AO.5- Down and Out Down Under

And on the second point of the second game, in the two hundred and fifty-eighth grand slam match of her career, Venus Williams finally was forced to say "no more."

Venus' retirement from her 3rd Round match with Andrea Petkovic provided a supremely anticlimactic moment for the end of Day 5, which had seen the pair's night match on Laver be the scheduled "main course" following the session's Stanislas Wawrinka/Gael Monfils contest. But in just the seventh point of the match (she lost six of them), Williams lunged for a Petkovic serve and screamed out in pain just as she had when she suffered the original lower-torso injury two days ago against Sandra Zahlavova. But THIS TIME there was no question what was going to happen next. After not doing so against the Czech, Venus walked to her chair and waited for a trainer (and the inevitable decision she'd help her make). Moments later, Williams hobbled past the umpire's chair and disappointingly hugged the Petkovic, signalling the first mid-match retirement of her grand slam career.

Earlier in the day, the match-up between Justine Henin and Svetlana Kuznetsova had its own disappointing aspects, but it also contained more than a few notes of hope. For Kuznetsova, anyway.

In an uneven match, the Russian was the better player. Noticably fitter than she has appeared at times in the past, on a shot-by-shot basis, Kuznetsova was the more aggressive of the two throughout and was less prone to ill-timed errors (well, except for one brief stretch), while Henin's timing often appeared off as she failed to rise to the occasion when the match was in the balance. At 4-4 in the 1st set, Henin finally had her first two break points of the match, but failed to convert either. Kuznetsova held for 5-3, then served out the set at 6-4. In the 2nd, Kuznetsova grabbed an early break, shrugged off a third break point in game #5 and soon found herself serving for the match at 6-4/5-4, 30/15.

It was at this point that Henin scrambled and got her wayward forehand under control long enough to get herself back into the match. A Kuznetsova double-fault gave her a break point, and then when the Russian missed a backhand the Belgian finally had her first (eleventh-hour) break of the match. Kuznetsova broke back in the next game, only to flub a drop shot volley attempt to give Henin a chance to break for the second straight game. She did, too, pushing the 2nd set to a tie-break and seemingly setting herself up for another of her snatching-victory-from-the-jaws-of-defeat comebacks.

She'd already done this sort of thing against Kuznetsova before, saving match point against her in Paris in 2005 en route to winning a Roland Garros title. Losing matches like this have been common in Kuznetsova's career, too. She held match point against eventual champ Anastasia Myskina at Roland Garros in 2004, and served for the match against eventual champ Serena Williams in Melbourne in '09. Just last week, she blew a 6-3/5-3 lead against Li Na in Sydney. It seemed fated to happen again on Day 5.

But it didn't.

Even while continuing to wrestle with herself and her forehand, Henin still found herself up a mini-break at 4-3 in the tie-break. Then she double-faulted to even things at 4-4, then netted a drop shot to fall behind 4-5. She saved two match points, one on Kuznetsova's serve and one on her own, before putting away an overhead to get herself a set point at 7-6. If Henin won it, it would have been easy to think she'd carry her momentum over and cruise through the 3rd as she had at this tournament a year against Alisa Kleybanova on her way to the final.

But Kuznetsova didn't let things get that far. Instead, the Russian put away a crosscourt backhand to end a long rally and wipe away Henin's set point for 7-7. Henin saved a third match point at 8-7, but then threw it away with another double-fault to give Kuznetsova a fourth MP. She wasn't going to squander another one. Kuznetsova closed out a 10-8 tie-break to win 6-4/7-6, preventing what might have developed into a classic match from going to distance.

While Henin is left to go back to work out the kinks in a game that hasn't seen much action over the last seven months (and is showing it), this could be an VERY BIG moment for Kuznetsova's season. With this win, Kuznetsova is 3-16 against Henin in her career, but maybe more importantly she seems to be past the in-the-dumps-and-angry mood that dominated her '10 season. She's obviously spent her offseason preparing well for '11, and there's already evidence that the Russian might be ready to have another of her bounce-back campaigns. Now, she's managed to avoid another in a line of slam moments that have haunted her career, even while she's still managed to win multiple major titles through the years.

There are a lot of questions about the players in the top half of the draw, but Kuznetsova is the only player in the bunch who's not battling some sort of injury (of the after-effects of one on her game) AND has already proven that she can win a hard court slam. It's too soon to say that she might be the favorite to reach the final (she faces Francesca Schiavone next), but it isn't too early to think that she might only be a few more days from assuming such a role.



=DAY 5 NOTES=
...by the way, what brainiac decided to schedule the Venus/Petkovic match second-up on Night 5, anyway? Any slight knowledge of the situation would signal it as a potential disaster for the fans in attendence since Williams' condition could very well lead to a quick retirement situation like the one that actually happened. As stupid as it was for some of the crowd to boo Williams as she left the court, that particular moment could have been avoided had she been scheduled for a late-in-the-day match elsewhere, or at the very least placed in the opening Laver night match just in case she wouldn't be able to complete the contest.

