After today’s first match on the centre court had already seen Argentinian title holder reach the final by defeating Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) in a dramatic fight by 6:4, 6:7 (4), the second finalist has now also been decided: the No 1 of the tournament, Nikolay Davydenko (RUS).

Davydenko, the No 4 in the world, had little trouble defeating countryman Igor Kunitsyn, ranking No 96, straight by 6:3 and 6:2. The Russian on the match: „I made a lot of unforced errors today but I was very tired from yesterday’s six sets. I’ll have to regenerate for tomorrow’s final now. I want to be able to play my best tennis tomorrow. Monaco is a very good base line player, my only tactics will be to play better.“ A possible good omen for his opponent: Last year Davydenko lost to Monaco in three sets in the quarter-finals.

The double final tomorrow at 12.15 on the centre court will see Austrians Julian Knowle/Jürgen Melzer (defeated Haase/Wassen by 3:6,6:3,10:8) facing No 1-seeded Brazilians Marcelo Melo/Andre Sa (defeated Oswald/Scherrer by 6:3,6:7(18),10:3).

After yesterday’s sunshine today’s semi-finals at the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, powered by bet-at-home-com, in Pörtschach were once again delayed a little bit by rainfall.

In the first match on the centre court the No 3 of the tournament, Ivan Ljubicic from Coratia, faced the No 2, title holder Juan Monaco (ARG). Regarding the ranking – 14 versus 29 – Monaco, who lives in Buenos Aires, had to count as favourite. This seemed to be affirmed during the first set. Even though took the lead by a break for 2:0 Monaco soon found back into the match and won by 6:4. In set two the Croat suddenly woke up and offered a tough fight – forcing a tie-breaker. There Ivan Ljubicic once again, like in is quarter final against Daniel Gimeno-Traver, proved his nerves of steel. Thanks to his winning by 7:6(4) a decisive set became necessary. A set that couldn’t have been more dramatic. Ljubicic immediately broke his opponent and played superior serve games. At 5:3 (serve Monaco) he even had three match-points – but couldn’t end the match. This brought the Argentinian back into the match who promptly re-broke for 5:5. In the final tie-breaker, characterised by many mini-breaks (10 overall) it was then indeed the title holder who was ahead by a nose, winning by 7:6(4). Thus Juan Monaco will face the winner of the Russian semi-final between Nikolay Davydenko – Igor Kunitsyn tomorrow.

A relieved Juan Monaco after the thriller: “It was a really nice game. We had a great fight. The match was an excellent preparation for Paris and I’m looking forward to the second final in Pörtschach in a row. But I’m a bit tired after yesterday’s and today’s matches. Therefore I’ll relax now, watching the second semi-final.”

A prominent guest had fevered along with his countryman Juan Monaco on the stands during the first semi-final – four-times Grand Slam winner (2 x Australian Open, 1 x French Open and US-Open) and uncrowned clay-court-king of the 1970s, Guillermo Vilas. Even more, the tennis legend from Argentina will play on the centre court tomorrow, Saturday. Under the motto “Legends and Hopefuls” the former No 2 in the world will play a double with Carinthian tennis hero Hans Kary and two young players, Patrick Ofner and Jason Peter Platzer.

Prior to this the doubles-final will take place on the centre court from 12.15 on. It will be followed by a 1-set-exhibition by Carinthian tennis talents Patrick Ofner (15 years) and Jason Peter Platzer (13 years). Then on to the appearance of the superstars: Guillermo Vilas will play a double on the side of Ofner versus Hans Kary and Platzer – which will not only guarantee high-class tennis but also a lot of fun. Finally – but not before 14.30 – the big singles-final of the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com, will take place.

In the first double of the day on court 2 No 2-seeded Austrians Julian Knowle and Jürgen Melzer faced a countryman, Oliver Marach, and his partner Michal Mertinak from Slovakia. Somewhat surprisingly the Austrian-Slovak pairing won the first set by 6:3. But then the class of Melzer/Knowle, who are getting more and more comfortable in their renewed partnership, gained the upper hand and they took the next two sets by 6:3 and 10:8. Thus they have the chance to reach the final of Pörtschach in their semi-finals-match versus Robin Haase/Rogier Wassen (NED) in the late afternoon.

Austria’s last remaining representative in the single-draw of the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, powered by bet-at-home-com, Jürgen Melzer, who had won his last of sixteen-match against Dutchman Robin Haase in three sets in the morning, had to face Russian Igor Kunitsyn (No 96) in the quarter-finals in the afternoon.

