RTAtour.com

It was a much hyped up match… what Andrei called, “the match of the century” and what Andrew called “the epic duel”. The hype however turned out just to be that… hype. The bubble burst for Andrew Chung on the night of July 8th, 2007 when he challenged Andrei Erdoss to the duel. As he sat down on the bench, disappointed and on the verge of tears, he reflected on what had happened to him….

This was a much anticipated match and one that had a lot of meaning for Chung who has been diligently practicing for the day of Erdoss’s return from Romania. Practicing an average of about 4 times a week during school days and increasing practice time to 5 - 7 times a week during summer, he has truly dedicated himself to this sport - all for a chance to defeat Andrei when he came back. However, it was not enough. On the evening of July 8th, Erdoss proved once again that he is second only to Michael Smith in the RTA Tour as he proceeded to defeat Chung in 4 sets in just under 3 hours. Along with that victory, Chung’s hope and spirit was crushed as he realized that even pushing himself to the limit was not enough to defeat his long time rival.

Chung was still hopeful after the first two sets, thinking that he still has a chance to come out on top when they had one set each. However, it was not to be. Things started to go wrong for Chung on the third and fourth sets. Chung had difficulty holding on to his serve because he lacked a big first serve that would immediately give him control of the point. And when Erdoss changed his strategy on the third and fourth set to hit more backhands, Chung found it difficult to execute his own strategy of hitting deep to push Erdoss back and coming to the net. He also didn’t have as much chance to use his forehand to hit the angled shots to move Andrei around the court. On top of that, Erdoss started hitting harder first serves and getting them in, which made it difficult for Chung to break Erdoss. Essentially, what Chung lacked was the ability to adjust to the opponent’s different strategies and as previously mentioned, the big, heavy first serve. Comparing groundstrokes, there was not much difference as far as pace or consistency between the two players. Chung felt that he had better directional control over his forehand than Erodss while Erdoss’s forehand had maybe slightly more topspin. At the net, Chung felt that he was more effective. And as far as speed, Chung did not feel that he was any slower than Andrei. He was able to chase down many balls that previously he would not have gotten. And Chung felt he was more consistent than Andrei since from the first set, he realized consistency will be one of the key factors that will decide the outcome of the match. However, Chung did not come to the net enough and did not hit enough to Andrei’s backhand.

Chung’s game is still evolving as he learns from each match and makes adjustments that will improve his game. Right now, Chung is working on the timing of when to approach the net for maximum effectiveness. He’s still working on flattening out his first serve to gain that elusive first serve that is hard and heavy. He is working on improving the consistency of his backhand. And during matches, he is working on trying to hit better angles with his forehand rather than just returning them consistently.

While Erdoss proved that there is still a fairly large gap between him and Chung, undoubtedly, both players and the rest of the RTA tour members realize that the gap is becoming smaller - slowly but surely.

Disappointed? Yes. But by playing Erdoss, Chung has gained some more insight into his game, and he will go back out on the courts to try and improve his game, using this experience to help him along the way.

The answer to my question to Andrei, “wonder if I can maybe beat you now?” is a no…. for the current moment. However, Chung believes that in the near future, the answer to that question may finally be a “yes”.

To that end, he wakes up again the next morning to resume his arduous training - with the light of hope flickering within his heart.

It took just under three hours for Andrei Erdoss to complete his 6-3, 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Andrew Chung in the so-called “Match of the Century.”

Chung issued the challenge, and Erdoss responded.

Ultimately Chung showed that he had improved since their last meeting. Erdoss and several observers noted afterward that Chung played a very consistent match. Almost in the same breath, however, those same observers noted that Chung’s serves were too easy for Erdoss to handle.

The match was consistent throughout on both sides, with several long rallies and multiple games decided after numerous deuces.

Chung effectively utilized angles to move Erdoss around the court in the second set. Erdoss later pointed to some key strategical changes after the second set that turned the match in his favor. He said his challenge was to focus on placement and winning points rather than on power and aesthetically pleasing shots. He also attacked the Chung backhand with moderate success.

Ultimately Chung vs. Erdoss was a solid match, even if it failed to live up to its billing.

“Maybe ‘Match of the Year,’” thought RTAtour President Justin Beckley. “But it’s the only RTAtour sanctioned match we’ve had this year, so that’s not really saying much.”

Whether or not there will be further matches this year is unknown. The option of Chung vs. Erdoss becoming a series of matches rather than a single match still remains. It could become the “Series of the Century,” although promoters may shy away from using any titles involving such dramatic terms as “century.”

