1.Serena Williams

Just like last year there is no clear favorite for the women’s singles title. In this new millennium, the Williams sisters have largely dominated the Championships, with Serena winning two and Venus taking the trophy thrice. This year too there is a Williams in strong contention for the title and her first name is Serena, the current Australian Open Champion. Serena has a game that’s very suitable for grass; her sharp serves and strong forehands could do a lot of damage to anyone. Seeded eighth this year, Serena would like to put aside her French Open disappointment where she was beaten in the quarters by eventual winner Justin Henin. As is her practice, Serena has skipped the warm-up tournaments, but is playing doubles at Wimbledon partnering her sister Venus.

2.Justin Henin

Wimbledon is the only Slam that Henin has not won. She came close twice, losing in the finals on both occasions. In 2001, she lost to Venus Williams, the then defending Champion in three sets and met the same fate last year at the hands of Amelie Mauresmo. Henin is playing a much more aggressive game now and is regarded as one of the best all-round players in the women’s circuit. She knows that though she herself has become a powerful striker of the ball, it’s wise to make forays to the net whenever possible to keep the rallies short, especially on grass.

3.Maria Sharapova

One of last year’s losing semi-finalists and the tournament second seed Maria Sharapova is a former Champion at Wimbledon. She triumphed in 2004, beating Serena Williams in straight sets in the finals. Maria arrived at DFS Classic, a pre-Wimbledon tournament after a semi-final appearance at the French Open on her least favorite surface – clay. She reached the final of the DFS Classic, losing to Serbian star Jelena Jankovic in a tight three-setter. Maria’s power-packed game is highly grass-friendly and she is very keen on repeating her 2004 success.

4.Amelie Mauresmo

The defending champion Amelie Mauresmo is seeded fourth this year. So far this year, Amelie has not shown signs of the form that has allowed her to win 2 slams last year. But the genial Frenchwoman would be no pushover at her favorite tournament. One of the few players on the women’s tour who can play a classis game of serve and volley, she used that style to great advantage last year when she bet Henin in three entertaining sets to clinch the title. She seems to have recovered from her Appendicitis and is hungry to bring-out her wide range of shots to win a second title here.

The player with the best outside chance : Never discount the chances of Venus Williams at Wimbledon. She was not one of the favorites at the 2004 edition of the tournament, but that did not stop her from winning the title. If she manages to keep a tab on those unforced errors and plays her game, she is one player everyone would dread to face at any stage of the tournament.Technorati Tags: Venus, Williams,, Serena, Williams,, Sharapova,, Mauresmo,, Henin,, Tennis,, Wimbledon

The world’s most famous tennis tournament start next week in SW 19 in London. Test your knowledge of Wimbledon.

A big thanks to Meera for helping out with some of the questions. It certainly helped that she has been at Wimbledon and got to do the official tour!
1-pointers

1. How do we know the area officially known as Aorangi Terrace better? If you need a clue, it got its name only during the late 90s after the BBC erected a big video screen for people to watch the matches on.

Henman Hill

2. Another sitter, after years of trying to win Wimbledon, who famously muttered in frustration ‘Grass are for cows’ resulting in one of the most repeated quotes of all time?

Ivan Lendl

3. Obvious question, who partnered Alisa Kleybanova to win the Junior Girls Doubles title at Wimbledon in 2003?

Sania Mirza
4. The 2006 Women’s Double Champions came from the same country. Which one? Bonus points if you can name the players.

China
5. What unique achievement is common to Bjorn Borg, Pat Cash, Stefan Edberg and (obviously) Roger Federer?

Won both Junior and Senior Wimbledon Mens Singles titles

_______________

2-pointers

1. One of the most charismatic champions ever, he had a list of 10 rituals he felt he had to follow before every match in the year he won the title. The oddest among them being watching Teletubbies every morning. His favourite Teletubby being Tinky Winky. Who?

Goran Ivanisevic in 2001- during that magic run which got him the title!
2. One of the most admired Wimbledon Champions of all time, he was arrested outside the White House in 1992 for protesting the U.S. treatment of Haitian refugees. Another clue? He defeated Jimmy Connors to win his only Wimbledon title. Who?

Arthur Ashe
3. This sponsorship deal between the company and the organizers of Wimbledon, dating back to 1902 is the longest ever unbroken sporting sponsorship in the history of sport. Which company?

