Australian Open 2011 Women's Semifinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's semifinals at the Australian Open this year. I correctly predicted 3 of 4 women's quarterfinals.

AP

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (1) vs. Li Na CHN (9). Wozniacki is the #1 ranked player in the world despite not having reached a single major final in 2010 and only once in her brief career (2009 US Open). The nubile, flaxen-haired 20-year-old from Denmark is sometimes called the "Golden Retriever" by some tennis observers due to her style of play resembling a human backboard. Wozniacki is in her first Australian Open semifinal while her opponent has reached this far in the tournament for the second consecutive year. In fact Li has won the first 10 matches she has played in 2011 and is surfing a wave of confidence while Wozniacki is hearing an increasingly louder chorus of whispers doubting her ability to ever win a major title. Li on the other hand is hearing the call of history: can she become the first player from China to compete for (and win) a major title, especially the grand slam of Asia/Pacific, the Australian Open? I say, yes, and probably this week. The match-up between the two players is interesting: Li has great power on both wings and is also an excellent mover; Wozniacki has the ability to frustrate her opponents by forcing them to "win" a point several times through relentless defense. Head-to-head Li leads 2-1 and beat Wozniacki in the fourth round here last year in straight sets as well as a few weeks before in Sydney. A year later I see no reason why the result should be any different. PREDICTION: Li.

Reuters

Vera Zvonareva RUS (2) Petra Kvitova CZE (25) vs. Kim Clijsters BEL (3). I expected Kvitova to come through this match just like she had against #5 Samantha Stosur whom she dismissed easily in straight sets in front of a hometown crowd. However, Zvonareva showed incredible defense and consistency to eliminate the Czech lefty 6-2 6-4. Zvonareva has always been one of my favorite players to watch and her rise to the #2 ranking in the world via two consecutive major final finishes is a delight. Clijsters has been the clear favorite to win this year's title since Serena Willliams announced she would not be defending her 2010 Australian Open title. She is the only player of the final four remaining in the tournament who has won a major title; Clijsters has 3 US Open titles (2005, 2009, 2010). With Elena Dementieva's retirement Zvonareva is probably the best player on tour not to have won a major. Head-to-head Clijsters leads 6-3 but 5 of these wins were before Clijsters' "retirement" in May 2007. The two played 4 times in 2010 and Zvonareva won 3 of those matches, losing the most important one in a rout: the 2010 US Open women's final (6-1 6-2). None of those matches were finals, where the mental pressure is a larger factor and this poses a disadvantage to the more mentally fragile player. In a semifinal the mental pressure is less which should help Vera play some of her best tennis. It is also true that Clijsters does have a tendency to go through bad patches which complicates what should be easy wins. I suspect something like that will happen in this match as well, but in the end, Clijsters will find a way to prevail. PREDICTION: Clijsters.

Best (Women's) Tennis Matches of 2010

BY MAD PROFESSAH

Here are my picks for the "best" (most memorable) tennis matches by women in 2010. These are basically the matches that had the most impact on me while they were occurring, feature some of the best play, had the most impact on the rest of the year or would be ones that I would most likely to watch again in the future. You can see my previous lists: Best Women's Tennis Matches of 2009 ,Best Women's Tennis Matches of 2007, and  Best Women's Tennis Matches of 2006.

1. S. Williams USA d. J. Henin BEL, 6-4 3-6 6-2, 2010 Australian Open final, Melbourne.

The finals of the 2010 Grand Slam tournaments (Australian, French, Wimbledon, U.S.) are often contenders for the most memorable matches of the year, due to the historic and reputational stakes at play depending on the result which sometimes (but not often) leads to high-quality tennis. The set up for this match was Justine Henin's return to professional tennis after a "retirement" of just over 18 months. The two had never been friendly and Henin had beaten Serena Williams in three consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinals the last year they had met in 2007. Williams had won this tournament 4 times before (always in an odd year) and had never been able to successfully defend an Australian Open title. She had also had a near-death experience on her way to the final against Vika Azarenka; it was unclear if this would strengthen or weaken her confidence. What resulted was a match for the ages; Henin (inexplicably) decided to radically modify her game and go for broke on her return-of-serve and basically hit the ball as hard as she could whenever she had the opportunity. She also repeatedly rushed the net. Williams was placed into the unusual position for her of facing someone who was being even more aggressive on court. It was a high-stakes gamble for Henin which in one 10 minute period towards the end of the second set appeared to be paying dividends when the Belgian was able to win 4 games in a row (barely losing a point). However, in the third set Williams steadied her game and Henin's match inexperience with her own new service motion led to her downfall as the double faults and missed serves began to pile up, allowing Serena to win her 5th Australian Open title and 12th major title overall.

2. S. Stosur AUS d. S. Williams USA, 6-2 6-7(2) 8-6, 2010 French Open quarterfinal, Paris.

This was the match that decided the 2010 Roland Garros title. I am absolutely convinced that if Serena Williams had won this match she would have gone on to win her second French Open title. Amazingly, Williams actually possessed a match point late in the third set but hit an attempted winner down-the-line (instead of cross-court!) an inch or two long. Samantha Stosur had been widely regarded as a very talented doubles player but not really much of a singles threat at a major prior to this tournament. In fact, Williams had easily beaten Stosur in straight sets in Australia earlier in the year. However, in the 2010 clay court season Stosur had the most match wins of anyone on tour and her universally respected serve had become more of a weapon as her confidence increased in direct proportion to her match-win total. Always an excellent mover and possessing a great top-spin forehand as well as a both a slice and two-handed backhand, Stosur's Achilles heel had been her mental toughness. However, after beating Justine Henin, the 4-time French Open champion in the round before, Stosur showed that she had made significant progress towards erasing those doubts and took the rightful place her talent indicated in the Top 5 of Women's Tennis and a perennial threat to win major titles in the future.

3. K. Clijsters BEL d. V. Williams, 4-6 7-6(2) 6-4, 2010 U.S. Open semifinal, New York City.

A major tournament is always diminished by the absence of the #1 player in the world, even if they are not the defending champion. Serena Williams' absence at the 2010 US Open loomed over the tournament like the very dark stormclouds which disturbed play in the later rounds. Serena's absence led to speculation that it could help her sister Venus Williams to her best performance at a non-Wimbledon major tournament since 2003. Venus was not at her best physically but had a dream draw until she ran into defending champion Kim Clijsters after winning 5 matches relatively easily. The result was another curious showdown between Venus and Kim (but not as curious as 2009's 6-0 0-6 6-4 quarterfinal result) where the Belgian was able to come out on top by simply playing the big points better even though Venus basically dictated play for most of the match. Venus failed to respond to the call of history when the big moments showed up (2nd set tiebreak and 4-all in the third). Clijsters went on to win her 3rd US Open title in three tries and has a remarkable winning streak in New York dating back to 2005. Hopefully she can broaden her success to the other majors before she leaves the tour again in 2012.

