Serena, Jen, Venus in action Tuesday By Matt Cronin Monday, May 31, 2004 Two years ago when a stressed out defending champion Jennifer Capriati walked out on court to face Serena Williams at Roland Garros, Chris Evert noted, "Jennifer has lost to Serena four times in a row and if she wants to be considered the world's best player, she needs to find away to get the edge over Serena again." She flunked, losing Roland Garros’ best match - a heartbreaking 3-6 7-6(2) 6-2 stomach churner where Capriati was in control of her own fate deep in the second set. Had she stopped Serena then, the younger Williams juggernaut may never left the station and won her first title here. On Tuesday, Capriati will get another shot at Serena in a Roland Garros Quarter final and this time says she’s better prepared and believes she has that edge. "I prefer to play someone like Serena instead of playing a real clay courter," she said. “It’s harder and you have to work harder. If I can keep balls in play, then I should have a little edge because maybe she’ll come up with errors. She’s not used to playing on clay." The 2002 Roland Garros quarter final was a defining match in the pair’s rivalry, arguably the best one in women’s tennis. The year prior, Capriati had owned Serena, beating her in back-to-back Roland Garros and Wimbledon quarter finals. But after 2002 Roland Garros, it was all Serena as she ran off six straight wins against Capriati (most of them three-setters), a streak which finally ended in Rome a little more than two weeks ago when Capriati beat her 6-4 6-4 in the semi finals. Serena credits her rival with playing well two weeks ago, but says she has another level coming. "Oh my god, for sure," Serena said. "If I didn't, I don't think I would need to be here.... I'm hitting the ball better. I feel it in my zone. I'm ready." Capriati, who hasn't won a Slam title in over three years, says she's playing as well as she has since the 2003 US Open, when she dropped the ball in her spectacular loss to Justine Henin-Hardenne in the semis. After dealing with a meddlesome back injury in the off-season, the Florida veteran sputtered and wheezed until Rome, when she body slammed Serena for the first time since 2001 and lost a cliffhanger to Amelie Mauresmo in the final. She says she's in the mix of contenders. "I always believe that," she said. Capriati hasn’t had an easy match in her four victories here and has been winning her contests mostly with sound, tireless defense. But against Serena, she may have to crank up her offense. Two years ago here, it was Serena who seized control in the second set tiebreaker when she went for her shots while Capriati played passive. Whether she’s capable of painting the lines when it gets tense on Tuesday is a question the world is waiting for. "I’m a different player now," Capriati said. "I feel more comfortable being aggressive. I’m serving better, can retrieve and also be aggressive. But I’m not going to change the way I’m playing. I’ll let her feel the pressure." In her run to the 2002 title, Serena was a very consistent groundstroker, fast, powerful and tougher mentally than the rest of the field. But she has only won one title this year and doesn’t seem as sound of foot on dirt. But she’s always willing to go to the mat against Capriati. "It seems like we always go three sets," Serena said. "It's always intense. The score line is close and can go either way. It's going to be an exciting match and I'll make sure I'm up for it." Venus Williams and Anastasia Myskina have only played twice, with the American owning a 2-0 edge. They haven’t played in over two years, with their last encounter coming on green clay at Amelia Island, where Venus prevailed 6-4 7-6. Both players are in better form now than they were then, with Myskina having cracked the top five this year behind a hard-hitting, relentless ground game and Venus having won her last 19 matches on clay. Myskina is hoping to break through to a Grand Slam semi final for the first time in her career. "I hope it’s going to be different this time," Myskina said. Venus, who reached the final here two years ago and has won both the US Open and Wimbledon twice, has put a lot of effort into preparing for a second week assault on the Roland Garros crown. "There’s only eight left so what are the odds?" she asked. I’m going to have to play hard in the quarter final because it’s not a given." -- ---禅心已作沾泥絮，莫向春风舞鹧鸪--- --

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