Saturday, August 10, 2002
Williams, Capriati upset
By BETH HARRIS
AP Sports Writer
MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif. — Chanda Rubin upset top-seeded Serena Williams 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 in Friday's quarterfinals of the JPMorgan Chase Open, ending the French Open and Wimbledon champion's 21-match winning streak.
No. 2 Jennifer Capriati exited within an hour of Williams, losing 6-3, 6-3 to Japan's Ai Sugiyama.
“Everyone has their off-days,” a dejected Capriati said.
Sugiyama will play No. 3 Lindsay Davenport, who stopped the chaos with a 7-6 (2), 6-2 victory over Eleni Daniilidou.
“It's surprising to lose both of them in the same day,” Davenport said. “Obviously, I didn't want to keep the trend going.”
Williams hadn't lost since a three-set defeat to Justine Henin in the German Open final on May 12. Besides her titles in the two consecutive Grand Slam events, Williams' streak included the Italian Open and saw her move into the world's No. 1 ranking for the first time.
“This isn't a setback. I'm still No. 1 and I still plan on getting that (U.S.) Open,” she said. “It really doesn't matter to me.”
It did to a grateful Rubin, who's ranked 21st and playing just her eighth tournament of the year after undergoing left knee surgery in January. It was her second such surgery in a year.
“It's definitely, so far, the biggest win that I've had,” said Rubin, an 11-year pro from Lafayette, La., who has won four career singles titles. “I feel like it's about time.”
No. 4 Jelena Dokic beat Rita Grande 6-4, 6-1, and will meet Rubin in the other semifinal.
Sugiyama watched some of the Williams-Rubin match before taking stadium court at Manhattan Country Club. Sugiyama said she was thinking: “OK, now my turn. I can also do it.”
Williams had plenty of chances against Rubin, the 12th seed.
“She had to play great tennis to beat me,” Williams said. “Anyone to beat me has to play great, so, obviously, I think she played really, really well. She did great.”
Rubin led 6-2, 4-3 and was serving with a 40-love lead when she double-faulted twice in a row. Williams hit a backhand volley winner for deuce, then Rubin netted a backhand to give Williams her first break point.
Williams cashed in on her third break point, hitting a forehand winner to even the set at 4-all. She won the next two games, including breaking Rubin at love, to take the set 6-4.
“I was kicking myself for a while in the third set, but it was just a question of getting back to the game plan and fighting through to the end of the match,” Rubin said.
Williams led 4-1 in the third set, but Rubin, an experienced doubles player, used lobs and drop shots to keep Williams on the run. Rubin led 5-4, but got broken after two deuces and the set was even at 5.
Rubin broke right back when Williams netted a forehand for a 6-5 lead, then served out the 2-hour, 8-minute match. On Rubin's first match point, Williams netted a backhand.
“It was just a battle of wills at the end,” Rubin said.
During Williams' winning streak, she was extended to three sets only three times, beating Capriati in two of those.
“The whole match I just couldn't get my rhythm, my technique wasn't right, I just could not get the shot that I would like to hit,” Williams said. “Maybe I was a bit rusty, maybe I didn't practice hard enough.”
Williams lost for the second straight year in the quarterfinals. She was playing her first tournament since beating older sister, Venus, in the Wimbledon final.
“Every Grand Slam is the stage where you want to beat them on,” Rubin said of the Williams sisters, “but this is a great step for me.”
Capriati struggled for more than 2 hours Thursday night before beating No. 16 Tamarine Tanasugarn 6-3, 6-7 (3), 6-2, and said it affected her Friday.
“I was flat,” she said. “I was not moving nearly as well as I have been. I was missing a lot of easy shots, you know, shots that I haven't been missing.”
But Sugiyama had an even later night. She and partner Daniela Hantuchova didn't finish a three-set doubles victory until 11:30 p.m.
“Physically, I was really feeling great,” said Sugiyama, who holds a 3-2 career edge over Capriati. “I was really ready for this match.”
Davenport blew three set points in the first set before dominating the tiebreaker, 7-2, against Daniilidou. She broke her opponent twice in the second set en route to reaching the semifinals for the third consecutive week.
Sports Stories
Bengals 24, Bills 17
Bengals-Bills Stats
Bledsoe impresses in Bills debut
Defense has set lofty goals
Cowboys 20, Raiders 6
Falcons 23, Jaguars 13
Ravens 12, Lions 6
Reds 12, Padres 10
Reds box, runs
Rehab stint in minors works wonders for Casey
Braves 6, Astros 5, 13 innings
Mets 2, Cardinals 1
Louisville 8, Columbus 2
Barry Bonds hits 600th homer
Chicago releases veteran DeShields
Strike deadline likely when players meet Monday
Williams, Capriati upset
