BBC Sport Online: Sports Talk

Will Henman ever win Wimbledon?

Can he ever make the final push for glory?

Britain has not had a men's winner of the most famous tennis title for 64 years, and each summer there is fresh hope that Henman will burst through.

A semi-finalist for the last two years, this time Henman bowed out in the final 16 after a marathon five-set battle with Australia's Mark Philippoussis.

He may promise a rousing run, but when the heat is on he is often found wanting.

Now 25, it is time for some major titles. But will he always fall just short of the mark?

Will Henman every win Wimbledon?

Until tennis becomes an egalitarian sport open to all classes, we can only look forward to a succession of nice but not terribly great tennis players called Tim or Jeremy. Roll on the day when Britain has a working class tennis hero with some fire in their belly; the day we hear cries of 'Come on Dave, Kev or Brian' echoing round Centre Court is the day we have a real chance of winning!
Steven Jarman, London, UK

I think Tim can go all the way, but he needs a change of coach. I think he has got as far as he can with David Felgate. The problem is David is such a good friend and the break would have to come from him. He needs a fresh approach from someone who could really motivate him. Perhaps John McEnroe? If he could be persuaded to leave the commentary chair.
Jeff Dobbie, England

Henman could win Wimbledon but he needs a coach who has experience of top level competition, who has taken someone there before. Tim seems to be too comfortable with his coach, who has neither played nor coached at the level required. Tim has to make a hard decision or he will never get close again.
John Tipping, Botswana

Tim is now at an age where he must start winning major championships, or face the fact that they will always escape him. Look at the great players of today, all of them had won a Grand Slam tournament by the age Tim is now. If he doesn't win one soon, he is in danger of becoming an 'also-ran'. He has the game for it. We only see Wimbledon, and hence get a skewed picture of Tim's game, but he has the ground strokes to win hard-court and clay court tournaments. He has said that he has the desire to win. Let him show it.
Rob Kerr, UK

He is in the top 20 and a grass court specialist. Statistically he could win Wimbledon. If we had more British tennis players of similar calibre then Tim might stand a better chance as he would not be carrying the expectations of the British people on his own.
Duncan, UK

Once again Tim Henman has been given every possible advantage by the All-England Club. He was seeded higher than deserved, played every game on Centre Court and has still been found wanting. Of course he will never win Wimbledon, he is simply not good enough.
Stuart Ainsworth, UK

I think Tim really gets fired up when its Wimbledon because the crowd are really supportive and urge him on, but he just gets to a stage where I think he is overawed by it all.But he CAN win Wimbledon There's still time! He's a great player with lots of skill.
Lucy, UK

No, he will never win Wimbledon. The British public expect too much of him every year and the pressure obviously gets to him. Anyway, let's face it, what has he won? He hasn't proved himself to anyone. To be quite honest, he'll never win a major title. He's just not good enough.
Ian Worsley, England

John Lloyd made a interesting point that Tim needs to reach a higher level, and the only way it's going to happen is to have a coach like Boris Becker. Then, and only then, do I think he'll do it. Otherwise he will be doomed to be labelled the best British player in his day and nothing more.
Martin Judge, England

There is no doubt that Tim Henman has the game to win Wimbledon. He's a natural serve and volleyer who, unlike many players on the ATP Tour, is extremely comfortable on the green lawns.

Henman is like the England football team in that they always get knocked out of major tournaments by the first in-form or world-class opponent they meet. Henman's a good player, but he's not a winner. I think Rusedski's more likely to win a Grand Slam than he is.
Rachel, UK

I feel that if Henman is ever to win Wimbledon he needs really to do so within the next couple of years. If he cannot I feel that he will be surpassed by some of the younger players such as Lleyton Hewitt and Juan Carlos Ferrero. I wish him all the best.
Mandeep Singh, Germany

Tim played extremely well only to be beaten by a 'machine like' serve, which, let's be honest, not many from the top seeds would have had much chance. Good luck next year Tim. I'm sure you can do it.
Steve Love, UK

I doubt that Tim will ever win a Wimbledon championship because he lacks the mental toughness to get through to the last four. At present there are several other great players who have the edge, with several more younger ones coming through the ranks. I think Tim's time has passed, but who knows? On a good day, Tim can beat anyone in the world.
Rick, Australia

I think Henman has more chance of winning a Grand Slam title outside Britain where there are not as many fans to put pressure on him.
Shelagh Campbell, Scotland

Will he ever win Wimbledon? I do not think so. At 26, he does not have many years left of good, solid tennis. Even if he competes in another five Wimbledon Championships, by that time he would have been old and just look at the younger players coming in - Juan Carlos Ferrero, Lleyton Hewitt and Philippoussis will be on the Tour for many more years.
Dan Tan, Australia

At any given point in time, anyone in the mens top 100 can beat a player ranked above him. No match can be taken for granted.
Ian, Australia

When it comes to Wimbledon, Tim seems to be able to cope with the early rounds, but reaches a level where he seems to get nervous, and makes silly mistakes. I believe there is too much pressure on him by the British people - his career is a national obsession - I saw this for myself at the championships today. Perhaps if he got less pressure, he could become a Wimbledon champion, and in this, I wish him every success.
Philip Davies, Oxford, UK

Possibly he can win, he's been playing well, but on Monday he was simply outclassed by someone better. It happens, and a good sportsman accepts it and determines to carry on another day. More to the point, do we want him to win Wimbledon if his sort of sportsmanship on losing is the public and petulant racket smashing he needlessly displayed on centre court on Monday? I think not.
Helen, UK