※ [本文轉錄自 Tennis 看板]
作者: establish (我是球迷) 看板: Tennis
標題: [情報] Heroic Verkerk edges epic
時間: Wed Jun 4 09:58:32 2003
Heroic Verkerk edges epic
By Benjamin Adler
Tuesday, June 3, 2003
Roland-Garros has a new hero – and his name is Martin Verkerk. The unseeded
Dutchman edged battling Spaniard Carlos Moya 6-3 6-4 5-7 4-6 8-6 Tuesday in
the match of the tournament so far. Appearing in his first-ever French Open,
Verkerk now meets Argentine No7 seed Guillermo Coria for a place in the final.
The likeable Dutchman, pumped up to the point of asphyxia, collapsed to the
ground as Carlos Moya's return hit the net after three hours, 52 minutes of
breathtaking tennis. The journeyman no-one had even written about – let
alone written off – had just secured a place in a Grand Slam semi final.
Incredible!
The lanky player describes his adventure here at Roland-Garros as "one big
crazy thing" – and that's about right when you consider he was knocked out
in the qualifiers last year and had never even won a match in a Grand Slam
before this year's French Open. First round losses at the US Open last year
and the Australian Open in January hardly marked him out as a title
challenger, but now he is just two wins away from lifting the 'Coupe des
Mousquetaires' trophy and emulating unseeded greats Gustavo
Kuerten and Mats Wilander.
Ranked No46 in the world, he joins Tom Okker and Richard Krajicek in the
elite club of Dutch players to have made a Grand Slam semi final and becomes
only the fifth player to reach the Roland-Garros last four on debut, the
latest being Juan Carlos Ferrero, no less, in 2000.
Moya – a magnificent loser
Verkerk came out all guns blazing in the first, smashing five aces and
grabbing two love games before taking the set 6-3 in just 27 minutes.
Showing remarkable audacity and a solid backcourt game, he was obviously
enjoying his day in the limelight and frustrating Moya with his array of
winners. A break at 2-2 and yet another thundering ace at set point was
all he needed to take a two-sets-to-love lead.
Former champ Moya had already been taken to five sets by Juan Ignacio Chela
in the third round, so even at two-sets-to-love down, the expectancy
courtside was that the Spaniard would fight back. That may be an
overstatement, but Moya certainly hung on in there, and at 6-5 in
the third set was given a lifeline when Verkerk double faulted to
hand the Spaniard the set. Back in it, the fourth seed broke Verkerk
once again in the fourth set – and that was enough to bring him level.
The fifth set has to go down as one of the most spectacular of recent years.
Both players went for everything in a gung-ho battle of breathtaking tennis.
Verkerk looked wobbly on numerous occasions, only to gather himself each time
and send down another lifesaving ace. The Dutchman, whose clenched fist
salute and exalted stare at his coach followed every winner, finally
broke the valiant Spaniard at 7-6 and then held his nerve to serve out.
"That break was obviously the turning point. I had to serve well then,
but I'd been serving well all match, so I didn't crack".
His look of utter disbelief as he fell to the floor on match point was
a magic moment. Who says he won't go all the way?
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