US OPEN 2011: Women's Quarterfinals Preview

Andrew Ong/usopen.org

By MAD PROFESSAH


Caroline Wozniacki DEN (1) v. Andrea Petkovic GER (10). Wozniacki was hand delivered a get-out-of-jail free card from Svetlana Kuznetsova, who was leading 7-6(6) 4-2 40-15 when suddenly the Russian had (another) one of her epic collapses, losing 11 of the next 13 games in a draining 3-hour-plus match. This was something of a repeat of their 2009 US Open 4th round encounter which Wozniacki had won 2-6 7-6 7-6 on her way to only major final. Her opponent Petkovic played a much less dramatic match against talented Spaniard Carlos Suarez Navarro, winning in straight sets 6-1 6-4. If  2-time major champion Sveta couldn't blast "Sunshine" off the court, what chance does Petkorazzi have of winning? Regardless of who wins this match to reach the semifinal, they have almost no chance getting to the final since they are in Serena Williams half of the draw. PREDICTION: Wozniacki.


Serena Williams USA (28) v. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS (17). The young, talented Russian was finally able to outlast the Iron Woman herself, Francesca Schiavone of Italy, in a 5-7 6-3 6-4 win to reach her second major quarterfinal of the year, claiming revenge for the come-from-behind win Schiavone had eked out during her historic journey to the 2011 French Open final. Unsurprisingly, Serena is the lowest seeded player to be in the final 8, following her straight sets dismissal of #4 seed Victoria Azarenka and #16 seed Ana Ivanovic. It is extremely doubtful the hard-hitting Pavlyuchenkova playing in her 2nd career quarterfinal will be able to make much impact on the hardest-hitting player of her generation playing in her 32nd quarterfinal.The only thing that could stop Serena winning the tournament on Saturday is being hit by a bus. PREDICTION: Williams.


Flavia Pennetta ITA (26) v. Angelique Kerber GER. The mystery quarterfinalists. It's not surprising that two of the quarterfinalists are from Germany, but that one of those German quarterfinalists is Angelique Kerber is stunning. After going through a notable lull after the great Steffi Graf, Germany has had a recent resurgence with Julia Georges, Sabine Lisicki and Andrea Petkovic all having reached the Top 20 in the rankings. However, it is the #4 German player who is in her first major quarterfinal against Italy's #2, Flavia Pennetta. Pennetta relishes her reputation as a giant killer, and eliminated Maria Sharapova from the draw 2 rounds ago. It is an incredible opportunity for the Italian to reach her first major semifinal and perhaps become the second woman from her country ever to reach a major final, and shockingly, the second Italian player this year. PREDICTION: Pennetta.


Vera Zvonareva RUS (2) v. Samantha Stosur AUS (9). This should be the popcorn match of the round. Zvonareva has been in 2 major finals and is now an established hard-court force to be reckoned with, but no-one who has ever had the mental collapses Vera has exhibited can ever really be counted on to play up to their potential level when it counts. In Samantha Stosur she faces an opponent who has beaten her 6 times in a row, but who is also known to wilt under the pressure of an important moment. Stosur has been improving in this category, and battling back to win the third set convincingly after losing the longest women's tie-break in Grand Slam history (15-17) against Maria Kirilenko shows her strengthening mental fortitude. Zvonareva has tasted success on these courts before and that might be the difference in a 3rd set tiebreak. PREDICTION: Zvonareva.

WIMBLEDON 2010: Women's Final Preview

AP

Serena Williams USA (1) vs Vera Zvonareva RUS (21). For the third consecutive year and sixth time in the last eight years, Serena Williams is in the Ladies' Final of the Wimbledon championships. Surprisingly, she is not facing her older sister this time, as she has four times before, winning three titles in the process. Serena did well to get past a spirited challenge from Petra Kvitova, but, as predicted, she left the court with a victory after two sets.

The 12-time major champion is playing Russian Vera Zvonareva who is in the first Grand Slam final of her career. Zvonareva has a very strong backhand and a good forehand. She has previously shown an extreme level of mental frailty (the celebrated collapse against Flavia Pennetta at the 2009 U.S. Open where she blew 6 match points in the second set and lost the third set 6-0 while in tears). However, by dispatching Kim Clijsters from a set down and outlasting a determined Tsvetana Pironkova in their closely contested semifinal demonstrate this is a brand new Vera.

AP

Unfortunately for her, she is playing a new Serena. This Serena has yet to lose a set in this entire Wimbledon tournament and is lapping the field in the number of aces delivered. The two have played 6 times before with Serena winning all but once. If Zvonareva can keep the game score close then perhaps Serena will get nervous and give her a chance. As Francesco Schiavone proved in the 2010 Roland Garros final, anything is possible.

Yeah, I don't think so either.

MadProfessah's PREDICTION: Serena in 2 sets.

Roland Garros 2010 Day 8 Open Thread

AP

Austria's Jurgen Melzer reacts after defeating Spain's David Ferrer during their third round match for the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, Saturday May 29, 2010. Straight. Sets. With a middle-set bagel. Upset of the event so far.

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Just returned from my Harvard 20th anniversary reunion. Tennis comes on ESPN at noon in my market today, so I'm sure they're air matches that have already been decided and since I haven't watched a lick of tennis today, I'm posting this thread as though play has only just begun.

Humor me.

Right not, I'm barely watching this pushy pushy dogfight between Caroline Wozniacki and Flavia Pennetta on Tennis Channel. Ugly day in Paris.

I won't be commenting because I don't want to read any spoilers.

Schedule for Day 8: Sunday, 30 May 2010

Court Philippe Chatrier 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Fourth Round
Elena Dementieva (RUS)[5] v. Chanelle Scheepers (RSA)
Not Before 12:00
2. Women's Singles - Third Round
Maria Sharapova (RUS)[12] v. Justine Henin (BEL)[22] To Finish 2-6 6-3
3. Women's Singles - Fourth Round
Nadia Petrova (RUS)[19] v. Venus Williams (USA)[2]
4. Men's Singles - Fourth Round
Roger Federer (SUI)[1] v. Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)[20]
5. Men's Singles - Fourth Round
Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[11] v. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[8]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Fourth Round
Maria Kirilenko (RUS)[30] v. Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[17]
2. Women's Singles - Fourth Round
Flavia Pennetta (ITA)[14] v. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[3]
3. Men's Singles - Fourth Round
Marin Cilic (CRO)[10] v. Robin Soderling (SWE)[5]
4. Men's Singles - Fourth Round
Andy Murray (GBR)[4] v. Tomas Berdych (CZE)[15]

Court 1 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Doubles - Third Round
Olga Govortsova (BLR)/Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS)[15] v. Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP)/Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (ESP)[2]
2. Men's Doubles - Second Round
Julien Benneteau (FRA)/Michael Llodra (FRA)[15] v. Rohan Bopanna (IND)/Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK)
3. Men's Doubles - Third Round
Julian Knowle (AUT)/Andy Ram (ISR)[10] v. Nicolas Almagro (ESP)/Santiago Ventura (ESP)
4. Women's Doubles - Third Round
Serena Williams (USA)/Venus Williams (USA)[1] v. Andrea Hlavackova (CZE)/Lucie Hradecka (CZE)[16]

Court 2 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - Second Round
Lukasz Kubot (POL)/Oliver Marach (AUT)[6] v. Leonardo Mayer (ARG)/Horacio Zeballos (ARG)
Not Before 13:00
2. Men's Doubles - Third Round
Guillaume Rufin (FRA)/Alexandre Sidorenko (FRA) v. Daniel Nestor (CAN)/Nenad Zimonjic (SRB)[2]
3. Men's Doubles - Third Round
Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)Leander Paes (IND)[3] v. Santiago Gonzalez (MEX)/Travis Rettenmaier (USA)
4. Women's Doubles - Second Round
Vania King (USA)/Michaella Krajicek (NED) v. Nadia Petrova (RUS)/Samantha Stosur (AUS)[4]
5. Mixed Doubles - Second Round
Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)/Bruno Soares (BRA) v. Cara Black (ZIM)/Leander Paes (IND)[2]

