by Jim Plautz
Lisa’s 3rd round match was scheduled for Philippe Chatrier, the showcase court at Roland Garros. It was the second match of the day and the stands were full in anticipation of seeing this young American star that had burst on the scene this tournament. The French had adopted Lisa as one of their own.
The media hype since Pete’s “she is my great hero” comment was unprecedented and Lisa basked in the attention. The press roared with appreciation when she responded to a question about Pete. “Yes, he is my great hero, not realizing that Lisa was only fulfilling her side of the bet.
Fans mobbed her before and after her practice session. Everyone wanted her to autograph the now-famous picture of Lisa taking a picture of the ball mark from the Myskina match. Vendors were hawking the pictures for five Euros and they couldn’t keep them in stock.
I finally had to step in and beg the crowd to let her get to her practice session. The crowd wasn’t cooperating but Gregg and I finally were able to clear a path. Lisa wasn’t cooperating either. “Dad, this is fun. I’m having the time of my life. You always said you thought the players should interact more with the fans. Didn’t you?”
“Yes I did, Lisa, but there is time for everything. We only have the court for 90 minutes so let’s make the most of it or you won’t be around to sign any autographs. You have a tough match tomorrow.”
Her opponent was a young Argentinean girl Paola Suarez that had upset the #27 seed, American veteran Amy Frazier. She was only 5’2” but known for her heavy ground strokes and speed around the court. Her second serve was vulnerable.
Lisa won the coin flip and chose to return serve, allowing her opponent to choose which side to serve from. It was midday and the sun was directly overhead so there was no advantage to serving from either side. Gregg had suggested letting Suarez serve the first game. She might be a little nervous and tentative and give Lisa an opportunity to get an early break of serve.
The strategy worked to perfection. Suarez double faulted the first point as cameras flashed throughout the stadium. It seemed that half of the 15,000 fans had brought a camera. The chair umpire warned the crowd after the first serve and again after the double fault, but the crowd only jeered. It was at this point that Lisa showed her class and control over the crowd. She stepped inside the baseline and held up her hands asking for silence. When the crowd quieted Lisa pleaded for order; “Please, no pictures.” The crowd responded about 5,000 flashes. Lisa beamed and asked again. “Please, later, after the match.” The crowd roared and settled back in their seats.
Suarez, down love 15 was even more nervous. She netted her first serve and put in a weak, 70 MPH 2nd serve which Lisa stepped into and cracked for a clean winner. Lisa won the game with another service return winner when Suarez took a lot off her first serve just to get it in. The message had been sent; I’m going to be all over your second serve today. You better not miss your first.
Paola was ranked #38 in the world and was too good a player to fold completely. She was also tenacious and continually made Lisa hit another shot after Lisa thought she already had won the point. She broke Lisa three times but was broken five times. Lisa earned an entertaining and satisfying 6-4, 6-3, victory.
The crowd rose and cheered as Lisa shook hands with Suarez the chair umpire. Lisa took a moment to towel off and put her racquet into her tennis bag, before coming back onto the court to acknowledge the crowd. It erupted when they saw the camera. Lisa waved and took a flash picture in each direction as the crowd responded in turn. It was a great day for the camera industry.
The press conference was a mob scene. Lisa showed up with her trademark smile, camera and a request, “Please, no questions about my brother.”
The French were outraged at the latest attempt to destroy Roland Garros and were not idle while the CIA was working at finding Agbu. They decided on another approach. Taking advantage of a France-Spain bilateral antiterrorist pact signed September 10, 2004, the joint police units of both countries swooped down on the ETA and Islamic extremists throughout France and Spain. This well-coordinated attack was designed to arrest and detain suspected ETA sympathizers and break the back of the Basque militant group. Not since 1987 when Spain reacted to the senseless killing of 24 innocent bystanders, has there been such an all-out attack on the ETA.
The New ETA was back to square one. All the gains that Agbu had earned with the investment in new schools and jobs were wiped out in one senseless act. Spain’s cooperation with the France in the raids was interesting. It showed how shallow their support had been for the New ETA. “A leopard cannot change its spots,” one Spanish official summarized.
Hundreds were arrested throughout Spain, from Madrid to Vitoria-Gasteiz, the Basque capital. Italy, Portugal and other European countries cooperated and patrolled their airports and borders. Basque political leaders who despised the ETA were also arrested. Each person was asked the same questions, “Where is Agbu? What is he planning?”
Enrique and several of Agbu’s friends escaped the dragnet by less than an hour. The supplies Agbu had requested yesterday were stored in the mountains and they left town at 11:00. At noon, the police broke into his now empty home and found nothing. They had missed an opportunity by minutes. Four terrorists had disappeared and Chris and her team were not pleased. “He is up to something,” she told her team. “We just don’t know what.”
The media initially reported the assault as the long-awaited crackdown on the New ETA and other terrorist groups. It took an anonymous tip to steer them in the right direction. A junior reporter for the French Gazette arrived at work late Saturday morning and found a voice message. “I suggest you look into the tie-in between the raid on Spanish terrorists and the extra security at Roland Garros. The leaders of the plot to bomb Roland Garros are still alive.”
Newspapers get these anonymous tips every day and the reporter was tempted to delete this message, but decided to play it safe. An hour later sources confirmed the lead and the junior reporter had a byline for the lead story for Sunday’s paper. “Terrorist Planning New Attacks on Roland Garros.” A page one 4x6 picture of Agbu accompanied the story.
Carlos led the Spanish charge into the quarterfinals with an easy straight win over a young Russian, Mikhail Youzhny. Carlos had yet to drop a set in the tournament.
Amelie Mauresmo was not so lucky. The 25-year-old French woman had never made it past the quarterfinals, but was in good form coming into the tournament. The 3rd seed dominated her opponents in her first two matches, but was upset by Ana Ivanovic of Serbia, the #29 seed. French hopes were now squarely on Ambre.
The premier match on the men’s side was between Australian Open Champion Marat Safin and Juan Carlos Ferrero, the 2002 French Open Champion. It was a classic match between Safin’s power and Ferrero’s shotmaking. Safin’s big serve proved to be the difference in a close and entertaining match. Down in each of the first two sets and thrashed in the third, the Russian escaped each time to post a four set victory.
Day 7 (Sunday)
The Russians Are Coming