Wk.38- To Be or Not To Be... Ms. Backspin

Let the debate begin.

Since Justine Henin was an easy choice in 2007, the process of figuring out each season's "Ms. Backspin" has been akin to a live-action Sudoku puzzle. When it's come to determining a worthy season honoree, I've often had to be a little creative, looking at the numbers and trying to "divine" an appropriate ending. A Fed Cup team, a doubles pair and a first-time slam winner who swept to the top on the wave of one beautifully emotional performance have been recent winners. But since Henin, there hasn't been a locked-in, dominant singles-based choice to be found. Early on, it looked as if 2011 might offer a return to "the basics" when it comes to this yearly debate. But it hasn't turned out that way.

"Ms. Backspin" is supposed to be about the best, most all-consuming, best-at-what-she-does female tennis player in the world. Ah, but there's the rub. Who's been that this season? Ummm, what day is it?

At the start of the season, it was Kim Clijsters. Then it was Li Na. Finally, this summer, Petra Kvitova looked like she was the choice of a new generation. But the Czech was bounced early a few times, and Serena Williams became THE dominant player of the hard court season... only to be trumped by Samantha Stosur in the Open final. Meanwhile, another player has won more matches and titles than any other, AND is the #1-ranked woman in the world, but, because of her lacking late-stage slam success (after coming within one point of the Oz final in January) no unbiased opinion could ever really see fit to place Caroline Wozniacki at the top of any "Player of the Year" list for 2011.

The case for "Ms. B," of course, HAS to begin with the slam winners. AO champ Clijsters has pretty much endured a lost season since picking up her first of multiple '11 injuries not long after winning in Melbourne. She's essentially been a wedding party ghost ever since. Li is the only woman with two slam finals to her credit on the season, but is it enough considering her general lack of results elsewhere? She's got the best chance of all the slam winners to be dubbed "Ms. Backspin," though, since her status as the Roland Garros winner and the first-ever Asian slam champ carries a great deal of weight now, and will probably mean even more not too far into the future. Kvitova? Oh, Petra. After Wimbledon, the crown was her's for the taking. Thing is, she could still pull off a late run to grab the honor, as she'll lead the Czech team in the Fed Cup final. A win there, plus another big one elsewhere (the WTA Championships, or at another Premier event, possibly giving her a shot to catch Wozniacki on the season titles list) likely puts her in the opening statement of the conversation. U.S. champ Sam Stosur is no "Ms. Backspin" contender after a generally subpar season leading into North American hard courts, but there will certainly be a place reserved for her at (well, make it "near" since Kvitova's SW19 run isn't going away) the top of the "Best Performance" list in the 2011 BSA's.

Still, even with such "squishy" footing when it comes to the four biggest names on the board, it's hard to imagine anyone OTHER than a slam champ taking home the honors this time around, as none of the doubles pairs have been dominant enough over the course of the season to be given serious consideration, another Russian FC title would seem perfunctory, and a win by the Czechs would add more juice to Kvitova's candidacy than that of the team's. Thus, it looks like this race is really down to a simple either/or head-to-head competition:

=UPDATED 2011 "Ms.Backspin" RANKINGS=
[w/ previous rank]
1. Li Na (2)...has "most important" win of season
2. Petra Kvitova (1)...a(nother) nod to the future?
3. CZE & RUS Fed Cup Teams (7)...no threat to move up
4. Caroline Wozniacki (5)...ditto (well, probably)
5. Peschke/Srebotnik (8)...they've had the best overall season in doubles
6. Kim Clijsters (3)...big start, small finish
7. Samantha Stosur (--)...small start, big finish
8. Victoria Azarenka (6)...progress, but still seeking that "career-defining" victory
9. Maria Sharapova (4)...promising, but still with lingering "career-resuscitation" questions
10. Serena Williams (10)...if she'd won in NYC, she'd possibly been as high as #3 or #4
HM (in order)- Liezel Huber, Roberta Vinci, Andrea Petkovic, Huber/Raymond, Hlavackova/Hradecka, Sabine Lisicki, Anabel Medina-Garrigues, Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez, Vera Zvonareva, Marion Bartoli, Katarina Srebotnik

Really, only Wozniacki seems to have any potential to push herself between the Li/Kvitova stranglehold on the top two spots in the current "Ms. Backspin" rankings, but it would take some look-out-mama-here-she-comes results in the season's final handful of events to do it. She'd need a defense of her '10 title this week in Tokyo, and (at least) her first-ever WTA Championships win, as well. A double-digit cache of '11 titles would provide her with a compelling argument to finish #2 in the rankings. But even that wouldn't get her to THIS #1 spot.

I'm inclined to go with Li at the moment, but I'm keeping an eye on Kvitova. A little movement from her, and a certain friendly neighborhood Backspinner might find her charms too hard to resist about two months from now.



*WEEK 38 CHAMPIONS*
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (Int'l $220K/hard court outdoor)
S: Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez def. Galina Voskoboeva 7-6/7-6
D: Grandin/Uhlirova d. Dushevina/Voskoboeva
GUANGZHOU, CHINA (Int'l $220K/hard court outdoor)
S: Chanelle Scheepers def. Magdalena Rybarikova 6-2/6-2
D: Hsieh/Sai.Zheng d. C-W.Chan/Han


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez/ESP

...quick! Who has the best record in tour singles finals the last three seasons? Well, obviously, since I'm asking the question here, it's pretty obvious that the answer is MJMS. But I bet no one would have thought of her if the query had come up elsewhere, huh? Since 2009, with her win this weekend in Seoul, Martinez-Sanchez is 5-0 in WTA singles finals. She's 5-1 overall, so she's now won five in a row, and she's even starting to branch out even more at age 29, as this weekend's win marks her first hard court title. Her second title in '11, MJMS's week's work included victories over Irina Falconi, Kristyna Pliskova, Julia Goerges and Galina Voskoboeva.
=============================
RISERS: Vera Dushevina/RUS & Vania King/USA
...Dushevina, though she was a Wimbledon Girls champ (defeating Sharapova in the '02 final) and reached her first WTA final (Eastbourne '05) while still a teenager, has always been one of the quieter Hordettes. Despite her quick start, she didn't win her first (and, so far, only) title until two years ago, but she manages to stick around and occasionally has some very good weeks. Last week was one of them. She opened things by knocking off #1 Seoul seed Francesca Schiavone, then backed up the win by taking down Alexandra Dulgheru, as well, before losing in the QF to her doubles partner, Galina Voskoboeva. Their partnership undamaged, the pair teamed to later reach the doubles final. Also in Seoul, King continued the recent surge that began with great doubles success in '10, and has carried over to her singles of late in '11. Last week, after quite a few years on tour, King (after having knocked off Kimiko Date-Krumm in the 1st Round) finally got her first win over a Top 10 player when she upset #2-seed Marion Bartoli in the 2nd Round to reach the QF.
=============================
SURPRISES: Chanelle Scheepers/RSA & Tetiana Luzhanska/UKR

...proving to be another member of the "late bloomer" club, 27-year old Scheepers reached her first career WTA final in Guangzhou after wins over Anastasija Sevastova, Hsieh Su-Wei, Urszula Radwanska and top-seeded Maria Kirilenko, then grabbed her first title in a straight sets win over Magdalena Rybarikova. The first tour singles champion from South Africa since Amanda Coetzer in '03, Scheepers' ranking jumped from #73 to #41 today. In the same event, 27-year old Ukrainian Luzhanska also tread new career ground. A two-time ITF finalist (0-2) this season, Luzhanska has never finished a year ranked higher than #222. But she's already managed to raise her ranking into the Top 150, in '11 and she reached her first tour QF last week after making her way past Bojana Jovanovski by taking their 1st Round match in a 3rd set tie-break.
=============================
COMEBACKS: Galina Voskoboeva/KAZ & Urszula Radwanska/POL
...the season-long comeback bids of both of these players progressed still further in Seoul and Guangzhou, respectively. Continuing to show improvement in her game since taking on Alina Jidkova as coach, Voskoboeva, though she failed to become the first woman representing Kazakhstan to win a tour singles title, DID manage to reach her first career singles final on the back of wins over Ekaterina Makarova, Iveta Benesova, Vera Dushevina and Polona Hercog. She and Dushevina also reached the doubles final, making Voskoboeva the fifth woman this season to reach both finals in the same event. Meanwhile, a week after reaching her first career singles QF and SF in Tashkent, U-Rad backed up the result by reaching another quarter with wins over Anastasia Rodionova and Chan Yung-Jan. Over the weekend, she also made it through qualifying in Tokyo.
=============================
VETERANS: Natalie Grandin/Vladimira Uhlirova (RSA/CZE)
...living out the notion that "practice makes perfect," Grandin & Uhlirova finally got fed up with finishing second. In Seoul, in their fifth appearance in a WTA final in '11 (and sixth over the last two seasons), the pair finally won their first tour title as a duo with a win in the deciding match over Dushevina/Voskoboeva. Czech Uhlirova, 33, had at least already won four previous WTA doubles crowns, but this was 30-year old Grandin's first tour title after having previously gone 0-11 in doubles finals. As surprising as Scheepers' title was, one could make a case that the OTHER South African's championship run of Week 38 was an ever LONGER shot.
=============================
FRESH FACES: Magdalena Rybarikova/SVK & Chieh-Yu Hsu/USA
...22-year old Slovak Rybarikova reached her second final this season in Guangzhou after notching wins over Jill Craybas, Aravane Rezai, defending champ Jarmila Gajdosova and Zheng Jie. On the ITF circuit, yet another Bannerette made news, as Taiwan-born American Chieh-Yu Hsu, 19, claimed her second challenger title this month by taking the $10K event in Adana, Turkey. After having taken the doubles crown with Nikola Frankova, Hsu then went out and defeated Frankova in the singles final.
=============================
DOWN: Marion Bartoli/FRA & Bojana Jovanovski/SRB
...Bartoli's loss to King in the 2nd Round in Seoul means that ever since her trip to the Stanford final early this summer, she's exited prior to the QF at four of her last five events. Meanwhile, Bojo's season continues to slowly unwind after a nice start. Jovanovski started 2011 with an overall mark of 15-5, but has gone 13-20 since, including her fifth and sixth straight losses in the past week. After losing to Luzhanska in the 1st Round in Guangzhou, the Serb has already been rocked in Tokyo, losing her opening match by a 6-1/6-0 score to U.S. Open semifinalist Angelique Kerber.
=============================
ITF PLAYER: Sorana Cirstea/ROU
...despite slightly improved results this season, the Romanian has continued to slip into the WTA shadows in '11 as the memory of her Roland Garros quarterfinal result in '09 fades a little more all the time. She HAS made some headlines on the level just below the tour, though. This weekend, she won her second $100K event of the season, defeating Silvia Soler-Espinosa (who just won a $100K event a week earlier) in the final in Saint Malo, France.
=============================
JUNIOR STAR: Anna Karolina Schmiedlova/SVK
...the 17-year old Slovak won her first career Grade 1 title at the Perin Memorial in Umag, Croatia. The #25-ranked junior, and #2-seeded girl at this event, outlasted the top-seeded Natalija Kostic 7-5/4-0 before the Serb retired from the match.
=============================


