Capdeville rallies to defeat Ram in three sets; Ball & Rettenmaier dictate

By JEFFREY DUNHAM
Aug 10, 10:15 pm EDT

The more experienced Paul Capdeville (CHI)

Under the threat of rain, a week of exciting tennis was about to come to a close at the LG&T Tennis Challenger at Binghamton's Recreation Park. While the doubles match was about to begin, singles finalist and No. 1 seed Paul Capdeville of Chile could be seen on the practice court preparing for his match against unseeded American Rajeev Ram. Capdeville appeared relaxed and confident in anticipation of the fourth Challenger-level final of his professional career. It would be the first step in his goal of returning to the ranks of the top 100 singles players in the world.

The doubles final was the first match to get under way, pitting unseeded Brian and Dann Battistone against the No. 4 seeded team of Carsten Ball and Travis Rettenmaier. Brian Battistone was celebrating his 29th birthday in front of a capacity crowd of 350 that packed the stands to watch the wishbone racquet wielding Battistone brothers take on the Australian/American duo of Ball and Rettenmaier. All competitors today have California roots. The Battistone brothers currently reside in Las Vegas, but both were born in Santa Barbara. While currently playing as an Australian, Ball was born and raised in Newport Beach, and Rettenmaier was born and resides in Los Angeles.

Rettenmaier and Ball take the prize for doubles

The atmosphere on center court was as highly charged as the air in the thunderheads high above. The first set proceeded on serve until 2-2. The Battistones got an early break point with Ball serving, but they could not convert. Brian returned two spectacular overheads in succession to get himself back in a point while serving at 2-3, but Dann, 31, missed a relatively easy shot for 0-15. A volley error and a double fault by Brian gave Ball and Rettenmaier three break points at 0-40 on Brian's serve. Rettenmaier sealed the break of serve for 4-2 on a forehand volley down the middle that went between the brothers. Two more service holds and Ball/Rettenmaier clinched the first set.

Brian opened the second set by holding at love. A double fault with Ball serving in the next game got the Battistones to deciding point, which they took advantage of with a crosscourt backhand return winner by Dann. Dann then held serve for 3-0. It appeared that the tables had turned. At 3-1, Brian served two double faults, and they eventually surrendered their break advantage on a volley error by Dann. Ball then held easily at love to tie the set at 3-3.

Although they seemed to be hitting their volleys in tandem at times, the Battistones were again broken on a volley error by Dann. Perhaps the occasion had caught up to the brothers, as nerves appeared to set in. With Rettenmaier serving at 4-3, Ball missed a forehand volley wide to go down 0-15, but Rettenmaier came back with an ace to tie the game at 15-15. The Battistones kept the crowd's hopes alive with a screaming down the line return by Brian, but their opponents would eventually hold for 5-3.

On the brink of defeat, Brian became a bit tentative on serve, as a backhand crosscourt volley struck at a severe angle by Ball appeared to rattle the brothers a bit Brian would eventually hold for 4-5. Serving for the match at 5-4, a lob miss by Brian, an unreturnable serve out wide to Dann, and another volley winner by Ball gave Ball/Rettenmaier triple match point. Ball double faulted for 40-15, but another big serve gave Ball/Rettenmaier the match in relatively comfortable fashion, 6-3, 6-4.

Fan favorites the Battistone Bros

Although they had better communication and coordination today, the Battistones were coming from behind during the whole first set, and never quite seemed to regroup after getting down a break. Plus, Brian's first serve percentage was much lower than in previous matches. His volleyball-like serve is big, but risky—much can go wrong with it, and it is sensitive to the wind. Still, the week was very successful for the brothers. This was their first final at the Challenger level. They will be going on to the Bronx Challenger on Monday, where they received a wild card, to continue their quest to win a title. With a little luck, a win there just might get them a wild card into the U.S. Open.

"They're great for the game," Rettenmaier, 25, opined when giving his acceptance speech. "Today, we forced our game upon them and dictated the tempo of the match. We made them adjust to us, although the 40-foot toss [of Brian's serve] was hard to follow. It is easy to lose that toss. But today you may just consider us 'the dictators.'"

Ball, 21, will go on to play in the singles draw at the Bronx, but he will not be playing doubles. Rettenmaier is returning home to California for the time being.

Rajeev Ram (USA)

The singles final began in short order and saw the 6'4" Ram, 24, get up an early break with an aggressive forehand return. He betrayed some nerves with a couple of mishit forehands while serving at 4-3, but he eventually held serve for 5-3 after a long exchange that ended with a strong crosscourt forehand. Ram later held at love to win the first set 6-4.

Capdeville held with difficulty to start the second set. Good serving by Ram and return errors by Capdeville combined to allow Ram to hold easily in the second game. Capdeville got two break points with Ram serving at 1-2, but a couple of big forehands down the line by Ram allowed him to hold. Capdeville held for 3-2, but again with considerable difficulty. Ram was proving to be a pesky, if less experienced, opponent. Capdeville was shouting and groaning in frustration through much of the first and second sets in response to his opponent's tenacity.

Capdeville then wasted a break point with Ram serving at 3-4, but got another one with an aggressive backhand down the line. A backhand long by Ram gave Capdeville the break to serve for the second set at 5-3. Capdeville served out the second set to enthusiastic cheers from the crowd. Clearly, they wanted a third set.

The third set opened with a break of service for Capdeville. A disputed call with Capdeville serving at 2-1 rattled him and gave Ram break point for the break back, but Capdeville, showing his experience in these types of match situations, quickly recovered and held for 3-1 behind a good first serve. A missed overhead by Ram gave Capdeville break point for a second break with Ram serving at 1-3. A great point ensued with Ram finally hitting an inside out forehand winner on a short ball by Capdeville. Capdeville got the second break on the next point when Ram double faulted. Capdeville then held for 5-1. It was quickly slipping away for the exhausted Ram. A missed easy backhand volley and a forehand long by Ram in the next game allowed Capdeville to get a third break and the match.

In his address to the crowd after the match, Ram acknowledged that he was fatigued, but that Capdeville had a lot to do with that. Capdeville gratefully acknowledged the crowd and his wife, who had accompanied him to a tournament for the first time.

"I had trouble with the return. He served so well in the beginning," commented Capdeville after the match. "But I am happy I could win here."

Capdeville will also move on to the Bronx on Monday, where he will be the No. 3 seed. Ram will not be playing next week.

On a side note, the young American Travis Helgeson, a semifinalist here, received a special exemption into the main draw at the Bronx on the strength of his strong showing here in Binghamton. Again, our humble tournament serves as a launching pad for another promising career!

Although the thunder could be heard, the sun shone at the same time, which is a commonplace event here in Binghamton. Perhaps it is Mother Nature reminding us that it is all just a game, and that we should enjoy the valuable moments during which we have such high quality professional tennis played right here in our city. Thank you to all who made this another memorable occasion.