Wimbledon Photos

Roger Federer

Eastbourne Report 2007

Wednesday 20th June 2007

This was my first ever time of going to Eastbourne - I started out from my home in London at 07:30am and arrived at the sunshine coast of Eastbourne at 10:15am. Eastbourne seems like a lovely place, the beach and sea looked beautiful, the sound of the seagulls, the lovely old traditional architecture in this area - so it was the perfect setting for the tennis.

After buying my ticket I went straight through to see a bit of Nadia Petrova on the practise courts, then I had a look around the little stands, then headed over to Court 1 to see my first match of the day - Sybille Bammer vs. Lucie Safarova. This was a bit of a scrappy match from both players with Bammer taking the early lead and the first set. During the match I could see Elena Dementieva walking towards the players restaurant and Tax Garbin walking to the practise courts. From this court you have a great view over the whole grounds and an especially good view of Court 2 and the match of Sharhar Peer vs. Nakamura. My friend came and joined us and we continued to watch more of the Bammer vs Safarova match, Lucie played much better in the second set, her shots were staying in within the lines, her serve improved and she took the second set. The weather was now very hot, so I decided to go for a walk around the grounds, I went over to the first practise courts. Groenefeld was on there starting a session with the usual stretches and laughing with her friend. Also practising Bethany Mattek, in a much more conventional outfit than usual! hahahhaha ;) I then went over to the second practise courts where I saw Elena Dementia being coached by her Mum, Maria Kirilenko hitting with fellow Russian Elena Likhovtseva, and at the far end of the courts Tathiana Garbin and her coach. On the court behind me was Renee Stubbs and Kveta Peschke warming up for their doubles match later in the day. They do quiet a long practise session here, about 45 minutes-60 minutes, which is the same time as Roland Garros. (At Wimbledon they only get about a 30 minute session as there isn't enough practise courts for them to train longer) I watched them practise for a while and chatted to a few friends, then watched the crazy scrum of people all trying to get Elena Dementieva's autograph. (Eastbourne is a great place to get close to the players and to get autographs, sadly it also attracts many of the awful professional autograph sellers who usually are incredibly ignorant and rude to the players and demand that the players sign multiple photos - they are the worst side of this tournament)

I then went for another walk around - saw Ai Sugiyama and her family getting asked for autographs from a huge group of teenagers. Then went over to Court 2 to watch a bit of doubles, Leizal Huber/Cara Black vs. two British girls. Just the other side of the court was British player Elena Baltacha being interviewed by a TV crew on the picnic lawn. Then I went back over to the first practise courts again - saw Lisa Raymond hitting with Smantha Stosur, Aga Radwanska listening to her ipod, Jill Craybas with a male hitting partner. Then over on the second practise courts watched some sessions of Tsvetana Pironkova hitting ground strokes and serves, in the far distance was Nicole Vaidisova having some serious treatment/stretches with a physio. (She seemed to be having a few problems with her lower back) Tathiana Garbin finished her session, then signed some autographs and gave me a beautiful smile as she left the court. I then went for an ice cream and continued to watch the practises, Vera Dushevina was hitting with another Russian girl, and now Nicole Vaidisova was jogging up and down, warming up and started a long practise session full which seemed to be many focused mainly on volleys and net work. At one point Nicole hit a very wild shot that flew in the air and landed in the middle of someone's picnic at the Pimms bar hahahhaha After the initial embarrassment Nicole was calling over to them saying sorry, but the people seemed to find the funny side in it, so it was alright! ;)

After I then went over towards Court 2 again, saw Nathalie Dechy being interviewed on the picnic lawn, Amelie Mauresmo running towards the locker rooms, also saw Sybille Bammer coming back from the players restaurant eating an apple and trying to sign some photos. Justine Henin was walking around chatting on her mobile phone. Then sat in the shade for a while and watched the doubles match of Maria Kirilenko and Elena Likhovtseva.

As the day draws to an end I then back to the place I started - back to Court 1 to watch cake-loving Marion Bartoli vs. British girl Melanie South. Bartoli took the first set easily 6/1, the second was a bit more tricky for her, South was playing better and Bartoli's serve became a bit of a mess. Bartoli finally won but looked to be exhausted, she really needs to do something about her fitness level if she wants to be more successful at the Slams! After I moved down to the front row for the last match of the day - doubles of Tatiana Garbin/Sharhar Peer vs. Renee Stubbs/Kveta Peschke. This was a continued match from the day before, Tax and Sharhar really tried so hard but they just couldn't compete with the superior doubles skills of Stubbs/Peschke. Though the match was very short, it was fun as the crowd really wanted to see Garbin/Peer win a few games. At the end Garbin signed a load of autographs and seemed to be a huge favourite with the Eastbourne crowd. Before we left the grounds we met up with our friends and spent the next hour chatting and drinking a well deserved jug of Pimm's in the bar overlooking the groundsmen preparing the courts for the following day.

