NUMBER ONE

P E R S O N A L I T Y :
M A R A T
S A F I N
Communication and External Relations Department
March 2005
Roger
Federer
Marat
Safi n
Lleyton
Hewitt
Andy
Roddick
Joachim
Johansson
Andre
Agassi
Guillermo
Coria
Rafael
Nadal
Tim
Henman
NUMBER
ONE
The INDESIT ATP
2005 Race is off to
a start. Who’ll be
on top at the end of
the year? Let’s do
some predictions
together...
Mario
Ancic
1
INDESIT ATP 2005 Race
Safi n and Federer
at the end of their
incredible match
in Melbourne
FabFour
No – it’s not a Beatles come-back, but the world of tennis too
has foursomes that seem a cut above the rest. We’re talking
about Federer and Safin, Roddick and Hewitt. Who’s going to
win the new race for the no. 1 title?
T
he INDESIT ATP 2005 Race
has barely started and it already looks a personal thing
between two players. Roger
Federer and Marat Safin were
so impressive in Australia that
suggesting possible challengers seems
pure conjecture. Here’s our tentative Top
Ten for this season anyway.
Melbourne was won by the player they
said would lose. Roger Federer was looking so omnipotent, a sort of infallible tennis
machine, that no one would have thought
he wouldn’t reach the final. But that’s what
Marat Safin made happen, in a semi-final
match that may well go down as the most
exciting match of the season, such was
the suspense of the see-saw scoring.
The Swiss ace is still the season’s big favourite. Hiccups happen to everyone but
in the long run his superior consistency
and completeness should prevail. He says
Post
scriptum
2
himself he’d prefer to win a 3rd Wimbledon than a 1st Paris. Either way he’s likely
to take home one or two slams. The good
news for us is that the Schumacher of tennis at last has a real challenger.
Behind the lead pair we have another couple of youngsters. Andy Roddick and
Lleyton Hewitt must be cursing their luck
at being born in the Federer era, otherwise
they might have been dominating the circuit. To get to the very top the American
is slightly lacking in technique and the
Australian in physique. Neither of their
temperaments, however, look like being
content with less than no. 1. But getting
there depends more on the top seeds than
on their own capabilities. And the FedererSafin duo seem better equipped.
Acting as a “buffer” between the Fab
Four and the rest of the Top Ten we have
“grandpa” Andre Agassi. In Melbourne he
was steamrollered by the Federer Express
and must have wondered what the point
of continuing was. A sad experience for a
champion whose presence we will unfortunately be missing quite soon, for no one
will be surprised if 2005 is his last season.
His objective is to equal the achievement
of his historic rival Pete Sampras, who
in his last Slam tournament took home a
victory as extraordinary as it was surprising. Will Agassi have the strength to follow
suit? He certainly doesn’t lack willpower
but he can only hope that Federer catches
flu and that Safin and Roddick get out of
the wrong side of the bed. The unknown
qualities outnumber the certainties but in
New York, Agassi’s home court and with
all his public behind him, the miracle just
might come off.
In the second half of our very personal
Top 10 we have some surprises. Frontline
we have a Swede who over the last year
has grown from a Mr Nobody into the new
T h e AT P s i t e i s n o w a v a i l a b l e i n S p a n i s h G a e l
M o nf il s s ig ne d a 5 ye a r c o ntr ac t with Nike wo r th a round
$2m Pete Sampras is considering playing in the Senior Tour
T im H e nm a n tu r ne d to Pilate s to e a s e hi s back troub le
End of season scenario?
The season has only just started and we’ve been having fun making predictions about who of all the established champions, new faces and old friends - will be this year’s new Top Ten.
1
2
3
4
Roger Federer
Marat Safin
Andy Roddick
Lleyton Hewitt
5
6
7
8
Andre Agassi
Joachim Johansson
Rafael Nadal
Guillermo Coria
9
10
Other
Other
Tim Henman
Mario Ancic
Taylor Dent
Tommy Haas
Switzerland, 23
He’s the undisputed favourite for the Indesit
Race 2005. He dominated last season and
delighted us with his incredible tennis. Forget about Dolly, we should be cloning Roger.
In the meantime, record his matches and
enjoy yourselves.
USA, 34
No longer a potential no. 1 and probably not
even a Grand Slam winner. But he’s there
right behind the top four, an eminence grise
hoping to pull a rabbit out of his top hat.
