News
24/12/01 - 07/04/02
18/08/01 - 10/11/01
25/12/02
Croatia to Face U.S. on Davis Cup Carpet
Tue Dec 10
LONDON (Reuters) - Croatia has chosen an indoor carpet surface in Zagreb for its first round Davis Cup tie against the United States in February, the International Tennis Federation said on Tuesday.
Goran Ivanisevic, the 2001 Wimbledon champion, is expected to make his much anticipated comeback during the tie by playing the doubles match.
Ivanisevic has not played competitively since undergoing surgery on his left shoulder in May.
Ivan Ljubicic and Mario Ancic are expected to fill the singles berths for the Croatians, provided Ivanisevic is only fit enough to play the doubles.
An indoor carpet court will be laid at the Hall Dom Sportova for the Feb. 7-9 clash, the winner of which will face Spain or Belgium in the quarter-finals.
08/10/02
ZAGREB, Croatia - Croat soccer star Zvonimir Boban laced up his cleats again Monday in a testimonial match that saw another Croatian sports great — tennis ace Goran Ivanisevic — steal the show by scoring a goal against some of Boban's best-known teammates.
Boban was joined by soccer greats Marco Van Basten, Lothar Matthaeus and Franco Baresi, as well as other stars — some active, others retired — in a match honoring the Croat player, who retired a year ago.
Boban organized the celebration at Zagreb's stadium on his 34th birthday to raise funds for orphans and neglected children.
He led Croatia's 1998 squad — a surprise semifinalist at the 1998 World Cup in France — in an exhibition match against an international All-Stars selection.
Matthaeus, Rivaldo, Leonardo, Serginho, Giuseppe Bergomi, Fernando Redondo, Andriy Shevchenko, Rui Costa, Jean Marie Papin, George Weah and Mark Viduka came for the occasion.
Papin scored first in the 11th minute, giving the "internationals" a 1-0 lead.
Near the end of the match, Boban left a field to a standing ovation and Ivanisevic replaced him. The crowd welcomed him euphorically, only to explode with joy when Ivanisevic, who won Wimbledon last year, scored for Croatia minutes after joining play.
The All-Stars won 2-1, with Leonardo scoring the other goal.
Earlier in the day, Boban also saw action in a match pitting the country's leading club, Dinamo Zagreb, and AC Milan — both with their lineups from the early 90s.
Milan won 3-1, with Boban defending against AC Milan in the first half — but then scoring two goals for the Italian powerhouse in the second, after switching sides.
Gianluigi Lentini got the other goal for the Italians in the fourth minute, while Miralem Arslanagic put the Croats on the scoreboard near the end of the match.
Milan's players included Baresi, Van Basten, Paolo Maldini, Marcel Desailly, Daniel Massaro, Alessandro Costacurta, Demetrio Albertini, Lentini and Dejan Savicevic.
Boban rose to stardom across Croatia as an 18-year-old, becoming the youngest player to captain Dinamo Zagreb.
But it was at AC Milan that the talented midfielder reached the pinnacle of his league career, winning four Serie A titles and three domestic Super Cups during the 1990s.
A playmaker with creative vision and sublime ball control, Boban also reached dizzy heights with the Croatian national team, skippering the side to the quarterfinals of the 1996 European Championships and third place two years later at the World Cup.
"For a decade, Croatian soccer has been overshadowed by the extraordinary talent of Zvonimir Boban," wrote longtime sportswriter Tomislav Zidak in a tribute in the daily Sportske Novosti.
U.S. at Croatia in 2003 Davis Cup
LONDON (AP) - The United States will play at Croatia in the opening round of next year's Davis Cup.
The U.S. team, which lost 3-2 to defending champion France in the Davis Cup semifinal last month, drew Croatia for its first-round match, scheduled for Feb. 7-9.
France, which will face Russia on Nov. 29-Dec. 1 in this year's final, will play at Romania in the opening round next year.
