August (27/08/2001)
US Open Draw Shock
Agassi, Sampras and Rafter on early collision courseIn one of the toughest draws in US Open history, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and Patrick Rafter have all been drawn in the bottom quarter, ensuring that only one will reach the semifinals.
Sixth-seeded Rafter, the back-to-back champion in 1997-98 is drawn to meet four-time champion Sampras, who is seeded a lowly 10th, in the fourth round. If players advance according to seedings, the winner of the Rafter-Sampras match would play two-time champion and second seed Agassi in the quarterfinals, leaving only one of the star trio standing by the semifinal stage.
In the first round Rafter plays American Bob Bryan, Sampras meets Frenchman Julien Boutter, while Agassi will tackle a qualifier.
Agassi faces his share of danger en route to the quarterfinals; he's scheduled to meet 29th seed Nicolas Kiefer in the third round ahead of a potential fourth-round showdown with 13th seed Roger Federer, who stunned Sampras at Wimbledon earlier this year. The bottom half of the draw also features defending champion and third seed Marat Safin, who will play a qualifier in the first round. The Russian is not in the Agassi/Sampras/Rafter quarter.
Kuerten, Hewitt benefit from draw
Top seed and ATP Champions Race 2001 leader Gustavo Kuerten, who demonstrated his hard court ability recently by winning Tennis Masters Series Cincinnati, would be pleased with his draw. The Brazilian is drawn to play 15th seed Goran Ivanisevic in the fourth round and seventh seed Yevgeny Kafelnikov (whom he has beaten six of the past seven times) in the quarters.
Fourth seed Lleyton Hewitt will also sleep easier knowing that he won't confront Agassi, Sampras or Rafter before the final, should any of them make it that far. The Australian firebrand, a semifinalist at Flushing Meadows last year, may face 16th seed Tommy Haas in the round of 16. Beyond that awaits an even tougher quarterfinal, most likely featuring either Andy Roddick, former finalist Todd Martin, or Spanish stars Alex Corretja and Juan Carlos Ferrero. Roddick, seeded 18, plays Czech veteran Slava Dosedel in the first round and potentially Corretja in the third round.
(22/08/2001)
US Open 2001 - Top 10 Men's Seedings
1] Gustavo Kuerten
2] Andre Agassi
3] Marat Safin
4] Lleyton Hewitt
5] Juan Carlos Ferrero
6] Patrick Rafter
7] Yevgeny Kafelnikov
8] Sebastien Grosjean
9] Tim Henman
10] Pete Sampras
For details, please visit the US Open site.
(21/08/2001)
Top-seed Patrick Rafter Withdraws from Hamlet Cup
COMMACK, NY, August 20, 2001 - Two-time U.S. Open champion Patrick Rafter has been on fire this summer, advancing to three consecutive Sunday finals at Montreal, Cincinnati and Sunday at the RCA Championships in Indianapolis.
The Australian has played three straight weeks without a break, and all in grueling conditions of heat and humidity. It's Rafter's success over the last month that has forced him to withdraw from this week's Hamlet Cup presented by Roslyn Savings Bank, where he was slated to be the No. 1 seed. According to a Rafter spokesperson, the Wimbledon finalist is suffering from "extreme muscle fatigue" in his right playing arm.
"I always look forward to coming to the Hamlet Cup on Long Island,'' said Rafter, who was a winner here in 1998. "They always treat me well. Heading into the summer I never thought I would have played in three straight finals. The heat and the conditions have really taken a toll on me physically. I'm really disappointed about not playing Long Island."
Rafter will be at the Hamlet Golf and Country Club on Wednesday for tournament activities, sponsorship and media appearances.
The Aussie has compiled a 20-3 record since Wimbledon and moved to 4th position in the ATP Champions Race. Rafter lost in the finals at the Tennis Masters Series events in Montreal (Andrei Pavel of Romania) and at Cincinnati (Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil) before winning yesterday at Indianapolis over world's No. 1 Kuerten (4-2, retired).
"Patrick has always been a popular player with the fans on Long Island," said Kari Mutscheller, tournament director. "He's had great success this summer, but he's worn down from all the matches he's played. We look forward to him coming back here next year to compete."
The field for the Hamlet Cup singles main draw will still feature six of the ATP Champions Race top 20 players: Alex Corretja, Goran Ivanisevic, Arnaud Clement, Jan-Michael Gambill, Guillermo Canas and Thomas Johansson as well as 13-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras.
