Wednesday, January 28, 2009
IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT,...
A once in a century heatwave caused havoc at the Australian Open on Wednesday, forcing tournament organisers to cancel matches and invoke their new Extreme Heat Policy for the first time.
The tournament match referee Wayne McKewen ordered the roof on the Rod Laver centre court be shut and all matches were suspended on the outside courts as the temperature soared past a stifling 43 degrees Celsius.
The players were left soaked in sweat and gasping for air in the sweltering heat while spectators abandoned the stands to watch matches on television sets in shaded bars at Melbourne Park.
The brutal conditions proved too much for the swarms of bogong moths that flutter around the stadium's bright lights, with dozens dropping dead on to the main court.
The Australian Open has always been played in severe conditions but organisers are on high alert this year after the Bureau of Meteorology forecast six consecutive days of 40 degrees temperatures in Melbourne.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
THE GHOST OF OPENS PAST
What can be said?
Fed overpowered Del Potro - 6-3, 6-0, 6-0.
Federer served at 70 per cent, and served 12 aces and no double faults.
Federer had just nine unforced errors; Del Potro had 24.
The Swiss won 32 of his 37 points when he landed his first serve.
Federer had 38 winners to Del Potro’s eight.
The No.2 seed won 21 of the 25 points when he came to the net.
The final set lasted just 19 minutes.
FITNESS WINS FOR RODDICK
Djokovic handled the expectations, public attention, challenging draw, and even ball crushing roddick, but the final element in this equation - stifling heat - sealed his fate.
He was two sets to one down against Andy Roddick in their quarterfinal, and with the score standing at 6-7(3) 6-4 6-2 2-1 in the American's favour, Djokovic ground to a halt.
He had managed to cope with the warm weather and Roddick in more or less that order for the first set, but when his rival tightened the screws at the start of the second set, Djokovic began to crumble.
It was bad enough that he had to play the new and streamlined Roddick [15 pounds lighter - mandated by his new coach Larry Stefanki ], but now he had to do it in the full heat of the day as the thermometer climbed into the mid-30s. It did not take long before Djokovic was gasping and calling for the trainer to have various bits of him iced down.
His previous match had been played at night, when Marcos Baghdatis had kept him on the court until 2.26 on Monday morning. So, in order to give himself a little more time to recover, Djokovic had asked for a night match on Tuesday, but the request was turned down. With little rest, a broiling sun and a rejuvenated Roddick crunching his forehand and walloping his serve, Djokovic was toast.
Monday, January 26, 2009
MURRAY OUT
Spain's Fernando Verdasco ended fourth seed Andy Murray's Australian Open campaign with a 2-6 6-1 1-6 6-3 6-4 victory on Monday to advance to his first grand slam quarter-final.
Verdasco became the first left hander other than world number one Rafa Nadal to beat Murray on the ATP Tour and also notched his first victory in six matches against the Briton.
The 21-year-old Scot, one of the pre-tournament favourites, produced flashes of brilliantly controlled tennis but also made several elementary errors and at one point in the fourth set screamed: "What the hell are you doing?".
The 25-year-old Verdasco will now next meet Jo Wilfried-Tsonga, who beat Blake in straights..
REUTERS
Sunday, January 25, 2009
FED SCRAPES BY BERDYCH
World number two Roger Federer fought back from two sets down to snatch a dramatic 4-6 6-7 6-4 6-4 6-2 victory against Tomas Berdych Sunday, retaining his hopes of winning a 14th grand slam title at the Australian Open.
Federer, who is seeking to equal Pete Sampras's record for grand slam titles, appeared listless from the beginning of his fourth round match with the Czech, before he found his form in the middle of the third set and never looked back.
The Swiss second seed had numerous opportunities to seal decisive games in each of the opening sets but the 20th-seeded Berdych managed to find a booming serve, blistering return or a winner to halt Federer's momentum.
However, after Berdych missed a smash while 3-4 down in the third, Federer seized the initiative and drastically raised his game to take the match in three hours, 29 minutes, setting up a quarter-final with Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro.
MONDAY ORDER OF PLAY [SUNDAY HERE]
Rod Laver Arena - play starts at 0000
12-Gael Monfils (France) v 6-Gilles Simon (France)
13-Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) v 2-Serena Williams (U.S.)
1-Rafael Nadal (Spain) v 13-Fernando Gonzalez (Chile)
From 0830
9-James Blake (U.S.) v 5-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France)
Paul Hanley (Australia)/ v 4-Lukas Dlouhy (Czech Republic)/
Jordan Kerr (Australia) Leander Paes (India)
- -
Hisense Arena - (0000)
Carla Suarez Navarro (Spain) v 21-Anabel Medina Garrigues (Spain)
18-Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) v 4-Elena Dementieva (Russia)
8-Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia) v 22-Zheng Jie (China)
4-Andy Murray (Britain) v 14-Fernando Verdasco (Spain)
Saturday, January 24, 2009
LOOKING AT THE SECOND WEEK
In the men's draw, play through the first the three rounds has validated the notion that the top four seeds could still be there for the semifinals. The "big four" of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray have been able to separate themselves from the rest of the players on the tour in recent months.