UK, 30
The Panda of tennis (last surviving exponent of
serve & volley), he looks a bit past it but can still
give us thrills. He’s always dreamt of winning Wimbledon and has even come close. Maybe at the
end of his career the dream will come true, though
it sounds more wishful thinking than a good bet.
Russia, 25
Federer was short of only one thing – a rival.
He now has one in the back on form Safin.
The Russian beat Roger in Australia but will
have to show more continuity if he wants to
keep up with him. No. 2 doesn’t really do him
justice – one and a half?
Sweden, 22
Boom Boom par excellence, he looks like
breaking all the ace records in history. But
it’s not only a serve he’s got – watch out
for his fine forehand, solid back hand and
unshakeable faith in his resources. He may
now be ready for a Slam final.
Croatia, 20
After his Wimbledon semi-final we were all
expecting him to take off, but he then exited the next seven tournaments in the first
round. All he has to do is get all his enormous talent together. Which is why he’s one
of this year’s Wimbledon favourites.
Boom Boom. We’re talking about Joachim
Johansson. Last year he beat Roddick in
New York, a Herculean task if ever there
was one. Lethal when serving, he lost to
Agassi in Australia in spite of the fact the
51 aces he clocked up on that occasion
set an all-time record for a game of tennis.
Potentially, he already deserves a Slam
because he has both hands very strong
and admirable self-confidence. His fiancée is Leyton Hewitt’s sister, which seems
to be doing wonders seeing the physical
progress he’s made. He’ll be no. 1 material if gets all his characteristics working
together.
Close at his heels is a young guy set to
be a teen idol: Rafael Nadal. The name
alone has a film-star ring to it, an impression he does nothing to correct. He graces
the court wi long shorts and a very mean
forehand. Apart from evoking an indio version of the Beautiful and the Damned, he’ll
USA, 22
A step down from the top two but still competitive, except on clay. If he completes his
game and perfects his technique, he’ll be
difficult to stop. Will he break his own world
speed record for a tennis serve this year
(250 km/h)?
Spain, 18
Undoubtedly ready for the quantum leap.
If he can stay out of injury, he’ll be among
the favourites at Roland Garros. He’s won
a Davis Cup and is thus an idol Spain. His
fisherman style long shorts may conceal a
true pirate.
USA, 23
Having lost five kilos to Weight Watchers
he’s suddenly become a great player. On
both hard court and grass he’s a serious
proposition and if he manages to discipline
his talent he can seriously aspire to a Top
Ten ranking.
be amongst the favourites in Paris but can
also be threatening on the hard court. Just
ask His Majesty Federer who lost to him at
Key Biscayne last year.
Next comes clay-court prince Guillermo
Coria, cruelly punished by cramp just
when he was on top of Gaudio at a Paris
final. Vendetta is best served on the rocks
but Guille doesn’t want to wait too long. He
may have missed the second half of last
season through injury but he’s still the man
to beat on clay, which is by no means the
preferred surface of the current Top Four.
Behind him comes the exact opposite Tim Henman – the last specimen of the
serve & volley school and still hunting
down the Wimbledon final that’s so far
eluded him. He may seem past his best
but if you believe in fairytales, put a few
pounds sterling on him to win the Championships.
Closing the ranks of the Top Ten is Mario
Australia, 24
Rusty is back after two seasons at no. 1 and another two in relative hibernation. The biceps he
grew this winter have made him even stronger. One
doubt though: last year he was always beaten easily by Federer and this year he lost against Safin. So
he’s still not on the same level as the leading pair.
Argentina, 23
Recovery from injury has been long but the
sight of red clay should make Gillle more
competitive. Last year he lost the Paris final
through cramp, so he’ll be out for revenge
this season.
Germany, 26
The German former no. 2 seed now has his
injury behind him and is ready to start regaining his true form. But in the meantime
his adversaries have improved, so he’ll
need to work very hard to get back in the
Top Ten.
Ancic. When he came close to reaching
the Wimbledon final last year, we were all
talking about a new phenomenon being
born. Since then SuperMario has done
his best to change our minds though. His
game is complex rather than complete
and he still needs time and patience to get
things together. When he does manage
though, it’ll be bad news for everyone, top
seeds included.
