MELBOURNE, Australia -- Jennifer Capriati's astounding Grand
Slam breakthrough and a stunning stumble by Venus Williams at the
Australian Open left the balance of power scrambled atop women's
tennis.
Seldom, if ever, has the WTA Tour enjoyed such a depth of
championship talent. Five players have won the past six Grand Slam
titles, and that group doesn't include top-ranked Martina Hingis.
The jumble will make tournaments delightfully difficult to
predict.
"It's going to be a great year," Capriati said.
She was speaking for herself, but fans are in for a treat, too,
especially if Capriati can sustain the brilliant play in Melbourne
that resulted in her first major title. She beat Hingis 6-4, 6-3 in
Saturday's final.
The victory will vault Capriati to seventh in next week's
rankings. It's the first time she has been in the top 10 since
early 1994, when she had abandoned the tour at age 17 because of
drug and personal problems.
Now she's a happy, mature, confident 24-year-old who seems
determined to make up for lost time.
"From here on, I will always have the belief in myself that I
can do anything," she said. "I will never be afraid in any
match."
Her upset victory came only 48 hours after another shocker --
Williams' 6-1, 6-1 loss to Hingis. Just when it appeared the
Wimbledon, U.S. Open and Olympic champion was ready to dominate
women's tennis, she instead endured the most lopsided loss of her
career.
"Not everyone can win every time," Williams said. "It's early
in the year. A lot of players have a tough time early in the
year."
Serena Williams played better than her sister in the early
rounds before losing to Hingis in the quarterfinals.
For Hingis the victories were doubly significant because she
beat both sisters in the same tournament for the first time. In
response to their overpowering strokes, she has gotten stronger
herself and improved her serve.
It's two years and counting since Hingis' fifth and most recent
Grand Slam title, but she remains the most consistent player on the
tour and a threat to win any event.
"I proved that I can beat anybody out there," Hingis said. "I
can still smile. I have more opportunities to come."
But there will be more obstacles than ever with the inclusion of
Capriati, who is capable of winning on every Grand Slam surface.
She reached the semifinals at Wimbledon, the French Open and the
U.S. Open by age 15.
And then there was the gold medal Capriati won on clay at the
1992 Barcelona Olympics. She wasn't sure how to compare that
achievement with winning the Australian Open.
"I was thinking about that," she said. "It's just too far
apart. That actually seems like another life. This is a new life, a
different life. It's actually winning something for the first time
again."
Capriati's first Grand Slam title was no fluke. In the final
three rounds her opponents -- winners of a combined eight Australian
Open titles -- were seeded fourth (Monica Seles), second (Lindsay
Davenport) and first (Hingis).
One player not surprised by Capriati's breakthrough was Hingis.
"She's a great player," Hingis said. "I've always said that.
When she's on a roll, she's really tough.
"She's one of the players I have a lot of respect for because
of her knowledge of the game. Maybe it's a different story off the
court, but on the court, she always belongs to the top five."
The top five next week will be Hingis, Davenport, Venus
Williams, Seles and Serena Williams. But after Capriati and French
Open champion Mary Pierce there's a steep dropoff.
As at most tournaments, mismatches dominated the early rounds in
the Australian Open. When it comes to overall balance, the WTA Tour
still can't compete with the men.
The future is bright for youngsters Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters
and Elena Dementieva, who won at least two matches apiece in
Melbourne and left town ranked in the top 20. But as Capriati has
shown, it can take a long time for a talented teen-ager to mature
into a champion.
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