P E R S O N A L I T Y : A N D R E W M U R R A Y. July Communication and External Relations Department. The Race

Transcription

1 P E R S O N A L I T Y : A N D R E W M U R R A Y July 2005 Communication and External Relations Department on The Race is 1

2 Federer v. Nadal Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal Streaks ahead Post scriptum Rafael Nadal They ve been at one another s throats for six months, a tennis version of the legendary Rumble in the Jungle. In Zaire there were two heavyweights like Ali and Foreman, here we have two young tennis phenomena who promise to go down in the history of sporting rivalries alongside McEnroe and Borg, Edberg and Becker, Agassi and Sampras. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are 1 st and 2 nd in the INDESIT ATP 2005 Race after some 50 matches played (and nearly all won), a hundred or so hours spent running after a tennis ball, and over two million dollars prize money. Each, of course. Yet only a handful of points separates them, for the moment in favour of Federer, who would gladly cede them in exchange for the Roland Garros that Nadalito denied him after a semi-final that fans had been awaiting like some historic event. Not all players have shoes suitable for grass. Anyone interested can buy them from a partner of the ATP Gerflor has signed a 3-year agreement with the ATP as Official ATP Court Surface. The Shanghai Masters Cup will also be played on Taraflex, a surface produced by Gerflor 2

3 This season is undisputedly theirs. The INDESIT ATP 2005 Race looks like being in the balance till the very last tournament... Their rivalry is based on different styles and certain things in common too. The Majorcan pescador who turns up on court in sleeveless vest and knee-length shorts versus the candid elegance of our Swiss gentleman. And again, on one hand Nadalito showing his muscles and never losing hope even when in serious trouble. And on the other the quintessence of tennis genius, the most talented and imaginative tennis player of all times. They share fine manners on court, a polite and sportsmanlike attitude that s a joy to everyone who still believes this is more a game than a business. A game that s unrivalled in this respect, poles apart from many other less edifying sports in which the point often seems to be hoodwinking the referee, adversary and ticket-paying public. In tennis, thanks to the Neck and neck Federer Nadal INDESIT ATP 2005 Race 1 1 INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking 1 3 date of birth 8 th August rd June 1986 place of birth Basilea (Switzerland) Manacor (Spain) home Oberwil (Switzerland) Manacor (Spain) height 1m 85 1m 85 weight 80 kg 85 kg play right handed left handed back hand one handed two handed professional since wins/defeats in /3 48/7 tournaments won in tournaments won in career 28 7 Grand Slam titles 4 1 Masters Series titles 6 2 prize money in career 16,547,423 3,384,996 direct encounters 1 2 racquet Wilson NCode Six-One Tour Babolat AeroPro Drive apparel Nike Nike Roger Federer players, these things don t happen. Nadal & Federer are the best possible advertisement that tennis could have, a perfect combination of strength, talent, selfsacrifice, humility and fair play. Not that this means winning isn t uppermost in their minds as soon as they get on court, obviously. The struggle will continue to intensify for the no. 1 spot is at stake. Yet only a couple of months ago anyone questioning Federer s leadership would have been recommended a rest in a psychiatric home. We play tennis, he plays another game, his adversaries used to complain. Then Nadalito came into his own and earned the title of no. 1 rival. As confirmed by Guillermo Canas, a player who would prefer a slow death to any kind of surrender however honourable. It wouldn t be so bad if this Nadal just beat you. The problem is he robs you of your will to play. So one automatically wonders whether Nadalito is already capable of usurping Federer s throne this year. If we were bookmakers, we d be busy encouraging people to bet on Nadal and taking advantage of the general euphoria surrounding him at the moment, because his actual chances are really rather scarce. In all probability the Pat Rafter, one of the best loved champions of the 90s, has been given a second child a girl by the beautiful model Lara Feltham Tim Henman has launched a new bracelet, the sales proceeds of which will go to his Kids at Heart charity. In collaboration with French Connection points of sale, you can donate a euro for a limited edition green bracelet with the wording Give and Get 3

