TENNIS: PHILIPPOUSSIS WINS CHALLENGER FINAL.Byline: MATTHEW KREDELL Staff Writer Mark Philippoussis Mark Anthony Philippoussis (born November 7, 1976) is an Australian tennis player. He turned professional in 1994 and as of 2007 resides in Nevada, United States. His background is a combination of Greek and Italian and he is well known for his powerful physique, standing at 6 ft 5 showed Sunday that he still has some top-10 shots left in him. The Australian, ranked No. 8 in the world seven years ago, beat up-and- comer Amer Delic Amer Delić (born on June 30, 1982) is a Bosnian-American professional tennis player. Delić was born in Tuzla located in the northeastern part of Bosnia-Herzegovina, at the time part of former Yugoslavia. 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 6-3 to win the Challenger of Calabasas tennis tournament at the Calabasas Tennis and Swim Center. Philippoussis battled back after losing the first set and being down a break in the second. At the end of the second-set tiebreaker tie·break·er n. An additional contest or period of play designed to establish a winner among tied contestants. Also called tiebreak. tie , Philippoussis took a shot that Delic thought would win him the point and ripped a wicked crosscourt cross·court adv. & adj. To or toward the other side of a playing court, especially a basketball or tennis court. forehand forehand the head, neck, shoulders, withers and forelimbs of the horse. winner to even the match. Delic watched the shot go by and waved his hand at it in a gesture that indicated he couldn't do anything to stop it. ``Too good,'' Delic said. ``I thought I hit a pretty good crosscourt forehand on the run. Usually this week that's been working, I'd get a short shot back. But he stepped in, cut it off and hit it right back. What can you say? ``No wonder he was a finalist at Wimbledon and the U.S.Open.'' Delic, who was born in Bosnia but went to college at Illinois and lives in Florida, is an improving player who was in his fourthChallenger final in his past six tournaments. But he hasn't won any of them, and the frustration showed in the third set, when he slammed his racket to the ground and pounded two balls out of center court. ``I used to watch him play on television growing up,'' Delic said. ``He's got experience on me, so obviously it helps in a close match like this.'' Philippoussis, who turns 30 in two weeks, could be retired by now. He has an accomplished 13-year career that includes 11 ATP ATP: see adenosine triphosphate. ATP in full adenosine triphosphate Organic compound, substrate in many enzyme-catalyzed reactions (see catalysis) in the cells of animals, plants, and microorganisms. titles, nearly $7 million in earnings and victories over tennis icons Pete Sampras Peter “Pete” Sampras (born 12 August 1971), is a former World No. 1 tennis player from the United States. During his 15-year career he won a record 14 Grand Slam men's singles titles in 52 appearances. Sampras finished as No. , Andre Agassi and Roger Federer. Instead, he's grinding it out in a Challenger event for a $7,200 winner's check. ``It's not about the money,'' Philippoussis said. ``It's about the points. This is a stepping stone for me to get back to where I was.'' Philippoussis has been going back and forth between ATP and Challenger events for the past three years. The last time he made an impact on the ATP tour was 2003, when he advanced to the Wimbledon final before losing to Federer. Every time he seems to get some momentum, minor injures derail de·rail intr. & tr.v. de·railed, de·rail·ing, de·rails 1. To run or cause to run off the rails. 2. him. He withdrew from the Calabasas tournament last year with back spasms. His goal is to get back into the top 100 -- he is expected to be No. 109 when the rankings come out today -- and set himself up to play on the ATP level more regularly next year. matthew.kredell@dailynews.com (818) 713-3607 |
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