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by Christopher Gerby First things first: the mystery from Thursday evening's Clijsters/Dokic doubles match has been solved. The gentleman who drew their ire was not a fan but actually Janette Husarova's burly, animated coach. (If the 2002 player guide is up to date, that would be Raul Ranzinger.) "Kim and I were a little upset that the other side's coach -- there was coaching going on throughout the whole match. Kim and I weren't so happy about that. I don't think anyone would," Jelena explained when I inquired about it tonight. The coach had positioned himself in a spot where he could give hand signals to Dementieva and Husarova without getting caught. The "smoking" gesture I saw Clijsters mimic was actually code for the number 2, which must have meant something in the Husarova playbook. Jeez, and here I was getting on Liliana Dokic just for applauding at an inappropriate time! (8) Daniela Hantuchova vs. Barbara Schett Singles: Quarterfinal Centre Court This week's unofficial glamour girls (sorry, Anna) took Centre Court at promptly 1 o'clock for a quarterfinal matchup few would have predicted. Barbara Schett's run to the late stages of the tournament seemed to come as a surprise to even Schett herself. Daniela Hantuchova, on the other hand, exudes such a mature-beyond-her-years level of composure and confidence on the court, you get the feeling she knew she'd advance at least this far. A spotless 2-0 record in her head-to-head with Schett gave the Slovakian additional cause for high expectations. After opening the match with an ace, Schett seemed to lose her way. Controlling the rallies with her powerhouse forehand, Hantuchova broke "Babsi" twice on the way to a 5-1 lead. But following a pattern established in her previous two victories, Hantuchova let some errors creep into her game once she had a big lead. Schett took advantage, holding for 2-5 and breaking for 3-5. That flipped the switch back on in Daniela's head and she went back to controlling the rallies. Schett drove an inside-out backhand into the net on set point, taking Hantuchova within one set of the semis. A generous overrule from chair umpire Leanne White early in the second set did little to stop the bleeding. Even with a first serve percentage hovering around 50, Hantuchova extended her lead to 6-3, 2-0. Schett had a pair of opportunities to break right back in Game 3, but her groundies continued to land short or wide on the important points. Smelling victory, Hantuchova notched holds for 3-0, 4-1, and 5-2. Schett clawed her way to 3-5, forcing the kid with the 44-inch legs to serve it out. Daniela was up to the challenge -- she wrapped up a 6-3, 6-3 victory with a clean forehand winner and exuberantly punched the air. Having spent her whole week on Court 2 and Court 1, Barbara Schett had found herself uncomfortable in Jarry Park's spacious stadium. "I think the centre court is completely different to play on. It seems like the surface is a little bit softer and especially the wind caused me a lot of trouble." Schett was able to get a morning warmup on the court, but that was before the swirling winds had taken hold. Excuses aside, Schett was very complimentary of her young opponent. When I asked if she thought Hantuchova was playing well enough to win the tournament, Barbara replied, "Of course. She already beat lots of good players before and she already won Indian Wells this year, so she knows how to win a big tournament. She's not afraid of that. I think she's playing well. She's serving well especially. I had big trouble with her serve today. And I think she has a very, very good chance to win the tournament." Daniela dropped in for an abbreviated press conference before her doubles quarterfinal. The upbeat 19-year-old believes the magic from Indian Wells has returned to her game this week. "I have to say that I had a little bit of the same feeling as I did there and, you know, I just would be really happy to do the same thing here. I just have to not look too forward and just concentrate on my next match, but definitely the way I'm hitting the ball, it feels great." Next up for Hantuchova is a Saturday evening showdown with Amelie Mauresmo (who needed just 51 minutes to destroy Fabiola Zuluaga in the day's first quarterfinal). Facing a higher-ranked player for the first time this week, Hantuchova says she has "nothing to lose against her. She's the one that is going to be under pressure, so I'm just going to enjoy myself out there and try to do my best." (2) Jennifer Capriati vs. (5) Justine Henin Singles: Quarterfinal Centre Court A matchup worthy of being the final pitted the highest ranked player left in the field (Jennifer Capriati) against the talented dynamo who ousted her from Wimbledon last year (Justine Henin). In fact, Capriati's only win in three career meetings with Henin came when the Belgian injured her ankle. If Jennifer needed more proof this would be no walk in the park, she got it in the match's third game, as Henin stretched her to an exhausting seven deuces. Capriati held on, though, and the match stayed with serve to 3 games all. A non-call in the middle of a rally at 30-30 in Game 7 annoyed Capriati and may have contributed to the double fault she then served to fall behind 3-4. Of course, the wind -- blowing even harder at this juncture -- also may have played a part. (Capriati and Henin would ultimately combine for 18 double faults in the difficult conditions.) The solitary break was enough for Henin, who went ahead to take the opening set 6-4. Showing smarts and improvisational skills not normally associated with her game, Capriati started using the wind to her advantage in the second set. Towering lobs and what JenCap