Some of her earliest memories involve rushing home from school, grabbing a sandwich and her gym bag, and riding the subway across town with her mom to the Central Red Army Club, a rickety collection of cracked, overcrowded courts. So what, exactly, goes through Dementieva's mind before she unleashes that beastly serve?įor 23 years, Elena shared a bedroom with her older brother, Vsevolod, in their family's apartment in the heart of Moscow. It's completely in her control, and yet completely out of it.Ī MILLION things can cross a player's mind while a tennis ball hangs in the air. Dementieva grew up reading Chekhov, Nabokov and Tolstoy, and she is consumed with the idea that setback is good for the soul. Tennis may never have had such an existentialist star. When asked about her serve-and the subject is raised in nearly every interview-the 24-year-old Dementieva, who is otherwise intelligent, charming and insightful, says matter-of-factly, "I think perhaps I need to struggle to play well." In the end, her ground strokes couldn't save her soft-assnowflakes serve, and she lost in straight sets. Instead, Dementieva was the one who echoed her country: exciting and brash, resilient and stubborn, yet, ultimately, built on a shaky foundation. It was billed as an all-Russian final, but Sharapova moved to Florida so long ago that she's about as Russian as Lindsay Davenport. The problem came when she met Maria Sharapova in the next match. Her long legs carried her everywhere the Belgian tried to go, and her strokes were powerful and precise. "A miracle!"Īnd yet the match against Henin-Hardenne was also a showcase for Dementieva's smart, punishing ground game. "With that serve, it's a miracle she's in the Top 10," says Hall of Famer Pam Shriver.
In that match, she double-faulted 14 times-a nightmarish number that would have sent a lesser player back to the banks of the frozen Volga. Against Justine Henin-Hardenne, in the semifinals at Indian Wells in March, Dementieva won after trailing 2-6, 2-5. Dementieva stayed and her play reflects the gritty character of the city she calls home.
"If you are Russian," says Dementieva, in perfect English, "you must be ready to battle everything."įour of the world's Top 10 women players were born in Russia, but three left as soon as they were out of pigtails, frustrated by eight-month winters and a lack of quality courts. But in every match she plays, she must compensate for a huge shortcoming: a serve that has been labeled bizarre, ugly … perhaps the worst in history. Sure, she's 5'11", with speed, power and some of the game's most dynamic ground strokes. That Dementieva has been ranked among the world's top 10 players since 2003 is remarkable. "I was so tired that the idea of dressing up in pretty clothes and driving fast cars seemed fun, like a vacation," she says. But Nikolaev called at the right time, after Dementieva had just played three bruising matches to lead Russia over France in the Fed Cup final. Petersburg giving an MTV-worthy performance: waking up in bed, her long blond hair falling sensuously over bare shoulders sauntering in skimpy jammies pouting from behind the wheel of a silver Mercedes McLaren purring over Nikolaev's piano.ĭementieva, the world's ninth-ranked tennis player, generally leaves the booty-bumping to her childhood rival, Anna Kournikova. "Now be the star in my video."Ī week later, Dementieva was in St. "Good," replied Nikolaev, a huge tennis fan. "Just listen to this," he said, and played her a new song. Elena Dementieva had just returned home to Moscow after a tournament in Paris last September when Igor Nikolaev, one of her country's biggest pop stars, called.
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