Wk.10/11 - A Waffle, with Bagels on the Side

Tennisrulz.com WTA BACKSPIN March 21, 2005 A WAFFLE, WITH TWO BAGELS ON THE SIDE...and other random spins on Indian Wells by Todd Spiker This week's random spins revolve around... THE TALE OF FilaKim CLIJSTERS AND HER MIGHTY BAND OF SUPPORTERS: The list of those who've sung a love song to Kim Clijsters has been pretty long over the last few years, even as she's often failed to show the mental makeup to close out a grand slam in a manner befitting a one-time #1 player in the world. At times, those spewing out such admiring words conveniently ignored Clijsters' shortcomings in favor of showering praise on her friendliness and willingness to please. Backspin's never seen fit to join that flock (squeegeeing a court just doesn't impress me, I guess), choosing instead to act as a pseudo-Greek chorus if only to serve as a guard at the Temple of the Obvious... never forgetting the one thing that a professional tennis player of Clijsters' ability is SUPPOSED to do -- win major titles, specifically grand slams. Around these parts, at least, Clijsters upped her likeability quotient when she finally ended her relationship with ATP jerk Lleyton Hewitt, a perplexing union that was monumentally at odds with her diametrically opposed reputation. That development, and the tour absence that has at least made the heart grow a tad fonder, means Clijsters gets the appropriate kudos this week after winning her first title (22nd overall) in thirteen months in Indian Wells. So, since I'm currently on good terms with the idea of liking FilaKim, I won't even mention how Lindsay Davenport (again) fell apart in a final as soon as she faced a little adversity, or that KC faced an injured Elena Dementieva in the SF. I mean, what fun would that be? This is supposed to be a celebration, right? It's quite an accomplishment to become only the second unseeded woman to ever win the Tier I Indian Wells title (S.Williams '99), and the first since the event sported 32 seeds. Thus, instead of wondering whether this "new" Clijsters will be just like the "old" one come grand slam time (if her wrist holds out, that is), I'll harp on that pessimistic Belgian doctor (Bruno Willems, remember?) who all but effectively declared Clijsters' career over last September (nice work, Doc), and the fact that Clijsters somehow doesn't qualify for special injury seedings at events such as this after the likes of Davenport and the Williams sisters have seemed to feast on them the last few seasons. There, that's as nice as I can be to "Nice Kim." She'll have to win something bigger to get the full shower of praise around here. ====================================== THE SAGA OF THE ALMOST-30 (or OVER) GANG: Indian Wells allowed some of the tour's most veteran players to show that "age" is in the eye of the beholder. 28-year old Davenport wiped out Maria Sharapova (more on that later), won 24 straight games at one point and made her fourth final of '05. Of course, she wilted there for the third time this season...but strengthened her hold on the top ranking. Mary Pierce, 30, took out Nicole Vaidisova and Nadia Petrova. And 32-year old Conchita Martinez made the QF, beating youngster Maria Kirilenko and making one wonder if she'll continue this late-career rebound as the tour soon heads for the European clay courts. ====================================== GIRLS! GIRLS! GIRLS! ...it wasn't just the veterans making waves in California. A bevy of teenagers made their presence felt, too. Supernovette Kirilenko upset Elena Bovina. Anna Chakvetadze knocked off Dubai RU Jelena Jankovic. Viktoriya Kutuzova beat two-time '05 titleist Flavia Pennetta. Jessica Kirkland made the 4th Round. And Evgenia Linetskaya whipped up on Amelie Mauresmo. All but Kutuzova (#249) left Indian Wells with new career-high rankings: #37 Evgenia Linetskaya #48 Maria Kirilenko #65 Anna Chakvetadze #151 Jessica Kirkland ====================================== ...and, of course... THE UNMAKING OF A SUPERNOVA: ...who couldn't but be stunned by the 6-0/6-0 loss that Maria Sharapova suffered in the SF against Davenport? It almost feels like some