Ferrero Continues Clay Court Dominance in Spain
ATP Tennis
Top seed Juan Carlos Ferrero claimed the ninth ATP title of his career with a 6-2, 6-4 victory of Belgium's Christophe Rochus in the final of the CAM Open Comunidad Valenciana presented by Onofre.
Ferrero, who moves up to second position in the ATP Champions Race 2003, captured his second title of the year (Tennis Masters Monte-Carlo) and is now 29-6 for the season with a 17-1 record on clay.
En route to the final, Ferrero defeated wild card Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Albert Portas, Agustin Calleri and Brazil's Flavio Saretta without dropping a set.
[...]
What the Players Said:
Ferrero: "It was a very good match. I played very well and felt very comfortable on court. I didn't feel any danger during the match. I am always happy to win a tournament, but it is special to win one in Valencia. I like playing here.
"I am not that far away from becoming the No. 1 player in the world. The key will be whether I can play better and more consistently on hard courts. If I continue to play well in the European clay court season and then take that form to the hard courts in the United Sates, I could finish the year as the World No. 1.
"From here, I won't be getting much rest, but I am looking forward to playing Rome as it is one of the most important tournaments on the circuit. Normally, I wouldn't have played this week, but Valencia is an exception. I have been receiving treatment on my right arm all week for a minor injury, but it is not serious. With a day's rest, it should be fine."
Rochus: "It was my first final, but I was feeling okay before the match. I wasn't nervous. The beginning of a match is very important against a player of Ferrero's standard. It sets the rhythm of the match. I didn't start well. He broke my serve and I was immediately under pressure. I was trying to do too much with my shots, hoping to make a difference, but he was too good. I was a little bit lost and didn't know what to do. I consider Ferrero as the best player in the world on clay.
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Photo 1: Return
Photo 2: JC and trophy
Photo 3: With Rochus
Photo 4: With Rochus and trophys (small)
Photo 5: Victory!!!
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Ferrero beats Rochus in final
Associated Press
VALENCIA, Spain (AP) — World No. 3 Juan Carlos Ferrero was worried he might have overplayed himself Sunday after winning his second title in two weeks at the Valencia Open.
Ferrero exceeded expectations before his home crowd by beating 134th-ranked Christophe Rochus of Belgium 6-2, 6-4 in the final, not dropping a set all week, and improving his season record on clay to 17-1.
But Ferrero said his serving arm was hurting and he won't be 100 percent on Tuesday when he begins the Italian Open, where he'll vie with new No. 1 Andre Agassi for the title.
"I am really giving myself a beating," Ferrero said.
"I was lucky not to have any matches that went to three sets," he added. "This will leave me in better shape physically for next week."
Ferrero usually had this past week off. But this year Valencia started a tournament, and Ferrero added it to his workload.
He won the Monte Carlo Masters two weeks ago and reached the semifinals in Barcelona last weekend. He heads to Rome then the Hamburg Masters, giving him five straight weeks of tournament play before the French Open starts May 26.
Ferrero said he was on course to become the world's top-rated player, but still had some fine-tuning to do.
"I need to be more regular on hard-courts, but I am getting there," he said.
Rochus was appearing in his first career ATP final after a run of four consecutive first-round losses.
It was Ferrero's ninth career title and the 23-year-old Spaniard earned $US61,700.
ATP Tennis
Top seed Juan Carlos Ferrero claimed the ninth ATP title of his career with a 6-2, 6-4 victory of Belgium's Christophe Rochus in the final of the CAM Open Comunidad Valenciana presented by Onofre.
Ferrero, who moves up to second position in the ATP Champions Race 2003, captured his second title of the year (Tennis Masters Monte-Carlo) and is now 29-6 for the season with a 17-1 record on clay.
En route to the final, Ferrero defeated wild card Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Albert Portas, Agustin Calleri and Brazil's Flavio Saretta without dropping a set.
[...]
What the Players Said:
Ferrero: "It was a very good match. I played very well and felt very comfortable on court. I didn't feel any danger during the match. I am always happy to win a tournament, but it is special to win one in Valencia. I like playing here.
"I am not that far away from becoming the No. 1 player in the world. The key will be whether I can play better and more consistently on hard courts. If I continue to play well in the European clay court season and then take that form to the hard courts in the United Sates, I could finish the year as the World No. 1.
"From here, I won't be getting much rest, but I am looking forward to playing Rome as it is one of the most important tournaments on the circuit. Normally, I wouldn't have played this week, but Valencia is an exception. I have been receiving treatment on my right arm all week for a minor injury, but it is not serious. With a day's rest, it should be fine."
Rochus: "It was my first final, but I was feeling okay before the match. I wasn't nervous. The beginning of a match is very important against a player of Ferrero's standard. It sets the rhythm of the match. I didn't start well. He broke my serve and I was immediately under pressure. I was trying to do too much with my shots, hoping to make a difference, but he was too good. I was a little bit lost and didn't know what to do. I consider Ferrero as the best player in the world on clay.
------------------------------------------
Photo 1: Return
Photo 2: JC and trophy
Photo 3: With Rochus
Photo 4: With Rochus and trophys (small)
Photo 5: Victory!!!
--------------------------------
Ferrero beats Rochus in final
Associated Press
VALENCIA, Spain (AP) — World No. 3 Juan Carlos Ferrero was worried he might have overplayed himself Sunday after winning his second title in two weeks at the Valencia Open.
Ferrero exceeded expectations before his home crowd by beating 134th-ranked Christophe Rochus of Belgium 6-2, 6-4 in the final, not dropping a set all week, and improving his season record on clay to 17-1.
But Ferrero said his serving arm was hurting and he won't be 100 percent on Tuesday when he begins the Italian Open, where he'll vie with new No. 1 Andre Agassi for the title.
"I am really giving myself a beating," Ferrero said.
"I was lucky not to have any matches that went to three sets," he added. "This will leave me in better shape physically for next week."
Ferrero usually had this past week off. But this year Valencia started a tournament, and Ferrero added it to his workload.
He won the Monte Carlo Masters two weeks ago and reached the semifinals in Barcelona last weekend. He heads to Rome then the Hamburg Masters, giving him five straight weeks of tournament play before the French Open starts May 26.
Ferrero said he was on course to become the world's top-rated player, but still had some fine-tuning to do.
"I need to be more regular on hard-courts, but I am getting there," he said.
Rochus was appearing in his first career ATP final after a run of four consecutive first-round losses.
It was Ferrero's ninth career title and the 23-year-old Spaniard earned $US61,700.
