Gerry Weber Open 2005 (Halle)

[lau]

The draw:

FEDERER, Roger (SUI/1) v SODERLING, Robin (SWE)
YOUZHNY, Mikhail (RUS) v MAYER, Florian (GER)
LLODRA, Michael (FRA) v Qualifer
KOHLSCHREIBER, Philipp (GER) v JOHANSSON, Joachim (SWE/6)

NADAL, Rafael (ESP/3) v WASKE, Alexander (GER/WC)
Qualifier v FERRERO, Juan Carlos (ESP/WC)
MELZER, Jürgen (AUT) v MARTIN, Alberto (ESP)
NOVAK, Jiri (CZE) v HAAS, Tommy (GER/7)

NALBANDIAN, David (ARG/5) v SCHÜTTLER, Rainer (GER)
ROCHUS, Christophe (BEL) v Qualifer
KIEFER, Nicolas (GER) v Qualifer
VERDASCO, Fernando (ESP) v CANAS, Guillermo (ARG/4)

LOPEZ, Feliciano (ESP/8) v CARLSEN, Kenneth (DEN)
SAULNIER, Cyril (FRA) v ROCHUS, Olivier (BEL)
PAVEL, Andrei (ROM) v SANTORO, Fabrice (FRA)
POPP, Alexander (GER/WC) v SAFIN, Marat (RUS/2)

[lau]

Doubles draw:

(1) BHUPATHI, Mahesh IND/WOODBRIDGE, Todd AUS v. KNOWLE, Julian AUT/MELZER, Jurgen AUT

LOPEZ, Feliciano ESP/NADAL, Rafael ESP v. (WC) KIEFER, Nicolas GER/WASKE, Alexander GER



(4) ERLICH, Jonathan ISR/RAM, Andy ISR v. CANAS, Guillermo ARG/NALBANDIAN, David ARG

DAMM, Martin CZE/PAVEL, Andrei ROM v. ALLEGRO, Yves SUI/FEDERER, Roger SUI



JOHANSSON, Joachim SWE/SAFIN, Marat RUS v. SODERLING, Robin SWE/YOUZHNY, Mikhail RUS

HAAS, Tommy GER/ZIMONJIC, Nenad SCG v. (3) SUK, Cyril CZE/VIZNER, Pavel CZE



NOVAK, Jiri CZE/PALA, Petr CZE v. ROCHUS, Christophe BEL/ROCHUS, Olivier BEL

(WC) KOHLMANN, Michael GER/SCHUETTLER, Rainer GER v. (1) LLODRA, Michael FRA/SANTORO, Fabrice FRA




I just love doubles. I wish I could watch more doubles matches on TV (even when I don`t like grass, this seems to be an interesting draw!!!)

* First of all: Marat is playing doubles again with PimPim. . I don`t know why, but I find that very funny!!! Those serves!!! :oThey should work really well on grass (do you remember that Marat and PimPim won their doubles match I think that in ¿Rome? against a really good Czech pair and then they retired due to Marat`s knee.............. and theirs poor perfomance in singles, I guess :?
And they play their first match against Youzhny and Soderling..... RUS / SWE vs. RUS / SWE... Funny

* Lopez/Nadal: I don`t know Nadal, but Lopez can play really well on hard court and I know he can do it really well on grass .... Dangerous players... we`ll see what they can do on grass and playing doubles, interesting.....

* Cañas/Nalbandian: The best hard/fast court argentine players..... Definitely preparing for DC in Australia Good luck boys!!!

* Allegro/Federer: Preparing to come back to DC??!!! Roger playing doubles again ??

* Rochus/Rochus: aaaaawwwww, that`s cute.... the little brothers ;D ;D

* Llodra/Santoro: I don`t really know much about them playing doubles on grass....... Will they be slipping all the time?? I really never payed attention when they played on grass......

[lau]

I have real problems with German I never could find this in the tournament`s site.... Anyway, from Marat`s official site:


06.06.05 1st round Marat v A. Popp 3rd on Centre Court

Marat is also playing doubles with Joachim Johansson 1st rd v Youzhny/Soderling.

