Mondays With Bob Greene: The best thing I did today: I didn't back off

STARS

Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-4 to win the China Open women’s singles in Beijing, China

Novak Djokovic beat Marin Cilic 6-2 7-6 (4) to win the China Open men’s singles in Beijing, China

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat Mikhail Youzhny 6-3 6-3 to win the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships men’s singles in Tokyo, Japan

Janko Tipsarevic won the Ethias Trophy in Mons, Belgium, beating Sergiy Stakhovsky 7-6 (4) 6-3

Julie Coin beat Olga Savchuk 7-6 (6) 4-6 7-6 (6) to win the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships women’s singles in Tokyo, Japan

Todd Martin won the Cancer Treatment Centers of American Tennis Championships in Surprise, Arizona, defeating Andre Agassi 6-3 7-5

SAYING

“I have so much confidence now going into Shanghai and the indoor events. It’s a great time of year for me.” – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, after winning the Rakuten Japan Open in Tokyo.

“I am happy with the week here, but it always hurts to lose. It doesn’t matter if it’s first round or the final.” – Mikhail Youzhny, after losing to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final.

“I love the atmosphere here and I try to bring my best in the big matches.” – Svetlana Kuznetsova, who won the China Open after losing twice before in the Beijing final.

“Svetlana played really well today. She had nothing to lose either – she’s already going to the Sony Ericsson Championships.” – Agnieszka Radwanska, after losing to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the China Open final.

“My patience and the choice of certain shots and a little more experience than he has decided the winner today.” – Novak Djokovic, after beating Marin Cilic in the Beijing final.

“The best thing I did today: I didn’t back off, I was just stubborn with my style of play.” – Marin Cilic, after beating Rafael Nadal 6-1 6-3 in Beijing, China.

“If you’re losing 6-1, 6-3, there are a lot of things you’re doing wrong in that match. I can accept to win, I can accept to lose, but 6-1, 6-3 is … mentally I probably wasn’t there.” – Rafael Nadal, following his loss to Marin Cilic.

“I think I’ve earned it. I won two Grand Slams and I should have got more. But you know what? I’m just excited to have those two, which is great.” – Serena Williams, after returning to the top spot in the women’s tennis rankings. She lost her next match.

“I would like to take some break now. … I’m very upset with myself.” – Dinara Safina, following her loss to Zhang Shuai, who was ranked 226^th in the world.

“Since I came back from the US Open, I’ve been trying to practice but I can’t find again the desire to come back to competition.” – Amelie Mauresmo, who said she will take time to think before deciding whether or not to retire from tennis.

“This week exceeded my expectations. This is a competitive tour and these guys take care of themselves. You’ve got to come ready to play.” – Andre Agassi, after losing the final of a seniors tournament in Surprise, Arizona.

“You have to put things in perspective. Andy (Murray) is the second best player on the planet. He’s behind only one man, Roger Federer, who is the greatest player in history. And people think he hasn’t made it yet?” – Tim Henman.

“It’s pretty embarrassing. It looks pretty bad, doesn’t it? How can we be in Group II?” – Jamie Murray, on Great Britain’s Davis Cup team

“She wanted to kill me, I guess.” — Russian teen Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova on Venus Williams, whom she upset two weeks in a row

“I won’t miss the pressure.” — 34-year-old Ai Sugiyama, who played the last match of her career at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in her native Tokyo

SAFINA SERENA SHOW

Dinara Safina lost before Serena Williams did. And that put Williams back atop the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour rankings. Safina’s tenuous hold on the number one spot ended when she lost to local wild card entry Zhang Shuai in the second round of the China Open. Zhang was ranked 226^th in the world. All Williams had to do to regain the world number one ranking was to win her match over Ekaterina Makarova, which she did. In her first match as the world’s top player, Williams lost to Nadia Petrova. Before this week, Williams had spent a total of 72 weeks as number one, including from February 2 to April 19 this year.

