Day 5: Sweet 16 Stories, Part I

The bottom half of the women's final sixteen is set. Amongst the group is a 17-year old Aggie ranked #217 in the world, a 26-year old qualifier, two former slam champions, a Wonder Girl and a 30-year old veteran who pushed Martina out the door on Day 5.


**THE SWEET 16**
(bottom half)

==BY AGE==
30...Ai Sugiyama, JAPAN
26...Severine Bremond, FRANCE
24...Na Li, CHINA
24...Justine Henin-Hardenne, BELGIUM
23...Daniela Hantuchova, SLOVAK REPUBLIC
23...Kim Clijsters, BELGIUM
17...Agnieszka Radwanska, POLAND
17...Nicole Vaidisova, CZECH REPUBLIC
==BY RANKING==
#2 Kim Clijsters
#3 Justine Henin-Hardenne
#13 Nicole Vaidisova
#18 Daniela Hantuchova
#21 Ai Sugiyama
#30 Na Li
#129 Severine Bremond
#217 Agnieszka Radwanska


Their stories:

...Justine Henin-Hardenne has now won 14 straight matches, third best on tour this season (16-Mauresmo, 15-Petrova). So far, she's yet to drop a set or be even remotely challenged. She'll next face Daniela Hantuchova, who finds her seemingly forever not-quite-as-wonderful-as-she-used-to-be Wonder Girl self in a familiar position since her one-time Top 5 ranking took a tumble and she developed a knack for emotionally melting down at the drop of a break point. Since that down period, Hantuchova has on several occasions gotten to a point where she faces a match that could finally help her make "the leap back" if she were to win, only to fail to muster anything close to what she needs to accomplish the feat. Here's another chance against JHH. Pierre predicted that she would indeed upset the Roland Garros champion here in his Battle Royale predictions. We shall see.

If Henin-Hardenne gets past Hantuchova, who last reached the QF in 2002, it would mean that likely only Kim Clijsters could possibly stand in Le Petit Taureau's way with a shot to prevent her from playing for her "career slam" on the final Saturday. But with Clijsters once again seeming to psych herself out when she faces her fellow Belgian, the JHH-Hantuchova match might just amount to the REAL SEMIFINAL as far as Justine is concerned.

Of course, maybe Clijsters won't even make it to that potential quasi-semifinal vs. Justine. After all, her next opponent has been making strides so fast that she could be ready to elbow Kim out of the spotlight.



Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska, 17, has come quite a long way in the past year. She was the 2005 Wimbledon Girls champion, then ended the year at #381. A few months ago, she shocked Anastasia Myskina in Warsaw en route to her first tour QF. She's coming off claiming the Roland Garros Girls title, and has now reached a slam 4th Round. Could claiming a huge slam upset be next on the list for Aggie? If so, a star would be born.

Speaking of rising stars, Nicole Vaidisova is still kicking around the All-England Club. She's done so pretty quietly, too, despite winning two separate matches by tight 7-5/7-5 scores. Originally, it looked as if the Dynamova's next match would offer her the chance for some revenge against Svetlana Kuznetsova for that blown SF match in Paris. Nicole made the date, but the Contessova didn't.

Instead, it'll be Na Li facing the Czech teen next. Today, Li upset #5-seed Kuznetsova 3-6/6-2/6-3 in the biggest win ever in a slam by a Chinese player. After slipping by the likes of Vaidisova, Groenefeld and Peschke despite flirting with defeat, Kuznetsova couldn't turn around her fortunes against Li. She almost did, though. Li led 4-1 in the 3rd set, but when the Russian broke her to get the score to 4-3 it looked like Kuznetsova might do it again. But Li would have none of it.

Kuznetsova wasn't the only former slam champ to be bounced today, either. Martina Hingis said bye-bye, as well, losing to Japanese vet Ai Sugiyama, 30, in three sets. Sugiyama will now re-enter the Top 20 after this tournament, the season after she lost in the 1st Round in three of the slams. For the right to face JHH in the quarters (hmmm... am I speaking too soon on that?), Sugiyama will face #129-ranked qualifier Severine Bremond.



On a six-match winning streak on the grass, Bremond knocked out Gisela Dulko (maybe she should have worn that "athletic" string bikini?), giving her a leg up on being the Last Qualifier Standing (the only other qualifer remaining, Nicole Pratt, faces Mauresmo tomorrow). Oh, on a side note, if you have the WTA/ATP Tennis Guide for this year, check out Bremond's bio photo. It's quite a beautiful shot, really. It's different from her tour website picture, and I'd give it the unofficial title of "Best Photo" in this year's guide... but that's just my opinion.

"Sweet 16 Stories, Part II" arrives tomorrow, as long as the London weather forecast holds up.


Meanwhile...





Saturday should be a great day for American tennis fans watching their televisions. It SHOULD be, but if things go as they SEEM they will, it'll be a crying shame. This is what I expect: ESPN will come on air at 8am, just in time for the Nadal-Agassi match to start, but the network will not be allowed to show it because of NBC's exclusivity rights. Four hours later, at noon, NBC will air the match on tape... just as the Roddick/Murray match is being played live. After the Nadal/Agassi theatre, the Battle of the Andys will be shown (on tape) on ESPN at 3pm. So, on the Saturday of a holiday weekend, the two most interesting matches of the tournament's first week will take place, both of them with American players, and no tennis fan in America will be able to see either one even though two networks will air a combined ten consecutive hours of coverage throughout the day. On Independence Day weekend, the freedom of the tennis fan will be infringed upon yet again. So what else is new?



All for Day 5. More tomorrow.

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Day 4: Venus Being Venus, Rafa Being Rafa

It's not as if she hasn't done this before, but still. It's not as if it would have been a flabbergasting surprise to see him exit so early, but still.



As it turned out, though, both Venus Williams and Rafael Nadal were the ones celebrating, while Lisa Raymond and Robert Kendrick were left to wonder how it all went so very wrong.

It was going to happen again. Venus' house of cards was going to be blown over by her 32-year old American countrywoman. A doubles specialist, no less... but one playing possibly the best singles match of her life, volleying like Stefan Edberg with the aggression of Boris Becker. She was taking it to Williams, even as the defending champ wasn't exactly falling apart. For once, it wasn't Venus' errors causing the problems. It was the opponent.

Raymond led 7-6/5-2. She served for the match at 5-3 and got to within two points of a monumental upset that would have brought this tournament to its knees, and set off a round of "what's up with Venus?" questions all over again.

It's amazing what a few minutes can do.

Suddenly, Williams' game and heart aligned perfectly, and Raymond was as good as dead. (Just ask Lindsay Davenport how it felt about a year ago.) When all seemed lost, Venus' eleventh hour wake up call ended the match in an instant. Raymond was broken. Williams held serve easily. The match was over, even if Venus DID still have to win nine of the remaining eleven games to make it official.

It was just Venus being Venus... sometimes looking like a mess, but able to transform into a devastatingly destructive tennis butterfly at any moment. Today, Court One was her chrysalis, and Raymond failed to pull off Williams' wings when she had the chance. Her inability to do so could end up being the lost moment in time that determines the eventual champion of this tournament.

