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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
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Passing shots
Top seed Marion Bartoli was defeated 6-3, 6-2 today in the opening round in Strasbourg by Camila Giorgi.
Here's a recent interview with Garbine Muguruza.
Here are the Fila outfits that Jelena Jankovic, Julia Goerges and Nadia Petrova will wear during the French Open.
Varvara Lepchenko is blogging from Brussels.
Ashleigh Barty has been awarded a wild card into the main draw of the French Open. Other women given wild cards are Shelby Rogers, Claire Feuerstein, Stephanie Foretz-Gacon, Caroline Garcia, Irena Pavlovic, Virginie Razzano, and Aravane Rezai.
'Pova talks about Paris on CNN Open Court.
Here's a recent interview with Garbine Muguruza.
Here are the Fila outfits that Jelena Jankovic, Julia Goerges and Nadia Petrova will wear during the French Open.
Varvara Lepchenko is blogging from Brussels.
Ashleigh Barty has been awarded a wild card into the main draw of the French Open. Other women given wild cards are Shelby Rogers, Claire Feuerstein, Stephanie Foretz-Gacon, Caroline Garcia, Irena Pavlovic, Virginie Razzano, and Aravane Rezai.
'Pova talks about Paris on CNN Open Court.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Williams wins Rome
Serena Williams, who defended her title last week in Madrid, won the Rome title today by easily defeating Victoria Azarenka 6-1, 6-3 in the final. Williams then put the icing on the cream cake by delivering her entire acceptance speech in Italian.
Earlier in the clay season, Williams won Charleston. This makes her the runaway favorite to win the French Open, the only major that she hasn't won multiple times. Williams won the French in 2002, but since then, has not been able to dominate on red clay because the slowness of the surface tends to neutralize her power and allows more clay-savvy players to take advantage.
Well, that was then--and this is now. Displaying a new dominance on the slowest of surfaces, Williams has become the woman to beat in Paris. Her two main competitors (in my opinion) are defending champion Maria Sharapova and Li Na. Each of them has also won the French Open once. Li's French Open warmup hasn't been that impressive; Sharapova (who withdrew from the Rome quarterfinals because of a viral illness) is going to be at the opposite end of the draw from Williams. Should the two top seeds prevail, it could be an interesting final--or not. Williams has been dominant over Sharapova on other surfaces for the last decade.
Last year, Sara Errani made it to the final, but her serve wasn't good enough to make her competitive against Sharapova. It still isn't.
There was an upset in the Rome doubles final, and it couldn't have been easy for the crowd. Italians Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci, the top seeds, were beaten 4-6, 6-3, 10-8 by the unseeded team of Hsieh Su-Wei and Peng Shuai. Errani and Vinci also lost to Hsieh and Peng in the second round in Indian Wells.
Earlier in the clay season, Williams won Charleston. This makes her the runaway favorite to win the French Open, the only major that she hasn't won multiple times. Williams won the French in 2002, but since then, has not been able to dominate on red clay because the slowness of the surface tends to neutralize her power and allows more clay-savvy players to take advantage.
Well, that was then--and this is now. Displaying a new dominance on the slowest of surfaces, Williams has become the woman to beat in Paris. Her two main competitors (in my opinion) are defending champion Maria Sharapova and Li Na. Each of them has also won the French Open once. Li's French Open warmup hasn't been that impressive; Sharapova (who withdrew from the Rome quarterfinals because of a viral illness) is going to be at the opposite end of the draw from Williams. Should the two top seeds prevail, it could be an interesting final--or not. Williams has been dominant over Sharapova on other surfaces for the last decade.
Last year, Sara Errani made it to the final, but her serve wasn't good enough to make her competitive against Sharapova. It still isn't.
There was an upset in the Rome doubles final, and it couldn't have been easy for the crowd. Italians Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci, the top seeds, were beaten 4-6, 6-3, 10-8 by the unseeded team of Hsieh Su-Wei and Peng Shuai. Errani and Vinci also lost to Hsieh and Peng in the second round in Indian Wells.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Passing shots
Serena Williams has just posted 22 consecutive match victories--the longest winning streak of her career. Who would have predicted this?
Heather Watson, who has been off the tour because of glandular fever, hopes to play in Strasbourg.
Victoria Azarenka says she is somewhat afraid of heights and somewhat afraid of the dark.
Get to know Dinah Pfizenmaier.
Amen, sister.
Sam Stosur always has some Vegemite and an Australian flag with her.
Heather Watson, who has been off the tour because of glandular fever, hopes to play in Strasbourg.