1. Seoul Final - MJMS d. Voskoboeva
...7-6/7-6. First-time tour singles finalists are now 0-9 in 2011. MJMS has handed out two of those losses, as she also defeated Patricia Mayr-Achleitner in the Austrian's first career final in Bad Gastein in the spring.
=============================
2. Guang Final - Scheepers d. Rybarikova
...6-2/6-2. Scheepers is the third first-time champion on tour in the last two weeks. In Birmingham in 2009, Rybarikova claimed HER first career tour title. That week, she defeated Scheepers in the 2nd Round on her way to the winner's circle.
=============================
3. Guang 1st Rd - Chan d. Pervak 4-1 ret.
Seoul 1st Rd - Suarez-Navarro d. Birnerova 6-4/6-4
...days earlier, Pervak and Birnerova had met in the Tashkent final.
=============================
4. Tokyo 1st Rd - Kanepi d. Pennetta
...3-6/6-4/6-4. Might today's victory over the recently-in-form Pennetta be Kanepi's best win in a disappointing season? Even without any truly great results in her ledger (aside from a SF at the Paris indoors), she's managed to also beat the likes of Rybarikova, Cibulkova and Petkovic in '11.
=============================
5. $75K Shrewbury Final - Mona Barthel/GER d. Heather Watson/GBR
...6-0/6-3. The German wins her second challenger title in two weeks. She also got wins over Ekaterina Bychkova, Anne Keothavong and Kristina Mladenovic.
=============================
6. $10K Madrid SF - Julia Mayr/ITA d. Evelyn Mayr/ITA
...6-2/6-1. There have been a few sister-vs.-sister match-ups lately, and this was another. Julia went on to lose in the final to Rocio de la Torre Sanchez, but did manage (w/ Evelyn) to take down de la Torre Sanchez in the doubles final.
=============================
7. $25K Tbilisi Final - Lesia Tsurenko/UKR d. Reka-Luca Jani/HUN
...7-6/6-3. Ah, here's the I-love-to-say-her-name Hungarian back for more after her recent U.S. Open exposure. Don't worry, though. Her week wasn't a complete disappointment -- she won the Tbilisi doubles title.
=============================


**MOST WTA TITLES - LAST 3 SEASONS**
15...Caroline Wozniacki, DEN (3/6/6)
7...Victoria Azarenka, BLR (3/2/2)
7...Serena Williams, USA (3/2/2)
7...Kim Clijsters, BEL (1/5/1)
5...Petra Kvitova, CZE (1/0/4)
5...Roberta Vinci, ITA (1/1/3)
5...Maria Sharapova, RUS (1/2/2)
5...Vera Zvonareva, RUS (2/1/2)
5...MARIA JOSE MARTINEZ-SANCHEZ, ESP (2/1/2)

**2011 FIRST-TIME CHAMPIONS**
Fes = Alberta Brianti, ITA (age 31)
Bastad = Polona Hercog, SLO (age 20)
Tashkent = Ksenia Pervak, RUS (age 20)
Quebec City = Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova, CZE (age 25)
Guangzhou = CHANELLE SCHEEPERS, RSA (age 27)

**2011 WORST WIN PCT in 3+ FINALS**
.000 - Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU (0-2)
.000 - Jelena Jankovic, SRB (0-2)
.000 - MAGDALENA RYBARIKOVA, SVK (0-2)
.000 - Lucie Safarova, CZE (0-2)
.250 - Marion Bartoli, FRA (1-3)
.333 - Kim Clijsters, BEL (1-2)
.333 - Maria Sharapova, RUS (1-2)
.333 - Samantha Stosur, AUS (1-2)

**BEST FINAL WIN PCT - LAST 3 SEASONS**
[3-or-more finals]
1.000 - MARIA JOSE MARTINEZ-SANCHEZ, ESP (5-0)
1.000 - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS (3-0)
1.000 - Agnes Szavay, HUN (3-0)
.833 - Roberta Vinci, ITA (5-1)
.800 - Aravane Rezai, FRA (4-1)
.778 - Kim Clijsters, BEL (7-2)
.750 - Sabine Lisicki, GER (3-1)
.750 - Anabel Medina-Garrigues, ESP (3-1)
.714 - Petra Kvitova, CZE (5-2)
.700 - Victoria Azarenka, BLR (7-3)
.700 - Serena Williams, USA (7-3)

**WORST 2011 SF WIN PCT - 3+**
.000 - KLARA ZAKOPALOVA, CZE (0-3)
.000 - Ana Ivanovic, SRB (0-2)
.000 - Angelique Kerber, GER (0-2)
.000 - Michaella Krajicek, NED (0-2)
.000 - Petra Martic, CRO (0-2)
.000 - Tamira Paszek, AUT (0-2)
.000 - Flavia Pennetta, ITA (0-2)
.200 - Peng Shuai, CHN (1-4)
--
NOTE: Cibulkova is 0-1 in finals, and has walkover loss in final

**DEFEATED TOP SEED, WON TITLE**
Auckland = Greta Arn, HUN (QF-Sharapova)
Paris = Petra Kvitova, CZE (F-Clijsters)
Pattaya City = Daniela Hantuchova, SVK (SF-Zvonareva)
Doha = Vera Zvonareva, RUS (F-Wozniacki)
Kuala Lumpur = Jelena Dokic, AUS (1st Rd-Schiavone)
Monterrey = Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS (F-Jankovic)
Stuttgart = Julia Goerges, GER (F-Wozniacki)
Rome = Maria Sharapova, RUS (SF-Wozniacki)
Strasbourg = Andrea Petkovic, GER (F-Bartoli)
College Park = Nadia Petrova, RUS (F-Peer)
Carlsbad = Agnieszka Radwanska, POL (F-Zvonareva)
Guangzhou = CHANELLE SCHEEPERS, RSA (SF-Kirilenko)

**SINGLES/DOUBLES FINAL IN SAME EVENT**
Pattaya City - Sara Errani, ITA (L / W)
Acapulco - Arantxa Parra-Santonja, ESP (L / L)
Charleston - Elena Vesnina, RUS (L / W)
Madrid - Victoria Azarenka, BLR (L / W)
Seoul - GALINA VOSKOBOEVA, KAZ (L / L)

**CAREER WTA TITLES - SOUTH AFRICANS**
9 - Amanda Coetzer, 1993-03
5 - Yvonne Vermaak, 1977-84
3 - Linky Boshoff, 1976-77
3 - Patricia Pretorious-Walken, 1969-70
2 - Brigitte Cuypers, 1976-78
2 - Joannette Kruger, 1995-97
2 - Greer Stevens, 1976-79
1 - Mariaan de Swardt (1998)
1 - Ros Fairbank-Nideffer (1983)
1 - Jennifer Mundel-Reinbold (1983)
1 - Elna Reinach (1993)
1 - CHANELLE SCHEEPERS (2011)
1 - Dinky van Rensburg (1990)

**MOST 2011 ITF $100K FINALS**
3...Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU (2-1)
3...Pauline Parmentier, FRA (2-1)
3...Petra Cetkovska, CZE (0-3)
2...SORANA CIRSTEA, ROU (2-0)
2...Anastasiya Yakimova, BLR (2-0)
2...SILVIA SOLER-ESPINOSA, ESP (1-1)
2...Laura Pous-Tio, ESP (0-2)

=BACKSPIN PLAYER-OF-THE-YEAR HISTORY=
[pre-Backspin]
1997 Martina Hingis, SUI
1998 Jana Novotna, CZE
1999 Steffi Graf, GER
2000 Venus Williams, USA
["Ms. Backspin"]
2001 Jennifer Capriati, USA
2002 Serena Williams, USA
2003 Justine Henin-Hardenne, BEL
2004 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2005 Kim Clijsters, BEL
2006 Amelie Mauresmo, FRA
2007 Justine Henin, BEL
2008 Cara Black/Liezel Huber, ZIM/USA
2009 Italian Fed Cup Team
2010 Francesca Schiavone, ITA





TOKYO, JAPAN (Premier $2.05m/hard outdoor)
10 Final: Wozniacki d. Dementieva
11 Top Seeds: Wozniacki/Sharapova
10 Doubles Champions: Benesova/Zahlavova-Strycova
=============================
=QF=
#1 Wozniacki d. (Q) Kerber
#3 Azarenka d. #10 Peng
#6 Stosur d. #4 Zvonareva
#2 Sharapova d. #5 Kvitova
=SF=
#1 Wozniacki d. #3 Azarenka
#2 Sharapova d. #6 Stosur
=FINAL=
#1 Wozniacki d. #2 Sharapova (in a hail of UE's)

...if only Kvitova had some post-Wimbledon results to look kindly upon, she'd be a nice pick here. With expectation now her daily companion, it'll be interesting to see how Stosur handles this first post-Open outing. The Czech or the Aussie would be fun picks, but, hedging bets, I'll go a safer route as Wozniacki tries to pull off her third successful title defense of the season.


