IT IS easy to understand why Richard Krajicek is loving retired life back home in Holland.

There is the Wimbledon title he won in 1996 to look back on, of course – easily his finest moment in 14 years as a professional.

Then there is the memory of reaching No.4 in the world rankings in 1999, of winning 17 tournaments and earning more than $10m.

And then, on top of all of that, he is married to model, actress and writer Daphne Deckers, who was in the James Bond movie 'Tomorrow Never Dies'.

His two children, Emma and Alec, only further his contentment.

Krajicek, 37, who will play in the Nottingham Masters next month, was forced to retire from the pro circuit almost six years ago because of an ailing right elbow. He admits it was one of the darkest times of his life.

"It was a totally unsatisfying end to my career. I hardly played in the last three years because of my elbow," he said.

"It was hard, the first three months felt like a holiday. But they normally come to an end, but it didn't. I fell into a black hole. I was really down, grieving almost.

"Winning Wimbledon helped a lot, if I hadn't won a Slam it would have been even worse.

"Steadily I accepted that my body gave me a big serve and strong forehand that won me Wimbledon – but it also gave me a lot of injuries. The good still far outweighed the bad and I have a great family. I'm loving life, without tennis."

Since retiring, Krajicek has set-up a self-titled foundation which builds sports facilities for children in Holland's inner-city areas.

He is the tournament director of the ABN AMRO World Tennis tournament in Rotterdam.

And he has also written an autobiography titled 'Hard Balls' and is penning a book on his best ever male players.

"I get a lot of help from my wife. She edits the books for me and jokes that she has to put it in proper Dutch for me!" he said.

"I have already changed my top-five players of all time four or five times, I just can't decide!"

Krajicek is the only Dutch player ever to win Wimbledon – and he says he still enjoys hero status in Holland and gets treated like royalty whenever he returns to the All England Club.

"It's a different culture in Holland to England. Here high-profile sports people can walk around and not be bothered by fans," he said.

Krajicek shocked the tennis world when he beat defending champion Pete Sampras in the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 1996, before beating Jason Stoltenberg in the last-four and Mal Washington in the final.

"I get really well looked after at Wimbledon, it takes care of its former champions," he said.

"I am a member of the club too because I won it so I can play there any time.

"I still get a buzz playing there although it's very different. I wish my body could go back just for one tournament so I could play Federer or Nadal. They seem to hit the ball harder even than we used to."

Krajicek is set to play in the senior doubles at Wimbledon this year, with Greg Rusedski, who he will face in the Masters.

He said he is in good shape ahead of coming to Nottingham – and is looking forward to the tournament and visiting the city for the first time.

"I'm a bit more relaxed now than it used to be in between matches. Instead of having a rest and a massage, I enjoy visiting the places I am playing in.

"I have played on the Seniors ATP tour in Barcelona in the build-up to Nottingham and played pretty good after a terrible first match.

"I have also played club matches in Holland and going to the gym so I think I'll be all right, unless I play Greg in my first match!

"My elbow is pretty good although when I played for four days in a row in the seniors tour I started to feel it.

"I can still serve 200km-an-hour, so I've still got a big serve.

"I don't think you ever lose your natural shots, like my serve and forehand but I have always had to work on my return. I will definitely have to work on it before I play Greg!"

Krajicek is joined by an illustrious list of legends who will be playing in the Nottingham Masters tournament at the Nottingham Tennis Centre between June 11-14.

Cedric Pioline, who won the Nottingham Open in 1999, and former world No.1s Ilie Nastase and Mats Wilander are also playing in the event.