Jelena-dokic.com

Jelena-Dokic.com JELENA CORNER May 9, 2005

THE ROAD TO MOROCCO...and Beyond by Todd Spiker

Query: When are victories over players ranked #135, #200, #969, as well as the rarely-encountered "NR" (not ranked) reason for a bit of cautious rejoicing? Answer: Well, that's easy -- when your name is Jelena Dokic and you're engaged in a long-term struggle to be "Fair" again. Not everybody came to Rabat... but Jelena did. These days, she's springing forth from Monte Carlo and, after her trip to Morocco last week, the shadow of doubt that has shrouded her for so long might just be endangered. Consider this:

LONG WINNING STREAKS - 2003-05 4...October '03 (Zurich) 4...APRIL/MAY '05 (RABAT) 3...March '03 (Miami) 3...February '04 (Tokyo)

Mind you, Jelena didn't emerge fully re-christened as the Fair One. But check out these excerpts from her post-match Q&A after going out at the hands of #1 seed Na Li in the 2nd Round, following her first four-game winning streak in eighteen months:

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QUESTION: What were your impressions of the match today? JELENA: The 1st set was very difficult, I was never able to get into the match. My opponent wasn't giving me anything, and I was a little tight. In the 2nd set, I realized that I had nothing to lose. The crowd got into it and I began to get my confidence and my game. I was able to react well, play well, and fight for all the points. In the 3rd set, I began to be a little tired and I began to make a lot of errors. I had a lot of break points, but it was a good match despite the loss. QUESTION: What were your impressions of the tournament in general? JELENA: My participation in the tournament was beneficiary to my game, I was very satisfied. I won four matches in all, I played well, and I could have gone even further. All in all it was a good experience. QUESTION: You've been away from the tennis courts a long time. Can you say that the real Jelena Dokic will return? JELENA: I hope all goes well. In any case, I still have to work hard, but so far I think I'm on the right track.

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It's become such a rare thing on the Corner (and, this year, almost as rare as an actual edition of the Corner itself)... saying that Jelena is leaving an event with "good" oozing from her pores. But, in fact, she exited Rabat feeling just that way for the first time in ages (even last year's early SF in Tokyo included scraping-by wins over lesser-ranked players, an injury and thorough butt-kicking by Lindsay Davenport, 6-1/6-0). She didn't get what might have been a watershed win over Li, as her streakiness resurfaced after dominating performances in qualifying and the 1st Round (over Kurhajcova), but she pushed the Chinese world #35 to three sets despite dropping the 1st set at love. After having battled back in Estoril her last time out, following up a bad opening set loss to Alyona Bondarenko by winning the first five games of the 2nd and taking the Ukrainian to a 3rd (though ultimately losing), even Morocco's losing effort might signal the start of a nice trend. As time goes by... this could turn out to be the beginning of a beautiful comeback.

"EUROJELENA"...through the years 1999...10-4 2000...10-4 2001...17-7 2002...20-7 2003...7-8 2004...2-6 2005...0-1

As the "EuroJelena" Tour "officially" begins after the brief sojourn into North Africa, we find anything but the same old story -- instead, it's a fight for reputation and a whiff of her past glory. After eighteen months in what seemed like tennis' version of purgatory... until the eleven months that followed it amounted to the sport's version of hell (including a nine-match losing streak and a drop to #450), there seems to be a slight break in the dark clouds above Jelena's head. Even her 2005 season stats don't look so bad, or at least don't make one cringe:

2005 STATISTICS

W/L...........6-5 [Main Draw]...2-4 [Qualies].....4-1 3-setters.....1-2 Wins 1st......4-0 Loses 1st.....1-5 TB/extended...1-3 Total Sets..12-10

As EuroJelena sets down in Prague this week, are things to the point where one can feel it safe to bank on a 1st Round win over Zuzana Ondraskova, who last week ranked just inside the Top 100 at #99 (Jelena was #443)? Maybe not, but there's enough encouragement floating around to think that such a thing could be the case soon. If a win happens on Tuesday, a 2nd Round matchup with Jelena Kostanic is a possibility... giving the "real" Jelena another chance to take a big step before heading to Paris in search of her first slam match win since the 1st Round of the US Open in 2003 (yes, it's been THAT long). Thus, Miss Dokic trudges off, head up and looking forward rather than back. Hey, it's a start. Perhaps she saw the "other side" when she contemplated being forced to play Challenger circuit events after the Estoril loss which was "highlighted" by wild swings in her mood and confidence.

"I wouldn't say I would like to go down to Challenger events, but matches-wise and confidence-wise it could be a good thing... My tennis isn't there so I have to build it up from the beginning like I did when I was 14." - JD

The road travelled in Morocco might have helped to make the Challenger idea only a brief contemplation, as Jelena seemed to overcome most of her worst inclinations... well, most of the time, anyway. Time will tell. The coaching issue still remains in limbo (the search is on, though, it seems), as does the nationality question (as always). But at least a more practical Jelena appears to have been sculpted by her travails.

"I think I can get to minimum Top 20. I'll just try to get close to the top again. After last year with how I got, I don't want to make goals. I'll be more realistic." - JD

As things stand pre-Prague, Jelena is 6-5 on the season. But she's 4-2 in the 2nd Quarter, making it a definite possibility that she'll avoid her fate in nine of the last ten WTA quarters -- a below-.500 record.

JELENA BY-THE-QUARTERS 2002 4Q....7-8 2003 1Q....5-6 2003 2Q..10-11 2003 3Q....5-6 2003 4Q....8-7 2004 1Q....5-6 2004 2Q....3-8 2004 3Q....0-1 2004 4Q....0-1 2005 1Q....2-3 2005 2Q....4-2

Hopefully, the coming weeks won't see her double-back on her path yet again. Great things are not expected in Prague, but leaving with some nugget of accomplishment is necessary to make sure that Morocco's momentum is carried beyond a one-week hint of resurgence. Play it again, fair Jelena... play it again. All for now.