sseemiller
Rookie
Well, Guga beat Gasquet, and Coria moved ahead. He doesn't seem too concerned about any soon-to-be announced scandal. :?
Costa Do Sauipe
RESULTS - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2004
Singles - Second Round
(3)G Kuerten (BRA) d R Gasquet (FRA) 76(3) 63
(4)A Calleri (ARG) d (Q)F Verdasco (ESP) 64 64
(Q)F Squillari (ARG) d (7)G Gaudio (ARG) 76(3) 63
(8)J Chela (ARG) d D Ferrer (ESP) 62 64
T Behrend (GER) d R Ramirez Hidalgo (ESP) 62 62
J Acasuso (ARG) d F Volandri (ITA) 76(4) 62
G Blanco (ESP) d A Montanes (ESP) 62 76(4)
L Horna (PER) d (Q)J Monaco (ARG) 64 61
Doubles - First Round
Lopez Moron/Portas d (1)Arnold/Hood 57 64 64
(2)Aspelin/Bertolini d Gaudio/Roitman 62 76(3)
(4)Kerr/Perry d Browne/Calleri 75 67(3) 63
Sa/Saretta d Bowen/Fisher 63 76(4)
DRAWS
For the Brasil Open singles draw, go to: <http://www.atptennis.com/posting/2004/533/MDS.pdf>
For the Brasil Open doubles draw, go to: <http://www.atptennis.com/posting/2004/533/MDD.pdf>
ORDER OF PLAY - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2004
Center Court start 2:30 PM
(3)Garcia/Prieto vs (WC)Ferreiro/Melo
(8)J Chela (ARG) vs (4)A Calleri (ARG)
Not before 6:00 PM
T Behrend (GER) vs J Acasuso (ARG)
Not before 8:15 PM
(3)G Kuerten (BRA) vs (Q)F Squillari (ARG)
Court 1 start 4:00 PM
G Blanco (ESP) vs L Horna (PER)
Fyrstenberg/Matkowski vs (2)Aspelin/Bertolini
Sa/Saretta vs (4)Kerr/Perry
Court 2 start 2:30 PM
Lopez Moron/Portas vs Behrend/Friedl
ATP MEDIA NOTES - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2004
KUERTEN DEFEATS GASQUET TO REACH QUARTERFINALS
Third seed Gustavo Kuerten played some of his best tennis of the clay court swing to defeat Frenchman Richard Gasquet 7-6(3), 6-3 and advance to the quarterfinals of the Brasil Open. Kuerten is hoping to reach his second final in three weeks, having reached the Vina del Mar final two weeks ago.
Fourth seed Agustin Calleri improved to 8-4 on the season by defeating Spanish qualifier Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-4 and advancing to his first quarterfinal since the first week of the season, when he reached the Doha semifinals.
Eighth seed Juan Ignacio Chela reached his first quarterfinal of the clay swing - and the season - when he defeated David Ferrer 6-2, 6-4.
Seventh seed Gaston Gaudio was the only seed to fall on Wednesday, beaten 6-2, 7-6(4) by Galo Blanco.
WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID
Calleri: "It was tough since at 2.30 it is very hot. But I know this is for both. I am playing well and as I said before I hope I can do well in these 2 last tournaments of the Latin American Swing."
Acasuso: "I hope this is going to be my year. Hopefully the injuries will stay away from me and I will be able to play my tennis and enjoy this great sport."
Kuerten: "I expected to play better than yesterday and I think I gained confidence during the match. Until 5-1 in the second I was playing unbelievable tennis but I lost a bit of concentration there and lost those two games before closing the match. I am happy to be in quarters again and to make the step towards a semi-final at home."
Blanco: "I feel recovered from the injury I had the past two weeks. This is great that I am reaching a quarterfinal again since some time now."
Squillari: "I have played a lot of matches in the past weeks; I think I am the player with more matches played on clay this year, and this gives me a lot of confidence. I feel I can win a tournament soon; at least I hope so."
QUARTERFINAL MATCHES
Third seed Gustavo Kuerten will hope to repeat his second-round Vina del Mar straight-sets win over Argentine qualifier Franco Squillari when the players meet again in the Costa Do Sauipe quarterfinals. Kuerten is 11-4 on the season and is hoping to win his first clay court title since he won five clay events in 2001. Squillari is appearing in his first quarterfinal of the season.
German Tomas Behrend entered Costa Do Sauipe without a win to his name this season but now stands one match away from his first career ATP semifinal appearance. Behrend took out top seed Carlos Moya in the first round (he now leads Moya 2-0 in career meetings) and on Thursday faces Argentine Jose Acasuso.
Eighth seed Juan Ignacio Chela will be hoping that his 3-1 record over fourth seed Agustin Calleri in the 2003 season will give him an edge when the countrymen battle for a semifinal spot. Chela is appearing in his first quarterfinal of the year.
