Blake defeats all challengers
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
WAIKOLOA, Hawai'i — James Blake has been to all three Hilton Waikoloa Village Challengers. Now that he has won, don't expect to see him again. That's the way success works on the U.S. Tennis Association Professional Circuit.
Blake, seeded No. 1 this year, looked all that and more yesterday in sweeping unseeded Martin Verkerk of The Netherlands, 6-2, 6-3. The singles final, played before about 250 at the Kohala Tennis Garden, lasted 64 minutes. Blake was brilliant for about 60 of those.
Coincidentally, his world ranking this week will be somewhere near that number after he figures in the 60 ranking points he won yesterday (along with $7,200). It is a career high for the 22-year-old who picked up the game in the Harlem Junior Tennis League and played Davis Cup for the United States last year.
It is probably too high for him to play here in another Challenger, which doesn't even allow Top-20 players into the singles draw. The circuit event offers a $50,000 purse — a few zeroes shy of professional tennis players' dreams.
"I wish there was a bigger tournament here. I wish they could make this a tour event so I could come back," Blake said. "My coach said as we got here, 'This place is so beautiful, it's unfortunate you don't want to come back because you'd rather be higher ranked.'"
Truthfully, Blake would rather have been in Melbourne yesterday. Nearly the entire Waikoloa field came to the Big Island from the Australian Open, with the Challenger scheduled to try and capture early-round losers on their way home. Blake nearly didn't make it. After winning his first-round match Down Under — his second Slam victory — he was up two sets and a service break in the second round.
Following Roddick
Blake couldn't finish. He learned from that yesterday, staying upbeat when Verkerk fought off five break points in the fourth game of the second set. Blake broke at the next opportunity and cruised home, then was immensely grateful he came to Hawai'i instead of returning home from Australia.
"This is about the best consolation there is," Blake said. "I go home much happier, more relaxed. I've played even more matches at the beginning of the year."
Blake lost in the first round of the inaugural Waikoloa event in 2000. He fell to Andy Roddick in last year's Waikoloa final. Now he's hoping to follow in Roddick's huge sneaker steps.
"Before you knew it," Blake said, "he was beating Pete Sampras and Marcelo Rios. He's moved on."
Blake's only serious challenge last week was a three-set semifinal against former Top-20 player Vince Spadea, who ousted Michael Chang in the quarterfinals. Other than that match, Blake never had a set point against him — a wave of dominance Verkerk could not divert.
"He had me under pressure all the time and I couldn't get out of it," Verkerk said. "I didn't play well — a little too short, a little too defensive, but he played better today."
Verkerk's serve — the main reason he reached this final — was under constant pressure. Blake had five break opportunities in the first set, and made good on two. He had six more in the second, and got the only one he needed.
Blake's game plan was simply to get Verkerk's serve back. "No matter how you play," Blake figured, "if you have a big serve you can take someone out of a match pretty quickly. ... I wanted to make sure I put a lot of balls in play and at least make him think on his serve."
Shockingly efficient
Blake underestimated his fast feet and exceptional service return. Blake jumped on Verkerk's serve often and blocked it back when he couldn't. And Blake's serve was shockingly efficient. He lost but eight points on his serve and Verkerk never even got to deuce.
It was Verkerk's sixth Challenger final, and first not on clay. It was also his sixth disappointment, and probably the one that hurts most. He lost to Blake last year, by nearly the same scores, in their only previous meeting. He expected better now, at the age of 23.
"I am a better player this time than I was then," Verkerk said. "For the last three months I've been trying to play more offensive. (But) this is my first final on the hardcourt, it is a tough draw. It's actually a much better level than a Challenger."
Verkerk will move up from No. 159 to somewhere in the 130s this week, also a career high. His goal is to be in the Top 100 by the time he's 25.
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Short lobs
American Glenn Weiner and Romanian Gabriel Trifu won the doubles championship, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, over Americans Justin Gimelstob and Blake. The winning team shares $3,100. ... The singles final started one hour late because of flooding from Saturday night's huge downpour. Water in the front row was shin high and leaking onto the court when the match was scheduled to start at 10 a.m. ... James Blake played No. 1 at Harvard and was the top-ranked collegiate player in 1999, the year he turned pro. ... Blake, who also has a modeling contract with IMG, has been letting his hair grow out — vertically and horizontally — the past year. He says his new look involves just shampoo, conditioner and nothing else, including a comb. "I'm young now, I still have hair so I might as well have some fun with it," Blake said. "I'm lucky enough to have a job where they won't kick me out of the office for having ridiculous hair." ... The second annual Big Island Championships is set for Sept. 7-15 at Hilton Waikoloa Village. Sandrine Testud won the inaugural event last year.
