NOTEBOOK Wimbledon



Record in reach: Despite losses in singles and mixed doubles, Martina Navratilova still has a chance to break the record for most Wimbledon titles. She and Lisa Raymond are scheduled to play in the women's doubles semifinal today against Liezel Huber and Ai Sugiyama. The 47-year-old Navratilova tied Billie Jean King's record of 20 Wimbledon titles last year when she and Leander Paes won mixed doubles. Navratilova and Paes lost in the third round Friday to siblings Wayne and Cara Black 7-6 (7), 6-7 (5), 13-11. The match spanned three days because of rain and darkness on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, with the final four games played Friday. At Wimbledon, Navratilova has nine singles, seven doubles and four mixed doubles championships. She has 58 Grand Slam titles overall. Australia's Todd Woodbridge remains in contention for two doubles titles to improve his total at Wimbledon to 11. He and Jonas Bjorkman led in the semifinal against Wayne Arthurs and Paul Hanley 7-5, 3-4, 15-0 when play was called due to rain. In mixed doubles, Woodbridge and Alicia Molik are in the semifinals against Hanley and Sugiyama.
Noise levels: Maria Sharapova has been labeled the "Queen of Scream" at Wimbledon. Sharapova's image was splashed all over British TV and newspapers Friday after the 17-year-old Russian beat Lindsay Davenport in the semifinals and became the third-youngest Wimbledon women's finalist. The Daily Mail focused on the "earsplitting shrieks" that occasionally accompany Sharapova's shots, saying they were among the loudest recorded on Centre Court. "On her way to victory, the 'Queen of Scream,' as she is deservedly known, reached an astonishing 86.7 decibels," the paper reported. Sharapova said that the "gruntometer" used to record her shrieks was "silly" and that she wasn't bothered "what other people are doing with their little machines." The Mail said Sharapova's shrieking was louder than a revving motorcycle and equal to a diesel train from 100 feet away. Sharapova's shrieking is actually much less noticeable than when she first turned pro, but the volume rose during a second-set tiebreaker against Davenport. The Mail described it as "loud as a screeching gibbon and outdoing the volume expected at a rock concert."
Wimbledome: The local government council last week approved plans to build a retractable roof over 82-year-old Centre Court at Wimbledon, giving final clearance to a project scheduled to be completed in 2009. The roof will allow play in weather such as Friday's rain, which disrupted the men's semifinals. "The club has been looking for some time at this," said John Dunningham, chairman of the planning and development committee at the All England Club. "We have to come into the 21st century." Construction is expected to begin in 2006.
Simply smashing: Serena Williams angrily smashed her racket on the grass court at a pivotal moment during her semifinal win over Amelie Mauresmo, then won three consecutive points with a cracked frame. The two-time defending champion said she couldn't remember the last time she'd been angry enough to break a racket in a match. "I cracked tons of rackets in practice," she said. "It's hard to crack a racket on grass."
-- Associated Press
Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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