4 Federer v. Nadal Roger Federer Rafael Nadal And the winner is... We asked some of the most authoritative tennis journalists who they thought would win the INDESIT ATP Race Federer or Nadal. The result was unanimous... Antonio Costanzo (Sport Italia and Eurosport Italy) Federer will win. First of all because he s the best and then because Nadal has to show he can maintain this level of play for the rest of the season. And now the grass season is coming, where Federer loses... only when he s injured. At the end of the year Roger will be the no. 1. Gianni Clerici (La Repubblica and Sky Sport Italy) I m very fascinated by Nadal s strength but Federer will win in the long run. Grass and fast surfaces will help him. And in any case he s still the most talented player around. Claudio Mezzadri (TSI Switzerland) Federer will win. On grass and in the indoor Masters Series he ll be the best again, while Nadal will find it hard going. It s surprising though what the Spanish player achieved on clay. Federer will have to take care to keep up his level of play, as he has over the last few months. Neus Yerro (Diario Sport Spain) For the moment Federer is the more complete player, whereas Nadal still has a lot to improve, especially his serve and volley. On his side though, Rafael has the will to work hard and the desire to keep on improving. Federer will win this year but the challenge has only just started.... Cristopher Clarey (International Herald Tribune and New York Times) Federer will stay no. 1 this year because he s the most versatile player and he s better than Nadal on fast surfaces. He also plays with less physical effort so he s less susceptible to injury. grass will restore the status quo. Federer will erect a new barrier between himself and his opponents (or rather opponent apart from Nadal everyone else is light-years away) and when the game is back on American cement and in the European indoor season, he will once again be the man to beat. It s surprising though what Nadal has been capable of in the last two months. He won two Masters Series, a Grand Slam title and his home tournament in Barcelona. And above all he showed himself highly competitive on cement. Federer is undoubtedly the favourite but he can t afford any distractions. It was a good thing anyway that Nadal came out so early. Federer s superiority was so obvious there was a risk of boredom creeping in. Sport is above all else struggle and sacrifice. Yet Federer seemed to be winning effortlessly - till the Majorcan fisherman came along. So he s now in the unenviable position of still being the no. 1 but without a Slam title to his credit in 2005 and with Sampras s record still ten lengths away. For while Nadal is playing to be this year s no. 1, Federer has set his sights on becoming the no. 1 of all times. What s certain is that the Nadal-Federer shoot-outs have appeal beyond the world of tennis. They re mass media events like Brazil-Argentina football, New Zealand - Australia rugby, an NBA basketball final. Let s hope it stays that way. Post scriptum Jonas Bjorkman is the eighth player to have won all the Slam tournaments in the doubles in his career. At Roland Garros he won with Max Mirnyi. The other seven are Todd Woodbridge, Mark Woodforde, Jacco Eltingh, Paul Haarhuis, Anders Jarryd, John Fitzgerald and John Newcombe 4

