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Kournikova a major contender; victories for her doubles partners

© Michael Cecilio

Russian starlet attracts attention for reasons other than glamour
It all started for Anna when she reached the semi finals of Wimbledon in 1997. Then she reached the finals of Lipton in 1998, defeating four top 10 players in a row. Since then, Anna had been in a minor career slump. Most of her problems sprang from a thumb injury when she slipped on the grass courts of Eastbourne last year, and caused the infamous "service yips", of which Anna would serve about 20 double faults in the course of a match. Miraculously, Anna still managed to fight her way past the problem, which was in full show at the Australian Open this year. Not only did she reach the fourth round, but she also won the doubles title with Martina Hingis. Still, major singles success was limited. She hadn't won a title - in fact, she still hasn't won a title - which led to so many questions about when she would actually break through and string a few match wins in a row for a title.

Much of the talk about Anna Kournikova was on her glamour and beauty, and not on her tennis. It seemed justifiable when Anna was unable to live up to the hype - she had lost a number of first round matches at the end of last year and also this year in Indian Wells. Not so any more. In the space of a fortnight, Anna has managed to draw a flicker of attention away from her beauty and on to her tennis, which has seen her achieve some spectacular results. Growing up on the clay courts of Russia was a big plus for her this fortnight in tournaments at Hilton Head and Amelia Island, where she reached the final and the semi finals respectively. Defeating Barbara Schett, Patty Schnyder and Lindsay Davenport in the course of the two tournaments, she gained respect from her peers as Lindsay had commented that Anna looked ready to join the elite. Inexperience and the best player in the world cost her the title at Hilton Head which Martina had captured in straight sets, but Anna proved to the critics and the fans alike that her game has improved dramatically. She had gotten more consistent and more patient with her groundstrokes - features of her game which can only help her on the clay courts.

Despite her inability to achieve a first tournament victory, Anna has accomplished much in the past two weeks, by proving to herself that she can play with the best and she can legitimately contend for more major titles in the future. In the course of a fortnight, Anna has risen seven places in the rankings from #20 entering Hilton Head, to #13 following Amelia Island.

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