Crema tenisului mondial masculin a descins in Londra, cu ocazia barclays ATP World Masters Tour. Primii opt in ierarhie, duelandu-se in grupe parca importate din competitii sportive pe echipe, si cu un britanic printre ei. Andy Murray, un fiu al Scotiei.

Tabelul competitiei masculine domina curtea interioara de la Wimbledon, intre Central Court si Court 1.

Care a si dat la o parte cortina turneului, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, dupa ce demarase cu un 5-0 in 22 minute, in fata argentinianului Del Potro, locul 5 mondial. Un insular in varsta de 22 ani, dispunand de un sud-american de 20, nu intr-o reeditare a razboiului Malvinelor…

Ce-i interesant despre aceste zile de tenis la cel mai inalt nivel tine insa si de localizarea evenimentului. Nu la All England Lawn&Tennis Club, sediu situat in sud-vestul Londrei, in inverzitul si traditionalul Wimbledon, ci la O2 Arena, acea labartata cupola cu tepi din ecranizarea cu James Bond, campata aidoma unui cort extraterestru, undeva pe malul sudic al fluviului, in tuguiul peninsulei Greenwich.

Ce aduce nou aceasta repozitionare a tenisului, de pe iarba Wimbledonului in sala complexului cu nume de furnizor de servicii de telefonie mobila? Beneficii atat pentru spectatori, cat si pentru jucatori.

Pentru jucatori!? Cum asa? Ei bine, e o lege nescrisa partizanatul in favoarea simpatiilor gazdelor de la Wimbledon de a oferi Central Court si in general terenurile principale celor mai bine clasati dintre britanici. Avantajul de a juca pe iarba proprie. Asta pe cand alde Dinara Safina, la vremea verii numarul unu mondial intre femei, era azvarlita pe terenurile periferice ale complexului de inalta tinuta. Un Murray probabil nici nu mai stie prea bine cum arata alte terenuri decat cel Central.

In O2 in schimb, fiecare tenisman isi asteapta randul si democratia e impartita si pentru purcei, si pentru catei. Pe acelasi teren de sub o cupola atat de mult blamata, atat de nefunctionala in opinia multora, la ora cumpenei dintre milenii, cand, intr-adevar, megainvestitia parea a fi devenit un “elefant alb”, un proiect muribund din fasa, miliarde aruncate pe malul Tamisei.  

Iata insa ca i s-a gasit utilitatea, fiind de fapt multifunctional. De la concerte de muzica, incluzand cel al Madonnei, pana la recentele Campionate Mondiale de gimnastica, iar acum, o noutate, tenisul.

Madonna, "aterizata din spatiu", intr-o coreografie scenica de exceptie, in timpul concertului din vara in O2 Arena

E bine si pentru spectatori. Putini muritori de rand isi permiteau luxul de a prinde un bilet la Wimbledon, ale carui destule meciuri se derulau si cu suficiente locuri lasate libere, pentru ca angajatii sau simpatiile ori prietenii angajatilor ori simpatiilor diverselor companii ce-si asigurasera pe cai comercial-corporatiste locurile lor in jurul dreptunghiurilor verzi nu catadicsisera finalmente sa onoreze cu prezenta.

In plus, Wimbledon e cochet, capsuni cu frisca si sampanie, bonomie de moda veche, dar nu intr-atat de extins. E oarecum exclusivist. O2 in schimb e pentru norod, mai mare, cu 17.500 locuri, si extrem de putine dintre acestea de un alt rang. Uniformitate si incluziune prin diversitate. Si un baietel dintr-o familie nevoiasa, de pe-acolo, din estul Londrei, dar de pe malul nordic, atat de “mai altfel” decat inverzitul Greenwich, poate prinde cu taticul sau un loc, inspirandu-se din arta cu racheta a urmasului lui Henman si intrebandu-si parintele cand incepe si el orele in preajma fileului.

Indirect, un imbold pentru regenerarea tenisului la nivelul juvenil si in general al maselor, in Regatul Unit. Atat de zgarcit in oferta de campioni pe scena mondiala. Atat de optimist acum, cand intre aspirantii la glorie suprema se regaseste si un britanic, fie el scotian si nu englez.

Acest turneu la O2 e in pas cu tendintele evidente ale globalizarii, tenis pentru mai multi, o nivelare prin devalorizare, sapand incet la temelia unui emblematic Wimbledon, atat de inradacinat in malul de care incet-incet ne indepartam.

Iar in crema jocului se va remarca Roger, ce ne zambeste cu crema pe fata si Gillette la purtator, nu ca Napoleon, cu o mana folosind racheta de tenis si cu cealalta ingrijindu-se de aspectul sau facial, aparandu-si concomitent amicul din reclama TV cu cei trei muschetari, Thierry cel cu mana pe lama de ras dar si pe minge.

Vom afla curand cine va triumfa, cine va lua potul, acolo unde recent si Marian Dragulescu sfida legea acceleratiei gravitationale si dadea Romaniei si mai mult aur. Unii aduc aur, cu sudoare si repetitie, altii iau aerul romanilor intr-o tara cu munti ca ai nostri care aur poarta. Iar noi?

Cladirea terenului principal de la Wimbledon, Centre Court, vazuta dinspre poarta 5. Wimbledon inseamna traditie, istoria jocului dar si emfaza. Nu e multora accesibil... De aceea Murray se poate astepta in O2 sa fie incurajat de un spectru mai larg de suporteri

Who?
Me, Lorraine, Kaj and Wendy or as Kaj likes to call us “The Riff-Raffs”

Where?
Henman Hill / Murray Mount,
Wimbeldon Lawn Tennis Championships 2009
At The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, Wimbeldon

Wimbeldon 2009

When?
01 July 2009

Ticket price?
Managed to get in for only £5, an absolute bargain

Wimbeldon Queue card and ticket

Snacks?
Pimm’s and Strawberries of course

Strawberries and Pimm's anyone?

