[the cat]

Earlier this year, Anna said in an article, that why should she change things when they are working? By that she meant why should she hire a professional coach when she was playing well with her mother coaching her. Sometimes I think Anna is too stubborn for her own good. She suffered another first round loss today, 7-5 in the third to Anne Kremer in Filderstadt. That makes 4 straight losses on her comeback trail. Five overall, if you count the loss to Mauresmo at the Paris Indoors in February. This is really getting scary! Anna shows no signs of improving. And today, she served something like 25 double faults. That brings back bad memories. I think of all the hurting she is suffering from right now. I'm talking about emotional pain. Not only should we worry about her foot holding up, we must now be concerned of the emotional pain she must be going through. Loss after loss. I think it's time for Alla to be the mother, and not the mother and coach. It's time for Anna to hire a professional tennis coach who can help her. A Pavel Slozil caliber coach would be nice. But is Anna willing to accept the fact that her mother coaching her hasn't worked? Changes must be made for Anna to ever think about being in the top ten again, or make a grand slam semifinal. Her fine form at the 2001 Australian Open seems like light years ago! Is Anna too stubborn for her own good? Do you agree that Anna must make coaching and philosophy changes to make it back to the top ten?

P.S. - I wish she would go back to Bollettieri's on a permanent basis. Anna always says how much she loved the place. She also has said that she is welcome back there anytime. But would they let her back in after she dumped IMG for Octagon?

[ October 18, 2001: Message edited by: the cat in the hat ]

 

[ys]

I expected this sort of writings from you, the cat. First, Anna is using a good coach at the moment, and the name of the coach is Melanie Molitor. And what is happening to Anna right now is entirely expected, not surprising, and to be honest, I would not make a tragedy out of it. If with 25 DF she was still very competetive vs Kremer, who is not a pushover indoors, then gamewise things are not that bad at all. I won't be really worried of any her losses before AO. This injury and repeated reinjuries could not but be a serious wound on her body and mental part. Give it a time to heal.

 

[marty&anna fan]

ys...are u sure that Melanie Molitor is the new coach of Anna?

I don't think so...but I'm happy to be wrong!
Melanie is a great coach!
<IMG SRC="smilies/bounce.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/bounce.gif" border="0">

C'mon spice girls! <IMG SRC="smilies/love.gif" border="0">

 

[ys]

Melanie helps Anna, but she is not officially her coach. In he interview in Moscow she said that she would consider coaching Anna..

 

[the cat]

Ys, you are expecting this kind of writing from me? Are you complimenting me or insulting me? I'll take it as an insult. Melanie Molitor isn't coaching Anna. She may be helping from time to time. But she's not coaching Anna. As for giving her foot time to heal. I have. I've given it 8 months. In addition to hiring a full time coach, Anna may be smart to find herself some new Doctors. Because this never ending foot injury hasn't fully healed yet. And Ys, you don't even comment on the emotional and mental toll all these losses and now the double faults again, are taking on her. Anna is tough, but is she tough enough to handle all this?

 

[xan]

You can't give away SIX games worth of double-faults and expect to win anything.

 

[Penne]

I think the cat in the hat has a VERY good point.

Anna is waaaaayyyyyyy to stubborn for her own good.

Granted she has been out of the game for a long time but her performances of late have been nothing short of woeful - she is a Top 10 caliber player who is wasting her potential because she can't bring herself to admit that she might be wrong.

She needs a REAL coach.

Sitting in the umpires chair yelling abuse at your daughter during practice sessions is NOT coaching. I highly doubt Alla has any technical expertise to offer Anna unlike some of the coaches outthere.

Anna is her own worst enemy. This is sort of like the whole "I'm not married" saga. Well Anna, if you don't want people to think you are married don't pull ridiculous publicity stunts in Miami restaurants or wear huge engagement rings next to wedding bands!

"I am a good tennis player, I wouldn't be noticed otherwise" We all know that's not the truth BUT if you are a good tennis player do everything in your power to prove it. Get a good coach, get a new serve and forgodsake get a clue before you become a total laughing stock.

25 doubles faults LMAO! <IMG SRC="smilies/yawn.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/rolleyes.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/berzerk.gif" border="0">

 

[ptkten]

I agree ys, people are being so negative toward Anna in her comeback. Indoors are the most difficult season to come back in because of the very tough draws. She has had some tough losses to some talented players and if she would improve her serve and nerves she would have won a couple of those matches. Nevertheless when she does improve those two aspects, then she should be climbing her way back to the top ten.
Good luck Anna <IMG SRC="smilies/smile.gif" border="0">

 

[apoet29]

I am a big fan of Anna and I have to admit that this loss, while not a great shock, is very disappointing. <IMG SRC="smilies/eek.gif" border="0"> Considering that the DF's cost Anna the match, I think that she would do well to develop a new Anna-tude in order to achieve wins in singles.

1. Be proactive- After her loss today, Anna stated that she was not setting any goals at this point, but would just wait and see what would happen. This attitude is wrong. When Anna experienced a slump last summer, which culmulated with her disasterous 2nd round loss at Wimbledon, she became proactive and took charge of her career. In an interview a few weeks after that loss, Anna stated that that loss spurned her to change things and work harder. The attitude change paid off. She fired Van Harpen, the wrong coach for her, and began playing incredible tennis during the summer hardcourt season where she made two semifinals in a row, including defeating Tauziat and Davenport at the Acura marking the first time she had beat two top ten players back-to-back since 98. Later that fall, she played incredible tennis making the final of a Tier 1 event and the semifinals of two others including the Chase. While many people point out the her reunion with Hingis may have played a part in her resurgence, it must be pointed that her summer semfinals back to back with made without playing doubles with Hingis.

