Robredo Not Very 'Lucky' Against Verdasco in First Round Match
by Greg Laub
Monday, August 25, 2003
No. 17 seed Tommy Robredo is not only the first men's seed to go
down in this year's US Open, he went down hard. Robredo didn't
seem to have any answers for the powerful serves and volleys of
Spain's Fernando Verdasco, falling in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.
After Marat Safin and Guillermo Canas withdrew from the tournament
last week, the two highest-ranked losers from Friday's qualifying
round were allowed to join the 16 winners into the men's singles
draw. Verdasco, who lost to American Jeff Salzenstein on Friday,
was one of those lucky losers.
But today, he didn't need much luck. Verdasco dominated from the
very beginning, winning the first six points of the match and never
looking back. It was quite an amazing turnaround after Friday's
match, one that saw Salzenstein dominate a frustrated Verdasco in
almost every facet of the game. Going in, it seemed the Spaniard
would have no chance pitted up against Robredo.
"In tennis, you can lose to No. 200 and you can beat someone in
the top 20 the next day," an elated Verdasco said after the match.
"But I felt good today. With Salzenstein, I had played five matches
in eight days, and my head was not good. I had two days to relax,
and today I was strong."
And outside of a few rare moments, he was strong throughout. One of
those moments came at the end of the match, just as Verdasco was
about to put it away, when fellow Spaniard and No. 29 seed Feliciano
Lopez showed up to join the swarm of fans cheering on the imminent
upset. At 5-1, Robredo wasn't giving in, forcing deuce after deuce
and winning an exciting game. Unfortunately, it was not enough, as
Verdasco finished him off in the next game.
When the match was finally in the books, Verdasco clapped into his
racket toward the crowd and hugged family and friends -- quite a
difference from when he smashed his racket in two and stormed off
the court on Friday, following his loss to Salzenstein. Today, he
was simply too strong to break his racket.
Match Facts
◎This was the first meeting between Robredo and Verdasco.
◎Robredo's best performance at the US Open came in 2001, when he reached
the fourth round.
◎Verdasco is playing in his first US Open. His only other Grand Slam
appearance came at 2003 Wimbledon, where he lost in the first round.
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