Things Looking Up for Davenport

By Lisa Dillman

Nov. 10, 2004 12 AM PT

Times Staff Writer

Fifth-best in the world. Or even 10th.

Who wouldn’t accept, even embrace, that distinction at any level, in any profession? Here’s a hint: a former No. 1 tennis player.

Looking up is quite different when you’ve been the one glancing down at everyone else. Lindsay Davenport was trying to explain the subtle nuance of that position to her husband, Jon Leach, a former collegiate player.

“It’s hard to explain to someone, even who played tennis, that five through 10, five through eight isn’t good enough,” Davenport, who dropped in the rankings because of injuries, said Tuesday. “It sounds terrible going into a Grand Slam, when you’ve won some, saying, ‘Semifinals. That’s my goal.’ That’s a very bizarre feeling, but that’s what I felt like I was doing there for about 18 months.”

At Wimbledon, Davenport said it was “100%” that this would be her last year. Suddenly, the wheels quit spinning in July and she began to win again. Now, she is one tournament from the year-end No. 1 ranking. It will be determined at this week’s season-ending WTA Championships at Staples Center. The other player capable of taking the top spot, Amelie Mauresmo of France, trails Davenport by 351 points.

Play begins tonight at 6:30 with three singles matches: an all-Russian matchup between U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and Vera Zvonareva, Serena Williams versus French Open champion Anastasia Myskina of Russia, and Davenport versus Elena Dementieva of Russia.

The eight-player field is split into two groups of four, setting up four days of round-robin play. The top two in each group move on to the semifinals Sunday afternoon, and the final is scheduled Monday night.

Mauresmo reached last year’s final despite a losing record in round-robin play. In 2004, she has won five titles and held the No. 1 ranking for five weeks.

“It’s different,” said Davenport, who won seven titles this year. “I don’t think anyone at this time last year would say that we’d be the two going for No. 1. It’s been unfortunate with some of the injuries that have kept a lot players out.”

Two of those would be Belgians Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne. Neither will play, although Henin-Hardenne qualified. Clijsters is out with an injured left wrist. Henin-Hardenne, No. 1 in 2003, won the Australian Open in 2004 but has been battling a virus for months.

Serena Williams seemed almost blase in her race to the Championships. She has played only one tournament since winning at Beijing in September. She said she was confident of making it and received an assist when her older sister Venus lost in the quarterfinals last week in Philadelphia.

Serena Williams went from winning three of the four Grand Slams in 2002 to reaching one Slam final this year, losing to Maria Sharapova of Russia at Wimbledon in July. Still, a strong showing here could serve as a springboard into 2005 for the once-dominant Williams.

“I hope so,” she said, laughing. “I feel excited to start playing. There’s one thing about tennis -- there’s always next year. You always have another chance, another opportunity.”

For the five-player Russian contingent, there are other concerns, specifically supremacy as the top player in the country. Myskina, Sharapova and Kuznetsova will be looking for bookends to their Grand Slam singles titles. Dementieva reached two Grand Slam finals this year, and Zvonareva made an ambitious push toward Los Angeles, playing six tournaments in six countries after the U.S. Open.

Myskina has the edge over the other Russians. She has a winning record against them and has never lost to Sharapova.

“We have a huge competition between us on the court,” Myskina said. “We’re really good friends off the court. I think it’s really hard to fight on the court and then bring the fight off the court. Tennis is going to finish sooner or later.”

Almost all the players are fighting nagging injuries. Sharapova pulled out of the semifinals in Philadelphia because of a strained right shoulder. She says the injury has improved but contends it might be related to the heavier Tretorn tennis balls used by the tour during the indoor season. The same balls are to be used at the Championships, but tour officials are aware of the players’ concerns.

Also of interest will be whether the event can reverse two years of mediocre attendance. Tournament director John Arrix said that the numbers were on track with last year’s.

WTA Championships

A closer look at the WTA’s $3-million year-end event at Staples Center:

THE FORMAT: Over the first four days, each player will play the others in her group (with one rest day), with the two top players from each group advancing to the knock-out semifinals Sunday. The group winners will play the runners-up with the winners advancing to Monday’s final.

THE GROUPS: The eight singles players with their 2004 season record and how they have fared against one another:

RED

No. 1 LINDSAY DAVENPORT, U.S.

* 61-8; vs. Myskina 4-1; vs. Dementieva 9-4; vs. Williams 3-9.

No. 3 ANASTASIA MYSKINA, Russia

* 49-16; vs. Davenport 1-4; vs. Dementieva 6-4; vs. Williams 0-3.

No. 5 ELENA DEMENTIEVA, Russia

* 39-20; vs. Myskina 4-6; vs. Davenport 4-9; vs. Williams 0-3.

No. 7 SERENA WILLIAMS, U.S.

* 36-7; vs. Myskina 3-0; vs. Dementieva 3-0; vs. Davenport 9-3.

BLACK

No. 2 AMELIE MAURESMO, France