All for now.



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2011 3Q Awards: The Long Road to a Good End

"That's everything you would ever want to do in a moment like that. I couldn't have dreamed of playing a better match."
-- Samantha Stosur

*2011 3Q Awards - Wks.27-36*
**TOP PLAYERS**
1. Samantha Stosur, AUS

...as the U.S. Open began, who would have thought that the ultimate rising-from-the-ashes-of-2011 star of the 3rd Quarter wouldn't be named Serena? Stosur might have wanted to play on Ashe before the final, or enjoyed a little of the spotlight pretty much everyone else who reached the latter stages of the tournament enjoyed. But would she have held her nerve through it all to reach the final, and then pull off a career-defining performance against Williams in the final, too? We'll never know. And it doesn't matter anyway. The Ballad of Slingin' Sammy ends up with a delightful completion of a career arc, after all. Who'd have guessed?
=============================
2. Serena Williams, USA
...she was the class of the North American hard court circuit, and the Open. Well, at least until she played in the Open final.
=============================
3. Liezel Huber & Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
...the veteran pair ended the quarter with a flourish, winning in Toronto and then at Flushing Meadows, too. It gave Raymond her first tour title since '06, and Huber her first doubles slam since her bad break-up with Cara Black. It propelled Huber back to #1 in the doubles rankings, too. Ironic, since it was Black's (according to Huber, at least) preoccupation with her own #1 ranking that caused some of the tension between her and the woman with whom she won 29 of her 46 career doubles titles.
=============================
4. Agnieszka Radwanska, POL
...her Open result was a disappointment, but her pre-NYC results (including a title in Carlsbad) is enough to lift her above a group of players with similarly-uneven 3Q results.
=============================
5. Vania King & Yaroslava Shvedova, USA/KAZ
...they won Cincinnati and (almost) defended their U.S. Open crown.
=============================
BEST OF THE REST:
6. Vera Zvonareva, RUS
7. Maria Sharapova, RUS
8. Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
9. Angelique Kerber, GER
10. Petra Cetkovska, CZE
HM- Sabine Lisicki/GER, Andrea Petkovic/GER & Peng Shuai/CHN

**RISERS**
1. Samantha Stosur, AUS
2. Agnieszka Radwanska, POL
3. Vania King/Yaroslava Shvedova, USA/KAZ
4. Vera Zvonareva, RUS
5. Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
6. Sabine Lisicki, GER
7. Andrea Petkovic, GER
8. Peng Shuai, CHN
9. Petra Cetkovska, CZE
10. Angelique Kerber, GER
11. Victoria Azarenka, BLR
12. Polona Hercog, SLO
13. Victoria Azarenka/Maria Kirilenko, BLR/RUS
14. Sara Errani/Roberta Vinci, ITA/ITA
15. Lucie Hradecka, CZE
HM- Dominika Cibulkova, SVK

**FRESH FACES**
1. Christina McHale, USA
2. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS
3. Monica Niculescu, ROU
4. Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
5. Alexandra Dulgheru, ROU
6. Ksenia Pervak, RUS
7. Tamira Paszek, AUT
8. Ayumi Morita, JPN
9. Sloane Stephens, USA
10. Madison Keys, USA
11. Irina Falconi, USA
12. Misaka Doi, JPN
13. Heather Watson, GBR
14. Laura Robson, GBR
15. Petra Martic, CRO
HM- Vitalia Diatchenko, RUS

**JUNIORS**
1. Grace Min, USA
2. Victoria Kan, RUS
3. Yulia Putintseva, RUS
4. Caroline Garcia, FRA
5. Anett Kontaveit, EST
6. Irina Khromacheva, RUS
7. Eugenie Bouchard, CAN
8. Nicole Gibbs, USA
9. Ashleigh Barty, AUS
10. Krista Hardebeck, USA
11. Ellen Allgurin, SWE
12. Francoise Abanda, CAN
13. Demi Schuurs, NED
14. Nastja Kolar, SLO
15. Victoria Duval, USA
HM- Indy de Vroome, NED

**SURPRISES**
1. Angelique Kerber, GER
2. Petra Cetkovska, CZE
3. Galina Voskoboeva, KAZ
4. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner, AUT
5. Natalie Grandin/Vladimira Uhlirova, RSA/CZE
6. Silvia Soler-Espinosa, ESP
7. Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP
8. Marina Erakovic, NZL
9. Johanna Larsson, SWE
10. Sofia Arvidsson, SWE
11. Pauline Parmentier, FRA
12. Reka-Luca Jani, HUN
13. Alexandra Panova, RUS
14. Mariya Koryttseva, UKR
15. Romina Oprandi, ITA
HM- Chanelle Scheepers, RSA

**VETERANS**
1. Serena Williams, USA
2. Liezel Huber/Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
3. Nadia Petrova, RUS
4. Anabel Medina-Garrigues, ESP
5. Roberta Vinci, ITA
6. Flavia Pennetta, ITA
7. Zheng Jie, CHN
8. Jelena Jankovic, SRB
9. Francesca Schiavone, ITA
10. Natalie Grandin, RSA
HM- Tatiana Poutchek, BLR

**COMEBACKS**
1. Serena Williams, USA
2. Liezel Huber/Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
3. Melanie Oudin, USA
4. Jelena Jankovic, SRB
5. Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP
6. Aleksandra Wozniak, CAN
7. Kateryna Bondarenko, UKR
8. Urszula Radwanska, POL
9. Aravane Rezai, FRA
10. Ana Ivanovic, SRB
HM- Sania Mirza, IND

"You never know how it is going in the head." - Petra Kvitova

**DOWN**
1. Petra Kvitova, CZE
2. Li Na, CHN
3. Kim Clijsters, BEL
4. Gisela Dulko/Flavia Pennetta, ARG/ITA
5. Venus Williams, USA
HM- Daniela Hantuchova, SVK

**ITF PLAYERS**
1. Pauline Parmentier, FRA
2. Aleksandra Wozniak, CAN
3. Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
4. Vitalia Diatchenko, RUS
5. Mathilde Johansson, FRA
6. Alexandra Cadantu, ROU
7. Nastassja Burnett, ITA
8. Victoria Larriere, FRA
9. Iryna Bremond, FRA
10. Andrea Hlavackova, CZE
11. Victoria Kan, RUS
12. Yulia Putintseva, RUS
13. Polina Vinogradova, RUS
14. Carolina Pillot, FRA
15. Indire Akiki, CRO

"I just remember that I lost, and that was that. I got really popular, a lot of people were telling me I was, like 'super cool,' that they never saw me so intense." - Serena Williams, in the Open's early days, trying to put her '09 U.S. Open "incident" -- for which she was fined a record amount and put on "behavioral probation" -- behind her

**TOP PERFORMANCES**
1. Stosur at the Open.
Not only did she become the first Aussie woman to win a slam since 1981 (and first in NY since '73), she also won the longest-ever U.S. Open women's match (3:16 vs. Petrova) AND participated in the longest (32-point) women's tie-break in grand slam history. And she did most of it under the cover of darkness, away from the show courts while other "bigger-named" players were hogging the spotlight. Played a day late because of weather delays, the finals set all of that right, though, as Stosur's masterful 6-2/6-3 win over Serena fits in rather snugly next to Sharapova's win over Williams at Wimbledon in '04 as the most surprising performance by ANYONE against the American in a big-stage final.
=============================
2. Serena in North America
Williams ruled the courts before her loss to Stosur, claiming two titles and winning all eighteen matches she played. Oddly enough, the only match she didn't win during the stretch came when she pulled out of her 2nd Round contest against Stosur in Cincinnati due to an injured big toe.
=============================
3. The Wozniacki Open, Pt. IV

...after a summer filled with uncharacteristic early-round losses, a public relationship with golfer Rory McIlroy and stories about a new "mystery" coach, Caroline Wozniacki finally had an experience that felt familiar -- winning her fourth straight title in New Haven and celebrating with the Yale football team (and McIroy).
=============================

[Doubles]
Doing C-Woz one better, Lucie Hradecka won her fifth consecutive doubles titles at Bad Gastein
[Junior]
Doing Serena one match better, Grace Min won the U.S. Open Girls title without dropping a set
[Team]
The Washington Kastles, with both Serena and Venus for part of the season, completed the first undefeated (16-0) record in the WTT's 36-year history.

*TOP MATCHES*
1. US Open 3rd Rd - Stosur d. Petrova
...7-6/6-7/7-5. Petrova saved four match points, but came up short in the Open's longest-ever women's match. Naturally, Stosur went on to win the title. Oh, Nadia.
=============================
2. Cincinnati 3rd Rd - Jankovic d. Schiavone
...6-3/5-7/6-4. JJ fails to put away a match point in the 2nd, then nearly blows a 5-1 lead in the 3rd before winning in 2:38. In between, trainers were called and arguments were had with coaches and the umpire. In other words, it was a mixture of "the usual" from these two.
=============================
3. US Open 3rd Rd - Pennetta d. Sharapova
...6-3/3-6/6-4. In a match of wild swings, the final one went Pennetta's way, as she build an insurmountable 3-0 lead in the 3rd by sweeping the trio of games in which Sharapova had held game points. In the end, the Russian's doubles-faults and unforced errors (60 in all) put the first blemish on her previously 12-0 record in three-setters in '11.
=============================

[7 games]
Victoria Azarenka served down 1-6/3-5, love/40 against Serena Williams in their 3rd Round U.S. Open match. She saved three match points in the game, then a fourth on Williams' serve. She then broke Serena's serve with a block-back winner to become the first to break the American's serve in the tournament. After saving break points in game #12, Azarenka pushed the set to a tie-break. Williams won it 7-5, but Azarenka proved herself worthy of the day's stage... as well as possibly the one reserved for a future grand slam champion.
[Tie-Break]
In their Round of 16 U.S. Open match, Samantha Stosur and Maria Kirilenko did battle in a (women's slam record) 32-point tie-break to decide the 2nd set. Stosur held five match points during the TB, while Kirilenko took six set points (and three successful replay challenges) to finally win it 17-15. On her eighth match point, though, Stosur finally won the match -- and, later, the tournament -- in three.

