Men and Women start New Haven Campaign

Both the ATP and WTA tours are in New Haven this week, ahead of next weeks final Slam of the season, The US Open at Flushing Meadows. Early winners on Monday included ladies seeds Sybile Bammer, Alona Bondarenko and Elena Dementieva and in the mens draw Tommy Robredo, Jose Acasuso and Mardy Fish. The tournament should be a key indicator as to which players are in form before the US Open, however many top players such as Henin, Jankovic and Federer have decided not to play in order to rest before next week.

8 Britsh players are fighting for a place in the main draw at Flushing Meadows. Each player will have to win 3 consecutive matches to qualify for a first round proper place in the draw. Good Luck.

Blake no match for impressive Federer.

This time last week, Roger Federer had just lost in the final of the Canadian Open to Novak Djokovic. This week in Cincinnati, Federer was back to winning ways in his 20th Masters Series Final of his career. Federer swept aside James Blake 6-1 6-4. Blake has not had much success against Federer in the past and his nerves showed. The young American gifted The Swiss number one too many points, even serving 4 double faults in one game and failed to capitalise of the 6 break points he had against the powerful Federer serve. The men now move on to New haven for the last warm up tournament before the years last Major, The US Open at flushing meadows.

In the ladies final this evening, justine Henin defeated number 2 seed Jelena Jankovic in 2 tough sets 7-6 7-5. Numerous breaks of serve throughout the match caused each lady to take the advantage on more than one occasion but the strength of Henins groundstrokes prevailed against the Serbian. The ladies tour also moves to New Haven this week. Svetlana Kuznetsova will be the top seed for the event.

Ladies feel the heat in Canada

Sunshine and wind were in Canada this week and theladies arrived where the men had just left. The biggest suprise of the first few rounds was Chinese qualifier Zi Yan beating recent tournament winner and French Open finalist Anna Ivanovic in straight sets. She has since reached the semi-finals with wins over Eleni Danilidou and Marion Bartoli, impressive in itself. Other semi finalists include Tatiana Golovin who came through a sea-saw match with Kuznetsova 2-6 7-5 6-1 after neither players could hold serve in the second set!. Henin v petrova will be played later tonight and Jelena Jankovic defeated Virginie Razzano in straight sets.

In the mens masters series in Cincinatti saw Novak Djokovic lose his first round tie to Carlos Moya and Rafael Nadal retire injured against Juan Monaco of Agentina. in the semi finals Roger Federer defeated Nicolas Almagro in 3 sets, Leyton Hewitt defeated Carlos Moya and matches between Querrey v Blake, and Ferrer v Davydenko will be played later tonight.

The US Open is a matter of days away, so players are fighting for that run of form going into the last major of the tennis season.

Experience v Youth in Toronto

The final of the Canadian open will feature world number one roger Federer and Novak Djokovic the up and coming world number 3 from serbia. In the semi finals Federer won a first close set against suprise package Radek Stepanek of Czech Republic 7-6 and then eased to a 6-2 straight sets victory. In the other semi Djokovic defeated world number 2 Rafael Nadal also in straight sets 7-5 6-3. Nadal had Djokovic 0-40 on the serbians serve in the second set but a succession of aces allowed the youngster to hold on. The powerful serve of Djokovic may well be his best weapon against a fired up Roger Federer.

In the ladies final in Los Angeles, Nadia Petrova of Russia will meet Ana Ivanovic of Serbia in the final. Petrova who has had some long battles all week had a far easier time in the semi-finals as her opponent Maria Sharapova withdrew without even hitting a ball! The Russian has an injury as is now a doubt for the US Open in September. Ivanovic came through an almighty struggle with fellow countrywoman Jelena Jankovic. The Second seeded Jankovic found Ivanovic's power too much at times and secumbed in 3 very tighty sets. The final should be close as well as both petrova and Ivanovic have lots of power however both girls serves can fall apart under pressure so it may be all about power!

Men head for Canada!

After Washington victories for Andy Roddick and a clay court win for Tommy Robredo in Sopot,Poland the men are on there way to the master series event in Canada. The tournament marks the comeback from injury of britains Andy Murray who will face USA's Robbie Ginepri in the first round. Murray is surely going to be a bit rusty after not playing since injurying his wrist in hamburg back in May.

The women continue their American tournaments and move on from San Diego to Los Angeles. San Diego winner Maria Sharapova keeps her number 2 spot in the ladies rankings behind Justine Henin. Anna Chakvetadze continues her impressive year and reaches a career high number 6 in the world and nears her 50th match win of the year!

A quick mention for the British girls who are finding form in the hardcourts of the USA. Anne Keothavong reached the final in Lexington and then won in Vancouver last week taking her near to the worlds top 150 at number 153. Elena Baltacha continues to comeback from injury and gain experience while Wimbledon junior semi-finlaist Anna Fitzpatrick also continues to make her mark on the senior tour and reaches a high of 364 in the rankings.

