GRAND PRIX DE TENNIS DE LYON
LYON, FRANCE October 12, 2003
Schuettler Wins Second Title in Two Weeks in Lyon
Top-seeded Rainer Schuettler won his second ATP title in as many weeks,
defeating unseeded Arnaud Clement in just under two hours Sunday at the
Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon. Both players were coming off tournament
wins last week, Schuettler in Tokyo and Clement in Metz, and were both
bidding for their 10th consecutive match victory.
Schuettler went up early with leads of 3-0 and 5-2 in the first set
before Clement got back into the match to even the first set at 5-all.
Schuettler then won eight of the next 10 points to take the first set
7-5. Clement continued to battle in the second, but for every attacking
play, the quick German had a better counterpunching response. Schuettler
won 7-5, 6-3.
The win was Schuettler's fourth ATP title and earned him 45 ATP Champions
Race points and $113,000. Schuettler became the first German to win this
event after Tommy Haas reached the final in 1997 and 1998.
Schuettler joins four other players who have won back-to-back titles
this year: Lleyton Hewitt, Guillermo Coria, Andy Roddick and Taylor
Dent.
Clement was looking to win his second Lyon title after winning in 2000.
During his nine-match win streak Clement had dropped just one set (in
the Metz final against Fernando Gonzalez) and had yet to drop a set in
Lyon before Sunday's final.
DOUBLES FINAL
Andy Ram and Jonathan Erlich won their second ATP title in three weeks
with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Frenchmen Nicolas Mahut and Julien Benneteau,
needing just one hour and seven minutes.
Mahut and Benneteau were coming off a win in Metz last week and defeated
the No. 2 seeds of Llodra and Santoro in the semifinal on Saturday. Ram
and Erlich also won the Binghamton and Istanbul Challengers and Ram won
the doubles at the RCA Championships with Mario Ancic in July.
Mahut and Benneteau were bidding to become the first French team to win
the doubles at the Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon since 1998 when Olivier
Delaitre and Fabrice Santoro won the title.
WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID
Schuettler: "I knew it was going to be a tough match because I watched a
little of Arnaud's match against Paradorn yesterday. After I won the first
set I felt pretty good. He was trying to put pressure on me but I was
waiting for him to attack because passing shots are one of my strengths
and luckily it was working.
"I know he likes to mix it up, play serve and volley. I liked it when he
came close to the net because I could lob him and he had to guess what I
was going to do with the ball. It was a great atmosphere out there and the
crowd was pulling for him, but I tought they were fair and I have been
playing well under pressure all week, so I liked being out there."
about winning two titles after title drought
"I've had a good hear, but obviously it sounds better if you win titles.
If you get to the late rounds, OK, it might be a good result but people
don't really remember. But when you win titles, that's when people notice."
about taking time off
"Tonight and tomorrow I am going to relax a little and not think about
tennis or come onto the court. I don't get too much time to take a
vacation but I took some days after Wimbledon and I have 10 days
planned after the season. Last year I went to the beach, this year,
I think since I live in Switzerland, I'll probably take a ski vacation."
about playing best tennis
"There have been several times this year when I've played good tennis.
I don't know if this was my 'best' tennis but certainly I played well.
After I clinched the berth in Houston I was having fun out there and
playing relaxed. There was no pressure on me."
about physical
"The match was over 2 hours. Sure I'm tired but I felt good going into
the match. My physio, Alex Stober, prepared me really well and fitness
is one of my strong points. If I go out there, I'm going to focus all
my energies and give it my best. There's no reason not to work hard
during the match.
Clement: "Physically Rainer Schuettler is a giant, he's quick in his
legs, imposing and a great counterpuncher. During the match I never
let down but he played the match of the week and it also seemed logical
that he came out victorious."
"What I'm proud of is that I kept up my level of play from last week
[in Metz]. And I won four matches this week, two of them playing well
and two of them while not playing so well. It's a good sign to win matches
when you aren't playing your best.
"Playing in France these past two weeks has been fantastic. Of course
it motivates you. It will be a big test for me to see how I respond in
Madrid next week when I am not playing in France and to stay at my best
level of tennis."
Ram: "I think we played really well this week. We've kept it going
since Wimbledon [semifinal], doing really well in Challengers and
winning in Bangkok. I think we've lost like two matches since then.
"We are really communicating well and playing with alot of confidence.
We wanted to put pressure on them early to take the crowd out of it a
little and it worked. If it had been a tight match, that would have
been in their favor. The crowds are great here, especially for the
singles."
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 61.70.206.23