Friday, May 28, 2010

Roland Garros Day 6: See No Ivo

Curtain Call

Player: Julian Reister
Nation: Germany
Age: 24
Current Ranking: 165
Notable Conquest: Feliciano Lopez (27th seed, Spain)
Tour Page
Today's Result: loss to Roger Federer (1st, Switzerland) in straight sets


Of course, Reister had no chance today. If a qualifier, in his first-ever Slam main draw, took out the top seed and defending champion, it would have been the biggest upset in tennis in a very long time. Ivo Karlovic (Croatia) pulled off the feat at Wimbledon in 2003 but Lleyton Hewitt (Australia), even in his prime, was no Federer. And Reister would do well to match the career Karlovic has had since.


However, that should not detract from the fact that Reister had a great tournament. He beat both Lopez and Olivier Rochus (Belgium) in straight sets. Rochus, while not the player he once was, is still not an easy win for anyone, particularly on clay. He is, after all, a former doubles champion at Roland Garros.

It's been all men so far for my Curtain Calls. I swear I didn't plan it that way. I really do try to pick the one player I find most deserving each day. Generally, things even out over the course of a Slam and I would imagine that will happen again before it's all over.

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