I really had the most fantastic time at my first Eastbourne, I loved the fact that you had great access to the practise courts, there was a very friendly and relaxed atmosphere here very laid back, the weather was was hot sunny with a beautiful sea breeze and seems to be a place that the players really enjoy to visit too - I definitely will be going back again next year!


Next report......Wimbledon!


Update 2 July 2007

SAVE THE EASTBOURNE TENNIS

Roland Garros 2007 Report

Friday -
My journey started as always on a cold morning at London's Heathrow Airport. After catching the 06:30am flight I arrived in Paris to make my way to my rented apartment...then onto the hallowed courts of Roland Garros.

Everytime I step foot into the grounds my heart skips a beat when I see the magnificent terracotta coloured courts laid out in front of me - it is a truly beautiful sight. First thing I did was to have a look around the practise courts, then I headed to the courts near the locker room entrance. On court 11 Justine Henin was practising, looked to be very relaxed and was laughing and joking quite a lot with Carlos (her coach). After I then made my way back to the far end of the grounds again to Court 13 and saw another practise session, this time with Katarina Srebotnik and Daniela Hantuchova. Then went to court 15 where there was a qualifying match being watched by quite a few players including Barbara Rittner (Wow, she has a beautiful voice!) Kveta Peschke, Jasmin Woehr and Daniel Merkert (German coach to Eleni Daniilidou). I then heard a rumour that Rafa nadal was practising on court 12, so I rushed over there to watch Rafa - he is very well liked by so many people Roland Garros...and especially by the teenage girls!! hahaha) Just as he was finishing his session - the sky went black, the lighting and thunder started then the torrential rain started. By this time it was about 17:30pm, so I decided to make my way back to the apartment to get some rest for the next day.


Saturday -
Though this was another qualifying day, it is also the jewel of Roland Garros - Journee Benny Berthet Charity Day! This is the day that the whole ground is opened to the public for the first time, and can have access to all courts...and even to the corporate boxes on court Phillip Chartrier, which is always a fantastic bonus! First of all, I went to have a look around the practise courts, then I made my way to Court 1 - the amazing 'Bullring' which is one of my favorite courts here. I got myself a front row seat, then I watched the first exhibition match - Martina Muller vs. Katarina Srebotnik, then the match after was the lovely Italian Tathiana Garbin's exhibition match which she won easily!

Then after I visited all of the promotional stands - Dunlop, French Tennis Magazine, Yonex, Prince, Wilson etc... then on to the practise courts. After I meet up with some French friends of mine, then saw a practise session of Andy Roddick on court 13, he was there with is coach (and former player) Jimmy Connors. There seems to be a great friendship between these two men, they were chatting and laughing a lot during the session. After I met up with another friend of mine for a drink and chat. Later in the day as I was walking in the tunnel under court Philip Chartier I bumped into a friend of mine, Eurosport commentator Manuel Poyan. It's always so much fun to chat to Manuel, he is a great man!!! While we were talking, I got introduced to the main tennis reporter for El Pais newspaper and also met Spanish player Ivan Navarro Pastor. After a long chat with Manuel, I then went for a final walk around the grounds before heading home for a well deserved rest.

Sunday -
This was the first real day of the tournament - and the weather forcast for today was terrible....and sadly, they were right! Just as I got through the main gates, the rain started....and didn't stop for the next 5 hours! Not much to say about my time in the rain delay, everyone seemed to spent the time doing the rounds of the food and drink stands, eating everything from potato chips to Belgian waffles with cream and chocolate. When play finally got started I saw the match on Court 1 of Dinara Safina vs Yuliana Fedak. I think Dinara wanted to get offcourt and out of the cold - she wrapped up the match in ultra quick time (around an hour) after playing a very aggressive match. The organisers decided to not play any more matches on that day, so I managed to get myself onto Court Philip Chartier to see the end of the Justine Henin match. Not much else to say about that day, it was pretty disappointing due to the weather..but then again I should be used to that after all my years at rainy Wimbledon!! hahaha


