Wk.19-And Miles to Go...

...before she sleeps, or wins Roland Garros. Whichever comes first.



Whatever the unofficial "signpost" is that Nadia Petrova needs to motor past this spring in order to be considered a -- if not THE -- favorite next month in Paris, she has to be in its general vicinity right about now, doesn't she?

You want consistency? Well, there's the four 2006 singles titles (five in total since late October), more than any other player this season. You want an unparalleled period of dominance? Well, she's won three straight titles and left Berlin with fifteen consecutive WTA match wins on clay (she's no Rafael Nadal, of course, but it should be noted that Justine Henin-Hardenne's '05 clay superiority included a 17-match streak heading into what would be her victorious turn at Roland Garros). You say she's not even the best Russian player? Well, she's now #3 in the world -- ahead of Maria Sharapova -- and certainly is more adept on the slower surface of the season's second grand slam, and the Supernova hasn't played in nearly two months. After whipping up on what some might have considered "less than elite" players en route to her other '06 titles, Petrova knocked off none other than the clay queen JHH herself in three tough sets in the Berlin final on Sunday. Enough evidence yet?

"I don't know what to say," said Petrova, "My legs were tired, my back began to hurt in the second set and I had problems serving. All I could do is fight."

And she did, and won. Just as she did in the heat of Charleston against Patty Schnyder last month. In fact, it's hard to name a more match tough player on tour this season, both mentally and physically. At this point, only the previous slam success of the likes of JHH, Kim Clijsters and Svetlana Kuznetsova would prevent an unbiased gent from placing Petrova at the top of the Roland Garros favorite list.

(And since I admit to not exactly belonging in that category when it comes to our fair Scarlett, barring any unforeseen circumstances between now and May 28, my Roland Garros pick is pretty much set in stone... or I should say "set in terre battue?")

Of course, Amelie Mauresmo wasn't really considered a slam-worthy player until she actually won one. No matter how many Tier I titles Petrova picks up before Paris (two after Berlin, meaning all five Tier I titles have gone to Russians this season), it doens't necessarily mean the party will continue on the final Saturday at Suzanne Lenglen. Just ask the Amelie Mauresmo of twelve months ago.

Sleep tight, Nadia. You have some hard work in front of you.


**WEEK 19 CHAMPIONS**

BERLIN, GERMANY (I-Red Clay)
S: Nadia Petrova d. Justine Henin-H. 4-6/6-4/7-5
D: Yan/Zheng d. Dementieva/Pennetta


PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC (IV-Red Clay)
S: Shahar Peer d. Samantha Stosur 4-6/6-2/6-1
D: Bartoli/Peer d. Harkleroad/Mattek

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

**PLAYER AWARDS**

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Nadia Petrova & Shahar Peer
...Petrova knocked out two Russians, two Chinese and a Belgian. Not a bad week of international relations for the tour's hottest player. In some ways, Petrova's late withdrawal from Rome might be more conducive to a title-winning result in Paris than either winning another title (meaning she'd have had to pull off a 27-match streak to win her first slam title) or losing there (which would have given her some extra rest, but when is losing really good, especially when it could sow seeds of doubt at just the wrong time?) would have. 19-year old Peer won her second title of the season in Prague, sweeping both the singles and doubles (and setting herself up for what would be a quick exit in Rabat).
-----------------------------
RISERS: Zi Yan/Jie Zheng & Na Li
,..suddenly, the Cookies are pouring over the wall. Last week, Li reached a Tier I SF in Berlin and got her first Top 10 win (over Patty Schnyder). Meanwhile, the Aussie Open-winning doubles team of Yan/Zheng took the Berlin title (both moved into the doubles Top 10 on Monday), while Zheng reached the 3rd Round in singles a week after winning in Estoril. Also, Shuai Peng reached the Prague SF. Combined, the last two weeks, the Li-Zheng-Peng trio have gone 18-4.
-----------------------------
SURPRISES: Magdalena Rybarikova & Kaia Kanepi
...17-year old Slovakian wild card, ranked #285, Rybarikova opened up the week in Prague with a big upset of Czech Lucie Safarova en route to the QF. Estonia's Kanepi took out #1-seeded Marion Bartoli on her way to the Prague SF, matching a career-best ('05 Kolkata) result.
-----------------------------
VETERAN: Martina Hingis
...in Berlin, the Swiss Miss got another Top 10 win (over Elena Dementieva), and might have gotten another over Amelie Mauresmo in the QF if the match hadn't been extended into a second day, enabling the world #1 to take the 3rd set on Saturday.
-----------------------------
FRESH FACES: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova & Raluca Olaru
...in January, 15-year old Russian Pavlyuchenkova won the Australian Open junior title after beating 17-year old Romanian Olaru in the SF. Last week, Pavlyuchenkova won her first ITF title in a $10K event in Casale, while Olaru won the $10K in Rabat to complete a back-to-back ITF title run (she won in Bucharest previously).
-----------------------------
DOWN: Justine Henin-Hardenne
...JHH won Berlin in 2002-03 & '05, but her dominance was thwarted by Petrova this time around. She's here this week not because of the loss, but because of the pattern she's starting to develop in '06. While Petrova has won while battling physical ailments and fought through bad patches, JHH rarely has. She's either great (case in point, her thrashing of Mauresmo in the SF) or loses in three sets. Not something to ponder for most players, but a point to note for a player who made her name while managing to win big matches even when her game wasn't at its best and/or she was physically compromised. It could be a key to her attempt to defend (or not) her Roland Garros title next month.
-----------------------------

