World Tennis Magazine

Unique Tennis Perspectives

Radek Stepanek

Radek Stepanek, Czech Republic Repeat Winning Ways in Davis Cup – Mondays with Bob Greene

by

By  Bob Greene

 

STARS

The Czech Republic beat Serbia 3-2 in Belgrade, Serbia, to retain its Davis Cup title

Filippo Volandri beat Alejandro Gonzalez 4-6 6-4 6-2 to win the Challenger Tour Finals in São Paulo, Brazil

Jana Cepelova beat Maria-Elena Camerin 6-1 6-2 to win the Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

 

SAYING

“We played in Serbia, on their surface, in front of their fantastic crowd. We made history today. I felt great on the court here since Friday and I just proved it. I’ve been Top 10 singles, Top 10 doubles, I’ve won two Grand Slams and played the Masters in singles and doubles, but winning the Davis Cup tops it all.” – Radek Stepanek, who for the second straight year won the decisive fifth rubber to lead the Czech Republic to the Davis Cup title.

“Missing two second-choice players was too big a blow and we just couldn’t do more although we tried to cope with the tough situation as best we could. The positive thing is that we have expanded our Davis Cup team and we will keep the faith in our new arrivals.” – Bogdan Obradovic, Serbia’s Davis Cup captain who didn’t have either Janko Tipsarevic or Viktor Troicki for the final against the Czech Republic.

“It’s a dream. The first thing I have to say is it’s a privilege to be on this team. Having Tomas (Berdych) and Radek (Stepanek) on the team is something special. I’m really proud of my team, it’s really amazing what they achieved. Radek is a real professional.” – Vladimir Safarik, Czech Republic Davis Cup captain.

“It was a great final and a very special moment for me. I’m getting older and I can’t miss these opportunities. I know that (Alejandro) Gonzalez will have many other opportunities to win titles.” – Filippo Volandri, after winning the Challenger Tour Finals.

“We push each other to the limit. We make each other better players. We make each other work harder on our games, especially when we play against each other. It’s always a huge challenge.” – Novak Djokovic, on his rivalry with Rafael Nadal.

STEPANEK, AGAIN

For the second straight year the Davis Cup final has come down the decisive fifth rubber. And for the second straight year Radek Stepanek has been the hero for the Czech Republic. The veteran Stepanek used his experience in stopping Dusan Lajovic 6-3 6-1 6-1 and giving the Czech Republic a 3-2 victory over Serbia. “The match was the same (as last year’s final), under the biggest possible pressure that can be,” said Stepanek, who last year beat Spain’s Nicolas Almagro in the decisive rubber. “I knew that I would want to use the experience from last year’s final. I controlled the match apart from the first game and I think I played in my best form ever this weekend.” Serbia was led by Novak Djokovic, who easily won his two singles matches, both in straight sets. But Serbia was missing its next two best players with Janko Tipsarevic sidelined with a foot injury and Viktor Troicki serving a suspension for missing a blood test. Instead, it was 117th-ranked Dusan Lajovic who carried Serbia’s hopes. Lajovic broke Stepanek to begin the match, but after that is was all Stepanek, a former Top 10 player who is now ranked 44th in the world. The Czech’s became the first nation to retain the Davis Cup since Spain in 2009. “Of course, it is more difficult to defend the title, but I think we used the experience from last year and we earned it,” the 34-year-old Stepanek said. There were questions concerning the decision not to play Djokovic in the doubles, which the Czechs won in straight sets. “We only had so many fit and eligible players to choose from and although I must take responsibility for the outcome as the decision maker, I have no regrets about the team selection in any of the rubbers,” Serbia captain Bogdan Obradovic said.

The Czech Republic was captained by Vladimir Safarik, who replaced the ill Jaroslav Navratil.

 

SPANISH GOLD

Filippo Volandri had a second chance against Alejandro Gonzalez, and this time he came out the winner. Their second meeting of the week just happened to be for the ATP Challenger Tour Finals title. In the round-robin portion of the tournament, it was Gonzalez beating the second-seeded Volandri. But with the trophies on the line, the 32-year-old Italian won 4-6 6-4 6-2. “I’m getting older and I can’t miss these opportunities,” Volandri said. “I know that Gonzalez will have many other opportunities to win titles.” It was Volandri’s third title of the year, a single season career high. He finished the year on a 29-6 run since mid-July. “Volandri is an amazing player,” Gonzalez said. “He deserved this title. For me, it was a great week.”

 

STANDING ON THE SIDELINES

Serbia went into the Davis Cup final with one of the best players in the world, Novak Djokovic. The problem was the other top Serbian players were not available to see action against the Czech Republic.  Janko Tipsarevic, who has been ranked in the Top 10 in the world, missed the Cup finale because of a heel injury. And with Viktor Troicki suspended after missing a blood test, Serbia had only one player ranked in the Top 100 available for action: Djokovic, who was ranked number one in the world until this month. Dusan Lajovic, a 23-year-old ranked 117th in the world, was Serbia’s other singles player. On the opening day he lost to Tomas Berdych, then ended the competition by falling to Radek Stepanek in the decisive fifth rubber. Djokovic entered the Davis Cup final having won 22 consecutive matches and his last four tournaments since losing in the US Open final. He won both of his singles matches in straight set, but it wasn’t enough.

 

SITTING IT OUT

Argentina won’t have Juan Martin del Potro on its Davis Cup team when it takes on Italy next year. Del Potro, ranked fifth in the world, said he felt his country’s tennis association (AAT) was “two-faced” in its attempt to get him on the squad. “I’m tired of being invited by email or messages and being pressured at the same time through certain media with stories about whether or not I’ll play Davis Cup, trying to make me look bad to public opinion,” del Potro said in a statement sent to AAT president Arturo Grimaldi and Davis Cup captain Martin Jaite. “It seems to me a hypocritical two-faced stance, the same as last year when any reply or non-reply was quickly known by some journalists,” wrote Del Potro. The right-hander has been heavily criticized by fans and in some sections of the media for not playing Davis Cup in the past. Del Potro told the AAT at the end of 2012 that he would not play Davis Cup this year so that he could concentrate on the ATP Tour. He also said that despite being Argentina’s top player, he was never consulted by the AAT over some of its decisions.

 

SPEAKING UP

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said recent criticisms by Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic of its anti-doping programs are unfair. “I think that tennis is doing a good job in the programs it has and we’ve had two fairly high-profile cases recently with Marin Cilic and Viktor Troicki, and let’s not forget both of those cases resulted in violations for the athletes concerned,” the ITF’s anti-doping manager Stuart Miller said. “To me that shows that the program is successful in catching the people it is supposed to be catching, so I don’t think it’s necessarily fair criticism.” Troicki was given a 12-month ban for failing to provide a blood sample at the Monte Carlo Masters in April. Cilic recently completed a four-month ban for taking the stimulant nikethamide. The player said he had inadvertently taken the substance in glucose tablets.

 

SWITCHING GAMES

Having had his tennis career halted by a heart condition, American Mardy Fish is considering professional golf. The former Top 10 player has played two tournaments on the All-American Gateway Tour, a developmental circuit for up-and-coming professionals who one day hope to earn their PGA Tour card. Fish failed to make the cut at both the ASU Karsten Golf Course in Tempe, Arizona, USA, and the Whirlwind Golf Club in Chandler, Arizona, USA. Both tournaments ended this month. The 31-year-old right-hander has missed most of the past two tennis seasons while recovering from an accelerated heartbeat that first struck him during a Davis Cup match in February 2012. He had the same problem the following month at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida, USA. He hasn’t played since retiring in the third set of his match against Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen at a tournament in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA. Fish has won six career ATP Tour titles and was ranked as high as seventh in the world in August 2011. He reached the quarterfinals at the US Open, Wimbledon and Australian Open and won the silver medal at the 2004 Olympics.

 

SUSPENDED

A two-year suspension has been handed Nuria Llagostera Vives after she tested positive for methamphetamine at a tournament in Stanford, California, USA in July. “I do not know if I have the strength to fight,” the 33-year-old Spaniard told a newspaper. “The only thing I can say is I’m very affected by this situation. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said Llagostera Vives is not eligible to play again until September 7, 2015. She was ranked as high as 35th in the world in singles in 2005, but now only plays doubles. The ITF said she was to have teamed with partner Francesca Schiavone at the Bank of the West Classic in Stanford, but withdrew because the Italian was not well. The governing body says Llagostera Vives was still randomly selected for testing and could not explain how the drug entered her system.

 

STILL DANGEROUS

He might be ancient in tennis terms, but John McEnroe showed he is still a dangerous opponent on the court.  Playing a charity match in Tokyo, Japan, for the victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, the 54-year-old McEnroe gave Japan’s top player, Kei Nishikori, a scare before finally losing 1-6 6-4 10-7 (match tiebreak). McEnroe was playing in Japan for the first time since 1997. “Considering I just got in a few days ago, my body was moving pretty well,” McEnroe said. “I was able to make some good shots, but he took some mercy on me.” And, then, McEnroe became McEnroe when a crying baby interrupted his serve. “Is this a tennis match or a day-car center,” McEnroe shouted. “What the heck is going on here?” Even Nishikori was impressed with McEnroe’s game. “He played a lot better than I expected,” Nishikori said. “I was surprised. His shots were very good. I really enjoyed playing against him and it was a great experience.”

 

SOCHI-BOUND

Maria Sharapova is going home for the Olympic Games. The tennis star is returning to her hometown of Sochi, Russia, in February as an NBC Sports correspondent. Sharapova carried the Russian flag in the opening ceremonies and won silver for Russia in the women’s singles at the 2012 London Olympics. “As an Olympian it means so much to me for this year’s Olympic Games to be hosted in my hometown of Sochi,” Sharapova told a magazine. “Sochi has such rich culture and history, that I’m looking forward to sharing that with the world through being a part of the NBC family.” In a statement announcing her new job, NBC said as a correspondent Sharapova will be “offering insight and commentary on Russia’s first Winter Olympics.” She was born in Siberia and lived in Sochi until she was 6, when she left to train in the United States. “Growing up in Sochi until she was six years old and with family and friends still living in the area, Maria will offer a unique and personal perspective on a place she knows so well,” said Jim Bell, executive producer of NBC Olympics.

 

SKIPPING COLUMNS

With all the major players taking a break from the ATP and WTA tours, it’s time for this columnist to follow suit. Tennis continues, however, with ATP Challenger events this week in Andria, Italy; Toyota, Japan, and Tyumen, Russia. Meanwhile the men are also playing Futures events – with total prize money ranging from USD $10,000 to USD $15,000 in Colombia, Czech Republic, India, Brazil, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Mexico, Spain and Turkey. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is staging women’s event in countries all around the world, also. The week of December 2, for example, will find Viktoria Golubic of Switzerland, ranked 194th in the world, the top seed for a USD $10,000 tournament in Antalya, Turkey. See you in January.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Dubai: Titalia Diatchenko and Olga Savchuk beat Lyudmyla Kichenok and Nadiya Kichenok 7-5 6-1

 

SURFING

Toyota: www.dunlop-tennis.jp

 International Tennis Federation: www.itftennis.com

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

WOMEN

$75,000 Soho Square Ladies Tournament, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, clay

$75,000 2013 Dunlop World Challenge, Toyota, Japan, carpet

TOURNAMENTS WEEK of DECEMBER 30

MEN

Brisbane International, Brisbane, Australia, hard

Qatar ExxonMobil Open, Doha, Qatar, hard

Aircel Chennai Open, Chennai, India, hard

 

WOMEN

$1,000,000 Brisbane International, Brisbane, Australia, hard

$500,000 Shenzhen Gemdale Kaisa Open, Shenzhen, China, hard

$235,000 ASB Classic, Auckland, New Zealand, hard

 

Czech Davis Cup Team
Czech Davis Cup Team

Serbs and Czechs Win To Set Up Davis Cup Final – Mondays With Bob Greene

by

Mondays with Bob Greene

 

16 September 2013

 

STARS

 

US Open

Men’s Singles: Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic 6-2 3-6 6-4 6-1

 

OTHER

Lucie Safarova beat Marina Erakovic 6-4 6-3 to win the Bell Challenge inQuébecCity,Québec,Canada

Bojana Jovanovski beat Olga Govortsova 4-6 7-5 7-6 (3) to win the Tashkent Open inTashkent,Uzbekistan

 

DAVIS CUP

 

World Group Semifinals

Serbia beat Canada 3-2 at Belgrade,Serbia

CzechRepublic beat Argentina 3-2 atPrague,Czech Republic

 

World Group Playoffs

(Winners are in 2014 World Group)

Spainbeat Ukraine5-0 at Madrid, Spain

 

NetherlandsbeatAustria5-0 atGroningen,Netherlands

Great BritainbeatCroatia4-1 atUmag,Croatia

Switzerlandbeat Ecuador4-1 at Neufchatel, Switzerland

Germanybeat Brazil4-1 at Warsaw, Poland

Belgium beat Israel 3-2 at Antwerp, Belgium

Japan beat Colombia 3-2 at Tokyo, Japan

 

Group I Second Round Playoff

Americas Zone: Chile beat Dominican Republic 4-1 at Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic; Asia/Oceania Zone: Chinese Taipei beat Indonesia 5-0 at Kaohsiung City, Taiwan

 

Group I First Round Playoff

Europe/Africa Zone: Slovenia beat South Africa 4-1 at Ljubljana, Slovenia

 

Group II Third Round

Americas Zone: Venezuela beat El Salvador 3-1 at Ciudad Merliot, El Salvador; Asia/Oceania Zone: New Zealand beat Philippines 3-2 at Lapu-Lapu City, Philippines; Europe/Africa Zone: Latvia beat Finland 3-2 at Riga, Latvia

 

SAYING

“This was like the World Cup for us.” – Novak Djokovic, after leading Serbia past Canada and into the Davis Cup final against the Czech Republic.

“We would like to keep the trophy because it’s beautiful. This competition means a lot to us.” – Radek Stepanek, who teamed with Tomas Berdych to lead the Davis Cup defending champion Czech Republic team to a semifinal win over Argentina.

“I hope it’s not another five years until the next (title).” – Lucie Safarova, who won the Bell Challenge, her first WTA title in five years.

“I love playing here. I was too young when I came here for the first time, then last year I reached the quarterfinals, and now this. It’s a great feeling to do so well here after being here for the last three years in a row.” – Bojana Jovanovski, after winning in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

“We’ve been working a lot over the last few years to play more as a team and less as individuals, and we really complemented each other well here in Québec. We really understand each other now.” – Anastasia Rodionova, after teaming with Alla Kudryavtseva to win the Bell Challenge doubles.

“To me he’s better than ever. He’s moving better, it was amazing to see how much he wanted it. His will to win … I’ve never seen anyone like it.” – John McEnroe, talking about Rafael Nadal’s US Open victory.

“I’ve had a tough year. I haven’t had too many matches, so it was good that I had to play the qualies. It’s great to finish this week on a good note. This title means a lot to me.” – Bojana Jovanovski, who won seven matches in eight days  to claim the title in Tashkent,Uzbekistan.

“At this moment, Italian women’s tennis is at its best with players like (Sara) Errani, (Roberta) Vinci, (Francesca) Schiavone, (Karin) Knapp, (Flavia) Pennetta and Camila (Giorgi) all in the Top 100. It has given players like me great motivation to keep improving. I feel like I want to prove myself too. Honestly, I really want to be there with them, I’m working hard, and hopefully sooner or later I’ll be there to share my name with all of them too.” – Nastassja Burnett.

“It was a very tough time to be out for nine months because of my knee and foot injuries – and it takes a lot of time to come back – but now I feel better and stronger with every passing day. My goal is to stay healthy and prevent any other injuries, and to get back into the Top 100 by the end of the year.” – Petra Cetkovska, who missed nearly nine months on the WTA Tour.

“Balancing marriage and tennis is hard but I’m thankful to my husband, who appreciates what I do. He knows playing tennis has always been my dream and he helps me a lot in my career, beyond doubt.” – Vesna Dolonc, on married life.

 

SPANISH REIGNS

When Rafael Nadal destroyed the world’s top-ranked player to win his second US Open and 13th Grand Slam tournament title, former players lined up to pay tribute to the Spanish left-hander. “It is one of the greatest years of all time and in my opinion it is probably the greatest year a tennis player has ever had,” John Lloyd said of Nadal’s return from a serious knee injury. Nadal has reached 12 finals this year, winning 10. He won all 22 matches he played on hard court in 2013 and posted a match record of 63-3 this year. Until Richard Gasquet broke Nadal in the semifinals at the year’s final major tournament, he had won 88 consecutive service games. The Spaniard is just one title away from Pete Sampras in the all-time list of male Grand Slam singles winners and four behind Roger Federer’s record of 17. “I think if he stays healthy he can easily win four or five more, no doubt about it,” said McEnroe, a seven-time major tournament champion. By winning the US Open, Nadal broke a tie with Roy Emerson and is now two titles ahead of two of the greatest champions in the sport, Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg. “Let’s hope that he stays healthy because it would be great for our sport – and somebody’s going to have to step up,” McEnroe said. Pat Cash, the 1987Wimbledon champion, said “Nadal could surpass Federer’s total of 17. That debate over who is the greatest is fun but pointless, but you can’t argue with eight French Opens and maybe more to come. … The only thing holding him back is his knees.”

 

SUSPENDED

Marin Cilic, once ranked as high as ninth in the world, has been handed a nine-month suspension for a doping violation. In making the announcement, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said the suspension was back-dated to May 1 and Cilic will be able to return to the ATP World Tour on January 31, 2014. Cilic tested positive for nikethamide, a stimulant, while he was at a tournament in Munich, Germany. The ITF said an independent tribunal found that Cilic ingested the stimulant inadvertently while taking glucose tablets “’and did not intend to enhance his performance in doing so.’” The 24-year-old from Croatia has not played since withdrawing from his second-round match at Wimbledon in June. He was ranked ninth in the world in early 2010 and is currently ranked 24th.

 

SECOND TITLE

Bojana Jovanovski could be excused if she was tired at the end of her stay in Uzbekistan. She had played – and won – seven matches in eight days. She was also jubilant, having won the Tashkent Open for her second WTA title. Jovanovski missed the main draw cut-off date, so had to play qualifying. She won both matches in straight sets to get into the main draw – and as the highest-ranked player in the field earned the top seeding. Playing seventh-seeded Galina Voskoboeva in the quarterfinals, Jovanovski was two points away from losing before the survived 1-6 6-4 7-6 (5). “I didn’t start well in the first set – it was so windy,” Jovanovski said. In the middle of the second set I got my rhythm and started being more aggressive. At the end I managed to win and I’m very happy about it.” In the final, Jovanovski bested unseeded Olga Govortsova in a match that lasted four minutes shy of three hours. “Anybody could have won this match today,” Jovanovski said. “It was a close match and all credit to Olga for an incredible battle. I’m so happy, and I didn’t really believe I could do it today.” Jovanovski won won atBakulast year. Govortsova has been in four finals, but has yet to win, losing to Lindsay Davenport inMemphisin 2008, to Francesca Schiavone inMoscow in 2009 and to Caroline Wozniacki in Ponte Vedra Beachin 2010.

