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juan carlos ferrero

Juan Carlos Ferrero calls it a career; Serena Williams still rolling — The Friday Five

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By Maud Watson

Farewell, Juanqui!

Juan Carlos Ferrero calls is a career in Valencia.

Earlier this week at the Valencia Open 500, tennis lost one of its classiest competitors as Juan Carlos Ferrero’s singles career came to a close at the hands of his good friend and compatriot, Nicolas Almagro.  It was a rewarding 14-year run for the Spaniard, who garnered 16 career singles titles.  He was named ATP Newcomer of the Year in 1999, and he quickly delivered on the hype.  At the age of 20, he defeated both Hewitt and Rafter in the Davis Cup final to lead Spain to its first championship title in the historic team competition.  He then went on to prove that his game was transferrable to all surfaces and enjoyed success on many of the sport’s biggest stages.  He reached the quarters or better at all four majors and won such prestigious titles as Monte Carlo, Rome, and Madrid.  His crowning achievement came in 2003 when he became Roland Garros champion.  That same year at the US Open, he earned the No. 1 ranking by defeating Hewitt and Agassi in succession before bowing out to Roddick in the final.  Unfortunately for Ferrero, an ill-timed bout of chicken pox in 2004 and a litany of injuries thereafter prevented him from ever playing at the top of his game again, though he continued to enjoy some thrilling title runs in his twilight years as a professional thanks to his fighting spirit and competitive drive.  But more important than his tennis results has been the way Ferrero has conducted himself and what he has done with his success.  His quiet and dignified demeanor harks back to the days of a by-gone era, and he’s already given back so much to the game.  In addition to his award-winning luxury hotel, Ferrero, along with his longtime coach Antonio Martinez, have helped turn the Valencia Open 500 into a world-class event.  Furthermore, his academy, JC Ferrero-Equelite, looks certain to produce future champions.  Suffice it to say, he won’t have trouble filling his days, and thankfully, it sounds like we’ll still be seeing plenty of him as he looks to do a bit of coaching with Almagro next season.  Congrats on a phenomenal career, Juan Carlos Ferrero, good luck in the future, and thanks for the memories!

Still Rolling

Serena Williams may not have played a match since winning the US Open, but she certainly hasn’t shown much rust as play got underway this week in Istanbul.  She easily dismissed Angelique Kerber in her opening match and overcame a spirited challenge by Li Na to secure her second win.  In the contest everyone was looking forward to, her showdown with current No. 1 Victoria Azarenka, she kept her emotions in check to overcome a surge by the Belarusian early in the second to earn a straight-sets victory and remain perfect at the WTA Championships.  While the American hasn’t always been at the top of her game, Serena has shown that she still has the most dominant serve in the history of women’s tennis.  So long as that weapon is finding its mark more often than not, it’s going to take something special to derail her from claiming her seventh title of 2012.

Confidence Boost

The WTA regular season came to a close last weekend, and it was a couple of familiar faces that scored much-needed wins as they look to put themselves in a position to climb back up the rankings in 2013.  American Venus Williams secured her first title in two years with her win Luxembourg.  Her tennis wasn’t always the prettiest at times, but sometimes grinding out a win means a lot more than steamrolling the competition.  That same sentiment holds true for Caroline Wozniacki, who earned her second title of the year with her victory over Sam Stosur in Moscow.  The good news for Wozniacki is that she still has the opportunity to play one more time in 2012 in the WTA’s (pointless) Tournament of Champions.  With a good showing there, the Dane could find herself back in the Top 10 and in an even better position to plan an assault back up the rankings next season.

Czeching Out

After showing so much promise in 2011, Petra Kvitova’s 2012 campaign is going out with a whimper as she was forced to withdraw from Istanbul.  After losing her opening match to Radwanska on a poor performance she initially chalked up to nerves, Kvitova later learned it was an illness that has since put her on bed rest, though she’s still hoping to salvage her 2012 by leading her nation to a second consecutive Fed Cup title.  But bottom line whether she competes in the Fed Cup final or not, Kvitova needs to get in better shape.  Things like asthma may not totally be in her control, but better managing her fitness would help her avoid some of the injuries and likely some of the illnesses that have plagued her in 2012.  Putting in the physical work is also apt to help the mental side of her game.  As shown in 2011, she has the tools and power to take her to the top, but as in 2012, she’s proven that doesn’t amount to much when there are deficiencies in the physical and mental departments.  She needs to right the ship or she may be headed the wrong way in the rankings.

Call it a Season

It wasn’t shocking when it was announced just yesterday that Rafael Nadal has pulled out of the two remaining events of the ATP season.  But it is a little puzzling that he hasn’t yet ruled himself out of the Davis Cup final.  It’s understandable that Nadal would like the opportunity to contribute to what may be a potentially winning effort by Spain against the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup final next month, but it would likely be best for everyone involved if he would just call it a season and look to 2013.  By not doing so, he’s putting Captain Alex Corretja in a potentially difficult position of possibly having to make an unpopular decision if he feels Nadal isn’t ready to go and opts to leave him off the team, even if Nadal declares himself fit.  Additionally, Nadal himself has admitted you could argue it wouldn’t be right to drop one of the other guys in favor of Nadal when that player put in the work to get Spain to the final.  Then there’s Nadal’s health.  He’s already stressed that he’s targeting the Australian Open and hopes to be fit and ready to go for the first major of next season.  If he’s still working his way back, why return to the hard courts in the Davis Cup final when he could continue to rest those knees for nearly another month and a half?  Tennis would love to have Nadal back and ready to go, so hopefully he won’t risk it by jumping the gun.  Besides, with the depth of talent Spain possesses, Nadal is likely to have other opportunities to play for yet another Davis Cup championship.

Andy Murray gives Great Britain its first Grand Slam title since 1936 — Mondays with Bob Greene

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STARS

US Open

Men’s Singles: Andy Murray beat Novak Djokovic 7-6 (10) 7-5 2-6 3-6 6-2

OTHER

Irina Begu beat Donna Vekic 6-4 6-4 to win the Tashkent Open in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Kirsten Flipkens beat Lucie Hradecka 6-1 7-5 to win the Bell Challenger in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada

Hsieh Su-Wei beat Zhang Shuai 6-2 6-2 to win the Ningbo International Challenger in Ningbo, China

DAVIS CUP

World Group
Semifinals

Spain beat United States 3-1 at Gijon, Spain
Czech Republic beat Argentina 3-2 at Buenos Aires, Argentina

World Group II Playoffs
(Winners advance to World Group in 2013)

Kazakhstan beat Uzbekistan 3-1 at Astana, Kazakhstan
Germany beat Australia 3-2 at Hamburg, Germany
Israel beat Japan 3-2 at Tokyo, Japan
Belgium beat Sweden 5-0 at Brussels, Belgium
Canada beat South Africa 4-1 at Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Brazil beat Russia 5-0 at Sao Jose do Rio Preto, Brazil
Italy beat Chile 4-1 at Napoleon, Italy
Switzerland beat Netherlands 3-2 at Amsterdam, Netherlands

World Group I First Round Playoff

Asia/Oceania: India beat New Zealand 5-0 at Chandigarh, India

World Group I Second Round Playoffs

Americas Zone: Ecuador beat Peru 4-1 at Lima, Peru

Europe/Africa Zone: Slovak Republic beat Portugal 3-1 at Bratislava, Slovak Republic

World Group II Third Round
(Winners advance to Group I in 2013)

American Zone: Dominican Republic beat Mexico 3-2 at Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic

Asia/Oceania: Indonesia beat Philippines 3-2 at Jakarta, Indonesia;

Europe/Africa: Ukraine beat Latvia 3-2 at Liepaja, Latvia; Poland beat Belarus 3-2 at Lodz, Poland

SAYING

Andy Murray

“Novak (Djokovic) is so, so strong. He fights until the end in every single match. I don’t know how I managed to come through in the end.” – Andy Murray, after beating Djokovic in the US Open final and becoming the first British man to win a Grand Slam tournament singles title since Fred Perry in 1936.

“It feels great to win a title. I’ll take back sweet memories from the Tashkent Open. I’m glad I made the last-minute decision to play here, and I will surely come back to defend my title next year.” – Irina-Camelia Begu, after winning her first tournament title.

“I don’t think like a 16-year-old. In tennis one has to grow fast, and I think I have matured fast. I love tennis and want to be playing. I have to get stronger physically and mentally and develop my game. I hope to first get into the Top 150 and probably play at a Grand Slam tournament in the near future.” – Donna Vekic, a 16-year-old qualifier who reached the final of her first WTA tournament.

“I just told her she’s one of the greatest of all time. ‘Go have fun and hit your shots.’” – Leander Paes, on what he told Venus Williams before she led the Washington Capitals to the WTT title.