Who were playing?
Quarter Final match between Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick

On Henman hill, watching Hewitt serve

Wagers?
£2 bet between me and Wendy on me winning the bet if Roddick wins and Wendy winning the bet if Hewitt did

Who won?
Roddick and me

Highlight of the day?
After the end of the match as we were making our way out, we saw Tim Henman and John McEnroe being interviewed live on the balcony of the building right in front of us. Kaj sensing a photo opportunity, shouted at McEnroe the infamous lines “You cannot be serious, John”… McEnroe and Henman were both distracted by Kaj heckling John that they turned and waved down at us. Kaj was too starstruck waving at McEnroe that she forgot to take a pic. But she managed to take a pic of Henman waving at us

Henman and McEnroe on the balcony giving an interview

Henman waving at us

Afterparty?
All the bars and restaurants in the Wimbeldon “Vill-aaj” was packed but we managed to find a really nice looking bar called “The Common Room”

Verdict?
Couldn’t have been any better, everything from the weather, the Pimm’s and strawberries, the company and even the tennis was perfect

Would I do it again?
Hell yeah, but would love to get my hands on “Centre court” tickets next time

Centre Court

This is the question that is on everyone’s mind, at least the people who follow tennis have been consumed by this question for some time now. And it is that time of the year when the red dust gets replaced by the gorgeous looking grass and the French wine with the mouth-watering combination of strawberries and cream. It is the abode where King Federer dwells and with his nemesis gone, read Nadal, owing to a dodgy-knee, only the Spiderman Movies-loving clan can hope for a miracle. Yet this is the beauty of sport. Just when you expect the script to be predictable, something turns up totally unexpected and mind-boggling. So who are the people who can upset Federer’s applecart and claim a slice of history of their own.

As I write this piece, I have just learnt that Novak Djokovic, the genius mimic expert has been dumped out of Wimbledon by the resurgent Tommy Haas. With this, my options get further trimmed down to something manageable. For starters I have a hunch that this would be Britain’s year, meaning Andy Murray’s year. England has been starved of any sort of success in their home slam, with the media resigning themselves to the fact that Tim Henman would never win Wimbledon and eventually he proved them correct. But this fellow, a Scot, is a little different from his predecessors. He is dogged, has an all court game and more importantly, has had Federer’s number on more than one occasion. And the way he has been playing so far has done little to douse the mountain of expectations riding on him.

Then you have Tommy Haas, who has a back-hand which is as good as Federer’s if not better than Federer’s. He has been on a super run and might have enough motivation and gas left in his tank to diffuse Federer’s flair when he faces him in the semi-finals. Then you have Andy Roddick, the perennial Wimbledon faithful, who does everything right, but somehow chokes right on the threshold of Wimbledon acquisition. He faces a tough and a pumped-up-again Lleyton Hewitt in the quarter finals. Their styles are as different as chalk and cheese, with Roddick relying more on his booming server and fore-hand while Hewitt is the counter-puncher of Agassi mould, just that he is even quicker on court. Whoever wins this titanic struggle might have the fire in their belly to reach the very end, the finish line, where the announcer proudly shouts, “Game, Set, Match and Championship…”

Now shifting focus to the another man who can ruin Federer’s party and that is Federer himself. How would he be feeling, standing on the cusp of a feat so monumental, that might just end the debate of the greatest player of all time, once and for all. He has shown no signs of nerves so far and has continued from where he left at Roland Garros. The demolition of Robin Soderling and the ace-machine Ivo Karlovic shows that he is focused and determined to usurp the tournament he loves the most back from Nadal. If he does manage to win it, it will be a fitting end to a glorious pursuit which started here at this hallowed land itself. A lot of anti-Federer supporters(including me) would cry their throats dry, suggesting the fact that Nadal wasn’t there, but then he also wasn’t there when Federer had shot out Pistol Pete in an innocuous looking 4rth round clash, which started all this in the first place and created an enigma now called “King Federer”.

The sun has come out, fleetingly, but there is a looming feeling that it will soon rain, as it always rains. People all over the country are out and about playing tennis. And once again, the media is rallying behind one British man. Once again, Maybe It Will Be His Time.

Yes, Wimbledon is upon us. And it has brought the annual tennis fever with it. And so far, the Brits as a whole haven’t been doing very well.

But there is always one who gets that step futher – one who we follow. We have done it for as long as I have seen the game. Recently, it was Tim Henman. He was quite good, and, for year after year, the nation rallied behind him. But he never won, because in order to win in this era of tennis, with Nada and Federer, who is scintillating to watch, and quite possibly the best player of all time – in this era of tennis, you have to be fantastic.

There hasn’t been a Brit fantastic enough to win Wimbledon in 73 years. But now, for the first time, the hope around the country doesn’t feel quite so much like a fools hope. There is a sense – a very real sense – that Andy Murray can pull this one off. He has beaten both Federer and Nadal before, after all, and has in fact beaten Federer in four of his last six encounters. If anybody can do it, presumably it’s him.

Listen to me. Here am I, claiming to be immune to the effects of Wimbledon fever!

By Cara Sulieman

A FUTURE Scots tennis star tipped for success by Tim Henman and Andy Murray’s mum could see her career stall – after the recession left her dad redundant.

Emma Devine’s father Kenneth has lost his job, meaning her parents won’t be able to pay for her expensive training regime any longer.

Kenneth and wife Kathy Devine have been coughing up the £35,000 annual bill for Emma to attend the Justine Henin tennis camp in Belgium where she is trained by Carlos Rodriguez.

But now they face pulling her out of the camp for financial reasons – damaging the 14-year-old’s future in the sport.