Think we’ve got it right? Since getting ten
out of ten would be a miracle, we’ll throw in
a couple of alternatives – say Tommy Haas
and Taylor Dent. Haas came back last
year after a serious injury and seems ready
claim his former status (2nd seed, which now
looks beyond his reach). But he’s certainly
ready to fight for a place in the Top Ten. As
is Dent (son of Dent), who has the talent of
a pure attacker and an appetite to satisfy
any chef. If he loses five kilos he’ll start to
be seriously dangerous.
Carlos Moya, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Tim Henman and Roger Federer decided not to play in
the Davis Cup this year Spanish Alex Calatrava put up for auction on eBay the possibility
of sponsoring him in one of the Grand Slam tournaments in 2005: the starting bid is �3,500
Images of the final in Rotterdam were transmitted via Internet by the tournament’s official website
3
Personality
Being
Marat
Safin
He’s the most
controversial player
on the circuit. As
he’s intelligent, shrewd
and never banal, we
asked the winner of the
Australian Open 2005
to reveal his personality
in his own words
Infancy “When you get rich and fa-
mous, you have to think just one thing:
where you’re coming from and how much
money you used to have. Things you can’t
afford to forget.”
Being Russian “We Russians are different. We have a different mentality, a
different way of living and reacting. But I
can’t explain it. I’m not Sigmund Freud!”
Professionalism “You want to sit
around in a 5-star hotel sipping whisky?
OK, but first you have to travel the world
sleeping in rooms with no bath and eating $5 menus. Starting out you earn
$100 a month, if you’re lucky. No one
gives you money, fame, glory...”
Homeland “In Russia there’s a unique
atmosphere. It’s my homeland. I was born
in Moscow and that’s where I’ll go back
and live the rest of my life when I retire. By
the way, Moscow has the most beautiful
women in the world. Guaranteed.”
School “I wasn’t a genius, I wasn’t a
dunce. I was a normal kid and failed an
exam now and again. Who hasn’t?”
Money “When I look at a dollar I only see
the picture of George Washington and a
bit of paper. Money is nothing other than
money. It makes life easier but I don’t feel
sexy because I’ve got a lot.”
Popularity “After winning my first Slam
title in 2000 people started recognizing
me. But not enough. I wanted to go to a
famous Moscow club for New Year’s Eve
but they wouldn’t let me in. If people don’t
recognize me now and ask what I do, I
say I’m a poor student. It’s more interesting and more fun.”
First Slam victory “I may be the winner of the US Open but I forgot my entry pass and they didn’t want to let me
in. When I said my name was Safin, they
asked me, “How do you spell that?”
Motivation “Motivation is like love.
When you’re desperate for it, you can
Post
scriptum
4
crazy.”
Defeats “Losing isn’t a tragedy.
Marat Safi n
never find it. When you let things go spontaneously, it turns up immediately.”
Women “Sure I like them a lot. What guy
doesn’t enjoy the company of a beautiful
woman. It’s great, it’s natural. You can’t
go against nature, can you?”
Hobbies “I find fishing marvellous.
When I was out with an injury, I would
spend 8 hours in a boat, sitting drinking
beer. I had everything I needed. What I
caught, I cooked. I was with friends and
at dinner we had wine too. Relax, relax,
relax: what more can you want?”
Expectations “I want to live my life,
not someone else’s. I know what I’m doing and I’ve been doing it for years. They
tell me to do this, do that, get up at seven
and go to bed at eleven, and eat this and
not too much of that. If I won ten Slam titles and was world no. 1 for years, people
would still say I could have done better.
You have to live with that thought. And
try not to react – otherwise you’re in trouble.”
Coaches “I don’t understand how my
coach can he hang around me 24 hours
a day? I can travel on my own though. I
don’t need a baby-sitter. And above all I
don’t need someone trying to teach me
too much. If someone talks to me from 9
in the morning to 10 in the evening, I go
What should I do? Shut myself in
my room and cry my eyes out?”
Sleep “I don’t like playing early. At
9 in the morning I’m not really ready
to play tennis – only to sleep.”
Fighting “At the outset I wasn’t used
to fighting. When I played well, winning
came easily, when I played badly... I
would lose against my mum.”
Distractions “During a game you
sometimes start thinking of dinner, the
car, playing golf, sometimes sex even.
But you’ve got to be careful not to lose
control. If you think too much, the game
will soon go against you.”
Winning “Winning a big tournament is
the best thing in the world. It makes you
happy, proud. It’s even better than sex. I
swear it.”
Broken racquets “In my year of grace
I broke 36 racquets. But I became world
no. 1, so who’s complaining?”
