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tournament victory

Around The Corner – ATP World Tour Finals

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By Mike McIntyre

The end is near tennis fans.

The ATP World Tour Finals being held in London, England marks the official end of the 2010 tennis season. The top eight players in the world are gathered to duke it out for bragging rights and a little extra cash as well.

While not nearly as prestigious as a Grand Slam event, the year-end tourney offers up more quality matches in one week than we are normally accustomed to watching. In a regular event the top eight players can only meet in the quarter-finals and rarely do we see them all left as the final ones standing. Here in London we get some fantastic matches right from the get-go with the field split into two groups of four players who all play each other once in the round robin format.

In Pool A this year we have world number one Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Tomas Berdych and Andy Roddick.

Pool B has Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Robin Soderling and David Ferrer.

Let’s take a closer look at both pools and speculate on who has the best chance of ending the year with a final tournament victory.

Rafael Nadal has just completed another mind-boggling season, perhaps his best one yet. Capturing three Grand Slams including his first U.S. Open title, Nadal has been by far the most dominant player on the ATP World Tour.

Novak Djokovic

Shoulder troubles hampered Nadal in recent weeks and kept him out of the Masters 1000 event in Paris, but he claims to be healthy now and ready to go. Nadal has been out since early October and without much match time lately I wonder if he will be as sharp as he will need to be to take this title for the first time in his career. Nadal has twice before made the semi-finals of this event, losing both times to Roger Federer.

Novak Djokovic had a decent year in 2010 but has still not been able to win a Slam since his one and only such victory at the Australian Open in 2008. He made the finals at the U.S. Open in September defeating Roger Federer in a memorable semi-final, but then fell to a very in-form Nadal. Djokovic has lost twice to Federer this fall and most recently lost the third round in Paris.

Tomas Berdych is the only first-time participant in the event and had his best year on Tour. The 25 year-old participated in the most number of tournaments of anyone in the top ten and made his first ever Grand Slam final at Wimbledon. Since that time he has failed to advance past the quarter-finals of any event and has not had two consecutive victories in any event since he played Toronto in August.

American veteran Andy Roddick has not had the type of year he was hoping for as he did not advance past the quarter-finals of any of the Grand Slams. He also uncharacteristically had poor showings at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and dropped out of the top-ten for a short time as well. Roddick’s best results came early in the season and it is tough to imagine him advancing deep in London.

Roger Federer has had a tough go by his standards this year but did capture one Slam in Australia and after a surprising loss to Berdych at Wimbledon has played with far greater consistency and resolve. He has gone 30-4 since that defeat and has won three titles. If he can get through Andy Murray – who has given him all sorts of problems in his career – he should have a good shot at taking this title.

Murray has been very inconsistent this year but still has Federer’s number for the most part. Federer still seems to get the better of the Scot in Grand Slam matches when things matter the most, but otherwise Murray has dominated the Swiss star. Murray won the Masters 1000 event in October in Shanghai, but since then has lost to Juan Monaco and Gael Monfils. He definitely has the ability to win this event, but will have to defeat some big names in order to make that happen.

Robin Soderling is a player who also has a serious shot at this title. He won the first Masters 1000 series event of his career recently in Paris and has proved over the past two years that he belongs in the top ten. Lookout for him this week as well.

Feisty Spaniard David Ferrer has played well since the U.S. Open with one tournament victory in Valencia and another final appearance in Beijing. The 28 year-old is the one player who is likely to get handled quite easily with a field as deep as this one. It is a noble accomplishment that he has qualified for this event but I don’t expect him to last long.

My call is for the either Federer or Murray to emerge victorious in London this year. They have both had some strong results this fall and should be hungry to end the year on a high note.

Enjoy this week’s tennis everyone and we’ll see you again around the corner in 2011.

Sun Shining on Jamaica; Victoria Azarenka Collapses on Grandstand Court

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NEW YORK – Jamaica’s Dustin Brown was almost as hot as the broiling sun baking the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as he blasted his way past Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo 6-4 7-6 (6) 7-5 to post his first Grand Slam tournament victory.

“Being Jamaican … heat is normally not an issue for me,” Brown said. “Today was extremely hot and I was definitely fighting with that.”