“Ask for help”

Kenneth said: “It is tragic to think that a bright prospect like her might not be able to reach her full potential because there just isn’t the money to fund it. But there’s nothing we can do.

“We tried last year to raise sponsorship for her by contacting major companies and financial institutions in Edinburgh to ask for help – but there was nothing. They seem to prefer sponsoring corporate events.

“Emma has worked hard for her sport for a very long time. Now it looks like that hard work has been for nothing.

“It was difficult for us to fund her last year, but we did it, having been told by Judy Murray, Andy’s mother, that Emma has huge potential. But we can’t financially carry on.”

Foot the bill

Kenneth is an accountant at Telford College but has been told he will be made redundant from the middle of next month.

He is worried that it will be hard for him to find another job, never mind foot the bill for Emma’s couching.

He said: “I’m 52 years old, so it’s not going to be terribly easy for me to suddenly find another job.

“So it’s going to be virtually impossible for Emma to carry on.”

Tim Henman

The young star is appearing in a showcase display at Wimbledon with Tim Henman, who has been her supporter since he saw her win the HSBC Road to Wimbledon under-14s tournament.

All England Club head coach Dan Bloxham said: “Emma is a real powerhouse from the baseline like Venus or Serena Williams.”

The teenager learned and improved her game at Craiglockhart in Edinburgh before her family were advised to send her to Belgium by Andy Murray’s mum, Judy.

But now it seems that the star will leave the tennis academy in September and return home – her dreams in tatters.

Murray has a real chance of winning Wimbledon

Thank god Wimbledon is on as it gives me some much needed sport to watch and discuss.

Since the footy season ended triumphantly i have been slightly dismayed and lost with no sport to concentrate on. This gives me too much time to think and as it happens i don’t have a lot to think about apart from sport.

Nadal pulling out is a huge blow to the tournament as a spectacle, but this will be sure to please Roger Federer and in particular, Andy Murray. This could be the time for Murray to win his first grand slam. If he doesn’t, cue the ‘bottled it’, or ‘he’ll do a Henman’. These people know nothing about the game and should keep their opinions to themselves. Murray will win a Grand Slam because he is that good. He is still young and improving and we are yet to see the best of him. Whether it is in two weeks or two years we should all continue to support a Scottish and British man at the top of his chosen sport.

I’m sick of people criticising him for being too miserable or not good looking. Who cares? I would rather have a winner over someone who can charm the fans and is a clone of David Beckham. Murray’s only intention is to succeed as much as possible and he is not interested in who he pleases along the way. Murray is a winner and people should focus on that, as we do not have that many in this country.

I’ve never really played tennis and didn’t start watching it until 1991, when Jennifer Capriati reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon. I became hooked then. Today, Wimbledon unveiled the new roof on Centre Court, and as part of this grand unveiling, there were a few exhibition matches involving Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Tim Henman and Kim Clijsters. Henman and Clijsters won the mixed doubles, Agassi the men’s singles and Clijsters the women’s singles. It was a bit of a blast from the past, and one that made me realise that there aren’t really any tennis personalities anymore. Today’s game seems to be dominated by extremely professional players. Nothing wrong with this as such, but at times it seems like you’re watching a conveyor belt of players with no distinctive features.

Perhaps this is also down to the fact that if you live in the UK and don’t have cable or satellite TV, you don’t get to watch much tennis at all. Things haven’t changed much in the men’s game, and whatever changes take place are fairly well publicised since we have a player in the top three. On the other hand, having subscribed to Eurosport online in order to watch some of the women’s tournaments, I was surprised to see that Dinara Safina was number one in the world. Having watched a few matches now, I’m a bit confused as to who all these young upcoming players are. So I’m quite looking forward to seeing more of it on TV in next few weeks. As someone who’s a bit of a romantic I’d to see Federer lift the Coupe des Mousquetaires but it’s obviously going to be very hard. I don’t have a firm favourite as far as the women go; I’m just hoping to see a lot of good tennis.

As for the roof at Wimbledon, it actually looks quite good but it does seem a bit low. It takes about 10 minutes to get it shut, and 30 minutes for the ventilation system to get moisture conditions to suitable level. It’ll be great to be able to watch more or less uninterrupted tennis during Wimbledon. And best of all, no more Cliff Richard.

Our congratulations go out to Andy Murray who has equalled Tim Henman’s record of 11 ATP event victories with a straight set victory over World No. 3 Novak Djokovic in Miami – see http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7983446.stm.

Still only 21, Murray has become a leading force in world tennis, and time is well overdue for the UK to embrace him as the talent that he is.

Sure he may not be as polite and forthcoming as his predecessor as British No.1, but Henman would’ve changed his personality at a drop of a hat if it meant achieving the success Murray has already claimed.

Murray’s selfishness is one of the prerequisites for becoming a tennis great. It is an individual sport, so it comes downs to players looking out for number one. And as his results and surge up the rankings show, Murray has enough selfishness and talent to make it to number one.

Whether it it time to start talking of him in the same breath as Federer and Nadal I’m not so sure (longevity will be key), but as his record against these two greats continues to improve, it may well become a case of when and not if.

Have your say:

Its appers that Tim Henman was a major help to Laura , as we found out this week that the 14 year old was inspired by a meeting with Time in 2004.

The pair played doubles together at a promotional event at a London sports centre, and Robson’s mother, Kathy, was impressed by the trouble Henman took to encourage her daughter. “He was so good,” Mrs Robson recalled. “He kept high-fiving her after every good shot. It did wonders for her confidence.”

Henman was full of praise for the youngster at the weekend. “I didn’t have to put up with all that attention at the age of 14,” the BBC pundit said. “But Laura is a very self-assured girl and mature. She knows what it’s all about, and has real potential, but I think we just have to be patient.”

