Faces Of The Day

Reuters

Actor Geoffrey Rush attends the matches in Rod Laver Arena during the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 24, 2010.

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I didn't to bed until 9:30 this morning after being up all night watching Andy Roddick and Fernando Gonzalez fight to the death in their insane epic marathon. The whole day of tennis gave the Open Thread a record number of comments. If you have the patient to sift through them all can sift throught them all, you'll get intense comments about everything from the matches to bad journalism to doping controversies. Thanks to everyone who stayed up through the night and participated.


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Coach Larry Stefanki watches Andy Roddick of the United States of America in his fourth round match against Fernando González, of Chile during day seven of the 2010 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 24, 2010 in Melbourne, Australia.


Reuters

Daniela Castillo, the girlfriend of Fernando González,, watches the match between the Chilean and Andy Roddick of the U.S. at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 24, 2010.

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Men's Singles - Fourth Round
[2] R Nadal (ESP) d I Karlovic (CRO) 64 46 64 64
[14] M Cilic (CRO) d [4] J del Potro (ARG) 57 64 75 57 63
[5] A Murray (GBR) d [33] J Isner (USA) 76(4) 63 62
[7] A Roddick (USA) d [11] F Gonzalez (CHI) 63 36 46 75 62


Reuters

Russia's Nadia Petrova waits during her match against compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 24, 2010.


Reuters

Belgium's Yanina Wickmayer looks up while on a changeover during her match against compatriot Justine Henin at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne January 24, 2010.

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Women's Singles - Fourth Round
Maria Kirilenko (RUS) d. (2) Dinara Safina (RUS) 54 ret. (low back injury)
(19) Nadia Petrova (RUS) d. (3) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 63 36 61
Zheng Jie (CHN) d. (31) Alona Bondarenko (UKR) 76(5) 64
(WC) Justine Henin (BEL) d. (Q) Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) 76(3) 16 63

Men's Doubles - Third Round
[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) d [17] J Melzer (AUT) / P Petzschner (AUT) 76(1) 64
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d P Marx (GER) / I Zelenay (SVK) 64 62
A Clement (FRA) / J Erlich (ISR) d J Brunstrom (SWE) / J Rojer (AHO) 63 06 75
E Butorac (USA) / R Ram (USA) d L Mayer (ARG) / H Zeballos (ARG) 67(3) 64 76(3)

Women's Doubles - Third Round
(2) Williams/Williams (USA/USA) d. Hlavackova/Hradecka (CZE/CZE) 63 62
(13) Dulko/Pennetta (ARG/ITA) d. (4) Hsieh/Peng (TPE/CHN) 62 62
(7) Kleybanova/Schiavone (RUS/ITA) d. (10) Mirza/Ruano Pascual (IND/ESP) 64 63
(WC) Peers/Robson (AUS/GBR) d. Dushevina/Rodionova (RUS/AUS) 63 63

Women's Doubles - Second Round
Chan/Niculescu (TPE/ROU) d. (11) Kudryavtseva/Makarova (RUS/RUS) 64 64

Inaugural Champion

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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.

Quote For The Day

“I think it was a shame [Yanina Wickmayer] got the ban and I’m happy she could come back. I sent her an e-mail to support her and I said I hoped she was fine. I think they went too far with the penalty, which she did not deserve.” --Shahar Pe'er, on playing her next opponent in the ASB Classic semifinals

Wickmayer and Malisse Can Play Again?

According to this article in French. Apparently nothing will be resolved until 2010.

Yanina Wickmayer will need a wildcard to get into the Australian Open according to this article in English.

As the World Turns.

Quote For The Day

"We're going to appeal because we still don't have all the elements which will allow us to decide whether a sanction of one year is appropriate. The scale of sanctions (under the world anti-doping Code) is between one and two years. To drop down from two to one year there have to be justifiable elements. We're going to meet the Flemish authorities Friday to see how we can coordinate our actions, and to be consistent in how we approach this case because the athletes seem to want to make it an affair of principles on different levels."

