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EVENTS
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
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A stressful day for Team Williams
By Jon Wertheim, Sports Illustrated
Mother Williams' marathon day started at 11 Wednesday morning, when Venus took the court at Rod Laver Arena for her quarterfinal dustup against Amanda Coetzer. No sooner had the retractable roof closed and the match commenced than Oracene's nerves started to fray. Befitting a player who yawned shortly before taking the court, Venus was a somnambulist for the first three games, winning just a solitary point. After 21 minutes, Coetzer took the first set 6-2. As Venus settled into something of a rhythm in the second and cruised 6-1, her mother relaxed. As dignified as Richard Williams is bombastic, Oracene routinely clapped for well-played points, even those won by Coetzer. Barring the occasional bursts of "Come on, Venus," she betrayed no more passion than a neutral spectator. In the third set, it was back to the pressure cooker. After a welter of backhand errors, Venus was suddenly down 3-5 and staring at her first Grand Slam defeat in 18 matches. Not one to yell, Oracene simply nodded and said in a voice totally inaudible to her daughter, "You know what you need to do, Vee." Vee did indeed, breaking Coetzer, holding her serve, and then breaking again. As Coetzer tightened, Venus' balls that had been flying long suddenly found their mark. She finally prevailed in a battle of wills and nerves, 2-6, 6-1, 8-6. "The way she plays big points, it's innate," says Oracene. "She just tunes everything out and says, 'I'm not going to lose.' That's the best I can explain it." The 106-minute match warranted a stiff drink -- preferably Brandi -- but Oracene scarcely had time to stretch. Venus signed a few autographs and walked off the court, and then youngest daughter Serena took on Martina Hingis. Back in her second-row perch, Oracene joked to friends that she hoped this one would be easier. Ha. Hingis and Williams -- the Montagues and Capulets of women's tennis -- added to their collection of epics with the top match of the tournament. Playing what she categorized as her best tennis ever, Hingis won the first set 6-2, confounding Serena with her shotmaking and clever forays to the net. In between sets, Serena called a trainer to seek treatment for a purported case of food poisoning. As Serena mixed what she called "pink stuff" (presumably antacid) with fluid, it was the one time all day Oracene claims she truly fretted: "It's no fun seeing your daughter sick on the court." But Serena recovered miraculously to win the second set, playing her most aggressive tennis but committing just 10 errors. By the third set, the entire stadium could have used a dose of the "pink stuff." Outslugging a visibly gassed Hingis, a visibly gassed Serena held a 4-1 lead. Hingis then charged back to 4-4. They traded blows from there -- 5-5, 6-6 -- two dog-tired players still managing to furnish brilliant, contrasting tennis. With Hingis up 7-6 and 30-0, Serena played a drop shot that clipped the tape and trickled over. Oracene looked heavenward and smiled. But a minute later, Hingis held her first match point. In an wild exchange that featured every shot in the book, Serena survived hitting a cold-blooded stab volley. It was just a brief reprieve. Two points later, Hingis ran Serena halfway to Adelaide and closed out the match with an emphatic overhead. Oracene grimaced, but that was it. No head hung low, no swearing, no look as though her favorite puppy had just died. "I feel bad for Serena, but she'll be mad for a while and then she'll be OK," shrugged Oracene. "It's just a tennis match." Later in the evening, there was consolation for Serena and her mother alike when the doubles team of Williams-Williams outlasted Barbara Schett and Anna Kournikova in three sets. "I think I was going on what I would like to call reserve," said Serena. Oracene felt likewise. "Two matches that ended 8-6 in the third set and then doubles after that -- that's what I call stress." And she'll get another taste Thursday when Venus plays Hingis in the second semifinal. As long as her daughter wins, Mom will be happy. But Oracene sure wouldn't mind if Venus took care of business in straight sets. Short volleysNever one to pass up the opportunity to twist the knife, Hingis was more than a little bit skeptical about Serena Williams' alleged case of food poisoning: "Well, you have to watch what you eat," she said smiling. ... An antidote to two riveting women's matches: Sebastien Grosjean made easy work of Carlos Moya 6-1, 6-4, 6-2. ... Good to see that sportsmanship is alive in men's tennis. In the first game of the fourth set of their quarterfinal match, Arnaud Clement conceded the point on a winner by Yevgeny Kafelnikov that was erroneously called out. Karmic justice is alive and well. Clement won the game and the match, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6, 7-6. ... Venus and Serena Williams have hit the two fastest serves of the tournament, respectively, on the women's side. Third? Jennifer Capriati. ... From the rumor mill: Ian Thorpe was on hand watching Hingis Wednesday. ... At this stage of the tournament, Pat Rafter is too superstitious to shave his beard. Still, he acknowledges, "It's shocking, it's very ugly." Sports Illustrated senior writer Jon Wertheim will file daily reports through the end of the Australian Open. Click here to send a question to his Mailbag.
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