2. The Hingis Factor and good coaching- Everytime Hingis and Kournikova reteam there is a lot of excitement about seeing one of the best doubles teams reunite. I love seeing them play together because their playing styles compliment each other really well. However, many fans tend to believe that Anna's reunions with Hingis mean that her singles play will improve and that is not the case at all. Kournikova's play only marginally improved in 99 and her play in 2000 improved after she got rid of Van Harpen. While Hingis is a great support system for Kournikova, she cannot help her win singles matches or tournaments, Anna has to do that.

Good coaching plays an essential role in any players progress and while Melanie Molitor may be helping Anna now, that is all she is doing. If Anna and Martina would dissolve their partnership (hey, it could happen), Molitor's help disappears. Anna needs a full-time coach who will concentrate on helping her. Besides considering Hingis' results lately, I don't think Molitor can be much help to anyone.

3. Play fewer tournaments- last year, Anna played 26 tournaments in singles and 19 in doubles, including mixed doubles in all four slams and at least 4 exhibition tournaments. That is an incredible amount of tennis and her fragile physique is not able to keep up with it. While Anna may feel that she needs to play a lot of tennis, her body is not able to keep up with the demands, which resulted in the stress fracture and other injuries that she has suffered since turning pro.

4. Match Rust?- While Anna had not played any tennis for 8 months, she has not had any problems resuming her incredible doubles play. I do realize that singles and doubles are different, still Anna's play is crucial to her doubles teams success. Case in point, after her incredible loss today, she went out and played a great doubles match with Hingis. From the stats, it doesn't appear that she had any service problems. I believe her loss to Fokina, a junior player without a match win on the senior tour, shattered her confidence. What Anna needs to do now is pick herself up and work on her confidence by remembering how well she is capable of playing.

I hope I haven't offended anyone with this post. It is my hope that Anna can come back strongly for next season. <IMG SRC="smilies/wavey.gif" border="0">

 

[apoet29]

Originally posted by ptkten:
<STRONG>I agree ys, people are being so negative toward Anna in her comeback. Indoors are the most difficult season to come back in because of the very tough draws. She has had some tough losses to some talented players and if she would improve her serve and nerves she would have won a couple of those matches. Nevertheless when she does improve those two aspects, then she should be climbing her way back to the top ten.
Good luck Anna <IMG SRC="smilies/smile.gif" border="0"></STRONG>

I hate to tell you this ptkten, but the draws are difficult in most tournaments during the season, not just indoors. Don't forget during the beginning of the season, Anna will have to try and defend her quarterfinalist points at the AO. Things aren't going to get any easier for Anna after the season ends, so it is crucial that she wins as many matches as possible.

 

[auntie janie]

apoet29, that was an excellent post! <IMG SRC="smilies/smile.gif" border="0">

One point: Has anyone considered that it may not be so easy for Anna to find a coach? Alla is widely known to interfere constantly with the coaching; what professional wants to have to deal with that? Add to that nightmare the continual hooplah surrounding Anna, and all her sponsor commitments that must be worked in -- what coach would want to take all this on?

 

[polexia]

although anna haven't exactly been gettin back on track..this first round defeat was still a surprise to me. i think she doesn't have enough motivation to play well anymore and she has too many excuses.
i'd be glad id melanise molitor is workin with her but look at hingis....both of them are in a slump right now. don't get me wrong, i'm a huge fan of both players but right now the problem is only their mental concentration and nothin else.. anna has the potential just not the stamina

 

[ys]

Well, I've been waiting for her return for eight months, I am just happy to see her playing. I believe in her abilities, and it is just a matter before she reqains her Top 10 quality. I am prepared to wait and see her losing matches before it happens. After fearing for quite while that she might never be back playing on Tour, that's an easy part for me.

 

[the cat]

You cats make some very good points! Janie, you are 100% correct stating that it might be difficult for Anna to hire a good coach. Because her coach will have to put up with alot of other things, besides coaching. If that's the case, I hope she goes back to Larissa P., at least on a part time basis. Larissa is like family to Anna.

[ October 22, 2001: Message edited by: the cat in the hat ]

 

[thefreedesigner]

Anna losing first round to Kremer is NOT a surprise for a player who has been out of competitive action so long, and finding a way back.

Anne can give many top players problems, so that isn't really an issue.

I'm of the view that its going to take Anna a lot of time to get court-smart again - her dubs with Martina will help so much in this - but she just has to keep playing, and hope that the injury does not re-occur.

Getting a 'proper' coach will help Anna long-term, and that's something that she and her mother should maybe think about.

But Anna's current losses are not for the lack of a proper coach. Even in the time Anna's been away, the game has gotten that much better, and that much tougher to win matches. It's going to be hard but Anna's 3 3-set losses must show that she still has the tools to compete?

 

[Volcana]

Martina certainly can't show anyone how to win tournaments anymore. In some ways, she's the worst role model Anna could have.

 

[polexia]

v-but martina isn't actin as a role model...tho it is a good point that..... good knows how long that title drought is...but it's still a pretty good thing that anna can practise with her. and when she practises with martina...she practises with melanie too
so it's not that bad a thing and it can only do her good

 

[tenn_ace]

good point, janie.... If Anna ever gets a coach, there will be tons of conditions from the coach side attached to that agreement...

I also agree with ys. I'm glad this girl is back and nobody's bashing will stop me from cheering and SUPPORTING her at this very difficult time.

Go Anechka! <IMG SRC="smilies/angel.gif" border="0">

 

[AjdeNate!]

Mark Prior's calf muscles are too big for his own good.

 

[GBFH]

martin brodeur is hot.
i'll pay for shirtless photos.