BY JUAN C. RODRIGUEZ - Miami Herald- March 19, 2000
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She was boorish. Disinterested. Confrontational, even. She was rebellious, wanting to do things her own way. Nothing beyond the standard operating procedure for many teenagers, but disconcerting nonetheless.
When you're the world's top-ranked women's tennis player, you don't receive much leeway for growing pains. Then 18, Martina Hingis discovered that last year. She had a meltdown not unlike many her age. The difference was Hingis didn't have the option of storming to her bedroom and punctuating her ranting with a door slam.
She was on center court at Roland Garros, playing for the French Open singles title against Steffi Graf. The Parisian crowd hissed louder as the episodes grew more distasteful. Hingis was penalized a point for unsportsmanlike behavior. She smashed a racket. She argued line calls.
After the three-set loss, Hingis left the court in tears with no intention of coming back for the awards ceremony. Her mother and coach, Melanie Molitor, convinced Hingis to return.
It was the start of a turbulent summer that saw Hingis briefly split from Molitor as her coach. Hingis went to Wimbledon without her and became part of the storied tournament's greatest upsets. The top-seeded Hingis lost a first-round match to qualifier Jelena Dokic.
``Tennis was sometimes the easiest part out there. You've got your lines, you know the rules, you play your game. You do your job. And then [it's], oh my God, what am I going to say?'' Hingis said. ``I was always afraid of having a speech after I won a tournament. Now it's, like, so easy.''
Still six months shy of leaving the teen years behind, Hingis is headlong into a fresh start. When she arrives in Florida for this week's Ericsson Open she'll be at home, or at least close to it. Last summer, the Switzerland native moved to Saddlebrook near Tampa, which now serves as her residence and training base.
Should Hingis win her second career Ericsson singles title this year, it'll be in front of her mom. Hingis never characterized the split as a major rift, but rather a needed break. She has since realized how much she needs her coach and companion.
``She's always been the most important person,'' Hingis said. ``I'd say that I'm willing to communicate more than I would in the last two years. Maybe sometimes I'd have my own thoughts, my own ideas about the way I should practice.
``As a teenager, you go through that stage. Some people may get back on top, some don't. It's very important to have someone you can trust, too. My mom's always been there for me.''
It was a former teenage tennis star who helped Hingis negotiate some of last summer's obstacles. Chris Evert is Hingis' mentor in the Sanex WTA Tour Partners for Success program. They speak periodically and meet at most of the big events.
``A year ago, she was very nice to talk with, someone who's been there,'' Hingis said. ``She's gone through the same feelings a little bit. I know it's a different time, but still, the way she did things with her father or how she coped with the press, just everything. It's very interesting to listen.''
Hingis' departure from her top-level game seemingly was as brief as that from her mother. Through the season's first three months she has warded off Lindsay Davenport's best efforts to overtake the Tour's No. 1 ranking.
Davenport did end Hingis' bid to win a fourth consecutive Australian Open crown in January. The two were scheduled to face each other in the State Farm Tennis Championships final in Scottsdale, Ariz., this month, but the match was canceled because of rain.
In Australia, Hingis showed no signs of a relapse. Davenport was leading 6-1, 5-1 before Hingis made a match out it. Still, Hingis lost the second set 7-5.
``She's always been an extraordinary loser to me,'' Davenport said. ``Martina gets a bad rap sometimes, but with me she's always been incredible, been extremely nice, and we've always gotten along great.''
Hingis also lost 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 on Saturday to Davenport in the final of the Tennis Masters-Indian Wells in California.
Hingis is getting along equally well in her new home, from a professional and cultural standpoint. She often trains with fellow Saddlebrook resident Jennifer Capriati on one of the facility's 45 courts.
``When I go back [to Saddlebrook] I can really say, `This feels like home,' '' Hingis said. ``The people are so nice and relaxed. That's all you need as a professional tennis player, because you travel so much. It's nice to go back home to a place where you feel safe and secure.''
A rabid sports fan, Hingis has attended a Bucs playoff game and enjoys going to Lightning games. Last month, Lightning defenseman Pavel Kubina said he and Hingis were dating.
``All the people, they were like, `Hey, I saw you on TV during that football game,' '' Hingis said. ``Everybody was more excited than when they watch me play tennis. That was very funny.''
Hingis' first choice was to join the growing legion of tennis stars moving to South Florida. Former doubles partner Anna Kournikova has an apartment on Miami Beach. On the men's side, Mark Philippoussis and Nicolas Lapentti are among those based here.
What dissuaded her were practice facilities. Saddlebrook offered too much to pass up. It's only a four-hour drive to Miami, but Hingis already has found what she sought.
``It was like a new beginning, and hopefully the new beginning of a successful story,'' Hingis said.