“It was a complicated decision to leave a world you have lived in intensely. But I have had a tough year and you start to notice that you don’t have the same ambition and motivation.” – Juan Carlos Ferrero, announcing his retirement from tennis next month.

“’Once you win, you have no doubt that you can win.” – Ivan Lendl, when asked if Andy Murray can win another Grand Slam tournament.

STRUTTING

With an Olympic singles gold medal already in his trophy room, Andy Murray snapped the British curse and won a Grand Slam tournament men’s singles crown in record time. Murray became the first British man to win a men’s Grand Slam singles title since Fred Perry captured the US Championships in 1936. And the four-hour, 54-minute match equaled the record for the longest US Open final. Another record came when Murray and Novak Djokovic battled through a 22-point first-set tiebreaker, the longest in US Open men’s final history. The tiebreak lasted 25 minutes. Murray’s victory came in his fifth Grand Slam tournament final. His coach, Ivan Lendl, also lost his first four Grand Slam tournament finals before tasting victory for the first time. “I have been asked about it many times when I got close to winning Grand Slams before,” Murray said. “I hope now it inspires some kids to play tennis and also takes away the notion that British tennis players choke or don’t win, or it’s not a good sport.” Earlier this year Murray became the first British man to reach the final at Wimbledon since Bunny Austin in 1938. A few weeks later, he defeated Roger Federer to win the gold medal on the same Wimbledon Centre Court at the London Olympics.

STOPPED BY INJURY

Argentina lost its top player in its Davis Cup semifinal, resulting in the Czech Republic earning a spot in the final against Spain. Argentine Juan Martin del Potro withdrew from the competition because of an injury to his right wrist. Czech captain Martin Jaite said del Potro almost withdrew earlier in the week when he felt more pain in his left wrist in Friday’s three-set win over Radek Stepanek.

SIGNAL ACHIEVEMENT

Playing the best tennis of her career, Irina-Camelia Begu captured her first WTA title by beating 16-year-old Donna Vekic in the final of the Tashkent Open. Begu last year was in two finals as she reached 38th in the WTA world rankings and was named Newcomer of the Year. This year, her ranking dropped to 96th in the world, but it all began to turn around at the US Open. That’s when the Romanian shocked former world number one Caroline Wozniacki in the opening round. Begu backed that up by winning the tournament in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. “My serve is what got me through,” Begu said. “Donna played very well and I was happy to break her in both sets.” As champion, Begu received a Chapan, which is a traditional Central Asian coat. “I saw Sorana Cirstea wear this when she won the title here in 2008, but now I have one of my own.” Begu said.

Until the final, it was Vekic who was the star of the tournament. She had to qualify for her first WTA main draw and was the youngest player in six years to reach a WTA final – the youngest since Tamira Paszek won a tournament in 2006 when she was 15. “I’m happy I had a good week, but a little disappointed of not being able to win the title after coming close,” Vekic said. “But I will come back.” Before Tashkent, Vekic had lost in qualifying in both of the WTA tournaments she had entered.

SPECTACULAR START

Paula Kania and Polina Pekhova apparently believe in starting at the top. The two young players captured the doubles title at Tashkent, Uzbekistan, when Anna Chakvetadze and Vesna Dolonc had to retire following the opening set because of a back injury suffered by Chakvetadze. Kania, a 19-year-old from Poland, and Pekhova, a 20-year-old from Belarus, were playing their first WTA event as a team. “We are thrilled and speechless,” the winning duo said. “We were the last pair to get in and to win the tournament is amazing. We played as juniors but this was our first WTA event together, and we hope to play more tournaments now. Our goal is to make it to the Grand Slams.”

STEPPING IT UP

Venus Williams beat Coco Vandeweghe in a last-game tiebreaker to help lead the Washington Kastles to their second straight undefeated championship World TeamTennis (WTT) season. Williams and Anastasia Rodionova won the women’s doubles match to put Washington in front 8-6. Then, after Sacramento took the men’s doubles to lead 11-10, Williams and Leander Paes teamed to win the mixed doubles in a last-game tiebreak. That sent the WTT championships into a final women’s singles showdown tied at 15. “I really felt like I came out on fire in all my matches,” said Williams, who was named the WTT finals MVP.

SAYS NO TO TWO

Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna will not represent India in Davis Cup play for at least two years. The All India Tennis Association (AITA) said in a statement that it had “decided not to consider” for selection until June 20, 2014. Bhupathi has been a Davis Cup player since 1995 and Bopanna for 10 years. Both players refused to play doubles in the London Olympics with Leander Paes. The AITA said it will instead use two of the following four players: Yuki Bhambri, Vishnu Vardhan, Divij Sharan and Sanam Singh.

SHARAPOVA SIGNS

At least three Grand Slam tournament champions will be in the field when the Brisbane International gets underway December 31-January 6. “Going into Australia after a long off season you always want to have the best possible matches,” reigning French Open winner Maria Sharapova said in a news release. It will be the first time Sharapova will compete in the tournament, which also will feature US Open champions Serena Williams and Andy Murray.

SWINGING AT LETS

There will be a new look on the men’s tour this year. The ATP board of directors approved the elimination of lets on the Challenger Tour for the first three months of next year. ATP Executive chairman Brad Drewett says the board believes “a trial at the ATP Challenger level will be a good way to test this initiative in a competitive environment and get feedback from players and the public before deciding if it could be adapted more broadly.” The board also announced a change to the penalties for a time violation that goes into effect next year. The move changes the penalty for a second and all subsequent violations of the 25-second rule by a server to a fault. Currently, the penalty for multiple violations is a point for the server and receiver.

STARTING A FAMILY

Like her former Belgian teammate, Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin is going to have a family. The seven-time Grand Slam tournament champion announced on her Facebook page that she is pregnant and expecting her first child in March. “Soon there will be three of us,” Henin said of her and her partner, Benoit Bertuzzo. Henin won four French Opens, two US Opens and one Australian Open. She retired for the first time in 2008. After making a comeback in 2010, Henin retired for good the following year with an elbow injury.

Now that she has a baby, Yan Zi is returning to the WTA tour. One of the original Chinese trailblazers, Yan is making her comeback at the GRC Bank Guangzhou International Women’s Open in Guangzhou. Yan and Zheng Jie won China’s first Grand Slam tournament title when they captured the Australian Open women’s doubles in 2006 and followed it up by adding the Wimbledon title later that year.

SHOULDER HURT

Canada’s Aleksandra Wozniak was forced to withdraw from the Bell Challenge in Quebec City after injuring her right shoulder during a warm-up session. Wozniak had been scheduled to play American Melanie Oudin in a second-round match. When she was unable to play, Wozniak apologized to the large crowd that had expected to see her take on Oudin. Canada’s top female player, Wozniak said she would return next year to the Bell Challenge in Quebec City. “I apologize to all my fans who came out to see me play tonight and to the Bell Challenge, which always does a great job and treats me so well here in Québec,” Wozniak said.

SAYING GOODBYE

Juan Carlos Ferrero is calling it quits. The former world number one says he will retire after playing in his hometown Valencia Open next month. Now 32, the Spaniard won the French Open in 2003 and reached the final of the US Open later that year, losing to Andy Roddick. In his career, Ferrero won 15 titles and helped Spain win two of its five Davis Cup titles, in 2000 and 2004. Ferrero said he plans to spend more time to his tennis academy and hotel.

SPENDING TIME ON COURT

Now that he’s retired, Andy Roddick is ready to play tennis. Exhibition tennis, that is. The 30-year-old Roddick retired from the men’s tour after the US Open earlier this month. But he will play Canada’s Milos Raonic in an exhibition at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre. Also on the card will be a match between US Open women’s champion Serena Williams and Agnieszka Radwanska. The four – Roddick, Raonic, Williams and Radwanska – will also play mixed doubles.

SERENA UPSET

The United States Tennis Association’s (USTA’s) decision to hold a top American junior player out of competition because of her fitness has caused Serena Williams to raise an eyebrow. “If that happened, that’s obviously a tragedy because everyone deserves to play,” Williams said of 16-year-old Taylor Townsend, the world’s top-ranked junior girl. “She’s so sweet and she works so hard. For a female, particularly in the United States, in particular an African-American, to have to deal with that is unnecessary. … Women athletes come in all different sizes and shapes and colors and everything. I think you can see that more than anywhere on the tennis tour.” The Wall Street Journal reported the USTA withheld funding Townsend’s tournament appearances while she focused on getting in better shape. “She’s still number one,” Williams said. “That’s saying something.”

SET FOR ISTANBUL

Wimbledon and US Open champion Serena Williams and two doubles teams have qualified for the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships, to be held in Istanbul, Turkey, October 23-28. The WTA’s season finale will feature the world’s top eight singles players and top four doubles teams. Besides Williams, others who have qualified include the doubles team of Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka, as well as the American duo of Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond.

