Tennis Frontier

Tag: li na

  • Li Na Announces Retirement

    Li Na Announces Retirement

    Li Na

    Li Na, this year’s Australian Open champion and the winner of the 2011 French Open, announced her retirement on Friday via a post on her Facebook page. The 32-year-old, who was the first Chinese player to win a Major, cited worsening knee injuries as the reason for her decision.

    “After four knee surgeries and hundreds of shots injected into my knee weekly to alleviate swelling and pain, my body is begging me to stop the pounding. My previous three surgeries were on my right knee. My most recent knee surgery took place this July and was on my left knee. After a few weeks of post-surgery recovery, I tried to go through all the necessary steps to get back on the court. While I’ve come back from surgery in the past, this time it felt different. One of my goals was to recover as fast as I could in order to be ready for the first WTA tournament in my hometown of Wuhan. As hard as I tried to get back to being 100%, my body kept telling me that, at 32, I will not be able to compete at the top level ever again. The sport is just too competitive, too good, to not be 100%,” she wrote.

    Li had not played since her third-round loss at Wimbledon, and more recently pulled out of the US Open.

    [divider]

    Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): Kulitat

  • Wimbledon Day 5: Order of Play & Scores

    Wimbledon Day 5: Order of Play & Scores

    The Centre Court matches on Day 5 of Wimbledon begin with 2011 champion and No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic playing the Frenchman Gilles Simon. The second match features the other 2011 champion, Petra Kvitova (6), who will face the five-time champion Venus Williams (30). Action concludes with last year’s champion Andy Murray (3) vs. the up-and-coming Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut (27).

    Action on No. 1 Court kicks off with Australian Open champion Li Na (2), facing the unseeded Czech Barbora Zahlavova Strycova. Following them is the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (11) playing the No. 21 seed, Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR). The final match will be between the 2010 finalist Tomas Berdych (6) and Marin Cilic (26).

    The full schedule for Day 5 is listed below (Results to follow)…

    [divider]

    Centre Court – 1:00 P.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Novak Djokovic (SRB) (1) d Gilles Simon (FRA) — 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Petra Kvitova (CZE) (6) d Venus Williams (USA) (30) — 5-7, 7-6(2), 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Andy Murray (GBR) (3) d Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) (27) — 6-2, 6-3, 6-2

    [divider]

    No. 1 Court – 1:00 P.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) d Na Li (CHN) (2) — 7-6(5), 7-6(5)

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) (11) d Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) (21) — 6-7(3), 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Mikhail Elgin (RUS) / Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) d Ross Hutchins (GBR) / Heather Watson (GBR) — 6-1, 1-6, 9-7

    [divider]

    No. 2 Court – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Simona Halep (ROU) (3) d Lesia Tsurenko (UKR) — 6-3, 4-6, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Jerzy Janowicz (POL) (15) d Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)— 7-5, 6-4, 6-7(7), 4-6, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) (4) d Michelle Larcher De Brito (POR) — 6-2, 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Jamie Murray (GBR) (14) / John Peers (AUS) (14) d Jamie Delgado (GBR) / Gilles Muller (LUX) — 6-3, 7-6(7), 6-3

    [divider]

    No. 3 Court – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (16) d Ana Konjuh (CRO) — 6-3, 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) (14) d Jimmy Wang (TPE) — 6-2, 6-2, 7-5

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Lucie Safarova (CZE) (23) d Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) (10) — 6-4, 6-2

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Lukas Dlouhy (CZE) / Liezel Huber (USA) d Michael Venus (NZL) / Alicja Rosolska (POL) — 6-3, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Marin Cilic (CRO) (26) d Tomas Berdych (CZE) (6) — 7-6(5), 6-4, 7-6(6)

    [divider]

    Court 12 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Feliciano Lopez (ESP) (19) d Ante Pavic (CRO) — 6-4, 7-6(4), 7-5

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Nicholas Monroe (USA) / Shuai Zhang (CHN) d James Ward (GBR) / Anna Smith (GBR) — 6-2, 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Jeremy Chardy (FRA) d Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) — 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0

    [divider]

    Court 18 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Belinda Bencic (SUI) d Victoria Duval (USA) — 6-4, 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Santiago Giraldo (COL) d Marcel Granollers (ESP) (30) — 4-6, 7-6(2), 1-6, 6-1, 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Leonardo Mayer (ARG) d Andrey Kuznetsov (RUS) — 6-4, 7-6(1), 6-3

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Jaroslav Levinsky (CZE) / Janette Husarova (SVK) d Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) / Megan Moulton-Levy (USA) — 6-4, 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 8 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Doubles – Second round
    Garbine Muguruza (ESP) (16) / Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP) (16) d Klara Koukalova (CZE) / Monica Niculescu (ROU) — 6-2, 4-6, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Bob Bryan (USA) (1) / Mike Bryan (USA) (1) d Matthew Ebden (AUS) / Samuel Groth (AUS) — 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-2, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Pablo Cuevas (URU) (16) / David Marrero (ESP) (16) d Austin Krajicek (USA) / Donald Young (USA) — 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-5

    [divider]

    Court 16 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d Caroline Garcia (FRA) — 7-5, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Shuai Peng (CHN) d Lauren Davis (USA) — 0-6, 6-3, 6-3

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (5) / Elena Vesnina (RUS) (5) d Irina-Camelia Begu (ROU) / Karin Knapp (ITA) — 6-7(8), 6-4, 6-4

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Florin Mergea (ROU) / Elina Svitolina (UKR) d Andre Begemann (GER) / Olga Savchuk (UKR) — 6-4, 3-6, 6-1

    [divider]

    Court 17 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Third round
    Kevin Anderson (RSA) (20) d Fabio Fognini (ITA) (16) — 4-6, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2, 6-1

    Ladies’ Singles – Third round
    Tereza Smitkova (CZE) d Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) — 4-6, 7-6(5), 10-8

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Marcel Granollers (ESP) (6) / Marc Lopez (ESP) (6) d Simone Bolelli (ITA) / Fabio Fognini (ITA) — 6-2, 7-5, 2-6, 1-6, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 4 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Doubles – Second round
    Flavia Pennetta (ITA) / Samantha Stosur (AUS) d Lucie Hradecka (CZE) (13) / Michaella Krajicek (NED) (13) — 7-5, 6-3

