May 18, 2004 Player of the Week: Jennifer Capriati ROME, Italy - Losing 62 60 in the semifinals of Berlin last week to Amelie Mauresmo may just have been the best thing for Jennifer Capriati in a long time. This week at the Telecom Italia Masters in Rome, Italy, Capriati stormed through the draw all the way to the final before losing a thrilling three-set match to Mauresmo and placing herself at the forefront of contenders for the upcoming French Open in Paris. "Last week she really played well, but I wasn't ready for her," she said. "You know, you learn something from those kind of matches." "I had something to prove to myself and to her," said Capriati, "for her to beat me like that, I wasn't gonna let that happen again." "It got me fired up. It made me mad, of course." Capriati certainly bounced back with a vengeance early on in the week, beginning by trouncing world No.37 Maria Vento-Kabchi of Venezuela 62 61 in the second round after receiving a first round bye. She then routed No.12 seed Paola Suarez of Argentina 62 62 in the round of 16, then defeated tough clay-courter Anna Smashnova-Pistolesi of Israel by the same score. "I think I'm getting there," she said after her win over Vento-Kabchi earlier on in the week. "I'm feeling more like myself out there, kind of the aggressive style that I play, and really going for my shots and moving well." "I think I can peak for the French Open." Heading into the semifinals, Capriati had even more to prove. In taking on top-seeded Serena Williams, Capriati had on her mind the eight consecutive losses to the American, a run that dates back to the 2001 Canadian Open in Toronto. When asked about which one of the losses was the most disappointing, Capriati was unable to pick a certain one. "They're all painful, that's the truth," she said. Coming back from a knee-injury, Serena Williams was error-prone as Capriati raced out to a 64 51 lead. Capriati's lead began to slip away but she managed to close it out on her second match point and on an errant forehand from Williams 64 in the second set. "I felt like the match was in my hands and I wasn't going to let it get out of my hands," said Capriati. "She has to let me win one time to keep things interesting." "She was playing pretty well today," said Williams after the match. "I just thought, 'Keep fighting. Third set - maybe.'" Perhaps the biggest achievement for Capriati of the week was how she fought through an incredible high quality final and managed to come within one point of victory against Mauresmo, who handed her one of the worst defeats of her career just a week earlier. In what turned out to be the longest one ever in the final in Rome, the two players battled through an unpredictable and exciting final set after splitting the first two. Capriati had a 4-2 lead in the third set, and after losing her next serve, broke again to go up 5-3 with a stunning running forehand passing shot, a shot that was thought by many to be the shot of the week. "Very impressive," said Mauresmo. "I went for it, she made the shot, the perfect shot." "I guess that running forehand was really working for me today," said Capriati. The closely-contested match ended up at 6-all in the third set tiebreaker after both players squandered match points, Capriati while receiving at 5-4 and Mauresmo while up 6-5 in the tiebreak. Eventually, Mauresmo's recent head-to -head success against the American and confidence from her solid play this season may have been just enough to pull off the win. "When you get to 6-all in the third-set tiebreaker, I think you don't really know what's going to happen," said Mauresmo. "Could have gone either way." "I'm very satisfied about the level of this match and hanging in there until the end." Although she did not come out the victor, Capriati was satisfied with her efforts. "You know, I didn't lose; she had to win the match," she said, "I don't really feel that bad right now." "I think it was just a really fantastic match. That's what I thrive for and that's what I play for, these kind of matches." "It's a good thing for the Grand Slam," said Capriati. "I mean, that's where the real Jennifer wants to come out anyway." -- ---禪心已作沾泥絮，莫向春風舞鷓鴣--- --

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