*UPSETS*
1. US Open 1st Rd - Dulgheru d. Kvitova 7-6/6-3
US Open 1st Rd - Halep d. Li 6-2/7-5
...at the hands of two Romanians, the Wimbledon and Roland Garros champions crash out of what would be the "longest ever" Open before it had barely even begun. Hmmm, were they the lucky ones?
=============================
2. Cincinnati 1st Rd - McHale d. Wozniacki
...6-4/7-5. The young American's upset of the world #1 set the stage for the Bannerettes' unexpected successes at the Open.
=============================
3. Toronto 3rd Rd - Voskoboeva d. Sharapova
...6-3/7-5. Sharapova's title in Cincinnati was sandwiched between her self-destructing U.S. Open loss to Pennetta and this defeat at the hands of world #135 Voskoboeva.
=============================

*COMEBACKS*
1. US Open 4th Rd - Pennetta d. Peng
...6-4/7-6. With the humid conditions making Pennetta sick and near vomiting in the backcourt, she failed to serve out the match at 6-4/6-5, 30/love, committing an unforced error on match point. Seemingly needing to win in straight sets to have any shot to physically be able to complete the match, the Italian fell behind 5-0 and 6-2 in the 2nd set tie-break. But not one to go out without a fight -- especially at the Open -- Pennetta went for broke in her attempt to wrap up her unfinished business. Saving four match points, she won the tie-break 8-6. Unfortunately, her QF loss to Angelique Kerber prevented her from reaching her first-ever slam semi.
=============================
2. US Open 2nd Rd - Falconi d. Cibulkova
...2-6/6-3/7-5. Down 4-1 and two breaks in the 3rd, on a match moved to Ashe Stadium only after Venus Williams' unexpected withdrawal from the tournament, Bannerette Falconi battled back to serve for the match at 5-4. She failed to do it, but got another chance at 6-5, finally winning on a flip shot across the net after she'd chased down a ball into the changeover area. Her victorious Connorsican explosion, on the 20th anniversary of Jimbo's wild Open ride, proved to be "the (most likely to be replayed) moment" of the tournament.
=============================

=THE GOOD=
Serena Williams won her first titles in over a year, while Nadia Petrova won her first in nearly three (and came the closest to knocking out eventual Open champ Stosur in NYC). Both their summers were brought to an end by the Aussie, actually.
=============================
Jelena Jankovic back with Ricardo Sanchez; Ana Ivanovic with Nigel Sears.
=============================
Young Bannerette newcomers Christina McHale, Sloane Stephens, Madison Keys, Coco Vandeweghe and Irina Falconi (not to mention juniors Grace Min, Nicole Gibbs, Krista Hardebeck and Victoria Duval) grabbing the spotlight at Flushing Meadows. In something of a shock, as many American women won 1st Round main draw matches as did the Russians. Throw in Melanie Oudin's Mixed crown, Huber/Raymond's doubles title, Vania King (doubles), Gabrielle Andrews & Taylor Townsend (junior doubles) and Serena's (singles) runner-up performances, and this year's U.S. Open had more of an American flavor than any in quite some time.
=============================

"Are you the one who screwed me over the last time here? ...Do you have it out for me? ... If you see me walking down a hall, look away. ...You are totally out of control. ...You're a hater, and you're just unattractive inside. ...We are in America, last I checked. ...And I never complain." - some of Serena Williams' comments to chair umpire Eva Azderaki after being given a point penalty for shouting during a point

=THE BAD=
The '11 slam champions in New York: Kvitova and Li choking in Flushing Meadows, and Clijsters not even being able to show up
=============================
Serena Williams, overblown "controversy" or not, giving all her critics something to harp on by once again sounding off against an umpire in a big match. She was fined only $2000, and spared a suspension for her less-than-"major" infraction... setting off yet another round of griping. Hmmm, maybe if someone's temper was controlled at the beginning of these incidents there wouldn't be such a long and distasteful aftertaste trailing behind them. Just a thought.
=============================

"My emotions did get the best of me this past weekend when I disagreed with the umpire." - Serena Williams, on Twitter, days after her on-court blow-up with umpire Eva Azderaki

=THE ?????? (TO BE DETERMINED LATER)=
Wozniacki and her "mystery coach," and what it will mean for her future.

=THE BET YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT COMING=
A German reached the U.S. Open semis, but it wasn't Andrea Petkovic, Sabine Lisicki, Julia Goerges, or even Steffi Graf. It was world #92 Angelique Kerber.

=THE "IF YOU'VE FORGOTTEN THAT HENIN PLAYED THIS SEASON, DID YOU ALSO FORGET THAT CLIJSTERS PLAYED IN NORTH AMERICA THIS SUMMER?" MOMENT=
Clijsters played a single match on hard courts, losing (6-3/1-2 ret.) in the 2nd Round in Toronto to Zheng Jie, retiring with a stomach muscle injury to go along with her previous ankle, toe, foot, shoulder and wrist injuries in 2011.

=THE TYPICAL=
Jelena Jankovic (vs. Elena Vesnina in the 1st Round in New Haven) was playing a match when a 5.8 earthquake hit the American east coast a few days before the start of the U.S. Open.
=============================
After famously dramatic '11 slam turns in Melbourne (vs. Kuznetsova), Paris (vs. Pavlyuchenkova) and London (vs. Paszek), Francesca Schiavone weaved another spellbinder against Chanelle Scheepers in the 3rd Round in New York, coming back to win from 7-5/5-4 and a match point down.
=============================

=THE REALITY OF THINKING GOOD THOUGHTS=
Both Alisa Kleybanova (Hodgkin's Lymphoma) and Venus Williams (Sjogren's Syndrome) announced that they were dealing with health issues.

=THE PROOF THAT THE POWERS-THAT-BE HAVE NOTHING BETTER TO DO=
WTA head Stacey Allaster said that she'd consider the use of an on-court "decibal meter" to help dole out penalties/fines for players' in-match grunts/shrieks/moans

=and (more) THEATRE OF THE ABSURD=
With hurricane-related delays cancelling flights on the East coast, both of Venus Williams' scheduled early-round U.S. Open opponents -- Vesna Dolonts (coming from Russia) & Sabine Lisicki (Dallas) had difficulties getting into New York.
=============================
Alize Cornet's cell phone went off during a Bastad match right as Caroline Wozniacki was serving for the match against her.
=============================
Bojana Jovanovski left Washington D.C. for a flight to her next tournament in Carlsbad, California -- only to have her plane set down in Carlsbad, New Mexico, 983 miles away. She finally arrived on the tournament grounds thirty minutes before her 1st Round match. She lost to Roberta Vinci.
=============================

Of course, all that has nothing on trying to figure out which woman should be 2011's "Ms. Backspin." But more on that game of 52-card pick-up next week.


All for now.

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Wk.37- Double Trouble

It's a double-Backspin day!

After the conclusion of the longest U.S. Open in the history of civilization, with or without handi-wipes, I just couldn't bring myself to do the 3Q Awards last week. So they'll belatedly arrive (fashionably late... you know, sort of like Serena's Twitter "apology") today, following this semi-sweet regular Monday offering.



*WEEK 37 CHAMPIONS*
TASHKENT, UZBEKISTAN (Int'l $220K/hard court outdoor)
S: Ksenia Pervak def. Eva Birnerova 6-3/6-1
D: Daniilidou/Diatchenko d. Kichenok/Kichenok
QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC CAN (Int'l $220K/hard court indoor)
S: Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova def. Marina Erakovic 4-6/6-1/6-0
D: Kops-Jones/Spears d. Hampton/Tatishvili


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Ksenia Pervak/RUS
...the 20-year old Hordette apparently specializes in reaching tour singles finals in places that seem "far off" and have "z's" in their names. A few months ago, she reached her first career final in Baku, Azerbaijan, losing to Vera Zvonareva (geez... another "z"). This weekend, after making her way through the likes of Galina Voskoboeva, qualifier Victoria Larriere and Urszula Radwanska (another "z"), the #1-seeded Pervak defeated Czech (hello... a "z") Eva Birnerova to claim her first career WTA crown in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Only the third first-time titlist of 2011 (she'd be followed by a fourth winner's circle newcomer one day later in Quebec City), Pervak is up to a new career-high ranking of #37, making her the eighth-highest ranked Russian of the ten currently in the Top 50.
=============================
RISERS: Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova/CZE & Marina Erakovic/NZL

