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Rafter will be missed

LONDON -- You will find few people more down to earth on the tennis circuit than Patrick Rafter. He puts every ounce of heart and energy into his matches and always finds time for a "how yer doin' mate" afterwards, win or lose. What you see is what you get from the sentimental favorite for Wimbledon victory. There's nothing fake about him.

He's honest enough to admit that he "choked" in last year's final against Pete Sampras, when he found himself just three points away from a two sets to love lead. I can think of only a handful of players who might ever admit to gagging in a Wimbledon final. So many others would dress up their sudden decline in frilly skirts and fancy bows in the hope of disguising the fact they blew it.

Rafter's not one of them. Never has been. Never will be.

Then there's the athletic endeavor on court; a liberal dose of handsome charm to make women across the globe swoon; a couple of U.S. Open titles for good measure; a fierce patriotism which made him hurt more about a Davis Cup final defeat for Australia late last year than a personal loss in the final here. You can see why the men's tennis tour is rueing the day Rafter packs up his rackets for the final time.

And that time will come at the end of the year, maybe February 2002 at the very latest. He'll only play into next year if Australia is in Davis Cup contention at the end of 2001, which will take him home in competitive mode. Then, he figures, he might as well continue on to play one last Australian Open.

Rafter is taking a tennis sabbatical and he's not for turning. He says there are other things in life he wants to explore. If he misses the sport enormously he might return, but I sense he doubts that'll be the case.

Rafter's not past it. He won't turn 29 until December. But he has been a professional player for a decade, often enduring an out-of-a-suitcase existence on a tour which offers scant few lengthy breaks and little playing time in his land of Oz. The wear and tear resulted in shoulder surgery late in 1999. The aches and pains can plague him still.

He also discovered after this year's epic semifinal defeat by Andre Agassi at the Australian Open, when he was cramping badly in the fifth set, that he sweats twice as much as the ordinary athlete. That cramps his all-action style.

Rafter, from a family of nine brothers and sisters, now has the option of settling down with girlfriend Lara Feltham and starting a family of his own, should he wish. He wouldn't have to be a globetrotting husband or father. Maybe the sleepless nights of screaming babies might send him rushing back to tennis. We can only hope.

For now, we have to hope for something more reasonable, like him reaching the latter stages of another Wimbledon and providing us with the thrills he delivered against Agassi and Sampras in the final four last year.

Ultimate victory here at this year's Wimbledon? What a way to go.

Phil Jones is co-host of World Sport, the international sports show that airs live on CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNN International.

'Good fellow' Rafter raining on the ego parade

By James Lawton 02 July 2001

It is a passable rule of workaday cynicism. Always distrust a man admired by men and adored by women. But it doesn't work with Pat Rafter. You look for an edge that isn't there, a vanity deeply suppressed, maybe, but bound to wriggle into the light. You watch for it vainly. His jokes may not always landed perfectly, but invariably they are well meant. Watching him, on and off the court, you are reminded a little of a scene from the classic movie All the King's Men, based on the unscrupulous career of the notorious American politician Huey "Kingfisher" Long. A young reporter calls his editor to report that he has turned over every stone in Louisiana and that "the guy is clean." After a dramatic pause, the editor replies, "Nobody's clean – keep digging." In this case such a directive is plainly pointless. What you see of Rafter, the least ugly of competitive Australian sportsmen, you plainly get: hard ambition, an easy camaraderie with his fellow toilers in the lucrative and often philosophically disorienting vineyard of tennis, a nice touch of self-mockery, and such relentless honesty that no one had to speculate about whether he choked when he had Pete Sampras at his mercy in last year's Wimbledon final. Rafter came right out and said it: I choked, mate.

Of those last two words, "mate" is the one to be found most regularly on his lips. For two very good reasons. The Sampras disaster was a desperate accumulation of pressures, psychological and physical, on a man who had been told that his right shoulder was shot, and any questions about the basic soundness of his temperament had been answered spectacularly enough with a brace of US Open wins. "Mate," on the other hand, is the most natural of companions for a series of generally warm and often witty one-liners. It was produced generously on Saturday night when Morocco's waspishly talented left-hander Hicham Arazi erupted in a blaze of virtuosity to win the first game of the third set and delay Rafter's ultimately confident march into today's fourth round, when he meets one of a fast-rising platoon of young Russians, the Muscovite teenager Mikhail Youzhny.

"It's a nice way to start the set, mate," said Rafter.

Last year he was asked if making a bungee jump from a Hamburg building was the best advised reaction to a depressing prognosis on his ailing shoulder. "They tied me by the ankles, not the shoulders, mate," replied Rafter.