Melzer fought like a lion right from the beginning, was rewarded by six break opportunities but could only realise one. The Russian, on the other hand, was successful twice, thereby winning set one by 6:4. In the second set Melzer broke for 5:3 and subsequently served the set out to 6:3. Prior to set three, the Russian took a medical out-time due to back-problems. Melzer then took advantage of the short period of weakness of his opponent, taking a 1:0 lead by a break but immediately had to acknowledge the re-break for 1:1. Next Kunitsyn managed another break for 4:2 after which it was Melzer’s turn to take a medical out-time in order to have his upper thighs treated. Plagued by cramps he continued playing and tried to keep the rallies short but to no avail. The man from Deutsch-Wagram was able to parry one match-point but in the end Igor Kunitsyn finished the match with an overall score of 6:4,3:6 and 6:3 from his perspective.

A disappointed but not disheartened Jürgen Melzer said after the match: “In the end I was very tired. To play six sets today was rather much. The cramps in both upper thighs started during the first game of set three and increased subsequently. At the moment I’d call my form ‘in-between’. Mentally it was very hard for me today to concentrate this long. But this shouldn’t aflict tomorrow’s double. Regarding the French Open next week, Pörtschach definitely was a step ahead after my low during the last weeks.”

Igor Kunitsyn’s semi-final-opponent tomorrow, Friday, will be the No 1 of the tournament, Nikolay Davydenko (RUS). The No 4 in the world had to face Hamburg semi-finalist Andreas Seppi from Italy on court 1 – and had to toil more than he would have liked. Which was also due to a hardening of the upper thigh-muscles which forced him to take a medical time-out twice. But in the end he won by 6:3,1:6 and 6:3 after 1 hour 37 minutes.

No 3 seeded Croat Ivan Ljubicic seemed to encounter little trouble in his match on the centre court against the No 109 in the world, Daniel Gimeno-Traver from Spain, at first, winning the first set by 6:3. But the clay court specialist from Valencia fought back and took set two by 6:4 in turn. The third set then became a true tennis-drama. At 6:5 the Spaniard had four match-points but couldn’t finish the match, thus allowing Ljubicic to reach the tie-breaker. There Gimeno-Traver had another two match-points, once again missing out. Ljubicic, on the other hand, showed nerves of steel and realised his first match-point for 7:6 (6).
Following the match the releived Croat said: “The match was very tough – I would have preferred it easier. But my opponent became stronger and stronger in set two and when I faced six match-points overall in the third set I thought it was over – thankfully this didn’t happen. I’m actually feeling quite well on clay right now but I’m not yet thinking of Paris. But it would be great to reach the final here in Pörtschach.”

In tomorrow’s semi-final he will face title holder Juan Monaco, seeded No 2, who triumphed over US-American Robby Ginepri. But in the end the Argentinian won in two straight sets by 7:5, 7:6 (3).

Today, Thursday, it was double-pack-day at the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com, on the Werzer Arena in Pörtschach, since the players had to complete both their last-16-matches as well as their quarter-finals due to the delay the rain had caused in the beginning of the week.

It was a birthday child that started proceedings on the centre court for Jürgen Melzer, last Austrian still standing in the singles main draw, celebrated his 27th birthday. A celbration which his opponent, 21-year-old Dutch talent Robin Haase, obviously didn’t want to join in. But Melzer started into the first games of set 1 aggressively and focused – which was rewarded by an early break when Haase served a double fault at 30:40. This made the man from Deutsch-Wagram even more self-confident which was proven by another break for 5:2. And even an immediate re-break by the man from the Hague didn’t ruffle Melzer: he broke again to win the first set by 6:3.

The second set didn’t start to the birthday child’s liking since Haase (ranking No 58) managed an early break for 2:1. But the current No 103 in the world overcame his short low and rebroke the Dutchman for 3:3. But then Melzer lost his serve by love and Haase served the set – despite an intermittent 15:40 – out by 6:4.

In the third set Jürgen Melzer presented himself with the best birthday present. Following a break for 3:1 he confirmed this by an impressive serve game while Haase seemed more and more unnerved. And Melzer even added a bonus: another break brought an overall victory by 6:3,4:6 and 6:2 after 1 hour 40 minutes. “I am very satisfied about the way I played. I already showed this in the first set and played even better in the third one. No matter the outcome of the quarter-final match, this day is already a good one”, said a content Jürgen Melzer.

In the third match on the centre court this afternoon, Jürgen Melzer will take on Igor Kunitsyn (RUS) who defeated Slovenian qualifier Blaz Klavcic in two straight sets by 6:1,6:4.

The second match on the centre court rather surprisingly also went over three sets. There the No 1 of the tournament, Nikolay Davydenko (RUS), faced the No 85 in the world, US-American John Isner. After it looked like a walk-through for the No 4 in the world after set 1 (Davydenko by 6:2) the 2,06 metres cannonball server from Greensboro, North Carolina, came back into the match and won the second set in the tie-breaker by 7:6(6). The third set was then decided by the greater experience of the Russian who broke Isner for 5:3 and finally served out the set for the overall score of 6:2,6:7(6) and 6:3. After the match Nikolay Davydenko said: “It was incredibly hard to return his service. And Isner also scored a lot of aces. The rallies were very short which made it difficult for me. You have to try to stay constant in your game when playing someone like that. But three sets were a good preparation for Paris in any case.” In the quarter-finals, which is planned for late afternoon, the Russian will now play Italian Andreas Seppi won in two straight set by 7:5 and 6:1 over Dudi Sela (ISR).