5 Special Ranking INDESIT ATP 2005 Race 1 Roger Federer (Swi) Age 23 Race Points wins/3 defeats The impossible happened. Nadal has almost caught up with King Roger, although Wimbledon should restore the distance between them. Will it be the same at the end of the year though? A question no one just a few weeks ago would have thought of asking 6 Guillermo Coria (Arg) Age 23 - Race points wins/11 defeats Coria is the big disappointment on clay this season. He lost the Rome final to Nadal, his performance wilted and then he bowed out to Davidenko in Paris. He ll probably make the Masters Cup but his real objective was Roland Garros. 1 Rafael Nadal (Spa) Age 19 Race Points wins/6 defeats Phenomenal. He s won two Masters Series (Monte Carlo and Rome) and now Roland Garros. Meaning he now sees Roger Federer, so given he s also competitive on cement, it s going to be a long battle for the no.1 spot. 7 Lleyton Hewitt (Aus) Age 24 Race Points wins/3 defeats Injury has kept him off the clay circuit, which isn t his favourite surface. Meantime, if marriage doesn t distract him, he can still go for the Top 3. 3 Nikolay Davidenko (Russ) Age 24 - Race Points wins/15 defeats The real surprise of the season. Though it s hard to see him still there in the top 3 at the end of the season, he s good on all surfaces, so who can say he won t gain a place at the Masters Cup in Shanghai? 8 Mariano Puerta (Arg) Age 26 - Race Points wins/9 defeats Amazing. He played well on South American clay at the start of the season but who would have bet on him reaching the final in the French Open? He now has to win some games on faster courts though if he wants to stay in the Top Marat Safin (Russ) Age 25 Race Points wins/8 defeats Enigmatic. At the start of the season he seemed to be the anti-federer, but the top spot now seems a long way off. On a good day he can beat anyone. But when is that good day going to be? 9 Gaston Gaudio (Arg) Age 26 Race Points wins/11 defeats Roland Garros winner in 2004, he didn t manage to hang on in the Top 10 till the end of the year. It ll be tough this year too, because he s never achieved much off clay courts even on good days. 5 Andy Roddick (USA) Age 22 Race Points wins/7 defeats A shadow of himself. The season has been disappointing so far, but with the Wimbledon grass and American cement drawing near, he should be back there fighting for a Slam. 10 David Ferrer (Spa) 15 Age 23 Race Points wins/16 defeats He ll fight till the end to stay in the Top 10 and, having proved in the Masters Series in Miami that he s competitive on cement as well, he may very well be in with a chance of succeeding. 1 Position in INDESIT ATP 2005 Race 1 Position in INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking The richest Federer and Nadal lead the dollar rankings as well. They re also the only ones to have topped 2 million dollars in Rafael Nadal Player Nation Prize money in 2005 Rafael Nadal Spain Roger Federer Switzerland Marat Safin Russia Nikolay Davidenko Russia Lleyton Hewitt Australia Guillermo Coria Argentina Mariano Puerta Argentina Andy Roddick USA David Ferrer Spain Max Mirnyi Belarus Mario Ancic Ranking under 21 Tommy Robredo After two Slams and six months of play, here are the top placed under-20s in the INDESIT ATP Entry Ranking. ATP ranking Player Year of birth 3 Rafael Nadal Mario Ancic Richard Gasquet Robin Soderling Tomas Berdych Juan Monaco Stanislas Wawrinka Nicolas Almagro Gael Monfils Andreas Seppi 1984 National rankings Spain and Argentina were the favourites for the top nation on clay, but at the half way stage a real leader hasn t yet emerged, as they re first equal. They re followed by the USA with Russia close behind and now France as well thanks to the coming out of their young star Richard Gasquet. The Top Ten s Belgian rearguard, however, will have to watch out for Italy, who after years now has five players in the world s Top 100. *sum of the top three players in the Indesit ATP Entry Ranking. The famous Italian journalist Gianni Clerici has published another book, of poems this time, some of which on tennis. Title: Postumo in vita Roddick has signed a tennis shoe agreement with Babolat; apparel-wise he is currently Lacoste Nadal is only the third player in the Open Era, after Nastase and Muster, to have won in Monte Carlo, Rome and Paris in the same year Nation Ranking* 1 Argentina 31 2 Spain 32 3 USA 40 4 Russia 46 5 Sweden 69 6 Croatia 89 7 Czech Rep France 95 9 Germany Belgium 133 5

