Men's Tennis

Pete Sampras' career would be complete if he won this year's French Open. It's virtually the only thing that the former world number 1 has not achieved in his 14 years playing professional tennis. His form at the US Men's Clay Court Championship in Houston recently was encouraging, where he reached the final before falling to Andy Roddick. However, his loss demonstrated that even in smaller clay court tournaments Sampras struggles, let alone a Grand Slam. Certainly, this year could be his last chance at the French Open, if he has one at all.

May 7, 2002 - Joel Hunt

Yevgeny Kafelnikov's seemingly joking remark that he would retire if Russia won the Davis Cup at the year end does not ring untrue. The 28 year old Russian has won the 1996 French Open, 1999 Australian Open and the Olympics in 2000, yet has failed to even begin to get the results his undeniable talent warrants. Rather than flirting with the idea of retirement, Kafelnikov would be better off following the lead of Andre Agassi, and rededicating himself to the game to ensure he comes close to reaching his potential.

Apr 8, 2002 - Joel Hunt

Lleyton Hewitt pipped Andre Agassi at the post in an absorbing final at San Jose, winning 4-6, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4). Both players were making comebacks, Hewitt from chicken pox which had drained him at the Australian Open and Agassi from a wrist injury. Hewitt continued his good form against Agassi, who he beat as a 16 year old in 1998 to win his first title in Adelaide.

Mar 5, 2002 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras has once again failed to make it to the quarter-finals of a grand slam event. At the 2002 Australian Open he fell in 4 sets to eventual finalist Marat Safin. Now aged 30, Sampras faces an uphill battle to convince himself that he still has it in him to be a contender for grand slams. The mind is still there, but the body clearly is not.

Feb 1, 2002 - Joel Hunt

France gained revenge with an upset win over Australia in the Davis Cup final this year. The last occasion the two teams met, it was Australia who came up with the upset beating France at home on their favoured surface of clay.

Jan 1, 2002 - Joel Hunt

20 year old Australian Lleyton Hewitt has claimed the year end number 1 ranking, and confirmed it with victory at the year end Tennis Masters. Hewitt is the youngest player ever to hold the year end top ranking. That bodes well for his future. His form can be contrasted with the waning Pete Sampras, who didn't even make the Masters event, and Andre Agassi failing to advance beyond its round robin stage. Their decline now looks to be setting in rapidly, whilst Hewitt's star continues to rise.

Dec 1, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Tommy Haas looks to be the next German star of men's tennis. The past month he has shown brilliant form, winning the indoor tournament in Vienna and the Masters event in Stuttgart. On the way he defeated US Open champion Lleyton Hewitt, preventing the Australian from attaining the number 1 ranking. Now he's looking for a spot in the ATP World Championship event in Sydney, which Frenchman Sebastian Grojean is fighting him for.

Nov 2, 2001 - Joel Hunt

The horrendous terrorist attacks of September 11 have sparked off what could be a world economic recession. Investors are reluctant to spend money in such turbulent and unstable times. The ATP Tour is not immune to the economic situation, and has announced a budget cut of $7 million (US) for 2002. As a part of this 15 staff members have also been laid off in order to cut costs. The ATP is now searching for another major sponsor for its masters tournaments for 2002.

Oct 3, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Australian Lleyton Hewitt has stunned the tennis world by claiming his first grand slam title, the US Open. He did it in some style, destroying Yevgeny Kafelnikov in a lacklustre semi-final, and then straight setting 4 time champion Pete Sampras in the final. Pete Sampras said that "I lost to a great champion. You're going to see this Lleyton Hewitt guy for the next 10 years like you saw me." At only 20 years of age, and already possessing 9 ATP titles; Hewitt does indeed look set to be a major contender in men's tennis for some time to come.

Sep 11, 2001 - Joel Hunt

It's been a difficult year for Pat Rafter. After deciding upon retirement by the year's end, he stunned everyone by storming to the Australian Open semi-finals. He led 2 sets to 1 against Andre Agassi, but then succumbed to cramps and a disappointing loss. Then for the first time in 3 years he failed to win at his favourite grasscourt tournament in Rosmalen. He looked set to make up for this when he reached the final of Wimbledon, but lost to a rejuvenated Goran Ivanisevic. And last week he lost a 3 set final at the Canadian Open to Romania's Andrei Pavel. "I'm bored with not closing out tournaments," was Rafter's comment. Will the two-time grand slam champion be able to reverse that trend at this year's US Open?

