Big Names Fall on Day One of 2007 Heineken Open
The vagaries of the tennis draw are necessary in order to prevent the same opponents meeting over and over again.
But most counted it a shame that a New Zealand wildcard should meet a qualifier in the first round while defending champion Jarkko Nieminen of Finland (pictured) should draw the toughest opponent he faced in 2006 first up this year. Olivier Rochus of Belgium made Nieminen sweat for every point in last year’s classic semifinal, and this year no-one would blame the Finn if he looked at the draw and cursed his luck.
Already centre court had seen 2004 Roland Garros champion Gaston Gaudio of Argentina fall to third seed David Ferrer of Spain 5-7 6-3 6-2, and one fan was heard to remark that it seemed like the second half of the week already.
"When I play against him, it's always tough. He is at a very good level and he is a very strong player. In the first set he had more chances but in the second and third I played better," said the world number 16.
Rochus made all the major plays against Nieminen, hitting either winners or errors as he ground out a first set win by 7-3 in the tiebreak. Once the momentum was regained with more naked aggression at the start of the second set, Rochus ran away with it 6-1. The defending champion was beaten, one of the only two Grand Slam winners in the draw was also gone, and the organisers sent their volunteers out with towels to mop up the bloodstains.
Nieminen didn’t want to make excuses but did point out he had been suffering from illness "In the off season I was showing some good form and then I got sick and that's why I didn't go to Adelaide," said the 25-year-old.
"I still feel that my form is not so good at the moment. I had a great feeling to come back here and defend my title; I have great memories from last year.
"I am still in doubles (with New Zealand's Dan King-Turner) and I hope to get some more matches and then I will have one week to practice for Melbourne."
Rochus reached the final in 2005 and the semis last year, when he played the Finn in perhaps the best game ever seen at the Auckland tournament before losing 4-6 7-6 6-7 after saving nine match points.
The match on day one in 2007 did not live up to those standards but the Belgian crowd favourite said he was struggling to overcome jetlag after arriving in from Doha.
"It was a very tough first round match. I am very happy but it wasn't the best match between us. I like the crowd here; they are very nice and are always cheering for me. I also like centrecourt, I just love playing here and I always try to do my best," said Rochus.
In other day one action Kristof Vliegen, Belgium’s other player in Auckland, beat Serbia’s Janko Tipsarevic 7-6(3) 6-0. Some suggested that the Serb threw in the towel after the first set tie-break, but they weren’t out there chasing down Vliegen’s withering groundstrokes.
German Philipp Kohlschreiber made his usual good start in Auckland. He used to have to qualify in earlier years, and in 2004 went as far as a quarterfinal before losing to the eventual champion Dominik Hrbaty. Yesterday he put away Luis Horna of Peru 6-4 7-5. Florent Serra of France beat Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador 6-3 1-6 6-4, Daniele Bracciali of Italy beat Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-3 6-2, while Gael Monfils made it a bad “net” day for France with a 4-6 4-6 loss to Alberto Martin of Spain. Spanish top seed Tommy Robredo, meanwhile, was very businesslike putting away his countryman Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo 6-2 6-1.
Cirque du Soleil Comes To Centrecourt:
Heineken are proudly presenting a special treat for fans on day two, a one-off segment specially choreographed for centrecourt by Cirque du Soleil’s Varekai, the first time they have performed outside the Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) in Australasia. The 56-strong Varekai troupe has already played to nearly four million people worldwide. The performance will be held after the second match on day two and will feature some stunts which are out of this world.