    Ladies’ Doubles – Second round
    Shuko Aoyama (JPN) / Renata Voracova (CZE) d Liezel Huber (USA) (15) / Lisa Raymond (USA) (15) — 0-6, 7-6(5), 6-4

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Martin Emmrich (GER) / Michaella Krajicek (NED) d Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) / Yung-Jan Chan (TPE) — 6-2, 3-6, 6-2

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Dominic Inglot (GBR) / Johanna Konta (GBR) d Raven Klaasen (RSA) / Marina Erakovic (NZL) — 7-6(5), 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 6 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Julien Benneteau (FRA) (4) / Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) (4) d Andre Begemann (GER) / Lukas Rosol (CZE) — 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-2

    Ladies’ Doubles – Second round
    Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) (11) / Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) (11) d Madison Keys (USA) / Alison Riske (USA) — 6-2, 6-2

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Martin Klizan (SVK) / Belinda Bencic (SUI) d Lukas Rosol (CZE) / Klara Koukalova (CZE) — 6-4, 6-0

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Chris Guccione (AUS) / Oksana Kalashnikova (GEO) d Henri Kontinen (FIN) / Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) — 6-3, 6-4

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Mate Pavic (CRO) / Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) d Jurgen Melzer (AUT) / Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) — 7-6(6), 7-6(4)

    [divider]

    Court 7 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Mate Pavic (CRO) / Andre Sa (BRA) d Teymuraz Gabashvili (RUS) / Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) — 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-4, 6-4

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) / Arina Rodionova (AUS) d Francesca Schiavone (ITA) / Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) — 6-3, 3-6, 6-3

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Oliver Marach (AUT) / Karolina Pliskova (CZE) d Frantisek Cermak (CZE) / Lucie Hradecka (CZE) — 6-1, 6-2

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Lyudmyla Kichenok (UKR) / Nadiia Kichenok (UKR) d Lauren Davis (USA) / Monica Puig (PUR) — 6-2 7-6(5)

    [divider]

    Court 10 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Juan-Sebastian Cabal (COL) (15) / Marcin Matkowski (POL) (15) d Jonathan Marray (GBR) / John-Patrick Smith (AUS) — 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4, 6-3

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Raquel Kops-Jones (USA) (7) / Abigail Spears (USA) (7) d Naomi Broady (GBR) / Eleni Daniilidou (GRE) — 7-6(3), 7-5

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Colin Fleming (GBR) / Jocelyn Rae (GBR) d Scott Lipsky (USA) / Jie Zheng (CHN) — 6-2, 6-0

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Neal Skupski (GBR) / Naomi Broady (GBR) d Robert Farah (COL) / Darija Jurak (CRO) — 7-5, 7-6(5)

    [divider]

    Court 11 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Doubles – Second round
    Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) (12) / Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) (12) d Zarina Diyas (KAZ) / Patricia Mayr-Achleitner (AUT) — 6-0, 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Eric Butorac (USA) (13) / Raven Klaasen (RSA) (13) d Jaroslav Levinsky (CZE) / Jiri Vesely (CZE) — 6-3, 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – Second round
    Daniel Nestor (CAN) (3) / Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) (3) d Dustin Brown (GER) / Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) — 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2

    Mixed Doubles – First round
    Jesse Huta Galung (NED) / Andreja Klepac (SLO) d Daniele Bracciali (ITA) / Karin Knapp (ITA) — 6-3, 3-6, 6-1

    [divider]

  • Wimbledon Day 3: Order of Play & Scores

    Wimbledon Day 3: Order of Play & Scores

    Third day action begins on Centre Court with 2012 women’s finalist Agnieszka Radwanska (4) playing the Australian Casey Dellacqua. The Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (11), who just won the Wimbledon tune-up event at Queen’s Club, faces Luke Saville (AUS). Last up, the men’s No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic will meet Radek Stepanek (CZE).

    No. 1 Court’s first match features last year’s men’s champion Andy Murray (3), who will play Blaz Rola (SLO). Next up is the 2011 women’s champion Petra Kvitova (6) vs. the German Mona Barthel. The final match is between the 2010 men’s finalist Tomas Berdych (6) and the Australian Bernard Tomic.

    The full schedule for Day 3 is listed below (Results to follow)…

    [divider]

    Centre Court – 1:00 P.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) (4) d Casey Dellacqua (AUS) — 6-4, 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) (11) d Luke Saville (AUS) — 6-3, 6-2, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Novak Djokovic (SRB) (1) d Radek Stepanek (CZE) — 6-4, 6-3, 6-7(5), 7-6(5)

    [divider]

    No.1 Court – 1:00 P.M.  

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Andy Murray (GBR) (3) d Blaz Rola (SLO) — 6-1, 6-1, 6-0

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Petra Kvitova (CZE) (6) d Mona Barthel (GER) — 6-2, 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Tomas Berdych (CZE) (6) d Bernard Tomic (AUS) — 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(3), 6-1

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (16) d Naomi Broady (GBR) — 6-3, 6-2

    [divider]

    No. 2 Court – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Na Li (CHN) (2) d Yvonne Meusburger (AUT) — 6-2, 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Vera Zvonareva (RUS) d Tara Moore (GBR) — 6-4, 6-7(3), 9-7

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Andrey Kuznetsov (RUS) d David Ferrer (ESP) (7) — 6-7(5), 6-0, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) (14) v Sam Querrey (USA) — To Finish 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-7(4), 6-3, 9-9

    [divider]

    No. 3 Court – 11:30 A.M.  

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Venus Williams (USA) (30) d Kurumi Nara (JPN) — 7-6(4), 6-1

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Leonardo Mayer (ARG) d Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) — 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-1, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) d Victoria Azarenka (BLR) (8) — 6-3, 3-6, 7-5

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Serena Williams (USA) (8) / Venus Williams (USA) (8) d Oksana Kalashnikova (GEO) / Olga Savchuk (UKR) — 5-7, 6-1, 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 12 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) d Ernests Gulbis (LAT) (12) — 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(5)

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d Misaki Doi (JPN) — 7-5, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Marin Cilic (CRO) (26) d Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT) — 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) (10) d Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL) — 3-6, 6-3, 8-6

    [divider]

    Court 18 – 11:30 A.M.  