Galo Blanco did not reach an ATP semifinal last year but is now just one win away from the last four. The Spaniard, whose lone career title came in San Marino in 1999, plays Peru's Luis Horna, who reached semifinals in Amersfoort, Sopot and Palermo last year.
Tomas Behrend (GER) vs Jose Acasuso (ARG) Behrend Leads 1-0
00 Guadalajara CH (Mexico) Clay R32 Tomas Behrend 1-6 6-3 6-4
01 Bucharest (Romania) Clay R32 Tomas Behrend 7-6(7) 6-4
Behrend FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 2-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: December 12, 1974
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 135T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 103
Acasuso FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Buenos Aires (l Moya);
YTD W-L: 6-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: October 20, 1982
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 54T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 92
Gustavo Kuerten (BRA) vs Franco Squillari (ARG) Kuerten Leads 2-1
96 Kitzbuhel (Austria) Clay R64 Franco Squillari 6-1 6-2
01 Rome TMS (Italy) Clay R16 Gustavo Kuerten 6-1 6-2
04 Vina del Mar (Chile) Clay R16 Gustavo Kuerten 6-1 7-6(2)
Kuerten FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
F: Vina del Mar (l Gonzalez); SF: Auckland (l Hrbaty);
YTD W-L: 11-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 19
Date of Birth: September 10, 1976
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 14T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 17
Squillari FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-2
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 3
Date of Birth: August 22, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 105T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 133
Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG) vs Agustin Calleri (ARG) Calleri Leads 4-3
99 Punta Del Este CH (Uruguay) Clay R16 Agustin Calleri 7-6 3-6 6-1
01 Sao Paulo-3 CH (Brazil) Clay F Agustin Calleri 6-4 6-3
02 Buenos Aires (Argentina) Clay SF Agustin Calleri 6-4 6-4
03 Buenos Aires (Argentina) Clay R16 Juan Ignacio Chela 7-5 7-5
03 Monte Carlo TMS (Monaco) Clay R64 Juan Ignacio Chela 6-4 6-1
03 Barcelona (Spain) Clay R32 Agustin Calleri 7-6(5) 6-2
03 Canada TMS (Canada) Hard R64 Juan Ignacio Chela 5-7 6-4 6-3
Chela FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 5-5
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: August 30, 1979
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 64
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 41
Calleri FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Doha (l Escude);
YTD W-L: 8-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: September 14, 1976
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 34T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 21
Galo Blanco (ESP) vs Luis Horna (PER) Horna Leads 1-0
00 Santiago CH (Chile) Clay R16 Luis Horna 5-7 6-1 6-3
Blanco FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: October 8, 1976
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 81T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 87
Horna FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-6
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: September 14, 1980
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 105T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 68
Marseille
RESULTS - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25
Singles - First Round
M Rosset (SUI) d D Sanguinetti (ITA) 61 76(4)
(WC) C Saulnier (FRA) d (Q) J Knowle (AUT) 61 63
R Soderling d (SE) T Enqvist (SWE) 76(4) 76(1)
G Carraz (FRA) d (1) JC Ferrero (ESP) 76(2) 67(3) 63
(4) M Mirnyi (BLR) d A Pavel (ROM) 46 76(5) 75
(6)A Costa (ESP) d H Arazi (MAR) 76(6) 76(2)
(WC-2) G Coria (ARG) d N Davydenko (RUS) 76(2) 63
D Hrbaty (SVK) d (Q) N Mahut (FRA) 63 75
Doubles - First Round
Erlich/Ram d Carraz/Clement 63 76(5)
Doubles - Quarterfinals
(1) Knowles/Nestor d Bachelot/De Chaunac 64 76(3)
(3) Hanley/Zimonjic d Escude/Safin W/O (Escude wrist)
ORDER OF PLAY - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26
Centre Court - 11:00 AM
(WC)C Saulnier (FRA) vs (4)M Mirnyi (BLR)
G Carraz (FRA) vs R Soderling (SWE)
(6)A Costa (ESP) vs D Hrbaty (SVK)
(Q)M Rosset (SUI) vs (2-WC)G Coria (ARG)
Starting at 7:30 PM
(8-WC)M Safin (RUS) vs J Bjorkman (SWE)
O Rochus (BEL) vs (7)A Clement (FRA)
Court 1 - 1:00 PM
(4)Palmer/Vizner vs Knowle/Vanhoudt
A Martin (ESP) vs S Sargsian (ARM)
J Nieminen (FIN) vs (5)F Gonzalez (CHI)
Erlich/Ram vs (2)Damm/Suk
ATP MEDIA NOTES – WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25
CARRAZ UPSETS TOP SEED FERRERO; NO. 2 CORIA AND NO. 4 MIRNYI ADVANCE
Frenchman Gregory Carraz posted the biggest win of his career on Wednesday by defeating top seed and No. 2 ranked Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-6(2), 6-7(3), 6-3, in two hours and 13 minutes in the first round. Carraz, who came into the match with an 0-6 career record against Top 10 players, fired 27 aces and saved five of six break points.