Title holder Juan Monaco from Argentina has also reached the quarter-finals. The No 2 of the tournament didn’t have any trouble winning over Czech Jiri Vanek (No 92 in the world) by 6:2 and 6:2 on court 2.

In the quarter-finals he will face US-American Robby Ginepri who definitely had to toil harder to defeat Olivier Rochus from Belgium by 4:6,6:2 and 6:3 after 2 hours 11 minutes.

The suprisingly strong Austrian-Swiss double Philipp Oswald/Jean-Claude Scherrer continued its success-run and defeated US-American pair Scott Lipsky/David Martin by 7:6(3) and 6:3. In the semi-finals they will face No 1 seeded Brazilians Marcelo Melo/Andre Sa.

In the last single match on the centre court today - interrupted by a short rain delay – the No 3 of the tournament, Croat Ivan Ljubicic, faced Spaniard Ivan Navarro. Even though Ljubicic showed slight weaknesses in the beginning he proved to be the better man as the match went on and won the first set in the tie-breaker by 7:6(3). In set two one break sufficed for the cannonball server to win by 6:4 and reach the quarter-finals, thereby sending the Spaniard back home. “I’m not yet in absoulte top form but it’s getting better with each round. I’ll yet have to study my opponent of tomorrow, Gimeno-Traver, but I know that he plays an irksome tennis”, the No 29 in the world explained.

This match rounded up all matches of the first round in Pörtschach. Tomorrow, Thursday, will see a fabulous day of tennis. At 11.00 Jürgen Melzer will open the 6th day of the tournament on the centre court with his match against Dutchman Robin Haase. This will be followed by the No 1, Nikolay Davydenko, challenging US-American John Isner. Should Melzer have won his match he will then play the third match on the centre court, succeeded by Ivan Ljubicic versus Spaniard Gimeno-Traver, followed in turn by Davydenko’s quarter-final match.

The ORF will therefore change its program and start broadcasting live already at 11.00 in ORF 1. The matches can also be followed live on OSP.

The finale of today was made up of the doubles. The No 2 seeded Austrians Julian Knowle/Jürgen Melzer defeated the duo Travis Parrott (USA)/Filip Polasek (SVK) in a very exciting and close match by 6:7 (5), 6:4 and 10:8. The Austrians about their success: “We started poorly which was partly due to Polasek’s service which was rather irksome. But when we got back into the match we were the better team and should already have won the first set. One could also see that we haven’t played together for quite a while but we’ll hopefully improve match by match here in Pörtschach.”

In the next round they’ll have to take up the Autrian-Slovak pairing of Oliver Marach/ Michal Mertinak, who superiorly defeated Donald Young (USA)/ Mischa Zverev (GER) by 6:3,6:2.

The biggest surprise was caused by Austrian Philipp Oswald and his Swiss partner Jean Claude Scherrer. They won over the strong US-American team John Isner/ Sam Querrey by 6:2, 6:2. They next will face another American pairing in Scott Lipsky/David Martin.

On the fifth day. Wednesday, the Hypo Group Tennis International on the Werzer Arena in Pörtschach commenced punctually at 11.00, as scheduled, despite cloudy weather conditions.

The initial position for the first match on the centre court was obvious. On the one hand the favourite, No 2 of the tournament and title holder, Juan Monaco (ARG), on the other hand the No 83 in the world, his countryman Carlos Berlocq – who had only just lost to him this year at the Australian Open in three straight sets. But the match was finished even faster than one could have assumed. After Monaco had broken him twice and lead 4:1, Berlocq had to give up due to a thigh injury. Thus the titleholder reached the second round – almost – without resistance.

The following match on the centre court saw Croat Mario Ancic (ranking No 46), who had only returned to the tour in February following a stomach illness, challenge Robby Ginepri (No 97) from the USA. Favourite Ancic, No 7 in Pörtschach, broke Ginepri in the first set for 3:2 and subsequently served the set out for 6:4. The second set was mirror-inverted – this time around it was the man from Fort Lauderdale who broke the Croat, winning by 6:3. The third set then saw break and re-break before the tie-breaker had to decide. There Robby Ginepri proved to be the luckier one and won after fending off two match points by 10:8. Final result: 4:6, 6:3 and 7:6(8) for the US-American.

At the same time the match on court 1 between Sergio Roitman (ARG) and 21-year-old Dutch talent Robin Haase was of special interest from an Austrian perspective since the winner would meet Jürgen Melzer in the second round. The first set brought on the expected tough fight between the No 58 (Haase) and the No 86 (Roitman) which in the end saw Haase up front in the tie-breaker by 7:6(7). In set two one break was sufficient for the Dutchman to win by 6:4. Thus Robin Haase reached the second round by 7:6(7) and 6:4 where he will face the only Austrian still in the tournament, Jürgen Melzer.