Monday -
Today started pretty much how Sunday had started....with lots of rain. This time I did manage to find my friends, so we spent the rain delay having a very funny and entertaining chat, so it didn't seem as bad as the day before. When the rain finally cleared we went for lunch, then after I went to court 2 to see the match of Italian Potito Starace, then made my way through the grounds to court 7 to see one of my favorites play...Tathiana Garbin vs. Akiko Morigami. Both players had a huge amount of support from the crowd - Garbin had the loudest supporters though! At first Tax wasn't really playing her best and Morigami with all of her experience took advantage of this and took the early lead. Morigami's serve was solid and seemed to return everything that was thrown at her - she really is a fighter. Garbin picked her game up, her shots were on target, her drop shots worked, her improved and with the help of the crowd, she managed to get into the lead and win the match. She seemed very relieved when she won and immediately went over to thank her supporters, throwing her towel into the crowd and celebrating, even though the rain had started to fall again. As I left the courts I saw the parents of Eleni Daniilidou walking towards the Players lounge area and really, that was about all for today because the rain didn't stop all night - so in some ways it was another slightly disappointing day.


Tuesday -
My last day at the tournament, so I was hoping that I would be more lucky with the weather. After getting through the security checks on the gates I made my way to court 6 for Mara Santangelo vs. Aga Radwanska. Mara took control from the start and didn't really give radwanska a chance to get into the game. I think Radwanska was pretty nervous and certainly didn't show any of the talent that she is often credited with. After that I went over to court 12 (this is a very bad court to watch because it's usually only used for practise but because of the rain, they decided to use it for matches) watched a little of the Nuria Llagosera Vives match, but couldn't see much so I went over to court 9 to get some photos of Ruban Ramirez Hidalgo. Today the courts were so busy, it was impossible to get onto some of the courts.

I then went back to court 7 to see Italian Francesca Schiavone's match. Not a very eventful match, Francesca had no problems and raced through without dropping many points. After the match she spent a lot of time chatting to her supporters and signing autographs which is always nice to see from the players. I then headed over to practise court 13 and got some photos of Iveta Benesova, then I got a text message from my friend Manuel Poyan and he offered to show me around the Eurosport commentry booths at the top of court Philip Chartrier. The media area is like a little hidden world - we first went in to the seating area where John Lloyd was watching the matches on the screens, we then went up the stairs to a gallery of 40 or so commentry booths. Each booth was quite small, only room for two people with three tv screens but with the most amazing view of the court Philip Chartier!!!!! I was introduced to Manuel's fellow Eurosport commentator Fernando. We then walked past all of the other commentry booths - ESPN, ESPN Espanol, German Eurosport, Japanese WowWow TV etc... then out to see the view from the terrace which is often used by the photographers. We then went up to the next gallery up stairs where the other commentry booths are including the guest channels France 2/3/4. Manuel showed me the old commentry booths (which are still in use) and we went to the far terrace to see France 2/3/4 outside studio which over looks the whole court. On our way back out, we passed Australian former player Mark Woodforde and British ex-player Jo Dury. It was so fantastic to be able to see the commentry area, it was very different to how I had imaged it to be, much better and with far better facilities.

After leaving Manuel, I then went over to court 5 to see some of Jonas Bjorkman's match, then onto courts 2 and 3. I finished my day watching James Blake getting beaten by a very tall Ivo Karlovic. I then went for one last walk around the grounds before heading to the Metro and back to the apartment for my last night.



Though my visit was plagued with rain delays, I still had a great time as always! I hope you enjoyed reading my report.


Next report..........Eastbourne!

Daniilidou Wins Korea Open

This has been an exciting and unpredictable week for the WTA Tour, with two players winning their first titles and a title also going to a player who has not won a tournement for the last two years.

Greek star Eleni Daniilidou, came back from a set down and a bout of cramp to couragously take the Korea Open title in Seoul at the weekend. Once ranked as high as 14 in the world, Daniilidou has had to struggle with many injuries and various coaches over the past few years - leaving her confidence and her ranking low. A recent change of coaching team has given Daniilidou the motivation she so desperately needed - making it to the semi finals in Shanghai where she was eventually beated by top 10 player Nadia Petrova and then on to her incredible winning week in the Korean capital of Seoul.

In the final, Daniilidou took three match points from Japanese Ai Sugiyama to ultimately force the tiebreaker, during which Daniilidou collapsed on the court with leg cramps forcing an injury time-out brake, and after took all but one of the points to win the match 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (3).

"I tried to play the tiebreaker as aggressively as I could. The key was to go for it," Daniilidou said. "It was my mistake not calling the physio (earlier). Ai is a fighter, I had to play very precise."

The Korea Open title is Daniilidou's first hard-court win over Sugiyama in four attempts. Sugiyama leads their head-to-head meetings 4-3 and last defeated Daniilidou at the French Open in June.


