ENQVIST, KING OF CHAMPIONS IN CHENGDU, DEFEATS IVANISEVIC IN FINALS
Kafelnikov Overturns Fan-Favorite Cash 7-5, 6-3 to Take Third Place

ATP Champions Tour No.1 Thomas Enqvist (SWE) continued his historic run en route to capturing the inaugural Chengdu Open crown, preserving his undefeated record on tour by defeating Goran Ivanisevic (CRO) 7-5, 6-2.

There was an era in tennis when the unbeatable Swede was Bjorn Borg. On the ATP Champions Tour, that invincible aura now surrounds Enqvist, who has won all twelve of the twelve matches he has played thus far. The victory in China supplies him with an additional 400 South African Airways ranking points, giving him a total of 1,200 points on the year. With tournament victories in Sao Paulo and Paris, Enqvist now towers 750 points over current No. 2, fellow Swede Stefan Edberg.

The Chengdu Open final was undistinguishable from an ATP World Tour match except in one key area: the players were smiling. A lot. "It's all the good parts of tennis, now you don't have the stress anymore, you don't have the pressure anymore, you just go out there and have fun," explained Enqvist. "Obviously, when you're on the court, you want to do well, but the most important thing is that you enjoy yourself and you give the crowd a good match."

Enqvist did just that. Though Enqvist has praised Ivanisevic's serve as "probably the best of all-time," he was able to break the lefty three times: once in the final game of the first set, and twice in the second set. Ivanisevic, re-aggravating the thigh muscle he had pulled the day, moved sparingly around the court. By the second set, upon missing his first serve, he would hop on his left leg to avoid landing on his injured right thigh. Yet Ivanisevic, who won Wimbledon in 2001 with an injured shoulder, and the 2008 ATP Champions Tour event in Budapest with an injured knee, still struck clean winners from the baseline and served 10 aces in the match. Enqvist dominated, however, rifling forehand, backhand, and volley winners.

Yet when Enqvist looks back on the Chengdu Open years from now, the first memory that comes to mind won't be his stellar play. "I had five fantastic days here. This was the first time I was able to hit with McEnroe, I got to hit with him, and I got to hit with Bjorn, [who] is my biggest idol and role model -- a really big hero for me always." Sounding every bit the star-struck fan, he added, "I had so much fun to be around him, to be able to have dinner with him, and to also hit some balls with him. That memory I'm going to keep for the rest of my life."

For Ivanisevic as well, the absolute highlight of the tournament was getting to interact with and play against McEnroe and Borg in the round robin stage. "First, [I played] Bjorn. I had a great time, then John...I didn't have [such a] good time because he wanted to beat me badly -- but in the end he lost. So it's always fun when you can beat your idol."

Meanwhile, the third place playoff lived up to the high entertainment expectations Australian Pat Cash had created for fans, with eventual winner Yevgeny Kafelnikov joining in the fun. Kafelnikov stripped off his sweatbands and lobbed them to Cash, who hit them into the stands.

When two spectators fought over one of the many black-and-white checkered headbands Cash threw into the crowd, Cash motioned for them to return it to him. He snipped it in half with his scissors, and tossed the two parts back to the spectators in question.

Throughout the match, the fans laughed as much as if they were audience members at a comedy show. At one point, Cash handed his racket to a ball girl in mock frustration and motioned for her to receive serve in his place. She whiffed the soft serve Kafelnikov lobbed to her, so Cash picked another ball boy to stand in for him. When Cash's second choice was similarly unable to get a rally going, Kafelnikov signaled for the ball boy at the net to take his place. The ball boy hit a clean inside-out forehand return for a winner. The umpire, who had allowed the intermission in play to unfold, then continued regular scoring when the players resumed.

Kafelnikov broke Cash in the final game of the first set and twice in the second set. The players did well to mix entertainment with competition as they played a technically sound match with the mirth of court jesters.

In fact, Kafelnikov so enjoyed the Chengdu Open that he said, "It's a shame I haven't been playing [in this] part of the world. If I knew how good the place was, I definitely would have come much more often."

Ivanisevic was blown away by the conditions in Chengdu. "This is one of the greatest stadiums I've ever played in my life," he said, noting the windless weather and just-right stadium size.

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About the Chengdu Open
The Chengdu Open is one of 7 tournaments on the ATP Champions Tour. It will be played November 5 to 8, 2009, at the Sichuan International Tennis Center in the new town of Shuangliu District of Chengdu. The tournament has eight players who will be divided into two groups for round robin play, the top two players from the groups will meet in the final while the runners-up from each group will play-off for third and fourth place. The tournament is being promoted by Chengdu Sports Industry Co. Ltd and CCTV-IMG Sports Management Company.