SOUTH AFRICAN-BOUND

Venus and Serena Williams will play each other in an exhibition match in South Africa in November. The sisters will also attend a coaching clinic in Soweto township when they travel to the country in support of a women’s charity. They will face each other on court for the first time in Africa in Johannesburg. Venus and Serena have combined for 13 Grand Slam tournament doubles titles and won Olympic gold in the doubles in 2000, 2008 and this year.

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD

American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan and Australian Samantha Stosur are the first winners of the US Open sportsmanship award. The Bryan twins won their Open era record 12th Grand Slam tournament doubles title, while Stosur, the 2011 women’s US Open champion, last in this year’s quarterfinals to top-ranked Victoria Azarenka. The USTA sportsmanship award comes with a USD $5,000 donation to the charity of the winner’s choice.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Ningbo: Shuko Aoyama and Chang Kai-Chen beat Tetiana Luzhanska and Zheng Saisai 6-2 7-5

Quebec City: Tatjana Malek and Kristina Mladenovic beat Alicja Rosolska and heather Watson 7-6 (5) 6-7 (6) 10-7 (match tiebreak)

Tashkent: Paula Kania and Polina Pekhova beat Anna Chakvetadze and Vesna Dolonc 6-2 retired

SURFING

Metz: www.opendemoselle.com

St. Petersburg: www.spbopen.ru

Szczecin: www.pekaoszczecinopen.eu

Seoul: www.hansolopen.com/

Guangzhou: http://sports.21cn.com

Tokyo: www.toray-ppo.co.jp

Bangkok: www.thailandopen.org

Kuala Lumpur: www.malaysianopentennis.com/

Orléans: www.opendorleans.com/

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK
(All money in USD)

MEN

$509,114 Moselle Open, Metz, France, hard
$410,850 St. Petersburg Open, St. Petersburg, Russia, hard
$136,148 Pekao Szczcin Open, Szczcin, Poland, clay

WOMEN

$500,000 Korea Open, Seoul, Korea, hard
$220,000 Guangzhou International Women’s Open, Guangzhou, China, hard

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$850,000 Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, hard
$551,000 Thailand Open, Bangkok, Thailand, hard
$140,000 Open Orléans, Orléans, France, hard

WOMEN

$2,168,400 Toray Pan Pacific Open, Tokyo, Japan, hard

Serena Williams solves wind and Ana Ivanovic

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NEW YORK – Solving the swirling winds in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Serena Williams blew past Ana Ivanovic 6-3 6-4 Monday to grab a spot in the quarterfinals of the US Open.

“It was crazy,” Williams said of the blustery conditions that affected play. “I didn’t even go for winners at any point. I just tried to get it over because it was so windy.”

Serena Williams

Seeking her fourth US Open women’s singles title, Williams will next take on 17th-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia, who upset seventh-seeded Francesca Schiavone of Italy 5-7 6-3 6-3.

In early men’s singles play, top-ranked Novak Djokovic survived a gritty performance by Russian Alexandr Dolgopolov to advance to a quarterfinal battle against his good friend and fellow Serb, Janko Tipsarevic, a 7-5 6-7 (3) 7-5 6-2 winner over Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain.

“It means there’s going to be at least one Serbian in the semifinals, which is great for our country,” Djokovic said.

Rain, heavy at times, had been forecast for New York City. The rain stayed away throughout the day, but blustery winds swept through the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, affecting ground strokes and especially the toss for the serve.

“It was really gusty out there, and in the wind it’s always gonna be even tougher,” Ivanovic said. “In those kinds of conditions serve is the shot that it’s gonna go away from both players. It did a bit. My serve broke down little more than hers did.”

Williams crushed nine aces and had just one double-fault. Ivanovic, who struggled the entire match with her service toss, hit three aces but served up eight doubles.

Because she missed 11 months with injury and illness, Williams’ ranking plummeting from No. 1 in the world to around 160. Since returning to play, Williams won two hard court tournaments this summer to raise her WTA ranking to 29th in the world. She was seeded 28th in this, the year’s final Grand Slam tournament, because of the withdrawal of defending champion Kim Clijsters.

Still, Williams is considered a heavy favorite to increase her Grand Slam tournament title count to 14, the most of any active woman and sixth all-time, in Saturday’s final.

Williams jumped out to a 3-0 lead to begin the fourth-round battle, breaking Ivanovic in the second game. But Ivanovic, the 2008 French Open winner, broke back from deuce in the fifth game to put the set back on serve.

When the Serb held at 30 in the next game, she had pulled even at 3-3.

With William serving, Ivanovic moved to break point at 30-40. When Williams won the next point to pull to deuce, she screamed, “C’mon.”

She did just that, beginning a five-game spurt to grab the opening set and take a 3-0 advantage in the second.

Ivanovic refused to go away, but Williams had too much firepower and dominated the rest of the way.

“As I said even before the match I think she’s the favorite for the tournament,” Ivanovic said of Williams. “She’s been playing really well and it’s gonna be tough, you know. But, the conditions are different … so you have to raise your level. She’s doing that, so I think she has a good chance.”

Djokovic had all he could handle in the opening set with his Russian opponent. But once he captured the opening set tiebreak 16-14 on his sixth set point, it was all downhill to his quarterfinal berth.

“Winning it was very important,” Djokovic said of the tiebreak. “That was probably the turning point. After that it was a good performance.”

Using slices and moving Djokovic from side to side, Dolgopolov threatened to take the opening set and even had set points in the tiebreak. But after finally prevailing in the tiebreak, Djokovic rolled to victory.

“He played a lot of low balls, slices. … I was confused on the court,” the winner said. “But it was really exciting.”

Now he’s looking forward to playing his Davis Cup teammate.

“I think this is the first time I play Janko in a grand slam,” he said. “We are great friends. It’s not going to be easy to play him, but look, it’s the quarterfinals and we both want to win.”

Serena Williams in, Sharapova out as US Open reaches halfway point

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STARS

(US Open, First Round)

Flavia Pennetta beat third-seeded Maria Sharapova 6-3 3-6 6-4

Serena Williams beat fourth-seeded Victoria Azarenka 6-1 7-6 (5)

Alexandra Dulgheru beat fifth-seeded Petra Kvitova 7-6 (3) 6-3

Simona Halep beat sixth-seeded Li Na 6-2 7-5

Juan Carlos Ferrero beat seventh-seeded Gael Monfils 7-6 (5) 5-7 6-7 (5) 6-4 6-4

Christina McHale beat eighth-seeded Marion Bartoli 7-6 (2) 6-2

Janko Tipsarevic beat ninth-seeded Tomas Berdych 6-4 5-0 retired

Julien Benneteau beat 10th-seeded Nicolas Almagro 6-2 6-4 6-3

Serena Williams

SAYING

“I just have cramping in my leg. That’s all. I don’t know. There are no questions. I already finished my press conference in English. I talked half an hour. I just have cramping in front and behind. That’s why I was so painful. That’s all.” – Rafael Nadal, explaining his cramping and sliding out of his chair to the floor during the English portion of his post-match news conference following his third-round victory over David Nalbandian.

“First two sets were ideal. I could not play better. I mean, I was getting a lot of balls back, I was ending the points when I needed to, I was making a lot of winners, my serve was OK, return was great. I felt fantastic on the court. There is not much I can say when everything seems fun and when you’re playing such good tennis.” – Novak Djokovic, after winning his second-round match 6-0 6-0 6-2.

“I hate losing. I’m the worst loser in the world. I’m still working on that. But, you know, that kinda keeps me motivated and keeps me going.” – Serena Williams, after losing just three games in her first two matches.

“You’re supposed to have a few nerves. If you don’t, you don’t care. So I do care a lot. That’s maybe why.” – Roger Federer, admitting he was a little nervous before his second-round win over Dudi Sela.

“Before I come to the court, I never think like I was Grand Slam champion. French Open is like three month already. I mean, is enough time to forget. Now is hard court season. You have to focus on hard court. You can’t only think about what you do on clay court. If you think about clay, you have to think about next year, not this year.” – Li Na, French Open champion, after losing her first-round match.

“Sometimes I feel like it’s a great experience for me to be in this position. I’m having a ton of fun with it. But sometimes I feel like I’m playing with house money a little bit just because I just would never have imagined two years ago, in 2009, not even having to come back here [following knee surgery], to be in this position. So it’s great. It’s just great.” – Mardy Fish, following his first-round victory, on playing the 2011 US Open as the top-ranked American.

“They can say what they want. I’m the type of player I am. I’ve won a lot of tournaments. I’m number one in the world, and of course I can still improve. There are a lot of things to my game I can still improve, but everyone can.” – Caroline Wozniacki, responding to critics who say she needs to develop a big shot to win a Grand Slam tournament.