Just as Venus did, Rafa had his own moments in the shade and sun on Centre Court. The clay court king with the desire to win on grass, but maybe not the game to fully pull it off just yet, was down two sets to none to a qualifier ranked #237 in the world before he, too, found his form just in the nick of time, wearing down Kendrick both physically and mentally to escape an upset.

Nadal almost lived up to his grass court reputation, but survived on the guts and guile that've made him so good on the red dirt. Now we get the gladiator match-up of all gladiator match-ups (well, at least the best you'll find that doesn't include Roger Federer) on Saturday, as Nadal faces Andre Agassi in a bit of theatre that, fittingly, will either send the little bald guy off into Wimbledon history, or become the inspiration for one final fascinating SW19 chapter.

Either way, it'll be a moment to remember, not to mention savor.

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**WOMEN'S EARLY ROUND AWARDS**
[1r-2r]
-TOP PLAYERS-
1.Justine Henin-Hardenne
2.Amelie Mauresmo
3.Maria Sharapova

RISERS: Daniela Hantuchova & Shuai Peng
SURPRISES: Melanie South & Sarah Borwell
VETERANS: Nicole Pratt & Tamarine Tanasugarn
FRESH FACES: Agnieszka Radwanska & Tszvetana Pironkova
DOWN: Anna-Lena Groenefeld & Patty Schnyder

-TOP MATCHES-
1. 2nd- V.Williams d. Raymond 6-7/7-5/6-2
2. 2nd- Medina-Garrigues d. Fernandez 6-7/7-5/11-9
3. 1st- Safina d. Craybas 6-3/5-7/7-5



Love/Love... sometimes, the pressure is just too much
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15/Love... the race to be the last women's qualifier standing is down to three -- Nicole Pratt, Tamarine Tanasugarn and Severine Bremond. Irakli Labadze was the only men's qualifier to reach the 3rd Round.
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15/15... #8 Patty Schnyder, who lost today to Bremond, was the first Top 10 women's seed to fall. #9 Nikolay Davydenko had lost in the 1st Round to Alejandro Falla earlier in the week to be the first top men's seed ousted.
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15/30... Dinara Safina has outlasted big brother Marat in yet another slam. Today, Marat blew a big lead against Fernando Gonzalez, while Dinara overcame a set and a break deficit against Mashona Washington (which, in an odd way, continues the Roland Garros pigeon scenario, as it was Washington who lost a 5-2 lead with match points to Sharapova in the 1st Round in Paris, and then Sharapova who eventually lost a 5-1 lead to Safina in the 4th Round). But one wonders how many Wimbledon lives Safina has left, considering she had to save a match point against Jill Craybas in the 1st Round before finally escaping that one.
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15/40... your Wimbledon "Upset Queens?" The Brits, Melanie South and Sarah Borwell for their 1st Round upsets of Francesca Schiavone and Marta Domachowska, respectively. Both lost today in the 2nd Round, by the way.
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30/40... quietly, after the contingent missed Wimbledon a year ago because of the Asian Games, three Chinese women (Na Li, Jie Zheng and Shuai Peng) have advanced to the Round of 32. They were a combined 0-2 at SW19 before winning two matches each, so far, this year.
-============================
Deuce... the women's Round of 32, by nation:

7...Russia (Sharapova, Kuznetsova, Dementieva, Myskina, Safina, Likhovtseva, Chakvetadze)
3...China (N.Li, Peng, Zheng)
3...USA (V.Williams, Perry, Frazier)
2...Belgium (Clijsters, Henin-H.)
2...France (Mauresmo, Bremond)
2...Serbia (Ivanovic, Jankovic)
1...Argentina (Dulko)
1...Australia (Pratt)
1...Austria (Bammer)
1...Croatia (Sprem)
1...Czech Republic (Vaidisova)
1...Italy (Pennetta)
1...Japan (Sugiyama)
1...Poland (Radwanska)
1...Slovenia (Srebotnik)
1...Spain (Medina-Garrigues)
1...Switzerland (Hingis)
1...Slovak Republic (Hantuchova)
1...Thailand (Tanasugarn)

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Ad... Andre Agassi won his 222nd career slam singles match today, tying him with Ivan Lendl for second in men's slam history. The Top 3:

233...Jimmy Connors
222...Andre Agassi
222...Ivan Lendl

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Game, "BATTLING FARCE WITH FACT"... anyone who wants to counter someone's argument for the Club's unequal pay policy being based on the additional amount of time spent on court by the men's players should show a tape of the Roddick/Mayer match from today to the person in question. Push Play, then walk out of the room. 1:09 (and THREE sets!) later, any of that person's arguments will effectively be moot.
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All for Day 4. More tomorrow.

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ALSO: Federerisms: Wimbledon Special Edition on ATP Backspin

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Day 3: Move Over, Anne White (& Billie Jean, too)?

What is it about this year's Wimbledon? First, it was Roger Federer walking onto Centre Court in a cream-colored blazer. Now, it's Bethanie Mattek sporting knee socks and a beach boardwalk rollerskater outfit right out of the 1970's.



You gotta hand it to the girl. It takes some guts to try to upstage one of the Williams sisters, they of the beads, hoop earrings, the infamous catsuit, the go-go boots and a warm-up outfit with "Serena" stitched in sequins on the back. It's a good thing Mattek came up with SOMETHING to distract everyone, since she wasn't in the match from the moment the first ball was struck. Venus made her title defense debut a day late, but not the least bit out of form.

And with Williams' appearance comes the potentially delicious possibility of her raising the champion's plate (or even the RU platter) on July 8, then using the recently-new oncourt interview portion of the ceremony to ask the crowd to voice an opinion on the issue she's taking the lead in championing -- equal pay for the women's field at the All-England Club's championships, just as in the other three grand slam events.

Reading "The Rivals," the moment could harken back to the days in the 1970's (you know, when Mattek's outfit was in fashion) when Billie Jean King was fuming about incidents such as the one tournament in which the purses for the fields were thus: $60,000 for the men, $7,500 for the women. One wonders, if Venus got the expected response from the spectators, if the-powers-that-be might cut off the microphone like they do at the Oscars when the acceptance speech clock winds down. Wouldn't the entire thing be great fun? It'd be a nice post-match sideshow to stick around for after the final ball in struck.

Ah, another reason for Backspin to root for Venus this year.

As for Mattek, though. As inspired as her get-up was today, she's got nothing on Anne White.



White retired the Wimbledon "My God, What is She Wearing?" Award back in 1985 with her lycra bodysuit. It might take Gisela Dulko walking out in a Nike-designed "athletic" string bikini to confiscate that trophy from White's mantle.

Not that too many would hold anything against Gisela if she tried to take the title. And if they were bothered? Who cares.



