The Hindu : Sport : French hopes go up in smoke

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French hopes go up in smoke

PARIS: French tennis fans were left shaking their heads in dismay on Saturday as for the first time in 10 years no home player made it into the last 16 of the men's singles at Roland Garros.

The last hope was cruelly crushed when wildcard Olivier Patience's brave resistance to sixth-seeded Serb Novak Djokovic was finally snuffed out after a five set marathon of over four hours.

Centre-court nerves

Earlier highly-fancied claycourter Paul-Henri Mathieu succumbed to the same centre-court nerves that floored French No. 1 Richard Gasquet in his second round match on Wednesday. Mathieu was sent packing in straight sets by Russian Igor Andreev.

A total of 21 French men started the 128-strong draw and the warning signs were there as early as the first round when three of the stalwarts of Gallic tennis over the last decade — Sebastien Grosjean, Arnaud Clement and Fabrice Santoro were all sent packing.

Quick learner

Keeping an eye on Novak Djokovic has helped Ana Ivanovic improve her game.

``Watching him, I can learn a lot,'' said Ivanovic. ``I can take some positive things watching him and some of his tricks on the court, and I can use it for my game.''

``I had really good preparation before coming here, and I feel more comfortable playing on the clay also,'' said Ivanovic, who won the German Open last month despite a foot injury.

``My movement is much better, so I think they're all little parts that has something to do with it.''

Major jinx

Jan Hajek retired in a Grand Slam match for the second time this year.

The 100th-ranked Czech quit while trailing 6-2, 6-2 to 16th-seeded Marco Baghdatis in the third round.

``I had a problem with my right shoulder,'' said Hajek, who beat Bohdan Ulihrach in five sets on Thursday. ``Two days ago I played my first five-set match, and on Friday I played doubles.''

In doubles, Hajek and Frantisek Cermak lost to Wayne Arthurs and Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-0.

At this year's Australian Open, Hajek retired with a stomach illness after losing the first three games to Juan Carlos Ferrero. ``It was bad luck,'' said Hajek, who will play in the main draw at Wimbledon for the first time later this month. ``Maybe I need more practice, or take care of my body better.''

Breathing easy

Keeping 21 clay courts at Roland Garros in perfect condition requires military-style precision — with more work part of the bargain when it rains. Officials were temporarily breathing easier after a dry weekend with the workload slightly decreased.

But the respite was likely to prove short-lived, with more rain in the week's forecast and most outside courts taken up by junior play.

Last Monday was particularly heavy for ground staff, with wet weather requiring each court in action to be groomed six times in one day. With court covers being dragged on and off when rain gets heavy, there is little time to pause for the dozens of ground staff.

Some consolation

Amelie Mauresmo was left seeking some consolation from the wreckage of another French Open campaign and once again her focus switched to the green, green grass of Wimbledon.

The 27-year-old from the Paris suburbs looked a pale shadow of her best in losing to Czech youngster Lucie Safarova in a third round tie.

A year ago it was a similar story as she was sent packing from her home Grand Slam tournament by another Czech teenager Nicole Vaidisova. Only on that occasion, Mauresmo rebounded magnificently and a month later she had won her first Wimbledon crown.

Could she do it again? Mauresmo did not rule it out, but first, she said, she had to get fully match fit after two months on the sidelines to recover from an operation to remove her appendix.

``I hope so,'' she replied if she would be back to full fitness in time to defend her Wimbledon title. — Agencies

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