O'Brien, Palmer duo raring to have a go

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, DEC. 9. The feisty American duo of Alex O'Brien and Jared Palmer, seeded third at the Gold Flake World doubles championship scheduled to start here on December 13, are not inclined to take their rivals lightly. The onus is more on O'Brien, who was the last year's champion with Canadian partner Sebastian Lareau.

``I am champion of the world right? I love it and I am determined to defend it with Palmer,'' said O'Brien after the two went through a solid two hour practice session at the KSLTA Stadium.

The pair didn't think the absence of the Woodies had made any tangible difference to quality of the field. ``So, the Woodies are not there. But what a replacement we have here in wildcards - Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes. It is going to be very tough facing them with all the crowd here supporting them. I bet guys would hang from there and cheer for them,'' said O'Brien pointing to nearby trees. ``We would rather take them in the later stage of the tournament,'' chipped in Palmer.

Palmer and O'Brien came together with a bang early this year starting off with back to back wins at Indian Wells and Washington DC. A lot then was expected of them at the Grand Slams, but they had to be content with a semifinal spot in the US Open and a few finals in the Masters Series.

``It was a bit disappointing that we didn't win any Grand Slams, but the fact remains that we are among the top ten pairs. That is important,'' said Palmer.

``What's more important is that we go out in style by winning the World doubles. It will be great way to end the year,'' said O'Brien. For him it is his first trip to India while Palmer had come earlier in 1993-94 and was a hitting partner for the Indian Davis Cup team.

``India is a different cultural experience altogether,'' said O'Brien.

On their game, O'Brien said, ``I am a steady sort of guy, while Palmer takes off with those flashy strokes. That kind of stuff makes a good mix.

``A win is a win, so we aim to give it the best shot, tennis like life deserves that,'' signed off O'Brien on a philosophical note.

Besides Palmer and O'Brien the other players to check at the KSLTA were Mahesh Bhupathi, Piet Norval and Don Johnson. Mahesh's partner, Leander, is expected on Sunday and so are the remaining teams.

In the meanwhile the fourth seeded pair of David Adams and John Laafnie de Jager of South Africa have pulled out of the championship. According to a message received from the ATP Tour, de Jager sustained a wrist injury last week and has expressed his inability to play at Bangalore.

The stand-in Swedish team of Simon Aspelin and Johan Landsburg will now get into the eight-team draw.

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