Monica Seles and Anna Kournikova both pulled out of the Wimbledon championships yesterday. Seles also withdrew from the recent French Open because of a foot injury which has troubled her for much of the year. Wimbledon, which starts next Monday, is the only Grand Slam tournament the 27-year-old Seles has failed to win. She lost the 1992 final to Steffi Graf.
Kournikova's withdrawal had been widely expected after she pulled out of this week's tournament at Eastbourne. The 20-year-old Russian, who is still suffering a stress fracture in her left foot picked up in February, had previously been forced out of the French Open and an exhibition match in Edgbaston earlier this month. It is her second withdrawal from Wimbledon in four years, after a thumb injury forced her out of the 1998 event.
Nathalie Tauziat was anxious to play down her Wimbledon chances after clinching the DFS Classic title for the second time at Edgbaston yesterday. The 33-year-old French woman beat Miriam Oremans 6-3, 7-5 in the delayed final to cap a perfect week of preparation for a tournament she insists will be her last.
Tauziat, who lost the Wimbledon final to Jana Novotna in 1998, will be the oldest singles player at the All England Club, but many believe her performance this week marks her out as a possible winner.
However, Tauziat is determined not to let such lofty ambitions spoil her swan-song on the surface she loves. "I'm ready for Wimbledon but this year I just want to play there," she said. "I haven't set myself any goals and I'm playing for fun. Everyone says I can win Wimbledon but I don't want to put any pressure on myself."
Defending men's champion Pete Sampras and women's number one Martina Hingis were named the top seeds for Wimbledon yesterday. Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain, fourth in the ATP Tour rankings, has been seeded eighth because of his lack of experience on grass. Pat Rafter of Australia, a losing finalist last year to Sampras, is seeded third, although he is 10th in the 12-month rankings on which tournament seedings are normally based.
Leading clay-court players had threatened to boycott Wimbledon over its seedings policy. In response, organisers said they would double the number of seeds to 32, but reserved the right to rank seeds according to their proficiency on grass. Sampras, who has won Wimbledon seven times, is currently fifth in the 12-month rankings.
The top seven women's seeds follow the latest WTA rankings - Hingis, Venus Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati, Serena Williams, Amelie Mauresmo and Kim Clijsters.
