Young Bermuda internationals Javon Whitter and Ryan Swan served up one of the most bizarre clashes of the 2001 Argus Open during a rain-interrupted round of matches at the Tennis Stadium yesterday, with Whitter eventually winning 6-3, 0-6, 6-0.

The contest never reached the anticipated heights the large gallery had expected with first Whitter and then Swan breezing through sets with constant breaks of service after the seventh game of the first set.

"I tried to take him out of his game because I knew he was in better match shape than I was," said Whitter.

"I knew I had to raise my game to a new level in the third set so I put pressure on him by attacking - coming to the net, which isn't my game, but he was outplaying me at the baseline."

In the end such strategy paid handsome dividends as Whitter broke Swan in the first, third and fifth games of the deciding set to take the match.

Veteran Vernal Davis and youthful Karl Roberts, former stars on both the international and local tennis scene, likewise grabbed some of the spotlight during weekend action.

Davis, on the downside of a stellar career featuring several titles and stints at the top of the national rankings, continued to defy the ageing process with twin victories while Roberts, a former youth champion who represented the Island at the CAC tennis championships, also made a successful return to tournament play.

Kenneth Pearman, who just a day earlier had enjoyed victory over Paul York and looked unbeatable in doing so, was Davis' first victim - 6-3, 6-3 - and then it was David Furbert's turn.

Furbert lost the first set 6-2 and was trailing 5-0 in the second when he quit.

Meanwhile, Roberts, one of the bright young athletes a decade ago when he represented the Island in tennis and football, made a triumphant return to tournament play when he partnered Romar Douglas to victory over the father and son team of Steve and McKenna Bean, winning 6-1, 7-5.

In other action, neither of the expected classic battles between seasoned veterans materialised as Martin Zolnai brushed aside the challenge of Coleridge Place on the way to a commanding 6-3, 6-2 victory.

Three matches in one day proved to be too much for the ageing legs of Michael Levon, forcing him to give up the challenge against Earl Leader while trailing 6-1, 3-0.

Sixth seed Larry Samuels, playing at the height of his game staved off what seemed certain defeat to oust Mark McClintock 7-6 (7-1), 6-3. Samuels roared off to a 4-1 lead but McClintock stormed back to win the next four games to take a 5-4 lead and was serving for the first set.

That's when Samuels dug deep and called upon all of his experience and resolve to break McClintock at 30 to level the match at 5-5. He then roared to victory in the tie-break, winning 7-1.

That triumph took the steam out of McClintock and he was only a shell of himself in the second set as Samuels won 6-3.

"It was just plain and simple, I choked," admitted McClintock when it was all over. "For goodness sake, I had the first set won at 5-4 and serving.

"But the situation, the circumstances, proved to be too much for me and I was unable to pull it off."

While McClintock was getting nervous, Samuels was gaining momentum. "Really, at no time did I think I was going to lose," he said. "I knew what I had to do; I just had to find an easier way of doing it. When I did, I was home free."

What was it Samuels did? "I changed my strategy and stopped trying to out-hit him," he said.

"I started to slow the pace of my strokes and move him from side to side."

Meanwhile, 12-year-old Kris Frick continued his amazing run in the singles, beating Burton Butterfield 6-2, 6-0 then came from a set down to defeat Craig Bethune 6-7 (8-6), 6-1, 6-4 before finally tasting defeat.

That came when he played with his father Steve in losing to Philip Nearon and Sammy Wilson 6-4, 6-4.

In other games, Laverne Stowe defeated C. Philips 6-0, 6-2 while the tandem of Carol Reid and Brian Connell defeated Belinda Roberts and Mark McClintock 6-4, 6-3. Sammy Maybury and Shonette Wilson eased past Tracy Berrell and Mike Levon 6-1, 6-1 while Charmaine Smith and Aileen Stuart ousted the teenaged team of Jasmine Quinn and Jackie Lambert 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5).