Group Becker - BBB or Boom Boom Bharat / Raja / Philip.
"Boom Boom" Bharat lived up to his top billing by easily overcoming Raja (6-0) and Philip (6-2) to top the group while journeyman Philip himself bageled Raja 6-0 to ease into the QFs. Of the matches Philips versus Bharat promised a lot but delivered little with Philip repeatedly being passed at the net and unable to enforce any sort of authority on the match. Raja, recently turned pro debuting on the AATP circuit surprised Bharat with his loopy serve and unorthodox style but the No.2 seed eventually found his length and game.
Group Agassi - Rizwan / Jonty / Ayazo
This was labeled the group of Death - a prophetic name if ever there was one - more on this one later from my more gifted colleague 'El Harry Wertheimandani"
Rizwan & Jonty faced off in the 1st tie (re-enacting a fateful practice match played out on the same court a few days back between the 2 protagonists and one that would play a very important role in the result) and Jonty prevailed 6-3.
The next match featured Riz and Ayaz and the latter prevailed 6-4 effectively ending Riz's campaign to win the one title that eludes him. In the final tie to decide group placings, Ayaz easily outpaced Jonty 6-1, a result which showed that while Mr.Ayazo was at the top of his game on the court, he was pretty far away from it off the court given his ebullient predictions of a Jonty victory over him.
Group Steffi - El Haresh / Ashutosh / Nimesh
No.1 seed Haresh started off proceedings against Nimesh (barely having made it in time for the registration) and after a typically nervous start which saw the top seed matching underdog Nimesh error for error, he eventually woke up, looked over the net, sized up his opponent and proceeded to win 4 straight games to sew it up 6-2. Ashu next up for Nimesh and this was one close call as the match see'd and saw'd and then see'd before Ashu prevailed 7-5 nailing his first matchpoint when Nimesh drove a slice wide into the tramlines. That left Haresh and Ashu to play the final tie to decide who would top the group. This match was played the next evening (26/9) and Ashu initially gained the surprise upper hand running away to a 2-0 and 40-15 lead on his serve. Just when it looked like an upset was on the cards, Haresh again woke up, dug down and let Ashu make the errors while unleashing a couple of passing shots to win 6-3 in a match which was a lot closer and nailbiting than the scoreline suggested.
Group Federer - Doc / Narem / Suvir
Doc Malpani faced off Naren in the first tie and even as the commentators were reeling off the backgrounds of the opponents, one found Doc shaking Naren's hand at the net - 6-0 to the Doc. Naren apparently had a bit of trouble adjusting to the pace and bounce of these hard courts, so far removed from his home base at Anushakti Nagar. The next tie saw the first real upset when Suvir played out of his skin and expectations to fire out a below-par Naresh 6-1. Easy come - easy go. More to come still - Doc started off his match against Suvir in blazing fashion running into a 4-0 lead before deciding to make it interesting - Suvir tightened up his game, Doc loosened his and the result was 5 straight games for Suvir. Things were looking pretty tense at this stage but then Doc Malpani is not top Doc on the MSLTA courts for nothing -- overcoming Baby calls from Jonty Jr in the cafe Doc held his serve to save the match and then proceeded to reel off the next 2 games to win the tie 6-4.
Quarter Finals Line Up
Haresh v Jonty
Ayazo v Ashu
Doc v Philip
Bharat v Suvir
Haresh played a great game to overcome Jonty's spirited challenge 6-2.
On the other court Ayazo similarly played the waiting game to overcome Ashu 6-1.
Bharat blanked Suvir 6-2 and in the final QF Philip overcame Doc 6-3 to set up an interesting Semi Final lineup.
Semi Final 1 - BB Bharat v Philip
The revenge match and sweet revenge it was - Philip prevailed 8-6 over the defending champion in a closely fought match to enter the Finals on his 2nd try and end BB Bharat's run of 3 straight finals.
Semi Final 2 - Haresh v Ayazo
The top seed calmly dispatched Ayazo's challenge 8-3 to maintain an his sterling record on the AATP circuit (his only loss to date has been his stunning loss to No.2 seed and brother BB BHarat in the finals of the last championship)
Final - Sunday evening 8-10pm Haresh (1) v Philip.
This is the first final to not feature both the brothers Ramchandani. So what would it be - 3rd title for overwhelming favorite Haresh or culmination of a great run for Philip? Match on!!
The first set was a slow one with both players playing well within themselves in a game more reminiscent of a chess match than a tennis match - posturing to gain the upper hand. With the score in the 1st set standing at 6-6 (6-6) there was nothing to prise apart the winners save a couple of loose shots from Philip which handed Haresh the 1st set. Philips looked the better player in the set but Haresh in true No.1 style still found a way to hold on and bag the set.
Alas the next set saw a terrible start with Haresh going down 0-3 in the blink of an eye (in a set which also saw Philip abandon some of his defensive play in favor or a slightly more aggressive mindset). Philips new found game paid off handsomely as he won the set 6-2 to even the score and push the title match into the super-set tie break.
The final set (super tie-break ie first to 10 pts with a diff of 2) was a panoply of the shots and determination of both the players. Nary a quarter was given but in the end Philip by single minded focus & a tad more aggression (esp at the net where he continued to ply his trade despite several setbacks) prevailed 10-8 to lift his first major title at this level.