Love/Love... before the tournament, I wondered how many people would have ever heard the names of qualifiers Ivana Abramovic and Yaroslava Shvedova when their matches began. After their opening matches today, maybe it'd be better for everyone if they weren't remembered for Wimbledon '06. Abramovic was double-bageled by Amelie Mauresmo, while Shvedova suffered the indignity of having to retire from her match with Lisa Raymond while leading the veteran 5-3 in the 1st set.
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15/Love... four more qualifiers won today, two women (Clarisa Fernandez & Nicole Pratt) and two men (Alejandro Falla & Irakli Labadze).
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15/15... anyone else, at least for a few moments, think that Andy Roddick was going to go down in flames in yet another slam today against Janko Tipsarevic? Not to mention starting to root for it to happen, too? Slams have a way of making players you haven't seen much (or never seen at all) suddenly become your new favorite player, if only for a few hours. Since Roddick won, though... let's go for that all-Andy match-up in the 3rd Round!
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30/15... hmmm, Mauresmo only had to complete four of a potential seven matches to win her slam title in Melbourne. Today, Kim Clijsters got a 2nd Round pass with a walkover against Viktoriya Kutuzova. Think it's a sign of something? Nah. Me, either.
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30/30... MATCH POINT SAVED WATCH: Dinara Safina did the deed against Jill Craybas (conqueror of Serena Williams a year ago) today.
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40/30... one quarter of my men's SF picks was dependent on Felciano Lopez upsetting #5 Ivan Ljubicic in the 1st Round today. After going down two sets, Lopez put on a furious comeback and eventually was up a break in the 5th set. In the end, though, Ljubicic prevailed 11-9 in the deciding stanza, winning on his eighth match point. Figures.
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Deuce... Slingin' Sammy Stosur knocked off 's-Hertogenbosch champ Michaella Krajicek in their 1st Round match. So much for that tune-up Netherlands title meaning anything at all at SW19. Last year, Klara Koukalova was the champion. The year before? Mary Pierce.
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Ad... how scary was Roger Federer's public dissection of "the man formerly known as" Tim Henman? It was like a cat playing with a trapped mouse. That makes Federer 6-for-6 in sets so far... and I smell a Special Edition of Wimbledon-styled "Federerisms" coming tomorrow.
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Deuce... Anna Smashnova lost to Maria Sharapova in the 1st Round today, as expected. You can make a strong -- almost iron-clad -- case that Smashnova is THE worst slam player in WTA history. She has eleven career WTA singles titles (and is 11-0 in finals, no less!), but is the only woman in tour history with ten or more titles who has never once advanced to a slam QF. Her best career results are a pair of Roland Garros 4th Rounds in '95 and '98. She's a combined 30-45 in the four majors, with 25 1st Round exits.
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Ad... don't look now, but the "B-team" Americans (hmmm, they need a nickname, I think) are at it again just weeks after their surprising results in Paris. Among the 1st Round winners have been Jamea Jackson, Meilen Tu, Amy Frazier, Mashona Washington, Meghann Shaughnessy, Laura Granville, Shenay Perry, Ashley Harkleroad and Vania King.
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Game, "MAKING UP FOR KATIE O'BRIEN'S FAUX PAS"... a day after the Brits seemed to lose their best shot at a 1st Round women's winner, Melanie South and Sarah Borwell



scored wins today. South upset #11-seed Francesca Schiavone, while Borwell downed Marta Domachowska. Next up are Shenay Perry (for South) and Ana Ivanovic (for Borwell). Their chances might not be so good to reach the Round of 32... but if one does manage to make it through it'd at least take away a little of the hurt that'll probably come about this weekend when Beckham and the lads likely disappoint the nation, right?
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All for Day 3. More tomorrow.

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Day 2: A Tale of Two Andres

He was the worst at times, but became the best over time... and so now begins his final walk down history's path.



Twenty years ago, if someone would have told you that Andre Agassi would be the player and man he is today, you might have thought the person was an insane dreamer viewing the world through rose-colored glasses with extra-think lenses. Back then, the long-haired, denim-clad, neon-glowing, Vegas-born son of a former Iranian Olympic boxer was anything but the model player, citizen and family man he's turned out to be. He had a suspected penchant for tanking matches, a knack for losing the big one and was all about flash, dash and "Image is Everything."



He was the "Zen Master," as Barbra Streisand called him, with an oh-so-'80s fashion sense. "Mister Brooke Shields," with an early-career aversion to Wimbledon's dress code (Wear white? Me?) and the audacity to publicly point out what he viewed as Pete Sampras' resemblance to humanity's simian ancestors.

Who'd ever think that he would finally make his slam breakthrough by winning Wimbledon in 1992, then go on and become the fifth man ever (and the only one whose entire career took place during the Open Era) to complete the career slam by winning all four majors? He always had the talent, but it took some time for him to find the heart and the commitment. But when he did, everything changed. He formed a friendly alliance with Sampras to build the best men's tennis rivalry of the past two decades, and went from one-time brat to maturing statesman by marrying Steffi Graf and becoming a two-time father.

Twenty years ago, you'd never have believed that the respectful 36-year old bald man with the hand-made "Daddy Rocks" necklace (rather than some gold-plated bling) who walked onto Centre Court for his first match at what will be his last Wimbledon was the same Andre Agassi that we thought we knew way back when. The Andre who seemed like the bastard child of "bad" Jimmy Connors and Johnny Mac will soon exit, in many ways, more resembling a showman-like Arthur Ashe for the new millennium... and to further prove the point, Agassi even won the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian Award in '95 for his good works off the court.

We really didn't know Agassi back then. Maybe he didn't really know himself yet, either. Thank goodness for the intervening time that's fostered the transformation, in image and reality, of the man who will walk away from the sport following the U.S. Open. The raucous welcome he received in England today will pale in comparison to the one he'll get in New York City, but it was as authentic as he has become. In the end, he won everybody over.

Occasionally, time, while often an enemy of a world class athlete, can also be their saving grace. That's been the case for Agassi... and we and the sport are all better for it. It's been a wild, sometimes odd, often frustrating, but always entertaining ride. But it's not over yet. Enjoy it while it lasts, for however much longer that is.

Twenty years ago, if you'd said you wished everyone could be like that Andre you'd been worthy of a stick in the eye. But in 2006? Yeah, being like this Andre would be pretty nice indeed... that'd make anyone proud.



