Phil...a busy week in the world of tennis

[crzyjournalist03]

Didn't know if you saw these two stories...one great leaving the world of tennis, another reappearing.

With wedding on her mind, Clijsters calls it quits
Associated Press


BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Kim Clijsters ended her tennis career Sunday, cutting short plans to retire at the end of the season because of chronic injuries.


The 23-year-old Belgian, once ranked No. 1 and winner of the 2005 U.S. Open, said on her Web site it was time to stop immediately after playing for 10 years and start a "new life." She won the 2002 and 2003 WTA Championships as part of her career 34 singles titles.



Clijsters is now ranked No. 4. She lost in straight sets to Ukrainian qualifier Julia Vakulenko on Thursday in her final match, failing to retain her title in Warsaw, Poland.



"It has been more than fun, but the rackets are being hung up," she said. "To retire before the age of 24, it is very young -- but it was so beautiful. I would have been able to continue for a few months and to take part in the four most lucrative tournaments [three Grand Slams and the Masters].



"Money is important, but not the most important thing in my life. Health and private happiness are so much more important."



She said her struggles with injury had taken its toll and she wanted to focus on other things, including her July 14 wedding to Brian Lynch, a former Villanova basketball player now playing in Belgium.



"It's tiring to get out of bed and to use an hour just to warm up stiff muscles in the morning," she said. "The constant injuries and continual rehabilitation … it makes it all even more difficult to go on."



A left wrist injury last year stopped Clijsters from defending her only Gland Slam title at Flushing Meadow and from playing in the Fed Cup final. She reached the 2007 Australian Open semifinals but injured her hip. She recently complained of back pain after losing in Key Biscayne, Fla.



Clijsters was Belgium's first tennis player to reach No. 1, holding the top-ranked spot for 19 weeks in 2003. But she was unlucky in Grand Slam finals -- losing in 2001 and 2003 at the French Open, in 2003 at the U.S. Open, and in 2004 at the Australian Open.



"The most beautiful memories of my career?" she wrote on her Web site. "Many victories in tournaments, Grand Slams in singles and doubles as well as being world No. 1 in singles and doubles.



"It is time for a new life. Time for marriage. Time for children? Time also to relax and to play with my dogs. And especially to spend a lot of time with my family and friends."


Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

[crzyjournalist03]

Sampras beats Martin in first Champions Cup action
Associated Press


BOSTON -- For Pete Sampras, it was a day to live dangerously.

First, the future Hall of Famer faced a triple match point against Todd Martin in the final of the Champion's Cup event at Boston University on Sunday. Then, between beating Martin and grabbing the first-prize check of $50,000, Sampras shared some bad news with the Red Sox fans in the crowd.

"I don't know if you guys heard, but I believe the New York Yankees just signed Roger Clemens,'' Sampras said during the trophy ceremony as the crowd of 3,560 erupted in boos. "I'm serious.''


On the day that the 35-year-old Sampras made a successful return on the seniors tour, another old-timer announced that he would be making a comeback that was much less welcome in Boston. Clemens, 44, said during the seventh-inning stretch at Yankee Stadium that he chose New York over the Red Sox for his latest comeback.

The fans at Agganis Arena probably missed the news while watching Sampras play Martin. So Sampras, a Dodgers fan, took the opportunity to tweak them.

"I'm just having fun,'' Sampras said after the match. "You know what, it's not that fun in this town. It's like a religion. I've never seen anything like it. They're passionate [in Los Angeles], but I've never seen anything like it is here.''

Sampras hadn't played competitive tennis since winning the 2002 U.S. Open for his record 14th Grand Slam title. Retired at 31, he didn't pick up a racket or watch tennis on television for almost three years before deciding to play a limited schedule of exhibitions and Champion's Cup events.

His presence was a coup for the seniors tour and reminder for his opponents -- Petr Korda, Tim Mayotte, John McEnroe and Martin -- of why he dominated the regular tour when they were in their prime.

"Adding Sampras has certainly added some extra buzz,'' said Jim Courier, a competitor and organizer of the tour. "There's no question that when you bring in 14 major titles in one body, it's going to get tougher.''

In a nod to the players knees, the matches are best-of-two sets, with a 10-point tiebreaker in case they split the sets. Sampras won the first set 6-3 and it was 5-5 in the second when Martin broke Sampras' serve, then held serve to tie it.

"I was thoroughly unprepared for a lot of what he had to offer,'' said Martin, the winner of last year's Boston event. "The only recourse I had was to turn it into a tennis match rather than a skills test, because his skills are better than mine.''

Trailing 9-6, Sampras won five consecutive points. Martin was serving for the victory at 9-8 when he hit a backhand -- a "pretty easy'' one, Sampras said -- into the net; Sampras took the victory at 11-9 when Martin returned a serve wide.

