Article sent by Todd Spiker

JELENA-DOKIC.com - July 10, 2003

 

(Yes, it's that time again.  One year after the inaugural State of Jelena's Game report here at JD.com, the moment has come for an update.)


THE STATE OF JELENA'S GAME

 

   That was what Martina Navratilova said about Jelena exactly one year ago as she was losing to Daniela Hantuchova in the 4r of Wimbledon, back when Martina was a part-time television commentator and before she was re-born as a doubles specialist extroidanaire who's now bearing down on the fair Miss Dokic in the WTA doubles rankings (#14 to Jelena's #13).
   So, as we stand sixty-five Jelena matches (of which she's won just 35) wiser, after an even earlier 3r loss at Wimbledon to Maria Sharapova, has anything changed?  On the surface, it'd be easy to say that things are actually worse.  Based purely on wins and losses, they are.  Clearly, the Jelena of July 2003 is not the one of July 2002.  In some obvious ways (such as the 23-26 mark from last year's US Open to now), that's a worrisome reality.
   But, taken in a long-range context, there's a touch of "good" that might overwhelm the easy-to-see problems.  Certainly, at various times this season, Jelena has looked like a player eons away from taking anything "good" from her struggles.  But it'd be simplistic to speak too soon and judge the Book of Jelena solely on its scuffed cover.
   This report is meant to lift up a few rocks and identify what's underneath other than that 15-17 record that Jelena is currently sporting as she heads into the North American hardcourt season.  As it stands, it's apparent that she is still a work in progress.  So, you'll have to forgive her for all the bright orange traffic cones that are set up around the court whenever she plays.  With luck, there'll be a grand re-opening sometime over the next five months... and Jelena will be cutting the ribbon on the next memorable phase of her tennis career.


A FISH OUT OF WATER, HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT

   A year ago, I theorized here that a Top 5 ranking was "a reality between (then) and the US Open," but that Jelena's game was "imitating a fairly new automobile long overdue for a trip to a mechanic.  It runs smoothly downhill, but it begins to labor once it meets a more challenging terrain."  There was no need to sell her game for scrap metal, but a tuneup looked to be required to "re-purpose" her tennis for the long haul.  She was not doing everything to be the best player she could be.  It wasn't a dire emergency situation, but something similar to that was on the horizon.
   That Top 5 ranking (#4 actually) did occur right before the US Open, and it proved out that Jelena's great success cleverly masked problems in her game that were hiding in plain sight.  Her ranking had been largely maintained as much by her talent as it was by an overly-heavy schedule and injuries to a few other Top 10 players (though, to be fair, Jelena went through her own battle with injuries early in the '02 campaign).  Remember, signs of slippage were evident last year even as Jelena was still lifting championship trophies, as Jelena's two Tier I titles of 2001 were not matched, and were replaced with Tier III and IV crowns instead.

 

   Martina also mentioned back then that Jelena's game was "user-friendly" for opponents, considering any awkward shots -- especially those that brought her forward to the net -- caused her problems and made her resemble a "fish out of water."  The blueprint to frustrate -- and defeat -- Jelena was common knowledge.
   Somewhere along the way, Jelena came to the same conclusion as Navratilova.  All the things that the recent Wimbledon Mixed Doubles champ said were sore points in the Dokic game -- an inability and unwillingness to move aggressively forward on the court, a poor second serve and a lack of variety in her shots, and no discernible "Plan B" in her gameday tactics -- were precisely the things that Jelena decided to do something about once she played her final match of 2002.  She couldn't contend for a grand slam title with the one-dimensional game she had a year ago, and that wasn't good enough for her.  Thus, she hired Heinz Gunthardt to help her make the changes and admitted a willingness to fall back a bit for much of 2003, if necessary, in exchange for better opportunities later in the season and into 2004 and beyond.
   Hopes were high that things would work out beautifully, for Gunthardt had a stint as 22-time slam singles champion Steffi Graf's coach on his resume and knew what it took to build the better champion Jelena wanted to be.


