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Coria fights back from jaws of defeat
Beijing, 17 September 2005 - Second seed Guillermo Coria fought off tennis fatigue on Saturday, saving three match points in the second set to finally subdue Swede Thomas Johansson 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 for a place in the final of the China Open.
The South American with only one title this season in Umag will now have a day to rest before squaring off on Sunday night against one of two dangerous Spanish seeds.
Coria said that he was tired after playing two matches on Friday due to rain this week. "I felt it before the match and in the first set,” said the winner. "It was also hot out there. Conditions were difficult but I eventually got used to them.
"I had to play well to finally beat him, as hard court is his best surface. It was a good win for me.”
Coria’s opponent will be decided Saturday evening when top seed Rafael Nadal faces former king of clay Juan Carlos Ferrero in a battle of current and past Roland Garros champions.
It’s also a clash of two Iberian tennis generations, with Nadal, 19, looking for a fourth straight win over his 25-year-old compatriot, a former world number one and the sixth seed at the China Open.
Coria, eighth in the world, improved to 53-18 this season, striking 22 winners, 11 unforced errors and 11 potentially costly double-faults.
But the former French Open finalist rose to the occasion when it counted against former Grand Slam champion Johansson while trailing a set and 4-5.
Three times, Johansson had the chance to close out victory; on all three he was prevented by the fleet Argentine, who forced errors.
After breaking for five-all in the second, Coria took the contest to a third set with a concluding break of the jittery Johansson, fourth-seeded winner of the 2002 Australian Open playing in his fourth semi of the season.
The South American earned revenge after losing to the Swede in their only previous meeting this year in Miami. Johansson’s last title came at Stockholm 10 months ago over Andre Agassi.
“It was a fantastic battle of wits, skill and determination,” said China Open tournament director Ekkehard Rathgeber, who is also Chief Operating Officer of tournament co-organiser TOM Group Limited, an associate of Hutchison Whampoa Limited.
“Coria showed great spirit in fighting back from the jaws of defeat, especially on Johansson’s favourite surface,” added Rathgeber. “And to overcome three match points allowed the fans to see something special today.”
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Released on behalf of TOM Group and the China Open by Two Up Front - Asia’s sports PR specialists.