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 'I have nothing to regret' No tears for Tauziat after career tournament
Posted: Saturday July 04, 1998 04:16 PM
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -- The match had just ended, and Nathalie Tauziat watched from her courtside chair as the celebration began. New Wimbledon champion Jana Novotna climbed into the Centre Court stands to share the jubilant moment with her mother and coach. The crowd cheered, Novotna beamed, and Tauziat buried her face in a towel. There were no tears from the Frenchwoman, however, and Tauziat later acknowledged the second-place finish as the greatest achievement in her 15-year career. She lost to Novotna 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) in Saturday's final. "It was one of the best days of my life so far," Tauziat said. "I'm very happy with what I've done. I have nothing to regret." The Grand Slam final was the first for Tauziat, and it was the first Wimbledon final for a Frenchwoman since the legendary Suzanne Lenglen won her sixth title in 1925. Because of Tauziat's inexperience in big matches, she was considered an underdog against Novotna, who earned her first major title after finishing second at Wimbledon in 1993 and 1997. "It's never easy to play your game when you are for the first time in the final of a big tournament like this," said Tauziat, the No. 16 seed. "She played better than me. She has more experience than me in the final of a Grand Slam. She deserved to win Wimbledon, and I hope next year is going to be my Wimbledon." That's a long shot. Tauziat, 30, cracked the top 10 for the first time just this year, and she has won only four WTA Tour titles. She may be closer to retirement than another Grand Slam final. Tauziat and Notovna had split eight previous meetings, and Novotna was concerned about the matchup, even after beating Venus Williams and Martina Hingis in earlier rounds. "I knew coming into this match that it was going to be really, really hard to beat her," Novotna said. "She's very experienced, and I knew that this would be probably the toughest match of the whole championship. I felt like the match against Martina was a piece of cake compared to this one." Tauziat wanted to serve and volley, but she struggled with her first serves and was reluctant to come to the net behind soft second serves. Her hesitancy allowed Novotna to charge behind her returns, which may have decided the outcome. "She always puts you under pressure," Tauziat said. "I decided at the end sometimes to come in on my second serve to put her under pressure, but I think it was too late." As the match slipped away, Tauziat shrieked, kicked the ball and looked to the sky for help. When none was forthcoming, she settled for second place.
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