Aug 7, 2001 - Joel Hunt

The Wimbledon title has gone to Goran Ivanisevic who defeated Australia's Patrick Rafter in the final. The Croatian won a see-sawing match by 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 2-6, 9-7. This has been a remarkable comeback as he was ranked 125th going into the tournament and had been making noises about quitting the game. Previously Goran has been described as the greatest player never to win a grand slam. Now, with victory in a tournament he'd lost in the final of 3 times previously; that monkey is finally off Goran's back.

Jul 13, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Gustavo Kuerten has proven his clay court skill with victory at the French Open after an epic campaign. He escaped near certain defeat in the 4th round, when American qualifier Michael Russell held match point for a straight sets upset. That seemed to focus Guga more, proceeding to cruise through the final three rounds to the title. This is his second consecutive French Open, and the third of his career. That's better than former champions Sergi Bruguera and Jim Courier, who each only won twice.

Jun 12, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Teenager Andy Roddick has had an impressive run since joining the ATP Tour. In only his 10th match he won his first career title at Atlanta, and then followed that up with a win at Houston. This is quicker than Sampras, Chang or Courier took to win their first career titles. Oh, and did I mention that Roddick beat Sampras during the prestigious Ericsson Open tournament in reaching the quarter finals. Could Roddick be the heir apparent to Sampras and Agassi?

May 7, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Andre Agassi has continued his magnificent form this year, winning the Ericsson Open in Florida with a crushing 7-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory of Jan-Michael Gambill. This, along with victory at the Indian Wells tournament over Pete Sampras and the Australian Open in January means Agassi has won the 3 biggest tournaments of the year so far. With Sampras waning, could 2001 again be Agassi's year?

Apr 5, 2001 - Joel Hunt

British star Greg Rusedski is on the comeback trail after winning the San Jose title against world number 1 Andre Agassi. He dominated the Australian Open champion with his power serving, winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-4. It has been a long haul for Rusedski, who hadn't been in a final since 1999. Now with a new coach on board in Pat Cash, he looks set to make his mark on the ATP Tour in 2001.

Mar 4, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Andre Agassi has for the first time in his career defended a grand slam title, taking out the Australian Open final with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 thrashing of Frenchman Arnaud Clement. But he was lucky to be there, trailing by 2 sets to 1 against home town hero Pat Rafter in the semi-finals. However from there the former 2 time US Open suffered from cramps, and Agassi crusied through to the final in 5 sets.

Feb 4, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Spain has claimed its first ever Davis Cup title, beating defending champion Australia 3 rubbers to 1. This was sweet revenge for Spain, who had lost their only 2 previous finals of the event to Australia on grass-courts in the mid 1960's. This time the tables were turned as the Spanish team took full advantage of their preferred clay-court surface, losing only the opening rubber when Albert Costa was beaten by Lleyton Hewitt in a 5 set thriller.

Jan 1, 2001 - Joel Hunt

Brazil's Gustavo Kuerten has shrugged off a reputation as a clay-court specialist, winning the year end World Championship. Fittingly perhaps he has finished the year as the top ranked player. He certainly had to work for his achievement, beating 5 time winner Pete Sampras in the semis on one of the American's best surfaces. He went on to thrash Australian Open champion Andre Agassi in the final 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. This victory adds luster to the Brazilian's French Open title this year, and stamps him as a genuine threat at the Australian Open hard-courts.

Dec 5, 2000 - Joel Hunt

This article will differ from the normal format written for Men's Tennis. It consists of a report on my experience as a volunteer journalist at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games tennis event. Next week will be a return to the usual format. I hope you enjoy it.

Nov 1, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov has added to his big match reputation by taking out the gold medal in the men's singles at the Sydney 2000 Olympics. He survived a torrid match with up and coming German Tommy Haas, eventually winning 7-6, 3-6, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3. Kafelnikov has added the presitigous Olympics title to his 1999 Australian Open and 1996 French Open crowns. As a former number 1 player, he now looks to be in ominous form for the rest of the year and beyond.

Oct 4, 2000 - Joel Hunt

20 year old Marat Safin has inflicted Pete Sampras' worst ever grand slam defeat, smashing him in straight sets in the US Open final. The powerful Russian won 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in an astonishing display which took only 98 minutes. This, coupled with Lleyton Hewitt's semi-final effort has surely heralded the arrival of the younger brigade; attempting to usurp the old guard of Sampras and Agassi.