bizarro alternate universe/reality result, doesn't it? Sure, it was a windy day and the twelve games lost were part of Davenport's dominating 24-game streak against Nathalie Dechy (8), Sharapova (12) and Clijsters (4) from the QF to Final late last week. But there's no question the 4 winner/25 unforced error loss was very un-Supernovian, especially coming off Sharapova's WTA season-best 12-match winning streak. Was it just an aberration, or a cause for concern? Coach Robert Lansdorp saw fit to comment about his worry that the 17-year old Russian is wearing herself out by playing and travelling too much and should skip Miami after this career-worst loss. He says he told the Sharapova camp (Yuri and, well, just Yuri, I guess) so, too. He might have a point, but Sharapova apparently has a month-long break coming up after Miami... and, let's be honest, Lansdorp, for all his expertise, loves being the center of attention. So, while his fears might be at least somewhat justified, one must pose the question, "Is there another reason why Lansdorp felt the need to go public with his recommendation?" Discuss. ====================================== And, finally... THE GANG'S (ALMOST) ALL HERE: ...Miami arrives, with Serena (three-time defending champ), Venus (excuses ready), and even Queen Justine (26-straight Tier I match wins, but out of action since September) waiting to hit the courts. Should be an interesting two weeks. ====================================== ==WEEK 10/11 CHAMPIONS== INDIAN WELLS, CALIFORNIA USA (I-HO) S: Kim Clijsters d. Lindsay Davenport 6-4/4-6/6-2 D: Ruano-Pascual/Suarez d. Petrova/Shaughnessy **PLAYER AWARDS** PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Kim Clijsters ...Backspin's Kim "lovefest" continues. A few facts: this was Clijsters third career Tier I crown. Wins over Top 5ers Elena Dementieva and Davenport made her sojourn outside the Top 100 a short one, as she jumped from #133 to #38 on Monday. ====================================== RISERS: Clijsters & Elena Dementieva ...Dementieva came back from a set down to win three-setters three times in a row (3r-Beltrame, 4r-Golovin, QF-Kuznetsova), but her injury ultimately rendered her SF run a little disappointing. ====================================== SURPRISES: Victoriya Kutuzova & Jessica Kirkland ...16-year old Ukrainian Kutuzova made Odessa proud, upsetting Pennetta and Amy Frazier on her way to the 4th Round. Kirkland, 17, further claimed the role of "most promising American" with a 4th Round run that included wins over Marion Bartoli and Jill Craybas. ====================================== VETERANS: Lindsay Davenport & Mary Pierce ...sure, Davenport's 1-3 in singles finals this season, but the double-bagel win over Sharapova was simply stunning. Pierce made the QF before being stopped by Sharapova, but earlier wins over Vaidisova and Petrova makes one wonder if she'll have a final slam run in her come Paris or NYC. ====================================== FRESH FACES: Evgenia Linetskaya & Marina Erakovic ...18-year old Russian Linetskaya claimed the big prize last week, Mauresmo's head on a 2nd Round platter. She's all the way up to #37 in the rankings. New Zealand's Erakovic, 17, spent the last few weeks making a name for herself in ITF events, winning her first in Warrnambool and reaching the final a week later in Benalla. She's #459 and climbing. ====================================== DOWN: Daniela Hantchova & Jelena Dokic ...after such a nice build up in the preceding weeks, Wonder Girl's 3rd Round exit at the hands of a hot Fabiola Zuluaga couldn't help but be a bit anticlimactic. And as for the Debutante, what can you say? After falling to #251, she chose to play qualifying for the first time since 1999. Needing only to win two matches to make the main draw, she only won one (and left Indian Wells with another love set on her ledger, this time delivered by Maria-Emilia Salerni). **LINK OF THE WEEK** ...speaking of Dokic, her choice to see how "the other half" lives didn't exactly turn out the way she'd hoped, but after winning her 1st Round qualifing match she did seem to have a more adult, realistic