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| 16 May 2002 | |
| Young French Stars Receive Roland Garros Wild Cards |
Young French stars Richard Gasquet and Marion Bartoli have each been given a wild card into the senior draw of Roland Garros, which kicks off in two weeks time in Paris.
Richard Gasquet was thrust into the limelight in April when he became the youngest player ever to qualify for a Tennis Masters Series event in Monte Carlo, then the youngest man in 14 years to win an ATP main draw match. Gasquet, 15 years 10 months, defeated Nikolay Davydenko and Adrian Voinea in straight sets to qualify for the main draw. He won a tough match against Franco Squillari 76 36 75 in the first round before bowing out to 2000 US Open champion Marat Safin 64 61 in the second. Shortly after Monte Carlo Gasquet captured a Futures title in Great Britain and he now sits at No. 319 on the ATP Entry System.
Gasquet is, of course, already a familiar name on the ITF Junior Circuit. He has won three singles titles and reached the semifinals of the Australian Open Junior Championships in January where, on the hottest day of the tournament, he was beaten by local hero Todd Reid 64 36 97.
Marion Bartoli will make her second appearance in the Roland Garros main draw, having benefited from a wild card in 2001. The seventeen-year-old captured the US Open Girls’ Singles title last year and keeps her trophy next to her prize possession, a signed shirt from her idol Pete Sampras.
Having finished 2001 at No. 3 on the ITF Girls Singles Rankings, Bartoli’s only appearance on the ITF Junior Circuit this year was at the Australian Open, where she lost in the round of 16. Instead she has been concentrating on improving her WTA ranking by competing in ITF Women's Circuit events in the United States. Her aggressive double-handed game proved too strong for the rest of the field at the $25,000 event in Colombus, Ohio, where she claimed her third Women's Circuit title. Bartoli followed up this success a few weeks later by reaching the semifinals in La Canada, California as a qualifier. Her WTA ranking has improved to a career-high No. 222.
Gasquet and Bartoli will also be heading the field at the Roland Garros Junior Championships, which starts on 2 June. Monitor their progress at ITFJUNIORS.COM by reading daily news throughout the Championships from our on-site reporter Eleanor Preston.
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