For the third straight day the year’s final major tennis event was played under extremely hot conditions. By 11:30 a.m. the temperature had reached 90 degrees with 42 percent humidity. It was even hotter on the asphalt courts, where temperatures topped 100 degrees.

Victoria Azarenka

Tenth-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus appeared wobbly while playing, then collapsed to the ground while chasing down a ball on the baseline. At the time she was trailing Argentina’s Gisela Dulko 5-1.

“I was warming up in the gym prior to my match against Gisela Dulko when I fell while running a sprint,” Azarenka later said in a statement. “I fell forward and hit my arm and head. I was checked by the medical team before I went on court and they were courtside for monitoring.

“I felt worse as the match went on, having a headache and feeling dizzy. I also started having trouble seeing and felt weak before I fell.

“I was taken to the hospital for some medical tests and have been diagnosed with a mild concussion.”

The only thing missing from Brown’s impressive victory was the steel band that for several years would entertain fans on the plaza outside Arthur Ashe Stadium. But while there was no music, there was plenty of Jamaican joy surrounding the outside court where the two non-seeded players had been relegated.

“It felt like I played a Davis Cup match at home there because a lot of Jamaican guys and Jamaican guys I know that live in New York came out to support me,” Brown said. “It definitely helped me in the hard times where I was really struggling – concentrating and also struggling with my body.”

Wearing dreadlocks and day-glo shoelaces – one orange, the other lime green – the 6-foot-5 (1.96m) Brown slammed 21 aces to go along with his nine double-faults. He finished with 116 total points, 20 more than his opponent.

“That’s one of my biggest weapons, my serve, and it definitely was there when I needed it the most. Especially at the end when I realized that I tried to close out the points really fast,” said.

Born in Celle, Germany, to a Jamaican father and German mother, Brown has honed his skills on the minor-league clay court tournaments of Europe. He pulled off a shocker at a grass-court event this past summer – in Newport, Rhode Island, USA – when he beat another big boomer, American Sam Querrey. It was the Jamaican’s first victory over a top 20 player.

Against Ramirez Hidalgo, Brown mixed his booming serves with deft drop shots, most of the time catching his foe way behind the baseline. Time and again, Ramirez Hidalgo would race to the net, arriving too late to do anything with the ball and usually shoveling it into the net.

“I try it and see how it works,” Brown said of his drop shot. “If the guy is running it down every time and hits a winner, then I should stop. But today it worked pretty well, so I kept using it.”

Brown broke his Spanish foe twice in the opening set, then held at 15 in the 10th game to take first blood, 6-4. The next time either player broke serve, it again was Brown, and this time it was to wrap up the first-round victory.

In the final set, Brown lost just five points on his serve, and no more than one in any of his six service games.

With Ramirez Hidalgo serving to level the set at 5-5, Brown battled through four deuces before he finally closed out the 65-minute victory on his third match point.

In this, the third day of the year’s final Grand Slam tournament, several seeded players were ousted.

Young American qualifier Ryan Harrison, making his main draw debut, knocked off 15th-seeded Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia 6-3 6-7 (4) 6-3 6-4.

“I played him in Indian Wells (California, USA),” the 18-year-old Harrison said of his veteran opponent. “I know kind of what I’m going to get from him.

“He serves very well. Off the ground he’s pretty steady, doesn’t miss a lot. He relies on you to make some mental errors and uses his experience and his serve and his ability to play to his advantage. Coming out today I was looking forward to … playing as aggressive as possible and using my transition game to help me.”

Seventh-seeded Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic was bounced by Frenchman Michael Llodra 7-6 (3) 6-4 6-4.

In women’s matches during the day, Virginie Razzano knocked off French compatriot Marion Bartoli, the 13th seed, 7-5 6-4; Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic beat number 21 Zheng Jie of China, and Luxemburg’s Mandy Minella eliminated number 32 Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria 6-4 6-0.

FEDERER TURNS TO ANNACONE

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Roger Federer announced on his official website – www.RogerFederer.com – that he will begin working with former Pete Sampras coach Paul Annacone as a “test.”