Another match on court 1 between the No 9 of the tournament, Mardy Fish (USA) and Russian Igor Kunitsyn, currently ranking No 96, went by rather swift, on the other hand. But the outcome was contrary to what the ranking would have one expect. Kunitsyn literally sweeped the US-American off the court at his Pörtschach debut. Final result: 6:1, 6:1.

The match on court 2 between Blaz Kavcic (SLO) who had fought his way through the qualification into the main draw, thereby defeating Nico Reissig from Salzburg, and Teimuraz Gabashvilil from Russia, No 125 in the ranking. While Gabashvili, 232 places ahead in the ranking, won the first set by 6:4, the Slovenian fought his way back into the match and equaled the score by 6:4. The third set then once again saw a fierce fight that went into the tie-breaker which the outsider, Blaz Kavcic, won rather surprisingly and therefore also the match by 4:6, 6:4 and 7:6(3).

The match on court TB saw a tough fight in the first set between Mischa Zverev from Germany and Israeli Dudi Sela, which the man from Kiryat Shmonna finally won in the tie-breaker by 7:6(2). In the second set the German then virtually went under and didn’t stand a chance. Thus Dudi Sela reached the second round by 7:6(2) and 6:0.

Tomorrow, Thursday, will be a day of superlatives at the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com, in Pörtschach. From 11.00 – also live on ORF 1 and Sport plus – Austria’s hope Jürgen Melzer will challenge Dutchman Robin Haase for the entry into round three. This will be followed by the match of the No 1 of the tournament, Nikolay Davydenko, against John Isner (USA). And after another quarter-finals match the participants of which have yet to be decided, one can see the second part of the double feature: should both Melzer and Davydenko have won their matches they will appear once more on the centre court – in their quarter-final matches.

Dark clouds and rainfall remained meddlesome companions at the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International on the Werzer Arena in Pörtschach on Tuesday, as well. The first match on the centre court – initially scheduled for 11.00 – began only after a delay of six hours.

There the Croatian No 3 of the tournament, Ivan Ljubicic, took on Jan Hajek (CZE) who had made his way through the qualification. But the obvious underdog (ranking No 301) surprised by a strong beginning while the cannoball-server from Banja Luka had troubles getting into the match. This was reflected by the fact that Ljubicic immediately lost his service. Subsequently both players won their service games, resulting in a 6:4 win for Hajek.

But it seemed that the No 29 in the world only had needed this one set to warm up: at the beginning of set two Ljubicic immediately broke Hajek for 2:0 and subsequently didn’t leave the more and more insecure Hajek the ghost of a chance. Logical result: 6:0. The third set became a mirror of the second one albeit with a somewhat more „conciliatory“ ending for the Czech. Ljubicic controlled the match at will, broke Hajek once, which proved sufficient to win by 4:6, 6:0 and 6:3 in the end.

Following this the – due to rainfall – suspended match from yesterday between Austria’s second hope left in the main draw, Oliver Marach and US-American Sam Querrey. It had been adjourned on Monday at 6:4, 3:5 from the Austrian’s point of view.

The man from Graz won his service game immediately after the resumption but Querrey kept his cool and equaled the set-score by 6:4. The beginning of set three saw two contested service games but while Marach wasn’t able to capitalise on his opportunities, the American No 5 of the tournament broke for 2:1. And even though Oliver Marach played several fabulous shots he was eventually unable to re-break the man from Chicago. Final result: 3:6, 6:4 and 6:4 for Sam Querrey.

Following the match Marach said: „I wasn’t dissatisfied with my game but made too many faults with my forehand. I also let go of too many opportunities. My opponent served better which proved decisive in the end.“ Thus it remains to Jürgen Melzer – who will play the winner of Roitman-Haase in the second round – to keep up the hope of the Austrians.

The third match on Tuesday took place on court 2 and saw a win by the favourite. The No 85 in the world, John Isner (USA), had little trouble sending Italian Simone Vagnozzi (288) back home by 6:3 and 6:2.

Heavy rain and lightning led to the suspension of the remaining matches late this afternoon.

After Jürgen Melzer had reached the second round of the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, by a hard-won but eventually sovereign 7:5, 6:2 victory over US-American Donald Young, his countrymen Rainer Eitzinger (1:6,1:6 versus the No 1 of the tournament, Nikolay Davydenko) and Werner Eschauer (defeated 6:4,6:2 by Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver) lost their matches.

Only Oliver Marach still stands a chance to reach the next round tomorrow. The Styrian had won the first set by 6:3 against the strong US-American Sam Querrey when the match was suspended at 3:5 from the point of view of the man from Chicago due to the rainstorm.

