John McEnroe triumphs over Mats Wilander to defend his title – Statoil Masters Tennis 2012
In a clash between two former world number one stars, John McEnroe crushed Sweden’s Mats Wilander with a breadstick at the Statoil Masters Tennis 2012 on Sunday.
The American legend jolted down a 6-1, 6-2 victory against Wilander to defend his legends title at this ATP Champions Tour event taking place in London, England. He required almost an hour to overpower the Swede and grab his second year-to-date title.
McEnroe was quoted in a post match press conference, “I have six titles here now and this one is as sweet as any of them. Everyone sounds so surprised when they tell me how well I’m playing! I’m in good shape and I love being out here and winning. This place is like our Wimbledon.”
The seven-time Grand Slam champion, McEnroe made quick in-roads at the Royal Albert Hall. He drew the first blood early in the set and then held his composure, eventually sealing the opener with a breadstick in under 25 minutes.
The 53-year-old kept her momentum rolling in the following set. He made a sloppy start and gifted away his serve. However, McEnroe stayed focused and not only recovered but broke Wilander’s serve several times to pull out the victory with a 6-2 score line.
After capturing his sixth title at this event, McEnroe praised his rival by stating, “Mats is such a great player. You give him an inch and he’ll take a mile so I just knew I had to keep the pressure on and keep focussed.”
The American veteran secured this spot after defeating Guy Forget with a 6-2, 6-4 victory. He also outclassed the local challenger, Jeremy Bates, with a breadstick in his opening round robin match.
Wilander on the other hand set up this final battle after stomping over his opponents in his round robin matches. He bounced back to overpower Pat Cash in a three-set thriller in his opening match and then outsmarted Henri Leconte in straight sets to stay unbeaten.
The American lifted his second ATP Champions Tour title of the season at the British courts. He captured his first title at the Stockholm Open earlier this year.
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