There is, however, a limit to natural matiness when you are involved in winning major titles and a streak of ruthlessness became ever more apparent after Arazi's sparkle began to ebb in the No 3 seed Rafter's 7-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory. In the third set Rafter, having absorbed Arazi's rush of blood and invention, began to hit the ball as sweetly as he did in last year's semi-final defeat of a crackling Andre Agassi. His slickly honed serve-and-volley turned Centre Court into a battleground of Panzer tank and Berber sharpshooter. Inevitably, the big gun prevailed. Rafter's self-analysis – as with so many of his public statements – was marked by strictly controlled optimism. "I wasn't comfortable in the first set," he said. "I was a little bit out of sorts. I wasn't really happy with the way I was hitting the ball. Then in the second and third sets I just started playing a little bit better as the match went along. I thought I played really well in the third set. I served well throughout the match, which is encouraging because it just gets tougher from now. If you're going to win this tournament, you just have to serve well. It's a little too early to say whether I'm peaking at the right time. "So far I've played sort of tricky guys, no one really standard. When I play Youzhny he's going to be a bit more of a standard player; he's really more of a test to see how I'm playing. If I'm off, he'll beat me. If I'm playing well, then my game will be in good touch for the rest of the week."

Few developments, beyond a successful joust with destiny by Tim Henman, more smash-and-grab by Greg Rusedski or the conquest by the latter's fourth-round opponent Goran Ivanisevic of several demonic army divisions of the night, would be more popular at Wimbledon. Or in the wider world of sport where wealth and celebrity have done so much to separate the megastars from a ready grasp of their nature by the public. Rafter, who at 28 implicitly supports the belief that this is his last serious run at the tournament he looked at with such awe on the early morning television in the house in Queensland he shared with eight siblings, especially understands the public affection for Ivanisevic.

Said Rafter, "It's so great to see Goran play well – just to see him come back the way he has. You know he's just loving it out there. It's good for tennis. I think it makes all the guys in the locker room pretty happy too. He's a good fellow." Good fellow. With respect to the legends of the old guard, to men like Laver and Rosewall and Hoad, it is not a term that has been easily associated with the ego parade of modern tennis. Too much pressure, too much detachment from real life, too much money. But Rafter and, in his mangled, chaotic way, Ivanisevic, have stood for something else. Most of all, for big-time tennis as an aspect of reality.

Yesterday Rafter was gathering with 30-odd compatriots all intent on burying the pain of the Lions' triumph in Brisbane. The plan was to plonk themselves in front of a satellite television and tune in to the climactic phase of the "footy" season, a big inter-state Australian Rules game, and perhaps later play a little cricket. Rafter was contemplating the bowling of a few "leggies". He will also offer a word of support to his young compatriot Lleyton Hewitt, who revealed, despite a blistering arrival on grass in the build-up to Wimbledon, a worrying level of tension in his third-round win over another talented young Moroccan, Younes El Aynaoui, by 7-5, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6.

"I'm pleased that Lleyton has made it to the second week. He's doing it the hard way again, though. He's still not comfortable out there, I don't think. But he's such a great little competitor that he knows how to win. I'm happy because for the last couple of years I've been saying that he is going to do something here. He's finally worked his way in, but I do think he needs to lift his game. "Probably he's just getting used to the Centre Court action. There is just such a great tradition in Australia of Wimbledon. We all just get so excited on playing here. You see it as a little kid on television and I think it is something that sits in the back of our minds. You're in a bit of awe of the place. I definitely was, though I think I've gotten over that. I don't know how Lleyton is dealing with it but I do expect him to get better and better as the tournament goes along."

For himself, he simply hopes for the best. If indeed he goes at the end of the year, he says that he will miss Wimbledon most. Some things run so deeply you have them for ever. Rafter, fine athlete, good fellow, is plainly playing for the rest of his life.

Rafter keeps to script

From our wire services
01jul01

LONDON: Pat Rafter's Wimbledon script is reading increasingly like a farewell fairytale.

Unlike young compatriot Lleyton Hewitt, Rafter has looked so comfortable on an unusually hard and bouncy centre court that there's growing optimism he'll cap his career with the title he covets most.

His draw entering the second week looks as generous as he could dare hope, meeting Wimbledon debutant Mikhail Youhnzy of Russia in the fourth round on Monday then either Guillermo Canas or Thomas Enqvist in the quarters.

He's on course for a semi-final against either Hewitt or Andre Agassi and, if he can get there, the ultimate storybook finish could be achieved with revenge for last year's final loss against seven-time champion Pete Sampras in the decider.