“I think everyone’s light turns on at their own time. I’m starting to feel like mine is turning on. Not everybody does it when everybody expects it to be done. I wish it could have been earlier. It’s starting to come now and I’m excited about it.” – Donald Young, who is finally winning matches on the ATP Tour seven years after reaching the number one ranking in the juniors

SWISS MASTER

Switzerland’s Roger Federer continues to write his name in the record book. By reaching the fourth round, Federer increased his Grand Slam tournament match wins to 226, making him second in the Open Era behind Jimmy Connors, who had 233. Federer is trying to set an Open Era record by winning his sixth US Open title. He currently shares the record of five with Connors and Pete Sampras. The Swiss master is bidding to become the first man to win six or more titles at two different Grand Slam tournaments, and to become the fourth man in history to win six or more US Championships or US Opens. Bill Larned, Richard Sears and Bill Tilden all won seven titles.

Federer has won at least one Grand Slam tournament title every year since winning his first at Wimbledon in 2003. This year, he lost to eventual winner Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the Australian Open, was runner-up to winner Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros and lost in the quarterfinals to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at Wimbledon.

In winning his five US Opens, his victims in the final were Lleyton Hewitt in 2004, Andre Agassi in 2005, Andy Roddick in 2006, Novak Djokovic in 2007 and Andy Murray in 2008. In those five victories combined, Federer lost just two sets.

SO GLOBAL

Sixty-seven countries have players in this year’s US Open, including Burundi, Netherlands Antilles, Bahamas and Guam, counting all of the competitors. The nation with the largest contingent in the men’s and women’s singles draw is, not surprisingly, the United States, with 29 players – 15 women and 14 men. But Russia has the largest group in women’s singles with 16. There are five men from Russia, giving the country a total of 21, the same size as France, which is represented by 14 men and seven women. Spain is next with 19 – 13 men and six women.

Burundi’s lone representative was Hassan Ndayishimiyo, who lost his first-round match in junior boys’ singles qualifying. Daniela Schippers, in the junior girls’ singles qualifying, also lost her first match. Other countries that had players only in the juniors include Mexico, Bolivia, Egypt, Philippines, Korea, Ecuador, Madagascar, Peru and Paraguay.

Among those countries with just one player in the competition were Denmark (who’s lone competitor was the world’s top-ranked woman, Caroline Wozniack), Cyprus, Finland, Luxembourg, Monaco, Tunisia, Georgia, Greece and New Zealand.

Conor Niland and Louk Sorensen qualified for the men’s singles, marking the first time in tennis history that Ireland had two players in the main draw at a Grand Slam tournament. Neither made it out of the first round. Niland retiring from his match against top-ranked Novak Djokovic because of food poisoning. Sorensen retired because of cramping during his first-round match against “lucky loser” Rogerio Dutra Da Silva of Brazil.

Jean-Rene Lisnard became the first player from Monaco to win a Grand Slam tournament match when he moved into the second round with a 7-6 (5) 6-2 6-4 win over Belgium’s Olivier Rochus. That was as far as he went.

Three Japanese were in men’s singles draw, the most from that country in a Grand Slam tournament since Roland Garros in 1974 and the first time at the US Open since 1972. All three – Kei Nishikori, Go Soeda and Tatsuma Ito – played only one match.

Three men from Colombia were also in the men’s singles, the first time since the 1977 Roland Garros that Colombia has had three men competing at a Grand Slam event and the first time at the US Open since 1976. Alejandro Falla was the only one to win his first-round match before losing to Tommy Haas in the second round.

SAY BYE-BYE

There were 14 retirements in the opening week of the US Open, a Grand Slam tournament Open Era record. And that doesn’t include the walkovers or lucky losers. Ten men retired from their matches in the first six days, with three complaining of injuries to their right shoulder. Two others – Nicolas Mahut and Marcel Granollers – pulled an abdominal muscle. Kei Nishikori complained of a sore lower back, Frank Dancevic said he had pulled a hamstring, Marinko Matosevic rolled his ankle, and Louk Sorensen had cramps.

Only four women retired in the first week – Japan’s Misaki Doi with cramps, Japan’s Ayumi Morita with an injured right shoulder, American Jamie Hampton with heat illness and Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer with lower back pain.

SEE YOU IN LONDON

Andy Murray and Roger Federer became the third and fourth players, respectively, to qualify for the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals, which will be held in London, Great Britain, November 20-27. The two join Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in the elite eight-player singles field. The 30-year-old Federer will be making his 10th straight appearance in the season finale, where he is a five-time champion. He won successive titles in 2003-04 when the tournament was held in Houston, Texas, USA, and in 2006-07 in Shanghai, China. He is the third player to qualify for the season finale for 10 or more consecutive years, joining Ivan Lendl (12) and Pete Sampras (11). Murray will be making his fourth straight trip to the Finals. The top three teams in the 2011 ATP Doubles Team Rankings have also qualified for the year-end finale: Bob and Mike Bryan, Michael Llodra-Nenad Zimonjic and Max Mirnyi-Daniel Nestor. All six players are past champions in the season-ending tournament.

SITE TO SEE

The US Open has a new show court. Gone are old courts 17 and 18, which in the second week of the year’s final Grand Slam tournament were used primarily for practice. The new Court 17 is a sunken gem with full television capabilities, state-of-the-art video screens and will include the Chase Review electronic line calling system. While bench seating was installed so that it could be used this year, future plans call stadium-style seats. The court was built as an amphitheater and will seat more than 2,500, making it the fourth-largest court at the US Open.

SET FOR DELRAY BEACH

Two former world number ones – Andy Roddick and Ivan Lendl – will participate in the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships. Roddick will join the ATP field, while Lendl will compete in the ATP Champions Tour field for the 2012 event, which runs February 24 to March 4 in Delray Beach, Florida, USA. Besides the ATP and seniors fields, the 20th anniversary of the event will also include a 10-and-under championships among other events. Joining Lendl in the seniors field will be Mats Wilander, Pat Cash, Michael Pernfors, Aaron Krickstein and Jimmy Arias.

STAR TURN

Pancho Gonzalez, twice a winner of the US Nationals, is the 2011 inductee into the US Open Court of Champions. A tennis pioneer, Gonzalez was 12 years old when he taught himself how to play tennis. He won the US Championships in 1948-49 and also won two matches to help the United States defeat Australia to capture the 1949 Davis Cup title. When tennis became open in 1968, Gonzalez, then 40 years old, reached the semifinals at Roland Garros and the quarterfinals of the inaugural US Open. The following year, he played Charlie Pasarell at Wimbledon in a five-hour match that spanned two days and led to the advent of the tiebreak. He also became the oldest player to win a professional tournament when he captured the Des Moines Open just shy of his 44th birthday.

SELECTED

Rick Welts, president and chief executive officer of the Phoenix Suns, and the Sportsmen’s Tennis and Enrichment Center of Boston, are the 2011 recipients of the USTA ICON Awards. The award honors individuals and organizations that have made a positive impact on diversity and inclusion in tennis and society, but also emphasize the United States Tennis Association’s commitment to fairness and equality. Previously known as the Breaking Barriers Awards, earlier honorees include Arthur Ashe, baseball Hall of Famer Hank Aaron, former USTA president Judy Levering, and AT&T Mobility’s CEO Ralph de le Vega.

The USTA also paid tribute to the career of Billie Jean King by introducing the inaugural Billie Jean King Legacy Award. The first recipient of the award was David N. Dinkins, the former mayor of New York City.

SPONSOR

Novak Djokovic is the newest Brand Ambassador for Audemars Piguet watches. Djokovic, who is ranked number one in the world, joins a Brand Ambassador team that includes Michael Schumacher, Leo Messi, LeBron James, cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and golfers Lee Westwood and Rory McIlroy.

SURFING

New York: www.usopen.org/

Genova: www.atpgenova.com

Biella: www.federtennis.it

Davis Cup: www.daviscup.com/

Szczecin: www.pekaoopen.pl

Tashkent: www.tashkentopen.uz/

Quebec City: www.challengebell.com/

Ningbo: www.tennis.org.cn

Sofia: http://tclevski.com

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN and WOMEN

US Open (first week), New York, New York, USA, hard

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

US Open (second week), New York, New York, USA, hard

$122,000 AON Challenger, Genova, Italy, clay

WOMEN

US Open (second week), New York, New York, USA, hard

$100,000 XII Torneo Internazionale Regione Piemonte, Biella, Italy, clay

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$153,000 Pelkao Szczecin Open, Szczecin, Poland, clay

$100,000 Ted Open, Istanbul, Turkey, hard

WOMEN

$220,000 Tashkent Open, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, hard

$220,000 Bell Challenge, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, hard

$100,000 ITF Women’s International Challenge, Ningbo, China, hard

$100,000 Allianz Cup, Sofia, Bulgaria, clay

DAVIS CUP

(September 16-18)

