| | Associated Press
Results
PARIS -- When her final backhand clipped the net cord,
popped up a few inches and trickled over to give her the victory,
Monica Seles didn't bother with the traditional and rather silly
hands-up sign of apology.
|  | | Martina Hingis rallied to beat Ruxandra Dragomir in three sets on Sunday. |
Instead, she simply sighed deeply and strolled to the net,
taking that bit of good fortune as payment due after a long, long
streak of bad luck.
In reaching the quarterfinals of the French Open with a 7-5, 6-3
victory over Amelie Mauresmo on a chilly, rainy Sunday, the No. 3
Seles took another step forward in a sentimental journey at a
tournament she won three straight times in happier days from 1990
to 1992.
Seles has known more than her share of bad luck over the years,
from the stabbing she suffered in 1993 to the incredible string of
injuries and ailments that have plagued her since. At the moment,
she's bothered only by bronchitis and sinusitis that require
energy-sapping antibiotics, minor stuff for her. A stress fracture
in her right foot sidelined her for five months until February.
When Seles is healthy and playing regularly, she is still, at
26, one of the toughest players in women's tennis. She proved that
in recent months by winning three tournaments, including the
Italian Open, in her best start to a year on the tour since 1992.
Against the No. 13 Mauresmo, the most popular of the French
players, Seles had to overcome not only a strong, fast, aggressive
opponent, but a crowd that cheered Seles' errors and often chanted
"Am-el-ie" when Seles stepped up to serve.
"In Rome, I had the whole stadium behind me, here I had the
whole stadium really against me," said Seles, who beat Mauresmo by
a similar score a few weeks ago.
Yet, Seles never was one to wither meekly on the court, while
the pressure to win may have been too much for Mauresmo, who
double-faulted on set-point in the first set.
A telling point, if not a turning point, came in the second game
of the second set after Mauresmo broke Seles for a 1-0 lead that
might have gotten the Frenchwoman back into the match. Now, Seles
had break-point on Mauresmo and capitalized on it quickly with a
sharply angled forehand crosscourt that touched the edge of the
sideline. Mauresmo couldn't believe it. She walked up to the spot,
stared at it, and kicked it in disgust.
The set was even again, an opportunity lost for Mauresmo, and
she never again led. At 4-3, Seles broke her once more, with the
help of another double-fault by Mauresmo and a forehand long on the
last two points.
Seles then closed out the match on her serve with that lucky net
cord, knowing a little luck is nothing to take for granted. In
truth, Seles never did take anything for granted.
"My mentality, really from junior tournaments on, was I always
think I'm going to lose this match," she said. "Some players
(think), 'I'm going to win this match,' even before it starts. I'm
very negative toward myself. I've been trying for many years to
change that. That's just the way, I guess, my brain works. I go in
thinking, 'This might be the last match I play at this tournament.'
That's kind of what I'm doing, and it really hasn't changed at
all."
Next up for Seles is another Frenchwoman, No. 6 Mary Pierce, who
beat Asa Carlsson 6-2, 6-1.
No. 1 Martina Hingis conceded a set Sunday before rallying to
beat Ruxandra Dragomir 6-3, 0-6, 6-1.
"I knew ... just get that (second) set over with," she said.
"I was down 3-0, 4-0. It's like no way at this tournament you're
going to come back."
Hingis won the final six games and advanced to the quarterfinals
against unseeded American Chanda Rubin, who beat Natasha Zvereva
6-4, 7-5.
"This next week is going to be kind of another level," said
Rubin, who also reached the quarters at Roland Garros in 1995.
Hingis played the first match of the morning in cloudy,
65-degree weather.
"I'm going to play in pants next time," said Hingis, who grew
up in Switzerland but more often now lives and trains in Florida.
"I'm freezing out there. My body's not used to it anymore."
Williams, seeded No. 4, rolled to a 7-6 (4), 6-2 victory over
No. 11 Anke Huber in a match that alternated between sublime and
sloppy.
In breaking Huber for a 3-1 lead in the first set, Williams
produced one of the great shots of the tournament, a lunging
forehand volley from the doubles lane after a sizzling, running
backhand pass attempt by Huber over the net post.
Huber got the break back and surged to a 6-5 lead as she forced
the pace in fierce all-court duels, but Williams dug in to break
her in the 12th game and force a tiebreaker.
That was all the edge Williams needed as she surged to a 6-2
lead in the tiebreaker and won it when the demoralized Huber
double-faulted on set point. Next for Williams is three-time
champion and No. 8 Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, who beat Barbara Schett
0-6, 6-4, 6-2.
No. 5 Conchita Martinez, coming off a victory in the German
Open, beat Ai Sugiyama 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, and will meet 17-year-old
Marta Marrero, a 4-6, 6-0, 6-4 victory over Rossana De Los Rios.
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