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daniela hantuchova

Roger Federer Wins 77th Career Title, His First in 2013 – Mondays with Bob Greene

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STARS

Roger Federer beat Mikhail Youzhny 6-7 (5) 6-3 6-4 to win the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany

Andy Murray beat Marin Cilic 5-7 7-5 6-3 to win The Aegon Championships in London, Great Britain

Simona Halep beat Andrea Petkovic 6-3 6-3 to win the Nürnberger Versicherungscup in Nürnberg, Germany

Daniela Hantuchova beat Donna Vekic 7-6 (5) 6-4 to win The Aegon Classic in Birmingham, Great Britain

SAYING

Roger Federer returns to the winner’s circle in Halle

“I thought I played well from the start and I really had to fight for it, in the semis against Tommy Haas and in the finals against Mikhail Youzhny. I think I did well today and they are exactly the kind of wins I need at this part of the season.” – Roger Federer, after capturing his first title of the year.

“The difference was that he was better today – he’s been better all his life.” – Mikhail Youzhny, who lost to Roger Federer in the final at Halle.

“He’s one of the best grass court players in the world. Me and Marin, we have played against each other since the juniors and we have had a lot of close matches and tight matches. I was lucky to come through in the end because he was playing great tennis, especially towards the end of the second set and I got a little bit lucky at the end of that set.” – Andy Murray, who beat Marin Cilic to win the title at Queen’s Club.

“It was a great match from both sides, a great level of tennis. Andy showed he is capable of coming back; he’s a great fighter. Congratulations to him for a great week. It was an extremely great week for me. I enjoyed all my matches. It wasn’t easy. I had some tough fights.” – Marin Cilic.

“It feels great to finally get the title. The first week on grass is always really demanding on the body, so I’m proud of how I made it through so many long matches throughout the week. And when I really needed to, I was tough mentally. I’ve been playing here since ’99, I think – it was about time I got the title.” – Daniela Hantuchova, after winning at Birmingham, Great Britain.

“I have mixed emotions right now. I can’t be happy after losing a match, but it was a great week for me and I’m happy I could reach the finals. And I gave it my all today – maybe it wasn’t my best tennis, but it was the best I could do today, and Daniela was just the better player out there.” – Donna Vekic, following her loss to Daniela Hantuchova at Birmingham, Great Britain.

“It is something that right now seems light-years away, something that I am not even thinking about.” – Rafael Nadal, when asked about matching Federer’s record 17 Grand Slam tournament titles.

“Ten years ago I went into Wimbledon with so much pressure, even though I had lost in the first round the year before. In terms of needing to prove my point that I was a legitimate Grand Slam contender, I had incredible pressure. Now, 10 years later, I know Wimbledon, I know Halle, I know my way around and what I need to do to perform well. I’m going in with pressure because I’m defending my title. There’s always pressure because it’s a privilege to play at Wimbledon and I want to do so, so well.” – Roger Federer.

“Always having a title you feel happy, especially one week away from Wimbledon. It’s the first tournament on grass this year and to win it gives us confidence.” – Santiago Gonzalez, after teaming with Scott Lipsky to win the Gerry Weber Open doubles.

“I think it is disappointing for a serve-and-volley player to go down like this. It shows also how easy it is to hit passing shots or returns today.” – Roger Federer, after beating Mischa Zverev 6-0 6-0 in the Gerry Weber Open quarterfinals.

“Andrea beat me in Romania a few years ago and I’m happy I could win against her here today. She played great and the atmosphere was great. It’s an unbelievable feeling to win my first WTA title.” – Simona Halep, who beat Andrea Petkovic in the final of the Nürnberger Versicherungscup.

“There are definitely more positives than negatives. The good thing is Simona made it a little easier for me to get over the loss because she played such an incredible match. She played an almost perfect match, especially after she found her rhythm in the middle of the first set. I wasn’t playing my best tennis, but even if I was playing my best tennis, it would be a very, very tough call.” – Andrea Petkovic.

“There is no one leader. If there is a guy playing better than the other, he doesn’t try to be the leader. Because that is not good. You don’t want to feel that your brother is carrying you.” – Mike Bryan, on how he and brother Bob play winning doubles.

“As twins, you see your twin as an equal. You don’t want to feel like you are dominating. When one of us starts to talk and bosses the other around, that is a negative for us. It is better in big moments, when we don’t say too much.” – Bob Bryan.

“I love playing as many weeks on grass as possible. Yeah, that’s why the Olympics and playing Newport (Rhode Island, USA) last year was so special to me because I could play a bigger chunk of tournaments. I think it’s a unique surface. There are certain players that play really well on it.” – Lleyton Hewitt, who is second only to Roger Federer in number of match wins on grass among active players.

“Happy Father’s Day to our awesome Dad back home in California. He is the reason we fell in love with this game so many years ago.” – Bob Bryan.

STILL WINNING

Halle, Germany, seemed as good a place as any for Roger Federer to return to the winner’s circle. Federer used the grass-court tournament to prepare for his defense of his Wimbledon title by rallying from a set down to beat Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny and capture his first title of 2013. “I have won a lot in my career but not recently,” said Federer, who hadn’t won since August 2012 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. “I am happy it worked for me today.” Youzhny played brilliantly and matched Federer with hammering ground strokes. Federer took home the Gerry Weber Open title for the sixth time after playing for two hours, 2 minutes. It was his 77th career title, tying him with John McEnroe for third place in the career titles list behind Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl. “I was satisfied with my game in the past 10 months,” Federer said. “Maybe people thought I was playing badly. That was not the case. I was playing well but when it mattered the others were just better. Today it worked well.”

STRONG AGAIN

Andy Murray overcame an opening-set groin strain and a strong performance by defending champion Marin Cilic to win his third Aegon Championships at Queen’s Club. In gaining his 27th career singles title, Murray rallied to defeat Cilic 5-7 7-6 6-3. It was his first tournament since he withdrew from the French Open with a back injury. “I worked very hard in the time that I had off to try and get myself in the best shape possible,” Murray said. The winner screamed in agony in the eighth game of the match when his foot slipped on the grass and he strained his groin. He continued to play without treatment. “It was just a bit sore on the groin area, but thankfully it wasn’t too bad,” Murray said. Murray also won the Wimbledon warm-up tournament in 2009 and 2011, and became the sixth player to win Queen’s Club three or more times.

SLOVAKIAN CHAMPION

Daniela Hantuchova was the experienced veteran and ranked higher. She was supposed to win, considering her opponent in the final was 16-year-old Donna Vekic. But even in defeat Vekic showed she could be the face of the future on the WTA tour. “This was my second WTA final and I’m still only 16,” said Vekic, the youngest player in the top 350 in the rankings. “Things have gone fast so far in my career, but I’m hoping when I make my third final I will win it. But it’s been a great week, considering it was my first grass-court event on the WTA Tour. Now I’m really looking forward to Wimbledon” where she will be making her main draw debut. The 30-year-old Hantuchova captured her sixth career title, her first since Pattaya City, Thailand, in February. This was her first win in three grass-court finals, having been runner-up in Eastbourne, Great Britain, in 2004, and Birmingham, Great Britain, in 2011.

SIMONA VICTORIOUS

Playing in the fourth final of her career, Simona Halep finally came away with the big trophy. The Romanian never lost her serve as she bested former top-10 player Andrea Petkovic at the Nürnberger Versicherungscup for her first WTA title. “This is a very nice win for me, and this is a very nice tournament,” Halep said. “I’ll never forget this.” Halep became the eighth Romanian ever to win a WTA title, joining Virginia Ruzici, Irina Spirlea, Ruxandra Drogomir Ilie, Sorana Cirstea, Alexandra Dulgheru, Irina-Camelia Begu and Monica Niculescu. Petkovic entered the tournament as a wild card. Despite the defeat, her confidence is high as she heads to Wimbledon, where she received a wild card into the main draw. “Everybody knows that grass and me haven’t become a love romance yet,” Petkovic said. “But I’m working on it. A few candlelight dinners with the grass and we’ll see.” The German has never made it past the third round at Wimbledon.

SECOND DOUBLE BAGEL

Roger Federer was perfect in his quarterfinal match at the Gerry Weber Open. And it was Mischa Zverev who paid the price. The Swiss master posted only his second career double bagel as he blanked Zverev 6-0 6-0 at the Gerry Weber Open. “It’s not something which is easy to do,” Federer said. “You never go into a match aiming for that score. I was very surprised that it happened, especially on grass.” It took just 39 minutes for Federer to close out his easy win. “I hope he doesn’t take it too badly,” Federer said. “I just had a pretty easy time picking up his serve, and I must have made a ton of returns.” He got his first double bagel against Gaston Gaudio at the 2005 Masters Cup in Shanghai, China, and said the only time he lost a match without winning a game was his first match at the age of 8. Zverev was philosophical about the beating. “I’d rather lost 6-0 6-0 to Roger in a quarterfinal” than to a qualifier in the second round,” Zverev said. “At least there is something to talk about later.”

SHOWING IMPROVEMENT

On her way to the final of the WTA event in Nürnberg, Germany, Andrea Petkovic upset top-seeded Jelena Jankovic. Both players received wild card entries into the tournament. Petkovic had missed months of action due to various injuries. Once ranked in the top 10, she had dropped to 103rd in the world. “I am glad my body has allowed me to play tennis again,” Petkovic said. “It was also mentally important for me to play such a match against a top-20 player.’” Serving for the match at 5-3, Petkovic lost the first three points, falling to a 0-40 deficit. But her Serb opponent produced error after error, giving Petkovic the victory.

SOUTHERN CAL OPEN PARTNER

Tonic by Martina Hingis has been named the Official Clothing Partner of the Southern California Open, a WTA Premier 700 event that will be held July 27-August 4 in Carlsbad, California, USA. The youngest Grand Slam tournament champion of this era and the youngest player to be ranked number one in the world, Hingis will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame next month. She is collaborating with Tonic to create her own signature tennis collection. The pieces were created for the high intensity movements of tennis.

SIGNED UP

Serbia’s top two female players – Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic – along with Italy’s Flavia Pennetta have announced they will be play in the Southern California Open, a major stop on the Emirates Airline US Open Series calendar. Others in the field include reigning Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka and 2012 Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwanska. The 28th edition of the Southern California Open will be played at the La Costa Resort and Spa.

SICK BAY

Gael Monfils has pulled out of Wimbledon for “personal reasons.” The 26-year-old Frenchman has just returned to action after being sidelined with a knee injury. He said he withdrew his request for a Wimbledon wild card because he had to deal with a personal problem that could not be delayed. He didn’t elaborate. Once ranked as high as seventh in the world, Monfils fell to 119th in the ATP rankings before rebounding to 67th following a series of good results.

SPOTS SECURED

Rafael Nadal has already earned a spot in the Barclay’s ATP World Tour Finals, which will be held in London on November 4-11. Since returning from a knee injury that sidelined him for seven months, Nadal has reached the final in all of the nine events he has played, winning seven titles, including a record eighth French Open crown. While Nadal is currently fifth in the world rankings, he is first in the current Race standings and guaranteed a top-eight finish and end-of-season showpiece event. Nadal missed last year’s World Tour Finals due to the knee injury that also forced him out of the London Olympics, the US Open and this year’s Australian Open. He has qualified for the ATP World Tour Finals for nine straight yeas. In 2010, Nadal lost to Roger Federer in the title match.

Also qualifying for the season-ending event are brothers Bob and Mike Bryan, the world’s top-ranked doubles team. The 35-year-old American twins are three-time ATP World Tour Finals champions, winning in 2003-04 and 2009. The Bryans have qualified for the season finale for the 12th consecutive year. They are trying to finish the season ranked number one in the world for a ninth time and fifth consecutive season.

SUSPENDED

Yannick Ebbinghaus of the Netherlands has been suspended for six months and fined USD $10,000 for violating tennis’s betting rules. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said the 23-year-old Ebbinghaus admitted to 67 violations between May 2012 and February 2013. The ITF said he can cut three months off his suspension if he commits no future violations and attends anti-corruption education training. If Ebbinghaus cooperates with the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) in educating others about the ban on betting, half of his fine will be waived. Under tennis rules, players are prohibited from betting on matches.

SISTERS AND SELES

Sisters Venus and Serena Williams will play a doubles exhibition match against Monica Seles and Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard to kick off the Rogers Cup competition in Toronto, Canada. The match will be played August 5 on the opening night of the week-long WTA tournament. A member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, Seles will be returning to Toronto for the first time since she was inducted into the Rogers Cup Hall of Fame in 2009. She won the Rogers Cup in 1995 following a two-year absence from the sport after being stabbed by a spectator at a match in Hamburg, Germany. Bouchard won the Wimbledon junior girls singles in 2012. The Williams sisters had received a wild card into the French Open women’s doubles, but withdrew because of an injury suffered by Venus.

STILL REMEMBERED

They remember Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon. Still reaping the fruits of his record 11-hour, 5-minute marathon match against John Isner in 2010, Mahut has been given a wild card into this year’s tournament. Mahut lost the first-round match 70-68 in the fifth set. He currently is ranked 224th in the world and could not have entered the main draw without a wild card. The 31-year-old Mahut teamed with fellow Frenchman Michael Llodra to reach the French Open doubles where they lost to American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan.

