Biography (written by Glyn James)

Daja (real name Daniela) Bedanova is a 19 year old tennis star from the Czech Republic. She was born on the 9th of March, 1983, in Ostrava, Czech Republic. In her spare time she enjoys skiing and skating, and she used to have a keen interest in astronomy. She is coached by her father Jan Bedan, and all of her family play tennis.

Daja reflects on her thoughts about tennis as a child:
"When I was small, I always liked to watch tennis. I used to watch my parents (both professionals in the Czech Republic) play all the time. I never really told myself that I could be a pro though, I just tried to play my best tennis."

Daja turned professional in 2000 and made her first Grand Slam appearence at Wimbledon 2000. After coming through threee rounds of qualifying she was beaten in the first round by Anne-Gaelle Sidot in straight sets. Daja did the same thing in the US open. After winning three qualifying rounds she again crashed out at the first round, this time to Nadia Petrova, with a 1-6 2-6 scoreline. Daja soon put this behind her, and, at the tender age of 17, represented her country in the 2000 olympics. She reached the second round of the event, and lost to Julie Halard-Decugis. Then came a major breakthrough. After having to go through the qualifying stages again, she forced her way into the semi finals of the Toyota Princess Cup in Tokyo, upsetting the 3rd and 5th seeds Amelie Mauresmo and Amy Frazier on her way. She was finally stopped by Serena Williams. After a little more disappointment in the Japan Open, Daja stormed to victory in Bratislava, defeating Miriam Oremans in three sets to take her first WTA tournament.

2001 started brightly for the young Czech. Still only 17 she reached the 4rd of the Australian Open, knocking out the 9th seed Elena Dementieva on her way. Again, she was stopped in her trails by the 6th seed Serena Williams in straight sets. Daja then struggled to make an impact on the next few tours before she suffered achillies tendonitis. This ruled her out of tournaments in Hamburg and Rome. Daja returned just in time for Roland Garros where she made a respectable 3rd, losing to Italian Silvia Farina Elia in two very close sets. Daja's grass court season was one to be forgotten. She failed to win a game at Birmingham, Eastbourne and Wimbledon, and was clearly very disatisfied. She bounced back in good form once again though, and in her preparation for the US Open, she overcame players such as Barbara Schett and Magdalena Maleeva. By the time the US Open came around, Daja was clearly feeling quietly confident, and deservedly so too. She made a fantastic QF at the US Open, and left many people shocked as she swept aside the challenges of Meghannn Shaughnessy and Monica Seles. She was only stopped by the number one seed Martina Hingis, but the damage had already been done. She was clearly one to watch. Unfortunately, Daja couldn't uphold this standard of tennis throughout the rest of the year, and played some rather inconsistent tennis. However, in this period she did manage to defeat Cristina Torrens Valero and Amelie Mauresmo. She also claimed her first doubles title at Bratislava, despite losing at the first hurdle where she was number one seed and defending champion.

In 2002, Daja once again set alight hopes of becoming a top player by making a SF in the Gold Coast tournament. Again though, Daja failed to take the momentum through with her to her next few tournaments and crashed out of the Australian Open in the 2rd to Anabel Medina Garrigues in straight sets. Daja picked herself up once more though and defeated Daniela Hantuchova in Antwerp, aswell as reaching the QF in Scottsdale. After some average performances prior to the French Open, not a lot was expected from the young Czech, but it was still a shock when she was defeated in 1rd in Roland Garros to Jelena Kostanic. Ironically, it followed a similar patern to their meeting the week before in Strasbourg with Daja taking the first set and losing the next two on both occasions. Daja's grass court season was emphatically better than the previous year. She reached the 3rd at Birmingham, but at Eastbourne she really raised a few eyebrows when she reached the SF and defeated Elena Likhovtseva, Meghannn Shaughnessy, and the number one seed Jelena Dokic. She then marched on to Wimbledon and took the first two matches with ease. However, an unfortunate draw pinned Daja up against the former world number one Jennifer Capriati, and Daja lost in straight sets after a close first set.

Daja will now be looking forward to the hard court season where she has enjoyed so much success in the past.
(The story continues...)