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Post by RogiFan on Sept 25, 2003 15:05:46 GMT -5
More great stuff, Kiro! V nice you talked to Canas and he recognized you! And wonderful pix as usual!! It must be hot and humid there!
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Post by Kiro on Sept 25, 2003 17:29:36 GMT -5
Thanks for the reports, Kiro!! Robin Soderling sounds so promising He beat Micha in the Istanbul challenger final. I think he's ranked in the Top 100 now He was supposed to be of Gasquet's generation and already he's surpassing him too (I think Robin is older). Just wish he'd get rid of that freaking headband! Magnus is slowly winning me over as well. Or should I say, once again Layla's influence is slowly winning me over Hope he wins his next match!! It's about time for the Swedes to do well. Soderling is older than Gasquet. He is 19 years old now. Soderling, Verdasco, Bedych, these are the future stars I met at Shanghai Open. Bedych didn't play here, but I saw him training. He is 18 years old. It will be great if all these kids can do well in the near future. ;D
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Post by ILR on Sept 25, 2003 17:29:47 GMT -5
totally! Those are brilliant pics Kiro, thank you so much!
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Post by Kiro on Sept 25, 2003 17:41:26 GMT -5
More great stuff, Kiro! V nice you talked to Canas and he recognized you! And wonderful pix as usual!! It must be hot and humid there! Well, surprisingly, we have had great weather up to now. Not humid at all, sometimes a little cloudy, most time it's sunny. And not so hot, actually, the highest temperature has been like 30Cº at noon, when the sun goes down it's quite cool. I didn't expect such great weather at all, last week it rained a lot during the WTA Polo Open. Well, we have roofs here, so I don't need to worry about the rain
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Post by RogiFan on Sept 25, 2003 17:48:50 GMT -5
Well, surprisingly, we have had great weather up to now. Not humid at all, sometimes a little cloudy, most time it's sunny. And not so hot, actually, the highest temperature has been like 30Cº at noon, when the sun goes down it's quite cool. I didn't expect such great weather at all, last week it rained a lot during the WTA Polo Open. Well, we have roofs here, so I don't need to worry about the rain SMART!!! [smarter than some tournaments we know... and perhaps hate... ]
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Post by Kiro on Sept 26, 2003 11:24:00 GMT -5
September 26thQuarter-finals day of Heineken Open Shanghai! 1st match: Wayne Arthurs vs Ivo KarlovicIt’s all about serve! In this match there was no baseline rallies at all. Both players served very well. But their return, groundstrokes and net games were not well played at all. In the 1st set, Ivo Karlovic lost his first service game. Then his serve started to be on track, but Wayne served very well in the whole set. Wayne won 1st set, 6-4. In the second set, Wayne played a terrible service game . He made 4 unforced errors at net in that game. Karlovic broke him and served the set out. In the 3rd set both players were serving ace after ace and soon it went to the tie-breaker. Wayne’s return nailed on the baseline luckily, and Karlovic double-faulted once. Thus Wayne managed to win. 2nd match: Magnus Norman vs Jiri Novak Magnus I saw Magnus practiced a little in the morning, I didn’t know he’s injured. He held his 1st service game. Jiri then held and broke Magus once to lead, 2-1. Magnus called the trainer. They resumed playing, in Jiri’s game, after a long rally, Magnus won one point and they came to deuce, but Magnus then decided he’d better retire. Ahh Magnus! Get well soon! 3rd match: Robin Soderling vs Scott DrapperRobin! Because Magnus retired, the 3rd match started earlier than we expected. It was a tough match for Robin, I think he might be fighting a flu, for he’s obviously got a running nose and he’s lacking power in his serves and strokes. He had chance to serve the 1st set out at *6-5, but he got nervous and was broken back. Drapper sliced the ball a lot, using his skill of spins to make it tough for Robin. Robin lost the 1st set tie-breaker. At that time I think there must be something wrong with Robin, for his serve speed dropped a lot. I watched his first round match and in that whole match he served very strongly. At the beginning of today’s match he served at more than 200 km/h too, but as the match went on, his first serve speed dropped to about 150, then 130. He even served some first serves at 113km/h or so. In the 2nd set you could see that Robin’s getting tired. Drapper noticed it too. Every time when they are changing sides, Drapper always got up from his chair very early, thus forced Robin to get up and resume playing before getting enough rest. Robin’s got several bps in one of Drapper’s games, but strange thing happened: when they were playing points, the players found that the tennis ball they were hitting was inferior . Before that game, they just changed new balls. They stopped that point and gave the ball to the umpire. They started again, and the ball was still not good. They’ve got 5 bad balls, it seemed that they came from the same pack . The official changed all the balls after the game, but bad balls have already made Robin lost his bps, for the ball was bad and he couldn’t return or hit well at all. But Robin has been fighting. He managed to hold all his service games, and won the 2nd set tie-breaker. The 3rd set was much tougher for Robin. He saved bps in almost all his service games. Drapper has been holding easily in this set, partly because when Robin found himself 0-40 down in Drapper’s game, he than give up the next point, and went to the chair to have rest as much as he could. He was so tired, and a little cramping too. The ball boys were so lack of training, and not focused at all. Players had to wait for them, so the match was extended. Robin wanted to have the tower, but the ball boy wouldn’t move at all, poor Robin had to go to the chair and get the tower by himself. Robin saved 2 match points in his service game, and he saved all his energy to fight for the 3rd tie-breaker. In the tie-breaker, his shot surprised Drapper. Maybe Drapper hadn’t expected that Robin could be so brave to fight at the end of the match. Robin made several great winners despite of the cramp in his legs. The crowd was so impressed and everybody’s cheering for Robin. And suddenly he’s 6-1 in the tie-breaker. Drapper then double-faulted, Robin managed to reach his first semifinal at an ATP tournament. 4th match: Mark Philippoussis vs Guillermo CanasNow it’s time to say, Canas is coming back! Although Mark won the match, it was very closely fought. Guillermo made great returns, and was stable at the baseline again. Mark played better than yesterday, and Guillermo played far more better than yesterday. Great rallies, Guillermo returned back those heavy serves and forehand strokes from Mark. Both players played good tennis. A great match, IMO, match of the day. Pics:
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Post by Kiro on Sept 26, 2003 11:32:16 GMT -5
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Post by TennisHack on Sept 26, 2003 11:38:13 GMT -5
Thanks for the reports Kiro! It's sad to hear Soderling is sick He's playing Philippoussis in the semis tomorrow. Your excitement and enthusiasm for him is making me excited for him as well. I'm happy he's finally hitting his stride (he's been out of the juniors for awhile). If only he was feeling better
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Post by TennisHack on Sept 26, 2003 11:39:33 GMT -5
Oh, and I love that shirt Wayne is wearing in practice! The soft blue is really nice. I'm getting tired of seeing the black-white combo all over the place Wish they'd go back to the blue or at least have a new design. I really liked the design they had at the beginning of the year.
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Post by RogiFan on Sept 26, 2003 11:46:11 GMT -5
Once again a superb report and fantastic piccies, Kiro!! Thank you! Very enjoyable -- I wait every day for your postings!! Too bad all these players are ill... it's that darn schedule... poor guys!
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Post by Vera on Sept 26, 2003 11:55:57 GMT -5
Thanks Kiro. Scud is looking good.
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Post by Lee on Sept 26, 2003 13:51:44 GMT -5
Gerat reports Kiro!
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Post by Kiro on Sept 26, 2003 20:04:33 GMT -5
Oh, and I love that shirt Wayne is wearing in practice! The soft blue is really nice. I'm getting tired of seeing the black-white combo all over the place Wish they'd go back to the blue or at least have a new design. I really liked the design they had at the beginning of the year. I love the shirt too! That's why I took so many pics of him, LOL. I guess Tacchini's new design will likely come out in the next week or so It will be October soon. I met some people at the tournament, who invesgeted about sports wears, and are interested in introducing Tacchini into China! How amazing it will be!
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Post by RogiFan on Sept 26, 2003 21:05:41 GMT -5
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Post by The Chloe on Sept 27, 2003 3:30:27 GMT -5
Indeed, Rebecca, but Soderling likes to dye his hair black. Hence the "really dark" part ;D Thanks for the great reports, Kiro! I wish I had your ability to talk to the players and/or their parents. Glad to hear Nick was nice! *ahem* My bad
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Post by The Chloe on Sept 27, 2003 3:42:08 GMT -5
Vincy needs to not wear the backwards cap. Ever. It does nothing for his head shape or face. Thanks for the stories and photos, Kiro
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Post by Kiro on Sept 27, 2003 11:21:07 GMT -5
September 27thSemifinals day! Singles 1st Match: Jiri Novak vs Wayne Arthurs Another typical win for Jiri! He lost the 1st set, which was closely fought and decided by a tie-breaker. Then, in the 2nd set, Wayne suddenly found that Jiri was returning all his serves back. Wayne was surprised, he choked at net and lost his serve. And Jiri broke Wayne twice to start the final set. Wayne was angry, but he couldn¡¯t do anything. Jiri won, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2. In this match, there were some inferior balls again. This time they changed all the balls immediately. 2nd Match: Mark Philippoussis vs Robin Soderling Mark¡¯s power was there, and it was too strong to Robin. And Mark is playing well now! His serve is on, he can stay stable at baseline, and he¡¯s got good touch of his forehand. And he¡¯s running well too. Sometimes he surprised Robin by running and hitting forehand winners. Compared to Mark, Robin has got less power, and less match experience. Mark defeated Robin, that¡¯s not surprising at all. But Robin managed to break Mark. He broke Mark two times, one in each set. Well, Mark broke back and won both sets, but he might be a little surprised too. Doubles Novak/Pala vs Arthurs/Hanley Wayne came for a revenge right after he lost the singles semifinal against Jiri. That¡¯s why he was so eager to win the doubles. Finally they made it, 6-7, 6-2, 7-6. Pala was the weak one and always being attacked by Arthurs and Hanley. Jiri needs a better partner, IMO¡ Well, Jiri played doubles in Davis Cup with Berdych last week, and they defeated the Srichaphan brothers. Would Tomas be a good doubles partner? Let¡¯s go and see. Pics: Mark practised with Nick at noon. 1024x768 wallpaper size version: www.lunar2.net/temp/shopics/9-27/scud04_1024x768.jpgJiri Novak warming up Robin Soderling
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Post by TennisHack on Sept 27, 2003 12:17:30 GMT -5
Poor Soderling I hope he was at least feeling better. He looks so crestfallen in those pics. It's good to hear he was able to break Mark, though! That's quite a feat. I hope big things come for him in the future Thanks again for the pics!! I think I like the version of the shirt Wayne's wearing better than the version Tommy's wearing. Juan Carlos had Tommy's version while he was practising for the Davis Cup last week. I hope those aren't just practice clothes!