"Athletically, he's still closer to the speed he was when he was competing. The rest of us have depreciated more,'' Martin said. "I hit a few shots today, but I was reacting nine times out of 10, if not 19 times out of 20.''

Sampras had been doing his best to stay in shape playing 3-on-3 basketball twice a week in Los Angeles with friends, including former tour player Alex O'Brien. Beach volleyball and golf have also kept him busy when he wasn't chasing his two kids, 1½ and 4½, around the house.

But now that he's back on the court, he plans to make a few appearances -- not the entire seven-event tour -- including Athens in two weeks. "I'm excited about taking my folks there, being a Greek-American,'' Sampras said.

Sampras went 3-0 in the round-robin before beating Martin in the final. McEnroe beat Courier 6-2, 6-3 in the consolation match.

Even so, the others were glad to have Sampras around.

"I think it adds a tremendous amount of legitimacy to what we're doing out here to have somebody who still plays at that level,'' Martin said. "For me, it's great to know that the best player in our era still wants to compete, still wants to beat me.''

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

[Phil C]

Interesting information. Thanks for posting.

[Phil C]

Originally posted by crzyjournalist03
Didn't know if you saw these two stories...one great leaving the world of tennis, another reappearing.

With wedding on her mind, Clijsters calls it quits
Associated Press


BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Kim Clijsters ended her tennis career Sunday, cutting short plans to retire at the end of the season because of chronic injuries.


The 23-year-old Belgian, once ranked No. 1 and winner of the 2005 U.S. Open, said on her Web site it was time to stop immediately after playing for 10 years and start a "new life." She won the 2002 and 2003 WTA Championships as part of her career 34 singles titles.



Clijsters is now ranked No. 4. She lost in straight sets to Ukrainian qualifier Julia Vakulenko on Thursday in her final match, failing to retain her title in Warsaw, Poland.



"It has been more than fun, but the rackets are being hung up," she said. "To retire before the age of 24, it is very young -- but it was so beautiful. I would have been able to continue for a few months and to take part in the four most lucrative tournaments [three Grand Slams and the Masters].



"Money is important, but not the most important thing in my life. Health and private happiness are so much more important."



She said her struggles with injury had taken its toll and she wanted to focus on other things, including her July 14 wedding to Brian Lynch, a former Villanova basketball player now playing in Belgium.



"It's tiring to get out of bed and to use an hour just to warm up stiff muscles in the morning," she said. "The constant injuries and continual rehabilitation … it makes it all even more difficult to go on."



A left wrist injury last year stopped Clijsters from defending her only Gland Slam title at Flushing Meadow and from playing in the Fed Cup final. She reached the 2007 Australian Open semifinals but injured her hip. She recently complained of back pain after losing in Key Biscayne, Fla.



Clijsters was Belgium's first tennis player to reach No. 1, holding the top-ranked spot for 19 weeks in 2003. But she was unlucky in Grand Slam finals -- losing in 2001 and 2003 at the French Open, in 2003 at the U.S. Open, and in 2004 at the Australian Open.



"The most beautiful memories of my career?" she wrote on her Web site. "Many victories in tournaments, Grand Slams in singles and doubles as well as being world No. 1 in singles and doubles.



"It is time for a new life. Time for marriage. Time for children? Time also to relax and to play with my dogs. And especially to spend a lot of time with my family and friends."


Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

Where have I heard this type of thing before? See you in a year Kim.

[Adidas410s]

Originally posted by Phil C
Where have I heard this type of thing before? See you in a year Kim.
Martina Hingis maybe??? :thinking:

[crzyjournalist03]

I think it's a much more difficult thing for any athlete to walk away than we realize. Most people plan on workign until their sixties at the earliest. Tennis players are retiring in their twenties...you get bored with all that free time. It sounds nice at first, but eventually, you're going to want to return to the sport that you love.

[Adidas410s]

Originally posted by crzyjournalist03
I think it's a much more difficult thing for any athlete to walk away than we realize. Most people plan on workign until their sixties at the earliest. Tennis players are retiring in their twenties...you get bored with all that free time. It sounds nice at first, but eventually, you're going to want to return to the sport that you love.

I think the way Sampras has done it has been great. He left on his own terms...took a few years off...and has slowly worked his way back into playing/travelling shape through charity events and now onto the Champions Tour.

Personally...I think Agassi stayed about 18 months too long. Once he started having serious back problems in mid-2005...he should've called it quits at the end of that year. Granted...I enjoyed his matches at the Open in 2006 but seeing him be knocked out by Becker fresh out of Baylor was rather sad. :(