Chang Falls in Straight Sets in Comeback

No question, no debate, no doubt about it. No more medical data required.

Michael Chang is coming back too soon.

He should arrive at his Placentia home some time this afternoon.

For the sullen promoters of the Volvo Tennis/Indoor tournament here, that’s about four rounds too soon. Amid a faceless sea of Chris Garners, Gilad Blooms and Bruno Oresars, Chang was one name sure to bring the local folks out. He and Stefan Edberg were the gate attractions, lured by huge guarantees to grace this land this week.

But after sitting out 90 days since his last singles match, Chang barely lasted 90 minutes in this, his official return to the men’s tour. Chang went out in straight sets Tuesday night, losing, 6-4, 6-4, to Glenn Layendecker, the world’s 63rd-ranked player noted mainly for a big serve and the big brace on his right leg.

If you didn’t know better, you’d have pegged the wrong player-on-the-comeback during warmups. While Chang bounced spritely along the baseline, Layendecker, who had knee surgery in 1986, looked like something out of Black & Decker, lurching around the court with a mammoth black fiberglass brace covering his leg from upper thigh to lower calf.

Chang, recovering from a fractured left hip, appeared fit and in shape and carrying a few more badly needed pounds, the result of regimented weight training during his three-month layoff.

Chang simply looked great.

Then, the match began.

Balls that Chang would usually run down bounded past him, untouched. Forehands that would normally nick the line flared out of bounds. Serves typically scooped up and returned deep now left Chang handcuffed and off balance.

Layendecker aced Chang 10 times.

Chang double-faulted four times.

Layendecker broke Chang’s serve three times.

Worse yet, Chang had Layendecker down, 3-0, and 0-40 in the fourth game of the second set--only to let that game, along with the next five, get away.

“He was vulnerable,” Layendecker said. “His confidence was down. I think it had to be, this being his first match back after three months. . . . He wasn’t sharp.”

Chang couldn’t argue.

“The mental part of my game was missing a little bit,” he said. “I think by being out so long and not playing tournament matches, the mental side wasn’t quite there.

“I thought I played OK. I was getting to most of the balls and was able to run down some shots. It’s just a matter of needing to play a few more matches. What can you say?”

Chang said the hip, which still hurt him as recently as last week, didn’t bother him during the match. How about afterward? During the loser’s press conference, Chang was asked if he felt any post-match ache.

“Only here,” he replied, tapping his chest.

Chang said his greatest trouble came when trying to deal with Layendecker’s serve.

“I’ve never seen Glenn serve that big before,” Chang said. “I had someone kind of scout on him last night, and I was told most of his big serves tended to go to the outside. Tonight, though, he hit the middle really well. He adjusted well.”

Chang’s scout was his father, Joe, who had an inkling things could turn ugly Tuesday night.

“When I watched him the other night, he had four aces in his first service game,” Joe said. “ Four aces.

“I came back and said, ‘Michael, he’s serving out of his mind.’ ”

No finesse player, and certainly no runner, Layendecker is a one-dimensional grinder, the type of opponent Chang normally slices and dices.

But on this night, the rank-and-file rose to more than equal terms with rusted royalty.