...these two were the women playing in the Quebec City final for the right to become the season's fourth first-time WTA champion. In the end, it was BZS kissing a trophy for the first time. At 25, Zahlavova-Strycova was playing in her second career final (Prague '10) after notching wins over Zhang Shuai, Mirjana Lucic, Andrea Hlavackova and Michaella Krajicek. At 23, Kiwi Erakovic was playing in her first final after taking out U.S. Open Girls runner-up Caroline Garcia, (temporary) Open star Irina Falconi, #1-seed Daniela Hantuchova and defending champ Tamira Paszek. With the Czech's victory in the final, Erakovic can now say that on two occasions in '11 she has managed to defeat both the #1 seed and defending champ at an event (after having defeated Azarenka, filling both roles, in Stanford), but didn't ultimately win the title either time. No other woman can say as much this season. So, at least she has that goin' for her. Which is nice.
=============================
SURPRISES: Raquel Kops-Jones/Abigail Spears (USA/USA) & Victoria Larriere/FRA
...in Quebec City, the all-American pair of Kops-Jones & Spears won their second (w/ Estoril '09) tour title as a pair. It's 28-year old Kops-Jones' (who won Quebec in '07, as well) fourth WTA crown, and 30-year old Spears' sixth. Meanwhile, in Tashkent, 20-year old world #262, Pastry Victoria Larriere, a star on the ITF circuit this year with four titles, qualified and reached her first career tour QF before losing to eventual champion Pervak. She got main draw wins over Zuzana Kucova and Magdalena Rybarikova.
=============================
COMEBACK: Urszula Radwanska/POL
...a few years ago, U-Rad seemed ready to follow in the footsteps of her sister Agnieszka as a Top 20 player. In 2007, she won the Wimbledon junior crown and reached the U.S. Open Girls final, climbing to #1 in the junior ranks. But things haven't worked out all that well for her. She finished 2009 in the Top 100 for the first time after climbing as high as #62, but just as she was set to make a move on tour, injury took her out of the opening months of last season, and her climb back has been anything but quick. She finished last season at #191. This weekend in Tashkent, though, after arriving with a #121 ranking, the still-only-20 year old Pole finally reached her first career tour QF and SF, getting wins over Varvara Lepchenko, Akgul Amanmuradova and Eleni Daniilidou along the way. Her ranking is now at #105.
=============================
VETERANS: Eva Birnernova/CZE & Eleni Daniilidou/GRE
...the 27-year old Birnerova has been banging around the tour for a while now, qualifying for a slam here and there, but never making much of an impact in the WTA since reaching a career-high of #59 back in '07. After winning eight ITF singles crowns in her career, the world #115 reached her first career tour singles final in Tashkent after knocking off the likes of Evgeniya Rodina and defending champion Alla Kudryavtseva. Her week jumped her into the Top 100 at #93. Meanwhile, in the tournament's doubles competition, Greece's Eleni Daniilidou, 29 today (happy b-day!!), claimed the title with young Hordette Vitalia Diatchenko, defeating the Kichenok sisters -- Nadiya & Lyudmyla -- of Ukraine in the final. Daniilidou also reached the singles QF, getting wins over Misaki Doi and Pauline Parmentier.
=============================
FRESH FACES: Vitalia Diatchenko/RUS & Ximena Hermoso/MEX
...Diatchenko, 21, recently added a $100K ITF singles challenger crown to a '11 resume that has included qualifying runs at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. In Tashkent, she won her first career tour doubles crown with Daniilidou. She also got a win over Olga Govortsova in singles. Elsewhere, Mexico doesn't exactly have a great tennis history for current Mexican-born players to draw upon, but 20-year old Ximena Hermoso is doing her best to change that. Since she experienced a seven-match losing streak earlier this season, she's reached four ITF finals, winning her second this weekend by taking out Israel's Ofri Lankri in the final of the $10K challenger in Porto Rafti, Greece.
=============================
DOWN: Lucie Safarova/CZE
...there weren't really any good candidates for this award this week, what with most all the players who carry along expectations to every court on which they show up to play not participating this week. But, Safarova being Safarova, as the #2 seed in Quebec City, still managed to have one of her they-could-come-at-any-moment early-round losses to Andrea Hlavackova. So, she gets the Week 37 booby prize.
=============================
ITF PLAYERS: Anastasiya Yakimova/BLR & Silvia Soler-Espinosa/ESP
...once again, the ITF circuit doubled up on the $100K events last week, so there are co-winners for the second time in recent weeks. Yakimova, for her part, won her circuit-best SECOND $100K event of the season in the Ningbo, China event. She got wins over Stephanie Foretz-Gacon, Akiko Nakamura and Erika Sema in the final. In Sofia, Bulgaria, Soler-Espinosa, fresh off her "Last Qualifier Standing" 3rd Round run at Flushing Meadows, won the week's other $100K with a nice string of victories over Alexandra Cadantu (another recent $100K champ), Johanna Larsson, Catalina Castano and Romina Oprandi in the final.
=============================
JUNIOR STARS: Ilka Csoregi/ROU & Chalena Scholl/USA
...15-year old Swarmette Csoregi won the G2 Serbian Junior Open in Novi Sad, while 16-year old Scholl claimed the G3 Canadian World Ranking event in Montreal where, as the #8 seed, she knocked off the #2, #4 and #1 (Aliaksandra Sasnovich/BLR in the final) en route to the title.
=============================


1. Que Final - Zahlavova-Strycova d. Erakovic
...4-6/6-1/6-0. A few Did-You-Know? facts: this was the fifth WTA singles final match-up in 2011 that included two unseeded players, and first-time career finalist Erakovic's loss means that the combined record of first-time finalists this season is now 0-8.
=============================
2. Tash Final - Pervak d. Birnerova

...6-3/6-1. Pervak is the fifth different Hordette to win a tour singles title this year.
=============================
3. Que 1st Rd - Hlavackova d. Oudin
...6-1/6-3. Proof that the U.S. Open Mixed Doubles title "carry-over" is zilch.
=============================
4. Que 1st Rd - Marino d. Dubois 6-2/6-4
Que 2nd Rd - Marino d. Wozniak 6-4/4-6/6-4
...needless to say, Marino was the "Canadian of the Week."
=============================
5. Tash 1st Rd - Amanmuradova d. Rezai
...6-4/6-3. Ugh, here we go again?
=============================
HM- $100K Ningbo 1st Rd - Karolina Pliskova d. Kristyna Pliskova
...6-3/6-4. The Kichenok sisters didn't win in the Tashkent doubles final, but one of the Pliskova twins HAD to win when they faced off in the 1st Round in Ningbo. Karolina won, giving her a 3-2 lead over Kristyna in career pro match-ups. Together, they lost in the 1st Round in doubles. Afterward, they both traveled to Seoul for this week's WTA event. Kristyna managed to qualify, but Karolina didn't.
=============================


**#1 SEED WON TITLE**
Dubai - Caroline Wozniacki
Indian Wells - Caroline Wozniacki
Marbella - Victoria Azarenka
Charleston - Caroline Wozniacki
Brussels - Caroline Wozniacki
Copenhagen - Caroline Wozniacki
Budapest - Roberta Vinci
Baku - Vera Zvonareva
New Haven - Caroline Wozniacki
Tashkent - KSENIA PERVAK

**2011 - DEFEATED TOP SEED & DEFENDING CHAMP**
[won title]
Auckland - Greta Arn (def. DC Wickmayer, #1 Sharapova)
Pattaya City - Daniela Hantuchova (def. DC/#1 Zvonareva)
[didn't win title]
Bogota - Han Xu (def. DC Duque-Marino, #1 Goerges = reached QF)
Bad Gastein - Laura Pous-Tio (def. DC/#1 Goerges = reached QF)
Stanford - Marina Erakovic (def. DC/#1 Azarenka = reached QF)
Toronto - Roberta Vinci (def. DC/#1 Wozniacki = reached QF)
Quebec City - MARINA ERAKOVIC (def. DC Paszek/#1 Hantuchova = reached Final)

**2011 FINALS - RUSSIANS**
4...Maria Sharapova (2-2)
3...Vera Zvonareva (2-1)
2...KSENIA PERVAK (1-1)
1...Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (1-0)
1...Nadia Petrova (1-0)
1...Svetlana Kuznetsova (0-1)
1...Elena Vesnina (0-1)

**2011 ALL-UNSEEDED FINALISTS**
Brisbane - Petra Kvitova/CZE d. Andrea Petkovic/GER
Bogota - Lourdes Dominguez-Lino/ESP d. Mathilde Johansson/FRA
Estoril - Anabel Medina-Garrigues/ESP d. Kristina Barrois/GER
Bad Gastein - M.J. Martinez-Sanchez/ESP d. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner/AUT (WC)
Quebec - BARBORA ZAHLAVOVA-STRYCOVA/CZE d. MARINA ERAKOVIC/NZL

**LOW-RANKED 2011...**
[Finalists]
#169 - Serena Williams, USA (Stanford - W)
#138 - Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU (Marbella - L)
#115 - EVA BIRNERNOVA, CZE (Tashkent - L)
#114 - Aravane Rezai, FRA (Dallas - L)
#109 - Patricia Mayr-Achleitner, AUT (Bad Gastein - L)
#105 - Magdalena Rybarikova, SVK (Memphis - W)
#100 - Sabine Lisicki, GER (Birmingham - W)
[Semifinalists]
#187 - Mona Barthel, GER (Copenhagen - SF)
#169 - Serena Williams, USA (Stanford - W)
#165 - Mariya Koryttseva, UKR (Baku - SF)
#162 - Galina Voskoboeva, KAZ (Baku - SF)
#150 - Michaella Krajicek, NED (Kuala Lumpur - SF)
#138 - Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU (Marbella - RU)
#138 - MICHAELLA KRAJICEK, NED (Quebec City - SF)
#121 - URSZULA RADWANSKA, POL (Tashkent - SF)

**2011 FINALISTS - BY NATION**
13...RUSSIA (7 titles)
11...CZECH REPUBLIC (5)
8...Denmark (6)
6...Germany (4)
6...Italy (4)
6...Australia (3)
6...France (1)

**WEEKS IN 2011 TOP 10 - of 38 weeks**
38...Caroline Wozniacki *
38...Victoria Azarenka *
38...Vera Zvonareva *
38...Francesca Schiavone *
38...Kim Clijsters *
37...Samantha Stosur *
34...Li Na *
25...Maria Sharapova *
22...Jelena Jankovic
20...Petra Kvitova *
18...Marion Bartoli *
13...Venus Williams
9...Serena Williams
7...Agnieszka Radwanska
4...Elena Dementieva (retired)
1...Andrea Petkovic
--
* - currently in Top 10





SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (Int'l $220K/hard outdoor)
10 Final: Kleybanova d. Zakopalova
11 Top Seeds: Schiavone/Bartoli
10 Doubles Champions: Goerges/Hercog
=============================
=SF=
#1/WC Schiavone d. (Q) Shvedova
#7 Begu d. #3 Goerges
=FINAL=
#1/WC Schiavone d. #7 Begu

...Schiavone hasn't won a hard court title since Moscow in '09. She's probably due.


GUANGZHOU, CHINA (Int'l $220K/hard outdoor)
10 Final: Gajdosova (still "Groth" at the time) d. Kudryavtseva
11 Top Seeds: Kirilenko/Gajdosova
10 Doubles Champions: Gallovits-Hall/Mirza
=============================
=SF=
#1 Kirilenko d. #3 Pervak
Zheng Jie d. Zhang Shuai
=FINAL=
#1 Kirilenko d. Zheng Jie

...correctly picking Pervak to win a title in back-to-back weeks seems a longshot, so I'll take a different Russian. Three of Kirilenko's five titles have come in Asia... plus, Stosur isn't in town.