Sep 11, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras has won his record breaking 13th Grand Slam title, defeating Patrick Rafter by 6-7 (10-12), 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 6-2. It was his 7th Wimbledon crown, and his third in succession. He is now the most successful player at the prestigious tournament in history, and has surpassed all other players in number of grand slams won. Sampras overcame tendonitis above his left ankle to win the tournament, and sealing his place in history. Rafter meanwhile, on the comeback from injury; was gallant in defeat.

Jul 18, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Gustavo Kuerten's victory at the 1997 French Open was considered by many to be an aberration. Now no one doubts his credentials as a clay-court champion. Kuerten won his 2nd career French Open title this year, defeating Sweden's ATP Tour race leader Magnuss Norman by 6-2, 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (6). Kuerten now joins the likes of Sergi Bruguerra and Jim Courier a dual French Open Champion. His place is well deserved.

Jun 27, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Jim Courier, a former number 1 has called the curtain on a career full of dramatic highs and lows. He was ranked number 1 back in 1992, a position which he held for 36 weeks. He won 4 grand slams, 2 each at the Australian and French Open and also reached the final of Wimbledon and the US Open. But he appeared to suffer from an early burn out, being caught reading at one point during a match at the end of 1993. After this he never reached another grand slam final. However, his rivalry with Pete Sampras in the early 1990's electrified the sport as they battled for the number 1 spot. Their match in the 1995 Australian Open was considered by many to have been one of the greatest in the sport. In tribute to Courier's retirement this week, this article will look over his turbulant career.

May 17, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Crowd control has become a big issue in the Davis Cup competition, particularly recently in some South American countries. In one of the worst issues of unruly crowd behaviour in the Cup, unruly Chilian spectators forced the Argentine team to withdraw from their Davis Cup qualifying match. The crowd, angered by line calls against their player threw fruit, coins, bottles and plastic chairs onto the court. Argentine player Mariano Zabeleta's father suffered a head injury which required 10 stitches. In response the International Tennis Federation has kicked both Argentina and Chile out of this year's Davis Cup competition. Tennis authorities need to take stronger measures to enforce crowd control in heated situations. This kind of outcome is unacceptable in our gentlemanly sport of tennis.

Apr 21, 2000 - Joel Hunt

19 year old Australian Llyeton Hewitt won his 5th career title last week, beating Briton Tim Henman by 6-4, 7-6. The teenager looks to be the best young player of his generation, improving to a 20-1 record this year. The question that remains for Hewitt is just how far he can go, particulary given his small stature.

Mar 15, 2000 - Joel Hunt

The 2 top rated Davis Cup teams the USA and defending champions Australia struggled home to 3-2 victories over Zimbabwe and Switzerland respectively. The Australian team had only won the title back in December when they routed an overmatched French team by 4-1. Earlier this month they came within 1 set of losing in the first round of this year's competition against the Swiss. This situation is unsatisfactory, and also provides little motivation for the top players after having to put in so much effort towards the Davis Cup in the previous year. The Davis Cup needs a revamp if it's to remain relevant and interesting to the viewing public.

Feb 18, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Andre Agassi has proven himself to be a worthy world number 1, claiming his second Australian Open title. He had a gritty run through the tournament, including an inspirational win over a red hot Pete Sampras in the semi-finals. In the final he faced a surprisingly tough match against the defending champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who in the past has not been known for his fighting qualities. Agassi's win takes his tally of grand slams up to 6, equal with that of former great Stefan Edberg.

Jan 31, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg and Mats Wilander were household names in tennis. The 3 greatest Swedish players ever combined to win 24 Grand Slam titles between them, all also achieving the world number 1 position. Bjorn dominated the late 1970's and early 1980's winning 5 consecutive Wimbledon crowns. Wilander hit his peak in the late 1980's, achieving the world number 1 ranking in 1989. Stefan Edberg was also dominant in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Unfortunately for tennis, the 3 now retired greats never met in the same tournament. This thursday in Stockholm, the 3 will meet in an exhibition match for the first and possibly last time.

Jan 12, 2000 - Joel Hunt

Andre Agassi has finished the twentieth century as the world number 1 in tennis. However Pete Sampras' straight sets thrashing of him in the final of the world championships this year has put a big question mark over Agassi's ranking. This year Agassi has only beaten Sampras once, and lost to him 4 times. Given the fact that Sampras has been beset with injury this year, there is a strong case for the argument that Agassi is only the number 1 by default.

Dec 18, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras capped off an incredible decade of tennis when he beat current world number 1 Andre Agassi in straight sets in the ATP Tour World Championship final last week. The effort was all the more impressive given that Agassi had beaten Sampras earlier in the round robin matches by the crushing score of 6-2, 6-2. For Sampras to come back and beat the Las Vegan so comprehensively in the final shows that he still has the ability to lift himself to a near unbeatable level of tennis; which has put him at the pinnacle of the men's game for so long.