**MATCHES**

1.Ber F - Petrova d. JHH
...4-6/6-4/7-5. Petrova was 1-8 vs. JHH before this match.
============================
2.Ber SF - JHH d. Mauresmo
...6-1/6-2. In their first meeting since the Melbourne final, JHH showed Mauresmo what she can do when she's feeling well (and after Mauresmo had to complete her QF match with Hingis earlier in the day). Of course, the next day Mauresmo pulled out of Rome citing exhaustion.
============================
3.Prag F - Peer d. Stosur
...4-6/6-2/6-1. Who would have thought Stosur might have gotten her first singles title on clay? Well, as it turned out, it didn't matter anyway.
============================
4.Ber Doub.F - Yan/Zheng d. Dementieva/Pennetta
...6-2/6-3. Raymond/Stosur didn't show up at this Tier I.
============================
5.Ber 1st - N.Li d. Ivanovic
...1-6, ret. Days after being forced to retire in the Estoril final herself, Li got some love from the tennis gods.
============================
HM-Prag Doub.1st - Navratilova/Strycova d. Blahtova/Rolle
...6-2/6-3. Martina's first action in her former homeland (and maybe future home?) in 20 years resulted in a win, and a standing ovation. The winning stopped in the 2nd Round, but the applause didn't.
============================


==WTA LISTS==

*2006 SINGLES TITLES*
4...NADIA PETROVA
3...Amelie Mauresmo
2...Justine Henin-Hardenne
2...SHAHAR PEER

*MOST CONSECUTIVE WTA TITLES*
3...Amelie Mauresmo (Jan-Feb)
3...NADIA PETROVA (APR-CURRENT)

*LONG 2006 WTA WINNING STREAKS*
16...Amelie Mauresmo (Jan-Feb)
15...NADIA PETROVA (APR-CURRENT)
11...Maria Sharapova (March)
10...Justine Henin-Hardenne (January)

*2006 WINS OVER WORLD #1*
--WTA EVENTS--
Australian QF - #6 JHH d. #1 Davenport
Antwerp F - #2 Mauresmo d. #1 Clijsters
Miami SF - #14 Kuznetsova d. #1 Mauresmo
BERLIN SF - #7 JHH d. #1 MAURESMO
--FED CUP--
1st Rd - #11 Schiavone d. #1 Mauresmo
--EXHIBITION--
Hong Kong - #2 Clijsters d. #1 Davenport

*2006 SINGLES/DOUBLES TITLE SWEEPS*
Anna-Lena Groenefeld - Acapulco
SHAHAR PEER - PRAGUE

*2006 SINGLES FINALS*
4...NADIA PETROVA (4-0)
4...Amelie Mauresmo (3-1)
4...JUSTINE HENIN-HARDENNE (2-2)
3...Maria Sharapova (1-2)
3...Flavia Pennetta (0-3)

*2006 RUSSIAN WTA TITLES*
4...NADIA PETROVA
1...Elena Dementieva
1...Svetlana Kuznetsova
1...Maria Sharapova

*2006 DOUBLES TITLES*
5...Lisa Raymond/Samantha Stosur
2...Ting Li/Tiantian Sun
2...ZI YAN/JIE ZHENG


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

**WEEK 20 - BATTLE ROYALE CONTINUES**

...of course, I correctly predicted both finalists (again) in Berlin but (again) STILL couldn't notch a correct champion pick. What else is new. Hey, at least I've gotten a bit of a lead on Tennisrulz head honcho Pierre Cantin in the Royale:

[4th Rd. ...tied 19-19]
QF...Backspin leads 25-20
SF...Pierre leads 13-12
F...Backspin leads 5-2
W...tied 0-0

(seriously, how can NEITHER of us have picked a champion yet?)


ROME, ITALY (I-Red Clay)
05 F: Mauresmo d. Schnyder
06 TOP: #2 Clijsters (#1 Mauresmo, #3 Sharapova & #4 Petrova w/d)
=============================

--Backspin's Picks--

QUARTERFINALS
Hingis d. Medina-Garrigues
V.Williams d. Srebotnik
Kuznetsova d. Hantuchova (Wonder Girl is already out, but she WAS my pick)
Clijsters d. Dementieva
SEMIFINALS
Hingis d. V.Williams
Clijsters d. Kuznetsova
FINAL
Clijsters d. Hingis

--Pierre's Picks--

QF:
Hingis def Pennetta
VWilliams def Srebotnik
Kuznetsova def Hantuchova
Clijsters def Dementieva

SF:
Hingis def VWilliams
Clijsters def Kuznetsova

F:
Clijsters def Hingis



RABAT, MOROCCO (IV-Red Clay)
05 F: Llagostera-Vives d. Zheng
06 TOP: Bartoli/Zheng
============================

FINAL: Zheng def. A.Bondarenko


All for now.