Eleni Daniilidou

Alona Bondarenko was the latest player to get the best of Italian Francesca Schiavone in a final of theLuxembourg Fortis Championships.

An unseeded player from the Ukraine, Bondarenko captured her first career title with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over the fifth-seeded Schiavone on Sunday.

"She played great," Schiavone said. "She didn't give me a chance. She only gave away three or four points in the match. I was trying to find the solution, to try and break her, come into the net, I did so many things. But not so well, I guess."

Appearing in her first final since Hyderabad, India last year, Bondarenko, 22, avenged a straight-sets loss to the Italian in the opening round of the French Open. She earned $95,500 for her victory.

"I didn't think about how it was a final, and that I could win or lose," Bondarenko said. "I just played and concentrated on every point. I concentrated a lot on my first serve. Today, I just focused on my game and nothing else."


Also on the tour this week, third-seed Anna Chakvetadze captured her first career title with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues in Sunday's final of the $175,000 Guangzhou International.

It was the fourth victory in as many career meetings against Medina Garrigues for the 19-year-old Chakvetadze, all in straight sets. A native of Russia, Chakvetadze has yet to be pushed beyond 6-4 in any set against the Spaniard.

"I knew I had to be really aggressive today, and it worked," Chakvetadze said. "Maybe the score looked easy, but it was a very difficult match. I just took my chances. Fortunately I came out on top today."


Anna Chakvetadze

WTA Titles for Paszek, Hingis & Kuznetsova

Fifteen-year-old Tamira Paszek of Austria won her first WTA Tour title on Sunday, beating sixth-seeded Maria Elena Camerin of Italy 7-5, 6-1 at the Portoroz Slovenia Open.

Paszek, ranked 259th, played her first WTA tournament in October 2005 in Linz, Austria, where she reached the second round. She joined her country's Fed Cup team last year.

"I played eight matches in nine days," Paszek said. "It was hard, but unbelievable. I am very happy."


Tamira Paszek (right)

Martina Hingis defeated first-time finalist Olga Poutchkova of Russia 6-0, 6-4 Sunday to win the Kolkata Sunfeast Open for her second title since coming out from retirement.

"I'm happy with the way things have gone this year -- my climb in the rankings has been very satisfying," said Hingis, who was ranked No. 9 entering the final. "I'm now enjoying the game more than when I was 17."

The 18-year-old Poutchkova, who is based in Florida, lost in 55 minutes.

"It was a learning experience for me and I was a bit nervous," Poutchkova said. "I tried to make a comeback in the second set, but she doesn't give you many chances."

Martina Hingis















Also on the WTA tour, Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova won her second title in two weeks with a 6-4 6-0 victory over France's world number one Amelie Mauresmo in a rain-disrupted China Open final on Sunday.

The world number five, who also triumphed in Bali last week, claimed her eighth career title when top seed Mauresmo's game fell apart after a two-hour break for wet weather.

"I'm just so happy," said Kuznetsova, who was runner-up to Serena Williams here in 2004. "She was not playing great, not at her best, and I put pressure on her and played pretty well."

Mauresmo apologised to the crowd for not making more of a contest of the final.

"I'm disappointed, there's nothing much to say, she just played much better than me, especially after the rain," the 27-year-old said Mauresmo.



Svetlana Kuznetsova
"It's my goal to one day be number one but I'm not rushing to this, I'm just enjoying every moment," said the Russian champion. "I think I have the possibility of doing it but I'm not obsessed by it."

Italy Wins the Fed Cup

This weekend saw the final of the Fed Cup - Belgium vs. Italy - played infront of a roaring crowd at the Stade Spiroudome, Charleroi, Belgium.

The final started with the fiery Francesca Schiavone vs. 98th ranked Kirsten Flipkens, after a few nervous games from both players the Italian showed her experience to easily come through in straight sets. Next match up was Belgian heroine Justine Henin-Hardenne vs. Italian hottie Flavia Pennetta. Any match against Henin-Hardenne was always gonna be tough and though Pennetta tried her hardest even with an injured wrist, nothing was good enough to stop the Belgian from winning the match and bringing the tie to Belgian 1-1 Italy.


Santangelo, Schiavone, Vinci

Day 2 began with high expectations from the fans from both sides - singing, cheering, chanting and flag waving gave the second day an atmosphere fitting for such a great clash of the tennis titans. Kim Clijsters was there to cheer on her compatriot Belgians as was Tathiana Garbin and boyfriend of Pennetta, Carlos Moya for the Italians.

