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3. Yevgeny
Kafelnikov
Age:
23
Height:
6'3"
Weight:
173
Birthplace: Sochi,
Russia
Highest Rank:
3
(Current)
Career Titles:
12
Best U.S. Open Finish:
Fourth round,
1994
Last
Year: Did not
play
Dream
On: "When I finish my career, I want it to be like John
McEnroe. Wherever you go, you just ask the name—'Do you
know John?'—and everybody will say 'Yes,' because he has
done so much for tennis. And that is what I want to
do."
Don't Mess with
Me: In 1996 the USTA departed from tradition and ignored the
ATP Tour rankings in determining seeds for the Open. The
fourth-ranked Kafelnikov was seeded seventh,
behind Andre Agassi, who was ranked eighth in the world at the
time. Kafelnikov skipped the Open in
protest.
He Works Hard for the
Money: Kafelnikov has led the
ATP Tour in matches played (singles and doubles) in each of the
last three years. During that time he averaged 169 matches
a
year.
4. Goran
Ivanisevic
Age:
25
Height:
6'4"
Weight:
180
Birthplace:
Split,
Croatia
Highest Rank:
2 (July
1994)
Current:
4
Career Titles:
19
Best U.S. Open Finish:
Semifinals,
1996
It's Always
Something: "[People] like action movies, so they like me.
Always something interesting going on with me when I play.
Some aces, a little talking to the people around, a little
fighting, a little throwing the rackets. They like this.
They don't like when somebody
is too
boring."
Loose
Cannon: Ivanisevic is fearsome when he has the ball in his hands.
In 1996 he won 89% of his service games (second to Sampras,
who held 91% of the time). However, that
does
not mean Ivanisevic is unbeatable. Talented, yes, but also
an incredible head case, a player as likely to flame out in
the first or second round as he is to advance to the
finals.
Open
Fact: In 1993, Ivanisevic beat Daniel Nestor of Canada 20-18 in
a third-set tiebreaker. It was the longest tiebreaker in
Open
history.
Profiles by Stephen Thomas
Next two seeds
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