Making up for lost time

BY KEVIN TRAN

Every fallen athlete dreams of a second chance. Jennifer Capriati is living hers. After a career marred by unmet expectations, Capriati supplanted Martina Hingis as the No. 1 female tennis player in the world on Sat., Oct. 13.

Capriati stormed onto the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tour at the tender age of 14, defying criticisms surrounding her decision to turn professional. Questions abounded about her ability to compete against top tier players. Could she match the older women on the tour in strength and speed? She quickly silenced the skeptics, becoming the youngest tennis player ever to break into the top 10 and finishing her first season as No. 8 in the world.

COURTESY WTA

Her rapid ascent to the top of the rankings heralded a new era for tennis. Capriati quickly became the media darling for the "new youth" that would overtake the sports world. Not intimidated by anyone, she boldly proclaimed that she would become the youngest player ever to reach the top. In 1991, her claim seemed plausible when she battled Monica Seles, another American phenom, in the U.S Open semifinals—a match that would become legend among tennis fans. For WTA officials and marketing firms, a mythic rivalry seemed on the verge of energizing women's tennis.

However, the inevitable process of "growing up" caught up with Capriati. She lost her will to practice and slowly degenerated into a "has-been"—at the age of 16. After some run-ins with the law for marijuana possession and shoplifting, she disappeared from the WTA spotlight at 17. She was no longer a media darling, but a normal teenager who just seemed confused.

Critics felt vindicated that she burned out, claiming that they were right all along. But who could blame her? A mentally abusive father who earned as much notoriety off the court as Capriati did on it, in addition to her growing rebelliousness, could only contribute to her decline. Ironically, stepping back from the spotlight was the best decision of her young career. Rather than miss out on her childhood, she experienced the unpredictable, at times destructive, life that characterizes the teenage years; still, she returned to tennis with a renewed focus. For the first time as an athlete, there was no pressure on her to be No. 1.

When she made her return in 1999, she appeared happier and more mature but, unsurprisingly, a bit rusty as a tennis player. And leave it to the media to squelch her happiness. Capriati became a target during post-match press conferences. "Does tennis mean more now because of all the personal agony you went through?" became the typical question, only to be followed by a series of backhanded questions about her past that diverted attention away from her tennis. Despite the barrage of inane questions, Capriati maintained her poise and smiled away—that is, until her semifinal loss at the 1999 U.S. Open. She broke down tearfully as she read a prepared statement in which she claimed, "The path I did take for a brief period of my life was not of reckless drug use, hurting others, but it was a path of quiet rebellion." It was a quiet rebellion made loud and clear by the media.

That setback seems to have been forgotten. The past, although a haunting presence in her mind, no longer seems to affect her. She won two grand slam events to start off the 2001 season and consistently reached the semifinals and finals in almost all of her tournaments. Now, her father sits calmly in the stands alongside her entire family, quietly supporting her in the background.

As reporters continue to try to mold her into the protagonist in a "bad girl gone good" drama, they should rather see her recent tennis success as an inspirational comeback story.

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