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This is the most stunning retirement in the history of tennis - even more surprising than Bjorn Borg walking away from the game at the age of 26 back in 1982.

Justine Henin, three-time defending French Open champion, reigning U.S. Open champion and top-ranked female tennis player in the world, announced Wednesday that she is leaving the sport that she ruled magnificantly last year when she set a single-season prize money record.

I can't friggen believe it! Justine had a lot of heart and that's why I liked her. She is smaller than her rivals Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Venus Williams and Lindsay Davenport and yet she was able to win more major tournaments (seven) than all of them except for Serena who has eight. She also won the Olympic Gold Medal in 2004. She becomes the first woman to retire from tennis while atop the WTA rankings. Steffi Graf retired in 1999 while ranked number three while Chris Evert walked away 10 years earlier ranked fourth.

"This is the end of a child's dream," Justine said at a news conference in Spain. "This is a definitive decision. Those who know me know it is serious."

Like Graf, there will be no farewell tour. The retirement is immediate: "It is a new beginning for me. I feel like I already lived three lives. I gave the sport all I could and took everything it could give me. I take this decision without the least bit of regrets. It is my life as a woman that starts now."

Justine won 10 tournaments last year, but has been in one of the worst slumps of her career this season. She lost last week in the third round of the German Open and pulled out of this week's Italian Open, citing fatigue: "I thought long about this," she said, her voice cracking and eyes watering. "I started thinking about it late last year. I was at the end of the road. I leave with my head held high."

Her personal life has been a difficult one. She was divorced from her husband last year. And she was only 12 when her mother died of cancer, and became estranged from her father and siblings for nearly a decade before reconciling last year.

In addition to her four French Open titles, Henin won the Australian Open in 2004, and the U.S. Open in 2003 and 2007. The only Grand Slam title to elude her was Wimbledon, where she was the runner-up in 2001 and 2006: "Winning Wimbledon would not make me happier than I am," she said. "I could never dream of Wimbledon. It was destiny. I didn't feel myself capable. It was too much for me."

Mark my words: Novak Djokovic is going to be the number one tennis player in the world by the end of the year. He won the Rome Masters tournament on Sunday, his third victory of the year. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, the two players ranked above him, have suffered some uncharacteristic losses and their nearly four-year grip on the top two spots appears to be slipping.

After his win, he cknowledged he is a contender to become No. 1: "I hope so. But I don't want to think about No. 1 yet. I know a lot of people will start talking now about me being one of the best players. Let's see. I'm taking it as it comes."

Andy Roddick made it all the way to the semifinals of the Italian Open - played on his worst surface - only to have to withdraw from the clay court tournament Saturday with a painful back injury. Get better soon Andy!

Top American tennis player Andy Roddick is having a terrific year so far but he has never fared well on the red clay courts of Europe. Still, Andy won his first match at the Masters Seires tournament in Rome today. It used to be known simply as the Italian Open.

Not only did Juan Carlos Ferrero hand Rafael Nadal just his second loss in 105 matches on clay, he also got to touch the Spanish heartthrob's chest! Ferrero, a former French Open champion and world number one, has had mostly mediocre results in the past five years so this win in Rome is big!

American tennis star Robby Ginepri gets a lot more attention for his looks and his physique than his results these days. But the 2005 US Open semi-finalist, pictured below playing in Barcelona on Monday, is still out there trying. Maybe if his game doesn't improve, Robby can find work as a model. He looks pretty terrific in the picture above which is from a photo shoot for an Atlanta tennis publication. Another picture of Robby in action after the jump!

When tennis is played on hard courts or on grass, Rafael Nadal is merely a top five player who gets good results much of the time but doesn't dominate. European clay though, is a different story. In the last three years, he has been virtually unbeatable on the surface and continued his dominance on Sunday by beating world number one Roger Federer in the finals of the Monte Carlo tournament for the third year running.

