Corretja wins classic
Georges Homsi
Friday, May 31, 2002

The third round match between French hero Arnaud Clement and No18
seed Alex Corretja will be remembered as probably the most thrilling
of the first week.

The four-hour epic, played out in front of a delirious Court Philippe
Chatrier crowd, was won and lost several times by both players, the
Spaniard eventually triumphing 6-1 6-2 4-6 5-7 8-6.

Corretja started the match on the front foot, moving very well,
playing deep topspin groundstrokes into all corners of the court
and keeping Clement on the defensive. Forced to take chances,
Clement committed most of the mistakes and after 55 minutes,
Corretja had raced ahead 6-1 5-0.

The Frenchman looked like a schoolboy taking a tennis lesson from
a pro. But at the end of the second set, Clement's competitiveness
had skyrocketed and he won two games before bowing 6-2.

A new phase of the match had begun.

The rallies were getting longer and Clement was winning his share.
He took the third set 6-4, but Corretja broke early in the fourth
to lead 5-3, a seemingly insurmountable lead.

But the feisty Frenchman wasn't going to give in without spilling
his guts. Taking chances on everything, he threaded winner after
winner. Corretja looked helpless against many of his missiles.

Clement won the next six games to stand at 2-0 in the final set -
a final set which was going to be incredible. Corretja scraped his
way back to 2-2, but Clement broke serve to lead 4-2. He floundered
two points to go to a 5-2 lead.

Then, at 5-4 Corretja faced three match points at 0-40. After missing
the first two, Clement found himself with an easy volley and the whole
court open. But he played it too safe, lost the point, and later, a
fourth match point.

"The third match point was really hard to swallow," lamented the
Frenchman later.

Back at 5-5, Corretja broke for 6-5. The crowd was still cheering
'Arnaud, Arnaud' but a rejuvenated Corretja broke for 6-5. Clement
was still there and fighting, and a few winners later, he was back
at 6-6. The Spaniard broke once again in the following game, taking
the match on his second match point after a Clement backhand sailed
too long.

After four hours and 13 minutes, the 2001 runner-up was still alive.
But he was back from the dead. As for Clement, his year has taken a
turn for the better.

"It's a very, very disappointing defeat," said Clement. "It would
have been really fabulous if I had won the match point, if I had
hit that volley on the other side. But this is also sport."