Tennis Masters Toronto (July 29, 2002)

Cañas foils Federer, Mantilla shocks Hewitt, Ríos back on track (?)
Tennis Masters Toronto, July 29, 2002
by Ed Toombs

Many local fans were surely disappointed when they woke up this morning, and not only by the news that hot muggy weather is forecast for the rest of the week. Worse still was the news that the popular Andre Agassi had withdrawn from the tournament. The official reason: a sore lower back and right hip. A local sportscaster wisecracked that Agassi?s back was certainly strong enough to lift the winner?s trophy in Los Angeles yesterday?.
The ATP?s communications guru Greg Sharko told us that the problems had been bothering Andre since the Los Angeles quarterfinals on Friday, and he was seen several times on the training table during the weekend. The injuries are felt to be minor. One suspects that more than anything Agassi is concerned about burning himself out before his ultimate goal, which is the U.S. Open.
Agassi is replaced in the draw by Kristian Pless, who will face Canadian wild card Daniel Nestor tomorrow.
The Canadian Masters Series stop is usually a fertile ground for upsets, which are already common enough on the ATP tour. The upset bug was back today, as two big names, Lleyton Hewitt and Roger Federer, bit the dust. Another big name was unable to complete his evening match, because of thunderstorms that rolled through the area: The eagerly awaited Pete Sampras - Wayne Ferreira duel was unable to start.
We focus on the ouster of Federer and Hewitt, and also check in on Marcelo Ríos and his attempt to get back on track.

Guillermo Cañas def. Roger Federer (10), 7-6 (12-10), 7-5
1st round
Stadium
Previous head-to-head: first meeting
The word ?Selbstvertrauen? -- self-belief -- has been a staple of Roger Federer?s German language interviews lately. That is to say, the young Swiss star seems to have lost it. Since his impressive win at the Tennis Masters Hamburg in May, Federer has struggled. The Basel native went to both the French Open and Wimbledon as a legitimate title contender, but lost his first match in both of these prestigious tourneys.
Roger went out onto the stadium court in search of that elusive Selbstvertrauen today, but it was the tireless Guillermo Cañas who had it, and he wouldn?t give it back. The unseeded Argentine, ranked in the top 20 in both the Entry and Race rankings, is best known for his clay court prowess, but he has been playing well on all surfaces in the past two years, as his hard court title in Chennai this year suggests. In the final analysis, Cañas (pictured at right during his pre-match warmup) was the better p layer, serving extremely well (12 aces and only 2 double faults) and keeping his nerve on the key points. Meanwhile Federer made far too many backhand errors to hope to defeat such a solid adversary.
The first set was essentially a serving contest, with both men serving effectively and returning ineffectively. We did not get a break point until Cañas served at 5-6, when the prospect of forcing a tie-break appeared to make the Argentine nervous. At 40-30, ?Willy? double faulted for the second time. Federer earned a break point / set point, and appeared to have clinched the set with a down-the line forehand, but the shot just missed the sideline. Given new life, Cañas pulled himself back together, and w on the critical game with a clutch forehand.
Federer drew first blood in the tie-break, taking a 4-2 lead with a blistering cross-court forehand passing shot. But the Swiss gave back the mini-break with an errant topspin backhand (this was a troublesome shot for him throughout the match), allowing Cañas to draw even at 4-4. We join the marathon game at 6-6 for its topsy-turvy conclusion.

RF serving: 205 km/h service winner down the middle. 7-6 Federer, set point #2

GC: Another bad Federer backhand, well long. 7-7

GC: Federer follows a backhand approach with a crisp backhand volley winner. 8-7 Federer, set point #3

RF: Splendid first serve return by Cañas, who follows it up with a mid-court forehand winner. 8-8

RF: Federer?s down-the line forehand ends up in the net. 9-8 Cañas, set point #2

GC: Federer jumps on a weak second serve with a backhand winner. 9-9

GC: Cañas approaches and nails an Edberg-like backhand volley. 10-9 Cañas, set point #3

RF: Cañas approaches again, but the Edberg impersonation is over, as he flubs the forehand volley. 10-10

RF: Cañas strikes a searing forehand winner. 11-10 Cañas, set point #4

GC: 206 km/h ace on the centre line. Some big-time play in the clutch by the Argentine earns him the first set, 7-6 (12-10).

