Tommy Haas

*Ch Prague: Haas was a late withdrawal due to lower back stiffness

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http://www.atpworldtour.com/posting/2012/600/mds.pdf

Parking this here temporarily.

From AAP:

Veteran Tommy Haas returned to the courts for the first time since the US Open and beat Somdev Devvarman of India 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to reach the second round of the Stockholm Open on Monday.
The 33-year-old two-time semi-finalist at the Kungligahallen from 2004 and 2007 missed more than a year of play from February,
2010, until last May as he recovered from hip surgery.
The comeback for the No.290 has been limited, with Haas winning only five matches this season prior to his Stockholm success.
He was joined as an opening-day winner by compatriot Philipp Petzschner, who beat Lukasz Kubot of Poland 6-2 7-5.
``I haven't played since New York so I was thinking a bit out there and second-guessing myself,'' said Haas, whose injury history also includes a year out in 2004.
``It was my first match in a long time. I'm very happy with how I played overall. This comeback is very important to me.''
Haas, who struck 37 winners in the contest which lasted for nearly 90 minutes, fired seven aces and committed 20 unforced errors, said he was pleased to be tested by Johannesburg finalist Devvarman, the number 84.
``Winning in straight sets is a good sign but I was glad to be up a break in the second set, and after losing it breaking again and serving out the match.''
Haas won the opening set in a tiebreaker as he produced a service winner on the first of three set points. The veteran began the second set with a break of the Indian and took a 4-2 lead on his sixth ace.
But Devvarman broke back in the eighth game for 4-all only to lose his serve again to Haas, 4-5. The wild card German served out the victory on the first of his three chances a game later.
Haas will await the winner from a match between South African fifth seed Kevin Anderson and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain.
Haas is playing in Stockholm for the sixth time, with his last appearance a 2009 loss in the second round to Jarkko Niemimen.

Tommy Haas after losing to Seppi at Halle: "I played well at times. I was forcing it, wanting it too much. I just need to play matches. You can't practise getting to the second round of a tournament."

Tommy Haas wants one more crack at the ATP World Tour.

The former World No. 2 is returning at the BMW Open in Munich this week after a 14-month absence. Haas had right hip surgery in February last year, as well as right elbow surgery the following month, and hasn’t played on the ATP World Tour since falling in the first round of the 2010 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships.

He is approaching his comeback with caution, and has opted to enter only the doubles in Munich, partnering Czech Radek Stepanek, but is eager to assess where he’s at physically. “I’m looking forward to the tests of seeing how my body feels, playing competitively again,” the German told ATPWorldTour.com. “Going out there is something you can’t really practise, so being tight and kind of nervous, and wanting to win again, I need to see how that feels and also see how my body responds.”

The ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tennis tournament is the perfect place for Haas to begin his comeback, giving the German a chance to test the waters in his home country. “I’m always compensating with something else, and then something else goes wrong, so it’s nice to be back in Munich, to see my family, my team and the people that take good care of me, doctors and physios,” Haas said.

Haas is taking his return to the court one tournament at a time, and plans to enter singles draws in the near future. “I’m hoping to see what it’s like, and hopefully make a return in singles the next few weeks.”

The lengthy layoff hasn’t been all bad news for the Hamburg native. This past November, his fiancée Sara gave birth to the couple’s first child, Valentina. It’s provided Haas with a perspective of life away from tennis. “I’ve really been enjoying life. I became a dad five five and a half months ago, which was obviously great. My daughter is everything that really matters to me now,” proclaimed the 12-time ATP World Tour singles titlist.

He added, “Timing wise, being away and off, it wasn’t that bad. I missed competing and playing… at the same time, life opened a lot of different doors for me. It’s been great and a thrill.”

At 33 years of age, the German knows the clock is ticking, and will make the most of his return. “Time goes by really fast too. I can’t believe it’s been 14-15 months again since I actually played competitively.”

His ambition is clear – he wants to remain physically fit, long enough so Valentina can understand what her father’s life was about before she was born. “I’d like to see one more time what I can do, if I can stay healthy and play a little bit, it would be great if my daughter could maybe see me play in a year or two, just at least a couple times, to see what I actually did before I stopped completely,” said Haas.

Plagued by numerous injuries in the past, he knows his wishes may not come true, but will make sure his daughter knows what he did for a living.

“If my body doesn’t allow it, she’s going to have to take a look at some old tapes or see me on the senior tour!”

Haas and Stepanek open their doubles campaign in Munich against Sweden’s Simon Aspelin and Australian Paul Hanley. The German and Czech have partnered each other on three occasions, with their best showing coming at the SAP Open in San Jose two years ago when they won the title.

Tommy Haas, who at this stage isn't playing the Aust Open, is back on the practice courts.

The return of Tommy Haas from injury has been delayed until some time after the Australian Open.

Haas is still off the scene with his hip injury, and has officially withdrawn from the upcoming Grand Slam at Wimbledon as expected.

tennisconnected.com: Haas Has Hip Surgery; May Retire

Former world No. 2 German and winner of 12 ATP World Tour titles, Tommy Haas underwent hip surgery last week in Colorado and will be sidelined for at least six months.

Battling various shoulder and knee injuries throughout the years, Haas could hang up his rackets if he doesn’t see a vast improvement in his ailing hip.

Acquiring US citizenship last month, the Hamburg, Germany born Haas also announced that he will marry actress Sara Foster in the summer.

Currently ranked No. 18 in the world, Haas will use his protective top 20 ranking if he decides to continue competition.

Haas told the German tabloid Bild that “the pain was too great,” when referring to his hip.

Career of Tommy Haas is now in serious doubt after the German has undergone hip surgery that will almost definitely see him sidelined for the majority of the 2010 season.

The soon-to-be 32 year-old was operated on by Dr. Marc J Phillipon at the Steadman Hawks Clinic in Colorado, with Haas telling the BBC; "I had to have the operation now. The pain was simply too great."

His agent Lars Schriewer said: "Tommy has been operated upon by the best doctor in this field.

"He is in the best of hands. Everything else remains to be seen."

Obviously Tommy Haas shock loss against Gabashvili didn't go down well with the German team today. He has been dropped from the Davis Cup team with Germany instead going with Kohlschreiber and Becker for their tie against France...