It is interesting how Graf fans always want to dismiss the importance of
those two Seles victories in 1990.
In fact, they were the propably the two most significant ones of them all.
The first of them take place when Graf had 11 months and 66 match winning
streak, and she was totally dominating the tour. The other one ended Graf's
three slam victory streak.
Only after these two back-to-back straigh-set losts to Seles Graf start to
lose matches to other players. Most likely Graf lost her self-confidence
realizing that she had a serious young rival.
It is true that Seles did not dominate Graf during 90-93, but she dominate
the tour. Graf did lost lot of matches to Sabatini and ASV in that time, but
she start to lose them only after those losses to Seles, not before.
The Seles *** of the tour really started in Key Biscayne 1990 when she
started her six tournament winning streak including the beating both Graf
and Navratilova for the first time. Graf might ended that year as #1, but
from the March 1990 onwards Seles win more matches and tournaments than Graf
that year. That domination ended to the stabbing, and during that period
Seles won 8 slams against 2 by Graf.
Back in that time there existed a popular theory that Graf was afraid to
meet Seles. In 1991 they played in the same tournament 7 times, Seles win
five of them, Graf the other two by beating Seles in the final. She
obviously shouldn't been afraid to meet Seles, but still she played some of
her most terrible matches ever, when she knew that Seles was waiting her in
the final, like that FO semi against ASV 0-6, 2-6.
T
Quote:
> The answer is NO
> 1989 FRENCH OPEN CLAY (O) S S. GRAF 6-3 3-6 6-3
> 1989 WIMBLEDON GRASS (O) R16 S. GRAF 6-0 6-1
> 1989 BRIGHTON CARPET (I) F S. GRAF 7-5 6-4
> 1990 BERLIN-GERMAN OPEN CLAY (O) F M. SELES 6-4 6-3
> 1990 FRENCH OPEN CLAY (O) F M. SELES 7-6(6) 6-4
> ___________________________________________________
> Seles period of domination
> 1991 US HARDCOURTS HARD (O) F S. GRAF 6-4 6-3
> 1991 CITIZEN CUP CLAY (O) F S. GRAF 7-5 6-7(4) 6-3
> 1992 FRENCH OPEN CLAY (O) F M. SELES 6-2 3-6 10-8
> 1992 WIMBLEDON GRASS (O) F S. GRAF 6-2 6-1 2/2
> 1993 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD (O) F M. SELES 4-6 6-3 6-2
> Graf led 3-2
> ___________________________________________________
> 1995 US OPEN HARD (O) F S. GRAF 7-6(6) 0-6 6-3
> 1996 US OPEN HARD (O) F S. GRAF 7-5 6-4
> 1998 CHASE CHAMPIONSHIPS CARPET (I) Q S. GRAF 1-6 6-4 6-4
> 1999 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD (O) Q M. SELES 7-5 6-1 8
> 1999 FRENCH OPEN CLAY (O) S S. GRAF 6-7(2) 6-3 6-4