Post by Annie on Jun 28, 2005 19:46:29 GMT 3
Tennis Masters Paris (Bercy) 2000
Report by Alex
The first time I saw Marat playing on tv was during the French Open 2000 against Tommy Haas.
Back then I didn't know any of the players (how stupid could I be? lol) , so I decided to cheer for the cutest (haha typical girly-girl hehe)
But I don't actually remember for who I was really cheering for , so I spent more time watching these two boys than the match! But I still ask myself if I was blind or what? Wasn't it obvious which one of the two was the cutest, the most talented?? It was clearly that Marat was the best wasn't it?
Actually I didn't need long to realize it and I was not the only one!. The morning after this match the girls from my class could only talk about one thing: MARAT!
I wanted to see this cute boy again, so I decided to record his next match (against Pioline), and I started to pay more attention to him, his game of course, but I cannot deny how beautiful he was either!
He had everything: power, a strong personnality, he was showing a lot on the court, everything! I no longer had any doubts, and since then, I couldn't stop watching his matches ;-)
I had to see him in real life now....
But let's talk about real things.....
How I met him the first time in real life..... It all happened at Bercy 2000, where I was with my dad (thank you Dad for this unbelievable week ;-)) So I had tickets for monday (but Marat wasn't playing until tuesday, wednesday and for the final)
Day #1: Tuesday:
Marat was scheduled as the last match on the smallest court at Bercy for his first round doubles match.
He was playing with A. DiPasqual (FRA) against M. Llodra (FRA) & N. Escude (FRA).
The little court in Bercy is the best way to be really close to the player because there are no numbered seats or whatever so you can sit anywhere and you are really close to the court!
Before the players entered the court, I was standing in the aisle alongside the court, so I was close enough to take some pictures of Marat arriving.
I couldn't stop staring at the players entrance, and suddenly the door opens, and I know that in a few seconds Marat will enter the court! I remember how I felt when I saw him; it was just unbelievable, it was him! He was there only a few meters away from me, it was incredible ;-)
Behind me and and everywhere else were sitting lots of girls who were waiting to get autograph from him (Almost no boys btw... Why am I not so surprised? lol)
The match went on, Marat wasn't playing bad but you could see that he was using the doubles more as a practice for the singles. Despite what the french journalists said, Marat was playing better than DiPasqual!
So, a few points before the end of the match I got up from the back and went down to the aisle, becaue I wanted to take all the chances I had to get an autograph from him. At the end of the match ( that Marat and Arnaud lost by the way), all the girls went down like crazy and started to scream around him..... Lost in all this girlish crowd I think you could see, 3boys!! lol
When Marat got up from his chair after he packed everything, he was acting like leaving but when he saw all the crowed there waiting and screaming for him he couldn't resist (What a nice boy!) and came to us to sign auographs ( as far as I remember Llodra and Escude didn't sign, but nobody wanted their autograph :-P .... I am so cruel!)
At this moment I was around 20 cm away from him, and he signed for me. I was so happy!! But as I was in the first line, all the girls behind were jumping over me to get closer, so it was impossible to move, but I have to say it wasn't so bad, because, as all the people behind me were pushing me, I could't stand up straight, so my head was at the same high as Marat's shorts! So I can't complain :-P
But as I had no way out I still had my arm over the barrier where Marat was, so he thought I wanted his autograph again, ( he came to me 3 times all in all lol) so he told me that he had to give some to the others too.... I felt a bit embarrassed because it wasn't at all what I wanted 9 hehe but I answered with a big smile, that it was okay like that.
Once Marat laughed because he guy wanted that he sign on a little tennis ball, the one you can put on your keys, and it's really smal and I don't remember if Marat could sign it or not.
Then he left, but he was proving once more how nice he is with his fans, because the match ended around midnight but he took some time for his fans!
I had a present to offer him but it was impossible to give it to him today so I planned to do it on the following day.
