Article by Todd Spiker

Beware...the Lady Lurks
by Todd Spiker

Well, it's Monday...so Jelena must have achieved yet another career-best rank on the WTA computer.  This week, it's #15 in singles and #17 in doubles.

(cue the theme from "Jaws")

Buuuhhh-dum... buuuhhh-dum...

Yes, that IS Jelena lurking in the shallow waters of the WTA rankings,
and the waters just keep getting more shallow each and every week.
Silvia Farina Elia was swallowed up in the past seven days, and the
likes of Maggie Maleeva and Amanda Coetzer are looking over their
shoulders, scanning for the dorsal fin cutting through the water's
surface that signals that Jelena has them in her sights.

Buuuhhh-dum... buuuhhh-dum...

This makes five straight weeks that Jelena's continued her measured pace to the top.  As she crosses North America and steps over the US-Canadian border for a Tier I event in Toronto this week -- with the opening day of play at Arthur Ashe Stadium just fourteen days away -- we should all make sure we don't overlook what we're having the honor to witness.

*Jelena's Year-End WTA Pro Rank*
1997  #589
1998  #341
1999  #43
2000  #26
2001  #15 (as of 8/13)

Does anyone doubt that we're not all that far off from seeing Jelena add another sterling moment to her career highlight list, right next to the '99 Wimbledon win over Martina Hingis and the Italian Open title against Amelie Mauresmo?  What we're seeing now are the comparatively small moments that make those big ones possible, the baby steps (forward and, sometimes, back) and learning experiences that pay dividends down the line.  Even the disappointments that sometimes crop up along the path are mitigated somewhat when one considers that Jelena, at 18, is at a stage in her tennis career where so many great things can be seen on the horizon...and that it's just a matter of time before she reaches another of those points when the expectations meet up with reality.  It happened at the All-England Club, then again in Rome.  Now, the watch begins for history to repeat itself.  When it does, no one should be able to say that they didn't see it coming all along.  Everyone has been forewarned.

Buuuhhh-dum... buuuhhh-dum...


THE NEW TOP 25 (Aug.13, 2001)
NAME=POINTS=(since 8/6)
1.Hingis  =  5577
2.Davenport  =  4588 (+128)
3.Capriati  =  4519
4.V.Williams  =  4342
5.Clijsters  =  2883 (+32)
6.Henin  =  2667
7.Mauresmo  =  2429
8.Seles  =  2352 (+310)
9.Tauziat  =  2235 (+188)
10.S.Williams  =  2000 (-381)
11.Dementieva  =  1823 (-97)
12.Coetzer  =  1708
13.Maleeva  =  1697
14.Shaughnessy  =  1692
15.JELENA  =  1511 (+35)
16.Farina Elia  =  1509
17.Sanchez Vic.  =  1420 (-48)
18.Testud  =  1402 (-67)
19.Kournikova  =  1379
20.C.Martinez  =  1358 (-32)
21.Huber  =  1357
22.Schett  =  1263
23.Tulyaganova  =  1092
24.Serna  =  1076
25t.Suarez  =  1074
25t.Nagyova  =  1074

Moving Up the Doubles Rankings
(as of Aug.13, 2001)
14.Schett  =  1477 (+46)
15.Shaughnessy  =  1470
16.Callens  =  1456 (-128)
17.JELENA  =  1424 (+17)
18.Sidot  =  1407 (-117)
19.C.Martinez  =  1404

*Race for the Sanex Championships*
(points from Jan.1-Aug.13, 2001)
Top 16 invited to event in Munich
1.Capriati  =  3785
2.Hingis  =  3368
3.Davenport  =  2945
4.V.Williams  =  2765
5.Henin  =  2258
6.Mauresmo  =  2222
7.Clijsters  =  2004
8.Shaughnessy  =  1555
9.Farina Elia  =  1429
10.Seles  =  1375
11.S.Williams  =  1260
12.JELENA  =  1210
13.Coetzer  =  1169
14.Testud  =  1167
15.Tauziat  =  1144
16.Maleeva  =  1042


THIS WEEK...

*Rogers AT&T Canada Cup (Tier I)*
Points Table
TITLE--260
RU--182
SF--117
QF--65
3rd--36
2nd--22
1st--1

*The Open Seeding Feeding Frenzy*
#12 Coetzer -- leads by 197 pts.
#13 Maleeva -- leads by 186 pts.
#14 Shaughnessy -- leads by 181 pts.
#15 JELENA -- 1511 points
#16 Farina Elia -- 2 pts. behind
#17 Sanchez V. -- 91 pts. behind
#18 Testud -- 109 pts. behind

*From the Lifeguard Tower*
...#13 Maggie Maleeva could be the next to fall, as she leads Jelena by just 186 points and this week defends 197 from a QF result in Montreal '00.
...#12 Amanda Coetzer is probably out of reach for Jelena this week, but she leads by just 197 and could be surpassed if Jelena could put
together a run to the Toronto final.  Next week, Coetzer will have to defend 145 points from a SF at New Haven, so she might soon join the
line of veterans that Jelena has overtaken in the past few weeks.

...Dementieva Watch:  after trailing her by 444 points last week, Jelena is now just 312 back with Dementieva's big US Open point total to be
defended in two weeks.
...Jelena is approximately 390 (2001) ranking points from clinching an invite to the year-end Sanex Championships.


THE NUMBERS...

*One Year Ago*
Ranked #39, Jelena was in Montreal for the then-named DuMaurier Open, losing a tight 1st Round match to Sabine Appelmans by a 7-6,4-6,6-7 score.

*Jelena in Canada*
97 Repentigny (jr.) - 3r (Dominikovic)
98 Repentigny (jr.) - RU (Dominikovic)
99 Toronto - 2r - (C.Martinez)
00 Montreal - 1r - (Appelmans)
01 Toronto - ??

*Jelena - 2001 surface records*
Clay -- 16-8
HARD -- 8-4
Grass -- 6-3
Carpet -- 0-2

The luggage is once again packed with hopeful expectations.  Wish Jelena luck in Toronto, eh?

Until next Monday...