03/06/2010 20:49 CEST - ROLAND GARROS JUNIOR

Finding help for
US junior boys

Clay

Contenuti correlati

• Assemblea generale di Confindustria Lecco
• Wind Music Awards all'Arena di Verona
• Dementieva spiga l'infortunio che l'ha costretta al ritiro (in inglese)
• Schiavone non troppo dispiaciuta di aver vinto così (in inglese)
• Welcome back, Maria

If there is one thing almost universally true in tennis, it is that US junior boys are not skilled on terre battue. A quick look at the list of Roland Garros Simple Juniors Garcons champions finds that Ham Richardson was the first to pick up the trophy in 1951. (The competition began in 1947.) Butch Buchholz won in 1958, the year he scored a Junior Grand Slam, winning all four of the majors. Cliff Richey was the 1964 champion, and the last American to claim the Garcons title, (and yes, this is a fact), was John McEnroe in 1977.
Ben Testerman was a finalist in 1979, and James Brown (not the outrageous rock & roller) was in the same position in 1981. Jared Palmer was the 1989 finalist, and the US had back-to-back runners-up—Brian Baker and Alex Kuznetsov—in 2003 and ’04. But, in 63 years of competition such a record shows that the surface is almost totally befuddling to youngsters from the US.
That may change now that Andrea Collarini has become a USA-er. Though he was born in New York City, the 18-year-old, (who had been living in Buenos Aires), was among the best Argentine juniors for some time. (“There were three of us who were around the same level,” he said. “We were the best.) Of course, having started to play the game at four years of age, it’s understandable why he is so good.
Last year, he was a quarterfinalist at Roland Garros, and during 2009, he put together an impressive three-tournament run where he was a finalist at the 30th Argentina Cup, Inka Bowl and Barranquilla. He was also a semifinalist at both the 50th Trofeo Bongfiglio and the 29th Asuncion Bowl.
Today, he defeated former countryman Renzo Olivo 1-6, 6-3, 5-2, Retired (heat exhaustion) in a two hour and five minute, 153 point contest. In the semifinals, he faces Duilio Beretta of Peru who survived a 6-2, 6-7, 8-6 test against Mate Pavic of Croatia. Beretta is another 18-year-old, and he is playing Roland Garros for the first time.
“I decided to make the move (to the US) in January, and I had hoped to do it in March, but I caught pneumonia and had to wait until April,” Collarini said. “Many things were behind the change. The most important was that there are more tournaments to play in the US, and the USTA said it would help me. Argentina helped me whenever I represented the country, and that started when I was 14-years-old, but when I wasn’t playing for them, my dad had to pay for everything.”
He went on to admit, “Some people said it was a mistake. Those who really understand tennis said it was the right decision. Obviously, the Director of Argentine Tennis wasn’t happy, but I can always go home and visit my family who still live there.”
Currently, he is living in the dormitories at the USTA Training Center in Boca Raton, Florida and is being coached by Diego Moyano. “It was a difficult decision, but it was something I had to do,” Collarini said.
Patrick McEnroe, the US Davis Cup captain and the General Manager of USTA Player Development has been watching the new American compete in Paris and believes he will become a top player. (It is interesting to note that Collarini represented Argentina in 2008 Junior Davis Cup by BNP Paribas final, where his team lost to the US. Because of International Tennis Federation rules, he will not be eligible to play for the US for 36 months.)
For now, tennis fans will just have to wait and see if the new American left-hander, whose favorite player is Fernando Verdasco, will become the top American on terre battue.

Mark Winters