No. 2 seed and wild card entry Guillermo Coria, who captured his first ATP title of the season on Sunday in Buenos Aires (d. Moya), defeated Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-6(2), 6-3, in the first round. This was Coria's first indoor tournament of the season. Earlier this month in Morocco, he did win both of his Davis Cup indoor matches to lead Argentina to a 5-0 first round victory.
No. 4 seed Max Mirnyi rallied from behind to defeat Andrei Pavel 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-5, to reach the second round. Mirnyi, who advanced to the Rotterdam semifinals last week, improved his match record to 7-3 on the year.
Wild card entry and Marseille resident Cyril Saulnier defeated Austrian qualifier Julian Knowle 6-1, 6-3, to improve his match record to 7-4 on the season. Saulnier has advanced into the second round or better in all five tournaments he has played in this year.
Qualifier Marc Rosset, the oldest player in the singles draw at 33 and three-time champion in Marseille (1993-94, 2000) defeated Davide Sanguinetti 6-1, 7-6(4). The Swiss Davis Cup playing captain improved his career record to 24-4 in Marseille.
Swede Robin Soderling beat three-time Open 13 champion and countryman Thomas Enqvist 7-6(4), 7-6(1). Enqvist came into the tournament with a career record of 16-2 in Marseille.
WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID
Saulnier: "It's very important to be able to play at home, it's only one week during the year. And obviously you are always keen to do well when you get a wild card. That's why I'm really happy with this win even if I was the favorite against a qualifier."
Rosset: "It's all about being motivated to play at 33 years of age...I like it here, I've been coming to Marseille for quite a few years. It would be great to play (Guillermo) Coria in the second round, I like playing the new guys on the circuit, it will be a good test for me."
(On being Switzerland's Davis Cup playing captain. Switzerland will host France in the quarterfinals in April. "For me it is not a job, it is fun to do it. I don't think anyone can say that is a job. I have a lot more things that I do in my life so I cannot consider that a job."
Carraz: "I'd never beaten a Top 10 player before and to win against the No. 2 moreover in France, it is a great satisfaction. It wasn't the best match I played in my career but certainly the biggest win. It helped me having played him in Bangkok last year. I served for the match then but got broken and then beaten. I was serving to his forehand in Bangkok and this time I decided to serve to his backhand and it paid off."
Ferrero: "I played him in Bangkok last year and it was very tough already then. He serves well, volleys well, especially the first volley which is very deep and puts me in the defensive. He's a very good player on these kind of courts and he played very well today. But I was feeling tired after all the long matches in Rotterdam, my legs are heavy and I could not get to the ball as quickly as I wanted to. I have two weeks to recover and get ready for the (ATP Masters Series in) Indian Wells and Miami followed by Mallorca (Davis Cup), Valencia and Monte Carlo."
Coria: "I'm very happy to have won this match, especially coming from slow clay in Argentina, playing on a much faster surface indoor here against a tough opponent. I am really tired from the long flight but hope to win the tournament here too."
THURSDAY MATCHES
Six of the eight seeds remaining in the field are in action on Thursday, led by No. 2 seed Guillermo Coria, No. 4 Max Mirnyi, No. 5 Fernando Gonzalez, No. 6 Albert Costa, No. 7 Arnaud Clement, and No. 8 Max Mirnyi. In addition, there are three French players (Carraz, Clement and Saulnier) left, the most of any country.
Leading off Thursday's program is Marseille resident Cyril Saulnier, who takes on Mirnyi. The Frenchman defeated Mirnyi in their last meeting in the second round at the Queen's Club in London last June.
Another Frenchman, Carraz, plays Robin Soderling for the first time in an ATP tournament. In their only previous meeting at the Milan Challenger in 2002, Carraz won 7-6, 6-4, in the quarterfinals. Carraz is attempting to reach his third ATP quarterfinal (or better) of the season.
Spaniard Albert Costa takes a 3-0 lifetime record against Dominik Hrbaty, who is one of two players (Hewitt) to capture two ATP titles this season. Hrbaty opened the year with back-to-back titles in Adelaide and Auckland and he is 7th in the INDESIT ATP 2004 Race.
Qualifier and three-time Marseille champion Marc Rosset plays Coria for the first time. Rosset is playing in his first ATP tournament of the season while Coria enters the second round with a 9-1 match record in 2004.
In the evening session, wild card and No. 8 seed Marat Safin takes a 4-2 lifetime advantage against Jonas Bjorkman but the Swede has won the last two meetings. Safin is trying to advance to his second quarterfinal of the season after reaching the Australian Open final earlier this month. Bjorkman was a finalist in Marseille last year (l. to Federer).
Another local favorite, Clement, who reached the Marseille final in 1999, has a 2-0 career mark against Rochus.
