2 Responses to db85mayotte_davis

1. Voo de Mar says:

   April 30, 2024 at 11:02 pm

   Points won by each set: | 30-38, 34-40, 30-20, 37-24, 37-32 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   30 % Mayotte – 53 of 173
   28 % Davis – 43 of 149

   The inaugural (# experimental) edition of a two-week event in Florida took place at Delray Beach, marking a unique occurrence in the Open Era – it remains the only instance where an event consisting of four rounds (96- or 128-draw) culminated in a final featuring two unseeded players! Despite the presence of 13 Top 20 guys, the semifinals saw three unseeded players vying for a spot in the championship match. With Davis overcoming Smid [18] in the semifinal, it became apparent that the eventual champion would be a total shocker. The serve-and-volley final, with only a few points contested from the baseline, featured two Americans, who couldn’t have expected each other in the final stages at Delray Beach when the tournament began (Davis had a 1-4 record in the main-level finals, Mayotte 0-4). The first two sets followed a similar pattern, with the higher-ranked, two years younger Davis [27] breaking at 4-all and clinching both sets after an hour and a half of play. However, the fitter Mayotte [45] asserted his dominance in the subsequent two sets, remaining unbroken after securing a pivotal break at 3:2 in the 3rd set with a forehand passing-shot. He continued his momentum by claiming five consecutive games in the 4th set from 0:1. In the decisive set, Mayotte managed to break in the opening game, but Davis fought back from a 1:3 deficit to level the score at 3-all. As the final reached its climax, both players exhibited signs of nerves. Mayotte seized another break at 3-all, benefiting from two consecutive strokes by Davis hitting the net-cord and remaining on his side. Mayotte saved a break point at 4:3 and, despite a tense moment when his return on match point landed just behind the baseline at 5:3, he ultimately converted his second match point with a confident overhead – he celebrated on his knees (Davis had a break point again in the last game). The victory marked the biggest payday for both players, with Mayotte receiving a check for $112,500 and Davis for $56,350. “It was one of those great moments. It’s the kind of thing you work for all your life,” Mayotte said touched by the presence of his parents in the stands. “My mother has never seen me play. My father might have seen me play a couple of matches in college.”
   Top-seeded Lendl and Wilander were both eliminated in the fourth round. The following year, as the event relocated to Boca West, they once again entered as the top seeds, and this time they advanced to the final. The 1985 heroes didn’t play any significant role in the second edition: Mayotte pulled out after the draw was made, while Davis endured an early exit, losing in his opening match.

   Mayotte’s route to his maiden title:
   1 Nduka Odizor 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-1
   2 Boris Becker 6-2, 6-3
   3 Marty Davis 6-4, 6-4
   4 Greg Holmes 6-3, 7-6(6)
   Q Mike Leach 6-2, 6-3, 6-2
   S Jan Gunnarsson 7-6(5), 6-2, 4-6, 6-1
   W Scott Davis 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4

   Mayotte didn’t face any seeded player, from 3rd round onwards his path could have looked like this: Aguilera, Krickstein, Wilander, Sundstrom, Lendl

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2. Voo de Mar says:

   April 30, 2024 at 11:35 pm

   # The first two editions (higher prize money only at Wimbledon & US Open) of the famous Florida event, featured the first four rounds ‘best of three’ and from quarterfinals onwards ‘best of five’, however, the number of seeds changed from 16 to 32 when it moved from Delray Beach to Boca West. In the years 1987-89 (Key Biscayne) all seven rounds were played ‘best of five’, thus the tournament was labelled “fifth Slam”. In 1990 the draw was cut from 128 to 96 and the format from ‘best of five’ to ‘best of three’ for all rounds except the final.

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