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| 25 Jan 2003 | |
| Fantastic Four. Heat is on for Aussie Open finalists |
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By Eleanor Preston
With temperatures soaring to a brutal 44 degrees, all
Saturday’s junior semi-finals were forced out of the sun and into the indoor
courts at Melbourne Park. But the referee’s decision to implement the extreme
heat policy didn’t stop Marcos Baghadatis (CYP) and Florin Mergea (ROM)
marching into the boys’ final. Baghdatis overcame Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) 64
76(9), while Mergea defeated Mathieu Montcourt (FRA) 62 76(5).
Barbora Strycova (CZE) continued the
sterling defence of the singles’ title she won here last year by notching up
another final. Strycova, who ended 2002 as the ITF World Junior Champion, beat
Marta Domachowska (POL) 61 64. She will take on Viktoria Kutuzova in the final
after the Ukrainian pulled out a tough match to outlast the gutsy Finn Emma
Laine 4-6 6-1, 8-6, coming from a break down in the final set.
With a place in a Grand Slam final
at stake, there was plenty of tension in the air and though Baghdatis made the
US Open final last year, narrowly losing to Richard Gasquet, he admitted that
he got a bad case of stage fright as he served for the match against Tsonga.
“At 5-4 when I served for the match
I got into a big panic and I started thinking about every shot, so I lost my
serve. In the tiebreak I was really positive because I wanted it so badly.”
Baghdatis had the same experience
when he played Gasquet and tightened up when he had the match in his grasp. He
said that experience helped him cope against Tsonga and should equip him for
his final against Mergea.
“I thought about the US Open and I
thought to myself that I hope I don’t do it again,” he said. “There is
pressure. You cannot say there is no pressure because it is on you all the
time. You have to use it and help it motivate you. I enjoy it because it makes
me play better. In the final I’m not going to panic. I hope this time I’m going
to grab the chance.”
Mergea will be a tough proposition,
especially after his confidence-boosting win against Montcourt. “Everything has
worked out really well for me. I got more confident as I went along and I knew
I could get into the final. Marcos and I have the same style of play so I think
that will help. I just have to believe in myself. ”
Mergea’s match was watched by
Romanian tennis legend Ilie Nastase, who has known Mergea for two years and
watches him whenever he can and is always on hand to offer advice. “It gives
you confidence when you have a really big man like that on your side and
watching you.”
Strycova says she is looking forward
to playing Kutuzova, and revealed that she has a bet on the final with her
father, although she wouldn’t reveal what her forfeit would be for losing. “I
think my experience will help me because although I will be nervous, she will
be more nervous. It would mean so much for me to win again.”
Photos by Ron Angle
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