Gaultier Fires A Warning

Greg Gaultier could have not given us a much better start to the defence of his Super Series finals title. The champion went through his complete repertoire of extraordinary flairy strokes, mixed in with passages of orthodox, disciplined line and length – almost as though it were two players in one – while beating David Palmer, a former holder of the title.

Then the Frenchman provided moments of farce and high comedy, interspersed with flashes of anger at refereeing decisions, followed it by allowing an early advantage to slip, as though it was obligatory to create a drama out of a match he sometimes dominated, and concluded it with a rush, hurtling through the fourth game in a 11-7, 3-11, 11-6,

11-2 win over the Australian.

“The first match is always difficult,” Gaultier said. “But it's very difficult here, because every match is like a final.

“But I felt sharp. The first game I was pretty quick. Then he tried to volley more and tried to be more aggressive and I was too defensive and rushing to the front too early. Then I got back to a basic game and it was better again.”

It is hard to watch matches between these two without remembering the World Open final of 2006, arguably the most remarkable of the lot, and won by Palmer after saving five match points, and there were a few patterns reminiscent of that classic.

There were the tight top left corner exchanges, Palmer's phases of insistent volleying, decisions frequently and noisily contested, and passages of play when it seemed Gaultier would get right on top, which, until the end, he never quite did.

But now Palmer was perhaps physically not quite the player he was then, while Gaultier looks to be in his best shape ever in the early part of a year, having worked for five months with a new team, and often he says “on different things from before.”

Palmer nevertheless played a good match. He never quite recovered from Gaultier's brilliant run of five points from 5-4 in the first game, but took his chance well in the second, when his opponent strangely faltered. Then he stepped up the pressure, took the ball earlier when he could and levelled it impressively at one game all.

It was amidst a flurry of arguments in a staccato and fragmented third game that Palmer gradually lost the edge, though he always fought hard and certainly gave as good as he got with the words.

One bit of verbal jousting occurred at 5-5 when Gaultier's drive was incorrectly called down, and then on appeal it was called good. First Gaultier argued shrilly, then Palmer came out and argued that he had stopped when the “down” call was made and that a let should be awarded, not a point to Gaultier.

It seemed that the dispute would go on and on, which caused the referee to ask, a little desperately perhaps, if Gaultier if he wanted to replay the point too. He said “no!!” so forcefully it made some of the crowd laugh. For a moment it seemed that disruption might become pandemonium, until Palmer decided to play on.

He was clearly still not pleased, however, which may have contributed to another outbreak of arguing by both men with Gaultier leading 7-6, after which Palmer was told he risked a code-of-conduct warning.

Fortunately humour was rarely far away either. Earlier Gaultier had brought chuckles with a curious little “aaagh” noise at one decision, and then loud laughter, when a lob at 10-6 was called out was then called in again, but not before he had left the court as of the first game were over. “If you're not sure, why call it?” he said.

And then, when Palmer disputed the penalty stroke with which Gaultier eventually did win the game, Gaultier was out of the door again, this time calling:”that other ball was out anyway.”

But referees are not that much different to players: both make mistakes.

Except that Gaultier is atoning for his with remarkable skill and speed.