Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 1, 1991 TAG: 9104010083
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: MEXICO CITY LENGTH: Medium
In the final match, after Gilbert had clinched victory, Leonardo Lavalle of Mexico beat Jim Courier 4-6, 7-6, 7-5.
Gilbert broke Herrera in the eighth game of the fifth set, then served out at love. Their match lasted 3 hours, 45 minutes.
"I felt satisfied to get the U.S. team to victory," Gilbert said. "He played above his ranking, and the crowds pumped him up and that helped him a lot."
Gilbert, 29, said adjusting to Mexico City's smog and the 7,250-foot altitude always has been the toughest part for the U.S. team. The players had four days to get acclimatized, but Gilbert said 10 would have been better.
"I was beginning to feel relaxed in the fifth set," Gilbert said. "I played steady and I didn't feel the crowd was pressuring me. So I went on ahead. I was the better player of the two and I won."
The United States, the defending champion, plays Spain in the quarterfinals.
At Rennes, France, Guy Forget beat Amos Mansdorf 6-4, 6-2 and Henri Leconte beat Gilad Bloom 6-3, 7-5 to finish a 5-0 rout of Israel. France plays Australia in the quarterfinals at Nimes on May 3-5.
At Berlin, Germany advanced to the semifinals by winning the doubles competition and taking a 3-0 lead over Argentina in its quarterfinal. Michael Stich and Eric Jelen beat Javier Frana and Christian Miniussi 7-5, 6-7, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4. On Saturday, Boris Becker and Stich won in straight sets.
At Prague, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia beat Czechoslovakia 4-1 to advance to the semifinals. Goran Ivanisevic beat Czechoslovakia's No. 1 player, Karel Novacek, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 6-4 to clinch the victory in the first match. Slobodan Zivojinovic then beat Petr Korda 7-6 (8-6), 2-6, 8-6. Yugoslavia will play either France or Australia in the semifinals.
by CNB