Court 3 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Doubles - Third Round
Liezel Huber (USA)/A. Medina Garrigues (ESP)[3] v. Iveta Benesova (CZE)/Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE)[13]
2. Men's Doubles - Second Round
Alexandr Dolgopolov Jr (UKR)/Denis Istomin (UZB) v. Mariusz Fyrstenberg (POL)/Marcin Matkowski (POL)[8]
3. Women's Doubles - Third Round
Maria Kirilenko (RUS)/Agnieszka Radwanska (POL)[11] v. Lisa Raymond (USA)/Rennae Stubbs (AUS)[7]
4. Mixed Doubles - Second Round
Yung-Jan Chan (TPE)/Eric Butorac (USA) v. Aurelie Vedy (FRA)/Michael Llodra (FRA)

Court 4 11:00 Start Time
1. Girls' Singles - First Round
Danka Kovinic (MNE) v. Kristyna Pliskova (CZE)[8]
2. Boys' Singles - First Round
Jozef Kovalik (SVK) v. Agustin Velotti (ARG)
3. Boys' Singles - First Round
Lucas Szewczyk (FRA) v. Dane Webb (USA)
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Micke Kontinen (FIN) v. John Morrissey (IRL)
5. Girls' Singles - First Round
Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER) v. Katarena Paliivets (CAN)

Court 5 11:00 Start Time
1. Girls' Singles - First Round
Morgane Pons (FRA) v. Karolina Pliskova (CZE)[2]
2. Boys' Singles - First Round
Sam Barry (IRL) v. Mitchell Frank (USA)[13]
3. Boys' Singles - First Round
Sebastian Lavie (NZL) v. Tiago Fernandes (BRA)[5]
4. Girls' Singles - First Round
Elina Svitolina (UKR) v. Jana Cepelova (SVK)
5. Boys' Singles - First Round
Filip Horansky (SVK) v. Darian King (BAR)

Court 6 11:00 Start Time
1. Boys' Singles - First Round
Gianni Mina (FRA)[3] v. Ricardo Rodriguez (VEN)
2. Girls' Singles - First Round
Monica Puig (PUR)[1] v. Clothilde De Bernardi (FRA)
3. Boys' Singles - First Round
Daniel Berta (SWE)[1] v. Junior A. Ore (USA)
4. Girls' Singles - First Round
Charlene Seateun (FRA) v. Jovana Jaksic (SRB)

Court 7 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - Second Round
Colin Fleming (GBR)/Ken Skupski (GBR) v. Wesley Moodie (RSA)/Dick Norman (BEL)[4]
2. Men's Doubles - Third Round
Marcelo Melo (BRA)/Bruno Soares (BRA) v. Daniele Bracciali (ITA)/Potito Starace (ITA)
3. Men's Doubles - Third Round
Marc Lopez (ESP)/Pere Riba (ESP) v. Frantisek Cermak (CZE)/Michal Mertinak (SVK)[9]
4. Women's Doubles - Third Round
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA)/Zi Yan (CHN)[9] v. Gisela Dulko (ARG)/Flavia Pennetta (ITA)[5]
5. Mixed Doubles - Second Round
Julie Coin (FRA)/Nicolas Mahut (FRA) v. Alisa Kleybanova (RUS)/Max Mirnyi (BLR)[5]

Court 8 11:00 Start Time
1. Girls' Singles - First Round
Grace Sari Ysidora (INA) v. Ulrikke Eikeri (NOR)
2. Boys' Singles - First Round
Alessandro Colella (ITA) v. Hugo Dellien (BOL)
3. Girls' Singles - First Round
Nour Abbes (TUN) v. Daria Gavrilova (RUS)[7]
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Mikhail Biryukov (RUS)[14] v. Juan Sebastian Gomez (COL)
5. Girls' Singles - First Round
Timea Babos (HUN)[5] v. Ilona Kremen (BLR)

