P17 Layout 1
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2014 SPORTS Berdych still searching for his ‘chosen one’ PARIS: Ivan Lendl might be “way too busy” to be ing set up was an obvious one-with both hailing playing those big matches or prepare a player for our sport”? “Well I would say unlucky and, on the his mentor but Tomas Berdych has not given up from the Czech Republic-but the man who guided those big matches. other hand, I think sometimes it is a pleasure to be the dream of jumping on the ‘super coach’ band- Murray to Olympic glory and two grand slam titles “It is a person that can be a consultant or just a part of that and to have had the chance to play wagon. simply could not commit to a full-time job with on top of my current team who are doing a great the best guys like Roger and Rafa,” said Berdych, If he needs any pointers on how to carve out a the world number seven. job. “It’s not easy to just say I want to work with (a who has been drawn with world number one successful coaching relationship with a grand slam “We had a meeting when I got back from particular) past champion and it’s going to work Djokovic in Group A at the Finals. champion, the players’ lounge at the 02 Arena is Shanghai. It didn’t work out because Ivan decided out. It also is about who that person is and... see- “I don’t think there will ever be another time the place to be during the ATP World Tour Finals he’s not able to give the full amount of the weeks ing if that’s the right decision and if (the relation- when someone is going to achieve more (than which start on Sunday. Should Berdych decide to that he would like to give,” Berdych told Reuters in ship) can work out. “If you put 10 coaches togeth- them). “But it’s also been unlucky for me as it’s hang out in the area, he could find the place an interview in the run up to the season finale. er, all of them are going to have different things much harder to fight for one of the slams and the buzzing with the presence of no less than five “He is going to be busy with his activities and that they can see, they can adjust and that they higher rankings.” Despite the misfortune he has ‘super coaches’. his stuff, so not with him.” Berdych has already can make better. suffered with the timing of his career, Berdych said Three years after Andy Murray pulled off a coup drawn up a shortlist of champions he would like to “I am looking to improve myself. One day I am he still had plenty to look forward to despite turn- by hooking up with eight-times grand slam cham- work with but after the talks with Lendl failed to going to (retire) and I want to say, ‘That was quite a ing 30 next year. pion Lendl, the super-coach seems to have produce the desired effect, the 2010 Wimbledon successful career and I’ve tried everything I possi- “Yes I still enjoy playing and the whole career is become a ‘must-have’ accessory for many of the runner-up is keeping tight lipped about his possi- bly can’.” still very much developing year-by-year and I have top players. Eighties rivals Boris Becker and Stefan ble targets. What he would like to achieve more than any- to say it is very different from the first years to Edberg have become familiar sights in the locker “I’m not going to say anything because that’s thing else is to improve his lopsided 11-46 losing now, and I like it,” he explained with a grin. rooms after they were lured back into the day-to- not the way I want to deal with those people. He is record against the Big Three of Federer, Rafa Nadal “There are certain stages that you have in your day grind of grand slam tennis by Novak Djokovic going to be sitting at home reading an article that’s and Djokovic. career that you have to go through and that’s what and Roger Federer respectively. about him. It needs to be done by a proper way,” It has been 10 years since he first burst into the I enjoy. That’s why I always find some new motiva- Goran Ivanisevic and Michael Chang will also be explained Berdych as he ran his fingers through spotlight by railroading Federer at the 2004 tion to go another year. in London to oversee the progress of ATP Finals strands of his dark hair which were sticking out Athens Olympics but since then his wins over the “For me it’s more fun now because I am older, I debutants Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori, while from underneath his back-to-front baseball cap. tennis establishment have been few and far am more experienced and I enjoy it even more.” Murray’s ‘chosen one’ is now Amelie Mauresmo. “I’m trying to bring a guy with a different experi- between. So does Berdych feel lucky or unlucky to The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals will be held at Berdych’s desire to draft in Lendl to his coach- ence... all those experiences that he can have from be playing in what he described as “the best era of The O2 in London from Nov 9-16. — Reuters Italian tennis player admits match-fixing ROME: Italian tennis player Daniele Bracciali par- tially admitted to match-fixing during a hearing last week with judicial authorities, a prosecutor said yesterday. “He admitted a few things and he denied a few things” Italian investigator Roberto Di Martino told The Associated Press. Bracciali and occasional doubles partner Potito Starace face corruption accusations after intercepted Internet conversations claiming they sold matches were Al Attiyah seeks second term printed in Italian media three weeks ago. Bracciali and Starace were already two of five Italians - along with Alessio Di Mauro, Giorgio of executive office of FIM Galimberti and Federico Luzzi - who were given suspensions in 2007-08 by the ATP Tour ranging JEREZ: Spain will witness the elections of and the Portuguese Vegas got the position from six weeks to nine months for betting. the executive office of FIM, in which Nasser of the second vice —president as he got 53 The intercepted comments are part of data Bin Khalifa Al Attiyah — the head of QMMF votes. FIM website stated that the that investigators led by Di Martino in Cremona is competing for the position of the Vice- Portuguese Vegas will compete the existing have been sorting through in a soccer match-fix- President . president Vito Ippolito for presidency. ing inquiry. The roots of the soccer inquiry led to In addition to the elections, there will be Al Attiyah enters this election with a Singapore, and the tennis branch of the investi- annual general assembly meetings for FIM good background full of achievements in gation is also extending beyond borders. headed by Vito Ippolito, the existing presi- the last period, so it will be different from “The reality is it’s the same story as with the dent, the union budget will also be dis- the last elections , as he managed to trans- football case,” Di Martino said. “It’s reached a lev- cussed as well as a number of the invest- late the plans and strategies into reality, el where it’s all over the world.” ment projects. The agenda of the meeting such as actual communications between The Last Bet operation has resulted in more will include the release of many new cham- the European and Asian unions , in addi- than 100 people placed under investigation in pionships in the Middle East region, Asia in tion to the support of the game cross Italy since mid-2011, with suspect soccer match- general, Africa and Latin America under the Middle East region throughout the organi- es being looked at by prosecutors in Cremona, great boom of the Motor bike sport all over zation of many championships such as Bari and Naples. Di Martino would not confirm the world. motocross in Qatar which is considered the or deny reports that former Swedish tennis play- Al Attiyah expressed optimism due to first of its kind , and many championships er Tomas Nydahl is also under investigation for the availability of the support to be re-elect- organized at Losail Circuit . Also the good recruiting players to fix matches. ed again for the same position for the next relationship with the president helped to “I can’t say. I don’t know where he is,” Di 4 years . it’s worth saying that Al Attiyah develop the sport, all these factors will be Martino said of the 46-year-old Nydahl, who won the last election in mid-October 2010 a boost for the success of Al Attiyah in this reached a career-high ranking of No. 72 in 1998. Di when he got 74 votes out of 94 , while Vito election which will be held on Nov 19-25 Martino said no other foreign tennis players are Ippolito kept his position as the president, at Jerez, Spain. involved. In a July 2007 conversation on Skype between Bracciali and an accountant who was arrested in 2011, Bracciali discussed arranging a match in Newport, Rhode Island, against ITALY: In this Wednesday, May 9, 2007 file photo, Daniele Bracciali returns the ball.