4. K. Clijsters BEL d. J. Henin BEL, 6-3 4-6 7-6(6), Brisbane International final, Brisbane.

This was the first match that I saw in 2010 that I knew would end up on this list of the most memorable of the year. Despite their public protestations to the contrary, it is clear the "Belgian sisters" Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin do not like each other and that became blindingly clear in as this match progressed. Henin was playing in one of her first matches back on the tour, and Clijsters was coming off her 2009 US Open win. Clijsters easily won the first set and was cruising up 4-1 in the second when suddenly the wheels fell off and she couldn't buy a first serve or keep the ball in play. Henin, always one to take advantage when seeing an opponent in distress, easily won the 2nd set and was up a break in the third when Kim woke up from her "walkabout" and resumed playing high-quality tennis. In fact, the third set contained some of the best tennis played by any two women on tour all year. Clijsters came back from down a break (twice!) at 3-1 and 5-3 but fought back to take the match to a third-set tie-break. Henin was not done, saving 3 match points in the tie-break before finally succumbing. The length of the rallies, brilliant shot-making, and impossible defense were breathtaking and made this tennis fan very happy that both of these great champions had un-retired and returned to the Tour.

5. F. Schiavone ITA d. S. Stosur AUS, 6-4 7-6(2), 2010 French Open final, Paris.

No Italian woman had ever been in the Top 10 of the women's tour and certainly never in the final of a major championship. At nearly 30 years old, who would have expected Francesca Schiavone to lose the first set she played at the 2010 Roland Garros tournament and then never lose another, eventually holding the Coupe de Suzanne Lenglen after outplaying a stronger, bigger (and arguably more talented) player in the final? But that's exactly what happened and the tennis world was the better for it. By winning Schiavone again demonstrated why we watch sports: you never know what could happen; impossible dreams can come true. Schiavone ended the year at World #7.

6. V. Zvonareva RUS d. K. Clijsters BEL, 3-6 6-4 6-2, 2010 Wimbledon quarterfinal, London.

This year's Wimbledon was an odd tournament for me because I was actually in London for the final 5 days of the tournament (but only had tickets to the men's final). Anyway, because of this I actually saw much less of the latter round matches than usual (but still predicted the winners with better than average accuracy). Vera Zvonareva had her great breakthrough in 2010 at last, when her other, more famous Russian contemporaries (Dinara Safina, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva) either flamed out, wimped out or limped away from the court. That Zvonareva was talented was never in doubt; she's an excellent mover, has a world-class two-handed backhand and great hands at the net. Similar to Samantha Stosur, it was her emotional fortitude that had been tested and found wanting (her 2009 meltdown to Flavia Pennetta is legendary). Somehow, this year, on the grass of Wimbledon, trading backhand after backhand with Kim Clijsters, Vera found a way to play through the mental tumult by realizing the game of tennis is actually quite simple: just hit the ball into the court more times than your opponent. Surprisingly, it was the 2-time major champion who wilted first, handing the Russian just her second major semifinal berth of her career. Vera did not squander this opportunity and made it all the way to her first major final where she ran into an unstoppable force named Serena Williams. It's not clear that this tournament's winner was ever in doubt when both Williams sisters were in the draw, but this match at Wimbledon was a crucial turning point for women's tennis for 2010 when Zvonareva proved that she had reached the very pinnacle of women's tennis, ending the year at World #2.

7. S. Williams USA d. V. Azarenka BLR, 4-6 7-6(4) 6-2, Australian Open quarterfinal, Melbourne.

Serena Williams was down 6-4, 4-0 against the hard-hitting Victoria Azarenka when suddenly both players realized that Serena Williams, the 4-time defending Australian Open champion could lose this match. This realization had immediate and opposite impacts on both players. Azarenka started playing more tentatively (and was probably impacted by the fact that it was almost exactly a year before that she had had Serena in a similar position on this same court after easily winning the first set when Vika was forced to retire from the match due to the extreme heat). Serena on the other hand was enraged with herself and basically willed herself not to lose, slowly but surely making up the huge deficit against Azarenka point by point and game by game. Everyone watching the match was pretty convinced that the 2nd set tie-breaker would be determinative. If Vika won, the match would be over (obviously) but if Serena could come back to even the match score the mental and physical advantage would be hers. The tie-break was a taught, nervy affair but Serena was the more aggressive player and won the tie-break and went on to win the match. She was never really in much danger of not defending her title after that moment.

8. S. Stosur AUS d. E. Dementieva RUS, 6-3 2-6 7-6(2), 2010 US Open 4th Round, New York City.

The latest finish of any professional women's match of all time was an incredible slugfest between two great players who have never won a major title. This match was what Pam Shriver calls a "barn burner." On both sides of the net one saw world-class ground-strokes, excellent net play, incredible movement and mental anguish. Both players became tentative on their serve and both players blew leads which should have been insurmountable. This was really Dementieva's match to win. She broke Stosur impressive serve four consecutive times in the second set and in the third had a match point at 5-3 on her own serve as well as three more on Stosur's serve in the next game. Amazingly, almost all of these match points were decided by winners by Stosur who kept on going for her shots, despite being pummeled by powerful ground-strokes from the Russian. After that excitement it was only fitting that it came down to a 3rd set tiebreak, where surprisingly, it Dementieva's game which broke down first and she lost the match on a series of forehand errors at 1:36am.

9. E. Dementieva RUS d. L. Safarova CZE, 6-7(5) 6-1 6-4, Open Gaz de France Suez final.

In a curious twist of fate, Elena Dementieva won what was her last career tour title in front of Amelie Mauresmo, who had won this final hometown title the year prior to retiring at the end of 2009. This year it was Dementieva's turn for one last hurrah as she faced a determined Lucia Safarova who played "out of her head," aiming for the corners and regularly connecting to send winners screaming to the baseline out of reach of the Russian. There were some incredible, hard-hitting baseline rallies until finally Safarova's inconsistency caught up with her and she succumbed to the greatest player never to have won a major championship. I wonder who Dementieva will be watching win this title from the stands in 2011?

