Hewitt, Hingis, Henin Missed: Change One Thing, Part IV

Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed the Change One Thing exercise as much as I have. Now it’s time for our final installment.

As is the case with much of Bleacher Report's contributions (mine included), the submissions received so far have fixated on the men’s game. With Part IV, however, a pair of ladies who left the game early come around for their share of recognition: Martina Hingis and my personal fave, Justin Henin.

As before, click on the person’s name to go to his/her Bleacher Report profile. Leading the way will be:

Long John Silver

I guess I have always had a soft corner for grace, dexterity and counter-punchers.
If there was one thing I can change in both my top favorites—the two H’s (Hingis and Hewitt), is their first and even more importantly … their second delivery. Serve is by far the most important tool in a tennis player’s arsenal because it’s the first hit and you can control the point right from the get–go.

It also would have extended their shelf life … because what they lacked in serve they had to make up with their odometer and retrieving abilities. I still will not completely accept that their games are predicated on defense … it absolutely is not. It is predicated on counter-punching, which is the mean of the bell curve between someone like Chang and Philippoussis.

What they lacked in serving, Hewitt made up through sheer doggedness, Hingis made through sheer dexterity and by possessing every shot in the game. Hingis’ second serve was even worse than Hewitt’s …but both possessed a more than a solid volley game. I think a heavier hit would have decreased the stress exerted on the other parts of their game, and increased their shelf life at the top.

But here is the caveat: Unlike someone wanting Safin to be more level-headed by working on his psychological mindset, it is not like Hewitt and Hingis could have possessed a great first serve if they wanted to–they both weren’t the biggest of blokes going around either. It’s genetic … and you can’t simply change that. That’s why I respect and love them even more … they took an initial endowment and maximized its return on investment (Lagrange multiplier is through the roof ….). Cheers.

Conor McMullin

If I could change one thing about Roger Federer ... I wouldn't. Everyone will jump to Wimby 2008, and Ozzie 2009, but you know what? What happened, happened. I love the guy and accept his painful loses, I hope people don't jump on those finals.

However, if I could change one thing about Bill Tilden, the man with six U.S. Opens in a row and 10 Grand Slam titles, it would be that he never got those prison sentences that kept him from the grand slams for over a year and a half. The poor man missed out on those years and that massively affected his grand slam count.

''Big Bill'' might even be considered the greatest now if not for that; He could have had 15 grand slams! I like looking up this guy as it is the history of the game I love also, and you know, he was number one for seven years!

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