Recent hot, dry weather has done Rafter a big favour in his ninth and likely last Wimbledon, baking the courts to help his game and he's lost just one set in three matches.

"It's a harder court this year," said Rafter after cruising through a 7-6 6-4 7-5 third round win over Morocco's Hicham Arazi.

"It tends to suit my type of serve because I have a bit of a kicking action, and the court really takes to that."

Should he pull it off, even the prospect of defending the title isn't enough to make the two-time US Open champion rethink the lengthy break he plans at the end of the year which most expect to mean retirement.

"I don't think so," he said. "...I'm just looking forward to not playing, putting the racquets down altogether."

Rafter wondered whether the aura of centre court could explain some of the difficulty that his friend and Davis Cup teammate Hewitt was experiencing in winning his matches.

Fifth seed Hewitt returned to centre court after his desperate five sets win over qualifier Taylor Dent and battled to put away Arazi's countryman Younes El Aynaoui 7-5 5-7 6-4 7-6 in the third round today.

"He's doing it the hard way again," Rafter said.

"He's still not comfortable out there.

"I think he's just probably getting used to centre court action. It's just such a great tradition in Australia, of Wimbledon. We all just get so excited on playing here. We're in a bit of awe of the place.

"I've got over that but I don't know if Lleyton's dealing with it."

But Rafter cautioned that Hewitt would improve as the tournament progressed, saying he was "such a great little competitor that he knows how to win."

Hewitt, 20, would never admit centre court still gave him some heart flutters, but knows he needs to improve against 38th ranked Nicolas Escude on Monday.

"I've definitely got to go up, play a lot better, if I'm to have a good chance of winning the tournament," said Hewitt.

"I'm going to have to step it up another gear if I'm going to get to the quarters."

Despite wins at the Queen's and Rosmalen tournaments coming into here which have helped him to a 15-0 win-loss record on grass all year and a 13-match streak now, there are many who question his approach on the surface in the headier atmosphere of a grand slam.

While Rafter went to net 70 times in three sets against Arazi, Hewitt went there just 29 times in four today, and agreed he "probably should have" tried it more often.

His serving against El Aynaoui caused some concern, especially in losing second set, when only 46 per cent of his first serves went in.

More encouraging was the fact Hewitt has shown that even on the most intimidating court in the world he can call on his renowned fight to pull through tight situations.

"I've beaten some top players in the last few weeks," said Hewitt, who downed Pete Sampras and Tim Henman on the same day to defend his title at Queen's.

"I've survived a couple of tight matches already in the tournament. If I get into a tight situation now, I know how to react.

"Here at Wimbledon in the past I've maybe pushed the panic button too early."

Sunday, July 1, 2001 (SF Chronicle)
When Rafter retires, it will be a sad day for tennis
Bruce Jenkins, The San Francisco Chronicle

   Wimbledon, England -- Rare is the tennis player who gets a career
thumbs-up in the court of public opinion. Louts become heroes, champions
become pushovers, masters of boredom become the life of the party.
   Patrick Rafter is among the special ones. Falling somewhere between Cal
Ripken and Tony Gwynn, to use some immediate comparisons, he has been
almost universally admired from start to finish. It's a wise move to get a
good, solid look at him before he goes.
   Rafter was out on Wimbledon's Centre Court yesterday in the kind of
atmosphere that sets this place apart: kaleidoscopic light, crystal-blue
sky against the greenery, little or no wind. Some of the greatest sports
photographs have been taken in twilight at the All England Club, and so
often the play measures up.
   Rafter wasn't necessarily at his best in a 7-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory over
Morocco's Hicham Arazi, but since he has made such strong hints about
retirement, it was more

