Yevgeny kafelnikov is the man to watch

The French Open started in Paris under brilliant sunshine with some tremendous first-round matches. Tough draws for the world's No 1 Pete S...

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The French Open started in Paris under brilliant sunshine with some tremendous first-round matches. Tough draws for the world’s No 1 Pete Sampras, who is recovering from a strained thigh muscle, was up against the Frenchman, Fabrice Santoro who had beaten Sampras twice before on clay.

This time with the crowd behind him on the slow clay of Roland Garros, the world’s champion looked like he might falter in the one Grand Slam event he has failed to win. He had already played the tournaments on clay losing in the first round in two of them, Monte Carlo and Rome and then pulling out with an injury in the third event in Germany. He came into the French Open nursing that injury and having regular treatment and the Frenchman was expected to have a good shot at an upset win. But Sampras is a champion and even on a surface that he doesn’t much care for, he accepted the challenge that he had prepared for and came though comfortably.

I have always thought that Sampras has the game to win on clay but has to firmly believe that unlike Wimbledon where he can get out of trouble with his serve, he needs to work himself back into the match from the back of the court rather than only rely on his magnificent serve and clean winners. If his injury is minor, he can play himself into the tournament and he will be fine. If it is serious then it is bound to hamper his movement at crucial stages. A lot will depend on his physical fitness and as always, the mental ability to believe that he can win the French Open on a surface he likes least of all.

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Defending Champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia was also recovering from an injury, a broken finger, and was expected to have his hands full against the Czech Martin Damm. But he seemed to start the defence of his title in the same way he left Roland Garros last year. He crushed the Czech player in straight sets and never looked in trouble. Kafelnikov has the kind of game that can win on almost any surface.He certainly did not expect to win in Paris last year and went on to lose in the first round at Wimbledon but it proved to the Russian and his fellow players that a Grand Slam win is not beyond his reach. Having won last year, he knows what it takes to win the French and that makes him one of the top favourites for the title.

In the women’s singles, besides the new world’s No 1, Martina Hingis and the champion of many years, Steffi Graf, all eyes in Paris are on the elegant and graceful Mary Pierce, who lives in Florida and plays out of France. She has had a good clay court season and seems ready to do some serious damage in this French Open.

She can play some brilliant tennis at times and then suddenly can lapse into errors. Seeded No 10, she has an outside shot at the title.

America’s new sensation is 16-year-old Venus Williams who has only played nine matches this whole year and was making her Grand Slam debut. Up against the steady Naoko Sawamatsu of Japan, ranked 48 places above her, the young American came through 7-5 in the final set showing the world of tennis that she has the right stuff when it really matters. She certainly is someone to watch closely from now on. (Professional Management Group)