Guga Goes Overtime In a Doubles Epic
by Christopher Gerby
Knowle/Kohlmann vs. Kuerten/Van Lottum
Men's Doubles: First Round
Court 13
For a laid back surfer dude, Gustavo Kuerten sure has been moody lately.
He was berating himself and throwing rackets at the Hamlet Cup, then
had a heckler ejected from Louis Armstrong Stadium on Tuesday. With
that in mind, it makes sense that he'd join forces with the perpetually
crabby John van Lottum. Falling behind 3-1 to little known Julian
Knowle and Michael Kohlmann didn't help their disposition, but a winning lob by Guga
on break point in Game 5 got them back on serve.
At 5-5 in the opening set, Kuerten completely framed a return. It fell
in for a winner, though, and he raised a hand in apology. Two points
later, at 0-40, Van Lottum ripped a powerful backhand, forcing a Kohlmann
error for the love break. Kuerten smiled broadly and put an arm
around Van Lottum as they strutted to the changeover with a 6-5 lead.
Attempting to serve out the set, Van Lottum double faulted for 15-30,
giving their less heralded opponents an opening. Kohlmann then
caught the baseline with a return...or at least appeared to. Van
Lottum immediately held up a considerable space between two fingers,
arguing that the ball was clearly long. "Pretty big point, don't ya
think?" John rhetorically asked, to no avail. Left-handed Knowle then
blasted a winning return of his own, sending the first set into a
tiebreak...
- MK serving: Kohlmann nets a forehand volley -- 1-0 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- GK: Van Lottum nets a backhand volley -- 1-1
- GK: Kuerten can't make a tough forehand volley -- 2-1 KOHLMANN/KNOWLE
- JK: Crowding the net, Knowle bricks a reflex volley -- 2-2
- JK: Knowle pummels a short Van Lottum lob -- 3-2 KOHLMANN/KNOWLE
- JvL: Service winner for Van Lottum -- 3-3
- JvL: Van Lottum delivers another service winner -- 4-3 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- MK: Kuerten ends a four-player rally with a forehand winner and high fives his partner -- 5-3 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- MK: Kohlmann puts away an overhead -- 5-4 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- GK: Double set point after a Kuerten service winner -- 6-4 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- GK: Knowle comes up with a winning backhand return -- 6-5 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- JK: Knowle stays alive with a service winner -- 6-6
- JK: Van Lottum buries a backhand return in the net -- 7-6 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
- JvL: A late call rules Kohlmann's forehand return long -- 7-7
- JvL: Van Lottum swings a clutch ace out wide -- 8-7 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- MK: Kuerten's backhand return barely misses the sideline -- 8-8
- MK: Kohlmann comes up with a service winner -- 9-8 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
- GK: Kuerten comes in, but his backhand volley floats long -- 10-8 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
Despite blowing two set points there, Kuerten and Van Lottum stormed
out to a 5-2 lead in the second set. Guga failed to serve it out at
5-3 and Van Lottum had a lot of trouble getting to 6-5, but the set
finally went to the Brazilian-Dutch coalition, 7 points to 5 in another
tiebreak. Court 13 was an absolute packed house now, with seatless
fans standing three rows deep for a glimpse of the action. They liked
what they saw as Kuerten and Van Lottum broke Kohlmann for a 3-2 lead
in the final set.
Nearing victory at 4-3 in the third, Guga got into a 15-40 hole on
his serve. He saved the first break point with an ace, but then Knowle
smacked a two-handed winner to get the set knotted up at 4 games
apiece. An enthusiastic fist pump from Kohlmann showed how much the
German wanted to come out on top in this marathon duel. He held his
own serve for a 5-4 lead.
At deuce in Game 10, Kohlmann reached match point with a superb running
forehand pass. Van Lottum answered right back with an unreturnable
serve, punctuated with a fist pump of his own. Two more service
winners followed, extending the third set to 5-5. Knowle held easily
for 6-5, but Kuerten was even more convincing, putting in four
consecutive first serves, none of them returned in play. For the
third and final time, these four warriors were going into a tiebreak...
- MK: Unforced error from Kuerten -- 1-0 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
- JvL: Forced error from Kohlmann -- 1-1
- JvL: Van Lottum blasts a service winner -- 2-1 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- JK: Knowle replies with a service winner -- 2-2
- JK: Kohlmann knocks off a high backhand volley -- 3-2 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
- GK: Winning backhand volley by Van Lottum -- 3-3
- GK: Kohlmann tries a lob, but it lands long -- 4-3 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- MK: Kuerten's backhand return is wide -- 4-4
- MK: Van Lottum rips a winning backhand return down the line for a mini-break -- 5-4 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- JvL: Kuerten indecisively fans on a high backhand volley, barely grazing the ball -- 5-5
- JvL: Kuerten spanks a winning forehand volley this time -- 6-5 KUERTEN/VAN LOTTUM
- JK: Match-saving reflex backhand volley winner for a stoked Kohlmann -- 6-6
- JK: Van Lottum's lob nearly catches the sideline -- 7-6 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
- GK: Van Lottum ends a nice rally with a big smash -- 7-7
- GK: Knowle guides a winning return down the line -- 8-7 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
- MK: Kohlmann ends it with an ace...? -- 9-7 KNOWLE/KOHLMANN
As soon as his first serve landed, Michael Kohlmann threw his arms into
the air, celebrating an apparent victory. John van Lottum was just as
certain that the ball had landed wide, however, and he insistently
pointed at a mark with his racket. The pro-Kuerten crowd began to boo,
but the ace call stood. A controversial end to a nearly three hour
classic, won by Knowle and Kohlmann 7-6, 6-7, 7-6.
