Jelena Jankovic Plays With Heavy Heart

NEW YORK -- At one point late in the match, you could see it. Jelena Jankovic turned to the back of the court and covered her face with her hands for no apparent reason. But it was only after she lost Thursday in the second round of the U.S. Open, that Jankovic let on that she was playing after finding out her grandmother had died.

"You could see I was not happy on the court," she said. "I was really suffering. I tried to think about my tennis but, you know, I felt like I was so late and so slow.

"You know, I couldn't even watch the ball."

More U.S. Open: Women's Scores | Men's Scores | Watch Live Coverage

Jankovic, the No. 5 seed and a finalist last year, lost to Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3, 6-7 (7-4), 7-6 (8-6) in a day of upsets at the U.S. Open.

Her mother was in New York for the Open, but flew home to Serbia Wednesday night. Jankovic said she'll go back Friday to be with her mother.

Jankovic did not hold her usual post-match press conference, but instead spoke through a WTA Tour official.

"I wasn't really on the court ..." she said. "My grandmother died, and I was very close to her. I was very sad and emotionally I was really not on court. I really tried my best to be there and to try to play but it was really hard."

Jankovic said she didn't know if her mother reached Serbia before her grandmother died because, "I couldn't really speak. I was just, you know, crying. I couldn't even ask for details."

It has been a rough year on the court for Jankovic, who finished last year ranked No. 1. In an effort to reach the next level, she bulked up to add power to her game. Instead, the added weight, about 15 pounds,served to slow her down.

She never felt comfortable with the weight, so she went about losing it.

She came to the Open saying she finally felt right again and was ready to rebuild her ranking.

"My head really wasn't there," she said. "It was like a shadow of myself ...

"So there are more important things in life than tennis. When you think about it, this is just a small event compared to somebody in your family who dies."

Email me at gregcouch09@aol.com