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Spaniard shares an intriguing anecdote from Roland Garros in 2003

Editor's Note: But for the COVID-19 pandemic, Roland Garros would now be underway. During the next two weeks ATPTour.com will look back on memorable matches and happenings at the clay-court Grand Slam, which tournament organisers are now hoping to stage in September.

Saturday, 31 May 2003 was a special day for Tommy Robredo. He had just turned 21 and was facing the biggest challenge of his career so far at Roland Garros: defeating a World No. 1 at a Grand Slam.

His opponent was Lleyton Hewitt, who took the first two sets 6-4, 6-1. However, the Australian would not be the man to claim the victory that day.

Playing in the third round of a Grand Slam was nothing new to the Spaniard. It was not even the first time he had met — and defeated — a Top 5 player at a Grand Slam event, as he had previously overcome Juan Carlos Ferrero at the 2001 US Open. But, in Paris, he produced the best victory of his career until that point.

“Until now I had always remembered my 2001 win over Ferrero in the US Open. But today’s surpasses that by a distance,” said Robredo.

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So, what happened that day on the French clay? David brought down Goliath. And he did so by coming back from two sets down in a total of three hours and 24 minutes to win 4-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.

"The important thing was keeping a good head. I didn’t care about going two sets down, or losing 0-3 in the fifth. I kept fighting, convinced that I could beat him,” said Robredo.

Sixteen years later, Robredo revealed something intriguing that happened to him before the match against Hewitt. The day after beating Jonas Bjorkman in the second round, the Spaniard went to the physio room for his treatment. In just 24 hours he had to face the World No. 1 and he wanted to be as prepared as possible. Andre Agassi was close by and he quickly asked him for some advice.

”Hey, Andre, tomorrow I’m playing with Hewitt,” said Robredo. “What tactics should I use?

“I’m not the kind of person that asks a lot of questions, but I thought I’d ask Agassi,” said Robredo. “It was very interesting. He suddenly got up off the bed. He sat down. And he started explaining the tactics to me.”

They spoke of Hewitt’s tactics, his cross-court backhand, his solid forehand and that on his second serve and on break points he tended to aim at the ‘T’.

“Agassi kept talking and I remember that the match was exactly as he had told me,” said Robredo.

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Robredo progressed to the fourth round, along with his countrymen Albert Costa, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Felix Mantilla and Carlos Moya. The next day, he returned to the same room he had spoken to Agassi in. And the US player was there once more.

“He got up and gave me a hug and said, ‘I watched the whole match and you honestly played incredibly. You applied all the tactics we talked about perfectly. I’m really glad.’ Nobody had ever given me tactics for a match as elaborately and clearly as he did. Everything he said was right. I knew exactly how Hewitt played and how you had to play him,” said Robredo.

After the evident success, the then-World No. 31 did not hesitate, “Hey, tomorrow I’m playing Kuerten, maybe you can give me some tactics. And he did it again for me,” said Robredo.

The result? Robredo reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final by beating the Brazilian 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(2), 6-4.

Swiss recovered from two sets and break point down in fourth round

For four consecutive years from 2005 to 2008, Roger Federer’s bid to become the sixth man to complete the Career Grand Slam was ended by Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros.

So, when the four-time defending champion fell to Robin Soderling in the fourth round in 2009, Federer knew he had a great chance to finally break through in the French capital. One day after Nadal’s loss, Federer met former World No. 2 Tommy Haas for a place in the quarter-finals.

The Mutua Madrid Open champion entered the contest on an eight-match winning streak and had won seven straight ATP Head2Head clashes against Haas, but it was the German who opened the match in inspired form to increase Federer’s nerves on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

"He wasn't taking full command of his opportunities," said Haas. "He was making a few more unforced errors than usual, and his forehand wasn't firing on all cylinders."


Despite a strong serving performance from Federer in the first set, Haas dictated rallies from the baseline with his forehand and served with power and precision in the tie-break to earn a one-set lead. He then doubled his advantage by taking the second set, rallying with Federer from the back of the court and extracting crucial errors in the 12th game to move one set from victory.

After three consecutive finals between Nadal and Federer, the Parisian crowd were beginning to imagine the prospect of losing both men from the draw in a 24-hour period. Those thoughts were magnified when the match reached its most crucial point in the third set.

As Haas continued to pile the pressure on Federer’s shoulders, the German earned break point at 3-4, 30/40 on the 13-time Grand Slam champion’s serve. If Haas could convert his opportunity, he would serve for the match.

