25C8E6D1-206A-4E2F-B835-F7EE06313263
By Lauren Lynch
© Mark Howard
(July 20, 2010) Xavier Malisse has spent much of the past decade celebrating his birthday with his head in the clouds. Yesterday, Malisse hit a milestone with his feet fixed firmly on the ground and a fork in his hand.
The Belgian baseliner celebrated his 30th birthday at the Atlanta Tennis Championship as tournament director Bill Oakes and his staff surprised Malisse with a birthday cake presented during a lunch break in the player lounge.
It was a welcome birthday departure for Malisse, who has spent several of his birthdays in flight.
"Every time (my birthday came around I) used to be Indianapolis or LA so I am always somewhere in a tournament," Malisse told ATP.com. "I think six of the last 10 years I've been on a plane flying. Not much excitement, but it's OK for me."
The 2002 Wimbledon semifinalist, who will play American qualifier Ryan Sweeting in today's 4 p.m. first-round match, is one of several veterans in the Atlanta field joining 29-year-old Lleyton Hewitt, 30-year-old James Blake, 34-year-old Rainer Schuettler, 29-year-old Taylor Dent, 28-year-old Mardy Fish, 27-year-old Andy Roddick and 32-year-old Michael Russell, who defeated 29-year-old Benjamin Becker, 6-3, 6-3, on Monday.
Thirty used to loom as a roadblock on the road to sustained success, but Malisse believes 30 is just a mark of longevity for him.
"Age is just a number," Malisse said. "But it just means you've been on the tour a long time. You're not a junior anymore, but besides that everything stays the same. Once the tournament is done, we'll get a good day in and celebrate (my birthday)."
The X-Man's primary concession to age is he now devotes more time to off court training.
"I think, I know my body better so I know what I have to do," Malisse said. "I do more physical work between tournaments and in the offseason than tennis (training). I keep my tennis in place for an about an hour or an hour and a half a day. It's a lot different."
Tennis is a numbers game and Malisse has been making progress in the numbers race. He started the season ranked No. 94, but has reached the semifinals in s-Hertogenbosch, quarterfinals in Houston at Queen's Club and pushed Sam Querrey to five sets before bowing in the third round of Wimbledon to elevate his ranking to No. 57. It is Malisse's highest rank in three years.
"I was injured for a couple of years," Malisse said. "So it's just a lot of hard work playing tournaments and challengers just to get points. It was a lot of working out and trying to get mentally strong to come back. All the workouts and work you put it and it paid off."
Roddick and Malisse could face off in the Atlanta quarterfinals in what would be a rematch of the 2001 Atlanta final. On April 29, 2001, Roddick was ranked No. 89 when he defeated Malisse 6-2, 6-4 in the Atlanta clay court final. He was the first American teenager to win an ATP title since Michael Chang in 1992.
"I have great memories of playing here and of playing golf here," Malisse said. "I played really well that week, but Andy was too good in the final."