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Moya Targets Clash Against Boyhood Idol In Delray Final

Carlos Moya qualified for his sixth consecutive ATP Champions Tour Final in Delray Beach on Sunday, and afterwards expressed his delight at the prospect of possibly meeting his boyhood hero Ivan Lendl in Tuesday’s final.

Moya confirmed his place with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over American Aaron Krickstein on Sunday evening, and the Spaniard must now await the result of tomorrow’s meeting between Mikael Pernfors and Johan Kriek to discover whether he will achieve his dream of playing against eight-time Grand Slam Champion Lendl. Lendl’s final hopes were dealt a blow in a 6-4, 6-3 loss to Johan Kriek in his final round-robin match on Sunday.

“Lendl is one of the all time greats, and he made history,” said Moya. “ This is what makes the Champions Tour unique, being able to bridge the generations. It is a dream for me that I might have the chance to play my idols like Lendl and hopefully McEnroe as well one day. It’s amazing to look up to them for so long and then to be on the same court with them. I have so many memories of watching him when I was a kid and I have so much respect for what he did and everything he achieved. He changed the game.”

Moya also gave some insight into how Lendl’s relationship with current World Number Four Andy Murray might help the Briton to take the next step in his career.

“Lendl’s partnership with Murray is very interesting,” he said. “It’s not the same as my relationship with Rafa, as I have never officially coached him, but I have tried to help him and answer any questions he has, and that voice of experience can be very important for young players. There is no doubt that Murray has the ability to win a Slam, it’s just that doubt over whether he is mentally good enough. But that is where Lendl can help, because he’s been in that exact situation of waiting and waiting for his first Grand Slam. I think Ivan has such a winning mentality that that will only help Murray, because that’s exactly what he needs to develop.”

Lendl had the chance to confirm his place in the Delray Beach final on Saturday, but suffered a surprise defeat to South African-born American Kriek, a man who has overcome considerable adversity to be able to make a comeback to Champions Tour tennis.

“I had a 12 hour operation three years ago to remove a tumor in my back,” said Kriek, a two-time Australian Open winner. “It was a tumour that was affecting my whole nervous system so I was told I might not walk again, let alone play tennis, so boy do I feel like a lucky guy.”

Also on Tuesday, Michael Chang notched up his first victory of the tournament over Pat Cash 6-4, 6-3, giving himself a chance of reaching Tuesday’s 3rd/4th place play-off match. Meanwhile, Mikael Pernfors overcame wind-swept conditions to complete a 4-6, 6-2, 10-5 (Champions’ Tie Break) win over American Jimmy Arias.