THE NAME IS DOKIC... JELENA DOKIC

   The process of building a better Jelena doesn't require Her Majesty's Secret Service to issue a license to kill.  Recent evidence shows that no 007 flights of fancy are necessary for a Top 10 player to tweak their game and produce best-ever results.  Amelie Mauresmo changed coaches in 2002 and her more aggressive game (and willingness to come to the net) produced SF at both Wimbledon and the US Open.
   And there's the case of Justine Henin-Hardenne.
   JHH is shorter (5'-5"/1.67m to 5'-9"/1.75m) and lighter (126lbs/57kg to 132lbs/60kg) than Jelena, but has always had more power on her serve (she also gives away fewer free points with DFs) and has always been surprisingly powerful off the ground... and that's not even mentioning her better ability to think on her feet on the court, or her unpredictable and varied game.  A year ago, I said it was far "easier to see Henin slipping through and winning a slam than Jelena" despite her physical disadvantages, and that's exactly what the Belgian did in winning Roland Garros after spending her offseason getting noticably stronger and putting an additional bit of sting in her groundstrokes.
   But after JHH has risen to new heights in Europe, Jelena is still smack dab in the middle of her transition.  It was hoped last year and after the Gunthardt hiring that the constant reminders Jelena experienced through good coaching in practice would plant the seeds in her psyche that would sprout and blossom in matches, but she's had a difficult time instituting what she has learned when the points count, despite comments about how well things go in practice.  Overcoming her natural inclination to simply pound groundstrokes from the baseline has proven to be a tough nut to crack.  Change is always difficult, but this new language has been so difficult for Jelena to learn it's as if it resembles a cave wall full of heiroglyphics in her mind.  Still, it shouldn't be a question of whether she's capable of becoming bilingual in a tennis sense, it's how long it will take for her to become fluent.
   The talent to pull it off is there. She HAS managed to fearlessly venture to the net far more often in matches this year, and while her volleys aren't perfectly crisp they ARE serviceable enough to work in her favor (and give opponents something else to think about).  And there's no reason why she can't have a more consistent (if not stronger) serve that isn't the liability her current one still is.  She's picked up her power on her first and second serves, but an increase in DF has accompanied the additional aces and higher speed averages.  The Sharapova match was a case study in all that is wrong (just look at how badly Jelena trailed the Russian in Aces/DF and 2nd Serve Win %):


................SHARAPOVA...DOKIC
ACES/DF...........8/1.......2/7
1st Serve %.......61%.......73%
1st Serve Win %...70%.......78%
2ND SERVE WIN %...60%.......27%


   It IS proper to wonder whether Jelena has the patience to play out this transitionary period to its completion.  And, at the moment, patience is an essential trait since she hasn't been able to maintain any consistency in her results in 2003, something that she stated back in February that she felt she COULD do while undergoing the process of changing her game.  Riding out this season so far has been a long and difficult battle that's already seen Gunthardt shot out on an ejector seat after Jelena's 2r exit in Paris.  Now, Borna Bikic has been installed as the new right-hand man/mentor/additional set of eyes.  The clock is likely already ticking, waiting for an upturn in results that will justify his hiring (or quite the opposite).
   Obviously, the uncharactistic struggles of 2003 have already left Jelena shaken... but is she stirred enough to return to her past heights and beyond?


