By Cheryl Jones
Tennis was scheduled as usual for the final Tuesday of Roland Gross. Mother Nature, however had other ideas. Other than a few junior matches, along with a few senior matches, there was nothing that could change the weather that was definitely in charge, of the entire day. It was raining sideways, the wind howled, and people ran for cover, abandoning their seats in every stadium on the grounds – more than once.
Earlier in the day, there was a match or two to watch when the Legends took to the courts at eleven – before the rain and wind made their entrance. American Michael Chang and Pat Cash of Australia took a drubbing from other “oldsters” Spaniard Sergi Bruguera and Croatian Goren Ivanisevic 7-6, 2-6, 10-4.
Each of the majors features a tiny tournament that features past greats. Of course, there is a long list of greats who often participate. To name just a few, John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, Mats Wilander, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker and Jim Courier participate often. The ATP Champions Tour sponsors a men’s event that is intended for former pros that have retired from the main professional tour. It’s usually an event that is as fun for spectators it is for the players themselves. A player must be in the year of his thirty-fifth birthday and have been retired for two years or more. Players must have been a world number one, a Grand Slam finalist, or a singles player who has been a part of a winning Davis Cup team. (Each event is allowed to invite two players that are given wildcards.)
There are ranking points and there is a year-end event that culminates at the Royal Albert Hall in London. But, it doesn’t seem as if anyone cares much about who wins or loses, it’s fun. The events are usually played over four days. For tennis fans, it is an enjoyable way to catch-up on a few favorite players from the past.
Checking for upcoming matches, I found a doubles matchup that for me was made in tennis heaven – Mansour Bahrami and Fabrice Santoro. Even though Bahrami is sixteen years Santoro’s senior, their mastery of trick shots and simply a bit of magic with a tennis racquet on a par with each other. Merely the mention of their names in the same breath makes me smile.
Bahrami was born in 1956 in Persia (now Iran). When he was sixteen years old, he was chosen to fill in for an absent player on their Davis Cup team. He did well. Soon, though Iran was taken over by what was then known as an Islamic Revolution. Tennis was viewed by the rulers in Iran to be an elitist sport. Bahrami began to play Backgammon for the next three years because all the tennis courts were closed. That got a little boring for him and he moved to France, where the other half of his two-country citizenship welcomed him with open arms. Since Backgammon doesn’t require much in the way of trick moves nor exercise in general, he was sure his best days were behind him, he began to play doubles.
He teamed with Frenchman, Eric Winogradsky at Roland Garros in 1989 and lost to a couple of Americans, Jim Grabb and Patrick McEnroe 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 in the final. It isn’t surprising that he has become a crowd favorite with his antics and genial attitude. It is always a treat to watch him perform his special brand of tennis. Teaming with Santoro should make for “the” most entertaining match at this year’s Roland Garros.
Santoro retired in 2010 after an almost unheard of lengthy professional career that began in 1989. Differing from Bahrami, he was quite successful on the tour after he won the Junior Roland Garros title in 1989 when soon after that his professional career began.
His accomplishments are many and because he was in the mix for such a lengthy period of time, he holds a number of records that defy his highest ranking of 17, achieved in August of 2001. To list just a few of his accomplishments: he has the most appearances in singles competition at Grand Slams – 70; the greatest number of career wins over top ten opponents for a player who didn’t reach the top ten – 40; and the most losses in singles competition at 444. (He won 470 matches by the way, which a tick more than he lost, though.)
The “Magic Man” as Pete Sampras dubbed him because of his prowess with a racquet, defeated 18 players who were ranked world number one at some point in their careers. Marat Safin once said, “Being told I would play Santoro was being told I was to die.” And looking back, that was often the case. It would seem that a goodly number of top-ranked players wisely echoed Safin’s thoughts.
He often played with two hands on both forehand and backhand. He explained that he thought it was because when he was learning how to play at six, the racquet was far too unwieldy to merely use one hand. Whatever the reason, his play has been entertaining and breathtaking in equal portions.
When this dynamic duo heads to the court for their legends match it will be one for the ages, I am sure. Fabrice Santoro and Mansour Bahrami will be worth a look-see even if they may be past their prime and playing a bit outside the spotlight that is television.
