Henman back on big stage

Tim Henman will return to the show court at Louis Armstrong Stadium tomorrow as he bids to continue his grand slam farewell run at the US Open in New York.

Henman’s second-round match with Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has been scheduled as the third match of the day on Armstrong, where play will start at 4pm Irish time.

The former British number one, who will retire at the end of September, upset the odds by beating Russia’s 27th seed Dmitry Tursunov in their opening round clash yesterday, the first time he beat the big hitter in four meetings at grand slam events.

Henman’s match with Tsonga follows a Serbian double bill that kick-starts the action on Armstrong.

Men’s third seed Novak Djokovic’s tie with the Czech Republic’s Radek Stepanek opens play before women’s fifth seed Ana Ivanovic takes on Russian Vera Dushevina.

With seeded players as highly ranked as women’s number 10 Marion Bartoli scheduled to play on outer courts tomorrow, US Open officials are making Henman’s last hurrah at the grand slams as accessible as possible to tennis fans.