Spanish Armada in Sweden

Spanish players took 3 of the 4 semi-final spots in Bastad, Sweden on Friday. David Ferrer, Nicolas Almagro and Carlos Moya all booked there places in the last 4 with straight sets victories over Gilles Simon, Luis Horna and home crowd favourite Robin Soderling. The other semi-final place goes to Fillipo Volandri of Italy the 5th seed who swept to victory over Olivier Rochus of Belgium 6-2 6-1. In Saturdays semis veteran Moya plays the youthful Almagro while Ferrer takes on Volandri.

In Gstaad there where wins for Radek Stepanek(CZE), Jean-Paul Mathieu(FRA) and Andreas Seppi(ITA) Top seeded french superstar Richard Gasquet, a recent semi-finalist at Wimbledon and the defending tournament champion was soundly beaten in his quarter final with Igor Andreev of Russia, a very dangerous player coming back from injury. Andreev won a close first set 7-5 and then ran away with the match 6-2 in the second set.


36 year old Belgian veteran Dick Norman rolled back the years to reach the semi-finals in Newport Rhode Island. Norman who has had some of his best wins on the grass court surfaces defeated Quereshi of Pakistan in 3 sets. He is joined in the semi finals by French veteran Fabrice Santoro, South African Wesley Moodie and French grass court specialist Nicolas Mahut, a recent finalist at Stella Artois championships at Queens Club, London.

Rains hits Gstaad and Bastad

Rain in continental europe halted play several times at the Bastad and Gstaad Opens! The wet weather that caused so much havoc at Wimbledon crossed the channel and both tournaments now have backlogged matches. However the clay dries faster than grass and can be raked so the interuptions are often shorter.

In Gstaad, Switzerland both top seeds are already out. Gael Monfil of France defeated Nikolay Davydenko of Russia in 3 tight sets while number 2 seed and compatriot Mikail Youzhny went out in straight sets to Austrain veteran Stefan Koubek. Defending champion and Wimbledon semi-finalist Richard Gasquet of France had an easier time defeating Spainsh clay court specialist Ruben Ramirez-Hidalgo in straight sets. other notable winners are Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador and Andreas Seppi of Italy.

In Bastad, Sweden there where wins for home favourites Robin Soderling and Thomas Johansson. Spaniards David ferrer and Fernando Verdasco are also through on their favourite service however top seed and defending champion Tommy Robredo was defeated in a sea-saw match with Peru's Luis Horna 1-6 6-1 1-6.

Better weather was to be had in the USA where the men are still playing on the grass courts. Former finalist Vince Spadea is already through to the quarters as is Aiman Quereshi. The Pakistani qualifier defeated top seeded Mardy Fish in round one before ousting Australian lucky loser Nathan Healey in 3 sets in the 2nd round. The tournament is the last chance on the ATP calander to practice there grass court skills before the 2008 British grass court season.

Roger federer and Venus Williams reigned supreme again at Wimbledon. Federer was taken to 5 gruelling sets by his younger Spainsh opponent Rafael Nadal, who had beaten the Swiss star 4 weeks previously at the French Open! Federer seemed to be cruising after taking the 3rd set on a tie break to be leading 2 sets to 1 however the grit and determination from Nadal saw him break world number one twice in the fourth set to take it 6-2. The fifth set started off on serve before the game of the match was played by Federer who destroyed Nadal and showed him who is boss. From there on it was all Federer, who won his 5th Wimbledon in a row a feat only Bjorn Borg could manage in the late seventies early eighties.

Venus Williams was the overwhelming favourite before the start of the ladies final against suprise package Marion Bartoli the 18th seed. Bartoli in previous rounds had beaten world number 3 Jelena Jankovic and then produced the fightback of the tournament to destroy Justine Henin, the world number 1. Williams started the match strongly and won the first set 6-1. Her power, reach and physical superiority showed against a nervous french lady. Howeveer in the second set Bartoli showed her power too and constantly had Williams on the run. Williams though managed to calm the storm and win the second 6-4 for her 4th Wimbledon triumph, a remarkable statistic only matched by legends such as Navratilova and Billie Jean King.

Int the ladies doubles number 2 seeds Liezel Huber and Cara Black came from a set down to defeat number 4 seeds Ai Sugiyama and Katerina Srebotnik. It was the second Wimbledon title together for the Zimbabwe/South African partnership.

The mens final caused an upset when top seeded Bryan brothers lost in 4 sets to Arnaud Clement and Michale Llondra of France. The tenth seeds lost the first set on a tight tiebreak but stormed back to record their first grand slam title and stop the Bryan brothers from defending their trophy.