Wrote Federer, “Dear Fans, I’ve been looking to add someone to my team and I’ve decided to spend some days with Paul Annacone. As Paul winds down his responsibilities working for the Lawn Tennis Association, we will explore our relationship through this test period. Paul will work alongside my existing team and I am excited to learn from his experiences. See you soon Roger”

Federer has been virtually “coachless” since ending a relationship with former Jim Courier and Michael Chang coach Jose Higueras in 2008.

Federer, currently ranked No. 3 in the world (his lowest ranking since 2003), failed to reach the semifinals at this last two major tournaments at Wimbledon and the French Open. The 16-time major tournament champion is expected to return to play next month in Toronto. His lone tournament victory in 2010 came at the Australian Open in January.

Severin Luthi, the Swiss Davis Cup captain, has been traveling with Federer for much of the last 18 months.

Annacone was a former top 20 player, U.S. Davis Cupper and former coach of Pete Sampras, Tim Henman and most recently as the head of coaching for Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association. He and the LTA recently announced that their relationship would not be renewed.

Federer previously worked with Peter Lundgren, Tony Roche and Higueras. His childhood coach, Peter Carter, died in a car crash in 2002.

In 2009, as documented in the new paperback book ROGER FEDERER: QUEST FOR PERFECTION ($19.95, New Chapter Press) by Rene Stauffer, Federer “failed in his attempt to lure the top Australian coach Darren Cahill to coach him.” Wrote Stauffer, “Cahill, who had worked with both Andre Agassi and Lleyton Hewitt, decided after a short test period to take a different position that allowed him to spend more time with his wife and his two kids, who live in Las Vegas.”

NADAL AND FEDERER REKINDLE RIVALRY AS RAFA WINS MADRID

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By Randy Walker

In a match played at a high intensity from the first strike of the ball, Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer 6-4, 7-6 (5) Sunday to win the Madrid Masters in the first meeting between the top two tennis titans in 12 months. The win for Nadal avenges his 6-4, 6-4 loss to Federer in the Madrid final in 2009, the last time that the two players met on a tennis court.

The title was his record 18th tournament victory at a Masters Series event – moving him ahead of Andre Agassi and his 17 Masters Series titles. It also marked his 39th singles title of his career and his 28th career title on clay. Nadal’s win keeps the Mallorocan undefeated on clay so far in 2010, having won titles in Monte Carlo and Rome. He will look to win his fourth title at Roland Garros in Paris – and unseat Federer as the reigning French champion.

“I have been unbeaten in this stadium for almost two years now. It was a wonderful tournament and I wish I could have defended my title,” Federer said following the loss.

Both players jumped out of the gate like gang busters, knowing that there is little margin between victory and defeat and even mistakes made in the opening stages of the match can be the difference between winning and losing. The match was played with much anticipation and with much interest from the sports world. Olympic gold medal-winning skier Lindsey Vonn, an avid fan of Federer, tweeted “OMG this is horrible, I’m at a sports restaurant and they r showing every sport except tennis & don’t even have the Tennis channel! Aahhh!!!”

The two titans had not clashed in exactly a year, equaling the longest period the two have gone without playing – matching the one year period between their first and second meetings at the 2004 and 2005 Sony Ericson Opens.

The rivalry began on March 28, 2004 when Nadal, then an aspiring 17-year-old, took down the world No. 1 Federer 6-3, 6-3 in the third round of Key Biscayne – then labeled as the NASDAQ-100 Open. As outlined in my book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, www.TennisHistoryBook.com), Nadal was the youngest man in the tournament field and said following the match, “I played almost perfect tennis.” Federer’s loss was only his second in 25 matches in the 2004 season and predicted great things for the young Spaniard. “He hit some really incredible shots, and that’s what youngsters do. I’ve heard a lot about him and saw some of his matches, so this is not a big surprise.”

Their current head-to-head sits at 14-7 in favor of Nadal.

Rene Stauffer, the author of the book THE ROGER FEDERER STORY: QUEST FOR PERFECTION ($24.95 New Chapter Press, www.RogerFedererBook.com) discusses Federer’s first match with Nadal – and that period in his career, in his book excerpt below.