Temperament “I’m not a Stefan Edberg. I’m not a robot. I’m a normal guy that
gets mad when something goes wrong. It
happens to you in the office, no? At worst
I break a racquet – so what? I didn’t kill
anyone. It’s a bit of graphite!”
Adversaries “The adversary I detest
most is Santoro. I hate playing against
him. He beat me five times in a row. I need
two weeks preparation and another two
weeks to recover afterwards.”
Success “I’m just too happy travelling
round the world playing tennis. Instead of
living in Moscow sweeping the streets.”
Job “I’m not interested in what happens tomorrow. I can’t be always worrying about what’s going to happen. And I
don’t want bodyguards. I’m not the Russian President. I just have to play tennis
and earn some money. And maybe entertain people. That’s my job.”
Yannick Noah and Jim Courier will be entered in the Hall of Fame this
year Federer won his 16 th consecutive final in Rotterdam, an all-time
record Guillermo Coria changed racquets by going over to the new Prince
technology – it’s the first time he’s changed since going professional
Special Ranking
by Joachim Johansson and Andy Rod- Scottsdale tournament, who takes home
dick. For the moment the giant Swede over 16 points a match with aces alone.
seems just ahead, having clocked up Completing the top 5 are the huge
284 aces in 16 matches, which is an en- Frenchman Gregory Carraz, with 15.5
viable average of 17.8 aces a match. Not aces a match, and the Belarus player
that the Austin champion is far behind. Max Mirnyi, whose 14.5 aces a match
Roddick’s average ace per match per- have enabled him to make a cracking
formance is only slightly lower at 16.1.
start to the season.
Johansson also set up a
curious record. Against
Aces
Agassi in the Australian
Player
Nation
per match
Open he managed 51 aces
(an all-time record) but also
Joachim Johansson
Sweden
17,3
lost the match. Curiouser
Wayne Arthurs
Australia
16,6
still, the top three performers in this particular statisAndy Roddick
USA
15,9
tic all lost their matches.
In addition to Johansson,
Gregory Carraz
France
15,5
we have Richard Krajicek
Max Mirnyi
Belarus
14,5
in 1999 (49 aces against
Joachim
Johansson
Aceman
The serve has become a vitally important weapon in modern tennis. Especially on the indoor courts where the last
few games in this stage of the season
have been played. So who are the fastest serves on the circuit? The title will be
contended, on an equal footing I’d say,
Not only aces
You can’t win by aces alone. Which is
proved by the number of good players whose ace scoring has so far been
poor. Here are players in the Top 100
who depend least on winning serves.
Unbeatable!
Roger
Federer
Roger Federer continues his long uninterrupted series of finals
victories. He’s currently
on 16. One thing is clear:
it’s best to play him early on, because once he
starts smelling success,
he’s like a bull on seeing
a red flag...
Kafelnikov) and Goran
Ivanisevic in 1997 (46 aces
against Norman).
In between these two phenomena, Johansson and
Roddick, we now see the
Australian Wayne Arthurs,
recent winner of the
USA
13,3
Marat Safin
Russia
13,1
USA
13
Mario Ancic
Croatia
12,5
Thomas Johansson
Sweden
11,6
Jan-Michael Gambill
Aces per
match
Winning serve
Filippo Volandri
0,8
Oliver Rochus
1,7
Sjeng Schalken
1,8
Bohdan Ulihrach
2
Keeping a high percentage of
service games won doesn’t only
depend on your serve. Though
scoring lots of aces helps. Here
are the best in this field.
Player
Year
Tournament
Adversary
Score
2003
Vienna
Carlos Moya
6-3 6-3 6-3
TennisMastersCup Andre Agassi
6-3 6-0 6-4
2003
Mardy Fish
2004
Australian open
Marat Safin
7-6 6-4 6-2
2004
Dubai
Feliciano Lopez
4-6 6-1 6-2
2004
AMS Indian Wells
Tim Henman
6-3 6-3
2004
AMS Amburgo
2004
Halle
2004
Wimbledon
2004
Guillermo Coria 4-6 6-4 6-2 6-3
The finest
doubles
% services
games won
95
Joachim Johansson
Player
Wayne Arthurs
95
Roger Federer
94
Andy Roddick
94
Ivo Karlovic
93
Apart from the singles
the doubles circuit has
come to life.
Here are the best doubles couples after two
months of activity.
Pos.
