Capriati, 13, Suffers First Upset of Her Young Career

Jennifer Capriati suffered the first upset of her young career today, falling to qualifier Nathalie Herreman of France 6-2, 6-4 in the fourth round of the International Players Championships.

By winning, the left-handed Herreman, ranked No. 113, reached the quarterfinals of a tournament for the first time since 1987.

The 13-year-old Capriati fell to 8-2 since starting her professional tennis career this month. Her only other loss was to third-ranked Gabriela Sabatini in the finals of the Virginia Slims of Florida.

“I made a lot of errors and she played well,” Capriati said. “I think it was a good tournament for me, I beat (sixth-seeded Helena) Sukova and made the fourth round, and I think that’s pretty good.”

Herreman said she took the match in stride.

“I didn’t feel the pressure at all today. I was pretty cool,” Herreman said. “I think there was more pressure on her than on me. Everybody wants her to win. It’s difficult. You can’t win every game.”

Although unheralded, Herreman had been playing well, losing just nine games in her previous three matches.

Herreman’s strategy was to keep the ball in play until Capriati made a mistake. The plan worked, as the teen committed 53 unforced errors to 33 for her opponent.

Capriati also fell behind in her third-round match Sunday. But she won by default when Patty Fendick suffered a knee injury while leading 4-2 in the first set.