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Kevin Anderson (RSA) (20) d Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) — 7-6(0), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) (27) d Jan Hernych (CZE) — 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Lucie Safarova (CZE) (23) d Polona Hercog (SLO) — 7-6(7), 7-5

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Lauren Davis (USA) d Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (12) — 6-4, 7-6(4)

    [divider]

    Court 8 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Jamie Murray (GBR) (14) / John Peers (AUS) (14) d Daniel Evans (GBR) / James Ward (GBR) — 6-2, 6-4, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) (21) d Benjamin Becker (GER) — 6-7(4), 7-6(0), 6-3, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Caroline Garcia (FRA) d Varvara Lepchenko (USA) — 7-5, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Ana Konjuh (CRO) d Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) — 3-6, 6-2, 6-2

    [divider]

    Court 16 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) d Elena Vesnina (RUS) (32) — 6-4, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Fabio Fognini (ITA) (16) d Tim Puetz (GER) — 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(6), 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Gilles Simon (FRA) d Robin Haase (NED) — 7-6(1), 6-4, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Shuai Peng (CHN) d Maria Kirilenko (RUS) — 6-0, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 17 – 11:30 A.M.  

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Jeremy Chardy (FRA) d Marinko Matosevic (AUS) — 6-7(5), 7-6(7), 7-6(9), 4-6, 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – Second round
    Jimmy Wang (TPE) d Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) (17) — 7-6(1), 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Sara Errani (ITA) (2) / Roberta Vinci (ITA) (2) d Jelena Jankovic (SRB) / Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) — 6-2, 6-2

    [divider]

    Court 4 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Dustin Brown (GER) / Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) d Ken Skupski (GBR) / Neal Skupski (GBR) — 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Zarina Diyas (KAZ) d Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) — 7-6(4), 6-4

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Belinda Bencic (SUI) / Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) d Kaia Kanepi (EST) / Anna Tatishvili (USA) — 6-2, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Martin Klizan (SVK) / Dominic Thiem (AUT) d Carlos Berlocq (ARG) / Joao Sousa (POR) — 7-5, 5-7, 6-4, 5-7, 8-6

    [divider]

    Court 5 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Andrea Petkovic (GER) / Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) d Kveta Peschke (CZE) (3) / Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) (3) — 7-5, 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Jamie Delgado (GBR) / Gilles Muller (LUX) d Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) / Divij Sharan (IND) — 2-6, 2-6, 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-2

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) / Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) d Johanna Konta (GBR) / Tara Moore (GBR) — 6-4, 6-4

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Zarina Diyas (KAZ) / Patricia Mayr-Achleitner (AUT) d Pauline Parmentier (FRA) / Laura Thorpe (FRA) — 6-3, 3-6, 6-3

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Shuko Aoyama (JPN) / Renata Voracova (CZE) d Jana Cepelova (SVK) / Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (SVK) — 6-1, 7-6(3)

    [divider]

    Court 6 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Feliciano Lopez (ESP) / Jurgen Melzer (AUT) d Alex Bolt (AUS) / Andrew Whittington (AUS) — 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Lukasz Kubot (POL) (7) / Robert Lindstedt (SWE) (7) d Santiago Giraldo (COL) / Alejandro Gonzalez (COL) — 6-2, 6-1, 6-4

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Ashleigh Barty (AUS) (6) / Casey Dellacqua (AUS) (6) d Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) / Heather Watson (GBR) — 6-4, 7-6(3)

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Tereza Smitkova (CZE) d Coco Vandeweghe (USA) — 6-3, 7-6(4)

    [divider]

    Court 7 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Marcel Granollers (ESP) (6) / Marc Lopez (ESP) (6) d Marin Draganja (CRO) / Florin Mergea (ROU) — 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Klara Koukalova (CZE) / Monica Niculescu (ROU) d Sandra Klemenschits (AUT) / Raluca Olaru (ROU) — 6-1, 6-4

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Garbine Muguruza (ESP) (16) / Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP) (16) d Christina McHale (USA) / Ajla Tomljanovic (CRO) — 7-6(4), 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Daniel Nestor (CAN) (3) / Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) (3) d Paolo Lorenzi (ITA) / Andreas Seppi (ITA) — 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 9 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Andre Begemann (GER) / Lukas Rosol (CZE) d Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) / Philipp Oswald (AUT) — 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-5

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) (12) / Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) (12) d Marina Erakovic (NZL) / Arantxa Parra-Santonja (ESP) — 6-4, 3-6, 6-3

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Madison Keys (USA) / Alison Riske (USA) d Petra Cetkovska (CZE) / Vania King (USA) — 7-6(5), 6-2

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Kristina Barrois (GER) / Stefanie Voegele (SUI) d Irina Buryachok (UKR) / Elina Svitolina (UKR) — 6-0, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – Second round
    Michelle Larcher De Brito (POR) d Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) — 6-3, 4-6, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 10 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Julia Goerges (GER) (10) / Anna-Lena Groenefeld (GER) (10) d Vesna Dolonc (SRB) / Daniela Seguel (CHI) — 6-2, 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Teymuraz Gabashvili (RUS) / Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) d Andrey Golubev (KAZ) / Denis Istomin (UZB) — 7-6(6), 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(6)

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Kimiko Date-Krumm (JPN) / Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) d Sharon Fichman (CAN) / Donna Vekic (CRO) — 6-1, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Chris Guccione (AUS) / Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) d Alejandro Falla (COL) / Marinko Matosevic (AUS) — 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 11 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Juan-Sebastian Cabal (COL) (15) / Marcin Matkowski (POL) (15) d Marcelo Demoliner (BRA) / Purav Raja (IND) — 6-2, 6-4, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Jean-Julien Rojer (NED) (11) / Horia Tecau (ROU) (11) d Henri Kontinen (FIN) / Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) — 7-6(5), 6-4, 7-6(4)

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Timea Babos (HUN) (14) / Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) (14) d Karolina Pliskova (CZE) / Kristyna Pliskova (CZE) — 6-3, 6-7(5), 12-10

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Vera Dushevina (RUS) / Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) d Annika Beck (GER) / Kurumi Nara (JPN) — 6-3, 6-2

    [divider]

    Court 19 – 11:30 A.M.  

