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| 11 Dec 2000 | |
| Orange Bowl Spotlight: No. 1 seed Todor Enev |
Todor Enev has been playing in the Orange Bowl since he was 13. At 14, he
made the 16 & under finals. Now, the No. 2-ranked junior in the world is the
favorite to win his first OB title.
A year ago, Enev was a semifinalist in the 18s, losing to eventual
champion Andy Roddick. With Roddick playing his final junior event last week
in the Sunshine Cup, the Bulgarian finds himself the Orange Bowl¹s number
one seed. "Everyone is playing great tennis," he says. "Every match is
important."
He mentions Sweden's Joachim Johansson, No. 3 on the current world list
and the tournament's No. 2 seed, as a player who could challenge him for the
title. The two have split matches in their four head-to-head meetings. Enev
won the last match-up in April in the first round of the Japan Open Junior
Championships, 6-4, 6-3.
You won't catch the 18-year old frolicking in the waters off Key
Biscayne this week, but he has returned to Miami for each of the last six
years because of the weather. "It's nice here," he says in the broken
English he has picked up through his tennis travels. "December is perfect.
Not like in Europe. It's cold, snowy for sure."
Enev has been a fixture at the on-line computer in the Players Lounge at
the Crandon Park Tennis Center, staying in touch with friends through the
internet during his two-week stay. But he still must dial up his parents to
report on his matches. Says Enev, "They don't know how to use the internet.
I have a computer at home but they can't use it."
Will his six-year streak of coming to Miami during the winter come to an
end now that he is playing his final junior tournament? Maybe not. The
Orange Bowl 18s winner gets a wild card entry into the Ericsson Open
qualifying tournament next March right here at the Tennis Center on Key
Biscayne.
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