 

SAFAROVA STOPS DROUGHT

It had been a long time since Lucie Safarova captured the big trophy. The Czech left-hander defeatedNew Zealand’s Marina Erakovic in the Bell Challenge final to capture her fifth WTA title, but her first in five years. “I hope it’s not another five years until the next (title),” Safarova said. The 26-year-old broke her opponent four times. “It was just about a few points today, but I was more consistent with my game and more aggressive, and I think that’s why I won,” said Safarova, who entered the tournament ranked 48th in the world. “My strategy was to try to go to her backhand side and just try to use my lefty shots as well as I could. I was a little bit nervous at the end because it was so long since my last WTA title.”

 

SWITCH IN THINKING

 Wimbledon champion Andy Murray says Davis Cup should become “a mandatory event.”Great Britain’s top player “We’re told which events to play throughout the whole year,”Murray said. “They should make Davis Cup a mandatory event so it isn’t up for discussion.” Playing Davis Cup for the first time in two years, the Wimbledon champion led Great Britain past Croatia and back into the World Group for 2014. Now 26 years old, Murray played Davis Cup regularly when he was younger and is now unbeaten in 16 matches since losing to Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka in his debut. “It isn’t about prioritizing Davis Cup,”Murray said. “We, as tennis players, are told which tournaments to play. We don’t have much flexibility in our schedule at all, and that’s why I don’t understand why they don’t make Davis Cup a mandatory event. We are meant to play 18 mandatory events during the year, which is about 27, 28 weeks worth of tournaments, and we don’t get to decide which ones we do and don’t play.” The “mandatory events” count towards a player’s world rankings and includes the four Grand Slam tournaments – which aren’t actually mandatory – and the nine Masters 1000 events. Francesco Ricci Bitti, president of the International Tennis Federation, said he found Murray’s suggestion “interesting.”

 

SWISS STARTER?

Now that Stanislas Wawrinka has led Switzerland back into the Davis Cup World Group, he would love to see Roger Federer join him for the 2014 international team competition. “My dream is that Roger would text me and say, ‘Go and win this tie and next year I’ll be a part of the team,’” Wawrinka said. Switzerland has never won the Davis Cup and Federer, the former world’s number one player, has only played one World Group level tie since 2004 – a 5-0 home loss to the United States in February 2012. Federer and Wawrinka teamed up to win the men’s doubles gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

 

SCHOLARLY RUBIN

Remember Chanda Rubin? Winner of seven WTA titles and ranked as high as sixth in the world, the right-hander was inducted earlier this year into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame. Her fellow players remember that Chanda always had a book in her hands when she wasn’t playing. All of that studying has paid off. Rubin recently graduated cum laude from Harvard Extension School with a Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree. At the recently concluded US Open, Rubin and Iva Majoli lost the Women’s Champion Doubles title to Martina Navratilova and Rennae Stubbs 6-2 6-4.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Québec: Alla Kudryavtseva and Anastasia Rodionova beat Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka 6-4 6-3

Tashkent: Timea Babos and Yaroslava Shvedova beat Olga Govortsova and Mandy Minella 6-3 6-3

 

SURFING

St. Petersburg: www.spbopen.ru

Metz: www.moselle-open.com

Szezecin: www.pekaoszczecinopen.pl

Seoul: www.kdbkoreaopen.com

Guangzhou: www.guangzhouopen.org/

Kuala Lumpur: www.malaysianopentennis.com

Bangkok: www.thailandopen.org

Tokyo: www.toray-ppo.co.jp

 

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

 

MEN

$600,592 St. Petersburg Open, St. Petersburg, Russia, hard

$540,536 Moselle Open, Metz, France, hard
$140,339 Pekao Szczecin Open, Szczecin, Poland, clay

$125,000 Kaohsiung Tennis Challenger, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, hard

 

WOMEN

$500,000 KDB Korea Open, Seoul, Korea, hard

$500,000 GRC Bank Guangzhou International Women’s Open 2013,Guangzhou,China, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$875,500 Malaysian Open,Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia, hard

$567,530 Thailand Open,Bangkok,Thailand, hard

 

WOMEN

$2,369,000 Toray Pan Pacific Open,Tokyo,Japan, hard

 

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic

Serena Williams, Leander Paes and Max Miryni Highlight U.S. Open Champions – Monday with Bob Greene

by

Mondays with Bob Greene

 

9 September 2013

 

STARS

US Open

Women’s Singles: Serena Williams beat Victoria Azarenka 7-5 6-7 (6) 6-1

Men’s Doubles: Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek beat Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares 6-1 6-3

Women’s Doubles: Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka beat Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua 6-7 (4) 6-1 6-4.

Mixed Doubles: Andrea Hlavackova and Max Mirnyi beat Abigail Spears and Santiago Gonzalez 7-6 (5) 6-3

Boys’ Singles: Borna Coric beat Thanasi Kokkinakis 3-6 6-3 6-1

Girls’ Singles: Ana Konjuh beat Tornado Alicia Black 3-6 6-4 7-6 (6)

Boys’ Doubles: Kamil Majchrzak and Martin Redlicki beat Quentin Halys and Frederico Ferreira Silva 6-3 6-4

Girls’ Doubles: Barbora Krejcikova and Katarina Siniakova beat Belinda Bencic and Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-3 6-4

Men’s Champion Doubles: John McEnroe and Patrick McEnroe beat Michael Chang and Todd Martin 6-4 6-0

Women’s Champion Doubles: Martina Navratilova and Rennae Stubbs beat Chanda Rubin and Iva Majoli 6-2 6-4

Wheelchair Men’s Doubles: Michael Jeremiasz and Maikel Scheffers beat Gustavo Fernandez and Joachim Gerard 6-0 4-6 6-3

Wheelchair Women’s Doubles: Jiske Griffioen and Aniek Van Koot beat Sabine Ellerbrock and Yui Kamiji 6-3 6-4

Wheelchair Quad Singles: Lucas Sithole beat David Wagner 3-6 6-4 6-4

Wheelchair Quad Doubles: Nick Taylor and David Wagner beat Andy Lapthorne and Lucas Sithole 6-0 2-6 6-3

 

OTHER

Dustin Brown beat Filippo Volandri 7-6 (5) 6-3 to win the AON Open Challenger in Genova,Italy

 

SAYING

“I don’t play tennis for the money. I honestly love to play. I love Grand Slams.” – Serena Williams.

“Vika’s such a great opponent, such a great fighter, and that’s why she’s been able to win multiple Grand Slams. That’s why it was never over until match point.” – Serena Williams, after winning her fifth US Open women’s singles title by beating Victoria Azarenka for the second straight year.

“It is a tough loss, but to be in the final and play against the best player – who deserves to win today – it’s incredible. I gave it all today. We showed our hearts. We fought hard.” – Victoria Azarenka, following her loss to Serena Williams in the women’s final.

“I definitely felt the love, so thank you all so much for the support.” – Serena Williams, talking to the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd after the women’s final.

“That’s why you play tennis. It’s to play in front of people like today in the bigger stadium in tennis. And even if I lost today, I was still happy to hear all the cheering and to hear all the crowd like this. I think it’s something quite amazing for me.” – Stanislas Wawrinka, after losing his semifinal match to top-seeded Novak Djokovic.

“I should not be nervous like this because it’s not the first time I have played in the semifinals. But when I walked on the court I felt the court was so big. I felt like it was a football stadium. For Serena it was like a table tennis court. I could not focus.” – Li Na, following her semifinal loss to Serena Williams.

“I got a little nervous, but I was able to close it out finally.” – Serena Williams, after needing seven match points before finally defeating Li Na.

“When you’re playing that well you forget how to lose.” – Martina Navratilova, talking about Rafael Nadal’s winning run since returning from his latest injury.

“It wouldn’t be right to leave here feeling regrets. It has been a great tournament for me. Sure, there is a little bit of a bitter taste in my mouth about losing, but this has been a super and positive week. I played the number two in the world and I had my chances.” – Flavia Pennetta, after her semifinal loss to Victoria Azarenka.

“I lost in straight sets, so that’s disappointing. I would have liked to have gone further. But, look, I can’t complain. If someone told me before the US Open last year I would have been here as defending champion having won Wimbledon and Olympic gold, I would have taken that 100 percent.” – Andy Murray, after being upset by Stanislas Wawrinka in the quarterfinals.

“Every point you have to play. He never miss. He never give you some presents.” – Mikhail Youzhny, explaining his quarterfinal loss to Novak Djokovic.

“I kind of self-destructed, which is very disappointing, especially on a quicker court. Your serve helps you out. You’re going to make the difference somewhere. I just couldn’t do it. It was a frustrating performance today.” – Roger Federer, after being upset by Tommy Robredo.

“Roger is the best player of all times. To beat him in a huge stadium like the US Open and in a Grand Slam, a match of five sets, it’s like a dream.” – Tommy Robredo, following his win over Federer.

“Of course not. I played good, though. I played really good.” – Serena Williams, when asked if her winning performance against Carla Suarez Navarro was close to flawless.

“It’s a never-ending run of history and records and there is always something on the horizon. What makes this sport so fun is there is always the next goal.” – Bob Bryan, after he and brother Mike lost their semifinals and a bid to become only the second men’s doubles team to win a calendar Grand Slam.