World Group Semifinals

Serbia vs. Argentina at Belgrade, Serbia, hard

Spain vs. France at Cordoba, Spain, clay

World Group Playoffs

Romania vs. Czech Republic at Bucharest, Romania, clay; Russia vs. Brazil at Kazan, Russia, hard; Israel vs. Canada at Ramat Hasharon, Israel, hard; South Africa vs. Croatia at Potchefstroom, South Africa, hard; Chile vs. Italy at Santiago, Chile, hard; Japan vs. India at Tokyo, Japan, hard; Belgium vs. Austria at Antwerp, Belgium, hard; Australia vs. Switzerland at Sydney, Australia, grass

Group I

Americas 1st round playoffs: Ecuador vs. Mexico at Guayaquil, Ecuador; Asia/Oceania 2nd round playoffs: Philippines vs. Chinese Taipei at Lapu-Lapu, Philippines; Europe/Africa 2nd round playoffs: Finland vs. Poland at Espoo, Finland, hard; Slovak Republic vs. Ukraine at Bratislava, Slovak Republic, clay

Group II

Americas 3rd round: Paraguay vs. Peru at Asuncion, Paraguay, clay; Asia/Oceana 3rd round: Korea vs. Thailand at Gimcheon, Korea, hard; Europe/Africa 3rd round: Great Britain vs. Hungary at Glasgow, Scotland, Great Britain; Denmark vs. Bosnia/Herzegovina at Hillerod, Denmark, hard

Roger Federer, Serena Williams on cruise control

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NEW YORK – One day after older sister Venus pulled out of the US Open with an illness, Serena Williams put a hurting on Michaella Krajicek.

Considered a favorite to win her fourth title on Arthur Ashe Stadium, Williams powered her way into the third round, crushing her Dutch foe 6-0 6-1.

Roger Federer found a little more resistance in his second-round men’s match, but not a lot more as he toppled Israel’s Dudi Sela 6-3 6-2 6-2.

Serena Williams

“Not much trouble on my serve, and from the baseline I also thought I had the upper hand,” said Federer, who is seeking his sixth US Open crown. “When it’s like that, obviously it’s tough for the opponent, but I just think I was superior today.”

No. 7 Gael Monfils of France was the highest men’s seed to be ousted when he fell to Spain’s Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-6 (5) 5-7 6-7 (5) 6-4 6-4.

Because injuries and illnesses have kept her out of tennis for most of the past year, Williams was seeded only 28th this year. Yet she is the favorite over top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki, who has yet to win a Grand Slam tournament title.

The defending US Open women’s champion, Kim Clijsters, who also captured the Australian Open in January, is not here because of injuries. Also on the sideline are French Open champion Li Na of China and Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, ensuring there will be a fourth different Grand Slam tournament women’s champion in 2011.

It wasn’t as if Williams was facing a strong foe. This was Krajicek’s first Grand Slam tournament main draw since Wimbledon in 208, and she had reached the second round at a major for the first time since the US Open four years ago.

Williams, on the other hand, showed the game that took her to two tournament titles this year and raised her ranking from the high 100s to 29th in the world – that low simply because of the paucity of matches played in the last year.

“I just hope to keep my errors down and keep making my shots, and hopefully I will be able to win five more matches,” Williams said. “If not, I’m still happy to be there.”

That’s because she wasn’t at last year’s US Open. A series of injuries and illnesses kept her out of tennis for 11 months, and she missed three Grand Slam tournaments during that time. Williams returned to the sport in June and didn’t win her first title of 2011 until Sanford. She followed that by capturing the hard-court warm-up event in Toronto, then pulled out of Cincinnati with an injury after winning her opener.

Krajicek just found herself in another league against Williams.

“I told her after the match welcome back,” Williams said. “I know she’s been going through a really tough time. … I hope she doesn’t get discouraged because she’s played well.

“She never gave up today no matter what the score looked like. I thought it was a really tough match. It was good for her and, you know, she’s still young. Her whole life is ahead of her.”

With his victory, Federer moved into second place behind Jimmy Connors with 225 Grand Slam tournament wins, snapping a tie with Andre Agassi. Connors leads with a 233-49 win-loss record.

“It was a good match for me in breezy conditions,” said Federer. “It was a bit tricky early on to find the rhythm. That’s why I was happy to get the first break in the first set.”

From then on it was close to a rout as Sela had nothing in his arsenal to threaten the Swiss master. It was Federer who was controlling the points, determining the speed and length of the rallies, and then usually finishing them off with a winner. In all, Federer had 31 winners, 21 more than Sela, and wound up winning 83 points to just 48 for his Israeli opponent.

In Ferrero, Monfils faced a strong foe. Currently ranked 105th in the world, the Spaniard is playing his first Grand Slam tournament this year, having missed the Australian Open while recovering from surgery, the French Open with a shoulder injury and Wimbledon with an unspecified injury.

But Ferrero was a finalist on the hard courts of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in 2003, losing to Andy Roddick, and won Roland Garros in the same. In September 2003, he was ranked No. 1 in the world.

The acrobatic Monfils couldn’t match the firepower off the ground that carried Ferrero to victory. Whenever Monfils appeared ready to take charge of the match, Ferrero came up with the correct answer.

In defeat, Monfils won over the audience with his crowd-please style of play, diving for shots and chasing down every ball. When the match ended, the crowd gave Monfils a standing ovation.

“It was like very lovely,” the Frenchman said of the crowd’s response. “It was a good feeling. Even though I lost the match, it was a good feeling.”

Alisa Kleybanova diagnosed with cancer, Soderling wins Bastad and Medina Garrigues takes Palermo – Mondays with Bob Greene

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STARS

Juan Carlos Ferrero beat Pablo Andujar 6-4 6-0 to win the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, Germany

Robin Soderling beat David Ferrer 6-2 6-2 to win the SkiStar Swedish Open in Båstad, Sweden

Anabel Medina Garrigues beat Polona Hercog 6-3 6-2 to win the XXIV SANAI Open in Palermo, Italy

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez beat Patricia Mayr-Achleitner 6-0 7-5 to win the Nürnberger Gastein Ladies in Bad Gastein, Austria

Eric Prodon beat Nikova Ciric 6-1 6-3 to win the BNP Paribas Polish Open in Sopot, Poland

Feliciano Lopez beat Carlos Salamanca 6-4 6-3 to win the Open Seguros Bolivar in Bogota, Colombia

Alisa Kleybanova

Laurynas Grigelis beat Illija Bozoljac 6-2 7-6 (4) to win The Comerica Bank Challenger in Aptos, California, USA

FED CUP

World Group II Playoffs: Japan beat Argentina 4-0 at Kobe, Japan

DAVIS CUP

World Group I, Americas Zone, 2nd round: Canada beat Ecuador 3-2 at Guayaquil, Ecuador

SAYING

“First of all, in any sport where you can measure distance, height speed and all of that, you see how athletes have changed their sport and made it better. I believe, with every generation, the sport has improved. Certainly, in the men’s game, that has been the case. I think that I played Pete (Sampras) at his best, I played Roger (Federer) at his best … I believe wholeheartedly that Rogers and (Rafael) Nadal have pushed the game much further than myself or Pete ever did. Their options on the tennis court are considerably more than ours.” – Andre Agassi.

“This is the toughest time in my life, and I hope it always stays the toughest time in my life. I’m sure I’ll be able to overcome this. It’s just a matter of patience and time.” – Alisa Kleybanova, announcing she has Hodgkin’s disease, a form of cancer.

“Since I don’t look like every other girl, it takes a while to be OK with that. To be different. But different is good. My smile remains my favorite part of my body. Does that count? I think a smile can make your whole body!” – Serena Williams.

“When Billie Jean asks you to do something, you do it.” – Chris Evert, explaining why she has made appearances at World TeamTennis events after being asked to do so by Billie Jean King.

“It is amazing. You don’t get to defend your title every year, so to defend my title in my hometown it is amazing. It is a title that I thought I would never win, but now I have gone the last three years: in the final, then win, win. I am on cloud nine right now.” – Robert Lindstedt, who teamed with Horia Tecau to successful defend their doubles title at the SkiStar Sweden Open.

“I take a lot of confidence in myself again. I can believe that I can win tournaments again after the injury. That is the most important thing. The knee responds very well, so everything’s perfect.” – Juan Carlos Ferrero, after winning the Stuttgart, Germany, title in just his third tournament of the year.


SENIOR SEÑOR

In just his third tournament of the year, Juan Carlos Ferrero showed off the skills that once took him to number one in the world. The 31-year-old Spaniard, who has been sidelined with knee and wrist injuries, won his 16th tour-level title at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, Germany, defeating countryman Pablo Andujar 6-4 6-0 in the final. “It’s been a dream for me this week,” Ferrero said. “This first tournament playing here (after) a very long year at home, practicing zero, so I came here with no goals. Now I am the winner of the tournament. I’m very happy.” Ferrero is the seventh different Spaniard to win at Stuttgart.

