By Randal Slavens, Toronto
Monday marks the launch of the main draw at Toronto’s Tennis Masters
Series Tournament. On Sunday, Moroccan stars Hicham Arazi and Karim
Alami warmed up for their singles action by teaming up to play
doubles. In their first qualifying match, the dynamic duo easily
disposed of the inexperienced Canadian team of Klinger and Sevigny, 6-4, 6-2. Although neither player accords high priority to doubles,
Alami and Arazi looked extremely comfortable as a team. To qualify
for the main draw, the Moroccan pair must still overcome the team of
Israel’s Harel Levy and American Cecil Mamiit. The match was
scheduled for Sunday afternoon, but rain got in the way and postponed
action until Monday.
Regardless of their results in doubles, both players give priority to
their singles matches. Hicham Arazi, currently ranks 25th in the ATP
Champions Race, faces American Michael Chang in first round action.
The two have never played before but their similar styles should make
for an exciting first round match. Both rely on quickness and sharp
groundstrokes, which should transpire into many long and exciting
rallies.
Karim Alami, ranked 41st in the ATP Champions Race, meets Australian
Peter Tramacchi, who had to win two qualifying matches over the
weekend just to make the main draw. The winner of the Alami-Tamacchi
match will likely face American Pete Sampras, the tournament’s second
seed, in round two.
Due to the incredibly high quality of players entered in the Toronto
tournament, several enticing first-round matches loom ahead.
Highlighting Monday’s action are Britain’s Tim Henman versus former
world number one Marcelo Rios; a battle of teenage stars: Australia’s
Lleyton Hewitt against Sweden’s Roger Federer; and 11th seed Nicolas
Kiefer of Germany versus 1999 U.S. Open finalist Todd Martin. Andre
Agassi, the tournament’s top seed, meets talented Frenchman Jerome
Golmard.
Up until a few days ago, the participation of Sampras and Agassi
remained uncertain. Both have been sidelined from injuries that kept
them out of Davis Cup action two weeks ago. Agassi injured his back
when his car was rear-ended in Las Vegas following his semi-final
loss at Wimbledon earlier this month. Sampras, meanwhile, struggled
with tendonitis in one of his legs during his run to a record-
breaking 13th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon. Sampras said that his
Wimbledon victory was “as good as it will ever get as a player.”
Despite his accomplishments, Sampras is still “constantly looking
forward to the next tournament…When all is said and done, I’ll look
back and reflect on it all…as I get older, the wins are more
emotional and mean more,” said Sampras at a July 30th press
conference at Toronto’s Tennis Masters Series Tournament.
For Sampras, the upcoming week in Toronto provides an opportunity to
add to his impressive trophy case – Albawaba.com
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
