Jim Courier showed flashes of his old brilliance and got off to a strong start at The Residences at the Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman Legends Championship on Wednesday.
Courier loves Cayman. Photo: Ron Shillingford |
The former world No.1 rolled over Mats Wilander 6-2, 6-0. Other winners on the first day of round-robin competition included Todd Martin and Wayne Ferreira.
Martin defeated Mikael Pernfors 7-6 (5), 6-7 (1), 10-7 (Champions Tie Break) and Ferreira defeated Paul Haarhuis 6-7 (3), 7-5, 10-3 (Champions Tie Break).
The Residences at the Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman Legends Championship, is the second event of the year on the Outback Champions Series, a collection of tennis events around the world featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30.
Courier, a finalist at two Outback Champions Series events last year, used his strong serve to overwhelm Wilander in the final match of the day.
“My serve worked well for me,” Courier said. “And I moved really well on the clay court. It’s important to move well on clay when it’s windy. That helped me a lot.”
Wilander had just arrived from captaining Sweden’s Davis Cup team at a tie in Buenos Aires and cited fatigue as one of the factors that contributed to his loss.
Martin won the first tournament in Naples a couple of weeks ago. He was first in the standings last year and takes it very seriously.
‘What we do is far from exhibition tennis,’ he said. ‘It may look as good as exhibition tennis at times but, no, we’re competing for prize money.
‘It’s an opportunity to still whet our competitive appetites. The draw is tougher here than it was in Naples. It means a lot to me. It would be safe to expect Courier to be in the final from the other group and from our group Haarhuis and Ferreira are especially tough.
‘I think this is a great way to bring tennis to places we haven’t been before. It’s a great opportunity for players to play. We’ve had great feedback.’
Jimmy Arias was here before Christmas for a pro-am charity event. ‘Mike Ryan (Ritz Carlton developer) is a great friend of mine and I like to come often. Every time I get a chance I come back.
‘I’m taking it very seriously but unfortunately my group is three former No.1s (Courier, Wilander and John McEnroe) and in a couple of weeks in Boston I’ve got another group like that.
‘It’s tough on me, that’s okay. I’m here to compete and still have a bit of fun. It is shockingly serious at this level. It’s remarkably serious. The guys will still have fun and joke around a little more but if I’m beating McEnroe, for instance, you’ll see how serious he can take it. His tantrums? I’m used to it but still don’t enjoy it.
‘Wilander’s first impressions of Cayman were so good that he joked that if he wasn’t married already he might have tied the knot here.
‘It’s a great chance to play against the guys. Obviously, it’s nice to have stiff competition and great to come to a new venue and see how tennis is surviving in the Cayman Islands.’
McEnroe arrived on Wednesday and played Arias yesterday, after we had gone to press.
Courier’s InsideOut Sports and Entertainment company began this tournament two years ago. ‘The Ritz Carlton is a spectacular place to play tennis,’ he said. ‘What a facility for us to play tennis. We’ve got the palm trees waving in the background and a beautiful stadium. All the seats are close to the courts so it’s an intimate feel. I’m ready to go.’
Courier is from Florida and used to the windy conditions in Cayman. He said he’s in good shape having finished third in Naples.
‘I’m looking forward to laying it on the line,’ he said. ‘It’s a tough field, two former No.1s in McEnroe and Wilander and Jimmy Arias has got a monster forehand, so I’m going to have to be at the top of my game.
‘In 2006 the Outback Series started with five tournaments and has grown to eight this year, including Cayman.’
Amazingly, Courier reckons there weren’t many opportunities for legendary former players like him to compete in which is why he started the Outback Series.
‘There was a great opportunity, particularly in the United States to expand and provide opportunities for players like myself to compete in and also there were places like Cayman that were not well served by professional tennis.
‘Part of our zest for this is the missionary outlook. That is exciting for us.’
Courier is full of praise for Ryan. ‘You couldn’t get a better partner than Michael Ryan and his team down here at the Residences. This is such a beautiful location and great opportunity for us to promote it.
‘This is the biggest professional tournament in the Caribbean. Hopefully, some people will hop over from the other islands as well. There are people coming from mainland US to come over and watch some tennis.
‘With the television coverage we’ll get from this event going into the US and substantially internationally, it’ll be a really nice level of awareness and hopefully a tourism boost for Cayman. It’ll be a nice synergy. What happens locally really does get exposed globally.
Courier is looking forward to playing McEnroe tomorrow. ‘He’s an amazing talent. His game is unpredictable, his temperament is unpredictable and there’s always an edge to a match like that. Hopefully, I can get to the final. That will be fun too.
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