TENNIS in DEPTH.

The retired French player was passionate about organising the event and will donate all proceeds to the Curie Institute, a cancer research centre in Paris. As part of the event, celebrities will team up with ex-players to form unusual doubles pairings and go head-to-head in the light-hearted atmosphere of the Centre Court. “Each of us will be hooked up to a inmicrophone so I think we’re going to have a lot of fun”, Mauresmo explained on Sunday afternoon during the final draw for the tournament.

With explosive characters such as Yannick Noah, Henri Leconte and Jean-Pierre Papin taking part, it is sure to be a lively evening. The action gets underway at 7.15pm, with Michèle Laroque and Amélie Mauresmo taking on Yannick Noah and Jean-Pierre Papin.

Pool A

Amélie Mauresmo – Michèle Laroque

Marie Pierce – Kad Mérad

Yannick Noah – Jean-Pierre Papin

Pool B

Henri Leconte – Bob Sinclar

Fabrice Santoro – Michel Boujenah

Mansour Bahrami – Pascal Elbé

Final

Winner of Pool A versus winner of Pool B

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Justin Gimelstob will receive a $10,000 donation to his charity from Andy Roddick. The two had made a much-publicized bet on whether Gimelstob could finish the NYC Marathon  under four hours and 45 minutes. Gimelstob, who is known for his habit of mouthing off about women tennis players, must be eating a huge slice of humble pie knowing that he was soundly beaten by retired tennis great Amelie Mauresmo (not one of his favourite players). 

Unofficial times posted by former tennis players running the New York City marathon on Sunday:

Amelie Mauresmo 3:40:20

Yannick Noah 4:01:38

Justin Gimelstob 4:09:58

Jonathan Stark 4:24:22

The top men’s time was 2:08 and the top 100 runners finished within 2:39. The top women’s time was 2:28 and the top 100 runners finished within 3:07.

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Although she is retired, Amélie Mauresmo is sure to remain the most popular player in France. After winning the title in 2009 over Elena Dementieva to cap off a brilliant tournament, Amélie will return to Coubertin for the first time… as a fan.

Her return will be emotional: “The stadium set-up is extraordinary. At the Open GDF SUEZ, fans are really close to the court and the players,” said Mauresmo who retired in early December. “So close that it can feel like they’re playing the match with us. It’s amazing to feel the fans urging you on. That’s how it always was for me. That support made a big difference. At different times throughout my career, whether or not I was in the best shape at the start of the tournament, I always felt at home at Coubertin. It’s as if the tournament was made for me. Fans gave me energy, incredible love. That’s why I was able to give them some great matches. At Coubertin, I just gave back the love fans gave me.”

There is an unbreakable bond between Amélie Mauresmo and the Open GDF SUEZ. It was only natural for the former world number 1 to choose this tournament as the site for her farewell to fans. Fans, tournament sponsor GDF SUEZ, and tournament organizers will pay tribute to her on Wednesday, February 10 at 7:30 p.m. after the sixth match of the day. She will then hold an autograph signing. She’ll be everywhere that day! She doesn’t know how she will react exactly but said, “Coming to the Open GDF SUEZ and stepping onto a court where I lived so many great moments and not playing will feel strange! I have no idea how I will react and I don’t know what’s in store for me either. Obviously, I’ll have a different relationship to fans. They’re not coming to support me but to say goodbye. I’m sure it’ll be another moment of strong emotions and sharing. It’ll be powerful and unforgettable.” As a symbol that a page has been turned, Amélie will also be there on Sunday, February 14. Not to lift the trophy but to present it to the 2010 champion.

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“I’ll miss seeing Amelie around,” said Ana. “She was always one of the friendliest of the top players, and she was very popular with fans and deservedly so – she was a great player. We also had some great matches against each other. I wish her all the best for the future.”

 Ana faced the former world No.1 eight times, with her first victory coming in a memorable match at the 2005 French Open when she was just 17.

The first of those memorable encounters came at the 2005 Australian Open, which was Ana’s very first Grand Slam. On that occasion Mauresmo won in straight sets, as Ana made her debut on Rod Laver Arena, the main stadium court at Melbourne Park.

The Frenchwoman would go on to score two more victories against Ana in spring of that year, before they met in round three at Roland Garros. In only her second major tournament, Ana defeated the home favourite 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in a highly charged encounter on Court Philippe Chatrier, which in many ways announced her arrival on the global stage.

“Obviously it’s a match I will never forget,” said Ana. “She was under a lot of pressure, playing at home, and the crowd was amazing that day. Actually, we had to stop the match for a minute or two because they were standing up and making so much noise during a changeover. That’s probably what I will remember most about playing Amelie. Unfortunately she beat me more times than I beat her!”

Ana would score her second and last win over the 30-year-old in their next encounter in Sydney in January 2006, in what she later described as one of the best performances of her career up to that point.

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The former world No 1, who currently stands 21 in the rankings, won Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2006 during a stellar career which saw her land 25 singles titles.

“I made this decision after careful consideration,” an emotional Mauresmo told a news conference at Issy, on the outskirts of Paris.

  Mauresmo came to prominence at Grand Slam level with a run to the 1999 Australian Open and she reached the semis at the US Open that same year.

Her Wimbledon title success came after three losing semi-final showings.

In 2004 she won Olympic silver. However, she suffered disappointments on home clay at Roland-Garros, where she could only manage two runs to the quarter-finals.

In 2005 she won the Masters end of season event.

Mauresmo’s last appeared on court was on Sept 2 when she lost in the second round of the US Open against 39th-ranked Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak in straight sets.

She announced the following month she would not play again this season citing a slump in her motivation to keep competing at the top level.

Her final title came appropriately enough at the Partis Open earlier this year when she defeated Elena Dementiev

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The French former world No 1 said on Thursday: “Since I came back from the US Open, I have been trying to practice but I did not find the desire to get back to competition.

“I do not want to rush things. I still give myself some time before making a decision regarding the remainder of my career.”

Mauresmo, 30, topped the WTA rankings in September 2004, and clinched her two grand slam titles in 2006 when she won the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

She has collected 25 WTA singles titles since turning professional in 1993 and is currently ranked 20th in the world.

Mauresmo has not played competitive tennis since losing to Canada’s Aleksandra Wozniak in the second round of this summer’s US Open.

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Former world No1 Amelie Mauresmo crashed out of the US Open to Aleksandra Wozniak in straight sets.

The 21-year-old Canadian took a closely-fought first set 6-4 but the Frenchwoman collapsed in a dismal second set.

She piled up the unforced errors and lost all three service games en route to a 6-0 thrashing.

It was a painful end for Mauresmo who won two Grand Slams only back in 2006.

The 10th seed Flavia Pennetta scorched into the third round trouncing Sania Mirza 6-0, 6-0.

The Italian 27-year-old needed just 50 minutes to end the challenge of the Indian.

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