First up was the battle of the one handed backhands - Justine Henin-Hardenne vs. Francesca Schiavone. The first set started once again with lots of nerves from both players and many breaks of serve. After a close set Henin upped the standard of her game to brake the Italian and take the first set 6-4, the second set was a bit more one sided with the mighty Italian showing what a great fighter she is and taking an early lead was a 4-0 advantage but after a few bad linecalls and a 'convenient' injury timeout from Henin, the whole momentum of the match changed. The Belgian managed to fight her way back into the match and took the second set and the match 6-4, 7-5 to bring a 2-1 lead for the local team.

Fourth match of the weekend - and a great turning point for Italy, was the clash of Mara Santangelo vs. Kirsten Flipkens. The young Belgian, affectionately nicknamed 'Flipper' by the fans, easily took the first set with the aid of the hugely partizan Belgian crowd - but the 26 year-old showed her real talent by dig deep and bring the game back level by taking the second set. The third set was always in totally control of Santangelo, playing with such style, focus and finesse - even though the rowdy Belgian fans shouted and booed her every shot. I think this match will be a great turning point in the career of Santangelo giving her the confidence to know she can win in these adverse conditions - and win she did, bagelling Flipkens in the process to win 6-7 (3-7), 6-3, 6-0.

The fifth and deciding match of the weekend was the doubles played by Schiavone/Vinci vs. Henin/Flipkens - the Belgian team worked very well together, both playing great volleys to take the first set. The Italians were a bit slow to get going, but in the second played some mighty tennis with Schiavone on the baseline and Vinci at the net - one point saw Schiavone high 4 overheads against Henin, perhaps the earlier defeat was the motivation needed to fire up Schiavone who played the leader of the Italian doubles team. As the game headed into the third set and Italian played with confidence and were leading the game 2-0 30-0 when Henin-Hardenne called for the trainer to tend a knee injury, even though she was showing no signs of a problem the Belgian decided (against the wishes of her team) to retire from the match, giving the win to the Italians and the Fed Cup 2006 title too!


The Fed Cup 2006 Champions

This is deja vu for Henin who retired from the finals at the Australian Open earlier this year, against French world No1 Amelie Mauresmo, handing the title to the French women without her getting the chance to feel that winning 'match point moment' - the Belgian suffered much criticism over her actions in Australia and it does not take a tennis expert to guess that she will face the same criticism after retiring from the Fed Cup final also. The Italian team was not disheartened by the why the weekend finished and didn't let it stop them from enjoying the occasion - the first time Italy has ever won the Fed Cup - I'm sure the party will continue for the Italian ladies all year and after the great heart and spirit that the team showed, they truly deserve it enjoy it!


Garbin, Schiavone, Pennetta, Santangelo, Vinci, Barazzutti (captain)

Congratulations Italy!!!

First Title for Baghdatis

We have seen some great results in the past few days and the ATP Beijing final was one of these!

Croatian heart throb Mario Ancic played the entertainer of the tour, Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis in the Chinese capital. The match was filled with exciting play from both players, the Cypriot took the first set and was leading the second when the Ancic fell, from there on it was easy for Baghdatis who won 6-4, 6-0. This victory gives Marcos Baghdatis his first ATP title.

"It's my first title," said Baghdatis, who became the first Cypriot in tour history to win an ATP tournament. "It's a great moment and I'm really happy about that, especially playing a great match today."


Baghdatis first made his name on the tour by his great winning streak at the Australian Open this year, after over coming rain delays, fireworks and many great names of the tour, he got into the grand slam final were he was eventually beaten by the great Roger Federer.


Marcos Baghdatis

Also Jurgen Melzer won his first ATP title by beating Filippo Volandri 6-1, 7-5 Sunday in the final of the BCR Open.

Melzer served well and came to the net often. He broke Volandri's serve twice in the first set. Volandri improved in the second set, but Melzer broke to lead 6-5 and served it out.

"I knew Volandri is a great baseliner," Melzer said. "I served much better, I put much more pressure on his serve and didn't give him time to get into his rhythm."

It was Melzer's fourth career final and second this year. He lost to Mardy Fish in the Houston final in April.

Volandri's only title came in 2004 at St. Poelten. He lost the Buenos Aires final to Carlos Moya in February.

"Sorry I beat you in the final," Melzer told Volandri after receiving the trophy. "I needed a title and you already had one."




In the WTA, top seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova overcame a slow start to beat France's Marion Bartoli 7-5, 6-2 for her third Wismilak International title.

