TENNIS | Notes from Paris

High hopes: Once again, Amelie Mauresmo raised a nation's hopes. Once again, France's expectations were too much of a burden. The last of 21 French players in the French Open's singles fields, the third-seeded Mauresmo committed too many unforced errors and lost her quarterfinal to No. 9 Elena Dementieva of Russia 6-4, 6-3. Mary Pierce gave France its last title at Roland Garros in 2000. The last French man to win was Yannick Noah in 1983. "I'm in France. I'm French. This is where I started playing tennis. I really want to play well here," Mauresmo said. "Sometimes I get the feeling that I'm making headway, but I'm still not there." The talented, hard-hitting Mauresmo has reached the final of the Australian Open, and the semifinals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. But she has never been past the quarterfinals at the French Open, losing at that stage last year, too. "This morning I felt more under pressure than previous matches," said Mauresmo, who had 33 unforced errors and just 18 winners. She thought a rain delay at 4-4 in the first set hurt her. "After that, when I came back, I didn't really get the feeling that I was going to be able to relax and play well," she said. "It's more than disappointing. It's frustration." Mauresmo entered the tournament after wins at the Italian Open and German Open. The only other women to win those events consecutively were Steffi Graf in 1987 and Monica Seles in 1990, and both added the French Open title.
Bad publicity: Call it the French Open program's cover curse. Only one player whose photo has graced the front of the event's daily magazine -- Gustavo Kuerten on Day 6 -- was still in the tournament heading into today, and most lost the day they were spotlighted. The Day 1 front-page star, Justine Henin-Hardenne, won her opening match, then lost in the second round. Arnaud di Pasquale and Andy Roddick followed with losses on the days they were featured. Mary Pierce won on Day 4, then lost her next match. On Day 5, Fabrice Santoro bid adieu. On Day 7, Nicolas Escude was on the cover and lost, followed by Day 8's Marat Safin and Day 9's Amelie Mauresmo on Tuesday.
Historic headline: Tim Henman's quarterfinal win at Roland Garros was so newsworthy -- or perhaps, so astonishing -- that he was told a British tabloid planned to splash the story across its front page. "Really?" Henman asked. "Now you're talking!" His 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Juan Ignacio Chela makes him the first British player to reach the French Open semifinals since the Open era began in 1968. A four-time Wimbledon semifinalist, Henman had never advanced past the third round at Roland Garros.
Famous face: During the news conference after Jennifer Capriati's quarterfinal victory over Serena Williams, a French journalist told Capriati she resembles Princess Caroline of Monaco. "Well, thank you. That's a compliment," Capriati responded, smiling. "I've never heard that before," she said, then added: "Well, I have -- not in a press conference."
-- Associated Press
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