Hopefully, she'll be back soon... but you get a bad feeling that we might be waiting for Venus to return even longer than we're going to be waiting for Serena to step back between the lines this year. It wouldn't be a shock if we'll be eyeing the start of Wimbledon before both are back on the court.

...meanwhile, Caroline Wozniacki got some measure of "revenge" against Dominika Cibulkova for her loss to the Slovak last week in Sydney. The Dane seemed pleased with her performance, as she won in straight sets. But, honestly, there wasn't any real evidence to be seen that she's done much this offseason to improve her chances of winning a slam and/or taking down the sort of big-time players she'll likely need to in order to accomplish the feat.

Granted, it IS in C-Woz's usual gameplan, but Cibulkova was allowed to dictate play. The winner/error numbers display it perfectly, as Wozniacki's were 11/11, while Cibulkova's were 31/41. Wozniacki can find ways to wait out opponents like Cibulkova, who had a shot to seize the 1st set but faltered in the closing moments while Wozniacki stayed steady (perhaps showing why the Slovak has yet to win a tour title, while no one has won more than C-Woz in recent seasons), but it's not the sort of step forward one might expect/desire if she's looking to improve and add things to her game. Actually, she WAS showing signs of working in such necessary in-point aggression leading into last year's U.S. Open, and her more stream-lined plan of attack last summer made her look like she might be ready to win a slam. In the end, though, she wasn't. As of January '11, she still doesn't have that look. Her steadiness and defense are her bread-and-butter, but at some point she's going to need to step things up. As she says, she has time to improve... but JJ probably thought the same thing two years ago, as well.

That said, as often happens in her matches, Wozniacki is a slow-building player whose game improves the more she plays. She's never been a great 1Q player, and has always been better later in the year. Maybe she'll get lucky in Melbourne, and the up-and-down players in her draw will play out their usual rollercoaster games, her consistency will outlast their hit-and-miss tendencies, and she'll be able to slip into the final. If Clijsters trips up and isn't there waiting for her, who knows? Most of the other contenders in the bottom half of the draw, even if their games could overpower Wozniacki, have shown that they'd be just as likely to crack in the final as outplay her. How her next opponent, 19-year old Anastasiya Sevastova, will handle the moment is anyone's guess, though, since she's never found herself in a position as big as playing the world #1 for a berth in a slam quarterfinal.

We shall see what happens next.

Afterward, Caroline had a little fun in the press room. There's some great video of Wozniacki "taking control" of her post-match press conference, answering all the "same old boring questions" that she always is asked, and getting out of the way all the "same old boring answers" that she's heard that people complain that she gives. It was probably more charming than laugh-out-loud funny, but she gets points for trying to lighten the mood. Hey, she's not a comedian, and she only had a few minutes to write some notes about what she was going to say and do... so I'll give her a B+ for her presentation.

...Maria Sharapova wasn't exactly sporting championship form, either. But she still advanced past Julia Goerges, 4-6/6-4/6-4. Again, though, her serve often acted as an anchor around her neck. Example: serving at 4-5 in the 1st, she double-faulted to open the game, then did it again to give Goerges a break point. Soon afterward, the German took advantage of the openings she was being given and blasted a forehand up the line to take the set. Moments like this, which turn instances when Sharapova is either even with her opponent -- or holds a slight advantage -- ultimately against her are still preventing her from solidifying up her confidence and allowing herself to become a force to be reckoned with again (later, she squandered a 4-0 3rd set lead befor scraping out the match). Sharapova at her best would be the sort of player that Wozniacki would have trouble defeating, but THIS Sharapova is one that she'd probably beat (as she did last September in New York) if they were to meet in the semifinals in Melbourne.

Sharapova IS working her way through the draw, though, and that can only be a good thing. The more she plays, the more likely she'll clean up her game and draw closer to being the "old Maria" she wants to be. And now Venus isn't there as a Round of 16 opponent (it'll be Petkovic, and it won't be easy... I actually picked the German to win the match-up before the tournament), which probably is a check-mark in her favor. She's surely not the favorite to advance to the final from the top half, but she's now only three matches from doing so. The old Sharapova never needed to build steam to win a slam. She usually hit the ground at top speed and never slowed up. THIS Sharapova, though, might need to gradually climb that two-week hill. You know, sort of like a diesel... so, it's interesting that her next opponent is The Diesel herself.

...actually, at the moment, I think the favorite for the final might just be the winner of the Li Na/Victoria Azarenka 4th Round match. Both easily moved past unseeded opponents on Day 5, and the two players who threatened, but ultimately lost to, Serena Williams in Melbourne a year ago will get another chance for AO second week glory in 2011.