10. S. Williams USA d. V. Zvonareva, 6-3 6-2, 2010 Wimbledon final, London.

It's not very often that the Wimbledon final is not one of the top 5 most memorable matches in the final but that's exactly what happened this year. The reason why this match is even on this list because it was the very last match Serena Williams played in 2010, and it demonstrated how dismissive she could be of the player who ended the year ranked World #2 and had an envious second half of the year, with two consecutive Grand Slam final appearances, something no woman has done since Serena in 2008. There was never really any doubt who would win this match, or the 2010 Wimbledon title. Hopefully, Serena will return early enough in 2011 to make another impressive mark on the majors next year.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

S. Williams USA d N. Li CHN, 7-6(4) 7-6(1), 2010 Australian Open semifinal, Melbourne.

K. Clijsters BEL d. C. Wozniacki DEN, 6-3 5-7 6-3, WTA Championships final.

S. Kuznetsova RUS d. A. Radwanska POL, 6-4 6-7(7) 6-3, Southern California Open final.

V. Zvonareva RUS d. C. Wozniacki DEN, 6-4 6-3, 2010 U.S. Open semifinal.

C. Wozniacki  DEN d. M. Sharapova RUS, 6-3 6-4, 2010 U.S. Open 4th Round.

K. Clijsters BEL d. S. Stosur AUS, 6-4 5-7 6-3, 2010 U.S. Open quarterfinal.

J. Jankovic SRB d. S. Williams USA, 4-6 6-3 7-6(5), Rome semifinal.

J. Jankovic SRB d. V. Williams USA, 6-0 6-1, Rome quarterfinal.

K. Clijsters BEL d. J. Henin BEL, 2-6 6-2 6-3, 2010 Wimbledon Championships 4th round.

S. Stosur AUS d. J. Henin BEL, 2-6 6-1 6-4, 2010 Roland Garros 4th Round.

K. Clijsters BEL d. V. Williams USA, 6-1 6-2, Sony Ericsson Championship final.

P. Kvitova CZE d. K. Kanepi EST 4-6 7-6(8) 8-6, 2010 Wimbledon Championships quarterfinal.

J. Henin BEL d. E. Dementieva RUS, 7-5 7-6(6), 2010 Australian Open 2nd Round.

Elena Dementieva Has Retired

by Savannah

Savannah's World

Doha 2010 - Day 1

by Savannah

Billie Jean King on the state of her baby the WTA,.

Billie Jean King, who co-founded the Women's Tennis Association and remains among the sport's more forceful advocates, concedes that women's tennis "is not in a great place right now." But King argues that the sport always goes in cycles; this particular down cycle, she said, is due more to freak injuries and bad luck. She also suspects it's exaggerated by media, whom she believes delight in pointing out injury or frailty (real or perceived) among female athletes.

"I just want everybody to be healthy at the same time because we really have depth if we can get them all playing," King said. "We've had a very bad year. But it's not going to be like that forever."

SOURCE

Doha - A Dismal Start

Jelena Jankovic did not have a great second half of the year. Still most people, well me, expected her to suck it up and bring her "A" game to Doha. The opening match between JJ and Vera Zvonareva should have been competitive. Instead JJ dropped the first set 6-3 and disappeared for the second set losing it 6-0. She is still saying she is ill.

For some reason I didn't expect much from the Caroline Wozniacki/Elena Dementieva match and I got even less. The final score was 6-1, 6-1 Wozniacki and it wasn't even that close. Elena is obviously injured but she did play the entire match.

There was one match worthy of the name and that was not between two new school WTA'ers. Francesca Schiavone and Samantha Stosur, neither of whom have official WTA sanctioned nick names both came to play.

I'm sure Franny will be talking to herself after blowing a 4-0 second set lead and losing the set and the match 6-4.

The win has to be a confidence booster for Stosur who tightened up her game winning six games in a row.

There is a lot of speculation that both Elena Dementieva and Jelena Jankovic will withdraw from the tournament. Li Na and Shahar Peer are the alternates. It was announced today that Li is a confirmed player in Bali, an event she said she didn't want to play. We should know more tomorrow.

Wednesday Order of Play - Doha

Khalifa Tennis Complex (from 17.00hrs - 10a Eastern US Time)

1. Vera Zvonareva vs. Victoria Azarenka

2. Kim Clijsters vs. Jelena Jankovic

3. Caroline Wozniacki vs. Samantha Stosur

2010 US OPEN: Women's Quarterfinals Preview

by Mad Professah

Here are my predictions for the women's quarterfinals at the 2010 US Open.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (1) Maria Sharapova RUS (14) vs Dominika Cibulkova SVK Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS (11). The top seed and last year's US Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki had never won a big match against a "Big Babe" like Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Venus Williams or Kim Clijsters and I doubted that she would even win 5 games against the 2006 US Open champion. But Wozniacki showed that she is not just an incredible retriever but has the consistency of a backboard. Sharapova didn't help her cause by throwing in 10 double faults. That being said, Wozniacki has made a believer out of me by dismissing Sharapova 6-3 6-4. The tall Russian was pounding away, shrieking as she pounded the ball nto the corners but almost every rally over 10 strokes was won by Wozniacki as eventually, Sharapova went for too much and committed an error to concede the point. I still believe that a "Big Babe" who is actually comfortable at the net would still be able to overpower Wozniacki, but it is doubtful that she will face someone who matches that description before the top seed reaches the final for the second consecutive year. However, I still don't see how the Danish youngster wins that final against someone with more power from the bottom half of the draw. PREDICTION: Wozniacki in 2 sets.

Vera Zvonareva (7) RUS  vs. Kaia Kanepi EST (31) Yanina Wickmayer BEL (15). It's odd how the 2010 Wimbledon finalist is silently making her way through the draw, even though she has reached the quarterfinals without dropping a set. The hard-hitting Kanepi is in her second consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal and will presumably manage the occasion better than her meltdown in London. Especially since she managed to win a match where she was down a bagel set and a break against last year's semifinalist Yanina Wickmayer. Zvonareva's birthday is Tuesday and she has been playing a more mature brand of tennis which will take her deep into the draw. PREDICTION: Zvonareva in 3 sets.  

Venus Williams USA (3) vs.  Francesca Schiavone ITA (6). Venus Williams has only lost 3 sets in the 7 matches she has played against the 2010 French Open champion, and never lost to her. However, after Schiavone became the first Italian woman to win a major title ever, she has made the phrase "Impossible is Nothing" seem like reality. Venus has not dropped a set in the tournament yet, but she should have lost one to a determined Shahar Peer in the fourth round, and if anyone can exploit what is her obviously sub-optimal mobility, it is Schiavone with her clay-court toughness and European flair. Happily, Venus' unreported injury is making her more aggressive and more likely to approach the net in order to shorten the points. That, and a decidedly gentle draw should give her a fighting chance to reach a non-Wimbledon final, her first since the 2003 Australian Open. I do think that the thought that she will not have to face her sister in order to win the tournament should give Venus some extra motivation and confidence to try to do so. PREDICTION: Williams in 3 sets.