SINGLES ACHIEVEMENT

Thanks to four rain delays, it took more than five hours before Sam Querrey was able to wrap up his 200th career singles victory. That came on the American’s 7-6 (11) 5-7 7-6 (5) win over Aljaz Bedene in the second round at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament in London, Great Britain. Querrey saved a match point at 6-5 before winning the tiebreaker and wrapping up the victory. Bedene fell hard while hitting a cross-court forehand winner. He received medical attention but was not injured.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Birmingham: Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua beat Cara Black and Marina Erakovic 7-5 6-4

Halle: Scott Lipsky and Santiago Gonzalez beat Daniele Bracciali and Jonathan Erlich 6-2 7-6 (3)

London: Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan beat Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares 4-6 7-5 10-3 (match tiebreak)

Nürnberg: Raluca Olaru and Valeria Solovyeva beat Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Kveta Peschke 2-6 7-6 (3) 11-9 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Eastbourne: www.lta.org.uk/

‘s-Hertogenbosch: www.topshelfopen.nl/

Wimbledon: www.wimbledon.com

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK
(All money in USD)

MEN

$618,000 Aegon International, Eastbourne, Great Britain, grass
$541,600 Topshelf Open, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands, grass

WOMEN

$637,000 Aegon International, Eastbourne, Great Britain, grass
$235,000 Topshelf Open, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands, grass

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN and WOMEN

The Championships, Wimbledon, Great Britain, grass (first week)

13 questions with Daniela Hantuchova

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By Justin Cohen

CINCINNATI, Ohio – Daniela Hantuchova has had much success on the WTA Tour since turning professional in 1999. To start, she has won all four Grand Slams in mixed doubles, becoming just the third female in the Open Era to accomplish the feat, joining Martina Navratilova and Cara Black.  The former world No. 5 also owns eight career singles titles, including two titles at Indian Wells, Calif. in 2002 and 2007. Currently ranked No. 35 in the world, the 29-year-old Slovak recently caught the attention of sports fanatics around the world when she was among 27 world-class athletes to pose nude in ESPN’s annual Body Issue 2012. The 5’11” blonde, who is known for her perfect physique and stunning looks, sat down with me this week at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, Ohio.

What is your most proud achievement off the court?

Running my own charity in Cambodia for a couple of years now with my brother. It makes me extremely proud being able to help kids other places in the world.

What is your favorite sports team?

New York Rangers. I love hockey!

If you had one last meal, what would you choose and why?

Pancakes (Laughs). I just love sweet stuff!

If you could play a mixed doubles match with one ATP player, who would it be and why?

Roger Federer. (Laughs) He is the best in the history and he is just an awesome guy!

What is your favorite location on Tour and why?

Rome, because it is my most favorite city in the world. I just love being there.

What is your opinion of Cincinnati?

I do love coming back here. I have been here for so many times. I love the conditions here. The courts are very quick. Plus we have the golf course right across the street which makes it very nice.

What are you short-term and long-term goals?

Long-term (long pause). Just being the best person I can be for my family and for the people around me. Hopefully helping more people around the world. Short-term goals as far as my career are to get back to the Top 10.

One piece of advice you would give to an aspiring tennis player?

Just to have fun with it and not to put too much pressure and expectations on themselves.

What is the toughest challenge you have ever faced?

Having to deal with the losses every week except when you are winning the tournament. Trying to figure out the fastest way to bounce back and be ready for the next tournament.

How would your family and friends describe you in three words?

Very stubborn (laughs), very loving and caring.

What are your hobbies when you are not on the tennis court?

I love playing golf, it is my favorite sport. I love skiing, swimming and just basically any active things to do. But of course, going shopping with my friends, going to the cinema. Just normal things.

Did you golf at the course next to the tennis center?

I went to the driving range.

How did you do at the driving range?

Yeah, it was not bad.

Cloning at the Sony Ericsson Open

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By Thomas Swick

At quarter past 10 on Sunday morning two Miami-Dade police officers in brown uniforms walked around thequiet grounds.

“There are great matches on all these courts,” the lead officer said, walking between the stands of 1 and 6. He then told his colleague of the crush for autographs afterwards. At that hour of the morning, it was a bit hard to imagine.

“I didn’t realize there was such a following for tennis,” the other officer said.

“Oh yeah,” the first one said. “It’s incredible to see grown men telling their children and grandchildren to go up and touch a player, touch his sweat.”

At the bottom of the stairs leading to the media center a photographer aimed his zoom at a car disgorging tall women with racket bags.

“Who we got?” I asked.

“I have no idea,” the man said laughing. “They all look like Sharapova.”

Tennis: the sport of clones.

There were only a handful of people in the stadium when Tomas Berdych, the tall blond Czech, and Grigor Dimitrov, the shorter, darker Bulgarian, walked onto the court for the day’s first match. Despite being different physical types, they still managed to look like clones by the simple fact that they had put on identical outfits for the day. Both wore the same turquoise shirt with one white and one blue stripe on each shoulder, white shorts, and white sneakers with identical turquoise laces and a turquoise swoosh on the side. The only difference was that Berdych wore a cap and one extra wristband.

Despite the small crowd, it was a different atmosphere for Dimitrov than at his previous match, for now he was warming up while music played and his picture appeared on the big screen. Though he’s not unaccustomed to the big time: Serena was in the stands, lending her support.

Dimitrov was as much fun to watch as he was against Chela, doing a split, a la Clijsters, on one point and falling down on another, behind the baseline, but still managing to get the ball back by sticking his racket up in self-defense while sitting down. He lost the point but won the match, his first victory over a top 10 player. In the upper deck, a small group unfurled a Bulgarian flag.

Out in the grounds, an older Swiss man was lecturing a younger Peruvian woman on overdevelopment while watching on the screen the Venus Williams-Aleksandra Wozniak match.

“What’s going to happen to the Everglades? What’s going to happen to our water? The next war will be fought not over oil but over water.”

I went and bought a lemonade.

Gael Monfils was hitting on a practice court, skying for lobs like Jordan going for a slam. Once he walked up to a ball sitting near the service line and with one fell swing, like a golfer, hit it over the net. It’s only on the practice courts that you see the parlor tricks players can perform with their rackets.

Ana Ivanovic and Daniela Hantuchova at the Sony Ericsson Open (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Back in the stadium, the Williams-Wozniak match had turned into a museum piece of unforced errors. Serving for the match in the third set, Wozniak produced two blatant, hapless double faults. Groans and hisses rained down from the stands. There are two types of people in the world: those who sympathize and those who critique, and it seemed that for every spectator who knew the feeling there was one who wanted better for his money.

Since neither woman could hold serve, the set went to a tiebreak. Venus won her first mini-break on a net ball, pumping her fist instead of falsely apologizing. When she won the final point, Wozniak’s father and coach, having just suffered through an excruciating thirty minutes, rose from his seat and applauded.

Six reporters showed up for Wozniak’s press conference. She sat in a small folding chair with her legs crossed and her mind positive. She laughed frequently, and I wondered if it was to ward off tears. I asked her what her father had said to her after the match, and she said he had told her “good match, we’re back on track” and that “there are some things we need to work on.” I asked if this was her first time playing in the stadium, and she said it was, and that it was “beautiful.”

For the next match in the stadium, Daniela Hantuchova and Ana Ivanovic walked onto the court in identical orange dresses and identical orange visors. What is it with dressing for the big stage? Don’t these clothing lines have enough appealing designs to go around? I tried to imagine the women’s reactions when they first spotted each other in the walkway. Though the distinctive purple court surrounded by a sea of green and now bookended by moving patches of orange looked rather striking. It made me think of Bud Collins.

USA Completes 5-0 Davis Cup Stunner Over Switzerland — Mondays With Bob Greene

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STARS

Angelique Kerber beat Marion Bartoli 7-6 (3) 5-7 6-3 to win the Open GDF Suez in Paris, France

Daniela Hantuchova beat Maria Kirilenko 6-7 (4) 6-3 6-3 to win the PTT Pattaya Open in Pattaya City, Thailand

Jesse Levin beat Steve Darcis 6-4 6-4 to win the YP Challenger of Dallas in Dallas, Texas, USA

Olga Govortsova beat Magdalena Rybarikova 6-3 6-7 (6) 7-6 (5) to win the Dow Corning Tennis Classic in Midland, Michigan, USA

Alexandra Dulgheru beat Mandy Minella 6-3 1-6 6-3 to win the VI Copa Bionaire in Cali, Colombia

DAVIS CUP
(First Round)

World Group

Spain beat Kazakhstan 5-0 at Oviedo, Spain
Austria beat Russia 3-2 at Wiener Neustadt, Austria
France beat Canada 4-1 at Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
United States beat Switzerland 5-0 at Fribourg, Switzerland
Czech Republic beat Italy 4-1 at Ostrava, Czech Republic
Serbia beat Sweden 4-1 at Nis, Serbia
Croatia beat Japan 3-2 at Hyogo, Japan
Argentina beat Germany 4-1 at Bamberg, Germany

Group I

Americas: Uruguay beat Peru 3-1 at Montevideo, Uruguay; Colombia beat Ecuador 4-1 at Salinas, Ecuador

Asia/Oceania: Uzbekistan beat New Zealand 3-2 at Tauranga, New Zealand; Korea vs. Korea beat Chinese Taipei 4-1 at Gimcheon, Korea; Australia beat China 5-0 at Geelong, Australia

Europe/Africa: Great Britain beat Slovak Republic 3-2 at Glasgow, Great Britain; Netherlands beat Finland 5-0 at s’Hertogenbosch, Netherlands; Slovenia beat Denmark 5-0 at Velenje, Slovenia

Group II

Americas: Barbados beat Paraguay 3-2 at St. Michael, Barbados; Mexico beat El Salvador 5-0 at Distrito Federal, Mexico; Dominican Republic beat Bolivia 4-1 at Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Venezuela beat Puerto Rico 5-0 at Caracas, Venezuela

Asia/Oceania: Philippines beat Pacific Oceania 5-0 at Camarines Sur, Philippines; Pakistan leads Lebanon 2-1 at Jounieh, Lebanon; Indonesia beat Hong Kong 3-2 at Hong Kong; Thailand beat Sri Lanka 3-2 at Colombo, Sri Lanka

Europe/Africa: Ukraine beat Monaco 5-0 at Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine; Cyprus beat Morocco 3-2 at Limassol, Cyprus; Hungary beat Ireland 3-2 at Szeged, Hungary; Latvia beat Egypt 3-2 at Cairo, Egypt; Belarus beat Moldova 4-1 at Minsk, Belarus; Bosnia/Herzegovina beat Turkey 3-1 at Ankara, Turkey; Estonia beat Luxembourg 5-0 at Tallinn, Estonia; Poland beat Madagascar 5-0 at Warsaw, Poland

SAYING

“It’s one of the greatest wins of my life. No, that’s wrong, it’s the greatest win of my life.” – John Isner, after beating Roger Federer in the first-day singles to give the United States a 2-0 lead over Switzerland in Davis Cup play.

“The mission was to go out there and not allow an artist a canvas to work with.” – Jim Courier, United States Davis Cup captain, about John Isner’s upset win over Roger Federer.

“You would like to be in the final in every tournament you play but let’s be realistic. The positive thing is I have the feeling I can play better than this.” – Maria Sharapova, after losing to Germany’s Angelique Kerber in the Paris Open quarterfinals.

“This win is unbelievable for me. I will enjoy it for sure over the next days. And I believe in myself more. I know I can play with the top players.” – Angelique Kerber, after winning the Paris Open.

“I gave everything I had and Angelique did the same. You have to know when to accept defeat, though. It’s what sport is all about. I didn’t fluff my lines when it came to the final and I was simply beaten by a better player.” – Marion Bartoli, after losing to Angelique Kerber in the final in Paris.

“It was the first time I defended a title in my career, but it’s better late than never.” – Daniela Hantuchova, who won at Pattaya City for the second straight year.

“These have been very hard months for me, during which I realized I don’t have the energy I need nor am I prepared to do all I have to do to be where I want to be.” – Fernando Gonzalez, announcing his impending retirement.

John Isner in Davis Cup action

STUNNER

It was only apropos that John Isner close out the United States’ stunning Davis Cup victory over Switzerland. It was, after all, Isner, who provided the big shocker when he beat Roger Federer in four sets in the opening singles. That gave the Americans a 2-0 lead, and they proceeded to clinch the first-round tie when Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish teamed up to stop Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka in the doubles. The Swiss duo had won the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics. Fish had started the rout by beating Wawrinka to being the five-match competition. After the Americans clinched, Federer stepped aside and let Michael Lammer get a chance to play. The United States turned to 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and he got the victory. Then Isner stopped Martco Chuidinelli to complete the 5-0 win.

SWEET VICTORY

Angelique Kerber capped a tremendous week by capturing her first WTA title, besting Marion Bartoli to win the Open GDF Suez. Kerber is the first German to win the Paris tournament since Steffi Graf in 1995. After winning the first-set tiebreak, Kerber raced to a 5-2 lead in the second set, only to have Bartoli win five straight games and level the match. “I got a little bit nervous,” Kerber admitted about the second-set slipup. But she won the first four games in the final set and converted her fifth match point for her first WTA title. During the week, Kerber also defeated third-ranked Maria Sharapova, beating top-10 players for the first time in her career. “I knew I had nothing to lose,” Kerber said of the final. “She was the favorite today.

STOPPED BY INJURY

Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova is skipping the Qatar Ladies Open because of an unspecified injury. Tournament officials said they have no information on the injury. The tournament’s number one seed is Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, who is the WTA’s top-ranked player.