[Anuska]

Order of play (Monday, centre court):

12:00

Fernando Velasco - Guillermo Canas

Mikhail Youzhny - Florian Mayer

Alexander Popp - Marat Safin

Jiri Novak - Thomas Haas


Do you know if any german Tv will show this tournament?

[lena]

The first days will broadcasted on DSF (german sports channel). From wednesday ZDF show tennis at 14.00 and then from 16.00 they switch to DSF.

[Anuska]

Thanks lena.

I don't have DSF, but i hope i will have chance to see Marat on ZDF

[lau]

Wooohooo!!! Marat Won!!
He defeated Alexander Popp 6-3, 6-2 (nice score!!) ;D


He looks like a saint, lol!!!!

[lau]

today`s interview after the match:

Interview with Marat Safin
Montag, 06.06.2005


Press-Conference with Marat Safin (RUS) after his win against Alexander Popp (GER) in the first round.

? It seemed that you had some trouble with your game until you found your rhythm? Why did it take so long?

! Well, it’s difficult to go out and start pretty well on a grass court especially, because I play from the baseline, I’m not a great serve-and-volley player. It’s really tough for me, and until I get used to it, it just took quite a while.

? It was your first match on grass since a long while. What was the feeling to win on grass?

! Pretty good. Well, for the first match it was quite ok. I wasn’t able to practice the week before, just because I have problems with my knee. It’s really tough and it’s really painful when you’re standing on the court, or especially when you’re doing some fitness or no matter what you do. It was just very painful to serve and to move on the sides. So I want to take a couple of days rest, take some medication and have some treatment. I came yesterday, stood on the court for only one hour yesterday and for half an hour today – therefore it was ok.

? What do you plan to do with this injury know?

! Well, I have to discuss with the doctors here and I have to think about it. What I have to do depends on if it’s really a serious injury or not. Nobody can give you a right answer how long it’s gonna take, if it’s gonna take three month or if I gonna take an injection for one day. What I know is that it’s very painful every day. I need to sit down with the doctors just to decide wheather I play or will stop for a couple of month. It’s very painful and I won’t play longer with this pain.

? So it is possible that you take a long rest?

! I hope not but you don’t know, because I’ve been having these problems for past two month and I really cannot serve and play the kind I wish to. But it’s gonna be a tough decision, because it’s in the middle of the season and a big tournament is coming right know. You can make a lot of points, and with a good draw you might make good results there. So you want to be prepared and you want to play pretty well. But unfortunately the tour and the years are really too long. You have not enough time to rest and to recover from injuries, that’s why I’m suffering. To make the right decision is really tough, because always some people say, you have to try and defeat the pain. But this is not my game to suffer on the court for three hours playing with the pain. Then you always have to be concentrated what you’re doing and how you’re doing, because you don’t want to make some certain movements. It’s difficult.

[lau]

from: cbs.sportsline.com/tennis/story/8539167/rss

Safin wins, but knee may force him to skip Wimbledon

June 6, 2005
CBS SportsLine.com wire reports



HALLE, Germany -- Marat Safin played through a painful knee injury Monday to beat wild card Alexander Popp 6-3, 6-2 and advance to the second round of the Gerry Weber Open.

The Australian Open champion won his first match on grass in three years, but said his left knee injury could force him out of Wimbledon.

"It hurt out there. If it feels the same before Wimbledon, I will withdraw," the second-seeded Safin said. "I will sit down with my trainer and the doctor and make a decision."

Top-ranked Roger Federer and French Open champion Rafael Nadal are the star names, along with Safin, at the key tuneup for Wimbledon.

The fourth-seeded Guillermo Canas ousted Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-4.

Safin has a dismal record on grass, a surface he dislikes. Last year, the Russian was eliminated in the first round of Halle and Wimbledon, while in 2003 an injury forced him to skip the whole grass-court season.

"It's more mental than physical," said Safin, of his aversion to grass. "But today I played impressively considering my knee hurt. Your head's not there because you're always worried about what happens if you move left or right."

Safin was able to power shots deep into the corners against grass-court specialist Popp. The 6-foot-7 German has twice reached Wimbledon's quarterfinals.

