Young and old dazzle crowd

Bryce Alderton

Saturday’s final match of the World Team Tennis season for the

visiting Philadelphia Freedoms and the Newport Beach Breakers had

adults as ball retrievers, a ceremony after the third set honoring

servicemen and women from Camp Pendleton, the usual back-and-forth

wisecracks from players and a women’s singles match that featured

generations against each other to cap it off.

Maria Sharapova, 16, of the Breakers and Martina Navratilova, 46,

of the Freedoms gave the crowd of about 1,500 at Palisades Tennis

Club a dazzling send off to the end of the WTT season, which ended in

a 25-13 Breakers’ win to even their record at 7-7.

Sharapova, using a serve that found various corners of the box and

was clocked at more than 100 mph on several occasions, along with a

powerful cross-court backhand return defeated Navratilova, 5-2, in

women’s singles.

“I had fun,” Sharapova said. “She is a great player, but I just

had to play my game and get it done.”

Sharapova kept Navratilova pacing back-and-forth along the

baseline, eliciting a candid response after one rally.

“I’m tired,” Navratilova said with a smile to the crowd sitting

above one corner.

Breakers’ Coach Dick Leach was pleased with the 12-point margin of

victory, the greatest of the year, he said, against a team featuring

Navratilova.

“She adds so much flair and she holds herself so well under

pressure,” Leach said.

The Breakers pressured the Freedoms from the outset with Brian

MacPhie and Josh Eagle claiming the first set, 5-4 (5-2) in men’s

doubles. Eagle and Sharapova teamed to defeat Navratilova and Andrew

Florent, 5-4 (5-3) in mixed doubles. All four were involved in a

fierce volley when the ball didn’t touch the ground for six hits,

finishing when Newport fired into the net.

Eagle leaped over the net and jumped into Florent’s arms. Florent

lowered Eagle to the ground while still holding his leg, and removed

a shoe.

“We used to play together for seven years and I was the best man

at his wedding,” Eagle said. “He is a great player with a special

ability.” The duo finished 2000 ranked No. 8 in the Association of

Tennis Professionals Team Race.

The Sacramento Capitals clinched the Western Conference with a win

Saturday, finishing the season 9-5. They will face the Delaware Smash

(12-1) in the final in August at the U.S. Open.