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Article sent by Glyn James
Wien Energy Grand Prix:Welcome to Austria - This week, Jelena has elected to extend her clay court season rather than defend her title on the grass of Birmingham, UK, and prepare thoroughly for the Wimbledon Championships which are closing in on us. The tournament, like the one in Birmingham is a Tier III event with $170,000 worth of prize money. I'm sure the prize money is the last thing on Jelena's mind who will be desperate to end an extremely bitter clay court season on a rather sweeter note, and a Tier III event may be just what the doctor ordered. Jelena is the number one seed, and Venus' Roland Garros conquerer Vera Zvonareva is the second seed, with Anna Pistolesi and Silvia Farina Elia making up the rest of the top four. Tournament sponsors inclue 'Wien Energy' and the American sports company 'Wilson.' For ticket information and directions to the event, you'd be advised to contact the tournament organiser, which you can find here - p.m.reichel@matchmaker.at. If you fancy yourself as a bit of a German speaker however, you may find some useful information on the official tournament website, which can be found at http://www.wienenergiegrandprix.at/. Unfortunately though, I don't speak German, but I did work out that 'sponsoren' is something to do with sponsorship, and I worked it out all by myself. Ok then, to bring my unfounded self-admiration to a sudden halt, I believe there's a pressing matter concerning a particular Miss Dokic that needs to be discussed. I can't keep waiting!! - I'm sure that thought is running through the heads of everyone who have an interest in Jelena. Some will be hoping for Jelena to ditch Enrique and Heinz, whilst the majority of us would give our left arm to see Jelena capturing a title this week. There is a sickening feeling of "What if Jelena never gets out of this slump?" Most can link the situation with Miss Kournikova's downfall. The belief that Jelena is too good to not be a regular top tenner is out-weighed each and every week as Jelena's 2003 downward spiral seems to be finding new depths of low-lands. On the bright side, Jelena didn't expect the change to be easy, and is already talking about 2003 being a step back in preparation for making two steps forward in 2004. Surely though, Jelena must be kicking herself to a certain degree. Just last year she was as good as, if not better than the Belgians who are now frightening the Williams sisters out of their skin. Jelena took the risk in the belief that the Williams sisters would not lose their grip, but such is life, Jelena looks to have made the wrong decision ... but this will not be confirmed until either 2004, where she hopes to reach the promise land, or until she says goodbye to her Fonzy - styled coach, which is looking like a worrying possibility. This week however, it's back to the drawing board for Jelena, as she desperately seeks a winning streak before the grass season (although to call it a season is a joke!). The Draw - Jelena is the number one seed, and can be seen sitting proudly at the top of the draw, although it's not very likely that she'll live up to her seeding.
Conclusion - A likely second round match-up with Grande lurks after Jelena's first round bye, and most of us are already thinking about another early loss. You don't need me to take you through the draw. There's only so much repetition I can take before I go clinically insane. It's the same old story. If Jelena turns up as Jelena this week, then she'll reach the final with her eyes closed, but the reality is that we haven't seen the Jelena we know for sometime now, and she can potentially crash out to anyone. Once again, my only advice is to place your money against Jelena this week. You should get fairly decent odds, and if you lose your money, who cares? Jelena gets a priceless win. It's a distressing time, but Jelena's fans will behind her, and will still be here when this slump ends. We eagerly await this return to form as much as you do Jelena. Good luck! ---------------------------------------------------- PREDICTION - 1rd - Bye. 2rd - Grande def. Jelena in three. ---------------------------------------------------- Comments: glyn_james@jelena-dokic.com |
