Wilkison Gives U.S. Something to Cheer About, Beats Soviet

It was as if CBS-TV whispered in the ears of Tim Wilkison and Andrei Chesnokov, “Hey guys, let’s pep up this tournament.”

Based on their fourth-round singles match Monday at the U.S. Open, CBS got what it wanted. Wilkison, the man from Asheville, N.C., whom the guys on the tour call Rambo and Dr. Dirt, beat Chesnokov, the stamp collector from Moscow, 6-0, 6-2, 6-3. Never for a moment did any of the 6,000 fans in the Stadium court forget the political impact of the match.

“Yes, like Rocky versus Drago,” said Chesnokov laughing, alluding to the movie “Rocky IV” in which an American boxer defeats a Soviet in Moscow.

The match played out like a movie script. Wilkison is a hard slugging, blue-collar player who grunts and sweats on the court like a milder Jimmy Connors. The harshest thing Wilkison said on court Monday was ‘fiddlesticks” after a bad shot.

Wilkison’s nickname was a perfect foil for Chesnokov, a cheery, fuzzy-faced 20-year-old. It was not quite the Geneva Summit, but it certainly was a rarity in tennis that a Soviet male was playing in the fourth round here, against an American. It has been 10 years since a Soviet male has been in this tournament.

Wilkison was aware of the historical context, and the crowd’s partisan response.

“It’s rather obvious that there aren’t too many American players left in this tournament,” Wilkison said. “I think that had a lot to do with it. Me playing Chesnokov wouldn’t normally be that big of a match, but with all the Americans out, they (tournament officials) were pushing it. Of course, the fact I was playing a guy from Russia had a lot to do with it. But I tried to low-key that. I leave that to Caspar Weinberger.”

Wilkison has parlayed a big serve and scrambling style to get this far. He’s ranked No. 31 in the world but beat Yannick Noah, ranked No. 6, earlier in the tournament. He’s obviously excited about his success, as evidenced by his 100 m.p.h. speaking cadence.

“It’s just my basic makeup, I think. Some guys have to push themselves to work out, to work hard. I’ve always had to push myself to take time off and relax. I have a type-A personality.

“I can remember when I was 12 years old, my dad built a wooden backboard for me in the backyard. I’d get up at 6 in the morning. And as soon as it got light, at 6:30, I’d hit against that wooden backboard. I can’t believe my next-door neighbors let me do it because a wooden backboard makes a lot of noise.

“They tell me that whenever it would rain, they would oversleep. They’d be late for work because they didn’t set their alarm clock. Every morning at 6:30 it was bang, bang.”

In addition to the fans, Wilkison was cheered on by his wife, Vicki, who should know something about cheering--she was a cheerleader at Clemson. Wilkison said he was greatly cheered by her gift to him last week--a Mr. T air freshener for his car.

Chesnokov is a breath of fresh air for the men’s tour. Soviet women have been prominent on the tour for four years, but he seldom ventured out of the Eastern Bloc for tournaments.

In fact, after Chesnokov complained at the French Open that he would never improve unless he could travel on the tour, he was chastised by Soviet tennis officials.

He said it again Monday, while holding an impromptu press conference in a hallway underneath the National Tennis Center.

“Three years ago, I played two to four tournaments and I was ranking No. 300 or No. 400,” Chesnokov said. “Last year, I played five tournaments and I was ranked No. 180. Now I play 10 to 12 tournaments and now I am ranked No. 30 (actually No. 31). I think if I play more tournaments, my ranking will go up.”

The Soviet Tennis Federation, which had been reluctant to let the players loose on the tour, next season will allow four men and six women to follow the Grand Prix tour on its regular international schedule.

The change of heart came about the same time as ProServ, a U.S.-based sports management company, signed to represent the Soviet Tennis Federation.

“It’s been interesting, a learning experience for both them and us,” Jerry Soloman of ProServ said. “It takes a long time to get decisions made.”

Among the first decisions was to step up the players’ schedule to include at least 20 tournaments per year. Chesnokov will play in the Volvo/Los Angeles tournament starting Sept. 15.

The next will be to get the Soviets into some decent tennis gear. Chesnokov was looking positively waif-like last week, playing in worn-down shoes and wearing the same shorts and shirt through three rounds. His racket, a Volkl, is made of graphite and he has only three of them. Until last year, Chesnokov played with an old-fashioned wooden racket.

Soloman said that ProServ had interest from some clothing and shoe manufacturers, but until the Soviets’ contract with Volkl runs out at the end of the year, they will have to conserve what little gear they have.

“He was down to his last pair of shoes,” Soloman said. “So, yesterday, we had to get him another pair.”

Chesnokov is allowed to keep only 20% of his earnings. The commercialization of Soviet tennis has begun, not coincidentally at a time when tennis has become an Olympic sport. “It makes much of a difference,” Chesnokov admitted.

With more Soviets on the tour, it is likely more of these “Rocky” scenarios will arise. Television, and tennis fans, can only hope future matches will be as interesting.