2 Responses to stuttgart93gustafsson_stich

1. Voo de Mar says:

   April 22, 2024 at 2:44 pm

   Stats with missing games between 2:1 for Stich in 2nd and 3:2 for him in 3rd;
   aces, double faults, break points correct for the entire contest… 36 of 48 games included (75%)

   Points won by each set: | 31-21, 31-31, 26-35, 32-34, 29-27 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   % Gustafsson – of 158
   % Stich – of 139

   The biggest title in Gustafsson’s long career when he was 26 (seeded with No. 16 so barely avoided playing the first round). He captured it after a 3-hour battle, quite uncharacteristic for clay: actually no longer rallies (Stich applied a constant S/V attitude while Gustafsson’s forehand was too massive for Stich’s technical ground-strokes), one break decided about each of the first four sets. The Swede [36] was on his way to notch a straight set victory (broke at 1:0 in 1st and 3-all in 2nd set), but trailing *2:3 in the 3rd set he lost the longest game of the final (six deuces) on sixth break point for Stich [7], and the German caught the wind. In the 4th set Stich broke to lead 2:1 and escaped twice (games no. 4 and 8) from 0/40, saving five break points in each of those games. Stich broke again to open the final set, he won the first eight points, and as he led 4:2* (30/15) his victory seemed inevitable because Gustafsson had an oxygen debt after running like crazy in the last point of the preceding game. The Swede somehow won another three points and the last four games! At 4-all he saved three mini-match points, including a 15/40 deficit. Stich was angry after his third wasted break point because he thought that Gustafsson’s serve clipped the net-cord. “I can’t believe this, I’m just so happy,” said Gustafsson with his $152,000 check. “It’s like a dream. I’m going to wake up tomorrow and think that I had lost.” A few months later they face each other on clay again (this time indoors, in Sweden), in the Davis Cup semifinal, and Stich wins with surprising ease 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

   Gustafsson’s route to his 5th title:
   2 Carsten Arriens 6-4, 6-2
   3 Alberto Berasategui 3-6, 7-5, 6-3
   Q Marcos Ondruska 6-3, 6-2
   S Marc-Kevin Goellner 6-4, 6-3
   W Michael Stich 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4

   Log in to Reply
2. Voo de Mar says:

   April 22, 2024 at 3:47 pm

   Stich was playing unbelievable tennis in the German speaking area of 1993; he entered 7 events there (six Germany, one Switzerland), and played finals everywhere. On top of that he played finals of two team competitions in Germany (World Team Cup and Davis Cup, both in Dusseldorf). Below Stich’s seven finals (4-3 record) in the German speaking world of 1993:

   Stuttgart (carpet): Krajicek 4-6, 7-5, 7-6, 3-6, 7-5
   Munich (clay): Lendl 6-7, 3-6
   Hamburg (clay): Chesnokov 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4
   Stuttgart (clay): Gustafsson 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 4-6
   Basel (hard ind.): Edberg 6-4, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2
   Frankfurt (carpet): Sampras 7-6, 2-6, 7-6, 6-2
   Munich (carpet): Korda 6-2, 4-6, 6-7, 6-2, 9-11

   Log in to Reply