THURSDAY SECOND ROUND MATCHES --
Cyril Saulnier (FRA) vs Max Mirnyi (BLR) Series Tied 1-1
99 Andorra Challenger (Andorra) Hard QF Max Mirnyi 2-6 7-6(7) 6-4
03 London / Queen's Club (England) Grass R32 Cyril Saulnier 7-6(2) 6-4
Saulnier FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Adelaide (l Hrbaty); San Jose (l Kendrick);
YTD W-L: 7-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: August 16, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 42T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 69
* As of February 23, 2004
Mirnyi FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Rotterdam (l Ferrero);
YTD W-L: 7-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: July 6, 1977
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 45
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 28
* As of February 23, 2004
Gregory Carraz (FRA) vs Robin Soderling (SWE) Carraz Leads 1-0
02 Milan-1 Challenger (Italy) Carpet QF Gregory Carraz 7-6(3) 6-4
Carraz FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Milan (l Dupuis); QF: Auckland (l Nadal);
YTD W-L: 6-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: April 9, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 46T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 55
* As of February 23, 2004
Soderling FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: August 14, 1984
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 78T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 57
* As of February 23, 2004
Albert Costa (ESP) vs Dominik Hrbaty (SVK) Costa Leads 3-0
97 Boston (U.S.A.) Hard R32 Albert Costa 6-2 6-2
01 Monte Carlo TMS (Monaco) Clay R64 Albert Costa 7-5 6-4
01 US Open (U.S.A.) Hard R64 Albert Costa 6-4 6-4 7-6(5)
Costa FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 12
Date of Birth: June 25, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 52T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 23
* As of February 23, 2004
Hrbaty FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
W: Adelaide (d Llodra); Auckland (d Nadal);
YTD W-L: 13-2
YTD Titles: 2
Career Titles: 5
Date of Birth: January 4, 1978
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 7
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 44
* As of February 23, 2004
Marc Rosset (SUI) vs Guillermo Coria (ARG) First Meeting
Rosset FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 1-0
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 15
Date of Birth: November 7, 1970
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: N/A
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 122
* As of February 23, 2004
Coria FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
W: Buenos Aires (d Moya);
YTD W-L: 9-1
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 7
Date of Birth: January 13, 1982
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 23T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 4
* As of February 23, 2004
Marat Safin (RUS) vs Jonas Bjorkman (SWE) Safin Leads 4-2
00 Copenhagen (Denmark) Hard QF Marat Safin 6-4 6-4
00 Toronto TMS (Canada) Hard R64 Marat Safin 6-4 1-6 6-3
00 St. Petersburg (Russia) Hard SF Marat Safin 6-4 6-4
01 Rome TMS (Italy) Clay R64 Marat Safin 6-2 3-6 7-5
02 Auckland (New Zealand) Hard R16 Jonas Bjorkman 6-3 4-6 6-3
03 Madrid TMS (Spain) Hard R64 Jonas Bjorkman 4-6 7-5 6-4
Safin FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
F: Australian Open (l Federer);
YTD W-L: 7-2
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 11
Date of Birth: January 27, 1980
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 2
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 30
* As of February 23, 2004
Bjorkman FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Doha (l Calleri);
YTD W-L: 4-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 5
Date of Birth: March 23, 1972
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 67T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 37
* As of February 23, 2004
Olivier Rochus (BEL) vs Arnaud Clement (FRA) Clement Leads 2-0
02 Miami TMS (U.S.A.) Hard R128 Arnaud Clement 6-2 7-5
02 Wimbledon (England) Grass R32 Arnaud Clement 6-0 7-5 6-3
Rochus FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 1-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: January 18, 1981
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 135T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 52
* As of February 23, 2004
Clement FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Sydney (l Hewitt);
YTD W-L: 6-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: December 17, 1977
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 78T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 25
* As of February 23, 2004
Alberto Martin (ESP) vs Sargis Sargsian (ARM) First Meeting
Martin FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 3
Date of Birth: August 20, 1978
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 74T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 61
* As of February 23, 2004
Sargsian FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Doha (l Henman);
YTD W-L: 5-5
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: June 3, 1973
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 48
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 42
* As of February 23, 2004
Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) vs Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) Gonzalez Leads 2-0
