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courtesyEurosport
The 2000 tennis season is now officially over and what a
season it was. Eurosport would like to honor those players who
have engraved their name in tennis history books forever, those
players who have made us remember what a grand sport tennis
is and whose charm and personality will never be forgotten.
BEST PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Without any doubt the best player of the year award, on the
men�s side, goes to Brazil�s Gustavo Kuerten for his amazing
year. Winning a total of 5 titles which includes his second
Roland Garros crown, Guga won the Grand Slam after 11 match
points in a tough battle against Magnus Norman. His participation
in the year end Masters Cup was the best of all as he did the
impossible: he beat the odds and took the number one spot from
Russia�s Marat Safin by winning the title and becoming the first
South American player to achieve this honour.
On the women�s side, even though Martina Hingis finished the
year as number 1, no other player deserves this award more than
Venus Williams. Venus came from behind and showed the tennis
world that she has what it takes, setting a 35 match winning
streak. She won a total of 5 tour titles and two Olympic gold
medals. Among her tour titles we can find Wimbledon and the
US Open were the defending champion was her sister, Serena.
Venus travelled to Sydney for the Olympics, winning the singles
title and sharing the doubles with Serena, at a Games which
proved a triumph for a vibrant and confident player.
BEST ACHIEVEMENT
Marat Safinbecame the most watched player this year as his strenghth
and determination made him overcome the biggest challenges.
Winning a total of 7 titles during the year, Marat�s bigggest
moment was at the US Open final when he defeated the player
of the decade, Pete Sampras. Safin made the year end Masters
Cup as the player to beat after having won two Matsers series
titles in Toronto and in Paris where he gave an incredible performance
in the final against Philippoussis after having gashed his right
eyebrow.
France�s Mary Pierce will take home the achievement award as
she stunned the tennis world by winning her second Grand Slam
title of her career: the French Open. She made the dream of
any athlete come true, to win an important title on home-ground.
After being absent from the courts Mary gave a superb performance,
beating along the way her doubles partner Martina Hingis in
a match that will stay in everybody�s mind for a long time.
She produced one of the most amazing shots ever done by a women,
a return volley in between her legs.
REVELATION OF THE YEAR
Spain�s Juan Carlos Ferrero led his country to their first Davis
Cup title earning the title of �King Juan Carlos� by his Spanish
fans. He reached his first Grand Slam semi-final at the French
Open and proved once more that he will be a tough contender
for years to come.
Kim Clijsters of Belgium took the tennis stage this year and
managed to attract the attention of the media. She won a total
of 2 titles and became a nightmare for the highest ranked players.
Her ranking progression was very impressive, beginning the year
as number 47 and finishing as number 18. She led her team in
the Fed Cup finals and defended the honour of her country as
no other player has done.
BEST PROGRESSION
At the beginning of the season he was an unknown but promissing
player in 87th position. Later on he crashed and reached 127th
position. Little by little his concentration and determination
helped put his game together and he began to fly through the
rankings. By May 22nd he was already among the top ten and swiftly
continued his progression. On September 18th he reached the
number one spot for the first time and traded places with Gustavo
Kuerten until the end of the season. Russia�s Marat Safin stunned
the tennis world with a growing confidence that helped him overcome
all the obtacles he faced on his way to glory.
She has been compared to Steffi Graff, she started the year
ranked 62nd and began to make her move by reaching the final
four at Indian Wells in March. Others began to take notice during
the summer when she made a semi-final appearance in Los Angeles
before reaching the final four at the U.S. Open in September.
Demure and soft-spoken, Elena Dementieva possesses an air of
quiet confidence that has grown with each new hurdle cleared.
The highlight for Dementieva came when she took home a silver
medal from the Sydney Olympics, beating everyone she faced except
Venus Williams. She finished the year as number 12 and her goal
for next year is to dethrone Martina Hingis.
BEST DRESSED (FASHION AWARD)
Without any doubt and by far the Williams sisters have dominated
tennis fashion this year. With their extravagant outfits and
hair do�s on and off the courts, Serena and Venus have always
tried to be orginal designing their own outfits and wearing
out of the ordinary attires. Their matching hair do and shoes
have made them a fashion frenzy on the tennis courts. This is
the first time in tennis history that fashion has become a �must�
when going on the court.
SEXIEST PLAYER
Spanish players have always been somewhat attractive and sexy.