Team
1
Black/Ullyett
231
Andy Roddick 4-6 7-5 7-6 6-4
2
Bryan/Bryan
211
Gstaad
Igor Andreev
6-2 6-3 5-7 6-3
3
Aspelin/Perry
178
2004
AMS Toronto
Andy Roddick
7-5 6-3
4
Bjorkman/Mirnyi
112
2004
US Open
Lleyton Hewitt
6-0 7-6 6-0
4
Bhupathi/Woodbridge
112
2004
Bangkok
Andy Roddick
6-4 6-0
6
Arthurs/Handley
104
TennisMastersCup Lleyton Hewitt
6-3 6-2
7
Damm/Stepanek
101
2004
Mardy Fish
6-0 6-3
Points
2004
Doha
Ivan Ljubicic
6-3 6-1
8
Erlich/Ram
92
2005
Rotterdam
Ivan Ljubicic
5-7 7-5 7-6
9
Melzer/Waske
90
2005
Dubai
Ivan Ljubicic
6-1 6-7 6-3
10
Suk/Vizner
87
Young French hope Richard Gasquet missed the start of the season because of... chickenpox Bobby
Reynolds played in the Australian Open because he couldn’t get... a visa for the Brazil tournament; lucky
him, seeing he got to the third round An exhibition opened at Roland Garros featuring all the tournament
posters produced by major artists over the last 30 years; if you prefer pins, www.pins-rolandgarros.com
5
New talents
Donald
Young
At just 15 he’s seen as the
black McEnroe. A left-hander
with a great temperament,
he’s history’s youngest ever
no. 1 juniores and has already
debuted with the pros. Will
he be the phenomenon of the
coming years?
Donald
Young
Y
ou don’t have to be an orphan to be a champion, but
tennis folk think it helps.
No offence to mother Ilona
and father Donald Sr. (good
health and long life to them
in fact), but in effect there are not a few
cases of young tennis talents being burnt
out by the excessive parental expectation. Aware of this danger, Ilona didn’t
want to exaggerate with little Donald Jr.
and waited till he picked up a racquet on
his own, when he was two.
The little guy soon learnt how to make
use of it. He kept hold of it for the next 13
years and last January used it to win the
juniores title at the Australian Open and
become, at 15, the youngest ever under
18 no. 1 in history.
Donald Jr. isn’t a new discovery of course.
He’s been under observation since John
McEnroe asked for a partner to train with
when he was in Chicago. Supermac was
given a thin looking boy with a mischievous grin and a red cap on sideways. He
thought someone was joking. Then, when
the kid played him a unreachable dropshot, he started asking around and then
pronounced, “Gentlemen, I’ve just played
against the future world no. 1”.
Donald Sr. Immediately agreed, “My son
has the right qualities for becoming the
new Sampras. And can go better. There’s
no hurry. He’ll get all the experience he
Post
scriptum
6
needs and then we’ll see what he’s capable of”.
The IMG immediately put him under contract and then the first sponsors swooped,
first of all Nike, who see him as a possible Tiger Woods of tennis. The initial
stream of dollars allowed them to move
from Chicago to Atlanta, where there’s a
Federal technical centre and just a twohour flight away is Florida, where some
of the world’s best tennis academies are.
For example the one run by Nick Bollettieri, who shaped up the talent of Andre
Agassi, Monica Seles and a dozen or so
other stars. “He has the cold determination of the great champions,” says guru
Bollettieri, “it only takes a quarter of an
hour with him to realize that. He has extraordinary talent and expectations on his
account are by no means exaggerated.
He’s going to be big”.
Many people, lacking imagination maybe,
have compared him to Arthur Ashe, the
strongest Afro-American player in history
and Wimbledon winner in 1974. But Donald Jr. isn’t happy with the comparison.
“If you only win one Slam title, it might be
just luck. If you win 14 though, like Sampras, it means you really are a no. 1. And
I want to become a no. 1”.
For the moment he should concentrate
on growing. Age comes on its own but
physique has to be worked on. One scout
put him at a generous 1 metre 75, which
we’ll pretend is true and hope he grows
the ten centimetres he’ll need to avoid
being trampled by the giants that inhabit
the upper regions of tennis. Marat Safin is
Le Coq Sportif paid tribute to a great champion who died recently, Arthur Ashe.
The French brand put back in production the tennis shoes Ashe wore when he won
at Wimbledon in 1975 Change in the ATP calendar: the Shanghai tournament is
being moved to Ho Chi Minh City (ex Saigon). Shanghai will host the Masters Cup
1.93, Andy Roddick 1.87, and so on.
