At a time when the ATP Tour is desperately attempting to simplify everything it continues to cling to the round robin format for its end of season tournament with a tenacity that would be vaguely funny were it not for the fact that two of its major indoor tournaments, in Stuttgart and Paris, also want to opt for the same formula next year.
So it was that a hugely enthusiastic Hanovarian crowd urged and cheered their man Nicolas Kiefer to a physically punishing 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 victory over Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov yesterday, without realising that the 22-year-old German had already made sure of qualifying for today's semi-final by winning the first set and three games of the second. Not that he realised this apparently.
If this is not absolutely crystal clear, then suffice it to say that there were eight possible conclusions to the four-man white group before play began, all of them requiring a degree in mathematics. The eventual losers were Todd Martin and Thomas Enqvist.
Today's semis will be quite different. By defeating Kafelnikov and thereby winning the group, Kiefer avoided playing Andre Agassi, the winner of the red group. His reward, if such it is, is a match against Pete Sampras, who sealed his place against Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti.
Sampras only needed to win a set against the South American to be sure of his place in the semis, and duly took the first 7-6 on the tie-break. Kafelnikov now plays Agassi today. They have met eight times previously, sharing the spoils, although since his restoration at this year's French Open Agassi has won both of their meetings.
