Almost three years ago to the day, I was in Paris at the tail end of a three week study-abroad trip. The majority of our European stay was spent in various locales in the United Kingdom (with Exeter as our home base), so when we had some free time during our final days overseas, I and two others in our group boarded the Eurostar to cross the English Channel and enter France.

The scant idle time that we had in Paris was usually spent resting in our hostel and watching undecipherable television. Thankfully, sport doesn’t require that you are fluent in the native language to understand what’s going on, so I tuned into the French Open regularly, which was wrapping up its second week.


I remember watching the Gaston Gaudio/Guillermo Coria final – “the match that no one wanted to win” – and seeing in amazement as Coria couldn’t convert on multiple match points against a surprising contender in Gaudio. Perhaps the crippling cramps and the 60mph serves had something to do with it.

Gaston took the final, 0-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1, 8-6, and instantly wrote his name in the record books. Did you know that in the last 13 Grand Slams, there are only three players to have won a Slam aside from Roger Federer? The exclusive list includes Rafael Nadal, Marat Safin, and Gaudio.

I also remembered Gaudio’s name because this was just about the time that I was started to seriously follow men’s tennis. At first, I scoffed at Gaudio’s triumph, writing it off as a fluke. But when I started watching the ATP Tour on a more intense level, really getting to know the players, I soon reversed my original thoughts and put the Argentinian’s victory in a new light. Anyone who can navigate their way through a Grand Slam should be commended for their efforts, and I soon started to follow Gaston more regularly on tour. It didn’t hurt he had one of the most attractive one-handed backhands in the game.

After Roland Garros, Gaudio didn’t let up. He reached the finals in the next three tournaments he entered (Bastad, Stuttgart, and Kitzbuhel), and ended 2004 ranked in the top ten. The following year showed even more promise, with victories at Vina del Mar, Buenos Aires, Estoril, Gstaad and Kitzbuhel. He ended 2005 ranked No.9 in the world.

But since then, Gaudio’s stock has fallen like an anvil, unable to stay at the level of play that he established in 2004 and 2005. It really isn’t that long ago that Gaudio was one of the best clay players in the world – bar none – but many have forgotten this. Unfortunately, this even includes his Argentine 'fans', who were reported to have booed him in his hometown event this year.

Gaston has taken this fall from grace harshly, speaking openly of retirement on a number of occasions. He’s been prone to extensive cold streaks and real mental breakdowns in matches, which often result in perplexing final scores. After winning the first two sets of Thursday's match against a suddenly resurgent Lleyton Hewitt, 6-4, 6-3, Gaudio’s impressive record at Roland Garros looked to continue onward. But 13 double faults later, Gaudio’s grasp on the match slipped away, and Hewitt quickly turned things around, winning in five sets. It was surely another very painful loss for Gaston, who after the match seemed resigned to his fate. Retirement talk could pick up steam again.

Only 28, Gaudio is still a player that many want to watch on tour. But does he want to hold up that end of the bargain? It doesn’t seem to be a certainty after recent events, and Thursday’s loss in Paris will be particularly damaging to a seemingly fragile Gaudio. It’s quite unfortunate, as win or lose, I see Gaudio as a tennis player who makes me want to watch the game, play it, and talk about it.

Stories like Gaston’s French Open title make me want to write about tennis even more than I already do. Hopefully for tennis’s sake, Gaston continues to battle and compete. If he should choose not to, I’ll write about that too – but I won’t really enjoy doing it as much.

*** For more tennis coverage, go to www.gasquetandracquet.com ***