6 Personality Andrew Murray His name was back in the news after the Beslan tragedy in Ossetia, when dozens of kids were killed by Chechenian terrorists. Eight years earlier, a similar fate had been reserved for a school in Dunblane, Scotland. A man named Thomas Hamilton walked into a class and killed 16 children. Andrew Murray was at school there that day and could have been one of them. Hamilton was at the door of his class when they finally overpowered him. Eight years on, that little kid won the junior category at the US Open and in the classic after-final speech he dedicated his victory to all the families of Dunblane and Beslan. I don t remember much of that day and I only really understood the enormity of what happened three or four years after, when the worst was over and people started having normal lives again. I lost some great friends of mine I was saved by a miracle. Andrew Murray soon left Scotland for Spain, where he went to the Emilio Sanchez Academy to learn the basic strokes, spirit of sacrifice, the will to struggle. This is how he ended up under the wing of Pato Alvarez, who enjoys the simplicity of styling himself the best coach in the world. A personal opinion, but with a dose of truth in it, seeing that he s trained dozens of players in Spain and always with good results. So Murray grew up more Spanish than Scottish, tennis-wise. Forget the serve & volley à la Henman, the reverse backhands, and such like: Murray is a product of modern tennis solid, fast, shrewd. When he s finished developing his physique, he can invent the knockout shot he lacks at the moment. In the meantime he s decided to abandon the the best coach in the world on the grounds of age limits. Pato is great and has taught He was 9 when pure luck made him a survivor of the Dunblane school massacre. At 18 he s now the world s top junior and is already impressive at a professional level. The UK seems to have found an heir to Tim Henman me so much, says Murray, but there s a half century between us and when you spend weeks away from home you need someone who s also a friend you can talk to, laugh and have fun with. This is where the former English player Mark Petchey comes in. Emilio Sanchez is keeping a close eye on Andrew anyway, given this is a temporary measure geared to the grass season. A definitive decision still has to be taken. Murray will have to be very careful now because people are starting to crowd Andrew Murray round him. The UK is an important market and everyone s looking for an heir to Henman - sponsors, the Federation, the fans, the tabloids, everyone. And who better could they find than a kid just turned 18 who has the nerve to get through two rounds at the Queen s, can beat a certain Taylor Dent (who s afraid of no one on grass) and only lose to Thomas Johansson 7-5 in the third set? It s worrying that he had to play three sets with cramp but this was probably the effect of his first matches at high level rather than insufficient athletic preparation. There s already Murray-mania in London now that the odds on Henman at Wimbledon have plummeted somewhat. No one s expecting to see him in the final of course. Given his age and limited experience, any match he wins will cause a stir. It s an important test for Murray though not so much technical as mental. When he was up against John McEnroe in an exhibition event last year, filmed by the BBC in the legendary Royal Albert Hall, he was given a lesson by the old Johnny Mac, who s 46. But Murray s grown since then, has achieved awareness of his own capabilities. As he says himself without hesitation, I like tennis because it enables you to make a show of yourself in front of thousands of people. If you don t like that sensation, you might as well give up. Saying something is one thing, doing it another. So what better scenario than the All England Club to see how he squares up as a performer? He may even win the honour of reaching the Centre Court, and then we d see if he was bluffing or not. Post scriptum In the Wimbledon qualifying rounds, Chris Guccione served 50 aces, 32 in the last set won 23-21, he served three aces in a game eight times and on one occasion four even. The unfortunate adversary was French Olivier Patience Belgian Xavier Malisse is the player with the highest percentage of break points converted 6

