Sunday’s Blast from the Past Grand Prix Hassan II marks Juan Carlos Ferrero’s first title since the ATP Masters Series Madrid in October 2003, which he won as the No. 1-ranked player in the world. Ferrero has played 111 tournaments since then and came into Casablanca ranked 115th.
Sunday’s Streaker
By reaching today’s final, Ferrero has extended his run of reaching at least one ATP World Tour final for the 11 consecutive years he has played on the ATP World Tour full time.
Sunday’s Extreme Conditions
Although they know when they witness high quality tennis, the Moroccan spectators showed that they are lacking in tennis etiquette. The crowd was especially unruly in today’s singles final. Even during the first game, Chair Umpire Mohamed el Jennati had to inform the audience that “the match cannot continue under these conditions.”
Saturday’s Waiting GameIn between seeing an awful lot of tennis balls, nets, tennis facilities, cars, planes and hotel rooms, tennis players and their teams spend a lot of their time sitting and waiting, whether it’s for a match to start, for tournament transportation to arrive, or a doubles partner to put just enough gel in his hair. While some players, like Florent Serra, spend their waiting time with a book, and others enjoy friendly conversation, observational research shows that a tennis player’s real best friend is almost always a multi-feature cell phone.
Saturday’s Extinct Species
While PETA is busy renaming musical groups and making puppies and kittens take their last trip, frustrated players have been dangerously abusing the crocodile that serves as the logo of tournament sponsor Lacoste with their racquets and shoes. In a moment of anger, Albert Montañés made crocodile soup of the two-dimensional reptile in his Semifinal loss to Florent Serra today.
Friday’s Mosquito BiteHe may have lost a step or two since he was at his best in 2003, as he admitted in the post-match interview, but Juan Carlos Ferrero still has some of the best feet on clay. In his Quarterfinal match against the tournament’s fourth seed, Victor Hanescu, the in-form Ferrero rarely had to slide to hit a shot. He demonstrated both his speed and his ability to read Hanscu’s shots as he got into perfect position quickly during the match’s fast-paced rallies.
Friday’s Keeping Score
There is a restaurant on the grounds of Complexe al-Amal, which hosts Grand Prix Hassan II and is also home to the Royal Moroccan Tennis Federation. Because it is located on a second floor, right before entering the restaurant one can go onto a balcony that serves as a great viewing location for Court 2. As I ventured there to take some “aerial view” photos of the Quarterfinal match between Teimuraz Gabashvili and Florent Serra, I found the balcony already occupied by a young man with a laptop, binoculars, and headphones. After a moment, I realized he was relating to someone he was speaking to through his headphones the point-by-point goings on of the match.
