No Longer 'Timid Tim'

Henman unleashes his tiger over Llodra
Tim: 'To come through a match like that and find a way to win, I think it's kind of character building'

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

Susan Mullane/Camerawork USA

Henman scored his biggest win ever outside of Wimby, but the likes of Coria might be too much for Tiger Tim on clay of Roland Garros.

FROM ROLAND GARROS – Before Roland Garros began, the chance of Tim Henman and his grass-stained knickers having huge impact here were as good as Serena Williams coming on court dressed as a nun.

On Sunday, after Henman pulled off the most amazing victory of his Grand Slam career away from Wimbledon with a 6-7 (2), 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 9-7 victory over France's Michael Llodra, the striking Serena might just have to walk on court for her quarterfinal against Jennifer Capriati wearing a worn habit and a colorless veil.

It's the first time that Henman has ever reached a quarterfinal of a Grand Slam that isn't played on turf at the cozy All-England Lawn and Tennis Club. He was thrust on the raucous Suzanne Lenglen Stadium, a locale where many non-Gaelic players have sunk into the deep clay at the hands of a hot French player. But despite not brining his "A" game to the match for the first two sets against a powerful, zoning lefty, he found a level of macho play not often seen from a man known to his critics as "Timid Tim."

Tiger Tim now appears to have superceded Timid Tim in the schizophrenic world of British tennis, where Henman is hailed as a conquering hero on his good days and dismissed a weak-kneed coward on his off days. During this bizarre first week in Paris, a 29-year-old serve-and-volleyer as pale as a café crème faced down a red-faced player and an overheated crowd in a four-hour, 11-minute classic. "In terms of atmosphere and drama, this one rates up pretty high," said Henman, who fought off a match point in the fifth set. "To come through a match like that and find a way to win, I think it's kind of character building."

USUALLY BEATEN BY BETTER GRASS COURT PLAYERS
If you take an objective and non-British look at Henman's overly chronicled Wimbledon career, he really hasn't tremendously unachieved there. In many of the years when he's gone deep, he's just been beaten by flat out better players on grass such as Michael Stich, Pete Sampras, Goran Ivanisevic and Lleyton Hewitt. It was only last year, when he had buffed up enough and had added a more than respectable ground game to his well-honed serve-and-volley attack, that he took a big spill in British eyes, losing to France's Sebastian Grosjean in the quarterfinals.

Then it was a toughness and direction in his game that he lacked. After a lackluster three-month swing, he decided in early November to begin attacking at will and, in November, won his first Tennis Master Series title. But Henman wasn't done attempting to right his ship and in December, hired 14-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras' old coach, Paul Annacone, to tutor him. Annacone believes that veteran players need to emphasize their strengths and not spend too much time worrying about their weaknesses.

On Sunday in Paris, Henman didn't remember that until it was almost too late. He allowed Llodra to take it to him the first two-and-a-half sets. The Frenchman gunned and twisted serves, banged his ground strokes and ran to net with more intention than Henman.

Susan Mullane/Camerawork USA

Llodra faded in the fifth.

"He was the one who was dictating play, serving aggressively and getting forward," Henman said. "I was being reactive rather than proactive. That something I need to avoid because that's not my style."

FIFTH-SET RECOVERY
Henman appeared to be toast when he broken to 3-2 in the third set when Llodra crushed a forehand return winner. But then the big tiger leapt out of his soul and he gored Llodra, breaking him back at love with a forehand volley winner. He was no longer the shy Tim who kept taking big left hooks to the ribs, but ratcheted up his serve, volleyed with touch and a certain meanness and cut loose on his passing shots.

Yet despite his much-improved play, the atmosphere spelled a fifth-set duel and the crowd knew the tide would eventually turn back to Lllodra. That occurred in the fourth game of the fifth set, when Llodra sprinted ahead and slapped a huge Henman overhead smash right back for a winner. Henman was consequently broken back to 2-2 "It was a fluke," said Henman. "I hit two great smashes and he charges in a makes a one-million shot."

Henman then had to rely on guts and guile. He faced down a match point at 4-5 in a long game when he swallowed a Llodra soft chip approach shot and apt it back for a winner. The crowd then knew it was just a matter of time before he would break the Frenchman and in the match's final game, he dared Llodra to charge and busted his chops with passing shots.

Henman broke out into his trademark-crooked smile and pounded his broadened chest. "I certainly take lot of positives out of it: determination and mental strength and I showed that I can get through," said Henman.

The 29-year-old Brit will play Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela in the quarters, another winnable contest. Chela is talented, but he can be exposed with a relentless net attack. Henman keeps saying that he can still win a Grand Slam, but he never imagined it might be this major. He'll dream that dream tonight.

Without question, even if Henman beats Chela, either Guillermo Coria (who's won 35 of his last 36 matches on clay) or '98 Roland Garros champion Carlos Moya) will likely have too much gusto for the Englander in the semifinals. But, by achieving a career milestone prior to Wimbledon in arguably the tour's most physically demanding Grand Slam, Henman proved that's he's tough enough to create another large row at Wimbledon. And if you're a British tennis fan that's all you can really ask for.