(20/08/2001)
Rafter First Title in 14 Months
(5) Patrick Rafter (AUS) d. (1) Gustavo Kuerten (BRA) 4-2, Ad-in Retired
(Right rib muscle strain)For the second week in a row Kuerten was forced to complete his semifinal and final matches on Sunday...He defeated Goran Ivanisevic 16 63 62 in one hour, eight minutes in a match that ended at 12:14 p.m. After a one hour, 15 minute rest, Kuerten came out in the final and was broken in the second game of the match....Kuerten had a chance to get back on serve in the seventh game but he squandered two break point chances at 15-40...Rafter was serving at AD-in when the Brazilian retired with a right rib muscle strain.
Rafter won his 11th career title, the first since June 2000 when he captured the grass court title in 's-Hertogenbosch. It was the 28-year-old Aussie's fourth consecutive fina appearancel, having finished runner-up at Wimbledon (l. to Ivanisevic) and the last two Tennis Masters Series tournaments in Montreal (l. to Pavel) and Cincinnati (l. to Kuerten). During that stretch, he has compiled a 21-3 match record.
"It's a really funny feeling and I finally won one," said Rafter, who was 0-5 in finals since his last title. "It's not the way you want to win but it's satisfying. I kind of feel like I have the monkey off my back. It's been a really positive week and I didn't know what to expect coming off finals the last two weeks."
Rafter improved his chances in qualifying for the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Sydney. He maintained his 4th position in the ATP Champions Race, 10 points behind Juan Carlos Ferrero who is 3rd.
Rafter held service 47 of 48 games during the tournament (saved 13 of 14 break points) with the lone break coming in the 12th game of the second set of his semifinal victory over Marat Safin. In that match, he saved one match point at 6-7 in the third set tie-break.
Kuerten came into the final having won 27 of his last 29 matches since the beginning of Roland Garros and he was looking to add on to his ATP-best six titles on the season. "In the warm-up this morning I felt it (rib) and it got worst as I played," said Kuerten, who is 6-2 in finals this year. "I had a tough time in the semifinals but I was able to get through it. It was really tough to come back and play another match. It's the first time I have retired in a final. For me it was another opportunity and you don't get to finals all the time." "I think with three or four days rest I will be OK and I'll have time to get ready for the US Open."
(19/08/2001)
4th Straight Final
Pat is on to his 4th straight final after defeating defending US Open champion Marat Safin in a classic 3-set match yesterday. Marat was defeated by Pat, 6-3, 5-7, 7-6.
Pat's opponent in the Finals will be the winner of the other semifinal match between Gustavo Kuerten and Goran Ivanisevic.
Kuerten defeated Pat in last week's Tennis Masters Series - Cincinnati finals, while Ivanisevic prevented Pat from winning the much coveted Wimbledon trophy last June.
Let's hope history does not repeat itself this time.
(18/08/2001)
[5] Rafter VS. [2] Safin
After defeating Max Mirnyi 6-3, 7-6, Pat will now face fellow US Open Champ Marat Safin in his 4th straight Semifinal.
(17/08/2001)
Final 8 at RCA
Pat is in the Final 8 of the RCA draw after knocking down Kristian Pless, 6-4, 6-4.
He will be facing former doubles partner, Max Mirnyi in the next round. Other players who also advanced to the Final eight were: Gustavo Kuerten, Tim Henman, Younes El Aynaoui, Goran Ivanisevic, Thomas Enqvist, and Marat Safin.
(16/08/2001)
On to 3rd Round
Pat advances to the 3rd Round after an easy 6-3, 6-0 win over Michal Tabara.
(15/08/2001)
Going to 2nd Round
Pat faces Michal Tabara in the Second Round of the RCA Championships.
For more info, visit the RCA site.
(14/08/2001)
RCA Championships
Pat is now at the RCA Championships in Indianapolis.
He earned a BYE in the First Round and will face the winner of the George Bastl/Michal Tabara match in the Second Round.
(13/08/2001)
Kuerten Claims Shield
ATP Champions Race 2001 leader Gustavo Kuerten captured his second Tennis Masters Series title of the year with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Patrick Rafter in the final.
The win was Kuerten's second of the day after the Brazilian completed his semifinal against Britain's Tim Henman in a final set tie-break just 20 minutes before starting the final. Kuerten now has won six titles on the 2001 ATP circuit, and the Cincinnati shield marks his fifth Tennis Masters Series victory.
"I don't know how I did it," said Kuerten. "I think all my life I'm still going to think about this."
Kuerten, who dropped only two sets all week with victories over Andy Roddick, Tommy Haas, Goran Ivanisevic, Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Henman en route to the final, needed just an hour to claim his third career hard court crown (Indianapolis, Tennis Masters Cup).
