Fuente : Australian Open
http://www.ausopen.org/

AUSTRALIAN OPEN: When Friend Becomes Foe

/noticias.info/ by Bren O'Brien
Friday, 21 January, 2005


There is little room for sentiment in the world of professional tennis. When it comes to the high-pressure environment of a Grand Slam, the only way to succeed is to view the person across the net as the enemy and an obstacle on the path to success.

That's not always the easiest thing to do, especially when the person up the other end is a compatriot and close friend.

With a number of Russian women ranked highly, and Spaniards and Argentines bunched toward the top of the men's rankings, it's inevitable that compatriots face each other regularly, particularly as they progress deeper into tournaments.

And while it's good to know your opponent like the back of your hand, the flip side is that he or she knows you just as well. That can often result in a close contest.

Twice on Day Four at the Centenary Australian Open, men from the same country faced off against one another, and both matches went to five sets.

Czech mates Radek Stepanek and Jan Hernych endured a three-and-a-half hour battle on Court 13, with the former eventually prevailing, while on Show Court 2 an all-French encounter between Sebastien Grosjean and qualifier Jean-Rene Lisnard ended in an upset when Lisnard won in three hours and 28 minutes.

Stepanek revealed after his marathon how tough it can be battling it out with someone he considers to be a good friend as well as a compatriot.

"It's always tough to play against a countryman and also a good friend, especially in a Grand Slam in a best-of-five-sets match. I already have one five-setter in my legs (first-round against Vince Spadea) and I'm just glad to make it through to the third-round," Stepanek said.

"We know each other because we practice together at tournaments during the year. We know each other's games very well and we are reading each other's games perhaps better then another opponent would do."

Stepanek said the nature of life on the tour meant he often spent a lot of time with his fellow Czechs.

"All the Czech guys, we all travel together spending our evenings together. We pretty much know each other very well. It doesn't matter if I'm playing Jan or someone else from our country, it's always a tough match. Today we played four hours, so obviously it was tough."

Lisnard has a different take on the country versus career argument, saying while he appreciated the talent of Grosjean, the No.14 seed was just another opponent.

"Grosjean is not very charismatic but he has many good results," Lisnard said. "I'm not very close to French players, that's why I don't care about playing French. If you start to care every time you play a French player, there are too many."

Lisnard is not the only player in the men's draw to upset a much higher-ranked compatriot. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez upstaged No.5 Carlos Moya on Day One, and after inflicting Moya's first defeat by a compatriot in 15 matches, he was delighted.

"I'm very happy and I think, yeah, it was the most important match in my life. I beat Carlos Moya. He's one of the best players around the world," Garcia-Lopez said.
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