FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP IN NEARLY THREE YEARS

Ferreira back on track with upset victory

By Tom A. McFerson
Special to tennisreporters.net

© Mark Lyons

FROM THE MERCEDES-BENZ CUP IN LA – Taken with his two other big wins this week (over Sebastien Grosjean in the quarters and Mark Philippoussis in the semis), Wayne Ferreira's appears to be back in the thick of it on the ATP Tour with a thrilling 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 win over Lleyton Hewitt Sunday at the Mercedes-Benz Cup.

The consecutive wins over Philippoussis and Hewitt, who’s styles of play couldn’t be any different, highlights why Ferreira has a legitimate chance to finish the year in the top 10. Seeded seventh here, he has a 15-7 hardcourt record this year. The victory won his first title in nearly three years since taking the Tennis Masters Stuttgart in November 2000.

“I played exceptionally well in (those) matches, but I’ve actually been playing some very good tennis this year. I’ve been very happy with the way that I’ve been playing.”

One, Ferreira has the firepower to compete with the game’s heavy hitters. A monster forehand and a dangerous backhand – “I’ve worked quite a lot harder on my backhand to improve that side,” Ferreira said – allowed him to consistently return the Philippoussis serve and then take the offensive once into the point.

Two, an improved attitude and relaxed manner are allowing Ferreira to come through in the tight matches.

“I seem to have a lot more endurance the older I’ve gotten, which has helped me be able to concentrate a lot harder," he said. "That’s the difference in my tennis right now. I concentrate a lot harder and a lot longer.”

Ferreira was unable to capitalize on several opportunities in the second and third sets against Hewitt, but he didn’t let it bother him. “That’s the difference in my tennis over the last year, is in those situations. I’m able to not get as upset or worked up as I used to.”

The real question mark will be how his body holds up for the rest of the year. After a brutal groin injury at Roland Garros in May (he had to be carried off the red clay), Ferreira is still feeling the injury. “I pulled out of Indianapolis last week. I still had a lot of pain in the groin. I felt okay coming in over the weekend and I thought I’d give it a try. I was fifty/fifty that I’d play on Tuesday. I really wasn’t sure. I said I’d go out and if the pain stayed the same I’d play. And it stayed the same. I’m very surprised that my body has held up pretty well.”

© Mark Lyons

Ferreira, who lives in the Bay Area, got in some much needed practice the week before with, of all people, Hewitt. Hanging with girlfriend Kim Clijsters while she played (and won) the WTA event at Stanford, Hewitt managed to get in two hits with Ferreira – one at the San Francisco Olympic Club and one on the Stanford campus.

“Actually, both of us were playing terrible last week. Our practices were not good at all. It was kind of scrappy tennis.”

As for the rest of the summer, and most importantly the US Open, Ferriera said, “If I keep playing like this I have a great chance to do well. I’ll be taking it very carefully over the next couple of weeks on my body to make sure I’m okay for the Open. It’s just a matter of my body holding up, that’s the problem for me. It’s not anything else, I still move as well, and I’m actually a lot stronger. It’s just my body.”