SONY QUALIFIERS

Three more players, including Svetlana Kuznetsova, have clinched spots in the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha, Qatar. Venus Williams, Victoria Azarenka and Kuznetsova, the French Open champion, join Dinara Safina, Elena Dementieva, Serena William and US Open runner-up Carolina Wozniacki in the elite event. The world’s top eight singles players and top four doubles teams will compete in the USD $4.55 million tournament. “I am proud of the season I’ve had. I look forward to competing with the best tennis players in the world in Doha,” said Kuznetsova, who added the China Open title to her resume. Venus Williams is the defending singles champion. And she and sister Serena have also qualified for the doubles. Others who have previously qualified include the doubles teams of Cara Black/Liezel Huber and Nuria Llagostera Vives/Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez. “Winning my first Tour title and reaching the Top 10 for the first time in my career has really made my year and I couldn’t think of a better place to finish it than in Doha,” Azarenka said.

STUNNING COMEBACK

Marion Bartoli pulled off a stunning comeback to grab a semifinal berth at the China Open. The French player trailed 6-3 5-1 before rallying to knock off seventh-seeded Vera Zvonareva 3-6 7-5 6-2. Up 5-1 in the second set, Zvonareva won only seven more points in the next six games, losing the set. Bartoli then cruised through the third set. In the semis, Bartoli lost to Agnieszka Radwanska.

SHANGHAI SKIP

Andy Murray blamed a wrist injury on his skipping the inaugural USD $5.25 million Shanghai Masters tournament. Ranked third in the world, Murray joins top-ranked Roger Federer among those who won’t be in Shanghai. Murray suffered the injury in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, in August. He played in the US Open in September, but pulled out of this month’s Japan Open because of the injury/ “I apologize for the inconvenience that my withdrawal may cause, but I trust you understand,” Murray said in a letter to the tournament organizers. “I would much rather participate in the tournament than be in the current position regarding my health.” Federer cited fatigue when he pulled out of the event.

$$$$$

The Australian Open has increased prize money for the 2010 tournament by 4.1 percent. Consequently, the men’s and women’s singles champions in the year’s first Grand Slam tournament will pocket USD $1.86 million. That’s from a total purse of USD $21.4 million. The Australian Open has offered equal prize money for the men’s and women’s draws since 2001, when the total prize pool was USD $7.5 million and the champions each received USD $450,000.

SET FOR BALI

Two players – Yanina Wickmayer and Anabel Medina Garrigues – are the first to qualify for the inaugural Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions being held in Bali, Indonesia, in November. The season-ending event is for the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour’s top international tournament winners. The 12 who qualify will play a round-robin singles format in a tournament that will offer both USD $600,000 in prize money and an opportunity to earn a USD $1 million bonus.

STILL SERVING

Two players who are a combined 67 years old and have both beaten Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer are still struggling in tennis’ minor leagues but hoping to make it back to the main draw. The 35-year-old Vince Spadea and 32-year-old Jan-Michael Gambill played in the Natomas/USTA USD $50,000 Men’s Professional Tournament in Sacramento, California, USA. Spadea made it through the first round before stumbling, falling to Santiago Giraldo of Colombia. Gambill gained the main draw with a wild card, then bested seventh-seeded Ryan Sweeting, a fellow American. That’s as far as Gambill got, however, losing in the second round to another American, Jesse Witten. Spadea and Gambill teamed up in the doubles, reaching the second round before losing. Spadea has been plagued by shin splints, foot tissue inflammation, bursitis in his right forearm and back problems. Gambill missed most of the past four years with severe tendonitis in both shins and his right arm.

SAYING GOODBYE?

Once ranked number one in the world, Amelie Mauresmo is considering retiring from tennis. The Frenchwoman withdrew from her final two tournaments of the season, at Linz, Austria, and Luxembourg. The 30-year-old won two Grand Slam tournament titles in 2006, at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. She has not played since losing to Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada in the second round of this year’s US Open. “I do not want to rush things,” Mauresmo said. “I still give myself some time before making a decision regarding the remainder of my career.”

SET FOR AUSTRALIA

Justine Henin will rejoin the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour in Australia in January. Henin’s coach, Carlos Rodriguez, said she will probably return from her retirement in Brisbane, Australia. That tournament begins January 3. “Justine will head off at the end of October for Orlando (Florida) for a couple of weeks of tough physical training,” Rodriguez said.