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Lucie Hradecka (CZE) (13) / Michaella Krajicek (NED) (13) d Gabriela Dabrowski (CAN) / Alicja Rosolska (POL) — 5-7, 6-4, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Aleksandr Nedovyesov (KAZ) / Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) d Tomasz Bednarek (POL) / Benoit Paire (FRA) — 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 7-6(2), 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Doubles – First round
    Eric Butorac (USA) (13) / Raven Klaasen (RSA) (13) d Ryan Harrison (USA) / Kevin King (USA) — 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4

    Ladies’ Doubles – First round
    Cara Black (ZIM) (4) / Sania Mirza (IND) (4) d Martina Hingis (SUI) / Vera Zvonareva (RUS) — 6-2, 6-4

    [divider]

  • Wimbledon Day 1: Order of Play & Scores

    Wimbledon Day 1: Order of Play & Scores

    By tradition, Day 1 of Wimbledon begins with the defending champion, Andy Murray, playing the first match on Centre Court. He will face the Belgian David Goffin. Up next is the women’s No. 2 seed, Li Na, of China, playing Paula Kania (POL). Last on Centre Court is the men’s No. 1 seed and 2011 champion Novak Djokovic (SRB), who will play Andrey Golubev (KAZ).

    The first match on No. 1 Court is Victoria Azarenka (8) vs. Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, followed by Grigor Dimitrov (11) vs. the American Ryan Harrison. Play on that court will conclude with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (14) vs. Jurgen Melzer (AUT).

    The full schedule for Day 1 is listed below (Results to follow)…

    [divider]

    Centre Court – 1:00 P.M. 

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Andy Murray (GBR) (3) d David Goffin (BEL) — 6-1, 6-4, 7-5

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Na Li (CHN) (2) d Paula Kania (POL) — 7-5, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Novak Djokovic (SRB) (1) d Andrey Golubev (KAZ) — 6-0, 6-1, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) (10) d Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) — 6-1, 6-2

    [divider]

    No. 1 Court – 1:00 P.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Victoria Azarenka (BLR) (8) d Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) — 6-3, 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) (11) d Ryan Harrison (USA) — 7-6(1), 6-3, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) (14) v Jurgen Melzer (AUT) — To Finish 6-1, 3-6, 3-6, 6-2, 5-4

    [divider]

    No. 2 Court – 11:30 A.M.  

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Tomas Berdych (CZE) (6) d Victor Hanescu (ROU) — 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Venus Williams (USA) (30) d Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor (ESP) — 6-4, 4-6, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Andrey Kuznetsov (RUS) d Daniel Evans (GBR) — 6-1, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(5)

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) (4) v Andreea Mitu (ROU) — To Finish 4-2

    [divider]

    No. 3 Court – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d Samantha Stosur (AUS) (17) — 6-3, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) (17) d James Ward (GBR) — 6-2, 6-2, 6-1

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    David Ferrer (ESP) (7) d Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP) — 6-0, 6-7(3), 6-1, 6-1

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Petra Kvitova (CZE) (6) d Andrea Hlavackova (CZE) — 6-3, 6-0

    [divider]

    Court 12 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Shuai Peng (CHN) d Johanna Konta (GBR) — 6-4, 3-6, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) d Dustin Brown (GER) — 6-4, 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(4)

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT) d Kyle Edmund (GBR) — 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (16) v Shahar Peer (ISR) — To Finish 6-3, 2-0

    [divider]

    Court 18 – 11:30 A.M.  

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Maria Kirilenko (RUS) d Sloane Stephens (USA) (18) — 6-2, 7-6(6)

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Jeremy Chardy (FRA) d Daniel Cox (GBR) — 6-2, 7-6(3), 6-7(6), 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Fabio Fognini (ITA) (16) d Alex Kuznetsov (USA) — 2-6, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 9-7

    [divider]

    Court 8 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Marinko Matosevic (AUS) d Fernando Verdasco (ESP) (18) — 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Bernard Tomic (AUS) d Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) — 6-4, 6-3, 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Mona Barthel (GER) d Romina Oprandi (SUI) — 7-5, 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) (21) d Samuel Groth (AUS) — 7-5, 7-6(2), 7-6(5)

    [divider]

    Court 16 – 11:30 A.M.  

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Gilles Simon (FRA) d Konstantin Kravchuk (RUS) — 6-2, 7-6(4), 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Kevin Anderson (RSA) (20) d Aljaz Bedene (SLO) — 6-3, 7-5, 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Naomi Broady (GBR) d Timea Babos (HUN) — 2-6, 7-6(7), 6-0

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Sara Errani (ITA) (14) v Caroline Garcia (FRA) — To Finish 6-2, 6-7(3)

    [divider]

    Court 17 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d Kimiko Date-Krumm (JPN) — 3-6, 6-4, 7-5

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Kurumi Nara (JPN) d Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER) — 6-4, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Marin Cilic (CRO) (26) d Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA) — 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-1

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) (28) v Michelle Larcher De Brito (POR) — To Finish 1-2

    [divider]

    Court 4 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Elena Vesnina (RUS) (32) d Patricia Mayr-Achleitner (AUT) — 6-0, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Leonardo Mayer (ARG) d Andreas Seppi (ITA) (25) — 6-3, 2-6, 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (12) d Jana Cepelova (SVK) — 6-2, 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Sam Querrey (USA) v Bradley Klahn (USA) — To Finish 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-1, 6-5

    [divider]

    Court 5 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Blaz Rola (SLO) d Pablo Andujar (ESP) — 6-3, 6-1, 6-4

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) d Filippo Volandri (ITA) — 7-6(1), 6-2, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) d Stefanie Voegele (SUI) — 6-3, 7-6(6)

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Tereza Smitkova (CZE) d Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE) — 6-3, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 6 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Ana Konjuh (CRO) d Marina Erakovic (NZL) — 6-3, 4-6, 6-0

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Yvonne Meusburger (AUT) d Vania King (USA) — 7-5, 6-3

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) (27) d Steve Johnson (USA) — 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4, 7-5

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Benjamin Becker (GER) d Donald Young (USA) — 6-4, 6-3, 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 7 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Polona Hercog (SLO) d Paula Ormaechea (ARG) — 6-4, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Lauren Davis (USA) d Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) — 6-1, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Tim Puetz (GER) d Teymuraz Gabashvili (RUS) — 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Coco Vandeweghe (USA) d Garbine Muguruza (ESP) (27) — 6-3, 3-6, 7-5

    [divider]

    Court 9 – 11:30 A.M.  

