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 Wimbledon win works wonders Relaxed Novotna cruises into Open semifinals
Posted: Tuesday September 08, 1998 09:19 PM
NEW YORK (AP) -- Meet the new Jana Novotna, relaxed and having fun, hanging out at the U.S. Open, thoroughly enjoying watching other tennis players worry about playing her. Winning Wimbledon can do wonders for the psyche. "It gives you confidence," she said, "not only for the next couple of weeks, but it gives you confidence for life. "I mean not too many people can do something like that. I have worked very hard over the years to win a Grand Slam tournament." Now she is reaping the benefits. Novotna, seeded No. 3, moved into the semifinals of the Open on Tuesday with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over No. 11 Patty Schnyder, continuing her summer of success. She will play doubles partner Martina Hingis, who advanced with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Monica Seles. Wimbledon changed perceptions about Novotna, who had gone through some painful Grand Slam losses before her breakthrough. Now, other players fear her. "I feel that way, yes," she said. "I feel like they are afraid of me. When they are ahead of me, they are unsure they can finish it off. It is a great achievement, a big step forward for me. "When you respect somebody, it makes it harder to beat them." Novotna's confidence has soared but that doesn't mean she isn't happy to have some help from the other players now and then. There was, for example, Schnyder's straight-set elimination of Steffi Graf a round earlier. If Graf had won that match, she would have been across the net from Novotna on Tuesday. And there is too much history there for Novotna to forget, especially the fold at Wimbledon in 1993 when she blew a big lead to lose to Graf in the finals. "I was pleased when I heard the news that she beat Steffi," Novotna said. "There's no question about it. I mean playing Steffi today in this [wind] condition, it would be really difficult because she hits really hard and she's very overpowering. It would be much harder to create my game." Playing Novotna proved more difficult for Schnyder, especially because of the winds. "It was terrible to play in," she said. "At the beginning, it was not that bad. But it started to get really bad and she played so deep, I couldn't really find my game. Then it got worse and worse. It was horrible. "I just started very slow and then she played really good and she didn't let me find my game." For Schnyder, just 18, it was a frustrating way to go out, especially after beating Graf. Novotna, who will be 30 next month, has no recollection of herself or her game when she was Schnyder's age. "I don't even remember or want to remember," she said. "I wasted too much time. I'm so much more mature and confident. I feel so much better about myself than I did when I was younger." Winning the quarterfinal was a case of turning the tables for Novotna, who in 13 Grand Slam seasons has so often been victimized in big matches. That was the old Jana. This is a new, improved version, more mature, her game better developed, her psyche in a comfortable place. "This is the best year of my career, no question about it," she said. "What is really important is that I'm enjoying myself. The older I get, the more I enjoy it, which is rather unusual to see. It doesn't happen too often. I'm glad it's happening to me now. I want to take advantage."
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