SERBS ADVANCE

Even without the world’s top-ranked player, Serbia grabbed a spot in the Davis Cup semifinals by besting Sweden 4-1. With Novak Djokovic resting up after winning the Australia Open for the third time, Serbia showed its depth when Janko Tipsarevic won both his singles matches and Viktor Troiki and Dusan Lajovic also won. Sweden’s only point came when Johan Brunstrom and Robert Lindstedt teamed up to win the doubles. “It’s never easy to play matches in which are the odds-on favorite, but the players deal with the pressure really well against Sweden,” said Serbian coach Bogdan Obradovic.

STAYING THE COURSE

Daniela Hantuchova has found a spot she loves. She won the PTT Pattaya Open for the second straight year for her fifth career title, the first time she has ever successfully defending a WTA title. But Hantuchova also had a rare lapse. She lost a set for the first time in 10 career matches in Pattaya City.

SAYONARA

Once ranked as high as fifth in the world, Chile’s Fernando Gonzalez says he will retire from the ATP tour after playing at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida, USA, in March. The 31-year-old Gonzalez reached the Australian Open final in 2007, where he lost to Roger Federer, but has struggled with his fitness following hip surgery in 2010. He current is ranked 268th in the world. “These have been very hard months for me, during which I realized I don’t have the energy I need nor am I prepared to do all I have to do to be where I want to be,” Gonzalez said. “I’m retiring from professional tennis but I want to remain close to tennis … After mourning the end of my career there will be nothing better than to work in my foundation” developing the game in Chile.

STEPPING DOWN

Jim Curley’s reign as tournament director of the US Open has ended. Saying “it is time for a change,” Curley has left a post he has held since 2001. He will stay on as a consultant through this year’s US Open, the final Grand Slam tournament of the year which runs August 27 through September 9. Deputy tournament director David Brewer will take over as tournament director and will oversee the United States Tennis Association’s (USTA) professional tennis operations.

SPONSOR

The International Tennis Federation has renewed its sponsorship agreement with Wilson Racquet Sports as an international partner of Davis Cup and Fed Cup. Wilson will remain the official ball of Davis Cup and Fed Cup competition for a further five years, starting in 2013 and running through 2017. “The Davis Cup and Fed Cup are iconic tennis institutions, important to the heritage of the sport and to our brand,” said Jon Muir, general manager for Wilson Racquet Sports. “These events help to drive the local participation efforts in many countries around the world, and our brand and business efforts have aligned to support this as well. We are pleased to continue this strong partnership and look forward to bringing the energy of the game to all generations of tennis fans.”

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Cali: Karin Knapp and Mandy Minella beat Alexandra Cadantu and Roluca Olaru 6-4 6-3

Dallas: Chris Eaton and Dominic Inglot beat Nicholas Monroe and Jack Sock 6-7 (6) 6-4 19-17 (match tiebreak)

Midland: Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka beat Vesna Dolonts and Stephanie Foretz Gacon 7-6 (4) 6-2

Paris: Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond beat Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Petra Martic 7-6 (3) 6-1

Pattaya: Sania Mirza and Anastasia Rodionova beat Chan Hao-Ching and Chan Yung-Jan 3-6 6-1 10-8 match tiebreak)

SURFING

Rotterdam: www.abnamrowtt.nl/

San Jose: www.sapopentennis.com

São Paulo: www.brasilopen.com.br

Doha: www.qatartennis.org

Bogotá: www.copacolsanitas.com/

Marseille: www.open13.fr

Memphis: www.memphistennis.com

Buenos Aires: http://copaclaro.com

Dubai: www.dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com

Monterrey: www.abiertodetenismonterrey.com/

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN

$1,590,000 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, Rotterdam, the Netherlands, hard
$531,000 SAP Open, San Jose, California, USA, hard
$475,300 Brasil Open 2012, Sao Paulo, Brazil, clay

WOMEN

$2,168,400 Qatar Total Open, Doha, Qatar, hard
$220,000 XX Copa BBVA Colsanitas, Bogotá, Colombia, clay

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$1,155,000 Regions Morgan Keegan Championships, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, hard
$676,226 Open 13, Marseille, France, hard
$484,100 Copa Claro, Buenos Aires, Argentina, clay

WOMEN

$2,000,000 Dubai Duty Free Championships, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, hard
$220,000 Memphis International, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, hard
$220,000 Whirlpool Monterrey Open, Monterrey, Mexico, hard

SENIORS

Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, Delray Beach, Florida, USA, hard

Wimbledon leaving NBC, likely headed to ESPN: This Week in Tennis Business with Justin Cohen

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ESPN close to finalizing deal with All England Club to end NBC’s 43-year coverage of Wimbledon

According to the SportsBusiness Journal, ESPN is close to finalizing a deal with Wimbledon to end NBC’s 43-year television coverage of the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world. A deal has not been signed yet and contract specifics have not been released to the public, but SportsBusiness Journal has learned that the All England Club has decided to sell its full rights package to ESPN. An announcement could come as soon as this week. The deal means that all Wimbledon matches during the two-week tournament would be shown live on cable, which has not been the case on NBC due to conflicts with the Today show. ESPN plans to make matches available via its broadband (ESPN3) and mobile (Watch ESPN) applications. NBC’s four year contract, which was worth about $13 million per year, ended on Sunday at the conclusion of this year’s tournament. This year was NBC’s 32nd anniversary of “Breakfast at Wimbledon”. ESPN’s Executive Vice President of Content John Skipper led negotiations last week in London, along with ESPN’s Executive Vice President of Programming John Wildhack.

Wimbledon

Ivanovic hires Nigel Sears as new coach

Former world No. 1 and 2008 French Open singles champion Ana Ivanovic has hired Nigel Sears to be her new coach on a long-term basis. Sears will step down as the Head of Women’s Tennis Coaching for Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) to focus solely on his work with the Serbian. Sears, who is the father of Andy Murray’s longtime girlfriend, Kim, previously coached Top 10 players Daniela Hantuchova and Amanda Coetzer. “I couldn’t be happier,” Ivanovic said in a statement. “I’ve admired Nigel for some time now, and I can’t wait to start working with him on court. It was important that I waited for the right coach, and we are both excited about the challenges ahead.” Ivanovic is currently on vacation and will begin working with Sears when she returns in a couple weeks. This summer, she is scheduled to play Stanford, San Diego, Toronto, Cincinnati and the US Open. “We’re really sad to lose Nigel because he’s a great guy, a great coach and he’s brought a lot,” said Roger Draper, Chief of the Lawn Tennis Association.

Davis Cup final dates earlier for 2012, 2013

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced that they will hold the Davis Cup finals earlier in 2012 and 2013 to accommodate the shorter calendar for men’s tennis. The ITF said on Monday that next year’s Davis Cup final will be held from November 16-18, two weeks earlier than originally planned. The new dates are the weekend after the year-end Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. The 2013 Davis Cup finals will be held from November 13-15.

Reebok Junior Tennis Academy in NYC celebrating 25 Years of Free Scholarship Training Program

Founded in 1986, the City Parks Foundation’s Reebok Junior Tennis Academy in New York City is celebrating its 25th year in which they have provided free scholarship training programs for local junior residents with intermediate or advanced playing ability on the tennis court. Each summer, the Academy gives 50 players the opportunity to realize their potential through the free scholarship training program. Over the last 25 years, over 5,000 youngsters have tried out with 1,250 having been accepted since the start of the Academy. Over 200 of these players have gone on to earn a USTA ranking, at least five have played in the US Open and hundreds have played collegiate tennis through a scholarship. The Academy provides a savings value of year-round free training, equipment and court time of about $3,500 per participant. Players get the opportunity to participate in specialized clinics with world-class professionals such as Virginia Wade and Billie Jean King.

Tennis-Depot launches online tennis pro shop and academy

Tennis-Depot recently announced the launch of their online tennis pro shop tennis-depot.com that specializes in online tennis services and sale of high-performance tennis equipment, as well as an extension to the well respected Oceanside Tennis Academy in Santa Barbara, Calif. The scheduled virtual launch is set for Thursday, July 7. What differentiates tennis-depot.com from their competitors is their strong specialization in high-performance tennis gear and the combination of online professional store and a virtual tennis academy. In addition, Tennis-Depot is an Authorized Exclusive Dealer for HEAD tennis racquets, bags and shoes and Penn tennis balls. “I am very excited about the prospect of extending our tennis academy services to include the online offering of specialized tennis programs, like camps, college placement and video analysis, combined with top-quality tennis equipment for intermediate and advanced tennis players,” said Dimitar Yazadzhiev, Co-Founder of Tennis-Depot and Owner and Tennis Director of Oceanside Tennis Academy. “We are a very motivated and expert team of professionals that love the game of tennis…so that is a great next step for us.” For more information you can go to tennis-depot.com or call at (805) 746-3644.

Ashaway Racket Strings launches new website

Ashaway Racket Strings has officially launched their new website at www.AshawayUSA.com. AshawayUSA.com is totally redesigned to provide a better user-friendly experience. Site navigation has been simplified and enhanced, product information has been recognized and detail added, and several more items has been included on product selection and use. Ashaway Racket String is made by Ashaway Line & Twine Manufacturing Company, the only U.S. manufacturer of string for squash, tennis, racquetball, and badminton. Operated by the Crandall family since 1824, Ashaway has been making racquet strings since 1949, and is responsible for several important technical innovations.

Tomic moving to Monaco to avoid paying taxes

After a splendid quarterfinal run at Wimbledon where he earned a pay check of $210,000, 18-year-old Australian Bernard Tomic has reportedly filed an application for residency in Monaco, which has traditionally been a haven for ATP and WTA Tour players who want to avoid paying taxes. Australian press is reporting that he will rent a $1.5 million studio apartment in Monte Carlo. “Monaco is a beautiful place,” said Tomic, who will also earn additional bonus money from endorsement contracts. “Maybe one day I’ll have enough money to live here but property is about 30,000 euros per square meter, so it’s a way off. [But] my citizenship will always be in Australia. I’ve gone to Monaco for a different reason. If you want to have a good career and a long-lasting career, you’ve got to do what’s right for your business, I guess.” Novak Djokovic, Caroline Wozniacki and Victoria Azarenka all have places in Monaco.

Caroline Wozniacki named most stylish tennis player according to Nielsen/E-Poll N-Scores

According to Nielsen, top-ranked WTA Tour star Caroline Wozniacki is the most stylish on tennis player on the planet according to the E-Poll N-Scores. The N-Score measures name and image awareness, appeal and personality attributes such as sincerity, approachability, experience and influence, both at the U.S. national and local levels. Through the court of public opinion, 2011 Wimbledon finalist Maria Sharapova is the second most stylish player, while recently retired Elena Dementieva is fourth, while Roger Federer came in at eighth and Serena Williams rounded out the Top 10 at tenth. Venus Williams had the highest N-Score (169) than any Top 10 Most Stylish Tennis Player, but she finished 11th. “From Venus Williams designing her own outfit to Bethanie Mattek-Sands’ tennis ball jacket, tennis stars are redefining tennis whites at Wimbledon,” said Stephen Master, Vice President, Nielsen Sports. “Unlike football or soccer stars consigned to wearing their team uniforms, tennis players can and are expressing themselves through their diverse duds. It makes for a fun element to the sport.”

Wimbledon champion commits to WTA Mercury Insurance Open at LaCosta Resort and Spa

Recently crowned Wimbledon ladies singles champion Petra Kvitova has committed to play in the Mercury Insurance Open presented by Tri-City Medical Center at the LaCosta Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., from July 30-August 7. “We are very excited to have the new Wimbledon champion play in our tournament,” said Raquel Giscafre, Mercury Insurance Open Tournament Director. “She is an incredible and talented player to watch and I’m sure tennis fans will enjoy the opportunity to see her play at the La Costa Resort and Spa.”

McEnroe, Bryans headline 2011 Esurance Tennis Classic in September

The Esurance Tennis Classic at Mill Valley’s Harbor Tennis Club in Mill Valley, Calif., which benefits the Celebrate Life Breast Cancer Foundation and Youth Tennis Advantage, will feature an all-star line-up including John McEnroe, Bob and Mike Bryan, Gigi Fernandez, Tracy Austin and Murphy Jensen. This year’s event will be played on September 24 and 25. Tickets went on sale on July 1 and can be purchased by visiting www.tennisclassic.org or by calling (415) 383-6114. More than $700,000 has been raised for charities at this spectacular event since 2004.

Good Wimbledon preparations for Bartoli and Seppi – Mondays with Bob Greene

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STARS

Marion Bartoli beat Petra Kvitova 6-1 4-6 7-5 to win the AEGON International women’s singles in Eastbourne, Great Britain

Andreas Seppi beat Janko Tipsarevic 7-6 (5) 3-6 5-3 retired to win the AEGON International men’s singles in Eastbourne, Great Britain

Dmitry Tursunov beat Ivan Dodig 6-3 6-2 to win the men’s singles at the UNICEF Open in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands

Roberta Vinci beast Jelena Dokic 6-7 (7) 6-3 7-5 to win the UNICEF Open women’s singles in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands

Andy Murray beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 3-6 7-6 (2) 6-4 to win the AEGON Championships at The Queen’s Club in London, Great Britain

Sabine Lisicki beat Daniela Hantuchova 6-3 6-2 to win the AEGON Classic in Birmingham, Great Britain

Marion Bartoli and Petra Kvitova

DAVIS CUP

Asia/Oceania Zone Group III: Sri Lanka and Lebanon are promoted to Group II for 2012; United Arab Emirates and Myanmar were demoted to Group IV.

