Tim Henman is joining the Laver Cup coaching staff and hopes to bring Jack Draper with him
Tim Henman recalls being impressed by the Laver Cup the first time he attended, which was for Roger Federer's farewell appearance before retiring in 2022. So Henman, a six-time Grand Slam semifinalist, was eager to accept the offer when he was invited to become a vice captain for Team Europe at this year's edition.
Henman's role during the matches scheduled for Sept. 19-21 in San Francisco was announced Tuesday.
He will work alongside new Team Europe captain Yannick Noah; Team World is led by captain Andre Agassi and vice captain Pat Rafter. Noah is replacing Bjorn Borg, and Agassi is replacing John McEnroe.
'I was just blown away by the magnitude, the delivery, of the event,' said Henman, who reached No. 4 in the ATP rankings and made it to the final four at Wimbledon four times and at the U.S. Open and French Open once apiece before leaving the tour in 2007.
'And then witnessing the best players in the world, who are individual athletes coming together as parts of teams. ... And then the intensity of the competition. I just thought it was absolutely fantastic," Henman said. "I'm a sports fanatic, and I want to see the best players playing against each other — and this absolutely ticks that box when you look at the two teams.'
He works as a TV analyst for tennis broadcasts and has been a captain for Britain in the United Cup team competition for women and men.
So far, Team Europe's Laver Cup roster includes four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and three-time major finalist Alexander Zverev of Germany. The first two players named to Team World are Americans Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton.
Henman, who is taking over the vice captain role from Thomas Enqvist, would love to see fellow Briton Jack Draper join Team Europe.
Draper, a 23-year-old left-hander, recently broke into the top 10 in the ATP rankings for the first time and won his first Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells, California.
'I spoke to his brother, Ben, who's a good friend of mine, ... at Indian Wells, and what he went on to achieve there was fantastic. I'd love — as Yannick Noah would — Jack to be part of Team Europe in San Francisco,' Henman said. 'I will be trying to use my powers of persuasion, that is for sure.'
The Laver Cup is an annual event founded by Federer's management company and first held in 2017.
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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