Dec 3, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras has dominated men's tennis in the 1990's. He finished the season with the year end number 1 ranking for a record 6 years straight. He has won 12 grand slams in his career, which equals the world record of Roy Emerson who also won 12. In 1999 he has missed 2 out of the 4 grand slam tournaments played, the Australian Open as a result of mental fatigue; and the US Open as a result of injury. This week the American has been forced to pull out of his attempted comeback at the Paris Open after sustaining yet another injury. Despite winning Wimbledon in July, at 28 years of age the warning signs are ominous for the current world number 3.

Nov 4, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pat Rafter is out for what will likely be the rest of the year on the ATP Tour, as a result of his shoulder injury failing to heal. He will now miss out on a chance to represent Australia in the Davis Cup final against France in December. The injuries which are currently plaguing the ATP tour is a worry for men's tennis.

Oct 21, 1999 - Joel Hunt

On the eve of the Davis Cup tie with Australia, Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov predicted a 3-1 victory for his team. He dismissed the chances of 18 year old Lleyton Hewitt, and Davis Cup rookie Wayne Arthurs. However, Kafelnikov was made to eat his words as the second string Australian line up handed Russia a semi-final thrashing.

Oct 6, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Andre Agassi is the new US Open champion, and world number 1. Agassi won against veteran Todd Martin in a 5 set thriller, coming back from 2 sets to 1 down. The win has arguably confirmed him as the best player of 1999, with wins at the French and US Open's, as well as a finalist spot at Wimbledon. Agassi has now won 5 grand slams, and looks set to win more. But former world number 1 Jimmy Connors has questioned the notion that Agassi be considered one of the game's greats.

Sep 22, 1999 - Joel Hunt

This year's US Open has so far been more notable for who hasn't been in it than who has. The first round brought the shock news of Pete Sampras' withdrawal from the event before a ball had been hit. Pat Rafter's attempt to win a history-making three-peat at the US Open ended in frustration with a default with injury. The main story for the US Open now is who will win out of hot favourite Andre Agassi, and this year's Australian Open champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov. Both have been ranked number 1 this year, and both will be keen to add to their tally of having won 1 grand slam in 1999.

Sep 7, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pat Rafter is now in doubt for the US Open after aggravating a shoulder injury during the recent Indianapolis event. His absence would be a great shame for the sport, as it would end his chances of winning the US Open for an extraordinary 3 consecutive years. It would also remove Rafter from the equation in what has become an intriguing battle for the top spot and hard-court supremacy between himself, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi and Yevgeny Kafelnikov.

Aug 25, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras has been able to turn around what had been a mediocre year for him, and is currently in top form. He has just won Queens, Wimbledon and now the Los Angeles tournaments in succession. At the time of writing Sampras is on an 18 match winning streak in singles, which is the 4th best streak of his career. With Pat Rafter faultering in his title defence of Toronto, and with a winning record against Agassi; Sampras now looks to be the favourite for reclaiming his former US Open title.

Aug 10, 1999 - Joel Hunt

After spending much of the past 18 months as the world number 2, Pat Rafter has finally clinched the world number 1 spot in men's tennis. He has become the 18th player to rank number 1 since the inception of world rankings in 1973. The last Australian to rank so highly was John Newcombe a quarter of a century ago. It is a fitting reward for Rafter, currently the 2-time US Open champion. The question now is whether or not he has the mental toughness to retain this lofty position.

Jul 27, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras has claimed his 6th Wimbledon title, and in doing so tied former great Roy Emerson for the most number of grand slams ever won. Sampras beat Andre Agassi in an exciting final, though in straight sets. Sampras now holds 12 grand slam titles, and has an excellent chance to surpass Emerson's record over the next 3 or so years.

Jul 7, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Pete Sampras has shrugged off his poor form this year to win the event at Queens in London. This is the biggest grass-court tournament in the lead up to Wimbledon, and serves as a good form guide for it. With a record equalling 12th grand-slam title within reach, Sampras will be desperate to continue his winning form at Wimbledon.

Jun 23, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Andre Agassi has come from nowhere to post a remarkable win at the French Open. This win has given him a career grand-slam; meaning that he has won once at each of the four grand-slams. To put this in perspective, the last player to achieve a career grand slam was Australian legend Rod Laver. The last American to do this was Don Budge in the 1930's.

