Roger Federer wasn't well-known in 2003, but he had amazing game -Caujolle
In an interview to Open 13 website, the Marseille Tournament Director Jean-Francois Caujolle commented on the event history. He recalled the 2003 Roger Federer's win. The Swiss left some very good memories to Caujolle, who said: "When I think of my most important finals, sometimes there is a bit of personal proudness or ego entering the game. Federer's win, when he beat (Jonas) Bjorkman, is a special memory. There was also some pressure there, and I wanted him to win, but it wasn't the Federer of today, he wasn't very well-known, but I liked a lot his game and I appreciated it. At the time he was still a teenager and before his win, he had lost to Marc Rosset in the final so Federer wasn't well-known yet as he was still young. But he had an amazing game, and he was playing his older brother, Marc Rosset, and Marc was playing well depending on his feelings. Here he was enjoying, he was feeling well, and the finals, in terms of intensity, were enormous here. Among the major wins, there is also the Kafelnikov's in 2001. He had come without asking for a guarantee and being willing to win the tournament, and he had already a Grand Slam win on his belt. He announced it and he made it. And then there is the Juan Martin del Potro's, his first indoor-court win."
Caujolle also added: "The finals featuring Frenchmen are definitely important, I have a good relationship with all of them and then you have to be aware that the tournament turned popular through them. In the early 2000s, Grosjean and Clement really made the tournament breakthrough, they had a very important role. There is Jo as well, obviously, with him, we have a great history as well, not all his finals were amazing but there was a really strong one in 2013 against (Tomas) Berdych saving a match point. Jo is like Becker, and for me, that final against Berdych, where he saved a match point in the second set tie-break, is really connected to the Becker-Vacek final."
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2F856oy
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