Streaming ATP Hertogenbosch live tennis🎾 Nuno Borges vs Nishesh Basavareddy
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If I say Roland Garros, what name comes to mind? Quickly, without thinking… 90% would have answered Rafa Nadal, while the other 10% depends on age. If you are under 30, maybe you said Iga Swiatek. If you are over 70, I would bet on Chris Evert or Björn Borg. And if you are in an intermediate age range and also like women’s tennis, there are many chances that the name that came to your mind is Aranxa Sánchez Vicario, Monica Seles or Justine Henin, a woman who built her little garden at the Philippe Chatrier, conquering four titles in a span of five years. A legend who left her mark on almost all stages, but especially here, on the clay of Paris.
“My first memory of the tennis world was watching players like Steffi Graf when I was 5 or 6 years old, from that moment on I started projecting myself into the future, that was where I wanted to be,” explains the Belgian in a beautiful report elaborated by the tournament itself. “Then came 1992 and my first memory as a spectator at Roland Garros. I was 10 years old and had just won a prestigious tournament in Belgium, where the winner got two tickets to go to the tournament. I was lucky because I won the tournament and also witnessed that year’s final: Graf against Seles,” she recalls with emotion.
Mom, someday I will play on this court and I will be Roland Garros champion‘. She looked at me and replied, ‘It’s very nice to have dreams‘. Since that day, that dream became a mission,” explains the four-time champion about those early childhood dreams.
Although in her second participation, she reached the semifinals, the truth is that Henin needed four attempts to sit on the French throne. “It was a very special date, my first Grand Slam, it was like the culmination that my dream had come true, the mission of a lifetime,” says a Justine who had already reached a final at Wimbledon and a semifinal in Melbourne. “Until that moment, I had experienced many things, both as a child and as an adult. I had made a promise to my mother who had passed away around that time, although more than a promise, it was a confirmation, I really needed to achieve this goal. It was my way of communicating with her and saying, ‘Mom, I did it, I fulfilled my dream, everything is fine‘. It was a tremendously special day,” she recalls of that 2003 triumph against Kim Clijsters.
It was precisely against her compatriot that she would also face in the finals of the US Open 2003 and the Australian Open 2004, but the truly significant triumphs would come at her beloved Roland Garros. After a surprising defeat in the second round of 2004, victories would follow in 2005 (against Mary Pierce), 2006 (against Svetlana Kuznetsova), and 2007 (against Ana Ivanovic). A triple crown that would remain in the minds of fans for eternity.
“Of course, the other titles were also very special. I think of the 2007 one, which meant my third consecutive victory. In that span from 2003 to 2007, I was fortunate to be among the best on the circuit, I was blessed. Of all my seasons during that time, I would choose 2007, where I also won the US Open. That year I played the best tennis of my entire career, achieving a good streak after Wimbledon until the end of the year. When I finished the season as the world No. 1, I began to think more about my private life and how I wanted to redistribute my time,” points out a Justine who would never be the same again.
SERENA, HER GREATEST RIVAL
Among all the rivals who had the honor – or torture – of facing Henin at Roland Garros, one stands out above the rest. In her 14 duels against Serena Williams (H2H of 8-6 in favor of the American), only two occurred at Roland Garros: 2003 semifinals and 2007 quarterfinals. If you paid attention to the story in the previous paragraphs, especially the dates, you already know what happened in both encounters.
“Serena was always one of my great rivals, the weapons she had were incredible, I remember with great emotion that 2003 semifinal. If I had to relive one of my matches in this tournament, I would choose that one. I also have to mention Kim (Clijsters), whom I played against numerous times, in fact, my first major defeat at Roland Garros was against her in the 2001 semifinal. There were other players who also made it very difficult for me, for different reasons, but I think Serena is the greatest champion I have faced, along with Kim, with whom I had a different bond for coming from the same country and knowing each other really well,” points out the Belgian.
Unforgettable memories of Henin on a tennis court, until 2008 arrived and the world No. 1 shattered, became exhausted, felt empty. Her retirement, precisely before that Roland Garros, caused a revolution in the draw that would end up favoring Ana Ivanovic, defeated twelve months before in the final. This created a gap of almost two years without Henin on the circuit until she decided to return in 2010. And how did she return? In a big way, like legends do, reaching the final of the Australian Open only to lose to Serena Williams in it. At that moment, surely no one thought that it would be her last Grand Slam final. Four months later, even she could not imagine that would also be her last Roland Garros.
“It was a bittersweet edition, I found a way to overcome Sharapova in the third round, although I still don’t know how I did it, as I had been away from the circuit for several seasons. I remember playing the final of the Australian Open in 2010 right after my return, but there I already realized that I was not the same player, especially physically. That caused me some problems that I had to carry during the tours, it made me work very hard, but I felt ready for Roland Garros. The question was, ‘Do I have the same hunger now as I did at the beginning of my career?‘. It was difficult to answer, although I still wanted to win titles,” acknowledges a woman who was only 28 years old at that time.
HER LAST TIME
Although it would not be her last tournament as a professional, that adventure in Paris would be decisive for Justine to understand that her time had passed, that destiny no longer held new adventures for her. “I was fine, I felt ready to compete, but I also felt that tennis had evolved a lot during my absence. I needed to be extremely fit, which was a fundamental piece of my game, but that year I was not able to show that version of previous seasons. After that painful defeat against Samantha Stosur, I made the decision to leave the competition.”
It was the return of the three-time champion after two seasons retired, a moment that sounded great in her head, but then in reality, it was not the same. After three victories against Tsvetana Pironkova (6-4, 6-3), Klara Zakopalova (6-3, 6-3), and Maria Sharapova (6-2, 3-6, 6-3), Henin faced the No. 7 seed, Australian Samantha Stosur. And it was the Belgian who took the first set, causing a stir in an entire crowd dedicated to the cause, but this time the story had an ambivalent ending for our protagonist.
“I had never felt such a bitter taste, I thought that with all I had achieved in the past, I did not deserve to have that return, as I had always fought to do things in an authentic and straightforward manner. It is part of my personality. In those moments, one could really see how she was, so that was the memory that stayed with me. One thinks that things could be different, but then I thought about how fortunate I had been to experience many great things. Despite that, of course I would have liked to win one, two, and three more Roland Garros titles, but life had other plans,” she reflects during the interview.
In the end, she had nine participations in Roland Garros, with a balance of four titles and a record of 41-5, nearing a 90% victory rate. If we look at her performance on clay courts, it’s a monstrous 130-22. Looking at the history, only Chris Evert (7) and Steffi Graf (6) lifted the tournament in Paris more times during the Open Era. For now, Iga Swiatek (4) still shares the same level. How many photoshoots at the Eiffel Tower would she have done if she hadn’t retired at 26? Or if she had returned with more ambition in 2010? It’s impossible to get an answer, but we do have Justine’s final consideration regarding the event that marked her career the most.
“Roland Garros is part of my life, it is more than tennis, it was always the biggest challenge of each season I played. Today, even now when I return, I have that very special feeling, that of being at home. Despite all the changes that have taken place, whether in its courts or with the new roofs, that magic I felt as a child remains in the same place as always,” concludes the legend who just turned 43 years old.
This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, “Mamá, algún día seré campeona de Roland Garros”