There is no tournament. There are no points at stake. This match technically does not even count in the RTAtour. Yet somehow it is the match of the century.

Sunday at 7:00 pm, Smyrna, Georgia’s Tolleson Park will host what is sure to be an epic duel with Andrei Erdoss taking on challenger Andrew Chung.

The hype for this match has been building since September 2006, when Erdoss defeated Chung in three sets in the Smyrna Invitational. Erdoss promptly boarded a plane bound for Romania, and Chung promptly began preparations for the day of Erdoss’ return.

Erdoss has been working on his game in Europe. He competed in two tournaments: One in Romania and one in Greece. However he has played mostly on clay courts and spent no time on the hard courts during his absence from the States. Meanwhile Chung began a regimen of playing tennis five to seven days a week, and competing in five different tennis leagues.

Chung kept in close communication with Erdoss during that time. When Chung won a match, he made sure that Erdoss knew about it. As the summer approached and Erdoss planned to return to Georgia, Chung let him know that a monumental challenge awaited him.

“Wonder if I can maybe beat you now.” said Chung in an online message on May 13.

It took Erdoss almost a month to respond, but on June 8 he let Chung know that he was up to the challenge.

“Be ready, very ready! I’m coming!,” said Erdoss.

Chung was obviously ready for this reply. Less than nine hours later, he wrote, “Hey pops!…I’m ready for you anytime…you are sadly mistaken if you think I’m at the same level as when you last played me before you left the U.S. huh! I think the real question is…are you ready to challenge me at your current state? ”

“Young one, you got it coming to ya. Pops don’t let nobody talk like that,” said Erdoss.

However, Chung’s bravado seemed to diminish when Erdoss made his long awaited return. They played a preview “match,” which was best of three games. Erdoss won 2-0.

In the following week, Chung had this to say.

“I’m fighting an uphill battle like no other. In the entire time that I have known Andrei, I have beaten him in one set just before he left for Romania…Which would indicate that I’m the underdog and Andrei is the overwhelming favorite.”

Suddenly Chung gave a third-person description, and promotion, of the challenge that awaited him.

“But can Andrew pull off an upset with a victory against Andrei that has eluded him until now? It will be a day to remember in the RTAtour history if it can be done…How much has Andrew managed to close this seemingly vast gap? Judging from his form, Andrei doesn’t seem to have lost any of his touch or skills. Will history repeat itself? Or will Andrew manage to defeat his nemesis and rewrite the history of the RTA Tour? Please join us this Sunday night as I, the challenger, go into this epic battle with the courage and determination to change the RTA course and history…. forever”

But Chung is not the only one promoting this match. In the past week, several reports have surfaced on the Internet. One such report reads as follows:

“The event is not to be missed! Due to the advancing age of both contenders, Sunday’s match is likely to be the grand finale of the epic Erdoss/Chung feud that has raged since their two worlds collided in the late ’90s on the RTAtour! Missing this display of athletic brilliance would be akin to turning down the opportunity to witness Spartacus in the Gladatorial games; make no mistake, history will be made.”

It is uncertain, however, if this will indeed be the grand finale. The contestants are currently considering a best of three match format, and possibly a best of five sets format for each match.

Also uncertain at this time is the injury situation. Erdoss is nursing a sore knee and two sore ankles. Chung claims both his right knee and his torso are sore.

Tonight all the hype, all the words exchanged, will culminate in the exhibition “Match of the Century.” As Chung once said, “talk is cheap! Let’s play!”

Ultimately, the eighth and final day of the 2006 Smyrna Invitational was not as much about tennis as it was about history. In one respect, it was about Michael Smith looking to further cement his place in the history of the RTAtour. In another respect, it was about the last eight years of the RTAtour and the people who have been at the core of the association during that time.

Play began Sunday at Tolleson’s court 2 at approximately 4:00 in the afternoon with a very efficient effort by Smith against Kevin Agricola. The biggest question in this match was not whether or not Smith would win, but whether or not Smith would break his own tournament mark of 42 minutes for quickest match victory.

“I swear I’m not going for the record,” Smith said after taking a 5-1 lead over Agricola in the first set.

He may not have been going for the record, but indeed Smith outdid himself by concluding his 6-1, 6-1 victory over Agricola just 39 minutes after the match’s opening serve.