Kuznetsova and the sixth-seeded Bartoli played a close first set, but the Russian pulled away midway through the second to win her seventh career singles title. It was her second championship of the season, winning at Miami in March.


Svetlana Kuznetsova


A busy time for the WTA tour with week...

- China Open Official Site

- Sunfest Open, Kolkata, India

- Banka Koper Slovenia Open Official Site


WTA Live Scores

The 'lovetennis' Gallery

lovetennis is proud to announce the launch of it's brand new exclusive photo gallery!

http://love-tennis.blogspot.com/

All photos in the gallery are taken by myself (Elisita) at Wimbledon, Roland Garros and Open Gaz de France.

The first ever tournament that I visited was Wimby 1996, I went there especially to see my first favorite player Gigi Fernandez, since then I have been to Wimby every year - I started going to the Open Gaz de France in Paris from 2002 and Roland Garros from 2003. Over the years I have seen nearly every player on the both tours at some time or another! As you can see from the gallery, my favorite players to photograph are Eleni Daniilidou and Amelie Mauresmo - but the gallery also features other players such as Conchita Martinez, Tathiana Garbin, Francesca Schiavone and many other players too.

Photography is very special to me - it gives me the chance to show others how I view things through my own eyes, my perspective on things. I'm sure we are all used to seeing the same sorts of stereotypical 'tennis shots' that grace the pages of tennis magazines around the world - you know the ones with the players grimmacing as they hit the ball! I prefer to take different types of photos to them, I like to show the beauty, humour and the personally of the players - I like to make them look damn hot! hahahahaha

Also included in the gallery is a section for some of the autographs I have collected for myself and for other friends over the years. Each signature has a story behind it, from the time I gave fan messages to Eleni Daniilidou to the time I had a lovely conversation with Conchita Martinez at Roland Garros. As they say...every picture tells a story!

We hope you will enjoy visiting our new gallery and hope you will come back often, as we will be continuing to update the gallery regularly with our lovetennis exclusive photos.

US Open 2006

Maria Sharapova is no longer a 'one Slam wonder' after winning the million dollar title at Flushing Meadows yeasterday. The 19-year-old Russian showed determination and grit to overcome the shots of world number two Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne 6-4 6-4 at Arthur Ashe Stadium in front of a crowd of 24,000 spectators.

The title marked the second grand slam of Sharapova's career, following her remarkable Wimbledon run in 2004.

"I experienced it two years ago, and I knew that I wasn't done, I had a lot more in me," she said. "That was just the beginning. This is not just preparation that happened a couple weeks before the tournament; this is preparation that I've done ever since I was a little girl."


Maria Sharapova - US Open Women's Champion

Roger Federer claimed his third U.S. Open title in a row with a flourish on Sunday, beating Andy Roddick 6-2 4-6 7-5 6-1 to capture his ninth grand slam singles crown.

The 25-year-old Swiss maestro captured the only service break of a tightly contested third set by breaking the ninth-seeded American in the last game and then charged to victory allowing Roddick just 13 points in the final set. Federer walked away with a winners cheque for $1.5 million dollars, a new Lexus car and a new record for being the only player to hold three consecutive Wimbledon titles and three consecutive US Open titles.


Roger Federer - US Open Men's Champion

In the women's doubles final, Nathalie Dechy of France and Russian Vera Zvonareva beat eighth seeds Dinara Safina and Katarina Srebotnik 7-6 7-5 to take the title.

The unseeded pair came through in just under two hours to give Zvonareva her third grand slam title and Dechy her first.

"That's what we work for, 20 years, to play in front of the crowd, in the center court of the grand slam in the finals," Zvonareva said.











"It's a great opportunity. You just got to enjoy. No matter how you play, try to do it."


The men's doubles title was won by the partnership of Leander Paes and Martin Damm, crowned with their first year as a team, after beating Jonas Bjorkman and Max Mirnyi 6-7 6-4 6-3 to win the men's doubles title at the U.S. Open.

"I don't think there are enough words to express how much fun and how much learning I've actually had playing with Martin, because we're actually opposites on the court," Paes said.

"It's been a fantastic year playing with him. I've really enjoyed it. I'd like to thank him for a wonderful year."

The victory gave Damm his first grand slam title, while for Paes it was his fourth men's doubles crown and seventh in all.





US Open mixed doubles title was won by the legend Martina Navratilova and her partner Bob Bryan. A month before her 50th birthday, navaratilova extended her already fantastic record to 59 Grand Slam titles with this win, but insisted this will be her last match as a pro player on the tour. She had originally retired in 1994, then returned to the tour in 2000 to play doubles and the occational singles match.