03 Roland Garros (France) Clay R16 Fernando Gonzalez 6-3 6-3 6-2
03 Stuttgart (Germany) Clay R16 Fernando Gonzalez 7-6(2) 6-7(5) 6-3
Nieminen FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Adelaide (l Hrbaty); QF: Rotterdam (l Mirnyi);
YTD W-L: 8-5
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: July 23, 1981
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 30T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 35
* As of February 23, 2004
Gonzalez FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
W: Vina del Mar (d Kuerten);
YTD W-L: 7-3
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 4
Date of Birth: July 29, 1980
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 27T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 24
* As of February 23, 2004
Costa Do Sauipe
RESULTS - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2004
Singles - Second Round
(3)G Kuerten (BRA) d R Gasquet (FRA) 76(3) 63
(4)A Calleri (ARG) d (Q)F Verdasco (ESP) 64 64
(Q)F Squillari (ARG) d (7)G Gaudio (ARG) 76(3) 63
(8)J Chela (ARG) d D Ferrer (ESP) 62 64
T Behrend (GER) d R Ramirez Hidalgo (ESP) 62 62
J Acasuso (ARG) d F Volandri (ITA) 76(4) 62
G Blanco (ESP) d A Montanes (ESP) 62 76(4)
L Horna (PER) d (Q)J Monaco (ARG) 64 61
Doubles - First Round
Lopez Moron/Portas d (1)Arnold/Hood 57 64 64
(2)Aspelin/Bertolini d Gaudio/Roitman 62 76(3)
(4)Kerr/Perry d Browne/Calleri 75 67(3) 63
Sa/Saretta d Bowen/Fisher 63 76(4)
DRAWS
For the Brasil Open singles draw, go to: <http://www.atptennis.com/posting/2004/533/MDS.pdf>
For the Brasil Open doubles draw, go to: <http://www.atptennis.com/posting/2004/533/MDD.pdf>
ORDER OF PLAY - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2004
Center Court start 2:30 PM
(3)Garcia/Prieto vs (WC)Ferreiro/Melo
(8)J Chela (ARG) vs (4)A Calleri (ARG)
Not before 6:00 PM
T Behrend (GER) vs J Acasuso (ARG)
Not before 8:15 PM
(3)G Kuerten (BRA) vs (Q)F Squillari (ARG)
Court 1 start 4:00 PM
G Blanco (ESP) vs L Horna (PER)
Fyrstenberg/Matkowski vs (2)Aspelin/Bertolini
Sa/Saretta vs (4)Kerr/Perry
Court 2 start 2:30 PM
Lopez Moron/Portas vs Behrend/Friedl
ATP MEDIA NOTES - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2004
KUERTEN DEFEATS GASQUET TO REACH QUARTERFINALS
Third seed Gustavo Kuerten played some of his best tennis of the clay court swing to defeat Frenchman Richard Gasquet 7-6(3), 6-3 and advance to the quarterfinals of the Brasil Open. Kuerten is hoping to reach his second final in three weeks, having reached the Vina del Mar final two weeks ago.
Fourth seed Agustin Calleri improved to 8-4 on the season by defeating Spanish qualifier Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-4 and advancing to his first quarterfinal since the first week of the season, when he reached the Doha semifinals.
Eighth seed Juan Ignacio Chela reached his first quarterfinal of the clay swing - and the season - when he defeated David Ferrer 6-2, 6-4.
Seventh seed Gaston Gaudio was the only seed to fall on Wednesday, beaten 6-2, 7-6(4) by Galo Blanco.
WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID
Calleri: "It was tough since at 2.30 it is very hot. But I know this is for both. I am playing well and as I said before I hope I can do well in these 2 last tournaments of the Latin American Swing."
Acasuso: "I hope this is going to be my year. Hopefully the injuries will stay away from me and I will be able to play my tennis and enjoy this great sport."
Kuerten: "I expected to play better than yesterday and I think I gained confidence during the match. Until 5-1 in the second I was playing unbelievable tennis but I lost a bit of concentration there and lost those two games before closing the match. I am happy to be in quarters again and to make the step towards a semi-final at home."
Blanco: "I feel recovered from the injury I had the past two weeks. This is great that I am reaching a quarterfinal again since some time now."
Squillari: "I have played a lot of matches in the past weeks; I think I am the player with more matches played on clay this year, and this gives me a lot of confidence. I feel I can win a tournament soon; at least I hope so."
QUARTERFINAL MATCHES
Third seed Gustavo Kuerten will hope to repeat his second-round Vina del Mar straight-sets win over Argentine qualifier Franco Squillari when the players meet again in the Costa Do Sauipe quarterfinals. Kuerten is 11-4 on the season and is hoping to win his first clay court title since he won five clay events in 2001. Squillari is appearing in his first quarterfinal of the season.
German Tomas Behrend entered Costa Do Sauipe without a win to his name this season but now stands one match away from his first career ATP semifinal appearance. Behrend took out top seed Carlos Moya in the first round (he now leads Moya 2-0 in career meetings) and on Thursday faces Argentine Jose Acasuso.
Eighth seed Juan Ignacio Chela will be hoping that his 3-1 record over fourth seed Agustin Calleri in the 2003 season will give him an edge when the countrymen battle for a semifinal spot. Chela is appearing in his first quarterfinal of the year.
Galo Blanco did not reach an ATP semifinal last year but is now just one win away from the last four. The Spaniard, whose lone career title came in San Marino in 1999, plays Peru's Luis Horna, who reached semifinals in Amersfoort, Sopot and Palermo last year.