However, Agricola became the first player in the tournament to claim at least one game in each set played against Smith. He avoided a bagel in the first set by breaking Smith’s serve in the second game of the match. Down 5-0 in the second set, Agricola overcame a 15-40 deficit and held serve to avoid the second-set bagel.

“Thank God. I was not hungry,” said Agricola.

Both players were glad for a quick match as temperatures topped out in the mid-80s Sunday afternoon. Smith had to play in the tournament’s final match later in the day and was nursing a sore right elbow, which is his serving elbow. He took ibuprofen and kept ice on the elbow between matches.

Championship Contestants
Michael Smith and Andrei Erdoss

Improving to 3-0 with his victory over Agricola, Smith ensured that the final match of the tournament would be for the championship. Smith arrived back at Tolleson’s court 2 around 7:30, approximately 30 minutes before his opponent Andrei Erdoss.

“I didn’t want anybody to miss it. It might be so quick,” Erdoss explained.

Although Smith was yet to spend less than an hour on court in any matches this tournament, his previous history with Erdoss did not point to a quick match.

Erdoss had a losing record against Smith, but the matches were almost always closely contested. The last time they met, in the 2000 Mableton Open, Erdoss became the first player to win a set over Smith in tournament play.

“Most of the time when I play Michael I just hit groundstrokes from the back, and then he puts underspin and takes control of the point,” Erdoss said. “My strategy [this time] was to hit a lot of underspin.”

Initially it seemed like a good strategy. However as the match progressed, two key flaws in the plan quickly surfaced.

Erdoss was much more experienced in trading topspin shots with players like Agricola, Justin Beckley and Andrew Chung than he was in hitting with slice as he attempted to do in this championship match against Smith.

“I’m not used to [hitting with underspin],” said Erdoss. “If I hit a lot of underspin my groundstrokes suffer.”

The second flaw with the plan was in Smith’s ability to react to the slice shots that Erdoss managed to send his way.

“I’m used to Andrei’s spin,” said Smith.

With Erdoss’ spin strategy foiled, Smith imposed his will as he had all tournament. He kept Erdoss off balance with a steady dose of slice and solid, effective serves throughout the match.

“My serves were really good though tonight, that’s my favorite part,” said Smith. “I was turning and it wasn’t hurting my arm that…much.”

Smith won the first set 6-0, which was the first time he had taken a set from Erdoss at love. Undeterred, Erdoss stayed with his gameplan.

“I think Andrei, it was like an all or nothing thing for him,” said Smith. “He was like, ‘I’m not going to play to lose,’ so he was going to try his slice and everything, and just hasn’t had enough time with it.”

“I’ve got to practice. I got to work on certain things more. More slice,” said Erdoss.

The second set played out much like the first, and by the time it was over Smith had become the 2006 Smyrna Invitational champion by claiming his second career 6-0 set against Erdoss. It was the same score by which he won five of the eight sets he played in the tournament. In terms of total games lost by the champion, Smith’s four ranks second in RTAtour history only behind Greg Lovelace’s two in the 2001 Smyrna Classic.

While Smith made some immediate history with his lopsided tournament championship, he also made a bit of long-term history by winning his fourth tournament title. He is now tied with Justin Beckley for most championships in RTAtour history. Considering that Beckley accumulated all his titles from 1994 to 1998 and that Smith has routinely beaten players from that era including Beckley, Smith has unquestionably built the strongest career resume of anyone who has ever played in the RTAtour.

Erdoss, whose career record falls to 25-13, now departs for Romania. While the time of his absence is indefinite, Erdoss insisted throughout the tournament that it not be called his last. For now, he plans to continue developing his game on the clay courts of his native country.

“Going to Romania, I’m curous what tennis is there…see how I do,” said Erdoss. “I’m actually excited about that. I get to play a little different type tennis maybe, and get a little more experience.”

Erdoss will have to adjust quickly, as he is already registered for a tournament next week. Although he has played for several years on the American hard courts, Erdoss seems better adapted to the clay than his fellow RTAtour competitors. He enjoyed success against Smith when they played an exhibition match on the Romanian clay.

“I beat him that time…In a different world,” Erdoss recalled.

“He beats me on his own turf,” Smith said.

As for on-court happenings, this would be a sufficient place to conclude. However, to close the summary of the 2006 Smyrna Invitational discussing records and strategies, groundstrokes and court surfaces, would be to miss the larger picture that has always been in the background of this association.

