That was the only faint shimmer of hope for the Italians. Nothing more was to come for the Italians in the tie as the Williams girls had struck a pot of gold in the red dirt. Everything went their way. In their Fed Cup debuts, the Williams girls held their own remarkably and never appeared in danger of losing their singles nor doubles encounters. Venus played solid claycourt tennis to defeat Grande in her first match and gained a measure of revenge for the USA to defeat Farina in a straight sets 6-1 6-1 romp. Serena was substituted for the second reverse singles after Monica withdrew due to injury and also capped off a remarkable Fed Cup singles debut against a stunned 60th ranked Rita Grande, winning 6-1 6-1. And what would you know, it was the Williams' girls again in the doubles, routing their outplayed and overpowered Italian opponents 6-2 6-2.
Things only look to be getting better for the Williams girls. They are powerful, they are athletic, they are confident and they are mentally tough. On a good day, they can beat absolutely anyone on the tour, but what they will need to get to the top is the ability to be absolutely focused and mentally strong on the big occasions. They do perform well on the Tier I/Tier II level, but developing the ability to be "all-together" in the pressure pack situation of, for example, a Grand Slam event in the second week will be absolutely crucial for them in order to win majors and get to the top of the rankings.
USA will play Russia in the final of the Fed Cup, hosted in Stanford University (site of the Bank of the West Classic) in September. Given the location of the tie and the surface on which it is being played, the possibility of choosing Lindsay Davenport to lead the USA dream team is incredibly high, especially considering the fact she has won the Stanford title two years running. USA will enter the tie the favourites, especially with the as yet unofficial exclusion of Russian #1 Anna Kournikova from the Russian team. Who would I pick if I were Billie Jean King? Assuming all the American players declare themselves available for the tie, I would pick Lindsay Davenport and Venus Williams for the singles and Monica Seles and Mary Joe Fernandez for the doubles. Although, who knows what that could do for the chemistry of the team, given that Lindsay and Venus are not exactly the best of friends....