In the mixed doubles it was a win for BRITAIN!!! Jamie Murray and his Serbian partner Jelena Jankovic beat the far more experienced Bjorkman/Molik team in 3 sets. Both players have never played mixed doubles before the tournament began, however showed nerves of steel and a genuine happiness on the court together to record a great victory to wrap up the 2007 championships. it was the first British success at Wimbledon since Jo Durie and Jeremy Bates won the same event in 1987!


The Mens tour now goes back to the clay courts of Baastad in Sweden and Gstaad in the Swiss Alps while the grass courters go over to America to Newport Rhode Island. The ladies have a few weeks off from the main tour as the Fed Cup semi-finals take place.

Serbians strike!

Thursday again saw heavy rain cut sohrt play at Wimbledon, however the mens 4th round and ladies quarter finals where finally completed.

Anna Ivanovic came back from a set and a break down to beat world number 10 Nicole Vaidisova of the Czech Republic 4-6 6-2 7-5. The Serbian could not compete with the excelelnt play from her younger opponent in the first set and when the Czech went up a break in the 2nd set the match looked all over. However the Serbian broke serve 3 times in the second set to level up. At 5-3 and 15-40 on Ivanovic's serve in the 3rd set again it looked like Vaidisova had the match won, only to lose the next 4 games in succession to hand the Serb her first Wimbledon semi-final.

Ivanovic will play Venus Williams in the semi as the Americans power was too strong for Russian number 5 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova. Williams won easily in straight sets in difficult conditions on centre court as the wind caused havoc. Everyone is predicting a Williams v Henin final however both Ivanovic and Bartoli will be no pushovers and may cause a suprise, especially under no pressure.

In the mens 4th round Novak Djokovic of Serbia defeated Lleyton Hewitt in 4 tight sets. The Aussie was leading 5-4 and serving for the 4th set when his opponent fought back to force a tie-break which he won 7-5. Djokovic goes on to play Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis in the quarters after the number 10 seed defeated 6th seeded Nickolay Davydenko in straight sets 7-6 7-6 6-3.
Roger Federer back after having 6 days off is 5-5 40-40 with Juan Carlos Fererro of Spain when rain stopped play. Federer had been 5-2 up in the match but looked a bit rusty from his lack of recent play.

Good news for the brits as both teams left in the mixed doubles draw won their matches today. Jamie Murray partnering Serbian Jankovic won in 3 sets while the all british pairing of Alex Bogdanovic and Melanie South defeated 13th seeds Wassen and Yang, a day after they had produced an excellent match in defeating top seeded Lisa Raymond and Bob Bryan of the USA. Murray/Jankovic go into the 3rd round while Bogdanovic/South are through to the quarters.

French success on the grass!

2 French players braved the wind and rain at SW19 to record victories on Wednesday. marion bartoli the 18th seed dropped the first set against Michaela Krajectk of the Netherlands before rallying to take the next 2 sets 6-3 6-2. Bartoli used her double handed shots to overpower her 18 year old opponent and now goes into her first major semi-final where she will meet the winner of S. Williams and Justine Henin. Venus Williams thrashed Maria Sharapova 6-3 6-1 as the Russian number 2 seed found it difficult to cope with the windy conditions. Thats means the number 2,3 and fourth seeds are all out of the ladies competition.

in the mens draw Richard Gasquet the number 14 seed beat his French compatriot Tsonga (wildcard) in straight sets. Tsonga has been somewhat of a revelation over the grass court season and defeated Tim Henmans conqueror Feliciano Lopez in the 3rd round, but couldnt cope with the powerful serve of Gasquet. Although the younger of the two, Gasquet has more experience of big matches and this showed on centre court today.

Nadal wins after 5 days!!!

Rafael Nadal finally made it into the mens 4th round at Wimbledon as the rain held off for just 3 hours on Wednesday. Nadal faced a break point on his own serve at 5-5 but managed to fight off Soderling before breaking the Swede in the next game to record a marathon win. Another match which was stretched over 5 days was won by up and coming Serbian Novak Djokovic. the Serb resuming 1 set all against german Nicolas Kiefer, broke his opponoent 2 times in the 3rd set before wrapping up the match in a 4th set tie-break. Kiefer who was out for the whole of last year with an injury should be satisfied with his performance here and hopefully will be back into the worlds top 20 sooner rather than later!

In the ladies 4th round Venus Williams powered to the first set 6-1 before rain halted play. In the quarters Marion Bartoli who knocked out Jankovic on Tuesday is a set down against her 18 year old opponent Michaela Krajcek on court number 2. As i Speak the covers are coming off again so hopefully more news soon.

