Jana Novotna

The first time a 14-year-old Jana Novotna traveled to the European tennis championships, she looked at the list of women's competitors and the only name she recognized was that of Steffi Graf.Then she looked at the draw. Novotna vs. Graf -- the beginning of a long, frustrating relationship."From the beginning, it was always Steffi who seemed to be the one who stopped me," Novotna says. "She was my first-round opponent in my first traveling tournament, and, of course, she beat me -- in three sets."

The stars - past, present and future - will be on court at the Baltimore Arena tomorrow night in the Chevy Chase Bank Tennis Challenge. World No. 3 Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick, who finished a sensational rookie season ranked No. 16, will face off in the main event. Jana Novotna, the 1998 Wimbledon champ, will join ex-ATP and current Champions Tour star Tim Wilkison in the Smith Barney Legends Match. Novotna and Wilkison will meet Zina Garrison, who won the 1988 Olympic doubles gold medal with Challenge creator Pam Shriver, and Richey Reneberg, a former world No. 1 doubles player and Davis Cup player.

The stars - past, present and future - will be on court at the Baltimore Arena tomorrow night in the Chevy Chase Bank Tennis Challenge. World No. 3 Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick, who finished a sensational rookie season ranked No. 16, will face off in the main event. Jana Novotna, the 1998 Wimbledon champ, will join ex-ATP and current Champions Tour star Tim Wilkison in the Smith Barney Legends Match. Novotna and Wilkison will meet Zina Garrison, who won the 1988 Olympic doubles gold medal with Challenge creator Pam Shriver, and Richey Reneberg, a former world No. 1 doubles player and Davis Cup player.

The first time a 14-year-old Jana Novotna traveled to the European tennis championships, she looked at the list of women's competitors and the only name she recognized was that of Steffi Graf.Then she looked at the draw. Novotna vs. Graf -- the beginning of a long, frustrating relationship."From the beginning, it was always Steffi who seemed to be the one who stopped me," Novotna says. "She was my first-round opponent in my first traveling tournament, and, of course, she beat me -- in three sets."

PARIS -- Maybe they will close their eyes and play it from memory. Steffi Graf and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, last year's French Open finalists and veterans of 34 tugs-of-war against each other, asserted their dominance yesterday with straight-set semifinal victories.They not only beat the heat, which transformed Center Court into an acrid desert scape, but they also beat challengers who complained of feeling flat on a day when having an edge was mandatory.Sanchez Vicario, a two-time French Open champion, reached her fifth final at her favorite Grand Slam at the expense of 10th-seeded Jana Novotna, 6-3, 7-5.The Czech didn't come close to playing like the predator who upset Monica Seles in the quarterfinals.

WIMBLEDON, England -- When Steffi Graf walks on to Centre Court today for the 100th Wimbledon women's final, it will be her sixth in seven years.She will face Jana Novotna, who will be playing for the championship for the first time.It would appear to be the perfect setup for Graf.But Graf shook her head in disagreement."I think when you reach the final for the first time, you are just so happy to be there that there is no pressure," said the defending Wimbledon women's champ.And that's how she expects Novotna to be, even though Graf has dominated their matches, 16-3.

WIMBLEDON, England -- Jana Novotna's usually serious demeanor cracked. She ran her fingers through her mop of blond hair and smiled."I am happy," she said. "I know I have been criticized for lookintoo serious, for being too aggressive, for seeming too cool. I think it is no one's business to judge me. I can't help the way I look."Novotna, seeming finally to believe that her game is ideallsuited to grass, has a chance to prove it today in the women's semifinals against Martina Navratilova.

NEW YORK -- Jana Novotna was about to serve for the second set in her quarterfinal match at the U.S. Open yesterday, when suddenly the Stadium Court crowd lost its voice."

WIMBLEDON, England -- This time, Jana Novotna wept in triumph.She was the one who marched through the stands to hug and kiss her friends and family. She held tight to the outstretched hands of the Duchess of Kent, who smiled excitedly and told her that the third time was the charm, after all.And there she was, cradling the gold winner's plate, on the greatest victory lap in tennis, as cheers and tears poured down from the Centre Court stands.Yesterday, Novotna buried the past with one glorious triumph, beating Nathalie Tauziat, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2)

No sooner did Zina Garrison get done saying "I'm maybe going to take a break" after suffering an upset loss Wednesday when she reconsidered and looked to next week's Virginia Slims of Washington to turn her game around."

