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Page 5
Current Singles Ranking: 2
Career Singles Titles: 23 Best Performance in a Grand Slam: WINNER - 98 US Open; 99 Wimbledon Best Performance at Flushing Meadows: WINNER (1998) 1998 US Open Performance: WINNER (defeated Coetzer, V.Williams, Hingis)
Summer hardcourt season performances The draw analysis: Lindsay Davenport is my pick for the 1999 US Open trophy. She hasn't displayed her best form lately, but she is just starting to peak at just the right time. Given she can control her big-hitting game and minimise her unforced errors, there should be no stopping her a second time round. She has a very safe draw until the semi finals where she is likely to meet 7th seed Serena Williams. Serena Williams has a winning record over Davenport with a 2-1 head-to-head edge and could pose plenty of problems for the world #2. However, should Williams get to this stage, inexperience may do her an injustice as she has never been to the semi finals of a major in her career. 4th seed Monica Seles would also like to try and unseat Lindsay Davenport in the semi finals, although she has lost to Lindsay the last three times they have played. And 9th seed Julie Halard-Decugis could give Davenport problems in a potential fourth round clash, as Julie just recently beat Lindsay in straight sets two weeks ago. Floaters who could trouble her in her section of 16: Amy FRAZIER, Corina MORARIU, Natasha ZVEREVA Her path (a prediction): VENUS WILLIAMS (USA) Summer hardcourt season performances The draw analysis: Venus has had a pretty good summer, winning her last tournament in New Haven and reaching the finals of tournaments at San Diego and Stanford some weeks ago. More importantly, she has accrued some memorable scalps over the past few weeks - the most notable were her back-to-back defeats over long-time nemesis Lindsay Davenport at San Diego and New Haven. Venus now ranks as an equal favourite for the US Open together with Martina Hingis, and this really is her big chance for Grand Slam glory. She should be ready to go for the kill while she has such a great opportunity. None of the other top four seeds have it as easy as Venus does up to the semi finals - I really cannot find anyone in the draw who could trouble Venus up to this point. Barbara Schwartz could loom as a fourth round opponent in what would be a rematch of the huge upset at Roland Garros a couple of months ago. Or tour veteran Mary Joe Fernandez could use her court savvy to try and notch up another victory over a Williams sister this year, having beaten Serena in the third round of the French Open this year. Perhaps Irina Spirlea could get her rematch of Venus Williams in the quarter finals to repeat that controversial and antagonistic semi final in the 1997 US Open. There might be many challengers but I doubt that many will break through over the power and accuracy of Venus Williams. That is, until one brings in world #1 Martina Hingis. Martina is perhaps the only person stopping Venus from a berth in the finals this year, and she will be confident in beating her powerful opponent, having routed her in straight sets just a couple of weeks ago. Go To Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
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