Quick Update

Thunder and lightning again hampered play on day 8 of Wimbledon 2007. However a few matches survived. Two of the womens top seeds crashed out. firstly defending champion and 4th seed Amelie Mauresmo couldnt fight enough to comeback against Nicole Vaidisova. After winning the second set to level the match mauresmo couldnt cope with her younger opponents power and lost the match 7-6 4-6 6-1 on centre court. The 14th seed will now go on to play against Ana ivanovic after the french open finalist defeated Nadia Petrova in a rain interupted match. On number one court Jelena Jankovic looked to be cruising past Marion Bartoli after winning the first set 6-3. However the French number 2 started to make her powerful groundstrokes count and after squandering 2 breaks of serve in the second set eventually won it 7-5. Rain then fell and the crucial game came in the 7th of the 3rd set. Bartoli broke Jankovic to love and eventhough Jankovic had 3 break points in the very next game, her 22 year old opponent won the set and match 3-6 7-5 6-3 to set up a quarter-final with Wimbledon suprise package Michaela Krajeck. The final womens fourth round match had to be moved to court number 3 due to the rain delays but in the end only 3 points were played as the heavens opened with Venus Williams serving 30-15 against Maria Sharapova.

In the mens match only 3 matches were completed. Hewitt defeated Canas in 4 sets, 4th seed Davydenko defeated Monfil in 3 straight sets and Juan Carlos Ferrero the 20th seed reached his first Wimbledon quarter final in 7 attempts when he defeated Tipsarevic also in straight sets. Rafael Nadal v Robin Soderling will go into a 5th day with the score now 4-4 before lightning stopped play again. Soderling managed to break back against Nadal after the Spaniard was leading 2-0 over night!

Wednesday and thursday look slightly better weather wise and players maybe forced to play 2 matches in one day to catch up on lost time especially as players like Nadal and Soderling are still playing 3rd round matches!!!

Rain Again!

Rain ruined the start of week 2 of the Championship Monday. After deciding not to play on the middle Sunday of Wimbledon organisers faced a headache as heavy showers continued to interupt play. Tuesday should see the womens quarter finals taking place and the fourth round of the men, however some ladies have yet to start there 4th round matches and men still on there 3rd round!.

Rafael nadal lost a 2 sets lead to promising Swede Robin Soderling but managed to get a break in the 5th set before the heavens opened. he looked to be cruising to victory and even thought he had won the match only for 'hawkeye' to rule his winnig shot OUT! After a rain delay Soderling cam e back to quickly rap up the 3rd set 7-6 on a tie break and then broke Nadals serve to love and force the 5th set. The inconsistency of Soderling again showed in the final set as his shots where either just wide or thumped into the net. The score stands at 6-4 6-4 6-7 4-6 2-0 (30-30) to Nadal. Play commenses on Tuesday morning after a ladies 4th round match.

In the ladies Serena Williams actually thanked the rain after her victory in 3 sets against Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia. The American suffered from severe cramp at the end of the 2nd set and had to be treated during a game in the middle of the court. Barely able to walk for the next few games Williams looked in trouble before the heavens again opened! An hour or so later the ladies were back on court and Williams lost the 2nd set on the tie break. Hantuchova looked to be bewildered by the whole event and didnt know what to do as Williams power started to prevail, although her movement looked a bit restrictive! She eventually won the 3rd set 6-2 to set up a quarter final match against Henin, in which the Belgian still attempting her first Wimbledon victory must be favourite.

Also scheduled for Tuesday are matches between Vaidisova v Mauresmo, Petrova v Ivanovic, V. Williams v Sharapova and Jankovic v Bartoli, all of which sohlud be tight affairs and a great spectacle to watch., if the rain holds!!!!! In the mens draw as already mentioned we have Nadal v Soderling to a finish, Davydenko will look to wrap up his match quickly against Gael Monfils of France (6-4 7-5 3-0) and Hewitt is one set all against Guillermo Canas. The most intriging match-up could be Kiefer v Djokovic. Kiefer a former semi-finalist and coming back from injury is a set down against his younger Serbian superstar and the 2nd set is currently on serve and again heading towards a tie-break. If Kiefer manages to win the 2nd set then the match could be a real classic as both the mens tennis games are suited to the fast grass service.


Lets hope the rain stays away or at least doesnt hold up play to much otherwise the backlog of matches will continue on..........

Wimbledon Week One Update

Well the rain has been pouring in SW19 this week, however there has still managed to be some great tennis matches played between the showers!

Lets start with the men and Roger Federer looks invincible on the grass and has swept his way through to the fourth round with most notably a straight sets demolishion of former australian open winner Marat Safin of Russia. Even when he looks like hes not 100% playing he is still powerful enough to win easily. His closest rival this year looks to be Andy Roddick of the USA who is looking to get back to some form on the grass and last night also made it through to the 4th round with a straight sets victory of promising Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. Rafal nadal should never be excluded from any tournament and he has also looked impressive in his first 2 matches though he faces a tough 3rd round opponent in giant Swede Robin Soderling. Soderling definatley has the game and more importantly the serve to wipe out nadals chances however needs to show more consistancy to overcome the young world number 2 from Mallorca.

