KEY POINTS:
In the end, there was barely enough time to drink the bottle of Deutz Blanc de Blancs. Although Aravene Rezai, the French woman who ended the hopes and dreams of Kiwi tennis fans by dispatching Marina Erakovic in the semis, showed a few of the blistering shots that
had put her in the final, her legendary opponent Lindsay Davenport was simply too classy. I'd only had a few forkfuls of the salmon fillet resting on steamed udon noodles and Davenport had taken the first set 6-2.
The plates had just been cleared and the order put in for strawberries and ice cream, when Davenport finished off Rezai 6-2, 6-2. Fifty-one minutes and it was all over.
Probably an early finish was a good thing. A week of corporate wining and dining is not for the faint-hearted, and an epic match lasting hours may have finished off livers that had been subjected to a constant assault over Christmas and New Year. Although, to be fair, a group of accountants for a large company won the record for the lowest spend of any corporate box of any year when they signed off a bill for only $48 after a day out this week.
The infamous girls and boys of Box 24 were looking perky, thanks in part to a secret drink recipe boxholder Craig Rendle had concocted. There was a photographic montage in honour of Box 24 showing the different outfits Craig has devised over the seven years Commercial Plumbing has been booking the box, starting with Anna Kournikova - which is a very good place to start.
During the Pat Cash/John McEnroe celebrity challenge, they dressed as big babies so they could spit the dummy every time McEnroe did, and, this year, they were dressed in camouflage gear as the Jagger Leach Security Protection squad and supporting Jagger's mum, Lindsay.
Box 24 has always been a part of what makes the ASB Classic so much fun, so it was nice seeing their efforts recognised publicly. And congratulations again to the organisers of the ASB Women's Classic for another brilliant event - to see Lindsay Davenport live was a real treat - and, of course, thanks to the sponsors.
Although I'm not sure how many customers Lufthansa will have secured for their private jet service as a result of the glossy brochure they'd placed in the players' box. Davenport is by far the biggest earner in the tournament, and she said in an interview that she flies economy. No faffing around with private jets for this sensible mother of one.
Still, some of the young players we saw on court this week will be the top 10 players of tomorrow and maybe when they get to rock-star status they'll remember Lufthansa's brochure in the players' box in Auckland and give the airline a call.