Tomas Behrend (GER) vs Jose Acasuso (ARG) Behrend Leads 1-0
00 Guadalajara CH (Mexico) Clay R32 Tomas Behrend 1-6 6-3 6-4
01 Bucharest (Romania) Clay R32 Tomas Behrend 7-6(7) 6-4
Behrend FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 2-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: December 12, 1974
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 135T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 103
Acasuso FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Buenos Aires (l Moya);
YTD W-L: 6-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: October 20, 1982
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 54T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 92
Gustavo Kuerten (BRA) vs Franco Squillari (ARG) Kuerten Leads 2-1
96 Kitzbuhel (Austria) Clay R64 Franco Squillari 6-1 6-2
01 Rome TMS (Italy) Clay R16 Gustavo Kuerten 6-1 6-2
04 Vina del Mar (Chile) Clay R16 Gustavo Kuerten 6-1 7-6(2)
Kuerten FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
F: Vina del Mar (l Gonzalez); SF: Auckland (l Hrbaty);
YTD W-L: 11-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 19
Date of Birth: September 10, 1976
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 14T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 17
Squillari FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-2
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 3
Date of Birth: August 22, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 105T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 133
Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG) vs Agustin Calleri (ARG) Calleri Leads 4-3
99 Punta Del Este CH (Uruguay) Clay R16 Agustin Calleri 7-6 3-6 6-1
01 Sao Paulo-3 CH (Brazil) Clay F Agustin Calleri 6-4 6-3
02 Buenos Aires (Argentina) Clay SF Agustin Calleri 6-4 6-4
03 Buenos Aires (Argentina) Clay R16 Juan Ignacio Chela 7-5 7-5
03 Monte Carlo TMS (Monaco) Clay R64 Juan Ignacio Chela 6-4 6-1
03 Barcelona (Spain) Clay R32 Agustin Calleri 7-6(5) 6-2
03 Canada TMS (Canada) Hard R64 Juan Ignacio Chela 5-7 6-4 6-3
Chela FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 5-5
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: August 30, 1979
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 64
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 41
Calleri FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Doha (l Escude);
YTD W-L: 8-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: September 14, 1976
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 34T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 21
Galo Blanco (ESP) vs Luis Horna (PER) Horna Leads 1-0
00 Santiago CH (Chile) Clay R16 Luis Horna 5-7 6-1 6-3
Blanco FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: October 8, 1976
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 81T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 87
Horna FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-6
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: September 14, 1980
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 105T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 68
Marseille
RESULTS - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25
Singles - First Round
M Rosset (SUI) d D Sanguinetti (ITA) 61 76(4)
(WC) C Saulnier (FRA) d (Q) J Knowle (AUT) 61 63
R Soderling d (SE) T Enqvist (SWE) 76(4) 76(1)
G Carraz (FRA) d (1) JC Ferrero (ESP) 76(2) 67(3) 63
(4) M Mirnyi (BLR) d A Pavel (ROM) 46 76(5) 75
(6)A Costa (ESP) d H Arazi (MAR) 76(6) 76(2)
(WC-2) G Coria (ARG) d N Davydenko (RUS) 76(2) 63
D Hrbaty (SVK) d (Q) N Mahut (FRA) 63 75
Doubles - First Round
Erlich/Ram d Carraz/Clement 63 76(5)
Doubles - Quarterfinals
(1) Knowles/Nestor d Bachelot/De Chaunac 64 76(3)
(3) Hanley/Zimonjic d Escude/Safin W/O (Escude wrist)
ORDER OF PLAY - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26
Centre Court - 11:00 AM
(WC)C Saulnier (FRA) vs (4)M Mirnyi (BLR)
G Carraz (FRA) vs R Soderling (SWE)
(6)A Costa (ESP) vs D Hrbaty (SVK)
(Q)M Rosset (SUI) vs (2-WC)G Coria (ARG)
Starting at 7:30 PM
(8-WC)M Safin (RUS) vs J Bjorkman (SWE)
O Rochus (BEL) vs (7)A Clement (FRA)
Court 1 - 1:00 PM
(4)Palmer/Vizner vs Knowle/Vanhoudt
A Martin (ESP) vs S Sargsian (ARM)
J Nieminen (FIN) vs (5)F Gonzalez (CHI)
Erlich/Ram vs (2)Damm/Suk
ATP MEDIA NOTES – WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25
CARRAZ UPSETS TOP SEED FERRERO; NO. 2 CORIA AND NO. 4 MIRNYI ADVANCE
Frenchman Gregory Carraz posted the biggest win of his career on Wednesday by defeating top seed and No. 2 ranked Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-6(2), 6-7(3), 6-3, in two hours and 13 minutes in the first round. Carraz, who came into the match with an 0-6 career record against Top 10 players, fired 27 aces and saved five of six break points.