Other names to watch out for include former finalist David Nalbandian of Argentina, Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus (semi finalist in 2006) and young Czech Tomas Berdych. Also after impressivley beating Lleyton Hewitt at Queens and demolishing Feliciano Lopez late last night look out for young French stat Tsonga. He has looked even more impressive this week at Wimbledon and could be a lively outsider to cause one or two big upsets in the latter stages of this tournament!!!

As for the Brits, well only Tim Henman made it past the 1st round in the mens competition and them after coming back form 2 sets down against Lopez, fell apart in the decider and went down to the Spaniard 6-7 6-7 6-3 6-2 1-6.

In the ladies event, things are hotting up also. Mauresmo, Henin, Sharapova and Serena Williams are still there looking for victory, Henin being the most impressive so far. Also look out for the Serbians again with jankovic and Ivanovic showing good form on the grass and could cause upsets. 3 top seeded ladies which have already fallen are Martina Hingis (did she rush back from injury too soon), Dinara Safina and Anna Chakvetadze, all of which where in the top ten seedings. If only some of the dark horses in the draw could find the confidence to try there shots against the top seeded ladies then we could be in for a terrific second week at Wimbledon. Michaela Krajeck posseses one of the finest serves in the womens game and Marion Bartoli should not be ruled out with her powerful ground strokes and service return. Finally dont forget the other Williams sister, venus, who after a scare in the first round looked impressive against Sromova and although only seeded 23rd should be a dangerous floater in the draw!

As for the Brits, well like in the mens draw only one british girl made it into the 2nd round. Katie O'brien defeated Sandra Kloesel of Germany in round one however fell apart in the 2nd round. Naomi Cavaday waste 2 match points against Martina Hingis but looks promising for the future while crowd favourite Elena baltacha fought hard against seeded Srebotnik of Slovenia only to lose in 3 sets!

Triple succes in Eastbourne

Monday was am execellent day for Brirish women in Eastbourne. In the final round of qualifying both Elena Baltacha and Katie O'brien beat higher ranked opponents to reach the first round proper. Both players have won 3 rounds of qualifying on the south coast grass courts and this will help there rankings improve going into Wimbledon. The bigggest win of the day though belongs to Melanie South. The 21 year old defeated former world number 8 Alicia Molik of Australia, coming back from losing the first set 1-6 to winning the next two 6-3 7-6. South had served for the match at 5-4 in the third but was broken and had to hold her nerve to win the deciding tiebreak. The win puts South in the second round of the tournament for the first time. Baltacha will play wildcard Anne Keothavong, guaranteeing that Britian will have 2 palyers in the 2nd round, while O'brien will play Bardina of Russia, a player beaten last week by kents Naomi Cavaday in Birmingham.

Rain hits the Grass!!

Heavy rainfall in England has caused a backlog of matches in Queens, London and Edgbaston, Birmingham. Friday should see the quarter finals taking place in both tournaments, however some players havent even played there 3rd round matches, meaning they will be forced to play at least 2 matches in one day and thats not including the doubles either! The rain is still pooring down at the DFS Classic and organisers may be forced to use 3 indoor courts at the club to get the tournament back on track.

On Thursday British rising star Alex Bogdanovic narrowly missed out on a huge upset against Andy Roddick losing in 3 close sets 4-6 7-6 6-4. This will surely boost Bogdanovic's confidence when playing in nottingham next week where he has been awarded a 'wildcard' for his efforts. Rafael Nadal was just one game away form defeating Max Mirnyi of Belarus when the heavens opened.

Bogdanovic wins battle of the Brits

Alex Bogdanovic beat his friend and fellow British Davis Cup player Jamie Baker today in 3 sets. The 2nd round match at Queens had the added incentive of a 3rd round match against former world number 1 Andy Roddick of the USA. Each player had there chances in the match with numerous break points. A decisive break of serve to love in the 7th game of the 3rd set gave Bogdanovic the momentum to finish the match off, after Baker had been a set and a break up in the second set. The win should enable Bogdanovic to reach the top 100 in the rankings and hopefully set himself up for a good run at Wimbledon.

In Birmingham Naomi Cavaday could not cope with the powerful French top 20 player Marion Bartoli losing 6-3 6-1. The players exchanged serves early in on in the match before Bartoli started to dominate, helped by poor serving throughout by Cavaday. However the British 18 year old should gain a place in the top 200 with her first round win against Bardina and like Bogdanovic will be hoping for a few more wins on the British grass courts in the next few weeks.

