By Bill Nichols

Some days Virginia Wade is the finest woman tennis player in the world.  Other days she's really with it.

But you'd better believe it -- Virginia has come a long way baby.  She is one of the premier performers on the Virginia Slims circuit and can beat most players even when she's not really with it.

Ginny Wade is a semi-finalist in the $75,000 Virginia Slims tussle this week at the Coliseum after eliminating Laura DuPont, Bridget Cuypers and Mima Jausovec.  But she's bored.

"I'm not really with it," she smiled.  "I hope I can get with it before the week is out."

"Temporarily, I've lost my fascination for hitting a tennis ball."

Miss Wade, England's gift to the tennis world, looks at the game of backhands forehands, lobs and volleys, differently than most.  She has said she would rather play beautiful tennis than win.

"In fact, if I'm really playing well, really hitting the ball, I can lose track of the purpose behind it all," she added.

She considers herself as being in a slump, even though she has reached the semis in the tour's first four tournaments this winter.

"One goes through these patches once awhile," she moaned.  "You get stale.  I need a vacation.  I'm going to take three weeks off and go home and practice."

Virginia is a regular visitor to the area having been here several times with the British Wightman Cup team.  And she has never failed to attract attention.

She has won here when maybe she should have lost.  And, occasionally, she lost when she had no business going so, especially when she wasn't with it.

The daughter of an Episcopal archdeacon, she was a math major.  She is a girl of many moods.  These moods reflect on the tennis court.

When Ginny is mad and still in control of her wits she can make short work of any opponent, but sometimes her wits are not with her.  But when you see her play, you're sure she's an art major -- or English, but never mathematics.  She just isn't that precise.

Virginia has had an outstanding career, which includes capturing the United States Open in 1968 but you always get the feeling she should win every tournament.

She is powerful and possessor of all the shots.  "I wish I had just some of her strokes," sighed Miss Cuypers.  "I definitely need a little win.  That would help no end."

If it isn't this week, she will win one day soon.  It would do wonders for her disposition.  And she may once again become fascinated with hitting a tennis ball.