Coria out of Cincinnati

Guille will stay in Chile with his new coach to prep for the US Open. Here's an article (in Spanish).

ETA: To clear up the confusion, his new coach, Horacio de la Pena, lives in Chile. What David said.

More Bad News for Coria Fans

Guillermo Coria (News/Posts) had to retire from Sopot after aggravating his shoulder injury. Will we ever see the Guille of old again? I hope so. I've always liked his rascally, elastic game--and even the gamesmanship he brings on court.

Coria's out of Roland Garros and Wimbledon

Let's hope he regroups and finds his confidence again.

No english articles on this yet, but for the Spanish speakers, here you go.

ETA: Here's a short article about this in English. Apparently it's his elbow.

17 Double Faults for Coria in Loss

It's one thing to watch Guillermo Coria struggle on hardcourts or grass, but on clay?  This is getting bizarre. 

From Sportal: Coria out in Munich

Local hope Denis Gremelmayer has knocked out top seed Guillermo Coria 3-6 6-2 6-3 in the opening round of the Munich Open.

The world No.9 started in blistering fashion, reeling off the first five games of the match, and although the German broke back, he couldn't stop the Argentine claiming the first set.

But from there it was all Gremelmayer as Coria, whose troubled serve has failed him in several tournaments this year, served 17 double faults on his way to the early exit.

Guillermo Coria's Serve

I'd like to thank the reporter who repeatedly asked Guillermo Coria (politely) all about his service problems during Coria's Monte Carlo press conference today.  I thought Coria was quite calm and open in addressing the issue.

Q. You made 23 double-faults. Has that happened to you before?

GUILLERMO CORIA: Yes, it happened to me in Australia against Grosjean. But whatever the number of double-faults, be it 15 or 20, it doesn't matter. The problem is rather to remain concentrated and to remain calm; then, I will be able to make less double-faults. When I will be serving well, the double-faults will not be so important. I was able to win in spite of my bad serve, so this gives me confidence for future matches.

Since I had surgery on my shoulder, I cannot hope to serve as well as I did before, but I'm still working on that shot and what I need is confidence. I'm hoping I will be able to serve as good as I played in my first match in Miami where I didn't make any double-faults.

Guillermo Coria and New Coach Jose Higueras

In his press conference today Guillermo Coria said that, although he has moved to California (Palm Springs), he has only committed to working with new coach Jose Higueras through Wimbledon.

"I hired him especially because I want to go to a higher level. We are starting to work together, and we are going through a period where we are getting to know each other now. We will work together until Wimbledon, and then after that we will see if we are continuing together or not. I would like it very much because he's a person who's had very good results as a player but also as a coach. He has a lot of experience. He's someone very simple, very calm. Precisely when I was playing bad, he remained very relaxed, very calm, and he told me to relax and think about what I had to do. So this helped me a lot, although I was playing bad, to keep calm and continue to play."

Coria Comes Back From 1-6, 1-5 to Win

From Eurosport: Coria pulls off amazing comeback

Sixth seed Guillermo Coria pulled off an amazing comeback against Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu on Wednesday to book a place in the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters. Having dropped the first set 6-1 and traling 5-1 in the second the Argentine recovered to eventually take the match 1-6 7-6 6-4.

Coria to Train in California

A small note in the Sun-Sentinel:

Seventh-ranked Guillermo Coria of Argentina will become the fourth top-10 player to live and train in the United States when he moves to Palm Springs, Calif., next month to begin training with former USTA coach Jose Higueras.

Guillermo Coria's about the last guy who I'd expect to try the U.S. as a training base, but the way his career has been going since he came back from shoulder surgery he's smart to try something new (not that he was ever shy about pulling the trigger on firing one coach and hiring another).

Maybe (hopefully) Jose Higueras can help him get back on track.  He certainly knows clay court tennis anyway.

Coria Still Having Service Problems

I never thought I'd hear the day when Guillermo Coria was complaining that a clay court was too fast.

From the AP: Coria loses to Italy's Di Mauro in straight sets

Coria won his first two service games but was broken in his third and fourth, double faulting several times and losing the set on the clay courts of the Fairmont Acapulco Princess in just 31 minutes.

He tried to rally in the second set but lasted only another 52 minutes before more double faults proved decisive.