love/love... on Day 2, Kveta Peschke defeated Kristina Brandi to become the first official match winner in main draw action at this year's Wimbledon
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love/15... soon afterward, men's #12 seed Thomas Johansson, a semifinalist last year, became the first seeded player to be defeated when he lost to Jonas Bjorkman
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love/30... the first woman's seed to lose? #28 Sofia Arvidsson, to Eva Birnerova
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love/40... obviously, there's no Virginia Wade in the bunch. After having some opening round success in '04 (four winners), the number of British women reaching the 2nd Round dropped to one in '05. Maybe the best chance for an opening round win this year was squandered by Katie O'Brien today, as she blew a 6-2 and a break lead over Tathiana Garbin, losing 6-2/6-7/2-6. No British women has won SW19 since Wade did it in 1977.
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15/40... Justine Henin-Hardenne burst out of the gates early on Day 2, thought not in Barbaro-esque fashion (thankfully). Without any messy aftermath, JHH won her 12th straight match by a bludgeoning 6-0/6-1 score over Meng Yuan. One can be sure that Yuan's loved ones were notified of the tragedy in due time.
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30/40... Jamea Jackson dropped the 1st set to Kirsten Flipkens, but the Georgia Peach stormed back to win 4-6/6-4/6-1, giving Virginie Pichet at least a small vicarious thrill to hold her over until she gets her own shot at payback versus the mini-Waffle.
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Deuce... in typical fashion, Ivo Karlovic had another one of those matches today against Stanislas Wawrinka. When you see a 7-6(5)/3-6/6-2/7-6(8)/11-9 scoreline in a 1st Round match at Wimbledon, you can likely assume that the big Croat was involved. And, as is often the case, he once again came out on the losing side.
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Ad... after swatting away Richard Gasquet in a virtual grass court tennis clinic, is it too soon to say that Roger Federer (tough draw be damned!) might not drop a set at this year's tournament? His win today gave him sole possession of the longest grass winning streak in ATP history -- 42 matches.
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Deuce... if the potential player/coach pairing of Andy Murray and Brad Gilbert becomes a reality, what will Roddick do if he becomes the world's #2 Andy sometime during the next two years?
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Ad... looks like Eastbourne wasn't the learning experience that Backspin's Girl Friday was hoping for. At least, not yet. After choking away a sure QF win over Svetlana Kuznetsova last week, Anna-Lena Groenefeld had a shot to make a quick rebound on the grass courts that might have been friendly to her big game. But, with just two aces against seven double-faults, she didn't get the expected help from her serve and blew a set advantage today, losing in three sets to Tszvetana Pironkova. Yes, that's the same Pironkova who last made big slam news in Melbourne when she upset Venus Williams. You know, while watching the Bulgarian some five months ago, you kind of got the feeling she wasn't the type to go away quietly after one big moment in the spotlight. The gut feeling was correct.
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Deuce... seven qualifiers won 1st Round matches today, four men (Benjamin Becker, Stefano Galvani, Roko Karanusic and Robert Kendrick) and three women (Severine Bremond, Tamarine Tanasugarn and Meilen Tu).
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Ad... the entire men's draw was scheduled, and slightly more than half actually completed their matches. After being forced to delay the traditional Tuesday appearance of the defending women's champion, Venus Williams is expected to make her 2006 SW19 debut on Wednesday.
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Game, "A VERY LITTLE BIT OF KNOWLEDGE APPARENTLY SOMETIMES DOES GO A LONG WAY"... with very little to go on, I still somehow managed to correctly pick seven of the eight World Cup quarterfinalists before play began. (I had Mexico, rather than Argentina.) For what it's worth, my Final Four were Germany, France, Brazil and Portugal. So I can still get three of the four, with Brazil/France meeting in the QF. Hmmm, I wonder if Pierre would allow me to count those picks in the Battle Royale totals?
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All for Day 2. More tomorrow.

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Day 1: Rainy Days and Monday

There were no pigeons to blame this time... it was just Wimbledon being Wimbledon.

If we didn't have at least one day essentially decimated by rain, as Day 1 was today, it just wouldn't be the tournament that's alternately so vexing as well as majestic. In fact, if we didn't have a rainy day during the fortnight, THAT'S when we might have to suspect outside influences were plotting something even more unusual down the line.



Love-Love... there was play for only about 30 minutes today, give or take a game or two. Oh, that retractable roof can't get to Centre Court fast enough, can it? 2009 seems so faaaar away.


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15-Love... the matches closest to completion? Well, Martina Hingis leads Olga Savchuk 6-2, Vera Dushevina is up 6-1 over Akiko Morigami, and Eva Birnerova holds a 6-2/0-1 advantage over #28-seed Sofia Arvidsson.
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15-15... Some seem to think that Roger Federer might be vulnerable in this tournament, what with the losses to Nadal playing on his mind, those match points Olivier Rochus held against him a few weeks ago, and the something-less-than-a-walk-in-the-park draw he received. Hmmm, since this weekend's Nottingham champ Richard Gasquet was supposed to be a real test for Federer, does the fact that he quickly took the opening set from the French 20-year old mean that the questions about Federer are really just a little ado about something less than nothing?
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30-15... speaking of Federer, how great was the blazer look he sported today when he walked onto Centre Court?



It's no catsuit (and thank you, Roger, for that), but it'll do rather nicely, I'd say.
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40-15... Martina Navratilova is now #20 in the doubles rankings after her RU result with Liezel Huber at Eastbourne.
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40-30... Cali Girl Alexa Glatch, 16, won her first pro title at a $10K in Fort Worth, Texas over the weekend, defeating Jamie Hampton 6-4/6-1 in the final. So maybe there's ANOTHER American teenager, along with Jamea Jackson (who turned her game around in time to break Kirsten Flipkens today when she was serving for the 1st set at 5-3... putting a big smile on Virginie Pichet's face, hopefully), to keep at least one eye on.
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Game, "DYING A DELICIOUSLY CRUEL DEATH IN STOPPAGE TIME"... I'm not really a soccer fan (hey, I'm an American... we're sociologically allergic to the game), but I do pay some attention to the World Cup. Did you see how Italy defeated Australia with a penalty kick in the closing seconds of stoppage time? What a cool way to end a game, huh? Well, unless you're an Aussie, of course.


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All for Day 1. More Tomorrow.

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Wimbledon Preview: The Deep End of the Court

Ah, Wimbledon. The Big W. SW19. Both the King and Queen of the slams, if for no other reason than the novelty of being the last remaining major grass court tournament in the world. The All-England Club is steeped in tradition and history, so why not apply a little of that to this year's action?

Yeah, I know I tried to work that angle before Roland Garros, too. It didn't work then, so much so that the injury that contributed to Nadia Petrova's 1st Round exit in Paris has knocked her from the draw for this slam, as well. But, undaunted, Backspin presses forward with the "every broken clock is right twice a day" philosophy, and takes another stab at it (and, no, that's not a Guenter Parche reference... well, at least not until right now).

With Lindsay Davenport and Serena Williams, winners of a combined three Wimbledon titles and runners-up three additional times since 1999, are both on the sidelines this year, leaving the door ajar for some fresh meat to stake a claim to the big plate... or the most consistently successful grass court player of the decade to add another chapter to her SW19 history.

**WIMBLEDON FINALS- 2000=05**
2000 Venus Williams d. Lindsay Davenport
2001 Venus Williams d. Justine Henin
2002 Serena Williams d. Venus Williams
2003 Serena Williams d. Venus Williams
2004 Maria Sharapova d. Serena Williams
2005 Venus Williams d. Lindsay Davenport

See any sort of pattern there? The 2000's have yet to experience a Wimbledon final that didn't include a Williams, even with all the sisters' ups-and-downs over that time span. Obviously, there's only one player who can continue this grass-stained 21st century march.

