by Jim Plautz
Dick Enberg hosted the one-hour preview of this year’s French Open and was joined by NBC’s expert commentators, John McEnroe and Mary Carrillo. Enberg spoke into the camera. “Ladies and Gentlemen, the second leg of the Grand Slam of Tennis is almost upon us, and as always we ask ourselves the question; are there any American men that can win this year’s premier clay court tournament. Year after year the question is the same, why can’t American’s win on clay? John, whom do you see as the favorites this year?”
“Let me correct you on one thing, Dick. American men have won this tournament. Michael Chang in ’89, Jim Courier in ’90 & ’91 and Agassi in 1999. Let’s not forget what they did.”
“You’re right, John, but as you know, Michael Chang’s win in ’89 over Stefan Edberg was the first American title since Tony Trabert won in 1954 & 1955; 35 years is a long dry spell.”
“Who will ever forget Chang serving underhand to Lendl in the semis?” Carrillo interjected. “That was a classic.”
“Getting back to this year, John, do any of our men have a chance?”
“Sure, Dick, we have a few guys that have a shot. Agassi is still a threat on clay, but I wouldn’t list him as a favorite.”
“Whom do you like?” Enberg pressed.
“Well, Federer wants this real bad and I think this might be his year, but Nadal is going to be awfully tough to beat. He is so strong. But the guy I like is Carlos. He is defending champion and has already won four clay tournaments this year. I think he is ready to establish himself as the best clay court player in the world.”
“I agree,” Carrillo said. “Carlos has all the shots.”
“John, are there any Americans that have a chance other than Agassi? What about Roddick and Blake?”
“I don’t see either Roddick or Blake getting to the second week. Roddick depends so much on the serve and he just doesn’t get enough free points on this surface. The good clay court players pick on his backhand. They also are in better shape. Blake has a game that should be good on this surface, but his record here is terrible. No, I think our hopes still rest with Agassi. He has a pretty easy draw and should have no trouble getting into the round of 16 before he faces anyone that can give him trouble.”
“Agassi opens against another American, Pete Simpson. What do we know about him?”
“Nothing,” McEnroe answered quickly. “I never heard of him.”
“He won a small tournament in Valencia, Spain a few weeks ago,” Carrillo volunteered. “I understand he is coming back from a bad knee injury he suffered in the NCAA tournament a couple years ago.”
“Well, Simpson will find out that Agassi is the wrong guy to play if you are coming off an injury. Andre will jerk him around like a yo-yo.”
“Okay, Mary, how about the ladies? Do the William sisters have a chance this year?”
“Dick, the sisters are always dangerous. It’s just a question of whether they are in shape and their mind is on tennis. And don’t forget Lindsay Davenport. She is still ranked #2 in the world.”
“Can she win on clay?” McEnroe asked, obviously not giving her much of a shot.
“Probably not, but she could go deep in the tournament before someone exploits her lack of speed. She’s a long shot.”
“So, who is your favorite?” Enberg asked.
“That’s easy, I’m going with ova or eva,” Carrillo replied with a smile. “Sharapova, Dementieva, Kuznetsova, Petrova, Zvonareva, Likhovtseva and I didn’t even include Elena Bovina. You pick one; they are all ranked in the top 15.”
“The Russians women are dominating,” McEnroe added, “and other than Sharapova, they all come from the Russian tennis program. They must be doing something right over there.”
“What about Ambre?” Enberg asked. “The French sure think she has a chance this year.”
“I agree,” McEnroe interjected before Mary could answer. “I saw her win in Italy and she is dominating.”
“She certainly is one of the favorites,” Carrillo agreed,” but I don’t think she can do it this year. The French will put too much pressure on her and on top of that, she is coming back from a one-year drug suspension. Maybe next year, but this year the pressure will eat her up.”
“Are there any new American girls that might make a name for themselves, Mary?”
“There are a couple new faces, but none that I see getting past the 2nd or 3rd round. There is a brother-sister act this year. Lisa Simpson just made it into the main draw and opens the tournament against Myskina on center court.”
“That will be the shortest brother-sister act in French Open history,” McEnroe predicted. “That daily-double would pay millions. They will both be gone by the second day.”
“Well, that wraps it up for today,” Enberg concluded. “I for one am looking forward to two weeks of fabulous tennis in the newly renovated Roland Garros Stadium.”
Marco and I meet with project team Friday morning to go over the tasks that still remained to be finished. We were only three days away from the opening match scheduled for 9:00 AM Monday, and only two days away from Sunday’s Grand Opening Ceremony. There were still 500 workers scurrying around the stadium putting finishing touches on both the inside and exterior of Roland Garros.
“Are we going to be ready?” Marco asked as he looked around the room.
The question reminded me of a time twenty years ago during my consulting years with Arthur Anderson. We were designing a new computer payroll system for the State Of Illinois Comptroller’s Office and one of the contractors responsible for the check writing system was behind schedule. Somebody asked the contractor how they were doing.
“We are doing great,” the project manager answered. “Last night we did a full test and were able to write checks. They are all to the same person and for the same amount, but what do you expect for government work?” After we stopped laughing we realized that he wasn’t kidding. I hoped today’s news would be better.
Summary-Level Gantt chart - Major Tasks and Responsibility
1. Repair Existing Stadium damage - Bouygues - Sergi Lebel
2. Update Exterior Facing - Bouygues - Paul Bruno
3. Install Dome over Philippe Chatrier - Clark - Sean Schafer
4. Install Dome over Suzanne Lenglen -Clark - Sean Schafer
5. Redesign Seating, Rest. & Press Box - Hunt - Tim Samuels
6. Improve Hwys; Marta; Parking - Bouygues - Jacques Bois
7. Improve Media s area and Security - Simpson Marco Noah