EXCLUSIVE
LOOKING TO EARN THE AMERICAN CROWN

Capriati shoulders the load of being Williamses' main foe

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

Susan Mullane Camerawork USA, Inc.

There are those who believe that third-ranked Jennifer Capriati has engaged in too much chest pounding when it comes to discussing the lofty game of the top-ranked Williams sisters, but for those who have closely followed the 26-year-old's long and storied career, occasional flashes of immense pride are not surprising.

But Jennifer has entered a new stage in her career, where the three-time grand Slam champion believes she has been and can be the best player in the world. But for now, she feels like she's standing alone amongst the elite players in actually believing that she has a chance to beat Serena and Venus.
Capriati told tennisreporters.net that at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, she tied herself up in an tight knot and snapped under the weight of her own hopes.

"I was putting to much pressure on myself, too many expectations and feeling the expectation of others," Capriati said after she knocked off compatriot Meghann Shaughnessy in the third round of the Acura Classic in San Diego. "Maybe I was carrying the load on my back of being the only one who has a chance to beat the Williamses. But now I've put all that aside and I'm doing my thing and enjoying it again. Not that I stopped enjoying it for that time but I was getting a little frustrated and agitated in trying to be so perfect out there all the time."

TOUGH SPRING FOLLOWING AUSSIE WIN
Capriati, who hasn't won a title since outlasting Martina Hingis for her second Australian Open title in January, had an emotionally trying spring, when she got into a blowout with U.S. Fed Cup captain Billie Jean King the day before the U.S. took the court against Austria and was kicked off the team. The dispute centered around Capriati's desire to have her father and coach, Stefano, practice with her in preparation for her defense of her French Open title and King's refusal to allow it.

The U.S. lost the tie and Capriati's willingness to damn the consequences of the fallout from the King dispute showed just how serious she was about winning the French again. But she was too tense and not conditioned enough to pull it off.

Fred Mullane Camerawork USA, Inc.

"My chances were pretty good," she said. "I know the Williamses were playing tough and better, but didn't feel my best physically so I didn't have the same confidence I had the previous year."

Consequently, Serena beat her in a classic three-setter in Paris and she was upended by France's Amelie Mauresmo in the Wimbledon quarters. Jennifer said that after Paris and London, she went home and considered what went wrong.

Part of her problem was a lack of confidence at closing time, which resulted from her knowledge that she couldn't run her opponents into the ground. So Capriati has hired a new physical trainer, Courtney Lewis, to travel with her full time.

"I'm really close to Venus and Serena," said Capriati, who has lost to Serena three times this year, including in the finals of Scottsdale and Miami. "We're all really close. I had close matches against Serena and haven't had any bad losses. I let my fitness go so I got this new trainer with me. I didn't feel my best and still did pretty well, so imagine if I feel really sharp and at the top of my game. Maybe that would have taken me to win those matches."

HOW MEDIOCRE DO THE WILLIAMSES HAVE TO BE TO LOSE?
Many players believe that in order to beat Grand Slam champions such as the Williamses, you have to believe that if you play at 100 percent of your ability, you can beat them. Other than Capriati, almost no other top-10 player has stated publicly that if they play their best, they can beat either Serena or Venus at the top of their game. Seventh-ranked Kim Clijsters said last week that Venus needed to be off her game a little in order for her to beat her (although she amended her statement after nearly knocking her off at La Costa on Friday), and fifth-ranked Jelena Dokic said the same this week about her prospects of knocking off either Venus or Serena.

Capriati has heard such comments from the young players, which she said puts her in a difficult spot.

"That a big load for me," she said. "But maybe now with Lindsay [Davenport] back and Martina Hingis eventually coming back, it will be easier. With the younger players, maybe they are in a little rut. It happens in a long season."

Unlike in Melbourne, where she was burning to take the title again and believed in herself, Capriati wasn't the same cocksure player in Europe. But now, she says she's refreshed and ready to roll again.

"Mentally I feel very good and very eager," she said. "I want to do really well. I think I have that spirit in me. The pressure is off. I don't have to prove anything. I want to be back up there. I want to start winning again and be where I was last year."

Outside of wining the Acura this week and getting the summer hardcourt season off to a good start, Capriati has another major goal left – to win her first U.S. Open, which begins on Aug. 26. She's reached the semifinals twice, but has never showed off her best stuff in front of her countrymen.

"It seems like I've never played my best at the Open," Capriati said. "I hope it's going to be different this year. Some places you don't play well. Maybe it's New York. I don't like noise and stuff like that. It's difficult to concentrate, there's so much going on."

Capriati said that in 2001, when she was crushed by Venus in the semifinals, she planned her schedule badly and shouldn't have played doubles, which often kept her at the site late into the night. While she said that was no excuse for her loss, this year she's planning on focusing on singles and singles only. Because winning the title would make her the happiest person in the world.

"It would mean everything in the world to me right now," she said. "I really live to win it. But its going to be really tough. I just hope everyone is there and playing well."