Graf Wins and Closes on No. 1 : Tennis: She defeats Date, 6-1, 6-4, for third title, but can’t escape questions about Seles.

Having been there longer than most, Steffi Graf knows that as she inches ever closer to No. 1, happiness will not be there to meet her. She must bring it herself.

Increasingly, happiness for Graf is found within the lines of a tennis court, away from the probing of well-intentioned doctors and reporters with dubious intent. Rather than fear potential humiliation on the court, Graf harbors apprehension for the postmatch interviews with their barrage of uncomfortably personal questions.

Graf’s haven Saturday--Stadium Court for the singles final of the Lipton Championships--rewarded her with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Kimiko Date, her third title of the year, and moved her within six-tenths of a point of No. 1 Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in the computer rankings.

The long climb from a possible career-ending back injury to the brink of No. 1 leaves Graf with some professional satisfaction but little solace. She has rehabilitated her ailing back, which failed her for a combination of genetic and tennis-related reasons, and has not lost a set this year.

She looked invincible against the eighth-ranked Date, who was troubled not so much by a sore shoulder as by Graf’s powerful forehand and determination to retain the title she won last year.

Graf broke Date twice to win the first set in 28 minutes, then began to serve better in the second set. But Date responded by improving her return of serve. One of the quickest players on the tour, she attempted to frustrate Graf by making the points longer and longer.

Graf knew of Date’s remarkable comeback against Gabriela Sabatini in the semifinals, when Sabatini was up a set and held a 5-1 lead, only to lose.

Somewhat similarly, Date was down a set and serving at 3-5. Her serve had been wobbly, and Graf had broken Date in her last service game. Showing courage in the face of Graf’s onslaught, Date fended off championship point in that game to hold her serve.

But Graf, too, has courage, and held her serve to win the match.

With the early exit of Sanchez Vicario from this tournament, Graf is poised to overtake the Spaniard in the coming weeks.

But what is it worth to be No. 1? Heartache? The end of a career? If Graf does not smile at the prospect of returning to the position she once held for 186 consecutive weeks from Aug. 17, 1987, to March 10, 1991, it’s because she knows firsthand the cost.

Graf has been bombarded this week with questions about the possible comeback of Monica Seles and the retrial in Germany of Guenther Parche, the man who stabbed Seles in the back in 1993 so that Graf might take back the No. 1 ranking from Seles.

Naturally, much sympathy has been directed toward Seles, who has not returned to the WTA Tour because of the physical and psychological trauma of the incident. Speculation is that if the mentally unstable Parche is put behind bars, Seles would feel free to return to tennis.

But it is Graf who may have the most to fear from Parche, who admitted to being so obsessed with Graf that he quit his job to travel to her tournaments. Seles was Parche’s opportunistic victim, Graf his haunting fixation.

This has had an impact on Graf. Usually, she looks a questioner in the eyes and answers in the same fashion. This week, faced with questions about the stabbing, Graf focused on some distant object and responded in a monotone.

“The last 10 days I have been confronted with this in every interview, every time, so that doesn’t make it easier to forget,” Graf said, sighing. “It is not possible to block it out, not at all. Even in the months before, you still . . . you still think about it. You try as much as you can, and you hope you don’t have to think about it too much.”

For the very private Graf, tennis has too often been associated with pain. Once, as a teen-ager, she left a tournament office and was confronted by a fan who, to demonstrate his devotion, slashed his wrists in front of her.

There are few means of escape. WTA Tour officials confirm that Graf travels with far more media following her than any other player--and that number is sure to increase when she takes over the No. 1 ranking.