Sometimes we forget just how superior Venus has been at Wimbledon. As a three-time winner and defending champ, she's appeared in five of the last six Wimbledon finals. If not for that umpire who couldn't keep score in '04, she might have been in six straight... and if not for her little sister, might be carrying on a Samprasian tradition on Centre Court.

After a long layoff following the Australian Open, Venus rejoined the tour just before Roland Garros. She faired pretty well, too, on the surface least suited to her style of play. She reached the QF, and seemed to be on her way to peaking during the forthcoming fortnight. I said as much at the time, and now find myself itching to do a 180 on my less than enthusiastic reaction to Venus' coming-up-for-air championship of a year ago. You know, the one where she jumped and jumped and jumped and jumped and jumped for...



...well, you get the idea. She might STILL be jumping in some alternate universe, for all we know.

Wimbledon does sometimes make for strange bedfellows, and Backspin and Venus might be fit to be tied over the next two weeks.

But how can Justine be ignored?

Here I was, moving forward with the idea of Venus, if you will, bringing a little title for Backspin to thrill and -- wham! -- Henin-Hardenne is magnificent in Eastbourne, looking better on grass than ever and stepping forward as the only top player emerging from the tune-up events with any sort of sustainable momentum. Oh, and JHH has some history she's chasing, too. The only slam she's yet to win is SW19, and a title there would add her name to this illustrious list of "Career Slam" winners:

**WON ALL FOUR SLAMS**
[Aust-RG-Wimb-US titles]
Doris Hart (1-2-1-2, 1949-55)
Maureen Connelly (1-2-3-3, 1951-54)
Shirley Fry (1-1-1-1, 1951-57)
Margaret Court (11-5-3-5, 1960-73)
Billie Jean King (1-1-6-4, 1966-75)
Chris Evert (2-7-3-6, 1974-86)
Martina Navratilova (3-2-9-4, 1978-90)
Steffi Graf (4-6-7-5, 1987-99)
Serena Williams (2-1-2-2, 1999-05)

An SW19 win would cement Henin-Hardenne's place in tennis history, and would officially reinstall her atop the women's game, circa 2006.

No matter how much I'd enjoy shining a spotlight on the likes of Maria Sharapova, Nicole Vaidisova or Nadia Pe- (whoops, force of habit, I guess) as one of my picks to take this year's title, I simply can't escape the Venus/Justine vortex of power. It's completely sucked me in. I have my two finalists.

Now, picking someone to WIN the title? That's an entirely different story.



**2006 WIMBLEDON QUALIFIERS**
[3 youngest]
16...Yung-Jan Chan, TPE
18...Vasilisa Bardina, RUS
18...Yaroslava Shvedova, RUS
-----------------------------
[3 oldest]
33...Nicole Pratt, AUS
29...Tamarine Tanasugarn, THA
28...Meilen Tu, USA
-----------------------------
[lucky loser]
Julia Vakulenko
-----------------------------
[last qualifier standing?]
Bardina or Tanasugarn

**FIRST SEED OUT??**
[contenders]
#17 Maria Kirilenko (vs. Asagoe)
#24 Marion Bartoli (vs. Pin)
#27 Na Li (vs. Razzano)
#30 Anna Chakvetadze (vs. Yan)
#32 Mara Santangelo (vs. Frazier)
-----------------------------
[maybe, but probably not]
#2 Kim Clijsters (vs. Zvonareva)
#5 Svetlana Kuznesova (vs. Oprandi)
#7 Elena Dementieva (vs. Mirza)
#9 Anastasia Myskina (vs. Black)
#10 Nicole Vaidisova (vs. Koukalova)
-----------------------------
[first Top 10 player out?]
#1 Amelie Mauresmo
#7 Elena Dementieva



...Sheesh. I'm still in a pickle about which way to go. With the player I've been mentally pointing toward since Roland Garros, or the one that I'd probably WANT to win more (and who picking against has been anathema to me successfully making predictions in this woeful season for prognostication... in case you've lost count, last week's 0-for-2 puts me in a wake-me-when-it's-over 21-tournament tailspin)?

Venus or Justine? Such a dilemma. Well, I'll go ahead with the rounds preceding the final.


*Round of 16*
#14 Safina d. #1 Mauresmo
#6 V.Williams d. #9 Myskina
#4 Sharapova d. Daniilidou
#25 Likhovtseva d. #22 Dechy
#12 Hingis d. #31 Dulko
#3 Henin-Hardenne d. Jackson
#5 Kuznetsova d. #10 Vaidisova
#13 Groenefeld d. #2 Clijsters

...the Dynamova gets to show Kuznetsova what she's learned from her loss to her in Paris. Groenefeld gets to show Clijsters what she's learned from HER loss to Kuznetsova in Eastbourne.

*QUARTERFINALS*
#6 V.Williams d. #14 Safina
#4 Sharapova d. #25 Likhovtseva
#3 Henin-Hardenne d. #12 Hingis
#5 Kuznetsova d. #13 Groenefeld

...ALG still might not have learned enough to defeat Kuznetsova this time around, either.

*SEMIFINALS*
#6 V.Williams d. #4 Sharapova
#3 Henin-Hardenne d. #5 Kuznetsova

...I'm already mentally pencilling in a healthier and more in form Sharapova as Wimbledon champion in 2007, though.

In order to delay a final decision a little longer, let's go to Pierre (who's full Wimbledon review can be found on Tennisrulz).


4th round results:
Safina(14) def Mauresmo(1) - this would be pretty big for Dinara, but she seems to be growing in confidence fast...

VWilliams(6) def Myskina(9) - tough one to predict, a 3 set match for sure... Venus is tough to beat on grass though

Sharapova(4) def Peer(20) - no problems here... Peer is solid and a fighter, but in Wimbledon? Nope.. not gonna happen

Dementieva(7) def Dechy(22)

Hingis(12) def Schnyder(8) - battle of the Swiss, an interesting match, but Hingis will outsmart her opponent

Hantuchova(15) def Henin-Hardenne(3) - the upset of the 4th round, Daniela certainly has all the shots to do it, taking out Justine in slams is never easy, but I think Dani will pull it off...

Vaidisova(10) def Kuznetsova(5) - Wow...great match in perspective, but I think Nicole has her game going, playing on grass will be a helper here...

Clijsters(2) def Kirilenko(17) - Maria K has variety, but Kim is not the one who will be bothered by that...

QF results:
VWilliams(6) def Safina(14) - great battle but in the end Venus will win her service games a bit more easily

Sharapova(4) def Dementieva(7) - just better all-around

Hingis(12) def Hantuchova(15) - Daniela will seem to have no answers to Hingis' strategy

Vaidisova(10) def Clijsters(2) - Huge win... Nicole will have her power game going and get the British tabloids talking about her as the second Sharapova

SF results:
Sharapova(4) def VWilliams(6) - Maria admitted being still bothered by last year's loss in Wimbledon, she'll be more than ready this time around... straight set win

Hingis(12) def Vaidisova(10) - Martina will be able to bring out Nicole's weaknesses....

Final result:
Sharapova(4) def Hingis(12)... dream final... Maria comes out on top!



