Gilles Simon
0 Comments
Email to a friend
Printer-friendly
Digg this
The great paper saver caper
Robert Schimmel
Carlos Alazraqui
20-somethings and Obama
John Fox
Frenchman wins Indy Tennis
Simon’s journey into the finals took him past a pair of Germans, Benjamin Becker and Tommy Haas, before being afforded the ominous task of handling the pure devastation of Sam Querrey (USA), who defeated James Blake (No. 8, top seed) last year by breaking the record for consecutive aces, and pummeling him into submission. Querrey earned the fourth seed this year, after climbing nearly 50 spots in the ATP world rankings, and took Simon to the brink with three hard-fought sets, before succumbing to exhaustion and a flaccid serve. Simon then closed out the final set 6-4, and won the affinity of Indianapolis with his seamless speed and tenacity.
Tursunov earned his passage to the finals by fighting his way through a muck of scrappy young Americans and unforgiving humidity. He defeated former champion and top seed James Blake in the semi-finals and then battled Simon (No. 25) on Sunday afternoon for the trophy, as the hardcourt sizzled to a rolling boil in the July sun.
In the final match, Tursunov resigned several points due to his indifference. Whether he was strategically preserving his energy for the throes of the match, fatigued from his come-from-behind rally against Blake Saturday afternoon or just generally apathetic, Dmitry was flat; at any given moment, it seemed he might just chuck his racket into the stands, take off his shoes and have a seat at the service line, à la Richie Tennenbaum.
Meanwhile, Simon continued to tug on the heart strings of the fans with his feistiness. Including his battle with Querrey Saturday afternoon, he successfully defended 17 consecutive break points, flying seamlessly all over the stadium to fish out impossible backhands, effectively out-hustling the competition for the $73,000 cash prize (which Simon can exchange for about six euros).
Simon only required two sets to squelch Tursunov’s aspirations for a repeat, and became the only Frenchman to ever win the title. Dmitry’s 32nd unforced error of the afternoon ultimately ended the game, set, match and tournament, as a lackluster lob shot softly kissed the alley, knocking out the tournament’s fading porch light with a ball-peen hammer, and sending Tursunov on the long, cold road back to Russia.
Check out more on nuvo.net for photo galleries and blog coverage of the Indianapolis Tennis Championships. Post a comment
 |
 |
 |
|
|
||
 |
||
Dec 1, 2008
St. Luke's United Methodist Church
The program will feature Ambassador Randall Tobias; Dr. Kent Millard; Marion County Health Department Director Dr. Virginia Caine; and (Ms.) Jerry Burkman ...
Do you have greater interest in the Pacers this year?
[ view results ]
