December 6 , 2007
Four-time BlackRock Masters Tennis Champion John McEnroe produced a sensational performance at the Royal Albert Hall on Thursday to pip tournament wildcard Pat Cash to the last remaining quarter-final spot.
Though both got off to a nervy start, with Cash losing his serve in the opening game of the match, the first set was a fiercely contested affair. Following a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct and a number of hotly disputed line calls, McEnroe relinquished a 5-2 lead to be drawn level at 5 all by an unrelenting Cash.
“I should have won the first set easily but I got a bad call on set point at 5-2 and then I wasted another 20 or 30 minutes because that took something out of me,” said McEnroe. “But I was hitting it cleaner than he was and serving a little better so I felt like I was always ahead.”
After closing out a tight first set 7-5, McEnroe took firm control of the match, snatching two early breaks to race to a 4-0 lead. From that point McEnroe always looked the likely winner as Cash could do little to stem the flow of passing shots from the American’s racket.
McEnroe will now face two-time defending BlackRock Masters Tennis champion Paul Haarhuis in the quarter-finals on Friday. He admits it will be a tough match.
“I’m definitely going to have to step it up. I know I’m hitting the ball well and it’s do-able if I feel good, that’s what it boils down to,” he said.
RUSEDSKI MAKES HISTORY IN LONDON
Two British players will feature in the quarterfinals of the BlackRock Masters Tennis for the first time after Greg Rusedski joined Jeremy Bates in the last eight at the Royal Albert Hall.
Rusedski needed to beat defending champion Paul Haarhuis in his second round-robin match to finish above Michael Stich in Group D and earn a place in the quarterfinals. He squeezed through 6-4, 1-6, 10-6 (Champion’s tie break).
It made Rusedski only the second player ever to beat Haarhuis at the BlackRock Masters Tennis after the Dutchman won the event in 2005 and 2006. Ironically, the only other man to beat Haarhuis was Bates, who won a stunning encounter in 2005, 2-6, 7-6(17), 16-14 (Champions' Tie-Break). The match included two of the longest tie-breaks tennis has ever known and finished in the early hours of the morning.
Against Rusedski, who is making his debut on the BlackRock Tour of Champions, Haarhuis struggled to deal with the Briton’s huge left-handed serve. Rusedski has been suffering with a heavy cold, and he visibly tired in the second set before edging home in the Champions’ Tie-Break.
“It feels pretty good,” said Rusedski.
“I played really well in that first set and then with my virus I got a little bit tired in the second and Paul lifted his game. But then I played a really good Champions’ Tie-Break to qualify so I’m pleased about it. Jeremy is the only other player to beat Paul, so beating Paul must be a British thing! The good thing is we’ve got two British players in the quarter finals which is fantastic.”
In the quarter-finals, Rusedski will face Guy Forget who beat Sergi Bruguera to clinch top spot in Group A. Elsewhere, Wayne Ferreira defeated Henri Leconte to clinch a place in the quarter-finals and put the Frenchman out of the tournament.
RESULTS – THURSDAY, 6th DECEMBER, 2007
Greg Rusedski d. Paul Haarhuis 6-4, 1-6, 10-6 (Champion’s tie break)
Wayne Ferreira d. Henri Leconte 6-4, 6-4
John McEnroe d. Pat Cash 7-5, 6-2
Guy Forget d. Sergi Bruguera 6-4, 7-6
LATEST GROUP STANDINGS
GROUP A
Guy Forget 2-0 (4-0)
Sergi Bruguera 1-1 (2-2)
Anders Jarryd 0-2 (0-4)
GROUP B
Jeremy Bates 2-0 (4-0)
Wayne Ferreira 1-1 (2-2)
Henri Leconte 0-2 (0-4)
GROUP C
Cedric Pioline 2-0 (4-1)
John McEnroe 1-1 (3-2)
Pat Cash 0-2 (0-4)
GROUP D
Paul Haarhuis 1-1 (3-2)
Greg Rusedski 1-1 (3-3)
Michael Stich 1-1 (2-3)
SCHEDULE (revised)
Friday Afternoon Session
1. Paul Haarhuis v John McEnroe
2. Wayne Ferreira v Cedric Pioline
3. Jarryd/Leconte v McNamara/Pernfors
Friday Evening Session
1. Greg Rusedski vs. Guy Forget
2. Jeremy Bates vs. Sergi Bruguera
* please note, the order of play is subject to change