Tournament Participants
and a Few of Their Supporters

The five players that participated in this tournament have formed a unique group with deep ties. They all met as high school tennis players in the late 1990s: Justin Beckley and Kevin Agricola from Pebblebrook; Andrei Erdoss, Andrew Chung and Michael Smith from Campbell. The group became acquainted through tennis and united by tournaments.

“Oh, I love it. I mean, I think it changed my life,” said Erdoss. “I love this group. We’re very close. We get to do a lot of things together, and just having those tournaments I think brought us closer together.”

They’ve experienced much in their years of friendship: From high school, to college and into the work force. They’ve competed with each other in tennis, basketball, soccer, shotgun shooting, ping pong, foosball, card games and a variety of athletic and mental challenges. They’ve gone camping and some have even traveled to foreign lands together. Over the years they’ve sharpened not only each other’s athletic skills, but also their life skills.

“I think we all changed and we all got better,” said Erdoss.

Smith continued, “As people and in every way. In tennis, also in our lives.”

Andrei Erdoss Cuts the Cake

So when they gathered for an after-party tournament and sendoff for Erdoss, they spent much of the time reminiscing. They recalled many moments, but only covered a small fraction in the time they had.

Chung said, “We’ve been through everything together, through thick and thin.”

“In my head I’m playing like a little video with all the little scenes that happened,” said Erdoss.

Members of the group look forward to meeting again, and they’ve already discussed visiting Erdoss in Romania as well as Erdoss visiting the States or even returning to residency Stateside at some point.

“…you guys keep your games. I’ll be back,” Erdoss told his friends.

With the tournament over, the question of the RTAtour’s future remains. No tournaments were held in 2004 or 2005 as Beckley and Erdoss could not find the time required to organize and direct. With one-half of the RTAtour’s committee overseas, there are significant challenges ahead for future tournaments.

“We are hopeful of more tournaments,” said Beckley. “We have not announced anything either way at this point.”

Once a decision is made, it will be posted here on RTAtour.com

The 2006 Smyrna Invitational concluded with a historic victory for Michael Smith, uncertainty for the RTAtour’s future and a nostalgic sendoff for Andrei Erdoss. After the championship match, Erdoss talked about his experience in this tournament and in the past eight years with the RTAtour. In the end, he spoke for the entire group.

“I mean I wouldn’t want it any other way you know?” said Erdoss. “I enjoyed every minute of it.”

Andrew Chung, Michael Smith
and Andrei Erdoss aimed for the
championship Saturday

Saturday began with the possibility of great things for Andrew Chung. Those possibilities were quickly, and decisively, erased Saturday evening.

The end of Chung’s 2006 Smyrna Invitational run seemed unfitting of the impressive performance he gave throughout the tournament prior to Saturday.

Chung dominated Kevin Agricola on the tournament’s opening day, was on the verge of taking Justin Beckley to a third set Wednesday and looked impressive Friday night when he beat Andrei Erdoss 6-3 in the second set to level their contest.

Although having one loss on his record, Chung was still in contention for the tournament title. A victory in the third set over Erdoss followed by a victory over Michael Smith would have secured Chung a tie for the lead at the conclusion of round-robin play.

The second set against Erdoss was one of Chung’s finest performances in RTAtour competition. He hit solid shots and fought to extend points when necessary, then seized opportunities to attack and convert opportunities. Chung gave everything he had in that second set, and was clearly exhausted as the players began the third and deciding set.

Erdoss sensed Chung’s fatigue and forced the issue as the third set began. He quickly grabbed the set’s first two games and was one point away from the third when the lights went out at Tolleson.

While it seemed that the lights had effectively saved Chung, Erdoss was determined not to let the reprieve spark a rally.

“I just wanted to finish what I started last night…so that it doesn’t give him ideas to come back or do any crazy stuff like that,” said Erdoss.

On the match’s first point of Saturday night, Erdoss hit an ace out wide to claim the game’s third set and immediately place all the pressure squarely on Chung.

“I was trying, but I didn’t expect it, so I was surprised,” Erdoss said of the ace.

Down 3-0, Chung could not answer the challenge. His shots, which were so solid less than 24 hours before, appeared shaky in part two of his match with Erdoss.

“I was starting with a disadvantage at two-love and ad-in,” said Chung. “For a moment I thought I could come back and try to keep the intensity, but it wasn’t happening today.”

A mere 14 minutes after Chung’s match with Erdoss resumed, it was over. Erdoss closed out the set 6-0 to improve to 3-0 on the tournament.

