Although the German did not have a single break point in the set he clinched the tie-break by two mini-

Although the German did not have a single break point in the set, he clinched the tie-break by two mini- breaks to one, 7-5.Henman’s double-faults subsequently presented Sinner with the first break of the match, for 2-1 in the second set. And even though Henman managed to break back in the next game, the success was chiefly due to his opponent, who could hardly have directed a high forehand volley over the baseline with greater awkwardness if he had been using a frying pan.A bizarre sequence of shots, culminating with a winning smash after a net cord and a deflection off a net post, brought Sinner three break points in the ninth game. Henman saved one with a serve and volley, only for Sinner to attack a second serve with a backhand pass.Henman’s backhand had been so unreliable for the majority of the 92 minutes of the match that there was a certain irony about the perfection of his shot which saved the first match point. Sinner did not hesitate over the second opportunity, passing Henman with a backhand across the court.It was Henman’s first match for three weeks, since a splendid start to the year as a finalist in Qatar, a victory in Sydney and an appearance in the third round of the Australian Open, in which he was defeated by Michael Chang, the No 2 seed.”It’s disappointing to lose in the first round, but it happens to a lot of players,” Henman said.

“Just because I’ve lost one match I don’t think I need to change the direction in which I’m moving.”Sinner, 29 last Friday, had his career disrupted by torn ligaments in his left ankle, caused by playing football in 1989. The injury required three operations, the last in March 1993.Henman had won their two previous matches in straight sets, on the grass at London’s Queen’s Club in 1995 and on an indoor carpet in Copenhagen last year. “Having talked about my performance tonight,” Henman said, “I think Martin did very well and deserves a lot of credit.”This afternoon Henman is due to play doubles in partnership with Pat Cash, the 1987 Wimbledon champion, and intends to make the most of the special atmosphere here.Things have never been quite the same in this part of the world since Peter O’Toole played Lawrence of Arabia. The novelty this year is an Irish village, complete with a replica of Ballinasloe Post Office and a cartload of Guinness barrels, which has materialised on the west side of Dubai Tennis Stadium.Far from a mirage, the reproduction of a little piece of Ireland serves to emphasise a strong connection between the Emerald Isle and the Dubai Open, specifically with the tournament’s promoters, Dubai Duty Free.Inspired by the success of the duty free operation at Shannon Airport, the director general of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, Mohi-din Benhindi, sought the advice of the Irish Government. He was invited to Shannon and subsequently recruited staff to set up shop in the Emirates, people such as Colm McLoughlin, who “came for five months and have been here for 14 years”.. Having signed up Josiah Thugwane, the Olympic champion, for this year’s London Marathon, the event organisers took the opportunity to show him round the capital yesterday. First, he had a run on Hampstead Heath; then a press appearance at South Africa House; and finally a dental appointment to sort out the teeth which were brutally rearranged in a road rage incident near Johannesburg 12 days ago.
The diminutive 25-year-old, who earned a place in history as the first black South African to win Olympic gold, is pursuing his running career in terrifying circumstances.After his surprise victory in Atlanta last August, he explained that the noticeable scar on his chin was from a bullet wound suffered five months earlier, when he had had a gun pulled on him after giving a lift to two men in a truck used to transport supplies to the township bar he runs.The bullet shattered the windscreen after glancing his face, and Thugwane subsequently jumped from the moving vehicle, sustaining back injuries which affected his Olympic preparations.He ran in Atlanta despite death threats against his family (he has a wife and four daughters).

The day after his victory, the coal-mining company for whom Thugwane still works as a cleaner helped him relocate from the corrugated iron shack he had built himself in the township of Mzinoni, to the middle-class Johannesburg suburb of Middelburg.However, it was while he was returning there after a training session on January that he says he was forced off the road by three men in a car, beaten and shot at. “When I tried to run away the people in the car followed me,” he says “One of them shot at me. He wanted to injure my legs.”The 5ft 2in and seven stone runner was only saved when another car appeared and his assailants fled He now trains 85 kilometres away from his home “This is where I can focus my mind,” he said “Of course it is sad But there is nothing I can do. This is my country.”Thugwane, who earned $50,000 (pounds 32,000) from appearing in the Fukuoaka marathon in December and will get around twice that to run in London, is determined not to be demoralised “I will run until I cannot run anymore. It is not only in South Africa that you can find such problems, you can meet them all over the world.