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Page 2
You're Out!
She was already there. Monica was initially down 5-2 in the first set, but had managed to crawl her way back to lead 6-5 with a set point. Aaaaagggghhhhh, things can be so frustrating!!! If it's any consolation, I suppose she was doomed to lose the match because the way she hit her ground strokes then were not the way the real Monica Seles would hit ground strokes. Always the aggressor on court, and usually the dictator of play, a Monica Seles match will always depend on the number of winners she makes and the number of unforced errors she makes. And unfortunately, unforced errors prevailed. Her backhand was just not up to scratch and unfortunately, she had seen another Wimbledon slip through her fingers with a 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 defeat. What is upsetting is that she went in the tournament with incredible form. She defeated last year's quarter finalist and grass court expert Yayuk Basuki in straight sets. She also defeated 14th seed Sandrine Testud, the lady who defeated her last year in the third round. But she could not maintain this good form against Zvereva. Although, not meaning to take the credit away from Natasha whatsoever - she played her slice backhands like she has never played them before and as Monica Seles said, she does have the quickest hands in the business. Just a doubles specialist? No, Natasha has so much talent and not only in doubles play. And Martina Hingis! We all knew she was having a pretty tough time with her form throughout the tournament and we only saw glimpses of her brilliance in perhaps her third and fourth round matches, not losing more than four games in any one set to her opponents in those rounds. But she was suffering from a lack of grass court practice and an eerie lack of self-confidence following the French Open. Her quarterfinal clash with Arantxa Sanchez Vicario was a tough one. The match panned itself out on the basis of two or three crucial points - had Arantxa taken the crucial points, perhaps we would have seen Hingis lose her first grand slam quarter final in two years. And in her semi-final encounter against Novotna, a replay of last year's final, she was unable to convert on the important points, and squandered a lot of opportunities at several break points. Unfortunately for her, the replay of last year's final was not a carbon copy. While she dropped the first set as she did last year, she also lost the second and the match - not like she did last year. It seems Miss Novotna has overcome those nerves somewhat over her years of experience.
The copyright of the article Third time's a charm, third time is misery at Wimbledon - Page 2 in Women's Tennis is owned by Michael Cecilio. Permission to republish Third time's a charm, third time is misery at Wimbledon - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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