Safin said his knee has bothered him for two months -- without specifying what the complaint is -- and made it difficult to work on his physical condition.

"I always say the year is too long. We don't have time to recover," Safin said. "It's an option to withdraw from Wimbledon, but it's a big tournament, a lot of points. I might do well there."

Two-time defending champion Federer and Nadal could meet in the semifinals with both facing relatively easy draws.

"It will be interesting to play here in Halle and in Wimbledon," Federer said. "I see him being a good player on all surfaces."

Also, Jurgen Melzer edged Alberto Martin 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-3) and Olivier Rochus beat Cyril Saulnier 6-4, 6-4.
AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service

[lau]

From official site`s forum:

Author: Webmaster (webby)
Date:
06-06-2005 16:57

Well I spoke to Amit before I wrote that so I should think he should know what is going on more than the press - don't you think?

Sometimes the way things are written in interviews makes it seem like Marat is making more of his knee than he is. He is just taking it slowly and not putting too much pressure on his knee to build up slowly to Wimbledon.

He needs the points so he will play.

webby

[lau]

A cloudy day may not look good when a grass court tournament is played... But you`ll always take beatiful photos in a cloudy day ;D

[lau]

Center
Matches Start At:11:45 AM
Vladimir VOLTCHKOV (BLR) vs Juan Carlos FERRERO (ESP)
NOT BEFORE 2:00 PM
Roger FEDERER (SUI) vs Robin SODERLING (SWE)
followed by
Philip KOHLSCHREIBER (GER) vs Joachim JOHANSSON (SWE)
followed by
Nicolas KIEFER (GER) vs Nenad ZIMONJIC (SCG)
followed by
David NALBANDIAN (ARG) vs Rainer SCHUETTLER (GER)

Court 1
Matches Start At:12:00 NOON
Michael LLODRA (FRA) vs Yeu Tzuoo WANG (TPE)
followed by
Andrei PAVEL (ROM) vs Fabrice SANTORO (FRA)
NOT BEFORE 5:00 PM
After suitable rest
JOHANSSON (SWE)SAFIN (RUS) vs SODERLING (SWE)YOUZHNY(RUS)

Court 2
Matches Start At:12:00 NOON
Christophe ROCHUS (BEL) vs Dick NORMAN (BEL)
followed by
BHUPATHI (IND)WOODBRIDGE (AUS) vs KNOWLE (AUT)MELZER (AUT)
followed by
NOVAK (CZE)PALA (CZE) vs ROCHUS (BEL)ROCHUS (BEL)

[annie]

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM HERE!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!1 I GOT IN!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT'S WORKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!1 sorry everyone...a moment of joy there rotflmao

[annie]

LOL...i share your happiness Annie...It's pure joy to be back...

[Andrada]

Hurrrrrrray!!!! The message board is back!!!! Yupeee!!!

Safin breezes into round two

Australian Open champion Marat Safin breezed into the second round of the Halle Open defeating Alexander Popp of Germany 6-3 6-4 on Monday. The Russian, who lost to Tommy Robredo in the French Open fourth round, will meet either Fabrice Santoro of France or Romanian Andrei Pavel next.


Safin also admitted that he could take a few months off to rest if a troublesome knee injury persisted.

forced lay-off at this stage of the tour would be a severe blow to the Russian with Wimbledon set to get underway on June 20.

"I need to sit down with the doctors just to decide whether I play or will stop for a couple of months," Safin said.

"It's very painful and I won't play longer with this pain. But it's going be a tough decision, because it's in the middle of the season and a big tournament is coming right now."

Safin blamed the knee problem, which he said had been bothering him for two months, on the gruelling ATP tour schedule.

"Unfortunately the tour and the years are really too long. You have not enough time to rest and to recover from injuries, that's why I'm suffering," he told reporters.

"To make the right decision is really tough, because always some people say, you have to try and defeat the pain. But this is not my game to suffer on the court for three hours playing with the pain," he added.

www.eurosport.com/imgbk/tennis/all/big_md-i183135.jpg [/img]