has taken notice.
"To play Thomas the way he's playing at the moment...I need my 100%. I need to play well, I need to serve well, I need to move well," said Ivanisevic.
As for Enqvist, he knows how to withstand Ivanisevic's huge serve: "Yes, I need to get my helmet on first, and all my hockey gear, to make the protection."
In all seriousness, Enqvist has that much respect for Ivanisevic's serve. "Obviously, his serve is probably the best all-time serve," he said. "It's always a challenge to get as many returns back as possible. It's going to be a good match, I'm looking forward to it."
The Group A qualifier for the third place playoff was a tense post-match mathematical affair as Cash, McEnroe, and Borg were all tied with one win and two losses. Normally, round robin match record ties would be broken with the percentage of sets won versus played, but all the players had all won in two sets and lost in two sets, and were tied with same percentage. Therefore, the percentage of games won versus played determined that Cash would advance, having won 33 of the 68 games he had played (48.53%).
McEnroe finished third in Group A, winning 30 of the 65 games he played (46.15%), narrowly edging out rival Borg who won 29 of his 63 games played (46.03%).
Kafelnikov qualified for the playoff much more simply, beating Michael Chang (United States) 6-2, 6-7(5), 1-0(9) (Champions Breaker) to own a 2-1 record in round robin play. With a 1-2 record, Sergi Bruguera (Spain) finished third in Group B. Chang finished fourth, posting a 0-3 record.
At stake at the outdoor hard court event are South African Airways ranking points. The winner will earn 400 points, with the runner-up to receive 250 points. Third place will receive 200 points, with the player finishing fourth to receive 125 points.