Kim Clijsters BEL (2) vs. Samantha Stosur AUS (5). Clijsters is on an 18-match winning streak at the US Open, having last lost a match in New York in the 2003 final(!) to Justine Henin. She is absolutely devouring the draw and she has to be considered the favorite to repeat as Champion here. However, the very talented Sam Stosur, who played one of the best women's matches of the year to eliminate Elena Dementieva in the 4th round stands in the Belgian's way. Stosur has finally broken through into the top of women's tennis and is a legitimate Top 5 player. I sort of think of her as the female Robin Soderling, since none of the players ranked above her will be very pleased that they picked the short straw and have to face her in order to reach the final. That being said, Stosur till has not quite made the leap to actually winning a major title, and I suspect it will be that lack (and Clijsters' preternatural defensive skills plus her offensive artillery) that will result in Clijsters' victory. It could be a scorcher of a match though, in the words of Jim Courier "a real popcorn match." PREDICTION: Clijsters in 2 tight sets. 

Roland Garros 2010: Women's Final Preview

Francesca Schiavone ITA (17) vs.

Samantha Stosur AUS (7)

BY MadProfessah

One of the most surprising grand slam tournaments in recent tennis history is coming to a conclusion with a final where for the first time in 6 years neither of the combatants has been in a major final previously. World No. 7 Samantha Stosur has reached this point by beating a series of excellent clay court players, one after another starting with a tight dismissal of Justine Henin, followed by outlasting Serena Williams and ending with a 2-set blowout of Jelena Jankovic. On the other hand, Francesca Schiavone has had the best luck of anyone in the tournament, having won every set she has played except for the very first, all the while facing a significantly lower level of competition. In her last match, her opponent Elena Dementieva retired after losing a close tie-break set!

In 2009 Schiavone and Stosur met in the first round of Roland Garros and the Australian won easily 6-4 6-2. Head-to-head Schiavone won the first match the two played in 2005 and has not won in 4 attempts, with two of these matches occurring on clay.

Although Schiavone is a big match player and will probably handle the pressure of playing in her first major final better than Stosur, the Australian has so much more power in her game that even with a slump she should still win her first major singles title relatively easily.

MadProfessah's pick: Stosur in 2 sets.

Skeevy Wonderful

AP

As our own Karen said a few days ago, Francesca Schiavone is a hero. She becomes the first Italian woman in the Open Era to contest a Grand Slam singles final after Elena Dementieva abruptly retired with a leg injury after dropping the first set in a tiebreak.

I predicted at the outset of the season that this would be a most unpredictable year on both tours.

So far, so good.

Roland Garros 2010: Women's Semifinals Preview

BY MADPROFESSAH

I previously made predictions of the four women's quarterfinals and four men's quarterfinals and got 4 of 8 results correct at this year's French Open.

Serena Williams USA (1) Samantha Stosur AUS (7) vs. Jelena Jankovic SRB (4). Samantha Stosur has the most clay court wins of anyone on tour this year. She showed that she can take out players who are expected to beat her with two exceptional, consecutive 3-set wins over 4-time French Open champ Justine Henin and 12-time major champion Serena Williams. She may possess the best serve in women's tennis right now. It was this difference which was most glaring in her defeat of Serena in the quarters. Stosur had quieter (but more effective) service stats (6 aces to one double fault) than Serena (13 aces, 9 double faults). Her second serve has a wicked kick which will push almost any opponent deep behind the baseline. Her next opponent is Jelena Jankovic who has lived up to her seeding (the only member of the Top 4 to do so) and is appearing in her sixth career major semifinal. Stosur is appearing in her second. Jankovic also sports a 3-1 career head-to-head edge over the Australian, but then again so did Serena Williams, with all their previous encounters occurring on hard courts. I actually like and appreciate both players' games so I will not be upset which ever player wins. In this case, I think Stosur will have the larger momentum and greater boost of her confidence having already beaten two great champions to reach this point. I think she will not stop until Stosur becomes a grand slam champion herself.
MadProfessah's pick: Stosur in 3 sets.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (3) Francesca Schiavone ITA (17) vs. Elena Dementieva RUS (5). This was supposed to be where Venus Williams was supposed to take advantage of the top heavy draw and finally make her way to another French Open final. Sadly, that dream was deferred by the excellent play of Nadia Petrova who then could not sustain a lead against her friend and doubles partner Elena Dementieva, an ended up choking on 3rd-set bagel. Francesca Schiavone is a big match player. A few weeks before her 30th birthday she is in her first major semifinal, the first woman from Italy to be in a major final in over a generation. Although I love her game (that one handed backhand! the shotmaking!), I predicted that the World's 3rd ranked player would take her out easily but Schiavone flipped the script aruond and dismissed Caroline Wozniacki 6-2 6-3 in a match that was not as close as the score indicates. This match is the hardest one for me to predict. The two have played 10 tour matches, with only one on clay (won by Dementieva) and with the Russian holding a slight 6-4 edge. Just as Schiavone has indicated her mental toughness in big matches, Dementieva has shown the opposite. I think that either Dementieva will be so nervous that Schiavone will blow her off the court in straight sets, or if Dementieva is able to win a set, she will be able to gut out an ugly 3-set win for her 3rd major final, her first in over six years. MadProfessah's pick: Schiavone in 2 sets or Dementieva in 3 sets.

Roland Garros 2010 Day 10 Order Of Play

Getty

Spain's Nicolas Almagro eyes the ball after hitting a forehand to Spain's Fernando Verdasco during their men's fourth round match in the French Open tennis championship at the Roland Garros stadium, on May 31, 2010, in Paris.

::

We have arrived at the final eight. MadProfessah has posted his predictions and we'll talk about them here as the action unfolds.

Conventional wisdom states that Elena Dementieva is the best active player on the WTA never to have won a slam. I reject that. That honor goes to Miss Nadia Petrova. No, she's never been to a Slam final, never won an Olympic Gold, but she has the most talent and most complete game of the non-Slam winners in the women's field. And she can serve. We know what her deadliest weakness is and I, for one, am hoping she can smother it this week and make her first Slam final.

I'm also rooting for Francesca Schiavone, one of the most imaginative players on the tour who fights to the bigger end. She'll have her work cut out for her against the backboard that his Caroline Wozniacki, but if the veteran can frustrate the youngster enough, she'll advance to her first Slam semifinal in the latter days of her career. What a story that would be.

As for the men, it probably goes without saying but I'll say it anyway: I wanna see Robin Söderling play Tomas Berdych in the semifinals. Let it be, let it be.

