Right where Capriati wanted to be, right? Nyet!
Up big but battling a leg injury, Lindsay Davenport just had to hold off first-time major semifinalist Svetlana Kuznetsova for a handful of games. Surely, Davenport could rely on her experience and powerful strokes to extend a 22-match winning streak and keep alive her bid for the No. 1 ranking, right? Nyet!
Capriati came oh-so-close yet again at Flushing Meadows before falling to 0-4 in Open semifinals, succumbing to the soft-as-cotton-candy serves and hard-nosed grit of an ailing Dementieva 6-0, 2-6, 7-6 (5).
Davenport, limping on a bad hip, devolved from near perfection in the first set and a 3-0 lead in the third to a 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 loss to Kuznetsova.
By beating the crowd favorites in topsy-turvy matches, No. 6 Dementieva and No. 9 Kuznetsova became the first
Russian women to reach a U.S. Open final. As of four months ago, no Russian woman ever won a Grand Slam title; now the country will have its third straight major champion.
Anastasia Myskina beat Dementieva for the French Open title, and Maria Sharapova won Wimbledon.
''I guess they're just pretty hungry to play, and there's just so many of them,'' Capriati said. ''And there's also a few good ones - I mean, all of them are good.''
It's the first time since 1988 that no Americans will be in the Open's singles finals. In the men's semifinals today, top-ranked Roger Federer of Switzerland plays No. 5 Tim Henman of Britain, and 2001 U.S. Open champion Lleyton Hewitt of Australia faces No. 28 Joachim Johansson of Sweden, who upset defending champ Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals.
For the first time in the Open era, which dates to 1968, none of the four top-seeded women made the semis in New York. That seemed to clear the way for Davenport and Capriati - both 28, former No. 1s, and owners of three Slams each - to get to the title match.
After all, Kuznetsova, 19, was best known until now as Martina Navratilova's former doubles partner. Dementieva, 22, was in just her third major semifinal, injured her left groin during the week, needed IV fluids after beating Mauresmo in the fourth round, and her infamously slow serves (around 60 mph) solicit laughter from spectators.
Capriati is building a forgettable body of work in U.S. Open semifinals. She's now served for a spot in the final a total of five times dating to 1991, always getting broken. This year, she finally converted her eighth break chance over two games to get to 6-5 in the third set. But Capriati double-faulted to send it to a tiebreaker, which Dementieva ended with a backhand winner down the line.
At least Capriati made it competitive. She was absolutely awful in the 17-minute first set, losing 24 of 29 points and hitting zero winners. Early in the second set, she let her frustration show, motioning at her family in the guest box, hammering a ball against the wall, asking the chair umpire to turn off her mike so it wouldn't pick up the loud sound of the wind.
When someone barked out advice from the stands, Capriati snapped: ''Shut up! I know what to do!''
Apparently, she did, and the third set had its great moments and its ridiculous ones - including a combined eight breaks of serve in 12 games. But on the set's third point, the players engaged in a 49-stroke exchange that featured fantastic defense by Capriati. When it finally ended with Dementieva missing an easy overhead, Capriati dropped her racket and raised her arms, while the Russian bent over, hands on knees. While both stopped to catch their breath, the fans responded with a standing ovation.