As disheartening as the sudden loss to Erdoss (and the elimination from championship contention) had to be for Chung, things would only get worse for him from there. 20 minutes after the conclusion of his match with Erdoss, Chung began play against Michael Smith.

For Chung, his final match of this tournament was not one he will want to remember. In some respects, forgetting should be easy. The match was a 42-minute blur of Chung searching in vain for answers while being systematically taken apart by his savvy opponent.

While Smith looked solid in his 6-0, 6-0 dismantling of Chung, perhaps the outcome wasn’t so much a reflection of the players’ respective abilities as it was a side effect of Chung’s tremendous effort the previous night.

“[Chung] was tired really,” said Smith. “He played really hard. He was really pushing for that set [Friday vs. Erdoss]. I really think that just wore him out. I think…definitely there is a carryover between days when you have a tough match.”

Smith added that recent exhibition contests with Chung were much more competitive than Saturday’s match. While Smith expressed satisfaction with his effort, he stated that the final result “…wasn’t much to do with what I was doing.”

In spite of Saturday’s results, Chung gained much in this tournament to build on for the future.

“The bottom line is I tried,” said Chung. “I think I did improve somewhat…I’ll just try to keep practicing and one day I’ll beat [Erdoss and Smith]. Just watch.”

“And then we’ll play tennis,” Erdoss added sarcastically.

Smith comes away from his first two matches this tournament with results reminiscent of his early days in the league (he began his RTAtour career by winning his first nine matches and first three tournaments). After losing two of his first three games in Friday’s match with Justin Beckley, Smith has run off 23 consecutive games (11 against Beckley, 12 against Chung).

Smith will play a doubleheader Sunday, with Kevin Agricola at 3:30 pm and Andrei Erdoss at 7:30 pm. Smith is an overwhelming favorite to prevail over Agricola — who is 0-3 in this tournament — and face Erdoss in the tournament’s concluding match with the championship on the line. Players are already giving Smith the edge in that contest.

“Oh, there’s no question. Mike will win,” said Chung.

“My money is on Mike,” said Erdoss.

Michael Smith defeated Justin Beckley 6-2, 6-0.

Andrei Erdoss led Andrew Chung 6-2, 3-6, 2-0 when the lights at Tolleson Park went out.  Chung and Erdoss will resume their match Saturday at approximately 7:15 pm.

Andrei Erdoss and Justin Beckley

Andrei Erdoss seems to have a propensity for 47-minute matches.

It took him 47 minutes to defeat Kevin Agricola in the opening match, and it took him just 47 minutes to complete a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Justin Beckley Thursday night. The match, rescheduled because of rain on Tuesday, began at almost 10:00 pm.

“The lights go out at 11,” Erdoss pointed out.

As it turned out, the Tolleson Park lights outlasted Beckley’s quest for a 3-0 mark in the tournament. The match reached completion almost 15 minutes before the lights gave way.

Erdoss, as he did in the opening match with Kevin Agricola, played a very consistent game throughout. In the early stages of the match, neither player appeared dominant. They were on serve after the first five games.

“I saw [Beckley was] actually trying to put more pressure on my backhand,” said Erdoss. “That helped [him] a little bit.”

Down 2-3 on serve in the first set, Beckley’s tennis arsenal rapidly diminished. The shots that kept him in contention quickly became an ally of his opponent.

“Sometimes my game disappears,” said Beckley.

Meanwhile Erdoss stayed consistent and put the onus on Beckley to hit clean shots. In spite of several strategies over the course of the next 10 games, Beckley continued to seal his fate with unforced errors.

“I tried hitting it with pace. I tried backing off and just, you know, trying to…avoid beating myself,” said Beckley. “[Erdoss] answered every challenge, everything I could think of to throw at [him] to try to win.”

Erdoss returned virtually every type of shot of widely varying paces throughout the match. He stayed in control and looked dominant as he claimed nine of the match’s last 10 games.

Erdoss improves to 4-0 all-time against Beckley in a match that had more than one link to the history between these players.

Beckley turned to his Wilson Profile racquet after breaking a string in the second set of Thursday’s match. The Wilson Profile was also the racquet Beckley turned to after shattering a racquet in the third set of his 1999 Smyrna Invitational contest with Erdoss.

The venue of that 1999 contest was Tolleson’s court 5, which was also the venue for Thursday’s match. Court 5 is also the place where Beckley and Erdoss first met while practicing in March of 1998.

Beckley falls to 2-1 in this tournament while Erdoss takes the standings lead with a 2-0 mark. Erdoss now has two matches remaining in this tournament; a tournament he insists is not necessarily the last one.