Hamburg Semi-finalist Andrea Seppi from Italy had a surprisingly hard time beating Latvian Ernests Gulbits after a tough fight by 1:6, 6:4, 6:3. Spaniard Ivan Navaro overcame US-American Vincent Spadea by 6:4, 6:4 and Czech Jiri Vanek kept the upper hand over wild card-player Martin Verkerk from the Netherlands by 7:5, 4:6,6:2.

The free-ticket-special “Free Warm-Up for Semi-Finals and Final” continues successfully. Each adult who buys a ticket for the semi-finals or the finals during the tournament week on Moday, Tuesday or Wednesday on the spot at the counter in Pörtschach will receive a free ticket for the respective day to watch the matches. Thus the tennis fan not only saves 25 Euro but also gets a “double feature” of exciting tennis action.

The third day of the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, on the Werzer Arena in Pörtschach brought on the “Super Monday” from an Austrian perspective. All four Austrians in the main draw – Jürgen Melzer, Oliver Marach, Rainer Eitzinger and Werner Eschauer – could be seen in court-action.

The beginning fell to 27-year-old Jürgen Melzer, competing against US-American Donald Young. The first set was an even match until 3:3 but subsequently became a game of nerves. Melzer managed to break for 4:3 but 19-year-old Young hit straight back. Following this both players failed to win their serving games. It was only at 6:5 when the Viennese kept his cool and served the set out to 7:5.

The second set proved to be the opposite since Donald Young (ranking No 81) couldn’t overcome the loss of set one. Thus Jürgen Melzer‘s greater experience and stability won the upper hand and he soon lead by 4:0 after two breaks. Even though the man from Chicago rebroke for 4:2, Melzer kept his cool and triumphed after 1 hour 24 minutes by 7:5/6:2.

„It was very difficult for me today. Having lost my form during the recent weeks this victory must count as one of my most joyful ones for me. At the beginning of the match I played rather cautiously but then played several good shots in set two. I didn’t feel my injuries during the match and therefore hope to stay in the tournament a little longer“, said a content Jürgen Melzer. Asked about his possible second-round-opponents he replied: „Haase is a dangerous newcomer, Roitman plays from further back from the baseline. But in the end I’ll have to focus on improving my form continuously.“

The second match on the centre court was between the No 1 of the tournament, Nikolay Davydenko (Rus) and 24-year-old Tyrolean Rainer Eitzinger who, as No 263 in the world, counted as clear underdog. And Davydenko (ranking No 4) did indeed take immediate control of the match. Eitzinger only won two serve-games and thus the Russian took the match in two straight sets by 6:1 and 6:1 after 57 minutes. Eitzinger: “It is, of course, very hard to keep up with the No 4 in the world. I just didn’t get into the match and stood too far behind the baseline. My opponent simply made the game too fast for me.”

The third one of the Austrian-Quartet on “Super Monday” at the Hypo Group Tennis International 08 in Pörtschach, 38-year-old Werner Eschauer, unfortunately only gave a short performance on court 2 of the Werzer Facilities. The man from Hollenstein succumbed to Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver, despite an initial lead, by 4:6 and 2:6. After the match he said: „After I had already lead by 4:1 in set one and played well I should have one the set. Even though, following a shoulder injury and a torn tendon of the clavicle, I didn’t feel any pain for the first time since January, I was obviously lacking the needed self-confidence. Now I’ll depart directly for the qualification in Paris hoping to at least reach the first round.“

Oliver Marach will now try his best to copy Jürgen Melzer in his match against US-American Querrey and reach the second round. A difficult but not unsolvable job for the 27-year-old man from Graz.

The second day of the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, on the Werzer Arena in Pörtschach started with a delay. The whole morning heavy rain made playing tennis impossible. But at about 13.30 the weather gods showed mercy and an hour later the tournament day started with the third qualification round.

The first match on the centre court saw 19-year-old tennis talent Nico Reissig from Salzburg play against Slovak Blaz Kavcic, two years his elder. But the number 366 proved too big an obstacle for the Austrian No 1188 in the world and the result was a disappointing 2:6 and 0:6 defeat.

That doesn’t change the fact of the “Super Monday” from an Austrian point of view. For tomorrow, Tuesday, no less than four Austrians will take up their racket on the Werzer Tennis Facilities from 13.00 on. The beginning will be made by Jürgen Melzer who will play talented US-American Donald Young. Following this, the second Austrian, Tyrolean Rainer Eitzinger, will face an almost unsurmountable obstacle: the No 1 of the tournament and No 4 in the world, Nikolay Davydenko (Rus). Oliver Marach from Graz will then be given an almost equally difficult task, having to play against 20-year-old Sam Querrey from the USA, No 38 in the ranking.