3Q Awards soon. All for now.



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The Perfect Man for the Job

For four years, from 2007-10, Novak Djokovic finished the year as the #3-ranked player in the world. The would-be prince of men's tennis was the "third man" in a two-man game, looking in on an exceedingly exclusive club from a vantage point that was close, yet so far away, wondering if the game's kings would ever deign to allow him to sit at their table.

But those days are gone. Now, the Serb is the one calling the shots and the deposed former rulers of the sport can only gaze upon HIM from afar, muttering to themselves that "he can't possibly be this good for much longer." Yep, the shoe is now most definitely on the other foot... err, feet.

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal didn't know the sort of monster they were unwittingly helping to create.

"You can't compare me to my father. Our similarities are different." - Dale Berra, on his father Yogi

They say necessity is the motherhood of invention, and the height of The Great Wall built between Federer/Nadal and the rest of the men's field over most of the past decade surely called for no stone to go unturned if anyone was truly serious about scaling the monstrous edifice. Andy Murray didn't have the equipment to mount the offensive, while Andy Roddick's best days were behind him, making any concerted effort on his part impossible. Juan Martin del Potro reached the top of The Wall, only to tumble back down its side and be forced to begin his climb once again from Point A. For years, no man seemed up to the challenge. But, as it's turned out, the person closest to the barrier -- Djokovic -- was the perfect man for the job.

A man with a childhood shaped and uprooted by war, whose discovery of and love for a sport changed both his and his family's life, was hardly the sort to give up after seeing his climbing efforts thwarted time and time again. Over the course of 2011, the work that Djokovic has put in to improve each and every aspect of his game, both on court and off, has become more and more apparent. His forehand is bigger, and his serve more stable (no more routinely having more double-faults than aces for him). A great defensive player blessed with supreme quickness during his career, he's improved his stamina (and overall confidence) by improving his fitness via his (now almost humorously "cliched") gluten-free diet, allowing him to go into a potentially long match knowing that he needn't change his approach in order to play quicker points so he'll be physically up to finishing in the end. As a result, he can do battle with the likes of a grinding Nadal in a series of pounding, 25-shot rallies and get the best of the Spaniard as many -- or more -- times as his opponent gets the best of him. Already blessed with a remarkable return of service, this season he's found ways to break down opponents' serves in a way that have allowed him to put forth his most stunning stuff in the most crucial moments of matches (see vs. Federer's serve, down 2 MP in the Open SF). With few exceptions, Djokovic has been at his best when the points have meant the most.

Physically, Djokovic doesn't appear to be an overwhelmingly imposing figure. But with the improvement in literally every area of his game all coming together at the same time, the sum of Djokovic's parts have come to equal something pretty awesome. So much so that even Nadal can't fully believe that the Serb is going to be able to defend his newly-won kingdom as well or for as long as he and Federer did. Maybe Rafa's subtle questions about Djokovic's staying power at #1 will prove to be prescient. But, in the final of this year's U.S. Open, the future was NOW, as Djokovic's many skills culminated in a magnificent match that only served to prove that the Serb is the best tennis player on the planet.



The match wasn't "the greatest match ever played." Rafa had won that one a few years ago. It wasn't even a five-setter. But Djokovic/Nadal was one of the best-played slam finals you'll ever see. On a point-by-point basis, no inch was given. Everything had to be taken. One potential shift in momentum in the action was almost always immediately met by a turn back in the other direction. Even big leads (mostly by Djokovic) were built upon the labor of a series of sustained, bludgeoning groundstroke-filled, defensively-astounding rallies that lasted 20-30 strokes that could have gone in the favorable stat column of either player... until one finally outlasted the other. Personally, I don't think I've ever seen a big match that had more of those sorts of rallies than this one. During CBS's coverage of the final, Mary Carillo joked that the action was, "Just one big salute to physical fitness."

Most of those rallies were ultimately won by Djokovic, as he beat Nadal at his own game, one which got Rafa to #1 in the world and with which he won ten slam titles. A year ago, Nadal, who had focused his entire summer on winning the Open (even talking about his ultimate goal minutes after winning Wimbledon) was a serving machine in Flushing Meadows. His serve was broken just three times the entire tournament en route to the title. In this tournament, Nadal wasn't nearly the unstoppable force he was a year ago, but he improved in every match. In Monday's final, though, Djokovic broke his serve three times... in the 1st set. In the match, he managed to break the Spaniard eleven times. Yet, still, Nadal was legitimately fighting with a belief that he could defend his title into the 4th set.

In the first two sets, Nadal jumped to early 2-0 leads. But, both times, Djokovic immediately broke back one game after Rafa had managed to break HIS serve. In the 1st, the Serb won six games in a row to take the set. In the 2nd, on his sixth break point attempt, he broke Nadal in an eight-deuce, 17:15 game filled with the long, punishing, high-quality rallies that marked the match. Djokovic led the set 4-2, and very nearly 5-2, before Nadal stopped the momentum to hold for 4-3, then break for 4-4. But, again, Djokovic broke back immediately, then served out the stanza at 6-4 for a two-set to none lead.

"You have to give 100% in the first half of the game. If that isn't enough, in the second half, you have to give what is left." - Yogi Berra

In the 3rd set, Djokovic grabbed a quick break for a 2-1 lead, only to see Nadal break him to get back on serve one game later. But, again, for the fourth straight time, Djokovic got the break back immediately to get back on top at 3-2. The momentum shifts weren't over, though. After the Serb began Game #6 with a double-fault and fell down love/40 while seeming to be having issues with his back, Nadal broke again to knot the score at 3-3, then finally broke the break-back string by holding for 4-3. With Djokovic serving again, Nadal held another break point, but Djokovic held in a game highlighted by his claiming of a 31-point rally in which Nadal dragged him from side-to-side in the backcourt, only to see the Serb scramble to get every ball back, then punctuate his efforts by smacking a winner down the line. After the point, as he'd done when his huge crosscourt forehand return winner had saved the first of two match points against Federer in the semifinals, Djokovic turned to the crowd with open arms, pleading for a little appreciation for the effort. Once again, he got it. When he served wide, inducing a Nadal forehand error, he officially got the game, too, to knot things at 4-4. Two games later, Nadal smacked his racket with his fist after missing on a wide forehand that would have given him two break points. Djokovic held for 5-5, and the set eventually went to a tie-break. Nadal, as he'd done in the first two games in the previous sets, won the first two points to take a 2-0 lead in the TB. This time, he held on, winning 7-3 and seeming to have turned the match momentum in his favor.

During the changeover, Djokovic had a trainer briefly look at his back, then went out and held serve to start the 4th. He then immediately went to his chair for a medical timeout 3:40 into the match. After a full session while stretched out on his stomach on the court, with the trainer working on his back after the Serb had downed a few pain pills, Djokovic returned to the court and quickly got into another long tussle with Nadal. Was the timing of the medical timeout a bit of gamesmanship, coming just when he'd taken a slight advantage in the set after having lost the momentum of the match in the previous one? At the very least, it forced Nadal to wait to serve, slowed him down and quieted the hopped-up crowd hoping for a five-setter. In the first game after the timeout, Djokovic broke Nadal on his fifth break chance in the game to go up 2-0. He then held for 3-0. It was a lead that Nadal couldn't come back from. Djokovic broke him at love for a 5-1 lead, then closed out the match with a forehand winner one game later. Final score: Djokovic 6-2/6-4/6-7/6-1, in a hearty 4:10, as he claimed his third slam of 2011.



This time, though, Djokovic didn't have to "dance for his supper." In fact, he didn't need to dance at all. Clad in a cap emblazoned with FDNY, one day after the 10th anniversary of 9/11, and dressed in red, white and blue (sure, those are Serbia's colors, as well as the U.S.'s, but the symbolism surely wasn't lost on either him or the crowd), he was finally able to bask in the champion's spotlight in New York City just a few years after he'd first "broken through" the consciousness of American sporting fans with his on-court impressions of the game's greats, and then felt a bit of the crowd's ire when he'd dared to return (slightly) cross words from afar with the top American player at the time, Roddick. In 2011, though, more secure in his position both in and outside the game, Djokovic proved to be a natural at being the center of attention for all the right and pure reasons.

Thus, Djokovic's astounding season continues. At 64-2, he's still in line for the "best" (winning percentage-wise) season in ATP history. He's 9-1 combined against Federer and Nadal, including a undefeated 6-0 mark against Nadal in finals contested on all surfaces. Ah, what the dominance of the two "former Kings" has wrought. Even as the #3 player at the end of '10, the Serb needed to improve at least a bit in every area in order to move past BOTH Nadal and Federer. Against all odds, he's managed to do just that. As we've seen on the hard courts this season, Djokovic's road to the top is becoming more and more physically wearing. And the season is still months from being over. Because of his success in 2011, come 2012, it'll likely be even more difficult for him to maintain such an edge on the field.

Once again after a slam final on Monday, Nadal sent a not-entirely-veiled message to Djokovic about the future, and how tough it'll be for him to live up to what he's done this season. After losing the Wimbledon final to the Serb, the Spaniard admitted that Djokovic was the best player in the world, but threw in the "at the moment" phrase at the tail end of the praise. After the Open, he noted how Djokovic's near-perfect season would likely be "impossible to repeat." Both, technically, were true statements, and maybe Nadal wasn't trying to get into Djokovic's head as he's admitted that Djokovic has sort of gotten into his. But after years of watching Federer's subtle messages about the true hierarchy in the men's game, one can't help think that Nadal has learned something from his friendly rival when it comes to maintaining his own aura, while warning everyone about getting ahead of themselves about another player's ability to be dominant over the long-term, even after a loss (or six) against said player.