Americas Zone Group IV: Panama and Trinidad & Tobago are promoted to Group III for 2012.

SAYING

“Venus and I have both missed tennis so much. If tennis has missed us half as much as we have missed tennis, we’re in a good place.” – Serena Williams.

“It was all great and it was all awesome. People will remember that match forever. Look, I will, too. But I don’t want it to be the only lasting image of my career. It’s up to me to make sure I accomplish more than that.’” – John Isner, about last year’s record-breaking match with Nicolas Mahut.

“I couldn’t believe it. I joked with him earlier in the week, last week, and said, ‘Watch us play each other.’ And he said, ‘No, there’s no way. That’s not even funny.’” – John Isner, referring to a rematch of his record-breaking first-round Wimbledon battle a year ago against Nicolas Mahut.

“Isner vs. Mahut drawing each other in the first round after last year is the most amazing thing I’ve seen in tennis! Centre court anyone?!” – Andy Murray.

“You cannot be serious.” – Patrick McEnroe, US Davis Cup captain borrowing his brother John’s famous Wimbledon saying when he heard about the Isner-Mahut rematch.

“The first sort of five hours nobody cared too much. It’s the next five that made the news. We were all glued to the television. It was something very special and unbelievable. We all know that. It’s nice that it’s possible in tennis.” – Roger Federer, on last year’s John Isner-Nicolas Mahut match.

“We might do dinner (afterward). We’re really good friends now, but obviously we both want to win. But we’re going to enjoy it and laugh at it at the same time.” – John Isner.

“It’s the same ankle I injured earlier. I slipped in the first set and it started hurting. I took some medication on the court that helped with pain in my knee but not my ankle.” – Kim Clijsters, who pulled out of Wimbledon after turning her ankle in a match ‘s-Hertogenbosh, the Netherlands.

“I think maybe she was not one hundred percent, and I tried drop shots.” — Romina Oprandi, a qualifier who upset Kim Clijsters 7-6 (5) 6-3.

“He was playing a different sport to me in the first two sets. I’ve never seen anyone dive so much.” – Andy Murray, referring to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s many diving volleys during their final match at The Queen’s Club – a match Murray won.

“Tennis has changed a lot. People are now trying to be healthier and everyone’s believing they can play longer. I think the days of retiring at 27 are over. By the time you get to the age I am, that’s when you really start to understand the game and you can take advantage of that. So I’m going to stay and take advantage of all my experience.” – Venus Williams.

“I’m enjoying the game, staying focused, having fun. Lots of people put too much pressure on themselves without sitting back and seeing we’re playing tennis for a living and it’s fun.” – Heather Watson of Great Britain, at 19 the youngest player in the top 100 in the women’s rankings.

“I’m really excited to be back. I really miss playing tennis. I’m thoroughly enjoying the short time I’ve been back on the practice courts. It sucked because when I left I was ranked number one. That’s what I miss most, just being on top of the game and playing some really good tennis, and the challenges of all the other players.” – Serena Williams.

“If we come back and play well, that’s credit to our games. It’s not easy to win majors because if it was, everyone would be doing it.” – Venus Williams, when asked if a Wimbledon victory by either her or her sister Serena would show that women’s tennis was in poor condition.

“Obviously no one wants to play them. They have the experience and play really well, especially on grass. It’s good that they got a higher seed than their rankings because no one wants to play them in the early rounds.” – Caroline Wozniacki, talking about Serena and Venus Williams.

“I’m hoping I can peak at Wimbledon, hopefully in the second week, and hopefully I’ll get there.” – Serena Williams.

“We have dropped ranking points and that’s part of being off, but at this point we’re happy to be back, we’re here to play, we’re in the draw and that’s what matters.” – Venus Williams.

“It’s fantastic for fans to have Serena and Venus back on the courts. Serena is one of the all-time greats and she brings a fantastic energy, fun on the court. She’s a great champion and a great entertainer.” – Stacey Allaster, WTA chief executive.

SAME PLACE, SAME FOE

American John Isner and France’s Nicolas Mahut made tennis history last year when their first-round duel at Wimbledon became the longest match in tennis history, a grueling 11-hour, 5-minute marathon stretched over three days. As only the luck – or “unluck” – of the draw would have, Isner and Mahut will meet again in a Wimbledon first-round match. “It won’t happen again,” Isner said of a possible repeat of the marathon battle. “Not even come close.” Last year Isner was victorious 6-4 3-6 6-7 (7) 7-6 (3) 70-68 since Wimbledon does not have a fifth-set tiebreak. It is only the eighth time in the Open Era that Wimbledon has had a back-to-back repeat first-round match up. In five of the previous seven occasions, the winner of the first meeting won the second time around. Shuzo Matsuoka of Japan had it happen to him twice. In 1990 Matsuoka beat Luiz Mattar, only to lose to him the following year. Matsuoka lost to Mark Woodforde in both 1993 and 1994.

SKIPPING WIMBLEDON

Kim Clijsters, who won the Australian Open in January, will miss Wimbledon because of a foot injury. The second-ranked Belgian injured her right foot at the Unicef Open in the Netherlands this past week. “At this moment I feel frustrated that it has to happen now before one of my favorite tournaments,” Clijsters said in a statement. “I’ve always enjoyed being a part of the Wimbledon atmosphere but I have no other choice now but to rest, recover and to not play tennis for a few weeks.” Clijsters is a three-time US Open winner.

American Sam Querrey and Benjamin Becker of Germany also have withdrawn from the grass court Grand Slam tournament. Both cited elbow injuries. A knee injury forced Greta Arn of Hungary to withdraw from the women’s singles draw.

SISTERS MOVING UP

With a look at the past, Wimbledon officials moved the Williams sisters up in the seeding for this year’s tournament. Defending champion Serena Williams was bumped up to number 7 in the seedings – 19 places above her world ranking – while sister Venus, who is ranked 33rd in the world, was seeded 23th. Serena underwent two foot surgeries and later had blood clots on her lung, missing nearly a full year. Venus was injured while playing in the Australian Open in January. Both sisters returned to action just this past week at Eastbourne, Serena losing in the second round while Venus lost in the third round. Between them, the sisters have combined to win nine of the last 11 titles at the All England Club, with Serena beating Venus three times in their four Wimbledon final meetings. “The seeding order follows the WTA ranking list, except where in the opinion of the committee a change is necessary to produce a balanced draw,” Wimbledon organizers said. “The only changes this year are Serena Williams and Venus Williams moving to 8 and 24, respectively. This reflects the balance between their proven records and also their lack of competitive play in the past 12 months.” They each were moved up one spot when second-ranked Kim Clijsters pulled out of Wimbledon with an injury.

STANDING BY

Lleyton Hewitt retired from his opening match at Eastbourne when he aggravated an existing injury. The 30-year-old Australian has undergone intensive treatment on the injury and hopes to be able to play Wimbledon, which he won in 2002. “I’d want it to be a lot better than it is today to be able to play Wimbledon,” Hewitt said last week. Hewitt’s world ranking has plummeted to 130 after winning just six matches this season and failing to defend his title in Halle, Germany. Because of a left ankle injury, Hewitt pulled out of the French Open just hours before he was to play his first-round match.

SHARK BITE

Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic could overtake Rafael Nadal for the number one spot in the men’s rankings by the time Wimbledon ends its fortnight run. In order for the Spaniard to remain number one, he must win the title and Djokovic must lose before the final. Anything else and the Serb would take over the top spot, according to Greg Sharko, the ATP’s computer and statistics guru. Roger Federer can’t catch Djokovic regardless of what happens, but if Federer won Wimbledon for the seventh time and Nadal loses before the final, Federer would pass Nadal.

SUCH DOMINATION

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have dominated men’s tennis in the last six years. Since Nadal won his first Grand Slam tournament title at Roland Garros in 2005, the Spaniard and Federer have combined to win 22 of the last 25 Grand Slam men’s singles titles. During that stretch, Federer has won 12 Grand Slam tournaments and Nadal 10. The only ones that escaped the dynamic duo were the Australian Open in 2008 and this past January, when Novak Djokovic joined the winner’s circle, and the 2009 US Open, which was won by Juan Martin del Potro. Since Roland Garros in 2007, the trio of Nadal, Federer and Djokovic have reached the semifinals together 20 times. Of the 20, eight have come in Grand Slam tournaments, including Wimbledon in 2007.

SWITCH

After calling for his match to be halted because of bad light, Janko Tipsarevic retired hurt in a rain-interrupted AEGON International men’s singles match at Eastbourne, giving unseeded Andreas Seppi of Italy the first ATP title of his career 7-6 (5) 3-6 5-3, retired. Tipsarevic asked for play to be halted at the start of the third set but was turned down by the tournament supervisor. He later complained that “the scoreboard was shining.” Officials halted play for around 20 minutes with Seppi leading 4-0 in the final set. Tipsarevic won the next three games before play was halted again for 10 minutes while the Serb was worked on by a trainer. Tipsarevic hurt his leg when he fell on the greasy surface. With Seppi two points from victory at 5-3 15-0 in the third set, Tipsarevic retired. Because of rain delays throughout the week, both men were playing their second matches of the day.

STRUGGLE, BUT VICTORY

It wasn’t easy. Sixth-seeded Marion Bartoli overcame blustery winds, a groin injury and the left-handed firepower of Petra Kvitova to win the Eastbourne grass court Wimbledon warm-up tournament. It was Bartoli’s sixth WTA title and first on grass. The Frenchwoman has now won 13 of her last 15 matches going into Wimbledon. In the third set Bartoli left the court to get treatment for a groin strain. Although she was limping, the set went with serve until Bartoli broke in the seventh game as Kvitova served three double faults. When she served for the match the first time, Bartoli was broken. But she broke right back, then closed out the victory on her next service game. It was the second match of the day for both women at the rain-affected tournament.

SEVEN-MILE RULE

Blaz Kavcic is staying too far away from the All England Club. Currently ranked 72nd in the world, Kavcic will take on Tobias Kamke of Germany in Wimbledon’s first round, with the winner possibly taking on fourth-seeded Andy Murray. Kavcic complained that Wimbledon’s official transport refused to take him home and instead dropped him at a subway station. “Can u believe it?” Kavcic Twittered. “Wimbledon official transport service is within 7 miles, I need it for 9, they dropped me at 7 and I had to take a tube :(`” However, all players had been told they must live within a seven-mile radius of the All England Lawn Tennis Club to enjoy free travel during the competition.

SUCCESSOR TO LI NA?

Playing in her first International Tennis Federation (ITF) final, 16-year-old Yang Zhaoxuan of China crushed Kim Hae Sung of Korea 6-2 6-0 to win the Airtel USD $10,000 women’s tournament in New Delhi, India. Yang dominated the entire week, capturing the title without dropping a set and losing only 14 games total in all five rounds. In the title match, Yang served six aces and 28 other winners against her 23-year-old foe. Yang lost only 10 points in her seven services games.

STEPPING DOWN

Adam Helfant will step down as head of the ATP at the end of the year when his three-year contract expires. In announcing the move, Helfant said he turned down an offer from the ATP board of directors to renew his contract with the men’s tennis tour. An American who joined the ATP as president and executive chairman in January 2009, Helfant said he will pursue other opportunities. “I am proud to say the tour is stronger than ever – in terms of on-court action and our business – and is well positioned for the future,” Helfant said in a statement. “There comes a time when it makes sense to look to the future and consider other opportunities. For me, that time is now.”

SKINNY-DIPPING

The latest ATP player to show all – well, almost all – for a good cause is Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. The nude picture of the Frenchman is in the June issue of the United Kingdom version of Cosmopolitan magazine. Tsonga is the third tennis player to bare all in support of the Everyman Male Cancer Campaign, following in the footsteps of Spaniards Tommy Robredo and Fernando Verdasco. The Everyman campaign raises awareness of, and funds research into, testicular and prostate cancer. Cosmopolitan features different celebrities in nude centerfolds each month to aid the male cancer campaign. Through its centerfolds, the magazine has helped raise vital funds for the 39,000 men a year diagnosed with male-specific cancer.

STUDY ON WTA

A study released by the WTA shows that despite injuries to prominent players such as Serena and Venus Williams, player withdrawals for 2011 are down by 35 percent and top player participation rates are up by 39 percent. The study, called the “Roadmap Report,” is a quarterly analysis of players’ participation rates and withdrawal rates. “Even though several top ranked players missed tournaments this year due to injuries, the number of top players participating in tournaments worldwide is way up this year compared to the way it used to be,” said Stacey Allaster, the CEO of the WTA. “The Roadmap is doing its job. Withdrawals are down; top player participation is up; prize money is up and so is attendance. Our game is doing quite well.”

Three years ago, the calendar for women’s tennis was substantially changed in response to concerns from players that the season was too long and grueling.

SENIOR BATTLE

Ten years ago, Goran Ivanisevic, Pat Rafter and Tim Henman were the talk of Wimbledon. This November, the three will reunite in London at the Royal Albert Hall. In 2001, Ivanisevic beat Rafter for the Wimbledon title after stopping Henman in the semifinals. All will take part this fall in the AEGON Masters. Joining the trio will be John McEnroe, Henri Leconte, Mansour Bahrami and Pat Cash.

SPONSOR

Rolex, a leader in the luxury goods market and a longtime supporter of tennis, will be the Official Timekeeper of the year-end TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships. The season-ending event will be held in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Under the terms of the six-year agreement, Rolex will receive global exposure across all WTA marketing platforms, including broadcast, digital and on-court branding. Additionally, Rolex will sponsor the Hawkeye Electronic Line Calling at the year-end Championships, which will feature the world’s top eight singles players and top four doubles teams.

