Dateline: 02/02/99

One of the great attractions of professional tennis is our feeling that we get to know the players. At the 1999 Australian Open, we found a lot of fresh insights into the personalities behind the strokes. Here are some highlights:

Both of the singles champions, Hingis and Kafelnikov, revealed just a bit of a mean streak. As detailed in SportsLine, the finals began before the players walked on court, with some mental aggression from the eventual victors. Did Mauresmo lose to Hingis because of questions about her femininity? Did Kafelnikov make Enqvist choke?

If you admire the off-court tactics of the victors, the sweet disposition of Thomas Enqvist, evident in his comments on losing to Kafelnikov, probably doesn't sway you toward forgiving him his collapse in the men's final. I was disappointed in Enqvist's performance, but even if his sweetness was somewhat to blame, I'll only be rooting for him even more next time.

Mauresmo, like Enqvist, showed surprising gentleness in the her comments about the pre-match remarks from her final-round opponent. Mauresmo's coach, however, was sharply critical of Hingis. Read what each had to say here.

Getting under the opponent's skin may have worked for Hingis and Kafelnikov, but it seems to have backfired for Agassi. Since calling Vince Spadea a "journeyman player," last year, Agassi lost to Spadea first in Cincinnati in August, then in the fourth round of this Australian Open, widely judged to have been Agassi's best chance at a Grand Slam in several years.

Of course, all of these controversies could easily be called mole hills made into mountains by a press hungry for stories. Are a few words here and there important? Given how carefully most public figures craft their images, I tend to pay attention when players in the spotlight stray from the usual "I'll just take one match at a time" script and reveal a little of themselves. Yes, the press blows almost everything out of proportion, but we get more involved as spectators when we like one player or another and care about who wins. After this Australian Open, who will have more -- or less -- of your support as the season continues?

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