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 Venus
Williams won her third straight Acura Classic title as she cruised
past Yugoslavia’s Jelena Dokic, 6-2, 6-2 in the finals of
the 2002 Acura Classic.
The top-seeded Williams needed just 55 minutes to win the match,
which was played before a capacity crowd of 6,500 at the La Costa
Resort and Spa.
“I must be doing something right,” Williams said following
her victory. “This is really nice to keep coming back to a
tournament that is so familiar and where winning is so familiar.”
Williams, who dropped only one set during the tournament, won $115,000
and a new Acura 3.2CL coupe for winning the title.
She also became the first player in the 19-year history of the
event to win the title three consecutive times. Williams defeated
Monica Seles in the 2000 and 2001 Acura Classic finals.
The victory in Carlsbad marked Williams’ 27th career singles
title.
Dokic, seeded sixth, reached the finals of the Acura Classic for
the first time as she defeated second-seeded Jennifer Capriati in
the quarterfinals, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4.
In her semifinal match, Dokic fought off two match points in a
6-7 (6), 7-6 (2), 6-0 victory over unseeded Anna Kournikova.
“It’s only my second time (in San Diego), so hopefully
I can come back here for many years to come and do a little bit
better,” said Dokic. “I was very tired from the last
two days.”
In the 2002 Acura Classic doubles final, Russia’s Elena Dementieva
and Janette Husarova of Slovakia defeated Ai Sugiyama of Japan and
Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia, 6-2, 6-4.
Navartilova Makes an Appearance
Fans who attended Sunday’s qualifying matches got an unexpected
treat as they got to see tennis legend Martina Navratilova play
in the doubles qualifying.
Navratilova teamed with Elena Tatarkova of the Ukraine. They defeated
Francesca Schiavone and Adriana Serra Zanetti of Italy in a first-round
qualifying match, 8-3.
In their second-round match, Tatarkova and Navratilova fell to
Tatiana Panova of Russia and Maria Vento-Kabchi, 1-6, 7-5, 6-4.
The match, which ended at 7 p.m., took two hours and 9 minutes.
Davenport Reaches Semifinals
Former champion Lindsay Davenport played in only her second tournament
since November 2001 when she suffered torn cartilage in her right
knee at the Sanex WTA Tour Championships in Munich, Germany.
In the 2002 Acura Classic, she defeated Marie-Gaianeh Mikaelian,
Chanda Rubin and Ai Sugiyama to reach the semifinals where she lost
to Venus Williams in straight sets.
Welcome Back Corina
Twenty-four-year-old Corina Morariu made her official tour comeback
at the 2002 Acura Classic. Morariu, who won the doubles title at
Carlsbad in 1999, was diagnosed with leukemia in May 2001, but is
now in full remission.
Tournament organizers granted her a wildcard into the doubles competition
where she teamed with fellow American, Kimberly Po-Messerli.
Before a large crowd on Stadium Court at the La Costa Resort and
Spa, Morariu and Po-Messerli dropped a first-round match to Chanda
Rubin and Meghann Shaughnessy, 6-2, 3-6, 7-5.
During the tournament, Morariu was presented with the inaugural
“Acura Classic Corina Comeback Award.”
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