Amelie Mauresmo, along with all of her fans, went into this year's U.S. Open with great expectations. She was the top-ranked player on the WTA tour and had secured the #1 seed for the final Slam of the year. With two Grand Slam trophies on the mantlepiece and an inspiring, long-awaited win over Serena Williams in the quarterfinals, Mauresmo had every right and reason to go into her semifinal match with Maria Sharapova brimming, perhaps even overflowing, with enough confidence to reach the final. Her fans had every reason to believe that she would silence the critics once again and conquer Maria, the Pig Slayer.
It was not to be. From the beginning of the first set, Mauresmo allowed Sharapova to pin her to the baseline, where her vaunted all-court game was least effective and most vulnerable. Amelie appeared to forget the cardinal rule for playing Maria - take control of the game by bringing her to the net to blunt Sharapova's power. By 4-0, Mauresmo had already mentally and physically conceded, ultimately failing to win a single game throughout the first set.
It is a testament to Mauresmo's work with a sports psychologist that she was able to shake off her atrocious play during the changeover. Amelie appeared to recover (and remember) her all-court game while Sharapova tightened-up, committing 14 unforced errors, as the second set progressed. On set point, Mauresmo sent an unreturnable, screaming crosscourt shot to the corner and lept for joy.
Unfortunately for Amelie, she promptly flushed her winning ways when both players exited the stadium for a changeover bathroom break. Upon returning, Maria resumed her game of Pin-the-Amelie-on-the-Baseline and Mauresmo was bageled once again in six brutal, discordant games. Amelie, quite aware of her bipolar, limp performance, made this telling comment on her third-set performance:
Even when I won the second set, I didn't feel things were going the way I wanted. I still didn't feel I was taking control.
The truth was plain to her; Mauresmo left all the control in Sharapova's hands and, as a result, Maria will be the one to face Justine Henin-Hardenne in tomorrow's final.
Amelie Mauresmo's fans know that she can win big one day and lose the next, with unfailing (and often irritating) regularity. They've been on the emotional rollercoaster for so long that they don't even bother taking motion-sickness pills anymore. One of TW's younglings, Momofan, questioned it best.. how can Amelie fans continue to root for her after this kind of lackluster, baffling performance? Simple. They hold the hope that in Madrid, at the YEC Championships, Amelie remembers what she does best and lives up to that revolutionary, confident and controlled standard of play.
Allez, Amelie. Vive la France!
--steggy