Victoria Azarenka says she is somewhat afraid of heights and somewhat afraid of the dark.
Get to know Dinah Pfizenmaier.
Amen, sister.
Sam Stosur always has some Vegemite and an Australian flag with her.
Azarenka and Errani advance to Rome semifinals
Looking at today's Rome match stats, it's easy to see how Samantha Stosur finally beat Victoria Azarenka. Oh wait--she didn't. Talk about doing it with mirrors. With a 14/34 winners/unforced errors ratio (Stosur's was 36/38), Azarenka's 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 victory came about mostly because--in the final set--Stosur ceased her aggression. How many times have we seen this? The 3rd seed is now 8-0 against Stosur.
(Did anyone else think Azarenka looked kind of heavy? Today was the first time I'd seen her play in Rome.)
Top seed Serena Williams made quick work of Carla Suarez Navarro, beating her 6-2, 6-0 in under an hour. Maria Sharapova, who is sick with a viral illness, gave Sara Errani a walkover. Errani and Azarenka will compete for a spot in the final against the winner of Williams vs. Halep.
(Did anyone else think Azarenka looked kind of heavy? Today was the first time I'd seen her play in Rome.)
Top seed Serena Williams made quick work of Carla Suarez Navarro, beating her 6-2, 6-0 in under an hour. Maria Sharapova, who is sick with a viral illness, gave Sara Errani a walkover. Errani and Azarenka will compete for a spot in the final against the winner of Williams vs. Halep.
Simon(a) says--It's upset time!
Having already run through Daniela Hantuchova, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Agnieszka Radwanska, and Roberta Vinci--today, qualifier Simona Halep advanced to the Rome semifinals by taking out two-time Rome champion Jelena Jankoavic.
Oh, the drama.
Halep played quite well in the first set, and saved two set points, but was outdone, 6-4, by Jankovic. And then she went all crazy on JJ the way she had on Radwanska earlier in the week, winning every game in the second set. That was pretty dramatic in itself; Halep threw every clay court trick known in Romania (and that's quite a few) at Jankovic.
But in the third set, Jankovic went up 3-0, 40-15, and looked like she was on her way to yet another Rome semifinal, but Halep fought back, then fought back some more, breaking her opponent twice. Eventually, the Romanian player would resemble a determined and clever gnat that could not be swatted away, and Jankovic's swat would become less and less effective. Though Halep's serve (the only weakness she displayed in this match) provided multiple opportunities for Jankovic to get the whole thing over with, the Serbian star was tapping forehands over the net instead of hitting winners.
Then, finally, Jankovic served for the match. She held two match points. Halep saved them both. Halep then held, and suddenly, she had two match points on Jankovic's serve.
It was almost over, but the player known by many as Drama Queen (or, in some parts, Queen Chaos)--after muttering and gesturing her way through two sets--had one last performance to deliver. At 5-6, 15-40, she smashed a ball deep into the deuce court, and it was called out by a line official. Play was stopped, as the chair umpire went to check the line. She quickly the declared the ball in, and Jankovic assumed she had hit a winner and saved a match point, but the chair umpire called for a replay.
Jankovic argued with the umpire, then hung her head--indeed, slumped her entire body--over the net in frustration. Halep would go on to win the final set 7-5.
This is the third time that Jankovic and Halep have played one another. All of their matches have gone to three sets, and Halep has won both matches played on clay.
Halep's very impressive journey to the semifinals is reminiscent of other recent big, unexpected, clay tournament runs. Aravane Rezai won Madrid in 2010, taking out Justine Henin, Jankovic and Venus Williams, among others. That same year, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez claimed the Rome title, defeating Jankovic 7-5, 7-6 in the final with a series of expert drop shots that repeatedly stunned the (fast-moving) defending champion. Martinez Sanchez's other victims included Francesca Schiavone (who would go on to win the French Open that year), Caroline Wozniacki and Ana Ivanovic. The result was probably a particularly bitter pill for Jankovic to swallow because she had defeated both Williams sisters on her way to the final.
And speaking of Williams sisters--world number 1 Serena Williams will be Halep's next opponent. Halep, a qualifier, has already played six matches.
Oh, the drama.
Halep played quite well in the first set, and saved two set points, but was outdone, 6-4, by Jankovic. And then she went all crazy on JJ the way she had on Radwanska earlier in the week, winning every game in the second set. That was pretty dramatic in itself; Halep threw every clay court trick known in Romania (and that's quite a few) at Jankovic.