"You're only as old as you feel, and I certainly don't feel 49," Navratilova said. "I just wanted to inspire people."

US Open Men's Final

Roger Federer
vs.
Andy Roddick

H2H - Federer leads 10-1



Livescores - US Open

US Open - Women's Final

Justine Henin-Hardenne
vs.
Maria Sharapova

H2H - Henin-Hardenne leads 4-1




Livescores - US Open

US Open - Men's Semi finals

Roger Federer
vs.
Nikolay Davydenko

H2H - Federer leads 7-0

----------









Andy Roddick
vs.
Mikhail Youzhny

H2H - Roddick 2-2 Youzhny

Livescores - US Open

US Open - Women's Semi finals

Justine Henin-Hardenne
vs.
Jelena Jankovic

H2H - Henin-Hardenne leads 1-0

----------









Maria Sharapova
vs.
Amelie Mauresmo

H2H - Mauresmo leads 3-0

Livescores - US Open

The Battle of the Brave

The fireworks, the rock concerts, the smell of burning hot dogs....oh and the small issue of a million dollar tennis tournament - this could only be the circus that is the US Open!


So far this week we have seen the early exits in the women's side, Anastassia Myskina, Martina Hingis and Nicole Vaidisova, we have had a day totally washed out by rain and we have seen probably one of the best matches of the tournament last night - Andre Agassi v Marcos Baghdatis.

The night session opened to rapturous applause as American hero Andre Agassi and Cypriot showman Marcos Baghdatis took to the court for their 2nd round encounter. The atmosphere was electric with the sort of energy and expectation usually kept for a heavy weight boxing bout, rather than for a simple game of tennis. This match was no simple game of tennis though...it had everything!

Played before a capacity crowd of nearly 24,000 on Arthur Ashe Court - the two men gave it their all in a three hour and 48 minute epic. After a close start to the match Agassi took the early advantage by leading the match by 2 sets to 0, but this was not enough to deter the mighty Marcos Baghdatis who managed to come back into the match and after playing some genius shot making took the next two sets to even up the score. After a fall on the court Baghdatis sustained a wrist injury which still was not enough to discourage the brave Cypriot.

Marcos Baghdatis








As they headed into the fifth set both men were playing at their best - and the crowd (predictably mostly biased in favor of the American) were loving every minute of the fight. Towards the end of the match the 21-year-old Cypriot suffered severe cramps in both legs and at one point was hardly able to stand but still managed to fire an ace down the court - this moment summed up the determination and couragous heart of both men in this great match! In the end Agassi was slightly the stronger mentally and managed to close the epic match with a 6/4 6/4 3/6 5/7 7/5 triumph.

"I just wanted to fight, you know? Playing Andre on the center court of Arthur Ashe, I was ready to die on the court." said Baghdatis in the post-match press conference.

"It's a guy like that that makes it easier to walk away from the game because you see what kind of hands it's in," said soon to be retiring champion Agassi

"He's just a true professional with a lot of style and a lot of charisma and a lot of talent."



Agassi now goes on to play German Benjamin Becker in the 3rd round.

Henin & Davydenko reign in New Haven

Another tournament for the WTA tour - another week of rain, injuries and retirements.

Lindsay Davenport began Saturday seeking to defend her Pilot Pen title but ended the day not knowing if she would be able to play the U.S.Open. Davenport retired from the Pilot Pen final with an injured right shoulder, allowing Justine Henin-Hardenne to take the title in the last hard-court tuneup before the year's last Grand Slam tournament, which starts Monday.

"Rest is going to help no matter what. Of course, with the U.S. Open less than 48 hours from beginning, this is not where I want to be," Davenport said. "I certainly can't play if it's like it was today.

Both Davenport and Henin-Hardenne entered New Haven after long layoffs because of injuries and it was the 24-year-old Belgian that picked up the momentum heading into the U.S Open. Henin-Hardenne needed only 22 minutes to win the first set 6-0. Between sets Davenport called for a trainer and took a medical timeout. When she returned, Davenport lost her serve in the first game of the second set and was in obvious pain. She met Henin-Hardenne at the net and shook hands, and the longtime favorite drew an ovation from the crowd.

"I could feel from the beginning of the match she wasn't hitting the ball as usual," Henin-Hardenne said. "I did what I had to do. It's not easy in this kind of situation, but I stayed focused on every points."

Henin-Hardenne, the second-seeded player and wild-card entry, drew a first-round bye, but Davenport had to work her way to the title match from the first round. She won all four matches in straight sets, including against top-ranked Amelie Mauresmo.

