Help
2/22/08 6:11 AM | Ricky Dimon
When Gilles Simon faces Teimuraz Gabashvili in Friday’s nightcap at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands, it will be the third time that the two unseeded quarterfinalists have met head-to-head. Their two battles have both been contested on clay, the first in 2006 at the Monte-Carlo Masters Series and the second in Valencia last season. Simon holds a 2-0 lead over the Russian; he won 6-4, 6-2 in Monte-Carlo before prevailing 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in a much tougher test in Valencia.
Clay gives the Frenchman a bit of an advantage, so it’s not too surprising that he enjoys a 2-0 edge over Gabashvili on the dirt. This time, however, they will clash on the indoor hard courts of Rotterdam. While this is the surface that probably best levels the playing field between these two players, it is becoming clearer by the day that Simon is extremely dangerous on hard courts. The Frenchman is up to No. 36 in the world after two solid performances this season. He reached the third round of the Australian Open, where had set points against Rafael Nadal in the first set before squandering the chances and going away in three straight. Simon followed up that nice run with a quarterfinal appearance last week at the Open 13 in Marseille. Included in that stretch was a second-round upset of top-seeded Novak Djokovic.
Things have not been going as smoothly for Gabashvili, so his hot streak here comes in completely unexpected fashion. The Russian got as high as 71st in the world back in March of last year, but he is down to No. 132 at the moment. Gabashvili played in just one ATP level tournament in 2007 prior to this week. In Chennai, India he was erased by Carlos Moya 6-4, 6-1 in the first round. Between then and now he toiled on the Challenger circuit, where he did not progress past the second round in any of three events.
Gabashvili, however, does not lack potential. He enjoyed a nice run on the U.S. hard courts last spring and he posted his biggest win ever at the 2007 U.S. Open by defeating Fernando Gonzalez in five sets in the first round. That potential is reemerging this week in Rotterdam. Gabashvili upset Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5, 6-1 in the first round and then took out Nicolas Mahut 6-2, 7-6 in the second. Also keep in mind that he had to win two matches in qualifying just to get into the main draw.
The key for Gabashvili on Friday is to get off to a good start. Simon is playing with a great deal of confidence right now and he is more accustomed to the bigger stages of tennis (such as a quarterfinal night match) than his opponent. If the Russian falters early due to the pressure, Simon could grab an early lead and never look back. On the other hand, if Gabashvili comes out playing like he has in his four previous matches in Rotterdam and sinks his teeth into this match, it will be anyone’s ballgame.
Tell a friend »
Did you know that... Legendary Björn Borg won 23 of 27 five set matches.
Laura, Dec 2, 2008 8:24 PM
Casper, Dec 2, 2008 6:28 PM
RickyDimon, Dec 2, 2008 5:57 PM
tennisgirl, Dec 1, 2008 11:48 PM
lendl, Dec 1, 2008 6:17 PM
Casper, Dec 2, 2008 8:23 PM
Casper, Dec 2, 2008 8:02 PM
Casper, Dec 2, 2008 7:27 PM
Gilles Simon
Teimuraz Gabashvili
ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament
Contact us
/ About us
/ Cookies
/ Recommended links
/ Advertise
/ Sitemap
Tennistalk v1.3.0