--Olivier Niggli, World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) legal director, on why WADA is seeking a tougher penalty against Yanina Wickmayer and Xavier Malisse

Wickmayer, Malisse Attack WADA

This could be fun.

Suspended Belgian tennis players Yanina Wickmayer and Xavier Malisse are launching appeals with European authorities challenging the legality of the whereabouts rules of the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Victory at the European Commission in Brussels and the Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights could force WADA to change its rules on when and where athletes can be tested out of competition.

“The indispensable fight against doping is not the issue here. The problem is the lack of proportionality of certain measures,” their lawyer Jean-Louis Dupont told The Associated Press on Sunday.

Read the rest...

Outrageous

US Open semi-finalist Yanina Wickmayer and her Belgian compatriot Xavier Malisse were on Thursday handed one-year bans for falling foul of doping regulations, the Belga news agency reported.

Wickmayer, the world number 18, was suspended by the Flemish Doping Tribunal (VDT) for failing to fulfil [sic] the controversial "whereabouts rule" while Malisse was also punished for missing a drugs test.

Both players can appeal their suspensions to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The suspension was announced despite 20-year-old Wickmayer currently playing in the Tournament of Champions event in Bali where on Friday she would be attempting to reach the semi-finals.

Wickmayer was accused of failing on three occasions to fulfil [sic] the ADAMS (Anti-Doping Administration and Management System) under which athletes are obliged to tell national anti-doping authorities where they will be at a chosen hour each day for a three-month period.

The sanctions came as a surprise - only last month, it was expected that the two players would escape with just a reprimand.

Malisse, 29, is currently 95 in the world, having been at 19 in 2002. He has won three titles in his career.

Color me curious that two Belgian players who haven't even tested positive for anything are banned for a year by a Flemish Doping Tribunal from the sport simply for not reporting whereabouts or missing a test mere weeks before another controversial Belgian player returns to the tour.

Can't say I'm a fan of either player -- didn't even know Malisse was still playing -- but this seems like overkill.

Actually, I think it's outrageous.

Wickmayer, who's contesting that other event that has no business on the WTA calendar, said she would immediately appeal.

US Open 2009: Women's Final Preview

BY MadProfessah

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (9) vs. Kim Clijsters BEL. Unseeded Kim Clijsters should win easily over the ninth-ranked teenager from Denmark playing in her first major final while the young mother of 18-month old Jada is playing in her sixth (one win, four losses).

I suppose the less said about the unfortunate result that lead Clijsters into this final. However, this should lead the Tour(s) to consider video replay, not just electronic line calling that players can resort to when bad calls are made. As I've noted before, it's very curious that these unfortunate incidents only seem to happen to Black players in a predominantly White sport. It was an egregious line call that went against Serena Williams in a quarterfinal match against Jennifer Capriati in 2004 that eventually led to the current electronic line calling that everyone agrees has been a resounding success. I hope that something good can come out of last night's incident that can improve the game again.

Wozniacki is not out of her depth; she absorbed the formidable power of Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarterfinal, eventually earning the right to (easily) dismiss "America's new sweetheart," the diminutive Melanie Oudin and another Belgian Yanina Wickmayer to reach this final.

However, it is hard to find another person who has been as severe an underdog in a recent Women's US Open final as Wozniacki is against Clijsters tonight. Maybe she'll use this opportunity to play out of her head, with no pressure, but even doing that, this Belgian will be able to turn defense into offense so quickly the result will not be in doubt. Clijsters will become the first mother to win a major tennis title since Evonne Goolagong in 1980.

MadProfessah's pick: Clijsters in 2 sets.

Quote For The Day

"She's known as the Belgian Maria Sharapova,"--Bill Macatee, about first-time US Open semifinalist Yanina Wickmayer, on CBS sports.

US Open 2009 Women's Quarterfinals Preview

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

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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.

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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.