"I'm playing badly. Not just in this game but all year," Coria said. "I thought I could change the situation today, but it was very difficult. The court is very fast, and [Di Mauro] took advantage of his opportunities."

Coria Defends His Reputation

From Xinhua: Argentine tennis star denies reports of poor reputation

Argentine tennis star Guillermo Coria, number eight in the Association of Tennis Players(ATP) world ranking, denied reports that he was held in low esteem by his ATP colleagues, in an interview with Argentina's La Nacion newspaper on Friday.

"Either those rumours are lies or I am very stupid. The people who come and speak to me and say "bad luck, good luck or well played", would be acting," he said. "I don't feel discriminated against."

Odd Guillermo Coria Photo

I'm sure this looked perfectly normal live in the stadium today or on television, but in a still photo Guillermo Coria looks awfully strange here.  Or maybe I'm just having trouble getting used to the new adidas Spiderman duds like everyone else.

Coria Speaks up for Canas

Guillermo Coria isn't forgetting his friends.  He said yesterday that as happy as he was that four Argentines were playing in Shanghai, it didn't make him forget that one more would have been there (referring to the suspended Guillermo Canas).  And then he said that he sent all his support to Canas.

Coria Qualifies for Shanghai

Guillermo Coria, aided by Marat Safin's withdrawal, has officially joined the list of players who have qualified for the year-end championships in Shanghai.

From the Masters Cup website: Coria Qualifies for Tennis Masters Cup

Guillermo Coria, currently in the sixth position in the INDESIT ATP 2005 Race, has secured a berth at the Tennis Masters Cup Shanghai...

"I am really happy to be playing in my third consecutive Tennis Masters Cup. I heard a lot of good things about Shanghai and the stadium which I have seen pictures of. It is really impressive. Although I will not be playing on my favorite surface, I expect to have a good tournament and share this great moment with the medical staff that supported me during my injury, my technical staff and especially my wife Carla," said Coria.

Coria Defends Canas Against Drug Charges

Guillermo Coria has taken a lot of abuse recently for his on-court attitude but I give him credit for sticking up for Guillermo Canas.  Every time he does it reminds people of his own drug suspension which had been almost forgotten until the new wave of Argentinian suspensions.  Many of the Argentines have been giving strict "no comments" on the subject of Canas, presumably to avoid being tarred by the same brush.

And after being banned from attending the U.S. Open even as a ticketholder, Canas is now banned from attending Argentina's Davis Cup tie against Slovakia (in Slovakia) next week.  That's probably for the best for the Argentine team since his presence would be a media distraction and the players need to focus their attention on beating  Slovakia.

Nevertheless, even though I understand why Canas shouldn't be on court as an official representative of Argentina (assistant coach, hitting partner or whatever) I still don't see why the guy can't buy a ticket to a tennis match if he wants.

From Reuters: Coria: Canas is No Criminal

Guillermo Coria on Saturday criticised the decision to ban fellow Argentine Guillermo Canas for two years after a failed doping test. Coria said the men's ATP Tour and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) had made a mistake and accused them of being out of touch.

"Canas is not a criminal. He didn't kill anyone," Coria told Reuters. "I know him very well and he would never take anything to give himself an advantage. It was an accident."

Coria added: "I hope CAS (the Court of Arbitration for Sport) will reduce the suspension. It will be very difficult for him to come back after two years. He will be 29.

"The ATP and ITF must look at things more on a personal level and less in black and white."...

Coria Addresses Argentine Doping

From Reuters: Argentines unfairly singled out over doping, says Coria

Guillermo Coria complained on Tuesday that doping charges against Argentine tennis players were being blown out of proportion...

"It's a real pity," he said."Whenever there is a doping charge against a player from Argentina it seems it becomes a huge thing because it's Argentina."...

"It feels like Argentine players are under the spotlight," said Coria after winning his first-round match at the China Open.

"I hope there are no more problems and things just quieten down now."

Guillermo Coria

It sounds like  Guillermo Coria was in fine form today during his loss to Florian Mayer.  From the Sopot website:

"The extremely ambitious Coria couldn't take the pressure. He screamed, threw his racquet, stared angrily at the crowd and finally slammed his racquet into a banner next to a line judge, which resulted in a warning from the umpire. Guillermo managed to make it one set all, but he was just too irritated and tired to focus enough to win the third."

