Sunny American tennis locales must not agree with Elena Dementieva.

The woman widely regarded as the best player never to win a Grand Slam tournament on the WTA Tour fared poorly in the Indian Wells-Miami stretch of the 2009 season.

Two weeks after a humiliating second-round loss amidst the palm trees of Southern California, Dementieva produced a fourth-round failure on Monday in a similar setting at the Sony Ericsson Open. The fourth seed concluded a miserable month of March by dropping a straight-set decision to 13th-seeded Caroline Wozniacki. The Danish teenager drummed Dementieva out of the South Florida tennis scene, 7-5, 6-4.

Just how lifeless was Dementieva in these two tournaments, which enjoy considerable stature among the community of tennis professionals? The mercurial Russian’s own words tell the tale.

After her second-round loss to 64th-ranked Petra Cetkovska in Indian Wells (her first match of the event, due to a first-round bye), Dementieva flatly said, “I was not really excited about playing this match.”

Safe to say, those are not the words one should expect from a player who needs a major title to make her career complete. Dementieva might lack an effective serve, but that reality hardly makes her conspicuous on the WTA Tour. (Only the Williams sisters can consistently thump their serves and pick up cheap points as a result.) Dementieva’s groundstrokes and court coverage are as steady and reliable as any of her counterparts. Her pronounced prowess from the back of the court has enabled the 27-year-old to reach five slam semifinals and two slam finals.

Why, then, does Dementieva find herself unmotivated and–once again–eliminated from a significant tour event?

Mental toughness has been Dementieva’s lingering weakness over the years. Even on the occasions when she reached the big stage, such as the 2004 French Open final against Anastasia Myskina, Dementieva has suffered bouts of stage fright that sabotaged her ability to think clearly and play fluidly. Dementieva doesn’t face the need to improve her skills; a lack of old-fashioned appetite looms as the persistent problem for an individual who gives well-considered and articulate answers at press conferences and in interviews.

Is it a mystery? Sure–just like other Russian tennis players (Marat Safin, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Myskina, Nadia Petrova, and others) who possess world-class abilities but noticeable psychological frailties.

Elena Dementieva has the tools to win a Grand Slam and become a force in women’s tennis, even at 27. If she can only bottle up a dose of intestinal fortitude, early-round losses at palm tree-lined American tennis complexes might not occur quite so frequently.

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