Slazenger
4. A future Wimbledon champion caused a major stir when he remarked - “Eighty percent of the top 100 women are fat pigs who don’t deserve equal pay.” Later he clarified his comments saying “What I meant to say was that only 75 percent are fat pigs.” Who?

Richard Krajiceck

5. The Rolex watch in the centre court of Wimbledon is very unique. Why?

Only digital Rolex Watch

_____________

3- pointers

1. After a series of disputed calls in a match during the 1995 edition of Wimbledon, this American stormed off the court thereby defaulting the match. Later his wife went up to the umpire and slapped him resulting in the player being suspended the following year. Who?

Jeff Tarrango
2. This Wimbledon Champion and Tennis Legend fainted on hearing that she had (unknowingly) kept the Queen waiting in the royal box for her appearance. She withdrew from the tournament and never played Wimbledon again. Later she died at the very young age of 39. Who? Lesser known facts: She wept openly during matches and also sipped brandy between games to reduce tension.

Suzanne Lenglen
3. According to Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Club Museum Curator, Honor Godfrey “It’s very important that when we are collecting from players that we collect for very particular reasons”. What item, in 2005, did he think was “absolutely amazing and that was an item that I was really pleased to get in the collection” because it had not been seen in the tournament since 1927?

Rafael Nadal’s pirate pants
4. This tennis player famously bet $500 on himself winning the men’s singles, men’s doubles and the mixed doubles title in the same year. And he won all three and ended up making more than 100,000 pounds. However, he is more famously known for another match that he played nearly 30 years later. Who is this gambler?

Bobby Riggs
5. This champion tennis player found herself bankrupt in the early 90s and living on welfare. She sent a letter to her doubles partner (and they had won the championship) and friend describing her situation and the fact that she was on the brink of suicide. Her partner arranged for the letter to be published in a tennis magazine without the former’s knowledge. The response was incredible and the tennis player in question ended up getting cash worth more than a million dollars from fans all around the world. Who?

Althea Gibson

Z

The French Open began on the 27th in less than perfect conditions. The tournament this year has been affected by rain, cloudy skies and windy conditions, reminding us of the tricky weather situation last year when the first week had damp conditions and the second week of the tournament was bright and sunny. The first 2 rounds went as per predictions with a few upsets thrown in.

The biggest upset so far has been the straight set elimination of Fernando Gonzalez, the fifth seed at the hands of Radek Stepanek. Stepanek went on to lose to unheralded French player Edouard Roger-Vasselin in five sets in the next round.

Americans not finding their feet on clay

Seeded American players were also bitten by the upset bug, as third seed Andy Roddick and eighth seed James Blake were sent packing by Igor Andreev and Ivo Karlovic respectively. Seven more American followed their two high-profile countrymen out of the tournament. Andre Agassi was the last American men’s singles champion at the French Open in 1999 and the only champion before him was Courier in 1992. It looks like there wont be an American champion for quite some time to come.

But there is good news for American tennis as the Williams sisters are playing their part pretty well. Both progressed to the third round where Venus would play Jelena Jankovic (who has already beaten Venus this year) - and Serena plays Michaella Krajicek.
Elsewhere, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, the prime contenders for the title are making good progress, with neither dropping a set in their first two matches. Federer might face his first challenge in the form of former Roland Garros Champion Juan Carlos Ferrero or Mikhail Youzhny in the fourth round, while Nadal’s fourth round foe could be former world no.1 Lleyton Hewitt.

Sania Update
From the Indian perspective, Sania Mirza was knocked out in straight sets in the second round by Anna Ivanovic. Not really a surprise considering how much she hates playing on clay and the fact that she has been recovering from an injury. She should do much better in the grass in England.

Roger Federer came to Melbourne for the year’s first grand slam – with “insufficient” match practice. At the beginning of the year he choose not to play at the Qatar Open, despite being the defending champion. His only real-match preparation for the Aussie Open was the Kooyong Classic, an exhibition tournament. And after wins over Radek Stepanek ( a tough three-setter) and Marat Safin, he lost in the final to Andy Roddick. Any other player would not classify such a lead-up before a slam as a good warm-up. But Roger Federer is not exactly any other player, is he?