   about the moments. You watch Gwynn to see that last bullet single through
the left side. Maybe Ripken will be good for a diving stop. With Rafter
it's a lunging volley, an all-out scramble against the odds, the
quick-snap overhead from his backhand side. A lot of tennis players have
superb athletic ability. Rafter is a great athlete who just happens to
play tennis.
   It seems odd that Rafter would leave. You understand it with Ripken,
looking quite the old man as he settles into his hitting crouch. Gwynn is
about twice the size of his rookie frame. Most of the time, Rafter looks
like he hasn't lost a thing -- but that doesn't address his right
shoulder, which has already fallen off once, or his mind, wearying of the
long, endless circuit.
   "I just think I need to step back for six months, or a year, and see how
much I love the game," Rafter said this week. "I might try to train my ass
off and get back into it. But I'll be 30 by then, and you've got to be
realistic."
   Rafter started talking this way at the first of the year, before the
Australian Open, and it sent shock waves across the country. The Aussies,
who would be down to Lleyton Hewitt and little else, could hardly afford
to lose Rafter in Davis Cup or the realm of international respect. The
tour would lose perhaps its most decent, down-to-earth player. As for the
female set -- total disaster. "Tell me it's not true," one heartbroken
teenager wrote to a Melbourne newspaper. "We wanted to grow old with him."
   It might seem unimaginable for Rafter to just walk away, but this isn't
John McEnroe, trying to stay in the limelight as a rock musician, or Jimmy
Connors, annoying every single soul on the seniors circuit. Rafter grew up
on a farm, one of nine kids, and he has a different notion of the high
life. It's more like the warmth of the sun, a beer with his mates, a
steady girlfriend, honest self-deprecation because it comes from the soul.
   "I really don't know what I'd do," he said. "Just wake up in the morning,
go for a swim on the beach, maybe do some yoga, play a bit of golf. It's
secret because I don't know. But that life sounds good to me."
   Rafter can make some serious amends at Wimbledon. Although he defeated
Andre Agassi in a stirring semifinal last year, he believes he "choked"
against Pete Sampras in the final, after leading by a set and 4-1 in the
second-set tiebreaker. "I got really tight, no doubt about it. I could see
a win, but I didn't believe in myself. That held me back. But it doesn't
keep me up at nights. Still won't. No one died over it."
   And no one played the U.S. Open any better than Rafter during Sampras'
peak,
   either. After winning it consecutively in 1995 and '96, Sampras watched
Rafter take the title the next two years, losing a five-set semifinal to
Rafter in '98.
   A year later, Rafter had major surgery on his right shoulder, crippled
under the weight of hard work. He seriously questioned his future back
then, only to undergo an exhaustive training program that brought him back
to form. To say the least, he was heartily welcomed by both fans and
players.
   "I think he brings a great rawness to tennis," Agassi said. "He's a true
competitor, a true champion, always professional on the court and a first-
class person off the court. You want a person like that around. The game
will miss him when he goes."
   Time can be a great healer in tennis. McEnroe and Connors, so reviled in
their youth, wound up being the standards for popularity. Billie Jean King
and Martina Navratilova overcame society's ignorance and sexism to become
larger- than-life champions. Chris Evert and Stefan Edberg, ice-cool to
the point of tedium, became fascinating and beloved.
   Patrick Rafter showed up as an honest, appealing bloke, and he'll leave
that way. He deserves a fine moment or two before he goes.

Saturday, 30 June, 2001, 19:17 GMT 20:17 UK
Rafter v Arazi

All the action game-by-game as Pat Rafter beats Hicham Arazi in straight sets in the third round at Wimbledon..

Read from bottom to top

Third set

Rafter 7-6 6-4 7-5 Arazi: After 121 minutes of tremendous tennis, Rafter clinches a well deserved victory with a stunning ace.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 6-5 Arazi: A stunning game sees Rafter move within one game of victory after he breaks the Arazi serve.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 5-5 Arazi: Rafter holds again to further frustrate Arazi.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 4-5 Arazi: A huge grin appears on Arazi's face after he somehow holds his serve, surviving a number of break points.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 4-4 Arazi: Arazi makes a small impact on the Rafter serve, winning a rare two points. However, the Australian sends some deep serves at Arazi, who crumbles again.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 3-4 Arazi: Rafter wins the best rally in the match but fails to win the game thanks to some dazzling tennis from Arazi.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 3-3 Arazi: Rafter records his third consecutive love game to keep his opponent in check.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 2-3 Arazi: Arazi wins his serve to 15 but needs to penetrate the Rafter serve if he wants to overcome his opponent.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 2-2 Arazi: Rafter, who is looking unbeatable on his serve, wins the game to love.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 1-2 Arazi: Some forceful returning from Rafter allows him to move 40-0 up on the Arazi serve. However, the Moroccan sends some thunderous serves past Rafter to take the game.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 1-1 Arazi: Arazi continues to struggle against the Rafter serve, with the Australian taking the game to love.

Rafter 7-6 6-4 0-1 Arazi: A wonderful game from Arazi allows him to make the perfect start to the third set.

Second set

Rafter 7-6 6-4 Arazi: Another ferocious service game from Rafter sees him take the second set and inch one set closer to a place in the fourth round. He clinches the set with an ace.

Rafter 7-6 5-4 Arazi: Arazi takes the game to love, keeping his slim chances of taking the second set alive.

Rafter 7-6 5-3 Arazi: Both players really begin to find their rhythm but Rafter excels again, moving within one game of a two set lead.