The 2004 season was turning into a triumphal march for Federer. He was celebrated wherever he appeared. His results continued to be worthy of a world No. 1. His first defeat of the year—and in manner of three months—came in mid-February, when he lost to Tim Henman in the quarterfinals of Rotterdam. He quickly regained form and successfully defended his title in Dubai, defeating the Spainard Feliciano Lopez in the final. At the Tennis Masters Series event in Indian Wells, Federer avenged his loss to Henman in the championship match and realized his first “countable” victory against another of his early nemeses. The win over Henman was only his second in eight matches, with Federer’s only previous win over the Brit in Key Biscayne in 2002 being decided when Henman was forced to quit after one set due to a stiff neck. His victory, therefore, was especially satisfying. “Now I believe that no opponent has a psychological advantage over me,” he said.

An opponent that would bring Federer to his knees, however, appeared shortly after Indian Wells—illness. Immediately after the final, Federer began to run a fever and suffer from nausea and muscle pains. Despite his illness, he did not cancel his pre-arranged trip to Portland, Ore., the home of his clothing sponsor “Nike,” for a promotional visit, but en route to Miami for the next tournament, Federer was forced to stop and check into an airport hotel in Los Angeles to rest and try to recover. As he and Mirka finally arrived in Florida, he considered withdrawing from the tournament, but when rain gave him an extra day of rest, he decided to give it a go.

After he was able to muster up enough strength to negotiate a three-set win in his first match against No. 54-ranked Nikolay Davydenko of Russia, Federer next drew the highly-regarded Spaniard Rafael Nadal. The 17-year-old left-hander from Mallorca played what he described at the time as the best match of his life and dominated the listless Federer 6-3, 6-3. The loss was the most decisive defeat Federer experienced in a year. Nadal also became the youngest player to defeat the Wimbledon champion. Federer was not surprised that he lost since he was not yet recovered from his illness. Nonetheless, he suspected that Nadal would be a dangerous rival coming of age. “He will become the most powerful left-hander in tennis in the coming years,” Federer prophesized.

BRYANS WIN 61st TITLE TO TIE WOODIES FOR MEN’S RECORD

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The Bryan Brothers – Bob and Mike – have tied the record for most doubles titles won by a team in the Open Era of tennis (since 1968), by defeating Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Madrid Masters in Spain on Sunday. The tournament victory – their 61st title together – ties them with the Australian pair of Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge.

The Bryans will look to break the record at the French Open, which starts next Sunday in Paris. The win in Madrid also moved the brothers back to the top ATP World Tour doubles rankings.

As documented in the historical book THE BUD COLLINS HISTORY OF TENNIS ($35.95, New Chapter Press, www.NewChapterMedia.com), the all-time winningest doubles team is Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver, who have won 79 doubles titles. In men’s doubles, the teams of John McEnroe and Peter Fleming and Bob Hewitt and Frew McMillan each won 57 titles – which places each team in a tie for third place. Earlier this year, by winning the Australian Open, the Bryans moved passed the Woodies into the first place all-time for most final-round appearances in Grand Slam tournaments by a men’s doubles team with their 16th appearance. The Bryans have won eight major men’s doubles titles (4 Australian, 1 French, 1 Wimbledon and 2 US Open titles) and are four titles away from equaling John Newcombe and Tony Roche’s all-time record of 12 titles.

The Woodies will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame this July in Newport, R.I.

STEADY CLIJSTERS BEATS VENUS FOR SONY ERICSSON TITLE

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By Randy Walker

Kim Cljisters won the biggest tennis tournament in the United States last September when she won the U.S. Open.

Saturday, she won the second biggest.

The Belgian dominated Venus Williams 6-2, 6-1 in just 58 minutes in the title match at the Sony Ericsson Open, regarded by many as the most important tournament outside of the four Grand Slam tournaments.

Clijsters, 26, played steady, consistent tennis while Williams was not in top form, committing numerous errors. During one stretch, Clijsters won 17 straight points in the second set, many off of unforced errors from the 29-year-old Williams.

”I was ready to go and was seeing the ball really well,” said Clijsters to Mary Joe Fernandez on CBS Sports following the win. “I stayed really consistent during the match today.”