Read the rest of this entry »

How things change! It was about 30 months ago that we saw an extremely pretty Russian girl play on the hallowed center court at Wimbledon against the Serena. Nobody gave her any chance of beating Serena but in a display of absolutely confident tennis, Serena was stunned and a star was born. 30 months hence, women’s tennis has seen major changes: Davenport is gone, Clijsters about to go, Henin spends more time injured, Mauresmo actually won a grandslam (!), Sharapova has shown us she is no Kournikova and the Williams sisters are more interested in fashion than tennis.

Deja vu

The showdown will be repeated a few minutes from when I write this post. Serena, overweight and in bad shape has scraped and scratched her way into the finals and Sharapova has been scorching on court at times.

I had written about Serena here: “…Nobody, ever, can wake up one fine day, come out on court and expect to win.” I think Serena has the capability to prove me wrong, I guess by getting as far as she has, she already has proved her point. She is far too good for me to write her off but I don’t expect her to do a Sharapova. Will Serena make me eat my words again?

Go Maria. Let’s watch some good tennis.

Talking of good tennis, what did you guys think of the men’s semi-finals. Federer demolishing Roddick and Gonzalez repeating that against Haas. Would it be too much to expect that both of them will turn in those kind of performances come Sunday?

- Prof

Technorati Tags:
Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Federer, Gonzalez

Sania, disappointment

Sania Mirza disappointed yet again and crashed out of the Australian Open in the second round. She lost to Akiko Nakamura of Japan who is ranked 10 places below her in the WTA rankings. Coming off a good run in the Hopman Cup and the other lead-up tournaments, there was a promise of better things to come at the first grandslam. But unfortunately for her “billion fans” and her, an inconsistent performance proved inadequate. Let us see how she handles this loss and how the rest of this season shape up.

Roddick versus Safin

 

 

If there is any player in the Australian Open draw that Roddick should want to avoid like the plague (other than Federer ofcourse), it is Marat Safin. The Russian who is making his billionth comeback is probably the second most talented man on the ATP circuit. And, he is the only guy to have beaten Federer in a Grandslam on a surface other than clay since the beginning of 2005. It is unfortunate for both players that this matchup had to happen so early in the tournament. Blame it on the mercurial Russian whose performances belie the talent he possesses.

 

Roddick is in the finest form he has been in for 12 months now. The serves are powerful and clicking, the powerful backcourt shots are in place and he appears fairly confident of his place on the court. Even given all this, he would be well advised to take Safin seriously. That man coming off two exhausting five set matches must be feeling like a polar bear in Chennai. But give him an opening and he will demolish you, if he fails to self-destruct that is. Safin is his own cyanide pill. You can find a previous post on Safin here.

Given current form, Roddick should win. But I would rather watch Safin progress in the tournament because he is capable of better tennis and in my opinion, has a better chance of beating Federer. Go Marat (ideal point to crack a Borat joke or pun… none come to mind right away)!

- Prof

Women’s Singles - 1st Round
Olga Savchuk UKR 3 5

Sania Mirza IND 6 7

Sania Mirza beat Olga Savchuk of Ukraine to advance to the second round of the Australian Open. If she moves to the third round, there is a potential matchup against the Swiss Miss, Martina Hingis.

Anybody for Mirza in the 3rd round? If yes, can she beat the Swiss Miss (whom she might meet)? How far in the tournament will Sania go?

Nice article about Sania and Anna Ivanovic finding fitness to improve their power.

Quote of the day- “The heat in Australian tans you. You can feel the sun burning your legs during changeovers. In Hyderabad, the sun isn’t that hot. I don’t know if it’s the ozone or whatever.” - Sania

- Prof

Technorati tags: Sania Mirza Martina Hingis

Roddick beat Federer! Under normal circumstances, when two players who are in the top five in the world meet each other, we wouldn’t think this is that much of an upset. But Federer’s record over the last two seasons have given him an aura of invincibility. Roddick has beaten the Fed only twice in fifteen meetings and Federer last lost to Andy Murray quite some time back last season: not invincible, but close.

Australian Open Preview

It’s the middle of January and the first major of the tennis calendar is upon us. The Australian Open doesn’t get the noise that Wimbledon and the US Open generate but it comes early in the year and tennis fans starved of grandslam action for five months eagerly lap it up. It is time for self appointed critics to comment on players’ strategies and serves, predict winners and comment on who will make it big in the next two weeks, months or even years. And yours truly is going to embark on such a mission though I restrict myself to just the next two weeks.

