BRISBANE, Australia (AP)—Justine Henin had barely finished off her first win since coming out of retirement when talk of her winning an eighth Grand Slam singles title began in earnest Monday.
Henin beat second-seeded Nadia Petrova of Russia 7-5, 7-5 in the first round of the Brisbane International, her first official tour match since announcing her comeback in September.
Petrova said Henin was a better, more aggressive player than she was when she quit the tour in May 2008 and had no doubt the 27-year-old Belgian could win another Grand Slam title.
“That’s why she’s back. She’s hungry to win Wimbledon,” Petrova said before Henin attended her first post-match news conference in 20 months. “The changes she’s done in her game is actually leading toward that.”
Henin spent a combined 117 weeks at No. 1 in the rankings, winning seven majors, an Olympic gold medal and 41 WTA titles.
“I feel better today than when I retired, that’s for sure,” Henin said. “Better emotionally, mentally, better with myself—and that makes a big difference that I will enjoy being on the tour again.”
Ana Ivanovic won her first match since September, while No. 4 Daniela Hantuchova and No. 6 Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada also advanced. No. 5 Alisa Kleybanova lost to fellow Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Top-seeded Andy Roddick beat Australia’s Peter Luczak 7-6 (5), 6-2 in a night match, his first since withdrawing at Shanghai with a knee injury in October.
Defending men’s champion Radek Stepanek won in straight sets, and Richard Gasquet beat Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in his first match since the Court of Arbitration for Sport last month rejected an appeal from the World Anti-Doping Agency against the Frenchman being cleared of wrongdoing after traces of cocaine were discovered in a March drug test.
Henin’s victory Monday followed exhibition wins last month, including one over Petrova in Cairo.
“It’s a big step my first match. I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long,” Henin said. “Finally, I walked on the court. The crowd … I was really touched. At the beginning, everything seemed very big: the stadium, all the people. I’m not used to it anymore.
“Everything went well. I have a lot to work on, but for a first match, a first tough round, I can be really positive today.”
Henin said it only took three or four games to settle back into the rhythm.
“Mentally, I was able to play my best when the score was tight at the end of both sets,” she said. “I really enjoyed being out there—that’s what I’m going to remember today.”
Being more aggressive on her serve has been a priority in recent months for the diminutive Belgian, who knows she needs to earn more easy points against the bigger women on the tour to remain competitive.
“I worked very hard and changed a few things in my game,” she said.
Petrova said she’d watch with interest as Henin and Kim Clijsters, another Belgian who made a tour comeback last year shortly before winning the U.S. Open, progressed in Brisbane. She said she’d tip Henin in the Belgian duel, saying Clijsters might have trouble keeping up in the rallies. Clijsters plays Australia’s Alicia Molik in the second round on Tuesday.
Henin is playing in Brisbane this week and Sydney next week on wild card entries as she prepares for the Australian Open, her first major in two years.
She will next play qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva of Kazakhstan, who beat Australia’s Casey Dellacqua 6-2, 0-6, 7-6 (1).
Third-seeded Ivanovic, the 2008 French Open champion, won the last three games to finish off a 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 win over Australian Jelena Dokic 7-5, 1-6, 6-3.
The 21-year-old Serb hasn’t played since a first-round exit at Tokyo in September, which followed a disappointing first-round loss at the U.S. Open.
After one match back and with a No. 21-ranking, she’s aiming to return to the top 10 and play in the year-end championship.
“Obviously there were nerves in the beginning, but I did a really good preparation and that gave me a lot of confidence,” she said.
Roddick said his left knee felt fine and he was happy with his fitness heading into the Australian Open.
“I by no means expected to come in after four months and breeze right into it,” he said. “First rounds are always a bit dicey. I was hitting it all right towards the end, so that’s a good thing.”
