TENNIS: It's a fairytale ending for retiring Tim

9:47am Monday 24th September 2007

No tears this time, just sheer elation at a job well done.

Tim Henman's final match as a professional ended in the best way possible as he struck the winning shot to take Great Britain's Davis Cup team back into the world's top 16, though what they will do there without him is another matter.

Together with doubles partner Jamie Murray, the British duo came from a set down to beat Marin Cilic and Lovro Zovko 4-6, 6-4, 7-6, 7-5 in a match of drama and excitement before a noisy crowd determined to give the long-time British No 1 a send-off to remember.

Fortune had favoured Henman in the way that Croatia had been unable to call on their three leading players, Ivan Ljubicic, Mario Ancic and Ivo Karlovic, and his singles victory the day before against Roko Karanusic had been a relatively straightforward affair.

But doubles opponents Cilic, a classy grass-court player, and Zovko, who is no novice, were to be formidable adversaries.

There was a tumultuous welcome when Henman walked out onto court, an indication of the atmosphere that would prevail.

At the start, even at the toss, it seemed as though Tim was prepared to let doubles specialist Murray be the boss, but as the match progressed, the 33-year-old's experience, tactical awareness and sheer brilliance at the net took over.

In the net exchanges you could instantly see what great hands Henman has, and one wonders how many doubles titles he may have won had the rigorous demands of the Grand Slam schedules not made it so difficult to play in both events.

The Anglo-Scottish alliance went down in the first set, though. It was evenly balanced throughout until Murray got nervous on his serve in the tenth game, double-faulting on the first point and not recovering.

But a smart volleyed interception by Henman enabled the British duo to break in the seventh game of the second set, and Henman served out at 6-4.

Murray was broken again in the sixth game of the third set but, spurred on by the crowd, they hit back immediately, breaking to love to take it to a tie-break where Henman and Murray went 3-0 ahead early on and took complete control to take it 7-3 and go two sets to one up.

Changing tactics, and using the "I" formation, with Henman crouching down near the net when Murray served, brought its rewards, making use of the senior partner's superb reactions.

The British pair found another gear again at the business end of the fourth set to go 6-5 up. With the home nation supporters now sensing blood, they heaped pressure on the Cilic serve and it seemed only fitting that Henman should seal the victory with a precise and deft forehand angled across court to bid farewell to the sport.

The occasion didn't quite have the magic of Friday's final singles match, nor the emotion. He didn't go down on his knees to kiss the grass, but still there were momentous scenes before he walked off into retirement with his four-year-old daughter Rosie cradled in his arms, and the ringing ovation continued long after they had disappeared from sight.

A night of celebration with his family followed, and a thoroughly deserved one.

It seems strange that it's now all over.

But it is.

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