Stage Set for Seles, Confident Hingis

Normally, when a player proclaims her superiority, it comes off as offensive bragging. When 16-year-old Martina Hingis does it, it’s still bragging, but it’s also a fairly accurate analysis of her season so far.

The top-seeded Swiss teenager has not been beaten this year, having won all six tournaments she’s entered. Only a six-week layoff because of a knee injury has stopped the Hingis juggernaut.

She goes into today’s semifinal supremely confident and happy to talk about it.

“I think I am getting more dangerous day by day,” Hingis said after Tuesday’s quarterfinal victory over Arantxa Sanchez Vicario. “Today, I played unbelievable. I’m feeling like I’m back in the old days. I can run again. I just feel very confident. I am happy with myself. I don’t care about who is going to be my next opponent.”

That would be Monica Seles, a three-time French Open champion. Hingis has won all three matches against Seles, all finals, twice this year.

Today’s semifinals give the women what they long for--the solo stage at the one Grand Slam tournament that treats them as second string to the men, who get preference on center court.

Hingis has asked for and received the scheduling she has wanted, though not necessarily on the court she might have preferred. Now she’s one match from the final she’s been hoping for. First she faces Seles, who has lost only nine matches on clay in her entire career.

“It’s not going to be easy because she’s just very strong from the baseline,” Hingis said. “The harder you hit, the harder it comes back. We’ll see. I never played this tournament [against] someone who hits it very hard. Everyone was a player who loops the ball. You have enough time to do something by yourself. But Monica hits it just so hard. It’s going to be a completely different game, I think.”

In the other semifinal, ninth-seeded Iva Majoli of Croatia plays 11th-seeded Amanda Coetzer of South Africa. Both matches will be on center court.

Coetzer upset defending champion Steffi Graf to reach her first semifinal in a Grand Slam tournament. Graf, a five-time winner here, was asked if Coetzer could win the title, “Probably not,” she replied.

As ever, the women were given second-class treatment for their quarterfinals: The four women’s matches were played on Court Suzanne Lenglen. Seven of the eight women’s players were seeded, including the top three.

On center court there were two men’s quarterfinals involving one seeded player, and two doubles matches.

It has been the schedule since the court formerly known as Court A was upgraded three years ago.

Combined with the scheduling that consistently puts women’s matches on far-flung courts, the women continue to complain and feel slighted.

“I don’t think it’s very nice for the women, also for the fans, if they only see the women on Court A and the men are on center court,” Hingis said.’ ‘I think we have the right to play on center court too.”

Graf, who seldom gets involved in tennis politics, has spoken out on the matter. So has Seles, who is rarely controversial.

“I think all the matches should be [in the] stadium],” Seles said. “I just don’t think it’s right. That was my opinion last year.”

The women argue that since more seeded players have remained in the women’s draw, their matches offer equal or better entertainment value.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Today’s Featured Matches

WOMEN’S SEMIFINALS

* Martina Hingis (1) vs. Monica Seles (3)

* Amanda Coetzer (11) vs. Iva Majoli (9).