Alexandra Stevenson had to call it quits in the second set of a first-round match Monday at the estyle.com Classic because of an injury to her left hip and upper thigh.

If the 6-3, 4-1 (ret.) disappointment against Tamarine Tanasugam at Manhattan Country Club broke her heart, it wasn't obvious.

"I was great last week," said Stevenson, who has been unable to finish matches five times this season because of injuries.

She giggled.

"Up until today."

Giggle, giggle.

"Unfortunately, things like this happen."

Giggle, giggle, giggle.

Stevenson was surprisingly upbeat, her smile as bright as her future appeared two years ago when she burst onto the scene by becoming the first qualifier to advance to the Wimbledon women's semifinals.

She hasn't advanced that deep into any tournament since. Stevenson, 20, had to win a pair of qualifying matches last weekend to reach the main draw here.

Clearly, Stevenson isn't the same wide-eyed teen-ager who captured the imagination of many with her too-good-to-be-true run at Wimbledon in 1999. Shortly after she was seen doing curtsies and throwing kisses to her admirers at Centre Court, Stevenson jumped from 86th to 36th in the rankings. Then she dropped off the radar screen.

After advancing to the round of 16 in last week's Acura Classic, Stevenson moved from 111th to 96th in the rankings. That puts her a few notches behind wild-card entrant Virginie Razzano, of France, who upended Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, in a first-round match Monday.

Razzano, ranked 83rd, and Stevenson now are headed in opposite directions. Troubled by back problems for nearly a year, Stevenson took a step backward Monday, retiring in a match that appeared all but lost.

"I couldn't push off my foot," Stevenson said.

She can't seem to get out of the blocks since advancing to the quarterfinals of a tournament in Sydney, Australia, last year.

After rolling to the round of 16 last week in Carlsbad, Stevenson was feeling good about her game, her problematic back and her decision to add yoga to her workout schedule. But those good vibes began to disappear in the third game of the first set Monday.

Tanasugam made Stevenson run, and that made Stevenson hurt. She received treatment during a changeover and never appeared comfortable.

"This is just a little setback," Stevenson said. "It's not like a huge injury where I'll be out for six months."

When Stevenson wasn't talking, she was giggling. Perhaps it's a nervous habit. Or the realization laughter is the best medicine.

At Wimbledon two years ago, Stevenson's private life became public when it was revealed she was the daughter of former basketball star Julius Erving.

"It's funny when everyone knows your whole life," she said. "I guess I just got used to it. . . .

"I learned how to be tough. I grew up a lot the last two years."

She's mature enough to understand tennis is a game and that a back injury and a sagging ranking aren't the end of the world.

"When I'm healthy, I can obviously play," she said. "It's no fun when you lose and you retire, but you have to keep things in perspective. I'm lucky to be out here."