SPANISH LADY

María José Martínez Sánchez is back. After winning her third career title last year in Rome, Martínez Sánchez missed two months with a knee injury. She didn’t play Rome this year, so her ranking plummeted into the 80s. On Sunday, the Spaniard returned to the winner’s circle, capturing the Nürnberger Gastein Ladies in Bad Gastein, Austria. Her 6-0 7-5 victory ended a remarkable run by Austrian Patricia Mayr-Achleitner, a wild-card entry who had the best week of her career. Martínez Sánchez won the first seven games of the match before Mayr-Achleitner took the next four games for a 4-1 second-set lead. But the Spaniard then won six of the last seven games to win. “At the start I was playing almost 100% perfectly,” said Martínez Sánchez, who hit nine aces in the match. “It’s normal to have a bit of difficulty after such a good start, but I stayed calm all the time until the end, and that’s why I won.”

SOUTHERN CAL HALL

Billie Jean King is going into yet another hall of fame. King heads the 2011 inductees who will be enshrined in the Southern California Tennis Association Hall of Fame in Los Angeles on August 5. A member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, King will be joined in the SCTA Hall by past SCTA and USTA President Franklin Johnson; fellow players Dorothy Head Knode, Pat Canning Todd, Kathy Mae Fritz and Hugh Stewart; along with coaches Billy Martin and Dick Leach. The eight will join the 62 previously inducted members of the Hall of Fame.

SIDELINED BY CANCER

Alisa Kleybanova is optimistic about beating cancer but is not sure when or whether she will be able to resume her tennis career. The Russian chose her 22nd birthday to make public the fact that she has Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Kleybanova, who is ranked 28th in the world, has not played since May and missed both the French Open and Wimbledon. “It’s not an easy time for me right now,” Kleybanova wrote in a message on wtatennis.com. “I’ve been a bit unlucky with my health. I have Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a form of cancer.”

SWEET PAYOFF

The US Open singles champions will each pocket a record USD $1.8 million this September. The United States Tennis Association (USTA) announced the total prize money for the year’s final Grand Slam tournament has been increased by more than USD $1 million to USD $23.7 million. The US Open begins its two-week run on August 29.

SURPRISING RUN

Federico del Bonis lost his semifinal at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, Germany to Juan Carlos Ferrero. That wasn’t a surprise since Ferrero, despite playing his first tournament in two months after wrist and knee injuries, once was ranked number one in the world. The surprise was that the 21-year-old del Bonis was in the semifinals. The Mercedes Cup marked the first time the Argentine has won a tour-level match. At Stuttgart, he won three matches in qualifying and three in the main draw to reach his first semifinal.

STARS IN ACTION

Three of the top women players in the world – French Open champion Li Na, top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki and Wimbledon finalist Maria Sharapova – will be heading to Japan in September to help the earthquake and tsunami victims. The three will compete in the Pan Pacific Open in September, and all three will also take part in charity events to raise money for the disaster victims. Li Na said they plan to meet with children from Fukushima Prefecture, where the nuclear power plan suffered a meltdown following the earthquake and tsunami. The three stars also will help the victims through their foundations.

SAYONARA

Sybille Bammer has retired for the last time. The 31-year-old Austrian retired from professional tennis after she lost in the opening round at Wimbledon in June. Then she decided to play her last tournament at home, in the Gastein Ladies, a clay court event in Bad Gastein, Austria. After pulling off a surprising first-round victory, Bammer lost the final match of career, falling to fellow Austrian Yvonne Meusburger 6-2 6-1. A two-time tour winner, Bammer never fared well in WTA tournaments played in Austria. “I will take a break now and enjoy some time off with my family,” said Bammer, who has a 9-year-old daughter. “I won’t regret my decision.”

SWISS TEAM

Switzerland’s best two players ever – Roger Federer and Martina Hingis – reportedly could partner in the mixed doubles at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Federer, who will be seeking to win his first singles Olympic gold medal, captured the doubles at the Beijing Games in 2008, teaming with Stanislas Wawrinka. Ben Rothenberg of The Daily Forehand has reported that Federer has asked Hingis, who is retired, to partner him in the London Olympics. Mixed doubles is making a return to the Olympics. The last mixed doubles gold medalists were R. Norris Williams and Hazel Wightman, who won 88 years ago.

STAYING HOME

After losing in the doubles final at the SkiStar Swedish Open, Simon Aspelin announced his retirement. The 37-year-old Sweden and his partner, Andreas Siljestrom, finished runner-up to Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau 6-3 6-3 for the title in Båstad. Aspelin turned pro in 1998 after graduating from Pepperdine University, where he was a four-time All-American. He won the first of his 12 titles in Marseille, France, in 2000 and reached a career-high doubles ranking of seventh in the world in March 2008. He teamed with Julian Knowle to win the US Open in 2007 and partnered with fellow Swede Thomas Johansson at the 2008 Beijing Olympics where they won a silver medal. “I’m a little bit disappointed after losing the final,” Aspelin said. “The feelings are mixed, but I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time so I can settle down and spend more time at home. I haven’t quite decided what I want to do later in the year, but right now I just want to relax for a few weeks.”

SEES PAST AS FUTURE

Ana Ivanovic is looking to the past in a bid to regain her Grand Slam tournament-winning ways. The Serbian star has returned to Scott Byrnes as her strength and conditioning coach. Byrnes worked with Ivanovic between July 2006 and July 2009, a period during which she became number one in the world. Byrnes took a break from tennis. Since his return, he has worked with Maria Sharapova, Vera Zvonareva and Victoria Azarenka. “With the appointment of Nigel (Sars) as my coach and now Scott as my fitness trainer, I feel that I have a very good structure in place and I am feeling optimistic about the future,” Ivanovic said.

“SOFT” RIVALRY, NOT

When Rafael Nadal, after winning the Australian Open in 2009, wrapped his arm around his defeated opponent, Roger Federer, in a gesture of compassion, it didn’t sit well with Hall of Famer Jimmy Connors. In the battle of left-handed Americans, Connors never felt sympathy for John McEnroe. “If I beat Mac in the finals of Wimbledon and he was having a tough time standing next to me, I could never see me putting my arm around him to console him, and vice versa,” Connors said. “And I wouldn’t expect him to. That’s not the kind of rivalry that we had. It carried far and wide to every corner of this great planet. I’m happy to say that he showed no respect, and I didn’t expect him to, even though he was trying to take my place as the best tennis player at that time. I didn’t give him any either; he was trying to brush me aside. We had a different feel and a different rivalry. It was the Lakers and the Celtics: his style versus my style, his attitude versus my attitude, his upbringing versus my upbringing. There was something that set us off towards each other. In turn, you saw the kind of tennis that we were able to produce.” Time has changed all that, however. “We had something special when we played. To be able to get beyond that, and move forward, I think is great,” Connors said of McEnroe. “Life’s too short to ever hold a grudge on everything.”

SANCTIONED

The Federal Communications Commission enforcement bureau believes cable giant Comcast Corp. has used its market muscle to discriminate against Tennis Channel. The Santa Monica, California, USA-based Tennis Channel has long claimed it lost revenue because Comcast, America’s largest cable television operator, has refused to add the sports network to a more widely distributed package of channels. Key to the case was testimony that two other sports channels that Comcast owns – the Golf Channel and Versus – has been provided better financial terms and greater exposure by the cable company. The case is now before an administrative law judge in Washington who has been presiding over the case. The judge will submit his decision to the five-member Federal Communications Commission, which will make the final determination.

SET FOR NEW HAVEN

Top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki will be joined by eighth-ranked Francesca Schiavone and 12th-ranked Svetlana Kuznetsova at the New Haven Open at Yale in August. Schiavone won the French Open in 2010 and reached the final this year, falling to Li Na. The Italian, who has been ranked as high as fourth in the world, will be making her sixth appearance at New Haven. Kuznetsova is a two-time Grand Slam tournament champion, winning the US Open in 2004 and the French Open in 2009. She won New Haven in 2007. Wozniacki has never lost a singles match at New Haven, winning all three times she has played in the hard-court tournament, a warm-up event for the US Open. The New Haven Open, part of the Olympus US Open Series, will be played August 18-27.

SCOT TO THE RESCUE?

Marcos Bagdatis has hired Miles Maclagan as his new coach. The Zambian-born Scotsman helped guide Andy Murray to a career-high world number two ranking and two of his three Grand Slam tournament finals. Now Maclagan is helping the 26-year-old Bagdatis prepare for the upcoming North American hard court season. Bagdatis grabbed Maclagan when the Scot split from Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber, reportedly by mutual consent, after Wimbledon. Maclagan becomes Bagdatis’ third coach in three months. Just before the French Open, Bagdatis announced he had hired Eduardo Infantino of Argentina as his coach. That was a short-lived relationship, and after Bagdatis lost at Wimbledon, he renewed his partnership with Guillaume Peyre, who guided the Cypriot to the Australian Open final in 2006.