view on her current situation: http://tennisreporters.net/scoop_030705.html ====================================== BACKSPIN POP QUIZ #2 Justine Henin-Hardenne returns to action this week in Miami. She carries a 26-match Tier I winning streak into the event. Who was the last player to defeat her in a Tier I? a.Meghann Shaughnessy b.Chanda Rubin c.Nadia Petrova For that matter, who was the most recent victim in that 26-match string? a.Kim Clijsters b.Serena Williams c.Lindsay Davenport ====================================== **MATCHES** [Qualifying to 3rd Round] 1.3rd - Linetskaya d. Mauresmo ...2-6/6-2/7-5. Even when the Horde falters, the Hordettes take up some of the slack. -------------------------------------- 2.2nd - Chakvetadze d. Jankovic ...2-6/6-2/6-4. No, that wasn't Jelena DOKIC playing that match. If that'd been the case, this match probably wouldn't have gone three sets, silly. -------------------------------------- 3.3rd - Zuluaga d. Hantuchova ...6-3/6-2. So much for re-living the Indian Wells experience. -------------------------------------- 4.2nd - Kutuzova d. Pennetta ...7-6/4-6/6-3. No, she's not Russian. -------------------------------------- 5.Qual.2 - Salerni d. Dokic ...7-6/6-0. Dokic led 4-1 and was a point from 5-1 in the 1st set, fell behind 5-6, battled back to force a TB, lost it 7-2... then didn't win another game. It's gonna be a long road back, if she ever makes it back at all. -------------------------------------- HM-Doubles 1r - Gagliardi/Jankovic d. Kuznetsova/Navratilova ...6-2/6-2. Apparently, it's no longer 2003. [4th Round to Final] 1.SF - Davenport d. Sharapova ...6-0/6-0. In 49 minutes. It'll either be the most telling or most bizarro result of the year. Bet money on the latter, and the Supernova's ability to rebound. -------------------------------------- 2.Final - Clijsters d. Davenport ...6-4/4-6/6-2. Davenport led 4-0 in the first, with points for 5-0. -------------------------------------- 3.QF - Dementieva d. Kuznetsova ..3-6/6-3/7-5. The Contessova double-faulted on MP, giving Punch-Sober reason to finally want to talk to her after all that drug test testiness from January. -------------------------------------- HM-QF - Clijsters d. Martinez ...6-1/3-6/6-2. Martinez, 32, was nearly the combined age of Clijsters' two previous opponents (18-year olds Linetskaya and Chakvetadze). ====================================== ==LISTS== *TIER I TITLES - ACTIVE** 10...Davenport 9....Martinez 7....S.Williams 6....Henin-Hardenne 6....V.Williams 5....Mauresmo 3....Clijsters 3....Pierce *LOW-RANKED TIER I WINNER* #133...Kim Clijsters ('05 Indian Wells) #58....Iva Majoli ('02 Charleston) #54....Lisa Bonder ('83 Tokyo) *2005 WINS OVER #1 PLAYER* January #7 S.Williams d. #1 Davenport (Aust.F) February #4 Sharapova d. #1 Davenport (Tokyo F) March #133 Clijsters d. #1 Davenport (IW F) *LOW-RANKED 2005 CHAMPIONS* #134 Sania Mirza (Hyderabad) #133 Kim Clijsters (Indian Wells) #100 Ana Ivanovic (Canberra) *LONG 2005 WTA MATCH WIN STREAKS* 12...Sharapova (Feb-Mar) 10...Pennetta (Feb) 10...Ivanovic (Jan) *CONSECUTIVE YEARS WITH WTA TITLE* 7...Serena Williams (1999-05) 7...Amelie Mauresmo (1999-05) 7...Kim Clijsters (1999-05) (Venus Williams, 7 years, 1998-04) (Next Longest: JHH, 4 years, 2001-04) ====================================== BACKSPIN POP QUIZ #2 ANSWERS b....Rubin, in the QF of Miami in '03. c....Davenport in the Indian Wells '04 Final. ====================================== WEEK 12/13 "WISH LISTS" ...for the record, in the "Indian Wells Duel" I got five quarterfinalists right, while Pierre had four. In the SF, PC had three while I had two. Sharapova's double-bagel left us both gasping for breath with zero finalists. Effectively, a dead heat. But in the torture trial that has been my prediction section in '05, I'll deem my mission "accomplished." I finally brought Cantin down to my level. Sure, he's 3-for-4, while I'm 3-for-(edited to protect the children)... but at least he's no longer "perfect." Victory! Let's try this again: MIAMI, FLORIDA USA (I-HO) 2004 F: S.Williams d. Dementieva 2005 TOP: Mauresmo/Sharapova /Sharapova
=============================

