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Irritated Mauresmo slams critics An irritated Amelie Mauresmo hit back at critics who claim she is an unworthy world number one because she has never won a grand slam title. "I just know where I come from and what kind of work it takes to get to that spot," the Frenchwoman said at the Filderstadt Grand Prix on Monday. "All I have to say is that hopefully a grand slam is going to come. "Ivan Lendl was (men's) number one before winning his first grand slam. I hope that's going to be the same in my case too." Mauresmo won the silver medal at the Athens Olympics and helped France win the Fed Cup last year. But she has reached only one grand slam final, losing to Martina Hingis at the 1999 Australian Open. At the French Open she has never progressed beyond the quarters, always succumbing to crippling nerves unbecoming a world number one. However, Mauresmo proved year-round consistency rather than performance at the major events can elevate a player to the pinnacle of the rankings. "I'm very proud of getting to number one, very happy about it," said Mauresmo, who is the first player from France to reach the top. "I'd been talking about becoming number one for two and a half years and finally I got to reach my goal. It's a great feeling and I'm going to try to keep that number one spot. "You dream about it when you're a kid and when you grow up and you get it, you're able to live your dream. "When I got to number one I just celebrated with a good bottle of wine with my friends. I really just wanted to share that moment with people that helped me, and family." On opening day of the tournament, eighth seed Ai Sugiyama of Japan was beaten 6-3 7-6 by Israel's Anna Smashnova-Pistolesi. Alicia Molik overcame Italy's Francesca Schiavone 6-2 6-3 while Silvia Farina Elia defeated Croatian Karolina Sprem 3-6 6-3 6-3. Despite the withdrawal of Serena Williams, Justine Henin-Hardenne, Kim Clijsters and Jennifer Capriati, the tournament features five of the world's top six players. Mauresmo is joined by Lindsay Davenport, who has a chance of claiming the number one ranking this week, and Russian trio Anastasia Myskina, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Dementieva in the field. |
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