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Post by Ilhame on Sept 27, 2003 17:35:15 GMT -5
You rock Kiro!
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Post by Kiro on Sept 28, 2003 10:12:46 GMT -5
September 28thFinals Day Mark Philippoussis def. Jiri Novak 6-2, 6-1 Mark was totally in control of the match. He served well, his forehand has been hitting killing winners one after another. Jiri looked tied. :-/It's understandable, for he played both singles and doubles semifinals yesterday, both in 3 sets. When they lost the doubles semifinals, it was already quite late in the night. But Mark finished earlier yesterday, and to tell you frankly, I think Mark didn't spend 100% effort on Robin Soderling, he must have saved something for today's final. Mark has been on fire from the very beginning till the very end. Jiri made some mistakes and struggled with his backhand. It all happened in a very short time, just about 45 minutes and the final was over. OK, congratulations to Scud, and good luck next time Jiri, hope to see both of you next year too. I didn't watch the doubles final, for I can't stand the Chinese pair, actually. :red: I knew the crowd would be cheering for them anyway. I said "good luck" to Wayne and Paul before the final. Thanks God they managed to win. So, a big day for the Aussies. Pics: Jiri Mark 1024x768 wallpaper size version: www.lunar2.net/temp/shopics/9-28/scud03_1024x768.jpgJiri & Mark Nick smiled all the time watching the ceremony after match
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Post by Ilhame on Sept 28, 2003 11:17:05 GMT -5
Thanks again Kiro Hope they'll be back next year and you can enjoy another great tourney
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Post by Kiro on Sept 28, 2003 11:51:24 GMT -5
Miscellaneous... I've got autographs from the following players: Hyung-Taik Lee (The first one. Why him? I didn't know. Maybe I was practicing how to ask for autograghs... : Guillermo Canas Jeff Salzenstein ( I didn't know his name, but I saw his Tournament ID card when he was signing the autograph ;D) Alex Kim Thomas Enqvist ( I thought I had to get his autograph before his 1st round match, because it was hard to tell who would be the winner between Thomas and Kiwi, if Kiwi lost, both would still stay here for Kiwi had doubles to play. But if Thomas lost he might leave soon. So I got Thomas's autograph after his first practice session on Monday.) Robert Kendrick (I didn't know his name, and couldn't figure out it by recognizing his autogragh either Later I found the answer by comparing the player profiles online to the pics I took.) Ivo Karlovic Scott Draper Jiri Novak Fernando Verdasco Andreas Vinciguerra (he's often been together with Magnus, while Magnus was surrounded by fans, he's not noticed so much...but I called him and got his autograph. Magnus Norman Anyway get well soon Magnus! Martin Verkerk ( I realized that I haven't got good pics of the FACE. Because he was moving all the time in the practice sessions and the match, and I can't capture the best moment to take pics... ) Mark Philippoussis Congrats! Nicolas Kiefer (Waited 1 hour for this one for Nicolas to finish his practise session.) Paul Hanley Wayne Arthurs (Wayne is an interesting guy. He's very relaxed when practicing Ivo Heuberger Justin Gimelstob Lars Burgsmuller (Sorry Lars, I think I must have jinxed you ) Robin Soderling Peter Luczak (Poor Peter lost his qualifying match at Tokyo again...please do better next time! Peter is a nice guy. ) Tomas Berdych I'll see later if I can find a scanner to scan all those autographs
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Post by TennisHack on Sept 28, 2003 11:54:37 GMT -5
So happy you had wonderful time, Kiro! Too bad the final wasn't longer, it was probably pretty anticlimatic. Thanks again for the wonderful pictures It was a lot of fun watching the tournament through your eyes!
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Post by RogiFan on Sept 28, 2003 11:59:42 GMT -5
thanks again Kiro! Good for Mark! He beat Novak!! ILR will be v happy and she'll like those piccies for sure! You have a nice collection of autographs, cool!
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Post by Kiro on Sept 28, 2003 12:05:25 GMT -5
Hi RogiFan! I like Jiri, actually, but I thought this was the time for Mark to win a title. He deserves one, maybe even a bigger one. I'm surprised to see him playing so good at baseline now. He's in great form.
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Post by ILR on Sept 28, 2003 12:42:11 GMT -5
Yay for Mark! and all the great pics and reports thank you so much! You got his autograph too *jealous*
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