 

SERENA RETAINS TITLE

Pushed to three sets, Serena Williams solved the wind and her opponent to win her fifth US Open women’s singles title and her 17th Grand Slam tournament singles crown. It wasn’t easy as Victoria Azarenka, who is ranked second in the world behind Williams, matched her point for point – until the final set. “Victoria, you played unbelievable,” Williams said during the on-court awards ceremony. “What a great match and a great person. It’s an honor to play against you.” At 31 years old, Williams became the oldest woman in the Open Era to win the US Open and the third-oldest Grand Slam tournament women’s winner. It was also a huge payday for the American. The winner collects USD $2.6 million, and because she finished first in the US Open tune-up events, Williams also pocketed a USD $1 million bonus. Williams successfully defended her US Open title and for the second straight year beat Azarenka in the title match. The two have combined to win six of the eight major titles in the past two years.

 

SET FOR MONDAY

Monday’s men’s singles title match will pit the top two players in the world – number one Novak Djokovic and number two Rafael Nadal. The two will be meeting for a tournament title for the 37th time. Nadal leads the series 21-15 and has won five of their last six meetings. But his overall edge was largely built in the first half of the rivalry when he won 14 of their first 18 matches. This summer, Nadal has been brilliant. He missed the US Open last year along with seven months because of a knee injury. But since returning to the tour, Nadal has been almost perfect, posting a 59-3 match record, including 21-0 on hard courts, the surface at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. It will be the third time the two have met in the US Open final, Nadal winning in 2010 and Djokovic the next year.

 

SIDE BY SIDE

It’s becoming habit-forming for Leander Paes, a habit the 40-year-old is perfectly delighted to continue. The Indian right-hander teamed with 36-year-old Radek Stepanek to win his third US Open doubles title and the eighth major title of his career. It was Stepanek’s second Grand Slam tournament doubles crown, winning the 2012 Australian Open with Paes. Playing in their first Grand Slam tournament final, Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares had only two break points in the match and failed to cash in on either. Peya suffered a back injury in the second set and his movement was restricted for the rest of the match.

 

SECOND TITLE

One day after Andrea Hlavackova captured the mixed doubles title with Max Mirnyi, she partnered Lucie Hradecka to the US Open women’s doubles crown. They became the first all-Czech pair to capture America’s premier tournament, beating the Australian duo of Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua 6-7 (4) 6-1 6-4. “It has been amazing,” Hlavackova said. “I cannot believe I won two Grand Slams in two weeks. I want to thank Lucie. She helped me as much as Max did.” The last player to win two US Open titles in the same year was Zimbabwe’s Cara Black in 2008, who teamed with Liezel Huber to win the women’s doubles and Leander Paes to win the mixed. Playing in only their eighth event together, Dellacqua and Barty were runners-up this year at three of the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open,Wimbledon and the US Open.

 

STOPPED

Brothers Bob and Mike Bryan were going for a calendar-year Grand Slam. Then they ran into Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek in the semifinals of the US Open. The Bryans were trying to become only the second men’s doubles team to win all four major tournaments in a single year. Instead, they fell to Paes and Stepanek 3-6 6-3 6-4. “As competitors, we hate to lose and we knew what was riding on this match and the opportunity of what we could have accomplished,” Bob Bryan said. “And then in one sense it’s a little bit of a relief where you get to kind of exhale for the first time in a few months.” The 35-year-old American identical twins has won 28 consecutive Grand Slam matches and were just two wins away from matching the 1951 feat set by Australians Ken McGregor and Frank Sedgman. “You leave that door a little ajar, I will find my foot through it,” said the 40-year-old Paes. “Once I get my foot through it, I got my body through it. Once I get my body through it, I get him through it.”

 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Novak Djokovic and Stanislas Wawrinka battled for more than four hours in their semifinal encounter before the world’s top-ranked player finally prevailed. But the well-played match was highlighted by the third game of the fifth set, which lasted 21 minutes and 30 points and featured some brilliant rallies and great shot-making. There were 12 deuces and Wawrinka saved five break points before finally holding with a service winner. The game earned the players several ovations from the appreciative crowd. “These matches is what we live for, what we practice for,” Djokovic said. “All the credit to (Wawrinka) for being so aggressive and playing so well. I’m just fortunate to play my best tennis when I needed to.”

 

SELES HONORED

Monica Seles is the newest member of the US Open Court of Champions. The winner of nine Grand Slam tournaments, including the US Open in 1991 and 1992, Seles spent more than 175 weeks ranked number one in the world and was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2009. “I brought back so many memories,” Seles said of being back on the main court at the US Open where she teamed with Chris Evert for an exhibition match. “You could feel the electricity.”

 

STREAKIN’ SERENA

Serena Williams had a – well – Serena-like streak during this year’s US Open at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The world’s top-ranked player showed her dominance by winning 24 consecutive games on her way to the women’s singles title match. Her streak began when she won the last five games against 15th-seeded Sloane Stephens before she “double-bageled” 18th-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro 6-0 6-0. Against her next opponent, fifth-seeded Li Na, Williams won the first seven games before the 2011 French Open champion finally held serve, halting the streak.

Serena’s “double-bagel” of Suarez Navarro was the first in a US Open women’s quarterfinal since Martina Navratilova blanked Manuela Maleeva 6-0 6-0 in 1989.

 

SWISS SHOCK

Roger Federer was seeking his sixth US Open title. Instead, he was surprisingly ousted in the fourth round by Spain’s Tommy Robredo, 7-6 (3) 6-3 6-4. Federer began the year ranked number one in the world. He was ranked seventh when he began the year’s final Grand Slam tournament. The Swiss star made 43 unforced errors and converted just two of 16 break points. “I kind of feel like I beat myself, without taking any credit away from Tommy,” Federer said. It is the first year that Federer has failed to reach a Grand Slam tournament final since 2002 and his earliest US Open exit in 10 years.

 

SIGNS UP

Andy Murray will play Davis Cup when Great Britain meets Croatia in a World Group playoff this week in Umag,Croatia. Also named to the squad were Dan Evans, James Ward and Colin Fleming. Murray didn’t play in April when Evans, Ward, Fleming and Jonathan Marray stunned Russia. The Croatia tie will be played on clay, the first time Great Britain has played on that surface since 2008. Britain and Croatia have played each other only once before in the international team competition, with Britain winning a 2007 World Group playoff 4-1 at Wimbledon.

 

SENTENCED

The father of Australian tennis player Bernard Tomic has been sentenced to eight months in prison for assaulting his son’s training partner. Under Spanish law, John Tomic will not go to prison because he has no criminal record and his sentence is for less than two years. Just prior to the Madrid Open in May, John Tomic head-butted Thomas Drouet, breaking his nose. The father claimed he was acting in self-defense. According to Australian media, John Tomic is likely to be banned from all ATP Tour events. The players association has already assessed the father a one-year ban. Drouet said he was assaulted at aMadridhotel when John Tomic asked him “to step aside for a quiet word.”

 

SO LONG ESTHER

An athlete with what has to be one of the best records in all of sports was given a special farewell at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Esther Vergeer first reached the world number one ranking in wheelchair tennis in 1999. When she retired this past February, she had compiled a 470-singles match winning streak, a string that went back to January 2003. She won four Paralympic gold medals in singles –Sydney in 2000,Athens in 2004,Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012 – and three gold medals in doubles: Sydney, Athens and London. A native of the Netherlands, Vergeer won 21 Grand Slam tournament titles, including six US Opens. In her career, she won more than 1,100 singles and doubles matches.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Genova: Daniele Bracciali and Oliver Marach beat Martin Draganja and Mate Pavic 6-3 2-6 11-9 (match tiebreak)

 

SURFING

Tashkent: www.tashkentopen.uz/

Quebec City: www.challengebell.com

Davis Cup: www.daviscup.com

St. Petersburg: www.spbopen.ru

Metz: www.moselle-open.com

Szezecin: www.pekaoszczecinopen.pl

Seoul: www.kdbkoreaopen.com

Guangzhou: www.guangzhouopen.org/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

 

WOMEN

$235,000 Tashkent Open,Tashkent,Uzbekistan, hard

$235,000 Bell Challenge,Quebec City,Quebec,Canada, hard

 

DAVIS CUP

World Group Semifinals

Serbiavs.CanadaatBelgrade,Serbia, clay

CzechRepublicvs.ArgentinaatPrague,Czech Republic, hard

 

World Group Playoffs

(Winners are in 2014 World Group)

Spainvs. Ukraine at Madrid, Spain, clay

Netherlandsvs.AustriaatGroningen,Netherlands, clay

Croatiavs.Great BritainatUmag,Croatia, clay

Switzerlandvs. Ecuadorat Neuchatel, Switzerland, hard

Germanyvs. Brazilat Warsaw, Poland, clay

Belgium vs. Israel at Antwerp, Belgium, clay

Japan vs. Colombia at Tokyo, Japan, hard

 

Group I Second Round Playoff

 

Americas Zone: Dominican Republic vs. Chile at Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic, hard; Asia/Oceania Zone: Chinese Taipei vs. Indonesia at Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, hard

 

Group I First Round Playoff

 

Europe/Africa Zone: Slovenia vs. South Africa at Ljubljana, Slovenia, clay

 

Group II Third Round

 

Americas Zone: El Salvador vs. Venezuela at Ciudad Merliot, El Salvador, hard; Asia/Oceania Zone: Philippines vs. New Zealand at Lapu-Lapu City, Philippines, clay; Europe/Africa Zone: Latvia vs. Finland at Riga, Latvia, hard

 

Group III

(Round Robin)

 

