''Guga''- The man with feet of clay: part II
http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/articles/2008-05-05/20080505120998828454
7.html
Monday, May 5, 2008
By Eric Frosio, Rio de Janeiro
January 2002 – September 2004: Playing through the pain barrier
Not even Florianopolis could cure his ills. Back on his home island in the
south of Brazil, Gustavo Kuerten was hoping to recharge his batteries and
expunge the memory of eight defeats in nine matches at the end of the
previous season, but this was sadly not the case. 2002 picked up where 2001
left off – defeats in the early rounds and yet more hip pain. Kuerten lost
to Julien Boutter at the Australian Open and then Augustin Calleri in Buenos
Aires, with the latter defeat against the Argentinean making Guga realise
that enough was enough.
"He was so nervous and frustrated throughout the match that he kept on
hitting himself on the head and the legs with his racquet," recalls his media
officer Diana Gabanyi. "He just couldn't bear not being able to play at
100%." On the advice of his friend and rival, Swede Magnus Norman, Guga
headed to Nashville, Tennessee to be operated on by specialist Doctor Thomas
Byrd. On 26 February, he had arthroscopic surgery on his right hip to repair
a crack in the cartilage of the femur "cap" at the top of the bone.
Only his elder brother Rafael and his coach Larri Passos were present during
the operation, with the latter having a particularly vivid recollection for
all the wrong reasons. "I'll never forget that day for as long as I live,"
said Larri. "Guga was operated on on the 26th and the following day, my
mother died (as the result of a virulent cancer). It was the saddest day of
my whole life. That day, I lost everything I'd ever known …"
After the operation, Gustavo Kuerten went to the Bahamas to convalesce away
from the media glare surrounding an injured former world No.1. After a
fortnight in the Caribbean sun, Guga got back onto the circuit in Majorca
where he made it through to the third round before losing to Gaston Gaudio.
There were definite positive signs, and though he felt a little
post-operative stiffness in the buttock muscle, nobody paid too much heed to
what would eventually have fatal consequences for his career…
Accompanied by Alex Stober, the ATP physio who spent many years with Pete
Sampras, Kuerten alternated between highs (victory at Costa da Sauipe,
finalist at Lyon having beaten Marat Safin along the way) and lows (losing to
Montanes in Rome, Albert Costa at Roland Garros and Schalken at the US Open).
2003 saw the same inconsistency. Guga won in Auckland (against Hrbaty) and St
Petersburg (beating Sargsian) but again went out in the early stages of the
French (losing to Robredo in the last 32) and the US Open (a first round
defeat to Tursunov). He was still feeling pain in his hip and buttock muscle
but elected to grit his teeth and play through the pain barrier. Kuerten got
back up to No.16 in the ATP rankings – a position more befitting a player of
his stature – at which point Larri Passos decided that it might be time for
a change.
"After St Petersburg, I thought for the first time that maybe I should stop
working with Guga. He was playing very well at the end of that season and I
thought that I had done all that I could for him… In the end, I stayed. I
wanted to prepare him well for the 2004 season but I ended up being
disappointed as he himself then decided to change things around during the
holidays…"
Guga began working with Mariângela Lima, a physiotherapist from
Florianopolis whose methods did not sit well with coach Larri's demanding
regime, but all the player was trying to do was to keep his head above water
as the pain gradually began to get worse. He got off to a good start to the
season, reaching the final at Vina del Mar and winning in Costa do Sauipe
(beating Calleri). But by the time the European leg of the tour was under
way, the pain was unbearable and now stretched from his hip and buttock along
his leg.
After his defeat to Gaudio in the third round at Barcelona, Guga could barely
walk. He was forced to pull out of Rome and Hamburg, but the doctor from the
Spanish federation designed a rest and rehabilitation programme to allow him
to play on his beloved Parisian clay. "I couldn't stay out on court for more
than two hours due to the pain. I really don't know where I found the energy
to beat Almagro (a first round five-setter) but it was a magic moment," the
triple French Open winner recalled. "Whenever I play at Roland Garros, I feel
such special emotions!"
Guga surfed on a wave of euphoria past Elsneer, a certain Roger Federer and
then Feliciano Lopez before losing in four sets to Nalbandian. "I can still
remember that inside-out passing shot from Nalbandian (when Kuerten had a
point for the fourth set). I'll never forget it! A few millimetres wider and
Guga would definitely have gone on to win his fourth title," recalls Larri
Passos.
After the French, Kuerten came down to earth with a bump. The American leg of
the circuit was a failure as was the Athens Olympics, and with the pain
getting worse another operation became the only option. "In hindsight, these
were actually good years," says Guga looking back. "Considering the physical
condition I was in, the fact that I managed to win tournaments and get within
reach of the top 10 was quite an achievement. I didn't realise it at the time
because I was my own hard taskmaster." Hindsight was indeed about to prove
that these were good years, as much worse was to follow…
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