GRAND CAYMAN, April 18 – Wayne Ferreira defeated Mikael Pernfors 6-4, 6-3 Friday at The Residences at The Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman Legends Championships to clinch a final-round berth in the year’s second tournament on the Outback Champions Series, a collection of tennis events around the world featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. Ferreira finished with a 3-0 record in round-robin play and will face either Jim Courier, John McEnroe or Jimmy Arias in Sunday’s final.
Courier improved to a 2-0 record in Group A with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 win over Jimmy Arias on Friday. McEnroe also remained in contention for the title Friday, beating Mats Wilander 6-4, 6-2 to even his record at 1-1. Courier controls his own destiny in his grouping as he will need to beat McEnroe on Saturday to finish with a 3-0 round-robin record to advance into the final to play Ferreira.
Ferreira successfully battled in the windy conditions against Pernfors at the Caribbean island paradise to advance into his fifth career singles final on the Outback Champions Series.
“I kind of feel like I’m getting a little used to the wind, but it’s very, very difficult,” said Ferreira. “The conditions are tough. You can only
prepare as well as you can.”
Ferreira will be seeking his fourth Outback Champions Series title of his career on Sunday. His last Outback Champions Series title came last October in Dallas at The Stanford Championships, where he defeated Courier in the championship match. Courier is eagerly anticipating his Saturday match-up with McEnroe, where a win would advance him into his sixth career Outback Champions Series final.
“I just relish that opportunity to play John,” said Courier. “He’s such a great champion and a great challenge. He presents a different look than
almost any player out there. He’s left-handed. He plays a very different style of game with his serve-and-volley and his slices and touch and feel. So I think it will be a very interesting match-up. We’re very much an oil-and-water match-up. I’m a right-handed power player. He’s a left-handed finesse player so I think those matches tend to be pretty interesting to the spectators.”
One day after his stunning upset of McEnroe, Arias said his level of play did not change much against Courier. However, not being able to win the key points and a slight lapse in his conditioning were the reasons he gave for his loss.
“It’s still the same tough conditions,” said Arias. “It’s just a matter of a few points in both matches. I could have lost to McEnroe and I actually
could have won today, which is pretty good for me to be able to play (Courier) that close, to tell you the truth, because he’s stronger, younger
and pretty talented. I actually felt like I had a lot of chances, but I still have to get in better shape because after the first set, I started fading physically. I think he sensed that and sort of stepped it up a little.”
The Residences at the Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman Legends Championships, features an eight-man round-robin match format with the winner of each four-player division meeting in the title match while second place finishers in each division meet in the third-place match. The event features $150,000 in prize money with an undefeated winner taking home $54,000 as well as Stanford Champions ranking points that will determine the year-end champion and the winner of a $100,000 bonus. More information – including ticket information – is available by visiting http://www.championsseriestennis.com/
About The Outback Champions Series
Founded in 2005, the Outback Champions Series features eight events where champion tennis players continue to exercise their competitive instincts in tournament formats that feature prize money and Champions Series ranking points that determine a year-end No. 1 player on the Stanford Champions Rankings. To be eligible to compete on the Outback Champions Series, players must have either; reached a Grand Slam singles final, been ranked in the top five in the world or played singles on a championship Davis Cup team. Each event also has the right to choose a “wild card” entrant.
About InsideOut Sports & Entertainment
InsideOut Sports & Entertainment is a New York City-based independent producer of proprietary events and promotions founded in 2004 by former world No. 1 and Hall of Fame tennis player Jim Courier and former SFX and Clear Channel executive Jon Venison. In 2005, InsideOut launched its signature property, the Outback Champions Series, a collection of tennis events featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. In addition, InsideOut produces many other successful events including one-night “Legendary Night” exhibitions as well as corporate outings, charity events and tennis fantasy camps, including the annual Ultimate Fantasy Camp. For more information, please log on to www.InsideOutSE.com or www.ChampionsSeriesTennis.com
ROUND ROBIN GROUP A
Jim Courier 2-0
Jimmy Arias 1-1
John McEnroe 1-1
Mats Wilander 0-2
ROUND ROBIN GROUP B
Wayne Ferreira 3-0
Todd Martin 1-1
Paul Haarhuis 1-1
Mikael Pernfors 0-3
WEDNESDAY RESULTS
Todd Martin, United States, def. Mikael Pernfors, Sweden, 7-6, (5), 6-7 (1), 10-7 (Champions Tie Break)
Wayne Ferreira, South Africa, def. Paul Haarhuis, Netherlands, 6-7 (3), 7-5, 10-3 (Champions Tie Break)
Jim Courier, United States, def. Mats Wilander, Sweden, 6-2, 6-0
THURSDAY RESULTS
Paul Haarhuis, Netherlands, def. Mikael Pernfors, Sweden, 6-3, 6-2
Wayne Ferreira, South Africa, def. Todd Martin, United States, 6-4, 7-6 (2)
Jimmy Arias, United States, def. John McEnroe, United States, 7-5, 6-2
FRIDAY RESULTS
Wayne Ferreira, South Africa, def. Mikael Pernfors, Sweden, 6-4, 6-3
Jim Courier, United States, def. Jimmy Arias, United States, 7-6 (5), 6-4
John McEnroe, United States, def. Mats Wilander, Sweden, 6-4, 6-2
SATURDAY SCHEDULE
Jimmy Arias vs. Mats Wilander
Jim Courier vs. John McEnroe
Todd Martin vs. Paul Haarhuis