Schedule for Day 10: Tuesday, 1 June 2010

Court Philippe Chatrier 14:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Quarterfinals
Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[17] v. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[3]
2. Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
Roger Federer (SUI)[1] v. Robin Soderling (SWE)[5]
3. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Marc Lopez (ESP)/Pere Riba (ESP) v. Wesley Moodie (RSA)/Dick Norman (BEL)[4]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 14:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Quarterfinals
Elena Dementieva (RUS)[5] v. Nadia Petrova (RUS)[19]
2. Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
Tomas Berdych (CZE)[15] v. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[11]
3. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Lukasz Kubot (POL)/Oliver Marach (AUT)[6] v. Daniel Nestor (CAN)/Nenad Zimonjic (SRB)[2]

Court 1 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/Leander Paes (IND)[3] v. Mariusz Fyrstenberg (POL)/Marcin Matkowski (POL)[8]
2. Women's Doubles - Fourth Round
Monica Niculescu (ROU)/Shahar Peer (ISR) v. Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP)/Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (ESP)[2]
3. Mixed Doubles - Third Round
Vania King (USA)/Christopher Kas (GER) v. Tathiana Garbin (ITA)/Marcin Matkowski (POL)
4. Women's Doubles - Fourth Round
Kveta Peschke (CZE)/Katarina Srebotnik (SLO)[12] v. Alona Bondarenko (UKR)/Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR)

Court 2 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Marcelo Melo (BRA)/Bruno Soares (BRA) v. Julian Knowle (AUT)/Andy Ram (ISR)[10]
2. Girls' Singles - Second Round
Nastja Kolar (SLO)[4] v. Charlene Seateun (FRA)
3. Mixed Doubles - Third Round
Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ)/Julian Knowle (AUT) v. Cara Black (ZIM)/Leander Paes (IND)[2]

Roland Garros 2010 Women's Quarterfinals

By MadProfessah

Here are my predictions for the women's quarterfinals at Roland Garros this year.

Serena Williams USA (1) vs. Samantha Stosur AUS (7) Justine Henin BEL (22). For the second year in a row, the winner of the tournament will be decided in the quarterfinal in which Serena Williams competes. Last year, Serena lost a nervy, tension-filled (frankly, ugly) quarterfinal match to eventual champion, Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova. This year instead of playing the 4-time Roland Garros champion Henin (who had a 24-match winning streak since Tathiana Garbin beat the 2003 defending champion in the second round at this tournament in 2004) Serena will face last year's semifinalist Samantha Stosur. The Serena-Justine showdown had been the most anticipated match on either side of the draw, even in a section of the draw called the "quarter of death" by Brad Gilbert. However, thanks to the hard-hitting, brilliant-serving Sam Stosur, that storyline is now dismissed from the tournament. Serena and Sam have only played four times (all on hard courts) with Stosur winning once, in Stanford last year. Serena is a woman on a mission, and will not be denied her chance to reach another Roland Garros final. PREDICTION: Serena in 3 sets.

Yaroslava Shvedova KAZ vs. Jelena Jankovic SRB (4). Surely Jelena Jankovic is too strong a defensive player to go through her entire career without winning a major? She made it to the 2008 U.S. Open final (losing to Serena in two close sets) but I believe that it is clay where her particular skills should be rewarded the most. Following that first major final Jankovic fell into a major downward spiral (although not as precipitous a decline as her Serbian countrywoman Ana Ivanovic, who although she possesses the 2008 French Open title still does not own a reliable second (or first) serve.) Jankovic has played well on clay this year, having beaten both Williams sisters on her way to the Rome final (which she lost). She should seize on the good fortune of not being in the "quarter of death" and sneak into her second major final. PREDICTION: Jankovic in 2 sets.

Francesca Schiavone ITA (17) vs. Caroline Wozniacki DEN (3). Wozniacki can regain the World #2 ranking by getting to the final, although I suspect her current Italian opponent and future Russian opponent will do their best to help maintain Venus Williams' hold on that position. This is the veteran Schiavone's 4th career quarterfinal, her second in Paris since reaching that lofty height in her debut at the tournament in 2001. The young Dane had never been past the 4th round of a major despite being on the tour for 3 years until her major breakthrough in New York (over Svetlana Kuznetsova in one of the very best matches of 2009) last year, where she lost the final to Kim Clijsters. In these clashes between wily veteran and talented youngster it is often the older player who comes out the loser because they more viscerally understand the significance (and rarity) of the moment and I expect this case to be no different. Youth will be served, again. PREDICTION:Wozniacki in 2 sets.

Elena Dementieva RUS (5) vs. Nadia Petrova RUS (19) Venus Williams USA (2). Oh, Venus! After getting past her 3rd Round Roland Garros jinx easily she meekly went out to the hard-hitting, mentally fragile Petrova on a cold wet day in straight sets, losing to someone she had never lost to on any surface. Sigh. Soon to turn 30 years-old, and for once blessed with a draw that had all the deadliest players in the other half for once, Venus couldn't keep it together long enough to make another deep run at the clay major, despite having amassed a very good record on clay this year. Petrova has always done well in Paris, first breaking through here at age 17 into the semifinals in 2003. Her opponent, Elena Dementieva, has quietly snuck through the draw, losing only one set in a tiebreak to Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada, with almost no one discussing her chances despite being a finalist here in 2004 and having played the best women's match on tour last year. Matches between the Russians are very often hideous, tight affairs with one player losing worse than the other instead of one player winning decisively. That's what I expect to see in this match. Head-to-head there's not much between these two, they are tied 7-7 in career matches, 2-2 in clay court matches and 1-1 in grand slam matches. Petrova has won exactly 2 major quarterfinal matches before, here in Paris, while the 6-month-older Dementieva has won 8 major quarterfinals, although only one in Paris. PREDICTION: Dementieva in 3 sets.

Champions On Four Continents

Getty

Woke up too late to watch the Rotterdam final. Tried to watch the replay, even though I knew the result. Couldn't do it. I hate when finals end in retirement. Robin Söderling defeated Mikhail Youzhny 6-4, 2-0. Hamstring, I think.


Reuters

Elena Dementieva finally wins Paris Indoors. Lucie Safarova can't seem to get over the hump. Second time to the final, second time she takes the first set against a higher-ranked Russian opponent, second time she finishes runner-up. 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4.


AP

Lukasz Kubot was a bit overwhelmed and couldn't exactly get out of his own way. But Juan Carlos Fererro was otherworldly to take the Brasil Open title. He is a Roland Garros champion, after all. And when he's clicking on clay, it's some clicky classy stuff. Not to mention crushing. Yeah. I know. But I couldn't resist.

The Spaniard lost a single game. 6-1, 6-0. Crushing.

Happy belated 30th birthday, JC.


Reuters

Didn't see a point of the match. Wanted the homegirl to take the title, but I've no problem with Vera Zvonareva beating Tamarine Tanasugarn to win the Pattaya Open in Thailand.


AP

I said it before and mean it again: this title was Andy Roddick's to lose. He lost it. Check the stats. They each won 50% of the points, 95 of 190 to be exact. Roddick won slightly higher percentage of serve points and a slightly higher percentage of return points had a higher first-serve percentage, and saved a slightly higher percentage of break points against serve.

But stats don't always tell the tale especially when a match is so close.

Wanna know when Roddick lost the match?