Day #2: Wednesday:
Today I could watch almost all the matches, as I had school only in the morning. But I remember that I had an exam I think on the following day or something like that so everytime we were waiting for the next match to start, I tried to study lol.... Ok don't need to be a genius to guess that I didn't get the best grade of my life that day! ;-)
Anyway to see Marat was more important that a stupid french exam :-P
Marat's match was again the last one of the day, so I had to wait until late in the evening before I could see him playing. It wasn't always so easy, and when santoro played, for example, I had to go out to get a coffee to stop myself falling asleep. ( some matces were just not exciting lol)
When Marat's match was about to start, it was already late evening and the stadium was less full than the afternoon. Marat played G. Bastl (SUI). Marat played good, and you could see that he wasn't playing 100% in order to keep some strength for the rest of the week (and he will need it for the final) ;-)
I still had to find a way to give him my present, so I needed to find him away from the courtside. The problem was that I was on the opposite side from where the players sit.
So some points before the end of the match (I think that the last set ended in a tie break), I got up from my chair with my present and I walked all around the stadium to go on the other side. I went down to the red barrier which is between the VIP part and the normal seats.
When Marat won his match I started to go under the red barrier to where his chair was, but a bodyguard stopped me and some others who wanted to do the same. A guy who was there didn't listen to the bodyguard and started to go down. So the two guys started to argue lol. I wondered if I'd be able to reach Marat to give him his present or not, but I decided to stay quiet, to be seen in a good way by the bodyguard. He came back to me and started to talk to me, telling me how rude people can be. So I talked a bit to him, I said that I agree with him etc.... So then he looked at me for some seconds without saying anything (I was praying that he would tell me that I can go down), and that's what he did, he asked me:"Do you really want to go down?" I did my sad innocent look ;-) and said yes, so he answered okay go. I was so happy (again lol).
This time it was really great because there were fewer people and it was quieter.
When he wanted to leave, we were screaming his name and I was holding the present I had for him in front of me.
He came to me (He looked a bit shy and kind of surprised) he was looking so cute scratching the top of his head and smiling like if he didn't know how to react to such a thing.
He took the present and thanked me. I tryed to say a this is for you", "congratulations", but it was as if I'd lost my voice, and I could only whisper..... I was dreaming, it was sooooo great!!
He put the present in his bag, signed some more autographs and left.
But that evening, when he went back to his hotel, he had something from me with him :
By the way I didn't tell you what the present was, did I?! It was a rabbit, not a real one of course only a teddy
Day #3: Thursday:
It was just a crazy day. Marat was again the last one to play, and he had to play Sebastien Grosjean.
Me and my dad had no tickets, but we decided to go there anyway and see if we could find a way to enter. Who knows??
So we arrived at Bercy and we realized that we were not the only ones who'd had this idea.
So my dad and some other guys started to talk with the two guys officials who were at the stadium entrance, asking them if there was no way to enter or no tickets to sell anymore. The guys answered that it wasn't possible.
The people went away and leaving my dad, the two officials and me. My dad tried asking them again, but they wouldn't change their mind, and told us to walk around as maybe we would find some ticket touts.
We found nobody, and I was really giving up, and losing all hope of seeing Marat tonight. But my Dad told me to go back to the officials again. At first I thought it would be useless, but he convinced me. I stayed (on the plaza next to the stairs outside, for those who know Bercy stadium) while my dad went back to the entrance.
Some minutes later I heard my dad calling my name! I turned in the direction of the door, and I saw him waving at me, telling me to come over. My heart was beating so fast, could it be possible that we would be able to enter?! Yes we did, the guy (only one of the officials was left), told my dad that he had a ticket, and as it's late nobody would be still there to check our tickets, so we entered both of us, with only one ticket.
I could see Marat playing and winning again!! :
Marat was playing good, he was agressive, I couldn't stop screaming for him (like all the matches before I think).
The next two days I had no tickets, so I followed the matches on the tv praying that Marat would reach the final.
