| | Associated Press
ROME -- Tennis has given Jennifer Capriati moments of glory
as well as severe disappointments since she made her European
professional debut in Rome a decade ago at the age of 14. Monday
was definitely not one of her glory days.
|  | | Jennifer Capriati says her lack of match play recently has had a negative effect on her game. |
Playing before only a few hundred people in a first-round match
of the Italian Open, Capriati was ousted by little-known
Anne-Gaelle Sidot of France 6-3, 7-5.
Now 24, Capriati is in the midst of her latest comeback and
reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in January. But
against Sidot the 13th-ranked American was outhustled and
outplayed.
"Maybe I just didn't feel as comfortable out there," Capriati
said of the defeat, citing her lack of match play. "I have to work
more on my shape."
She blamed her lack of practice on ankle tendinitis, saying,
"So I'm not there at that point of being perfect, you know."
Capriati declined to speak about the period in her life when
drugs and personal problems forced her off the Sanex WTA Tour in
1993. She returned in 1996, achieving mixed results since.
But Capriati did recall her first appearance at the Foro Italico
in 1990 when she reached the quarterfinals, losing to Gabriela
Sabatini before a packed and excited center court crowd.
"My dad's Italian, so it was a big deal to come," she said.
"It was very exciting playing, a night match, full crowd. That's
what I remember."
It was the start of a career that saw her rise as high as sixth
in the world and capture the gold medal in the 1992 Olympics by
defeating Steffi Graf in the final.
"I still love to travel," she said, insisting: "I've made a
commitment to playing because, you know, it's something that I
really love to do."
One thing she needs is a new coach. She said she parted "on
good terms" with Harold Solomon, who was credited with helping get
her to her first Grand Slam tournament semifinal in nine years in
Australia.
Capriati said she is looking for someone she can trust and is
very knowledgeable. "They're hard to come by. I mean, especially
for me."
The top eight seeds had first-round byes in the $1.080 million
tournament.
In early action, two other seeded players were ousted. No. 16
Silvija Talaja lost to Fabiola Zuluaga 6-2, 6-3 and No. 14 Nathalie
Dechy was upset by Jelena Dokic 6-1, 4-6, 6-3.
In other early matches, No. 15 Dominique Van Roost defeated
Irina Spirlea 6-2, 6-3 and unseeded American Alexandra Stevenson
was ousted 6-0, 6-2 by Tatiana Panova.
The field includes top-ranked Lindsay Davenport, Nathalie
Tauziat, Mary Pierce, Venus Williams and Monica Seles.
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