Centre Court's is old hat… Great No. 1 Court action

The thunderous applause for Becker and Cash, as they entered the arena, drew my attention back to Centre Court. Both players looked unbeatable as they warmed up, but my money was riding on Red. To the redhead, this match was an idle stroll through the park and a picnic on the lawn. Boris has an affinity for grass, rivaling the affinity U.S. automobiles have for gasoline, which the English call petrol. (Wimbledon November 1997: Becker announced his retirement. I’m glad I got to see Becker play a few times. He’ll be missed.)

Despite the promising previews, the Becker/Cash match rated only a seven on a scale of one to ten. And the other matches were not epic confrontations. Actually, the day was a little disappointing. All three matches were won in straight sets. Miss Graf taught Jennifer a lesson in power and consistency. Jennifer is such a darling, but so business focused. She's only what? Fourteen? There's hardly enough time to breathe between points. She needs to slow and focus herself. (Unfortunately, at the time of this edit, news about Jennifer's use of narcotics has been announced…tragic this. She'll be missed.)

Chang looked as if he still had some Stade Roland Garros red clay on my socks, but upon closer inspection, the red looked more like blood caused by the current battle. The grass was not kind to him, nor was Stefan.

My headlines would read: Becker crushes Cash, who is coming back from an injury. Graf shows no mercy to Capriati, USA's little darling. Edberg's serve and volley power game destroys Chang's baseline artistry.

No. 1 Court was the place to be on Tuesday. Again, I had made the 'Century Club,' having lined up at eight on Monday evening. I was delighted to rent another great seat to witness Monica 'The Grunt' Seles playing Zina 'Jitterbug' Garrison, followed by Ivan 'The Terrific' Lendl playing Alex 'The Austrian' Antonitsch and Natalia 'The Rusky' Zvereva playing Gabriela 'Gabby' Sabatini, whose grunts are much more sultry than Monica's. My seat was ground level, near the court, and it cost me $41. Fantastic! Let - the - games - begin!

This . day . was . SENSATIONAL. Un.be.lie.va.ble! The Seles/Garrison match was a superb three-setter Zina worked very hard to win. Her jitterbug receiving motion and slow, willful serving motion will try your patience, but she runs like a deer during hunting season.

Mr. Lendl, showing an uncanny cool, had a tough time putting the Austrian away, but was victorious in a super, hard-fought four-setter. It was strange watching Lendl serve and volley. He's determined to win Wimbledon, and his coach thinks the serve and volley game is the way. Maybe? I remember Conners and Borg, who won this tournament a number of times from the baseline and they lacked Lendl's big serve. But this was another time and circumstances were quite different. So much more power exists in the game today due to the improved technology: wide-body frames, bigger hitting area, high tech strings and shoes, etc. Increased power benefits the big servers. For this reason, the chances of two baseline players meeting in future finals are doubtful. The improved equipment is adding power to the lady's game and this is wonderful. Fans and the Virginia Slims Tour will benefit from the increased power.

Lovely Sabatini nearly fell victim to the Russian Zvereva. Gaby faced a match point in the third set. She raised her magnificent back, reached deep and denied the Russian. The match was a grueling two-hour baseline shootout that went to extra innings. Sabatini started rushing the net later in the third set and this strategy was beneficial to her victory. This match was an exciting three-setter and a fine climax to another thrilling day at the 'Big-W'. In a third and deciding set, the tiebreaker is disallowed. The match continues until a player wins by a margin of two. The third set score was 8-6. In the men's play, the fifth set must be played out (no tiebreak).

Sabatini made life interesting for adult male fans with her passionate grunts. She possesses the looks of a Grecian goddess. I remember Miss Sabatini when she was a frail, little girl, just starting on the pro circuit. I observed her playing in a tournament at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, around '84. She was about 14-years-old then. Six years have come and gone and now Miss Sabatini is twenty. She's no longer frail. She's statuesque. The physical demands of the game have shaped her into a tall, stately figure with shapely legs of steel and a magnificent upper torso. To put it plainly, she is built like a stately skyscraper, with all bricks perfectly placed.

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