The other pairings from Thursday's draw with the home team listed first:
Romania vs. France; Netherlands vs. Switzerland; Australia vs. Britain; Sweden vs. Brazil; Spain vs. Belgium; Argentina vs. Germany; Czech Republic vs. Russia.
The United States, the winner of a record 31 Davis Cup titles, last reached the final in 1997 and has not won the event since 1995.
Croatia expects to have 2000 Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic back for Cup play. Ivanisevic, 31, underwent left shoulder surgery last May 16 and has not played any tennis since April 6. He began training this week and said the United States would be a "very attractive rival — and also a very good and dangerous rival."
Ivanisevic said he was "very much hoping to play, at least in doubles."
"However, with or without me, it will be very hard to beat the Americans", he said.
Patrick McEnroe, captain of the U.S. team, said he expected again to use younger players like James Blake and Andy Roddick, who played singles for the United States in the semifinals against France.
That means he won't be asking U.S. Open champion Pete Sampras and runner-up Andre Agassi to play.
On Tuesday, Sampras withdrew from all remaining ATP tournaments this season, saying he was "taking some time to re-evaluate where I want to go from here."
"It's time to pass the baton completely," McEnroe said. "It's time for all of us to go forward and stop asking if these guys are going to play. It's time to move on."
The winner faces Spain or Belgium for the quarterfinals.
The first-round matches are set for Feb. 7-9, the quarterfinals April 4-6, the semifinals on Sept. 19-21 and the 2003 finals on Nov. 28-30.
07/09/02
TENNIS COURTESANS
By BRAD HUNTER
They're wearing tiny black cocktail dresses and stiletto heels, and sporting impossibly perfect blond hair and the dazzling tans of the idle rich.
Is this the opera? A debutante ball? A happening hot spot?
Nah, this is the uniform of the beauties trolling for tennis players at the U.S. Open and other stops in the professional tour.
The gorgeous gals are now on the "inside," but for others, getting close to a tennis titan is not an easy task.
"You have to get to know the people around them," one former groupie told The Post. "Their security, their managers, people like that. You can't just approach them, but you can get noticed."
That's what one star-struck strumpet did when she sent former Wimbledon champ Goran Ivanisevic a pair of handcuffs and a tube of chocolate at the 1997 U.S. Open.
"It's the first time in my life I've seen handcuffs, and you probably use [the tube of chocolate] for the painting," the affable Croatian told reporters. "So I guess you paint the girl. She also sent me some instructions."
Argentinian legend Guillermo Vilas, champ of the 1977 U.S. Open, laughed about the determined dollies who made life on the road more pleasurable.
"There are very few who travel all over the world, and actually I saw a woman that everyone used to know here today," the former champ said. "But to follow the tour, you have to be rich."
Instead, Vilas said, each city on the circuit - be it New York, Paris or London - has homegrown hotties that become available when the tour hits town. He agreed that aspiring groupies need an in.
"They have to get to your manager or friend before they get to your bed," he said. "It's nice. There were always girls around, and they would try very hard."
In his new autobiography, "You Cannot Be Serious," John McEnroe wrote about the bevy of beauties that was always lingering around the circuit.
"It didn't take a whole lot of effort," McEnroe writes. "If I went to a restaurant they'd be there. I'd go to a nightclub, they'd be there. There were always girls around the tennis matches."
As for court cuties like Anna Kournikova, Serena Williams and Daniela Hantuchova, they have fiercely devoted male fans who would like to bed them. Except in women's tennis, they're usually not called groupies. They call them stalkers.
19/08/02
Ancic, 18, who beat Switzerland's Roger Federer in the first round at Wimbledon earlier this year, overpowered the fourth-seeded Russian 4-6 6-2 6-4 to set up a third round match with 15th seed Arnaud Clement of France.
Kafelnikov took the first set comfortably enough but was broken in the first and fifth games of the second set, and then was broken to go 2-1 down in the third before rain interrupted play. When they returned, Ancic held on to his lead .
Kafelnikov could provide no explanation when asked the reason for his defeat.
"You are asking me a question I cannot answer. I have no idea," Kafelnikov responded with a smirk. "He was doing everything better than me."