Robson will not be playing the junior tournament at the US Open but she is likely to appear at the Australian Open in the winter. Her schedule is being worked out by Robson’s coach, Martijn Bok, who is determined to follow a prudent course and not rush the young left-hander.

Robson’s minders have a difficult time ahead as they attempt to dampen down the excitement caused by her run to the title at Wimbledon, during which she defeated the No 1 seed, Melanie Oudin of the United States, in the second round, and the No 3 seed, Thailand’s Noppawan Lertcheewakarn, in the final.

 

Quote From The Telegraph

With Scotsman Andy Murray managing to scrape his way through a five setter at Wimbledon he has truly taken on the the mantel of torturing every Brit who watches tennis. Not only was it a five set match, but he waited until his opponent was serving for the match before finally breaking serve and then going on to win in the dimming London light.

You have to hand it to him for his grit and vastly improved patience, not least with putting up with the press calling him a Briton when he is proud to be Scottish. This would not be so bad if Tim Henman had not been described as an Englishman all the way through his tennis career. What makes it worse is that if he loses the media invariably chooses to acknowledge his nationality, as if to say “we don’t want you now, Scotland can have you back”. Sometimes the media sucks like that. As for McEnroe implying Murray is English, that’s as good as calling him an alien. Come to think of it he does sometimes look like he is waiting to pounce on Sigourney Weaver, AKA Lieutenant Ripley.

In truth it would be great for both Scotland and Britain if Murray beat Nadal, the world number 2, tomorrow. The one person I would feel sorry for is Henman, who never won the grand slam title he deserved. At least he has a hill named after him.

Her kommer opfølgeren på det forrige indlæg. Denne gang kommer indlægget til at omhandle de sportsfolk, som i mit hoved er undervurderede, og jeg må sige, at en plads på denne liste, er en del mere ærefuld, end en plads på den forrige.

LET THE COUNTDOWN BEGIN!

10. Kenneth Perez – Manden der laver nogle af de lækreste mål i den hollandske Æresdivision, er nok en af de mest undervurderede fodboldspillere! Han bliver stort set altid fundet for let til det danske landshold (selvom han ikke spiller i Jylland), og brillerer i de største klubber Holland, hvilket må siges at være bedre end Brøndby, FCK, FC Nordsjælland og FC Midtjylland, som spillerne fra landsholdet kommer fra.

9. Lars Rasmussen – Manden med talegaver på Grev Ingolf-stadiet, har stået i skyggen af Lars Christiansen de sidste år, men er kommet en lille smule ind i varmen, efter Ulrik Wilbæk tiltrådte som træner. Han har ikke fysikken med sig, men han gør det sgu godt nok når han får chancen – synd han ikke kommer med til OL.

8. Michael Jakobsen – Den fantastiske AaB-forsvarsspiller – han bliver undervurderet af vores kære landstræner, og er åbenbart fundet for let til A-landsholdet, men han er god nok til at være anfører på U-21! Han kan spille i centerforsvaret, samt venstre back. Skandale, at Morten Olsen nægter at bruge ham! Efter min mening er Niclas Jensen og Thomas Rasmussen ikke langtidsholdbare satsninger i landsholdsammenhæng!

7. Tim Henman – Han var, af englænderne, blevet udråbt som fremtidig Wimbledon-vinder (der har ikke været en engelsk vinder af Wimbledon siden Fred Perry’s storhedstid fra 1934-36!) – hvilket aldrig kommer til at ske, da han har stoppet karrieren.  Dog har han holdt en stabil placering i toppen af verdensranglisten for mænd i hans 14 år lange tenniskarriere. Respekt – selvom han aldrig vandt, har han levet med et kæmpe forventningspres.

6. Jimmy Nielsen – Manden der tog på druk, da han spillet på U21-landsholdet, selvom han havde fået besked på at passe sin seng, samt gamblede og tabte for millioner af kroner, er blevet stemplet meget hårdt. Man kan sige meget om Jimmy, og han da har sine små “ting”, men han er en glimrende målmand. Undervurderet keeper, som har mærket konsekvenserne ved at pisse ved siden af potten i professionel sport.

5. Peter Crouch – Manden ligner en stork med plateausko, der er træt af at skide, og han spiller for Liverpool – og så til det gode… Han har en glimrende målnæse, og selvom det ser frygteligt ud, når han bevæger sig, har han faktisk også teknik. Man kan sige meget, men han er ingen dårlig spiller – men han er grim!

4. Thomas Enevoldsen – Et af dansk fodbolds største talenter. Han er klasse, og udvikler sig rekordhurtigt. Han har en stor andel i, at AaB bliver mestre i år! Jeg behøver vist ikke komme ind på min mening om Morten Olsen igen…

3. Eli Manning – Quarterback hos New York Giants (1 Superbowl-ring – 2008). Måske burde han stå på den forrige countdown, men han har altid stået i skyggen af sin storebror, Peyton Manning, som vandt Superbowl i 2007 med mit hold, Indianapolis Colts, men i år var det Eli der førte New York Giants til sejr over New England Patriots i Superbowl. Respekt til Eli!

2. Morten Andersen – Han er bl.a. den der har scoret flest point i sin karriere nogensinde (2544), han har spillet 23 sæsoner i NFL, og 48 år gammel. Han begynder så småt at få anerkendelse herhjemme, men den er stadig yderst begrænset. Han har slået rekorder, der formentlig aldrig bliver slået – imponerende!

1. Danske SAS-liga spillere, der spiller på jyske hold – Disse spillere bliver gang på gang fundet for lette af vores kære landstræner, hvorimod spillere fra Brøndby og FC Nordsjælland boltrer sig på landsholdet, som små fede fisk i en tønde. Der er noget der ikke stemmer… Er jylland blevet solgt til tyskerne? Måske kan vi sælge Morten Olsen til tyskerne, selvom de godt nok har givet ham sparket før.. Det kunne DBU lære noget af!

