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Day 5, Sunday, Part 2: Match Results by Ken Kamlet Capriati let down after leading a set and her hip injury restricted her movement. Clijsters recovered well from a poor start and played decisive tennis as she dominated the third. While she has no chance to end 2003 #1 in the world, Kim Clijsters is still in contention to defend the title she won here last year. A particularly pleased Clijsters said, “It is great especially at the end of the year to be in another final and be in the position to being able to defend my title. So I will be there on the last match of the year. And you know, just give your two hundred percent because, after that it is over. And you can have a relaxing holiday”. A downcast Jennifer Capriati later said that taking an injury time-out to attend her hip problems may not have been the best idea. “I guess by doing that I broke up my momentum”, she reasoned, “and, you know, gave her a little time to just sit back and gather herself … because she started playing better … I came out and just wasn’t serving the same anymore”. Match 2: Amelie Mauresmo (6) def. Justine Henin-Hardenne (2) 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-3. An inspired Mauresmo fought bravely and took advantage of flat, occasionally sloppy play of Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne. As the match neared its unexpected conclusion, Mauresmo required 4 match points before finally finishing things off. Those courtside could hear Mauresmo breathing heavily and see her shaking with anticipation as she tried to steady her usually fragile nerves. With this loss, Justine Henin-Hardenne dubiously becomes #1 despite coming off a less than stellar week. No previous player had reached the top spot in the rankings on the heels of two consecutive losses. Justine Henin-Hardenne praised Mauresmo for her effort and for rising to the occasion. “You know, Amelie – she is a great player,” the Belgian stated, “She can be Number 1 one day. That is for sure. I mean, she is very complete. She is physically strong … when she is playing aggressive like she did today, she can beat everybody” And while the new top ranked player avoided her usual litany of excuses, she did tell tennis historian Bud Collins that she is not playing Fed Cup because of a sore back and recent illnesses which will require rest. Match 3: Kim Clijsters/Ai Sugiyama def. Cara Black/Elena Likhovtseva 6-3, 6-4. Match 4: Virginia Ruano Pascual/Paula Suarez def. Svetlana Kuznetsova/Martina Navratilova 6-4, 6-4. A fairly uninspired pair of matches helped bring us one step closer to the end of a season of fairly unexciting doubles results and match-ups. With the exception of the staggering return of 48 year old Martina Navratilova to the world top 10 in doubles, 2003 has been one of the least notable doubles seasons in WTA Tour history. Bland partnerships, mediocre play and a lack of star power have all contributed to the current tepid status of women’s doubles. Where are Gigi Fernandez, Natasha Zvereva, Pam Shriver and Kathy Jordan when you need them? Too bad that the most recent and more interesting doubles partnerships of the past couple of seasons have all seemed to have disbanded, at least for now. Hingis/Kournikova, Williams/Williams, Raymond/Stubbs; all of these tandems would certainly be welcomed back. |