The Hindu : Sport / Tennis : Olivier Rochus meets Richard Gasquet in final

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Sunday, Sep 30, 2007
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Olivier Rochus meets Richard Gasquet in final

Nandakumar Marar

— Photo: Vivek Bendre

HAPPY MOMENT: Belgium’s Olivier Rochus sent Germany’s Rainer Schuettler packing from the Kingfisher Airlines Open on Saturday.

MUMBAI: Rainer Schuettler, after defeating Hewitt in the quarterfinals, found the form missing from his game in the semifinals against Olivier Rochus at the Kingfisher Airlines Open tennis tournament on Saturday.

The German’s dream of figuring in an ATP final was dashed by the eighth seeded Belgian, a quiet mover up the draw, now one step away from the third title of his career.

Rochus won a duel between backhanders, played under conditions less oppressive than faced by the players earlier this week. He makes up absence of regulation weapons like big serves or searing strokes with footwork and fortitude. The Belgian kept faith in backhands to keep the ball in play, chased down returns like a man possessed. The 6-4, 6-4 semifinal victory was accomplished in one hour, 48 minutes.

Richard Gasquet beat veteran Fabrice Santoro, sparring partner and Tour senior, in a one-sided semifinal match 6-0, 6-3. “I wanted to play aggressive, but it did not happen on court because he did not give me a chance,” said the 35-year-old in a candid admission, after 58 minutes at the receiving end in the second semifinal. “He has been a top 10 player, now will be back in the world’s top 10 by the end of the year. Gasquet is my favourite for the final.”

The top seed at the Mumbai ATP event and one of world’s hottest talents, Gasquet is aware of the pressure of expectations in Sunday’s final. “I am supposed to be the favourite, but in tennis you never know. Rochus has one of the world’s best backhands and has come so far, so I need to play my best,” said the top seed from France, delighted to be on court the week after withdrawal from the US Open second round due to viral infection.

Schuettler uses the backhand as a battering ram, for Rochus the backhand is more of a shield. The former re-arranged footwork to hit down the line winners, the latter used backhand crosscourt volleys, floated low and deep, like a probe to find out the limits of his rival’s patience. Down 0-3 in the first set, the Belgian had climbed out of the hole by the fifth game, capitalised on the impatient German’s mistakes.

The last time these two met (Denmark Open 2002), Rochus had won in three sets without hitting a single ace (two double-faults) against Schuettler’s awesome serving (eight aces, one d/f). Five years later at the CCI courts, the Belgian had his say, quietly but firmly (four aces, one d/f) against a fiery German (five aces, four d/f).

The Belgian is now a step away from his first hardcourt title, both titles in his career (Palermo 2000 and Munich 2006) were won on clay.

He played the first ATP semifinal in 2007 after making the quarterfinals stage at Doha, Dubai and Bastaad this year. Rochus has been more consistent at the top, since breaking into the 100 in 2000 when named ATP’s Most Improved Player in 1999 for moving up from 364 to 67.

Schuettler was a Grand Slam finalist in 2003 (Australian Open). The German struggled to get his act together this season (won a mere two ATP matches in 2007). Last year was more profitable for a one-time World No. 5, losing to Rafael Nadal in the 2006 Dubai Open semifinals after wins over Ferrer, Klec and Phau.

The results: Singles (semifinals): Olivier Rochus (Belgium) bt Rainer Schuettler (Germany) 6-4, 6-4; Richard Gasquet (Fra) bt Fabrice Santoro (Fra) 6-0, 6-3. Doubles (semifinals): Robert Lindstedt (Swe) / Jarkko Nieminent (Fin) bt Boris Pashanski / Viktor Troicki (Srb) 6-1, 7-5. Quarterfinals: Boris Pashanski / Viktor Troicki (Srb) bt Wesley Moodie (SA) / Patrick Briaud (US) 6-4, 7-6(3).