SADDLEBROOK FORUM

Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Florida, USA, will play host to the nation’s largest tennis gathering, the USPTA World Conference on Tennis. The United States Professional Tennis Association represents more than 15,000 instructors in more than 80 countries. Association spokeswoman Poornima Rimm said the five-day conference attracts about 1,500 attendees. The conference will feature more than 40 general sessions, seminars and specialty courses for tennis pros, manufacturers, wholesalers and media.

SHARED SUCCESS

Eastbourne (men): Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram beat Grigor Dimitrov and Andreas Seppi 6-3 6-3

Eastbourne (women): Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik beat Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond 6-3 6-0

‘s-Hertogenbosch (men): Daniele Bracciali and Frantisek Cermak beat Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau 6-3 2-6 10-8 (match tiebreak)

‘s-Hertogenbosch (women): Barbora Zahlavova Strycova and Klara Zakopalova beat Dominika Cibulkova and Flavia Pennetta 1-6 6-4 10-7 (match tiebreak)

London: Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan beat Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes 6-7 (2) 7-6 (4) 10-6 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Wimbledon: www.wimbledon.com

Braunschweig: www.nordlb-open.org/

Turin: www.sporting.to.it/

The Lawn Tennis Association: www.lta.org.uk/

Tennis Brit: www.tennisbrit.co.uk/

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN

Wimbledon, London, Great Britain, grass (first week)

$100,000 Guadalajara Challenger, Guadalajara, Mexico, hard

WOMEN

Wimbledon, London, Great Britain, grass (first week)

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

Wimbledon, London, Great Britain, grass (second week)

$163,300 Braunschweig, Germany, clay

$122,000 Turin, Italy, clay

WOMEN

Wimbledon, London, Great Britain, grass (second week)

SENIORS

Volkswagen Senior Classic, Turin, Italy, clay

A seeded disaster at Roland Garros 2011 – Mondays with Bob Greene

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STARS

 

French Open

(First Week)

 

Daniela Hantuchova beat top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki 6-1 6-3

 

Arantxa Rus beat second-seeded Kim Clijsters 3-6 7-5 6-1

 

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova beat third-seeded Vera Zvonareva 7-6 (4) 2-6 6-2

 

Stephane Robert beat sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych 3-6 3-6 6-2 6-2 9-7

 

Gisela Dulko beat eighth-seeded Samantha Stosur 6-4 1-6 6-3

 

Lukas Rosol beat eighth-seeded Jurgen Melzer 6-7 (4) 6-4 4-6 7-6 (3) 6-4

 

Gilles Simon beat 10th-seeded Mardy Fish 6-3 6-4 6-2

 

OTHER

 

Carlos Moya beat Thomas Enqvist 7-6 (0) 6-3 to win the Grand Champions Brazil in Sao Paulo, Brazil

 

SAYING

 

“Actually, I think I’m playing really well at this moment.” – Novak Djokovic, after winning his 43rd consecutive match.

 

Novak Djokovic in round 4 of Roland Garros 2011
Novak Djokovic

“To beat him you need to produce the perfect match and not make any mistakes. You need to play like (Rafael) Nadal, hit the ball really strong, to make him run. But only a few guys can beat him at the moment. Even Nadal struggles to organize his game when he plays against him.” – Richard Gasquet, after losing to Novak Djokovic.

 

“Twenty-eight quarterfinals in a row, that’s great. But that’s another opportunity for me to go one step further.” – Roger Federer, after reaching a record 28 consecutive Grand Slam tournament quarterfinals.

 

“Of course, I should have lost this match. I have to be honest. I didn’t think I could win the match. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t serve.” – Fabio Fognini, after battling injuries and outlasting Albert Montanes to reach his first Grand Slam quarterfinal.

 

“I don’t really want to comment on this, because, well, it’s not of my business. I’m just trying to do my thing, focusing on me. … The rest, I don’t really care.” – Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, when asked about the top three seeded women being beaten before the quarterfinals.

 

“When you play less than 50 percent of your potential, it’s very tough to win the fourth round of a Grand Slam. It’s just that she played a little bit more aggressive. That’s why I was playing a little bit too passive. It’s not acceptable at this stage of the Grand Slam.” – Vera Zvonareva, after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

 

“Kim (Clijsters) had a tough loss yesterday; I had a tough loss today. That’s what happens. Since we’re numbers one and two, it means that we must be doing something right. It’s just unfortunate to lose in a Grand Slam, but that’s what happens, and we just need to move forward.” – Caroline Wozniacki, after being upset by Daniela Hantuchova in the third round.

 

“I’m happy that I gave myself the opportunity. It’s better to try than not to try. That’s kind of the attitude of a real loser. I gave it the best that I had and with my abilities that I had. So I definitely don’t regret it.” – Kim Clijsters, after losing her second-round match to Aranxta Rus.

 

“This is for sure my biggest win. She’s a real hero. I played fantastic tennis. I always liked to see her playing and to watch her matches, and it was really, really nice that I played against her.” – Aranxta Rus, after shocking second-ranked Kim Clijsters.

 

“I started cramping at the end of the second set, and this continued in the third. From 4-2 in the third set I began to feel dizzy and had problems seeing the ball clearly. At no point did I think of retiring, and I kept fighting until the end.” – Sabine Lisicki, who had match point against Vera Zvonareva before losing the second-round match and being carried off the court on a stretcher.

 

“Life will continue. A match is lost, but life continues.” – Albert Montanes, after losing to an injured Fabio Fognini.

 

“It’s never too early to think about grass for us.” – Mardy Fish, noting that his loss meant no American player – male or female – made it past the fourth round on the clay courts of Roland Garros.

 

“It’s time to close this amazing chapter of my life. This very emotional decision makes me thankful and proud of all the moments I have been able to share on and off the court with fans from all over the world and with the champions and legends from many decades.” – Patty Schnyder, in announcing her retirement from the tennis tour.

 

SEEDED DISASTER

 

For the first time in the Open era, since 1968, none of the top three seeded women made it to the second week of Roland Garros. It is only the third time that none of the top three seeded women has reached the quarterfinals at a major in the Open era. It also happened at Wimbledon in 2008 – when the top four were eliminated by the end of the fourth round – and at the Australian Open in 1997.

 

Caroline Wozniacki still won’t be able to add a Grand Slam tournament title to her number one ranking after she was soundly beaten 6-1 6-3 by Daniela Hantuchova. Seeded 28th in the year’s second major, Hantuchova hit 26 winners compared to just eight by Wozniacki. The 20-year-old Dane had a mini-revival midway through the second set before her game fell apart again. Hantuchova’s run ended in the next round when she fell to the 2009 French Open champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova, 6-7 (3) 6-3 6-2.

 

Second-seeded Kim Clijsters was ousted in the second round by little-known Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus. Clisters, playing only her second match since suffering a severe ankle injury, was seeking to win her third consecutive Grand Slam tournament title, having succeeded at the US Open last September and the Australian Open in January. She appeared to be having no trouble with her 20-year-old foe, leading 6-3 5-2 when Rus became finding the corners and Clijsters lost her rhythm and confidence. Rus, who staved off two match points by Clijsters, took 11 of the next 12 games to win 3-6 7-5 6-1. “I started doubting a little bit,” said Clijsters, who made 65 errors. “I think that on clay is something that for me is definitely the wrong attitude to have. My ankle feels fine, so that has absolutely nothing to do with it.”

 

It wasn’t pretty, but Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova prevailed over fellow Russian and third seed Vera Zvonareva 7-6 (4) 2-6 6-2 in a fourth-round battle. Zvonareva led 4-2 in the opening set before letting her opponent back into the match. In the third set neither player seemed able to win, while both appeared ready to lose as each made a series of errors. The win put the 19-year-old Pavlyuchenkova, the youngest player in the top 40, into s Grand Slam tournament quarterfinal for the first time.

 

With the top three players out of the tournament, the top woman going into the second week at Paris was fourth-seeded Victoria Azarenka.

 

SHARK BITE

 

Novak Djokovic is trying to become only the fourth player since the computer rankings began in 1973 to take over the world number one ranking after winning a Grand Slam tournament title. According to the ATP’s Greg Sharko, the Serb, if successful at Roland Garros, would replace Rafael Nadal atop the rankings as the two would switch positions, the Spaniard falling to number two in the world. The others to move up to number one following a Grand Slam tournament title are Mats Wilander, after winning the 1988 US Open; Boris Becker, following his 1991 Australian Open title; and Roger Federer, who took over the top spot when he won the Australian Open in 2004.

 

SCAN ON ANKLE

 

Andy Murray underwent a scan on his injured right ankle after he bested Germany’s Michael Berrer 6-2 6-3 6-2 in a third-round match. The Briton twisted his ankle at the beginning of the second set, but was able to withstand the pain to advance. “I don’t know if I will be 100 percent fit. I don’t know if I will be playing the next match. Maybe I will be,” Murray said after the win. “You never know with these things. They can go away quickly. There’s things you can do to recover faster. That’s what I’ll do. I’ve managed to play almost two sets with it. I don’t know. I’ve just got to wait and see, see what happens, and do all the right things.” Murray suffered the injury while running to get a drop shot at 2-1 in the second set. He immediately began hopping on his left foot, keeping weight off his right. At the changeover, a trainer taped Murray’s right ankle.

 

STRETCHER NEEDED

 

Germany’s Sabine Lisicki was taken off the court on a stretcher when, she later said, her body let her down. Lisicki had a match point while leading 5-2 in the third set against third-seeded Vera Zvonareva when she was overcome with dizziness and cramping. The German eventually lost the second-round match 4-6 7-5 7-5. “I’m sad that my body let me down,” Lisicki later said on her website. “Doctors recently discovered that I’m intolerant to gluten – meaning I can’t eat e.g. pasta. One of the biggest energy sources …” She added that her “body needs to adjust to the big change and needs some time.”

 

SWITCHING COURTS

 

Roland Garros fans were angry when officials switched Novak Djokovic’s match against Juan Martin del Potro to another court and forgot to tell everyone. The high-profile men’s match had been scheduled to be last on Chatrier court. When the earlier matches ran long, officials moved the Djokovic-del Potro match to Lenglen Court but apparently forgot to tell gate officials at the new location. The gate crew at first refused to let in the extra crowd, which began chanting “Let us in” as play went on inside the smaller arena. The two players split the first two sets before play was called because of darkness. The following day Djokovic captured the next two sets to win the match.

 

SETS ANOTHER MARK

 

He’s almost the forgotten man at Roland Garros, but Roger Federer continues to set Grand Slam tournament records. Federer, who is seeded third behind Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, beat his Swiss countryman Stanislas Wawrinka 6-3 6-2 7-5 to advance to his 28th consecutive Grand Slam tournament quarterfinal. Federer improved on the record he shared with Jimmy Connors, although Connors did not do it in consecutive tournaments. The last time Federer failed to reach the quarterfinals at a major was at the 2004 French Open, when he was the top-seeded player but lost to Gustavo Kuerten in the third round. Besides winning a record 16 major titles, Federer also holds the mark of 23 straight Grand Slam semifinal appearances, a run ended at last year’s French Open, when he was beaten in the quarterfinals.

 

STRUGGLING TO VICTORY

 

Fabio Fognini could barely walk and figured he could not win his fourth round match. He was wrong, and now is in his first Grand Slam tournament quarterfinal. The Italian overcame a left thigh injury and five match points to outlast Spain’s Albert Montanes 4-6 6-4 3-6 6-3 11-9. “Of course, I should have lost this match,” admitted Fognini, who won 189 points, one more than his opponent. The match lasted 4 hours, 22 minutes, and by the end the 49th-ranked Fognini basically stood immobile on court, yet would end exchanges with a winner or when Montanes would make an unforced error. “I have to be honest. I didn’t think I could win the match,” Fognini said. “I couldn’t move. I couldn’t serve.” He said his only choice was to swing away at the ball, “and if it went in, it went in.” Fognini said he originally thought he was cramping, but later felt he might have pulled a muscle. The 38th-ranked Montanes was broken while serving for the match at 5-3 in the fifth, and he later failed to convert match points on Fognini’s serve at 8-7 and at 9-8. Fognini broke Montanes to lead 10-9, and then served out the victory, closing it with a backhand winner as, on point after point, Montanes would hit the ball right near Fognini, rather than forcing the Italian to move around more to get to shots. “He was hitting so hard I didn’t want to take too many risks,” Montanes said.

 

SYSTEM CHANGE

 

Rafael Nadal wants the ranking system to be changed. He called on tennis authorities to make it a two-year rolling ranking system, a move he believes will preserve the health of players. Nadal said the change from a one-year rolling ranking system would not only protect players from burning out but would also ensure that athletes coming back from long injury layoffs would not lose too many ranking points. Nadal made the suggestion before Novak Djokovic beat 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro. The Argentine’s ranking plummeted from fifth in the world in January 2010 to 485th a year later as he was sidelined for almost a year with a wrist injury. Del Potro was seeded 25th at this year’s French Open. “(With a two-year rolling ranking system) if you stop being number five of the world, you’re not going to be number six when you come back, but maybe you’re going to be number 14, 15,” Nadal explained. “But with the way the ranking is done today, that’s not happening. If you have an injury for three months, five months, you are done.”

