A wild card goes wild on Wimbledon grass

SOME THINGS never change at tradition-heavy Wimbledon. After all, Tim Henman kept up Britain's not so enviable record of not having a men's singles finalist since Bunny Austin in 1938.

But if the All England Club had expected the status quo to continue its reign over London SW19 then the old world order was in for a shock in the shape of a man who'd never - quite - managed to gatecrash the establishment party.

Three times Goran Ivanisevic had reached the final and three times he'd headed back to Croatia with an anguished look on his face and the scant consolation of the loser's plate in his luggage.

Goran doesn't care much for the old order, however and this year he decided it would all turn out different.

Yes, he was a wild card ranked 125 in the world without a title since a success on - modest - home ground at Split in 1998. And no, a wildcard had never won a Grand Slam singles in the open era.

But not any more, because the 29-year-old from Split - with the split personality to match - broke Australian third seed Pat Rafter's heart to write a new page of Wimbledon history in winning their pulsating final.

Rafter had come here full of beans, but threatening that retirement was his next career move, having lost out to Pete Sampras in last year's rain-interrupted final. This time the rain kept off at the death - but only after it had forced the tournament to go into a third week after the opening ten days passed off in hot sunshine.

Rafter ended up with two days off after beating 1992 champion Andre Agassi in a five-set semifinal every bit as much as classic as their meeting at the same stage 12 months ago.

Ivanisevic was meanwhile taking three days to oust Henman as bad light and rain did for the Briton and let the Croatian off the hook.

The champion said the title was his destiny. He was dead right - though he still had time to double fault twice on championship point, provoking palpitations among his flag-waving fans enjoying `people's Monday' on the centre court along with thousands of Australians whose sporting desire had not been sated by cricket Test success.

Ivanisevic served up a record 213 aces through the tournament and yet proved he could do so much more - including keeping his head - just when it really mattered.

``This is what I was waiting for all my life. I was always second. Second place is not good enough. Finally I am a champion'' said Ivanisevic. ``This is everything for me. Whatever I do in my life I will always be Wimbledon champion.

``I don't even care now if I win a match in my life again. This is the end of the road!'' said the man who only eight months ago defaulted from an event at Brighton Down on the British South Coast for lack of appropriate equipment'' after smashing all his racquets.

In fact it is not, because he is already bursting for the opening day of next year's tournament to be welcomed on centre court as the defending champion.

If Ivanisevic was a gloriously eccentric champion, Pat Rafter was the most gracious of losers - though he would not be drawn on whether he will return to the scene of two straight final losses having been gunned down by `pistol Pete' Sampras last year.

``This time it hurts a little bit more than last time that's for sure.

``But it was an amazing atmosphere and a lot of fun.''

Would that he himself provides another year of it at least.

So what of the other nearly men?

Two springing immediately to mind were seven-time champion Sampras, a fourth-round loser to Swiss teen Roger Federer, beaten in turn by Henman in a marvellous quarter-final.

Sampras, winner of a record 13 Grand Slams, thus failed to become the first man ever to lift a Slam singles crown eight times and failed to move ahead of William Renshaw, with whom he shares the all-time Wimbledon record.

``It's unfortunate it's over. It wasn't going to last forever,'' was Sampras' reaction which could now equally apply to his future assaults as Federer and company look to step into the vacuum shortly to be left by the veterans.

Henman was the biggest loser of all as the rain and fading light contrived to wreck his semifinal against Ivanisevic and let the Croat out of jail when he had lost the third set to move to within millimetres of the exit door.

Sixth seed Henman's defeat took 44 hours as his meeting with Ivanisevic, who he had beaten four times in as many previous meetings, began on Friday, was delayed by rain, delayed by more rain on the last Saturday and finally finished in misery as the rain held off Sunday.

The host nation now remains winless since Fred Perry's 1936 hat- trick triumph.

``I did my best but unfortunately it wasn't good enough this year,'' Henman sighed.

