By TERRY MADDAFORD
What you see with Goran Ivanisevic is definitely what you get.
Amazing tennis, tantrums and everything in between.
The Heineken Open No 2 seed, who last year won Wimbledon, appropriately, perhaps, as a wildcard, brought his full box of tricks to Stanley St yesterday in winning his second-round match 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
On the other side of the net, and with the crowd's support very obviously elsewhere, unseeded 19-year-old Russian Mikhail Youzhny, who reached the fourth round at "Ivanisevic's Wimbledon," was left to conjure his own magic.
In the rain-delayed first set, Youzhny, 58th on the ATP rankings - 46 places lower than his sometimes volatile opponent - did find enough in his bag to help himself to a 6-4 victory in 28 minutes. He broke Ivanisevic in the opening game, but not again.
"That was a gift. Two doubles-faults, a careless shot and an over-rule," Ivanisevic said. "He played good in the first set."
Ivanisevic quickly took the first game of the second set, but at the change of ends the rain again intervened.
Not happy, the 30-year-old Croatian threw his racket at his bag and was off. But back on court, he needed little time to rediscover his rhythm.
No mucking about. Just aces, double-faults, powerful backhand and forehand winners, and deft touches at the net.
Even a hint of the clown prince with a behind-the-back shot which surprised the Russian and handed a lucky point to the carefree Croatian.
One double-fault, and a deep and apparently meaningful conversation with his racket.
Another, time to use his titanium Head racket to test the bounce-ability of the court.
Later, annoyed by yet another double-fault, he sent a ball over the dome towards Carlaw Park.
"Code violation, ball abuse, Ivanisevic" - the not unexpected retort from chair umpire Tony Nimmons.
At other times it was "Gentleman Goran."
With the ball taking the top of the net to wrongfoot the advancing Youzhny, Ivanisevic was almost apologetic in raising his hand to indicate his good fortune in cruising to a 6-3 victory in the second set.
Another delay, but breaks for Ivanisevic in the fifth and ninth games of the third set, played in the best weather of the day, were enough for a triumph in a match almost four hours from start to finish, but with only 1h 40m of tennis.
Ivanisevic had 14 aces - down from the 19 he managed in two sets in despatching Finn Jarkko Nieminen in the first round - and nine double faults.
He had a first-serve percentage of just 48, but three crucial break-points.
But the smiling assassin does not look too long at the stats.
"It was boring. Sitting around the locker-room is no fun," Ivanisevic said. The breaks do not help your rhythm. I want to keep going."
So do the fans, who would like nothing more than to look forward to a final between the tournament's folk hero and top seed Marat Safin.
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