Wednesday, October 28, 2009 11:39 AM
Santoro reconsidering retirement
Tom Tebbutt
Reporters aren’t usually part of the story, but I guess I can take some credit for this one.
On Tuesday, after he was beaten at the ATP event in Lyon, France, Fabrice Santoro admitted that, after saying he would retire at the end of this year, he is reconsidering and may play the Australian Open in January.
Already the holder of the record for the most Grand Slam events played in the open era (1968-2009) with 69, if he enters the 2010 Australian Open he will have played a Grand Slam in four different decades. Santoro, whose double-handed wizardry prompted Pete Sampras to dub him the “Magician,” played the French Open in 1989, making his Roland Garros debut as a 16 year old. Though he has now played 45 Grand Slams in a row, he missed 14 earlier in his career. So, his current total could have been considerably higher.
I did a story on Santoro during this year’s French Open and, noticing that his first Grand Slam had been in 1989, realized that if he continued playing through the 2010 Australian Open he would have competed in Grand Slams in four different decades. A few days later, I saw him near the players restaurant and told him about it. He listened with a certain amount of interest to what I said but did not seen too convinced about going to Australia.
On Tuesday, after losing 6-4, 6-4 to Albert Montanes in Lyon, Santoro, who turns 37 in December, told French reporters, “It’s true, I’ve been thinking about Australia since a Canadian journalist put that idea in my head. But if I’m going to go to Australia in January, that means I can’t go skiing in December, it means I would have to train as I have every winter for the last 20 or 30 years. I don’t like to take tournaments lightly and not be prepared when I get there. Australia is not a tournament you can take lightly.
“I might take a little peek there in January. The record of playing Grand Slam tournaments over four decades is so remarkable that it even makes me want to spend another 45 hours in a plane for the return trip again.”
Santoro’s creative, clever tennis has been a treat for fans all over the world. One last tip of the cap in Australia, where he won the doubles title twice (2003, 2004) and reached his only Grand Slam singles quarter-final (2006), would be a big hit with tennis fans Down Under.
My favourite memory of Santoro, currently ranked No. 53, was his second-round match against Roger Federer in Arthur Ashe Stadium at the 2005 US Open. It was a magical night when the players and fans alike shared in the pure delight of glorious shot-making. Everyone knew, including the two players who are good friends, that Federer would win – and he did 7-5, 7-5, 7-6(2). But for two hours and 17 minutes the crowd was enraptured by the spirit and spectacle of the match unlike any I have ever seen.
One last thing, when I spoke to Santoro at the French Open, I also suggested that finishing his career having played a record 70 Grand Slams tournaments was a nice round figure and sounded more impressive than 69.
Ana on camera: From the “sometimes you gotta wonder” file comes this picture of Ana Ivanovic. Apparently, according to her official website, it was taken by “renowned fashion photographer” Lorenzo Agius.