Det er stadig uvist, hvad næste “Over/Under” kommer til at omhandle, men glæd jer! Det bliver stort!

Bach – fra et mekka af ildelugtende, feterede sportsfolk, og sportsfolk, som burde være det!

On Sunday, March 16. I found myself heading to the Pacific Life Open tennis tournament in Indian Wells, California excited for many reasons, the last of which I thought would be Andy Murray’s match against Jurgen Melzer. Without the knowledge of what time players were scheduled, I entered the Indian Wells Tennis Garden unsure of who would set the tone for the day with the first match I was to witness.

While my better half was waiting fifteen minutes for a $6 espresso, I was intently looking at my program, planning each move of the day from court to court. Would I start off my day watching Kusnetsova on center court, that would be a waste of time. Perhaps I would go watch Tommy Robredo battle against an underated Nichoas Massu, that would surely be an intense match. As I began walking to this match, I noticed on the center court scoreboard that Andy Murray was playing against Jurgen Melzer, and he was losing 4-0 in the first set, I had to see this.

There were plenty of seats as we climbed to the center of the stands, slightly to the right of the net. I have always wanted to see Andy Murray live and there he was. The man who holds the weight of the United Kingdom on his back. The man who is so ugly, his mom outwardly expresses his grotesque features to the media. The man who has continuously been likened to Tim Henman, solely due to him being “British”. After watching several passionate rallies, it was quite apparent that, Andy Murray is not Tim Henman. Let me say that again so that all in the tennis world can understand this. ANDY MURRAY IS NOT TIM HENMAN.

I saw many things that surprised me in his two hour tennis match. Murray uses his racquet speed and quickness to paint the lines, pushing and pulling his opponent from side to side. His craftiness sets him apart from other players, quickly reacting to the situation and coming up with the only possible way to win a point. While not being a speed demon, his efficient footwork allows him to move around the court and be in position for even the most difficult shots. His power is deceiving and from any given spot on the court, he can hit an outright winner. All of these aspects make up a game that is unique and has the potential to be brilliant.

Andy Murray is a young superstar and it is time that the tennis world, especially the UK, recognizes and embraces it. After watching him grit and battle his way to victory against Jurgen Melzer, it is clear that he has what it takes. It’s true that Murray does not play with grace, nor would you ever see him applaud the other player when a well hit ball flies past him. He cares too much about winning. Murray is instilled with a fire and passion for the game and doesn’t care who he offends in order to accomplish the ultimate goal of becoming a champion. With this kind of spirit and attitude, who knows… maybe even Tim Henman would have won something.

Thanks to “Handsome” Chapin, a man who once arrogantly walked into the hostile surroundings of private member country club, and bravely destroyed an 80 year old co-worker at tennis…. for this lovely article. For another article, detailing why Andy Murray is conversely, a complete and utter twat, check this out: http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/02/20/court_of_king_andy_cant_disgui.html

In beating both Serena and Venus Williams Justine Henin has done an extremely rare thing. I believe that only once before has someone beaten both Williams sisters in a tournament.

However she has a difficult job still to do in playing the final against Svetlana Kuznetsova the reason being that NO ONE has beat both Williams sisters and then won the tournament.

One would feel that Justine is a better player than Svetlana against whom she has a very good record of 14 – 2 against the Russian but I wonder if the statistic mentioned above will play a part. Mr BH

After some fevered speculation in the British press its now official. Tim Henman is going to retire later this year after he plays for Britain in a Davis Cup match at Wimbledon.

You can read the entire press release here

http://www.timhenman.org/NEWS/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=465648&itype=5883from

Tim’s site but essentially he seems to be saying a couple of things:

The back is not good and this is stopping him from playing at a level he wants to.

and

His motivation isn’t what it was because he has now got a third child on the way and he now has a larger life outside of tennis.

In the typical style of the British media I confedantly predict that the media that hae slated him over the years now proclaim him to be one of the best players of the past ten year.

I think its fair to say he has been an extremely good player but simply just not the greatest of his “generation”.

Good luck in the US open Tim! BH

What a poor two days for British men’s tennis. Not only did Henman loose in the first round at Cincinnati citing a very sort back yesterday but today Murray does the same. In his case its clear that the wrist has still not fully healed.

One supposes that at his age Tim must be thinking about whether or not he wants to continue pushing himself through the pain barrier, but Andy….

Well I’d hoped that his injury would be behind him now and that his main obstacle would be lack of match fitness. This appears to be not the case and you have to wonder if Murray has come back to soon strange as that might seem.

Get well soon guys. BH

source: http://www.eatsleepsport.com/news_details.aspx?story_id=600530&l_id=999999&t_id=509

Well once again Tim Henman has gone out when seemingly he had turned the match around. Having lost the first two sets on tie break Tim won the next two 6 – 3 and 6 -2 only to loose the last 1 – 6.

Perhaps he just ran out of steam against someone who was younger than him but i gather he played really well in the 3rd and 4th sets. What a shame it would have been good to see him progress.

Oh well as usual the British fan will just have to follow someone else for the remainder of the tournament. A tournament which the evening papers in London were suggesting might run on until a third week because we have had so much rain this week with more forecast this weekend.

All England Club, 25 June-8 July

Wimbledon second round result:

T Henman (GB) v F Lopez (Spa)

6-7 6-7 6-3 6-2 1-6

GAME-BY-GAME UPDATES:
By Tom Fordyce

FIFTH SET

Henman 1-6 Lopez
Alas – that’s it. Lopez holds without a sniff of a problem, and the Henman dream is over. Lopez screams a celebration; Tim slumps. Sorry I couldn’t bring you the result you probably wanted. Wasn’t it ever thus?

