By Justin Cohen
- Roger Federer’s website – www.RogerFederer.com – has a new look. His website, which had almost 3.5 million visitors in 2010 and which has more than 310,000 members, has more of a classic and clear design with more images and content as well as improved usability and interactivity. Fans will find current information as well as details on Roger’s career, statistics, images and videos about the sixteen-time Grand Slam champion. New functions also include RSS feeds as well as the option to create a connection between a user and a Facebook account. “It is fantastic to have such a great fan following in the ‘real’ world as well as on the web. It is because of this that I decided that it would be important for me to give my loyal fans something new and exciting” said Federer.
- Tournament officials of the Mubadala World Tennis Championships in Abu Dhabi confirmed that World No. 1 Rafael Nadal and No. 2 Roger Federer will participate in the exhibition event from December 30, 2010-January 1, 2011. Robin Soderling, Tomas Berdych, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Marcos Baghdatis are also slated to participate in the event.
- Former World No. 1 and 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic has cut ties with her coach Heinz Gunthardt despite a recent improvement in results towards the end of the 2010 season. Since she began working with Gunthardt in March, Steffi Graf’s old coach, Ivanovic’s ranking has gone up from 58th to 24th. The reason for the split is because Gunthardt is not able to travel to all the tournaments with the Serbian.
Roger Federer - Auckland Tournament Director Richard Palmer recently announced that Maria Sharapova would be participating in his tournament, which acts as a warm-up event for the Australian Open. He followed that announcement up by saying her appearance fee was very “fair and reasonable”, but he would still have to cut his marketing budget for the tournament and request additional money from the 2011 title sponsor. Organizers also reported a rise in ticket enquiries since the Sharapova announcement, especially for corporate boxes.
- Doubles specialist Renee Stubbs announced that she will be retiring from the WTA Tour in 2011 after the Australian Open and Australia’s Fed Cup tie against Italy in February.
- After reaching a deal with the Spanish Tennis Federation to increase their funding, the ladies of the Spanish Fed Cup team have called off their boycott. The Federation also agreed to pay more attention to the women’s game of tennis.
- Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has pulled out of Davis Cup final against Serbia with another tear in his patella tendon. “My tendon snapped once again in Montpellier,” said Tsonga. “The injury is less serious than last summer but the doctors told me to end my season.”
- No. 20 ranked Marcos Baghdatis has ended his 2010 season following a shoulder injury, which happened in Vienna, Austria. “I am very sorry that I will not be able to see my fans in Basel and Paris this year,” Baghdatis said on his website. “I injured my right shoulder in Vienna and have been advised to rest so as not to cause any further damage.”
- The Inaugural Charity Challenge, hosted by John Isner and Sam Querrey, is set to take place on Sunday, December 5 at 2 p.m. at the Manhattan Country Club in Manhattan Beach, Calif. Tennis legends Lindsay Davenport, Tracy Austin, as well as rising young stars Denis Kudla and Sloane Stephens will participate in the fan-friendly tennis event in Southern California. The first match will feature Denis Kudla and Sloane Stephens, followed by a mixed doubles match featuring Isner, Querrey, Davenport and Austin. The exhibition matches will conclude with a Pro-Set Shootout between the hosts. Although the exhibition matches begin at 3 p.m., ticket holders are encouraged to arrive early and support the Pro Am, which begins at 10 a.m. The matches will include special celebrity umpires, mic’d up players and live giveaways. Evening entertainment will follow the Pro Am and exhibition matches. The event will benefit both the Boys and Girls Club of America and the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, where John’s mother was treated. General Admission tickets are $100 and can be ordered at: http://www.ticketalternative.com/Events/12675.aspx
- After being drawn in the same group in the AEGON Masters Tennis tournament at Royal Albert Hall in London, Tim Henman will face off against Goran Ivanisevic for the first time since their epic Wimbledon semifinal in 2001. The duo is scheduled to play in the round robin stages of the event on December 1. “I’m really looking forward to playing Goran again,” said Henman. “Our match from 2001 in the semis of Wimbledon was such a unique match and such a special match because it was of huge importance to both of us. If there’s one match that people want to talk about with me it’s probably that match. l look forward to playing him again, and hopefully beating him this time.” The former Wimbledon champion is just as excited to take on his former Wimbledon rival. “Whenever I see Tim I think of that match, and it’s going to be great to play him again, especially in England at the Royal Albert Hall,” said Ivanisevic. “Tim deserved to win Wimbledon, he had a good game to win it, and he was very close against me. He was dominating me and then the rain came. It saved me. If it hadn’t come I probably would have lost that match, but then after the rain, something changed. He wasn’t the same Tim Henman any more. God sent me the rain and I thank God I won every day because I do not like to think what I would be doing now if I had not won.” On the opening day of the tournament, Henman will face Moroccan Younes El Aynaoui. This year, the AEGON Masters Tennis event will feature a 12-man singles field, with last year’s champion Pat Rafter drawing the 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash and rookie Todd Martin in the round-robin stages. Rafter’s fellow Aussie Mark Philippoussis faces the current No.1 player in the South African Airways Rankings, Thomas Enqvist, and Britain’s Jeremy Bates. In the fourth and final group, former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski, former World No. 1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Cedric Pioline have all been drawn together.