“You got to stop saying last tournament.” said Erdoss. “I’ll be back. 10 years from now we can have a tournament.”

Justin Beckley and Andrew Chung

Justin Beckley improved to 2-0 in this year’s round-robin Smyrna Invitational with a hard-fought 6-2, 7-6 (3) victory over Andrew Chung Wednesday night at Tolleson Park.

Beckley trailed 5-2 in the second set before rallying to take a 6-5 lead.

“[Beckley] was coming out with some amazing shots over there,” said Chung.

“It took those kind of shots to win,” said Beckley. “I knew I couldn’t just get the ball back and wait for [Chung] to mess up.”

Chung broke Beckley’s serve in the following game to force a tiebreaker. In the tiebreaker, the players were even at three points apiece before Beckley took the next four points to claim the match.

Beckley, who also serves as a commentator for RTAtour matches and authors articles such as this one, was impressed by Chung’s play.

“[Chung] gave me everything I could handle, seriously,” said Beckley. “I told you people when I was commentating that he had gotten a lot better since last time, and I think tonight showed that. He played some really good points.”

Even though the end result was a loss for Chung, the final score actually gives a measure of his improvement. In three previous tournament matches against Beckley (played in 1998 and 2002), Chung managed to win a total of only five games. On Wednesday he won five in one set.

“Today was a really tough match. Coming here I knew it was going to be an uphill battle, but I gave it everything I had,” said Chung.

Chung and Beckley will both fight uphill battles for the remainder of the tournament. Both players have Andrei Erdoss and Michael Smith remaining on their schedules. Between the two, Beckley and Chung have just one tournament victory over either Erdoss or Smith. That one victory was by default.

The weather was the story of day three at the 2006 Smyrna Invitational. All matches originally scheduled for Tuesday were postponed due to a large area of precipitation that moved into north Georgia during the afternoon and remained throughout the evening and night.

The match between Andrei Erdoss and Justin Beckley has been rescheduled for Thursday evening at 9:30. No make-up date has been announced for Kevin Agricola’s contest with Michael Smith.

More rain is expected on Wednesday, but forecasters expect most of it to fall early in the day. Precipitation chances drop from 60 percent Wednesday afternoon to 20 percent Wednesday night. Justin Beckley’s match with Andrew Chung is scheduled for 8:30 pm. There are no other matches scheduled for day four.

Andrei Erdoss and Kevin Agricola

In his final RTAtour event before departing for Romania, Andrei Erdoss looked impressive in his opening match of the 2006 Smyrna Invitational. It took Erdoss only 47 minutes to dispatch Kevin Agricola and improve to 1-0 in this round-robin event.

For Erdoss, it was his first tournament match since he lost to Kevis Santiago in the semifinals of the 2003 Austell Open.

“Actually I like this. I like the pressure. I was a little nervous at the beginning,” Erdoss said after the match.

Erdoss however did not let any nervousness show in the early moments of Monday’s match. He set the tone quickly by breaking Agricola’s serve in the opening game.

Agricola did however have some highlight-worthy moments. He served two aces and extended several points. At times he showed the same kind of shotmaking ability that helped him advance to the Harvest Pointe Open finals in 1999.

“[Agricola] has very unpredictable serves, which is good for him,” said Erdoss.

“I actually was really happy with my game,” said Agricola. “My serves were much better…I had some really good shots.”

Although he hit several very good shots, Agricola was unable to hit them with the needed regularity needed to seriously challenge the two-time Smyrna Invitational champion. Erdoss controlled the match by maintaining consistency throughout and being selective in going for additional power.

Erdoss and Agricola will both return to Tolleson Park Tuesday evening. Erdoss will face Justin Beckley in their first tournament meeting since 1999, when Erdoss defeated Beckley in three sets to advance to the Smyrna Invitational final. This match will be one of the three remaining for Erdoss in this tournament.

“I’m excited, I can’t wait. I look forward to them,” said Erdoss.

Agricola — who is yet to win more than two games in any set — will play his final match of the tournament against Michael Smith, an opponent who defeated him 6-0, 6-2 in the quarterfinal round of the 2000 Mableton Open.

“I’ll let [Smith] win by default,” Agricola said with a laugh.

The day two post-match interviews concluded with Erdoss — whose upcoming transatlantic move prompted this tournament — asking what is perhaps the question of this Invitational, “Are you guys going to have other tournaments afterwards?”