 

SPEAKS UP

 

Julia Cohen’s search for a title ended up just one match short. The American, who failed to qualify for the French Open, opted to play a USD $25,000 International Tennis Federation (ITF) tournament in Bangkok, Thailand, where she was the top seeded player. Cohen dropped her opening set to Thailand’s Nicha Lertpitaksinchai to begin the tournament. And in the quarterfinals, she escaped Poland’s Sandra Zaniewska 3-6 6-1 7-6 (8). Cohen began the title match by taking the first set 6-3. After that, it was all 22-year-old Ayu-Fani Damayanti of Indonesia who captured the event 3-6 6-2 6-3.

 

STUPID RULE

 

Amelie Mauresmo, a favorite of the fans at Roland Garros, has been retired for two years. But she wanted to have fun and play a bit of mixed doubles in her home Grand Slam tournament with compatriot Michael Llodra, who she has spent some time coaching. Last year, Mauresmo even coached Llodra to a grass-court title at Eastbourne, England. Delighted to have her back, the French Open tournament organizers gave the pair a wild card. But then the rule book was produced. It turns out all players have to be registered for three months in the program that allows players to be tested anywhere, anytime. Since Mauresmo was retired, she hadn’t been drug-tested. Consequently, that was sufficient to ban her from competing in this year’s French Open mixed doubles.

 

SO LONG

 

After a highly successful 17-year career, Switzerland’s Patty Schnyder has retired from professional tennis. Schnyder won 11 WTA singles titles and was ranked as high as seventh in the world in 2005. She was ranked in the Top 10 for a total of 94 weeks. “Patty has displayed excellence and leadership both on and off the court for many years,” said Stacey Allaster, chairman and CEO of the WTA. “She has been a great ambassador for women’s tennis and made an important contribution to the growth of the sport as a long-time member of the Players’ Council.  Patty will be truly missed by her fellow players and the fans.  We wish her the best of luck and hope that she remains close to the women’s game.” Schnyder turned professional in 1994 and won her first WTA title in 1998 at Hobart, Australia. She holds a career win-loss record of 552-361 and has reached 27 career WTA finals, winning her most prestigious title in 2002 at Zurich, Switzerland, defeating Lindsay Davenport in the final. This year’s Roland Garros marks Schnyder’s 59th career Grand Slam tournament appearance, sixth on the all-time list in the Open Era. Her best Grand Slam event result was at the 2004 Australian Open when lost to Kim Clijsters in the semifinals. Schnyder qualified for the season-ending WTA Championships three times – in 1998, 2002 and 2005. She helped Switzerland reach its only Fed Cup final in 1998 and represented her country in three Olympic Games: Atlanta, Athens and Beijing.

 

SERENA TO PLAY

 

Serena Williams is scheduled to play World TeamTennis (WTT) in July. The WTT website said Williams will play in Washington, DC, on July 7 and two days later at Sacramento, California, USA. The 13-time Grand Slam tournament champion has not played since July 2010 after undergoing foot surgery and then developing blood clots on her lung. The WTT season will be held July 4-24.

 

SPEEDY START

 

Playing in only his second ATP Champions Tour event, Carlos Moya won his first title at the Grand Champions Brasil in Sao Paulo, besting Thomas Enqvist 7-6 (0) 6-3. Enqvist failed in his bid to win the Brazilian tournament three consecutive years.

 

SEVEN INDUCTED

 

The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) has inducted seven new members into the ITA Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame – one coach and six players, four of whom played varsity collegiate tennis at Stanford. Enshrined in the hall, located at the University of Georgia, were Simon Aspelin of Pepperdine, Marcel Freeman of UCLA and former Stanford stars Scott Davis, Jim Grabb, Gene Mayer and Jonathan Stark. Joining them was Tim Cass, who coached the University of New Mexico to five consecutive Western Athletic Conference titles between 1991 and 1998, and has since coached Texas A&M University to three Big 12 Conference Championships. Aspelin won the US Open doubles in 2007 and was a doubles silver medalist at the 2008 Olympics. Davis won the Australian Open doubles in 1991 and was ranked as high as number 11 in the world in singles in 1985. Grabb won both the French Open doubles and the US Open doubles in 1992. Mayer was the French Open doubles champion in 1978-79 and reached as high as number four in the world in singles. Stark won the French Open doubles in 1994 and the US Open mixed doubles in 1995.

 

SENIOR BATTLE

 

Mary Mentzer had to beat a living legend to win the USTA National Senior Women’s 90-over Hard Court Tennis Championships in La Jolla Beach, California, USA. Mentzer, from North Fort Myers, Florida, USA, defeated Dorothy “Dodo” Cheney of La Jolla, California, 6-1 6-4. Cheney was seeking her 391st United States Tennis Association (USTA) national title. Her 390th title came earlier in the week when she teamed with Mentzer to win the doubles crown. “My running is the key,” said the 91-year-old Mentzer. “At this age, most people can’t run, but I do, so that is the key.”

 

SALUTED

 

Andrea Petkovic is the winner of the latest Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Heart Award. The key to Germany’s Fed Cup renaissance, Petkovic won both her singles matches in Germany’s 5-0 win over the United States in the World Group playoffs in April. The win sealed Germany’s promotion back to the World Group after a one year absence. Petkovic was short-listed by the Heart Award judging panel with Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez of Spain, Olga Savchuk of Ukraine and Polona Hercog of Slovenia. The final decision was decided by a public vote on the Fed Cup website. Petkovic receives a check for $3,000 to be donated to her chosen charity. She joins Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia, Bianca Botto of Peru, Ayumi Morita of Japan and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, who were honored earlier in the year. Another player will be recognized at this year’s Final. The Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Heart Award is a joint initiative between BNP Paribas and the International Tennis Federation (ITF). It aims to recognize players who have represented their country with distinction, shown exceptional courage on court and demonstrated outstanding commitment to their team.

 

SACRIFICE REWARDED

 

Gisela Dulko wanted to be with her brother in Buenos Aires, Argentina, as his wife gave birth to twins. Her sacrifice was rewarded, however, as she upset 2010 French Open finalist Samantha Stosur 6-4 1-6 6-3 to reach the fourth round, matching her best result at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament. “I stayed awake really late,” the 26-year-old Dulko said of the night before she was to play Stosur. “It was very emotional, because I would have loved to be there, but I’m here.” After Dulko beat Stosur, she waved a towel that said in Spanish “for Myla And Teo. It was worth it. I love them.”

 

SURFING

 

Paris: www.fft.fr/rolandgarros/

Sao Paulo: www.grandchampionsbrasil.com.br

Prostejov: www.czech-open.com/

Halle: www.gerryweber-open.com/?ref=atp

Copenhagen: http://e-bokssonyericssonopen.dk/

London: www.lta.org.uk/fans-major-events/AEGON-British-Tennis-Series/AEGON-Championships/

Birmingham: www.lta.org.uk/fans-major-events/AEGON-British-Tennis-Series/AEGON-Classic/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

 

(All money in USD)

 

MEN

 

Roland Garros, Paris, France, clay (second week)

$152,000 Czech Open, Prostejov, Czech Republic, clay

 

WOMEN

 

Roland Garros, Paris, France, clay (second week)

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

 

$946,840 Gerry Weber Open, Halle, Germany, grass

$895,414 AEGON Championships, London, Great Britain, grass

 

WOMEN

 

$220,000 e-Boks Sony Ericsson Open, Copenhagen, Denmark, hard

$220,000 AEGON Classic, Birmingham, Great Britain, grass

 

Victoria Azarenka and Novak Djokovic take home Sony Ericsson Open 2011 crowns – Mondays with Bob Greene

by

STARS

Novak Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal 4-6 6-3 7-6 (4) to win the men’s singles at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida, USA

Victoria Azarenka beat Maria Sharapova 6-1 6-4 to win the Sony Ericsson Open women’s singles at Miami, Florida, USA

SAYING

“It’s the best four months in my life, but it’s only the start of the season. If I want to have that shot at the number one ranking I need to play consistently well throughout the whole year.” – Novak Djokovic.

“I don’t feel invincible. I don’t feel that I can’t lose on the court. What I feel is big confidence. What I feel is that I’m playing best tennis of my life.” – Novak Djokovic, after beating Mardy Fish in the Sony Ericsson Open semifinals.

“He is not losing games. He is crushing us. He’s so confident and he doesn’t give you much out there at all. When he does, he seems to erase it pretty well. He’s moving better than anyone right now, no doubt about it, on a hard court. It’s his playground right now.” – Mardy Fish, on Novak Djokovic.

“I didn’t win any of the big points. None of them. I left a lot of shots out there today. That’s what’s disappointing.” – Mardy Fish, after losing to Novak Djokovic.

“Always the key to playing against Roger is to play very well. Sometimes is not enough. Tonight was enough.” – Rafael Nadal, after beating Roger Federer in the semifinals at Miami.

“It’s still early for us. The season is broken down into four segments, and we’re coming to the end of the first segment. If we’re still number one after the US Open, then we’ll start getting excited.” – Mahesh Bhupathi, noting he and fellow countryman Leander Paes will be number one in doubles when the new rankings come out Monday.

“It was a great two weeks,” Hantuchova said” We had so much fun on and off the court. Aga is a great girl and we are great friends. That’s part of the reason why we play so well together.” – Daniela Hantuchova, after she and Agnieszka Radwanzka won the women’s doubles in Miami.

STREAK CONTINUES

Novak Djokovic has apparently forgotten how to lose. Not even the world’s top-ranked player, Rafael Nadal, could slow down the Serbian Express as Djokovic won the Sony Ericsson Open and remained unbeaten this year, running his record to 24-0, the best start to a season since Ivan Lendl won 25 straight at the start of 1986. Djokovic outlasted Nadal 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) in the final in Miami for his fourth title of the year, including the Australian Open. “It’s the best four months in my life, but it’s only the start of the season,” Djokovic said. It is the second time the Serb has won the Miami Masters. He captured the event in 2007, and he became only the fourth player – joining Federer, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras – as the only ones to win the Australian Open, Indian Wells and Miami – the three most important early season events – in the same year. Nadal, who is ranked number one in the world, lost in the final at Miami for the third time. He has never won the hard court tournament. “Maybe I was a little bit more nervous than other days,” Nadal said. “Maybe because I never won here, and this is the third chance.”

SQUEALING DUEL

All the spectators agreed it was a noisy match as Victoria Azarenka clobbered Maria Sharapova to win the Sony Ericsson Open women’s title and the war of shrieks. The finalists are two of the loudest, highest-pitched squealers in the sport. Azarenka, however, had a game to go along with the noise. She neutralized Sharapova’s power, took advantage of her mistakes and won the Miami tournament for the second time. The win capped a great week that saw Azarenka eliminate in straight sets second-ranked Kim Clijsters, third-seeded Vera Zvonareva and the ninth-seeded Sharapova. The victory also came less than two weeks after Azarenka retired from her quarterfinal match at Indian Wells with an injury. There was some debate as to whether she would be able to play the Sony Ericsson Open.

SET FOR FED CUP

Petra Kvitova will lead the Czech Republic Fed Cup team when it takes on Belgium in a semifinal April 16-17. Also on the team named by captain Petr Pala are Lucie Safarova, Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova. The tie will be played on an indoor hard court in Charleroi, Belgium. The Czechs are in their third straight Fed Cup semifinal, having lost to the United States in 2009 and Italy last year. The Belgians, who won the competition in 2001, reached their first semifinal since 2006.

Sony Ericsson Open semifinalist Andrea Petkovic will lead Germany in its Fed Cup playoff against the United States April 16-17 in Stuttgart, Germany. Julia Goerges, Sabine Lisicki and Anna-Lena Groenefeld are also on the German team. Petkovic upset top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki and former world number one Jelena Jankovic as she advanced to the semifinals of the Miami tournament where she lost to Maria Sharapova. The winner of the US-Germany tie will advance to the eight-team World Group for next year’s competition.

STAR POLISH

Serena Williams is set to release her own collection of nail polish with OPI in time for the French Open in May. The tennis star will introduce the Glam Slam! France collection, which will be comprised of four shades. Each color comes with a Shatter polish that provides a broken or shattered effect as it dries. Two years ago, Williams launched her debut clothing collection on television channel HSN and sold out within three hours, which she attributed to the price. Katy Perry and Justin Bieber have also released nail polish collections with OPI.

SPECIAL CITY

This year’s World TeamTennis (WTT) Finals will be held at the Family Circle Tennis Center in Charleston, S.C., a community known as the “Best Tennis Town in America.” The WTT Finals Weekend, July 22-24, is the culmination of three weeks of intense coed team tennis competition featuring some of the biggest names in the sport playing in the WTT Pro League presented by GEICO. The three-day, season-ending event will include conference championship matches as well as the Finals. Last year, the Kansas City Explorers won their first championship and the King Trophy, which is named for WTT co-founder Billie Jean King. The 36th season of the WTT Pro League begins July 4, with the top two teams from each conference advancing to the WTT Finals Weekend.

SETBACK

Aleksandra Wozniak, Canada’s top female player, has suffered yet another setback. The tendinitis that scuttled the second half of her 2010 season has returned. This time it’s a little lower down on the forearm, closer to the wrist. The 23-year-old is on enforced rest and cannot train. There is no timetable for her return. “At this moment, it’s uncertain. She sees a doctor every week, has treatment. They did some strengthening exercises last week, and there was more inflammation. She just wasn’t ready,” Fed Cup captain Sylvain Bruneau said of Wozniack. The tendinitis first appeared while Wozniack was playing in a hard court tournament in California last July.

