Tennis under the lights across US Open evenings was introduced in 1975, and that added a critical new dimension to the tournament and for the game. Men and women who were tied down during weekdays in office jobs could drive from the suburbs or take a subway from New York City and attend night sessions, looking forward to that prospect all day long. At the end of summer, this always made sense. The fans could sit more comfortably in the cooler evening air, enjoying the tennis, appreciating the players under different circumstances.
Both the male and female players often eagerly anticipate competing at night, realizing that the atmosphere would be in some ways more highly charged, recognizing that the conditions would make their task less draining physically than playing during the day. Throughout it all, the women's singles match would open the program, followed by the men's contest.
In 2002, however, on the last night of August, in a break from previous tradition, the women literally took over the night session. For the first time ever, it was an all-women's program, and it turned into a soaring celebration for the female competitors. They more than lived up to a billing they had never experienced before. Martina Hingis – the 1997 champion and an enduringly popular player with one of the most acute tactical minds in tennis – got things started. Hingis, seeded ninth, faced the diminutive South African Amanda Coetzer in a third-round encounter.
Coetzer, barely more than 5-foot-2, was unseeded that year, but she was a stupendous retriever who compensated for her lack of size with a gigantic heart and a limitless supply of determination. In 1997, she reached a career zenith at No. 3 in the world, finishing that stellar campaign at No. 4. Thrice at the majors, she was a semifinalist. But now she was approaching the age of 31, and no longer as staunch a defender as she had once been. The guileful Hingis took Coetzer apart, 6-3, 6-4.
That left the stage in Ashe Stadium to the popular American Jennifer Capriati, the No. 3 seed. Capriati had saved four match points to oust Hingis in the Australian Open final earlier in the year. In this memorable evening session at the Open, Capriati dismissed countrywoman Meghann Shaughnessy. Shaughnessy, the No. 30 seed, was a capable player from the backcourt but Capriati outmaneuvered her, 6-2, 6-2.
Following those appealing singles duels, Hingis returned for a doubles match alongside Anna Kournikova. This accomplished duo had won the Australian Open earlier in the year, and they had taken that same title together three years earlier. In a second-round battle that concluded the evening program, Hingis and Kournikova defeat wild-card partnership Laura Granville and Jennifer Hopkins.
All in all, it was a celebratory and groundbreaking session for the women as they lit up Arthur Ashe Stadium with their star performers carrying it all confidently. Hingis, of course, was the keynote player, appearing in two matches, entertaining the fans with her strong mind in singles and agile hands on the doubles court, making everyone realize that the top women competitors could stand on their own at the US Open through an entire evening program – and even flourish.
