TENNIS : U.S. OPEN NOTEBOOK : Maleeva-Fragniere Falters in Her Quarterfinal Match

Mary Joe Fernandez won her quarterfinal match Tuesday against Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere and will play either Gabriela Sabatini or Leila Meskhi in the semifinals.

Fernandez defeated Maleeva-Fragniere, 6-2, 2-6, 6-1, in an unevenly played match. Fernandez had 36 unforced errors and Maleeva-Fragniere 34.

Maleeva-Fragniere, who upset second-seeded Martina Navratilova in the fourth round, said she wasn’t sure what went wrong.

“I’m not sure if it’s the win against Martina that was a problem, but I was a little bit nervous,” Maleeva said. “It seemed I couldn’t win.”

Garrison update: Zina Garrison, who plays Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in the quarterfinals today, received treatment Tuesday after irritating her right Achilles tendon during Monday night’s mixed doubles match.

Garrison and partner Rick Leach, the Wimbledon mixed doubles champions, lost to Liz Smylie and Todd Woodbridge in straight sets.

According to the Women’s Tennis Assn., Garrison’s right ankle has been taped during all of her matches because it is sore and the tape irritated her Achilles tendon.

Mac coming back?: There is a chance that John McEnroe will play singles if the U.S. reaches the Davis Cup final.

“You want the party line?” U.S. Capt. Tom Gorman asked. “OK, we have a very difficult match with Austria coming up. We have to get by them first.”

The U.S. Davis Cup squad of Andre Agassi and Michael Chang and doubles team Rick Leach and Jim Pugh plays Austria in the semifinals later this month in Vienna.

Gorman did not rule out the possibility that McEnroe would join the team for a final against the winner of the other semifinal between Australia or Argentina.

McEnroe last played Davis Cup in last year’s 5-0 quarterfinal victory over France in San Diego.

Worst Interview II: Katerina Maleeva, who was a poor interview at the Virginia Slims of Los Angeles, reached new depths in the U.S. Open interview room after losing to Jana Novotna in the fourth round.

Q--Are you happy about your sister’s win over Martina?

A--Yes, I am very happy.

Q--How many times have you played Jana before?

A--Three.

Q--Was there any celebration by your family?

A--No.

Q--Did your sister’s win take anything out of you?

A--No.

Trivia: When McEnroe followed up his first-round victory over Javier Sanchez with a five-set, 4-hour and 20-minute fourth-round decision over Emilio Sanchez, he became the first man to defeat brothers in the U.S. Open since 1979, when Jimmy Connors defeated Anand and Vijay Amritraj.

Why people like me: According to Andre Agassi, here is why tennis fans enjoy him: “They come out to watch me play really good tennis and to see some different clothes. That’s what they get, so it all works out.”