But the defending champion Djokovic has shown the same occasional lapses in concentration that contributed to his early exits in Brisbane and Sydney heading into the Aussie Open. Djokovic's tough four-set win over former NCAA champion Amer Delic should give Andy Roddick additional confidence that Roddick can knock out Djokovic should they meet in the quarterfinals. Delic controlled many of the significant baseline rallies with Djokovic, and Roddick's shot-making has been impressive so far in Australia.
Djokovic, though, will first have to take care of Marcos Baghdatis in the fourth round. The Cypriot was slowed by injuries for most of last year but has shown flashes of the brilliance that he displayed when he reached the final of the Australian Open in 2006. He remains a crowd favorite at Rod Laver Arena.
Roddick's new coach Larry Stefanki has been emphasizing Andy's return game, which could pay big dividends if he takes on Djokovic. Roddick has benefited from a manageable draw, dismantling a pair of qualifiers in his first two matches. It's never an easy assignment to take on Fabrice Santoro, but Roddick dicatated the terms in his third round victory over the 36-year-old magician.
Next up for the American is a fourth-round date with Tommy Robredo, who has never beaten Roddick in nine chances. Perhaps Roddick is poised to expand the elite circle of men's tennis to a "big five" this year if he can fight his way into the final four Down Under.
Heading into 2009, Roger Federer announced he was ready to reclaim his control over men's tennis. So far the former world No. 1 has been living up to those bold words. He rolled past Marat Safin in straight sets in the third round in what could have been Safin's final match in Melbourne.
While Federer's next opponent — Tomas Berdych — stunned the smooth Swiss in the 2004 Olympics, he hasn't beaten Federer since. That trend should continue when they meet in the fourth round. In the quarterfinals, Federer would then play either Marin Cilic or Juan Martin del Potro. These rising stars both have big games but shouldn't be able to take down Federer on a very big stage.
Nadal and Murray have been just as impressive. The top seeded Spaniard destroyed Tommy Haas in straight sets and hasn't lost a set in his first three matches. While Fernando Gonzalez's power could give Nadal some trouble in the fourth round, the Chilean may be physically drained after rallying from two sets down to beat Richard Gasquet in an epic third-round match.
If Gael Monfils can upset Gilles Simon, Nadal will have a chance to avenge his loss earlier this year to Monfils in Qatar. Murray remains on a collision course to meet Nadal in the semifinals. If he's feeling any pressure to capture his first Grand Slam title, Murray hasn't shown it so far and was dominant in blowing Jurgen Melzer off the court in the third round.
Brian Webber, FOXSports.com
Friday, January 23, 2009
DAD FROM HELL
TENNIS dad from hell Damir Dokic thinks he's the man to manage the sport's next generation of stars.
As daughter Jelena shines in Melbourne, Mr Dokic is planning a comeback of his own.
The fiery father is trying to sell his mansion and acreage in the Serbian countryside for $6 million, The Daily Telegraph reports.
He plans to use proceeds from the sale to build a tennis centre and launch new talent.
"I'll return to the successful period when I was working with Jelena and she was the fourth best player in the world," he has vowed.
Cut off from Jelena, Mr Dokic lives alone on a sprawling estate at Vrdnik, 70km north of Belgrade.
He tends to 20,000 plum and pear trees and makes his own brandy, but has apparently had enough of the quiet country life.
He wants to relocate to the nearby city of Novi Sad for his return to the world of tennis.
Mr Dokic's outbursts, which included being thrown out of the US Open after abusing staff over the price of a meal, made him one of the sport's most notorious figures.
His daughter has also revealed how his oppressive presence drove her into a deep depression from which she is only now emerging.
As Jelena has been rebuilding her life and reputation with the help of boyfriend Tin Bikic in Australia, Mr Dokic has worked on his property for the past four years.
"I'm struggling with how to help my child," he has said.
BEST WAY WOULD BE TO STAY ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD!
YOU CAN TAKE THEM OUT OF THE BALKANS, BUT NOT THE ...
Crowd violence spilled over at the Australian Open -- once dubbed the 'Happy Slam' -- in Melbourne again on Friday. Following is a factbox of violent incidents at the grand slam tournament in recent years.
* Around 150 fans were evicted from Melbourne Park on the opening day of the 2007 tournament after vicious fighting flared between rival Croat and Serb supporters. The fans attacked each other with bottles and flagpoles. Police were caught on the back foot by the first time such violence had flared in more than 100 years of grand slam tennis.