7 Marat Safin Grand Slam Ranking Pos Player AO RG Total 1 Rafael Nadal Marat Safin Roger Federer Lleyton Hewitt Marian Puerta Nikolay Davidenko Andy Roddick Guillermo Canas David Nalbandian Tommy Robredo A player s season (and even more so his career) is determined by his performance in the Grand Slam tournaments. So here s this season s rankings after the first two Slams (the Australian Open and Roland Garros). Wimbledon is the third. In the lead are the two Slam winners, Marat Safin and Rafael Nadal, neither of whom got past the quarter finals in their other tournament. For once, we see Swiss Roger Federer lower down the podium. He could overtake the others though at Wimbledon, seeing he s the favourite. Then come Lleyton Hewitt, as was expected, and two surprises, Nikolay Davidenko and Mariano Puerta, French Open finalist. These are the only six players to have topped 100 points. Andre Agassi is already out of the Top 10. Recordman And here are the Open Era players who ve played the most matches in Grand Slam tournaments. Andre Agassi is the only player in this Top 10 who s still playing. Followers up include Tim Henman (20 th ), Lleyton Hewitt (29 th ), Marat Safin (38 th ) and Jonas Bjorkman (39 th ). Pos Player Wins Defeats Total 1 Jimmy Connors Ivan Lendl Andre Agassi Pete Sampras Stefan Edberg John McEnroe Boris Becker Mats Wilander Bjorn Borg Guillermo Vilas Marathon Man Most wins in 5 sets 1 Pete Sampras 29 2 Ivan Lednl 25 3 Todd Martin 23 4 Boris Becker 21 4 Wayne Ferreira 21 4 Mats Wilander 21 Jimmy Connors The Slam tournaments are different from the others in that they re played 3 sets out five right from the first round. Detailed below are the long-distance players in the Open Era (since 1968) who ve recorded the best performances when the game reaches a fifth and decisive set. Most matches played to 5 sets 1 Ivan Lednl 42 2 Pete Sampras 38 2 Todd Martin 38 4 Andre Agassi 36 5 Michael Chang 35 Wimbledon record Wimbledon is the most prestigious tournament in the world. But who in the history of the event has won the most matches on the courts of the All England Club? Here are the Top 10. In % terms, the best performer is still Bjorn Borg, followed by Pete Sampras and, way behind, Boris Becker. Best 5 th set record* *out of at least 7 matches 1 Jens Knippschild 100% (7-0) 2 Bjorn Borg 87% (20,3) 3 Johan Kriek 86.7% (13-2) 4 Marat Safin 86.4% (19-3) 5 Harold Solomon 85.7% (12-2) 5 Damir Keretic 85.7% (6-1) 5 Stephane Simian 85.7% (6-1) Pete Sampras Number 1! Pos Worst 5 th set record 1 Markus Hipfl 0% (0-8) 2 Juan Ignacio Chela 0% (0-7) 3 Mark Kratzmann 10% (1-9) 4 Jonathan Stark 11.1% (1-8) 4 Agustin Calleri 11.1% (1-8) Player Slam wins 1 Pete Sampras 14 2 Roy Emerson 12 3 Bjorn Borg 11 Pos Player Wins Defeats % 1 Jimmy Connors Boris Becker Pete Sampras John McEnroe Bunny Austin Jean Borotra Bjorn Borg Jaroslav Drobny Stefan Edberg Goran Ivanisevic If Roger Federer wants to become the most successful player of all times, here s the record he has to beat. Pete Sampras won 14 Slam titles, so Federer has only ten to go. 3 Rod Laver 11 5 Bill Tilden 10 6 Fred Perry 8 6 Jimmy Connors 8 6 Ivan Lendl 8 6 Andre Agassi 8 6 Ken Rosewall 8 Andy Roddick leads the circuit in 4 of the 6 serve statistics: aces, points won on 1 st serve, service games won and break points converted. Roger Federer heads the tables in points won on 2 nd serve and Potito Starace percentage won on the 1 st On the receiving side, three of the statistics are headed by Rafael Nadal: points won against 1 st and 2 nd serves and receiving games won 7

8 S P E C I A L W I M B L E D O N The world s most prestigious tennis event, the one most players dream of winning since childhood. And where Roger Federer is clear favourite to win his 3 rd title in a row and lengthen his lead again in the INDESIT ATP 2005 Race One for all! If Roger Federer was a torero, he would come to a sticky end. He starts feeling unwell when he sees red. But as soon as he sets foot on green he s unstoppable again. After defeat in Paris at the hands of his new rival in the INDESIT ATP 2005 Race, the Spanish Rafael Nadal, the Swiss ace immediately returned to his threatening form once on a grass court. The Halle tournament saw his 20 th consecutive finals win. He s now limbering up for a third Wimbledon victory, having won the last two. It s hard to imagine anyone beating him. Getting near yes, but actually usurping the throne, that s another thing. Just look at the bookmakers. In any other grand slam there are three