KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. – Venus Williams stood a single point
from defeat eight times. Her game was erratic, the weather hot, the
match long and the crowd firmly in Jennifer Capriati's corner.
|  | | Jennifer Capriati reaches out to return a volley against Venus Williams in the Ericsson Open final on Saturday. Williams won 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4). |
But Williams would not fold. The past couple of weeks she
endured a lot -- jeers at Indian Wells, talk of fixed matches, a
debate started by her father regarding fan racism -- so eight pesky
match points weren't about to rattle her.
She won them all, then won the last point as well Saturday to
beat Jennifer Capriati 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4) in a sloppy but
scintillating final at the Ericsson Open.
Williams earned her third title at Key Biscayne, where she has
won 18 consecutive matches since 1998.
"I was just able to hang in there through it all, through all
my tough matches, through any ridiculous comments or questions I
had to face," she said.
The third-seeded Williams surmounted the controversies and
survived a 2-hour, 24-minute final that was a fascinating
combination of clunker and classic.
No. 4 Capriati literally missed by inches in a bid for her first
title since winning the Australian Open in January. She managed to
muster a smile during the trophy ceremony.
"It was a super close match," she said. "It was too bad
somebody had to lose."
Most of the cheers during the match were for Capriati, who grew
up in Florida and has been a sympathetic figure since her
tumultuous adolescence. But Williams had her supporters, too, and
received a warm ovation when handed her trophy.
"I got some lucky points," she told the crowd, "and here I
am."
Both players were lucky to reach a third set, because the first
two were abysmal, as were the final statistics. There was a
double-double in double faults -- 16 by Capriati, 11 by Williams --
and the number of unforced errors was equally staggering -- 53 by
Capriati, 71 by Williams.
But with the court temperature around 100 degrees, both players
showed remarkable fitness and resolve. As the tension built in the
third set, the quality of play improved markedly and sometimes
bordered on brilliant.
Capriati had three match points serving at 5-4, then five more
serving at 6-5. She made an error on seven of the eight match
points, but several came at the end of furious rallies, and twice
she hit shots past Williams that were long by an inch or two. On
one apparent winner, a crosscourt backhand, Capriati pumped her
fist in jubilation before realizing the ball had been correctly
ruled out.
She double faulted on her final match point, and Williams saved
that 26-point game to make the score 6-6 and force the tiebreaker.
"I never really felt like I was going to lose," Williams said.
"I wasn't nervous at all."
She took advantage of Capriati's mounting frustration and seized
a 6-1 lead in the tiebreaker.
"Maybe, like, mentally I got kind of got discouraged after
letting so many match points go," Capriati said. "I kind of had a
letdown in the tiebreaker, I guess, maybe the first few points."
Capriati saved three match points herself to close to 6-4 in the
tiebreaker, then hit a backhand into the net, and a weary,
triumphant Williams smiled in relief.
Williams earned $375,000 and strengthened her claim as the best
player on the women's tour. Her ranking next week will rise from
third to second for the first time, behind only Martina Hingis,
whom she beat in the semifinals.
Capriati won $195,000 and sounded eager for a rematch. The only
other time she faced Williams was at Key Biscayne four years ago.
"She's definitely, like, beatable," Capriati said. "It's not
like I wasn't close."
The two finalists have won the past three Grand Slam
tournaments. Williams claimed the Wimbledon and U.S. Open titles
last year, and Capriati capped her heartwarming comeback in January
by winning the Australian Open.
In next week's rankings, Williams will climb from third to
second for the first time, behind only Martina Hingis.
Williams won the title despite 122 unforced errors in her final
two matches. She had 51 while beating Hingis on Thursday. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories |
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ALSO SEE
Saturday's results
Capriati quietly reaches first Ericsson final
Agassi rallies to set up semifinal battle with Rafter
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Venus Williams attributes her victory to some helpful advice from her father (Courtesy: CBS Sports).
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