Courting fame
K. KEERTHIVASAN
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If it’sJanuary it’s the Chennai Open. And big names, like Nikolay Davydenko and Carlos Moya will be in town…
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Time was when Yevgeny Kafelnikov landed in Chennai on a private aircraft — Citation 10. Those were halcyon days, or so it seems now. It’s perhaps a sign of the times that the Chennai Open, a premier ATP tennis tournament beginning on January 5, will be held under tight and elaborate security with Commandos throwing a ring of safety around all the top players. That the presence of khadi-clad men will not deter fans from thronging the Nungambakkam Stadium is anot
her matter. No doubt, the Mumbai terror attacks will remain on every player’s mind, but it will not take their focus away from what they’ve come for. To say who has the best chance of clinching the singles title is insulting sports’ inherent nature — unpredictability. Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko, the World No. 5, is one such. Matchfixing allegations may have dented his reputation — he was later exonerated of all charges — but not his resolve. Known as the ‘Iron Man’ for his appetite for work, Davydenko can be more than a handful.
Old favourites
The old warhorse Carlos Moya is a crowd favourite in these parts. A regular to Chennai Open, Moya has been coming here for the last seven years. The Spaniard knows that his best is over. The 32-year-old is still fighting fit and can take inspiration from the stands and win, you never know, his third title here. The big-serving Croatian Ivan Ljubicic is a player you ignore at your own peril. His calm demeanour and witty comments have not been forgotten. The 2006 champion, not in the best of form in 2008, will be eager to stamp his mark. Janko Tipsarevic could turn out to be the dark horse. As you all can remember, the Serb put up a fantastic exhibition of attacking tennis during the Australian Open in January 2008 before losing to Roger Federer in five gruelling sets. He is yet to win a ATP singles title. Knowing the history of Chennai Open where new faces have become household names, who can discount Tipsarevic’s chances?
Doubles hasn’t been exciting in Chennai. It has lost spectator support here due to the absence of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi. But with Paes partnering Lukas Dlouhy and Bhupathi pairing up with Mark Knowles, the crowd should come back .
In these troubled times, it’s been the combined effort of the International Management Group, Tamil Nadu Tennis Association, Tamil Nadu Government, Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu and the consortium of sponsors that has run the tournament for five consecutive years without major hiccups. The five-year term comes to end after the 2009 edition. One only hopes that the tournament, easily the best organised and the most popular in India, remains a permanent fixture that will continue to entertain the tennis loving public.
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