There should now be a changing of the guard as Sampras and Andre Agassi, beaten by Rafter in another brilliant semifinal, age still further, Henman remains a nearly man, and Rafter himself heads towards the beaches of retirement as compatriot Lleyton Hewitt bids to take his place in Aussie affections. Ivanisevic has had his day and the future is up for grabs. Messrs Federer and Hewitt take note.

Without equal

A second successive Wimbledon crown showed Venus Williams is without equal on grass and now the American intends to prove she is the world number one. The 21-year-old, also the U.S. Open and Olympic champion, dropped just two sets as she defended her crown, but says she has all sorts of plans to improve her game.

``I think I can capitalise better,'' she said after beating Justine Henin in the final.

``Really work on more things in my game - moving forward, taking the ball early, just some new strategy that I can add to the next year coming.''

The tall, powerful and uncompromising Williams enjoyed a phenomenally successful 2000, following Wimbledon with U.S. Open and Olympic titles, but she admits she was riding a wave and not really working at her game.

``I didn't practise that much for the U.S. Open at the Olympics, I hardly hit at all. I'd get out there. I'd be practising, I'd be just fooling around. Really if you start fooling around your game gets worse.''

William's game suffered towards the end of the year. She entered fewer tournaments, was distracted by college where she studied design and her form became ragged.

Though she reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and won the Ericsson and German Opens, she entered only seven tournaments before Wimbledon in 2001, losing in the first round at the French Open and failing to capture the coveted number one spot in the rankings.

Now she says the serious assault on that top spot, held for so long by Martina Hingis, begins in earnest.

``I have to make it a priority. I have to play more. Either that or I have to win every Grand Slam which isn't easy, so I'll play a little bit more,'' Williams said.

Hingis has been all but forgotten after her shock first round Wimbledon defeat by little-known Virginia Ruano Pascual.

Despite failing to win a Grand Slam tournament for two-and-a- half years she remains at the top of the rankings.

For many months commentators have been writing her off as having a game that is too delicate and lacking in power to compete with the hard hitters of today's tennis.

But by dint of hard work, entering and doing reasonably well in tournaments and sticking at it, she is still the one statistically to topple.

``It showed my consistency that I was always at the top,'' a disappointed but defiant Hingis said after her defeat.

Maybe I sometimes feel second, but I was always there and it was always a different player who beat me in the semis or finals that's why the ranking system is there,'' she said.

Promising youngsters

It was perhaps telling that 19-year-old Henin, one of a crop of promising youngsters to find success this year, did not even mention Hingis initially when discussing how to move up to the next level in the game.

Henin, who has leapt up the rankings from 100 last year to five, said: ``I think great champions are tough. Maybe it's another level because you know Williams, Capriati, Davenport, they're very strong. But I think I have the game to win these matches.''

Despite her small size, Henin has a much more aggressive, herd hitting game than Hingis, who relies greatly on touch and anticipation.

And power brings results. Even the tall, imposing Lindsay Davenport said she could not match or deal with Venus Williams' service strength during their semifinal.

Recent injury has hampered Davenport's progress and she drops to number four in the world after her semifinal defeat with Jennifer Capriati at number four.

Capriati's dramatic success in the first two Grand Slams of the season after an unlikely comeback from teenage delinquency has provided the hot story of women's tennis this year.

Her Wimbledon semifinal defeat by Henin was almost relief from the unbearable pressure as fans willed her to win all four in the same year for the first time since Steffi Graf in 1988.

Mature, now and philosophical in defeat, Capriati said she could not be too disappointed.

``Everyone was making a big deal out of the Grand Slam but I'm pretty happy with the way the year has gone so far. I mean it's pretty hard to win one Grand Slam so I'm happy,'' she said.

With the U.S. Season approaching Capriati will be Venus William's chief concern as she prepares to defend her U.S. Open title. Not that anyone should write off little sister Serena.

The 19-year-old Serena Williams won he U.S. Open crown two years ago and, though like her sister she has suffered from lack of match practise and has a more fragile temperament, her aggression and strength make her very dangerous.

However hard Venus intends to practise, she knows she cannot expect an easy ride across the pond.

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