Relaxed
"I had already played for an hour on the court [against Henman], so I was very relaxed," said Kuerten, who regained first position in the ATP Champions Race from Andre Agassi after reaching the semifinals. "The first set [against Rafter] was probably the best set I had played all week. I was always making him guess what I was going to do next, I mixed up my game and I didn't give him too much rhythm."
With Brazil celebrating Fathers' Day, Kuerten dedicated his victory to his "four fathers" following the death of his own when Guga was a child. "This is for my brother, who has been like a father to me, my coach, my mother, my father, who still lives inside me, and for all the fathers in Brazil," said Kuerten, who hit 26 winners.
Rafter, who was playing in his third consecutive final (Wimbledon, Montreal) and his third in Cincinnati in four years, said he had been totally outplayed. "The last two finals I've played have been very, very close," said Rafter. "But today, I never got myself in with a chance, largely because Guga played so well."
Powerful returns
The Australian had only lost his serve twice all week - once against Greg Rusedski in a marathon quarterfinal that lasted 2 hours, 47 minutes and once against countryman Lleyton Hewitt in the semifinals - but he couldn't control Kuerten's powerful returns and was broken four times in the match.
Rafter, winner in Cincinnati in 1998, thought the rain break might have helped his opponent prepare for the final. "Sometimes it works in your favor," he said. "When you play singles and doubles, it helps you see the ball so well. He served extremely well - he's never served that well against me - and I have to give him full credit. I take my hat off to him."
Having earned 100 Race points for winning the title, Kuerten now moves 59 points clear of Agassi at the top of the Leader Board, while Rafter moves closer to the leaders in fourth position.
(12/08/2001)
Rafter to skip Australian Open
CINCINNATI, Ohio (August 11, 2001 08:59 PM EDT) - Patrick Rafter said Saturday that he will not play in the Australian Open in January next year.
Instead, he will drive around Australia.
Rafter, a two-time U.S. Open champion, made his plans known during a press conference after he defeated fellow Australian Lleyton Hewitt, 6-4, 6-3 for a place in Sunday's final of the $2.5 million Masters Series.
It will be his third final in three weeks, but he is still looking for a win.
"In the Australian summer, I'll just be driving around Australia. I haven't seen much of it," he said when asked if he planned to skip the Grand Slam event at Melbourne Park.
The 28-year-old is sticking to the announcement he made last January when he said he needed a six-month break and may or may not make a return.
Rafter says he has no plans during his hiatus, either in Australia or Bermuda, his North American base. But the Masters Cup in Sydney in November, in which he is fourth in the line for a spot in the eight-man field, is more than inviting.
"I'll play the Masters if I make it. I want to play it badly. But the Australian Open ... I'd like to play the Masters and the Davis Cup," he said.
The first Davis Cup date falls two weeks after the U.S. Open in September. Australia will host Sweden in a semi-final in Sydney.
"I've committed myself to the U.S. Open, I generally play my best tennis and have my best results there," he said. Rafter is signed for ATP events in Indianapolis, followed by Long Island and then the U.S. Open beginning August 27.
For Rafter it will be six consecutive weeks on the trot at U.S. events. "They say in the locker room: 'Jeez, you're going to drop dead before the U.S. Open.' Yeah, maybe. I'm pretty sure I'm not coming back anyway," he said.
Rafter indicated he is looking forward to leaving the game behind, but whether temporarily or for good is still to be decided.
(12/08/2001)
Third Straight Final
Pat is off to his third straight Final after defeating Lleyton Hewitt, 6-4, 6-3.
(11/08/2001)
Pat has no idea!
Patrick Rafter might play tennis again after this year, but he might not. The truth is, as he told the media on Tuesday, he just doesn't know. It certainly amused Michael Perry of the Cincinnati Enquirer, who printed the following extract from his post-match press conference:
Q: During your six months off, will you pick up a racket?
A: No idea.
Q: What if after three months you decide you're missing it?
A: No idea.
Q: When do your six months off begin?
A: No idea.
Q: Are you going to be spending it in Bermuda or Australia?
A: I don't know.
Q: You have this pretty well mapped out?
A: I certainly do.
(11/08/2001)
Final Four
Final four are: Gustavo Kuerten, Tim Henman, Lleyton Hewitt, and Patrick Rafter. Pat joins the group after defeating Greg Rusedski 5-7, 7-6, 6-4.
Pat will be facing his compatriot, Lleyton, in the Semis.