On his semi final he faced Juan Carlos Ferrero, and when the chair umpire said game set match Marat, I knew that I would see Marat in the next day.......
Day #4: Sonday:
It's the final!!!!!
We arrived at Bercy some time before the match started (I didn't want to lose one single point of this match)!
It was the first final played by Marat that I would see in real life, so it was really impressive.
If you could have seen my face before the match, you could have thought that somebody forced me to come, I didn't look happy although I was!!! I was so nervous, that I couldn't smile lol
So we went to our places, the stadium was really colourful, there were blue pink and purple lights which were flashing around the court, it was really theatrical! And the trophy stood in the middle....., will have the honor of holding it at the end of the match; Who Marat or M. Philippoussis (AUS)? humm at this point in time nobody knew.
Finally the players came on court. I sat on the side where the players are. Before I came I borrowed some opera glasses that you use in the theater to see better, from my best friend and you will see that they were quite useful
Indeed when Marat entered the court, I noticed that he had a black t-shirt, and dark blue shorts! I was a bit surprised by that, but the players started to warm up, and I would have quickly forgotten about this detail,if the following incident hadn't happened:
While they practiced, Marat walked to the back of the court and got a pair of shorts from Rafael Mensua (He was with him at this point in time). I didn't realize what was going on, so I was looking around the stadium but then my dad who kept his eyes on the court (clever him) asked me to watch and what could I see!!?? MARAT CHANGING HIS SHORTS ON COURT!! Only Marat could do that!! (actually now that I know him a bit more I'm not so surprised) So there I silently thanked my friend for her "glasses" what a view of Marat's underwear and ass ;-) (ok that was the erotic part of my report )
The match was incredible!! A lot of really good points!!
The match could have ended earlier than expected. Indeed the racket's rebellion came. Marat should have known that the rackets would one day complain about the way he treats them! Marat came at the net, dived, but he didn't get up again!! The whole stadium wondered what was going on, Philippoussis went to the other side of the court to see how Marat was. Marat was bleeding, indeed, when he had dived, the racket had hit the arch of his eyebrow. (For those who don't know this tennis rule, if before he'd fallen, Marat's shot would have been a winner and he'd dropped his racket, he would have lost the. That's why, he probably kept his hand on the racket.)
The doctor had to come, Marat lay on the floor, on his back, a ball boy put his bag next to him, I guess to stop too many people coming too close to him. (on the tv they showed all the details of what the doc did to him, it was bloody.... Poor Marat!). I was so afraid, for him and I was afraid that he would have to retire (what he would have to do, if they couldn't stem the blood).
My dad and me were sitting behind a Philippoussis' fan, and when Marat got hurt, he started almost to laugh about him and to say that Marat would go crying back home to his mom. So my dad and me started to complain about the way he was talking about him, started to criticize Mark's game that he had no real good shot etc.... (Sorry to any Mark's fans who would read this report, it was not against Mark, but to make this guy shut up)
So we were a bit arguing, and from then on, when Mark did a winner, the guy in front was screaming and cheering even more for him.
The match went on, at each break, Marat put ice on the arch of the eyebrow to stop it swelling. Sometimes when he got up you could see that his head was turning, even once I thought he would really fall down.
But the most paradoxical thing about it, is that Marat played really good after it lol
The match ended with an unbearable 5th set tie break! I was so nervous. Every point is important in a tie break you have to be there 100%. But Marat did it!! HE WON!!
I have to say that it was really a wonderfull moment, so beautiful that I cried. It maybe sounds childish, but it was just to much, a long match like that, Marat who gets hurts, almost gave up, and now he won in a 5th set tie break!
There are just no words to describe really how I was. To see Marat holding this trophy, in Paris it was just WOW!
About Mark's fan..... Haven't see him or heard him anymore after match point..... why that? humm I have no clue? So Marat will maybe go back home to his mom, but with the trophy
When I went out from the stadium, I had a t-shirt on, where was written "ALLEZ MARAT", it was funny to see the people's face ;-)
By Alex
( and a smidge of help from Ruth.)