But in the third set, Jankovic went up 3-0, 40-15, and looked like she was on her way to yet another Rome semifinal, but Halep fought back, then fought back some more, breaking her opponent twice. Eventually, the Romanian player would resemble a determined and clever gnat that could not be swatted away, and Jankovic's swat would become less and less effective. Though Halep's serve (the only weakness she displayed in this match) provided multiple opportunities for Jankovic to get the whole thing over with, the Serbian star was tapping forehands over the net instead of hitting winners.
Then, finally, Jankovic served for the match. She held two match points. Halep saved them both. Halep then held, and suddenly, she had two match points on Jankovic's serve.
It was almost over, but the player known by many as Drama Queen (or, in some parts, Queen Chaos)--after muttering and gesturing her way through two sets--had one last performance to deliver. At 5-6, 15-40, she smashed a ball deep into the deuce court, and it was called out by a line official. Play was stopped, as the chair umpire went to check the line. She quickly the declared the ball in, and Jankovic assumed she had hit a winner and saved a match point, but the chair umpire called for a replay.
Jankovic argued with the umpire, then hung her head--indeed, slumped her entire body--over the net in frustration. Halep would go on to win the final set 7-5.
This is the third time that Jankovic and Halep have played one another. All of their matches have gone to three sets, and Halep has won both matches played on clay.
Halep's very impressive journey to the semifinals is reminiscent of other recent big, unexpected, clay tournament runs. Aravane Rezai won Madrid in 2010, taking out Justine Henin, Jankovic and Venus Williams, among others. That same year, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez claimed the Rome title, defeating Jankovic 7-5, 7-6 in the final with a series of expert drop shots that repeatedly stunned the (fast-moving) defending champion. Martinez Sanchez's other victims included Francesca Schiavone (who would go on to win the French Open that year), Caroline Wozniacki and Ana Ivanovic. The result was probably a particularly bitter pill for Jankovic to swallow because she had defeated both Williams sisters on her way to the final.
And speaking of Williams sisters--world number 1 Serena Williams will be Halep's next opponent. Halep, a qualifier, has already played six matches.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Halep continues her run in Rome
Simona Halep, who had already eliminated 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and world number 4 Agnieszka Radwanska from the Italian Open, took another step today when she defeated Italian clay expert (and 13th seed) Roberta Vinci in straight sets. Next up for the under-the-radar Romanian is Jelena Jankovic.
Jankovic defeated 2011 French Open champion Li Na 7-6, 7-5 today, and what a ride it was. Li made 62 unforced errors, which kind of tells the story of the match, but not really. Jankovic found a way to win, though it wasn't pretty. The turning point of the match came in the seventh game of the second set. It took Jankovic ten break points to finally break Li, as both players made impressive shots and unforced errors in succession. When Li double-faulted for the second time in the game, the opponents (who are also former doubles partners) could do nothing but smile.
Jankovic held in the next game, but then Li broke her--and it took her seven break points to get the job done. In the end though, after over 2 hours and 39 minutes, Jankovic prevailed. She and partner Mirjana Lucic-Baroni prevailed in doubles, too, defeating 7th seeds Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Kveta Peschke.
Both Maria Kirilenko and Ayumi Morita retired in their 3rd round matches today. Kirilenko's opponent was Sara Errani, and Errani's victory makes her the new world number 5.
Also today, Sam Stosur got her first ever win over Petra Kvitova.
Here is the quarterfinal singles draw:
Serena Williams (1) vs. Carla Suarez Navarro
Simona Halep vs. Jelena Jankovic
Samantha Stosur (9) vs. Victoria Azarenka (3)
Sara Errani (7) vs. Maria Sharapova (2)
Jankovic defeated 2011 French Open champion Li Na 7-6, 7-5 today, and what a ride it was. Li made 62 unforced errors, which kind of tells the story of the match, but not really. Jankovic found a way to win, though it wasn't pretty. The turning point of the match came in the seventh game of the second set. It took Jankovic ten break points to finally break Li, as both players made impressive shots and unforced errors in succession. When Li double-faulted for the second time in the game, the opponents (who are also former doubles partners) could do nothing but smile.
Jankovic held in the next game, but then Li broke her--and it took her seven break points to get the job done. In the end though, after over 2 hours and 39 minutes, Jankovic prevailed. She and partner Mirjana Lucic-Baroni prevailed in doubles, too, defeating 7th seeds Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Kveta Peschke.
Both Maria Kirilenko and Ayumi Morita retired in their 3rd round matches today. Kirilenko's opponent was Sara Errani, and Errani's victory makes her the new world number 5.
Also today, Sam Stosur got her first ever win over Petra Kvitova.