Cavaday races into 2nd round

Naomi cavaday played an almost perfect match to record her 1st WTA full tour win. She defeated Bardina of Russia ranked inside the worlds top 70 6-2 6-1 in less than an hours play. Cavaday is Britains best hope of a regular top 100 player in almost a decade and this win should allow her to climb into the worlds top 200 rankings. Cavaday has also just been awarded a wildcard for Wimbledon where she lost narrowly last year to top 20 player Ai Sugiyama of Japan.

Brits rule at Queens Club.

2 British men qualified for the second round of the Stella Artois tournament at Queens Club on Monday. Alex Bogdanovic and Jamie Baker had excellent wins over higher ranked opponents H. Lee of Korea and A. Peya of Austria respectfully. Now the players must put a side their off court friendship to play each other for a place in the 3rd round and a possible meeting with former world number one Andy Roddick. The 2 youngsters have been practising hard for the grass court season and Bogdanovic if he is able to get a victory over Baker will be ever closer to a place in the worlds top 100!! Baker is aiming to break into the worlds top 200 this year for the first time.

It wasnt all good news for the Brits as Richard Bloomfield couldnt produce his form of Surbiton a week ago and fell in straight sets to his more experienced opponent Robbie Ginepri of the USA, 6-4 6-2. Bloomfield found the courts difficult to play on and will now attempt to gain a wildcard for Wimbledon or win a place in qualifying for the prestigious event.

In Birmingham 3 British players take to the court on Tuesday, all having difficult matches against higher ranked opponents. Naomi Cavaday playes Bardina of Russia, Baltacha plays Sequera of Venezuela and British number one Anne Keothavong takes on Austrian rising star Tamira Paszek. Lets hope the confidence of the home territory will help the British girls achieve success in Edgebaston.

Nadal and Henin - Champions again!!!

Rafael Nadal and Justine Henin both won their 3rd French open titles over the weekend at Roland Garros. Henin powered to victory over a very nervous Ivanovic. The 19 year old Serbian playing in her first Grand Slam final couldnt get her serving working after what had seemed a bright start, breaking Henin in the opening game. However the experience Belgian and world number one started to find her angles on the court and was soon victorious with a simple 6-1 6-2 victory. The win will surely give Henin a confidence boost going into the grass court season and she will have her eyes set on victory again. Nadal used his clay court all round game to win in 4 sets against Federer. The Swiss ace had his chances indeed squandering 10 break point chances in the first set but the Spaniard kept plugging away and forced Federer to make too many errors. Nadal still only 21 will have his eyes set on Bjorn Borgs six victories in France!!!

In the doubles events Mark Knowles of The Bahamas and Daniel Nestor of Canada won their 3rd Grand Slam Mens Doubles Title with victory over their Czech opponents. In the ladies event Mara Santangelo of Italy and Austrliam Alicia Molik took victory over Srebotnik and Sugiyama while in the mixed doubles Natalie Dechy gave the home crowd something to cheer about with her partner Andy Ram with a striaght sets victory.

Federer v Nadal in the final again

Roger Federer wil face Rafael Nadal for the second successive year in Paris. Both players had there sternest tests yet and in fact Federer was very lucky to inflict a straight sets victory over Nikolay Davydenko as the russian served for the second set at 5-4 and was 4-1 up in the third set before secumbing to his Swiss opponent. Nadal gruelled out a tough first 2 sets with Djokovic before the serbian fell apart in the third set. The final on Sunday will be a difficult one to predict and it should be a very close match with both opponents looking to outgun the other.

in todays womens final, 19 year old Serb Ana Ivanovic will try to put her nerves behind her and use her power to dictate play against world number one Justine Henin. However the belgian has far more experience than Ivanovic and has also won the title for the last 2 years so she will be difficlut to beat. again it should be a close encounter and i slightyl favour the Serbian to win her first Major tournament

Ivanovic powers to first ever final

Anna Ivanovic thrashed Maria Sharapova 6-2 6-1 to reach her first ever Grand Slam at the French Open. The 19 year old came out fighting from the start and soon found herself with break points on the Sharapova serve. Nerves didnt seem evident as Ivanovic used her powerful ground strokes to good affect in the demolishion of her opponent. In the other semi Justine Henin stopped an all Serbian final from taking place with a good win against rising star Jelena Jankovic. Henin is gunning for her 3rd title in a row in Paris and lookied on top form again. Ivanovic's power may cause Henin problems in the final and it should be a close encounter as long as the Serbian settles quickly and her nerves dont ruin the occasion!!

Friday sees the mens semi final take place and Nikolay Davydenko should give a good account of himself and could even cause a big shock as long as he continues to hit his shots and make Federer stay at the back of the court! Rafael Nadal plays Djokovic in the other semi and with the form thats he in it could well be another straight sets victory for the reigning champion!