...the Hisense Arena "dead spot?" How freakin' otherworldly weird was that when the chair umpire bounced the ball and it seemed to literally be sucked into a vortex? It's a good thing no one in the stands likely watches the TV series "Fringe," because if they did they might have screamed "run for your lives!!!!"

...and, finally, how wonderful, in theory at least (since not as many people would actually be able to see it, compared to the wide coverage of ESPN2), would it be if Tennis Channel could cover the ENTIRE tournament rather than ESPN2? Sure, technically, things might not look as sharp or be as (over)produced, but at least there'd be some sensible decisions and actual analysis of match play and players. Last night, as the Henin/Kuznetsova match was reaching the end of the 2nd set on TC, as well as the end of the coverage window before ESPN2 took over at the top of the hour, it was a wonderful moment when it was announced that TC would stay with the match until its conclusion because, honestly, it was a legit question in my mind whether or not ESPN2 would have even picked up coverage mid-match. At best, it probably would have taken twenty minutes of set-up from the talking heads in the makeshift Melbourne studio going over everything that'd happened in the four hours when the network wasn't covering the tournament last night before someone would have thought that maybe the people who'd been watching the match on TC might have wanted to see the rest of it on their television. That's a pretty sad commentary on the network's tennis "smarts. As it turned out, such a delay would have meant the Henin/Kuznetsova match was nearly over.

(Side Note: I didn't mention this the other day, but before the Sam Stosur/Lauren Davis match, Chris McKendry and Darren Cahill were discussing what would happen in the match. They ended with Cahill saying that the first four games would be the key. Then, seconds later, ESPN2 picked up coverage of the match in Game #4, with Stosur a couple of points away from already going up 4-0. As usual, the network thought it was better to talk about the match rather than actually show it.)

With no Venus or Henin left to air, I wonder how much women's tennis ESPN2 will even air from here on out until it absolutely HAS to (Sharapova matches excluded). While TC featured the more intriguing women's matches (Wozniacki/Cibulkova, Henin/Kuznetsova) on Thursday, I can't help but think that ESPN2, had it been on the air, would have shown mostly the match involving Andy Roddick that took place in the same time period. Really, I don't think, I KNOW that's what would have happened.




*LAVER NIGHT MATCH RECORDS - BY NATION*
[women/men]
2-0...Belgium (2-0/0-0)
2-0...Switzerland (0-0/2-0)
1-0...Cyprus (0-0/1-0)
1-0...Czech Republic (1-0/0-0)
1-0...Germany (1-0/0-0)
1-0...Serbia (0-0/1-0)
1-1...Argentina (0-0/1-1)
1-3...Australia (1-2/0-1)
0-1...Spain (0-0/0-1)
0-1...United States (0-1/0-0)
0-2...France (0-0/0-2)
0-2...Russia (0-2/0-0)



*WOMEN'S ROUND OF 16*
#1 Caroline Wozniacki/DEN vs. Anastasiya Sevastova/LAT
#23 Svetlana Kuznetsova/RUS vs. #6 Francesca Schiavone/ITA
#30 Andrea Petkovic/GER vs. #14 Maria Sharapova/RUS
#9 Li Na/CHN vs. #8 Victoria Azarenka/BLR
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD

*MEN'S ROUND OF 16*
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD
#6 Tomas Berdych/CZE vs. #9 Fernando Verdasco/ESP
#14 Nicolas Almagro/ESP vs. #3 Novak Djokovic/SRB
#8 Andy Roddick/USA vs. #19 Stanislas Wawrinka/SUI
Tommy Robredo/ESP vs. #2 Roger Federer/SUI




TOP QUALIFIER: Vesna Manasieva/RUS
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): #3 Kim Clijsters/BEL
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q1: Sloane Stephens/USA def. Liana-Gabriela Ungur/ROU 7-6/1-6/8-6
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): 1st Rd. - Ekaterina Makarova/RUS d. #19 Ana Ivanovic/SRB 3-6/6-4/10-8 (on 6th MP, 1:31 3rd set)
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): xx
TOP NIGHT MATCH:: xx
=============================
FIRST WINNER: Evgeniya Rodina/RUS (1st Rd. - def. WC Olivia Rogowska/AUS)
FIRST SEED OUT: #28 Daniela Hantuchova/SVK (1st Rd. - lost to Kulikova/RUS)
UPSET QUEENS: Russians
REVELATION LADIES: Czechs
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: Vesna Manasieva/RUS (3rd Rd.)
IT GIRL: xx
MS. OPPORTUNITY: xx
COMEBACK PLAYER: xx
CRASH & BURN: Early Rounds: Jankovic only Top 8 seed not to advance to Final 32
ZOMBIE QUEEN: xx
LAST SHEILA STANDING: #5 Samantha Stosur/AUS (in 3rd Rd.)
LADY OF THE EVENING: xx
DOUBLES STAR xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx




All for Day 5. More tomorrow.