WIMBLEDON, England -- This time, Jana Novotna wept in triumph.She was the one who marched through the stands to hug and kiss her friends and family. She held tight to the outstretched hands of the Duchess of Kent, who smiled excitedly and told her that the third time was the charm, after all.And there she was, cradling the gold winner's plate, on the greatest victory lap in tennis, as cheers and tears poured down from the Centre Court stands.Yesterday, Novotna buried the past with one glorious triumph, beating Nathalie Tauziat, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2)

NEW YORK -- Jana Novotna. You remember her. The woman who never seems able to win the really big ones. The one who blew a 4-1 lead in the final set at Wimbledon, the one who hasn't been to the finals of a major tournament since.You remember her. But last night, in the quarterfinals of the Chase Championships at Madison Square Garden, you wouldn't have recognized her.No. 5 seed Novotna captivated everyone, as she upset No. 2-ranked Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, 6-0, 6-3."Does it look to you like I'm playing the best tennis of my life?"

PARIS -- Maybe they will close their eyes and play it from memory. Steffi Graf and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, last year's French Open finalists and veterans of 34 tugs-of-war against each other, asserted their dominance yesterday with straight-set semifinal victories.They not only beat the heat, which transformed Center Court into an acrid desert scape, but they also beat challengers who complained of feeling flat on a day when having an edge was mandatory.Sanchez Vicario, a two-time French Open champion, reached her fifth final at her favorite Grand Slam at the expense of 10th-seeded Jana Novotna, 6-3, 7-5.The Czech didn't come close to playing like the predator who upset Monica Seles in the quarterfinals.

NEW YORK -- Jana Novotna was about to serve for the second set in her quarterfinal match at the U.S. Open yesterday, when suddenly the Stadium Court crowd lost its voice."

WIMBLEDON, England -- When Steffi Graf walks on to Centre Court today for the 100th Wimbledon women's final, it will be her sixth in seven years.She will face Jana Novotna, who will be playing for the championship for the first time.It would appear to be the perfect setup for Graf.But Graf shook her head in disagreement."I think when you reach the final for the first time, you are just so happy to be there that there is no pressure," said the defending Wimbledon women's champ.And that's how she expects Novotna to be, even though Graf has dominated their matches, 16-3.

WIMBLEDON, England -- Jana Novotna's usually serious demeanor cracked. She ran her fingers through her mop of blond hair and smiled."I am happy," she said. "I know I have been criticized for lookintoo serious, for being too aggressive, for seeming too cool. I think it is no one's business to judge me. I can't help the way I look."Novotna, seeming finally to believe that her game is ideallsuited to grass, has a chance to prove it today in the women's semifinals against Martina Navratilova.

NEW YORK -- Jana Novotna. You remember her. The woman who never seems able to win the really big ones. The one who blew a 4-1 lead in the final set at Wimbledon, the one who hasn't been to the finals of a major tournament since.You remember her. But last night, in the quarterfinals of the Chase Championships at Madison Square Garden, you wouldn't have recognized her.No. 5 seed Novotna captivated everyone, as she upset No. 2-ranked Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, 6-0, 6-3."Does it look to you like I'm playing the best tennis of my life?"

Reading Time: Two Minutes.* It sounds like a heckuva movie to me, LSU's baseball team having to come out of the loser's bracket to win its conference (SEC) tournament, an NCAA regional qualifier and, finally, the College World Series. Besides, the Tigers had to rally from two down in the ninth inning in the semis. There's probably a descendant of Roy Hobbs on the team.* New York's sophisticated, supposedly all-knowing baseball fans would not have to endure miserable summers if they didn't believe all that noise about their teams emanating from spring training.

Reading Time: Two Minutes.* It sounds like a heckuva movie to me, LSU's baseball team having to come out of the loser's bracket to win its conference (SEC) tournament, an NCAA regional qualifier and, finally, the College World Series. Besides, the Tigers had to rally from two down in the ninth inning in the semis. There's probably a descendant of Roy Hobbs on the team.* New York's sophisticated, supposedly all-knowing baseball fans would not have to endure miserable summers if they didn't believe all that noise about their teams emanating from spring training.

No sooner did Zina Garrison get done saying "I'm maybe going to take a break" after suffering an upset loss Wednesday when she reconsidered and looked to next week's Virginia Slims of Washington to turn her game around."