While the last nine months haven't allowed Djokovic, in historical terms, to race past the two men who've been involved in the "Greatest of All Time" discussion the last few years, in 2011, the sum of HIS parts equal up to the sum of BOTH their's. Combined. Maybe in a few months, he'll go down as the best there's ever been in a single year. But even if that doesn't happen, it won't matter.

Djokovic is the best there IS. Today. And, right now, that's all that really matters.



=NOTES=
...this slam is the seventh straight won by either Djokovic or Nadal, the second-longest such two-headed streak in ATP history. The longest? Eleven in a row... perpetrated by Nadal and Roger Federer from 2005-07.

Combined, the Djokovic/Nadal/Federer trio has now won 26 of the last 27 slam titles. At 64-2 for the season, Djokovic is currently sporting a season win percentage of .9697, slightly ahead of the men's all-time best mark of .9647 by John McEnroe (82-3) in 1984.



TASHKENT, UZBEKISTAN (Int'l $220K/hard outdoor)
10 Final: Kudryavtseva d. Vesnina
11 Top Seeds: Pervak/Jovanovski
10 Doubles Champions: Panova/Poutchek (Poutchek 2009-10)
=============================
=SF=
#1 Pervak d. Amanmuradova
#4 Sevastova d. #6 Kudryavtseva
=FINAL=
#1 Pervak d. #4 Sevastova


QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC CAN (Int'l $220K/carpet indoor)
10 Finals: Paszek d. Mattek-Sands
11 Top Seeds: Hantuchova/Safarova
10 Doubles Champions: Arvidsson/Larrson
=============================
=SF=
#3 Paszek d. #7 Falconi
#2 Safarova d. Krajicek
=FINAL=
#2 Safarova d. #3 Paszek

...the new WTA rankings yield some big changes. A few: even with her early exit in Queens, Maria Sharapova jumps all the way to #2, while '10 Open champ Kim Clijsters falls to #9. Victoria Azarenka is #3, Vera Zvonareva #4, and new U.S. champ Sam Stosur is up to #7. Meanwhile, Serena Williams goes from #27 to #14.

In Doubles, Open champ Liezel Huber has re-claimed the #1 ranking from Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik. Partner Lisa Raymond, who first reached the doubles top ranking back in 2000, is up to #6.

In a bit of good news/bad news, Sania Mirza is up to #10 in the doubles rankings, and is part of the fourth-ranked team in the 2011 Doubles race (giving her and Elena Vesnina a shot to qualify for the WTA Championships field), but, apparently, her recent knee injury may lead her to miss the rest of the season.

...the "ITF Player of the Week" is Romania's Alexandra Cadantu, who won the $100K challenger in Biella, Italy. Cadantu defeated Yvonne Meusburger, Sessil Karatantcheva and Laura Pous-Tio before taking out Mariana Duque-Marino in the final. One other result of note in this event was Duque-Marino's win over Kaia Kanepi in the SF. A year ago at this time, Kanepi was coming off a QF result at the U.S. Open, her second straight slam QF result of the 2010 season.

Elsewhere, Stosur's NYC good vibes seems to have carried over to her fellow Australians, as both Olivia Rogowska and Johanna Konta also won challenger events this weekend.



*WOMEN'S SINGLES FINAL*
#9 Samantha Stosur/AUS def. #28 Serena Williams/USA 6-2/6-3

*MEN'S SINGLES FINAL*
#1 Novak Djokovic/SRB def. #2 Rafael Nadal/ESP 6-2/6-4/6-7/6-1

*WOMEN'S DOUBLES FINAL*
#4 Huber/Raymond (USA/USA) def. #3 King/Shvedova (USA/KAZ) 4-6/7-6/7-6

*MEN'S DOUBLES FINAL*
#9 Melzer/Petzschner (AUT/GER) def. #6 Fyrstenberg (POL/POL) 6-2/6-2

*MIXED DOUBLES FINAL*
(WC) Oudin/Sock (USA/USA) def. #8 Dulko/Schwank (ARG/ARG) 7-6/4-6/10-8

*GIRLS SINGLES FINAL*
Grace Min/USA def. #1 Caroline Garcia/FRA 7-5/7-6

*BOYS SINGLES FINAL*
#13 Oliver Golding/GBR def. #1 Jiri Vesely/CZE 5-7/6-3/6-4

*GIRLS DOUBLES FINAL*
#6 Khromacheva/Schuurs (RUS/NED) def. (WC) Andrews/Townsend (USA/USA) 6-4/5-7 [10-5]

*BOYS DOUBLES FINAL*
Kern/Lenz (GER/GER) def. Dubarenco/Manfov (MDA/UKR) 7-5/76-4



**WON THREE SLAMS IN A SEASON**
1933 - Jack Crawford
1934 - Fred Perry
1955 - Tony Trabert
1956 - Lew Hoad
1958 - Ashley Cooper
1964 - Roy Emerson
1974 - Jimmy Connors
1988 - Mats Wilander
2004 - Roger Federer
2006 - Roger Federer
2007 - Roger Federer
2010 - Rafael Nadal
2011 - Novak Djokovic

**CAREER COMBINED SLAM TITLES - active**
18...Bob Bryan
16...Roger Federer
14...Leander Paes
13...Mike Bryan
11...Mahesh Bhupathi
10...Rafael Nadal
8...Max Mirnyi
8...Daniel Nestor
7...Nenad Zimonjic
4...NOVAK DJOKOVIC

**MEN'S SLAM FINALS - ACTIVE**
23...Roger Federer (16-7)
14...RAFAEL NADAL (10-4)
6...NOVAK DJOKOVIC (4-2)
5...Andy Roddick (1-4)

**MOST ATP FINAL MATCH-UPS**
20 - Ivan Lendl vs. John McEnroe
19 - Roger Federer .vs Rafael Nadal
16 - Andre Agassi vs. Pete Sampras
16 - Boris Becker vs. Stefan Edberg
15 - Jimmy Connors vs. John McEnroe
13 - Boris Becker vs. Ivan Lendl
12 - Bjorn Borg vs. Jimmy Connors
--
11 - Novak Djokovic & Rafael Nadal

**MOST ATP SLAM FINAL MATCH-UPS**
8 - Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal
5 - Andre Agassi vs. Pete Sampras
5 - Ivan Lendl vs. Mats Wilander
4 - Bjorn Borg vs. Jimmy Connors
4 - Bjorn Borg vs. John McEnroe
4 - Roger Federer vs. Andy Roddick
--
3 - Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal

**CONSECUTIVE SLAMS WON BY TWO MEN**
11 - Roger Federer (8) & Rafael Nadal (3), 2005-07
7 - Rafael Nadal (4) & Novak Djokovic (3), 2010-11
6 - Pete Sampras (4) & Sergi Bruguera (2), 1993-94
5 - Jimmy Connors (3) & Bjorn Borg (2), 1974-75




TOP QUALIFIER: Romina Oprandi/ITA
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): #28 Serena Williams/USA
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): #9 Samantha Stosur/AUS
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): #9 Samantha Stosur/AUS
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: Alexandra Panova/RUS def. #6q Andrea Hlavackova/CZE 3-6/6-2/7-6(7)
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): 2nd Rd. - Irina Falconi/USA d. #14 Dominika Cibulkova/SVK 2-6/6-3/7-5
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): 3rd Rd. - #9 Samantha Stosur/AUS d. #24 Nadia Petrova/RUS 7-6/6-7/7-5
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): #4 Huber/Raymond (USA/USA) d. #3 King/Shvedova (USA/KAZ) 4-6/7-6/7-6
TOP ASHE NIGHT MATCH: 4th Rd. - #1 Caroline Wozniacki/DEN d. #15 Svetlana Kuznetsova/RUS 6-7/7-5/6-1
=============================
FIRST WINNER: Monica Niculescu/ROU (def. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner/AUT)
FIRST SEED OUT: #5 Petra Kvitova (lost to Dulgheru/1st Rd.)
UPSET QUEENS: Romanians
REVELATION LADIES: Americans
NATION OF POOR SOULS: Czech Republic (2-5 in 1st Rd., Cetkovska walkover in 2nd)
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: Silvia Soler-Espinosa/ESP (3rd Rd)
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: Sloane Stephens/USA (3rd Rd)
LAST AMERICAN STANDING: Serena Williams/USA (RU)
IT: Esther Vergeer/NED (wheelchair champ / 426 straight wins)
MS. OPPORTUNITY: Angelique Kerber/GER
COMEBACK PLAYERS: Liezel Huber & Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
CRASH & BURN: Wimbledon champ, #5 Petra Kvitova/CZE (1st Rd./lost to Dulgheru) & Roland Garros champ, #6 Li Na/CHN (1st Rd./lost to Halep)
ZOMBIE QUEEN: Flavia Pennetta/ITA - sick and nearly throwing up on court late in the 2nd set, overcomes 0-5 hole and saves 4 MP in tie-break vs. Peng Shuai/CHN to escape with straight sets 4th Round win
LADY OF THE EVENING: Samantha Stosur/AUS (two dramatic night wins, neither on Ashe Stadium court)
BROADWAY-BOUND: Francesca Schiavone/ITA (for combined '11 slam dramatic performances)
DOUBLES STAR Melanie Oudin, USA
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: Grace Min/USA




All for now. 3Q Awards next.

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Slingin' Sammy's Bumpy Road to Brilliance

I guess, in the end, this U.S. Open secretly "belonged" to Samantha Stosur all along.

After all, for the past two weeks in New York, the 26-year old Aussie, even while playing second fiddle to other top players when it came to court assignments and media attention that seemingly fated her to be a footnote at this slam, STILL managed to be invovled in some of the biggest moments of the tournament. In the 3rd Round, she won the longest-ever women's match at the U.S. Open, then was a part of a women's slam record-breaking 32-point tie-break in the Round of 16 (naturally, even while winning the match, she lost the TB that had made the contest memorable). Come semifinal time, she found herself on the Grandstand court rather than on the grounds' biggest stage. She didn't like it, but no one ever said the Road to New York was going to be easy. Nothing is ever easy for Slingin' Sammy Stosur.