or for players with at least similar odds. But at Wimbledon Federer is on his own. His objectives are changing as well. Bjorn Borg s five consecutive wins, Pete Sampras s seven overall wins. Having won two on the trot, Becker once said that the legendary centre court was his drawing room. So what should Federer be saying? The Swiss came into his own on this court in 2001, when he eliminated Sampras, then considered unbeatable. He had to wait a while to build on that success but when the first triumph came in 2003, it radically changed his career. I always knew I could win slam tournaments but it wasn t till that first win at Wimbledon that things started moving. And how! Since then he s won another Championships title, one in Australia, another at Flushing Meadows. John McEnroe himself was categorical about it, when I saw Federer win his first Wimbledon, I immediately felt sure he d win another five at least. For the moment I see no reason to change my mind. Only Roland Garros eludes him still but it s a question of time and a little luck. Post scriptum Goran Ivanisevic aside, the last left-hander to win at Wimbledon was John McEnroe 21 years ago Safin reached his first ever grass final at Halle but Wimbledon is the only Slam where he s never even made the semis. He s announced he ll be taking a break afterwards due to bad knee pain 8

9 G S WIMBLEDON Paris can spell doom for many players. And between Roland Garros and Wimbledon there are only two weeks. Getting used to the completely different surface in such a short time is not for everyone. Our young phenomenon Rafael Nadal could be a major victim. His game isn t suited to grass anyway, let alone if he hasn t enough time to train for it. After the victory party in Paris he flew to Germany for the Halle tournament where he was immediately eliminated by the modest Alexander Waske. Nadal has the strength, the mindset and the will to win on grass but without time to train he ll find it too arduous. If he s drawn against a grass player, he could be out of the running at the start. A guy who ll immediately be front-page in the tabloids, on the other hand, is the usual Tim Henman, desperate for a title he s been chasing since he first set foot in the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. He was practically an infant still, but the dream has always been the same. He even discovered that over the last few Habitual winners Here are the players in the Open Era (since 1968) who ve won at least two Wimbledons. 7 wins Pete Sampras 5 wins Bjorn Borg 3 wins John McEnroe, Boris Becker 2 wins Roger Federer, Stefan Edberg, Rod Laver, John Newcombe years he s been somewhat hindered. Henman has never been a Goliath but he was very surprised to see how the speed of his shots at Wimbledon was gradually diminishing. He looked into this, detective-like, and even involved Slazenger (his sponsor!). The upshot was that tennis balls are uncorked two weeks ahead of the tournament so they can slightly deflate and thus slow down a little. This is because grass is already very fast in itself and the idea was to prevent play from becoming too unforgiving. Which is understandable, though no consolation for Henman. It s not Henman that Federer should be minding so much as Andy Roddick, the other finalist last year, who has just won Queen s (the classic run-up to Wimbledon) for the third time running. They will be the two real Championships favourites, with Lleyton Hewitt in second row carrying the unknown quantity of an injury that s kept him out for nearly two months. Roger Federer Grass often conceals surprises. Though the surface has almost disappeared from the circuit, there are still experts around who can make life hell for top players. Two names spring to mind immediately - the Croat Ivo Karlovic and the American Taylor Dent. The latter is the son of an Australian player and grew up on grass. Many compare him to Pat Rafter, who reached the final at Wimbledon twice. His problem is staying in top physical Andy Roddick won his 3 rd consecutive Queen s Tournament, the classic prologue to Wimbledon; John McEnroe and Lleyton Hewitt are the only others to have done this Penn, an ATP partner and the ball that s used in Masters Series tournaments, has created a new type of ball that lasts longer and is more visible thanks to Encore technology. 9