Court 9 11:00 Start Time
1. Boys' Singles - First Round
Dominic Thiem (AUT)[8] v. Ashley Hewitt (GBR)
2. Girls' Singles - First Round
Adriana Perez (VEN) v. Garbine Muguruza Blanco (ESP)
3. Girls' Singles - First Round
Paula Kania (POL) v. Silvia Njiric (CRO)
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Andrea Collarini (USA) v. Jiri Vesely (CZE)[4]
5. Girls' Singles - First Round
Emi Mutaguchi (JPN) v. Doroteja Eric (SRB)

Court 10 11:00 Start Time
1. Girls' Singles - First Round
Ons Jabeur (TUN) v. Sophia Kovalets (UKR)
2. Boys' Singles - First Round
Carlos Boluda-Purkiss (ESP) v. Jannick Lupescu (NED)
3. Girls' Singles - First Round
Tamara Curovic (SRB)[12] v. Ester Goldfeld (USA)
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Andrew Whittington (AUS) v. Tobias Blomgren (SWE)
5. Girls' Singles - First Round
Zarah Razafimahatratra (MAD) v. Lauren Davis (USA)[10]

Court 11 11:00 Start Time
1. Boys' Singles - First Round
Guilherme Clezar (BRA) v. Raymond Sarmiento (USA)
2. Girls' Singles - First Round
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) v. Grace Min (USA)
3. Boys' Singles - First Round
Facundo Arguello (ARG) v. Kevin Krawietz (GER)[7]
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Denis Kudla (USA)[6] v. Justin Eleveld (NED)
5. Girls' Singles - First Round
Gabriela Dabrowski (CAN)[6] v. Chantal Skamlova (SVK)

Court 14 11:00 Start Time
1. Boys' Singles - First Round
Romain Arneodo (FRA) v. Renzo Olivo (ARG)[11]
2. Girls' Singles - First Round
Risa Ozaki (JPN) v. Lyudmyla Kichenok (UKR)[13]
3. Boys' Singles - First Round
Mick Lescure (FRA) v. Oliver Golding (GBR)
4. Girls' Singles - First Round
Akiko Omae (JPN) v. Nanuli Pipiya (RUS)[16]
5. Boys' Singles - First Round
Yasutaka Uchiyama (JPN)[16] v. Karue Sell (BRA)

Court 16 11:00 Start Time
1. Boys' Singles - First Round
Tristan Lamasine (FRA) v. Peter Heller (GER)
2. Girls' Singles - First Round
Jade Suvrijn (FRA) v. Richel Hogenkamp (NED)
3. Girls' Singles - First Round
Amandine Hesse (FRA) v. Luksika Kumkhum (THA)
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Thomas Szewczyk (FRA) v. Federico Gaio (ITA)
5. Girls' Singles - First Round
Natalija Kostic (SRB) v. Estelle Cascino (FRA)

Court 17 11:00 Start Time
1. Girls' Singles - First Round
Caroline Garcia (FRA)[15] v. Mai Grage (DEN)
Not Before 13:00
2. Women's Doubles - Third Round
Cara Black (ZIM)/Elena Vesnina (RUS)[6] v. Kveta Peschke (CZE)/Katarina Srebotnik (SLO)[12]
3. Women's Doubles - Second Round
Alisa Kleybanova (RUS)/Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[8] v. Monica Niculescu (ROU)/Shahar Peer (ISR)
4. Boys' Singles - First Round
Mate Pavic (CRO) v. Mathias Bourgue (FRA)

17:00 Start Time
1. Mixed Doubles - Second Round
Andrea Hlavackova (CZE)/Michal Mertinak (SVK) v. Tathiana Garbin (ITA)/Marcin Matkowski (POL)
2. Mixed Doubles - Second Round
Vania King (USA)/Christopher Kas (GER) v. Akgul Amanmuradova (UZB)/Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK)

Inaugural Champion

Getty

Yanina Wickmayer of Beligum holds the trophy after defeating Flavia Pennetta of Italy at the women's Auckland Classic final on January 9, 2010. Wickmayer defeated Pennetta 6-3, 6-2.

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What irony that she's the first titlist of the new decade.