Report by Alex
The first time I saw Marat playing on tv was during the French Open 2000 against Tommy Haas.
Back then I didn't know any of the players (how stupid could I be? lol) , so I decided to cheer for the cutest (haha typical girly-girl hehe)
But I don't actually remember for who I was really cheering for , so I spent more time watching these two boys than the match! But I still ask myself if I was blind or what? Wasn't it obvious which one of the two was the cutest, the most talented?? It was clearly that Marat was the best wasn't it?
Actually I didn't need long to realize it and I was not the only one!. The morning after this match the girls from my class could only talk about one thing: MARAT!
I wanted to see this cute boy again, so I decided to record his next match (against Pioline), and I started to pay more attention to him, his game of course, but I cannot deny how beautiful he was either!
He had everything: power, a strong personnality, he was showing a lot on the court, everything! I no longer had any doubts, and since then, I couldn't stop watching his matches ;-)
I had to see him in real life now....
But let's talk about real things.....
How I met him the first time in real life..... It all happened at Bercy 2000, where I was with my dad (thank you Dad for this unbelievable week ;-)) So I had tickets for monday (but Marat wasn't playing until tuesday, wednesday and for the final)
Day #1: Tuesday:
Marat was scheduled as the last match on the smallest court at Bercy for his first round doubles match.
He was playing with A. DiPasqual (FRA) against M. Llodra (FRA) & N. Escude (FRA).
The little court in Bercy is the best way to be really close to the player because there are no numbered seats or whatever so you can sit anywhere and you are really close to the court!
Before the players entered the court, I was standing in the aisle alongside the court, so I was close enough to take some pictures of Marat arriving.
I couldn't stop staring at the players entrance, and suddenly the door opens, and I know that in a few seconds Marat will enter the court! I remember how I felt when I saw him; it was just unbelievable, it was him! He was there only a few meters away from me, it was incredible ;-)
Behind me and and everywhere else were sitting lots of girls who were waiting to get autograph from him (Almost no boys btw... Why am I not so surprised? lol)
The match went on, Marat wasn't playing bad but you could see that he was using the doubles more as a practice for the singles. Despite what the french journalists said, Marat was playing better than DiPasqual!
So, a few points before the end of the match I got up from the back and went down to the aisle, becaue I wanted to take all the chances I had to get an autograph from him. At the end of the match ( that Marat and Arnaud lost by the way), all the girls went down like crazy and started to scream around him..... Lost in all this girlish crowd I think you could see, 3boys!! lol
When Marat got up from his chair after he packed everything, he was acting like leaving but when he saw all the crowed there waiting and screaming for him he couldn't resist (What a nice boy!) and came to us to sign auographs ( as far as I remember Llodra and Escude didn't sign, but nobody wanted their autograph :-P .... I am so cruel!)
At this moment I was around 20 cm away from him, and he signed for me. I was so happy!! But as I was in the first line, all the girls behind were jumping over me to get closer, so it was impossible to move, but I have to say it wasn't so bad, because, as all the people behind me were pushing me, I could't stand up straight, so my head was at the same high as Marat's shorts! So I can't complain :-P
But as I had no way out I still had my arm over the barrier where Marat was, so he thought I wanted his autograph again, ( he came to me 3 times all in all lol) so he told me that he had to give some to the others too.... I felt a bit embarrassed because it wasn't at all what I wanted 9 hehe but I answered with a big smile, that it was okay like that.
Once Marat laughed because he guy wanted that he sign on a little tennis ball, the one you can put on your keys, and it's really smal and I don't remember if Marat could sign it or not.
Then he left, but he was proving once more how nice he is with his fans, because the match ended around midnight but he took some time for his fans!
I had a present to offer him but it was impossible to give it to him today so I planned to do it on the following day.