Federer. who has reigned supreme on all other surfaces, is no slouch on clay but he's only managed to beat Nadal on the dirt once in eight matches. He lost 7-5, 7-5 in Monte Carlo but can still feel good about the real clay court prize: the French Open which begins in three weeks. It's the only major Roger has not yet won. Nadal, just 21, has won it three times in a row and I just have a feeling is ripe for a loss in Paris to Federer or someone else.

If Roger wins the French, my friend Henry is gonna do a back handspring in front of the Taj Mahal!

Two years ago, Amelie Mauresmo was the number one tennis player in the world, the first openly gay woman to hold the top ranking since Martina Navratilova last did in 1987. Amelie won Wimbledon and the Australian Open that year before going into a tailspin and falling out of the top 20.

But this photo, showing the French star smiling before a national flag, is just lovely and her relaxed smile could hint that she's ready for another run at the top. The photo was snapped during the draw for the Fed Cup World Group play-off between Japan and France in Tokyo on Friday. The play-off will be held this weekend.

...and he's got the big guns to do it! Here's the deal on Nadal: the world's second-best player for the last three years. He is the king of clay court tennis with a record of 109-3 on the surface since the start of 2005. He's also won 95 of his last 96 matches on clay including a win Thursday at the Masters Series Monte Carlo where he is the three-time defending champ.

I love spouting my tennis knowledge but let's face it, I really just wanted to post another picture of his big biceps! So sue me.

...Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic feels the need to tear his shirt off after he wins a tennis match but I think more players should also begin doing so, don't you? Do ou hear that Andy Roddick? Rafael Nadal? Marat Safin?

Djokovic, the third-ranked player in the world and reigning Australian Open champion, stripped a bit after winning his second round match Tuesday at the Master Series tournament in Monte Carlo.

Top-ranked Roger Federer, who had shockingly not won a single tournament all year, won the Estoril Open Sunday after second-seeded Nikolay Davydenko retired with a leg injury while trailing 7-6 (5), 1-2. It's been eight years since Federer needed five tournaments to get a shot at his first trophy of season.

"It's not the way you want to win a tournament, but that's just the way it goes sometime," Federer told the crowd after the match. "It's great to win a title again and to straightaway win my first clay court tournament of the season gives me great confidence going into Monte Carlo."

I came across these pics on my pal Kenneth Walsh's site (Kennethinthe212) and found them very appealing and thought you might to! Happy Friday!!!

The American hottie who has had an up-and-down career is trying to make an impact at the US Clay Court Championships...BTW, sorry for the erratic posts today. There are problems with our system. Also, I am on vacation in Newport, just yards from the sand so I'm a little distracted with all the sights. But will be blogging here and there each day - I promise.

No, I'm not talking about his looks! How shallow do you think I am? Ten times, the U.S. Davis Cup team has called on Andy Roddick to push the Americans into the next round. Ten times, Roddick has come through in the clutch. Andy has an easy 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 win over Paul-Henri Mathieu on Sunday, to clinch victory for the U.S. over France in the quarterfinals. The Americans will face Spain in the semifinals...

Heartthrob Andy Roddick served up 30 aces on his way to a 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5) win Friday over Michael Llodra to give the U.S. a 1-0 Davis Cup lead over France. Andy makes me so proud to be an American!

Thanks to OhlalaBlog for posting this delish picture of Team Sweden as they prepare for a Davis Cup match thisx weekend in Buenos Aires. Pictured above are Thomas Johansson, Robert Lindstedt and Robin Soderling.

The Swedes have a long history of gorgeous tennis players starting with Bjorn Borg who was a real teen heartthrob when he came onto the scene in the early 70s. But the real blonde bombshell was the insanely beautiful Stefan Edberg who had the same kind of muscular tennis legs as Thomas Johansson which are on display in the photo below. Thomas, the 2002 Australian Open men's singles champion, is a real nice guy. I've chatted him up twice at the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells in recent years.

