Sanchez Vicario

WIMBLEDON, England -- No. 1 seed Steffi Graf got up with sinus and cold problems yesterday, and seemed more worried about how being sick would seem than concerned about picking up her suspended semifinal match with Kimiko Date.When the two appeared on the court for the 11 a.m. start with the match even at 6-2, 2-6, the stands were three-quarters empty, and Graf seemed determined to finish off Date before anyone else had a chance to arrive.Her opening serve was an ace, and the set was over in 26 minutes, with Graf, the defending champion, winning, 6-3, and advancing to today's rematch of last year's Wimbledon final against Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.

WIMBLEDON, England -- Other seeds may have had their problems, but Arantxa Sanchez Vicario was single-minded yesterday, moving smoothly into tomorrow's scheduled women's final with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Meredith McGrath.Just who Sanchez Vicario will play -- if the rains hold off -- is still unknown. The second women's semifinal was called because of darkness last night with No. 1 seed Steffi Graf and No. 12 Kimiko Date deadlocked after two sets.Graf played to form in the opening set, winning easily, 6-2. But in the second, Date came alive, finding all the lines and angles to take it, 6-2."

PARIS -- From ferocious to fragile and back again, Steffi Graf, the defending champion of the French Open, retained her title yesterday in a 3-hour, 3-minute epic confrontation with fourth-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain.Graf's 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 10-8 victory, the longest women's final ever played at Roland Garros, reduced Sanchez Vicario to tears of exhaustion and Graf to tears of joy, and delivered the resolute German her 19th Grand Slam singles title. The dramatic victory moved her into a tie with Helen Wills Moody for second place in her sport's most prestigious record book behind Australian Margaret Court's 24 titles.

VALENCIA, Spain -- American rookie Chanda Rubin stole some of the spotlight with an upset victory over Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, but Spain overcame the United States, 3-2, to capture its third consecutive Federation Cup title yesterday.After Spain took a 2-0 lead on the first day of the five-match final, Conchita Martinez clinched the victory by defeating U.S. No. 1 Mary Joe Fernandez, 6-3, 6-4. Rubin, who replaced injured Monica Seles, stopped the Spanish singles blitz by beating Sanchez Vicario, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, before a sold-out stadium of 6,000 chanting fans.

When Ilie Nastase hit a sweet little cross-court winner out of the reach of Tracy Austin, who will have her first child this spring, he jiggled his belly and laughed."

Mary Pierce is jetting in from a day of sponsor appearances in Paris, and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario is winging over on the Concorde from Spain for tonight's Signet Bank Tennis Challenge.It is the 10th year for the event at the Baltimore Arena that has earned approximately $1.5 million for children's charities. And Pam Shriver, the creator and driving force behind the event, wants this one to be special.Tonight's lineup certainly is.World No. 2 Sanchez Vicario vs. No. 4 Pierce in a three-set singles match; Ilie Nastase and Shriver against Tracy Austin and Johan Kriek in the legends mixed doubles; and Cal Ripken teamed with Sanchez Vicario against Orioles teammate Brady Anderson and Pierce in the all-star mixed doubles.

NEW YORK -- At some point today, Cal Ripken will receive a gift from Pam Shriver and her fellow players at the U.S. Open.Shriver, an Orioles part-owner who plans to be at Camden Yards when Ripken ties Lou Gehrig's record of 2,130 consecutive games if her tennis schedule permits, will present Ripken with a framed 1995 U.S. Open poster signed by some of tennis' biggest stars.From Pete Sampras: "To Cal, a class act on and off the field. Keep up the fine example."From Jim Courier: "Cal, a true American hero, keep up the great work."

NEW YORK -- Defending U.S. Open women's champion Arantxa Sanchez Vicario was upset last night by No. 14 Mary Joe Fernandez, who came on the court with her right thigh wrapped and her prospects dim.Few gave Fernandez much of a chance against No. 3 Sanchez Vicario. But it was Fernandez who showed the heart to pull out a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 fourth-round victory.It was the earliest exit for a defending U.S. Open women's champion since 1986."I am a human being. It is impossible to always get things when you want them," said Sanchez Vicario.

Two of the world's top-ranked women's players will be featured at the 1995 Signet Bank Tennis Challenge at the Baltimore Arena in October, tournament chairwoman Pam Shriver announced yesterday.Second-ranked Arantxa Sanchez Vicario will play No. 5 Mary Pierce, and Shriver will team with Ilie Nastase against Tracy Austin and Johan Kriek in a doubles match.Proceeds from the Tennis Challenge, presented by The Baltimore Sun, will be distributed by the Baltimore Community Foundation to children's charities.

WIMBLEDON, England -- Third set. Eleventh game. Thirty-two points. The game of their lives and the game of the ages.For 20 minutes they played on, kicking up dirt, clumps of grass and history, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario grunting and serving, Steffi Graf returning, the shots barely clearing the net, the tennis balls skidding to the chalk lines. The rules of up-right, up-tight Wimbledon came tumbling down with every point, as fans screamed in the middle of rallies and gray-haired women and men dressed in suits and straw hats pumped their fists.