Between Maria Sharapova and Angelique Widjaja

Maria Sharapova: The Rising Russian Superstar in Tennis

To open this topic, I would like you to remember our Indonesian tennis player from the 1990s: Ms. Yayuk Basuki! Do you still remember her? She is the best Indonesian tennis player in history. Of course I believe you all (Indonesians) do. Her best achievement in Wimbledon is the quarter-final in 1997, and her highest rank according to WTA is 19 in the world, also in 1997. To my opinion, Ms. Yayuk Basuki during her professional time could do better than what she had already achieved in 1997 if she followed what professionals do to boost her career. I remember how she turned down French Open for the sake of Wimbledon, an attitude that she should not have as a professional. I understand that she disliked clay court, the one like Roland Garros, the venue of the French Open. She could not maximize her effort in a slow clay court, that's why she skipped Roland Garros to concentrate more on the fast grass court of Wimbledon. But as a professional she can't choose where she had to play for she cannot be so picky. She should follow her fellow tennis pro, Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, a Spaniard, who disliked Wimbledon's grass court but she always took part in the tourney without being so picky. She knew that as a true champion, she had to be able to play in all kinda courts! No matter how slow or how fast a court is. Sánchez-Vicario is the opposite of Yayuk Basuki in her preference of a court. I remember how Yayuk Basuki refused to move her home base to Europe or the United States to boost her career. The proximity of her residence to the great tourneys will help her to improve her career's achievement. A path that she did not follow for a bad rationale: home sickness!

Four years later, another Indonesian player was 'born': She is Angelique Widjaja. In 2001, she lifted girls trophy in Wimbledon and all of the sudden she was an everybody's hero in this country for making the headlines. Amongst the crisis that blanketed this country in many facets, the trophy lifted by Angelique Widjaja is like an oasis in the vast desert. But obviously the trophy was the zenith of her achievement since that time Widjaja's career declined as rapidly as it ascended. It seemed that Widjaja fell into the same pit as her elder, Ms. Yayuk Basuki! Now we have almost heard nothing from her again as she only played in some murky satellite tourneys.

On the other hand, Russia's Maria Sharapova has never lifted girls trophy in her career. When Widjaja was high on lifting her first (and the last) girls trophy in Wimbledon, Sharapova was focusing on bringing home the ladies trophy! Why bringing home girls trophy when you can bring home the trophy for the bigger ladies?? Who is gonna remember the ones who lifted girls trophy?? Nobody! That's what came across Sharapova's mind! As we see today, Sharapova hits the headlines of every sport pages in the newspapers and magazines.

Of course in this blog, I would not like to belittle the achievement of Ms. Yayuk Basuki. It doesn't matter what I say in this blog, Yayuk Basuki is still one of the greatest tennis player in this country. But would she follow the path of the professionals, she could make the bigger headlines in the newspapers front pages!

(Written by: Yari NK)