...whew! At least Pierre didn't pick JHH, then I knew I'd be nuts to pick against her. That combination hasn't been all too lucky for me this year in the Battle Royale. Of course, I DID pick Justine in Melbourne, and we all remember what happened there. Help, I'm spinning myself into the ground, and not in that humorous Team USA crashing out of the World Cup sort of way, either. (Seriously, how hilarious was that?)

(procrastination, thy name is Backspin Picks)

I know, I'll flip a coin on this rematch of the 2001 Wimbledon final. (Yes, conviction is my forte this time out.)



Heads for Venus. Tails for Justine.

(tails)

Okay, best two out of three.

(heads... and heads)

Fine, I'll go with Venus then. Hmmm, maybe I sort of wanted to pick her all along, huh?

*FINAL*
#6 V.Williams d. #3 Henin-Hardenne

...so, a sixth slam title for the #6 seed. Guess I'm banking on Venus to get me out of this mess.

Did I just say that? Now I know I've gone off the deep end.



All for now. More tomorrow.

Read more...

Wk.25-Welcome Back, Petit Taureau

It's a little difficult to fathom that the world's #3-ranked player, the leader in the 2006 points race who has claimed one slam this season and been runner-up in the other, the champion of four tournaments on three surfaces who's put together two double-digit winning streaks and just became the fastest woman to $2 million dollars in a calendar year in tennis history can finally be "welcomed" to the season in June... but that's sort of the case here.

Justine Henin-Hardenne has been around all year, but "Le Petit Taureau" didn't TRULY show up until Saturday in Eastbourne.



Finally, against Anastasia Myskina in the final at Devonshire Park, Justine played -- and won -- the match I know that I've personally been waiting for her to pull off all season. Down a set, down a break twice in the 3rd set... failing to convert three match points at 5-4 (up 40-0 on Myskina's serve) in the set, then a fourth in the deciding tie-break... but still not seeming to break a sweat in pulling off her 27th career singles title, and making the successful transition from clay to grass while keeping her now-eleven match winning streak intact. Masterful. Simply masterful.

Now, it's onto SW19 to play the only slam that JHH has yet to win. If she plays the way she did in Eastbourne, that last part might not be able to be said for much longer. With #1-ranked Amelie Mauresmo sliding and #2 Kim Clijsters, um, "coughing" (to avoid that athletically uglier, more descriptive word that starts with "c"), #3 Henin-Hardenne is looking suspiciously ready to reassume her royal position on the WTA throne.

So, will Justine really win Wimbledon? Well, Justine might not... but Le Petit Taureau certainly could.

The search for evidence of her arrival at the All-England Club begins on Monday.


*WEEK 25 CHAMPIONS*

EASTBOURNE, ENGLAND (II-grass)
S: Justine Henin-Hardenne d. Anastasia Myskina 4-6/6-1/7-6(5)
D: Kuznetsova/Mauresmo d. Huber/M.Navratilova


's-HERTOGENBOSCH, NETHERLANDS (III-grass)
S: Michaella Krajicek d. Dinara Safina 6-3/6-4
D: Yan/Zheng d. Ivanovic/Kirilenko



PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Justine Henin-Hardenne
...this second grass title of her career moved her out of a tie with Serena Williams for career singles titles (now 27) amongst active players. At Wimbledon, she'll try to break that tie with Venus with five career slam titles.
=============================
RISERS: Zi Yan/Jie Zheng & Dinara Safina
...Raymond/Stosur has been so good this year, it's easy to overlook just how great a year the world's second-best doubles team is having. Yan/Zheng's 's-Hertogenbosch title was their fourth on the season. Dinara didn't seem to be quite as vexed by the grass as her big brother Marat often is at Wimbledon. Well, at least not until she faced Richard Krajicek's younger sister in the Netherlands final.
=============================
SURPRISE: Nathalie Dechy
...Dechy hasn't had much to get excited about this season, but she finally found something to smile about with her upset of Mauresmo in the 2nd Round at Eastbourne. Unfortunately for her, she reverted back to her normal '06 form in her next match against Myskina.
=============================
VETERANS: Brenda Schultz-McCarthy & Eleni Daniilidou
...native-born Krajicek wasn't the only player to thrill the home crowd in the Netherlands, as Schultz-McCarthy's big serve pushed her into the QF with wins over Laura Granville and Marta Domachowska. In the same event, Eleni the Greek held up her affinity for grass with a SF run after wins over Jie Zheng, Gisela Dulko and Paola Suarez.
=============================
FRESH FACE: Michaella Krajicek
...Krajicek, 17, had quite the week back in her home nation. She won her second title of the season, and third of her career, with wins over the top seed (Elena Dementieva), defending champion (Klara Koukalova) and one of the OTHER little sisters (Safina, not Jaslyn Hewitt) of big brothers who've won slam titles. Hmmm, Krajicek could face Amelie Mauresmo in the 2nd Round at Wimbledon. Speaking of which...
=============================
DOWN: Amelie Mauresmo
...for a player whose year started out so winningly, Mauresmo sure has been quiet (for all the wrong reasons) lately. Another poor showing in Eastbourne, losing to fellow Frenchie Dechy in her opening match, doesn't really bode well for her holding up her #1 seed at Wimbledon for too many rounds, does it? Still, her game SHOULD fit the grass, and she DID rebound with a doubles title with Svetlana Kuznetsova. So, who knows. (Yeah, right.)
=============================

**WIMBLEDON QUALIFYING AWARDS**
PLAYER: Meilen Tu
...continued her Birmingham grass SF momentum by making it through qualifying.
-----------------------------
RISER: Romina Oprandi
...the Italian Noodle held match point (and lost it) against Kuznetsova in Rome, and now she'll get another shot at the Contessova in the 1st Round of Wimbledon.
-----------------------------
SURPRISES: Ivana Abramovic & Yaroslava Shvedova
...how many people will know them when they see their names on the Schedule of Play this week?
-----------------------------
VETERANS: Nicole Pratt & Tamarine Tanasugarn
...33 and 29, respectively, these two's eyes usually light up a bit when grass court season comes around.
-----------------------------
FRESH FACES: Yung-Jan Chan & Vasilisa Bardina

...Taipei's Chan, 16, reached the junior SF at Roland Garros a few weeks ago, then turned around and became the youngest Wimbledon qualifier last week. Russia's Bardina, 18, has been a force on the ITF tour this season, and now gets a shot at fellow qualifier Tu in the 1st Round of Wimbledon.
----------------------------
DOWN: Jelena Dokic
...in 1999, 16-year old qualifier Dokic broke onto the scene at Wimbledon before finally losing to Alexandra Stevenson in the QF. In 2006, a 23-year old Dokic lost to Stevenson again in Wimbledon action... only this time it was in the 1st Round of qualifying.


