It’s Down to No. 1s and Best of the Rest

Each year Wimbledon moves along, forming its shape and character, determined by unpredictable weather and unguessable bounces of a tennis ball. If last year’s tournament was hot and predictable, this year’s has been defined by unseasonable cold and the swift loss of top-seeded players.

It has been universally hailed as the strangest Wimbledon in memory, but is that such a bad thing?

While much has been lost in glamour, more has been gained in enthusiasm and freshness. It’s a change from the norm to find tennis players happy to be here and willing to say so. Two blue-collar players beat their betters on Tuesday, and they unashamedly exulted. One player, No. 114 in the world, described his survival to this point in the tournament as a wonderful dream. Another, No. 116, said playing in the Wimbledon semifinals is an honor. The unseeded players reacted in a way considered unseemly by players in the top 10.

Meredith McGrath, after defeating ninth-seeded Mary Joe Fernandez, 6-3, 6-1: “I just stopped shaking about five minutes ago. I’m really excited to be here. Coming into the tournament, I never expected it. I mean, it never crossed my mind.”

Alex Radulescu, after defeating qualifier Neville Godwin, 6-3, 6-0, 6-4: “I think I’m dreaming, and I hope nobody wakes me up. It’s just fantastic. It’s unbelievable.”

Tuesday’s program, under a gray but dry sky, whittled the already depleted fields even further. The women are headed for their semifinals Thursday, and the men will play their quarterfinals today. Both sides of the draw feature new names.

Five of the eight remaining men are unseeded. It is the first time since the open era began in 1967 that so few seeded players remain in the quarterfinals.

Unseeded Richard Krajicek defeated 10th-seeded Michael Stich, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4; unseeded MaliVai Washington defeated Paul Haarhuis, also unseeded, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2. Thirteenth-seeded Todd Martin defeated unseeded Thomas Johansson, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-2. Top-seeded Pete Sampras defeated 16th-seeded Cedric Pioline, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

The women have been more formful. McGrath, the only unseeded player in the semifinals, will play third-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, who defeated unseeded Judith Wiesner, 6-4, 6-0. Top-seeded Steffi Graf defeated sixth-seeded Jana Novotna, 6-3, 6-2, and will play Kimiko Date in the other semifinal. Date, seeded 13th, defeated 14th-seeded Mary Pierce, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.

Date is the first Japanese woman to reach the semifinals of Wimbledon and one of only two women to have beaten Graf this year. Date’s match against Pierce put her on Centre Court for the first time.

“Wimbledon is always a tournament that I want to win,” Date said through an interpreter. “Centre Court is the court I’ve always wanted to play on.”

Graf’s match against Novotna lacked the anticipated drama. The two met last year in a semifinal here, with Graf winning in three sets. But the Wimbledon match both players and fans remember came in the finals in 1993.

Novotna beat Gabriela Sabatini and Martina Navratilova on her way to the final. Novotna is one of the few pure serve and volleyers in the women’s game, and never was she more confident and poised to beat Graf. She had the match in hand, led, 4-1, in the final set, and failed to win another game. Graf won, 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-4, in 2 hours 14 minutes, and Novotna commiserated on a royal shoulder. Novotna’s classic failure has never really left her.

Novotna tried too hard Tuesday to expunge her past. Her attacking game relies on instinct and timing and can’t be forced against an opponent such as Graf. Graf’s serve was better than it has been, and her handling of Novotna’s serve made the difference.

“It was a lot easier than I expected,” Graf said. “I returned really well, right from the beginning, and I think that kind of gave me a positive attitude into the game. I think she knew she had to do something better, keep playing closer to the lines.”

Fernandez injured her back in practice Tuesday and moved stiffly throughout the match. McGrath, whose game is well suited to grass, took full advantage.

“I think it’s an honor just to be in the semis of Wimbledon,” McGrath said. “I don’t want to say I’m honored to be in the company of Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, because, unfortunately, I have to beat her in a couple of days.”