Asia/Oceania Zone at Dubai, United Arab Emirates, hard: Cambodia, China-Hong Kong, Iran, Malaysia, Oman, Pacific Oceania, United Arab Emriates, Vietnam

 

Group IV

(Round Robin)

Asia/Oceania Zone at Dubai, United Arab Emirates, hard: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Iraq, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Turkmenistan

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$600,592 St. Petersburg Open, St. Petersburg, Russia, hard

$540,536 Moselle Open, Metz, France, hard
$140,339 Pekao Szczecin Open, Szczecin, Poland, clay

$125,000 Kaohsiung Tennis Challenger, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, hard

 

WOMEN

$500,000 KDB Korea Open, Seoul, Korea, hard

$500,000 GRC Bank Guangzhou International Women’s Open 2013,Guangzhou,China, hard

 

Serena Williams
Serena Williams

Radek Stepanek leads Czech Republic to Davis Cup title — Mondays with Bob Greene

by

By Bob Greene

STARS

Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer 7-6 (6) 7-5 to win the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London, Great Britain

Lukas Lacko beat Jarkko Nieminen 6-3 6-4 to win the IPP Open in Helsinki, Finland

DAVIS CUP

The Czech Republic beat Spain 3-2 to win the 2012 Davis Cup title

SAYING

Radek Stepanek wins decisive fifth rubber to give Czech Republic Davis Cup title

“I was dreaming about it my whole life and now we’re standing here as Davis Cup champions. It’s amazing.” – Radek Stepanek, after he won the decisive fifth rubber to lead the Czech Republic to the 100th Davis Cup title.

“These are very tough moments. But we can’t be down on ourselves in any way as we fought to the last moment.” – Nicolas Almagro, who lost the final match as the Czech Republic beat Spain 3-2 in the Davis Cup final.

“I wasn’t really feeling this surface very well in the past couple of years. But this year has been different. I got motivated, got a little bit more physically fresh. I wanted really to fight and I really wanted to get as far as I can in this tournament. Winning all the matches I played makes it even more special.” – Novak Djokovic, after winning the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

“Today we had times where we had longer rallies, we had times where we had shorter rallies. I think we had some great stuff out there. It was good playing such points. I think the quality was good. I shouldn’t have been broken as often as I was broken today. But then again, that obviously has something to do with Novak, as well. It was extremely close today.” – Roger Federer, after losing in the final at London.

“We finished here winning the title, so it’s incredible for us. We try to play as best as we can always. I think we have very good relationship. So I think that’s one of the keys of our success.” – Marcel Granollers, after teaming with Marc Lopez to win the doubles at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

“It’s always tough playing them. They’re not a conventional doubles team. They make it very, very difficult in more ways than one, no matter who they play. We were expecting that. We fought hard to stay in the match. We got ourselves again into a match tiebreak. This time I think we just played a bad tiebreak. That sums it up.” – Mahesh Bhupathi, after losing the doubles final in London.

“I think it’s been a fantastic season to be part of. Four different Grand Slam champs. Then having the Olympics, as well, was obviously very unique. I’m very happy I stayed injury free throughout. That allowed me to basically play a full schedule almost. I’m very pleased that I was able to pick up my performance at the end of the season … so obviously gives me confidence for next year.” – Roger Federer.

“Suspension of (Bob) Hewitt is appropriate given the serious allegations that have been made and the findings presented to our executive committee.” — Mark Stenning, chief executive officer of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, after Hewitt was indefinitely suspended from the shrine.

SIZZLING STEPANEK

Veteran Radek Stepanek pulled off two remarkable victories, including the final rubber, to lead the Czech Republic to a 3-2 victory over Spain and capture the 100th Davis Cup final. When Nicolas Almagro’s final shot ended in the net, Stepanek tearfully sank to his knees on the court. His 6-4 7-6 (0) 3-6 6-3 victory gave the Czech Republic its first Davis Cup title since Czechoslovakia captured the crown 32 years ago. It also made the Czech Republic the first country to win the Davis Cup and Fed Cup team trophies for men and women, respectively, and the mixed Hopman Cup event in the same year. At the age of 33, Stepanek became the first man in 100 years aged 30 or above to win the decisive fifth Davis Cup rubber. On Saturday, Stepanek had teamed with Tomas Berdych to upset the Spanish team of Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez and capture the doubles, giving the Czech Republic a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five competition. When David Ferrer beat Berdych 6-2 6-3 7-5 in the first of the reverse singles, Spain had pulled even, making the Stepanek-Almagro battle decisive. “I can’t describe what I’m feeling right now,” Stepanek said. “I came on the court with the mindset that I had to stay calm, hungry, motivated and concentrate … I was playing very aggressively today. I wanted to be the one who was active, who was controlling the game, and it paid off.” Spain, playing without former world number one Rafael Nadal, was trying to win its fourth Davis Cup title in five years and sixth overall. “We are runners-up in the Davis Cup, not what we wanted as we came here to win the title, but we are leaving with our heads held high knowing that we did a good job,” Almagro said.

SHOW STOPPER

Novak Djokovic made sure they were no doubts as to who is the world’s top-ranked male player. The Serb ended the year by defeating second-ranked Roger Federer and capturing the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in one of the best matches played in 2012. There had been questions about Djokovic regaining the number one spot from Federer. After all, Djokovic hadn’t won a Grand Slam tournament since the Australian Open in January, with Rafael Nadal taking home the French Open title, Federer reigning at Wimbledon, and Great Britain’s Andy Murray triumphant at both the London Olympics and the US Open. In London, Djokovic knocked off Murray before beating Federer. It was the first time the Serb had won the season-ending event since 2008, when he emerged victorious in Shanghai, China. It was only the fourth time in the tournament’s 43-year history that the world’s top two players had contested the season finale.

SUSPENDED

South African tennis player Bob Hewitt has been indefinitely suspended from the International Tennis Hall of Fame by the organization’s executive committee. The suspension followed an investigation into multiple allegations concerning sexual misconduct involving Hewitt and minor students he coached. “After carefully considering the issue, we commissioned a thorough investigation by outside legal counsel,” said Mark Stenning, CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. “Our executive committee considered the findings of the investigation and has voted to suspend Bob Hewitt indefinitely. We feel suspension is the proper course of action on behalf of the Hall of Fame, the women who have made these allegations, and our sport.” Hewitt was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1992.

STELLAR AWARD

Ivan Lendl, an integral member of the Czechoslovakian Davis Cup team before becoming an American citizen, is the recipient of the 2012 Davis Cup Award of Excellence. The award was presented to Lendl in Prague, Czech Republic, in a special ceremony at the 2012 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Final between the Czech Republic and Spain. “The Czech Republic has been one of the most successful teams in Davis Cup World Group history, and Ivan Lendl is undoubtedly one of its most influential and inspiring team members,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti in presenting the award to Lendl, who was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2001. “We are pleased to recognize Ivan’s contributions to the competition by honoring him with the 2012 Davis Cup Award of Excellence.” Lendl competed for eight consecutive years on the Czechoslovakian team and in 1980 led it to its only Davis Cup title, defeating Italy in the final in Prague. Lendl and the other members of the 1980 team were on hand to see the Czech Republic win this year’s Davis Cup title by defeating Spain.

Past recipients of the Davis Cup Award of Excellence have been Emilio Sanchez of Spain in 2011; Slobodan Zivojinovic of Serbia in 2010; Manuel Orantes of Spain in 2009; Guillermo Vilas of Argentina in 2008; Stan Smith of the United States in 2007; Alex Metreveli of Georgia in 2006; Miloslav Mecir of the Slovak Republic and Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia in 2005; Manolo Santana of Spain in 2004; John Newcombe of Australia in 2003; Pierre Darmon of France in 2002; and Neale Fraser of Australia in 2001.

SLOVAK TOPS IN HELSINKI

Lukas Lacko slammed 12 aces as he defeated top-seeded crowd favorite Jarkko Nieminen to capture the IPP Open in Helsinki, Finland, 6-3 6-4 in less than an hour. Besides the aces, Lacko’s huge serve produced numerous service winners or set up easy winners. The Slovak won 37 of his 42 first-serve points as he dominated the match. “Today was my day,” said Lacko. “I do not remember when I served so well. I not only hit the ball hard, but also was able to serve into the corners. The 31-year-old Nieminen is Finland’s top player and was ranked as high as 13th in the world in 2006.

SWITCHING SPORTS

International Tennis Hall of Famer Gustavo Kuerten beat Novak Djokovic 7-6 (9) 7-5 in an exhibition match in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The indoor clay court match was played before more than 10,000 people at Maracanazinho Arena. Ranked number one in the world, Djokovic is coming off his latest victory, capturing the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. In Rio de Janeiro, he entertained fans by dancing and putting on a big wig to imitate the hairstyle of the 36-year-old Kuerten, a former number one and a three-time French Open champion. The two stars help inaugurate a public tennis court in the Rocinha shantytown in Rio. And both Djokovic and Kuerten scored in a charity soccer game played before a Brazilian league match. Djokovic’s Serbian countryman Dejan Petkovic, who starred for several Brazilian soccer clubs in the last decade, organized the exhibition, which also featured former Brazilian stars Zico and Bebeto.

STARS ON CSI

Chris Evert and Lindsay Davenport will play themselves when they appear on an episode of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” in January. Also appearing in the show about the death of a professional female tennis player will be another retired player and television commentator, Justin Gimelstob. A member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, Evert won 18 Grand Slam tournament singles titles, while Davenport won three Grand Slam singles crowns to go along with an Olympic gold medal.