This year Carlos Moya is said to be the sexiest player on the
tour. His long hair, his personality and his amazing body attracted
the attention of spanish director Santiago Segura, who gave
him a role in his latest movie, Torrente 2. Now as a movie star
and a tennis player, Carlos is known worldwide but this has
not affected his attitude as he is still a sweet and caring
guy. He is currently dating a spanish comentator named Patricia
Conde but he still hasn�t tied the knot. So all you Moya fans,
you can still attract this cute guy�s attention and who knows,
maybe you will become the future miss Moya.
She is a gorgeous long haired blond, blue eyes and with an exquisit
body. She has become the most photographed athlete ever and
she has charmed tennis fans all over the world. The minute Anna
Kournikova walks on the court, the eyes of every man point at
her. Her amazing moves and dazzling looks have made people forget
she is a tennis player. But after her performance at the year
end championship she has prooved that she is more than a pretty
girl. We salute Anna for combining her exquisite looks with
her astonishing tennis abilities.
BEST TEAM
This year the team cups, Davis and Fed Cup, have been filled
with excitement. Many countries particpated and only a few were
noticed and honored. Spain and the United States have been recognised
as the best teams of the year. In this year�s final of the Davis
Cup, there is no doubt that Spain takes the honour. They accomplished
the unthinkable, thrashing Australia 3/1 and winning their first
Davis Cup title ever. Led by captain Javier Duarte, Juan Carlos
Ferrero, Alex Corretja, Juan Balcells and Albert Costa defended
their flag colors and made every single Spanish citizen feel
proud. Victory over the Australian defending champions in front
of 14,000 screaming fans at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona
made Spain only the 10th nation to win the tournament in its
100-year history.
The United States gained a measure of sweet revenge from a gut-wrenching
Fed Cup defeat, to Spain in 1998, by sweeping to a 5-0 victory
to capture the 2000 Fed Cup title. Lead by Billi Jean King,
the American heroes, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati, Monica
Seles and Lisa Raymond showed their red, blue and white pride,
leading their country to their second consecutive title and
17th overall.
BEST MATCH
All throughout the season there have been many matches that
will be remembered but there is one match in particular that
will never be forgotten. Paris: Palais Omnisport Bercy where
the Paris Masters takes place. The best tennis players have
gathered here to win a place in the season-ending Masters Cup
in Lisbon. Among the players, 20-year-old Marat Safin, the world
number one, and 24-year-old Mark Philippoussis. Both players
faced each other in the final fight for the title. Safin cut
himself above the right eye when he hit himself with his own
racket attempting a diving volley mid-way through the third
set. He resumed after being treated by a doctor at courtside
-- and promptly broke Philippoussis serve to take the set. He
needed ice on the injury to keep down the swelling but finally
won in three hours 28 minutes on his sixth match point despite
being battered and bloodied. The pair slugged it out for three
hours 17 minutes before it came down to the tie-breaker. Safin
served 22 aces and Philippoussis 21 as the pair traded shots.
LONGEST MATCH The ATP
Tour has a tradition in offering us very long and exciting matches.
This year was not an exception. During the Grand Slam season
we tend to see five hour long matches as both players give their
best to reach the following round. In this year�s Wimbledon
we witnessed the longest and most stressful match of the season.
Third round of the tournament and Mark Philippoussis faced Sjeng
Schalken from the Netherlands in a 5 set match that lasted four
hours and 51 minutes. The match took off rapidly as both players
evened the match to one set all in one hour and four minutes.
One hour and 32 minutes later the match was leveled again as
both players gasped for air and searched for some extra energy
that would help them finish the match. The fifth and final set
lasted a record time of two hours and 15 minutes with a score
of 20/18 in favour of Philippoussis. Philippoussis advanced
to the next round were he faced Agassi and was eventually eliminated.
A special ovation to Pete Sampras who, this year, won a record
13th grand slam title on the Wimbledon grass, gaining the title
of player of the decade. He defeated Australian Pat Rafter in
four sets, watched by parents who steadfastly avoided the media.
Pete is known as a perfectionist and no other player in history
has won as many titles as he has since the 60?s. He has reached
the top of his game with a combination of strength and skill
that no other player has ever had. The key to his game is his
serve which is extremely powerful on fast surfaces, especially
on the grass at Wimbledon. Pete Sampras has indelibly written
his name on the pages of tennis history and it will be hard
for any player to try and even his accomplishments.
The next meeting will be January 1st 2001 when the season begins,
hoping that it will bring us as much of excitement as the year
2000 has.
Eurosport
: Alejandra Sanchez
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