Haas enjoys the limelight after years of major court mediocrity

Published on Saturday 27 June 2009 19:40

IF PATIENCE is a virtue then Tommy Haas must the most virtuous man on the professional circuit. For 13 years he has been waiting to make his great breakthrough, the moment when he can stride on to a major court at a major tournament and hog the limelight. And for 13 years, he has been knocked back by injury after injury leaving him with only three semi final finishes in more than 40 grand slam campaigns.

But this year, Haas, a veteran campaigner of 31, is finally getting his long awaited rewards. He is through to the fourth round for only the second time in his career and, after beating Marin Cilic over two days and five sets, he is on top of the world.

The German was out on Court One until 9.34 on Friday night as he and his young Croat foe stood toe to toe. They had been at each other's throats for four hours at that point but still there was no quarter given and none expected. And they were still dead level at 6-6 in the fifth set. At that point, the umpire called it a day. Only the huge, illuminated scoreboard was visible in the gloom and however desperate both the players and the tournament officials were to get the job done, they had to stop.

So tight had been their battle that the packed crowd – now cold and less than sober – gave the men a standing ovation as they trudged to the locker room.

Back to work again yesterday, they took another 26 minutes to resolve their differences as Haas won 7-5, 7-5, 1-6, 6-7, 10-8. Haas was through to play Igor Andreev and a place in the quarter finals was very much on the cards.

"Winning these kind of matches, it's like you're kind of still on a high in some ways," Haas said. "The body's feeling a little bit tired, to be honest. I mean, it was a long match, a tough battle yesterday with so many ups and downs. Also mentally it drains you for sure. But overall I'm feeling great. You know, good thing is day off tomorrow. Relax a little bit and get ready for my next match."

At last life is beginning to work out for Haas. Four weeks ago he found himself in the same position at Roland Garros – a fourth round slot and a chance to progress. True, he was playing Roger Federer but the Swiss has looked as tight as a drum throughout the tournament and he had not yet transformed himself into the Mighty Federer. Haas gave Federer the fright of his life but the eventual champion survived in five sets.

That sort of defeat could have scarred Haas for months – it is not often any player has a chance against the likes of Federer at a grand slam and letting the opportunity slip by shatters the confidence. Haas, though, skipped back to Germany and won the Halle title on grass, beating Novak Djokovic in the final.

"It's just about never stopping believing in your game and having the right people around you or getting the right people around you," Haas explained. "That's very important. You know, I believe in my game. When I'm feeling healthy and I feel fit and I feel I put in the work, you know, I have a very good game still to beat a lot of players and to give the top players trouble. And while I still feel that, I will continue to play the game and enjoy it as well."

Should he beat Andreev, Haas could well find himself playing Djokovic again – and that really would be a reward for the patient German.

Tomas Berdych had been waiting a long time to get his first win on the board over Nikolay Davydenko. For three years he has been running into the world No.11 and in each of the eight meetings he has come away empty handed. Finally, though, on Davydenko's least favourite surface, Berdych got his win, thrashing the Russian 6-2, 6-3, 6-2. So far he is yet to drop a set in SW19.

At 6' 5" with a thumping serve and welting ground strokes, Berdych can, on his day, frighten anyone. The only problem in the past has been that his own potential has frightened Berdych and he has faltered at the vital moment in big matches. But in the middle of the world's most prestigious tournament, the media spotlight is shining on the established stars of the game and that, in turn, is giving the nearly-men a little breathing space. And Berdych is loving it.

"There's not any pressure and you don't feel like anything else other than just go on court and just concentrate for yourself," Berdych said. "That's it. So leave it for them (the top seeds], let's make the pressure for them. And we're going to try our best and we will see."