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Post by Salem6 on Nov 1, 2003 17:36:05 GMT
 Tim Henman maintained his superb form to reach the final of the Paris Masters with a 7-6 7-6 win over world number one Andy Roddick.  Henman is seeking the first Masters Series title of his career Henman came through a tense encounter despite failing to convert his first five match points. The British number one goes on to meet either Jiri Novak or Andrei Pavel on Sunday It will be the third Masters final of Henman's career, having lost in Indian Wells last year and Cincinnati in 2000. Henman has spoken all week of a new relaxed approach and it was evident from the opening moments. He began in the kind of form that saw him beat Roger Federer on Thursday, breaking Roddick's serve in the opening game. Roddick grew increasingly frustrated, slamming his racket to the ground after Henman saved three break points with big serves in game eight. However, the Briton was clearly nervous when serving at 5-4 and lost the game to love. The momentum seemed to have shifted to Roddick but with the score locked at 4-4 in the tie-break he missed a pass, and Henman coolly served out the set. Roddick came under increasing pressure as the second set progressed, with Henman looking close to the crucial break at 3-3 and deuce. A match point followed for Henman at 5-4 but Roddick controlled the point, producing a solid backhand volley. It came down to another tie-break and, after being pegged back from 6-3 and 7-6 up, Henman finally took it 9-7 to end the second seed's challenge.  Audio:- news.bbc.co.uk/media/audio/39519000/rm/_39519493_sport_oversvp.ram
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Post by Salem6 on Nov 2, 2003 10:06:27 GMT
Tim Henman insists he will maintain his relaxed attitude in Sunday's Paris Masters final, despite the high stakes. Henman faces surprise package Andrei Pavel, and will be favourite to lift his first Masters crown following wins over Andy Roddick and Roger Federer.  "If I thought 'I've never won a Masters, what a chance', that would be wrong because I'd be putting more pressure on myself," he said. "I will go out there and work hard on staying nice and loose on my serve. "At the same time, I need to be aggressive and look to get forward when I get the oppportunities, putting pressure on the second serves when I get the chance." Henman has put his improvement in form down to a 'nothing to lose' attitude but he faces an opponent who is in a similar position after an injury-hit season. "That level of play has always been there, but I have played well in patches, not consistently " Tim Henman."I didn't really expect to make the final," said Pavel, who was sidelined for the first half of this season with a back injury and had won only three matches before heading to Paris. "It's important for me to able to compete at this level after my injury and if I play aggressively in the final I have a chance." Henman's projected world ranking, even if he loses the final, is 17 but the 29-year-old has been so pleased with his play that he believes he can go on to better his highest ever ranking. "That level of play has always been there, but I have played well in patches, not consistently," he said. "That's the battle, the challenge for me because I know the tennis I am capable of and it's whether I can string it together. "When I was at my highest ranking, I played some good tennis, but if I play the tennis I'm capable of for longer periods I don't think number four will be my highest ranking. "That is what excites me and motivates me." Audio:- news.bbc.co.uk/media/audio/39520000/rm/_39520033_sport_henman_use.ram[glow=red,2,300] GO TIMBO[/glow] |
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