The final single match of the “Super Monday” on the centre court will see the No 3 of the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, cannonball-server Ivan Ljubicic from Croatia, playing versus a qualifier – a hurdle that shouldn’t prove too high. The fourth Austrian on this “Super Monday”, Werner Eschauer from Hollenstein, will meet an opponent of equal strength in Daniel Gimeno-Traver (Spa), which should offer him a fair chance to reach the second round.

Tomorrow, Monday, will also see the start of the free-ticket-special “Free Warm-Up for Semi-Finals and Final”. Each adult who buys a ticket for the semi-finals or the finals during the tournament week on Moday, Tuesday or Wednesday on the spot at the counter in Pörtschach will receive a free ticket for the respective day to watch the matches. Thus the tennis fan not only saves 25 Euro but also gets a “double feature” of exciting tennis action.

Should the two remaining matches scheduled for the centre court and the still open qualification matches be cancelled due to the currently heavy rain, it would be possible that the matches tomorrow will already start at 10.00. For more information please see the Order of Play which will be sent out this evening.

Tomorrow, Sunday, the main draw of the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, will commence on the centre court of the Werzer Arena in Pörtschach.

There will be two matches. No 7-seeded Croatian Mario Ancic (No 46 in the world) will meet US-American Robby Ginepri, 50 places behind him in the ranking. Following this the match between German Mischa Zverev and Israeli Dudi Sela will take place. Prior to these matches the third round of the qualification will be played from 9.00 on.

Next week will then be welcomed by a “Super Monday”. All four qualified Austrians will compete in the main draw that day. The order of play on the centre court will be: Ivan Ljubicic (CRO), No 3 of the tournament, versus a qualifier, followed by Jürgen Melzer against US-American Donald Young, then No 1, Nikolay Davydenko, will play Tyrolean Rainer Eitzinger, rounded up by the match between Sam Querrey (USA) and Oliver Marach. The fourth Austrian, Werner Eschauer will face Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver on a side-court.

Today’s first two qualification-rounds didn’t prove to be too fortunate for Austrian players. While Jürgen Gündera, Philipp Oswald and Marc Rath were only defeated in the second round, Armin Sandbichler already had to say good-bye after round one. The only one still standing is 19-year-old Nico Reissig from Salzburg who defeated Vjakoslav Skenderovic (6:3,5:7,6:4) and Massimo Dell’Acqua (7:6(4) und 6:4) in two close fights.

The „Super Monday“ will also be one for the fans, namely with the free-ticket-special “Free Warm-Up for Semi-Finals and Final”. Each adult who buys a ticket for the semi-finals or the finals during the tournament week on Moday, Tuesday or Wednesday on the spot at the counter in Pörtschach will receive a free ticket for the respective day to watch the matches. Thus the tennis fan not only saves 25 Euro but also gets a “double feature” of exciting tennis action.

The 15th edition of the Hypo Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, holds a pleasing aspect from an Austrian point of view. No less than four players will be represented in the main draw. Jürgen Melzer had already been signed, Oliver Marach and Rainer Eitzinger were awarded a wild card and Werner Eschauer benefited by the cancellation of several players, thereby reaching the main competition.

Jürgen Melzer and Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb were the „good luck charms“ at today’s draw. The most difficult mission was handed to Rainer Eitzinger. He will have to play Russian No 1, Nikolay Davydenko.

Jürgen Melzer drew for himself for the first round the young US-American Donald Young (No 80 in the ranking): “I have never played him before but I know that he is left-handed and very talented. At times he plays great tennis, then again rather faulty. But that doesn’t matter to me, I have to take care of my own form. I have used the last days to relax some. Since yesterday I’m playing seriously again. Three hours with Latvian Ernets Gulbis, and I plan to train intensively today and tomorrow, as well. I’m feeling better than recently in Hamburg and hope to get back into form in Pörtschach in order to be well prepared for Paris.”

Oliver Marach has drawn a very tough opponent, US-American Sam Querrey, No 38 in the ranking, and will need a lot of self-confidence to reach the second round. Werner Eschauer was a little luckier, he will play Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver (No 119) and should stand a good chance of reaching round two thanks to his experience.

Title holder Juan Monaco will face his Argentinian countryman Carlos Berlocq, Ivan Ljubicic versus a qualifier, Mario Ancic against Sergio Roitman and Mardy Fish versus Russian Igor Kunitsyn.

The qualification has commenced today at 9.00 during cloudy and very windy weather conditions. Five Austrians overall are competing. Marc Rath (Lower Austria) born 89 and Nico Reissig (Salzburg) 89, as well as thanks to a wild card Jurgen Gundera (Carinthia) 82, Armin Sandbichler (Vorarlberg) 85 and Philipp Oswald (Vorarlberg) 86.

After lengthy negotiations Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb awarded the last remaining wild card for the 15th edition of the Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, this afternoon.