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) d Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) — 6-2, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Jimmy Wang (TPE) d Alejandro Gonzalez (COL) — 6-3, 6-3, 6-2

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Radek Stepanek (CZE) d Pablo Cuevas (URU) — 6-2, 6-4, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Casey Dellacqua (AUS) d Anett Kontaveit (EST) — 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 10 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) d Carlos Berlocq (ARG) — 6-3, 6-3, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Lucie Safarova (CZE) (23) d Julia Goerges (GER) — 7-6(3), 7-6(3)

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Jan Hernych (CZE) d Tobias Kamke (GER) — 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3, 5-7, 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 11 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Misaki Doi (JPN) d Elina Svitolina (UKR) — 6-4, 6-1

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) d Johanna Larsson (SWE) — 7-6(2), 6-0

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Luke Saville (AUS) d Dominic Thiem (AUT) — 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) v Varvara Lepchenko (USA) — To Finish 7-6(6), 0-2

    [divider]

    Court 19 – 11:30 A.M.    

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Ernests Gulbis (LAT) (12) d Jurgen Zopp (EST) — 7-6(7), 7-5, 7-6(10)

    Gentlemen’s Singles – First round
    Robin Haase (NED) d Vasek Pospisil (CAN) (31) — 7-6(6), 4-6, 7-5, 6-3

    Ladies’ Singles – First round
    Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL) d Monica Niculescu (ROU) — 7-5, 6-3

    [divider]

  • 2014 Wimbledon Women’s Draw

    2014 Wimbledon Women’s Draw

    The women’s draw for the 2014 Wimbledon is out. Serena Williams (#1) and Simona Halep (#3) are in the top half; Li Na (#2) and Agnieszka Radwanska (#4) are in the bottom.

    First Quarter

    Serena Williams (USA) (1)
    Anna Tatishvili (USA)

    Chanelle Scheepers (RSA)
    Christina McHale (USA)

    Jovana Jaksic (SRB)
    Petra Cetkovska (CZE)

    Anna Schmiedlova (SVK)
    Alize Cornet (FRA) (25)

    Andrea Petkovic (GER) (20)
    Katarzyna Piter (POL)

    Irina-Camelia Begu (ROU)
    Virginie Razzano (FRA)

    Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP)
    Olga Govortsova (BLR)

    Daniela Hantuchova (SVK)
    Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) (13)

    Angelique Kerber (GER) (9)
    Urszula Radwanska (POL)

    Heather Watson (GBR)
    Ajla Tomljanovic (CRO)

    Petra Martic (CRO)
    Lourdes Dominguez Lino (ESP)

    Tamira Paszek (AUT)
    Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) (24)

    A.Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) (26)
    Alison Riske (USA)

    Alexandra Cadantu (ROU)
    Camila Giorgi (ITA)

    Timea Bacsinszky (SUI)
    Sharon Fichman (CAN)

    Samantha Murray (GBR)
    Maria Sharapova (RUS) (5)

    [divider]

    Second Quarter

    Simona Halep (ROU) (3)
    Teliana Pereira (BRA)

    Dinah Pfizenmaier (GER)
    Lesia Tsurenko (UKR)

    Belinda Bencic (SUI)
    Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK)

    Victoria Duval (USA)
    Sorana Cirstea (ROU) (29)

    Roberta Vinci (ITA) (21)
    Donna Vekic (CRO)

    Vera Zvonareva (RUS)
    Tara Moore (GBR)

    Zarina Diyas (KAZ)
    Kristina Mladenovic (FRA)

    Shuai Zhang (CHN)
    Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP) (15)

    Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (11)
    Francesca Schiavone (ITA)

    Annika Beck (GER)
    Jie Zheng (CHN)

    Karolina Pliskova (CZE)
    Karin Knapp (ITA)

    Julia Glushko (ISR)
    Sabine Lisicki (GER) (19)

    Klara Koukalova (CZE) (31)
    Taylor Townsend (USA)

    Madison Keys (USA)
    Monica Puig (PUR)

    Kristyna Pliskova (CZE)
    Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ)

    Kaia Kanepi (EST)
    Jelena Jankovic (SRB) (7)

    [divider]

    Third Quarter

    Victoria Azarenka (BLR) (8)
    Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO)

    Johanna Larsson (SWE)
    Bojana Jovanovski (SRB)

    Tereza Smitkova (CZE)
    Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)

    Coco Vandeweghe (USA)
    Garbine Muguruza (ESP) (27)

    Lucie Safarova (CZE) (23)
    Julia Goerges (GER)

    Polona Hercog (SLO)
    Paula Ormaechea (ARG)

    Monica Niculescu (ROU)
    Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL)

    Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN)
    Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) (10)

    Sara Errani (ITA) (14)
    Caroline Garcia (FRA)

    Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL)
    Varvara Lepchenko (USA)

    Misaki Doi (JPN)
    Elina Svitolina (UKR)

    Kimiko Date-Krumm (JPN)
    Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22)

    Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) (28)
    M.Larcher De Brito (POR)

    Stefanie Voegele (SUI)
    Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS)

    Anett Kontaveit (EST)
    Casey Dellacqua (AUS)

    Andreea Mitu (ROU)
    Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) (4)

    [divider]

    Fourth Quarter

    Petra Kvitova (CZE) (6)
    Andrea Hlavackova (CZE)

    Mona Barthel (GER)
    Romina Oprandi (SUI)

    Kurumi Nara (JPN)
    Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER)

    M.Torro-Flor (ESP)
    Venus Williams (USA) (30)

    Sloane Stephens (USA) (18)
    Maria Kirilenko (RUS)

    Johanna Konta (GBR)
    Shuai Peng (CHN)

    Lauren Davis (USA)
    Alisa Kleybanova (RUS)

    Jana Cepelova (SVK)
    Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (12)

    Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (16)
    Shahar Peer (ISR)

    Naomi Broady (GBR)
    Timea Babos (HUN)

    Ana Konjuh (CRO)
    Marina Erakovic (NZL)

    Yanina Wickmayer (BEL)
    Samantha Stosur (AUS) (17)

    Elena Vesnina (RUS) (32)
    P.Mayr-Achleitner (AUT)

    Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS)
    B.Zahlavova Strycova (CZE)

    Vania King (USA)
    Yvonne Meusburger (AUT)

    Paula Kania (POL)
    Na Li (CHN) (2)

    [divider]

  • Roland Garros French Open Day 3

    Roland Garros French Open Day 3

    On Day Three of the French Open, Wimbledon champion Andy Murray will play his first round match against Andrey Golubev (KAZ). World No. 5 David Ferrer, of Spain, faces off against Igor Sijsling, of the Netherlands. Local favorite Richard Gasquet (12) plays the young Australian Bernard Tomic.

