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Comfort zone Capriati feels just fine on Roland Garros' clay
PARIS (Reuters) -- Jennifer Capriati admitted that she was in good shape for a shot at winning another Grand Slam tournament after producing a confident display at the French Open on Thursday. This year's Australian Open champion has breezed through her opening two matches at Roland Garros without dropping a set, easing into the third round with a 6-2, 6-1 demolition of Italy's Tathiana Garbin. "Clay is not my best surface but I can definitely play on it," said No. 4 seed Capriati, the 1992 Olympic gold medallist. "I proved that to myself in Barcelona. "But you definitely have to work at it, it takes time. "I feel pretty comfortable on the clay." Capriati's tennis career has been one sprinkled with a few good stories, particularly at the French Open. In 1990, she became the youngest ever Grand Slam semifinalist when she reached the last four in her French Open debut as a 14-year-old. And a decade later the 25-year-old American has returned to Paris, as one of the sport's feel-good stories, having turned her life and career around after year's of scandals and setbacks that made more lurid reading. After reaching the quarter-finals at Roland Garros in 1992 and 1993, the pressures of the multi-million dollar contracts and sky-high expectations got to Capriati, leading to burn-out and arrest on charges of shoplifting and possession of marijuana. Since rededicating herself to her career, Capriati has been a model citizen, a favorite among the French Open paparazzi for her new lean, fit appearance. "I'm just working out and watching what I'm eating a little bit more," she said. Capriati faces hard-hitting Croat Mirjana Lucic in the last 32.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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