It was handed to 30-year-old Martin Verkerk. The Dutchman had already been No 14 in the world in 2003 before he was thrown back by numerous injuries. He currently ranks No 351 after he had started the year only in place 676. His biggest success so far had come when he reached the final at the French Open in Roland Garros in 2003 where he lost to Juan Carlos Ferrero. The very same year he went up into the semi-finals of St. Pölten but was defeated by Pörtschach-competitor Nikolay Davydenko.

Leitgeb justifies his decision: “He is in very good form this year and could cause one or more surprises in Pörtschach. I prefer such an ambitious player to, for instance, the No 9 in the world, Richard Gasquet, who has completely lost his form at the moment.”

The other two wild cards had previously been awarded to Austrians Oliver Marach and Rainer Eitzinger. A big advocate for the nomination of Eitzinger had been Davis Cup Captain Gilbert Schaller who had recommended the Tyrolean.

One is well prepared for the tournament in Pörtschach, the last prearrangements are under way. The players will arrive during the next days. The draw will take place tomorrow, Saturday, at 10.00 at the VIP-area on the Werzer Tennis Facilities.

Since there are already several attractive players in the main competition of the Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com, in Pörtschach from May 17 to 24 – Nikolay Davydenko, title holder Juan Monaco, Ivan Ljubicic, Mario Ancic, Fabrice Santoro and Mardy Fish – Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb has now awarded the first of overall three wild cards.

“I had hoped to the last that Carinthian local hero Stefan Koubek would recover from his back injury and be able to compete in Pörtschach. Stefan currently is in a Viennese private hospital. I talked to him today over the phone and unfortunately he will not be able to play. Thus the whole pressure from a local point of view lies on Jürgen Melzer who also currently has some physical problems. I therefore decided to award the first wild card for Pörtschach to Oliver Marach. Thus at least two Austrians are definitely in the main competition which will at least be a small relief for Jürgen. In Pörtschach Marach had reached the singles quarter final in 2006 and even reached the doubles finale the same year together with Czech Cyril Suk. Currently the Styrian lies in 52nd place in the ATP doubles ranking“, explains Leitgeb.

The decision on the remaining two wild cards will only be made during the next days. So far French Open winner Juan Carlos Ferrero, Frenchmen Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon, as well as Moroccan Younes El Aynaoui have applied for one.

Following the application of former French Open winner Juan Carlos Ferrero for a wild card at the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com, the management of Frenchman Richard Gasquet also asked for one.

The French player started his race for the top ten in 2006 in Pörtschach, as Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb well remembers: “Back then I offered the 19-year-old Gasquet a wild car for the main competition. But he refused and only wanted one for the qualification. The reason: he simply needed more matches. Unfortunately the Frenchman encountered an injury and had to retire from the main competition prematurely. But following this Richard made his way up, in which Pörtschach surely played no small part.”

Richard Gasquet, only 21 years old as of today, currently ranks number nine. He reached his best ranking so far in July last year as number seven. Overall he already scored no less than five single titles on the ATP tour since 2002 and two double titles as well. He furthermore reached five single finals. Another feat was his participation in the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai in 2007.

The final decision on who will be awarded the three still open wild cards for Pörtschach will be made by Ronnie Leitgeb on next Monday.

Should both wild card applicants be signed by Leitgeb one would once again see an attractive field of competitors in Pörtschach this year. Two top ten players, Davydenko (4) and Gasquet (9), additionally Monaco (14), Ferrero (23), Ljubicic (29), as well as Fish (38) Seppi (46), Santoro (50) and Ancic (51).

One must also hope that Jürgen Melzer finally finds his form again. The Lower Austrian reached the semi-finals in 2004, the final in 2005 and the quarter-finals in 2006 in Pörtschach.

This week the ATP tournaments in Barcelona and Munich are being played side-by-side, next week Rome is on the schedule, followed by Hamburg and from May 17 to 24, 2008 it will be time for the 370.000 Euro Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com in Pörtschach.

The participation of Miami winner 2008, Nikolay Davydenko, has already been secured. He is currently in top form and has already reached the final in Estoril and the semi-finals of Dubai, Doha and Monte Carlo this year.

Additionally there are Indian Wells finalist Mardy Fish (USA), Pörtschach title holder Juan Monaco (ARG), the two fab servers Ivan Ljubicic and Mario Ancic (both CRO) as well as the great Frenchman Fabrice Santoro.

Yesterday Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb received the first, very interesting, application for one of the three wild cards still available: “It is no lesser player than the French Open champion from 2003, Juan Carlos Ferrero from Spain. That year he also was No 1 in the world and currently ranks 23rd. For Pörtschach a clay specialist like Ferrero would surely be an asset. But I still have to wait for further applications and will only be able to make a final decision concerning the awarding of all three wild cards on May 12.”

The 28-year-old Spaniard has been on the tour for 10 years and has already won 11 titles troughout his career. Thereby the right hander has earned almost 12 million dollars prize money. This year he already reached the final in Auckland.

The € 370.000.- Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com, from May 17 to 24, 2008 in the Werzer Tennis Arena in Pörtschach will be extensively covered in national TV.

