2 Responses to doha99schuettler_henman

1. Voo de Mar says:

   August 19, 2025 at 7:52 pm

   Points won by each set: | 37-26, 38-45, 28-15 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   17 % Schuettler – 16 of 94
   22 % Henman – 21 of 95

   The 23-year-old Schuettler [124, qualifier] hadn’t even played an ATP semifinal before, his highest rank was 104. He couldn’t have asked for a more suitable Top 10 opponent in the final though, because a year before he met Henman twice indoors within a few weeks, first defeating him 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 in Split, then losing to him 6-4, 3-6, 4-6 in London – those two matches certainly gave him the required self-confidence entering the final where no-one expected him. The German played quite amazing match in terms of ground-stroke winners, manufacturing them during baseline rallies and passing the Brit [7], who blew four game points at 4-all in the opener. Schuettler squandered a mini match point at 5-all in the 2nd set, but despite heavy legs after a very demanding week, he broke Henman thrice in the decider (at 0:0, 3:1 and 5:1). The Brit had lost a similar final in Doha of 1997 to a player with a game-style resembling Schuettler’s. It was a breakthrough tournament for Schuettler after a two-year period of drifting between Challengers and ATP tournaments – he advanced to No. 66 spending the entire 00s as a regular ATP player, and skills he showed in the Qatar Open (especially very good responding to big serves) would help him in reaching the career-defining Aussie Open ’03 final – he deconstructed i.a. big serves of two different generations like Krajicek & Roddick.

   Schuettler’s route to his maiden title (19th main-level event):
   [ Khalfan 6-4, 6-1; Roux 6-1, 6-4; Tieleman 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-2 ]
   1 Andrei Medvedev 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
   2 Daniel Vacek 7-6(3), 6-3
   Q Goran Ivanisevic 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-2
   S Cedric Pioline 3-6, 6-2, 7-5
   W Tim Henman 6-4, 5-7, 6-1

   Serve & volley: Schuettler 1/2, Henman 7/20

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2. Voo de Mar says:

   August 19, 2025 at 8:45 pm

   ☆ Schüttler and four months older Burgsmüller belonged to Dirk Hordorff’s {1956-2023} team, they were training together for a decade, playing actually the same type of tennis, and their first few years on the tour were very similar, yet Schüttler’s triumph in Doha separated them completely in tennis hierarchy… Burgsmüller waited three more years for his maiden ATP title (Copenhagen) which would remain his lone. Both Germans faced each other 9 times in the years 1997-2006, and Burgsmüller edged that rivalry 5-4 (at the main-level 2-1).

   Comparison of their rankings at the end of 1995-99 seasons:
   Burgsmüller… 162 – 145 – 279 – 134 – 134…
   Schüttler… 446 – 332 – 117 – 124 – 48…

   Ultimately Schüttler earned almost 7.5M dollars while Burgsmüller, who finished his career four years earlier, almost $2M.

   

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