I missed seeing Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert on Oprah this week but the show's Web site has a nice story on the pair. Here are some excerpts:

While the press loved to run stories about their rivalry, Chris and Martina say they completely supported each other off the court. "What's weird about tennis is you're both in the locker room before the match and after the match, and one is very happy and one is very sad," Martina says. "But we would put our arms around each other and say, 'You know what, I was lucky,' or, 'Next time you're going to get it, I'm sure', and, 'Are you okay?' Or we would leave notes in each other's racket bags for later."

Between defecting to the United States and being an openly gay athlete, Martina has been placed under scrutiny more than once and has become a role model for many. Chris says she knew Martina had guts from the moment she met her. "You lived your truth and you had a clear conscience and you felt great about yourself, so that is the most important thing," Chris says.

...for the eyes! Here are some shots of Spain's David Ferrer and Rafael Nadal during a press conference in Germany on Wednesday. They will face te team of. Germany in a Davis Cup World Group Quarterfinal this weekend. I know it's just my own little fantasy, but don't David and Rafael look kinda like lovers in these shots - whispering and laughing? It's adorable!

When I spoke with Martina Navratilova a few weeks ago, she was leaving for Chicago the next day to tape an episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on extraordinary friendships. Appearing with her on the show would be Chris Evert, the greatest rival of her pro tennis career. The show airs today (3 p.m. in LA, check your local listings for elsewhere).

The Navratilova-Evert relationship is fascinating on many levels. In terms of pure sports, few rivals have competed so many times (80 matches between 1973 and 1988) and nearly finished dead-even (Martina edged Chris 43-37 head-to-head). Each won 18 grand slam titles and between them, held the number one ranking from 1975 through 1987 with only Tracy Austin breaking their stranglehold for a brief time in 1980.

I watched so many of their classic matches with the best being Chris' wins over Martina in the 1985 and 1986 French Opens and Martina's victories over Chris in the 1988 Wimbledon semifinal (see video below), 1984 US Open final and 1981 US Open seimifinal. Both were at their best in these riveting three-set thrillers.

And here's a few points from their 1975 French Open final won by Evert:

But enough of the tennis part.

As these two tried to beat each other's brains out on the court, off the court they were almost always pretty tight except for a brief period in the early 80s. They were pals in the mid-70s when Martina defected to the US and win the French and Wimbledon doubles together and when their rivalry was at its peak, they spoke with respect for each other and always consoled each other after a match no matter which one won.

Martina was couragous enough to come out publicly as a lesbian almost 30 years ago when it was a far more difficult thing to do - especially on the world stage. She deserves everlasting credit and respect for blazing that trail and for continuing to be a leader and outspoken activist.

Chris, during her playing career, was perceived as America's sweetheart which such nicknames as "Cinderella in Sneakers" and "Chris America." She was also the world's top-ranked player when Martina came out and when Billie Jean King was outed by a vindictive ex-lover who filed a palimony suit. Chris very publicly supported both women at that time and remained so.

Billie Jean told me a few years ago that it is exactly that kind of support from top stars that is needed in men's sports if male athletes are to ever feel comfortable coming out during their playing careers.

This clip has become an Internet sensation and garnered Mikhail Youzhny far more attention than his tennis ever has. He lost a crucial point against Nicolas Almagro in the Sony Erricson Open then, in a fit of self-loathing, smacks himself in the head with his racquet three times!!! The edge of the frame connects with his forehead and, all I can say is, "There Will Be Blood."

I had a feeling this might happen: A resurgent Andy Roddick ended a streak of 11 consecutive losses to Roger Federer on Thursday at the Sony Ericsson Open pulling off a .7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-3 quarterfinal win in one of the biggest tournaments outside the four grand slams.

"I came in knowing that nobody has beaten me 12 times in a row," Andy told the crowd after his win. "So I had that on my side."

This win is no fluke for Andy. Last month in Dubai, he beat second-ranked Rafael Nadal and third-ranked Novak Djokovic on his way to that title. It seems that since splitting from coach Jimmy Connors, he's had some of his best results in years! I guess his recent engagement to swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker has something to do with it too.

Says Andy: "Being happy and content off the court is only going to help in my mind."