Pacific Life Open, Indian Wells (March 6, 2003)
by Ed Toombs
Today featured the second round matches in the bottom half of the draw, and some of the tournament favourites saw their first action. Jennifer Capriati (2) and Amélie Mauresmo (5) advanced easily, but Lindsay Davenport (4) played patchy tennis before putting her game together in the third set of her 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 win over Daja Bedanova.
Our attention was focused on the outer courts. We report on the Russian invasion, and follow the progress of our beloved lefties-and-Asians portion of the draw.
Russians invade the desert There were Russians everywhere you looked on the grounds this afternoon. Many of the tour?s best young players hail from that nation, and it so happens that the bottom half of the draw contains most of them.
The biggest upset victim of the day was 7th-seeded Russian Anastasia Myskina, victimized by a compatriot, 17-year-old Svetlana Kuznetsova, 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 6-3. The slender Myskina may have made the day?s best fashion statement -- a peach-coloured sleeveless top / shorts ensemble set off with a white belt -- but her tennis was nowhere near as good as the outfit. Myskina?s feet often appeared embedded in syrup, and she committed an industrial quantity of unforced errors. Anastasia made a br ief appearance in the top ten last month and is now ranked 11th, but she will take a rankings hit at Indian Wells (she is defending points from her quarterfinal of last year), and will have to improve her performance if she wants to take another run at the elite.
Make no mistake, however, young Kuznetsova is a top-drawer talent. Already ranked 41st in the word, she may well be voted Newcomer of the Year for 2002 when the WTA awards are announced during this tournament. She is a stocky, blonde powerhouse, based in Barcelona, where she trains with her good friend Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario and the staff of the Sánchez Academy. Kuznetsova serves effectively and likes the forehand, although she is also capable of producing winners from her two-fisted backhand.
Sveta should have won the match in straight sets, but when serving for the match at 5-4 and 6-5 of the second set she collapsed in a heap of errors and was broken at love both times. The second set tie-break was painful, with all but two of the 16 points ending in errors. Kuznetsova was the more errant of the two, and Myskina won it 9-7 to force a deciding set. The youngster was able to hold her lead this time, winning the final four games of the match to claim the highest-ranked victim of her young ca reer.
Svetlana Kuznetsova?s third round opponent on Saturday will one of the other fast-rising Russian teens, Vera Zvonareva. Vera also produced an upset today, a 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 triumph over 28th seed Iva Majoli. Zvonareva also happens to be one of Svetlana?s rivals for Newcomer of the Year (as is yet another Russian teen, Dinara Safina, whose defeat we chronicled yesterday).
Two of the three other seeded Russians in action today survived three-set battles, with only 25th seed Elena Likhovtseva able to cruise (6-2, 6-2 over Meilen Tu).
Elena Dementieva (14th seed) overcame a slow start to overcome an impressive, solid-stroking Czech lefthander, Iveta Benesova, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1. Elena also had to get through some nervous moments serving for the second set at 5-4, saving a break point before finally converting her third set point. During these anxious moments Dementieva was breathing rapidly and heavily, and we were a little afraid she was about to hyperventilate. Relieved to have survived the anxiety, Dementieva stepped up th e pace and confidently breezed through the third set with few worries.
Dementieva?s career was in large part launched by her march to the semis as an unseeded player at Indian Wells in 2000. If she defeats unseeded Virginia Ruano Pascual on Saturday, she is on course for a likely fourth round meeting with Jennifer Capriati. Ruano Pascual was one of today?s upset perpetrators: she accounted for the unpredictable 22nd seed Alexandra Stevenson, 6-4, 6-4, in the main stadium.
To wind up the Russian Report, we note the success of 13th seed Elena Bovina. Bovina was playing Yoon Jeong Cho, and discovered what Monica Seles already knows, namely that you can never count the tough little Korean battler out. Recall that at last year?s U.S. Open Seles led Cho 6-1, 5-1, only to see the Korean storm back to force a third set. Today Cho close almost mounted a similar comeback in the first set, roaring back from 0-5 to 4-5. This time the fightback fell short, as Bo vina broke Cho at love to take the opening set 6-4. Cho kept fighting, and levelled the match by taking the second set 7-5, but Bovina pulled away to finally subdue her pesky opponent, 6-4, 5-7, 6-1. Next up for Bovina is American qualifier Samantha Reeves, who surprised 20th seed Paola Suárez, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Angie and Magüi battle for ?funky corner? supremacy
By far our favourite corner of the draw in these early days has been the bracket headed by 9th seed Patty Schnyder. It was composed of a quartet of talented, versatile left-handers -- Schnyder, Emilie Loit, Clarisa Fernández and Magüi Serna -- and two excellent young Asian players, Angelique Widjaja and the impressive qualifier Akiko Morigama. Saturday the championship of On The Line?s ?funky corner? will be waged between Widjaja and Serna.
Widjaja, the talented 18-year-old from Indonesia, created the day?s second-biggest upset when she saw off Schnyder, 6-4, 6-2. Patty was listless, only occasionally showing the splendid shotmaking of which she is capable. Meanwhile, Widjaja played it cautious and smart, backing Schnyder up continually with looping shots and either waiting for errors or nailing winners when she had an opening. Widjaja had two set points in the opening frame on Schnyder?s serve, but the Swiss lefty saved them with two of h er best forehand winners of the match. The Indonesian looked a bit nervous serving for the set at 5-4, but finally got some help from Schnyder on her fourth set point when the Swiss, with Widjaja scrambling defensively, sent a forehand wide. Unfortunately for the spectators, Schnyder put up little resistance in the second set.
Widjaja next faces a fellow dangerous floater, Spain?s unseeded Magüi Serna, for a spot in the fourth round. Serna rebounded from a slow start to oust the 24th seed, the Argentine stringbean Clarisa Fernandez (pictured at right), in an all-Latin-lefty duel. Clarisa was wearing a large bandage wrapped around her right thigh, but still played well for two sets before fading. The turning point came with Fernández serving at 4-5. The Argentine threw in a costly double fault at 15-30, and Serna cashed in on her first set point thanks to a scalding forehand passing shot.
Fernández faded badly in the third, and Serna, who is playing some very high quality tennis this week, eased comfortably into the third round. The championship of our favourite section of the draw will be settled on Saturday.
Wandering in the desert The men trickle in
The men?s tournament doesn?t start until Monday, but the players are starting to arrive and are honing their games on the practice courts. One of the first to show up at the site was Yevgeny Kafelnikov. ?Kafel? has been here for a couple of days, working hard, and now has been joined by compatriots Marat Safin and Mikhail Youzhny. Others spotted today include last year?s runner-up Tim Henman, Todd Martin (a semifinalist last year), and former number one Gustavo Kuer ten.
Quotable quotesJennifer Capriati underwent surgery in the off-season to remove cataract-like obstructions from both corneas. She feels that after experiencing problems early in the season, the problem is now under control. ?The sensitivity is gone, most of it. It was pretty bright for everyone out there today. I?m seeing fine.? Capriati also suggested that tennis had become something of a disagreeable chore last year, but we don?t know exactly why that was the case. Was it the pressure of being the main ch allenger to the Williams sisters taking its toll? ?No,? Capriati replied, ?some other issues I?m not going to really share.?