Tennis Roundup : Shriver, Gadusek Advance to Rancho Bernardo Final

“God, make a return on a break point!” screamed Pam Shriver again and again Saturday night.

Down a set and a break in the second set of her 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 semifinal victory over Zina Garrison, the top-seeded Shriver had Garrison down 0-40, 15-40 and 15-40 in three straight games.

Yet, Shriver could not break through, and trailed, 5-4, with Garrison serving for the match.

Aided by two errors on volleys by Garrison, Shriver finally broke to make it 5-5.

“I missed two very easy volleys and got upset over them,” Garrison said. “Before I knew it, the match was out of my hands.”

Shriver advanced to today’s final of the $100,000 Audi Challenge against Bonnie Gadusek at 11 a.m. at the Rancho Bernardo Inn.

Gadusek defeated Stephanie Rehe, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, Saturday afternoon when the sun was out.

Playing on a very cool evening, Shriver and Garrison put on quite a show. Both players served and volleyed, and Shriver also talked and shouted.

“I wasn’t in the best of moods the first two sets,” said Shriver, who added that she was a little tired from playing doubles, attending a clinic and making an appearance at three tournament-related parties earlier Saturday. “Sometimes when I’m tired and not concentrating, I talk to myself a lot. But that’s still no excuse for being a moron on the court. Actually, if my mother and grandmother weren’t here, I probably would have been worse.”

And all for an Audi, which, in addition to a share of the prize money, goes to the singles winner.

“If we were playing for a Chevette,” Shriver said, “we probably wouldn’t have played as hard. That’s as much as I’ve put into a non-sanctioned event.”

While Shriver, ranked fifth in the world, is well-known, eighth-ranked Gadusek keeps a very low profile.

“I’m more of a consistent player who has a steady and solid record,” Gadusek said. “I’m not that flamboyant. I’m more shy and keep to myself.”

Have agents and coaches suggested to Gadusek that she try to change her persona?

“Yes,” she said. “I’ve thought about it, but I don’t think this is the time in my career when I want to change things. If people want to appreciate me, they’ll have to do it for my tennis and not my personality.”

On the court, Gadusek said she is getting bored with hitting just ground strokes. It’s time for a new challenge. Time for her to attack from the net.

“Sometimes hitting from the base line can be boring for me and for the spectators,” said Gadusek, who used a strong net game in the final two sets of her comeback victory against Rehe.

John McEnroe beat defending champion Stefan Edberg of Sweden, 7-6, 6-2, to set up a meeting with second-seeded Jimmy Connors today in the final of the $289,000 Transamerica Open tennis tournament at San Francisco.

Connors made the final when third-seeded Anders Jarryd retired with a painful knee. Connors led, 6-7, 6-1, 2-0, when Jarryd was forced to withdraw.