Quick exits
Sampras, Rafter bow out in first round of Swiss Indoors
Posted: Wednesday October 07, 1998 05:14 PM
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Pete Sampras steadily weakened as the match wore on AP |
BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -- Top seeds Pete Sampras and Patrick
Rafter both crashed out in the first round of the $1 million
Swiss Indoors on Wednesday.
Sampras, winner of three titles this season including Wimbledon,
was toppled by South African Wayne Ferreira 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
only hours after Rafter was eliminated in straight sets by Czech
Daniel Vacek.
Sampras, playing for the first time since he was eliminated in
the semifinals of the U.S. Open last month by Rafter, got off to a
strong start but slowly began to crumble.
Sampras' and Rafter's defeats mark the departure of the
tournament's biggest draws and its three Grand Slam champions this
year. Petr Korda, the Australian Open champion, was eliminated in
the first round on Tuesday, losing 6-2, 6-4 to Germany's Nicolas
Kiefer.
Rafter, the two-time U.S. Open champion surrendered 7-6 (9-7),
7-5 to Vacek after an hour and a half of play.
"There were only one or two key points in the match and they
didn't go my way," Rafter said. "But that's often the case in
indoors.
"My game is more suitedto hard court, and if I want to become
world No. 1 I'll have to learn how to play on all surfaces ...
quickly."
Rafter narrowly lost the first set to Vacek, before taing a
medical time-out so his therapist could massage his left hip.
Serving well but laboring in his return game, Rafter seemed to
struggle on the indoor carpet. Playing in only his first tournament
since successfully defending his title at Flushing Meadows a month
ago, the 25-year-old Australian showed only brief limpses of the
form which won him six titles this season.
Trailing 15-40 at 4-5, Rafter suddenly rallied, saving two match
points and winning four consecutive points to stay alive.
But Vacek converted his next chance.
The Czech held his own serve and then blasted four return
winners to clinch the match at love.
"Daniel kept serving as hard as possible," said Rafter, who
will next play in Vienna, Lyon, Stuttgart and Paris. "I served
pretty well but I need to put more pressure on my opponents and
construct points better indoors."
The 28-year-old Vacek, a doubles specialist still looking for
his first singles title, will face France's Fabrice Santoro in the
second round.
In other first-round play, seventh-seed Greg Rusedski began the
defense of his crown with a 6-2, 6-2 victoy over German qualifier
Axel Pretzsch.
Patrick Rafter fought tooth and nail, but came up short against Vacek AP | |
"Hopefully I'll be successful here," said Rusedski, the losing
finalist in Toulouse last weekend. "I like it here and I have a
record of nine wins and only one loss here."
Ranked 14th on the tour, Rusedski needed just 52 minutes to rout
Pretzsch, who defeated veterans Niklas Kulti of Sweden and Czech
Martin Damm to qualify.
Rusedski used his dominant serve to get three consecutive aces
and take the firt game against Pretzsch easily.
Rusedski's return proved just as effective against the young
German, playing in his first career ATP Tour event.
While Pretzsch managed to hold his opening serve of the match,
the Briton easily broke him twice in each set on way to the second
round.
"I was really pleased with the way I played," said Rusedski,
returning to formafter spending two months nursing his left ankle
after tearing ligaments at Queens in June. "Everything is coming
together nicely."
Rusedski will take on another German qualifier, David Prinosil,
in the second round.
"There were only one or two key points in the match and they
didn't go my way," Rafter said. "But that's often the case in
indoors.
"My game is more suited to hard court, and if I want to become
world No. 1 I'll have to learn how to play on all surfaces ...
quickly."
In other first-round play, seventh-seed Greg Rusedski began the
defense of his crown with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over German qualifier
Axel Pretzsch.
"Hopefully I'll be successful here," said Rusedski, the losing
finalist in Toulouse last weekend. "I like it here and I have a
record of nine wins and only one loss here."
Ranked 14th on the tour, Rusedski needed just 52 minutes to rout
Pretzsch, who defeated veterans Niklas Kulti of Sweden and Czech
Martin Damm to qualify.
Rusedski used his dominant serve to get three consecutive aces
and take the firt game against Pretzsch easily.
Rusedski's return proved just as effective against the young
German, playing in his first career ATP Tour event.
While Pretzsch managed to hold his opening serve of the match,
the Briton easily broke him twice in each set on way to the second
round.
"I was really pleased with the way I played," said Rusedski,
returning to form after spending two months nursing his left ankle
after tearing ligaments at Queens in June. "Everything is coming
together nicely."
Rusedski ill take on another German qualifier, David Prinosil,
in the second round.
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