ORF 1 and OSP will broadcast no less than 51 hours throughout the tournament week this year. 42 hours of these will be live coverage, the remainder consisting of daily summaries.

Taking last year as a basis, over 100 foreign TV-stations in 200 countries have reported from Pörtschach. Among them CNN, Reuters, SNTV and EBU. Overall the international coverage amounted to 296 hours.

Below are the scheduled ORF broadcasting times for the Hypo Group Tennis International 08, presented by bet-at-home.com:

Tennis ist the word once again in Pörtschach from May 17 on. Champ Events already hosts the “Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com” for the 15th time. The location will once more be the inimitable Werzer Arena which is situated directly at the Lake Wörthersee.

For the anniversay tournament, Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb has devised a concept that consist of seven pillars which will offer an impressive tennis experience not only to the players but also to the spectators. The 370.000 Euro tournament is getting more and more established as the perfect preparation for the French Open which will take place the subsequent week in Paris.

1. Signing of successful players of the hard-court-season so far
Ronnie Leitgeb has been advertising the “Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com” for months. And successfully so. This year’s Miami Masters-winner Nikolay Davydenko will come to Carinthia not only as the current number 4 in the world but also as two-times Pörtschach-winner. The Ukrainian also reached the finale in 2003 where he lost to Andy Roddick. But he took his revenge last week in Miama in the semi-finals – which also marked his first victory over the US-American.

And another big name: Mardy Fish. He played sensationally at the Masters tournament in Indian Wells and only had to bow to Novak Djokovic from Serbia in the finale. Fish has long established himself as a crowd puller who captivates tennis fans all over the world.

Title holder Juan Monaco will also be playing in Pörtschach. Last year the Argentinian enthused spectators with his fighting spirit and defeated fan favourite Gael Monfils in the finale by two straight sets.

2. Players from Hypo-core countries
While looking for players the core markets of the Hypo Alpe Adria Group were also taken into consideration. Thanks to his invaluable contacts Ronnie Leitgeb was able to find an attractive mixture, as well: from Croatia the two top-servers Ivan Ljubicic and Mario Ancic. Italy will be represented by Andrea Seppi and Fabio Fognini. Boris Pashanski will carry the colours of the topical tennis-super power Serbia.

3. The sentimental favourite
Fabrice Santoro has been performing top-tennis around the world for almost two decades now, enthusing fans and fighting right to the last point. In 2008 the 35-year-old Frenchman is taking his farewell-tour which will also lead him to the Werzer Arena at the “Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com”. Santoro once was one of Thomas Muster’s most feared opponents, leaving the Styrian with a negative balance of 3:4 in direct duels. During 19 years of professional tennis Santoro so far played 857 matches and celebrated five tournament wins.

4. The Austrians
Austria’s top players Stefan Koubek and Jürgen Melzer are currently going through a dry spell. Koubek, as No 61 best-ranked national player is hampered by spinal disc problems and currently undergoing therapy, hoping for a comeback in Monte Carlo. Melzer, who lost to later winner Juan Monaco in the first round last year, is currently playing once top, once flop. One can hope that the beginning of the clay season will lead to a tournaround.

5. Wild cards not yet awarded
Concerning the three still to be awarded wild cards, Tournament Director Ronnie Leitgeb is keeping himself covered: “I’ll take my time during the next weeks to visit all tournaments from Estoril over Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Munich and Rome to Hamburg in order to grab any opportunity that offers itself.” Looking back on last year one will remember that Andy Roddick and Gael Monfils had been signed at the last minute. And the latter fought his way right into the finale.

6. Paris-atmosphere for players, Flushing Meadows-feeling for spectators
The original balls from Roland Garros, 4.608 overall, are a matter of course. And the accompanying clay amounts to 15 tons. For the first time there will be “public catering” for the tennis fans right across from the VIP-stand. Leitgeb: “I noticed this at the US-Open and was convinced that it would be an enrichment for our tournament.”

7. Free warm-up for the semi-finals and the finals
Each adult who buys a ticket for the semi-finals or the finals during the tournament week on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday on the spot at the counter in Pörtschach will receive a free ticket for the respective day to watch the matches. Thus the tennis fan not only saves 25 Euro but also gets a “double feature” of exciting tennis action.

The preparations for the “Hypo Group Tennis International, presented by bet-at-home.com” are going according to plan and promise the top tennis event that one has grown accustomed to. The federal state of Carinthia is also repsonsible for this. The vicinity to the Mediterranean creates an almost mediterranean climate and grants an exceptional amount of sunshine hours in Austria’s southernmost federal state. Summer in Carinthia has a lot to offer. Embedded in a singular landscape with high peaks and rolling hills the country offers over 1.200 lakes to refresh oneself in the water, be sportively active or simply let the soul relax while lying on the beach.

Therefore the tournament’s motto is “Carinthia is southern fun in the sun”.