For more information please visit: www.chengduchampions.com

About the City of Chengdu
Chengdu is the capital of "Heavenly State" (Tian Fu Zhi Guo), home of giant pandas, spicy food and the city of cotton-rose hibiscus. Located in the west of Sichuan Basin and in the center of Chengdu Plain. Chengdu, which is rich in natural resources, covers a total area of 12.3 thousand square kilometers with a population of over 11 million. The history of Chengdu can be traced back 2,400 years when the first emperor built his capital here and named the city. Enjoying the food as well as the culture, shopping and having tea at a teahouse afford a deeper understanding of Chengdu.

About Shuangliu County
Shuangliu County, a suburb of Chengdu, has ranked number one on "Sichuan's Top Ten Counties" list for 13 consecutive years due to its consistent economic growth and strength. With a population of 950,000, Shuangliu boasts the infrastructure of a major metropolis, hosting the Shuangliu International Airport, the Chengdu-Kunming railway and three expressways, ten highways that lead to downtown Chengdu, and four subway lines currently under construction. Covering a total area of 1,067 sq. km, 21 towns, and four sub-districts, Shuangliu also features cultural and historical attractions such as Jinhua Temple and Huanglongxi town. The very name "Shuangliu" comes from the famous line "embraced by two rivers and stretching two flows" in the poem In Praise of Shu Capital written by Zuosi, a noted Chinese poet.

About Chengdu Sports Industry Co., Ltd
Chengdu Sports Industry Co., Ltd is a state-owned company launched by the Chengdu municipal government, specializing in financing, investing and managing sports businesses.

CSI's main business practices have involved investment and management of sports venues and facilities and sports events as well as other sports-related businesses.

CSI has established a close cooperation and partnership with well-known international business giants, including IMG, AEG, Ticketmaster and the NBA, in accordance with its high-end partnership strategy in the globe.

Web site: www.csi88.cn / E-mail: Chengdusi@sina.com

About China Central Television (CCTV)
China Central Television (CCTV) is the national television enterprise and the largest TV broadcaster in the People's Republic of China. It operates 17 national channels, and attracts more than one billion viewers (over 90 percent of the population). CCTV plays an important role in the nation's education, information, culture, entertainment, and social services. China International TV Corporation (CITVC) is the wholly-owned business arm of CCTV and the most powerful media enterprise in China. CCTV 5 is the only national sports network in China and has an 80 percent market share of China's television sports industry. CCTV Sports Promotion Corp., the business arm of CCTV Sports, focuses on sports media, events, partnerships and sponsorship, including the production of many successful programs.

About IMG Tennis
IMG is the leading management company in tennis. IMG represents some of the world's top male and female tennis players. The company's roster of top tennis clients includes many of today's superstars: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Venus Williams, Jelena Jankovic and James Blake. In addition, IMG owns, manages or represents many of the world's leading tournaments including the Sony Ericsson Open, Australian Open, the Chennai Open, the Malaysian Open, and Wimbledon amongst many others.

About IMG Sports & Entertainment
Operating in 30 countries, IMG Sports & Entertainment's diverse businesses include: consulting services; event ownership and management; fashion events and models representation; licensing; golf course design; and client representation in golf, tennis, broadcasting, speakers, European football, rugby, cricket, motor sports, coaching, Olympic and action sports. IMG Academies are the world's largest, multi-sport training and educational facilities, delivering world-class training experiences to more than 12,000 junior, collegiate, adult, and professional athletes each year. For more information please visit: www.imgworld.com

About CCTV-IMG Sports Management Company
CCTV-IMG Sports Management Company is a 20-year exclusive joint venture formed by IMG Worldwide, Inc., the global sports and entertainment company, and China Central Television (CCTV), the world's largest television broadcaster. The Company is committed to creating, developing and promoting world-class sporting events and sports programming across China, including Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. IMG's extensive knowledge and depth of experience in designing, staging and operating sporting events will be linked with the unrivalled influence and expansive reach of CCTV and its 17 national channels and array of cable networks, which combined currently reach more than 1.2 billion people. CCTV and IMG will work together as partners, combining the best of their vast experiences and powers -- CCTV in China and media; IMG internationally and in sports management -- to develop new and important sporting events in China. Leveraging the combined strengths of both CCTV and IMG, CCTV-IMG Sports Management Company intends on becoming an important factor in bringing the best sporting events and sports management methodologies to China.

About Sichuan International Tennis Center & Sichuan Tennis International Hotel
Sichuan Investment International Tennis Center Development Co., Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Sichuan Investment Corporation, which manages 5-star hotels; organizes large conferences; operate professional tennis tournaments and stadium management. Founded in early 2007, currently owns and manages Sichuan Tennis International Hotel (based on the construction of 5-star standard), 36 tennis courts which are equipped to host ATP and WTA events, as well as a Sports Park covering 160,000 square meters. Located in Dongshen Town, Shuangliu New Urban Disctrict, only 16 kilometers away from the Chengdu city and 15 minutes from the Shuangliu International Airport. Situated on a beautiful ground, this multifunctional sports complex is ideal for events, accommodation, leisure and conferences.