SPANISH DELIGHT

Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez became only the second Spanish team to win the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals doubles title when they outlasted the Indian pair of Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna in London. It was the third title of the year for the pair. The only other Spanish team to win the championship was Juan Gisbert Sr. and Manuel Orantes, who captured the title at Stockholm, Sweden, in 1975. Granollers and Lopez were the first Spanish duo to qualify for the elite season finale since Sergio Casal and Emilio Sanchez accomplished the feat in 1994. Casal and Sanchez were runners-up in both 1988 and 1990.

SPLITTING UP

After proving they were one of the best doubles teams in the world, Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna are breaking up. They teamed up so they could represent India at the London Olympics. They ended their partnership with a 34-22 record, having won their first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 trophy at the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris, France. Bhupathi has finished runner-up in the season finale five times – in 1997, 1999 and 2000 with Leander Paes and with Max Mirnyi in 2010. “There were times in the year where the pundits of Indian tennis threw us under the bus, said that ‘we’re not good enough,’ said that, ‘these guys are jokers,’ in a diplomatic way,” Bhupathi said. “But we believed in ourselves. We reached three ATP World Tour Masters 1000 finals, won one Masters 1000 title and finished runners-up here. We’ve beaten all the top teams there are to beat. We came through with flying colors, which I think is credit to us at the end of the day.” Bopanna will be playing with American Rajeev Ram next season.

SIGNED FOR STOCKHOLM

Two American Hall of Famers, John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors, say they will compete in the Kings of Tennis ATP Champions Tour event in Stockholm, Sweden, next March. It will be the first appearance for Connors in the event, which will also feature fellow Wimbledon and US Open champion Stefan Edberg. “These are some of the absolute biggest and most entertaining players of all time,” said tournament director Thomas Enqvist. “It feels great to follow up a successful first year and to give our audience a possibility to see these players.” McEnroe is the defending champion, having beaten Sweden’s Magnus Larsson in the final last year. Connors and McEnroe have played each other 34 times, with McEnroe holding a 20-14 edge. Between the two, Connors (8) and McEnroe (7) won 15 Grand Slam tournament singles titles.

STARGAMES

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) and StarGames have joined forces to promote tennis participation around the world. The inaugural World Tennis Day will be held March 5 as part of the 2013 ITF Centenary activities. World Tennis Day will be centered on a series of high profile exhibition events around the world, including the BNP Paribas Showdown in New York’s Madison Square Garden. Each of the events, organized by the promoter StarGames, will feature current and former professionals together with demonstrations of the ITF’s program aimed at increasing participation among young players around the world. The ITF will also be encouraging its 210 National Associations to support World Tennis Day with their own grassroots and club activities to attract new participants to the sport.

SO LONG

Argentina’s Gisela Dulko is calling it a career. The 27-year-old Dulko made the announcement on her website. She won four singles titles and 17 doubles titles in her career, reaching a high of 26th in the world in singles and number one in doubles, teaming with Flavia Pennetta. The two won the 2011 Australian Open women’s doubles after capturing eight titles in 2010, including the season-ending WTA Championships. “This was not an easy decision, despite the fact that it has been on my mind for quite some time,” Dulko wrote on her website. “Tennis has been my life for the past 20 years. I started playing when I was 7 and knew from a young age that I wanted to be a professional tennis player … Along the long road there were many moments and some which were not so great. … The reason why I have decided to retire from tennis is because I now have other priorities on which I want to focus. As a result I don’t have the same desire or ability to make the sacrifices which are necessary to live the life of a tennis professional.”

SPONSORS

NH Hoteles has extended its sponsorship of Davis Cup by BNP Paribas for an additional three years through 2015. The company and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) signed the new agreement in Prague, Czech Republic, during the 2012 Davis Cup final. NH Hoteles became an international Davis Cup sponsor in 2004.

Rolex also will continue as an international sponsor of Davis Cup by BNP Paribas. The company first joined the Davis Cup family of sponsors in 2007 and is the Official Timekeeper of Davis Cup. “We are delighted that Rolex is extending its association with Davis Cup and look forward to working with them over the coming years,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti. “The company’s commitment to tennis is good for the sport as a whole and we thank them for that. We think that the Davis Cup is an excellent fit because of its prestigious history that, for over a century, has asked each player and each team to strive for the very best.”

SAD NEWS

The wife of tennis great Rod Laver is dead following a long illness. The 84-year-old Mary Laver died at their home in Carlsbad, California, USA. “We had a wonderful life together,” Laver said. “We did a lot of traveling, a lot of tennis tournaments, tennis events.” The two were married for 46 years and had one son, Rick, who was born three weeks after Laver won his second Grand Slam in 1969. She had three children from a previous marriage.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Helsinki: Mikhail Elgin and Igor Zelenay beat Uladzimir Ignatik and Jimmy Wang 4-6 7-6 (0) 10-4 (match tiebreak)

London: Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez beat Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna 7-5 3-6 10-3 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Toyota: http://www.dunlop-tennis.jp

Dubai: www.dubaitennis.com

ITF: www.itftennis.com

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

WOMEN

$75,000 Dunlop World Challenge Tennis Tournament, Toyota, Japan, carpet

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$220,000 ATP Challenger Tour Finals, Sao Paulo, Brazil, hard

WOMEN

$75,000 Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, hard

Jan Kodes: Czechs Have 50-50 Chance To Win Davis Cup Against Spain

by

By Jan Kodes

 

Jan Kodes of the Czech Republic, the 1973 Wimbledon champion, 1970-71 French Open champion and the 1971 and 1973 US Open singles runner-up, is the author of the book A JOURNEY TO GLORY FROM BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN, a one-of-a-kind coffee table book that documents the history of tennis in the Czech Republic. The book features an incredible array of historic and never seen before photos and many anecdotes and stories about Czech players including Martina Navratilova, Ivan Lendl and many others. It is available for 24 percent off here:  http://www.amazon.com/Jan-Kodes-Journey-Behind-Curtain/dp/0942257685/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1320242085&sr=1-1  Kodes was a member of the only Czech team to win the Davis Cup back in 1980. He also lead the Czechs to its first appearance in the Davis Cup final in 1975.

 

The up-coming Spain vs. Czech Republic Davis Cup final this weekend in Prague should be a heavy test for Czech players Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek.

The team has selected a fast indoor surface in its attempt to win the Davis Cup trophy for the first time since 1980 and for only the second time in history. Back in 1980, at the indoor ice hockey stadium on a rubber carpet supreme court, the Czech team won the Davis Cup for the first time, 4-1 over Italy. That Czech team was made up of Ivan Lendl, Tomas Smid, Pavel Slozil and myself.

The Spaniards have arrived in Prague without Rafael Nadal and therefore I rate the chances of the Czechs of winning the Cup at 50-50. This is the fourth Davis Cup final for the Czech team. We lost to Sweden on a fast indoor court in Stockholm by a 3-2 margin, where I lost to Bjorn Borg in the match that clinched the win for Sweden. In 1980, the Czech team beat Italy 4-1 where Lendl powered our team to victory and Smid beat Adriano Panatta in five sets in the opening match. In 2009, Tomas Berdych and the Czech team were beaten 5-0 by Spain on clay in Barcelona.

Who will win this time? The Spanish doubles team of Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez just won the ATP World Tour Finals in London!  David Ferrer has had a great season winning seven ATP singles titles and Nicolas Almagro, who reached top 10 this year, likely playing in the second singles position. For sure this will be an open tie and the Czechs must believe in Berdych to win both of his singles matches. Radek Stepanek, the Czech big fighter star, might surprise on the opening day. Can he beat Ferrer? This could be a key match too!

Both Czech players had to play all three days so far during their run, but they were also a little lucky. Against Serbia in quarterfinals, Novak Djokovic did not show up and with Argentina in Buenos Aires in the semifinals, Juan Martin Del Potro give up the tie after winning his opening match.

The Czechs have a strong chance to win at home and must take it just like the Czech women did in winning the Fed Cup also in Prague. The Czechs have had many several solid performances in getting to the final and are deserving of being Davis Cup champions. However, they have to play great tennis for one more weekend!

 

Jan Kodes with Tomas Berdych
Jan Kodes with Tomas Berdych

Record injuries at the US Open

by

And the injuries, believed now to be in record numbers, kept piling up at the U.S. Open on Thursday.

That’s now 14 players who have quit in mid-match or pulled out of the tournament before going on court because of injury or illness.

Is it just bad luck or is this a trend which needs some serious attention from professional tennis?

“Out of the 14 players, 11 have musculo-skeletal problems, and all appear to be because of overload,” said Dr. Ben Kibler, who is one of the world’s leading authorities on tennis-related injuries and who is in New York for tennis conferences this weekend.

“It may be just a bad year,” said Kibler, “but it bears investigating. I will bring it up at our sports medicine meeting this Sunday.”

On Day 4 of the Open, with 11 players already sidelined, Petra Cetkovska handed a walkover to Ana Ivanovic because of a quadriceps injury, Radek Stepanek retired against Juan Monaco with a shoulder injury and Robin Soderling pulled out of the tournament without hitting a ball, citing wrist and viral problems.

The ITF would have to go through every drawsheet in the history of the U.S. Open to determine if 14 pull-outs is a record, and that’s quite a job. I went back 10 years and it has never come close to being this bad. In fact, this is the worst injury/illness situation since 10 players withdrew or retired in 1998. Most think it is indeed a record.

Clearly, the injury problem affects men more than women. Over the last 10 years, there have been 50 men who have quit the tournament with injuries or illness and only 16 women, though this year the numbers are eight men and six women.