"I just hope I can keep going this way," Henin-Hardenne said. "I've been very consistent." And most importantly, she said, she's having fun. "I enjoy my tennis," she said. "That's probably why things have gone so well these last few months."



In the men's final, Russian Nikolay Davydenko warmed up for the U.S. Open in the best possible manner as he beat Argentine 10th seed Agustin Calleri 6-4 6-3 to win the New Haven event on Saturday.

The second seed broke once in the first set and twice in the second as he wrapped up victory in one hour, 21 minutes. The win gave Davydenko his third title of the year, but his first on hard courts.

Davydenko has never been beyond the third round at the U.S. Open but said the victory was a big boost to his confidence going into the final grand slam tournament of the year.

"For my mind, to win the tournament here, I felt good already from the first round so I hope I play good (at the U.S. Open). Davydenko said.

Calleri rued a few missed chances to break in the first set. "I had three or four break points, but he served very well, he didn't give me a chance to break him. He just played very well on the important points." Calleri said.

"Obviously I would have loved to win the tournament. On the other hand, I felt very good here."

US Open 2006

The matches for the last Grand Slam of the year have been drawn, the U.S. Open 2006


Women's Singles Draw / Version in pdf


Men's Singles Draw / Version in pdf

www.usopen.org

Ferrero, Roddick & the legend of the Phoenix

The phoenix has been a symbol of the physical and spiritual Renaissance, the power of the fire, the purification and immortality - these are all the same qualities that were displayed in this year's Masters Series in Cincinnati. We have witnessed the resurgence of two greats of this sport, two ex-number 1's and Grand Slam winners, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Andy Roddick. A Masters Series that was plagued with emotion and the unexpected early defeat of an exhausted Roger Federer at the hands of raising star Andy Murray. The Scot won through patience rather than by good tennis, knew the exact moment to capitalize on the numerous errors of his exhausted rival and to take control of the most important victory of his young career. Murray is applying the wise advice given to him by his new coach Brad Gilbert, and it definately seems to be working.



Brad Gilbert



Federer even in defeat acted like a true sportsman, which makes him an even greater champion. The Masters news didn't stop there, we also witnessed another great event the defeat of Rafael Nadal to former champion Juan Carlos Ferrero, in a match which was a mixture of emotion and a great display of tennis from both players. Nadal playing at his best level was still no match for the inspired Ferrero who managed to play with great flare and determination, going on to eventually win the clash of the Spanish champions.





Ferrero © Andrew Lewis



Another player who has risen again from the ashes in Cincinnati this weekend is American Andy Roddick, playing with aggressive, forceful tennis and ignition that literally blew his rivals away, including Ferrero who he beat in a great final (6-3 6-4) Roddick played like the old Andy Roddick that we used to see a few years ago, his incredible serve was back, and with full power blows and acceleration, these were the determining factors what helped Roddick gain victory on American soil again and makes his a definate favorite to lift the men's title at the US Open in a few weeks time.

Andy Roddick and Carlos Ferrero, Foto © Andrew Lewis

Now for the WTA, this last week has been particularily tough for the organisers of the Montreal tournament, in a week that has seen numerous absences, retirements and rain delays. The week concluded with the final being played a day last due to the showers over Montreal, seeing Serbian player Ana Ivanovic against Swiss Martina Hingis. The latter could not match the power, talent and youth of Ivanovic, who took the title with a 6-2 6-3 victory. The player from Belgrade, aged just 19 years of age and 19th in the world rankings, this is her second title and her first at Tier I level.





Serbian Ana Ivanovic (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)



Another WTA success came this weekend for legend Martina Navratilova who managed to gain title number 176 in doubles with her partner Russian Nadia Petrova, They deafeated the partnership of Black and Groenefeld 6-1 6-2. This new victory is added to the four previous ones that the American already obtained in Canadian in the years 1981, 1982, 1985 and 2004, each one of them won with different partner.




Navratilova & Petrova




More WTA news; Amelie Mauresmo and Justine Henin-Hardenne were the first two players to qualify for this years 'Sony Ericsson Championships', This event will take place in Madrid from the 7-12 November and will feature the world's top eight players of the year.



Amélie Mauresmo - winner of the Sony Ericsson Championships 2005


This week's tournaments: WTA & ATP in New Haven - 'Pilot Pen Tennis'

http://www.pilotpentennis.com


and the WTA Forest Hills Women's Tennis Classic

http://www.foresthillstennis.com


For more information and results visit the lovetennis forum and blog!


Greetings from the 'lovetennis' team


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