Ancic said afterwards that his career had been helped by fellow Croat and 2001 Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic,
"We are in contact all the time," said Ancic. "Sometimes I call him or he calls me. He is a very nice guy and has always taken care of the juniors, not just me.
"When he was a big player he was always coming to cheer us and we could speak with him and joke with him and it has stayed like that."
Kafelnikov's compatriot Marat Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open champion also left the tournament early after withdrawing due to a viral infection.
26/06/02
Goran Ivanisevic’s victory in the 2001 men’s singles was predicted be no one except chronically optimistic Croatians – stand up Davor Burazin, a tennis writer from Split who forecast his countryman’s great triumph in these pages – which, in retrospect, was surprising because one of the rules of picking Wimbledon winners is: in the shrinking world of grass-court contenders, no one with form on the surface, however long ago he or she showed it, should be discounted.
Ivanisevic might have been a wild card, he might have been nursing a shoulder injury, he might have been mixing with the low life outside the world’s top 100, he might have been closing on his thirtieth birthday, he might have been ever so slightly bonkers, but we all knew, and chose to forget, that give him a racket and a grass court and it’s like pouring water on the roots of a wilting hydrangea.
The man who had been in three previous Wimbledon title matches was revivified right from the start of last year’s tournament and by the time he reached his final appointment with the Australian Pat Rafter he had seen off the American buck Andy Roddick, Russia’s moody giant Marat Safin and the best of British, Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski.
So, on the basis of past grass-court form, those to look out for this year, remembering that Ivanisevic’s dodgy shoulder means he will be missing, are Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Todd Martin, Henman, Rusedski, Mark Philippoussis, Lleyton Hewitt and, falling into the Ivanisevic category of an old-stager with failing limbs, Holland’s Richard Krajicek, whose 1996 triumph made him the only player to beat Sampras in eight Wimbledons.
The other category of contender is the one containing players who have given us glimpses of grass-court form or who have demonstrated on other surfaces that they have the sort of all-court game that will make them competitive on the All England lawns.
Here the candidates include Safin, Roger Federer, Roddick, Nicolas Escude and Wayne Arthurs.
That’s the easy bit. Listing the names. Now the hard part; picking the winner. Of those with enstablished grass-court form, Sampras, having won seven of the past nine Wimbledons, must surely have a chance.
-The Observer
25/06/02
The All England Club had invited Ivanisevic and his parents as their guests, but Ivanisevic's recent shoulder surgery meant he could not travel from Croatia. Last year, Ivanisevic went into the stands to hug his father after his five-set win over Pat Rafter in the final.
Andre Agassi, the 1992 champion, instead opened play on Centre Court, beating Israel's Harel Levy 6-0, 6-4, 6-4. Afterward he said it a "great honor" but sympathized with Ivanisevic.
"Yeah, I thought we were going to have a moment of silence for him or something, or just get kind of still," Agassi said.
"But it's too bad because that is a special part of winning, you know, coming back."
23/06/02
"I can't return there wearing a suit and a tie," Ivanisevic told the Sportske Novosti daily. "I'll return, but the way I should — with a racket."
"I hope and I wish that it'll be next year," he added.
Ivanisevic, 31, stunned the world last year by becoming the first wildcard player to win Wimbledon in a dramatic final against Australian Patrick Rafter.
In May, the left-handed Ivanisevic underwent surgery on his left rotator cuff in a clinic in Heidelberg, Germany.
He said his rehabilitation is progressing well, and that he should be able to raise his arm above his head "in about two to three weeks."
He said that attending this year's Wimbledon tournament without being able to play was "inconceivable."
The All England Club suggested that Ivanisevic walk around the central court before the tournament begins next Monday since he can't defend his title.
"But how can I do that and then go into the lounge to watch the match, knowing that at that moment, I should have been on the court, preparing to defend the title?" he said.
"When I finish my career, I'll come to Wimbledon as a fan and watch tennis," he said. "But I can't do it yet. I'm still a player."