While Clijsters was an unseeded, unranked wild card entry last September in the U.S. Open, Clijsters was seeded No. 14 in Key Biscayne this week, and will move back into the top 10 – at No. 10 – on the WTA Tour computer on Monday with her tournament victory.

The title was the 37th of Clijsters’ career and her third since she came out of retirement last summer – the other two being the U.S. Open last year and earlier this year in Brisbane, Australia. The title was also the second for Clijsters in Key Biscayne, having previously won the title in 2005, defeating Maria Sharapova 6-3, 7-5 in the final.

Williams was seeking her fourth Key Biscayne title and was riding a 15-match win streak – with two tournament titles – entering the early spring hard court event.

PHILIPPOUSSIS, MELIGENI EACH ADVANCE TO FIRST CHAMPIONS SERIES FINAL

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RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, March 13 – – Mark Philippoussis of Australia and Fernando Meligeni of Brazil each advanced into their first career Champions Series tournament final Saturday with semifinal victories at the $150,000 Banco Cruzerio do Sul Rio Champions Cup. Philippoussis defeated former world No. 1 Mats Wilander of Sweden 6-3, 6-4, while Meligeni defeated Wayne Ferreira of South Africa 7-5, 2-6, 10-2 (Champions Tie-Breaker). The Banco Cruzeiro do Sul Rio Champions Cup is the opening event on the 2010 Champions Series tennis circuit, the U.S.-based international tennis circuit for champion tennis players age 30 and over.

Champions Series Tennis
Champions Series Tennis

Sunday’s final, with a $60,000 first prize check on the line as well as 800 Champions Series ranking points, will be a rematch of a round-robin match from last year’s event in Rio, won by Philippoussis 6-4, 3-6, 11-9 (Champions Tie-Breaker).

“I expect a fun match against Meligeni,” said Philippoussis. “It is going to be a great atmosphere, playing against him here in Brazil. I know what he is going to do. He is going to try to make me run all around the court, to both sides and I know I won’t be doing it. I will play my way.”

Philippoussis, 33, first joined the Champions Series circuit in 2007 after tearing the lateral meniscus in his right knee while attempting to return to the ATP World Tour earlier in the year at the Hopman Cup in Perth, Australia. He was unable to play competitive tennis in 2008, due to continued knee problems, but returned to the Champions Series in 2009, with a third-place finish in Grand Cayman being his best result to date. During his ATP World Tour career, he was a singles finalist at Wimbledon in 2003, losing to Roger Federer, marking Federer’s first career major tournament victory. He was also a finalist at the U.S. Open in 1998, losing to countryman Patrick Rafter.

“This is my first final in the Champions Series and I haven’t had these many matches in a long time, so the more I play, the better it is for me, but it feels really good to win,” said Philippoussis, who has been enjoying time surfing off the beaches of Rio when not competing this week. “My body is feeling good and that is what matters for me and that I am having fun on the court.”

Meligeni, who will turn 39 on April 12, is from Sao Paulo, Brazil and is a local wild card into the event. He reached the semifinals of the French Open in 1999 and finished in fourth place at the 1996 Olympic Games, falling to Leander Paes in the bronze medal match. He did pick up a medal seven years later, in the final match of his career defeating Marcelo Rios in the gold medal match at the Pan American Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Against Ferreira, Meligeni rode the wave of the highly energetic and partisan home crowd to win the hard-fought nail-bitter on the fast indoor court at the Maracanãzinho Stadium.

“When I got here I felt like an outsider, among so many great champions, number ones, top 10s and now I am in the final,” said the left-handed Brazilian. “In tennis sometimes, when you don’t lose in the first round and you don’t have a great day, you have the chance to come back the next day and turn things around. That is what I did today. I played good tennis, had fun on the court and I knew that if I could win the first set, I would have a better chance, because Wayne is in better physical condition than I am.”

In his quarterfinal match early Friday against Mikael Pernfors, Meligeni said after losing the first set, that quitting competitive tennis entered his mind, before surging back to win the match in a first-to-ten-points Champions Tie-Breaker, played in lieu of a third set.

