She came and she conquered. She succeeded when few thought she would. She stood out among the crowd but not because of a loud, over the top attitude or because of publicity and fame garnered from elsewhere. She stood out because of her grace, her dignity, her passion and her technique. She is Justine Henin. She had the grace we don’t get to see anymore, she had the dignity to rise above the mishaps and the misgivings; she had the passion which defines the game of tennis and she had the technique, as John McEnroe himself said the best single backhand in men and women’s tennis today. An end to the era of graceful tennis.
Justine Henin, for me, is the last of the tennis players who can make history, who can make a place for themselves in the history of the game. It will be long before another comes. Having won an Olympic gold, 7 Grand Slam titles and just short a win at Wimbledon, she has had a career few can boost of.
According to me she never really got the respect and adulation she deserved off the court, from people who aren’t tennis fanatics. Few know what she has done and what she was capable of. She had the power to intimidate her opponents and they knew that on a good day, which was almost always since the past few years, she was hard to beat.
When one thinks of retirement it is because of injury, of losing the touch or because of age. She retired, at 25, when she was No. 1 and when no one was close to taking that tag, that rank away from her. She retired because the emotion she had towards her game, the game of tennis had diminished. Very few have the courage to do that, those very few are the Champions of their game.
Today is a sad day in the world of tennis. A day that a fan wishes never comes. The day a player retires, puts an end to a wonderful career. I am yet surprised at why she took this step but she must be having her reasons. The first thought that came into my mind was why now? There is the Roland Garros coming up, her slam, her domain. She will be missed, at every tournament, at every slam.
Justine Henin, for me, is the last of the tennis players who can make history, who can make a place for themselves in the history of the game. It will be long before another comes. Having won an Olympic gold, 7 Grand Slam titles and just short a win at Wimbledon, she has had a career few can boost of.
According to me she never really got the respect and adulation she deserved off the court, from people who aren’t tennis fanatics. Few know what she has done and what she was capable of. She had the power to intimidate her opponents and they knew that on a good day, which was almost always since the past few years, she was hard to beat.
When one thinks of retirement it is because of injury, of losing the touch or because of age. She retired, at 25, when she was No. 1 and when no one was close to taking that tag, that rank away from her. She retired because the emotion she had towards her game, the game of tennis had diminished. Very few have the courage to do that, those very few are the Champions of their game.
Today is a sad day in the world of tennis. A day that a fan wishes never comes. The day a player retires, puts an end to a wonderful career. I am yet surprised at why she took this step but she must be having her reasons. The first thought that came into my mind was why now? There is the Roland Garros coming up, her slam, her domain. She will be missed, at every tournament, at every slam.
