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Sampras sees Henman as next great threat

WORLD number one Pete" Sampras had cruised to another lopsided ATP triumph at Key Biscayne in Florida when he was asked to predict…

Wed Mar 26 1997 - 00:00

WORLD number one Pete" Sampras had cruised to another lopsided ATP triumph at Key Biscayne in Florida when he was asked to predict who might be his next great threat among the rising young stars of tennis.

He annointed Tim Henman, the 16th-ranked British sensation now nursing an injured right elbow and caught in a tug-of-war between his coach and the British Davis Cup captain.

"Henman has got a game that will be consistent for a lot of years," Sampras said. "Henman is the one guy that I find is going to be a threat not only for me but for all the guys."

Sampras advanced to the quarter-finals of the ATP Lipton Championships yesterday with a 6-2, 6-0 romp over Magnus Larsson, spoiling the Swede's 27th birthday. Sampras has won 37 of his past 38 hardcourt matches.

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"It went a lot easier than I thought", Sampras said. "I got off to a great start. I came out fired up and ready to go. It was a real good day."

Sampras will next face 54th-ranked Hendrik Dreekmann of Germany for a semi-final spot.

Henman, 22, lost his first match in this tournament to Spanish qualifier Julian Alonso and has a loose bone chip in his right elbow that rubs a nerve.

British Davis Cup captain David Lloyd wants Henman playing in next week's tie against Zimbabwe. Henman's personal coach, David Felgate, wants him to put his health above his national pride and rest. His fate is uncertain.

"If this was another event, I would not be playing," Henman said. "But this is the Davis Cup and I am desperately keen to play.

Sampras knows such choices can keep a contender from becoming a champion. But he still sees Henman in the top five eventually.

"Maybe not now, but over time in the next couple of years," Sampras said. "There are a lot of variables to deal with, being a hero. It's not easy to deal with that. I went through that.

"Now he is up and coming, got nothing to lose. There will come a point where he is expected to win. It's an added pressure that, knowing him a little bit, I think he will handle it very well."

Sampras also mentioned hard-serving Mark Philippoussis, but said the 28th-ranked Australian needs a steadier game.

Second seed Thomas Muster eliminated Spain's Alex Corretja 6-4, 6-4, to set up a quarter-final with Sweden's Jonas Bjorkman, who beat Philippoussis 6-3, 6-4. Goran Ivanisevic beat Slovakia's Dominik Hrbaty 6-4, 6-4, for a quarter-final berth.