Said Meligeni after his win Friday over Pernfors, “It wasn’t a usual performance for me, as I am used to being much more relaxed on court and having more fun with the crowd, but this is very, very competitive and we both wanted to win and I had to find a way to be the winner. You could tell that Pernfors wasn’t very happy when he left the court.”

Tickets for the event can still be purchased by calling 5521-3005-4023 or on www.ChampionsSeriesTennis.com Sunday’s schedule begins at 11 am with the third-place match between Wilander and Ferreira, followed by the singles final between Philippoussis and Meligeni.

Jim Courier finished the 2009 season as the top-ranked player on the Champions Series, followed by Pete Sampras and Todd Martin. John McEnroe won the inaugural Rio Champions Cup in 2009, defeating Courier 6-2, 6-3 in the final. The full 2010 Champions Series schedule of tournaments will be announced in the near future. The first tournament in the United States – the Staples Champions Cup – will be held April 29-May 2 in Boston, Mass., and will feature Bjorn Borg playing in his first tournament in the U.S. in 10 years.

InsideOut Sports + Entertainment is a New York City-based independent producer of proprietary events and promotions founded in 2004 by former world No. 1 and Hall of Fame tennis player Jim Courier and former SFX and Clear Channel executive Jon Venison. In 2005, InsideOut launched its signature property, the Champions Series tennis circuit, a collection of tournaments featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. In addition, InsideOut produces many other successful events including “Legendary Night” exhibitions, charity events, corporate outings and tennis fantasy camps such as the annual “Ultimate Fantasy Camp”. Through 2009, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment events have raised over $4 million for charity. For more information, please log on to www.InsideOutSE.com or www.ChampionsSeriesTennis.com or follow on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

CHAMPIONS SERIES ON VIDEO

The Champions Series video page features exclusive behind the scenes footage of events and candid player interviews. Videos can be seen at http://www.championsseriestennis.com/video.php

RICARDAS BERANKIS: A STAR BEING BORN?

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By Chris Kane

Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania, the 2007 US Open Boy’s Champion, made a strong statement at the SAP Open Tuesday in San Jose, Calif., defeating former U.S. Open semifinalist Robby Ginepri of the United States in his opening match.

The 19-year-old qualifier who now resides in Brandenton, Fla., recovered from losing a first set tie breaker to win convincingly 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 6-3.

Despite being ranked No. 255 in the world and sporting only a 2-4 lifetime record at the ATP level, Berankis played a solid attacking game to defeat Ginepri, a former world No. 15, who lost to Andre Agassi in five sets in the 2005 U.S. Open semifinals.

Upon the conclusion of the match Berankis let loose a cry of jubilation underscoring the importance of the match. He will now face German Bjorn Phau who upset No. 8 seed Jeremy Chardy of France earlier in the day in straight sets.

Berankis’ U.S. Open junior tournament victory puts him in some exclusive company. Past winners include: Andy Murray (2004), Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (2003), Andy Roddick (2000), David Nalbandian (1998), Stefan Edberg (1983) and Pat Cash (1982).

Martin Tops Agassi In Outback Champions Series Final In Surprise

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SURPRISE, Ariz., Oct. 11, 2009 – Todd Martin defeated Andre Agassi 6-3, 7-5 Sunday to win the singles title at the $150,000 Cancer Treatment Centers of America Tennis Championships at Surprise. Martin earned $60,000 for the tournament victory, his first title in 2009 and his fourth career title on the Outback Champions Series, the global tennis circuit for champion tennis players age 30 and over.

“It’s nice to go out and play well against really good players,” said Martin. “I felt good out there. I felt in a rhythm. I found a great feel for the ball.”

Todd Martin tops Andre Agassi
Todd Martin tops Andre Agassi

The Cancer Treatment Centers of America Tennis Championships at Surprise is the seventh and final event on the 2009 Outback Champions Series. Martin’s victory was his first on the Series since he won in Naples, Fla., on March 16, 2008. Martin also won Outback Champions Series titles in 2006 in Boston and in 2007 in Newport, R.I. Last year in Surprise, Martin lost the championship match to John McEnroe by a 3-6, 7-6(3), 11-9 (Champions Tie-Breaker) margin.

