|
JENNIFER, SMILE
Capriati's gripping in attempt
to hold on to crown
By
Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net
|
Susan
Mullane
Camerawork USA, Inc.
|
FROM ROLAND GARROS –
There were plenty of reasons for Jennifer Capriati to smile on Saturday
– a beautiful sunny morning in the City of Light, a convincing
victory over Evie Dominkovic and her entire family in attendance
supporting her.
But while Jennifer is pleased
with her play, it has been impossible to see her dimples this week
because she isn't grinning at all. It appears that she is under
an enormous self-imposed pressure to repeat here, so much so that
she's already discussing the parameters of her retirement: if she
fails to stay near the top, the 26-year-old is gone.
"Now that I've gotten
to the top, I definitely want to try and stay," she said. "I
can't see myself dropping out. If I do start dropping out, I would
seriously think If I'm going to keep playing or not."
Jennifer says that right now,
she can't see herself retiring, because she's playing well enough
to seriously compete for every Slam title. But she added that she's
doesn't have the personality to just hang around if she's no longer
able to do so.
"I don't know how that
feels," Jennifer said. "Maybe I would just enjoy sticking
around. But right now, I couldn't see myself doing that. It's such
a tough and grueling sport and life. I don't know if it would be
worth it if you are kind of down there once you've been at the top.
Then it's hard."
As the golfers would say,
Jennifer is pressing. As the tennis player say, she's a little tight.
When asked whether she can relate to Kim Clijsters, who played a
pitiful match in losing 6-0 in the second set to Clarissa Fernandez
on Friday and that proceeded to give the increasingly tiresome "there's-more-importnant-things-in-life-than-winning-a-tennis-match"
speech, Capriati was sharp-tongued.
A SNAP RESPONSE
A reporter asked, "How do you
suppose you [are] reacting publicly?" Jennifer snapped, "Publicly?
Well, I don't think it matters publicly how you react. It's important
what you feel inside. I'm sure she's disappointed, devastated. But
maybe it helps her not to get down inside if she has a positive
outlook and not show everyone she's going to go and cry about it.
That would help me, to stay up and not just go and cry in front
of everyone."
It sounds like the question
touched a sore spot, which is Jennifer's severe dislike of having
to discuss her life and career with the public. Her inner self remains
hers and she's like to hold all of it for keeps between herself,
friends and family, and never have discuss her emotions in public.
That is a continuing theme in her career, from the time she was
a teen phenom, to the time that she was a tennis burn out, to now,
when she is a defending Roland Garros champion. With that attitude,
you can't expect her to smile much once she comes off court.
Another reporter read Jennifer
a quote from the egomaniacal John McEnroe's new book on (what else?),
ego, where Mac says that to get to the top in tennis, you need an
ego, and to stay there, you need an ego, and that selfishness is
a major part of pro tennis.
"I think with ego is
pride," Jennifer said. "To get to the top, you have to
have a lot of pride. For example, at the Australian this year, that
was pride and ego and I didn't want to lose. If you didn't have
that, you're not a champion, not a fighter. Part of ego is is being
able to fight. … You have to be a little selfish because there's
so much that requires being done."
It's hard to call Capriati
selfish, because although she isn't exactly brimming with happiness,
she's never been stuck-up. Rude? Yes, at times. But she wasn't born
with a golden spoon in her mouth and isn't snooty.
"You don't have to walk
around and think your God's gift to the earth," Jennifer said.
IN AT NO. 1, OUT NOT AT
NO. 1
By the way, while Capriati is the
No. 1 seed, she lost the No. 1 ranking to Venus Williams yesterday
and can't regain it here. She said it was no big deal, but then
added, "It goes to show you how bizarre it is if you win a
Grand Slam and you're not even No. 1 If you win two in the year
so far, you're not No. 1, that doesn't make any sense.
Well, it does make sense if
you consider that Venus won '01 Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and
has won more than a few other regular tournament titles in the the
past year and that Jennifer has won none. Sure, it will appear a
little odd if Jennifer repeats here here if she's isn't No. 1, but
what is a more strange is how badly she got beat up last fall (including
her quick defeat to Venus at the U.S. Open) and that she has lost
to Serena Williams three times this year. A medium-sized title here
or there would have meant that she would have kept the No. 1 spot
for at least another few weeks.
But Jennifer is no Venus and
Serena, players who when they decide they want to dominate, find
a way to win the Sydney's and Scottsdale's of the world. JCap implied
that her mentality is essentially built around peaking at the Slams.
"If I win 10 smaller
tournaments and not win a Grand Slam, I'd rather win a Grand Slam
and no other tournaments," said Capriati. "I haven't won
a clay court title coming into this, but I'd rather win this title.
Maybe I don't play [the other tournaments] the same way I play a
Grand Slam, the motivation, the mental. I never give up, but it's
different. I'm fighting for my life here. It's the most important
thing to me. I don't know how long I will be playing."
We may not see Capriati light
up Paris with a golden grin unless she wins the title, when she's
sure to let a torrent of emotions coming flying out. With victory,
comes relief. But even though she's playing extremely well right
now and says she's strong and confident, Capriati is beating herself
up inside, trying to convince herself that she can succeed again.
"I've got to try to hold
my crown here," Capriati said. "Last year, I was more
trying to get it. Mentally it's different."
|
