Tim Henman

The Henman Fact File

Date Of Birth: September 6, 1974

Place of birth: Weston-on-the-groom, Oxford

Turned pro in 1993

Height: 6'1 ft

Weight: 155lbs

Highest ranking: 6

I can tell you that he shares his birthday with another special sporting person, our very own Greg Rusedski.  If that is not fate I don't know what is !! He is a year younger than the ever cheery Greg who has been a breath of fresh air for us tennis fans who had begun to think that we would never see another great British tennis player.   Even though there has been some controversy about Greg coming over from Cananda to join us, as far as I am concerned, the more the merrier, and I wish him well with his engagement to yet another Lucy.  Some poeple get all the luck...If only my parents had thought about Lucy when they were naming me...or maybe not !!!

1999 has been a great time for Tim, being number 6 in the world and reaching  the last four at Wimbledon.  You never know just how much he can amaze us with talent when he needs it most !!

Wimbledon 1999

I will try and update this site with news of Tim's exploits and his career but at the moment Wimbledon is the best I can do.

1st round : A. Di Pasquale 6-4 6-0 3-6 7-6

2nd round : C Woodruff 6-4 6-3 7-6

3rd round : S Grosjean 6-1 6-7 6-3 6-3

4th round : J Courier 4-6 7-5 7-5 6-7 9-7

Quarter final : C Pioline 6-4 6-2 4-6 6-3

Well, it is fair to say that Tim's Wimbledon record is quite up and down.   He was the first player of our era to be disqualified from Wimbledon after lashing out at a member of the ground staff while playing doubles, but soon made up for it by comforting the poor ball girl he inadvertently hit !! After a successful 97, getting through to the quarter finals only to be beaten by Michael Stich, we began to see a new Tim Henman who seemed determined to better himself.  After Queens this year, and an enthralling match with Pete Sampras, it became obvious that he was going to be a threat to the Sampras crown which has come to take over most of the grand slams.  With seemingly easy victories this year, with only small lapses coming at times in each match, Tim has continued to hog the limelight this year, leaving Greg Rusedski the place to grow, seemingly unnoticed by some, but not by his greatest fans, into a much more all round player, who even though more noted for his serve, has the ability to have the softest touch while still being able to impress crowds with the power shots. As was obvious as the Davis Cup, we can also see in Greg and Tim a powerful doubles team who whipped the American when we needed it most, and even though we must battle to be in the Davis Cup, they both proved themselves with great victories when it was needed. 

At last we start to have something to look forward to when Wimbledon comes, rather than just sitting waiting for those Americans to impress us with their power serves !!!

So the end of Wimbledon has come, and even though Tim did not get any further this year than last, I feel that his victory over Jim Courier was a major talking point of the entire championship.  His shaky start gave us all heart murmurs but as the match progressed we could see a swing in momentum as Tim began to grow in confidence.   With the unfortunate rain delay we saw a Tim who may have taken it all the way that night, go back into the locker room.  As he returned two days later it was obvious he was determined to get past the Davis Cup enemy !!  Even though the fourth set went Courier's way, as we entered the fifth it was obvious Tim still had his momentum and at times of need he was able to provide us with the entertainment that Wimbledon has become known for.  Fighting off match points strengthened our hopes and his victory showed us that he was going to be the one who takes Britain to the final, if not this year then soon.  Even he, after his defeat at the hands of Sampras, spoke that he was 100% sure he would win and so are all his fans.  At last we proud to say we are British fans, not merely hide away in the shadows.

His career

4 singles titles - Sydney and Tashkent 1997

                     Tashkent and Basle 1998

3 doubles titles - Basle 1997, Battersea 1999 and Monte Carlo 1999

1999: Won 27 matches - Lost 17 matches

Seeded doubles number 70

Rankings and their changes over the last 8 years

1992 - 771

1993 - 434

1994 - 161

1995 - 99

1996 - 29

1997 - 17

1998 - 7

1999 - 6

He also happens to be one of the best golfers on the tennis tour and plays off a handicap of four