Mauresmo, Sharapova Qualify for Semis

The new Hingis: Myskina outsmarts Davenport
Lindsay needs a win over Serena to advance

By Matthew Cronin, TennisReporters.net

Lumfoto

"Nastia" Myskina defeated Lindsay Davenport and Maria Sharapova beat Vera Zvonareva in the WTA Championships.

FROM THE WTA CHAMPIOSNHIPS IN LA – Anastasia Myskina should be playing for the No. 1 ranking at the WTA Championships, but she's not. However, should the deeply complicated Russian win the title, she'll be well on her way to the cherished top spot.

In her well-composed 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 upset of Lindsay Davenport on Friday, it was apparent that she has the tools of a No. 1 player. No, she won't have the staying power of a Martina Hingis at the spot, but if you put their games side by side, you can see remarkable similarities.

"Nastia," as her coach calls her, can be simply nasty, in a Marquis de Sade way. She may not have the sneaky intellect of a Hingis, but her two-handed backhand is nearly as good, her forehand is better, her first serve is right there with the Swiss (while her second serve is just as negligible). She's not as quick as Hingis was, but is a faster runner. She's nowhere near the volleyer that Martina was and isn't the dogged competitor that Hingis was in her prime. But when she's focused and truly believes she can win, she's just as capable.

"I know I'm not a really strong girl," Myskina said. "I can't hit really hard. So I have to play with my head and I have to move really well against a player like Lindsay."

ANASTASIA RUNS LINDSAY RAGGED
Just ask Davenport, who easily won the first eight sets in their rivalry. Three weeks ago in Moscow, Myskina turned the tables on her for the first time. Her coach, Jens Gerlach, convinced her that – with a high first serve percentage and more aggressive play – she could get Davenport moving and win the rallies with her legs.

That strategy paid off on Friday night, as "Nastia" consistently extended Davenport beyond six-ball rallies. When you can do that against the three-time Grad Slam champion, and the seventh ball to her isn't a sitter, then you have a good chance of winning the point. That's especially the case for Myskina when she was whipping her crosscourt forehand deep and properly lining up her two-handed backhand.

For someone who has had closing problems against non-Russian elite players, Myskina played a terrific tiebreak, hammering at Davenport's normally reliable forehand until it broke down. But it was the second set that mattered most. On Wednesday, the queen of Roland Garros choked away a set and two-break lead against Serena Williams. Myskina admitted she had gagged.

"I really wanted to win that match," Myskina said. "I had a really big chance and I didn't' take it. I was too nervous. Tonight, I was like I am usually."

Once she got up 3-0 and two breaks against Davenport, bets were laid as to whether she would choke. Davenport climbed back to 2-3 and nails were bitten and broke. "That was a pretty scary for me," said Myskina. "If I lost this match, that would have been it for the year. I told myself to keep fighting and to play every ball and not to think about the score I was really thinking about holding at 3-2."

Myskina did, by cracking a forehand winner and that was essentially the match. "I feel more confident playing against Lindsay now than when I was younger," the 23-yeaar-old Myskina said. "I was the young girl against the superstar. A little has changed now. I know how to play against the best players."

So much of Myskina's long-term success will depend on whether she can keep her cool. Vera Zvonareva takes a lot of gruff for crying "setly" (a new tennis term meaning "every set"), but Myskina has a terrible temper that needs to be reigned in. Against Davenport, she rarely gave Gerlach the hard stare. But she did curse at herself.

"I just tell myself to shut up," Myskina said. "Today it really worked. Jens has a lot of courage and he understands how I feel on court. He never really gets mad at me. We talked before the match and I understand everything. But as soon as I go on court, the emotions go over me. Sometime it's hard to hold them inside."

Ron Cioffi/TR.net

Lindsay Davenport needs a big win to keep her No. 1 ranking this week.

Lindsay needs a win over Serena to advance
The round robin event has now become quite intriguing. Davenport will now more than likely have to beat Serena on Saturday to secure a spot in the semifinals. If she doesn't and Amelie Mauresmo reaches the final, Davenport could lose the No. 1 ranking. Williams has won both her matches, while Davenport and Myskina are 1-1.

However, in the Red Group round robin competition, Williams is leading in sets won with four, while Myskina has three and Davenport has two. There's a bunch of possibilities. If Davenport beats Serena in three sets and Myskina beats Elena Dementieva in straight sets, Davenport is out. If Davenport wins in straight sets and Myskina wins in three, it will go down to games won. A player with a 2-1 record will go bye-bye.

There's no such intrigue in the Black Group, as Mauresmo and Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova both qualified for the semifinals. The Frenchwoman out-served US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3, 6-2, and Sharapova whaled on Vera Zvonareva 6-4, 7-5.

Mauresmo and Sharapova both own 2-0 records and will play each other on Saturday in a match that means nothing in the round robin. However, it means a tremendous amount for Mauresmo, who entered the tournament 351 points behind Davenport in the rankings and can gain 43 more with a victory over Sharapova. "The story is very simple: I need to reach the final and probably win the Championships to hope to get to No. 1," Mauresmo said. "I'm very proud to reach the semifinals but I have to keep going."

It's not going to be an easy victory because Sharapova is playing very, very well. She nailed an amazing 58 winners against Vera and said her shoulder is holding up just fine. She's feeling tough enough.

"All of them are tough and it's about who is tougher," she said. "I'm feeling quite confident."