Estoril Open 2002 News and Events

Jarkko Nieminen
© João Lagos Sports

Finland's Jarkko Nieminen reached his second ATP final by defeating Estoril regular Fernando Meligeni 7-5, 6-1 on Saturday.

"It's difficult to compare this to the Stockholm final , since the conditions are completely different. Of course the first final is always special, but perhaps I can make this even more special by winning," said Nieminen after the win.

The Estoril Open is Nieminen's first ATP event on clay, and he's obviously comfortable on Portuguese soil. The 20-year-old now holds a 14-1 record in Portugal, including Challengers. He has even played in Estoril once as a junior.

In the final, Nieminen will take on fellow 20-year-old David Nalbandian. "I know the way he plays, and we've played a lot against each others as juniors", said Nieminen about his final opponent.

"In the first set I played well, but I lost a little bit after that. Today it would have been easier to go sailing than to play tennis. The wind will be the winner tomorrow", said Meligeni following the semifinal loss. "You have to give Nieminen a lot of credit. This is his first claycourt tournament, and he's in the final."