Agassi, who earned $30,000 for the runner-up showing, was playing in his debut event on the Outback Champions Series. The event marked his first tournament appearance since he retired from his ATP career at the 2006 U.S. Open.

“I really enjoyed being here this week, with a lot of peers and familiar faces and the crowds were great,” said Agassi. “Three days in a row is a lot of tennis for me now. Hopefully I can improve next time.”

En route to the final, Agassi defeated Mikael Pernfors of Sweden 6-2, 7-5 on Friday night and Wayne Ferreira of South Africa 6-3, 6-3 in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon.

Martin took control of the match from the start, controlling points with a high percentage of first serves and aggressive play off his backhand side. After winning the first set 6-3, Martin broke Agassi in the second game of the second set and held for a 3-0 lead. Agassi had a chance to break back, holding triple break point at 0-40 with Martin serving at 4-2, but Martin was able to claw back and hold for a 5-2 lead. After Agassi held serve, Martin served for the title at 5-3, but was unable to close out the match as Agassi’s powerful returns kept him alive. Martin was then able to break Agassi’s serve at 5-6 and clinch the match, benefiting from an Agassi forehand error on match point.

Said Martin, “I felt that as long as I didn’t get carried away with my serve I was really going to have a good day.”

Martin and Agassi played their final 10 years after the two met in the men’s singles final at the 1999 U.S. Open, won by Agassi 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-2. Agassi won 13 of 18 matches against Martin during their ATP careers, Martin last winning in the quarterfinals of the Paris Indoor in 1998.

Said Agassi of his experience in Surprise, “This week exceeded my expectations. It was a lot of fun. This is a competitive tour and these guys take care of themselves. You’ve got to come ready to play.”

In the third-place match Sunday, Aaron Krickstein concluded a memorable week of tennis by defeating Ferreira 3-6, 6-3, 10-8 (Champions Tie-Breaker) to earn the $25,000 third-place purse. Krickstein upset Jim Courier in the first round of the event on Thursday night before losing to Martin in Saturday evening’s semifinals.

“It’s tough sometimes to come back and play the next day after you lose, especially a tough match,” said Krickstein. “But pride is always involved and you want to win.”

Pete Sampras won the opening event on the 2009 Outback Champions Series, defeating McEnroe in the final of the Champions Cup Boston in February. McEnroe won the second event of the year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, defeating Jim Courier in the final. Sampras won his second title of the year at the Del Mar Development Champions Cup in Los Cabos, Mexico, defeating Patrick Rafter in the final. Courier won his first title of the 2009 season in April at the Cayman Islands, defeating Jimmy Arias in the final. Pat Cash successfully defended his title on the grass courts at the Hall of Fame Champions Cup in Newport, R.I. in August, defeating Courier in the final. Courier won his second title of the season in Charlotte in September, defeating Sampras for the first time since 1997 by a 3-6, 6-4, 10-8 (Champions Tie-Breaker) margin in the final.

Founded in 2005, the Outback Champions Series features some of the biggest names in tennis over the last 25 years, including Agassi, Sampras, McEnroe, Courier and others. To be eligible to compete on the Outback Champions Series, players must have reached at least a major singles final, been ranked in the top five in the world or played singles on a championship Davis Cup team. The Outback Champions Series features seven events on its 2009 schedule with each event featuring $150,000 in prize money as well as Champions Series points that will determine the year-end Champions Rankings No. 1.

InsideOut Sports + Entertainment is a New York City-based independent producer of proprietary events and promotions founded in 2004 by former world No. 1 and Hall of Fame tennis player Jim Courier and former SFX and Clear Channel executive Jon Venison. In 2005, InsideOut launched its signature property, the Outback Champions Series, a collection of tennis events featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. In addition, InsideOut produces many other successful events including “Legendary Night” exhibitions, charity events, corporate outings and tennis fantasy camps such as the annual “Ultimate Fantasy Camp”. Through 2008, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment events have raised over $4 million for charity. For more information, please log on to www.InsideOutSE.com or www.ChampionsSeriesTennis.com.