Davenport limps but enjoys a rebirth

WIMBLEDON, England -- Thirty-five months after walking off Centre Court from an epic final, Lindsay Davenport curtailed her absence, walked onto cozy Court No. 2 with a bandage on her right knee and prepared the smallish crowd for a rare sports experience.

For the ensuing two hours on a Tuesday afternoon, they’d watch an elite athlete while thinking: And to think she gave birth to another human.

Those in various stages of awe included some who have never given birth, such as certain males, and the woman who settled into the aisle seat on the third row up from the court, alongside the coach and the husband.

“I mean, she felt great, but I’m just surprised she could come back this soon,” said Ann Davenport, who herself gave birth thrice, finally to Lindsay. “Having a C-section. I’m just in total awe. I am.”

There’s just something about this Wimbledon for the Orange County Davenports, almost as if it’s a bonus Wimbledon, a Wimbledon at 32 after none at 30 or 31, a Wimbledon that during Lindsay’s hiatus seemed inviable. So Ann Davenport finds herself devouring details such as the spectators’ respectfulness, the “pomp and circumstance,” the Roger Federer match she took in Monday on Centre Court.

“Look at the linespeople, all dressed up,” she said.

Asked if she foresaw this Wimbledon, Lindsay Davenport said, “I did not. It’s a real treat, a real honor and privilege. . . . You know, I’ve had some of my greatest memories here. What started off as a Grand Slam that I probably liked the least definitely turned into the one I liked the most in the latter part of my career.”

Fielding a question about male players with children, Davenport cracked, “It’s probably easier for a guy to come back after having a child.”

They’re in a five-bedroom house just up the road in Wimbledon Village -- player, husband, coach, mother, nanny and 1-year-old son Jagger, and they’re all about the village, Ann recommending both the Indian restaurant and the Mediterranean on the corner.

“Fortunately for her, Jagger is an unbelievable baby,” Ann said of her fifth grandchild. “Very, very good. Took him one night to adjust to the time change here. He sleeps 10, 11 hours a night.”

Everything’s cooperating, even Ann’s schedule as regional commissioner of the Southern California Volleyball Assn., except the player’s right knee. Having revved into shape after childbirth and cruised to a 34-5 record since returning last fall, she walked into Wimbledon again with the bandage, and the bandage grew into a monstrosity once the trainer visited just before the third set.

It seemed the stay -- in the draw, at least -- might end up short at that point, the Czech Republic’s 110th-ranked Renata Voracova having just won the second set. If a knee with pain but without structural problems owed partly to the strain of being 32, Davenport’s eventual 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 victory owed partly to the caginess of being 32.

In fact, it seemed a sufficient feat in a glad-to-be-here Wimbledon, until a writer suggested to Davenport that her perspective might make reaching the second week less imperative.

That’s when the chipper mom gave way to the entrenched competitor, the one who chose to play elite tennis after giving birth, and Davenport suddenly said, “No, I mean, I’m not here going, ‘Gosh, I hope I get to the second round.’ I haven’t lost before the quarters here since, I think, ’98.”

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Wimbledon: Day 2

A look at who won, who lost and what’s next at the All-England Club (world rankings in parentheses):

Who won

* Venus Williams, United States (7) d. Naomi Cavaday, Great Britain (197), 7-6 (5), 6-1 -- “It’s definitely an honor,” Williams said of taking Centre Court as defending champion. “But by the time I’m walking out there I’m just really so focused that I don’t enjoy it as much as I could.”

* Andy Roddick, United States (6) d. Eduardo Schwank, Argentina (60), 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (0) -- Nobody’s talking about him too much. But then, “You know, I don’t know if I’ve ever been the one that everyone’s talking about.”

* Rafael Nadal, Spain (2) d. Andreas Beck, Germany (122), 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (0) -- He faced zero break points along the way. It’s another indication that he’s good.

* James Blake, United States (8) d. Christophe Rochus, Belgium (112), 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, 6-4 -- If all goes well, he could play Roddick in the fourth round. It’s charming when little upstart countries thrive.

* Male Spaniards (9-3 in the first round) -- And to think they used to treat Wimbledon with indifference or worse. And given that one of the losses came to a fellow Spaniard, they’re even better than it looks.

* Wozniak (30) and Wozniacki (94) -- Caroline of Denmark and Aleksandra of Canada will play each other in a Wozniak-Wozniacki second round. Good luck to the chair umpire.

* Venus Williams/Serena Williams, United States (seeded 11th) d. Tatiana Poutchek, Belarus/Anastasia Rodionova, Australia, 6-0, 6-3 -- The Williamses often speak of shopping for clothes. They also hunt for hardware.

Who lost

* Nikolay Davydenko, Russia (4) lost to Benjamin Becker, Germany (116), 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 -- This very mild upset happened on Court No. 2, once dubbed the “graveyard of champions.” It proves it’s also the graveyard of those who play clay-court tournaments the week after the French Open.

* Mardy Fish, United States (39) lost to Richard Gasquet, France (10), 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 -- Fish drew Nadal last year and now Gasquet who, as Roddick noted, “kind of saved all his good tennis for the year and used it today.” Next year, Fish should get a first-round bye.

What’s next

* Serena Williams, United States (6) vs. Urszula Radwanska, Poland (190) -- Radwanska, 17, is the kid sister of a highly ranked player also in the Wimbledon draw (Agnieszka). Maybe they’ll have a lot to talk about.

* Roger Federer, Switzerland (1) vs. Robin Soderling, Sweden (41) -- Soderling played Nadal last year to a five-day, five-set, rain-haunted match in the third round. Nobody craves a reprise.

* Ana Ivanovic, Serbia (1) vs. Nathalie Dechy, France (97) -- This shouldn’t take too long.

* Novak Djokovic, Serbia (3) vs. Marat Safin, Russia (75) -- It could be fun while it lasts.

* Bobby Reynolds, United States (102) vs. Frank Dancevic, Canada (95) -- Reynolds will try to become the first male American in the third round. Again, it’s charming when the little upstart countries thrive.

-- Chuck Culpepper