Italy Wins Second Fed Cup

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Team Italy (left Corrado Barazzutti, Francesca Schiavone, Roberta Vinci, Sara Errani, Flavia Pennetta) lift the trophy after the final match of the Fed Cup World Group between Italy and the USA at Circolo Tennis Rocco Polimeni on November 8, 2009 in Reggio Calabria, Italy.

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Twas a clean sweep.

Fed Cup Final Open Thread

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USA team during the national anthems at the Final of the Fed Cup World Group between Italy and the USA at Circolo Tennis Rocco Polimeni on November 7, 2009 in Reggio Calabria, Italy.

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Italy leads USA 1-0. I haven't checked the scores, but that would mean Flavia Pennetta had her way with Alexa Glatch. Melanie Oudin just broke Francesca Schiavone in the fourth game of the second rubber.

Face Of The Day

Reuters

Tennis player Flavia Pennetta of Italy displays a creation as part of Pin-Up stars Spring/Summer 2010 women's collection in Milan September 23, 2009.

US Open 2009 Women's Quarterfinals Preview

So here we are. In the order they will be contested:

Getty

Li Na, who's been enjoying some of her time in Chinatown, can beat Kim Clijsters. But I don't think the best Chinese singles player is going to excuse Comeback Kimmie. Unless, of course, the Belgian undoes herself, which remains a strong possibility. I know Venus Williams is Venus Williams, but the tour's newest mother champion allowed a woman on one leg to bagel her after she delivered her own. That betrays an inconsistency a player with Li's speed and firepower can take advantage of. If she, of course, doesn't undo herself. Comeback Kimmie in 3.

Getty

Flavia Pennetta survived 6 match points. That makes her more dangerous than she might otherwise be. Serena Williams has been known to lose many a head-scratcher in the quarterfinals of a Slam. I won't bother to list them, but you know what they are. One, a nightmatch on Arthur Ashe stadium five years ago. The defending champion is trying to successfully defend a Slam title for only the second time in her career and not since Wimbledon 2003. She might be particularly nervous. The gutsy Italian doesn't have a serve, so if Serena's return game is on point, this is going to go fast. Serena in straights.

Reuters

Kateryna Bondarenko would be playing Jelena Jankovic, but since the Serbian's grandmother died, she'll face Yanina Wickmayer instead. In the top half of the Tier III event, the younger Bondarenko sister should use her experience in winning a doubles Slam to subdue the the young Belgian, whom I haven't even seen strike a tennis ball, so what do I know? Who would've thought this year's final eight would feature two Belgians? Bondarenko in 3.

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In what I called the most intriguting quarter of the draw, we get the fortnight's best story. 17-year-old Russian killer Melanie Oudin will play the propagandists' queen Caroline Wozniacki. As Lan said, Melanie slayed the entire Russian Fed Cup squad -- past, present, and future. Almost had a chance to oust another one, but alas the headcase that is Svetlana Kuznetsova couldn't get out of her own way to take out the counterpunching Dane clad in a potato sack with ruffles. I speak of her appearance because that's about the only thing making the media propagandists salivate all over her. This is a player deep in the third set of a second-week Slam encounter posting 5 winners to 4 unforced errors. Not my cup of tea. Oudin has a forehand she can call a weapon, but she's also a counterpuncher. Still, her attitude, her ability to make midmatch adjustments -- her guts -- endears her to me nonetheless. As one of her hometown friends said in an article that made CNN.com's front page, "It's still so surreal. She sort of wins no matter what happens. She's there going for it and not giving up." I think she's going to give the propagandists heartburn. Melanie in 3.

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No matter what happens we are guaranteed a first-time finalist, perhaps even a youngster who storms through the draw out of nowhere and wins her first Slam against all the odds.

In No Mood

Reuters

Andy Roddick was in no mood to win his fourth Legg Mason Classic title today while Juan Martín del Potro was in no mood to lose it. Such a scenario between two evenly matched players produces today's tight, tight result. The Argentinean's gonads seem to be swelling. The American's....

Reuters

I was in no mood to watch the women's final. Flavia Pennetta goes a step farther than last year at the LA Women's Tennis Open while Samantha Stosur remains title-less.