STANDING TALL

India’s Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes may have won the men’s doubles at the Sony Ericsson Open and ready to take over the number one spot in the rankings, but they know most sports fans back home will be celebrating something else. After all, India won the Cricket World Cup for the first time in 28 years.  “Cricket is a religion back home, and we won’t even get a mention in (Monday’s) press,” Bhupathi said after their 6-7 (5), 6-2, 10-5 (match tiebreak) win over Daniel Nestor and Max Mirnyi. Once ranked number one in the world, Paes and Bhupathi broke up their seven-year partnership and played with other partners for nine years. “There was too much pressure on the partnership and the friendship,” Paes said. “We needed a breather, some oxygen.” In November, they decided to reunite. “A lot of life is timing; a lot of life is about karma,” Paes said.

Daniela Hantuchova and Agnieszka Radwanska won the Sony Ericsson Open women’s doubles, edging Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova 7-6 (5), 2-6, 10-8 (match tiebreak). “We tried to not think too much about who we were playing. They’re great doubles players,” Hantuchova said of her opponents. “We just tried to focus on what we were doing and it paid off. We stuck to our game, which was being aggressive. It was a close match, but we just kept fighting.” It was the ninth career doubles title for Hantuchova, but her first since Rome in May 2006. Radwanska won her second WTA doubles title.

SNICKERING

Andy Murray pulled off an April Fool’s prank by announcing he was employing his friend Ross Hutchins as his new coach. His Twitter feed had the media in a frenzy trying to verify the action. Murray got the last laugh, though, when he Twittered again, this time saying he picked Hutchins because he needed “another yes-man.”

SPECIAL FUNDRAISING

With Kim Clijsters, Robin Soderling, Vera Zvonareva and Japan’s Kei Nishikori, Kimiko Date-Krumm and Ayumi Morita leading the way, ATP and WTA players raised more than USD $300,000 during a “Tennis for Japan” exhibition during the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida, USA. The money will go to the victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami disasters. Players walked through the Stadium Court stands to collect donations from fans and encouraged the public to show support for the victims. Others – including Caroline Wozniacki, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic, Ai Sugiyama, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic – also recorded video messages of hope supporting the victims. Organizations making contributions included the WTA, ATP, the Grand Slam tournaments, Sony Ericsson, ITF, IMG, SAP, Itau, Fila, adidas and Lagardere. “Tennis is a global sport, and when a tragedy strikes the entire tennis community comes together and responds,” said Miami tournament director Adam Barrett.

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal were among the players that took on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers professional soccer team during the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami to raise money for the victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami. Andy Murray scored a goal for the ATP squad, that was also made up of Richard Gasquet, David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco, Feliciano Lopez, Viktor Troicki, Jurgen Melzer and Marcos Baghdatis, who also scored a goal. The Strikers won the game 4-2. After the match, Djokovic teamed with GR8 Miami to hold a fund-raising dinner and after-party attended by more than 200 supporters. The high-ticket item of the night was a tennis hit with Djokovic, which alone went for more than $5,000.

SPOTLIGHTED

Tennis players Carmen Boland and Anzela Zguna were two of eight inductees into the 2011 Rollins College Sports Hall of Fame. As a member of the Rollins women’s tennis team, class of 1955, Boland was undefeated for four years. After graduation she turned pro and joined the WTA tour. Also honored with the Alumni Achievement Award was professional tennis umpire Lynn L. Welch, a 1978 graduate of Rollins.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Miami (men): Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes beat Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor 6-7 (5) 6-2 10-5 (match tiebreak)

Miami (women): Daniela Hantuchova and Agnieszka Radwanska beat Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova 7-6 (5) 2-6 10-8 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Houston: www.mensclaycourt.com/
Charleston: www.familycirclecup.com/
Casablanca: www.frmt.ma/frmt/index.php
Marbella: www.andaluciatennis.com/
Monte Carlo: www.monte-carlorolexmasters.com/
Athens: www.statusathensopen.gr/default.asp?pid=53&la=2
Johannesburg: www.satennis.co.za
Fed Cup: www.fedcup.com

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN

$562,130 Grand Prix Hassan II, Casablanca, Morocco, clay
$442,520 US Men’s Clay Court Championships, Houston, Texas, USA, clay

WOMEN

$721,000 Family Circle Cup, Charleston, South Carolina, USA, clay
$220,000 Andalucia Tennis Experience, Marbella, Spain, clay

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$3,150,000 Monte Carlo Rolex Masters, Monte Carlo, Monaco, clay
$120,000 Status Athens Open, Athens, Greece, hard
$100,000 Soweto Open, Johannesburg, South Africa, hard

WOMEN

$100,000 Soweto Open, Johannesburg, South Africa, hard

FED CUP

World Group
Semifinals

Russia vs. Italy at Moscow, Russia, hard
Belgium vs. Czech Republic at Charleroi, Belgium, hard

World Group Playoffs

Germany vs. United States at Stuttgart, Germany, clay
Spain vs. France at Lleida, Spain, clay
Slovak Republic vs. Serbia at Bratislava, Slovak Republic, clay
Australia vs. Ukraine at Melbourne, Australia, clay

World Group II Playoffs

Belarus vs. Estonia at Minsk, Belarus, hard; Slovenia vs. Canada at Koper, Slovenia, clay; Switzerland vs. Sweden at Lugano, Switzerland, clay

Hantuchova and Raonic Take Home Titles – Mondays with Bob Greene

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STARS

Robin Soderling beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-3 3-6 6-3 to win the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands

Petra Kvitova beat Kim Clijsters 6-4 6-3 to win the Open Gaz de France Suez in Paris, France

Milos Raonic beat Fernando Verdasco 7-6 (6) 7-6 (5) to win the SAP Open in San Jose, California, USA

Nicolas Almagro beat Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3 7-6 () to win the Brasil Open in Costa do Sauipe, Brazil

Daniela Hantuchova beat Sara Errani 6-0 6-2 to win the PTT Pattaya Open in Pattaya City, Thailand

Lucie Hradecka beat Irina Falconi 6-4 6-4 to win the Dow Corning Tennis Classic in Midland, Michigan, USA

Irina-Camelia Begu beat Laura Pous-tio 6-3 7-6 (1) to win the Copa Bionaire in Cali, Colombia

SAYINGS

“I can’t stop smiling. I’m happy about it and I hope I can keep it going more than six weeks into the full year schedule and see where I am at the end of the year.” – Milos Raonic, after winning his first ATP tournament, the SAP Open.
“He has good potential and he has one of the best serves, and also on the baseline he plays so aggressive. The moments he needs to play solid, he plays solid, and I think that he can be a Top 20 player very soon. Now he’s going to be [ranked] 50-something, and it’s just the beginning of the year. He has all year to become a good player and I think he can do it.” – Fernando Verdasco, speaking about Milos Raonic.

“Matches start to build on each other. We’ve won a few in a row now. It’s always nice to play on Sunday, and it’s even better to win on Sunday, so we’re happy and hopefully we can keep it rolling for a little bit now.” – Rajeev Ram, who teamed with Scott Lipsky to win the SAP Open doubles title.
“I had many tough matches this week. I had to fight a lot for every match. I was lucky; I had the margins on my side. I think to win tournaments like this, you need to of course play well, but you need a little bit of luck as well.” – Robin Soderling, after winning the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament.
“I played a good match today. It was difficult of course because he played unbelievable, he didn’t miss many things. I had to play my best tennis to win some games and break him, so it was difficult. At the end he just played better than me.” – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who lost to Robin Soderling in Rotterdam, Netherlands

“We had a great week. We played four great matches in a row. We beat tough teams as well so I’m really happy about the win. (Next week) in Marseille we are the top seeds, so of course we’ll go there and try to get the title.” – Philipp Petzschner, who teamed with Jurgen Melzer to win the doubles title in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

“Winning the Fed Cup was definitely a highlight, and matches against the Williams sisters and Amelie (Mauresmo) herself also stand out. It was a childhood dream. It was a great experience. I will miss the people, the life. I have no regrets.” – Stephanie Cohen-Aloro, who announced her retirement from the WTA tour.

“It wasn’t a good day for me. There’s too much on my mind this week. I’m not just under pressure as defending champion here, it’s everything and I’m not focused on my game.” – Vera Zvonareva, who lost her semifinal match after refusing to play after being penalized for “abusive language.”

STOPPING FOR GOOD

Stephanie Cohen-Aloro announced her retirement after her last match at the Open Gaz de France Suez in Paris, France. In her final tournament, the Frenchwoman reached the second round in singles as a “lucky loser” and the semifinals in doubles. Her best results on the WTA tour were semifinal finishes at Estoril, Portugal, in 2004 and Barcelona, Spain, in 2008. She peaked at Number 61 in singles. In doubles, she reached on final, at Paris in 2003, when she teamed with Marion Bartoli. She was a member of the French team that won the Fed Cup in 2003. “It was a difficult decision but one I came to progressively,” the 27-year-old said. “My passion for tennis is still there, but my motivation has started to dip a little.”

Daniela Hantuchova

STEPPING UP

Kim Clijsters took over the top spot in the WTA ranking this week, supplanting Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark. The Australian Open winner was assured of being number one after winner her quarterfinal match at the Open Gaz de France Suez tournament in Paris. Clijsters has won the last two Grand Slam tournaments. She topped the rankings in 2003 and again in 2006. She quit tennis in 2007, got married and gave birth to a daughter, then returned to the sport in 2009. She has won the last two US Opens.

SWEDE RETURN

Robin Soderling successfully defended his ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament title, but it wasn’t easy. “I don’t know how I managed to beat you,” the Swede told Jo-Wilfried Tsonga after the title match. “I think we both deserved to win this final.” Soderling became only the fourth player to successfully defend his title in Rotterdam, Netherlands, joining Arthur Ashe, Stefan Edberg and Nicolas Escude. Retaining a title for the first time in his career, the Swede has won eight career titles in 18 finals. He has twice been runner-up at the French Open . “I played well in the important moments,” Soderling said.

STAYING PUT

Roland Garros in Pari9s will remain the site of the French Open after the country’s tennis federation opted to upgrade the existing site rather than move the tournament outside the city. Three other communities had been bidding to stage the clay-court Grand Slam tournament beginning in 2016. Paris won 70 percent of the votes over Marne-la-Vallee in the final round. In earlier balloting Gonesse and Versailles were eliminated. The upgrade will cost USD $370 million, half of what would have been required to move the tournament.  The French Open has been played on the red clay courts of Roland Garros since 1928. Originally covering eight acres of land with five courts, Roland Garros now has 20 outside courts spread over 21 acres. Still, it remains the smallest of the four major tournaments. Wimbledon and Melbourne Park, where the Australian Open is played, each cover close to 50 acres, while the US Open has 34.5 acres of land at Flushing Meadows in New York.

STAR ASCENDING?

By knocking off defending champion Fernando Verdasco in the SAP Open final in San Jose, California, USA, Milos Raonic became the first Canadian to win an ATP tour title since 1995. The 20-year-old, playing in his first final, is the youngest tour winner since Marin Cilic won in New Haven, Connecticut, USA, in 2008 when he was 19. The last Canadian to win a tour title was Greg Rusedski in Seoul, South Korea, in April 1995. Raonic edged Verdasco 7-6 (6) 7-6 (5) in a match that had no service breaks and only one break point. Raonic hit 13 aces and 20 service winners in the victory, hitting one serve at 149 mph. He has had a strong start this year, going through qualifying and winning three matches in the Australian Open. He has risen in the rankings from 156th at the end of last year to 59th this week. “It’s been quite a month and a half, but an amazing month and a half,” he said. “I just hope to keep this going.”

SIDELINED

Gael Monfils will miss France’s first-round Davis Cup tie against Austria next month. A left wrist injury caused Monfils to pull out of the SAP Open in San Jose, California, USA, after his quarterfinal victory over Tim Smyczek. A statement on the tournament website said Monfils “has also withdrawn from Memphis, Acapulco and Davis Cup. He will be out for four to six weeks and hopes to return for Indian Wells.” The agile, acrobatic Frenchman, who is ranked 12th in the world, has been plagued by injuries throughout his career. “It’s been a month and a half that I’ve had this pain,” Monfils said on his website. “I can’t hit my backhand. I tried, but my backhand is very soft. I have a better backhand than I showed here – more powerful.” Monfils’ withdrawal advance Milos Raonic to the final, where he defeated defending champion Fernando Verdasco to win his first ATP title.

SHE SAID WHAT?

Vera Zvonareva was seeking her third straight Pattaya Open title when officiating caused her a lot of angst during her 7-6 (3) 6-4 semifinal loss to Daniela Hantuchova. Zvonareva received what she felt was a series of contentious lines calls, and the Russian spent much of the match mumbling angrily to herself or shouting and gesticulating at the umpire. When she lost her serve at 3-3 in the second set, she began smashing her racquet. She was later penalized for improper conduct, which gave Hantuchova a match point. Zvonareva refused to play and demanded the referee intervene after questioning the umpire, who said she had Zvonareva’s lips and detected abusive language. “I didn’t agree with that,” Zvonareva said. “I talked to myself in Russian. I don’t think she can understand that.”

SPOKESWOMAN

Billie Jean King has signed with the British orthopedics giant Smith & Nephew PLC to be the spokeswoman for the company’s Legion knee implants. King, who won six Wimbledon singles championships and four US Open titles, had double knee replacement surgery last year using the Legion implant. “For nearly four decades I was in a downward spiral of pain and compromise due to my knees,” King said in prepared remarks. “The mental and emotional shift my new knees have provided me has been tremendous. I feel like I’m 20 again, and I’m back on the courts
playing tennis.” In addition to her on-court exploits, King is the founder of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), Women’s Sports Foundation and Women’s Sports Magazine. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, by President Barack Obama in 2009.