No. 2 seed and wild card entry Guillermo Coria, who captured his first ATP title of the season on Sunday in Buenos Aires (d. Moya), defeated Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-6(2), 6-3, in the first round. This was Coria's first indoor tournament of the season. Earlier this month in Morocco, he did win both of his Davis Cup indoor matches to lead Argentina to a 5-0 first round victory.
No. 4 seed Max Mirnyi rallied from behind to defeat Andrei Pavel 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-5, to reach the second round. Mirnyi, who advanced to the Rotterdam semifinals last week, improved his match record to 7-3 on the year.
Wild card entry and Marseille resident Cyril Saulnier defeated Austrian qualifier Julian Knowle 6-1, 6-3, to improve his match record to 7-4 on the season. Saulnier has advanced into the second round or better in all five tournaments he has played in this year.
Qualifier Marc Rosset, the oldest player in the singles draw at 33 and three-time champion in Marseille (1993-94, 2000) defeated Davide Sanguinetti 6-1, 7-6(4). The Swiss Davis Cup playing captain improved his career record to 24-4 in Marseille.
Swede Robin Soderling beat three-time Open 13 champion and countryman Thomas Enqvist 7-6(4), 7-6(1). Enqvist came into the tournament with a career record of 16-2 in Marseille.
WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID
Saulnier: "It's very important to be able to play at home, it's only one week during the year. And obviously you are always keen to do well when you get a wild card. That's why I'm really happy with this win even if I was the favorite against a qualifier."
Rosset: "It's all about being motivated to play at 33 years of age...I like it here, I've been coming to Marseille for quite a few years. It would be great to play (Guillermo) Coria in the second round, I like playing the new guys on the circuit, it will be a good test for me."
(On being Switzerland's Davis Cup playing captain. Switzerland will host France in the quarterfinals in April. "For me it is not a job, it is fun to do it. I don't think anyone can say that is a job. I have a lot more things that I do in my life so I cannot consider that a job."
Carraz: "I'd never beaten a Top 10 player before and to win against the No. 2 moreover in France, it is a great satisfaction. It wasn't the best match I played in my career but certainly the biggest win. It helped me having played him in Bangkok last year. I served for the match then but got broken and then beaten. I was serving to his forehand in Bangkok and this time I decided to serve to his backhand and it paid off."
Ferrero: "I played him in Bangkok last year and it was very tough already then. He serves well, volleys well, especially the first volley which is very deep and puts me in the defensive. He's a very good player on these kind of courts and he played very well today. But I was feeling tired after all the long matches in Rotterdam, my legs are heavy and I could not get to the ball as quickly as I wanted to. I have two weeks to recover and get ready for the (ATP Masters Series in) Indian Wells and Miami followed by Mallorca (Davis Cup), Valencia and Monte Carlo."
Coria: "I'm very happy to have won this match, especially coming from slow clay in Argentina, playing on a much faster surface indoor here against a tough opponent. I am really tired from the long flight but hope to win the tournament here too."
THURSDAY MATCHES
Six of the eight seeds remaining in the field are in action on Thursday, led by No. 2 seed Guillermo Coria, No. 4 Max Mirnyi, No. 5 Fernando Gonzalez, No. 6 Albert Costa, No. 7 Arnaud Clement, and No. 8 Max Mirnyi. In addition, there are three French players (Carraz, Clement and Saulnier) left, the most of any country.
Leading off Thursday's program is Marseille resident Cyril Saulnier, who takes on Mirnyi. The Frenchman defeated Mirnyi in their last meeting in the second round at the Queen's Club in London last June.
Another Frenchman, Carraz, plays Robin Soderling for the first time in an ATP tournament. In their only previous meeting at the Milan Challenger in 2002, Carraz won 7-6, 6-4, in the quarterfinals. Carraz is attempting to reach his third ATP quarterfinal (or better) of the season.
Spaniard Albert Costa takes a 3-0 lifetime record against Dominik Hrbaty, who is one of two players (Hewitt) to capture two ATP titles this season. Hrbaty opened the year with back-to-back titles in Adelaide and Auckland and he is 7th in the INDESIT ATP 2004 Race.
Qualifier and three-time Marseille champion Marc Rosset plays Coria for the first time. Rosset is playing in his first ATP tournament of the season while Coria enters the second round with a 9-1 match record in 2004.
In the evening session, wild card and No. 8 seed Marat Safin takes a 4-2 lifetime advantage against Jonas Bjorkman but the Swede has won the last two meetings. Safin is trying to advance to his second quarterfinal of the season after reaching the Australian Open final earlier this month. Bjorkman was a finalist in Marseille last year (l. to Federer).
Another local favorite, Clement, who reached the Marseille final in 1999, has a 2-0 career mark against Rochus.