Here is the quarterfinal singles draw:
Serena Williams (1) vs. Carla Suarez Navarro
Simona Halep vs. Jelena Jankovic
Samantha Stosur (9) vs. Victoria Azarenka (3)
Sara Errani (7) vs. Maria Sharapova (2)
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Petra in Rome: She did it with mirrors
These days, any reasonably good player wakes up in the morning believing she can beat Caroline Wozniacki and Petra Kvitova; neither of them is very scary at the moment. Wozniacki made her exit from Rome today in the first round, compliments of Bojana Jovanovski.
Kvitova was another story, though the story has gotten old. She won the first set against Sabine Lisicki, 6-4. The second set was over almost before you could say "Oh, Petra"--Lisicki won every game. Watching Kvitova in that set, I wondered "Who is this player?" The big serve was absent, the powerful groundstrokes were absent, the wicked angles were absent.
Serving at 1-2, Kvitova went down 0-40, but saved three break points. Lisicki broke her anyway, to go up 3-1. And then the Mystery Switch began to hum, as the Czech player slowly turned it on. At 5-all, she broke Lisicki, who--by this time--was playing at a lower level--then won on her own serve to take the match. It's painful to watch Kvitova go through this routine (which is often unsuccessful, as well), but it's become predictable.
In the next round, Kvitova is probably going to play Sam Stosur (unless Peng Shuai has something to say about that), who has her own issues. Kvitova is 4-0 against Stosur, with her last win coming at Fed Cup.
It was an especially bad day for Agnieszka Radwanska. Qualifier Simona Halep has been known to take out a top player or two, and today, she let loose on Radwanska in what was practically a clinic. It helped that the 4th seed was slower of foot than usual; she's been making quite a few errors lately, too. Halep defeated Radwanska 6-7, 6-1, 6-2. The victory is especially notable because, almost every time a player loses a first set tiebreak to a better player, the challenger is mentally done in. Not Halep, though. She brushed off the tiebreak loss (7-2) and went about business.
Urszula Radwanska fared better: She beat Ana Ivanovic 6-3, 2-6, 6-2. Laura Robson won four games against Serena Williams, Carla Suarez Navarro beat Nadia Petrova, and Romina Oprandi beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-0.
Tomorrow, Julia Goerges takes on Victoria Azarenka. Goerges has only two settings--impressive giant-killing and multiple error-producing. Unfortunately, she leans toward the latter much of the time. It's a shame. too, because Goerges has a lot of things going for her, especially on clay. She won the Stuttgart event in 2011, taking out Azarenka, Lisicki, Stosur, and Wozniacki along the way.
Kvitova was another story, though the story has gotten old. She won the first set against Sabine Lisicki, 6-4. The second set was over almost before you could say "Oh, Petra"--Lisicki won every game. Watching Kvitova in that set, I wondered "Who is this player?" The big serve was absent, the powerful groundstrokes were absent, the wicked angles were absent.
Serving at 1-2, Kvitova went down 0-40, but saved three break points. Lisicki broke her anyway, to go up 3-1. And then the Mystery Switch began to hum, as the Czech player slowly turned it on. At 5-all, she broke Lisicki, who--by this time--was playing at a lower level--then won on her own serve to take the match. It's painful to watch Kvitova go through this routine (which is often unsuccessful, as well), but it's become predictable.
In the next round, Kvitova is probably going to play Sam Stosur (unless Peng Shuai has something to say about that), who has her own issues. Kvitova is 4-0 against Stosur, with her last win coming at Fed Cup.
It was an especially bad day for Agnieszka Radwanska. Qualifier Simona Halep has been known to take out a top player or two, and today, she let loose on Radwanska in what was practically a clinic. It helped that the 4th seed was slower of foot than usual; she's been making quite a few errors lately, too. Halep defeated Radwanska 6-7, 6-1, 6-2. The victory is especially notable because, almost every time a player loses a first set tiebreak to a better player, the challenger is mentally done in. Not Halep, though. She brushed off the tiebreak loss (7-2) and went about business.
Urszula Radwanska fared better: She beat Ana Ivanovic 6-3, 2-6, 6-2. Laura Robson won four games against Serena Williams, Carla Suarez Navarro beat Nadia Petrova, and Romina Oprandi beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-0.
Tomorrow, Julia Goerges takes on Victoria Azarenka. Goerges has only two settings--impressive giant-killing and multiple error-producing. Unfortunately, she leans toward the latter much of the time. It's a shame. too, because Goerges has a lot of things going for her, especially on clay. She won the Stuttgart event in 2011, taking out Azarenka, Lisicki, Stosur, and Wozniacki along the way.