Rafter 7-6 4-3 Arazi: Arazi keeps himself in the set with a strong service game which he wins to 15.

Rafter 7-6 4-2 Arazi: The fast-improving Rafter holds his serve without any real problems.

Rafter 7-6 3-2 Arazi: Rafter makes the crucial breakthrough, breaking the Arazi serve instyle with an uncompromising smash at 40-15.

Rafter 7-6 2-2 Arazi: Few problems for Rafter as the Australian strolls to the fourth game without conceding a point.

Rafter 7-6 1-2 Arazi: Arazi serves his fourth and fifth ace with a solid display to keep his nose in front.

Rafter 7-6 1-1 Arazi: Rafter levels the set with a steady service game.

Rafter 7-6 0-1 Arazi: Arazi takes concludes the first game of the second set with an ace as the Moroccan looks to hit back after losing the first set.

First set

Rafter 7-6 Arazi: Rafter grabs the first set in dazzling fashion - dropping just two points. A stunning second point gives Rafter a 2-0 lead after two lobs and a number of chances falling to both players awaiting at the net.

Rafter 6-6 Arazi: It's tie-break time as the first set continues to be dominated by the serve.

Rafter 6-5 Arazi: The Australian support continues in full voice as Rafter gets within one game of taking the first set. Arazi battles on, not afraid to mix his game with a number of lobs.

Rafter 5-5 Arazi: The set remains wide open as Arazi's serve keeps the pressure on Rafter.

Rafter 5-4 Arazi: Arazi misses two great opportunities to break the serve but a concentration lapse at the net allows Rafter to hang on. Arazi will be serving to stay in the opening set.

Rafter 4-4 Arazi: Still nothing to separate the two players as Arazi pulls off a number of attacking strokes - including one stunning passing shot with Rafter left flat-footed at the net.

Rafter 4-3 Arazi: Rafter grabs his service game but not without a battle. Another game that goes to duece but an ace comes to the Australian's aid.

Rafter 3-3 Arazi: A number of entertaining rallies with Rafter defending astutely against the varied serves of the Moroccan. Arazi hangs on after surviving a game that goes to deuce.

Rafter 3-2 Arazi: The noise levels increase as Rafter edges ahead with a dominant showing in the fifth game.

Rafter 2-2 Arazi: As the shadows lengthen across the court Arazi, once again, levels the match on his serve.

Rafter 2-1 Arazi: The match continues to go with service as both players look to seize the initiative.

Rafter 1-1 Arazi: The Moroccan is unfazed and bounces back to level the match with a strong service game.

Rafter 1-0 Arazi: The Australian serves strongly to take the opener on a sun-blessed court.

------------------------------------------------

P Rafter (Aus) bt H Arazi (Mor ) 7-6 6-4 7-5
Pat Rafter booked the final place in the fourth round at Wimbledon with a straight sets win over plucky Moroccan Hicham Arazi.

Rafter, beaten by Pete Sampras in the final last year, defeated the Moroccan 7-6 6-4 7-5 to earn a last 16 clash with Russian teenager Mikhail Youzhny.

The number three seed said: "It just gets tougher from now. There are improvements starting to show up in my game and I was hitting the ball a lot better nearer to the end of the match."

It was a dazzling display from the Australian who sent the Centre Court crowd into delirium after a finally ending the challenge of the dangerous Arazi in just over two hours.

If I'm off my game against Youzhny he will beat me and if I'm not then I will be in good stead for the rest of the week

The third seed took the opening set on a tie-break as Arazi matched him big serve for big serve and served only his fifth ace to take the second 6-4.
Chalk

Arazi had to save three break points in the third game of the third set, enjoying a massive slice of luck when a Rafter forehand appeared to land on the outside of the line but was called out.

Rafter demanded the ball back from the ball boy to examine it for signs of chalk dust but found none and Arazi went on to win the game and keep his nose in front.

But there was no denying the powerful Rafter, who looked unbeatable on his serve in the third set.

He got his break in the 11th game with a brilliant backhand return winner giving him the chance to serve out for the match.

Rafter had allowed Arazi just three points on his serve in the set so far and gave his opponent just one more as he secured victory with his 10th ace.

Rafter is well aware that Youzhny could pose him a tough test.

"If I'm off my game against Youzhny he will beat me and if I'm not then I will be in good stead for the rest of the week."

Hewitt, Rafter in last 16
From our wire services
01 July 01
News Interactive
LONDON: Lleyton Hewitt and Pat Rafter were less than convincing but moved through to the fourth round at Wimbledon overnight with victories over Moroccan opponents.
Fifth seed Hewitt extended his win-loss record on grass this year to 15-0 as he subdued Younes El Aynaoui 7-5 5-7 6-4 7-6.