10 G S WIMBLEDON form, but his serve & volley and attacking game make him a player to avoid. Karlovic on the other hand is the most atypical player you could imagine. He s the tallest on the circuit (2m 8), has an astounding serve, a good volley, a nonexistent backhand and a mentality that the best psychologist-coach on the circuit - Alberto Castellani - is building up. Breaking his serve is a Herculean task and nearly all his matches are decided on two or three points. This is why the psychological factor is fundamental. Hall of Fame Here are all the winners in the Open Era (1968) Rod Laver (Aus) 1969 Rod Laver (Aus) 1970 John Newcombe (Aus) 1971 John Newcombe (Aus) 1972 Stan Smtih (USA) 1973 Jan Kodes (Cz. Rep.) 1974 Jimmy Connors (USA) 1975 Arthur Ashe (USA) 1976 Björn Borg (Swe) 1977 Björn Borg (Swe) 1978 Björn Borg (Swe) 1979 Björn Borg (Swe) 1980 Björn Borg (Swe) 1981 John McEnroe (USA) 1982 Jimmy Connors (USA) 1983 John McEnroe (USA) 1984 John McEnroe (USA) 1985 Boris Becker (Ger) 1986 Boris Becker (Ger) 1987 Pat Cash (Aus) 1988 Stefan Edberg (Swe) 1989 Boris Becker (Ger) 1990 Stefan Edberg (Swe) 1991 Michael Stich (Ger) 1992 Andre Agassi (USA) 1993 Pete Sampras (USA) 1994 Pete Sampras (USA) 1995 Pete Sampras (USA) 1996 Richard Krajicek (Hol) 1997 Pete Sampras (USA) 1998 Pete Sampras (USA) 1999 Pete Sampras (USA) 2000 Pete Sampras (USA) 2001 Goran Ivanisevic (Cro) 2002 Lleyton Hewitt (Aus) 2003 Roger Federer (Swi) 2004 Roger Federer (Swi) Taylor Dent On grass he seems to have found the right spirit, seeing he made the final at Queen s after beating Hewitt and then losing to Roddick in two tie-breaks (!). Another talent to watch is Richard Gasquet, still not mature enough for the big time but very close to posing a real problem for any adversary. And lastly Mister Enigma himself, Marat Safin. He s always said he loathes grass, cast doubt on his playing at Wimbledon and also announced he has a very painful knee (having seen a doctor in Italy he decided to rest a few weeks after Wimbledon). But then he gets to the final in Halle, plays some fabulous tennis against Federer and is suddenly dangerous again. He s the only player to have beaten Federer when the Swiss is performing at his best. Can he do it again at Wimbledon? So everything s ready for another half million spectators to re-enact the Wimbledon rituals, including the human snake that queues down the street outside the club thousands of people who camp out all night in the anguished hope of getting a seat next morning. See why they say Wimbledon is such a unique event? Post scriptum Federer comes to Wimbledon having won his last 29 matches played on grass The Roland Garros final had a TV audience in Spain of 4.7 million, with a peak of 6.4m in the closing moments, and a 58% share, making it the 5 th biggest sporting event, in terms of viewers, in Spanish history 10

11 Top 10 Grass is a very funny surface and often upsets the rankings. Here are the ten grass men who can go for the title. 1 Roger Federer (Swi) Winner 2003 and 2004 To beat him... he ll have to be injured. When in good health he s practically untouchable, unless maybe by Roddick serving his best. If everything goes as normal, he should win his third Wimbledon in a row. 6 Tim Henman (GBR) Semi-finalist in 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2002 He s been dreaming of winning this tournament since he was a kid and he s come close a couple of times. He now seems past his best, but who knows, maybe when no one s expecting it, he ll turn into a Wimbledon winner, like Ivanisevic. 2 Andy Roddick (USA) Finalist 2004 Last year he came close to beating Federer in the final. This year though A- Rod isn t playing his best tennis and the absence of his strategist Gilbert could be a serious drawback. 7 Ivo Karlovic (Cro) 4 th round 2004 He has the most lethal serve on the circuit and is strong on grass. Last year not even Federer was able to break his serve and only beat him thanks to three tie-breaks. He s in good form and feeling confident, so he s a very dangerous contender indeed. 