We're going to have to start calling him a junior Hewitt.)

Coria Headline

This BBC headline caught my eye: Croatian crown for classy Coria  I've heard Coria called a lot of things before, but classy?  That's a first for me and particularly funny after the Hewitt-Coria Davis Cup dustup.  And the article never even mentions why he's supposed to be so classy, although I did learn for the first time that his wife is Croatian.  "My wife is Croatian and from this region, so I felt like (I was) home," the second-seeded Coria said.

Guillermo Coria Wins

Guillermo Coria is through to the third round after defeating 18-year-old Serbian qualifier Novak Djokovic 4-6, 6-2, 3-2.  From Reuters: Coria through after opponent retires

A bit of a mystery why Djokovic retired.  During the match he appeared to be having trouble with  his foot, but tournament organizers said the reason for his retirement was a respiratory problem. 

Or we could go with Coria's explanation.  "Maybe he didn't like the weather so much." 

Update: Djokovic has made his retirement clear now.  It was a sinus problem that's been bothering him for about a year.  "Every time I get to clay and some long points, it gets worse and worse,” he said. “I just couldn’t breathe after long points."

That's something he's definitely going to have to get worked out if he's going to do well on the ATP Tour - someone send him to a specialist because he looked good in his first two rounds here. 

Coria vs. Gaudio

Confirmation that the ARAG World Team Cup is a stupid event.  Argentina downed Chile today as Gaston Gaudio beat Fernando Gonzalez 6-4, 6-2 and Guillermo Canas beat Nicolas Massu 6-2 1-6 6-3. But afterwards the bad blood was just among the Argentines.

Gaston Gaudio was more than a little upset that Guillermo Coria had opted out of playing singles today (shoulder pain, Coria said) and brought it up with the media.

"I’m fed up, one has to tell the truth, this isn’t a team because there’s somebody who makes the decisions choosing what’s best for him," said Gaudio.

"I understand that a player can be feeling tired and decide to rest, being so close to Roland Garros, but not for the most important match."

Coria opted for the high road this time.  "This must be talked face to face.  All had been spoken and arranged before, although without the presence of Gastón because he was training. The truth is that this helps for nothing. It's a pity. It's something to speak face to face, but he chose another way."

Neither one of them should be playing tough matches just days before the French Open.  They both need to get to Roland Garros and get acclimated, not worry about contesting a meaningless exhibition in Germany. 

And I'm just curious - are any of the Argentines on speaking terms?  From what you hear in the press Gaudio hates Coria hates Nalbandian...awkward.

Federer Wins Coria Duel

Roger Federer made his intentions clear on clay today defeating Guillermo Coria 6-4, 7-6(3) in Hamburg.  Federer was down a break in both sets and behind in the tiebreak, but he found a way to claw his way back each time.  And he overcame a bit of craziness in the second set when a fan in the stands apparently became sick and delayed play for five minutes. 

Federer's the last guy who needs any more confidence, but he's got it.  "It’s definitely a message for me to the French Open and to the other guys that I can beat him quite convincingly, at least the end. So this is definitely good stuff."

Coria must be getting fed up with this runner-up business.  To Nadal in Monte Carlo and Rome and now to Federer in Hamburg.  At least publicly, he chalked it up to tiredness.  "Obviously he plays incredible tennis but the truth is it is impossible to play back-to-back Masters Series at such high intensity," he said. "He came here much fresher than me."

"I'm tired mentally and physically. If you are not 100 percent against Federer it's pretty much impossible to beat him."

And he wasn't about to grant Federer favorite status at the French Open.  "Nadal on clay I think is stronger than Federer."

How  are the Feet, Rog?

Now that they're not bothering him, Roger was willing to talk about the foot problems that have plagued him this year. 

"I had a strong pain at the Australian Open in the Safin match. The days after were tough. My foot really hurt. I started feeling, because I played so much in the States and I played Monte Carlo as well. I took days off, started to practice again and just felt that the foot wasn’t right yet. Three must have been some sort of inflammation. So, I just preferred to take a rest and make sure that I spend some time at home to give me enough energy for what’s coming now."

