Enqvist Adds Weight to Spadea’s Burden

It’s not easy not being Pete Sampras.

That is the burden every American male tennis player of a certain age understands. Who’s the next Sampras? is the en vogue question, and those being bombarded with the query have had it. This Generation X of tennis players is nothing like the soon-to-be Generation Ex, which includes Sampras, Andre Agassi, Michael Chang and Jim Courier.

The weight of those expectations falls heavily on Vince Spadea, Michael Joyce, Justin Gimelstob and Chris Woodruff, all 20-somethings who had solid junior tennis pedigrees. By virtue of their citizenship, they were expected to duplicate the once-in-a-generation success of Sampras, Agassi, Chang and Courier.

Spadea, like his contemporaries, is fixated on slugging out a living on the professional tennis tour and attempting to solve his problems, not those of American tennis. Wednesday found Spadea hard at work at the Infiniti Open at the L.A. Tennis Center at UCLA, playing a second-round match against Thomas Enqvist of Sweden. The second-seeded Enqvist won, 7-6 (7-4), 6-1.

After the match, which Spadea had opportunities to win, the 23-year-old reflected on a life of unmet expectations.

“A majority of our group hasn’t had the kind of success as our predecessors, we are aware of it,” Spadea said. “It’s an unusual situation that those players, virtually all of them, have won a Grand Slam title or been finalists. And we are struggling to be in the top 50. I don’t have an answer for that.”

Unlike Agassi or Sampras, Spadea had a successful junior career. He turned pro at 19 and has twice been the youngest American in the top 100. His rise was constant and perceptible, and by the end of last year he rose to No. 54.

The reality of professional sports stepped in to quash Spadea’s optimism. It took the form of a back injury at the start of this year that kept him off the tour for three months.

The damage was not just physical. Three years of climbing the rankings ladder were lost. Not able to defend or earn points, he saw his ranking plummet to its current No. 101. Coming back on the tour and relearning its rhythm presents a learning curve that is discouraging.

“I’ve been losing for six months,” Spadea said, shaking his head.

Against Enqvist, Spadea looked much like every other earnest and talented pro who sees himself as being just an upset away from fame and rankings points. The Swede was asked if the parade of lower-ranked opponents ever become nameless, faceless blobs on the other side of the net.

Enqvist shook his head emphatically, no.

“Out on the tour, nobody is faceless,” Enqvist said. “Maybe for the public and the media, but we know everybody. Anybody can beat anyone.”

This is the expectation that Spadea clings to as his hope. Everyone is one match away.

From somewhere, Spadea has found a perspective that keeps that hope alive,

“It beats the alternative,” Spadea said. “You’re in your 20s only one time in your life. If you can earn the opportunity to be at this level, you take it. I guess it’s glamorous, by comparison to what I could be doing. We’re fortunate to have the jobs we do. Whatever happens, I’m grateful.”

In the evening feature match, huge-serving Australian Mark Philippoussis, seeded third, picked himself off the canvas for the second match in a row and beat another Australian, Sandon Stolle, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Philippoussis, who was down, 6-1, 2-0 and love-40, in his first-round match, trailed Stolle by a set and a break before Stolle tightened, netted an overhead and let Philippoussis back in the match.

Serving at 5-3 in the third set, Philippoussis--who holds the tour service-velocity record at 142.3 mph--hit a service winner at 135, then hit another serve 139 on match point that just missed long before Stolle netted a forehand to end it.

Tennis Notes

In the day’s only upset, Guillaume Raoux of France defeated fifth-seeded Patrick Rafter of Australia, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5). Kenneth Carlsen of Denmark defeated Sargis Sargsian of Armenia, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the day’s remaining match.

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Infiniti Open

Beginning Noon

* Byron Black vs. Justin Gimelstob

* Mahesh Bhupathi vs. No. 6 Jim Courier

* No.1 Goran Ivanisevic vs. Olivier Delaitre

Beginning 7:30 p.m.

* No. 4 Richard Krajicek vs. Glenn Weiner