Sunday Open Thread

We've got finals today. Andy Roddick's going for his fourth Legg Mason title up against defending champ Juan Martín del Potro. And sizzling hot Samantha Stosur takes on Flavia Pennetta who dismissed Maria Sharapova last night for the LA Women's Tennis Open title.

And speaking of Sharapova. Listening to Mary Jo (who, for the umpteenth time, needs to recuse herself from calling Sharapova's matches!) and Cliffie and Pammy and Tracy carry on last night, you would have thought Maria was playing herself. If they said anything about Flavia, it was so brief as to be lost in all the chatter about the shoulder the shoulder the shoulder the shoulder the shoulder....

Give it a rest, people. Sharapova has the yips. Has for two years. Overcame them for one tournament -- the 2008 Australian Open -- to tear through the field without dropping a set in one of the most dominating Slam performances of the decade.

Twas before her alleged surgery.

Sistergirl has other things on her mind. She's on the court to fulfill some other obligations, I would venture, and once those are paid due, she'll go back to travelling the world with her best friend forever.

Or are they no longer forever?

But anyway.

Who's going to win the US Open Series titles today?

Face Of The Day

Getty

Tathiana Garbin of Italy returns the ball to Flavia Pennetta of Italy during their WTA Tournament semi-final match in Palermo on July 18, 2009.

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Mercedes Cup

Singles - Semifinals
[4] V Hanescu (ROU) d F Fognini (ITA) 63 67(4) 62
J Chardy (FRA) d N Kiefer (GER) 63 75

Singles - Quarterfinals
J Chardy (FRA) d M Zverev (GER) 76(4) 61
N Kiefer (GER) d [Q] L Kubot (POL) 62 61

Doubles - Semifinals
V Hanescu (ROU) / H Tecau (ROU) d [1] L Kubot (POL) / O Marach (AUT) 64 75
[4] F Cermak (CZE) / M Mertinak (SVK) d [2] M Fyrstenberg (POL) / M Melo (BRA) 36 62 10-4

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Catella Swedish Open

Singles - Semifinals
[2] R Soderling (SWE) d [WC] A Vinciguerra (SWE) 61 76(6)
J Monaco (ARG) d [3] T Robredo (ESP) 60 62

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Internatzinali Femminili di Tennis di Palermo

Singles - Semifinals
(1) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) d. Tathiana Garbin (ITA) 61 61
(5) Sara Errani (ITA) d. Anna-Lena Groenefeld (GER) 63 46 61

Doubles - Final
(2) Llagostera Vives/Martínez Sánchez (ESP/ESP) d. Koryttseva/Kustova (UKR/BLR) 61 62

Face Of The Day

AP

Today it was Flavia Pennetta's turn to throw away her momentum and gag against a higher-ranked player she'd never beaten before at the Porsche Grand Prix. Serving up a set and 3-1, with the bonus of serving first in the second, at 30-15, she hit a passing shot right back to Dinara Safina instead of down the line into the court open wide as the Mississippi. Safina nailed a volley past Flavia and a few points later broke serve.

What a difference a point makes. She had time to recover, unlike Juan Monaco yesterday, but the Italian never mustered the guts to lift up her head and her game and play the kind of tennis that gave her the ascendancy in the match to begin with. She dropped the second set 5-7 and ate a bagel in the third.

I still can't believe Safina is the No. 1 player in the world. Her serve is terrible.

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Singles - Semifinals
(1) Dinara Safina (RUS) d. Flavia Pennetta (ITA) 36 75 60
(5) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) d. (2) Elena Dementieva (RUS) 64 62

Doubles - Semifinals
Mattek-Sands/Petrova (USA/RUS) d. (3) Ruano Pascual/Zheng (ESP/CHN)
75 26 106
Dulko/Pennetta (ARG/ITA) d. (WC) Petkovic/Woehr (GER/GER) 64 64

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Internazionali BNL d'Italia

Singles - Semifinals
[1] R Nadal (ESP) d [12] F Gonzalez (CHI) 63 63
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) d [2] R Federer (SUI) 46 63 63

Doubles - Semifinals
[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) d [5] B Soares (BRA) / K Ullyett (ZIM) 61 36 10-7
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d [4] M Bhupathi (IND) / M Knowles (BAH) 64 67(6) 10-8

Face Of The Day

Getty

Angela Haynes was three games away from victory over Flavia Pennetta. Receiving serve at 3-1 in the second set the moment got too big. She only one two more games in the match. Word is she got tired. This was her fifth match, after all. Surely a player who hasn't played much professional tennis for the past three years was bound to run out of steam at some point. Hope she has a support team that makes it possible for her to build on this mini-run.