==4th Round==
-TS-
#1 Mauresmo d. #20 Hantuchova
#6 Kuznetsova d. #18 Jankovic
Linetskaya d. #22 Golovin
Clijsters d. Mirza
#11 Schnyder d. #7 V.Williams
#3 S.Williams d. #15 Likhovtseva
#7 Molik d. #19 Henin-Hardenne
#2 Sharapova d. #14 Schiavone

-PC-
Mauresmo(1) def Hantuchova(20)
Kuznetsova(6) def Vaidisova
Dementieva(4) def Bovina(13)
Clijsters def Myskina(5)
Karatantcheva def VWilliams(8)
SWilliams(3) def Likhovtseva(15)
Henin-Hardenne(19) def Molik(7)
Sharapova(2) def Shaughnessy


==Quarterfinals==
-TS-
#1 Mauresmo d. #6 Kuznetsova
Clijsters d. Linetskaya
#3 S.Williams d. #11 Schnyder
#7 Molik d. #2 Sharapova

-PC-
Kuznetsova(6) def Mauresmo(1)
Clijsters def Dementieva(4)
SWilliams(3) def Karantantcheva
Sharapova(2) def Henin-Hardenne

==Semifinals==
-TS-
#1 Mauresmo d. Clijsters
#3 S.Williams d. #7 Molik

-PC-
Kuznetsova(6) def Clijsters
SWilliams(3) def Sharapova(2)

==FINAL=
-TS-
#3 S.Williams d. #1 Mauresmo

...I hate picking Sharapova out in the QF because I have just as much confidence that she might just rebound as she normally does -- by winning the entire tournament. But I'll go with Serena, who has a dream of a draw fit for a three-time defending Miami champion, over Mauresmo (though Clijsters, again, or the slow-starting Kuznetsova wouldn't be a surprise).

-PC-
SWilliams(3) def Kuznetsova(6)

==============================

Ahh...suspense. All for now.




==4th Round==
-TS-
#1 Mauresmo d. #20 Hantuchova
#6 Kuznetsova d. #18 Jankovic
Linetskaya d. #22 Golovin
Clijsters d. Mirza
#11 Schnyder d. #7 V.Williams
#3 S.Williams d. #15 Likhovtseva
#7 Molik d. #19 Henin-Hardenne
#2 Sharapova d. #14 Schiavone

-PC-
Mauresmo(1) def Hantuchova(20)
Kuznetsova(6) def Vaidisova
Dementieva(4) def Bovina(13)
Clijsters def Myskina(5)
Karatantcheva def VWilliams(8)
SWilliams(3) def Likhovtseva(15)
Henin-Hardenne(19) def Molik(7)
Sharapova(2) def Shaughnessy


==Quarterfinals==
-TS-
#1 Mauresmo d. #6 Kuznetsova
Clijsters d. Linetskaya
#3 S.Williams d. #11 Schnyder
#7 Molik d. #2 Sharapova

-PC-
Kuznetsova(6) def Mauresmo(1)
Clijsters def Dementieva(4)
SWilliams(3) def Karantantcheva
Sharapova(2) def Henin-Hardenne

==Semifinals==
-TS-
#1 Mauresmo d. Clijsters
#3 S.Williams d. #7 Molik

-PC-
Kuznetsova(6) def Clijsters
SWilliams(3) def Sharapova(2)

==FINAL=
-TS-
#3 S.Williams d. #1 Mauresmo

...I hate picking Sharapova out in the QF because I have just as much confidence that she might just rebound as she normally does -- by winning the entire tournament. But I'll go with Serena, who has a dream of a draw fit for a three-time defending Miami champion, over Mauresmo (though Clijsters, again, or the slow-starting Kuznetsova wouldn't be a surprise).

-PC-
SWilliams(3) def Kuznetsova(6)

=============================

Ahh...suspense. All for now.