15/06/02
Goran's operation which lasted 3 hours was a complete success, now he has gone back home with his family to rest and recover. Goran hopes to be in good shape pretty soon so you won't miss him too much! We will give you more information as we get it.
15/05/02
"I was supposed to open at Wimbledon on Monday (June 24) at 1 o'clock, and I can't finish my career this way," Ivanisevic said Tuesday. "I think I've got another two years."
The 30-year-old Croat is to undergo surgery to his left shoulder on Thursday, sidelining him for the rest of the year. Wimbledon runs June 24-July 7.
Ivanisevic will be the first Wimbledon men's champion not to return to defend his title since Stan Smith in 1973. Smith stayed away because of a player boycott. Traditionally, the men's titleholder opens play on the first Monday of the tournament.
"I think I am capable of coming back," Ivanisevic said. "It would be nice to come back to play Wimbledon. That's my goal."
Ivanisevic, who has had shoulder problems for several years, will undergo rotator cuff surgery in Heidelberg, Germany.
He was in Monaco to attend the Laureus Awards, sometimes called the "Oscars of Sport," for which he is nominated in the World Comeback of the Year category.
Last year, Ivanisevic became the first wild-card entry to win a Grand Slam singles title by winning at Wimbledon, where he was runner-up three times previously.
The Croat also said he expected Britain's Tim Henman to come under huge pressure at Wimbledon in the year of the Queen's Golden Jubilee, marking her 50 years on the throne.
"There's going to be a lot of pressure on Tim since it's the 50 years anniversary for the Queen celebrating the crown," said Ivanisevic, who beat Henman in the semis at Wimbledon last year. "I wouldn't like to be in his skin."
Ivanisevic said seven-time champion Pete Sampras (news - profile - photos) also is a contender for the Wimbledon crown despite a two-year title drought.
"Pete isn't playing very well at the moment, but I still think he will be very dangerous," Ivanisevic said. "And I think he can do it again."
14/05/02
The Croatian, who had entered the tournament as a wildcard after dropping to 125th in the rankings, beat Australian Pat Rafter in a nailbiting final to clinch the title.
09/05/02
The 30-year-old said Tuesday he would undergo surgery on his left shoulder in Germany next week, as the pain he had been fighting for more than a year had worsened beyond endurance in recent months.
"Everything is agreed, there is no point in delaying it further," the big-serving left-hander told Slobodna Dalmacija daily newspaper, based in his native Adriatic city of Split.
After surgery in Heidelberg, Ivanisevic will enjoy the status of "protected ranking," meaning he would be allowed to miss the first nine tournaments after the operation and keep his last ATP ranking unchanged.
"I know I could just as easily get invited to tournaments (after the surgery), but why should I be begging for invitations. This way I can skip nine tournaments before starting to regain my position," he said.
"Then I plan to be a candidate for the comeback of the year," he said.
This is what he did in 2001, when he entered Wimbledon with an injured shoulder and a triple-figure world ranking and became the first man to win a Grand Slam tournament as a wild card.
08/05/02
Asked in a brief telephone interview with The Associated Press whether it means he might miss Wimbledon, Ivanisevic said: "Most likely."
But he insisted that "nothing is firmly decided yet."
"My decision will depend on many things: the condition of my shoulder, what it will mean to my status, etc.," he said. "It's one of the heaviest decisions in my life."
The final decision could be expected in a few days, he added.
"I wanted so much to play that opening match on Monday at Wimbledon on Center Court," Ivanisevic said in a statement Tuesday. "I am very disappointed, but I have no other choice."
Ivanisevic will be the first Wimbledon men's champion not to defend his title since Stan Smith in 1973. Smith stayed away because of an ATP boycott.
Ivanisevic was reportedly hastened toward surgery when pains in his shoulder forced him to cut short Monday's training in Split, his hometown in southern Croatia.
He has played only once in six weeks, a doubles match for Croatia in a Davis Cup quarterfinal a month ago. Ranked No. 16 in the world, he has canceled his entry in the ATP World Team Championship in Dusseldorf, Germany from May 20.