Third seed Rafter defeated Hicham Arazi 7-6 6-4 7-5.

Rafter, beaten finalist last year, produced a below-par performance but still emerged victorious after 2hrs 2mins to set up a last-16 meeting with Russia's Mikhail Youzhny.

While Arazi, seeded 27th, delighted with his touch play, Rafter called on his experience to win the big points.

He took the first set tiebreak 7-3 with the help of a stunning cross-court passing shot and achieved a crucial break of serve in the fifth game of the second set by exposing Arazi at the net once more.

Although Arazi saved three break points to hang on early in the third set, Rafter eventually broke to lead 6-5 and he sealed his opponent's fate with an ace on his first match point.

Hewitt's victory was another effort short of Hewitt's best, following his desperate five-set second round win over qualifier Taylor Dent.

The 20-year-old South Australian was short of being in command against the 82nd-ranked El Aynaoui, whose ranking hit 15 a year ago but who was now rebuilding after injury.

El Aynaoui had the first chance to break in the match, in game two. But he wasted the opportunity and after both men held serve strongly for the next nine games, it was Hewitt who pounced first in the 12th, breaking El Aynaoui to take the set.

It was Hewitt who blinked first in the second set in the face of El Aynaoui's continuing onslaught. Serving to stay in the set at 5-6, he suffered the same fate as El Aynaoui had in the first, with two errors from 30-30 costing him the set.

There remained little between the players in the third set as they stayed mainly at the baseline and it was Hewitt who grabbed the decisive break for 5-4 when El Aynaoui netted a backhand on the second break point. Hewitt held to love to take the set.

Play was stopped for around half-an-hour with Hewitt about to serve at 2-3 in the fourth, but the break seemed to have little affect on both players' concentration.

There were no cracks in the set until Hewitt had two break points at 5-5, but the dogged El Aynaoui fought out of both and a tiebreak ensued.

Hewitt grabbed the early advantage by taking the first point off El Aynaoui's serve after a spirited rally.

He cleared out to a 6-2 lead with another mini-break and converted his third match point with an unreturned serve which wrapped up the tiebreak 7-4.

Wimbledon-Relaxed Rafter turns his mind to other sports
By Stephen Wood

LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) - Pat Rafter seemed to be preoccupied with
everything but his own Wimbledon chances after securing his place in the
fourth round of the grass Grand Slam on Saturday.

The Australian, seeded third, overcame an indifferent start on Centre Court
to beat Moroccan Hicham Arazi 7-6 6-4 7-5.

The win took Rafter through to a last-16 meeting with Russia's Mikhail
Youzhny and, with only 10th seed Thomas Enqvist left in his quarter of the
draw, Rafter, last year's beaten finalist, is on course for at least a
semifinal berth.

But that appeared to be the last thing on his mind as he weighed up the
sporting issues currently affecting his nation.

First he had to deal with the disappointment of watching the Wallabies rugby
union team lose the first test to the British and Irish Lions in Brisbane on
Saturday.

Then he warned compatriot Lleyton Hewitt, the fifth seed and early favourite
for the title here, that he would have to improve if he has designs on the
men's singles crown at Wimbledon.

And his other concern was making sure he was available for a challenge
cricket match between the Australian and South African players here at the
championships.

"I watched the rugby and I was really nervous for the boys (Australia)," said
Rafter.

"It was disappointing but we'll be back -- don't you worry."

DAY OFF
Rafter has a day off on Sunday before facing Youzhny on Monday.

But he joked: "It's not a day off for me. There's another big footie (rugby
union) match to watch on Sunday morning and I want to try and bowl a few
leggies in the cricket match.

"I will have a bit of a hit, I suppose, and then put my feet up."

Hewitt also plays his fourth-round match -- against Frenchman Nicolas Escude
-- on Monday, after he clawed his way past Moroccan Younes El Aynaoui in four
sets on Centre Court on Saturday.

Said Rafter: "I think Lleyton is still trying to get used to Centre Court.

"He's doing it the hard way at the moment but I'm pleased he's got this far.
I've been saying for a couple of years now that he will make an impact here.

"It took a while for me to get used to playing on Centre. For Australians it
means a great deal and some of us are in awe of it.

"But Lleyton will have to lift his game next week."

Rafter's relaxed mood is a good sign that the shoulder injury which has
disrupted his year is no longer affecting the 28-year-old player.

He described himself as being "out of sorts" in the first set against Arazi
but soon shrugged off his malaise to stay one step ahead of his 27th-seeded
opponent.