Second set, third game 15-40 on serve. Had been facing down triple break point before saving one with aggressive tennis. At 15-40, though, Roddick constructed a point and blasted a forehand so hard, it pulled Verdasco so far to his forehand he had to stretch, open his racquet face, and lunge just to get his racquet on the ball. He did. It floated. Roddick, waiting, waiting, waiting, oh, so, patiently on the baseline for the floating ball to land, pushed it inside out crosscourt with his forehand. This time, Verdasco had no trouble planting his feet and stricking a forehand crosscourt that landed short enough for Roddick to angle a two fisted backhand right back to Verdasco who, waiting expectantly, struck a forehand down the line to break serve.

Game, set, match.

Really. Cuz after that, Roddick reminded Verdasco just how vulnerable he's been since Wimbledon 2009. And when you smell blood....

Roddick, down break points in the final two sets, played tentatively and lost. Verdasco, on the other hand, stepped up and crushed the ball when facing break points in the second set, faced no break points in the final set -- he was, after all, under no pressure, the smell of blood intensifying -- and won.

Or, to put it another way, Roddick broke serve twice in 9 games and won a set. Verdasco broke serve twice in 20 and won the match. 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Go figure.

And to think Roddick was a set away from giving the USA a clean sleep in San José, Mardy Fish and Sam Querrey taking the doubles title earlier.

The broadcast director, whenever Brooklyn Decker Roddick was on the screen, kept asking the graphic designer to draw a heart around her head. You know. Valentine's Day. But the heart always looked like the cloud containing the dialogue above a comic strip character. In her heart, she seemed to say, "This is how I have to spend Valentine's Day? You better win, honey.... Yes!.... Wait.... You.... What?!!!.... Awwwwwwwwww.... crap.... Humph.... No nooky for you tonight, buddy."

The Spanish Armada carries on.

Day 3: Late-Night Thriller

Getty

All the hype was about the women's "blockbuster" that ESPN had the audacity to call the "Greatest 2nd Round Grand Slam match ever?!" before it even began, but we'll get to that later.

The thriller of the night belonged to none other than James Blake and Juan Martín del Potro. Question marks loomed over the match. How would the reigning US Open champion's tennis elbow hold up? How would the 30-year-old man's knee hold up? How much desire to win would he display?

I'd like to write a match report, but I'm too tired, so I urge you all to see it on replay if you can. It was all-court power tennis punctuated with masterful net play, especially from Blake. The tiebreak he played to level the match in the second set was enthralling.

They saved the best for the last. Del Potro, who displays little emotion during the peaks and valleys of a match, hurt his rib late in the fifth set, Blake needed his left arm attended right before del Potro served for the match a second time, fans shouted at Blake in the middle of several big points, but both players displayed some serious gonads to give the fans at Hisense Arena a 6-4, 6-7(3), 5-7, 6-3, 10-8 adventure they'll be talking about for days.

::


Reuters

I wrote a version of the following shortly after Justine Henin outlasted Elena Dementieva 7-5, 7-6(6).

The hype for the women's night match on Rod Laver was too much before, too much during, and now too much after.

It was intriguing, dramatic, intense, and competitive. It was also erratic, nervy, painful, and ugly.

During the match, the tweets were outrageous. "Best match I've ever seen!" from someone who called the Brisbane final the same thing. "I can't remember the last time I saw such great tennis from both sides of the net" from someone who hailed the Brisbane final as the best thing since sliced bread. Pam Shriver even said early in the match that this was going to be a match she would never forget and then called it the greatest straight set match ever. Too few comments from the commentators about how terrible the serving was on both sides of the net.

As a critic, I know I can be too critical, even harsh, as some of you like to say, but when people ignore much of what's in front of their eyes simply to hype the best parts to the hilt, for the sake of the sport, I suppose, it leaves viewers wondering what the hell folks are talking about and makes you question the credibility of those doing all the hyping.

Another writer who bemoaned all the double faults on the WTA last year said nary a word about all the double faults in this match. I guess because she liked both players and was so very excited that Henin is back, she overlooked the woeful service games from both players. And I mean woeful. Neither player could hold serve. For me, great matches feature players who can close out matches on their own serve. You serve for a match once and get tight, fine. You serve for it twice and get tight, it's ugly. (It was interesting that both del Potro and Henin served for their matches twice. The second time simultaneously. They both faced 15-30 simultaneously. He held. She didn't) I'm not going to overlook the ugly just because some of the exchanges off the ground and at the net were beautiful.

They're both fighters. But ElenaD isn't as focused in Slam matches as she is in non-Slam matches it makes the whole affair less palatable because we know what she can produce when she is. One of my readers, a new fan to tennis, doesn't know much about ElenaD's history and all he can talk about is how sorry for her he feels because she's in such visible pain on the court.

And despite what the propagandists claimed, she did not play as well as she did in Sydney. There, her serve was better, her groundstrokes were flatter, deeper, more precise, and she wasn't talking to herself or her mother when she missed a shot.

Henin means business. So much so that she's still looking up at her coach between every point and he's still giving her signals. Pathetic. And though she'd never admit it in public, she also wants to upstage the comeback of her compatriot. She may just do it. But if, and only if, the rest of the tour allows her to get away with that crappy serve as it did for much of her first go around.

If she wants to fulfill her dreams in London, she's going to have to buy a serve.

::

Faces Of The Day


Reuters

Bernard Tomic of Australia keeps warm with a towel during his match against Croatia's Marin Cilic at Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 20, 2010.


Reuters

France's Marc Gicquel turns to the crowd after losing a point to Andy Murray of Britain at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 20, 2010

Reuters

Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil reacts during his match against Andy Roddick of the U.S. at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 20, 2010.


Getty

Donald Young of the United States of America talks to the media during day three of the 2010 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 20, 2010 in Melbourne, Australia.

Australian Open 2010 Day 3 Open Thread

Getty

An American fan shows her support during day two of the 2010 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 19, 2010 in Melbourne, Australia.

::

The women have yet to complete their first-round matches, thanks to the unseasonable cold and rain, but we've arrived at the most talked about second-round matchup in the draw.

I suspect most of the pressure will be on Elena Dementieva's side of the net. Justine Henin has already received a considerable amount of hype in her comeback and that could weigh on her. And even though a Russian will be her opponent, a Belgian will be on her mind. I'll stick with my preview prediction and give the Divorcee this one in a close decider.

Raise your hand if you're going to stay up/get up to watch it?

::

Every year John sends me a quick email from Down Under to give us a birdseye view of the action around the ground. From today:

Hello Craig

Thank you for another blog year....

I spent the last 2 days at the tennis, very crowded, it has become the teenagers place to hangout, even the most obscure players are standing room only now. The plans for expansion announced yesterday should help.

On some players I saw... Your girl Serena was not moving well, but she has won finals on one leg. I still don't think Isner has much game. Del Potro's body has filled out well. Nadal seems to have lost all joy, he is getting the crowds sympathy vote now. First time I've seen Lacko, he has real potential to be top 20. Casey has a good draw, and played way better than she has for a few years.