Luxa/Skoch vs. A Kim/Salzenstein
Men's Doubles: First Round
Court 15
I know, I know, you've had enough of the Czech doubles specialists.
But while you might not give a damn about Martin Damm, you should care
a skoch about David Skoch. Why? Simply because he has the worst
hair in men's tennis. Mere words can't do it justice, but the two
that come closest are mullet helmet. *shudder* Oh, and if
you're keeping score at home, worst hair in women's tennis goes to
Denisa Chladkova's too-short-for-military-service peach fuzz.
There were a couple American wild cards in action here. Jeff Salzenstein
hasn't played much doubles in recent years, but with a big lefty serve
and considerable net skills, he's got the game for it. Alex Kim, on
the other hand, is a steady retriever type whose skills are best
utilized in singles. None too surprisingly, it was Kim making
back-to-back volley errors in Game 3, more or less breaking his own
serve.
With his parents looking on from the third row, Salzenstein continued
racking up free points in his service games. He and Kim even had a
couple break chances against Skoch in Game 6, but the Czechs held
firm, with David putting away a volley for a 4-2 lead. A love break of Kim
followed and Alex dejectedly tossed his racket to his chair.
Wrapping up the opening set in 27 minutes, Peter Luxa held at love.
The Americans got off to a better start in the second set, but eventually
fell 6-2, 6-4.
(30) Magui Serna vs. Maria Sanchez Lorenzo
Women's Singles: Second Round
Court 6
Court 6 has been very good to Maria Antonia Sanchez Lorenzo. She
eked out a three set thriller over Janet Lee on that court four years
ago and survived a stiff challenge from qualifer Yulia Beygelzimer on
Tuesday. Now came the real test: a meeting with 30th seeded Magui
Serna, a fellow Spaniard who shares Sanchez Lorenzo's preference for
hard courts.
Sanchez Lorenzo came out playing aggressive, confident tennis, winning
her service games with ease. It was more of a struggle for Serna.
Not a picture of peak fitness at her best, Magui looked downright
roly-poly at the Open. More importantly, she was having trouble keeping
her forehands in the court. Putting in clutch first serves when she
needed them, Serna managed to save five break points on the way to 5-5
in the opening set.
Sanchez Lorenzo got tight in Game 11, opening with back-to-back double
faults and bouncing her racket. Serna looked headed for her first
break at 0-30, throwing a nice lob over Sanchez Lorenzo's head. But
Maria wheeled around, chased it down, and flipped an equally good lob
over her shoulder, winning the point when Serna netted the resulting
overhead. Sanchez Lorenzo ran off three straight points from there,
holding to 6-5.
Serna had a 40-0 lead in Game 12, but Sanchez Lorenzo defiantly hung
around, staving off a grand total of seven game points. After the
fifth deuce, a laboring Serna popped a drop shot wide, giving Sanchez
Lorenzo the day's first set point. Maria cashed it in, driving a
backhand winner into the corner, past the outstretched racket of
Serna.
The 7-5 first set had been a mentally and physically taxing war.
Sanchez Lorenzo prevailed, but looked to be in genuine distress as she
asked for a bathroom break and left the court. Sure enough, she
dropped serve for the first time in the match upon returning. Another
long game followed, with Serna saving four break points before throwing
in a double fault and her latest wild forehand error for 1-1.
Sanchez Lorenzo held easily to 2-1, seeming to have gotten her
second wind. Serna, meanwhile, had lost the plot completely. She
gagged on a routine smash to end Game 4, leaving Sanchez Lorenzo up
a set and a break.
Sanchez Lorenzo overcame a couple double faults to hold for 4-1, then
broke at love to claim a 5-1 lead in the second set. Serna put up a
brave fight in the following game, rallying from 30-0 to 30-40.
But Sanchez Lorenzo uncorked a service winner and the game continued.
Serna let a second break chance slip away on her umpteenth forehand
error. Two points later, Magui misfired with one last forehand,
making the 7-5, 6-1 final score official. It
was definitely an off day for the 30th seed, but give all due credit
to Maria Sanchez Lorenzo. She served well, hit the best overheads
I've ever seen from her, and showed remarkable grit in some long,
critical games.
