It's Finis, but Graf Won't Forget Paris

By LISA DILLMAN

June 6, 1999 12 AM PT

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

PARIS — The most unexpected of Steffi Graf’s 22 Grand Slam singles titles unfolded in a compelling three-set drama at the French Open, a fascinating psychological study of rejection and repudiation.

For Graf, it couldn’t get any better--or any crazier--so she decided to freeze the moment, declaring this was her final French Open, shortly after the sixth-seeded German defeated top-seeded Martina Hingis of Switzerland, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2. It was her sixth title here and she trails all-time Grand Slam leader Margaret Smith Court by two championships.

Graf’s career was in doubt a year ago because of chronic injuries, and the stunning accomplishment Saturday brought tears of joy from her. But not as many tears as there were from a sobbing Hingis, who antagonized the crowd with an afternoon of juvenile behavior.

Her tears came from bitter disappointment, as she was three points from winning her first title at the French Open.

The jeers were from a pro-Graf crowd, which turned anti-Hingis when the 18-year-old became petulant. Hingis came within one fit of misbehavior from being defaulted. She received a warning for racket abuse, and a point penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct when she crossed over to the other side of the court to argue a controversial line call.

Graf clinched the match when Hingis hit a backhand long, and the crowd booed Hingis off Center Court. Several minutes later, she returned for the awards ceremony, sobbing profusely in the arms of her mother, Melanie Molitor, who had persuaded her to return for the ceremony.

This was almost like Graf in the role of 29-year-old baby-sitter, disciplining the naughty teenager. She reassured Hingis that, indeed, her time eventually would come in Paris.

“This is the biggest win I’ve ever had,” said Graf, whose last Grand Slam victory was the 1996 U.S. Open. “I’ve had a lot of unexpected ones. There have been a few where it didn’t come perfectly.”

Graf stopped and laughed in the interview room.

“I had some champagne, so I’m trying to find my way through here,” she said. “I’ve had some struggles, but this by far is the most unexpected. I came into this tournament without the belief. I wasn’t even doing well in training.”

Her injuries are well-documented: Knee surgery two years ago led to a lengthy rehabilitation and she has suffered from a series of various injuries since then. There was one school of thought within the Graf camp to skip the French Open and aim for Wimbledon

However, no one tells Graf anything.

“This proves dreams come true,” said Graf’s coach, Heinz Gunthardt. “All we need is the prince to ride up on the white horse and carry her away.”

For Graf, the day did have a dreamlike quality and after 2 hours 25 minutes, she developed a special bond with the crowd, which constantly exhorted her, chanting, ‘Steffi! Steffi!’

“I feel French,” Graf told the fans at Roland Garros. “I’ve played all over the world, and I’ve never had a crowd like this this, ever.”

For that matter, neither had Hingis.

The crowd turned hostile in the second set when Hingis--in an ill-timed move--lost her cool and questioned a call when she was leading, 6-4, 2-0.

The moment was hardly crucial, the first point of the third game. She hit a shot near the baseline, and it was called out. The chair umpire, Anne Lasserre, came out to look at the mark. Hingis said she looked at the wrong mark, crossing over to Graf’s side to argue the point.

“I guess it was a little bit too much. I didn’t expect what happened at all. Steffi turned around immediately, she knew it was in,” Hingis said.

Said Graf: “That obviously showed that she was pretty tight and she wanted it bad. I also have never seen anybody come around to the other side, because everybody knows you’re not allowed to do that. I’m kind of questioning, ‘What is she doing now?’ ”

Hingis then sat in her courtside chair and the supervisor came out and upheld the decision of the chair umpire. And Hingis, instead of leading 15-0, was down 30-0 after being assessed a point penalty.

Later, she still had the match in control, serving for the championship at 5-4. Even Graf was doubting herself.

“As I was sitting down, I was like, ‘OK, this is going to be the last changeover,’ ” Graf said. “I didn’t feel bad about it: ‘OK, this is the last time I walk on the court. This is maybe the last time, but at least go for it.’ And I did.”

Hingis got tight and tired, as Graf reeled off six consecutive games to take the second set and a 3-0 lead in the third. An exhausted Hingis drew more ire by taking a lengthy bathroom break after the first game of the third set. Every move drew boos, including the one on Graf’s first match point. Hingis caught Graf off guard by serving underhanded and won the point.

Facing a second match point, Hingis tried it again, missed and complained to the chair umpire that the crowd noise bothered her. At this point, Graf finally showed some annoyance.

“Can we just play tennis, OK?” she said.

Later, Graf acknowledged the bizarre scene.

“It had everything,” Graf said. “That was one of the craziest matches ever. I don’t know what else can happen.”

It may have served as a lesson for Hingis, who declared last year that Graf’s time had passed. Graf commented on Hingis’ behavior.

“You have to be respectful of your opponent,” she said. “Sometimes she hasn’t been. I’m not even talking about myself, but others. It is something she should really take a closer look at because we’re all out there. We’re all trying hard. As I said earlier, it’s a game. That’s it.”

Of course, this education isn’t likely to happen overnight. Sour grapes tinged the tone of Hingis’ postmatch news conference, with the loser sounding more like a high school girl jilted on prom night than the top-ranked women’s tennis player in the world.

“My dress was already ready for the picture with the trophy,” Hingis lamented.

Hingis also refused to concede that Graf might have outplayed her. “Anna [Kournikova] came later to the locker room and hugged me and said, ‘You were better out there,’ ” Hingis said. “Some other players and other people who saw the match said ‘You were better.’ But it just didn’t happen this year. Next year.”

Her chances will be enhanced now that Graf has decided not to play here again. This could be Graf’s last year on the tour, and she is relishing another shot at Wimbledon. She also told the German press she is playing mixed doubles with John McEnroe at Wimbledon.

Now, however, the enduring relationship between Graf and the French Open is over. She did not even tell her coach, making the decision after the match.

“I know chances only come around so many times. This is an incredible moment,” she said. “I just want to keep it the way it is.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Simply Grand

Steffi Graf’s Grand Slam singles victories:

FRENCH OPEN

1987: d. Martina Navratilova

1988: d. Natasha Zvereva

1993: d. Mary Joe Fernandez

1995: d. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario

1996: d. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario

1999: d. Martina Hingis

WIMBLEDON