He’ll also need vitamin treatment and
weight-training to gain a few kilos of
muscle. The kid only weighs 67 kg (in his
clothes).
If mother nature is generous, Donald Sr.’s
plans may work out. Because Donald Jr.
has enormous talent. Scientific studies
have shown that genius resides in the
left-hand side of the brain and that lefthanded people are therefore particularly
gifted. On court there nothing he can’t
already do – slice serves, delicate dropshots, stinging volleys (his forehand is
pure poison). He can also argue with his
mother when she gives him too much advice. “Mom, let me do what I want. I’m the
one on court,” he screamed once during
the last Australian Open.
Donald Jr. has already debuted on the
professional circuit. Not like common
mortals, who have to learn the ropes in futures and challenger tournaments, but in
an ATP event in the major circuit. It was in
Memphis, where the young phenomenon
was invited by the organizers. He lost his
first match against Robby Ginepri, fellow
American, no. 69 in the INDESIT ATP Entry
Ranking.
A good way to burn him out is to run after
success at all costs, as soon as possible.
Febrile managers crave TV exposure, interviews on CNN, GQ cover photos. Which
all means contracts, commissions, money.
But the risk is that the kid will get dispirited
up against a world he’s not ready to take
over. As Bollettieri rightly says: “You have
to be very careful choosing the right moment for a kid to debut. You have to wait till
he’s ready technically and mentally. Adult
players hate kids. What do you think a 25
year old is going to do playing a 15 year
old? Offer a welcoming hand? He’ll try and
annihilate him, because no one likes losing to a kid. They used to call my Agassi
punk, when he was 17. And that was the
nicest word”.
Donald Jr. doesn’t seem worried for the
moment. If anything, he seems to have a
superiority complex. At times he’ll start
playing right-hand (“to give my opponent
a chance”) or take a nap just before going
on court. Someone like that has only two
options. Either he becomes an absolute
phenomenon or he’ll have a book of jokes
dedicated to him, in comparison with
which the one on Totti will seem no laughing matter. The jury should sit out another
year before giving its verdict.
Gael Monfi ls
Teen-ranking
Donald Young isn’t the only young talent
on the ATP circuit. Here’s the under 21
situation according to the INDESIT ATP
Entry Ranking. At the top of this special
ranking, we have Swedish Robin Soderling, who recently won his second ATP
title, in Milan. He may not be the new
Edberg but he can calmly aim at a top
20 placing. He’s followed by Croat Mario
Ancic, a super-fine talent ready for the
Player
Top Ten. Then Tomas Berdych (very
high potential) and the already famous
Rafael Nadal, hero of Spain’s Davis Cup
victory last year. Next come Juan Monaco, Nico Almagro, Marcos Baghdatis,
Janko Tipsarevic and Ivo Minar. Last
in this Top Teen Ten is the 18 year old
French Richard Gasquet, a huge talent
who’s still not quite resilient enough to
achieve high level ranking.
Nation
Born
Ranking*
Mario Ancic
CRO
1984
23
Rafael Nadal
SPA
1986
31
Robin Soderling
SWE
1984
36
Tomas Berdych
CZE
1985
44
Nicolas Almagro
SPA
1985
89
Juan Monaco
ARG
1984
91
Marcos Baghdatis
CYP
1985
95
Janko Tipsarevic
SCG
1984
101
Ivo Minar
CZE
1984
111
Stanislas Wawrinka
SUI
1985
118
* INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking 28 th February
Federer and Ljubicic are the payers who’ve won the most matches in 2005: 20 Giant Ivo Karlovic
has won 93% of all his service games but only 3% (!) of his returns All the Top 100 in the INDESIT
ATP 2005 Race have committed double faults (the lowest number is 6, by Edgardo Massa) Still
in the INDESIT ATP 2005 Race Top 100, there are 14 players who serve at least 10 aces a game
7
Memorabilia
“
“
Wilson T2000
M a m m a m i a , w h a t ’s t h i s ? N o t h a n k y o u . B e a u t i f u l ,
OK, historic, but you can’t play tennis with this thing.
N o w o n d e r t h e g a m e u s e d t o b e s l o w e r. H o w d i d
they hit the ball at all? Let me have my racket back!
8
Robin Soderling after winning the Milan ATP Tournament