Tennis: Becker raises the tone: Former champion takes relaxed approach

IT WAS not easy to reconcile Boris Becker's fears for the security of his fellow tennis players with yesterday's peaceful surroundings as he toned up for Wimbledon with the Vauxhall Cup at relaxed Roehampton.

With Goran Ivanisevic, Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge, Becker was able to stroll freely among the spectators which is why they are prepared to break into their final week of practice for a semi-serious competition between Europe and the Rest of the World before the serious business gets underway in three days' time.

Polite applause, no histrionics, a shower afterwards side by side with the members of this well-to-do club. It is how tennis used to be before stars became superstars and sprouted sponsors, agents, managers and minders.

They are far less accessible now and harder to get at, although not so hard that a maniac could plunge a knife into Monica Seles.

'It shocked the whole world, not just the tennis community,' Becker reflected after his 6-3, 7-5 victory over Woodbridge. 'To think that some crazy guy could do that on the pretext of helping Steffi Graf get to number one is incredible.'

Becker enjoys himself in England as his Wimbledon record shows. He is confident of his chances over the next fortnight but sensibly refuses to look beyond his first round opponent, his fellow German Marc Goellner, who he acknowledges 'has played extremely well over the last three months and has also shown he can play on grass'.

Ivanisevic lost 6-3, 6-7, 4-6 to the Australian Woodforde as the Rest of the World squared the tie. The world No 1, Pete Sampras, has withdrawn from the match and has been replaced by his American compatriot, Jim Courier.