Chang’s Goodbye Tour Makes Final L.A. Stop

After 16 years on the pro tennis tour, Michael Chang said Monday that he is planning to keep his suitcase in the closet for a while.

Chang is playing in the Mercedes-Benz Cup tournament this week and will participate in an event in Cincinnati before concluding his career where it began -- at the U.S. Open in New York.

“I finally get to unpack my bags after 16 years, which will be nice,” Chang said before he was honored during an evening ceremony at the Los Angeles Tennis Center at UCLA.

Chang, 31, will play Zack Fleishman in a first-round match tonight. The top five seeded singles players -- including No. 1-seeded Lleyton Hewitt -- will play in matches preceding Chang’s on the stadium court.

“It’s a little bit bittersweet,” Chang said of his final competitive appearance in Southern California. “It’s a place I know and a place where I have had some great success.”

Chang, who played junior tennis in Southern California, has enjoyed worldwide success en route to becoming one of the most successful players of his generation. He has won 34 tournaments -- including Mercedes-Benz Cup titles in 1996 and 2000 -- and more than $19 million in prize money.

In 1987, he became the youngest player -- at 15 years 6 months -- to win a main-draw match at the U.S. Open. He won his first tour title at San Francisco the following year and in 1989 became the youngest Grand Slam champion when he won the French Open by defeating Stefan Edberg.

Chang, however, has not won a tournament since his 2000 victory here. He has played in eight events this year, but has lost in the first round six times.

“It’s been a little bit of a struggle to get the kind of results I’ve had in the past, but I feel like there are still glimmers of that kind of play,” Chang said.

Chang is hoping for a repeat of 2000 when he ended a two-year victory drought by winning the Mercedes-Benz Cup.

“I was struggling, and for some reason that week here in L.A ... I was able to put together five great matches and win the title -- after not having won a title in quite some time,” he said.

Win or lose this week, Chang said he is looking forward to retirement. After the U.S. Open, he will take care of some business commitments and continue to work with his charitable foundation.

“I’ll take some time to collect some thoughts, do a bit of fishing and work on my golf game a little bit,” he said. “I’ll still be involved in tennis one way or another.”

If Chang defeats Fleishman, he could meet fifth-seeded Mark Philippoussis, who plays Adam Kennedy today.

Philippoussis and fellow Australian Hewitt teamed in doubles Monday in the first competition for both players since Wimbledon -- where defending singles champion Hewitt lost in the first round and Philippoussis advanced to the final before losing to Roger Federer.

Philippoussis and Hewitt, playing as a team for the third time, defeated Wayne Ferreira and Justin Gimelstob, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5.

Hewitt appeared to be having a good time Monday, a stark contrast to his emotional state after losing to 6-foot-10 Croatian Ivo Karlovic in the first round at Wimbledon on June 23.

Hewitt, who plays Cecil Mamiit tonight, was happy to ease back into a competitive situation through doubles.

“There’s not a lot of pressure on us on the doubles court,” Hewitt said. “We go out there and we enjoy our tennis and we try to work on all the areas of our game for the singles as well.”

As Hewitt prepares for a run at another U.S. Open title he said he is “more hungry in a lot of ways,” than he was after winning the 2001 U.S. Open and 2002 Wimbledon titles.

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Featured Matches

Stadium Court at UCLA

Beginning at 11 a.m.

* Fifth-seeded Mark Philippoussis vs. Adam Kennedy

* Top-seeded Lleyton Hewitt vs. Cecil Mamiit (7:30 p.m.)

* Michael Chang vs. Zack Fleishman