Roger, wearing a bright yellow shirt and white headband, started the second set strongly, gaining the early beak. But he could not consolidate the advantage, and at 3-2 the Argentine returned the favour. The players stayed on serve until Federer wilted at 5-6. At 15-15, his sixth double fault puts the Swiss in danger. 15-30: Federer attacks, picks up a tough half volley, but is passed down the line by Cañas. 15-40, match point: Federer once again errs on his shaky (today, at least) backhand, bouncing it lamentably into the net. Make the final: 7-6 (12-10), 7-5 for the happy Cañas.
In his post-match comments Federer gave two reasons for his sub-par display. First, the high heat and humidity. ?In Europe you hardly ever get humidity like this?. I get headaches in this weather and my whole body just gets flat. You know, I can?t push myself to do more because my heart rate goes up.? Second, that elusive self-belief. ?I mean, I had all my chances in the first set, and it just shows a little bit that I?m missing confidence. It?s a pity,? summarized the struggling Swiss.
The victorious Cañas was quite buoyant in his press conference. ?Willy? was more than prepared for the heat: ?This kind of tournament and the one in Cincinnati, they?re gonna be the same weather. You prepare to have this weather for playing.? And self belief? No problem here, as Cañas served notice that he means to have a big week. ?I?m very confident,? said the Argentine. ?I try to, I don?t know, to be in the last round this weekend.?
So Guillermo Cañas has a firm grip on that precious Selbstvertrauen and is has no intention of letting go. In the second round he will face Thai qualifier Paradorn Srichaphan, who outduelled Michel Kratochvil in a rather contentious affair (see below).

Félix Mantilla def. Lleyton Hewitt (1), 2-6, 6-4, 6-3
1st round
Stadium
Previous head-to-head: first meeting
Top seed Lleyton Hewitt had an adventurous and ultimately unsuccessful evening on stadium court against an inspired Félix Mantilla. Lleyton won the first set comfortably 6-2, but began to serve poorly and had more of a tussle in the second. With Mantilla leading 5-4 (on serve), the rain began to fall and the match was delayed for 2 hours, 7 minutes. After the delay Mantilla promptly broke Hewitt's serve to force a third set.
Suddenly the number one ranked player, rusty in his first tournament since Wimbledon, was in a war against a highly motivated and determined opponent. Mantilla, now constantly slashing backhands down the line that forced Hewitt to scramble well behind his baseline, broke serve to take a 3-1 lead in the final set. Hewitt reacted, breaking right back and delivering a bellowing fist pump. The players stayed on serve until Mantilla delivered a telling break to assume a 5-3 lead, thanks to another splendid backhand winner. "Felix the Cat" was now doing the bellowing! And as the match went on, it became clear that the crowd was behind the underdog Mantilla ("I must say thank you to the people," said Mantilla after the match).
The dramatic final game:
With Mantilla serving for the match, the Spaniard took a 30-15 lead on a serve and short forehand winner. But Felix now looked tenative, and he sent a backhand long. 30-30: Hewitt ends an intense rally with a splendid forehand winner. 30-40: the aggressive Mantilla returns, with those backhands down the line forcing an error from the scrambling Aussie. Deuce: Hewitt's forehand appears long but is called good, much to Mantilla's dismay. Advantage Hewitt: Mantilla again dominates a baseline point and finishes with a clean forehand winner. Deuce number 2: Hewitt comes to the net but Mantilla does some great hustling, runnning down a drop volley, and then scrambling back to retrieve a lob, and Hewitt finally misses a backhand at the net. Match point: Mantilla makes a remarkable stabbing forehand pass that Hewitt can only barely touch. Mantilla has closed the upset in style, and falls to his back in joy. The fans, a surprisingly large number of whom stayed through the rain delay, stand and cheer a great effort by the underdog. Make the final: 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.
This was Mantilla's second career win over a number one player, with both surprisingly coming on hard courts: in 1999 he accounted for Pete Sampras in Indian Wells. And it was a win which Mantilla feels he sorely needed. "I was surprised by my level today," admitted the Spaniard. "In the last months I didn't play so good. It's a special day for me. It showed me the way, and now it's in my hands to keep improving." Mantilla was also quick to dispel the suggestion that he might have been motivated by the distaste for Hewitt displayed by some Spanish players (notably Alex Corretja). "I think he's a nice guy. He likes to express himself, but I have no problem with him. I think he's a great player and a good person too."
As for Hewitt, he professed to be unconcerned by the loss, especially coming off a post-Wimbledon virus. "I didn't expect a whole heap here. But the US Open is the big one for me, and as long as I'm hitting the ball well by then I'll be fine." Hewitt also felt the humidity played a factor, slowing the conditions down for his opponent. "He played extremely well. But there were very humid conditions out there, which obviously helped him. He stood 4 metres behind the baseline and ran down everything." Finally, Hewitt made it clear that he had requested a Tuesday start to have an extra day to recover from his illness, and was miffed when the request was denied. "It would have been nice to have an extra day like I requested. I found out at 7:00 last night on the golf course. I was pretty happy with that," ironized the world number one.

