Hantuchova Stuns Top-Seeded Mauresmo at WTA Eastbourne

Posted on June 19, 2004

Wildcard Daniela Hantuchova showed she is back in a big way from her confidence and weight battles, on Friday upending No. 1 seed Amelie Mauresmo in three sets at Eastbourne.

"This is exactly what I needed," Hantuchova said. "I just couldn't wait to get my confidence back. Now I feel good about my game, and I just want to win as many matches as I can, whether it's this week or next week."

Part of Hantuchova's success is due to hooking up with former coach Nigel Sears, who grew up and lives 15 miles from Eastbourne.

"She played well, a solid match," said Mauresmo, who was twice up a break in the third set, after falling to Stick Girl. "She played a very tough match. I didn't take advantage of my opportunities. I thought I was close to victory, but things change quickly on this surface, they can go so fast."

In the final Hantuchova will face No. 2 seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova, who outlasted countrywoman and No. 4 seed Vera Zvonareva 6-1 in the third.

Rain stopped short the women's semifinals at 's-Hertogenbosch Friday, with Klara "Kouky" Koukalova beating fellow un-seed Anabel "Funky Cold" Medina Garrigues 7-5, 3-0 ret. (left ab strain), and (3)Mary Pierce tied with (8)Lina Krasnoroutskaya 2-2, to finish on Saturday.

Either Pierce of Kras will have a long Saturday with the resumption of their semifinal, then the final against Kouky.

ATP REVIEW/PREVIEW
At Nottingham Friday, American and No. 6 seed Taylor Dent fought off a match point to beat Victor Hanescu 7-6 in the third in their rain-delayed quarterfinal, but the tank went dry later in the day when Dent contested the semifinal against Swedish qualifier Thomas Johansson, losing in straights.

Dent, who fired his last coach who apparently focused too much on conditioning, looked to again fall victim to a lack of conditioning, on grass yet.

"I don't remember the last time I was in a final," Johansson said. "I'm really happy with the way I'm playing and the way I'm moving on the court...I think Taylor could have been a little bit tired, I got an early break in the second and then I was on a roll."

In the final Johansson will face the top-seeded Paradorn Srichaphan, who easily dismissed Swede Robin Soderling in straights. Srichaphan leads the career head-to-head with Johansson 1-0, and is the first top seed to reach the final in the history of the event. Johansson is shooting for his first title since the 2002 Australia Open.

The doubles final will be (1)Hanley/Woodbridge vs. (3)Leach/MacPhie.

Rain has put the schedule far behind on the man's side at 's-Hertogenbosch, with only two players advancing into the semis Friday in (4)Tommy Robredo (d. (8)Verdasco in three) and Michael Llodra (d. "Everybody Loves" Raemon Sluiter in three).

Saturday will see two rain-delayed quarters played in (1)Guillermo Coria vs. (7)Arnaud Clement, and Mario "Baby Goran" Ancic vs. Martin "Berzerk" Verkerk, then the semifinals.

NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS
Amelie Mauresmo says she is ready to put her French Open choke behind her and find some success on the grass: "I think I'm capable of volleying pretty well so I have a lot of hope for the next few weeks."...Jennifer Capriati and Heinz Gunthardt are no more...David Nalbandian, who has lost to the last three eventual champs in Slam play, injured a rib in a British exo Friday putting some doubt in his appearance next week...Martina Navratilova says now that the Williams sisters regard tennis as a hobby, their days of domination are over: "The Williamses are finding out that tennis cannot be just a hobby. It needs to be a full-time deal because it takes such a long time to build up confidence and so little time to shatter it. Players used to go on court against either sister hoping they were not going to make a fool of themselves. Now even lower-ranked women know they can hang in there and get a respectable score. The better players know they can win, and that levels the playing field a tremendous amount. The aura of invincibility which the Williams sisters used to have has gone."...Anna Kournikova is playing World Team Tennis with the Kansas City Explorers, to begin on July 9, and says it could be a stepping stone to rejoining the WTA Tour: "I had a great experience last year and wanted to come back. I still feel I can play competitive tennis, which I miss a lot, and this format allows me to play short term without the risk of being injured again on the Tour...I'm going to see how I feel traveling for five days. I want to see how my back is doing."...This week the WTA went one step farther in their horrid "Get In Touch With Your Feminine Side" campaign, introducing "colorful new taglines" such as "Girls Just Want To Have Fun," "No Man's Land," "They May Not Cook, But They Sure Can Serve," "Sure, They Do Dishes. Big Crystal Ones," and "A Woman's Gotta Do What A Woman's Gotta Do." Says WTA CEO Larry Scott: "The theme and tone of the campaign embodies the intensity, style, passion and athleticism that symbolize this new era of women's tennis that is attracting new fans and propelling the game to unprecedented heights." Nice campaign-speak. How about something that symbolizes an all-time high of tournament pull-outs for top players due to injuries and off-court hobbies? How about "A Woman's Gotta Pull When a Woman Has a TV Gig Instead"?...Only three active players have reached the quarterfinals or better at all four Grand Slam events: Andre Agassi, Marat Safin and David Nalbandian...Wimbledon withdrawals for the men: Andre Agassi (hip), James Blake (neck), Gaston Gaudio (foot), Gustavo Kuerten (hip), Nicolas Escude (shoulder), Younes El Aynaoui (right foot), Agustin Calleri (groin), and Rafael Nadal (left foot)...There has been a Williams sister in the Wimbledon final over the last four years...Martina Navratilova is the defending mixed doubles champ at Wimbledon...An American woman has won Wimbledon the last five years...The Age's Robert Lusetich: "During the French Open, Martina Navratilova was told by the chair umpire after hitting up for her first-round match that baseball caps with logos were forbidden. "Can I have some scissors?" asked Navratilova, who delighted the Roland Garros crowd by cutting out the Nike swoosh. She then added: "That's what's wrong with tennis, right here." If only it were so simple. For a sport on the wane, practically not on the radar screen -- or, more pointedly, on the television screen -- in the US, where the big corporate dollars live, alienating a massive US company which pours money into the game is beyond hubris."...Serena on her budding acting career: "Everyone says I'm a natural actress, but I need to be more expressive with my eyes. You have to use every facial thing you can muster up in emotional roles. Crying -- it's difficult. I can, though." We've seen some good acting in post-match conferences...Amanda Coetzer announced her retirement from tennis on Friday. The 32-year-old reached a career-high of No. 3 with nine singles and nine doubles titles: "It's been an amazing journey for me. No matter what I may do in the future, I know that tennis will always be a part of my life."...Greg Rusedski will drop to the No. 3-ranked Brit (behind Arvind Parmar) when the rankings come out Monday...Former No. 1 Mats Wilander says the Andy Roddick-Brad Gilbert pairing has run its course: "Andy Roddick, he's gotten a lot of help from Brad Gilbert," Wilander said at Davis Cup in April. "But at the same time, I'm not sure he's doing anything for him anymore. What he taught Roddick didn't take too long -- it's just that somebody told him...I'm not sure he's developing his game anymore. I think he's just keeping him interested in fighting and winning tennis matches."