FINAL ACE
Rafter broke in the fifth game of the second set and in the 11th game of the
third, before wrapping up victory with an ace on his first match point.

He allowed Arazi only three points on his serve during the third set.

"It was a struggle in the first set but I think I played really well in the
third and that has given me a lot of confidence," he said.

"I served very well throughout the whole match. I don't know much about
Youzhny but I'm sure he's an accomplished player and if I don't play well,
he'll beat me."

Rafter has never won Wimbledon, despite reaching the final last year and the
semifinals in 1999.

He has announced his intention to retire from the circuit at the end of the
year and his expected absence from the championships next year would leave
his legion of supporters disappointed.

But Rafter said: "I'm looking forward to not playing but if I do miss the
game then Wimbledon will be the first thing I'll miss."

Rafter means business
London, England, 28 June – Aussie in fine form

When Pat Rafter first started coming to Wimbledon, it was little more than an enjoyable holiday with matches followed by a trip down the pub.

Now, at his ninth and possibly last Wimbledon, the 28-year-old Aussie is being forced to take matters a little more seriously.

Last year’s beaten finalist, seeded third, negotiated a bumpy ride against Czech opponent Slava Dosedel to proceed to the third round and keep alive his hopes of going one better this year.

Afterwards, Rafter, who won 7-5 4-6 6-4 6-1, said: “I guess when you first come here, especially for me, I was never really a contender. So you could always enjoy yourself in London and go down the pub.

“Now it’s not like that any more, it’s strictly business. I feel pressure now and I didn’t before and it’s good to feel that because it means you are a contender.

“It could be my last time here so I’ve got to make the most of it.”

Against Dosedel, Rafter was given notice that this would be no walkover when the Czech broke his serve in the third game.

Rafter fought back to take the opening set, but Dosedel stunned him by breaking his serve at a crucial moment in the second, which he took 6-4.

Rafter continued to make unforced errors but managed to shrug off his mistakes to win the third 6-4, and finally discovered his form to close out the final set 6-1.

His next task will be against 5ft 5ins Belgian Olivier Rochus or Hicham Arazi of Morocco on Saturday, but whoever his opponent is, Rafter’s mind will also be on other Australians in the sporting world.

Aussie cricketers Adam Gilchrist and Ashley Noffke dropped into SW19 to wish their compatriot luck, while Rafter also has his eyes on the British Lions’ first Test on Saturday and the rugby league State of Origin clash between his beloved Queensland and New South Wales.

“Whatever is Australian I’ll watch,” said Rafter, “But I’ll try not to watch the Lions match if I can.

“It should be a great game but I don’t want to get too pumped up. I don’t want to come down if they lose and try to beat the shit out of some English guy!

“I’ll be trying to pull myself away from it.”

Friday 29 June 6:00 PM

Wallaby tune-out for pumped-up Rafter
It might seem like the perfect motivation, but Pat Rafter won't be watching the first rugby union Test between the Wallabies and the British Lions on Saturday in case he gets too pumped up.

The Wallabies game will end about an hour before Rafter takes on Moroccan Hicham Arazi in the third round at Wimbledon, but the Australian third seed will be trying his hardest not to watch.

Rafter, whose new headbands attracted interest again today during his hard-fought 7-5 4-6 6-4 6-1 win over lowly-ranked Czech Slava Dosedel, will invest in a green-and-gold headband for the occasion.

And if the match is postponed until Sunday, he'll don a maroon one in honour of Queensland, which takes on New South Wales in the State of Origin rugby league decider.

But he said watching the games before he played could affect his performance, likening it to the old question about whether players should have sex before a match.

"I don't want to get that pumped up, you know. I don't want to come down if they lose and try to beat the s... out of some English guy," he said.

"If I'm playing late, there's a chance I'll watch it.

"But I'll try not to watch it if I can. It's like the sex question. Control yourself."

Rafter still has fresh memories of how he cramped up and had to retire from his Davis Cup final match with Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero last December.

Then, he blamed the tension of watching Lleyton Hewitt's match beforehand.

Rafter, who was visited in the locker room today by Australian cricketers Adam Gilchrist and Ashley Noffke, rated the Wallabies a 50-50 chance of winning but was less confident about the Maroons.

"That's going to be a really tough match. I'd like to think they'll win," he said.

Rafter's own future at Wimbledon was looking shaky after he struggled to take the first set against Dosedel and dropped the second.

He admitted he had not done his homework on the Czech, whom he had played once before - a 7-5 6-4 win to Dosedel in the second round of the South Australian Open two years ago.

