E-Paper
It's all over for me: Davenport
Former champion Lindsay Davenport suffered a shattering semi-final defeat on Thursday and admitted she was finished with Wimbledon.
Former champion Lindsay Davenport suffered a shattering semi-final defeat at the hands of Maria Sharapova on Thursday and admitted she was finished with Wimbledon.
The 28-year-old American, who beat Steffi Graf to clinch her only Wimbledon crown in 1999, came face to face with the future of the women's game in the shape of the 17-year-old Russian blonde and got blown away 2-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-1.
"I would be very surprised if I was back," said Davenport who first played at Wimbledon in 1993 when Sharapova was just six.
"I have had some great memories here but today was a tough loss to take and it was a bitter-sweet feeling walking off the court where I have so many great wins in my career."
Davenport, with three Grand Slam singles titles to her name, also won the women's doubles here in 1999 with Corina Morariu and was a losing finalist to Venus Williams in 2000.
"This was always a tournament where I struggled for a few years and I wasn't really sure of grass but I grew to love it more than any other Grand Slam."
The popular American, who also won the singles title at the US Open in 1998 and the 2000 Australian Open, has amassed 17 million dollars in her 11-year career but had already stated she wasn't going to play in the Olympics in Athens next month.
"I feel like I have had an amazing career but I don't feel the same sort of excitement before matches that I used to feel," she said. "Wins don't excite me as much and the losses don't hurt as much.
"But I will always remember 1999 here. Winning the singles and doubles here was remarkable. Everything went my way in those two weeks."
With an 11-year age difference, Davenport squandered a golden opportunity in Thursday's semi-final as she built up a set and 3-1 lead before Sharapova came storming back.
"She totally deserved to win. I had control of the match and she took it from me," admitted Davenport. "She has a big game. She hits the ball so hard and she is young. Her game is going to develop even more."
