Prior to the days of Andy Murray, Tim Henman was the shining light of British tennis. The quintessential man who had a hill christened in his name, cemented the scream “C’mon Tim” into the annals of sport and took British hearts on a roller-coaster ride every time a Grand Slam – particularly Wimbledon – appeared on the calendar.
Of course, he was never to take the top prize, his most famous effort not quite enough against the gentle giant Goran Ivanisevic, the only person to win the men’s singles title at Wimbledon as a wildcard.
“It’s definitely the match I get asked about the most,” says Tim, “but I’m not one to dwell on things. It was an amazing match, and one that people tend to remember from my career.” And although a setback, for him and the millions of fans who were within touching distance of seeing a Brit in the Wimbledon final for the first time since Fred Perry in 1936, the grass courts of SW19, his “second home”, are still where his fondest nostalgic memories were born.
“Nothing beats playing on centre court in front of your home fans – the atmosphere is electric and it’s certainly where I played a lot of my best tennis. But then the reality is that it was also home to some of my biggest disappointments.”
Tim retired in 2007, and having been on the road for some 30-35 weeks of the year since the age of 16, he suddenly found himself staring at a very different schedule. There was time, freedom, choice. “A passion of mine has always been travelling, seeing new places, but when you’re hopping around as much as you are on the tennis circuit, sometimes when you get a week off the last thing you want to do is go away again.
“Obviously this was part and parcel of being a professional, and I loved the game, but to suddenly have a wealth of time to travel recreationally was great. My wife and I were looking at buying a holiday home. We like the South of France and Tuscany, but all of a sudden skiing was on the agenda – something I couldn’t do while a professional due to insurance. This left us unsure where to buy.”
It was around this time that Tim’s friend had started working at The Hideaways Club, an exclusive diversified portfolio of exquisite villas, chalets and apartments around the world. He went to the South of France to see one of the properties and no sooner was he a member.
“I understood the whole concept and it ticked all the boxes – now virtually all our holidays are through the Club. My relationship has evolved enormously, as I joined as a member first and foremost, but got to know the people involved and become an ambassador and an investor.
“The destination list is always growing. One of the most important aspects of Hideaways is that the maximum member to property ratio is 6:1, so there’s always plenty of choice. And the challenge for the club is that they say every property has to have a wow factor – it’s got to take your breath away. There can’t be any weak links in the portfolio. We’ve been to a lot of the properties now and I’ve never been disappointed. I can’t speak highly enough of it.”
And although Tim’s days on the court are over, he is far from twiddling his thumbs, with involvements in Wimbledon, HSBC, Rolex, Jaguar, Robinsons and his charity foundation. And he’s something of a golf addict, playing off scratch. “People often ask how’s retirement, and I always say if I knew it was this good I would have stopped playing 10 years earlier.”
QUICKFIRE
Favourite country of travel?, The South of France or Italy – I have a soft spot for wine. Good weather, good food and good company – you can’t go wrong.
Sporting hero?, Björn Borg.
Your ultimate doubles partner?, I would say Federer, as I think he’s the best player in history. But for doubles I’ll go with MacInroe – he was the last guy who really dominated singles and doubles at the same time.
Who’s going to win:, Wimbledon?, Obvious answer is Djokovic but I’ll go with Federer.
Rugby World Cup?, New Zealand.
The St Andrews Open?, Rory McIlroy.
F1 Championship?, Hamilton.
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