MELBOURNE. Feb 1. (Reu-ters/AFP): Czech veteran Petr Korda won his first Grand Slam tournament
when a dlsappoin-ting Marcelo Rios crumbled in straight sets In the Australian Open men’s singles final today.
Sixth seed Korda won 6-2, 6-2. 6-2 over the dispirited Rios in a match lasting just 85 minutes on Melbourne Parks Centre Court. The Czech slumped to the court after hitting a forehand winner on the final point and then threw his racquet in the air.
Korda then climbed into the stands to hug his wife, Regina, and their four-year-old daughter. Jessica.
"I've been waiting for this for a long time." Korda said in a courtside television interview.
"I Just didn't believe it could happen but my dream has come true." said Korda, who almost retired from tennis in 1995 after struggling with a string of chronic injuries.
Korda. 30. became the oldest Grand Slam champion since Andres Gomez won the French Open in 1990 when three months older than Korda.
The win earned Korda a winners cheque of 615,000 Australian dollars (412,000 US dollars) and will catapult him to number two in the world rankings from his current ranking of seven.
The Czech gained at least two service breaks In each of the three sets, losing his own serve just once in the first set as the
two left-handers got off to a nervous start. Ninth seed Rios was tense and never recovered from his poor start as his forehand. usually one his main attacking weapons deserted him.
"I felt a little bit tired." Rios told reporters. "I mishit too many balls. I lost my coordination. maybe because I wasn't moving that good."
The players traded service
breaks in the fourth and fifth games of the opening set. Korda gaining the upperhand with two more breaks of serve In the sixth and eighth games.
The second and third sets followed a similar pattern, with Korda breaking the pony-tailed Rios' serve twice, including in the last game of the last two sets.
Korda pushed the 22-year-old from Santiago around the court at will, playing confidently as a sluggish Rios committed error after error.
Rios committed 31 unforced errors to Korda’s 26. Unlike Korda. the Chilean failed to take advantage of the six break points offered to him.
Korda last reached the final of a Grand glam tournament at the French Open in 1992, when he was beaten by Jim Courier in straight sets.
Korda may still retire at the end of the year despite his triumph.
"I will sit down with my family and with my coach and we will see what happens."
T am very happy but I don’t want to rush any decision".
Korda said at the start of the tournament that after 14 years on the Tour — many of them dogged by injury — he wanted to give it one more season and then decide whether to carry on.
Rios had never progressed past the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam before but won the US Open junior title in 1993, the same year he was ranked the number one junior in the world.
The Chilean beat Korda in ' straight sets in the first round of the Australian last year.
Rios earned Australian dollars 307.500 (205.000 US dollars) for being runner-up and will move up from his current ranking of eight to number five in the world when new ATP Tour rankings are released tomorrow.
The last time two left-handers played in an Open final was when Roscoe Tanner beat Guillermo Vilas in 1977.