Graf Finds Herself in a Battle to Survive

Wimbledon’s soap opera script wrote itself into the women’s draw late Thursday. It left this cliffhanger: Just as the two rivals appeared headed to yet another confrontation in the final of a Grand Slam tournament, darkness falls, and there is a scream.

To find out whodunit, tune in today . . . and Saturday.

The intended denouement of the women’s semifinals was left hanging because Thursday’s inclement weather and the necessity of completing the men’s quarterfinals backed up the court schedule.

One half of the story line was completed: Fourth-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario defeated unseeded Meredith McGrath of the United States in her expected brisk fashion, 6-2, 6-1, in 62 minutes.

Steffi Graf’s match with Kimiko Date of Japan was suspended because of darkness, with each player having won a 6-2 set. Graf won the first set and Date the second. It was Graf who stifled a scream when told her match would have to be completed today. The final will be played Saturday.

The unfinished business provides some titillation for what seemed to be a pre-ordained Graf-Sanchez Vicario final, a replay of last year’s classic that Graf won.

Sanchez Vicario got on court first, even as the light was dying, but dispatched McGrath before the sun dropped over the rim of Court 1. McGrath, whose right leg was swathed in a mummylike amount of athletic tape, had limited mobility.

Her weak ankle, hyperextended knee, strained hamstring and sore hip pretty much doomed her to fail against the quickest player on the tour.

“I don’t want to pin the loss on an injury,” McGrath said. “Arantxa came out there with her ‘A’ game tonight, and she was hitting the ball deep and passing me, basically at will, and serving big. I don’t know even if I was 100% healthy if that would have done the job against her tonight.”

Sanchez Vicario has the distinction of having reached the final without facing a seeded player.

Graf is not in the final yet, although she won the first set quickly and appeared intent on getting off the court before the light failed. She failed before it did.

Date’s low, flat stokes are not to Graf’s liking, while Date absorbs the power of Graf’s shots and rebounds the force back at Graf. That allowed Date, seeded 12th, to break Graf in the fifth game of the second set.

It was in that game where, while Graf stood at the baseline to serve, a spectator yelled out, “Will you marry me?”

Graf allowed a rare on-court smile and responded, “How much money do you have?”

Stay tuned.