Coaching Situation

Tony Roche must be a genius because this is a very strange coaching arrangement he and Federer have going.  Roche has made his reappearance in Hamburg this week.  Roger says the plan right now is for Roche to be with him through the French Open, but not Wimbledon.  Although Federer is willing to have him along if he wants to come.  "That’s not the plan for the moment, but if he starts to like my game and maybe is in the mood to stay longer, I have nothing against it. We’ll see."

Maybe they figure Roger knows what he's doing at Wimbledon and doesn't need any help. 

Three Challenges for Coria

Going into this year's French Open Guillermo Coria has to deal with memories (or nightmares) of last year's finals collapse, his continuing recovery from last year's shoulder surgery, and a new racket.  "It's always difficult when you change," he said about the adjustment,  "but I needed to after my shoulder operation."  Now I wish I were a doctor and could understand why shoulder surgery would necessitate a racket change. 

Monte Carlo Final

Rafael Nadal d. Guillermo Coria 6-3, 6-1, 0-6, 7-5

It's too soon to tell whether this is a changing of the guard in clay court tennis, but the kid sure is coming on strong.  For most young players, it takes months to see improvement in their games.  For Nadal, every week he seems to get better.

The Monte Carlo tournament website is kind enough to supply transcripts of player press conferences, so I took a peek.  Nadal is obviously as strong as an ox but, unusual for such a good clay court player, he still needs to work on his endurance.  He obviously expends a lot of emotional as well as physical energy when he plays and he seemed to admit that endurance is one thing he would need to improve :

Coria Over Ferrero

From The Telegraph: Coria takes fast track on road to recovery

Compared to Rafael Nadal and Richard Gasquet, the two new kids on the block who contested the second semi-final, Guillermo Coria and Juan Carlos Ferrero, are almost elder-statesmen of the game.

Both have been dragged down by injury and illness during the past 12 months, but thankfully, for the good of a competitive summer on the red stuff, both have shown here that they are well on the road to full recovery.

Coria is a little further down that road than his Spanish rival, but Ferrero indicated he was catching up fast in a semi-final in which a little too much was asked of his rehabilitation and he lost 6-2, 7-5.

Guillermo Coria

Now that the French Open is in sight again, memories of Guillermo Coria's collapse in the final last year are back.  One reporter wanted to know whether he is working with a sports psychologist.  Coria's response:

I'm not working with a psychologist. I tried it for two weeks and I didn't like it at all.

Manufactured Controversy of the Day

From The Australian: Coria faults Roger's credentials on clay

DEFENDING Monte Carlo Masters champion and 2004 French Open runner-up Guillermo Coria believes Roger Federer faces further Roland Garros heartbreak this year.

Guillermo Coria at Monte Carlo

From the BBC: Coria relished Monte Carlo clay

Guillermo Coria made a successful return to clay with victory over Paul-Henri Mathieu at the Monte Carlo Masters on Monday.

The 23-year-old Argentine, playing hs first clay-court event since last year's French Open, won 6-2 7-5.

I Still Want to Win the French Open...But Tennis is Not My Favorite Sport

Guillermo Coria isn't playing in Valencia this week but instead is in Barcelona preparing for the clay court season.  After a recent practice session he had the opportunity to meet soccer stars Maxi Lopez and Maxi Rodriguez from Barcelona FC and Espanyol.  It sounds like he enjoyed himself.  "I know more about futbol (soccer) than tennis," Coria said.  "I love going to the soccer games and that soccer players come and see me play tennis."

Guillermo Coria

Guillermo Coria is getting some rare English press, ironically about  him not getting English press.  From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: Coria a puzzle (to non-Latins)

This was not the quiet, slight Argentine who is an enigma to many tennis fans. The fifth-ranked Coria, last year's losing Nasdaq-100 finalist (to Andy Roddick), is little known outside Latin America in part because he is the rare top player who does not speak to reporters in English.

To become better known in this country, Coria will probably have to speak English. Though he understands the language and speaks reasonably well, he isn't comfortable speaking it with the media. Typically after a match, he gives a brief press conference for English-language media during which his answers are roughly translated.

Then he gathers with Argentine journalists, many of whom follow Coria to tournaments and have known him for years. The result is a huge gap between what Latin American sports fans and the rest of world know about Coria.

Guillermo Coria at the Nasdaq 100

Guillermo Coria is feeling comfortable in Miami at the Nasdaq Open.  He says "There are more Latins here than in Latin America, so I feel good here."