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8/17/08 7:05 AM | Ricky Dimon
Will the fire ever be put out? We'll find out when Juan Martin Del Potro and Viktor Troicki do battle for the first time in their careers with the Legg Mason title on the line in Washington, D.C.
It's now up to Troicki to douse the flames of Del Potro's incredible hot streak. The 6'6'' Argentine has won three straight tournaments and 18 consecutive matches. He captured two clay-court events immediately following Wimbledon and then came over for the U.S. Open Series and promptly upset Andy Roddick in the Los Angeles final last week. Still just 19 years old, Del Potro is up to a career-high 19th in the world. The No. 2 seed crushed Jesse Levine in round one here, took care of Dudi Sela in three after a second-set hiccup, erased 2007 runner-up John Isner 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals, then destroyed No. 4 seed Tommy Haas on Saturday.
Troicki is going about his business making far less noise, but like Del Potro, he is unquestionably playing the best tennis of his career. The 6'4'' Serb, ranked 93rd in the world, is making his first appearance in an ATP final. He should be able to handle the moment just fine considering the way he stormed back from a 6-0 first-set loss to stun top-seeded Roddick in front of a packed house on Friday night and the played near-flawless tennis against Igor Kunitsyn in his first ATP semifinal. Those wins were preceded by victories over Denis Gremelmayr in the first round and Bobby Reynolds in the second.
Hard hitting from the back of the court will be featured prominently on Sunday. Both players are tall (Del Potro is 6'6'' and Troicki 6'4'') but they still like to do most of their damage at the baseline, although both are more than capable of coming in when necessary. Troicki especially might have to do some of that in an effort to throw off Del Potro. With the way Del Potro is currently striking the ball of each wing, it's too dangerous to rally with him. If Troicki serves incredibly well and comes up with special stuff like he did in the third set against Roddick, he could make it competitive.
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Did you know that... Guillermo Vilas won 46 consecutive matches during 1977.
kaitepai, Dec 2, 2008 4:51 AM
tennisfan2, Dec 2, 2008 3:42 AM
tennisgirl, Dec 1, 2008 11:48 PM
lendl, Dec 1, 2008 6:17 PM
jorgeedu72, Dec 1, 2008 3:34 PM
samprallica, Nov 30, 2008 1:33 PM
samprallica, Nov 30, 2008 1:21 PM
samprallica, Nov 30, 2008 1:15 PM
Viktor Troicki
Juan Martin Del Potro
Legg Mason Tennis Classic
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