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The Cincinnati Post
Gold medalist out at U.S. Open
By Diane Pucin
Los Angeles Times
EZRA SHAW/Getty Images
Sargis Sargsian celebrates after defeating Nicolas Massu in five sets.
NEW YORK -- All day, all night, all around the grounds of the United States
Tennis Center, emotions overflowed.
An Olympic gold medalist howled in despair.
Nicolas Massu, who played a four-hour, five-set match against Mardy Fish in
Athens, Greece, to win that gold, played the second-longest match in U.S.
Open history and lost Thursday night.
On Court 11, packed with cheering Chilean fans for him and noisy Armenian
fans against him, the 10th-seeded Massu was upset by 31-year-old Sargis
Sargsian, 6-7 (6), 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4. It took 5 hours 9 minutes, and at
the end Massu bent over, exhausted and disgusted. Sargsian was serenaded by
rooters who had chanted in Armenian all during the match. Only once, in a
1992 semifinal, had a match here gone longer when Stefan Edberg took 5:26 to
beat Michael Chang 6-7, 7-5, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4.
Massu broke rackets and carried on a 10-minute argument with chair umpire
Carlos Ramos after being penalized a game in the fifth set for his third
broken racket, one that was bounced so hard it caromed as high as his head.
Massu's rant to Ramos was profane. His tirade an hour after the match was
angry.
"I can't believe I lost the match," Massu said. "It's hard to believe that
this guy (Ramos) didn't use the head a little bit. This guy come here, put
to me two, three warnings. If I have to pay something I pay, no problem. But
the third one? Unbelievable."
The first warning for equipment abuse had come to Massu at 4-4 in the first
set after he wrecked a racket. Ramos gave Massu a point penalty in the 10th
game of the second set before taking away a game from him to start the fifth
set.
In a statement, tournament referee Brian Earley explained why Massu was
penalized a game. "There were three code violations for racket abuse,"
Earley said. "Following the Grand Slam code of conduct, the first code
violation resulted in a warning. The second violation resulted in a point
penalty. The third violation resulted in a game penalty."
Three crushed rackets had been discarded by Massu, stark proof of his anger.
The Olympic silver medalist didn't have a good day either. Fish, seeded
26th, quarreled about line calls and hung his head after bad shots instead
of fighting to hit better ones until he left a 6-3, 3-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 loser
to Czech qualifier Michal Tabara.
French Open champions grumbled and groaned as well.
Anastasia Myskina, seeded fourth, was dismissed, 7-6 (3), 6-3, in the second
round by a fellow Russian, 17-year-old Anna Chakvetadze who is ranked 175th.
And Gaston Gaudio of Argentina, seeded ninth, was a mostly passive
participant in his 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 loss to Thomas Johansson of Sweden.
Myskina considered the performance "a pretty bad match for me," then said
she was all done in. "I'm really empty right now," the 23-year-old said. "I
didn't want to fight. I didn't want to run. I didn't want to do anything."
Paying customers should love hearing that.
Gaudio, too, just shrugged and muttered, "Too bad," as he walked away from
the court.
But there were sounds of joy around the grounds.
Shikha Uberoi, an Indian American with an infectious laugh, embraced the
gargantuan Arthur Ashe Stadium court, clapped for herself and for her
opponent Venus Williams after good shots for both, giggled with glee when
Williams ended an enthralling rally with a winning passing shot and later
spoke with awe about the way the lights made her racket sparkle.
Uberoi, ranked 275th, fought hard against 11th-seeded Williams before losing
a second-round match, 7-5, 6-1.
Publication Date: 09-03-2004
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Gold medalist out at U.S. Open
By Diane Pucin
Los Angeles Times
EZRA SHAW/Getty Images
Sargis Sargsian celebrates after defeating Nicolas Massu in five sets.
NEW YORK -- All day, all night, all around the grounds of the United States
Tennis Center, emotions overflowed.
An Olympic gold medalist howled in despair.
Nicolas Massu, who played a four-hour, five-set match against Mardy Fish in
Athens, Greece, to win that gold, played the second-longest match in U.S.
Open history and lost Thursday night.
On Court 11, packed with cheering Chilean fans for him and noisy Armenian
fans against him, the 10th-seeded Massu was upset by 31-year-old Sargis
Sargsian, 6-7 (6), 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4. It took 5 hours 9 minutes, and at
the end Massu bent over, exhausted and disgusted. Sargsian was serenaded by
rooters who had chanted in Armenian all during the match. Only once, in a
1992 semifinal, had a match here gone longer when Stefan Edberg took 5:26 to
beat Michael Chang 6-7, 7-5, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4.
Massu broke rackets and carried on a 10-minute argument with chair umpire
Carlos Ramos after being penalized a game in the fifth set for his third
broken racket, one that was bounced so hard it caromed as high as his head.
Massu's rant to Ramos was profane. His tirade an hour after the match was
angry.
"I can't believe I lost the match," Massu said. "It's hard to believe that
this guy (Ramos) didn't use the head a little bit. This guy come here, put
to me two, three warnings. If I have to pay something I pay, no problem. But
the third one? Unbelievable."
The first warning for equipment abuse had come to Massu at 4-4 in the first
set after he wrecked a racket. Ramos gave Massu a point penalty in the 10th
game of the second set before taking away a game from him to start the fifth
set.
In a statement, tournament referee Brian Earley explained why Massu was
penalized a game. "There were three code violations for racket abuse,"
Earley said. "Following the Grand Slam code of conduct, the first code
violation resulted in a warning. The second violation resulted in a point
penalty. The third violation resulted in a game penalty."
Three crushed rackets had been discarded by Massu, stark proof of his anger.
The Olympic silver medalist didn't have a good day either. Fish, seeded
26th, quarreled about line calls and hung his head after bad shots instead
of fighting to hit better ones until he left a 6-3, 3-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 loser
to Czech qualifier Michal Tabara.
French Open champions grumbled and groaned as well.
Anastasia Myskina, seeded fourth, was dismissed, 7-6 (3), 6-3, in the second
round by a fellow Russian, 17-year-old Anna Chakvetadze who is ranked 175th.
And Gaston Gaudio of Argentina, seeded ninth, was a mostly passive
participant in his 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 loss to Thomas Johansson of Sweden.
Myskina considered the performance "a pretty bad match for me," then said
she was all done in. "I'm really empty right now," the 23-year-old said. "I
didn't want to fight. I didn't want to run. I didn't want to do anything."
Paying customers should love hearing that.
Gaudio, too, just shrugged and muttered, "Too bad," as he walked away from
the court.
But there were sounds of joy around the grounds.
Shikha Uberoi, an Indian American with an infectious laugh, embraced the
gargantuan Arthur Ashe Stadium court, clapped for herself and for her
opponent Venus Williams after good shots for both, giggled with glee when
Williams ended an enthralling rally with a winning passing shot and later
spoke with awe about the way the lights made her racket sparkle.
Uberoi, ranked 275th, fought hard against 11th-seeded Williams before losing
a second-round match, 7-5, 6-1.
Publication Date: 09-03-2004
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress