Henman keeps cool as Rafter falls apart

Pat Rafter's forlorn look to Australian legend Tony Roche, who was ensconced in the players' box overlooking Centre Court, accompanied by a shake of the head and a slow, deliberate walk to congratulate Tim Henman perfectly encapsulated the mood of the world number six as he crashed out of The Championships at Wimbledon.

The US Open champion produced an insipid, hesitant performance brimming with basic errors and self-doubt. It was difficult to reconcile his performance yesterday evening with the powerful athlete who stalks opponents and whose serve and volley style earned him a grand slam title last year.

In mitigation, Rafter did carry a little stiffness in his back and hips which required the services of a physiotherapist before the fourth set. "It affected my service action," Rafter said. "I couldn't get the usual power and reduced the speed with which I could attack the net."

The fact that Rafter was able to play a doubles match after a short rest following his defeat suggests the damage was more uncomfortable than painful.

It would be churlish not to acknowledge the mature, measured display of Henman, a player whose calm assurance amid national fervour belied his 23 years. However, he was greatly helped in his 6-3, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2 victory by an opponent who imploded.

Rafter's problems were many, from a lacklustre and timid delivery on serve, stiffness aside, to woeful return of service. It is salutary to note that the Englishman registered only 57 per cent of first serves on target, yet won a whopping 83 per cent of those points. It illustrates the inadequacy of the Rafter return, which alternated between a tentative push and an ugly swish.

The Australian's serve, noted for a high kick, is negated somewhat by the grass surface which offers less bite than a hardcourt but Rafter's failure to establish his rhythm inspired a short delivery, which Henman dispatched with authority and precision.

To offer some perspective on the Rafter serve, he sometimes failed to break 100 miles per hour on his first serve and could manage an average of only 104mph; Venus Williams, who has the fastest recorded serve in women's tennis, at 125mph, would have enjoyed a faster average delivery in her match yesterday.

The Englishman broke six times to his opponent's two but it could have been many more. Rafter offered only glimpses of the athletic tennis for which he is noted.

Henman could easily have claimed this match in three sets, having served for the second set at 5-4, but a couple of double faults when "pushing a little too hard," allowed Rafter a glimpse of salvation of which he availed, maximising his good fortune by securing the tie-break 7-3.

The crowd sensed a more even encounter but Rafter's brittle game, characterised by a plethora of unforced errors, conspired to once again hand Henman the initiative. Henman gratefully seized upon his opponent's largesse.

Only once, to which he would later allude, did Henman tighten under pressure. "There was a game - I think it was the third - that went to six or seven deuces and that was a crucial game. A break is not a break until you hold your serve. I made a few serves at the right time and managed to hold on.

"This match has been different from the others. In those games you have to think about a lot more things, when the guy is standing on the baseline, like to get the return into court and wait for an opportunity to come to the net.

"Against a guy like Pat, who is attacking at every opportunity, the game plan is a little bit decided for you. So, you know, you can play with your instincts. I felt very loose in my whole game, the way I was serving. I wasn't really trying to hit my serve particularly hard, but sometimes when you've got a good rhythm, that's when you serve best.

"Likewise on the returns, I was keeping it simple and I think that's when I do play best, when it is instinctive."

Henman deserves credit for the victory but would be foolish to misrepresent the current wellbeing of his game. Despite finding himself once more on a pedestal, the scope for improvement is pronounced.

He now faces the mercurial Czech Petr Korda, a straight-sets victor over Holland's John Van Lottum. Henman can expect a far more resolute opponent and one whose serve and service return should be more powder keg than powder puff.

The winner would probably face the onerous task of a tilt at defending champion Pete Sampras, who was an easy winner over Thomas Enqvist. Sampras must first surmount the challenge of Frenchman Sebastien Grosjean, who put out the number 16 seed Felix Mantilla.

Sampras continues to operate on 80 per cent capacity, a model of efficiency relying on a serve that has already racked up more than 60 aces in the competition. But even the world number one must take a back seat to Croatian Goran Ivanisevic, who blasted a staggering 44 aces in his victory over Czech Daniel Vacek.

There was a familiar predictability to the women's competition, with victories for number two seed, Lindsay Davenport, Jana Novotna, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Monica Seles and Venus Williams.

An eargerly awaited quarterfinal contest between Venus and younger sibling Serena will not materialise because Serena was forced to retire during her match against Virginia Ruano Pascual.

Samantha Smith's great run was brought to a conclusion when the local heroine lost in straight sets to 16th seed Nathalie Tauziat.

Venus, seeded seven, took just 79 minutes to win 6-3, 6-4 and was clearly pleased not to have to face Serena in the next round. "Serena is definitely the toughest player out there . . . she's fast and strong and getting better with every tournament," she said.

Novotna, champion on grass at Eastbourne a week ago, advanced beating Corina Morariu 6-3, 6-1 in less than an hour. The third seed next meets 10th seeded Romanian Irina Spirlea who ousted South Africa's Surina De Beer 6-4, 6-4.

Sanchez Vicario, the women's fifth seed, found herself in trouble at the start of her third-round match. The Spaniard was staring at a first set deficit when she trailed Austria's Sylvia Plischke 53.

Sanchez Vicario, twice a losing finalist at Wimbledon, held her nerve though and fought back to take the next nine games to move to within sight of a victory. She finally wrapped up the match 7-5, 6-2.

"I realised that I had to start going a little more for my shots, and that's what I did," said the six times grand slam winner.

Sanchez Vicario, undeterred by Plischke's charges to the net, spiced her sharp passing shots with some deftly placed lobs, causing the Austrian no end of frustration.

The Spaniard will next meet Belgian 15th seed Dominique van Roost who eased past compatriot Sabine Applemans in straight sets.