* In 2008, fans of Greek descent were subdued by police pepper spray after trouble erupted during a match between Fernando Gonzalez of Chile and Konstantinos Economidis, a Greek qualifier on Margaret Court Arena. The match had to be stopped for 10 minutes as the fans were removed from the stadium by police.
* Former finalist Phil Dent warned at the 2009 tournament that disruptive fans with ethnic ties at the Open were certain to cause a riot unless there was a security crackdown. Dent was outraged at the behaviour of teenage fans supporting the Bosnian-born American Amer Delic in the first-round match against his American son Taylor. "I've got to tell you their behaviour would not be accepted anywhere in the world," Dent told local radio.
* In 2009 police escorted at least five fans from Melbourne Park after narrowly averting an all-out brawl. Security moved in after tensions had boiled over in the match between Croatian Marin Cilic and Serbian Janko Tipsarevic. Punches were later thrown in a scuffle near a packed bar.
* Ethnic tension burst into violent crowd scenes after Serb Novak Djokovic's third-round win against Bosnian-born Delic. Groups of rival fans hurled chairs at each other in the beer garden outside centre court when simmering tension boiled over under the hot Melbourne sun. One woman was knocked cold when a chair struck her head. Police arrested two men and ejected another 30 people from the grounds.
GOOD SIGNS
Roger Federer has put on another masterful display on a court he has come to dominate in recent years, knocking out the ever-dangerous Marat Safin in straight sets to move through to the fourth round of Australian Open 2009.
Billed as the match of the tournament so far – and a rematch of their famous semifinal at Australian Open 2005 which Safin clinched 9-7 in the fifth set – the encounter didn’t live up to the hype, with the world No. 2 progressing comfortably.
The only time Federer was truly challenged was in the tight third set, but three-time Open champion hung tough to triumph 6-3 6-2 7-6(5), and said it was a pleasing performance.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
MURRAY DINES
Andy Murray has continued on his path to claiming his first major title with a resounding straight sets victory over Spain’s Marcel Granollers on Thursday night.
The No. 4 seed displayed the form that has seen him become the hottest prospect in men’s tennis in the last six months, defeating the world No. 51 6-4 6-2 6-2.
Murray said he felt his form improve as the match wore on.
DUDE NO DUD IN NEW DUDES
There is a new look to Rafael Nadal this year. A worrying look. Well, worrying if you happen to be in his section of the draw. Not only is the best player on the planet sporting a new sartorial style, but he is looking like a man on a mission, and whistled past Roko Karanusic 6-2 6-3 6-2 on Thursday to reach the third round.
The world has become accustomed to seeing Nadal mopping up clay court titles and making the French Open his very own, but of late the Spaniard has been branching out. Not only did he break Roger Federer's heart by beating the Swiss in the Wimbledon final, but he also ended 2008 as the best hard court player in the world. Of his 82 wins for the season, 46 of them came on the cement surface. This was indeed a break from the norm.
Coming to Australia, Nadal is looking good. Usually he takes his time to warm up as the new season begins and so far, he has never made it beyond the semifinals in Melbourne – and he has only got that far once in four attempts. This year, though, he has dropped a meagre 11 games in his first two matches and has barely had to get out of third gear to get this far.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
WHO? LU!
Yen-hsun Lu had barely walked off the court at Melbourne Park on Wednesday after one of his biggest career wins when his mobile phone started ringing.
Lu, whose previous biggest win was a first-round upset of Britain’s Andy Murray at last year’s Beijing Olympics, pulled off a marathon upset of 10th-seeded David Nalbandian in the second round at the Australian Open.
Lu beat the 2002 Wimbledon finalist 6-4, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in a match just short of four hours, marking the first time in 12 Grand Slams that the 25-year-old Lu has advanced past the second round.
Lu persevered through a 10-minute final game when he fought off six break points, but he had a strategy—reverse psychology.
“Everybody knows Nalbandian is one of the best backhand players,” Lu said. “So I thought he’s ready for a forehand return. So I just changed my mind and went to his backhand all the time.
“I served six times to his backhand on break point and I won all the points.”
KOROLEV WORKED ROGER
Roger Federer set up a juicy third round clash with former Australian Open champion Marat Safin after finally subduing a stubborn Evgeny Korolev 6-2 6-3 6-1 on Wednesday.
Federer, who is seeking to equal Pete Sampras's record of 14 grand slam wins with his fourth at Melbourne Park, was more than matched by the Russian qualifier in the opening two sets before romping away with the third.
The 27-year-old Federer enthralled the crowd packed into Rod Laver Arena with some audacious shot-making but Korolev also joined in and his wristy racket work provided some anxious moments for the world number two.
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