Kafelnikov serves Russian salad at the Open

MELBOURNE, Jan 31: Tenth seed Yevgeny Kafelnikov won the Australian Open men's singles title today when he outlasted an erratic Thomas En...

MELBOURNE, Jan 31: Tenth seed Yevgeny Kafelnikov won the Australian Open men8217;s singles title today when he outlasted an erratic Thomas Enqvist of Sweden 4-6 6-0 6-3 7-6.

The Russian threw his racquet into the crowd in joy after racing through fourth set tie-break 7-1 to end an absorbing final at Melbourne Park and claim his second Grand Slam title.

A jubilant Kafelnikov thanked his fans, his wife Mascha and new coach Larry Stefanki for a victory he said was worth more than his 1996 French Open triumph.

8220;My last message is to one person Pete,8221; a grinning Kafelnikov told the crowd in reference to absent world number one Pete Sampras. 8220;This is really a great, wonderful feeling. Thanks for letting me do it.8221;

Sampras decided to miss the Open after an exhausting campaign at the end of 1998, when he finished as number one for a record sixth consecutive time. The tournament was also without 1998 finalist Marcelo Rios and Croatia8217;s 11th seed Goran Ivanisevic who withdrew with back injuries before hittinga ball.

The Russian added spice to the final when he suggested after downing German youngster Tommy Haas in the semi-finals that world number 21 Enqvist was suspect under pressure, even though the Swede held a 4-2 match advantage between them before the final.

Enqvist had also won their last two meetings in tournament finals, at the Marseille Open last year and the 1996 Paris Open.

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But the normally ice-cool Enqvist appeared to live up to Kafelnikov8217;s claim and wilted at crucial stages of the match.

The Swede double faulted on the last point of the tie-break to hand the world number 10 the title and the A722,000 about Rs 1.91 crore winner8217;s prize money.

Kafelnikov becomes the first Russian to win the season-opening Grand Slam. His victory today propels him to world number three, supplanting Spaniard Alex Corretja who lost in the second round. Enqvist will rise to a career-high number six when the latest rankings are released on Monday, ATP tour officials said.