Marcelo Ríos def. Kenneth Carlsen (Q), 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (8-6)
First round
Court One
Previous head-to-head: Ríos leads 4-1
The unpredictable former number one Marcelo Ríos is always an intriguing player to follow. In his last Toronto stop two years ago, the Chilean excelled in wins over Tim Henman and Arnaud Clément before losing a bizarre, gamesmanship-filled encounter with Jérôme Golmard. Marcelo has not been in good form of late, however, having lost to a string of undistinguished players in recent weeks: Alejandro Hernández, Victor Hanescu and Jean-René Lisnard were among his no-name executioners. In fairness, it shoul d be noted that Ríos is coming back from a layoff caused by tendonitis in his right knee. In addition, he is also dealing with controversy surrounding a biography that has just been published in his homeland, containing some juicy revelations about his often stormy life.
Ríos seems to be going in the right direction at last, if his win over a fellow lefthander, Danish serve-volleyer Kenneth Carlsen, is any indication. Although still wearing a strap just under his right knee, the moody Chilean?s movement seemed very good, and he fought hard throughout.
The 29-year-old Carlsen also fought hard and played very well, showing the attacking skills that made him a regular in the top 100 for most of the 1990s. The blond Dane, who like Ríos sports a pony-tail on court (although Carlsen?s, which he keeps tucked under his cap, may be the shortest pony-tail known to man) actually dropped completely off the computer rankings two years ago because of a bad shoulder. In a nice comeback story, the Dane has brought his ranking from infinity back up to 109. From what we have seen the last few days, if he gains control of his nerves in tight situations Kenneth seems destined for a return to a double-digit ranking soon. In fact, Carlsen had excellent chances to win both sets in today?s match.
The match was played in the late afternoon and early evening under cloudy skies and much more comfortable conditions than the day?s earlier fixtures. It began as a very evenly-played affair. The aggressive Carlsen served well and showed some impressive, acrobatic volleys. Ríos gave more than one exhibition of his baseline artistry, flicking deftly angled strokes and whipping some deliciously-struck passing shots past his onrushing opponent.
The players stayed on serve until the 11th game. Ríos, who was supported throughout by an enthusiastic band of flag-waving compatriots, threw in his first sloppy game. Owing to a series of forehand errors, Ríos dropped his serve at 15. With a chance to serve out the set now, Carlsen failed, although it must be said that Chilean, who stepped up his game and delivered some superb returns, was primarily responsible for this. The turning point of the ensuing tie-break came at 5-5, Carlsen serving: looking to chip and charge, Kenneth dumped his sliced backhand into the net. Ríos calmly cashed in his set point with a service winner just inside the sideline, and the first set was his.
The second set stayed on serve until the tie-break, but not without some drama. Ríos was starting to get a better read on Carlsen?s serve, and earned six break points in the set. But ?Chino? couldn?t strike the big return at the right time. Frustrated at his lost chances in the seventh game, Marcelo bounced his racket onto the court, a transgression for which he was warned by chair umpire Adao Chagas of Brazil for racquet abuse. Ríos, who was generally on good behaviour today, did not break his racque t and argued that therefore the warning was unjustified. He jawed with the umpire throughout the ensuing changeover.
So, with the Chilean fans attempting to rally their man with cries of ?Chi Chi Chi! Le Le Le!? we moved on to the tie-break.

KC serving: Service winner to Ríos?s forehand. 1-0 Carlsen.

MR: The Dane pulls a forehand too wide. 1-1

MR: Carlsen attacks the net, reacts quickly to a Ríos pass that ticks the tape, and makes the reflex volley. Mini-break, 2-1 Carlsen.

