2008 US Men’s Clay Court Championships Players

Mardy Fish

Mardy Fish is one of a group of young players who rose to prominence at the beginning of the 21st Century. He has been in fine form in 2007 and has reached a ranking of 31 in the ATP race.

He has mastered the green clay courts of the United States, winning the singles title at the US Men’s Clay Court Championships in 2006, defeating Germany’s Jurgen Melzer in three sets. What made the victory all the more rewarding for the young American was that he had been awarded a wildcard for the event. It will be interesting to see how he fares on the markedly slower red clay court surfaces of the River Oaks Country Club.

He has impressed in recent times with his victories over some of the top-ranked tennis players including Carlos Moya, Juan Monaco, Tommy Haas and Ivan Ljubicic.

Ivo Karlovic

Defending champion, Ivo Karlovic, is one of the many young up-and-coming stars from Eastern Europe. The tallest man ever to grace the ATP circuit, Karlovic has taken on and beaten some of the finest tennis players in the world including Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Roddick, James Blake and Thomas Johansson.

The Croat’s weapon of destruction is his serve, made even more potent by his 6 foot 10 inches in height. Roddick had this to say of the Karlovic serve: “It’s probably the biggest weapon in tennis… you don’t really get a feel for it unless you are on the other side. It was not fun at times”. Karlovic has etched his name into the record books by becoming the fourth player ever to hit more than 1000 aces in a season. He joins the very elite ranks of Pete Sampras, Goran Ivanisevic and Andy Roddick.

This 2008 US Men’s Clay Court Championships player has had a successful season to date – he has claimed three singles titles including the US Men’s Clay Court Championships. His other titles were on grass and hard court, which says a lot for the young man’s versatility.

Tommy Haas

German, Tommy Haas is slowly recapturing the form he so enjoyed at the beginning of his career. He is currently ranked 10th in the world, but peaked in 2002 with a ranking of number two. He made waves when he claimed the scalps of some of the greatest players in the game, notably Andy Roddick, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer, Marat Safin and Jim Courier.

A family tragedy at the end of his second year as a professional had a huge influence on his game. In late 2002 his parent’s were involved in a serious car accident, which effectively kept him out of the game until 2004.

He had an impressive 2007 with a semifinal finish at the Australian Open, he reached the fourth round at Wimbledon and made it through to the quarterfinals at the US Open.

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