Men hit ground strokes with more power, serve more explosively and play best-of-five sets at the Open while the women play best-of-three. That’s the main reason why men account for most of the injuries.

But this year appears to be an anomaly for women, who three times in the last 10 years had no players retiring from injuries or illness — in 2007, 2006 and 2002.

While this just may be “a bad year,” as Kibler put it, it doesn’t come as a surprise to him. It was only a few days ago that Kibler talked at length with worldtennismagazine.com about the link between the U.S. hardcourt season, including the Open, and shoulder injuries in particular.

He pointed out that we’re now in the ninth month of a season which, despite recent schedule cutbacks, is still overly long. Overhead strokes, like serves, leave players particularly vulnerable at this time of year.

Kibler pointed out that while serving slows down during the clay court season because aces are difficult to come by and, thus, service placement becomes more important than speed, when the players get onto the faster hardcourts in the United States they start bombing big serves again.

Here’s the list of pull-outs and retirees thus far with their final round in parentheses:

* Kei Nishikori (1), lower back, retired to Flavio Cipolla.

* Conor Niland (1), illness on court. retired to Novak Djokovic.

* Frank Dancevic (1), hamstring injury, retired to Marsel Ilhan.

* Marinko Matosevic (1), ankle injury, retired to Juan Ignacio Chela.

* Misaki Doi (1), thigh injury, retired to Laura Pous-Tio.

* Julie Hampton (1), cramps, retired to Elena Baltacha.

* Ayumi Morita (1), shoulder injury, retired to Laura Robson.

* Louk Sorensen (1), cramps, retired to Rogeria Dutra da Silva.

* Karol Beck (1), shoulder injury, retired to Diego Junqueira.

* Radek Stepanek (2), shoulder injury, retired to Juan Monaco.

* Petra Cetkovska (2), quadriceps injury, gave a walkover to Ana Ivanovic.

* Venus Williams (2), breathing difficulty, gave a walkover to Sabine Lisicki.

* Yanina Wickmayer (2), back injury, retired to Alla Kudryavtseva.

* Robin Soderling, illness and wrist, quit tournament before playing, giving his spot to lucky loser da Silva.

Year by year, here’s the litany of pull-outs:

* 2010: Six men, three women.

* 2009: Four men, one woman.

* 2008: Five men, one woman.

* 2007: Four men, no women.

* 2006: One man (Nicolas Mahut), no women.

* 2005: Four men, three women.

* 2004: Six men, one woman.

* 2003: four men, one woman.

* 2002: Eight men, no women.

In 1998, with eight players quitting in the first round and 10 for the tournament, that was considered devastating. Now, here we are in 2011 with already 14 gone. Dr. Kibler is right. There’s no clear trend here, but the injury situation needs a closer look.

What strange racquet was used to win Washington last week?

by

Wilson? Head? Babolat? Volkl? Pffffft.

None of those big-money racket manufacturers won last week’s Legg-Mason Tennis Classic in Washington, D.C.

Bosworth rackets

The racket in Radek Stepanek’s right fist — the won with the “B” stenciled on the strings — was made by Jay Bosworth of Bosworth Tennis in Boca Raton, Fla., a virtually unknown company to fans that doesn’t do endorsements, doesn’t pay players to use its equipment, but a firm which is well known to a lot of pros.

Jay wasn’t in the stands on that sweltering day to watch his 32-year-old client overcome a rain delay and win his first ATP 500 event, the fifth title of his career and his first since 2009. But he was all over his TV set as Radek used his 10-sided Bosworth frame to whip world No. 7 Gael Monfils by 6-4, 6-4.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. It was really cool. I was so proud of the way Radek played,” said Bosworth, who ascended to presidency of the company after his father, Warren Bosworth, died a year ago.

What’s different about a Bosworth racket? For starters, the 10-sided head, which creator Warren Bosworth created to widen the sweet spot on the strings. Next, the racket is custom fitted to the player’s style, down to the curve of the grip.

But doesn’t Babolat do that for Rafael Nadal and Wilson for Roger Federer? I asked Jay.

“Yes, but we’re more proactive about it. I give the players my thoughts about how I think they should play.”

Tennis insiders know all about Bosworth rackets, but the company was probably a complete mystery to most fans. Ivan Lendl used a Bosworth. Martina Navratilova used a Bosworth. Players under contract for big money with major manufacturers might not use a Bosworth racket, but they would have their rackets customized by Bosworth.

Stepanek formed an alliance with Bosworth after a long talk with Lendl, who, like Radek, was born in the Czech Republic.

“Everyone at first was laughing at me,” Stepanek recalled the initial reaction to the 10-sided frame. “Everyone was trying to get inside my bag, to see the racket.”

Stepanek says his Bosworth has “double the sweet spot. “Even when I was with Volkl, they customized my rackets,” he explained. “It’s made for me, for what I need. I need a bigger hand and it’s a great help to have someone who understands rackets that well.”

Warren Bosworth founded his first tennis business in 1972, marketing his early rackets under the Fox brand. Bosworth Tennis was born in 1982, the year son went to work for father.

The company employs just five people and now makes rackets for amateurs as well as professionals, though Stepanek is, apparently, the only to pro using a Bosworth.

The shot of the season on the ATP World Tour

by

If this isn’t the shot of the season on the ATP tour and possibly one of the all-time single point sequences, then it certainly must be top five or, possibly, top three.
It happened Sunday afternoon at the Legg-Mason final in Washington, D.C.,. and showed why Gael Monfils — not Rafa Nadal — is the greatest pure athlete in the game.

Gael Monfils
You don’t have to watch this point over and over to appreciate it. One time is enough. But you will want to watch it over and over because, if you haven’t seen Monfils perform with this kind of incredible speed and athletic ability before, you will be quite amazed.
Monfils lost the point, but not before he saved three volleys and, in one of the most acrobatic and athletic plays you’ll ever see in tennis, leaped approximately three feet on the dead run to return an overhead from Radek Stepanek.
OK. Here’s how it happened and I wouldn’t be surprised if it hits youtube.com by Monday, allowing you to see it in full color.
Shortly after a long rain delay, Stepanek was serving at 4-3 and 15-love. Step’s first ground stroke was a backhand deep and flat to Monfils’ forehand corner. Gael made a sliding (yes, sliding on a hardcourt) retrieval, his shoes screeching as he came to a halt outside the plane of the doubles line.
His return was defensive, down the middle, and Radek, already well on the way to the net behind his first groundie, guided a forehand volley now deep to Monfils’ backhand side. No problem. Gael, his long legs in full flight, was there and threw up a lob.
Stepanek retreated a step, measured it and slammed the overhead straight on, a little to the right of Monfils’ center mark. And here’s where the gasps occurred.
On a full run to get back into position, Monfils jumped, his right arm stretched high, and he returned the smash. How high was he? I’d make the height of back-wall curtain about six-feet and, looking straight at Monfils, his waist was about even with the top of the wall. Can we say he was three feet off the ground when he hit that overhead? I’d call that a fair estimate.
Unfortunately, he didn’t get the point, but Stepanek needed two more volleys to put it away.
I’ve seen a lot of tennis in my years, but I can’t say that I’ve seen more pure athletic ability in one point than I saw in this spectacular display.

Stepanek sips fountain of youth, beats Monfils for Legg Mason title

by

By Christopher Lancette

Unseeded No. 54 Radek Stepanek was so relaxed before his Legg Mason Tennis Classic championship match against top seed and No. 7-ranked Gael Monfils on Sunday that he strolled out on to the court with his laces undone.

Then he tied his shoes and went to work – beating Monfils 6-4, 6-4 for only the second time in five tries on hard courts. En route to winning his first title of the year and becoming the oldest man to win the Legg Mason since Jimmy Connors did it in 1988, the 32-year-old Stepanek appeared to run with his 24-year-old opponent’s legs.

“We are like a fine wine,” Stepanek said of veteran players like himself. “The older we are getting, the better we are.”

Stepanek, who lost by the identical score to Monfils last month in Hamburg, earned $264,000 and a trip higher up the rankings for his week in Washington. He also improved his record to 2-5 in finals against opponents ranked in the top ten. Stepanek also happened to become the last player from the Czech Republic to win the Legg Mason since Petr Korda, now his coach, won the title in 1992.

Relying on the tenacity of his doubles game, Stepanek suffocated the net throughout the match. Up 2-1 and serving at 15-0 in the second set, he ran the famously fast Frenchman from sideline to sideline while working his way forward. He finished the point by rolling his right wrist over a ball to cut a forehand volley for a sharply angled winner. Stepanek finished that game with a drop volley that even Monfils could not touch before it bounced twice.

“I wanted to be in the control of the match … the one who is deciding what’s going to go on,” Stepanek said. “I wanted to have the match in my hands and [be] the one who was deciding who wins and it. I was right to come to the net because that’s my game. That was my game plan to be aggressive.”

Stepanek displayed steady nerves, too – keeping his calm on a point very similar to one that Monfils’ opponent John Isner blew last night. Ahead 4-3 and 15-0 in the first set, Stepanek sent Monfils scrambling to every corner of the court only to see ball after ball come back to him. While Isner ultimately lifted his head and missed the finishing volley, Stepanek angled a backhand crosscourt winner.

“You don’t want to do it because when you take your eyes off the ball or off your racquet, you’re increasing the chance of mis-hitting the ball or not hitting the volley clean,” he said. “It [Monfils’ speed] is a distraction and I didn’t want to be distracted for any second of the whole match. Gael is such a great athlete and his speed all over the court is amazing. Even though I won the points, I would say normally nobody would run for those balls that he did. I was just trying to close out the points, no matter if it would be another five or six volleys.”