KC: Carlsen serve-volleys, Ríos nets his backhand pass. 3-1 Carlsen.

KC: Carlsen dumps a slice backhand approach shot into the net. Mini-break vanishes, 3-2 Carlsen.

MR: Ríos appears in a position to hit an easy winner at mid-court, but for some reason known only to him tries a drop shot, which fails to clear the net. Mini-break reappears, 4-2 Carlsen

MR: A deep Ríos forehand lands on the baseline and forces a Carlsen error. 4-3 Carlsen.
KC: Textbook wide serve and volley to the open court. 5-3 Carlsen

KC: Another fine serve-volley point. 6-3 Carlsen, set point #1
MR: A clutch cross-court forehand winner by the Chilean. 6-4 Carlsen, set point #2.

MR: Unforced forehand error by Carlsen. 6-5 Carlsen, set point #3.

KC: Solid serve, easy forehand volley -- which Carlsen dumps unpardonably in the net. 6-6.

KC: Second serve. A rally ensues, which Ríos dominates, delivering a delightfully angled forehand that forces a running forehand error by Carlsen. 7-6, match point #1 for Ríos.

MR: A well-placed service winner by Ríos. Game set and match, throatily saluted by the Chilean supporters. Make the final: 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (8-6).

After the match, Ríos went to sign some autographs for the fans behind his chair. But there was suddenly a mighty crash: the eager fans had knocked over the wooden barrier upon which they were leaning. ?Chino?, no doubt figuring discretion was the better part of valour, waved off the fans and went to sign autographs on the safer opposite side of the court? but not before waving a thank you to his loyal supporters.
Marcelo Ríos will likely have to improve over today?s effort in the second round, where he will face either 16th seed Carlos Moyá or aggressive Frenchman Julien Boutter. But the Chilean appears headed in the right direction. And we wish Kenneth Carlsen continued success in what has been an exceptional comeback from the land of the unranked.

Toronto Tidbits
Johansson survives ace barrage
Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson staged a notable comeback in his 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8-6) squeaker against Croatian bomber Ivan Ljubicic. Ljubicic smashed 34 aces and served at 65 percent. In the deciding tie-break Johansson trailed 2-5 and faced a match point before coming back to win. The Swede admitted after the match that he did not intend to come to Toronto because of a troublesome knee that had forced him to withdraw from Los Angeles last week. But his condition improved late last week, and he made a hasty decision to try his luck here.
Kratochvil hot and bothered
Despite the steamy conditions, most of the players weren?t skimping on their effort level: the Johansson-Ljubicic duel was one of four matches decided by either 7-5 or 7-6 in the third set. One of the more enthralling duels saw the flashy Thai qualifier Paradorn Srichaphan outlast Michel Kratochvil, a solid ball-striker out of Ostermundigen, Switzerland, by a 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (7-3) score.
Paradorn has a reputation as one of the more likable guys on tour, but don?t tell that to Kratochvil, who refused to shake hands with the winner after their marathon. It seems that the Swiss was upset with what he felt was stalling tactics. ?He?s taking all this time, faking things. Is that in the rules??, lamented Kratochvil to a tour official before storming to the locker room.

Quotable quotes
Guillermo Cañas admits that he was as surprised as everyone else by his countryman David Nalbandián?s runner-up showing at Wimbledon. But Guillermo served notice that we had better get used to similar performances by the talented Argentine legion in non-clay events. ?[Nalbandián] is a very good player, I know. Maybe in the beginning you didn?t expect an Argentinean guy being in the final of Wimbledon. But I think many guys, we play well on all kinds of courts. Then we have to expect one of my fr iends -- or me -- in the final of this kind of tournament.?
It?s not every day you see fans waving Canadian flags and shouting ?USA! USA!?, but that?s what we saw today from some of the spectators today. You see, Greg Rusedski, a Canadian who ?defected? to England seven years ago, was playing American Todd Martin, and discovered that many in this country have still not forgotten. Martin was the clear crowd favourite, but after a close three-set defeat Rusedski claimed to be unruffled by the reaction of his former countrymen. ?I don?t really worry about it . I just get on with my tennis. You know, it?s part of the Commonwealth, so nothing to worry about.? The witticism was greeted with laughter from the reporters present and, needless to say, was accompanied by Rusedski?s all-purpose, toothy grin.