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Revitalized Capriati, inspired by Agassi, reaches quarters of Bell
Posted: Thursday November 04, 1999 11:01 PM
QUEBEC (AP) -- Jennifer Capriati, trying to regain the form she flashed as a promising teen, beat Seda Noorlander of the Netherlands 6-4, 6-2 on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Bell Challenge tennis tournament. In another afternoon singles match, American Mashona Washington advanced to her first WTA quarterfinal with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Japan's Shinobu Asagoe in a match of qualifiers. In the night session, sixth-seeded Lisa Raymond eliminated Jana Nejedly, the last Canadian in the singles field, 6-0, 6-1, and third-seeded Chanda Rubin beat Australian Nicole Pratt 6-3, 6-3. Capriati, once a top-10 player and now 29th after years of trouble away from tennis, said she drew inspiration from Andre Agassi, himself a former wunderkind who slipped out of the top 100 before gaining the No. 1 world ranking this season. "When we talk, we really talk about why we really play tennis, and he's just told me to forget about the money and all that and don't get into what everyone else thinks," Capriati said. "It's hard for people who aren't playing. They don't really understand what's going on out there. It's obviously easier to talk to somebody who knows where you're coming from. Hopefully you learn things and really appreciate what someone else has to say." Capriati was arrested for shoplifting late in 1993 after a ring was stolen from a Florida store. Though the case was later dismissed, Capriati found more problems. Police at a party she was attending the following year found traces of marijuana in her belongings. Capriati, who in 1990 in the French Open became the youngest semifinalist in Grand Slam history, went into rehab and returned in 1996. She has shown glimpses of her old form and the progression continued this year. She won her first tournament since 1993 and could finish the year in the top 30 for the first time since '96. "I don't want to put pressure on myself and say that I'll be in the top 10," Capriati said. "I think maybe I have a chance but I just want to keep thinking about the tennis itself."
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