Showcasing the aces of the game

THEY CAME to Chennai, each with a distinct style, to participate in the biggest tennis show in this part of Asia.

The occasion was the ATP Gold Flake Open, the only time that the city actually gets to see top-ranking tennis stars in the men's circuit.

The top singles seed, who was out of the reckoning even as the tournament got under way, had arrived a private aircraft. Yevgeny Kafelnikov, flew down in a Citation-10 from the German resort of Baden- Baden, where he was holidaying with his family. It was the only private aircraft bringing a player for the event. He got down to ``business'' almost immediately and said that he wanted to sharpen his skills and get ready for the tournament as he had just returned after a holiday.

Many others received preferential treatment even as they landed and were spared the waiting in queues (though short ones; having travelled in the upper classes) to complete the formalities. ``But when it comes to baggage they are like everyone else. A search is as thorough as with anyone else's baggage. Even the Citation-10 was subjected to checks,'' says an airport official.

Most of them, with the exception of Byron Black, seemed to like the shifting of the tournament from April to January - it was at least better than the cold, sometimes snowy Europe and Russia. Black, the defending champion, felt that April, the month when the tournament was held in the previous years, was ``fine. No complaints.''

Off the court, many stars preferred the cool comfort of their rooms or liked to spend time at the hotel gym. The South Africa versus England game in my room,'' said Byron Black. ``I like to stroll about on my own and see places of interest. But there was not much time and I did not know what there was to see. Yeah, we did manage to visit a few temples,'' he said after losing the doubles here.

There were some events outside the courts, where the players' presence lent charm. Some were seen in attendance at the annual auction of tennis memorabilia on Tuesday, which managed to raise Rs. 3.54 lakhs for Samraksham, an NGO, and the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association tennis academy project.

Another event where some stars marked their attendance was the `Mercedes Benz rising stars' event. For close to three hours Leander Paes, Cedric Pioline, Orlin Stanoytchev and Byron Black, spent time with children who had gathered at the place. Vijay Amritraj was there too. The ``real star'' of the show turned out to be a four-year-old, Ishan Hussain, son of Ilyas Hussain, now a coach himself, who imitated Paes and others, possibly without intending to. Elephants have had a long association with the tournament. ``Oh, yes, I have seen elephants, but only in a zoo,'' said Jerome Golmard, who ventured to ride one with his girlfriend, Cecile, early this week. Jerome is seeded fourth this time round and has been to Chennai last year too. Spaniard Carlos Moya, who was seen atop an elephant last year, did not venture near one this time.

(By R. K. Radhakrishnan)

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