Morariu Downs Raymond and Other Matches |
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Morariu Downs Raymond and Other Matches |
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This article contains reports of the following matches:
Sandrine Testud vs. Rachel McQuillan
Singles: 1st Round
Court 1
Tuesday morning was a chilly one in Montreal. Cold enough,
in fact, that even Olga Barabanschikova had to tone down her
usually skimpy practice attire. 14th seed Sandrine Testud and
qualifier Rachel McQuillan each started out hot on serve, though,
each holding easily to open the match. The first break came with
Testud leading 2-1, as she employed a delicate forehand volley to
win at love. Testud solidified the break in the 5th game, but
not without difficulty. It was a long, back and forth series of
deuces which included a delayed call against McQuillan on a break
point. She complained to chair umpire Christina Olausson, "Oh my
God...It was very very very late."
Testud steamrolled her way through what was left of the first set, quickly breaking for 5-1 and holding at love with a down the line forehand her Australian opponent was barely able to get a racquet on. Despite dropping the convincing 6-1 set, McQuillan recovered gamely, splitting the first four games of the second, all going with serve. Testud got up 30-40 in Game 5, however, and took the lead with a cross-court backhand winner. An ace ended the following game, with Testud now in command at 6-1, 4-2. McQuillan served well for 4-3, but Testud came right back with an impressive hold for 5-3. Although she didn't look particularly pleased, Sandrine was moving well and hitting the ball with authority.
Olausson drew Testud's ire in the next game, overruling what had been called a McQuillan fault. "Oh no no. It's so wide. It was so out," was the French-accented plea. It soon turned out to be a moot point, as Testud rallied to break serve one last time and claim a 6-1, 6-3 victory. It wasn't a perfect peformance, but Testud had performed well in less than ideal weather. Her next test could prove much tougher, as she'll square off with Iva Majoli in second round play on Wednesday.
Barbara Schett vs. Silvia Farina
Singles: 1st Round
Court 2
Just a couple days removed from reaching a singles final
in Boston, Barbara Schett had to feel pretty good about her
chances at the du Maurier. However, she was trapped in a real
dogfight on Tuesday with Italy's Silvia Farina. When I got there,
Farina had a slim lead at 7-5, 6-7, 2-1. She didn't take long to
extend it -- a love break put Farina ahead 3-1. Schett got a
break chance in the following game, but Farina held on. At 30-40
in the final set's sixth game, Farina followed up a good approach
shot with an easy forehand volley, extending her lead to a
formidable 5-1. Whatever fight was left in the Austrian seemed
to disappear at this point. Looking very solid in every aspect of
her game, Farina had little trouble serving out the 7-5, 6-7, 6-1
victory.
Lisa Raymond vs. Corina Morariu
Singles: 1st Round
Court 1
An all-American affair on Court 1 gradually became a big
attraction on Tuesday, both because a potential upset was brewing
and because there was a mass exodus from Centre Court before the
Conchita Martinez-Amy Frazier bout. Rising star Corina Morariu,
recently named to her first Fed Cup team, won the first set in a
tiebreak over Pennsylvania native Lisa Raymond. Raymond picked up
the mythical 17th seed (immortalized when Richard Krajicek rode it
to a Wimbledon crown) when Venus Williams withdrew from the
tournament. She did it justice in the second set, using crackling
forehands, smashes, and a few aces to trounce Morariu 6-1 and
force a deciding third set.
Morariu is a player of obvious talent, with a really nice one-handed backhand and a strong serve. She fired home a pair of aces in holding for 1-0 and kept Raymond away from the net in breaking for 2-0. Morariu got what she obviously felt was a bad ovverule in Game 3 and she let the umpire know about it: "What? Are you kidding me? The ball was, like, this far out." The next point ended on a Raymond error in virtually the exact same spot and Morariu made an exaggerated out gesture as it landed, just to make sure the linesman got this one right. She eventually won the game with a sizzling backhand winner.
Raymond got her serve-and-volley game in order, holding for 3-1 and securing a love break for 3-2, but both the serve and volley abandoned her in Game 6. A pair of double faults were key to Morariu's momentum-taking break. Raymond was none too pleased and earned herself a code violation for ball abuse. Morariu then got down triple break point for the second service game in a row, but slowly dug her way out, changing racquets twice along the way. Finally up game point, she leaned into a big backhand down the line which landed safely for a 5-2 lead. Raymond was clearly pressing in the next game and could suddenly do no right. At 15-40, she misfired on a forehand and the minor upset was complete. Steadily making a name for herself on the WTA Tour, Corina Morariu earned a spot in the du Maurier Open second round by a 7-6, 1-6, 6-2 count.
Schett/Schnyder vs. Farina/Habsudova
Doubles: 1st Round
Court 6
Opportunities for revenge don't come about much faster
than this. A couple hours after losing two Silvia Farina in
singles, Barbara Schett faced her in doubles. This time she had
Patty Schnyder on her side. The two have formed one of the more
dangerous doubles teams on the tour in '98, even finding a way to
beat Martina Hingis and Jana Novotna in the Hamburg championship
match. Farina and partner Karina Habsudova had a title of their
own, however, and had won it more recently -- they took the Czech
Open in Prague last month. Judging by how they'd looked in
singles, Farina and Habsudova would be no pushovers. Indeed, they
already had a 3-0 lead when I took my Court 6 seat.