Doctors recently determined that much of the cartilage and muscle tissue in Ivanisevic's left shoulder was badly affected by more than a decade of professional tennis.
Ivanisevic beat Pat Rafter in last year's Wimbledon final to become the first wild card to win a Grand Slam singles title.
07/05/02
The pair feature in the strongest field for the traditional pre-Wimbledon grasscourt event at London's Queens Club from June 10 to 16.
The lowest world ranking which ensures automatic entry to the main draw without the need to play a qualifying tournament is 102 -- the highest cut-off point since the inception of the tournament in 1979.
For the first time since 1995, there are also three British direct entrants into the main draw.
Henman at five, 32nd-ranked Greg Rusedski and world number 100 Martin Lee are all ranked high enough in the ATP Entry System to qualify automatically.
In 1995, the trio consisted of Rusedski, Jeremy Bates and Mark Petchey.
Henman will be gunning for revenge against Hewitt, and a first Stella Artois title.
The Australian beat the British number one in the final last year and went on to become the youngest year-end world number one.
Hewitt also won their only encounter this year, in the final of Indian Wells, prompting Henman to say that the 21-year-old Australian had set the benchmark for all other players to compete against.
Wimbledon Champion Goran Ivanisevic enters the event for the 11th time, joined by Frenchman Sebastien Grosjean, who finished 2001 as the world number six, and Australian Open runner-up, Marat Safin.
Argentina's Guillermo Canas, currently ranked 16 in the Entry System, will make his first appearance at the event.
A host of past Stella Artois champions will also return. As well as 2000 and 2001 winner Hewitt, Wayne Ferreira (1992), Todd Martin (1994) and Mark Philippoussis (1997) will compete for the coveted singles title and 58,553 pounds ($85,590) winner's check.
The United States will be represented by some of their most experienced players and talented youngsters, including former world number two Michael Chang, rising 22-year-old James Blake and Jan-Michael Gambill.
Pete Sampras a winner in 1995 and 1999, has again asked for a wild card to be reserved for him, as has Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero.
14/04/02
PARIS (Reuters) - Croat Goran Ivanisevic has pulled out of the Monte Carlo Masters Series and Brazilian title holder Gustavo Kuerten has confirmed he will not take part in the claycourt event starting Monday, organizers said.
Ivanisevic, who played in the Davis Cup quarter-final in Argentina last weekend, is nursing a recurrent shoulder injury.
"As we feared, Ivanisevic has decided to pull out," a statement said.
INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (Reuters) - Croatian teen-ager Mario Ancic added another top name to his hit list, dumping former world number one Yevgeny Kafelnikov out of the second round at Indianapolis Wednesday.
Russian roulette as Safin takes aim
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) - Goran Ivanisevic couldn't accept Wimbledon's Royal Box invitation for opening day Monday, so the 2001 champion sent his father Srdjan instead.
ZAGREB, Croatia - Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic, recovering after shoulder surgery, said in comments published Friday that he will not attend this year's tournament as a spectator.
Sorry, haven't been updating in a while. But this was posted at Goran's official site on the 22nd of May:
MONTE CARLO, Monaco (AP) - Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic isn't considering retirement from tennis despite the upcoming shoulder surgery that will force him to skip the Grand Slam tournament.
MONACO (Reuters) - Goran Ivanisevic's amazing victory at Wimbledon in 2001 earned him the title of this year's Laureus World Comeback of the Year award.
ZAGREB (Reuters) - Goran Ivanisevic is slowly coming to terms with the reality of missing defending his Wimbledon title and he is already contemplating another spectacular comeback.
ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) - Croatian newspapers reported earlier Tuesday that the 30-year-old left-hander has decided to undergo an operation on the serving shoulder that has been bothering him for years.
LONDON (Reuters) - World number one Lleyton Hewitt and Britain's Tim Henman head a wealth of big names scheduled to appear at the Stella Artois Championships next month, organizers said Thursday.