    On the women’s side, the Romanian Simona Halep (4) will meet Alisa Kleybanova, of Russia. The 2008 Roland Garros champion Ana Ivanovic (11) plays Caroline Garcia (FRA). Li Na (2), the 2001 champion, and winner of this year’s Australian Open, will face Kristina Mladenovic, of France.

    The full schedule for Day 3 is listed below (Results to follow)…

    [divider]

    Court Philippe Chatrier – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Simona Halep (ROU) (4) d. Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) — 6-0, 6-2

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    David Ferrer (ESP) (5) d. Igor Sijsling (NED) — 6-4, 6-3, 6-1

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (11) d. Caroline Garcia (FRA) — 6-1, 6-3

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Gael Monfils (FRA) (23) d. Victor Hanescu (ROU) — 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2

    [divider]

    Court Suzanne Lenglen – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) d. Na Li (CHN) (2) — 7-5, 3-6, 6-1

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Richard Gasquet (FRA) (12) d. Bernard Tomic (AUS) — 6-2, 6-1, 7-5

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Andy Murray (GBR) (7) d. Andrey Golubev (KAZ) — 6-1, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Sara Errani (ITA) (10) d. Madison Keys (USA) — 7-5, 3-6, 6-1

    [divider]

    Court 1 – 11:00 A.M.

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Ivo Karlovic (CRO) d. Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) (11) — 6-4, 7-5, 7-6(4)

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Sloane Stephens (USA) (15) d. Shuai Peng (CHN) — 6-4, 7-6(8)

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Fernando Verdasco (ESP) (24) d. Michael Llodra (FRA) — 6-2, 7-6(4), 7-6(3)

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Lucie Safarova (CZE) (23) d. Mandy Minella (LUX) — 6-3, 7-5

    [divider]

    Court 2 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) (24) d. Kimiko Date-Krumm (JPN) — 6-3, 0-6, 6-2

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Juan Monaco (ARG) d. Lucas Pouille (FRA) — 6-3, 6-1, 6-4

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (13) — 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-2

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) d. Albano Olivetti (FRA) — 6-1, 6-4, 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 3 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) (27) d. Sofia Shapatava (GEO) — 6-3, 6-1

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) (28) d. Pere Riba (ESP) — 7-5, 6-4, 6-1

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Jurgen Zopp (EST) d. Tommy Haas (GER) (16) — 2-5 Ret.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d. Shelby Rogers (USA) — 6-2, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 4 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Camila Giorgi (ITA) d. Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) — 6-4, 6-3

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Denis Istomin (UZB) d. Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) — 6-3, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Dinah Pfizenmaier (GER) d. Estrella Cabeza Candela (ESP) — 4-6, 6-3, 6-3

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Coco Vandeweghe (USA) d. Iveta Melzer (CZE) — 7-6(6), 6-2

    [divider]

    Court 5 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Teliana Pereira (BRA) d. Luksika Kumkhum (THA) — 4-6, 6-1, 6-1

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT) d. Daniel Brands (GER) — 4-6, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Marinko Matosevic (AUS) d. Dustin Brown (GER) — 7-6(5), 6-4, 6-7(1), 7-5

    [divider]

    Court 6 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Heather Watson (GBR) d. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) — 6-3, 6-4

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Kevin Anderson (RSA) (19) d. Stephane Robert (FRA) — 7-5, 6-3, 6-4

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Jack Sock (USA) d. Nicolas Almagro (ESP) (21) — 5-0 Ret.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor (ESP) d. Klara Koukalova (CZE) (30) — 7-6(4), 6-2

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Casey Dellacqua (AUS) d. Lourdes Dominguez Lino (ESP) — 7-5, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 7 – 11:00 A.M.

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Carlos Berlocq (ARG) d. Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) — 3-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-4

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Jelena Jankovic (SRB) (6) d. Sharon Fichman (CAN) — 5-7, 6-1, 6-3

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) (21) d. Danka Kovinic (MNE) — 7-6(6), 6-2

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Steve Johnson (USA) vs. Laurent Lokoli (FRA) — Postponed

    [divider]

    Court 8 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Sorana Cirstea (ROU) (26) d. Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) — 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-2

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Simone Bolelli (ITA) d. Andrea Arnaboldi (ITA) — 6-4, 6-4, 6-2

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) d. Urszula Radwanska (POL) — 4-6, 6-4, 3-0 Ret.

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Nicholas Monroe (USA) / Simon Stadler (GER) d. Martin Klizan (SVK) / Dominic Thiem (AUT) — 6-3, 7-5

    [divider]

    Court 10 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Alison Riske (USA) d. Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) — 7-6(2), 6-3

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Polona Hercog (SLO) d. Jana Cepelova (SVK) — 6-2, 6-3

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Pablo Cuevas (URU) d. Matthew Ebden (AUS) — 6-1, 6-2, 6-3

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Mate Pavic (CRO) / Andre Sa (BRA) d. Ken Skupski (GBR) / Michael Venus (NZL) — 6-2, 6-3

    [divider]

    Court 11 – 11:00 A.M.