Best half hour was watching Justine practice. Reminded me of why she was my favourite before her personality was revealed. Magnificient strokes, strength, speed.. The King/Cibulkova match was on the next court and it was pitty pat club tennis in comparison.

Some good matchups today, unfortunately I am back at work.

Wednesday, January 20 Order Of Play - Show Courts

Rod Laver Arena 11:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) v. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)[3]
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Kim Clijsters (BEL)[15] v. Tamarine Tanasugarn (THA)
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Lukas Lacko (SVK) v. Rafael Nadal (ESP)[2]

Rod Laver Arena 19:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Elena Dementieva (RUS)[5] v. Justine Henin (BEL)
2. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Marin Cilic (CRO)[14] v. Bernard Tomic (AUS)

Hisense Arena 11:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 1st Round
Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[4] v. Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN)
2. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Andy Roddick (USA)[7] v. Thomaz Bellucci (BRA)
3. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) v. Dinara Safina (RUS)[2]
4. Men's Singles - 2nd Round James Blake (USA) v. Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG)[4]

Margaret Court Arena 11:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 1st Round
Jarmila Groth (AUS) v. Sofia Arvidsson (SWE)
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) v. Flavia Pennetta (ITA)[12]
4. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Antonio Veic (CRO) v. Gael Monfils (FRA)[12]
Not Before:19:00
5. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Andy Murray (GBR)[5] v. Marc Gicquel (FRA)
Show Court 2 11:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 1st Round
Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (FRA) v. Victoria Azarenka (BLR)[7]
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Maria Kirilenko (RUS) v. Yvonne Meusburger (AUT)
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Feliciano Lopez (ESP) v. Rainer Schuettler (GER)
4. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Jelena Jankovic (SRB)[8] v. Katie O'Brien (GBR)

Show Court 3 11:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 1st Round
Vera Zvonareva (RUS)[9] v. Kristina Kucova (SVK)
2. Men's Singles - 2nd Round Marsel Ilhan (TUR) v. Fernando Gonzalez (CHI)[11]
3. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Aravane Rezai (FRA)[26] v. Angelique Kerber (GER)
4. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Sorana Cirstea (ROU) v. Alisa Kleybanova (RUS)[27]

Face Of The Day

Reuters

Elena Dementieva of Russia raises her trophy after beating Serena Williams of the U.S. in the women's singles final at the Sydney International tennis tournament January 15, 2010.

::

Singles Final
(5) Elena Dementieva (RUS) d. (1) Serena Williams (USA) 63 62

Doubles - Final
(1) Black/Huber (ZIM/USA) d. Garbin/Petrova (ITA/RUS) 61 36 10-3

Men's Singles - Semifinals
R Gasquet (FRA) d J Benneteau (FRA) 64 75
M Baghdatis (CYP) d M Fish (USA) 64 67(7) 76(5)

Men's Doubles - Semifinals
[1] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d I Andreev (RUS) / E Korolev (KAZ) 60 76(4)
R Hutchins (GBR) / J Kerr (AUS) d S Aspelin (SWE) / P Hanley (AUS) 75 63

::

Heineken Open

Singles - Semifinals
A Clement (FRA) d [5] P Kohlschreiber (GER) 63 76(2)
J Isner (USA) d [8] A Montanes (ESP) 62 76(5)

Doubles - Semi-finals
[WC] M Daniell (NZL) / H Tecau (ROU) d J Brunstrom (SWE) / J Rojer (AHO) 36 76(4) 10-8


::

Hobart International

Singles - Semifinals
(4) Alona Bondarenko (UKR) d. (1) Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) 46 63 64
(2) Shahar Peer (ISR) d. Sara Errani (ITA) 62 60

Doubles - Semifinals
Chan/Niculescu (TPE/ROU) d. (1) Hsieh/Peng (TPE/CHN) 76(5) 46 10-8
Chuang/Peschke (TPE/CZE) d. Errani/Vinci (ITA/ITA) 63 62

Best (Women's) Matches of 2009

After a year's hiatus in 2008, MadProfessah's list of the Best Tennis Matches of the Year has returned, this time, twice as long! You can still see that inaugural post, the Best Women's Matches of 2007.

Here are the most memorable tennis matches by women in 2009:

1. S. Williams USA d. E. Dementieva RUS, 6-7(4) 7-5 8-6,Wimbledon Championships semifinal, London.

Unanimously recognized as the best match of 2009 by competitors, fans and commentators, the semifinal showdown between Elena Dementieva and Serena Williams was the pivotal moment in the most important tournament of the year. The Russian was popularly regarded as having the most powerful ground strokes of any player on tour but also one of the weakest serves. Serena, of course, is well-known for having the best serve of any player on the WTA Tour and is also very powerful on both wings. Even so, few expected the battle royale which resulted with Dementieva holding a match point at 7-6(4), 5-4 which Serena saved after an extended rally ending with an error by the Russian. Despite the disappointment of not winning the match in the second set, Dementieva was able to exhibit incredible mental fortitude by extending the match to a record 2 hours and 49 minutes, the longest women's semifinal in Open tennis history. But Serena was able to prevail and it was this match which demonstrated that no one was going to be able to stop her from winning her 3rd career Wimbledon title, not even her sister, the best grass court player of her generation.

2. S. Williams USA d. D. Safina RUS, 6-0 6-3, Australian Open final, Melbourne.

None of the 2009 Grand Slam finals were stellar matches, but Serena Williams' dismantling of the World #1 player in the final of the Australian Open was still noteworthy. Although not as devastating as the incredible beatdown of Maria Sharapova Serena displayed in the 2007 final (in that match Sharapova was not playing badly but there's absolutely no one who could have beaten Serena the way she was playing that day), the 2009 final still ended up with a similar result: the humiliating defeat of the Russian player in the final of the Australian Open. It was Serena's 10th major title and her second consecutive Grand Slam title in a row.

3. S. Kuznetsova RUS d. S. Williams USA, 7-6(3) 5-7 7-5, Roland Garros quarterfinal, Paris.

It was clear at the outset that the person who won this match would go on to win the French Open title. The surprising aspect of this match was that the person who exhibited the superior mental toughness was Svetlana Kuznetsova, not 10-time major champion Serena Williams. Kuznetsova faced a set point in the first set but won that point and ended up winning the first set in a tiebreak. In the second set Kuznetsova held a significant lead at 5-3 and was 3 points from victory but ended up losing 4 consecutive games to lose the second set. Serena was up a break and had a lead of 3-1 in the decisive set when things fell apart and she never held a lead again. As Serena said, "It was like, 'Here, do you want to go to the semis? Because I don't.' She was like, 'OK.'" The win was a huge boost for the Russian, who Serena had beaten to win the first major of the year, and Kuznetsova went on to win the second major of the year and her second career major title.