"I didn't ask anyone about Slava and I couldn't remember how he played. I guess I didn't prepare too well, did I?" the world No.10 said.

"I wasn't quite sure how he was going to play and that tightened me up a little bit because I didn't know what to do, what his weaknesses were, what his strengths were.

"I was really trying to just study him out in the first couple of sets. I was very tight and just freed up in the last few games."

Rafter wants farewell final

From our wire services
29jun01

LONDON: Few people retire at the ripe old age of 28 but that's exactly what last year's beaten Wimbledon finalist, Pat Rafter, is considering in what could be his last appearance at the All England Club.

Rafter, who reached the third round of the men's singles overnight, has talked about bringing his illustrious career to a premature end this year because of persistant injury problems.

So the burly Queenslander, who won back-to-back US Open titles in 1997 and 1998 but has struggled to make an impact this season after sustaining an elbow injury, is determined to erase the memory of last year's final defeat to Pete Sampras.

"I'd love to have another crack in the final, said Rafter after beating Slava Dosedel of the Czech Republic 7-5 4-6 6-4 6-1 in the second round.

"It could be my last time here so I want to make the most of it."

But Rafter, who plays Moroccan Hicham Arazi in round three, knows he'll have to produce something special if he is to end his career on a high note.

"It's a very, very tough tournament," said Rafter, who has swapped his pony-tail for a sharper, shaven-headed look.

"I think there are new guys out there believing that they can do it now. It's not just a one-horse race anymore."

Rafter said unlike his behaviour during earlier visits to southwest London he is solely focusing on the task in hand, refusing to be drawn in by the allure of London's nightlife.

"I guess when I first came here I was never really a contender so I'd always enjoy myself in London," he said. "You could always go to the pubs couldn't you?

"Now it's not like that anymore. It's strictly business, do what you have to do to get through to the next round. It's very professional."

Whatever the outcome of this year's championships, Rafter, who carried the Olympic torch past Sydney's Opera House on the eve of the 2000 Games, ruled out a career in media when he finally decides to hang up his racquet.

"Definitely not the media," he scoffed. "I wouldn't like to do the commentary.

"You know that tennis has been my life and my game. I'd like to take a step back and see how much I really miss it, how much I love it.

"I'm sure, for instance, that in 10 years time I'll be involved in tennis in some capacity. I think it's a great sport and I love it."

Friday, 29 June, 2001, 12:17 GMT 13:17 UK
Rafter's Lions dilemma

Rafter took a while to find his form

By BBC Sport Online's Claire Stocks at Wimbledon.

Pat Rafter has a problem.

Playing in his last Wimbledon, the Australian third seed would dearly love another crack at the title that eluded him last year when he "choked" in the final against Pete Sampras.

His progress has so far been impressively smooth.

And in theory Saturday's third-round match against Moroccan Hicham Arazi should present no problems.

But there is the small matter of a rather important rugby union match down under which is interfering with his preparations; the Lions first Test against world champions Australia.
It is arguably the biggest rugby union match since the world cup final, but Rafter says he'll have to miss it.

"If I am playing late I might try to watch it but otherwise I'll be trying to pull myself away from it.

"I will try not to watch it if I can. You know, it's like a sex thing, control yourself if you can!"

"I mean I don't want to get too pumped up. I don't want to come down if they lose and try to beat the stuffing out of some English guy."

Except the typically Aussie Rafter did not use the word stuffing, just another four-letter word beginning with S.

It is one of the reasons Rafter is such a favourite not just with his countrymen - to whom he embodies all that is good about the straight-talking, mischief-making, sport-loving Australian.

Several distractions

Journalists also love him also, for pretty much the same reason.

He is a breath of fresh air in the high-pressure, intense world of the tennis tour; the sort of guy with whom you could sink a Castelmaine XXXX.

The beer they drink in his home state of Queensland, for whom he will also be rooting for during Sunday's State of Origin game deicider against New South Wales.

The match is the highlight of the Australian rugby league calendar.

But as Rafter says: "I was sort of brought up in rugby league but you know, rugby union, cricket, whatever is Australian, I'll watch."

He's threatening to wear a green and gold headband during his match to show his allegiance to the cause of John Eales and his men.

"I think it's a 50-50 game. The Lions are a very good team and it should be a great game."

One of the features of this year's Wimbledon has been the huge number of Australian fans pouring into SW19.

Many are living here but many others are in England to follow Steve Waugh and the Australian cricket team in the Ashes tour.

The first Test is on Thursday at Edgbaston - and if Rafter makes it to the quarter-finals he could have another clash of loyalties.