In other men’s first-round results, Colombia’s Alejandro Falla beat seventh-seeded Jeremy Chardy of France 6-4, 6-4 and eighth-seeded Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil defeated Argentina’s Juan Ignacio Chela 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
และแม้ว่าจะเล่นได้แค่ match เดียว แต่ตอนนี้กระแสเอแนงฮือฮามาก ได้รับการจับตามอง และคาดการณ์ว่าจะได้แชมป์ที่ บริสเบนไปแล้ว นั่นทั้งๆที่มีคิมที่ฟอร์,ร้อนแรงสุดๆอยู่ในการแข่งขันด้วยนะครับ
Weekly Slice: Henin primed for immediate impact
First serve
She smiles a little more often these days and is rarely parted from new companion Deuce, a fluffy and frivolous 2-year-old dog, but don't expect Justine Henin's newfound public warmth to extend to the tennis court.
As she begins her much-anticipated comeback, the former world No. 1's persona is somewhat different from that of the tortured and stressed figure who quit the game 19 months ago.
But any foe hoping that Henin's decision to peel back some of the layers of secrecy will result in a lesser degree of on-court ruthlessness will be disappointed. The Belgian knows only one way to play - to try to grind her opponent into the dirt. She is not coming back onto the circuit because she hopes she can recapture old glories but because she knows she can.
Women's tennis has not made any great strides in her absence, the start of which hit the tennis world like a thunderbolt just days before the 2008 French Open. Indeed, the magnificent achievement of Henin's fellow countrywoman Kim Clijsters in winning her comeback Slam at the U.S. Open made it clear that major trophies are very much up for grabs.
With a few personal demons ironed out thanks to an extended break, Henin looks ready to make an immediate impact. The Australian Open is the first item on her checklist, and while logic would suggest it is unlikely she can go all the way, it is an exercise in foolishness to ever write off this 5-foot-4 warrior.
This week's predictions Brisbane International: Justine Henin
ข่าวเพิ่มเติมนะครับ ตอนนี้เอแนงถอนตัวจากรายการที่ซิดนี่ย์แล้วครับ ผมว่าดีนะครับ เพราะผมไม่เคยเห็นด้วยกับการเล่นรายการนี้ตั้งแต่แรกเลยครับ เอแนงคงไม่คิดว่าตัวเองจะมาไกลขนาดนี้ที่บริสเบน เลยเตรียมสำรองไว้ที่ซิดนี่ย์ก่อน พอมาได้ขนาดนี้คงรู้แล้วแหละครับว่าพร้อมแล้วสำหรับ AO แถมต้องพักด้วยเลยถอนตัว
นัดแรกของเซรีน่า อดเจอเอแนงเลยอ่ะ hahahaha
Henin withdraws from Sydney with injured leg
BRISBANE, Australia (AP)—Justine Henin injured her left leg in a Brisbane International final loss to Kim Clijsters on Saturday in a setback to her career comeback ahead of the Australian Open.
Henin withdrew Saturday from the Sydney International, where she could have met top-ranked Serena Williams in the second round if she’d won her opening match.
The 27-year-old Belgian said she’d strained her upper left leg earlier in the week and aggravated it in the final, a 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (6) loss to U.S. Open champion Clijsters.
“It was a bit sore in the last few days and really got worse today in the third set,” Henin said. “I hope it’s not that serious and that I’m going to be able to recover soon, but it would be just a great, great mistake to go and play in Sydney.”
Henin said she’d consult a doctor again if it hadn’t improved within a couple of days.
“It was very tight for a few days. But it really got worse in the end,” she said. “It’s no excuse, it’s not the reason why I,” lost to Clijsters.
Henin has no ranking after quitting the tour in May 2008, while holding the No. 1 ranking. She received wild-card entries to play in Brisbane and Sydney ahead of the Australian Open, her first major since she lost in the quarterfinals at Melbourne Park in 2008.
Henin announced her comeback in September, soon after Clijsters won the U.S. Open in only her third tournament after coming back from more than two years in retirement.
Henin won four matches in Brisbane, including a first-round win over Nadia Petrova and a semifinal win over third-seeded Ana Ivanovic, the 2008 French Open champion.
The Australian Open starts Jan. 18, and Henin is focused on her return to Grand Slam tennis.
“I just think it could get worse if I play in the next few days,” she said. “It’s something I cannot do because there’s a goal for me in 10 days and I have to be ready.”