The fourth game was a break of Habudova, decided when Schnyder won a volleying showdown with Farina. Schnyder and Farina volleys were instrumental in the next few games, as well. Holds for Schett and Farina brought the score to 4-2. A winning smash by Habsudova finished off a well-played break of Schnyder for 5-2. The Swiss #2 came up with a great volley to fight off a set point in Game 8, but Schett followed that up by missing a backhand long and shouting something in German. First set to Farina/Habsudova: 6-2.
All four players put up holds to start the second set.
At 2-2, the Italian-Slovakian combination jumped out to a 0-40
advantage and immediately broke Schett's serve on a punch volley
by Farina. Silvia and Karina kept rolling along, winning 13 of
14 points on the path to a 5-2 lead in the second set. Schnyder,
who had been making some loose-looking errors, despondently
tossed her racquet to her chair on the changeover. Playing with
nothing to lose so far down, Schett and Schnyder scored a 0-30
lead against Habsudova's serve. However, they lost the next
four points and the match: 6-2, 6-2. The Karina/Farina team will
really go places if it can continue to play at such a high level.
With Habsudova smoking the ball from the back of the court and
Farina shining at the net, they can't be an easy team to beat.
Likhovtseva/Sugiyama vs. Barabanschikova/Tatarkova
Doubles: 1st Round
Court 6
High-profile doubles matches stirred up quite a frenzy in the late afternoon. The grounds were buzzing with anticipation for the outer court appearances by Kournikova, Graf, and the top-seeded Hingis/Novotna pair. Unfortunately, the Kournikova match was moved to Centre Court, the Hingis/Novotna match was put off for an hour, and the stands were packed for Graf on Court 2. However, for the discerning doubles fan there was the matter of #7 seeds Elena Likhovtseva and Ai Sugiyama taking on fun-loving Olga Barabanschikova and hard-hitting Elena Tatarkova. An ace by Barabanschikova helped the youngsters take a 1-0 lead, but Likhovtseva and Sugiyama gradually took control of the set. They played very solid tennis, while Barabanschikova and Tatarkova mixed occasionally spectacular moments with bad errors. Likhovtseva failed to serve out the set at 5-2, but Sugiyama got the job done when her turn came.
Breaks of Tatarkova, Likhovtseva, and Barabanschikova made the score 6-4, 2-1. Sugiyama then held at love, although perhaps the game would have been a bit more competitive if a player who shall remain nameless hadn't been busy winking at an onlooker between points. Barabanschikova argued a call late in the fifth game, seeking an overrule from chair umpire Gabriel Pace and then gently berating the linesman in question. Barabanschikova and Tatarkova went on to take that game, but a winning topspin lob by Likhovtseva completed her hold for 4-2. Down break point in the following game, Barabanschikova hit an atrocious overhead and laughed. She also made the last error of the match, missing a forehand to end the 6-4, 6-2 defeat. Despite that lackluster performance, the saucy Belarussian remained popular with the fans. Olga signed autographs and posed for photos before departing. There were no such requests for Likhovtseva and Sugiyama, but as of Tuesday night they're still alive in both draws.
Coetzer/Huber vs. Rittner/Ruano-Pascual
Doubles: 1st Round
Court 2
Although not primarily known for their doubles ability,
Amanda Coetzer and Anke Huber have notched some very good results
as a team, particularly at the 1997 Lipton. Leading 4-1 in the
first set of this match, they seemed well on their way to an easy
win. Not so fast -- Barbara Rittner and Virginia Ruano-Pascual
surprisingly reeled off five games in a row to win the first set.
Coetzer and Huber seemingly took this as a wake-up call. They
gained another 4-1 lead and this time made it stick, Huber holding
at love and Rittner losing the set on a missed lob. The 6-1 set
left the match dead even.
Coetzer hit a rare ace in a hold for 1-0. Both Germans were broken after that, Huber struggling with her serve and banging her racquet against a table after letting their opponents back in the match at 2-1. A Ruano-Pascual break and Coetzer hold turned things back around for the favorites, yet again leading a set 4 games to 1. Rittner held, putting the pressure on Huber. She faltered again, double faulting twice in a break for 4-3. Luckily for her, Ruano-Pascual was just as bad in Game 8, double faulting for 15-30, missing a forehand for 15-40, and double faulting again for 5-3. Ruano-Pascual and Rittner kept battling, but Coetzer and Huber fought off a pair of break points and won the match when a sharp volley by Coetzer clipped Ruano-Pascual's racquet. Coetzer and Huber survive: 4-6, 6-1, 6-3.
Amanda Coetzer has been a fixture on the practice
courts this week and the work appears to be paying off. She
was the undisputed star of the third set here, hitting terrific
backhands and volleys. Lest you think Anke Huber isn't just as
willing to work, she actually stayed on court for a full 15
minutes after the win hitting practice serves. She seemed to be
making progress, but would get discouraged and yell at herself
almost every time one of her serves found the net.
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