SPECIAL PARTNER

Leander Paes believes it was karma that brought him Mahesh Bhupathi back together again as a doubles team following a nine-year separation. The two will continue to play as a team, at least through the French Open in May, Paes said. “We’ve just signed up to play three more tournaments together – the Dubai Open, Palm Springs and Miami. Of course there’s the Davis Cup,” Paes said. “I am sure we’ll play a lot more together. If we are winning and we are enjoying, we’ll take it from there. We’ve won the French Open twice before so it’ll be interesting to play there and see how it goes.” Paes claims reuniting with his former partner happened at the right time. “I think it was a good time to get back together, even though it may have taken nine years,” he said. In those nine years, Paes said the two tried to reunite at least five times. “A lot of my family, coaches and friends have been trying to get us together for years. In fact, a lot of people think we have never tried before. But really, we have. In the last nine years, there have been at least five times that we’ve tried,” he said. “Every time he would ask me to play, I’ve done well with a partner. If you are winning a Grand Slam with someone, it’s tough to break that team,” Paes said. “Every time I’ve asked him, he would be doing well with his partner. The timing in life is very important. Over the years, we’ve both matured a lot; we’ve both grown as individuals. I have to commend Mahesh for a great run at the Australian Open. Our coming together now is really karma. It’s like life coming a full circle.”

SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR

Rafael Nadal added to his trophy case when he was named Sportsman of the Year at the Laureus Sport Awards. The Spaniard, who won three Grand Slam tournaments in 2010 – Roland Garros,    Wimbledon and his first US Open – beat out Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, boxer Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines and Barcelona footballers Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi for the Sportsman of the Year honor. Olympic gold medalist skier Lindsey Vonn was named Sportswoman of the Year, beating out the likes of high jumper Blanka Vlasic and tennis players Serena Williams, Kim Clijsters and Caroline Wozniacki. The awards were presented at a ceremony in Abu Dhabi. Spain’s World Cup-winning squad won Team of the Year, while the Spirit of Sport Award went to the European Ryder Cup team for their win at Celtic Manor. Winners are chosen by 46 sports stars that make up the Laureus sports academy.

SWEDE FUND

The Swedish newspaper Affarsvarlden reports that former world number one Stefan Edberg has launched a corporate bond fund. Edberg, who earned more than $20 million in career price money, is a part owner in Case Asset Management, the Stockholm-based boutique that will run the fund. The six-time Grand Slam tournament winner is one of the biggest seed investors in the fund. Edberg and Kristianstad Sparbank together have invested SEK50 million ($7.8 million). Edberg told Affarsvarlden that during the financial crisis he bought bonds from Nordic banks as he believed they would not collapse. The new fund, which launched at the beginning of January, is called Safe Play and targets returns of 5-7% per annum. Edberg’s company, Case Asset Management, was founded in 2004 by Edberg and some leading Swedish investors. 2009 was a good year for the firm as its balanced fund, Fair Play, returned 27 percent, and in 2010 the fund returned 10 percent.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Cali: Irina-Camelia Begu and Elena Bogdan beat Ekaterina Ivanova and Kathrin Woerle 2-6 7-6 (6) 11-9 (match tiebreak)

Costa do Sauipe: Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares beat Pablo Andujar and Daniel Gimeno-Traver 7-6 (4) 6-3

Midland: Jamie Hampton and Anna Tatishvili beat Irina Falconi and Alison Riske, walkover

Paris: Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Meghann Shaughnessy beat Vera Dushevina and Ekaterina Makarova 6-4 6-2

Pattaya: Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci beat Sun Shengnan and Zheng Jie 3-6 6-3 10-5 (match tiebreak)

Rotterdam: Jurgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner beat Michael Llodra and Nenad Zimonjic 6-4 3-6 10-5 (match tiebreak)

San Jose: Scott Lipsky and Rajeev Ram beat A Falla and Xavier Malisse 6-4, 4-6 10-8 (match tiebreak)

TO SURF

Memphis: www.memphistennis.com/splash

Marseille: www.open13.fr/

Buenos Aires: www.copaclaro.com/

Acapulco: http://abiertomextenis.com.mx/

Dubai: www.dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com/

Bogota: www.copacolsanitas.com/

Delray Beach: www.yellowtennisball.com

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN

$1,226,500 Regions Morgan Keegan Championships, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, hard

$782,400 Open 13, Marseille, France, hard

$544,330 Copa Claro, Buenos Aires, Argentina, clay

WOMEN

$2,050,000 Dubai Tennis Championships, Dubai, Qatar, hard

$220,000 XIX Copa BBVA Colsanitas, Bogota, Colombia, clay

$220,000 Cellular South Cup, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, hard

SENIORS

Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, Delray Beach, Florida, USA, hard

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$1,619,500 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, hard

$955,000 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, Acapulco, Mexico, clay

$442,500 Delray Beach International Championships, Delray Beach, Florida, USA., hard

WOMEN

$721,000 Qatar Ladies Open 2011, Doha, Qatar, hard

$220,000 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, Acapulco, Mexico, clay

Women’s Showdowns Await at US Open

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Elena vs. Sam. Ana vs. Kim. There are some high-pressure women’s showdowns brewing in the U.S. Open round of 16.

Early on Day Five at the 2010 US Open, Elena Dementieva took out No. 24 seed Daniela Hantuchova 7-5, 6-2. Dementieva recently admitted to spending a month recovering in her bed after a calf injury forced her to retire midway through her semifinal match at the French Open, but with a few U.S. Open warm-up tournaments under her belt, including a semifinal appearance in New Haven, she looks to be back in top form and ready to face her next opponent: 2010 French Open finalist, Sam Stosur.

Elena Dementieva

Stosur’s appearance at the U.S. Open was in doubt in recent weeks as the Australian continued to struggle with a nagging arm injury, but she showed no sign of discomfort in her 6-2, 6-3 win over Italy’s Sara Errani. This was the second time in two weeks that the two had met, but clearly Stosur made some adjustments after narrowly squeaking out a victory in a third set tiebreak the first time around.

Ana Ivanovic continued her inspiring run today with a convincing win over French veteran Virginie Razzano 7-5, 6-0. She was all smiles after needing just 20 minutes to close out the second set, but she’ll now face a much tougher test in the form of defending champion Kim Clijsters who made easy work of No. 27 seed Petra Kvitova 6-3, 6-0.

Venus Williams closed out the day with a predictable 6-2, 6-1 win over qualifier Mandy Minella of Luxembourg as sister Serena looked on. Perhaps less predictable was Venus’s “New York By Night,” sparkling black ensemble complete with glimmering nude-colored underthings. She will face Shahar Peer next.

There were some great matches on the fifth day of competition in New York, but the highlight came from exuberant Italian Francesca Schiavone when she successfully hit a between the legs shot or “tweener” in her win over Alona Bonderenko.

“I’d like to see it again,” she said, smiling.

By Blair Henley

US Open: Kim Clijsters Quietly Winning

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NEW YORK – For being the defending champion, Kim Clijsters certainly has been skirting the headlines at the US Open.

On Friday, the talk was all about Hurricane Earl’s impact on New York City, which at least during the day turned out to be all bluster and very few raindrops, but not enough to halt play for long on the hard courts of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

An 18-year-old American, Ryan Harrison, had his Flushing Meadows run ended, 6-3 5-7 3-6 6-3 7-6 (6) by Sergiy Stakhovsky of the Ukraine, while Britain’s Andy Murray, one of the pretenders for the men’s crown, easily dispatched Jamaica’s Dustin Brown 7-5 6-3 6-0.

Kim Clijsters

Meanwhile, the mom from New Jersey – that’s where Clijsters’s husband hails from – ran her winning streak in America’s premier tennis tournament to 17 straight matches. Clijsters lost the first three games before ripping through the next 12 to snare a spot in the fourth round of the year’s final Grand Slam tournament.

“That’s tennis,” Clijsters said. “And, until the set is over, you can still always come back and win.

“That’s what I tried to do, tried to be a little more aggressive and just go for the angles a little bit more.”

It worked to perfection for the tournament’s second seed.

“If you start to focus on how you’re hitting or feeling the ball, you might start worrying,” she said. “I was just trying to give it my best each point.”

In other early women’s matches, fifth-seeded Samantha Stosur of Australia beat Sara Errani of Italy 6-2 6-3; sixth-seeded Francesca Schiavone of Italy, the French Open champion, downed Alona Bondarenko of the Ukraine 6-1 7-5; 12th-seeded Elena Dementieva of Russia beat Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia 7-5 6-2; 20th-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia defeated Argentina’s Gisela Dulko 6-1 6-2; and Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic ousted Virginie Razzano of France 7-5 6-0..

Beating the rain and winning their men’s second-round matches were 10th-seeded David Ferrer of Spain, 12th-seeded Mikhail Youzhny of Russia, 18th-seeded American John Isner, 23rd-seeded Feliciano Lopez of Spain, Tommy Robredo of Spain, Michael Llodra of France and Daniel Gimeno-Traver of Spain.

Robredo advanced to the third round when Julien Benneteau of France retired while trailing 6-4 6-6 (2-1). Ferrer beat Germany’s Benjamin Becker 6-3 6-4 6-4; Lopez outlasted Benoit Paire of France 6-4 6-7 (4) 5-7 7-6 (3) 6-2; Gimeno-Traver defeated Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 4-6 6-2 6-0 7-6 (2); Youzhny beat Dudi Sela of Israel 6-1 6-3 4-6 6-3; Isner stopped Marco Chiudinelli of Switzerland 6-3 3-6 7-6 (7) 6-4; and Llodra downed Victor Hanescu of Romania 7-6 (2) 6-4 6-2.

Last year Clijsters ended her two-year retirement during which she married American professional basketball player Brian Lynch and gave birth to their daughter, Jada. In her third tournament back on the tour, she won her second US Open.

While Clijsters’ victory was big news, some were still talking about how her semifinal foe, Serena Williams, lost the match on a point penalty assessed when she went off on a profanity-laced tirade at an official who had called a foot fault on her.

Even after Clijsters won her third-round match Friday, she was asked about Serena pulling out of this year’s Open because of foot surgery.

“Look, my tournaments are not based on what Serena does,” Clijsters said testily, answering a question in her post-match interview. “Obviously I try to focus on what I have to do best, and that’s trying to play good tennis and trying to see how far I can go. Whether she’s here or not, my attitude is always the same.”

Clijsters also won the US Open in 2005. The following year she was injured and could not defend her title. Then came her retirement, marriage and family. She and her husband have homes in both her native Belgium and New Jersey, where he grew up.

“They’re both home,” Clijsters said. “I think you create that home atmosphere. You know, I even try to create it in our hotel room.

“It’s obviously nice to go to a place that you’re familiar with and you can cook yourself and do everything kind of yourself. But, obviously, my childhood memories are in Belgium. I still live on the same street as my parents used to live, where I grew up. My grandparents live next door. That’s obviously what I go back to when I go back after the US Open.”

Right now her sight is set on yet another US Open victory. She has won three hard court titles his year, including a US Open warm-up event in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. There, she beat Ivanovic when the Serb retired from the match while trailing 2-1. The two will battle in the fourth round.

“She had some injuries when I played her in Cincinnati in the semifinals,” Clijsters said. “The first three games we played I think were pretty good tennis. We can kind of have a rematch here.”

WIMBLEDON DRAW COULD FORTELL SERENA-SHARAPOVA, HENIN-CLIJSTERS FOURTH-ROUNDERS

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A fourth round encounter with Maria Sharapova could be in the cards for top seed Serena Williams as the draws for the 2010 Wimbledon championships were released Friday.

Sharapova famously defeated Williams in the 2004 Wimbledon final as a 17-year-old. Williams won her third Wimbledon title last year, defeating sister Venus in the singles final.

Williams opens with Michelle Larcher de Brito of Portugal while Sharapova plays Kateryna Bondarenko of the Ukraine in the first round. Sharapova will likely have to get by Daniela Hantuchova in the third round before a potential fourth-rounder with Serena.

No. 6 seed and French Open finalist Sam Stosur and No. 3 seed Caroline Wozniacki and 2009 US Open finalist highlight the second quarter of the draw – to potentially play Serena in the semifinals.

Kim Cljisters, seeded No. 8 and playing Wimbledon for the first time since 2006, could face fellow Belgian Justine Henin in the round of 16. Henin, seeded No. 17, potentially would have to get passed No. 12 seed Nadia Petrova in the third round. No. 4 seed Jelena Jankovic is the highest seed in the quarter. The Serbian former world No. 1 has a curious opening round match against promising British teenage Laura Robson.

Clijsters, who last year played in an exhibition test match for Wimbledon’s retractable roof against Steffi Graf last year, opens against Italy’s Maria Elena Camerin.

The bottom quarter of the draw is highlighted by Venus Williams, the No. 2 seed, who opens against Rossana de los Rios of Paraguay, who like Clijsters, is one of the few mothers competing on the WTA Tour. Former world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic, unseeded, takes on Shahar Peer of Israel, seeded No. 13, in an interesting first-round match. Francesca Schiavone, the No. 5 seed and reigning French Open champion, opens against Vera Dushevina of Russia and is seeded to potentially face Venus Williams in the quarterfinals.

For the full women’s draw, go to www.Wimbledon.org.