Ivanisevic Overcomes Legend Borg On Day One

Bjorn Borg had been the inspiration for Goran Ivanisevic wanting to become a tennis player, but on the opening day of the inaugural Chengdu Open in China, the Croatian dispatched his idol 6-2, 7-6(0). Showing several glimpses of the left-handed service that took him to the Wimbledon title in 2001, Ivanisevic raced through the first set and then toughed out the second as Borg found his range.

“Bjorn Borg is a legend, he is the reason why I started to play tennis,” said Ivanisevic.

“To play him is a big honour. Even though this time I know I was much better, I was still a little nervous, because it’s Borg. I watched [all] his matches, I had his pictures on my wall.”

Elsewhere, Thomas Enqvist continued his perfect record on the ATP Champions Tour in 2009, beating Michael Chang 6-3, 6-2. It took Enqvist, who currently tops the South African Airways Champions Tour Rankings, to a 9-0 win-loss record on the circuit this year. He has won titles in Sao Paulo and Paris.

John McEnroe began the event well also, overcoming Pat Cash 6-4, 7-6 (4).

An honourable mention should also go to Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who scored the best win of his post-career. Since returning to tennis on the ATP Champions Tour, the Russian has not found life easy. But, Kafelnikov is quickly regaining full fitness, and on Thursday he impressively beat Sergi Bruguera, 7-6(5), 6-2.

“For the first time in a long time, I felt like I was in control of what I was doing on the court,” said Kafelnikov, in regard to his fitness. “That’s a huge sign of improvement to me. I’ve been working quite hard in the past couple of months. It’s a nice feeling, to be able to enjoy how I used to play before.”

It means that Ivanisevic and McEnroe top Group A, while Kafelnikov and Enqvist lead Group B after day one.

For latest scores, gossip and updates, follow us on Twitter. To view the order of play and the round-robin groups from Chengdu, click on Results. You can also view the latest South African Airways Champions Tour Rankings.

Goran Charms BBC Presenter and Predicts Murray Slam in 2010

BBC Radio 5 Live breakfast show presenter Shelagh Fogarty admits that she has had a crush on the 2001 Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic for as long as she can remember, and so she was rendered almost speechless when he surprised her with a guest telephone appearance on her show from Chengdu in China.

Ivanisevic, who will visit Luxembourg and London on the ATP Champions Tour over the next month, called into the popular breakfast show after hearing about Fogarty’s crush. He invited her to come to watch him play at the AEGON Masters Tennis, 1-6 December, an offer that she happily accepted.

Ivanisevic, who also appeared on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme on Thursday, was asked about Andy Murray’s chances of winning a first Grand Slam title.

The Croatian said he was convinced that it would happen for the British player in 2010.

“I think he is ready,” said Ivanisevic. “I thought he might win Wimbledon this year, but there is a lot of pressure so it is not easy. But generally, he has everything - the game, the mind, and next year, definitely, he is going to win a Grand Slam title. I don’t know which one, but he is going to win one of them.”