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Henri Kontinen (FIN) / Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) d. Juan Sebastian Cabal (COL) (10) / Robert Farah (COL) (10) — 6-4, 6-3

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Marcel Granollers (ESP) (12) / Marc Lopez (ESP) (12) d. Johan Brunstrom (SWE) / Frederik Nielsen (DEN) — 7-5, 6-2

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) / Scott Lipsky (USA) d. Colin Fleming (GBR) / Ross Hutchins (GBR) — 7-6(6), 6-4

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Jeremy Chardy (FRA) / Oliver Marach (AUT) d. Mathias Bourgue (FRA) / Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA) — 6-1, 7-5

    [divider]

    Court 14 – 11:00 A.M.

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Kiki Bertens (NED) d. Alexandra Cadantu (ROU) — 7-6(5), 6-1

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) d. Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) — 6-2, 6-3

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Dusan Lajovic (SRB) d. Federico Delbonis (ARG) — 6-3, 6-2, 6-3

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Jamie Murray (GBR) (15) / John Peers (AUS) (15) d. Vasek Pospisil (CAN) / Rajeev Ram (USA) — 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(2)

    [divider]

    Court 16 – 11:00 A.M.

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Andreas Seppi (ITA) (32) d. Santiago Giraldo (COL) — 6-3, 7-5, 6-3

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Elina Svitolina (UKR) d. Petra Martic (CRO) — 5-0 Ret.

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Jean-Julien Rojer (NED) (13) / Horia Tecau (ROU) (13) d. Adrian Mannarino (FRA) / Benoit Paire (FRA) — 6-4, 6-0

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Teymuraz Gabashvili (RUS) / Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) d. Bradley Klahn (USA) / Neal Skupski (GBR) — 7-6(5), 6-4

    [divider]

    Court 17 – 11:00 A.M.

    Men’s Singles – Round 1
    Axel Michon (FRA) d. Bradley Klahn (USA) — 6-1, 6-7(4), 5-7, 6-1, 6-4

    Women’s Singles – Round 1
    Julia Glushko (ISR) d. Donna Vekic (CRO) — 7-5, 2-6, 6-4

    Men’s Doubles – Round 1
    Julien Benneteau (FRA) (11) / Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) (11) d. Benjamin Becker (GER) / Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) — 6-3, 4-6, 6-0

  • Serena Williams Wins Record Seventh Title in Miami

    Serena Williams Wins Record Seventh Title in Miami

    Serena Williams

    World No. 1 Serena Williams won her record-breaking seventh title in Miami on Saturday, beating Li Na in the final, 7-5, 6-1.

    After a shaky opening game, Li Na, the No. 2 seed, broke to open the set. She then held, and looked to be in control of the match, eventually going up a double break, to 5-2. However, despite error-riddled play from Williams, Li Na failed to capitalize on the lead, and got broken both times she served for the set. It was exactly what Williams needed to gain confidence, and she began playing remarkably better.

    When serving to stay in the set at 5-6, Li Na was broken a third consecutive time, giving Williams the first set 7-5.

    Each player held to open the second set, but Williams broke Li Na’s second service game, giving her a 4-1 lead. Trouble on serve continued for the Chinese No. 1, as Williams, in true dominant form, broke again to go up 5-1 after another lengthy game, then held easily, serving it out 6-1. It was Williams’ 59th career title.

    [divider]

    Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): Francisco Carbajal

  • Tears and Laughter

    Tears and Laughter

    Stanislas+Wawrinka+Australian+Open+2014+Men+eaKRCvehVMHl e

    The 2014 Australian Open Finals

    Li Na [4] def. Dominika Cibulkova [20] 7-6(3), 6-0

    Stanislas Wawrinka [8] def. Rafael Nadal [1] 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3

    At some point in the twelve months between the day Swiss player Stanislas Wawrinka lost a five-set, five-hour tennis match to defending champion Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open, and the night when he won a five-set Australian Open match against the again-defending champion Djokovic, Wawrinka got a tattoo on his forearm. A motivational tattoo courtesy of Samuel Beckett’s Worstward Ho: “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”

    Tennis players see a lot of their forearms. If Wawrinka ever forgot to try, or forgot how important it is to fail in life, all he had to do was glance downward and Mr. Beckett could remind him of the game plan. Keep going! I remember deploying the same passage on my site, Extreme Western Grip in early 2012, after Rafael Nadal lost a grueling six-hour Australian Open final, also to Novak Djokovic. After falling to Djokovic in umpteen straight finals, Nadal had, I believed, finally failed better—a lot better. And, indeed, next time Djokovic and Nadal met in a tournament final, Rafa won. But that’s Rafa; getting badly burned and then rising majestically, muscularly from the ashes—fist-pumping and vamos-ing in six directions at once—is what he does. He almost did it this past Sunday, despite carrying a back injury so severe he required a medical timeout and repeated visits from the trainer.

    I ought to have realized, from the evidence of the permanent marker he’d injected into his very being, that Stanislas Wawrinka was very also serious about rising like a scruffy phoenix from the ashes. Instead, I was surprised when he pulled himself together, after a very shaky first set against Djokovic in last week’s quarterfinal match, to win in five. I was impressed to see the Swiss force himself, time and time again, to cling to the baseline when it was clear as the stripes on Berdych’s T-shirt that his instinct was to retreat to the comparative emotional safety of the backcourt. I was relieved when he didn’t let down in the next round, defeating Tomas Berdych and earning his first chance to play for a slam title. But he’d never taken a set off Rafael Nadal, not in 26 tries, so all I expected—hoped—for him was that he keep trying again, and again. I hoped he’d get a set, or maybe even two. I hoped the loss wouldn’t hurt too much. 

    In fact, I suspected that the match might unfold in much the way the women’s final did, with the underdog putting up an admirable fight but succumbing in the end to the better, more experienced player. Despite being billed on Channel 7 as a Bond-girl-esque battle between “Lethal Li and Dominika the Dominator,” the attention during coverage of the women’s match remained, and fittingly so, on the tennis. (So far as I can recall, Eugenie Bouchard’s impending marriage to Justin Bieber was not mentioned even once.) It was good tennis, with a happy ending. During the trophy speeches, Li Na’s comic timing was, as usual, impeccable—much like her backhand in the second set— and the smile on her face was unguarded and wonderful to see. But Cibulkova, despite the tears coursing down her face, also seemed honestly happy to be there. It’s not that she was “just” happy to be there, Cibulkova obviously wanted to win. (And if she can keep playing the kind of tennis she played throughout the Open, win she will.) Yet her 6-7(3), 0-6 loss—that second set was closer than it sounds—hadn’t obliterated her awareness of how much she’d accomplished before it.