Wozniacki goes blank
Blank verse, that is. I'm very pleased to have a poem about Caroline Wozniacki in The Barnstormer. (For some reason--though I often write formal poetry--I don't generally write in blank verse, so this is a nice change for me.) Following "The Lesson Of Caroline," you'll find a seasonal tennis poem.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Serena Williams defends title in Madrid
She looked a bit befuddled throughout the week, and her footwork betrayed her sometimes, but when it came down to defending her Madrid title, Serena Williams looked like--well, like Serena Williams. She defeated Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-4, winning her 50th title, and was in control of the match from start to finish. Of course, the longer this losing streak to Williams goes on, the worse it appears to get. Sharapova doesn't look like herself when she plays the world number 1, who--every time her opponent starts to figure things out--simply elevates her game another notch.
Yesterday, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova won the Madrid doubles title by defeating Cara Black and Marina Erakovic 6-2, 6-4. This is the second title Pavlyuchenkova and Safarova have won as a team; they were the champions in Charleston in 2012. Pavlyuchenkova's new coach, Martina Hingis, also coached the unseeded championship team to the Madrid final.
Meanwhile, in Rome, Mallory Burdette beat Madison Keys in the second qualifying round, and the top-seeded qualifier, Lourdes Dominguez Lino, was knocked out in the second qualifying round by Andrea Hlavackova.
Also qualifying was Anabel Medina Garrigues, who played a very good match against Serena Williams in the Madrid quarterfinals. And regarding the Spaniard's fluffing of new balls, the WTA has acknowledged that if the umpire had seen her do it, she would most likely have had a code violation called on her.
Yesterday, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova won the Madrid doubles title by defeating Cara Black and Marina Erakovic 6-2, 6-4. This is the second title Pavlyuchenkova and Safarova have won as a team; they were the champions in Charleston in 2012. Pavlyuchenkova's new coach, Martina Hingis, also coached the unseeded championship team to the Madrid final.
Meanwhile, in Rome, Mallory Burdette beat Madison Keys in the second qualifying round, and the top-seeded qualifier, Lourdes Dominguez Lino, was knocked out in the second qualifying round by Andrea Hlavackova.
Also qualifying was Anabel Medina Garrigues, who played a very good match against Serena Williams in the Madrid quarterfinals. And regarding the Spaniard's fluffing of new balls, the WTA has acknowledged that if the umpire had seen her do it, she would most likely have had a code violation called on her.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
And so they meet again
Once, when asked about her so-called rivalry with Anna Kournikova, Martina Hingis replied "What rivalry? I win all the matches."
I bring this up because I am so tired of reading headlines about "Serena Williams and her rival, Maria Sharapova." This is not 2004, and there is no rivalry between Serena and anyone at this time. Williams has a 12-2 record against Sharapova, and Sharapova hasn't beaten her since the WTA Championships in Los Angeles eight and a half years ago.
The Russian star will get another chance tomorrow, however, when she and Williams vie for the Madrid title. Sharapova defeated Ana Ivanovic in today's semifinals, and Williams defeated Sara Errani. Sharapova's victory marked her 500th career match win.
Because of an odd twist in Sharapova's career, red clay is now probably the best surface for her to play against Williams. The neutralizing quality of red clay makes it the world number 1's least advantageous surface, while Sharapova--the 2012 French Open champion--has come a long way in learning how to compete on clay. Should Sharapova win tomorrow's final, she would become the world number 1.
And speaking of all things Williams, we could get a Venus vs. Serena 2nd round match in Rome next week. Serena has a bye in the first round, and Venus plays Laura Robson.
I bring this up because I am so tired of reading headlines about "Serena Williams and her rival, Maria Sharapova." This is not 2004, and there is no rivalry between Serena and anyone at this time. Williams has a 12-2 record against Sharapova, and Sharapova hasn't beaten her since the WTA Championships in Los Angeles eight and a half years ago.
The Russian star will get another chance tomorrow, however, when she and Williams vie for the Madrid title. Sharapova defeated Ana Ivanovic in today's semifinals, and Williams defeated Sara Errani. Sharapova's victory marked her 500th career match win.
Because of an odd twist in Sharapova's career, red clay is now probably the best surface for her to play against Williams. The neutralizing quality of red clay makes it the world number 1's least advantageous surface, while Sharapova--the 2012 French Open champion--has come a long way in learning how to compete on clay. Should Sharapova win tomorrow's final, she would become the world number 1.
And speaking of all things Williams, we could get a Venus vs. Serena 2nd round match in Rome next week. Serena has a bye in the first round, and Venus plays Laura Robson.
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