Saturday, August 12, 2000
Clement a familiar foe for Enqvist
By Neil Schmidt
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Arnaud Clement
(AP photo)
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MASON — One of the few people at the Tennis Masters Series Cincinnati familiar with Arnaud Clement is Thomas Enqvist. This is bad for Clement, for he'll lose the element of surprise that has carried him through the week.
The unseeded Clement, a 22-year-old Frenchman, will meet the seventh-seeded Enqvist in a Tennis Masters Series Cincinnati semifinal at 6:30 p.m. today. It's the third meeting between the two in the past 13 months.
Of course, that removes any intimidation factor Clement might have felt in his first Masters Series semifinal.
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ABOUT THE PLAYERS
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Series tied 1-1
THOMAS ENQVIST
Personal: 26 years old; born in Stockholm, Sweden
Rankings: No.13 in ATP Champions Race; No.8 in ATP Entry System
Highest singles ranking: No.4 (November '99)
In Cincinnati: 15-5, sixth year
2000 highlights: Finalist — Adelaide, Tennis Masters Series Indian Wells
ARNAUD CLEMENT
Personal: 23 years old; born in Aix-en-Provence, France
Rankings: No.55 in ATP Champions Race; No.50 in ATP Entry System
Highest singles ranking (Entry System): No.42 (January 2000)
In Cincinnati: 4-2, third year
2000 highlight: Semifinalist — Los Angeles
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“I'm the outsider,” Clement said. “I have nothing to lose. There's no pressure on me.”
Enqvist beat unseeded Fernando Vicente 7-5, 6-1 Friday night. Clement upset 13th seed Franco Squillari 6-2, 7-5, winning on his eighth match point.
Clement is the tourney's last remaining sleeper. He entered with a 15-18 record this year and ranks just 55th in the ATP Champions Race. He's a sight: He wears either sunglasses or goggles, even at night, and has a tan line across his forehead from where he wears a bandana.
He blasts the ball from the baseline and plays like Michael Chang, chasing down every ball. This is just his second semifinal of the year; he has never won a Tour event.
Thomas Enqvist
(Luis Sanchez photo)
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The 26-year-old Enqvist is a big-serving Swede from the Ste fan Edberg mold. This is his third semifinal here; he lost in that round in 1995 and '96. He has been ranked as high as No.4, that coming last year.
Enqvist usually does best on this surface; he's 21-7 on hard courts this year and just 12-8 elsewhere.
“Clay and grass haven't been my cup of tea,” he said.
Clement beat Enqvist 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 this time last year on hard courts in Montreal, but Enqvist won 6-3, 6-4 on the same surface this January in Adelaide, Australia.
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