Sabatini Overcomes Pressure and Capriati : Tennis: It’s not easy, but Argentine gets past 13-year-old in the Florida final, 6-4, 7-5.

Jennifer Capriati is only 13, but on Sunday she managed to put all the pressure on Gabriela Sabatini.

Sabatini was up to it, scoring a 6-4, 7-5 victory to win the Virginia Slims of Florida tournament, but she didn’t seem to enjoy it.

“I had to be strong mentally to play against all the pressure I had to face today,” Sabatini said. “I had to play my best tennis. I had to concentrate and play smart.

“I just wanted to finish the match and get out of this match today.”

Capriati, playing in her first professional tournament, rolled through five matches to reach the final, but couldn’t get past the third-ranked women’s player in the world.

Not that it bothered her much.

“I thought this week was one of the greatest weeks in my life,” Capriati said. “My first pro tournament and I got to the finals. I’m just so excited that I got this far.”

Sabatini won $70,000, while Capriati, who turns 14 later this month, won $28,000 as the youngest player to reach a major pro tournament final in the Open era that began in 1968.

Unlike in her previous matches, Capriati couldn’t come up with the winners when she needed them the most. Down a break of service, 3-2, in the first set, Capriati could only trade games with the stronger, more experienced Sabatini.

With the Argentine on the brink of taking the first set at 5-4, Capriati was up love-30--two points from evening the set.

But Sabatini held off the spirited Capriati and nailed down the set.

It was more of the same in the second set. Capriati went up, 4-2, breaking Sabatini at love, but she couldn’t hold it. Sabatini broke right back and then held for 4-4.

At 5-5, Sabatini broke the youngster’s serve to take a 6-5 lead before serving out the match.

Capriati had a break point in the final game, but Sabatini fired a service winner to foil any comeback thoughts.

“She kept the rallies going,” Capriati said. “She kept hitting those unbelievable dropshots . . . I think I got a little impatient.”