(10/08/2001)
Quarters now
After a scary first set, Pat has advanced to the Quarters by defeating James Blake 7-6, 6-2. Up next is fast-serving Greg Rusedski.
(09/08/2001)
Off to Round 3 we go!
Pat has successfully advanced to Round 3 with an easy 6-0, 6-3 win over the Belgian Xavier Malisse.
He will play James Blake in the next round.
(08/08/2001)
Pat breezes in Cincinnati
Pat Rafter advances to the Second Round on the Cincinnati Masters Series tournament after defeating his opponent in straight sets. Albert Portas fell to Rafter 7-5, 6-3.
(07/08/2001)
Tennis Masters Series - Cincinnati
Pat Rafter is seeded at No. 8 in this year's Cincinnati Masters Series. He will first play Albert Portas.
I may not be able to edit this site as much as I would like to, so to be up to date, please check out the Cincinnati site.
(06/08/2001)
Pavel's Dream Comes True In Montreal
Unseeded Andrei Pavel became the first Romanian to win a Tennis Masters Series title, following his 7-6(3), 2-6, 6-3 victory over Australia's Patrick Rafter in the final in Montreal.
Pavel, the 27-year-old from Constanta, fell to the ground and kissed the court repeatedly as he sealed the biggest win of his career with an ace.
"I'm so nervous right now," Pavel told the record Montreal crowd. "It's a dream come true. I told myself to keep smiling, to enjoy it and to just go for it. It paid off."
Pavel, who became the first Romanian to win in Canada since Ilie Nastase won in Toronto in 1972, now rises to 20th position in the ATP Champions Race 2001 and adds the TMS Montreal shield to his previous ATP titles in Tokyo 1998 and St. Poelten 2000.
"This is the highest of the highest for me right now," said Pavel. "I couldn't really believe it. It's amazing. You know, to beat Rafter in the final of the Masters Series, imagine how Goran [Ivanisevic] felt at Wimbledon. It's a huge tournament. It's one of the biggest tournaments on earth, so it's amazing - a very good feeling."
With early victories over Xavier Malisse and Francisco Clavet, Pavel continued his impressive run with back-to-back wins over Hicham Arazi, Andy Roddick and Tommy Haas to reach his first final of the year.
Rafter, the 1998 Toronto champion, was attempting to become only the fourth player to win at both sites since the venue began alternating in 1981. But Pavel had other ideas. Possessing one of the best backhands in the game, the Romanian took the opening set in the tie-break in 51 minutes and seemed to be in control of the match until Rafter broke the formidable Pavel serve - the first time it had been breached since Clavet achieved the feat in the second round - and opened up a 3-1 lead.
Another break of serve was enough for Rafter to level matters at one set all, but as the match went into the decider, it was Pavel who came out on top after breaking Rafter's serve for the first time in the match in the eighth game.
Rafter, who reached his fifth Tennis Masters Series final with victories over last year's finalist Harel Levy, Magnus Norman, Todd Martin, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Fabrice Santoro, now rises to fourth position in the ATP Champions Race 2001.
"I just wasn't timing the ball as well as I would have liked," said Rafter. "He played well and hit the right shots at the right moment. My serve was too predictable and I put too much pressure on myself towards the end of the match."
Looking ahead, Rafter added: "There's a long year left yet, and fourth [position] won't hold up if the results aren't good. So I have to continue to have the good results and if I do I will be able to cement myself a spot there."
Earlier in the tournament, three-time champion Andre Agassi fell to Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic in the first round, top seed Gustavo Kuerten fell to Roddick in a preview of this week's first round clash in Cincinnati, and defending champion Marat Safin retired injured against Nicolas Escude.
Pavel's march to the title was observed by record crowds all week. The tournament set an all-time attendance record with 165,611 fans on site, 13,889 more than the previous record in 1999. This was the biggest attendance ever for a Canadian tournament, and 12 out of 15 sessions were sold out on Center Court.
(06/08/2001)
Pat in Montreal - Tennis Masters Series
Final
Defeated by Andrei Pavel
7-6, 2-6, 6-3Semifinal
Defeated Fabrice Santoro
6-2, 6-2Quarterfinal
Defeated Juan Carlos Ferrero
7-5, 4-6, 6-2Round 3
Defeated Todd Martin
6-4, 6-2Round 2
Defeated Magnus Norman
6-1, 7-6Round 1
Defeated Harel Levy
6-7, 6-3, 6-3
(01/08/2001)
Patrick Rafter Interview (after defeating Harel Levy) (30/07/2001)
Read Pat's interview after the First Round match. Click here.
