BBC SPORT | Tennis | Morariu makes welcome return



By Caroline Cheese BBC Sport Online

Ordinarily, the return of a top-fifty player to the tour after a spell on the sidelines would not be cause for much of a fanfare.

But the case of Corina Morariu is anything but ordinary.

In January 2001, she and partner Ellis Ferreira were celebrating clinching the Australian Open mixed doubles title.

Starting to play again is another hurdle for me to overcome, but it's much better than the fight I was in last year

Corina Morariu

By May, she was struggling with her form and her fitness and withdrew from the Italian Open with an ankle injury.

Less than a week later, she was attached to an oxygen tank having been diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia.

Morariu faces battle against leukemia

"Looking back, it made sense - my red blood cell count was low and that's how you get oxygen to the brain," she said.

"So naturally, I was having trouble concentrating, feeling weak on the court and having shortness of breath.

"But when you're young and you're an athlete and not feeling well, you don't think, 'Oh, it might be cancer.'"

On Monday, Morariu will make a low-key return to the game, taking part in the doubles event of the Acura Classic in San Diego.

Corina Morariu and Lindsay Davenport
Davenport and Morariu won at Wimbledon in 1999

It is, however, as welcome a return as that of her long-time doubles partner Lindsay Davenport, with whom she won the Wimbledon women's doubles title in 1999.

A former doubles number one as well as a solid singles player, Morariu was 23 when she was diagnosed with cancer.

After intensive chemotherapy, her strength had been sapped to the extent that a brief stroll would exhaust her in the same way a tight three-setter used to.

Even her return to the court was a bittersweet experience.

"It was extremely difficult because I was an athlete and I was used to being able to do certain things with my body that I couldn't do," she said.

"When I stepped back on the court, it was nice for me to be able to be out there and to be out of the hospital.

"But it was also extraordinarily frustrating to know the things that I could do before and to know that now I hold a racquet for ten minutes and I'm just completely exhausted.

"The reality sort of hits you like a ton of bricks at that stage."

But Morariu's fightback was helped by a deluge of support from, among others, her fellow players.

I don't think you can come out of a life-threatening situation like I was in without a different perspective

Corina Morariu

More widely known for its petty squabbles and back-biting, the women's game closed ranks in support of Morariu.

"The response I've gotten from the players has just been incredible and beyond anything I could have ever imagined," she said.

"I think I'm still shocked how everyone just came out to support me and to be by my side if they could or to do whatever they could to know that they were thinking of me.

"That's a feeling that I really couldn't even begin to describe."

Though Morariu speaks of how her perspective on tennis has changed, she refuses to accept that, just by returning to the tour, the fight is over.

"I don't think you can come out of a situation like I was in, a life-threatening situation and fighting a battle for your life, without a different perspective," she said.

"I came back to playing tennis, and I have the luxury of being able to reflect on where I was a year ago, which was in the hospital and not being able to leave the room.

"Starting to play again, it's another hurdle for me to try to overcome, but it's much better than the fight I was in last year.

"It's a huge challenge for me, and I'm really looking forward to it."


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