- The USTA announced that 40-year-old Jim Courier will be the new U.S. Davis Cup Captain following a successful 10-year tenure by Patrick McEnroe. “I think it’s a great honor first and foremost. And I think it’s a great challenge. And I think it’s going to be a lot of fun,” said Courier. The former World No. 1, who help led the US team to two Davis Cup titles during his play career, will make his coaching debut in Chile on the red clay next March. “Jim will continue to bring class and character to the role of U.S. Davis Cup Captain along with an outstanding pedigree in Davis Cup competition,” said Lucy S. Garvin, Chairman of the Board and President of the USTA. “We will see that same fighting spirit every time the U.S. competes and a new generation of U.S. Davis Cup players will have an opportunity to become better competitors under his leadership.”
- The first of the three “Survivor Series” qualifying tournaments will be held at the Delray Beach Stadium & Tennis Center from November 13-16 in Delray Beach, Fla. The second event will be held at a later date in November and the third tournament will be held in January. The “Survivor Series” winners each receive a wild card into the qualifying tournament from February 19-21 at the ATP World Tour Delray Beach International Tennis Championships. The top four finishers in the qualifying tournament advance to the 32-player main draw, where they could face the likes of Andy Roddick, Mardy Fish, John Isner or even Bob and Mike Bryan in the doubles field. The main draw is a $500,000 event and runs from February 21-27, 2011. For more information visit: www.yellowtennisball.com or call: (561)330-6000.
- Following her straight set loss to Francesca Schiavone in the WTA Championships, Elena Dementieva announced her retirement from professional tennis. In an on-court ceremony, Dementieva thanked the tour, her fellow players and fans. “It’s the right time for me. I never wanted to wait until my ranking dropped,” said Dementieva. “I’m going to miss so many things about our tour. Right now I feel like it’s the end of the world, because I really like to play. It’s going to be a completely different life for me. I’ll study. I study in one of the best universities in Moscow. I started last year, so obviously now I have more time to study. It’s going to be hard to watch all the girls playing. I know I’m going to follow the tournaments. I’m going to watch the Australian Open.” The 29-year-old from Moscow, who currently resides in Monte Carlo, Monaco, was a winner of 16 singles titles throughout her career including a Gold Medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The Russian, who was ranked as high as No. 3 in 2009, reached the finals at the French Open and US Open in 2004. She also reached the Wimbledon semifinals twice and the Australian Open semifinals once. Dementieva, who ended her career ranked No. 9 in the world, won more than $14.3 million in career prize money.
- In a recent AskMen.com poll of the World’s Most Influential Men, Rafael Nadal ranked No. 15. Nadal was the second highest athlete on the list behind New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who was ranked No. 6.
- Scottish doubles specialist and 2007 Wimbledon mixed doubles champion Jamie Murray was married last Thursday to fiancée Alejandra Gutierrez in a traditional ceremony in his hometown of Dunblane, Scotland. Younger brother and current World No. 4 Andy Murray acted as the best man. The wedding took place at the Cromlix House Hotel. The couple met in London in 2008. Following the wedding, Jamie tweeted, “Love is a game that two can play and both win.”
- The USTA and Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) announced today the fields for the 2010 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships, which will take place at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center’s new Indoor Building in Flushing, N.Y. from November 4-7. The men’s field will feature reigning NCAA singles champion Bradley Klahn of Stanford and ITA/D’Novo All-American champion Alex Domijan of Virginia, while the women’s field includes ITA/Riviera All-American champion Hilary Barte of Stanford and defending Indoor Intercollegiate champion Jana Juricova of Cal-Berkeley. Other players in the men’s field include: defending Indoor Intercollegiate champion Steve Johnson of USC; 2008 USTA Boys’ 18s National Champion Austin Krajicek of Texas A&M; 2009 USTA Boys’ 18s National Champion Chase Buchanan of Ohio State; 2008 USTA Boys’ 18s National Clay Court Champion Evan King of Michigan; and Drew Courtney and Michael Shabaz of Virginia, who won the 2010 NCAA doubles title. Other participants in the women’s field include: Maria Sanchez of USC, who is ranked No. 3 in the ITA Preseason Singles Rankings; Kristie Ahn of Stanford, who won three qualifying matches to become the youngest player in the 2008 US Open main draw; and Nicole Gibbs of Stanford, who was the runner-up at the 2010 USTA Girls’ 18s National Championships. The tournament features a 32-player singles field and 16-team doubles field for men and women.