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Federer, who had struggled to find his best level on his forehand, held his nerve to not only survive, but turn the match on its head. Haas returned Federer’s second serve with interest, attacking his opponent’s backhand with a cross-court reply. But Federer had other ideas, shuffling his feet to strike a pinpoint inside-out forehand winner just inside the tramline.

"When I hit that forehand to save a break point at 3-4 in the third, I had the feeling it could be a turning point in the match,” said Federer.

The 58-time tour-level titlist held serve and claimed back-to-back games to force the match to a fourth set. From there, Federer won 12 of 14 games to cruise to the finish line. It proved to be a crucial victory for Federer, who overcame Gael Monfils, Juan Martin del Potro and Soderling to lift the Coupe des Mousquetaires for the first time.

With his Roland Garros triumph, Federer joined Fred Perry, Don Budge, Rod Laver, Roy Emerson and Andre Agassi as the sixth man to complete the Career Grand Slam. The win also drew the Swiss level with Pete Sampras’ record haul of 14 Grand Slam titles.

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Relive the German's upset at 1996 Roland Garros
Editor's Note: But for the COVID-19 pandemic, Roland Garros would now be underway. During the next two weeks ATPTour.com will look back on memorable matches and happenings at the clay-court Grand Slam, which tournament organisers are now hoping to stage in September.

Two weeks before Roland Garros in 1996, Michael Stich was unsure if he was going to play the clay-court Grand Slam.

Stich had lost a three-setter in the second round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia against current ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi. Before that, he hadn’t played for nearly three months due to a left ankle surgery that March.

“Why should I come to Paris and look like an idiot on clay?” Stich wondered, according to the New York Times.

Little did the 27-year-old know that he’d not only play Roland Garros, but he would spring the upset of the tournament and achieve his career-best result on the terre battue.

After winning his first three matches with the loss of only one set, 15th-seeded Stich faced a daunting fourth-round challenge against defending champion Thomas Muster. The second seed was the tournament favourite after triumphing in Monte Carlo and Rome.

Despite trailing by two sets to one, it appeared the Austrian was poised to wrestle back control of the match from Stich. Muster served to force a decider at 5-3, and converting would have put him in good shape, as he was arguably the fittest player on the ATP Tour.

“We all knew Thomas Muster was a strong guy. He was an animal,” former World No. 1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov told ATPTour.com. “He could run fast and for a long time.”


Instead, Stich kept Muster pinned well behind the baseline to earn three consecutive break chances. Although he couldn’t convert the first two, he hit a ball with heavy topspin to Muster’s forehand, and the Austrian couldn’t reach due to the high bounce.

The players weren’t going to a fifth set, but a tie-break. Stich hit a net-cord winner to earn the first mini-break, and he never looked back from there. When he clinched the 4-6, 6-4, 6-1, 7-6(1) stunner with a forehand volley winner, Stich threw his arms up in celebration.

"There was a lot of pressure on him to defend his title," Stich said, according to the Washington Post. "I had nothing to lose. He had a lot to lose.”

Muster won 18 tour-level clay-court titles in 1995 and 1996, yet he lost in four sets against a player who wasn’t sure he was going to play Roland Garros at all.

"It's a disappointment now, but when I wake up tomorrow morning, I will hopefully have the same hair," Muster said. "Winning last year hasn't changed my life, and this is not going to change my life, either."


The upset surprised the rest of the field, too. Kafelnikov said that there was a crowd of players watching the match in the locker room.

“I was very surprised, but all credit to Michael. He played a very fantastic match,” Kafelnikov said. “That was the surprise of the tournament, that the defending champion went out in the fourth round. But Michael played a very great tactical match and used his strengths to his advantage very classically. It did surprise many players.

“I knew Thomas was the best clay-court player at the time with his record and his game. That year was very, very hot. The courts got a bit quicker. The balls were travelling through the air a bit faster.”

Stich maintained his momentum, beating home favourite Cedric Pioline and Swiss Marc Rosset to reach his first and only Roland Garros final. The German fell short against Kafelnikov, who had led their ATP Head2Head series 6-3.

Nevertheless, the fortnight was a 180-degree turnaround for Stich. Not only did he show up in Paris, but he looked better than ever on the red clay.

"I might have lost a match,” Stich said after the final. “But I've recaptured my love for the sport."