Day #2: Wednesday:
Today I could watch almost all the matches, as I had school only in the morning. But I remember that I had an exam I think on the following day or something like that so everytime we were waiting for the next match to start, I tried to study lol.... Ok don't need to be a genius to guess that I didn't get the best grade of my life that day! ;-)
Anyway to see Marat was more important that a stupid french exam :-P
Marat's match was again the last one of the day, so I had to wait until late in the evening before I could see him playing. It wasn't always so easy, and when santoro played, for example, I had to go out to get a coffee to stop myself falling asleep. ( some matces were just not exciting lol)
When Marat's match was about to start, it was already late evening and the stadium was less full than the afternoon. Marat played G. Bastl (SUI). Marat played good, and you could see that he wasn't playing 100% in order to keep some strength for the rest of the week (and he will need it for the final) ;-)
I still had to find a way to give him my present, so I needed to find him away from the courtside. The problem was that I was on the opposite side from where the players sit.
So some points before the end of the match (I think that the last set ended in a tie break), I got up from my chair with my present and I walked all around the stadium to go on the other side. I went down to the red barrier which is between the VIP part and the normal seats.
When Marat won his match I started to go under the red barrier to where his chair was, but a bodyguard stopped me and some others who wanted to do the same. A guy who was there didn't listen to the bodyguard and started to go down. So the two guys started to argue lol. I wondered if I'd be able to reach Marat to give him his present or not, but I decided to stay quiet, to be seen in a good way by the bodyguard. He came back to me and started to talk to me, telling me how rude people can be. So I talked a bit to him, I said that I agree with him etc.... So then he looked at me for some seconds without saying anything (I was praying that he would tell me that I can go down), and that's what he did, he asked me:"Do you really want to go down?" I did my sad innocent look ;-) and said yes, so he answered okay go. I was so happy (again lol).
This time it was really great because there were fewer people and it was quieter.
When he wanted to leave, we were screaming his name and I was holding the present I had for him in front of me.
He came to me (He looked a bit shy and kind of surprised) he was looking so cute scratching the top of his head and smiling like if he didn't know how to react to such a thing.
He took the present and thanked me. I tryed to say a this is for you", "congratulations", but it was as if I'd lost my voice, and I could only whisper..... I was dreaming, it was sooooo great!!
He put the present in his bag, signed some more autographs and left.
But that evening, when he went back to his hotel, he had something from me with him :
By the way I didn't tell you what the present was, did I?! It was a rabbit, not a real one of course only a teddy
Day #3: Thursday:
It was just a crazy day. Marat was again the last one to play, and he had to play Sebastien Grosjean.
Me and my dad had no tickets, but we decided to go there anyway and see if we could find a way to enter. Who knows??
So we arrived at Bercy and we realized that we were not the only ones who'd had this idea.
So my dad and some other guys started to talk with the two guys officials who were at the stadium entrance, asking them if there was no way to enter or no tickets to sell anymore. The guys answered that it wasn't possible.
The people went away and leaving my dad, the two officials and me. My dad tried asking them again, but they wouldn't change their mind, and told us to walk around as maybe we would find some ticket touts.
We found nobody, and I was really giving up, and losing all hope of seeing Marat tonight. But my Dad told me to go back to the officials again. At first I thought it would be useless, but he convinced me. I stayed (on the plaza next to the stairs outside, for those who know Bercy stadium) while my dad went back to the entrance.
Some minutes later I heard my dad calling my name! I turned in the direction of the door, and I saw him waving at me, telling me to come over. My heart was beating so fast, could it be possible that we would be able to enter?! Yes we did, the guy (only one of the officials was left), told my dad that he had a ticket, and as it's late nobody would be still there to check our tickets, so we entered both of us, with only one ticket.
I could see Marat playing and winning again!! :
Marat was playing good, he was agressive, I couldn't stop screaming for him (like all the matches before I think).
The next two days I had no tickets, so I followed the matches on the tv praying that Marat would reach the final.
On his semi final he faced Juan Carlos Ferrero, and when the chair umpire said game set match Marat, I knew that I would see Marat in the next day.......