SODERLING STIFTELSE

Robin Soderling has been busy on and off the court this past week. Off the court, Soderling inaugurated a foundation, became an ambassador for the Non-Violence Project and announced a new talent award. The Robin Soderling Stiftelse hopes to help children in need, attempting to improve their everyday lives, assisting those who are economically deprived and providing aid to research that is focused on children’s diseases. Sweden’s top player was named ambassador for the Non-Violence Project – Tennis for Peace, an international youth education and leadership initiative promoting social change. And, together with Swedish candy manufacturer Lakerol, Soderling introduced a new talent award which aims to ensure the growth of Swedish tennis. “This scholarship is very dear to my heart because as a junior I know how hard it was to develop into a top player. It’s a long and costly way to go,” Soderling said. On the court, Soderling won the SkiStar Swedish Open in Båstad, Sweden, reclaiming the title he won in 2009.

SCHOOLS FOR MALAWI

Through his Roger Federer Foundation, the tennis star has launched a USD $3.3 million (2.4-million euro) initiative to build schools in Malawi. In association with Action Aid International Malawi (AAIM), Federer has begun a 10-year initiative to support early childhood education. The aim is to sustainably improve the quality of care and education in 80 Community Based Childcare Centers (CBCCs) and put 54,000 children between 4 and 6 years of age into schools. “As the father of two little girls, I observe every day how incredibly fast children learn if their environment is a stimulating one,” Federer said in a statement. “It is a great privilege for me and my foundation to help give children in Malawi the chance to reach their full potential.” Malawi is one of Africa’s poorest countries, with half its 13 million people living below the poverty line.

SET TO CLASH

Russia will be host to Spain when the 2012 Fed Cup competition gets underway next year. Other World Group matchups between the eight nations who actually compete for the international tennis trophy send Serbia to Belgium, Ukraine to Italy and Germany to the Czech Republic. In the World Group II first round, the United States will be at home to Belarus, Slovenia travels to Japan, France will be at the Slovak Republic and Australia will play host to Switzerland. Fed Cup by BNP Paribas is the largest annual international team competition in women’s sport, with 81 nations taking part in 2011.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Aptos: Carsten Ball and Chris Guccione beat John Paul Fruttero and Raven Klaasen 7-6 (5) 6-4

Bad Gastein: Eva Birnerova and Lucie Hradecka beat Jarmila Gajdosova and Julia Goerges 4-6 6-2 12-10 (match tiebreak)

Båstad: Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau beat Simon Aspelin and Andreas Siljestrom 6-3 6-3

Bogota: Treat Conrad Huey and Izak Van der Merwe beat Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah 7-6 (3) 6-7 (5) 0-0 default

Palermo: Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci beat Andrea Hlavackova and Klara Zakopalova 7-5 6-1

Sopot: Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski beat Olivier Charroin and Stephane Robert 7-5 7-6 (4)

Stuttgart: Jurgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner beat Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez 6-3 6-4

SURFING

Hamburg: http://bet-at-home-open.com/

Baku: www.bakucup.az/

Bucharest: www.bcropen.ro/en/

Petange: www.tennispetange.lu

Atlanta: www.atlantatennischampionships.com/

Poznan: www.porscheopen.pl/

Astana: www.ktf.kz

Los Angeles: www.farmersclassic.com/

Gstaad: www.creditagricolesuisseopengstaad.ch/en/

Umag: www.croatiaopen.hr/tenis/home.aspx

Stanford: www.bankofthewestclassic.com/

Washington: www.midatlanticwtc.com/

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN

$1,425,000 bet-at-home Open German Tennis Championships, Hamburg, Germany, clay

$531,000 Atlanta Tennis Championships, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, hard

$120,800 Poznan Porsche Open, Poznan, Poland, clay

WOMEN

$220,000 Baku Cup, Baku, Azerbaijan, clay

$100,000 ITF Roller Open, Petange, Luxembourg, clay

$100,000 BCR Open Romania Ladies, Bucharest, Romania, clay

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$619,500 Farmers Classic, Los Angeles, California, USA, hard

$563,400 Crédit Agricole Suisse Open Gstaad. Gstaad. Switzerland, clay

$563,400 ATP Studena Croatia, Umag, Croatia, clay

$125,000 President’s Cup, Astana, Kazakhstan, hard

WOMEN

$721,000 Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, California, USA, hard

$220,000 Citi Open, Washington, DC, USA, hard

$100,000 President’s Cup, Astana, Kazakhstan, hard

Sampras Rallies to Beat Courier

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WorldTennisMagazine.com takes a look back at ATP World Tour Finals from yester-year in this special series – ATP World Tour Final Rewind. Today we look back to matches from November 17, as excerpted from the book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.TennisHistoryBook.com) by Randy Walker.

1991 – Pete Sampras rallies to defeat Jim Courier 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-4 in 3 hours, 10 minutes to win the year-end ATP Tour Championships in Frankfurt, Germany. Says Courier of Sampras, “When he is hot, he is hot, he can knock you off the floor. He goes for shots most of us wouldn’t even think of hitting. It was his day today.”

2002 – World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt battles Juan Carlos Ferrero for four hours and five sets, but successfully defends his title at the year-end ATP Masters Cup in Shanghai, China, defeating the Spaniard 7-5, 7-5, 2-6, 2-6, 6-4. The event is the biggest sporting event ever to be staged in China at the time, with 9,000 fans in attendance and global television audience of millions.

BULL RING IN ELEVATED BOGOTA AWAITS U.S. DAVIS CUP TEAM

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By Randy Walker

The Tennis Federation of Colombia has selected the Plaza de Toros La Santamaria in Bogota, located at an elevation of over 8,000 feet above sea level, as the site for its Davis Cup Play-Off Round series against the United States September 17-19. A clay court will be placed inside the 10,000-seat bull ring in the Colombian capital city. The United States must win this series with Colombia in order to qualify for the elite 16-team Davis Cup World Group in 2011 and be eligible to win the Davis Cup next year.

The selection by the Colombian Tennis Federation of Bogota comes as a bit of a surprise as the elevation of 8,626 feet, which creates swifter conditions, will aid the expected U.S. singles players Sam Querrey and John Isner and their booming serves. However, the unusual conditions – and the U.S. players lack of match experience at such elevation – may also provide for a difficult adjustment, especially with the series being played only five days following the conclusion of the U.S. Open.

Querrey and Isner represented the U.S. admirably in its 3-2 loss to Serbia in the first round earlier this year on clay and in Serbia. Querrey and Isner recently played the clay-court final in Belgrade, marking the first time since the 1991 French Open final between Jim Courier and Andre Agassi that two American men have competed in a clay-court final in Europe. Davis Cup stalwart Andy Roddick has indicated that he will not compete for the U.S. Davis Cup team in 2010 after skipping the first-round series against Serbia. The U.S. doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan are also expected to compete for U.S. captain Patrick McEnroe.

Colombia is led by Santiago Giraldo, currently ranked No. 57, who had a great run to the round of 16 of the Italian Championship last month, defeating Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-0, 6-3 en route. The Colombian No. 2 is Alejandro Falla, who is ranked No. 65.

The United States famously was defeated in the first round of the 1974 competition by Colombia – losing 4-1 also in Bogota after competing in the last six Davis Cup finals, winning five times. The last time the two nations played was in 1979 as the U.S. blanked Colombia 5-0 in Cleveland in the first round. That series marked the debut of John McEnroe and Peter Fleming as a U.S. Davis Cup doubles team. The United States has not played in South America since a 1997 first round series at Brazil.

The United States played in a bullring during its 2008 Davis Cup semifinal against Spain in Madrid. Spain won that series 4-1 at the famed Las Ventas bull ring.

For the full Davis Cup Play-off draw, go to www.DavisCup.com.

Randy Walker is a communications and marketing specialist, writer, tennis historian and the managing partner of New Chapter Media – www.NewChapterMedia.com. He was a 12-year veteran of the U.S. Tennis Association’s marketing and communications division where he was worked as the press officer for 22 U.S. Davis Cup ties, three Olympic tennis teams and was an integral part of USTA media services team for 14 US Opens. He is the author of the book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY.

GINEPRI IS LAST AMERICAN STANDING

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By Blair Henley

After eight days of play at Roland Garros the men’s draw has been whittled down to 16 of the usual suspects. You know, Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray… and Robby Ginepri? Wait a second. He’s ranked No. 98 in the world and has won only one match of the eight he played this season before coming to Roland Garros. And he’s an AMERICAN!

It took five hard fought sets for Ginepri to top 2003 French Open champion and clay specialist, Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-4 in the third round. His win was a bright spot for the United States on a damp day in Paris that saw the demise of No. 6 seed Andy Roddick and perhaps more shockingly, the top-seeded doubles duo of Bob and Mike Bryan. Another American, No. 17 seeded John Isner, was eliminated the day before.

