Blame it on Rios

SANTIAGO, April 1: Waving his racquet like a magic wand, tennis star Marcelo quot;Chinoquot; Rios has captured overnight the hearts of the...

SANTIAGO, April 1: Waving his racquet like a magic wand, tennis star Marcelo quot;Chinoquot; Rios has captured overnight the hearts of the Chilean nation and taken a step toward shedding his bad boy image after grabbing the world number one ranking.

Rios8217;s straight sets victory over Andre Agassi in the final of the Lipton Championships on Sunday catapulted the left-hander to the top of the tennis world and made him the first Latin American ever to attain that status.

Smiling and blowing kisses to his girlfriend, Rios showed none of the tantrums and bad manners that have shadowed him both on and off court, which recently led US magazine Sports Illustrated to dub him the most hated man in tennis.

Indeed, the left-hander8217;s decisive triumph made him beloved in Chile as he delivered to his countrymen a rare moment of sporting glory. Thousands of Chileans, celebrated, dancing in the streets, blowing car horns and trumpets. Rios became a national demigod overnight.

His bad boy image was previously reflectedon court with his constant kicking of tennis balls and throwing his racquet when matches were not going his way. Even off court, he often showed signs of immaturity, his temper flaring at news conferences when asked difficult questions.

Tennis buffs liken Rios to former tour star Ivan Lendl, who before rising to world number one, was portrayed as a cold-hearted, stone-faced player. With time, Lendl mellowed and the public warmed to him. Rios is showing signs of going through a similar transformation.

Manuel Astorga, Rios8217; physical trainer, considers that his pupil is beginning to mature and learning to control the pressure that other 22-year-olds never have to face.

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quot;Marcelo is a human being and is under pressure that a youth of his age rarely has to endure8230; But he is going through that change that is part of the chronological maturing of everyone,quot; Astorga told reporters.

Rios8217; maturing on court has been noticeable even in the past weeks. Earlier this year, he crumbled to Petr Korda in the final ofthe Australian Open, showing little steel for a battle against the wily Czech veteran who won the championship 6-2 6-2 6-2 in just 85 minutes.

But in Sunday8217;s final against former world number one Agassi, Rios showed no immature nerves and concentrated on his tennis, his unquestionable ability, that first came to light when he won the 1993 US Open junior title, sparkled.Born on December 26, 1975, Rios was a schoolboy rebel. At the age of 13 he told his parents his main interest in life was to be the world number one at tennis.

quot;I never liked studying much and I was never really good at it either. Perhaps for that reason I decide to put all my efforts into playing tennis,quot; Rios told an interviewer after his Lipton victory in Key Biscayne, Florida.