Michael Stich won a thrilling battle of former Wimbledon champions in front of a packed crowd at the BlackRock Tour of Champions event in Hamburg, and then paid tribute to the retiring Justine Henin.
The 1991 Wimbledon champion saw off 1987 winner Pat Cash 6-4, 6-4, while Mikael Pernfors beat Marc Kevin Goellner 7-6, 6-4 and Goran Ivanisevic (pictured) was forced to retire with a pulled calf muscle while 7-6, 5-5 up against Anders Jarryd.
Pete Sampras will make his BlackRock Tour of Champions debut in Sao Paulo
The Croatian was disappointed to hurt himself while playing so well, and will leave the injury overnight to see if he is able to play on Thursday.
News of Henin’s retirement filtered through during the afternoon in Hamburg, and shocked the champions as they prepared for their matches.
Stich said: “She was one of the most complete players of the last 10 years, winning seven Grand Slams. She was small compared to the other girls but she had a very complete game. She made up for her size with her tennis. She was very creative and it made her the champion that she was. It’s always a shame when you lose someone but everyone has to retire some time. I just wish her happiness because life is starting for her now, and it’s a chance for other women to emerge and take her place.
Cash said he could understand why she made the decision but admitted that her departure is a loss for the game.
“It’s a lot of pressure to keep playing at that level - certain players like Bjorn Borg retired early, and you can’t blame them,” said Cash.
“The Top Ten in the women’s game is full of big, powerful women and for her to outpower them in spite of her size was really fantastic. Her backhand was a thing of real beauty. It’s a loss for the game as a whole, but tennis is quite stressful for players, there isn’t much of an off-season, and it’s not surprising that she’s worn out and perhaps had enough. When you lose your motivation and the losses start to come, it’s no fun. I’m guessing she just thought that she couldn’t push herself any more and needed to stop.”
Ivanisevic was characteristically less understanding.
“I don’t understand it. She was No.1 and she retires,” said Ivanisevic.
“She was such an unbelievable player and could have won more Grand Slams. I don’t know why she did it. Maybe it’s a woman thing. I don’t understand women. It’s very sad for tennis - a big loss.”
On Thursday, Ivanisevic is scheduled to meet Goellner late in the day, while Henri Leconte takes on Thomas Muster and Jarryd plays Pernfors in and all-Swedish battle.
After Hamburg, Pete Sampras will make his long awaited debut on the BlackRock Tour of Champions in Sao Paulo, 21-24 May, 2008.
The Tour opened in Belfast in February with Anders Jarryd successfully defending his title. in Barcelona last month, Marcelo Rios triumphed, while Muster won in Rome last week.
