The problem child of tennis - Jennifer Capriati
This summer a scandal in the world of tennis broke out while the entire media glare was focused on the Wimbledon Championships at the All England Club. Former American child prodigy Jennifer Capriati was rushed to a South Florida hospital in the early hours of June 28.
Hospital sources confirmed that Jennifer had overdosed on prescription drugs, whereas the Capriati family spokeswoman, a few hours later claimed the overdose was accidental.
The media, however, was quick to jump on this story due to Capriati’s troubled past and her brush with the law earlier on in her life. The actual story may never come to light but her now her colleagues from the tennis fraternity and her friends have come forward to lend support in order to get Capriati back on track.
Leading from the fore is Capriati’s idol Chris Evert. Evert’s connection with Capriati goes way back when Capriati joined Jimmy Evert’s (Chris Evert’s father) intense tennis training program in Florida when she was just ten years old.
The Evert’s were like a family to Capriati helping her in every step of the way. Chris Evert’s brother John was Capriati’s first agent as well. Evert strongly felt that Capriati could not handle all the fame and fortune at such a tender age. She was catapulted into stardom when just weeks before her fourteenth birthday she reached a tour final on her debut.
Even though she lost, the media interest in her had already sparked off. A few weeks on she was on the cover of Sports Illustrated and the centre of attention. The downside was that the adolescent girl in her had gotten lost.
She had all the fame but her lifestyle was a far cry from an average fourteen year old girl. By the time she was in eighth grade she was already worth six million dollars. Thus it became a challenge for Capriati to keep up with such a demanding schedule.
According to Chris Evert, Capriati was on a high until she was successful but the minute she plunged into an abyss losing match after match, her glee turned into depression.
Her successful run began when she became the youngest player in 1989 to reach the French Open semi final. She ended the year ranked number eight in the world when she was just fourteen. She won her first Olympic gold medal in 1992 defeating Steffi Graff and making her way to the top.
A year later however the tables began to turn. Her first round loss to Leila Meshki at the US Open left a huge dent in her ego. That was where Capriati’s downfall began. She was arrested in 1993 for shoplifting a mere thirty five dollar ring and then subsequently taken in for possession of marijuana in 1994. The girl whose face graced the covers of magazines was now the subject of a mug shot. Hence the Chicago Sun Times aptly called her “the poster child for burned out sports prodigies”.
The latest incident was a grim reminder of the past when there Capriati admitted to have considered committing suicide when she was a teenager. She had a successful comeback campaign winning three major grand slams but had to leave tennis due to a shoulder injury.
Chris Evert strongly felt that Capriati was let down by those close to her, people who flocked to her when she was at the top left her side when her life came crashing down.
Capriati’s friend and colleague Justin Gimelstob has the same sentiments that a feeling of abandonment led her to this stage. Other prodigies such as Andrea Jaeger and Pam Shriver feel that the way out for Capriati is to build a life outside tennis and not to make the game a reason for her existence.
Her former boyfriend Dale DaBone attributes the overdose to her depression over tennis, but believes that she would not try to kill herself.
It was an unfortunate chapter in the history of a woman whose life was nothing but tennis. She grew up living a game which has now been the cause of her depression. However, it was the people that she met during the course of her career that are now the ones lending an arm to her in her time of need.
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