THURSDAY SECOND ROUND MATCHES --
Cyril Saulnier (FRA) vs Max Mirnyi (BLR) Series Tied 1-1
99 Andorra Challenger (Andorra) Hard QF Max Mirnyi 2-6 7-6(7) 6-4
03 London / Queen's Club (England) Grass R32 Cyril Saulnier 7-6(2) 6-4
Saulnier FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Adelaide (l Hrbaty); San Jose (l Kendrick);
YTD W-L: 7-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: August 16, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 42T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 69
* As of February 23, 2004
Mirnyi FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Rotterdam (l Ferrero);
YTD W-L: 7-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: July 6, 1977
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 45
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 28
* As of February 23, 2004
Gregory Carraz (FRA) vs Robin Soderling (SWE) Carraz Leads 1-0
02 Milan-1 Challenger (Italy) Carpet QF Gregory Carraz 7-6(3) 6-4
Carraz FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Milan (l Dupuis); QF: Auckland (l Nadal);
YTD W-L: 6-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: April 9, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 46T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 55
* As of February 23, 2004
Soderling FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: August 14, 1984
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 78T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 57
* As of February 23, 2004
Albert Costa (ESP) vs Dominik Hrbaty (SVK) Costa Leads 3-0
97 Boston (U.S.A.) Hard R32 Albert Costa 6-2 6-2
01 Monte Carlo TMS (Monaco) Clay R64 Albert Costa 7-5 6-4
01 US Open (U.S.A.) Hard R64 Albert Costa 6-4 6-4 7-6(5)
Costa FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 12
Date of Birth: June 25, 1975
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 52T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 23
* As of February 23, 2004
Hrbaty FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
W: Adelaide (d Llodra); Auckland (d Nadal);
YTD W-L: 13-2
YTD Titles: 2
Career Titles: 5
Date of Birth: January 4, 1978
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 7
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 44
* As of February 23, 2004
Marc Rosset (SUI) vs Guillermo Coria (ARG) First Meeting
Rosset FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 1-0
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 15
Date of Birth: November 7, 1970
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: N/A
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 122
* As of February 23, 2004
Coria FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
W: Buenos Aires (d Moya);
YTD W-L: 9-1
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 7
Date of Birth: January 13, 1982
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 23T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 4
* As of February 23, 2004
Marat Safin (RUS) vs Jonas Bjorkman (SWE) Safin Leads 4-2
00 Copenhagen (Denmark) Hard QF Marat Safin 6-4 6-4
00 Toronto TMS (Canada) Hard R64 Marat Safin 6-4 1-6 6-3
00 St. Petersburg (Russia) Hard SF Marat Safin 6-4 6-4
01 Rome TMS (Italy) Clay R64 Marat Safin 6-2 3-6 7-5
02 Auckland (New Zealand) Hard R16 Jonas Bjorkman 6-3 4-6 6-3
03 Madrid TMS (Spain) Hard R64 Jonas Bjorkman 4-6 7-5 6-4
Safin FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
F: Australian Open (l Federer);
YTD W-L: 7-2
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 11
Date of Birth: January 27, 1980
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 2
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 30
* As of February 23, 2004
Bjorkman FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Doha (l Calleri);
YTD W-L: 4-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 5
Date of Birth: March 23, 1972
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 67T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 37
* As of February 23, 2004
Olivier Rochus (BEL) vs Arnaud Clement (FRA) Clement Leads 2-0
02 Miami TMS (U.S.A.) Hard R128 Arnaud Clement 6-2 7-5
02 Wimbledon (England) Grass R32 Arnaud Clement 6-0 7-5 6-3
Rochus FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 1-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: January 18, 1981
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 135T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 52
* As of February 23, 2004
Clement FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Sydney (l Hewitt);
YTD W-L: 6-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: December 17, 1977
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 78T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 25
* As of February 23, 2004
Alberto Martin (ESP) vs Sargis Sargsian (ARM) First Meeting
Martin FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-4
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 3
Date of Birth: August 20, 1978
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 74T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 61
* As of February 23, 2004
Sargsian FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
QF: Doha (l Henman);
YTD W-L: 5-5
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: June 3, 1973
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 48
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 42
* As of February 23, 2004
Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) vs Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) Gonzalez Leads 2-0
03 Roland Garros (France) Clay R16 Fernando Gonzalez 6-3 6-3 6-2
03 Stuttgart (Germany) Clay R16 Fernando Gonzalez 7-6(2) 6-7(5) 6-3
Nieminen FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
SF: Adelaide (l Hrbaty); QF: Rotterdam (l Mirnyi);
YTD W-L: 8-5
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: July 23, 1981
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 30T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 35
* As of February 23, 2004
Gonzalez FastFacts:
2004 Highlights:
W: Vina del Mar (d Kuerten);
YTD W-L: 7-3
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 4
Date of Birth: July 29, 1980
INDESIT ATP 2004 Race: 27T
INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking: 24
* As of February 23, 2004