Guillermo Coria continued his impressive emergence and
announced himself a definite contender for French Open glory by capturing the
second title of his career at the Masters Series event in Hamburg.
The Argentinian secured a 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory over compatriot Agustin Calleri
on Sunday, in the final of the prestigious tune-up event for Roland Garros.
It carried the 21-year-old into the world's top 10 for the first time with
just eight days to go until play begins at the season's second Grand Slam.
It was a startling performance on the clay from Coria, who looked back to full
fitness after suffering from cramps in Saturday's semi-final.
As soon as the final was over Coria paid tribute to the trainer, Juan Regue,
who had treated him on court the day before.
"He performed a miracle and without him I would not be here today," he
said.
Coria produced a brilliant retrieving drop shot combined with a cut-off volley
in the eighth game, in which he made the break of serve which earned him the
first set, and then made a spectacular running volley pass to make the crucial
break at 5-4 in the second.
The momentum of this carried Coria to a rapid double break and a 3-0 lead in
the third set, and although the unseeded Calleri got one of the breaks back, he
could only delay the inevitable.
This tournament marked the first time that all four semi-final places in a
Masters Series event had been occupied by players from one country, something
which they all associated with hopes of a better future for their
financially-ravaged country.
"This is something historic and it's great to give our country something to
cheer about," Coria had said before the match.
"Because there has been a lot of bad news from Argentina, I think that us
sportsmen can give our people something to think about, which is positive, and
forget about the negative things."
There had been speculation that two of the quartet had been quarrelling.
Gaston Gaudio was seen to jostle Coria after losing his semi-final, and there
were suggestions that the two had been at odds in the locker room, but both
issued firm denials.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Coria said: ``I thought about the
cramps a little bit at the beginning of the match, but I was calm today on court
and just focusing on the next point.
``I knew that if I got nervous today maybe I would not be able to finish the
match because I would have had cramps again.''
The win made him the first Argentine to take the title for 25 years - since
Guillermo Vilas, the player after whom Guillermo Coria is named.
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