Graf Isn’t Happy After Tough Win

For a moment, the scowl left Steffi Graf’s face. If you blinked, you could miss it.

It came after a tenacious struggle to hold serve in the fifth game of the third set, as Graf fought off one break point and prevailed through five deuces. Her opponent, Chanda Rubin, finally pushed a lob long and a smiling Graf caught the ball and briefly held it above her head.

Graf, seeded fifth, would not lose another game, defeating Rubin, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, in the semifinals of the Evert Cup on Thursday at Grand Champions Resort.

On Saturday, Graf will play in her first final of 1999, meeting the winner of today’s semifinal between 12th-seeded Sandrine Testud of France and unseeded Serena Williams.

Graf’s displeasure, even after all these years and all the Grand Slam titles, had nothing to do with the score. For the 29-year-old German, the game is the thing. And, frankly, she did not like it much on a cool, windy day.

“That’s what I’ve been asked a lot of times, ‘What does it mean to you to win titles?’ ” said Graf, a champion here in 1994 and 1996. “I’ve always said the most important thing is to play well. I didn’t do that today, so I’m not happy about it. Probably a little bit later on, I look forward to the finals. But right now, I’m just not happy the way I played.”

Still, there were positive aspects in the pursuit of perfection.

On an off day, Graf slogged through and stayed resolute despite early service breaks in the second and third sets.

In any event, Graf planned on practicing later in the day. She played matches on three consecutive days, and she is off today. “I think it’s a very strange schedule altogether. . . . That’s ridiculous,” she said.

As for Rubin, the loss muted her immediate sense of accomplishment this week. The 23-year-old defeated three seeded players in Martina Hingis (No. 1), Amanda Coetzer (No. 7) and Conchita Martinez (No. 14) to reach the semifinals. But she is now 0-7 against Graf, winning two sets in those matches.

“I actually did not think about it all during the match,” said Rubin, who is ranked 26th. “It never entered my mind. I was just playing another player. I guess that’s good. But I didn’t get it done. At the end, I probably beat myself a bit. She started forcing me a little bit more.”

Six of those seven matches were before Graf’s comeback from knee surgery last year. So Rubin is qualified to judge Graf, pre-surgery and post-surgery.

“She’s moving pretty well, striking the ball fairly solidly,” she said. “Her game is pretty much the same it’s been. It’s the movement that you can really tell how she’s feeling. I felt like she moved pretty well today.”

* SHOW AND SELL: Women’s tennis is using a time-honored tactic--sex appeal--in attempt to revive interest in the sport. C1