ITALY: CHRIS???VERT WINS WOMEN'S TITLE???T ITALIAN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS: NASTASE BEAT???TAN SMITH IN MEN'S SEMIFINALS.

Record ID: 647371

  • Title: ITALY: CHRIS???VERT WINS WOMEN'S TITLE???T ITALIAN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS: NASTASE BEAT???TAN SMITH IN MEN'S SEMIFINALS.
  • Date: 2nd June 1974
  • Summary: 1. GV Crowd at stadium 0.05 2. GV Smith serves from far end and play in progrress and Smith loses point 0.22 3. GV Play and Nastase winning further point 0.40 4. GV Scoreboard Nastase winning last set 6-2, 6-2, 5-4 and on match point: Nastase receives service and wins matchpoint (2 shots) 0.56 5. GV Crowd 1.00 6. LV Nastase and Smith off court 1.07 7. GV Evert serving from far end to Navratilova, rally and Navratilova wins point 1.41 8. GV Evert serves, rally and Evert wins point with passing shot 1.55 9. GV Crowd applauds 1.58 Initials BB/0320 TH/PN/BB/0345 SPORT - TENNIS Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 17th June 1974 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: ROME, ITALY
  • Country: Italy
  • Reuters ID: LVA8VPYT4NXQK2HTCY619UV57IPF
  • Story Text: Twenty-year-old Chris Evert of the United States won her first major tennis title when she triumphed in the women's singles of the Italian Open championships in Rome today (Sunday, 2 June). She beat 17-year-old Martina Navratilova of Czechoslovakia 6-3, 6-3 in the final.

    The victory is worth 5,000 dollars to Miss. Evert. It was the third time the two girls had met, and the young American star made it three straight victories. But today's game was closer than the scoreline suggests and it was Miss. Evert's deadly lobbing that proved the decisive factor.

    In the men's semi-finals, Ilie Nastase of Rumania and Stan Smith of the United States resumed their rivalry. On this occasion, Smith played well below his best form, and the dominant Nastase won 6-2, 6-2, 6-4.

    SYNOPSIS: As the Italian Open Tennis championships approached their final stages on Sunday, an out-of-form Stan Smith -- serving from the far end -- was soon in difficulties against his old rival, Ilie Nastase of Rumania. Nastase took the first two sets of this men's semi-finals six-two, six-two. And he looked as if he would win this third set by a similar margin.

    At five-two down, Smith saved three match points, then broke Nastase's service for the first time to come back to five-four. But when the American's own service game began to let him down. Here, it's Nastase tucking away another point.

    That brought Nastase a fourth match point -- on Smith's service. And the Rumanian, who has repeatedly wrong-footed the American and beaten him with fine passing shots, made no mistake this time.

    Victory to Nastase by six-two, six-two, six-four. His opponent in the final will be Sweden's Bjorn Borg or Argentina's Guilermo Vilas.

    Another American, Chris Evert, serving in the final of the women's singles, also on Sunday. Her opponent -- Martina Navratilove of Czechoslovakia, who at seventeen is three years younger than Miss. Everts It's the third time the two girls have met. On previous occasions, Miss. Evert has been the winner. But she found the Czech girl a tougher proposition on the Rome courts.

    Chris Evert, striving to win her first major world title, finally succeeded by a six-three, six-three margin. The victory ??? her prize-money worth five-thousand dollars.
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