Top Seed Humbled by Brit Qualifier

Jim May produced the shock of the tournament so far with a suprise 3 set win over top seed and american rising star Sam Querrey, ranked 65 in the world. May is over 1000 places below Querrey in the rankings but showed that his qualifying form was no fluke and made his way into the 2nd round. Other notable victories included british number 3 Alex Bogdanovic and former national champion Lee Childs. Bogdanovic is looking for a good grass court season to try and enable the youngster to enter the worlds top 100 for the first time and join Andy Murray and Tim Henman in this elite zone.

In the womens tournament Melanie South continued her impressive form to reach the quarter finals along with Katie O'brien who defeated the seeded Meng Yuan of China. Disappointed came as 3 other Brits failed to build on there 1st round victories. Elena Baltacha and Naomi Cavaday showed glimpses of form but lost in 3 sets and Anne Keothavong fell to Dutch veteran Brenda Schultz McCarthy.

It was quarter final days in Paris for the men as Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic had comfortable victories over Carlos Moya and Igor Andreev. Tommorrow sees the ladies semi finals take place with Serbians Jelena Jankovic and Anna Ivanovic looking to become the first Serbians to reach a grand slam final when they meet the more experienced Sharapova and Henin respectively.

British girls go well in Surbiton

5 British girls reached the 2nd round of the £25,000 challenger event in Suribiton london on Tuesday. The best british victory belonged to Melanie South. The 21 year old knocked out top seed and world number 89 Alberta Brianti, a player ranked over 100 places above her in the rankings. South showed her liking for the grass courts last year when she managed to beat former world top twenty player Franchesca Schiavone at Wimbledon. The British number 3 has had an inconsistent year and needs a really good grass court season to keep herself in the top 200. British up and coming star Naomi Cavaday had a great win over aussie Emily Hewson and there where also wins for British number one Anne Keothavong, number 2 Katie O'brien and former British number one Elena Baltacha who continues to impress after being out for over a year with illness.

In the mens draw, the all british 1st round tie was won by Jamie Baker who managed to beat the more experienced Johnathan Marray in straight sets. Fellow Brits Alex Bogdanovic and Richard Bloomfield play on Wednesday as does British qualifier Jim May who faces a tough test in top seeded American Sam Querrey.

Lets hope the weather stays fine!!

In Paris the ladies quarter finals took place and there where wins for Henin, Ivanovic, Jankovic and Sharapova while Roger Federer defeated Tommy Robredo in 4 sets to set up a semi-final with impressive Nikolay davydenko in the mens draw.

Nadal too good for Aussie Hewitt

Rafael Nadal thrashed Lleyton Hewitt in 3 straight sets in the French Open 4th round today. Nadal won the first 4 games of the match and was never looked back, maintaining his position as favourite for the Paris crown. Novak Djorkovic used his power to defeat Spaniar Fernando Verdasco again in straight sets 6-3 6-3 -7-6 and tournament suprise Igor Andreev defeated Cypriot number one Baghdatis in 4 sets. Andreev has been out of the game with several injuries in recent times however he showed he back to his best on the red clay of Roland Garros with a punishing display. After a slow start the Russian powered to a 2-6 6-1 6-3 6-4 victory to reach quarter finals for the first time. In the battle of the veterans, Carlos Moya rolled back the years to knock Jonas Bjorkman out of the tournament. The Swede could not cope with Moya's clay court skills and now will concentrate on his doubles with Max Mirnyi of Belarus, where they are one of the favourites for the top prize!.

Wednesday sees the ladies quarter finals take place. The match every one wants to see is Henin v S. Williams. The last time they met in Paris was in 2003 when Serena left the court in tears as the crowd supported Henin to victory. Serbians Jankovic and Ivanovic also play against Vaidisova and Kuznetsova respectively while the last match sees 2 Russians go head to head, with Maria Sharapova hoping to gain in form and defeat Chakvetadze for a place in the semis for the first time..

Watch this space

Swiss Miss again!!!

Patty Schnyder again secumbed to the pressures of Grand Slam tennis when she lost a close 3 setter with Maria Sharapova. The perenial under achiever from Switzerland had numeruos chancve in the 3rd set to close out the match, but the battlingt Russian kept pressuring Schnyders service games and eventually won 9-7 in the final set. Sharapova now goes through the quarters where she will take on compatriot and fellow seed Anna Chakvetadze. Despite todays victory Sharapova still looks unsettled on the red clay and Chakvetadze surely has a great chance of becoming the new star of Russian tennis, especially after her excelent victory again Lucie Safarova who had previously defeated Mauresmo in this tournament.

In the mens draw there where easy wins for Guilermo Canas, Roger Federer and Tommy Robredo, while Nikolay Davydenko fought hard for a 4 set victory over David Nalbandian, a palyer he had not beaten for over 3 years!!!