NOT EXPECTING MUCH

   The words still ring in the ear --  "I'm not expecting much the rest of this year."  After Eastbourne, that was Jelena's uncharacteristically unchallenging assessment of her own abilities and prospects.
   Maybe it can be forgiven and passed off as a momentary lapse for a player who has now gone over a year since she last won a singles title.  Aside from the needless drama and controversy that still court her (Damir, Australia, Yugoslavia/Serbia-Montenegro, Fed Cup, Olympics, etc.) off the court, what's happened on it -- or more specifically, the thought process all the early-round losses have produced in Jelena's own mind -- has made Jelena seem disconnected and overly pessimistic.
   Confidence and winning go hand-in-hand.  Even more than was the case a year ago, Jelena sometimes faces two opponents in every match -- the player on the other side of the net, and herself.  Is it any wonder that Jelena has a 1-15 record this year when she loses the 1st set?
   All season, the long-vaunted match toughness has been noticably absent (the 0-for-4 on break points vs. Sharapova was only the latest example) as a few close losses early in the year have evolved into a disturbing pattern.  Even on a good day, a dominant set is often followed up by a perplexing period of seeming disinterest that only makes Jelena question her tennis even when she has managed to win a match.
   Jelena's belief in her own game has never been lower than it has been at times this season.  A propensity to wear her emotions on her sleeve can be a beautiful thing when she's feeling good about her prospects, but when she's full of questions it's just another obstacle to overcome.  When Jelena isn't confident, everyone watching knows it.  In 2003, the growing lack of expection has seemed to remove all emotion from Jelena's on-court demeanor, making it difficult to discern any difference in her face no matter if she wins a point or loses it.  Having a poker face is fine if you're Chris Evert or Steffi Graf, but when Jelena has one it's no concerted effort to contain her emotions -- it's a sign of a problem (if you have a tape of the Sharapova match, watch it and count how many times Jelena, in stark contrast to her opponent, has a positive expression on her face -- the ledger will tilt overwhelmingly in the Russian's favor).
   A change in on-court demeanor might not seem overly important, but for a streaky player such as Jelena it could be a tactic that allows her to maintain an optimistic attitude through sheer force of will.  Staying positive and urging oneself on -- it's precisely the type of thing that Billie Jean King has often stressed when she's worked with players such as Navratilova in the past.  In order to run, Jelena needs to first take a steady step... and refusing to get down on herself in tough times would be a move in the right direction.


JELENA, EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE

   Amidst less success, though, is Jelena STILL in a better place than she was a year ago?  Is she closer to contending for that elusive slam title, or at least joining the Belgians as a recent slam finalist?
   Surprisingly, a case can be made that the answer is "yes."  The one-dimensional Jelena simply wasn't going to cut it in the Williams Era, where the Sisters have pushed other top players to become fitter and develop bigger and better weapons.  At the moment, Jelena isn't well-armed enough to effectively enter the fray -- but she IS finally making the attempt to be the best player she can be.  THAT, even with less success under her belt, puts her ahead of where she was one year ago.
   But when will Jelena's work bear fruit?  Well, there WERE hopeful signs at Wimbledon that that time may be closer than it was short while ago.  For, lo and behold against Sharapova, Jelena actually served-and-volleyed successfully on two consecutive points (volleying one winner, while Sharapova hit a ball out past a net-charging Jelena on the other) in the late stages.  Ultimately, it didn't change the match's outcome.  But it was an encouraging sign, especially when combined with Jelena's effective attempts at drop shots and other change of pace tactics (though too few and far between) during the contest.  It was actually a cameo appearance of a legitimate "Plan B," though a rough one badly in need of a second draft.
   At the very least, two coaches and six months into her season, it was proof that some components of a "new" Jelena are coming to the surface on occasion.  Not with the frequency to cause jitters ala the cutting dorsal fin in "Jaws," but enough to see that Jelena is trying to make Gunthardt's (and now Bikic's) teachings work.
   Wimbledon's bright spots didn't end there.  After winning a tight match over Elena Baltacha in the 1st Round of Wimbledon, Jelena even pounded her heart as she looked to the friend's box and said in a press conference that she would have lost the match a few month's ago.  Whether it was an accurate assessment or not, as long as Jelena believes it, it's true enough to matter.
   Staying positive.  Urging herself on.
   If Bikic had any hand in changing Jelena's bad Eastbourne attitude, then a major early battle has been won.  The Jelena who doesn't expect much from herself will get even less than she could ever imagine.  The Jelena we saw a Wimbledon, while far from a polished and finished product, at least has a chance to find her way back to success before 2003 is over.


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