Henman 1-5 Lopez
Forget the effigies – we now need live sacrifices. Lopez breaks again in an epic game, and the end is now perilously near.

Henman 1-4 Lopez
Right – get the horse-shoes out, the rabbits’ feet, the four-leaf clovers. If you’ve got a spare effigy knocking around, now’s the time to throw it on the pyre. Lopez careers through his service game, and somehow he’s now the man parked in the driving-seat with his foot pressing pedal to the metal.

Henman 1-3 Lopez
Finally he’s on the board, but is it ever a mighty struggle… Lopez pings hm back to deuce twice, his confidence running fresh again, and the noisy patroits fall silent again. A crisp volley wins the day as the game-clock clicks round past the three-hour mark.

Henman 0-3 Lopez
Ouch – Lopez, benefiting from the new, faster balls, barrels in three firecracker first serves to leap into a three-game lead. Henman’s suddenly angry, snapping at the umpire when a ball-boy struggles to pick up a stray ball and shaking his head angrily when the German official fails to simper an apology.

Henman 0-2 Lopez
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Lopez is back – he whistles a backhand pass down the line to get to 15-40 and then watches Henman double-fault meekly at break point. It’s never easy, is it?

Henman 0-1 Lopez
After a long breather for a Henman courtesy break, the players rise from their seats to tumultuous applause. Lopez is out of the blocks quickly, driving Henman back with whipped forehands to hold serve. Nervous gulps all round.

FOURTH SET

Henman 6-2 Lopez
Ding-dong – we’re level! An ace opens the game up, two driving forehands right onto the baseline extend the lead and a Lopez lofter seals it. Extraordinary scenes. Ready for the final-set showdown?

Henman 5-2 Lopez
Lopez wins his first game in six, but he has to burst every rivet to do so. Albert Costa, so content a set and a half ago, now has his chin in his hands.

Henman 5-1 Lopez
It’s become a canter. Tim holds to love, and middle-aged women in the crowd are hugging.

Henman 4-1 Lopez
Lopez is falling apart like an old sofa – he plonks a mid-court forehand into the net to give away a break point and double-faults spectacularly to capitulate once again. Henman is now reading his serve as easily as Einstein flicking through the Beano, and the match has been turned on its head.

Henman 3-1 Lopez
The Henman fist-pump, so conspicious by its absence earlier, is now coming out on almost every point. He holds with iron-wristed confidence and waves the F-P at Lucy in the VIP box, who flashes a thin-lipped yet encouraging smile.

Henman 2-1 Lopez
Have we just witnessed the turning-point? Lopez is wobbling like a freshly-made jelly – Henman eases away another volley to set up three break points, and as Lopez’s forehand flies long he runs to the net, stares his opponent right in the snout and points to his own eyes. Break of serve, and that was the most aggressive thing I’ve ever seen Tim do. It was vaguely shocking, like hearing your mother use the f-word while in conversation with her friend Dorothy Freshwater.

Henman 1-1 Lopez
The pegs are level again, but Lopez’s body language has changed completely – where once he loped like a lion, he’s now slumped like a ticked-off teenager.

Henman 0-1 Lopez
In bright sunshine, Lopez gets himself going again with a much more solid service display. Metre-long shadows across the court, and every point is now being cheered like a Lottery scratchcard win.

THIRD SET

Henman 6-3 Lopez
He’s right back in this, just 20 minutes after being two sets and a break down – Henman holds to 15, punching away a high backhand volley on the run, and the crowd rise to him. Excellent horse-shoe action earlier, it would appear.

Henman 5-3 Lopez
Now it’s Lopez who’s having to fight like a jam-jarred wasp to hold his own serve. Henman pushes him to 40-30 and leaves a big dent in the Iberian confidence as he does so. Time to serve for the set.

Henman 5-2 Lopez
There’s a bite and bounce on the Henman serve that just wasn’t there before. Whatever he put in his water four games ago should be made available on the NHS. The results are in too from the vote we’ve had running on the website – of the 18,000 who got involved, 4.5% predicted an easy Tim victory, 32.7% Tim through in a thriller, 29.2% Tim beaten in an epic and 33.5% Tim crushed. 4.5% – what were you thinking?

Henman 4-2 Lopez
Could this be the start of something? Could it? A new Henman has appeared, a man with the touch of an angel at the net and a devil at the baseline, and Lopez can’t handle it – he’s broken again. The crowd, slumped in slumber for so long, are in rampant voice.

Henman 3-2 Lopez
Suddenly, and from nowhere, Henman’s dander is up. He produces his best service game of the day, booming in ripper after ripper, and holds to love. Delicate green shoots of hope begin to nudge through the topsoil.

Henman 2-2 Lopez
Hold on a second – could there be a glimmer of light at the end of this dismal tunnel? Lopez’s serve wobbles for the very first time, and a double fault gives Tim a break point. He dances around like S Club 7’s Bradley while waiting for the serve, steps up and creams a backhand into Lopez’s toes. He’s broken back!

Henman 1-2 Lopez
Tim digs deep to stem the flow of games, but the stench of panic is in the air. Something needs to change here and fast – the Lopez serve has been almost impregnable so far.

Henman 0-2 Lopez
Lopez accelerates through his service game, and he looks in complete control. Coach Costa, a straight-faced mannequin earlier on, is now beaming openly.

Henman 0-1 Lopez
With the dust still settling on that horror, Lopez goes for all-out attack on the Henman serve. It’s an inspired tactic – Henman’s mind is all over the shop, and he puts yet another volley into the net to go another break down. Complete silence on Centre.

