Tennis: Justine Henin is pregnant; Juan Carlos Ferrero to retire
Justine Henin of Belgium, who won seven Grand Slam singles titles, had some news to pass along to her faithful fans via Facebook.
No ... not another comeback. Of course, at age 30, nothing is impossible, to borrow that old marketing slogan from a shoe company.
It turns out Henin is pregnant and the baby is expected in March.
Henin retired, for the second time, in early 2011. And there has been no buzz about Comeback No. 2 as she has been doing a bit of work in television, of late. She is a lock for the Hall of Fame with her four French Open titles, two U.S. Open wins and one Australian Open championship.
Her first French Open crown came in 2003, and the male winner that year, Juan Carlos Ferrero, made some news on Wednesday as well, announcing his retirement.
Ferrero, a former No. 1, said that his final event will be in Valencia, Spain, in October. He turned 32 in February and injuries have been taking a toll. He was once a force on the clay courts, having his best results just before Spanish countryman Rafael Nadal took hold of the surface.
Interestingly, Ferrero’s retirement announcement comes shortly after Andy Roddick’s. Ferrero reached two other Grand Slam finals in his career, losing to Albert Costa in the 2002 French Open, and Roddick in the 2003 U.S. Open.
That was Roddick’s lone Grand Slam singles title. And Ferrero never made another Grand Slam final.
Two other legendary French Open champions acknowledged Ferrero’s retirement, via Twitter.
Nadal, @RafaelNadal : “A great moments with Juan Carlos Ferrero! I miss you friend, I hope that you continue in the tennis world!â€
Gustavo Kuerten, @gugakuerten: “Great person, player, rival & friend! Tennis will miss him!â€
And the Lakers’ Pau Gasol was on the news, early Wednesday morning, paying tribute to his countryman on Twitter: “Another great tennis player announces his retirement, this time a Spanish one. Best of luck to Juan Carlos Ferrero & thanks for your tennis!â€
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