It’s the middle of January and the first major of the tennis calendar is upon us. The Australian Open doesn’t get the noise that Wimbledon and the US Open generate but it comes early in the year and tennis fans starved of grandslam action for five months eagerly lap it up. It is time for self appointed critics to comment on players’ strategies and serves, predict winners and comment on who will make it big in the next two weeks, months or even years. And yours truly is going to embark on such a mission though I restrict myself to just the next two weeks.Men

Does Roddick’s victory mean anything different for this year’s Australian Open? Does anybody change their predictions on the basis of this result? You would be a fool to bet against Fed based on this match. It is a new season and even Federer might require sometime to get back into his groove. But even when he is not in form, you are going to need a flawless performance and a bad Fed day to beat the man like Safin got two years back at Melbourne. So, Federer it will be again this time around.

Nadal hasn’t started the season too well either, losing at Chennai and pulling out of a tournament with a strained groin muscle. Rafter turned down Hewitt’s practice request for some personal reason and this probably dents the fairly flimsy chances that Hewitt had of doing anything at all. At this point, I would bet on Roddick to do some damage but not quite enough to topple Federer. Then the other names, Andy Murray, Baghdatis, Tursunov pop-up: no serious challenge here. The dark horse could very well be James Blake. He played well last season and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few strong performances this season too. If one of these players can mount a serious challenge to Federer, we could be in for some rivetting tennis.

History suggests an Opportunity

The best time to challenge Fed is at the Australian Open. The new season implies the champ is still rusty from the lack of match practice and the early rounds could be crucial especially against a dangerous opponent such as say, Karlovic. Looking back at the results of the last ten years, we see that the Sampras name figures only once. And he was the most dominant player of his time. Agassi has won it thrice. He was always the one for meticulous training in the heights during the Australian summer. Further, there have been unlikely champions: Petr Korda, Yevgeny Kafalnikov and Thomas Johansson (really!!!). Add to this list, Marat Safin (the 2005 winner) and you can see what I mean when I say the best time to beat the top guy is at the beginning of the season. In cricket terms, before he is well set and has got his eye in.

Women

The women’s field looks fairly weak to me with the pullout of Henin and the retirement of Davenport. I predict a Sharapova victory and I am certain the organizers would love for her to be there till the end of the tournament. This Russian is a showstopper, both with the game and the looks. She is not just another pretty thing. She is focussed, talented and does not look like she will fritter it away. Clijsters and 2006 champion Mauresmo will have to be contended with before she can lift the Daphne Akhurst memorial cup.

As I was recollecting the men’s winners of the past, I looked up some of the women’s winners of the last decade. And guess what? The women victors have been more consistent with the then rankings and stuff. Hingis won thrice in a row at the peak of her powers. Capriati won twice in her glorious comeback run. Lindsay won once and yes, there was a Wiliams winner, Serena, twice. Does this mean that the women’s game is weaker outside the top few? Is that the reason no serious challenge is mounted on the reputed players? Old winners’ lists give some interesting things to wonder about.

Sania Mirza’s chances:

Sania has had a fantastic start to the 2007 season. She was in good form as India nearly qualified for the final of the Hopman Cup and made the semifinals of the tournament in Hobart losing eventually to the top seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze.

Sania has an easy draw at the Australian open. She has been drawn against an unknown Ukranian (another East European!) Olga Shevchuk in the first round. If she manages to win that she will meet either Emma Laine (another unknown!) or a qualifier. Sania may well face Martina Hingis in the third round and that match is going to generate a lot of interest! Besides Sania had actually defeated Hingis last year.

Here’s wishing her a great Australian Open and a fantastic 2007!

Pretty Russian

And before I end this one, I have a question to raise. I would like readers to post their views on this. How do those Russians manage to produce all these pretty women players! Saying that they don’t play that well is missing the point I am trying to make. Here is the new additon that I noticed, Anna Chakvetadze (who is seeded 12 at the Australian Open):

- Prof and Z

Technorati Tags: Tennis, Australian, Open, Federer, Roddick, Sania, Sharapova

US Open is my second most favourite grandslam (I think most people’s). It is by far the most vociferous slam, the glamour of tennis in New york and under lights as opposed to the quiet applause on the green lawns (except Henman hill of course) of Wimbledon, has a unique appeal. US Open has got spirit and it keeps the audience entertained something rarely seen on the dusty clay of Roland Garros. you have Spaniards all over the place and the tennis is a slug-fest, the matches are rarely, if ever, enthralling. The Australian Open: less glamorous than the Big Apple but it is good fun to watch and most importantly, rain is kept at bay and the indoor tennis is awesome (that king of indoor tennis, Becker performed ever so well when the roof was closed). But, for sheer entertainment, the US Open is unparallelled.