Ginepri isn’t a complete stranger to the second week of a Grand Slam. He made it to the semifinals of the 2005 U.S. Open and the fourth round of the 2008 French Open, but the neck surgery he underwent just a month and a half ago made this year’s run even more improbable.

“I’m not 100 percent sure the name of it, but they go in and burn a couple nerves in the neck to prevent the brain from feeling the pain,” Ginepri explained. “But there’s no real harm to it, no downside at all, so I went with it.”

The 27-year-old from Kennesaw, Ga., took out another American, Sam Querrey, in the first round and then overcame Potito Starace of Italy before running into former world No. 1, Ferrero. The Spaniard has won 11 clay court titles in his career; Ginepri had previously won 11 matches on the surface.

“I really wasn’t sure what to expect going into this match. I don’t do well with game plans, so I just kind of went out there and tried to apply my game, kind of feel the match as it went on,” Ginepri said. “But it was a tough fight. He’s such a great competitor out there. I knew he wasn’t going to give up after I was up two sets to love. You can never count someone out like that. But I hung in there. I just competed well throughout the whole match. I never got down on myself, and always gave myself another opportunity to see another point.”

Andy Roddick did not show the same resolve in his surprising upset at the hands of No. 114-ranked qualifier, Teimuraz Gabashvili of Russia. Gabashvili hit 58 winners in his 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 triumph, more than quadrupling Roddick’s total of 14.

Ginepri reacted to being the last American man in the draw: “Obviously you want as many Americans in the tournament as you can, but if I’m the last man standing, you know, so be it.”

He will face No. 3 seed Novak Djokovic next. Win or lose, Ginepri explained why he will always have a soft spot for playing at Roland Garros.

“You see, we share the initials RG.”

WILL U.S. DAVIS CUP TEAM EXPERIENCE “ELEVATION” IN COLOMBIA?

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By Randy Walker

The United States Davis Cup team drew an away tie at Colombia in the 2010 Davis Cup Play-off Round draw held Tuesday in London. The United States will have to win this series, to be played September 17-19, to be eligible to win the Davis Cup in 2011 and stay in the elite 16-team Davis Cup World Group.

Expected to compete for the USA in this series are Sam Querrey and John Isner, who represented the U.S. admirably in its 3-2 loss to Serbia in the first round earlier this year on clay and in Serbia. Querrey and Isner recently played the clay-court final in Belgrade, marking the first time since the 1991 French Open final between Jim Courier and Andre Agassi that two American men have competed in a clay-court final in Europe. Colombia is expected to choose a clay court for this series with the Americans. Davis Cup stalwart Andy Roddick has indicated that he will not compete for the U.S. Davis Cup team in 2010 after skipping the first-round series against Serbia.

Colombia is led by Santiago Giraldo, currently ranked No. 59, who had a great run to the round of 16 of the Italian Championship last month, defeating Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-0, 6-3 en route. The Colombian No. 2 is Alejandro Falla, who is ranked No. 69.

The United States famously was defeated in the first round of the 1974 competition by Colombia – losing 4-1 in the Colombian capital of Bogota after competing in the last six Davis Cup finals, winning five times. The 1974 series against Colombia was played at an elevation of 8,626 feet – the highest elevation ever for a U.S. Davis Cup match. The United States Tennis Association and Davis Cup Captain Patrick McEnroe can hope that the Colombians chose to play this 2010 match at such an elevation as the swifter conditions would greatly benefit the big serves of both Querrey and Isner. Sea-level city Barranquilla, that has hosted professional events in the past, and Cartagena could be better options for the Colombians.

The last time the two nations played was in 1979 as the U.S. blanked Colombia 5-0 in Cleveland in the first round. That series marked the debut of John McEnroe and Peter Fleming as a U.S. Davis Cup doubles team. The United States has not played in South America since a 1997 first round series at Brazil.

The United States has long-waged drug war in Colombia, but the country has seen a recent bounce in tourism as drug hostilities have waned.

For the full Davis Cup Play-off draw, go to www.DavisCup.com.

RAVAGING RAFA: THE EMPEROR OF ROME AGAIN

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By Bud Collins

While Roman emperors have come and gone over the centuries, the current one – of Spanish origin – holds the old town in the palm of his left hand.  And has no intention of  letting go.

Crowned for a Roman record fifth time, Rafael I should be known as Ravaging Rafa as he comes to town, sweeps up the goodies, and nobody dares to resist.  Rafa started winning the Italian Open as a teen-ager in 2005, and boosted his match record here to 27-1 by beating countryman David Ferrer, 7-5, 6-2, on a cold, wet and windy Sunday.

How did he ever lose in Rome, this a gladiator in plaid short pants?  Blistered feet and another Spaniard, Juan Carlos Ferrero, did him in two years ago.  Unwisely Rafa insisted on playing when he had no chance. Typical.

It looks as though Nadal, bursting with pride and punch, no longer worrying about his gimpy knees, could become the Eternal City’s eternal champion.  The only things that roadblocked him yesterday – momentarily – were two rain delays.  The second washed out most of the sell-out gathering of 10,400 in the new stadium at Il Foro Italico.

What would an earlier emperor named Nero think of this successor?  Can’t you hear him saying, “The Spanish kid’s just as tough and melodic as I was on a stringed instrument.  Every year he burns down the town.  I could only do it once.”

Those few citizens who waited out the weather for several hours, among them US Ambassador David Thorne, were rewarded by more of Rafa – and No. 12 Ferrer, who resisted fiercely.   Both of them love the rust-toned European clay, and they played as if their lives depended on it.  Though their battleground was slippery and uncertain – both were knockdown victims – they drove each other to the far reaches of the enclosure, and ran down balls like Labrador retrievers.  Ferrer, who had beaten a pair of top tenners along the way, Andy Murray and Jo Wilfred Tsonga, just about equaled Nadal’s shotmaking. And sometimes topped him.  It’s the kind of give-and-take tennis, double digit rallies that you see only on European soil.

Rafa lost serve only once in the entire tournament.  That was to the greatest player in the history of Latvia, Ernests (cq) Gulbis (can you name another?) in their 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 semifinal.  Watch out for lanky 21-year-old Gulbis, Nadal would tell you.   Their tussle wasn’t settled until the very last game.

Ferrer was quickly behind Fernando Verdasco – yet another Spaniard – 5-1 in their semi.  Only to win eight straight games and the decision, 7-5, 6-2.  “I was just worn out,” said the tall lefty, Verdasco, instrumental in Spain’s Davis Cups of 2008-09.  He played almost every day for three weeks, and won  Barcelona. “It was the best three weeks of my career.”

A year ago Nadal played anywhere he could set foot on a clay court, but realizes he has to pace himself, as Roger Federer is doing.  The knees soured, he lost his French title and No. 1 standing and was unable to defend his 2008 Wimbledon.

“I’ve had a lot of bad days over the last five years.  The thing is to have enough motivation to want to improve all the time.  That is the main thing for me.  No I didn’t have problems with my knees for a whole week.  Unbelievable.”

Ferrer, keeping it hot for Rafa despite the champion’s onerous spin that is so terrible to solve and do anything with.  His to-the-point thought on Nadal: “Rafa is in form, especially in difficult moments, and it is difficult to beat him.” Amen.

All dirt roads lead to Paris, and the Emperor longs for the French championship lifted from him a year ago by Robin Soderling, allowing Federer to win.  Is he as good as he was in grabbing four straight at Roland Garros?  I think so, but sometimes knees don’t please.

Will these abundant Spaniards keep it up?  Three semifinalists, and the only all-Spanish final in Italian annals.  They were blooming like the azaleas on the timeless Spanish Steps.  Tangling with the Emperor in this settlement is like being thrown down those Steps.

You can follow Bud Collins on his website www.BudCollinsTennis.com, on his Facebook Fan Page “Bud Collins and The Bud Collins History of Tennis book,” and on twitter at @BudCollins. Make sure you go out and buy a copy of his celebrated book THE BUD COLLINS HISTORY OF TENNIS ($35.95, New Chapter Press, www.NewChapterMedia.com).

ROBBIE KOENIG BLOGS FROM ROME!

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Jeez what a first day here in the Italian capital. Was anyone else as blown away as I was by the performance of Santiago Giraldo??? The kid was truly amazing against Juan Carlos Ferrero, one of the most in form players on clay this year besides Nadal!! Will be VERY interesting to see how his second round match pans out because it’s never easy to reproduce such ball striking in back to back matches!

I am looking forward to see Roger Federer in action in his first clay court event. I watched a bit of his doubles today…the guy is sooo loose when he plays, its a joke!

The new stadium here is good, nothing more, nothing less. Unfortunately for us, the commentary booth is in the clouds so not a great perspective to watch the tennis unfold. Will try post some pictures tomorrow.

Pizza for lunch today, was well below par…Papa Johns anyday!

Ciao
Robbie

Roger Federer plays doubles in Rome