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Losing her way. Will she lose her will too?

© Michael Cecilio

Her eyes were bloodshot and her expression was downcast. It was a complete contrast from the cunning, cheerful and often witty character we have grown to know since her remarkable professional debut in 1994 as a precocious teenager with an abundance of talent and poise for someone so young and inexperienced at the time. At the age of twenty-two, Martina Hingis has etched her name into the record books as one of the all-time greats of tennis. Although her final record may never give this credence, she may also go down in the minds of many as one of the most talented players to ever pick up a tennis racquet – man or woman – if not, the most talented player ever, period.

Almost eight years to the day since her professional debut on the WTA Tour, Martina Hingis displays a much different character today than the brash, confident, happy-go-lucky child of that long gone era. The trials and tribulations of growing up have reared their ugly head but only under intense media scrutiny which often resulted in public criticism and mockery at times. The well-documented on-court dramas which have plagued her professional life have, almost directly, given her a sense of humility, a sense of groundedness and a sense of maturity which was often perceived to be lacking from her public character.

Almost eight years to the day since her professional debut on the WTA Tour, Martina is no longer the doe-eyed, enthusiastic new talent on the tour. She appears sullen, sunken and defeated and pictures of her most recent press conference, announcing her indefinite break from the tour, support this notion. Her announcement has led to her withdrawal from tournaments in Zurich, Linz and the season-ending championships in Los Angeles. While it is disappointing that one of the tour’s most innately gifted shotmakers will not be producing her artistry until possibly the beginning of 2003 – and disappointing for her hometown fans and the fans in LA who are pining to see all the top women compete for the season-ending prize – a break from the tour looks to be the welcome move for Hingis at this point in time.

The move to take an indefinite break has come at a particularly fitting time for Hingis who will be pushed out of the Top 10 rankings for the first time since September 1996. Looking down next week’s rankings list, it will be a strange sight to see Hingis, who just one year ago to the week was the world’s #1 player, next to the number 11. Even more disheartening will be the fact that once Hingis gets back to the tour, returning to the Top 10, let alone the higher echelons, will pose a serious challenge for her. The power players have taken control of her on the court and in the rankings, leaving Hingis to submit herself to a position she was never accustomed to as a junior, and even as a professional during her tenure at the top.