This year’s Open is over and it was great entertainment. The familiar sights of Roger Federer holding the trophy aloft and Martina Navratilova saying she’s done with the game; the media being more interested in the banana than in the wonderful tennis that Sharapova was playing; another Brit failing; Roddick hitting his powerful serves. They are good times, when the grandslams are on.

Federer is on a different plane. It’s like what Chang said about Sampras when at his peak: The guy is from a different planet. Sharapova, it is intimidating enough when someone plays tennis that well; couple that with the way she looks and you wonder if the world is a fair place :). Paes has won after a long time. He is older, slower but you can see the passion, emotion and love for the game. Indian tennis owes him a lot; Indian sports in general does. He is the only superstar we have had in individual, truly global sports (other than Anand).

Agassi has retired. I still can’t believe it! It doesn’t seem like very long ago when I saw a tremendous four-set display in the US Open. Two old men standing across the net from each other and showing the world how tennis is supposed to be played. If there had been no tie-breakers, they would till be playing set 1. The level of tennis on display that night, I am yet to see again (I doubt I will). That man is now gone: the rebel, the rival, the champion, the old man of the game.

Navratilova is gone. I can’t say enough about her contribution to the sport. Her best tennis years were long over by the time I was an avid watcher. But at fifty she plays the game better than some of the divas of the modern game. Davenport will probably not play again. She was a good player and was one of the original powerful hitters in the women’s game. She won more than I thought she would.

There were a few upsets: Baghdatis, Nadal, Nalbandian, the Williams sisters, Andy Murray. The new video challenge, a good addition I think. But on the whole, it was a great tournament and no one can debate it when I say, the best players won.

Now, it’s a long wait for the next grandslam, early next year. Let’s see how the draw pans out, new stars, old stars, whether the Federer phenomenon continues, whether Mauresmo is really a choker, will Andy Murray be a phenomenon, will Safina do things that Safin has failed to, will Safin make a comeback, what is happening to Hewitt… waiting for Australian Open 2007.

-Prof

Technorati Tags: US Open Navratilova Sharapova Federer AndyMurray Davenport Agassi Safina Hewitt

A striking figure standing across the diminutive Henin, dressed in black,a lovely chain around the neck, black hair-clips in place and the hair being tucked behind the ears every two points and squeals after every shot and fist-pumping!!! Maria Sharapova has won her second GrandSlam. And what a victory it was; Henin never really had a chance.

She started off playing nervously but once she was set in her groove, there was absolutely no chance for Henin. Henin didn’t play the tennis she is capable of but I don’t think it would have mattered much today.

Sharapova was inch perfect, brilliant power-hitting. She was kissing the lines, hitting deep shots and moving Henin all around the court. Sharapova was serving at her best and hitting that inside out forehand perfectly. The match was hers to win or lose. And after disappointments in her last two years, she has proved to us, she is no one-slam wonder.

Maria burst on to the scene when people had written off that diva, Kournikova. She came out and showed us she wasn’t just another pretty pair of legs. I mean, to beat Serena at Wimbledon, playing the way she did! There was ambition, determination and hers was a story the crowd loved: the six-year old with her non-English speaking father, out in a country where they knew no one and all they had was her talent!
She is absolutely gorgeous, carries herself very well and yes, she grunts but then it is very easy for the crowds to forgive her for that (easy for me to, definitely!!). After the match today, she went off-court for a few minutes and got her phone, and ‘told her Mom to start breathing again’.

It is heart-warming to see her succeed. She is going to be around for a while and fans, sponsors and tournament organizers world-over are going to be praying for her success. ‘Maria, you have won our hearts!’

Martina

What do you say about this woman? She been everywhere, won everything there is to win, retired, come back and competed against players about twenty years younger… and she has won, again. How does she do it? No one knows. Where does the motivation to carry on come from? And the fitness…? She might not be as sharp or fast but then she can still win.

Martina retires, again. And finally, the career is over… it is, isn’t it?

- Prof

Technorati tags: Sharapova,Henin U.S.Open Navratilova Martina