Monfils gave the older man credit.

“He imposed his game more than me today,” Monfils said. “He didn’t miss a lot today so this was a bit tricky for me.”

Monfils also observed that his own reactions were slower than usual, perhaps because of the late night he had in the semifinals when he finished his win over Isner at 1:15 a.m.

“I was a fraction slower,” he said. “Maybe I was seeing the ball a fraction late, and I didn’t hit aggressive returns.”

The other oddity apart from the fountain-of-youth role reversal was that Monfils played more cautiously than usual. While he made fewer careless mistakes by not over-hitting some shots, he also failed to claim the collection of winners that comes with his high-powered, gambling style.

Stepanek looked different too, compared to last year’s Legg Mason. A summer ago, he made more jokes and played to the crowd in his matches – keeping fans in stitches but also leaving before championship Sunday. His 2011 tournament was marked by less high jinx, more business.

The Changeover with Radek Stepanek

2011 Legg Mason champion Radek Stepanek sits down to chat about his sense of humor, playing with his heart on his sleeve, what stopped him from having a hockey career, the origin of his “worm” victory dance move — and why it’s so important to sign autographs for kids. Interview by Christopher Lancette. Video produced by Won-ok Kim.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y13TxUoCPt0&w=550&h=343]

Photo credit © Won-ok Kim

Monfils’ speed propels him into Legg Mason finals on Sunday

by

By Christopher Lancette

Two points illustrated the difference in Gael Monfils’ 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (8-6) victory over John Isner in a semifinal match ending at 1:15 a.m. Sunday morning because of numerous rain delays – setting up a Legg Mason Tennis Classic championship date with Radek Stepanek on Sunday at 3 p.m.

The first was a flashy one – the kind of Monfils play that Janko Tipsarevic’s coach warned him about in his contest with the lightening quick Frenchman. Down 4-5 in the third set and serving at deuce, Isner ran Monfils from wing to wing and hit what would have been winning shots against most players on the tour. Isner closed in behind Monfils’ last shot and put himself in position for what should have been an easy volley winner. Isner, however, looked up to see where his opponent was – taking his eye off the ball just long enough to cause him to frame the volley attempt. Point Monfils.

Two points earlier, in a play that won’t make the highlights, Isner attempted to hit a drop shot. Monfils’ eyes grew wide, though, the instant he saw Isner drop his elbow – the “tell” that a drop shot is coming. He sprinted forward, pounced on the ball and easily smacked a backhand crosscourt winner.

Though Isner ultimately came back and held serve on that game, Monfils’ strategy of using his speed to always make his opponent hit another shot proved to be an investment that paid off as the hour grew later. He wore Isner down, which also forced Isner to work harder during his service games and to take bigger risks on just enough of his own shots to make a few critical errors.

“[Monfils’ reaction time] puts a lot of pressure on you and makes the court smaller,” Isner said. “A lot of times that forces you to go for the lines because you feel like it’s the only place you can put the ball past him.”

Monfils also fended off Isner’s powerful serve with tremendous returns, getting rallies started on returns and creating opportunities to win points. He put Isner in 0-30 and 0-15 hole repeatedly. All the extra sweat drained Isner just enough to leave Monfils fresher and more accurate in the third set tiebreaker. Up 7-6 but facing Isner’s serve, Monfils returned a boomer, stayed in the point, and won the match when an Isner forehand hit the net.

After the match, Monfils characterized his ability to read his opponents’ shots and react as a “gift” that he’s blessed to possess. He also said he could have played a few points a bit smarter.

“I played two fancy shots I could have been more aggressive on or more taking care of my business,” he said.

Then he raced out of the press room to stretch, wind down and try to catch some winks before the Sunday final.

Photos by credit © Won-ok Kim

Radek Stepanek reaches Legg Mason finals; Donald Young not ready for prime time

by

By Christopher Lancette

In a match that appeared to feature teacher versus student, Radek Stepanek earned a spot in the finals after he thrashed Donald Young for a 6-3, 6-3 at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic on Saturday afternoon and demonstrated that the youthful and much-hyped American is still not ready for prime time. The Czech ran Young sideways, up, back and in a few other directions – opening acres of space for an unending series of winners all day long.

Youth be damned. It was intellect and experience that carried the day and will move the 32-year-old Stepanek, already the oldest man in the top 100, higher up the rankings from his No. 54 spot.

“Yeah, definitely,” Stepanek said in response to a WTM question about whether brains mattered more than brawn. “I came prepared technically the best that I can for every match. I played different than he was used to. That paid off. I was trying to be aggressive and attack his second serve, just putting that pressure on him and I was in control the whole time.”

Up 2-0 at deuce in the second set, for example, Stepanek served, volleyed and smashed an overhead that Young futilely chased although the ball bounced well over his head. Stepanek forced an error on the next point when he made Young hit a racquet ball shot with his back to the court, then finished the game on a backhand volley.

Those kinds of plays gave Young cases of the grumps throughout the match. Young spent much of the afternoon thrashing his body around in frustration and, to the annoyance of many of his critics who would like to see him coached by people other than his parents, talking to his mother in the front row. She also accompanied him to the press conference afterward.

Up 5-3 and serving the first point of the game, Stepanek yanked Young off the court, came in behind it and hit a forehand winner up the line. He went up 30-0 on a serve-and-volley and closed out the match on a pair of service winners.

Young admitted that he was overmatched by his veteran opponent.

“He took me out of my game pretty much,” he said. “He played different, changed the pace. He attacked. He didn’t really let me really get set into the way I wanted to play or have been playing. I was a little off today but that was probably accredited a lot to him.”

Asked whether he tried making and adjustments and if they worked, Young quipped, “All of ‘em didn’t work, obviously, because it didn’t end up with me coming back and winning. I tried to start putting a few more balls in play, not going for as much because it wasn’t landing like it was previously. I had to go through everything I wanted to do because he had me quite flustered anyway.”

The win continues a great week for Stepanek, who won a final in San Jose in February of 2009. His last final appearance came in a loss to Andy Roddick in Brisbane in January of this year.

“I think it’s very important,” he said of his week in Washington. “I’m getting my ranking much better for next week. It’s very important to be seeded at the U.S. Open which would be a great bonus for me, but the main thing I’m looking forward to is tomorrows match. It’s great to play a final in such a big event and I’m looking forward to it.”

Stepanek will face the winner of the Gael Monfils/John Isner match.

Follow World Tennis Magazine on Twitter at @worldtennismag

Photo credit by © Won-ok Kim

The Sony Ericsson Open preview – Around the Corner

by

By Mike McIntyre

After another dominating performance by Novak Djokovic in Indian Wells, the Masters 1000 level action continues this week in Miami at the Sony Ericsson Open.

Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, who battled for the title in Indian Wells, both have a first round bye along with the other top thirty-one seeds. Good thing too, as the top two players in the world headed straight to Bogota, Columbia to play in an exhibition match on Monday. Nadal gained a small dose of revenge as he won that match 7-6(5), 6-3. Of course that result is meaningless as both players were no-doubt trying to conserve energy for Miami.

Nadal has a tough opening section of the draw in Miami and will face the winner between Kei Nishikori and Jeremy Chardy. Either way I would say this is a tough opening match that could test a tired Nadal. Both Alexandr Dolgopolov and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga are also in Nadal’s quadrant of the draw and they could present a threat in the fourth round.

Roger Federer

In the other section of the upper half of the draw are Roger Federer and Andy Roddick who could clash if they both progress through to the quarter-finals. Federer has a decent section to navigate with players like Radek Stepanek, Marcos Baghdatis and Juan Monaco present but not strong enough to threaten him.

Roddick could see Marin Cilic in the third round but the defending champion should be quite capable of winning his first few matches. It is about time that Roddick showed us what he can still do on the ATP World Tour. If he doesn’t come ready to play, the American veteran will likely find himself dropping out of the top ten in the rankings.

No longer even mentioned in the conversation of Grand Slam contenders, Roddick’s attitude is perhaps what needs the most adjustment. Physically his serve and other aspects of his game have not changed very much, however his confrontational nature seems at an all-time high. His verbal abuse towards the chair umpire in his loss to Richard Gasquet in Indian Wells was obnoxious and immature and did not endear himself towards any of the fans that surely wanted to support their country’s most recent slam winner.

In the bottom half of the draw we have a much tougher area of competition. Players like Robin Soderling, Andy Murray, Juan Martin Del Potro, Milos Raonic, Stan Wawrinka and of course Novak Djokovic are all going to be forced to battle within this section.

It will be interesting to see how Raonic reacts to suddenly being seeded and having more expectations placed upon him. He is now considered to be a favorite to move through the opening rounds. An Australian Open rematch against off-season hitting partner David Ferrer looms in the third round.

Soderling or Del Potro will likely advance to face the winner of the above mentioned match in the quarterfinals, while Gasquet and Wawrinka also linger. Look for Del P to continue his return towards the top ten as he showed us in Indian Wells that he is ready to resume his place near the pinnacle of the men’s game. Following his semi-final performance last week he has shot up 39 spots in the rankings to his current spot of no. 51.

In the other quarter, Andy Murray will be hoping to awaken and display some skill for the first time since his straight-sets defeat against Djokovic in Melbourne back in January. The fifth ranked player in the world has failed to win a match since then. His recent inconsistencies should favor big-serving John Isner whom he could face in the third round.

Djokovic should not have to face any serious opposition until the quarter-finals so expect his eighteen game winning streak to make it to at least the big 2-0.

With the tour getting ready to switch to clay courts, enjoy this last big tournament on the pavement.