would later refer to as "funky little slice shots" broke up the rhythm of the match and left Henin searching for answers. Henin's vaunted backhand wasn't even making an impression in this set, which Capriati grabbed 6-0 in a brisk 25 minutes. The "extreme heat" policy which allows players a voluntary ten-minute break before the final set on especially warm days went into effect just in time for Henin. The third set started poorly for the # 2 seed, who broke herself with back-to-back double faults. Henin gave the break right back, though, before duking it out with Capriati in another long, tense Game 3. With fans of both players getting involved (including one shout of "Jennifer, hit her with a stiff backhand!"), the American held on for a 2-1 lead. Henin was hit with one of a player's worst nightmares in the following game -- foot faulting on a second serve to give a hard-hitting opponent double break point. Capriati took advantage, blasting a cross-court forehand winner to pull ahead 3 games to 1. A love hold by Capriati and another poor service game from Henin advanced the ledger to 5-1. Capriati got within two points of victory, but then threw in a pair of unforced errors to make it 5-2. This drew a large ovation from the crowd, eager to see the French-speaking 20-year-old stage a comeback. Henin was getting really good snap on her backhand now and even struck a forehand winner with an insane angle for a 40-0 lead in Game 8. Capriati burned her with another winning lob, though, and won four straight points to earn a match point. Henin then punched a backhand long to make it official: a 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 victory for Jennifer Capriati. Justine Henin actually received the larger ovation of the two players as she departed Centre Court. Although she admitted to having great difficulty with the wind, Henin gave the victor full credit. "At the beginning of the second, she played more aggressive, no more mistakes. She started to serve better, returned good, and I couldn't come back into the match. I wasn't aggressive enough to come back." After starting the summer hard court campaign in a bit of a lull, Jennifer Capriati seems to be peaking at the right time. "This week I have come into my game well and just the results that I expect are how I expect to be playing now. I mean, I'm happy that it's finally coming, you know, going into the Open, that I'm playing better." Due to face the winner of the Jelena Dokic-Martina Hingis night match, Capriati expressed an interest in getting revenge on Dokic, who defeated her a couple weeks ago in San Diego. Renewing acquaintances with Hingis was also a scenario she found appealing, though. "It would be fun to play her. I like playing her because we have such great matches and such a battle. So, either one." (3) Jelena Dokic vs. (6) Martina Hingis Singles: Quarterfinal Centre Court Improving from one set to the next in her first week back from ankle surgery, Martina Hingis was beginning to look like a legitimate contender for her second Montreal title. But standing in her way was red hot Jelena Dokic, who has added quite a bit of luster to her hard court resume this summer. After a pair of service breaks got the match underway, the players settled into a pattern of difficult-but-successful holds. Hingis was, as ever, working the angles and anticipating fairly well. Dokic, meanwhile, was hitting the ball harder and showing the impact of all her recent doubles play with some strong finishes at the net. Trailing 4-5, 15-30, Hingis committed an error off her bread-and-butter backhand to suddenly put Dokic within a point of the set. The Yugoslavian (turned Aussie turned Yugo again who may soon be relocating to Great Britain) capitalized right away. A very sharply struck backhand pass gave Jelena a 6-4 win of the opening set. She jogged to the changeover with a clenched fist in the air, sending a message to her experienced but rusty opponent. After some errant serving and a questionable line call cost Dokic the opening game of the second set, she broke twice en route to a 4-1 lead. Hingis wasn't playing badly, but the hard-hitting blonde was really putting her on the defensive. Hingis survived a major gut check in Game 6, putting away a swinging forehand volley to end a 5-deuce battle. As the cloud-dotted evening sky turned a quite beautiful shade of orange, Martina Hingis tried to prevent the sun from setting on her tournament. She was outgunned, though, and failed to win a point in either of Dokic's last two service games. Dokic looked positively giddy as she bounded up to the net at the end of her 6-4, 6-3 win. "She definitely played well," a mildly downcast Hingis said after falling to Dokic. "She's one of those players who don't normally have a week off much. She's in kind of this routine and that's where I need to get back." After three months on the shelf, Hingis claimed to be generally pleased with her quarterfinal showing. "I didn't come here for nothing. I know where my standard is at this point and I was happy to get through the first couple rounds." "She played better than I thought she would, but I still don't think she's at the top of her game" was Jelena Dokic's assessment. Asked about her own performance, Jelena replied, "I was aggressive. I didn't make too many errors... I dictated points off the return also and I served pretty good. I was solid." Whether that level of play will be good enough against Jennifer Capriati remains to be seen. "She has all the pressure on her, so I'm just going to go out there and try to play a good match," said Dokic. No, that's not an accidental repeat of the Daniela Hantuchova quote -- they appear to be headed into the weekend in the same frame of mind. |