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WTA rankings getting wacky

Jennifer Capriati moves to No. 7, but her win in Australia shows how the top rankings mean little in women's tennis.

Compiled from Times wires

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 28, 2001

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Jennifer Capriati's Grand Slam breakthrough and a stunning stumble by Venus Williams at the Australian Open left the balance of power scrambled atop women's tennis.

Seldom, if ever, has the WTA Tour enjoyed such a depth of championship talent. Five players have won the past six Grand Slam titles, and that group doesn't include top-ranked Martina Hingis.

The jumble will make tournaments delightfully difficult to predict.

"It's going to be a great year," Capriati said.

She was speaking for herself, but fans are in for a treat, especially if Capriati can sustain the brilliant play in Melbourne that resulted in her first major title. She beat Hingis 6-4, 6-3 in Saturday's final.

The victory will vault Capriati to seventh in this week's rankings. The top five will be Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, Venus Williams, Monica Seles and Serena Williams. But after Capriati and French Open champion Mary Pierce, there's a steep dropoff.

It's the first time Capriati has been in the top 10 since early 1994, when she abandoned the tour at age 17 because of drug and personal problems. Now she's a happy, mature, confident 24-year-old who seems determined to make up for lost time.

"From here on, I will always have the belief in myself that I can do anything," she said. "I will never be afraid in any match."

Her upset victory came 48 hours after another shocker -- Venus Williams' 6-1, 6-1 loss to Hingis. Just when it appeared the Wimbledon, U.S. Open and Olympic champion was ready to dominate women's tennis, she endured the most lopsided loss of her career.

"Not everyone can win every time," Williams said. "It's early in the year. A lot of players have a tough time early in the year."

Serena Williams played better than her older sister in the early rounds before losing to Hingis in the quarterfinals.

For Hingis the victories were doubly significant, because she beat both Williams sisters in the same tournament for the first time. In response to their overpowering strokes, she has gotten stronger and improved her serve.

It's two years since Hingis' fifth and most recent Grand Slam title, but she remains the most consistent player on tour and a threat to win any event.

But there will be more obstacles than ever with the inclusion of Capriati, who is capable of winning on every Grand Slam surface. She reached the semifinals at Wimbledon, the French Open and the U.S. Open by 15. And she won the gold medal on clay at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. She wasn't sure how to compare that with winning the Australian Open.

"I was thinking about that," she said. "It's just too far apart. That actually seems like another life. This is a new life, a different life. It's actually winning something for the first time again."

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