Day #4: Sonday:
It's the final!!!!!
We arrived at Bercy some time before the match started (I didn't want to lose one single point of this match)!
It was the first final played by Marat that I would see in real life, so it was really impressive.
If you could have seen my face before the match, you could have thought that somebody forced me to come, I didn't look happy although I was!!! I was so nervous, that I couldn't smile lol
So we went to our places, the stadium was really colourful, there were blue pink and purple lights which were flashing around the court, it was really theatrical! And the trophy stood in the middle....., will have the honor of holding it at the end of the match; Who Marat or M. Philippoussis (AUS)? humm at this point in time nobody knew.
Finally the players came on court. I sat on the side where the players are. Before I came I borrowed some opera glasses that you use in the theater to see better, from my best friend and you will see that they were quite useful
Indeed when Marat entered the court, I noticed that he had a black t-shirt, and dark blue shorts! I was a bit surprised by that, but the players started to warm up, and I would have quickly forgotten about this detail,if the following incident hadn't happened:
While they practiced, Marat walked to the back of the court and got a pair of shorts from Rafael Mensua (He was with him at this point in time). I didn't realize what was going on, so I was looking around the stadium but then my dad who kept his eyes on the court (clever him) asked me to watch and what could I see!!?? MARAT CHANGING HIS SHORTS ON COURT!! Only Marat could do that!! (actually now that I know him a bit more I'm not so surprised
) So there I silently thanked my friend for her "glasses" what a view of Marat's underwear and ass ;-) (ok that was the erotic part of my report )The match was incredible!! A lot of really good points!!
The match could have ended earlier than expected. Indeed the racket's rebellion came. Marat should have known that the rackets would one day complain about the way he treats them! Marat came at the net, dived, but he didn't get up again!! The whole stadium wondered what was going on, Philippoussis went to the other side of the court to see how Marat was. Marat was bleeding, indeed, when he had dived, the racket had hit the arch of his eyebrow. (For those who don't know this tennis rule, if before he'd fallen, Marat's shot would have been a winner and he'd dropped his racket, he would have lost the. That's why, he probably kept his hand on the racket.)
The doctor had to come, Marat lay on the floor, on his back, a ball boy put his bag next to him, I guess to stop too many people coming too close to him. (on the tv they showed all the details of what the doc did to him, it was bloody.... Poor Marat!). I was so afraid, for him and I was afraid that he would have to retire (what he would have to do, if they couldn't stem the blood).
My dad and me were sitting behind a Philippoussis' fan, and when Marat got hurt, he started almost to laugh about him and to say that Marat would go crying back home to his mom. So my dad and me started to complain about the way he was talking about him, started to criticize Mark's game that he had no real good shot etc.... (Sorry to any Mark's fans who would read this report, it was not against Mark, but to make this guy shut up)
So we were a bit arguing, and from then on, when Mark did a winner, the guy in front was screaming and cheering even more for him.
The match went on, at each break, Marat put ice on the arch of the eyebrow to stop it swelling. Sometimes when he got up you could see that his head was turning, even once I thought he would really fall down.
But the most paradoxical thing about it, is that Marat played really good after it lol
The match ended with an unbearable 5th set tie break! I was so nervous. Every point is important in a tie break you have to be there 100%. But Marat did it!! HE WON!!
I have to say that it was really a wonderfull moment, so beautiful that I cried. It maybe sounds childish, but it was just to much, a long match like that, Marat who gets hurts, almost gave up, and now he won in a 5th set tie break!
There are just no words to describe really how I was. To see Marat holding this trophy, in Paris it was just WOW!
About Mark's fan..... Haven't see him or heard him anymore after match point..... why that? humm I have no clue? So Marat will maybe go back home to his mom, but with the trophy
When I went out from the stadium, I had a t-shirt on, where was written "ALLEZ MARAT", it was funny to see the people's face ;-)
By Alex
( and a smidge of help from Ruth.)
