Costa, what a hero!

[Nadal (納豆的花季)]

Costa, what a hero!  (→好標題:))
By Guillaume Baraise
Saturday, May 31, 2003
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     Albert Costa has gone and done it again. After gruelling five-set wins
in his first two matches, the Spanish champion somehow outlasted Nicolas
Lapentti 4-6 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-3 in today's third round to claim another epic
victory and book a place in the last sixteen. In soaring temperatures, the
No9 seed yet again showed he has nerves of steel and the stamina of a
long-distance athlete to clinch the match in four hours and 38 minutes. Above
all, the holder sent a message to the other fifteen pretenders to his crown;
you want my title, you're gonna have to fight for it - long and hard. Arnaud
Clement is the next to take the Costa challenge.

    Costa is in the fourth round then, and even he probably doesn't know how
he got there. Right from the off, the Catalan was playing backs-to-the-wall
tennis. Argentinean qualifier Roitman was the first to have him on the ropes,
at two sets and a break down. Czech Radek Stepanek also took him to the brink
in the second round. So many predicted a struggle in the sun for the Spaniard
when he was paired off with Ecuadorian Nicolas Lapentti in the third round.
Costa was expected to wilt in the heat, especially given Lapentti's penchant
for physically challenging encounters.

    After a tight first set, won by Lapentti, Costa called the physio in for
treatment on a stiff neck at 4-3 down in the second. The quick massage was
not enough to enable him to salvage the second set though. Lapentti's deft
drop-shots and a delightful combination of cross-court strokes had Costa
chasing shadows. The fans in Suzanne-Lenglen Court were not about to let
Costa go without a fight though. They roared the champion back into action in
the third and he regained the initiative, winning it 6-3.

Tennis match or bull fight ?
    Try as he might, Costa seemed all washed up in the fourth. Totally
exhausted, the man from Barcelona looked out for the count when Lapentti
pulled off a miraculous 'between-the legs' lob to lead 4-1. But this is one
proud champion, and out of nowhere he found a second wind to reel off five
straight games to win the set.

    Then, at the start of the fifth set, the tide turned definitively in the
champion's favor when Lapentti began feeling the effects of the heat and the
humidity. Cramp had set in and now it was his turn to call on the physio.
But the magic massage had little effect on the South American, and he was
soon hobbling around the court again. Surely he would throw in the towel?
Not a bit of it. Cheered by on by the excited crowd, who by this time were
cheering every point wildly, Lapentti showed incredible lucidity to
transform his game and hang on in there. He began pulling off outrageous
winners, drop-shotting to great effect. Costa nearly cracked at 4-3, even
handing his opponent a break before gathering himself to hold.

    The last break was to be his, and with Lapentti barely able to move the
Spaniard closed out the set 6-3 to win the match.

    So, with three epic five-setters behind him, can Costa possibly find
reserves of energy from somewhere to take into the second week? Unlikely,
but with this guy you never know. Come what may, one thing is for sure the
holder has defended his title with great honor.
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品名：拉菲爾納豆(茉香)
產地：Mallorca,Spain
重量：77 kg
保存方法：置於陽光直射的紅土上，風味更佳
保存期限：無限
進口商：ATP股份有限公司

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※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.csie.ntu.edu.tw) 
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