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turned Brit – was lost
under Henman's shadow
Many felt Greg Rusedski was basically a good guy, but there was always a little something odd and off-putting about the fellow. It probably can be linked to his (“did he do it for money?”) move from Canada to Britain and his overly-eager urge to please in his adopted home, to do just the right things and say the right things with the proper accent. In other words, he tried to be more British than the Brits.
Sure, he had a fine career, won 15 titles, loyally played Davis Cup and helped plenty of young players, but often things just didn’t work out. Simon Barnes put things in perspective, noting that for years Britain had craved a “British tennis hero as an empty stomach craves food. Rusedski, arriving from Canada, seemed an answer to that prayer – a big man with a wonderful worm-killer of a serve. He won matches at Wimbledon…He smiled. Next year, he’d be great. But next year, a chap named Tim Henman appeared from nowhere, and that was the end of Rusedski as a British sporting icon. The affection of the British public went to the homegrown Brit rather that the hybrid.”
Plus, Rusedski never really performed that well on the one stage that really mattered – Wimbledon – where he never got beyond the quarters. And his best result, reaching the final of the ‘97 U.S. Open, came when his adopted Kingdom was deep in mourning over the loss of their beloved Princess Di. Ultimately, his toothy, too-eager smile merely earned him the nickname “The Grinner.” But his prime problem was always being the second fiddle. This was like the deeply introverted Roger Maris going up against the heroic Mickey Mantle with all his charisma. Or 49er Steve Young tirelessly battling to escape the aura of Joe Montana, or the left-handed immigrant/serve-and-volleying Martina Navratilova with her prickly personality, provocative opinions and groundbreaking lifestyle struggling in the shadow of the perfect blonde: the right-handed baseliner, girl next door, “our Chrissie” Evert.
So Rusedski’s biggest problem wasn’t the drug accusation he suffered late in his career. After all, according to Barnes, he fought with an “incandescent fury” and it ultimately proved to be his finest hour as he stood up “loud and proud demanding justice.” Rather, his problem was the emergence of a brilliant boy scout, England’s very own Tim Henman. The product of a truly proper Oxford family – tweed jacket and respectable ‘tude firmly in place. Sure, Greg and Tim had some things in common. They were born on the same day a year apart. Both reached No. 4 in the world and married women named Lucy. But each summer Henman set off a national frenzy, the perhaps futile hope that a Brit might gain the Wimbledon crown. Thus, an anonymous picnic knoll by centre court was transformed into Henman Hill. The most ho-hum details of Henman’s life became fodder for the tabloids. While Timmy endorsed detergents, try as he might, Rusedski always withered as Henmania soared. And, oh yes, the bounding lefty with the Roscoe Tanner-like power game who once blasted a serve 149 miles per hour, was not the smoothest wordsmith on the block, as the reader below indicates.
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| Greg Rusedski played under Tim Henman's shadow. |
• After losing to Sampras at the U.S. Open, Rusedski said he needed to show his opponents “less respect” and needed “a little more arrogance.” Agassi countered, “These are bold statements coming from a guy who’s lost eight of nine matches to Sampras…We all have to make choices…professionally and personally. If arrogance is what Greg’s focused on, I’m not sure I hope he accomplishes it.”
• In ‘95, after opting to play for Britain and going winless in three tournaments, he delighted in saying, “There you are, I’m a true Brit. I can’t win a tennis match.”
• After his loss to Pete at the U.S. Open, Greg offered one of tennis’ most ill-fated scouting reports and predictions when he proclaimed, “[Pete was] not playing that great…I’d be surprised if he wins his next match [against Tommy Haas].” Greg claimed Pete wasn’t the same player he used to be. “You’ve just got to look at Pete’s returns…[and] second serves. Guys will punish him for that…The movement and fitness isn’t the same. He’s a step-and-a-half slower.” Pete went on to win the tournament in great glory over Agassi.
• Rusedski was given a hero’s welcome by star-hungry fans when he first played Wimbledon in ‘95. But when he returned to play in Toronto, he was booed unmercifully by fans who threw marshmallows and balls at him, carried signs saying “Queen’s Fool” and serenaded him with “Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey, good-bye.”
• A caller to a top British radio station suggested that if Rusedski had taken “performance-enhancing” drugs, he should ask for his money back.
• Sue Mott offered this unvarnished British perspective: “We used a maple leaf to cover our embarrassment. The more Greg lost, the more Canadian he became. As long as losing beset him, we callously set him adrift toward Nova Scotia.”
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