Martina Hingis

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Sudip Ranjan Hatua
dt:12/06/2000

I like Martina Hingis (named after tennis great Steffi Graf ) with the revitalization of women's professional tennis. When Monica Seles was knocked out of competition by a psychotic fan, Steffi Graf was left more-or-less unchallenged. No one could really vie for a title as Steffi dominated the sport on the women's side, just as Pete Sampras did/does on the men's side.

Enter 16 year-old Martina Hingis(now 17). In a very short time, she became the contender -- the one who could possibly knock Steffi off the throne. In a sense, she has already done this as she is now ranked #1 by the Women's Tennis Association after Steffi's prolonged absence due to injury.

Moreover, while her tennis skills are excellent, her perkiness has also brought life to the sport which, I feel, was losing energy. The rise of Anna Kournikova at the same time only heightened this boost: here is a rivalry that might last for years, culminating in some excellent tennis.

Now that Venus Williams has entered the scene as well, women's tennis seems to be set -- there should be no dearth of good matches for years to come.