SURPRISE IN SURPRISE

Andre Agassi made his debut in the Outback Champions Series for senior players, but it was Todd Martin who took home the biggest prize. Martin beat Agassi 6-3 7-5 in the final of the Cancer Treatment centers of America Tennis Championships to earn USD $60,000. In his first tournament since the US Open in 2006, Agassi bested Mikael Pernfors and Wayne Ferreira before being stopped by Martin. “Three days in a row is a lot of tennis for me now. Hopefully I can improve next time,” Agassi said of the tournament played in Surprise, Arizona, USA.

STOPPED EATING

Jelena Dokic’s father started a hunger strike to protest the 15-month jail sentence he was given for threatening the Australian ambassador to Serbia. Bosiljka Djukic, the lawyer for Damir Dokic, said he had been told his client is no longer taking any food, water or medicines. The 50-year-old Dokic was arrested after reportedly saying he would blow up the car of Australian ambassador Claire Birgin because of negative articles in the Australian newspapers in which Jelena Dokic accused her father of beating her. The elder Dokic, who is serving his sentence in the northern town of Sremska Mitrovica, has since admitted he beat his daughter.

SPANISH FLAIR

Spain will defend its Davis Cup title in Barcelona. The Spanish tennis federation announced the site for the final between Spain and the Czech Republic will be the clay courts at Barcelona’s Palau Sant Jordi. Spain won the first of its three Davis Cup titles at the Barcelona venue in 2000 against Australia.

SO DESERVING

Wheelchair tennis champion Esther Vergeer has been chosen as a Laureus Ambassador for the newly launched Laureus Sport for Good Foundation the Netherlands. Ranked number one in the world and a five-time Paralympic champion, Vergeer was one of three Laureus ambassadors announced as the Netherlands joined the global Laureus Sport for Good Foundation’s growing network. Also selected were Pieter van den Hoogenband and Yvonne van Gennip at the launch in Amsterdam. Boris Becker, the vice chairman of the Laureus World Sports Academy, Laureus supporter Ruud Gullit and Prince Pieter-Christiaan van Oranje helped launch the Laureus Foundation the Netherlands, which is supporting three projects in 2010, including the De Laureus Maritime Challenge. Vergeer is a double winning of the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award, most recently in 2008.

SENIOR SIGN-UP

Greg Rusedski will attempt to win his first ATP Champions Tour title on British soil. The former member of Britain’s Davis Cup team will play in the AEGON Masters Tennis tournament at the Royal Albert Hall in London in December. Last year Rusedski held match point before Cedric Pioline captured the title 6-7 (4) 7-6 (3) 11-9 (champions tiebreak). Also confirming he will be in the field to defend his title is Pioline.

STARRING

Boys from Australia and girls from Russia won their respective Junior Davis Cup and Junior Fed Cup competitions. The event, held in San Luis Poltosi, Mexico, began with 16 boys teams and 16 girls teams from 28 nations. Dana Gavrilova crushed Germany’s Annika Beck 6-0 6-0 in the final to clinch the crown for Russia, only its second title in the competition’s history.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Beijing (women): Hsieh Su-Wei and Peng Shuai beat Alia Kudryavtseva and Ekaterina Makarova 6-3 6-1

Beijing (men): Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan beat Mark Knowles and Andy Roddick 6-4 6-2

Tokyo (men): Julian Knowle and Jurgen Melzer beat Ross Hutchins and Jordan Kerr 6-2 5-7 10-8 (match tiebreak)

Tokyo (women): Chan Yung-Jan and Ayumi Morita beat Kimiko Date-Krumm and Rika Fujiwara 6-2 6-4

Mons: Denis Istomin and Evgeny Korolev beat Alejandro Falla and Teimuraz Gabashvili 6-7 (4) 7-6 (4) 11-9 (match tiebreak)

SITES TO SURF

Shanghai: www.shanghaimasters1000.com/2009/en/

Linz: www.generali-ladies.at

Osaka: www.hp-open.com/

Stockholm: www.ifstockholmopen.se/en-gb/

Moscow: www.kremlincup.ru/