1.East F - JHH d. Myskina
...4-6/6-1/7-6. The Czarina's been looking for signs of her game coming around? Well, she's made the final in two of her last three events, defeated Kuznetsova in the SF here, and gave Henin-Hardenne quite a run in a very entertaining final match. Saving four match points before finally succumbing to defeat has to make her feel a bit better about things, right?
-----------------------------
2.Neth F - Krajicek d. Safina
...6-3/6-4. Hmmmm, let's see, Marat Safin has only reached one Wimbledon QF, and crashed out in the 1st or 2nd Rounds four of the six times he's played there. Meanwhile, Richard Krajicek won the Wimbledon title in 1996, defeating Pete Sampras in the QF to single-handedly split what very well could have been a run of eight straight SW19 titles by the American. Based on family history, this grass court result should have been expected.
-----------------------------
3.East QF - Kuznetsova d. Groenefeld
...5-7/7-5/7-6. What is it about Kuznetsova outlasting these young players in matches that she should have lost? First, it was Vaidisova in Paris, and this time ALG led 4-2 in both the 2nd and 3rd sets, served at 5-4/40-15 in the 3rd before dumping three match points with nervous errors and letting the match slip away. Still, Groenefeld's serve and power could prove to be huge assets at Wimbledon, where she could be in position to make a big run if she can learn from her Eastbourne mistakes.
-----------------------------
4.East 2nd - Dechy d. Mauresmo
...3-6/6-2/6-3. Has the rest of '06 already become anticlimactic for Amelie?
-----------------------------
5.East SF - JHH d. Clijsters
...6-3/5-7/6-1. With JHH in form, and Clijsters looking anything but confident despite being defending champion, this was hardly the most memorable of the 23 match-ups between the Belgians. It's a series that JHH now leads 12-11, by the way.
-----------------------------
6.East Doub F - Kuznetsova/Mauersmo d. Huber/Navratilova

...6-2/6-4. Well, Martina is still going to try to get her record 21st Wimbledon title before she turns 50.
-----------------------------
7.Wimb Q1 - Stevenson d. Dokic
...4-6/7-6/6-2. Seven years later, 1999's big surprises meet again with singles rankings in the 600's. And, as has been the case with Dokic so often in recent matches, any inkling of adversity was met with little resistence. The one-time Wimbledon semifinalist led this match 6-4/5-4, but once she lost the 2nd set tie-break it was all over except for the handshake at the net. Hard to believe these days that she used to be known for her fighting spirit.
-----------------------------
8.Wimb Q1 - Flipkens d. Pichet
...6-4/7-6. What did Virginie do to deserve Flipkens? First, she beat the Belgian in the final qualifying round at Roland Garros, but then got "lucky loser" Flipkens in the 1st Round of the main draw... and lost to her. A few weeks later, they met again in the opening round of Wimbledon qualifying. Pichet won't be getting a similarly immediate rematch.



**MOST 2006 WTA TITLES**
4...JUSTINE HENIN-HARDENNE
4...Nadia Petrova
3...Amelie Mauresmo
3...Shahar Peer
2...MICHAELLA KRAJICEK

**MOST CONSECUTIVE WTA TITLES**
3...Mauresmo (Aust./Paris/Antwerp)
3...Petrova (A.I./Charleston/Berlin)
2...HENIN-HARDENNE (RG/EASTBOURNE)

**YOUNGEST 2006 TITLISTS**
17...Michaella Krajicek (Jan-Hobart)
17...Nicole Vaidisova (May-Strasbourg)
17...MICHAELLA KRAJICEK (JUN-NETHERLANDS)

**LONG MATCH WINNING STREAKS**
16...Amelie Mauresmo (Jan-Feb)
15...Nadia Petrova (Apr-May)
11...JUSTINE HENIN-HARDENNE (MAY-CURRENT)
11...Maria Sharapova (March)

**WORST 2006 WIN PCT./FINALS**
[2+ appearances]
.000 Flavia Pennetta (0-3)
.000 Jelena Kostanic (0-2)
.000 Dinara Safina (0-2)
.000 Francesca Schiavone (0-2)

**WINS OVER TOP SEED & DEFENDING CHAMPION...and won title**
Lucie Safarova - Gold Coast
Lourdes Dominguez-Lino - Bogota
Anna-Lena Groenefeld - Acapulco
MICHAELLA KRAJICEK - 's-HERTOGENBOSCH



The Wimbledon Preview arrives on Sunday, as...



...makes its debut.


All for now.

Read more...

Wk.24- Vera Z & the Georgia Peach

If what happened in Birmingham is any indication of what's going to occur a short time from now at SW19, then hold onto your seat. The tennis world might be about to do a reverse spin on its axis.

I mean, unless Jamea Jackson vs. Vera Zvonareva was precisely the final you were expecting in the grass season's opening salvo, matching a suddenly emerging American against a Russian Hordette still trying to find her way.



When the 2nd Quarter began, 19-year old, Atlanta, Georgia-born Jackson seemed to fit rather snugly into the batch of American women in the post-Venus/Serena/Lindsay/Jennifer Era... a player with some obvious athletic talent, but also one that invariably was missing the key ingredient that would ever make her more than a passing fancy (see the career of Mrs. Ashley Harkleroad Bogomolov).

It's amazing what a few months can do to perceptions.

Jackson may not have strikingly transformed into a future grand slam champion in the early stages of this spring/summer -- though her fortunes certainly bear watching when the tour returns to the American hardcourts in July -- but she's already come a long way since she ended 2005 ranked #75 and lost early '06 matches to the likes of Tzipora Obziler and Yaroslava Shvedova. In the last few months, "The Georgia Peach," daughter of an ex-NFL cornerback, has made quite a name for herself.

It's spelled J-A-M-E-A.

First, somewhat incidentally, she became the answer to a trivia question by being the first player to challenge a line call though replay in a match in Miami against Harkleroad. She lost the challenge, but her thought to take advantage of her opportunity to be "the first" seems to have become a part of her game ever since. Added to the American Fed Cup team by captain Zina Garrison, she seized the opportunity once again -- in her debut FC match, knocking off Anna-Lena Groenefeld in Germany to lead the U.S.'s 1st Round upset. Then, this past week, rather than concede the "inevitable," she took out Maria Sharapova in straight sets on English grass in the Birmingham semifinals.

Watershed Fed Cup heroics on clay. The biggest win of her career on grass. And to think that Jackson says that hard court is her favorite surface.

Of course, Jackson's week didn't have a "storybook" ending, as she was trumped in a wild final 7-6(12), 7-6(5) by Zvonareva.



Needless to say, with two-time defending champ Sharapova in the field, Zvonareva was not the Russian most expected to see hoising the trophy on Sunday. Of course, Vera Z has been battling against expectations for a while now, not always successfully.

She reached #9 in the world in August 2004, smack dab in the middle of the Russian slam feeding frenzy of that season. With all her countrywomen grabbing major titles, Zvonareva's have been akin to chum ever since. Emotions and inconsistency have usually gotten the better of her (in the Birmingham final, she was treated twice for nose bleeds, of all things). She was just 21-21 in '05, but managed to pull herself together for one week to defend her Memphis crown. This year, she reached the Auckland final (going 4-1) to start the season, but went 6-11 afterward and had fallen to #78 before righting herself with six straight wins this past week. But how long will "Good-and-Stable Vera" last this time?