SECOND SET

Henman 6-7 Lopez
Calamity for Henman – Lopez comes to the net to put away an Edbergesque volley and then watches happily as a half-hit Henman backhand loft drifts into the tramlines. He fights back from 5-0 down to 6-5 as Lopez gets wobbly-legged in sight of the tape, only for Lopez to seal a two-set lead with a overhead backhand volley that Henman just can’t reach. It’s looking grim now – it’ll take another epic five-set sensation to keep British interest in the tournament alive…

Henman 6-6 Lopez
Hold onto your seats – it’s tie-break time once again as Henman survives a missed overhead smash to keep the smooth-moving Spaniard at bay. For now.

Henman 5-6 Lopez
Lopez piles on the pressure with another big service game, and Henman duffs two more mystifying mis-hits into the net. He needs to hold serve to stay in the set, but things are worryingly flat out there. Reach for your lucky horse-shoe and get rubbing.

Henman 5-5 Lopez
Roars of approval and relief as a Henman ace polishes off a rock-solid service game to love. The sun’s out on Centre Court and the corporate types finally in their courtside seats, and the atmosphere is beginning to build.

Henman 4-5 Lopez
The constrast is impossible to ignore – after that see-saw epic in the last game, Lopez holds to love as Henman’s groundstroke radar goes awol once again. Only one man looks capable of breaking here, and he wasn’t brought up in Oxfordshire.

Henman 4-4 Lopez
Red lights flash and sirens wail as Henman mis-hits a volley into the net to teeter at 0-40. He shows nerves of titanium to crash in three successive sizzlers of first serves to draw level, only to leave a simple volley at the net and watch aghast as it falls in by a metre. Lopez eyes him like a hyena watching a limping goat and sets up two more break points with raking forehands, only for Henman to hang on with another brace of boomers. At last Lopez goes long from the baseline and Henman holds – but that was a mighty close-run thing.

Henman 3-4 Lopez
A frame-it-and-put-it-on-the-wall of a backhand pass from Henman gets him to 30-30, the first time he’s been within racquet-length of a break all day. Lopez stands on the service line, looks down, bounce-bounces the ball and hammers in an unstoppable first serve to snuff out the danger in half an instant. Where’s the break going to come from today?

Henman 3-3 Lopez
Knees knock and teeth chatter as Henman slips to 0-30 on his own serve. With Lopez clambering all over his serve, he holds his nerve to dink a life-saving volley past the Spaniard at the net and then comes up with a fizzer of a first serve to take the game.

Henman 2-3 Lopez
Anything you can do, says Lopez, and holds to love himself with minimum fuss. He strolls over to his chair, wipes the handle of his racquet on a towel and stares into space with the placid expression of a man completing his most satisfying clear-out of the day.

Henman 2-2 Lopez
Relief all around as Henman holds to love. Our umpire for today intones the score with a Germanic drawl: “Two gamesch all.”

Henman 1-2 Lopez
If Lopez had any fans in here, they’d now be standing up and singing, “It’s all gone quiet over there,” while pointing all around Centre Court. But since his coach Albert Costa is the only pro-Lopez face in the entire crowd, an eerie silence descends over SW19 instead.

Henman 1-1 Lopez
Lopez gets close at 30-30, but he mis-hits a backhand to give Tim a precious slice of daylight. Update on Thumbgate: he’s still fiddling with it like a mangy cur scratching at a flea bite.

Henman 0-1 Lopez
Tim’s in a certain depth of trouble here. Felithiano’s first serve is firing on all available cylinders, and Henman just can’t get involved. Coach Paul Annacone watches with only the merest flicker of concern on his chops.

FIRST SET

Henman 6-7 Lopez
Yells of anguish around Centre as Henman duffs a simple volley at 3-1 and then falls apart completely on the next four points. He double-faults at 3-5, and even a plaintive scream from a chubby-faced lady in an ill-fitting jester’s hat cannot prevent him lofting a forehand long to concede the set. Lopez yells with happiness to a background of desultory appluase.

Henman 6-6 Lopez
Lopez holds with another slinging first serve, and the match rolls into tie-break town. Where’s your money? No sniffs of breaks of serve today, so the next few points could be key to the whole shaboodle.

Henman 6-5 Lopez
Easy peas for the home-town hero – he holds to love, and the first Cub scout-style outbreak of “Henman! (clap-clap-clap)” rings around Centre. The Duke of Kent, sporting his usual magnificent facial hair-furniture, strokes his glistening pate reflectively.

Henman 5-5 Lopez
Tim tries to monkey with the Lopez head by bouncing around like a lightweight Sumo as he waits for the serve, but the floppy-haired Iberian is made of stern stuff. He leans back and blasts in the first ace of the day to edge us closer to the tie-break.

Henman 5-4 Lopez
Henman’s tucked into his groove nicely now – he steams into the net and dictates the chat from there, popping away two soft-touch volleys to edge ahead.

Henman 4-4 Lopez
Henman gets a little nibble at 30-30 when Lopez booms a forehand long, only for his Spanish foe to close out the game with a cheeky exchange of bish-bosh volleys at the net. More of that cut on Henman’s right thumb – perhaps Garry Richardson was right to be concerned, because Tim keeps looking down suspiciously down at the plaster he’s got covering it. It’s clearly smarting.

Henman 4-3 Lopez
That’s a little more like it – Henman serve-volleys for the first time today and immediately looks more comfortable. Lucy H is wearing a large pendant that seems to be made from jade – a Maori good luck charm, perhaps.

Henman 3-3 Lopez
Big serving from Feliciano, and Henman fails to get a point on the board. Standards sloppy at the mo, and the match hasn’t really got going again. Team Henman are here once again in the same order as Wednesday – (from left to right) coach Paul Annacone, physio Johan de Beer, Mrs Henman, Mrs H Snr and Mr H Snr.