Boom or Bust

I don't know what's going on with the women's draw out in the desert because I haven't been able to watch a match. We know that two of the top "stars", No. 2 seed Jelena Jankovic and No. 3 seed Elena Dementieva, have crashed out in their first matches. At least ElenaD managed to win a set. She said something about not recovering from all the tennis she's played so far this year and is happy to get some rest before Key Biscayne. This from one of the fittest players on the tour.

Quietly advancing, however, is the American Angela Haynes who got into the main draw after winning two qualifying matches as a wild card. She announced herself at the 2004 US Open where she advanced to the third round and followed it up at Wimbledon the next year where she took a set from a woefully out-of-shape Serena Williams in the first round. Since all of that, her brother died tragically in a motorcycle accident, and she's been off the radar ever since. Ranked No. 151, she hasn't played in the main draw of a Slam since 2005.

Now, she's is in the third round of the 6th Slam, after defeating in straight sets No. 20 seed Sugiyama Ai, who's no walk in the part no matter how much of a veteran she's become. The American hasn't dropped a set in her four matches, including qualifying.

That AP image you see above is the only photo anyone bothered to take of the 24-year-old Black woman from Compton. No, I'm not accusing anyone of bigotry or racism, so calm down. But Haynes probably considers the BNP Paribas Open a home event, seeing as though she was raised less than two hours away. And she's clearly playing some of her best tennis under the radar. Perhaps the crafty lefty with the swinging serve can use this event to get her career back on track. She must seize the day. No. 12 seed Flavia Pennetta is her next test. Let's see how she holds up.

Sombreros

Nicolás Almagro and Venus Williams sport the local crowns in the trophy presentations for the Abierto Mexicano Telcel event that ended yesterday in Acapulco, a once-popular vacation destination for Americans. Venus crushed rival Flavia Pennetta 6-1, 6-2, while Almagro picked apart Gaël Monfils 6-4, 6-4. It's one of the calendar's few joint events outside of Slams.

Face Of The Day

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Italian tennis player Flavia Pennetta waves after defeating French tennis player Pauline Parmentier during the WTA Open in Acapulco, Mexico, on February 25, 2009.

Flipping The Bird

Feisty, feisty.

"She gave the finger and should have been removed right away," she said.

France captain Nicolas Escude confirmed that the hosts were objecting to Pennetta's win due to the gesture towards the umpire.

Mauresmo earned a match point at 7-6 in the second set tiebreak thanks to an overrule. "We have prepared a letter for the supervisor to have the result of the match being revised," Escude said.

"At that moment, I didn't really see and cotton on," said Mauresmo, who indicated that when she did look up Pennetta appeared to have mouthed an insult at the chair, flicking her middle finger.

The point gave the Frenchwoman a match point but she then served a double fault and eventually slumped to defeat.

Pennetta, who did receive a warning for her conduct, said she was sorry afterwards.

Clothes Horse

Flavia Pennetta likes fashionable duds.

9 Years Later

Venus Williams wins again in Zurich. And broke her head-scratching, three-match losing streak against Flavia Pennetta.

Work it.

Tennis Talk

by Savannah



Jelena Jankovic is the No. 1 player on the WTA Tour and once again the argument rages as to whether she is worthy. To define the sides in this debate. Does the No. 1 player mean that said player has racked up the most points and is by that measure No. 1? Or does being No. 1 mean that said player has played the best tennis, won at least a major during the last 52-week period, and shown the mental and physical skills in her matches to make them worthy of being called best in the world?

Read Savannah's Tennis Talk