(6) Dementieva/Krasnoroutskaya vs. Molik/Serna
Women's Doubles: First Round
Court 8
Not very long after her disappointing singles performance on Court 6,
Magui Serna was right back at it, playing doubles with hard serving
Alicia Molik next door on Court 8. They'd be underdogs here, facing
the all-Russian combination of Elena Dementieva and Lina Krasnoroutskaya.
Simply pronouncing Lina's last name correctly was a victory for the
chair umpire, who said it very slowly, then smiled and proudly
gave thumbs up to a linesman.
Three of the players opened with successful service games, but
Serna was having a hangover from singles. She got down 0-40 in Game 4,
fought back to 30-40, and lost the game when Molik knifed a backhand
volley wide. Krasnoroutskaya was in a generous mood, though, double
faulting twice as she handed the break right back for 3-2. A beautiful
drop volley by the big Aussie ended Game 6 in favor of Molik/Serna.
If you've seen Elena Dementieva play this year, you know she's
developed a terrible mental block while serving. Particularly on
second serves, she chases bad tosses and hits hideous, slow-paced,
sidearm knuckleballs which either get pounced on or miss the service
box altogether. That was the case in Game 7, an easy break for Molik
and Serna. Magui just could not get it together on her own serve,
though. She made multiple volley errors, getting broken again as this
topsy-turvy set went to 4 games all.
After a Kransoroutskaya hold, the pressure was on Molik at 4-5. She
got down 30-40, but Lina missed an angled touch volley to blow set
point. Another Krasnoroutskaya miscue (netting a forehand approach)
took the score to 5-5. Dementieva finally had an uncomplicated service
game, even thumping an ace on the way to 6-5. Now it was up to Magui
Serna. 0-for-2 serving so far in the set, could she redeem herself?
Down 30-40, 6-footer Alicia Molik smacked an overhead to save another
set point. The game dragged on for four deuces, Molik and Serna each
squandering opportunities to force a tiebreak. Another bad volley by
Serna brought up set point # 3. Krasnoroutskaya made the most of this
one, stepping into a textbook backhand return, lacing it down the line
to win the opening set 7-5.
Molik's vaunted serve was broken in the second game of the second set.
The same happened to Serna (for the fourth time in four tries) as the
Russians upped their lead to 4-0. Molik finally got on the board for
1-5, but there would be no miracle comeback on this day. Dementieva
was a little shaky in closing it out, but got the job done. Deja vu
all over again for Magui Serna, losing twice in one day by the same
7-5, 6-1 score.
(6) Husarova/Friedl vs. Washington/Tarango
Mixed Doubles: First Round
Court 9
The 2003 US Open will be remembered as the tournament at which Pete
Sampras and Michael Chang formally said goodbye. With much less
fanfare, one of their American contemporaries (who regularly beat
Sampras in the juniors) would make his own retirement official. "I sure
hope you're fast," Jeff Tarango said to mixed doubles partner Mashona
Washington during a pre-match practice session. Warming up for what --
barring an upset -- would be the final match of his professional tennis
career, the fiery lefty was in good spirits. He could even be seen
joking around with Ashley Harkleroad (sharing the practice court in
preparation for her own doubles match) and Ashley's coach Jay Berger.
A winner of 16 ATP titles (2 of them in singles), Jeff had the USTA to
thank for this swan song. They had granted a wild card to the team of
Tarango and Washington. No such exemption was required for
Janette Husarova and Leos Friedl, two of the world's finer doubles
players. They looked strong early on, breaking Mashona's serve for a
3-1 lead. Tarango pulled as many tricks out of his bag as she could
in the latter stages of the set. He put some backspin on a nifty
drop volley in Game 6 and poached out of the I-formation in Game 7.
Husarova and Friedl were too solid at the net, however, and they had
little trouble closing out a 6-4 win of the opening set.
Tarango held to open the second set and got a golden 15-40 opportunity
against Friedl's serve in Game 2. Washington lost both break points
on errors, though, and badly missed a volley at the end of Game 4,
dropping serve for the second time in the match. The Czech-Slovak
team had a 6-4, 3-1 lead and was showing no mercy. Friedl nearly
knocked Washington down with one big body serve and cranked a couple
aces in a love hold for 4-2.
Rather than exhibit his famous temper, Tarango continued thinking
positively. "That's the one," he said, encouraging Washington after
she opened Game 8 with a winning return. Yet Husarova pulled out of a 0-30
deficit to hold for 5-3, putting the next-to-last nail in Tarango's
coffin. Jeff did manage to hold serve at love, forcing Leos Friedl
to serve it out.
Up 40-0, Friedl went for a big second serve,
double faulting to extend the match. At 40-15, a Friedl forehand
clipped the tape, hopped over, and bounced twice before Mashona
could track it down. Jeff managed a rueful smile and shook hands
with the deserving 6-4, 6-4 winners. There were no tears, no
tributes, no standing ovation. Tarango cheerfully posed for a picture
with Washington, signed a few autographs, and walked back to the locker
room for the last time.
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Last updated 26 September 2015
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