4. C. Wozniacki DEN d. S. Kuznetsova RUS, 2-6 7-6(5) 7-6(3), U.S. Open 4th Round, New York City.

The teenaged sensation had made a name for herself on the tour all year long but it was only at the final major of the year that the Danish player made her major breakthrough to defeat 2-time major champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. The Russian was dominating in the first set, firing on all cylinders and simply overwhelming the youngster with her forehand and backhand. However, in the second set Kuznetsova started to make more errors and Wozniacki improved her retrieving abilities, often making the Russian hit two or three attempted winners to try to win the point, eventually leading to an overhit error. Eventually the second set was won by Wozniacki due to at most two points that could have gone either way. In the third set both players held and consolidated breaks of service but, surprisingly, it was the more inexperienced player who ended the match the victor. Wozniacki would go on to reach her first career Grand Slam final and end the year ensconced in the Top 5.

5. V. Williams USA d. D. Safina RUS, 6-1 6-0, Wimbledon semifinal, London.

Venus Williams humiliated the world #1 by delivering the worst thrashing in a Grand Slam to a top-seeded player ever and one of the most lopsided scores in a grand slam semifinal in the Open era. For the third time in the third major of the year, Safina's mental infirmities overwhelmed her not insubstantial strengths as a player but this time the meltdown occurred in a semifinal and not a final. Strangely, none of the supreme confidence and expert shotmaking Venus displayed in this match were apparent in the final against her sister the next day. Then again, it's easier to look good when your opponent is busy trying to look so awful.

6. M. Oudin USA d. M. Sharapova RUS, 1-6 7-6(3) 6-3, U.S. Open 3rd Round, New York.

Melanie Oudin is the third highest-ranked American player after the Williams sister who made a name for herself by dismissing former World #1 Jelena Jankovic in the fourth round of Wimbledon. She is nearly a full foot shorter than the statuesque 3-time major champion Maria Sharapova. However, despite losing the first set easily, Oudin never seemed to panic or feel that she was unable to win the match despite the stark difference not only between the two player's heights but the difference in their levels of success on the WTA tour. Oudin was aided by Sharapova's wobbly serve--the Russian former #1 double-faulted 21 times, the most of any player in a WTA tour match all year. The American also had a very partisan and rowdy New York City crowd behind her who never gave up on the diminutive American despite Sharapova's service-break lead in the final set. The 17-year-old became the youngest American semifinalist at the U.S. Open since Serena Williams nearly 10 years before on her way to winning the first of her 11 major titles.

7. S. Williams USA d. V. Williams USA, 7-6(2) 6-2, Wimbledon Championships final, London.

It's not often the Wimbledon final doesn't make into the Top 5 Best Matches of the Year but 2009 was that kind of year (on the Women's side). For the fifth time of the decade (and second consecutive year) the Williams sisters would face each other in the Wimbledon final. At the time, Venus was widely regarded as the finest grass court player of her generation with 5 titles and Serena was the current defending champion of two of the four majors and is clearly the best player of the decade. Unfortunately (as usual) the showdown did not live up to its potential. Venus demolished her semifinal opponent without breaking a sweat the round before and was never seriously challenged in London until the final. Serena got through the match of the year by defeating Elena Dementieva in an incredible match that lasted nearly 3 hours. However, in the final it was Venus who seemed the less physically present, and Serena was definitely the more mentally focused, thus leading to the relatively lopsided score after the relatively close first set, which was filled with deep powerful hitting and incredible ball retrieval by both players.

8. C. Wozniacki DEN d. V. Azarenka BLR, 1-6 6-4 7-5, Sony Ericsson Championships round-robin, Doha.

In the last tournament of the year, the young Caroline Wozniacki met the young Victoria Azarenka for the third time in 2009, having lost both matches played against the feisty Belorussian . After losing the first game of the match, Azarenka won 6 games in a row to take the first set. The second set featured an amazing 14-deuce fifth game and lasted almost 80 minutes, nearly half the duration of the entire match. Despite losing the second set, Azarenka served for the match at 5-3 in the deciding set but only had a match point on Wozniacki's serve at 4-5 but made an error to even the match at 5-all in the third. Eventually Wozniacki broke to go up 6-5 and won the match on a service winner. Azarenka and Wozniacki will most likely be rivals for many major titles well into the future.

9. K. Clijsters BEL d.V. Williams USA, 6-0 0-6 6-4, U.S Open 4th Round, New York City.

The first two sets of this highly anticipated match-up between the beloved mother of Jada and the 7-time Grand Slam champion were the two most lopsided sets of tennis of the year, with Clijsters starting off hot and Venus Williams committing error after error followed by a set where Williams settled down and started painting the lines with successive winners despite the Belgian's legendary flexibility. This match was a canonical example of "Big Babe Tennis" with both players banging away from the baseline, impressing the audience with huge serves, blistering groundstrokes and powerful athleticism. In the end, Clijsters' superior control was the edge that gave her the victory.

10. F. Pennetta ITA d. V. Zvonareva RUS, 3-6 7-6(8) 6-0, U.S. Open 4th Round, New York City.

Flavia Pennetta became the first Italian women to reach the Top 10 in August 2009 a few weeks before this classic showdown with the always combustible Russian Vera Zvonareva in the 4th Round of the U.S. Open. In the second set, Pennetta saved no less than SIX match points, several with winners on her racquet and ended up winning the middle set. Zvonareva was so mentally frazzled by this result that she failed to win a single game and lost the deciding set 6-0. An incredibly memorable result for the popular Italian.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Here are some honorable mentions for memorable matches of the year by women

D. Safina RUS d. A. Mauresmo, 4-6 6-3 6-4, Wimbledon 3rd Round.
S. Williams USA d. S. Kuznetsova RUS, 5-7 7-5 6-1, Australian Open quarterfinal.
J. Dokic AUS d. A. Kleybanova USA, 7-5 5-7 8-6, Australian Open 4th Round.
M. Oudin USA d. J. Jankovic SRB, 6-7(8) 7-5 6-2, Wimbledon 3rd Round.
C. Suarez Navarro ESP d. V. Williams USA, 2-6 6-3 7-5, Australian Open 2nd Round
K. Clijsters BEL d. S. Williams USA, 6-4 7-5, U.S. Open semifinal.
K. Clijsters BEL d. C. Wozniacki DEN, 7-5 6-3, U.S. Open final.
M. Oudin USA d. N. Petrova RUS, 1-6 7-6(2) 6-3, U.S. Open 4th Round.
V. Williams USA d. S. Williams USA, 6-1 2-6 7-6(3), Dubai Championships semifinal.
V. Azarena BLR d. S. Williams USA, 6-3 6-1, Sony Ericsson Open final.
S. Williams USA d. V. Williams USA, 6-2 7-6(4), Sony Ericsson Championship semifinal.