| | Results
MELBOURNE, Australia -- Jennifer Capriati, cracking winners
with the power and control of her golden teen years, surged to her
first Grand Slam quarterfinals since 1993 on Sunday in the
Australian Open.
Capriati won 20 of the last 22 points in a 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 victory
over Patty Schnyder, who knocked off last year's runner-up, Amelie
Mauresmo, in the second round.
|  | | Lindsay Davenport waves to the crowd after her center-court victory. |
If Capriati gets past Ai Sugiyama, a 7-5, 6-4 winner over 1995
champion and No. 4 seed Mary Pierce, looming as a likely semifinal
foe is No. 2 Lindsay Davenport, who beat Anna Kournikova 6-4, 6-3
to reach the quarters.
Davenport's quarterfinal opponent will be No. 9 Julie
Halard-Decugis, who advanced when Jana Kandarr pulled out because
of a strained hamstring in her left leg.
After starting the tournament ranked No. 21, the 23-year-old
Capriati is guaranteed at least a No. 17 ranking.
Capriati, who finished 1998 ranked No. 101, had been as high as
No. 6 in 1991 and 1992, when she won the Olympic gold medal in
Barcelona. She dropped off the tour for several years, amid
much-publicized problems, after three quarterfinal finishes in
major tournaments and a first-round loss in the U.S. Open in 1993.
"I finally got past that fourth-round mark that has been
stopping me," said Capriati, who lost in that round in the French
and U.S. Opens last year. "I feel confident. I'm a lot stronger
physically (than in 1993), I'm in better shape, and I have more
variety.
"Today I was really put to a test. It's not easy to play
somebody like that. I think that's the best I've played so far."
If she isn't fully back to where she was in her good old days,
Capriati is close. She's serving consistently at close to 110 mph,
ripping returns cleanly, and pounding groundstrokes close to the
lines with confidence.
Against the No. 29-ranked Schnyder, Capriati simply wore her
down in the third set. Serving at 1-1, Capriati fought off two
break-points to start a run of 12 straight points, including a
break of Schnyder's serve at love.
Capriati then yielded a couple of points while breaking Schnyder
again, and closed out the match at love with an overhead, a
brutally hard forehand winner and two errors by Schnyder.
"She just rolled over the top of me," Schnyder said. "She was
hitting the ball so hard and deep and making me run. At the end she
was just hitting winners everywhere.
"She's been a great player. She can beat anybody." | |
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Agassi holds off Philippoussis to reach Aussie Open quarters
Hingis, Serena reach fourth round at Australian Open
Kournikova clearly center of attention in Melbourne
Focused Capriati grinds out another victory
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