Henman 3-2 Lopez
Henman holds to love as Lopez returns like a man holding a racquet in the wrong hand. The umpire takes advantage of the changeover to make a telephone call from the comfort of his lofty perch.

Henman 2-2 Lopez
Three mis-hit returns in a row from Tim, and Lopez draws level easy-style. Huge grey clouds overhead, but sunshine too. We’re still going.

Henman 2-1 Lopez
After the hiccup of a double fault – greeted by a shout of “No worries, Tim!” from a plum-voiced worrier in the crowd, Henman polishes off the game with a big serve down the middle which Lopez blocks wide.

1305 BST: Rishi Persad does his usual rabble-rousing on Henman Hill, where various half-cut public schoolboys in polo shirts shout “Go on Tim!” obligingly for the cameras.

1258 BST: Centre Court is surprisingly empty as Henman pads out. Sue Barker, wearing a trademark lilac jacket and skirt combo, stands courtside and chews the fat with a grey-suited John McEnroe. Mac has plumped for the sort of dull brown tie that a headmaster might have worn in 1983.

1251 BST: Weather update: it should be OK for the next three hours at least. Not particularly warm, but non-wet at least.

1237 BST: Just like that, it’s now Thursday afternoon. Tim’s been out practising, and despite a small cut appearing on his thumb overnight – which gets BBC roving reporter Garry Richardson very excited – he looks in prime shape.

1946 BST: Play has been officially abandoned for the night. I repeat: sack it off and go home. We’ll be back with Tim and Feliciano sometime on Thursday afternoon. Probably for the best, to be honest.

1940 BST: I don’t know why they bothered – it’s raining again. Sigh. That surely will be it for the day. Surely.

1929 BST: It has stopped raining, it’s true. And there are whispers that we could still squeeze in 45-odd minutes of tennis. In fact – could it be – the covers are coming off!

1802 BST: Three bedraggled teenagers stand in the rain outside Sue’s studio, waving soggy pieces of paper on which are written the words “We heart Sue”. At least they’re not smoking, or getting each other pregnant.

1747 BST: Optimistic? Which fool said optimistic? It’s belting it down again, and Sue Barker has just started a link by saying, “Well, we’ve beeen hearing about the success of tennis in Belgium…”

1730 BST: Covers update: they’re coming off Centre. I’m making no predictions about re-starts after the glaring whoopsie earlier, but be optimistic.

1715 BST: For those concerned about Sue B after the earlier comment, rest easy – she’s been chatting to Jimmy Connors and is now giggling like a schoolgirl. He gave her some chat about the unofficial competition he used to have with John McEnroe over who could wear the tightest shorts on court, and she was pacified in an instant.

1709 BST: It’s now whacking it down. Official. Those foolish enough to turn up without brollies are now fashioning makeshift covers from anything thay can lay their hands on – plastic bags, coats, over-priced official programmes.

1703 BST: Groans from the crowd – the covers are going to be kept on for a while, as the Wimbledon radar indicates that another shower is on its way. Even as the stadium announcer solemnly intones the words, the moisture begins to fall from the skies. He signs off with only the slightest hint of smugness creeping into his voice.

1656 BST: Better news from SW19 – the rain has stopped. The covers remain on, but we shouldn’t be too long. The impatient ones in the crowd try to get a slow hand-clap going, only for their efforts to founder on the politeness of the majority.

1649 BST: I thought I was disappointed – you should have seen Sue Barker’s face. She looked like she was about to burst into tears.

While we wait for the clouds to scud off, website users can amuse themselves by downloading their very own Tim Henman masks. And Nadal masks, for that matter. There’s people on Centre Court wearing them, you know.

1644 BST: Uh-oh – brollies begin to pop up all around, and a gruff bark from the umpire calls the players off. The BBC weather crew did predict this, but the disappoinment still stings – it’s like walking into a country boozer on a hot summer’s day, thirst raging, only to be told that they’ve stopped serving.

Henman 1-1 Lopez
Early sniff of a break for the home-town hero, only for Lopez to volley like a grass-court legend and see off the danger. Just to run through the official Henman support team court-side, we’ve got (from left to right) coach Paul Annacone, physio Johan de Beer, Mrs Henman, Mrs H Snr and Mr H Snr. Lucy is a woman transformed from yesterday – she’s sharing a joke with Johan and flicking her blonde locks around happily as she does so.

Henman 1-0 Lopez
Delight all around as Tim holds to love with three crunching serves and a crisp volley. Henman could fall over his shoelaces and still get a round of applause out here.

1631 BST: Cheeky fact before we get going: Lopez is staying in the same house as Rafael Nadal this fortnight. The pair are old pals – they play doubles together – although apparently they failed to breakfast together this morning. Rafa got up early to go off and practise, while Feliciano enjoyed a lie-in. One of them is world number two, the other 78. Work that one out.

1627 BST: Here come the brave musketeers, striding onto Centre Court to excited applause from the assembled throng. The grey-blazered committee member who leads them out then pats them both nervously on the shoulder before scurrying off to his ringside seat.
Story from BBC SPORT

Unfortunately this years tournament is clashing somewhat with a heavy work load brought on by our annual budget round at work. What would you rather do sweat over spreadsheets or watch some tennis?

This means that i haven’t had the chance to see very much. From what I’ve seen or read Henin, Jankovic and Mauresmo are all playing well on the women’s side and on the men’s side Nadal, Roddick and believe it or not “Tiger” Tim Henman are all playing well.

With no Andy Murray this year Tim is once again entertaining (I’m not sure that’s a strong enough word to use) the British public with his nail biting games.

Having beaten Moya in 5 sets he now has to play another Spanish player Lopez but i must confess i missed the few games they played before rain delayed play earlier this evening.

Anyway tomorrow the forecast is meant to include something called the sun so perhaps we shall get almost a full day at Wimbledon.