Czech Mate in Paris

Lucie Safarova caused the upset of the womens tournament so far when she humbled French home favourite Amelie Mauresmo in Saturdays 3rd round encounter. The Czech teenager used her powerful groudstrokes to force Mauresmo to make too many errors. It wasnt all plain sailing for Safarova though as Mauresmo broke serve to lead by 3-0 in each of the sets, only to be pegged back each time by Safarova. It was a disappointing day for France overall as Jean Paul Mathieu fell in straight sets to Igor Adreev of Russia and Thierry Ascione put up a brave fight before losing in 5 sets to Novak Djokovic. Maria Sharapova gained a 4th round spot at the hands of a fellow russian, however Sharapova looked far from her best during her 6-1 6-4 victory, indeed she found herself 4-1 down in the second set before rallying late on.

Tommorrow sees the womens 4th round take place and each winner will gain a quarter final berth. My pick of the matches will be rising star Shahar Peer of Isreal against last years finalist Svetlana Kuznetsova. The match will be close and I think the Isreali will spring a suprise!

Roger Federer will play against Mikail Youhzny which looks the best of the mens 4th round clashes!

Rising Stars of British Tennis

The grasscourt season is upon us and its time for the Lawn tennis Association to decide which British players will get the chance to have a 'wildcard' into Wimbledon. Its fair to say that the grass does allow the 'Brits' there best chance of winning a few matches in the tennis calendar, however its surely time to see youngsters get a chance to play rather than allowing the 'oldies' to earn a few extra dollars courtesy of the wildcard system. A player can earn over £10,000 just by entering into the singles and doubles tournaments at Wimbledon and losing in the first round! Perenial under achievers such as Delgado, O'donoghue, and Mackin need to be turned away from these tournaments if there ranking is not high enough to enter directly and youngsters should be given the chance to show how they can perform. For once Britain genuinely has a rising star in the womens game in the form of Naomi Cavaday. Narrowly losing to the experienced Ai Sugiyama in last years tournament, Cavaday has risin over 300 places in the rankings in less than a year and is on the verge of entering the ladies top 200!, quite an achievement as she is still only 18!. Only 3 British women lie inside this barrier these being Keothavong, O'Brien and South all of which have struggled with consistency this season. Cavaday however has won her first $25,000 ITF challenger title as a qualifier in the USA in February and has had consistent performances on this level of tournament, a step up from last years more regular $10,000 tournaments (the lowest on the WTA tour) Cavaday has been working at the Nick Bolleteri Academy and if she can have a consistent performance at tournaments in Surbiton, Edgebaston, Eastbourne and Wimbledon this summer she could become the next British number one player and get closer to that elusive top 100 spot, which would allow her direct entry into most of the top tier WTA events. Other names to look out for this year are Georgie Stoop, Natasha Khan and Anna Fitzpatrick all youngsters in the British camp eager to impress on home soil. Elena Baltacha is also back to full health and after good success in recent weeks in Korea is steadily improving her world ranking. On the mens side, hopefully Alex Bogdanovic will beable to show his full potential soon and join the likes of Henman and Murray in the worlds elite. Bogdanovic is a consistent performer on the challenger tour however has struggled to gain wins on the ATP full tour. Other men to look out for are Jamie Baker and Richard Bloomfield. It could be in doubles where Britain finds most success this summer with both James Auckland and Jamie Murray have had lots of success this year. Although they have both recently struggled on the clay, the grasscourt season should suit then more.


Lets hope the rain stays away for the British Grasscourt Season and come on you youngsters!

Jankovic improving with every game!

Jelena Jankovic again showed her increasing pedigree on the womens tennis circuit with a battling 3 set win over Venus Williams in the 3rd round of the French Open in Paris on Friday. Jankovic has had an excellent start to the year which has seen her move into the worlds top 5 for the first time and a mixture of baseline winners and errors from her opponent allowed Jankovic to set up a 4th round clash with home country favourite Marion Bartoli, a match which she surely will start favuorite for. Jankovic along with Novak Djorkovic and Ana Ivanovic is continuing to put put Serbian tennis firmly on the map. Bartoli herself had an execellent straight sets win over the 13th seed Elena Dementieva. Former finalist Dementieva could not cope with Bartoli's fierce return of serve and made too many unforced errors to beable to be competitive in the match, struggling especially on her own service games. Saturday sees the completion of the womens and mens 3rd round draws and hopefully the rain will stay away so the french crowd can cheer on Amelie Mauresmo. The former world number one hasnt been playing particularly well on the red clay this season and has been upset by outsiders such as Annable Medina Garrigues of Spain and Ukranian Julia Vakulenko in recent weeks. Mauresmo has a very tough match against rising Czech star Ludmila Safarova. The youngster who reached the quarters of the Australian open earlier in year will surely fancy her chances against a player who has been known to choke with the pressures of her home crowd support.

More news on Saturday with all the results and comments from day 7 at Roland Garros.