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Chang and Edberg In Form Ahead Of Paris Showdown

Defending Champion Stefan Edberg and former French Open winner Michael Chang both opened their accounts in style ahead of their long-awaited Paris rematch at the 2009 Jean-Luc Lagardere Trophy. The pair will clash tomorrow, twenty years after their epic 1989 Roland Garros final, and both were in superb form today. Chang needed less than an hour to breeze past Tournament Director Guy Forget 6-1, 6-1, while Edberg, who beat Bruguera in last year’s final, defeated Frenchman Arnaud Boetsch 6-4, 6-3.

“I’m looking forward to tomorrow and it’s going to be a good match for both of us,” said Chang. “I’ve known Stefan for so long and he’s such a great champion. The guy is in great shape and he’s defending champion here so it’s not going to be an easy thing to do but I was feeling pretty comfortable out there today so hopefully I’ll feel the same tomorrow.”

Edberg admitted that a victory against Chang, 20 years after the American shattered his French Open dreams, would taste particularly sweet. “It would be nice to get a bit of revenge for 1989 if I beat him tomorrow,” he said. “Hopefully it will be a good, close match. It will definitely be tough, that’s for sure. I’ve played Michael many times over the years so I know it’s always going to be a challenge to play him.”