    Dominika+Cibulkova+2014+Australian+Open+Day+pMzpaSOaaYKl

    Watching the two pose for trophy photos, I was hard-pressed to remember another time when the person left holding the runner-up plate looked so, well, radiant. It’s a shame it doesn’t happen more often. Being No. 2 out of 128 is an achievement to be proud of, but tennis doesn’t work that way. It’s a psychologically harsh sport. Take a tune-up tournament for example. Thirty-two players enter the Sydney draw, but only one gets to go on to the Australian Open with a victory fresh on her mind. Others might win a match or two, or possibly even three, but the last experience will be of loss. No wonder it’s the nihilistic Samuel Beckett and not, say, Ram Dass, to whom tennis players turn to for their inspirational tattoos. 

    After watching Wawrinka defeat Djokovic, I expected that Wawrinka, like Cibulkova, would put up a good fight in the final. I didn’t think he would win. But more important, I didn’t think he’d win playing the way he did: first, so spectacularly, and then so very anxiously. The first set and a half from Wawrinka—regardless of whether Nadal was already injured or not—was magnificent on all fronts. After the match he called it the best tennis he’s ever played. He served well, returned well, and drove his backhand down the line in a way that made Roger Federer look almost frail. Wawrinka’s forehand might be the stroke most vulnerable to a dip in form (he occasionally forgets he has knees to bend), but the winners he strikes off that side are likely to cause sharp, admiring intakes of breath from onlookers. (Or, at least from me.) If only he’d kept it up after he knew Nadal was hurt, like Rafa would have done himself.

    For all that Nadal is kind to children, afraid of puppies, and modest on the podium, he’s ruthless when it comes time to drive the dagger home. Stanislas Wawrinka, on the other hand, is more like the rest of us. As he said after the match, it was hard for him to know that his friend and rival was hurting, hard to stay focused on what he needed to do. Well, it was also hard for me to watch. I was at Indian Wells in 2013 when Wawrinka managed to lose to an injured Roger Federer in much the same way that Wawrinka played the third set of the Australian Open final. He obligingly hit half-paced balls directly to his opponent’s racquet so that the poor guy with the bad back didn’t have to run. It was painful to watch. The next round, which pitted the wounded Federer against Rafael Nadal wasn’t a barrel of fun either, but it was a relief to see Rafa move swiftly to put his ailing opponent out of his misery.

    There is another passage from Beckett, this time from Molloy, which could describe the spiral of psychological struggle that became the men’s final: “I did my best to go in a circle, hoping in this way to go in a straight line.” It was difficult to watch Wawrinka wrestle with himself to keep his aggressive game turned outward against his opponent, and not against himself. It was difficult to watch Nadal struggle to keep himself in the match, knowing that he would (or should) lose, and painful to see his tears when it was done. It would have been Rafael Nadal’s 14th slam title, equaling Pete Sampras’ tally, and the American was on hand to present the trophy. If there was ever doubt about the psychological law of diminishing returns, all that needs to be done is to compare the crestfallen face of Rafael Nadal to the brimming smile of Dominika Cibulkova. Success is nothing if not relative.

    But if the 2014 Men’s Final was messy, Wawrinka’s joy at winning it was sublime. With this title he becomes the new Swiss No. 1 and World No. 3, and he, like many of us, couldn’t quite believe it, saying he’d find out the next morning whether or not he was dreaming. For me, the disappointment of the final two sets gave way to a vicarious experience of Wawrinka’s happiness in a matter of hours. By the early hours of Monday morning, as I waited in line at the airport to board my flight to New Zealand, it was not only the pleasure of the smiles of two new Australian Open champions, and two wonderful weeks spent in Melbourne that was on my mind, but also the loss of an ending. I didn’t want it to be over. Samuel Beckett once wrote, “tears and laughter, they are so much Gaelic to me.” It’s a sad sentence, not suitable for inspirational body art. Tears and laughter are without clear meaning, and of the past. But I mention it now because tears and laughter are also of a piece. In tennis, there’s no winner without a runner-up plate. And there’s no beginning to a holiday down under without its ending. 

    I’ll see you all back in California.

  • Li Na Third-Time Lucky in Australia

    Li Na Third-Time Lucky in Australia

    AO WTA Winner Li Na

    The Chinese superstar and world No. 4 Li Na won her first Australian Open title on her third try, defeating Dominika Cibulkova, 7-6(3), 6-0.  This is the second Major title for Li, 31, who won the French Open in 2011. Li is the first player from China to win the Australian Open, and Cibulkova is the first Slovakian to reach the final of any Major.

    Cibulkova, 24, ranked 21, and standing just 5’3″, was a surprise finalist. After the tournament saw off the top-seeded Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka, Li’s draw opened up. But Cibulkova had to personally dispense with Maria Sharapova, rising star Simona Halep, and the tricky Agnieszka Radwanska to reach the final.

    Li broke the Slovakian in the first game of the match, but a low first serve percentage and too many unforced errors kept Cibulkova in the hunt. She proved a worthy opponent in a competitive and entertaining first set, which eventually went to a tiebreak. The veteran proved too much for the first-timer, however, whose serve let her down in the crunch. With the first set in hand, Li found her form and never looked back, closing the second set at love.

    Photo credit:  globalite (Creative Commons License)

     

     

  • Li Na Advances to the Australian Open Final

    Li Na Advances to the Australian Open Final

    Li Na 2014

    China’s Li Na reached the Ladies Australian Open final for the third time in four years with a 6-2, 6-4 win over young Canadian revelation Eugenie Bouchard.

    Li dominated the opening stanza, rushing out to a 5-0 lead in only 16 minutes before Bouchard finally registered a game on the scoreboard. She added another before Li closed out the set behind penetrating groundstrokes and strong serving.

    The Canadian steadied her nerves in the second set and made a match of it before her experienced opponent broke and closed out the set with a crosscourt backhand.

    Li Na will meet the winner of Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova and Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska who face off in the other semifinal.

    [divider]

    Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): globalite