Jun 8, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Patrick Rafter has emerged from a 5 month form slump to reach the final of the Super Nine event in Rome. Along the way he defeated Andre Agassi and clay-court expert Felix Mantilla, and came within just 1 match win of the world number 1 position. The following week, Rafter helped the Australian team win the World Team Cup, highlighted by singles wins over Pete Sampras and Thomas Enqvist. All of this on clay, supposedly Rafter's least favourite surface! This article will look at Rafter's resurgence, and examine the question of whether he has what it takes to be a worthy successor to Pete Sampras as a genuine world number 1.

May 25, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Yevgeney Kafelnikov recently achieved the world number 1 ranking, despite being on a 6 match losing streak. He was able to do this because of the nature of the current ATP rankings system, which required Pete Sampras to defend a certain amount of points he had gained in 1998. This situation, along with Marcelo Rios' rise to the top ranking without a grand slam title to his name; has shown up the current rankings system as being badly inadequate.

May 12, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Gustavo Kuerten rose from almost complete obsurity in 1997 to win the French Open title. Since then he has had fair results, but nothing to prove that his grand slam win was more than an aberration. However by winning his first Super-Nine title at the Monte Carlo open, Kuerten has established early favouritism to win again at Paris; and prove himself in the eyes of tennis fans and of his peers.

Apr 27, 1999 - Joel Hunt

The Davis Cup is a major part of tennis history, and up until recently was well supported by top players. Nowadays players like Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi and Michael Chang prefer to skip the competition; their priorities clearly being with their individual achievements. Sampras has himself stated that he finds the Davis Cup is becoming "irrelevant." Such attitudes paint a bad picture of tennis professionals in the eyes of the general public.

Apr 9, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Carlos Moya has shocked tennis watchers in claiming the no. 1 ranking this past fortnight. The Spaniard is the 14th man to reach the top spot since the inception of world rankings in the 1970's.

Mar 23, 1999 - Joel Hunt

The future of men's tennis was on display last week, as young guns Michael Jan-Gambill and Lleyton Hewitt contested the final of the Scottsdale tournament. Gambill defeated current world number 1 Pete Sampras along the way to winning the title, whilst Lleyton Hewitt had his second win over Pat Rafter.

Mar 8, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Yevgeny Kafelnikov has closed on Sampras' number 1 ranking, having just won the indoor tournament in Rotterdam. The Russian is now ranked no.2 and is just 85 points behind claiming the coveted no.1 spot, and a place in tennis history.

Feb 23, 1999 - Joel Hunt

Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov has surprised many by taking out his 2nd grand slam title at the Australian Open. Kafelnikov moved quietly through the draw, whilst big guns Andre Agassi, Todd Martin and Thomas Enquist stole the headlines.

Feb 9, 1999 - Joel Hunt

This year's Australian Open has been full of upsets in the men's draw. In the absence of Pete Sampras and Marcelo Rios, and with the defeats of Pat Rafter, Andre Agassi and Petr Korda; the tournament is wide open.

Jan 26, 1999 - Joel Hunt

With the withdrawal of Pete Sampras from the Australian Open, world number four Pat Rafter is now considered by many as the favourite for the title. However, there are a number of factors which suggest that he will not be able to live up to that favouritism.

Jan 12, 1999 - Joel Hunt

The 1999 Australian Open will be the next major event for the players, and it looks to be an intriguing event. Its outcome will be a good pointer for men's tennis for the years to come.

Dec 29, 1998 - Joel Hunt

Men's tennis in 1998 has been a year of transition. With the recent retirements of Boris Becker and Michael Stich, and the continuing poor form of Michael Chang and Jim Courier, men's tennis was missing something this year.

Dec 15, 1998 - Joel Hunt

Alex Corretja has surprised all by winning the ATP Tour World Championships in Hannover. Pete Sampras meanwhile has clinched the year-end number 1 ranking for a record breaking 6th year in a row.

Dec 1, 1998 - Joel Hunt

The race for no.1 has come down to the wire now between Marcelo Rios and current holder Pete Sampras. It will be decided in the ATP World Championships in Hannover.

Nov 17, 1998 - Joel Hunt

The race for the number 1 spot has intensified, with Marcelo Rios and Pete Sampras picking up a title each over the last fortnight. Meanwhile US Open champion Pat Rafter is enduring a slump, falling to the number 3 position.

Nov 3, 1998 - Joel Hunt

Pat Rafter, Pete Sampras and Marcelo Rios are vying for the coveted year end no.1 position. The upcoming European indoor season will determine the victor.

Oct 20, 1998 - Joel Hunt

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