Croat pays tribute to Ivanisevic; now he wants to emulate him

Friday 24 June 2011

TEN years ago, a thirtysomething Croat took out a home favourite en route to an unlikely championship win at a rain-affected Wimbledon.

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Supporters of Andy Murray will hope history is not about to repeat itself.

Ivan Ljubicic used to carry a picture of Goran Ivanisevic, who defeated Tim Henman in the semi-finals before beating Pat Rafter in the 2001 final, in his wallet, vowing to keep it there until he too had achieved something in the sport of which he could truly be proud.

If the 32-year-old overcomes Murray when he makes his first visit to Centre Court this afternoon, he will have done that. Ljubicic went on to reach a career high of No.3 in world – he is currently ranked 33 – but vividly recalls the emotions he felt watching on TV while his countryman became champion.Ljubicic was competing at a tournament in Gstaad, Switzerland, at the time and remembers it as if it was yesterday. The adrenaline carried him through to a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Roger Federer the next day and Ljubicic still feels that he, Ivo Karlovic, Mario Ancic, Ivan Dodig and Marin Cilic owe Ivanisevic a debt of gratitude. “I cried when he won Wimbledon,” Ljubicic said. “For me, as for many Croats, it was the most emotional moment in my life. I’ve learned a lot about tennis and life in general since then, but Goran opened the door for us all. His success broke the ice and it meant a lot to me. It was the beginning of tennis in Croatia.“We are a small country, we lived through the war and it was not easy. Our tennis federation is not rich like others and we do not have much. Ivanisevic’s victory promoted a generation of young players. It would not have happened without him.” Ljubicic was born in Banja Luka, in the Serb-dominated part of Bosnia. He was 13 when civil war engulfed the Balkans and he, his mother and brother were hastily booked on to one of the last flights out of the country.Their route to safety came via Belgrade, Hungary and Slovenia and finally to a refugee camp in Croatia. Adult males were not permitted to leave Bosnia and a six-month wait began to find out if his father would manage to join him.Thankfully he did. The Ljubicics rebuilt their life in the Croatian city of Rijeka and the following year Ljubicic was picked up by an Italian tennis club, and set on the path to tennis stardom. Success has eluded him in the majors however.He played in the boys’ final at Wimbledon in 1996, but he has never gone beyond the third round at SW19, and his best grand slam performance was reaching the semi-finals at the French Open in 2006. He has a 3-3 head-to-head record with Murray and won their last meeting 6-3, 6-2 in just 67 minutes at the China Open last October. “In Beijing I played one of my best matches maybe in my career,” said Ljubicic, who would have met Murray on Centre Court in Davis Cup action four years ago had he not been suffering from kidney stones. “I know I need to do exactly that to beat Andy again. I’m really excited about the possibility of playing on Centre Court for the first time in my life. We both know it’s going to be a totally new match. This is his best surface; for me it is my worst.“In 1996 I played the junior final here and thought this was going to be my best surface but when I started coming here as a pro I struggled from day one. But this year, from my first practice, I have felt a little more comfortable.” Standing 6ft 4ins, with his head shaved bald, Ljubicic cuts an imposing figure on court. He took on the tennis authorities during the seven years he spent as a rep on the ATP Tour’s player committee and he likes to go scuba diving in shark infested waters in the Maldives each year.It would be ironic if, like Ivanisevic, he too encountered an Indian summer in his 30s. Ljubicic said: “There are many more things I can achieve in grand slams,” he said. “I have never really played my best tennis in them. This year I’ve had third round [in Australia], fourth round [at Roland Garros] and third round here, which is almost the best season I ever had in them.” As for Ivanisevic, his assistance comes in a more tangible form these says. Ljubicic receives daily texts from his countryman, who will arrive at the tournament next week. It will be bad news for Murray if Ivanisevic is able to watch Ljubicic play.

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Croat pays tribute to Ivanisevic; now he wants to emulate him

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