Conchita Martinez

Top-seeded Conchita Martinez of Spain was knocked out of the European Indoors tournament Wednesday, losing, 6-4, 6-4, to Belgium's Sabine Appelmans at Zurich, Switzerland. Appelmans broke Martinez to lead, 5-4, and held serve to take the first set. The Belgian then opened the second set with consecutive breaks to go ahead, 4-0. Martinez was able to break back narrowing the gap to 5-4, but Appelmans held serve to close the set.

The semifinals of the women's Pacific Life tennis tournament were determined Thursday at the Indian Wells Garden, and it turned out to be one of those which-name-doesn't-fit-here lineups. Kim Clijsters of Belgium is the No. 1-seeded player, and she performed to expectations with a 6-2, 6-3 rout of Chanda Rubin. The other semifinal was settled Wednesday. Lindsay Davenport is set to face Jennifer Capriati in the featured 8:30 match tonight.

Sentiment has little place among athletes who must, almost by definition, render another person unhappy so that they might advance. The image comes to mind of the big fish swimming silently behind the innocent little fish, the big guy's mouth wide open. Monday's U.S. Open was awash with such singular calculation.

The hints of promise, almost like occasional rumors, finally turned into reality, in, of all places, her adopted country on a crisp June day. France had waited 33 years for another French female singles champion at Roland Garros, and if a Canadian-born, Florida-raised baseliner named Mary Pierce wasn't Gallic enough, well, imports of quality also have their place here.

How do you get to be No. 1? For 17-year-old Conchita Martinez of Spain, you change coaches, alter your game, limit the number of tournaments you play and try to live up to some staggering potential. There is already a fairly glowing consensus of Martinez in her peer group. --Said Martina Navratilova: "She has got a chance to be one of the best, if not the best." --Said Hana Mandlikova: "She's so young, she has lots of time to improve and she's very good already."

Top-seeded Conchita Martinez of Spain withdrew from this week's Virginia Slims of Albuquerque tournament with a stress reaction to her left leg.

After losing four of its top players, the Virginia Slims of Los Angeles got a boost Saturday when Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez of Spain entered the tournament, which begins Monday at the Manhattan Country Club. Martinez gives the event some much-needed depth after Kimiko Date, Lori McNeil, Gabriela Sabatini and Natalia Zvereva dropped out last week because of injuries.

Having struggled in the past against Conchita Martinez, top-ranked Martina Hingis was prepared for their final match Sunday in the Bank of the West Classic at Palo Alto. Martinez wasn't. Hingis overpowered a tired Martinez to win her second consecutive Bank of the West, 6-0, 6-2. Hingis, seeded No. 1, took only 53 minutes to improve her 1997 record to 50-1. Martinez, seeded sixth, had played Saturday night until almost midnight and said she slept only six hours.

Conchita Martinez, a quarterfinalist at the French Open the past three years, announced she will play in the Mazda Tennis Classic, July 29 through Aug. 4 at the La Costa Resort in Carlsbad. Martinez, the eighth-ranked player in the world, won three tournaments in 1990--Scottsdale, Ariz., Indianapolis and Paris. Martinez, 19, resides in Barcelona, Spain. Monica Seles is the only top-10 player to commit to the Mazda Tennis Classic.

American teen-ager Halle Cioffi eased past New Zealander Claudine Toleafoa 6-3, 7-5 today in the first round of the $50,000 Fernleaf Classic women's tennis tournament. Cioffi, seeded third, led two other seeds into the last 16 of the 32-player hard-court tournament. She was joined in the second round by fifth-seeded Belgian Sandra Wasserman and No. 8 Maria Strandlund of Sweden.

The finish line was agonizingly close. Mary Pierce was fidgeting, fussing and flexing at the French Open. Doesn't she always? Pierce's quirks are, at times, high theater and, at other times, sheer annoyance to an opponent. But on Thursday, her body was rebelling, pulling a Michael Chang, starting to cramp in the third set of her semifinal match against top-seeded Martina Hingis.

Give her credit, Martina Hingis doesn't think she is so smart that she can't learn something new about tennis. Now into her second cycle of appearing in Grand Slam tournament finals, the 17-year-old has discovered that defending the three titles she won last year will not be easy. Hingis defeated Conchita Martinez, 6-3, 6-3, in the final of the Australian Open on Saturday. While the 86-minute victory was not difficult, the pock-marked two-week path to the final at Melbourne Park was.

The story line threatens to become monotonous: Martina Hingis advances to her fifth consecutive Grand Slam tournament final, against an interchangeable array of hapless victims. The sport may tire of the Swiss teenager long before she grows bored with her winning ways. Eighth-seeded Conchita Martinez of Spain slotted herself in as the latest Hingis opponent, as both players won their semifinal matches Thursday at the Australian Open.

Having struggled in the past against Conchita Martinez, top-ranked Martina Hingis was prepared for their final match Sunday in the Bank of the West Classic at Palo Alto. Martinez wasn't. Hingis overpowered a tired Martinez to win her second consecutive Bank of the West, 6-0, 6-2. Hingis, seeded No. 1, took only 53 minutes to improve her 1997 record to 50-1. Martinez, seeded sixth, had played Saturday night until almost midnight and said she slept only six hours.

Conchita Martinez, who had never even won a set in 11 previous matches against Monica Seles, defeated her nemesis, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, Friday to reach the semifinals of the Bank of the West tournament at Palo Alto. Martinez, seeded sixth, pumped her right fist as she completed the victory over the second-seeded Seles. "It's been many, many years. I can't explain how happy I am," Martinez said. Martinez advanced to a semifinal match today against third-seeded Amanda Coetzer, who defeated No.

Taking its cue from the weather, the second round of State Farm Evert Cup heated up on Sunday. While the tournament and its players seemed in a slumber the first two days, all it took was a dose of competition to wake things up. Veteran players were challenged in the time-honored manner at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort. Second-seeded Conchita Martinez was made to work hard in her match against hard-working Petra Begerow before winning, 6-4, 6-2. Two teenagers were heard from Sunday.

The semifinals of the women's Pacific Life tennis tournament were determined Thursday at the Indian Wells Garden, and it turned out to be one of those which-name-doesn't-fit-here lineups. Kim Clijsters of Belgium is the No. 1-seeded player, and she performed to expectations with a 6-2, 6-3 rout of Chanda Rubin. The other semifinal was settled Wednesday. Lindsay Davenport is set to face Jennifer Capriati in the featured 8:30 match tonight.

Conchita Martinez ended a nine-match losing streak against Steffi Graf, defeating the world's No. 1-ranked player, 6-3, 6-3, Sunday to win the Virginia Slims of Philadelphia. Martinez, ranked fourth in the world, targeted Graf's backhand and charged the net for a victory that earned her $150,000. "You can't imagine how happy I am," Martinez said after the 1-hour 17-minute match. Graf, the defending champion, was playing in her first tournament since foot surgery in October.

Top-seeded Conchita Martinez of Spain was knocked out of the European Indoors tournament Wednesday, losing, 6-4, 6-4, to Belgium's Sabine Appelmans at Zurich, Switzerland. Appelmans broke Martinez to lead, 5-4, and held serve to take the first set. The Belgian then opened the second set with consecutive breaks to go ahead, 4-0. Martinez was able to break back narrowing the gap to 5-4, but Appelmans held serve to close the set.