Final score Philip beat Haresh 6-7(6-8), 6-2, 10-8.
A dejected Haresh who had given his all had little left in the tank in the end and could not stay back for the post match conference. The new champion however decided to hit a few shots with the organizers and say a few words as well.
The presentation ceremony was graced by the the mysterious Uncle Toni Sharma who has now been sighted at every single AATP event - particularly in matches featuring the No.1 seed. Reliable sources tell us that he also happens to be the coach, mentor, hitting partner, masseur, cheering squad and strategist for Harry Ramchandani. Well luck to them - Harry was seen hitting the courts the very next day and he will need all the support to retain his No.1 ranking which is coming under increasing pressure by the new upstarts on the tour. In the meanwhile the champion Philip has decided to travel out of Mumbai to savour his sweet victory but promised to return to defend his title in the next edition slated somewhere in November/December of 2009.
Keep watching this blog - El Harry Wertheimandani will be putting down his perspective soon
Monday, September 28, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
The Class of 2009-2010
It’s been 5 long months post the last AATP event and plenty has transpired since then in the tennis world. Rafael Nadal lost in
Closer home, just as much has ensued with our own AATP pros. Here’s a quick rundown of what they have been doing since April (we couldn’t help but give our thoughts on what they should have been doing instead)
Anil Goel
What he has been doing – Publishing his first novel Release 2.0 , an economic espionage thriller; currently on display at Oxford Bookstore in Churchgate
What he should have been doing - Reading “What to expect when you’re expecting” (I can confirm that the stork will be visiting the Goel household come Australian Open time) and writing for the AATP blog (S.O.S. to Anil – I could do with some help here!!)
Ashutosh Goel
What he has been doing – Beating hoodlums at Oval Maidan while jogging resulting in a three inch gash on his left forearm; and snoring away to glory as I sit here and update this blog - literally
What he should have been doing - Meeting sponsors to launch AATP’s first corporate tennis tournament edition (Ashu - Miles to go before we sleep)
Ayaz Vasi
What he has been doing – Piling on the air miles, gained thanks to wedding in Mumbai and honeymoon across the US
What he should have been doing - Piling down the pounds; gained thanks to wedding in Mumbai and honeymoon across the US
Bharat Ramchandani
What he has been doing – Adding tapes of old Becker matches to his DVD collection; get ready for an updated version (read imitation) of Boom Boom Boris in AATP Season II
What he should have been doing - Adding stamina and patience to his explosive game… “I Say”
Dr. Aniruddha Malpani
What he has been doing – Celebrating daughter’s full scholarship to study at
What he should have been doing - Donating the money he had earmarked for her education to the AATP tour
Haresh Ramchandani
What he has been doing – Signing up for a new role in office, a dance performance at a friend’s wedding in October and the half marathon in January
What he should have been doing - Signing up for a new diet; Haresh adds a whole new meaning to the phrase “heavyweight” champion
Kailash (Jonty) Kandpal
What he has been doing – Moving residences to Borivali and coaching first-born Rohan away from the spotlight of MSLTA (Confidential documents seen by this blogger explore the possibility of an AATP junior circuit in 2015 – Rohan is expected to be top seed)
What he should have been doing - Getting enough rest for his double duty come tournament time; wife Swati is due to have their second baby the same weekend (On a related note, kudos to Jonty for landing AATP’s “Hum Do Humare Do” campaign)
Nimesh Vora & Suvir Shah
What he has been doing – Exercising their vocal cords while engaging in screaming duels on court. Much has been written and even more has been heard of their on-court showdowns at MSLTA
What he should have been doing - Exercising their racket skills while engaging in tennis duels on court; and living up to their school motto True Be The Scholar
Phillips Eapen & Pranav Bhatti
What he has been doing – Hiding away from the spotlight – AATP’s own media-shy personalities. Although, our new stand-by agents Quick Gun Murugun and Mango Dolly have confirmed that one of them did get married on July 13th in a Kerela church to an HR professional. Congratulations are in order here too
What he should have been doing - Sign me up as their PR agent (I can assure you both top billing in my next blog at the minimum and a supporting role in AATP’s upcoming reality show “I’m NOT a celebrity – Get Me Outta Here”)
Riawan Sumar
What he has been doing – Losing his heart and bachelor status to Sunita Khatri (more on her and all the ladies in our next edition)
What he should have been doing - Using frequent flyer miles to make recurrent tennis trips to Mumbai (Rizwan cited the Fifth Amendment when asked to comment on reports of his infusing oil money to ensure an AATP event to coincide his annual trip back home)
Siddharth Singh Rathore
What he has been doing – Hitting the gym in Mumbai, hitting the hot night spots in Daman, hitting on women in Mumbai & Daman; and hitting the jackpot with his tennis predictions
What he should have been doing - Doing extra rehab for his corned out feet and injured wrists. We hope rumors of Badshah’s absence from 26/09 are just that; his flamboyance on and off the court will be severely missed if he is unable to participate
There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the class of 2009-2010… We’ll be back next week with some never before seen or heard behind the scenes footage as the run-up to 26/09 continues….
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