3 Lleyton Hewitt (Aus) Winner 2002 Federer says he s his main adversary on the London grass. Lleyton missed out on the clay season and now needs a few matches to regain proper fighting form. Having improved his service though, he ll be a tough nut to crack. 8 Marat Safin (Rus) Quarter finals 2001 He s always said he doesn t like grass and even considered giving Wimbledon a miss. Then he turns up in the final at Halle against Federer and plays a really great match. You can never trust Marat, one way or the other... 4 Taylor Dent (UK) 3 rd round 2002 and 2004 Serve and volley both superlative, return and crosscourt shots less so. The primary factor though will be his athletic form, which isn t always perfect. He s one of the top grass specialists. 9 Thommy Haas (Ger) Third round 1998, 1999 and 2000 He was once the world no. 2, then a long injury kept him off court. He s now climbing back up and is a very versatile player. At Halle he got Roger Federer very worried. 5 Mario Ancic (Cro) Semi-finalist 2004 In an astonishing performance last year he gave Roddick an extremely rough time in the semi-final. He hasn t kept up that level of play but Wimbledon is a world of its own. If he gets the right feel, he could well do a repeat of last year s feat. 10 Richard Gasquet (Fra) 1 st round 2004 Still a little green for the big times, he s certainly one of the players to avoid in the early rounds. Vastly talented, he hasn t much experience on grass but these young champions are very quick to learn... Michael Owen and David Beckham offer their support for London s candidacy for the 2012 Olympics. A London Olympics? This is something the city really wants to win. London is one of the five candidate venues for the 2012 Olympics, with Paris, Moscow, New York and Madrid. The UK and French capitals are the favourites. Madrid is penalized by the fact that Spain has recently had an Olympics (Barcelona 1992), Moscow has serious economic and political problems and New York would need a major structural overhaul. For the moment, Paris enjoys a slight advantage but the final decision will be taken in Singapore on 6 th July. The chairman of the London 2012 project, the unforgettable middle-distance champion Sebastian Coe says he s in any case proud of what s been done so far. Wimbledon will be an opportunity to promote the city in its Olympic challenge. Ivo Karlovic Let s bet on it... The perfect serve On grass the serve is an indispensable weapon. Here are the best players in terms of the ratio between aces and double faults per game. Just for once, a Top 10 without Roger Federer in it. Player ace double faults difference Ivo Karlovic Andy Roddick Wayne Arthurs Joachim Johansson Mardy Fish Mario Ancic Ivan Ljubicic Max Mirnyi Lleyton Hewitt Andrei Pavel In the UK betting is one of the national pastimes and Wimbledon is one of the most bettable events. Before the start of the tournament, one of the top bookmakers, William Hill, was practically taking it for granted Roger Federer would win his 3rd consecutive title. The odds on him winning are in fact 1.6 (ie. one pound bet wins 1.66 pounds). Following in order are Andy Roddick (5.50), Lleyton Hewitt (11), and Rafael Nadal (13), who isn t that competitive on grass but has a lot of punters behind him after his success at Roland Garros. Also interesting are the odds on Mario Ancic, a semi-finalist last year and a fine grass player, at 17, and Taylor Dent, who can play divinely on grass, quoted at 81. It s also possible to bet on single matches, sets won/lost and countless other combinations. At the start of Wimbledon Federer will be the player with most tournaments won in 2005: 7 to Nadal s 6 and Gaudio and Roddick s 3 Marat Safin is the 3 rd player to have topped a million dollars prize money in Federer and Nadal are already over $2m Fancy buying a racquet made to measure for you? At you can have a frame custom made to your specifications 11

12 Memorabilia Tennis love Lizzie Bradbury (Kirsten Dunst) is a promising young talent whose life is winning at tennis. But when she falls in love with Peter Colt (Paul Bettany), facing his last stand at Wimbledon, she discovers that life isn t just winning or losing, when the game is love. The dream cast of this romantic comedy by the makers of Notting Hill and Bridget Jones Diary includes the leading lady of Spiderman 2 12