| US-Slovenia
Knotted 1-1
Raymond upset by Pisnik, looks for redemption
Venus soars to easy win; Srebotnik
hurt, may not play
By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net
Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA |
| Lisa Raymond, above, couldn't
win when it counted and lost to Tina Pisnik. |
 |
FROM THE FED CUP IN PORTOROZ,
SLOVENIA – On Sunday, Lisa Raymond will have one or possibly
two shots at redemption.
On Saturday, she dug the US a small hole when she played a confused
opening Fed Cup match in a 7-5, 7-5 loss to Slovenia's Tina Pisnik.
But the suddenly lethal Venus Williams stepped in and set things
right, blowing apart Katarina Srebotnik 6-1, 6-2 to even the first
round Fed Cup tie 1-1.
Venus played under cloudy skies, but at least it was dry as she
opened holes in the atmosphere with her nuclear all-court display.
Raymond played in a drizzle, was unsure of her footing, could
never establish her forehand and was eaten alive by Pisnik's high
forehands to her one-handed backhand. It was the Patty Schnyder
loss at the Aussie Open again for Raymond, where the 30-year-old
didn't show enough confidence in her topspin backhand and found
herself leaping to chip the ball back. That strategy didn't get
it done.
The crowd lifted Pisnik on their shoulders and carried her whenever
she got shaky, literally willing service winners and passing shots
from the steely-legged blonde. Pisnik did a terrific job of matching
Raymond slice for slice, was far more effective with her drop
shot and competed better.
Raymond had her chances, especially when she went up a break at
4-3 in the second set, but one never got the feeling that she
was comfortable on the slippery dirt and she was immediately broken
back at love to even the set at 4-4. At that point, it was obvious
that if Pisnik didn't' choke, she would briefly put the Slovenians
in the driver's seat.
After Pisnik ripped a backhand down the line winner to go ahead
6-5, Raymond quickly dug herself a hole in the final game. She
fought off one match point when Pisnik missed a backhand long,
but the Slovenian then caressed a drop shot winner and won the
contest when Raymond sank a forehand into the net.
National-hero-for-a-day Pisnik did a double fist pump, the sold-out
stadium went nuts and there was trouble in the air for Uncle Sam.
"It's an unbelievable feeling," said Pisnik. "That's
what we were hoping for. Our dream came true."
Slovenian captain Mima Jausovec added, "I'm very happy. "This
is what we wanted. Tina did her job really great. She showed us
she's a really big fighter and loves the atmosphere."
Raymond was down in the dumps. A 2-0 lead is much more different
than 1-1 and even though she was secure that Venus would win,
she's not thrilled with being the marked woman in the tie.
"Tina played well but it's extremely disappointing,"
she said. "Every time you play Fed Cup, the team puts its
faith in you to go out and get the point. It's tough."
US captain Zina Garrison was able to shrug off the loss, because
she has a lot of faith that the US can grab two wins on Sunday.
"Lisa was in every point. She had her opportunities and it
slipped away," Garrison said. "A couple of points here
and there it would have been the reverse scores for Lisa. It was
a mental struggle more than anything. Tina used the crowd to her
advantage and rose to the occasion when she needed to."
Venus soars to easy win; Srebotnik hurt,
may not play
Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA |
| Lisa Raymond, above, couldn't
win when it counted and lost to Tina Pisnik. |
 |
Fortunately, Venus silenced the crowd before
they could settle into their seats for the second match, jumping
out to a 5-0 lead in the first set and never really looking back.
Sure, Srebotnik is not an "A- level" player, but Venus
nailed the corners all day long, was more imposing in crosscourt
rallies, down the line, with her serve and at the net. She committed
few unforced errors and kept coming forward.
She played the role of stopper in the form of a Roger Clemens,
Curt Schilling or Josh Beckett. A 0-2 hole was not acceptable.
"There was extra motivation in a way," said Williams.
"But I don't want there to be more nervousness. I needed
my mind clear to stick to my game plan and battle on. …
I feel really good. It's different from when you're playing a
normal tournament. I feel a lot more jolly."
Srebotnik was treated for a thigh injury after the third game
and appears to be in a heap of trouble. She broke down in tears
when asked her injury in press conference and is scheduled to
have an ultrasound to see whether she did anymore than pull her
thigh muscle. If she tore it, she's done, as is the Slovenia's
teams hopes. Their so-called back-up singles player, Maja Matevzic,
has been injured the past five months and is reportedly losing
to juniors in practice. Tina Krizan, who is scheduled to play
doubles with Srebotnik against Raymond/Martina Navratilova, hasn't
played a singles match in a long time.
Srebotnik is scheduled to play Raymond in Sunday's second match
after Venus plays Pisnik. That's the match that Jausovec is pointing
to as one the team has to get, as she doesn't give Pisnik a great
chance to topple Venus.
"The main key is Katarina's health," Jausovec said.
"If she can move, then she can beat Raymond, and if she's
injured, it will be difficult. We are counting on Katarina's match
against Lisa. Venus is playing really well so it's hard to compete
against her. You have to make every point and hit winners all
the time."
Pisnik is thinking bigger. Rain began fall late on Saturday and
the forecast for Sunday is for more dodgey weather.
"I've never has the opportunity to play Venus at home with
heavy balls on clay I think I have good chance," Pisnik said.
With the way that Venus is striking the ball, she's still a big
favorite. Slicing into Williams backhand isn't a great idea unless
Pisnik keeps the ball extremely low, because Venus will take many
of those and blowtorch them down the line.
But the most important thing for the US on Sunday is to get a
win out of Raymond to get her confidence on track again. With
Navratilova on her side, she'll likely have enough of a mental
boost to pull through if it goes down to a fifth match. But what
she really needs is a win in singles to close out the tie at 3-1.
Garrison stated, "We have to get Lisa up."
Raymond wants another chance to right her ship. Srebotnik is a
much more straight-ahead player who Raymond should have an easier
time deconstructing. But that could be easier said than done when
she'll be fighting her own demons and well as the crowd.
"Hopefully, Venus come way with a win and then the match
on racket tomorrow," Raymond said. |
