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Martina's Waterloo French Open still elusive for No. 1 star
Posted: Tuesday May 30, 2000 02:19 AM
By Pedro Pinto, CNNSI.com PARIS -- There's one thing that eats away at Martina Hingis. Yes, she owns 29 career titles and five singles Grand Slam trophies. But she has never reigned victorious at Roland Garros. "I've been talking about winning this tournament for the last three years,” she said. “But I just want to play some good tennis as I think I did in the last year’s. And we'll see what will happen." One person who thinks this may be the year the completes the sweep is one of her top competitors, Monica Seles "Well I think Martina is playing some terrific tennis,” says Seles who has won the French Open three times. “She's No. 1 in the world so I think her chances are very good in every tournament she enters." Not surprisingly, Hingis says the lack of a title is an indication of how difficult is can be for her to win at Roland Garros. “It's still the one I haven't won so far, “ she says. “This is the most difficult Grand Slam to win, maybe next to the U.S. Open. They're all very different, but this is probably physically the hardest one.” Hingis came within three points of winning the French Open last year, but then, when a return of serve against Steffi Graf was called wide, she lost control, throwing one of the greatest fits in the history of tennis. The crowd turned on her and Graf took full advantage. And when it was all over, the world No. 1 left center court in tears.
That’s something she can now laugh about. “When I saw the Tennis Magazine and the pictures in there, I almost started laughing. Because it's funny, when you go through an emotional experience like I did last year, and when you look back, it's funny.” That's one incident Hingis will never forget and neither will the people of the French capital. "When I got here first day, Tuesday, and since then I've never had so many people recognizing me,” said Hingis. “So, it's been real funny walking around Paris so far." Hingis believes that in order to make her third final at Roland Garros and win, she must concentrate on two things. "Patience, control, and just have control over myself and everything that will happen in the next two weeks." At 19 years of age, the Swiss Miss is an international icon and already a veteran of the tour. But there doesn't seem to be any sign of her losing interest in the game anytime soon. This is my sixth year to be on tour,” Hingis said. “I started very early, and I always keep saying, ‘Oh, how long am I going to play? But that's with everybody the same. When Arantxa (Sanchez-Vicario) started, she was only 14, Steffi the same and they're still playing. Well some of them. They also said they were going to finish when they were about to be 22 or 23, so, who knows? Ask me again in five years. Hingis has won a singles title in Paris before. In 1993, at the age of 13, she captured the junior’s tournament. But that hasn't quenched her thirst of lifting the official trophy at Roland Garros and completing her Grand Slam.
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