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BRISBANE, Australia (AP)—Justine Henin had barely finished off her first win since coming out of retirement when talk of her winning an eighth Grand Slam singles title began in earnest Monday.
Henin beat second-seeded Nadia Petrova of Russia 7-5, 7-5 in the first round of the Brisbane International, her first official tour match since announcing her comeback in September.
Petrova said Henin was a better, more aggressive player than she was when she quit the tour in May 2008 and had no doubt the 27-year-old Belgian could win another Grand Slam title.
“That’s why she’s back. She’s hungry to win Wimbledon,” Petrova said before Henin attended her first post-match news conference in 20 months. “The changes she’s done in her game is actually leading toward that.”
Henin spent a combined 117 weeks at No. 1 in the rankings, winning seven majors, an Olympic gold medal and 41 WTA titles.
“I feel better today than when I retired, that’s for sure,” Henin said. “Better emotionally, mentally, better with myself—and that makes a big difference that I will enjoy being on the tour again.”
Ana Ivanovic won her first match since September, while No. 4 Daniela Hantuchova and No. 6 Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada also advanced. No. 5 Alisa Kleybanova lost to fellow Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Top-seeded Andy Roddick beat Australia’s Peter Luczak 7-6 (5), 6-2 in a night match, his first since withdrawing at Shanghai with a knee injury in October.
Defending men’s champion Radek Stepanek won in straight sets, and Richard Gasquet beat Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in his first match since the Court of Arbitration for Sport last month rejected an appeal from the World Anti-Doping Agency against the Frenchman being cleared of wrongdoing after traces of cocaine were discovered in a March drug test.
Henin’s victory Monday followed exhibition wins last month, including one over Petrova in Cairo.
“It’s a big step my first match. I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long,” Henin said. “Finally, I walked on the court. The crowd … I was really touched. At the beginning, everything seemed very big: the stadium, all the people. I’m not used to it anymore.
“Everything went well. I have a lot to work on, but for a first match, a first tough round, I can be really positive today.”
Henin said it only took three or four games to settle back into the rhythm.
“Mentally, I was able to play my best when the score was tight at the end of both sets,” she said. “I really enjoyed being out there—that’s what I’m going to remember today.”
Being more aggressive on her serve has been a priority in recent months for the diminutive Belgian, who knows she needs to earn more easy points against the bigger women on the tour to remain competitive.
“I worked very hard and changed a few things in my game,” she said.
Petrova said she’d watch with interest as Henin and Kim Clijsters, another Belgian who made a tour comeback last year shortly before winning the U.S. Open, progressed in Brisbane. She said she’d tip Henin in the Belgian duel, saying Clijsters might have trouble keeping up in the rallies. Clijsters plays Australia’s Alicia Molik in the second round on Tuesday.
Henin is playing in Brisbane this week and Sydney next week on wild card entries as she prepares for the Australian Open, her first major in two years.
She will next play qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva of Kazakhstan, who beat Australia’s Casey Dellacqua 6-2, 0-6, 7-6 (1).
Third-seeded Ivanovic, the 2008 French Open champion, won the last three games to finish off a 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 win over Australian Jelena Dokic 7-5, 1-6, 6-3.
The 21-year-old Serb hasn’t played since a first-round exit at Tokyo in September, which followed a disappointing first-round loss at the U.S. Open.
After one match back and with a No. 21-ranking, she’s aiming to return to the top 10 and play in the year-end championship.
“Obviously there were nerves in the beginning, but I did a really good preparation and that gave me a lot of confidence,” she said.
Roddick said his left knee felt fine and he was happy with his fitness heading into the Australian Open.
“I by no means expected to come in after four months and breeze right into it,” he said. “First rounds are always a bit dicey. I was hitting it all right towards the end, so that’s a good thing.”
In other men’s first-round results, Colombia’s Alejandro Falla beat seventh-seeded Jeremy Chardy of France 6-4, 6-4 and eighth-seeded Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil defeated Argentina’s Juan Ignacio Chela 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
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