THE tennisreporters.net NEWSLETTER: FRIDAY, AUGUST 30

Gabriela Sabatini talks about today's game
Dominance of Williamses could affect fan interest
Anna could be great Arantxa considering retirement
'I should have won more Slams'

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

FROM THE U.S. OPEN – Former U.S. Open champion Gabriela Sabatini, in town to give out the WTA Mentor Award to Tracy Austin, says that watching today's women's tennis is interesting as long as No. 1- and 2-ranked Serena and Venus Williams don't completely take over the sport. "It is [interesting] as long as the Williamses don't start dominating the game," Sabatini told tennisreporters.net. "In the past, even before me, you saw Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert winning all the tournaments. There was a big gap between the two of them and the rest. I hope that doesn't happen again with the sisters."

Sabatini added that when Monica Seles and Steffi Graf dominated the game, it wasn't terrific for tennis, either.

"It's not great for the game," she said. "To see the same players winning the tournaments every time, it's not great."

Before Graf began to dominate her in 1992, Sabatini and the German had a great rivalry, with Sabatini actually taking eight out of 11 matches from Graf between 1990 and 1992, including her 6-2, 7-6(4) win over her in the U.S. Open final. Graf holds a 29-11 career edge over Gaby. Sabatini said that rivalries fuel the sport and that today "you are seeing that between the two sisters. Which is difficult to see because it's hard to play your sister so you always think, 'Are they really giving their best?' It's not the same like if you play someone else."

The Argentine – who made millions off her good looks during her career – said that current starlet Anna Kournikova is capable of being as good as she was.

ANNA COULD BE GREAT
"I don't know what it is with Anna," Sabatini said. "I think she can be a great tennis player. She has the game to do it. It's a matter of having the right objectives and wanting to be a great champion."

Like Kournikova is doing now, Sabatini underachieved, as she was more than capable of winning one Grand Slam. She reached 17 Grand Slam semifinals in her 13-year-career.

'I SHOULD HAVE WON MORE SLAMS'
"I wish I was better able to handle the media and attention, especially at home," she said. "Everybody wanted me to be No. 1. I wish I was more prepared for that. I could have won another Grand Slam or two. I had the game. I beat everybody. I should have won Wimbledon. I was so close. You realize things too late. I wish I had the same mind and mentality that I have today."

Sabatini looks little like the husky net rusher who won the title here in 1990. (As Ted Tinling said of her during her playing days, "She looks like Marilyn Monroe and walks like John Wayne.") The Argentine now looks like more like high-priced model and is making millions with her 11 types of perfume, including her newest one, Devotion. Sabatini's perfumes aren't distributed in the U.S., but are wildly popular in Europe and South America. She also has a line of watches.

The 32-year-old Sabatini says the best thing about retirement is "no pressure. It's a great feeling." Sabatini, who won 27 singles titles in her storied career, retired in 1996, and isn't sure whether she could play at a top five level today.

"It's more of an offensive game today," she said. "Much more than it used to be. You see everybody hitting the ball very hard. You see a lot of power today. Before, you saw more variety, like people coming to the net. It's stronger than it used to be."

At Wimbledon, some analysts noted that France's Amelie Mauresmo transition into an athletic net attacker brought up visions of Sabatini, whose dives and twists around the net made her one of the sport's most marquee players. Gaby said Amelie does remind her of herself.

"Mauresmo has a similar game," she said. "I like her style very much. Martina Hingis also has some great hands. She can do a lot of different things with her hands, mix up the ball."

ARANTXA CONSIDERING RETIREMENT
Sabatini spoke to two of her peers and old rivals, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario and Monica Seles while at the Open and said that Sanchez – who was crushed in the first round here – "is thinking of hanging up her shoes."

"I asked Arantxa if she's still enjoying it, and she told me, 'I'm going to play until I get sick and tired of it,'" Sabatini said. "She starting to think about retirement. Monica, you can tell she's still into it and is still intense."

Sabatini is very pleased with the rise of Argentine tennis, which as seen men's players David Nalbandian, Guillermo Canas, Gaston Gaudio and Juan-Ignacio Chela become forces.

"I was so happy to see that," said Sabatini. "This is one of the best moments of tennis in Argentina. You can see that in the men's. Now you're seeing that on the women's side. I have been there, but I would like to see some more women coming into the top. "You go though different periods. You go through periods where there aren't too many players. You go through periods where there are many, like now. Argentina has always produced great players. But there aren't too many women who play tennis in Argentina."

Sabatini isn't sure whether her countrywomen, the No. 32-ranked Paola Suarez, will reach her potential and is more hopeful for Roland Garros semifinalist Clarissa Fernandez, who lost in the first round here.

"If they get mentally strong and set goals they could be up there. More Clarissa, because she's younger. Paola has been playing for a while and she has had her opportunities. There's also a young player, Gisela Dulko, who hits the ball so well. But the younger players, their games are unorganized. You have to know what your doing and it would help to have good coaches."

Sabatini said she was seriously affected by the 9/11 attacks, saying that she loves New York and that the tragedy "hurt the whole world." However, she still has sweet memories of 1990 when she returns to Flushing Meadows.

"It was funny, from the first day I started to play, I dreamt I was going to win the tournament and I dreamt that every day that I was holding the trophy," she said.