Stella Artois Championships: Wednesday Preview
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© Getty ImagesHenman: In relaxed mood ahead of his opening
match.
By Barry Newcombe
Tim Henman v Karol Beck: First meeting
Only last Friday Tim Henman was in a commanding position in the semi-finals of the French Open against South America's best player Guillermo Coria.It was Henman's best performance in the slow court championships of the world and he gained a great deal of locker room respect for his deeds even though that semi-final ended in defeat.Henman gave himself a couple of days away from the courts,began practising on grass on Monday for the first time since last year and is now ready to start his challenge in the Stella Artois where he has been a finalist three times. His first opponent is the Slovak Karol Beck, 22, who became champion at Surbiton last week.Beck also played in Paris,losing in the first round.Coria, incidentally, lost in the French final to his Argentine compatriot Gaston Gaudio and signified the next morning that he would at the Stella Artois to take up his second seeded place.
Verdict--Henman to open in style
Sebastien Grosjean v Todd Reid: Grosjean leads 1-0
Sebastien Grosjean had his best year on grass last summer. In a surge of ambition and sustained play he took out both Lleyton Hewitt and Tim Henman in successive rounds in the Stella Artois and only succumbed in the final where he was beaten by Andy Roddick. Next Grosjean moved on to Wimbledon where he beat Henman again,at the quarter final stage, and was then beaten in the semi-finals by Mark Philippoussis. Even so it was the best performance by a French player at Wimbledon since Cedric Pioline in 1997 and fully indicated Grosjean's skills. This is his first match in the Stella Artois this year, at fifth seed, and he takes on the Australian Todd Reid,20,who qualified for the main draw and has already won a round. Reid is a former junior champion at Wimbledon, which says a lot for his grass court attributes, and at 129th in the world is not far away from that magical top 100.
Verdict--Grosjean to come under pressure
Marc Lopez v Lleyton Hewitt: Hewitt leads 1-0
Lleyton Hewitt, by his own extremely high standards,had one of his least successful years on grass last summer. He had already won the Stella Artois three times but was caught by Sebastien Grosjean.When he moved on to defend his Wimbledon title he was stopped in the first round on the Centre Court by the Croatian Ivo Karlovic,a qualifier,and for the first time since 1967 the champion lost in the first round. Hewitt was 20 years and eight months when he became the youngest to hold the world No 1 ranking in 2001. He begins the Stella Artois at sixth seed and starts off against the 21 year old Spaniard Marc Lopez who he beat in Barcelona two years ago.
Verdict--Hewitt to make a strong case for the tournament
Victor Hanescu v Ian Flanagan: First meeting
Ian Flanagan from Nottingham qualified for the Stella Artois with a world ranking of 866th and at the age of 22 is using the tournament as a stage for his ambitions. He wants to move fast up the rankings and this inner drive was always in evidence when be beat the 2003 Wimbledon runner up Mark Philippoussis in two tie break sets in the first round. It brings Flanagan up against another young and ambitious competitor in Romania's Victor Hanescu,also 22,whose first round victim was the former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivansevic.Flanagan has no doubts that playing in the Stella Artois is a good arena for him to show his skills.He has only to study Hanescu's record to appreciate that the Romanian is some way ahead of him at 78th in the world. Last year Hanescu qualified for Wimbledon and reached the third round.
Verdict--Hanescu to give Flanagan a demanding match
Jamie Delgado v Jonathan Marray: Delgado leads 1-0
This is an all British match,which is good to see on the third day of the tournament,and the prize of a third round place is considerable. Jamie Delgado faces a busy day because whatever happens in this match in the Stella Artois he will have to head off fast for the domestic tournament in Raynes Park which offers the prospect of a wild card entry into Wimbledon.Delgado qualified for the Stella Artois and moved on from that to take out the 11th seed Taylor Dent of the USA in the first round.Marray,who already has a wild card into Wimbledon,won his first ATP tour match in the first round and with a world ranking of 277th is ahead of Delgado who is on 326. The 27-year-old Delgado has been on the road in tennis for a long time and knows the demands of grass court play inside out.
Verdict--Delgado to put the pressure on Marray
Mario Ancic v Todd Martin: First meeting
Todd Martin, at 6ft 6ins,walks tall in all ways in tennis. He has been on the road since 1990 and over the years has gained a deserved reputation for his durability and his determination to win.He will be 34 next month and it is no surprise that he was the second oldest player in the top 100(behind Andre Agassi) at the end of last year.He won the Stella Artois in 1994 and was a Wimbledon semi-finalist for the first time that summer,winning a record four five set matches.He plays at the Stella Artois this time as sixteenth seed and takes on a much younger opponent in 20 year old Mario Ancic of Croatia. Ancic spent his early years in tennis in the shadow of his fellow Croatian Goran Ivanisevic with whom he first teamed up at the age of ten. Two years ago Ancic not only qualified for Wimbledon but pulled off one of the more sensational victories when he took out ninth seed Roger Federer in the first round on the Centre Court.
Verdict--Martin to be up against an ambitious player