The Vera the Almost days still haven't quite become a thing of the past as, even while managing to win a single title in each of the past four seasons, Zvonareva's stretches of mediocre-or-worse results are still fairly mighty. The period between her last title and this one? Sixteen months. She still hasn't found her way to shore and fully learned to pull herself onto the Russian tennis beach, evolving from a talented player into a true champion. But, at just 21, she may just get there yet.

A first ever grass court title would be a good place to start.

But other than that, the week certainly "went true to form." Boy, imagine what we'd be expecting at Wimbledon if Roger Federer, rather than winning the Halle title and tying Bjorn Borg's record 41-match grass court winning streak, hadn't saved those four match points against Olivier Rochus earlier in the tournament? Or what if Rafael Nadal, who won the 1st set against Lleyton Hewitt on grass at Queen's Club and then retired after the 2nd as a precaution against worsening a sore shoulder, had WON the grass title that Hewitt eventually claimed?

Neither happened, but imagine if they HAD. As it is, we'll have to be content with Sharapova losing the SF on grass and the world #78 facing the world #81 for the title instead.

If you're looking for some sort of comfort in a pattern for this 2006 season finally being established... keep dreaming.


**WEEK 24 CHAMPIONS**

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND (III-Grass)
S: Vera Zvonareva d. Jamea Jackson 7-6/7-6
D: Jankovic/N.Li d. Craybas/Huber

_____________________________

**PLAYER AWARDS**

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Vera Zvonareva
...Chakvetadze, Schiavone and Jackson were amongst those left in Vera Z's wake. But what will she do with her newly-found (again) momentum?
-----------------------------
RISER: Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez
...the 23-year old Spaniard recently won her third ITF title of the year in Mostoles, and established herself as the potential champ of the FOUR-lettered -- MJMS -- ladies, not to mention managing to combine the names of the two best-ever Spanish female players in her last name.
-----------------------------
SURPRISE: Jamea Jackson
... Jackson alone took out both '05 finalists (Sharapova & Jelena Jankovic), the '04 champ (also Sharapova), and threw in a win over the grass court 's-Hertogenbosch '05 champ (Klara Koukalova) for good measure en route to her first ever WTA singles final.
-----------------------------
VETERAN: Meilen Tu
...imagine this, two Americans get to the Birmingham semifinals and neither was named Williams or Davenport. 28-year old Tu lost while Jackson won, but the surprising upturn in the '06 results of the "B-team" Americans continues.
-----------------------------
FRESH FACES: Jackson & Sanja Ancic
...Mario's little sister made some hay on the ITF tour in '05 by winning a slew of events in her native Croatia. She finally recently won an ITF title OUTSIDE of Croatia, at the $25K in Grado, Italy... where she defeated Ana Vrljic in the final. Vrljic is a Croat. Geez, what is it with this girl? There's a healthy sense of national pride... but this is just plain weird.
-----------------------------
DOWN: Maria Sharapova
...Sharapova didn't seem all that worried about losing to Jackson in the SF of the tournament she's won the past two years, including just weeks before her '04 Wimbledon championship run. I guess we'll see if it means anything for SW19 when or if it actually means something at SW19.
-----------------------------

**MATCHES**

1.Birm SF - Jackson d. Sharapova
...6-4/6-4. Sharapova was 25-1 in her last 26 grass matches before this one. Don't know if any pigeons were milling about for this one.
-----------------------------
2.Birm F - Zvonareva d. Jackson
...7-6(12)/7-6(5). Zvonareva didn't make things easy on herself. After winning that 14-12 tie-break, she took a 4-0 lead in the 2nd set, then won only six total points as Jackson reeled off five straight games. In the end, though, her grass court cuisine reigned supreme. (I know that makes no sense, but I'm a fan of those old "Iron Chef" shows.)
-----------------------------
3.Birm 2nd - Raymond d. Stosur
...4-6/6-1/7-6. "Sammy, thank you for helping me win the Roland Garros doubles title... now take that, babe."
-----------------------------
4.Birm 1st - N.Li d. Washington
...6-3/6-3. Washington had a shot at a RG rematch in the 3rd Round with Sharapova. Again, don't know if the pigeons were in attendence.
-----------------------------
5.Prostejov $75K F - Smashnova walkover Oprandi.
...Peer might have surpassed Smashnova on the WTA Tour, but this Israeli is so good in finals that Oprandi "didn't even bother to" play her in the final.

_____________________________

==WTA LISTS==

**2006 WTA TITLES - RUSSIANS**
4...Nadia Petrova (Doha, A.I., Charleston, Berlin)
1...Maria Sharapova (Indian Wells)
1...Elena Dementieva (Tokyo)
1...Svetlana Kuznetsova (Miami)
1...VERA ZVONAREVA (BIRMINGHAM)

**WTA CAREER TITLES - RUSSIANS**
[active]
11...Maria Sharapova (2003-06)
10...Anastasia Myskina (1999-05)
6....Svetlana Kuznetsova (2002-06)
5....Nadia Petrova (2005-06)
5....Elena Dementieva (2003-06)
4....Dinara Safina (2002-05)
4....VERA ZVONAREVA (2003-06)

**LOW-RANKED 2006 WTA TITLISTS**
#89 Lourdes Dominguez-Lino (Bogota)
#87 Meghann Shaughnessy (Rabat)
#78 VERA ZVONAREVA (BIRMINGHAM)
#60 Michaella Krajicek (Hobart)

**2006 WTA SEMIFINALISTS - NATIONS**
30...RUSSIA
11...Belgium
11...France
8....Italy
8....UNITED STATES

____________________________

==THE BEAT(ING) GOES ON...==

...one would think that picking Maria Sharapova to win a grass court tournament would be a safe pick, huh? One would think that the unremitting drumbeat of cracked predictions would find a brief moment of respite with the clay court season a thing of the past, right? One would think. And one would be wrong, again. This is getting to be waaaaay too much of a habit.

So, here we go again. Broken, but not unbowed.


EASTBOURNE, ENGLAND (II-Grass)
05 FINAL: Clijsters d. Dushevina
06 TOP: Mauresmo/Clijsters
-----------------------------
SF: Kuznetsova d. Mauresmo; Clijsters d. JHH (oh, no...not again)
FINAL: Clijsters d. Kuznetsova


PIERRE's P.O.V.:
SF:
Mauresmo def Kuznetsova
Henin-Hardenne def Clijsters

F:
Henin-Hardenne def Mauresmo



's-HERTOGENBOSCH, NETHERLANDS (III-Grass)
05 FINAL: Koukalova d. Safarova
06 TOP: Dementieva/Safina
-----------------------------
SF: Jankovic d. Ivanovic; Safina d. Kirilenko
FINAL: Jankovic d. Safina


PIERRE's P.O.V.:
SF:
Ivanovic def Krajicek
Safina def Daniilidou

F:
Safina def Ivanovic


ALSO THIS WEEK: WIMBLEDON QUALIFYING



All for now.

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NEXT WEEKEND: "The Daily Backspin, SW19 Edition" begins with the Wimbledon preview

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