Turns out, she was saving the best for last when she faced off with Serena Williams, the woman who'd entered the Open as the nearly-unanimous odds-on favorite to take the crown. While Sunday afternoon's final was about wrapping up some unfinished slam business from a season ago for Stosur, as she finally played the slam final that she'd failed to in her previous major final in Paris last year, for Serena, well... when someone figures out exactly what Williams' angle was on this day, hopefully they'll be kind enough to fill the rest of us in on the secret.

"Slump? I ain't in no slump... I just ain't hitting." - Yogi Berra

After dominating opponents on hard court all season, winning all eighteen matches she played after coming back from a nearly year-long health-related absence, Williams didn't have her legs in this match. Or her serve. Or her forehand. Or her composure. Stosur, though, had all HER weapons -- the big kick-serve and forehand prowess, as well as the volley of a former #1 doubles player -- and more, namely the long-in-coming ability to put her head down and avoid losing her nerve. It was a lethal combination that even Serena wasn't able to overcome, save for a brief period early in the 2nd set. In the end, when Stosur pounded a forehand winner on match point to nip Williams in the final total winner numbers (20-19), the fact was that the Aussie's 6-2/6-3 victory, the seventeenth consecutive straights sets women's final at the Open, was hardly that close.

Just as Serena set the table for her wins in this tournament in the first few games of the opening set, so was the case with Stosur on Sunday. Stosur didn't allow herself to be put into the position of playing catch-up. In game #2, she quicky went up 40/love on her serve en route to a fairly routine hold. One game later, Stosur got to break point on William's serve via an off-the-net-cord volley. A Serena unforced error gave the Aussie a quick 2-1 lead. It would set the pattern for the match, as Williams' low first service percentage (35% for the 1st set) and inability to consistently keep her groundstrokes in the court (or get them over the net) allowed Stosur's fine play to encounter no direct, sustained challenges. She held at love for a 4-2 lead, stepping in and taking advantage of Serena's less-than-penetrating shots, running around balls to get into position to pound her forehand (seriously, she makes Steffi Graf's penchant for making a similar move during her career seem like child's play). Late in the set, the combination of a sluggish Williams and a dashing Stosur made for a supremely rare occasion, as Serena was simply outclassed for an extended period of time as the Aussie ran off a string of twelve straight points to end the set, taking it at 6-2 on the strength of winning 16 of 19 points on her own serve.

Stosur's point streak hit thirteen before it finally ended with a forehand error off the net cord, but a winner off a Williams second gave Stosur two more chances to break in the opening game of the 2nd set. Serena erased one chance with an ace, then finally discovered the one thing that could (briefly) break her free of her gameday lethargy -- anger. After smacking a big forehand that appeared to be about to become a winner, Williams let out a celebratory howl. Thing is, she did it before Stosur was able to completely make a play on the ball. When she got her racket on Williams' shot, Serena's celebration was thwarted when chair umpire Eva Azderaki pointed to the "intentional hinderance" rule to award the point to Stosur. Rather than being deuce, the Aussie got the break to lead 1-0.

And Serena was having none of it. Not being fully aware of the rules (Azderaki's move was the correct one, according to the sport's guidelines), Williams immediately launched into the umpire for her "wrong" decision, calling her actions, among other things, "totally not cool." No one watching could avoid, even in some small way, making the connection to the big scene Serena was involved in the '09 Open semifinals, when a foot-fault call led to a point-penalty on match point and a controversy that still lingers in the air, if only because the sincerity of Williams' contrition is easy for many to question. Williams didn't threaten to shove any tennis balls in any areas in which they shouldn't go this time around, after all.

Serena did use her newly-peeved attitude to pump up herself and her play, though, stoking the crowd and leading observers to believe that the championship would turn on that one moment. Williams, perhaps trying for the starring role in "Mad Serena Beyond Thunderdome," quickly went up 40/love on a rattled Stosur's serve. The Aussie got her act together in time to win a beautiful exchange of eye-to-eye volleys to save one break point. Serena still got the break of serve for 1-1, but Stosur had managed to throw herself a lifeline at the most important moment in the important match of her career.

Williams held for 2-1, then carried over her displeasure to -- and through -- the changeover. Berating Azderaki throughout, but not involving her in any direct discussion (she implored her to not even look at her, even if they passed each other in the hallway), and going on about her not being able to express herself and, last time she checked, still being an American and having the right to do so. It wasn't exactly a mature, admirable moment in Williams' career, but it would have been looked upon as the "fire of a champion" had she been able to maintain her level of pique while continuing to raise the level of her game, as well.

But that didn't happen.

Williams got two break points on Stosur's serve in game #4, but the Aussie fired an ace to save one, won a pair of rallies during which Serena had failed to seize control of either when she'd had small openings, then hit another ace to hold. The tide was turned back in Stosur's favor. She was back in the game, and Serena's renonwned ability to turn a match on a dime and walk off with a victory was about to meet its match. Stosur broke Serena's serve on a Williams error for a 4-3 lead, and the 1st set listlessness was soon back. When the Aussie led 5-3, and was up 40/15 on the Williams serve, Serena managed to save two match points, but it was too little too late. Stosur's forehand winner (#20) officially ended things, making her 2011's fourth different slam champion, and third different first-time slam major winner.

As sterling as Stosur's afternoon was, it was even more unexpected, and not just because Williams was figured to be ready to romp (even after the late finish of her semifinal victory over Caroline Wozniacki Saturday night), with possibly the Aussie being able to (maybe) make things close. While Serena had starred on the sport's biggest stages, Stosur had usually wilted under the weight of the attention and expectations that come with such circumstances. But THAT Stosur wasn't on Ashe court in the final, just as she wasn't in New York the past two weeks. The "old" Sammy would have folded in the face of Serena's would-be onslaught in the 2nd set, but the "older" Sam, once she took a step back to regain her bearings, was having none of it. That "wrist message" she left herself a while back -- "attitude" and "composure" -- must still be lingering somewhere inside her head.



Displaying strength where there once was weakness -- between the ears -- the Aussie never allowed the aura of Williams to intimidate her, nor the thirteen-time slam winner's induced-by-anger moments to overwhelm and wash away all that she'd worked so hard to turn in her favor. Instead, she allowed herself to play HER game, not Serena's, unlike all the other players Williams has dominated in NYC and points west over the last two months. She didn't struggle to hold her serve in the early going, preventing Williams from racing to an early, suffocating lead. With Serena failing to gain momentum from the outset, and her groundstrokes lacking the usual penetration that she's used to prevent opponents from seizing control of rallies, Stosur wasn't pressured to deviate from her original, preferred gameplan. Not wanting to be pushed off the court ala Wozniacki one night before, Stosur wasn't afraid to step in and cut off Williams' groundstrokes. It not only kept her forehand "in play," but she was able to wield it like a deadly weapon to pulverize Serena all day as Williams oddly never found a way to alleviate its potency by attacking the Aussie's weaker backhand wing. Essentially, Stosur did exactly what she did while defeating both Williams and Justine Henin on the clay at Roland Garros in '10, but then proceeded to NOT do against Francesca Schiavone in her maiden slam final.

So, given a second chance on the big stage, Stosur didn't waste her opportunity once again. It's something of a pattern in Stosur's career, where "practice has made perfect"... even if it takes her a bit longer to get where she desires than, say, Serena. While Serena found success early, winning at the Open at 17 in 1999 and going 5-1 in the first six finals of her career that season, Stosur went 0-5 in tour finals over four seasons before finally raising her first singles trophy in '09 at age 24. Stosur had to become a #1 doubles player first, THEN get her singles footing. She had to fail in big moments, and see her tennis future possibly flash before her eyes when she lost parts of two seasons to Lyme Disease in 2007-08. While Serena won her first slam title in just her seventh attempt, it took Stosur thirty-four, the third-longest "training period" in WTA history for a major champion.

But none of that matters now. For one day on Ashe court in New York, Stosur was THE best player in the world. Just like Australia's thirty-one year drought of women's slam champs, and thirty-eight year absence of a female U.S. Open winner, anything troubling that came before was all washed away on one afternoon.

One brilliant afternoon, that is.



=DAY 14 NOTES=

...after beginning this Open by doing all she could to brush under the rug her '09 altercation with a lineswoman -- "You're still still talking about that? It was TWO YEARS AGO." --Serena ultimately leaves NYC forcing everyone to bring up the situation all over again. Remember, the record fine she incurred then also came with a two-year probationary period, during which if she was found to have committed another "major offense" she could be heavily fined and barred from the following year's Open. News on any Williams fine will arrive on Monday, but it's hard to see what happened in the final being viewed as "major" enough to lead to any sort of suspension based on the original punishment parameters from '09.

But, with what some might call a "behavioral pattern" being established by Williams in just a very small number of events over the two-year span, one never knows what could happen, I suppose. After all, Williams WAS supposed to be an unstoppable force at this Open.

"I didn't really say everything I said." - Yogi Berra

...elsewhere, after coming back from match point down to win the Open Doubles title a year ago, Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova found out how the other half lives this year in Flushing Meadows. Oh, they didn't have a match point against Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond in the Doubles final today, but they did hold a 6-4/5-3 lead and served at 5-4 for their third slam crown in five slams entered as a team. Huber & Raymond ended up winning the final 4-6/7-6/7-6.

Just wondering... when Shvedova's swing on a volley at 4-4 in the 3rd set literally caused her racket to crack in half, considering the incident where Agnieszka Radwanska's broke off and went flying through the air earlier this year, was I the only one wondering what this says about the new "racket techonology?"

It's Huber first slam Doubles title since her break-up with partner Cara Black, and it's 38-year old Raymond's first slam win of any kind since 2006. They get the "Comeback" award for the Open.

...in the juniors, Grace Min defeated #1-seeded Caroline Garcia 7-5/7-6 to become (with Coco Vandeweghe '08) just the second American to win the Open's Girls title since 1995. In doubles, Irina Khromacheva (RG) and Demi Schuurs (AO) added a second 2011 girls slam title to each of their resumes when they defeated the Wild Card American team of Gabrielle Andrews and Taylor Townsend in the final.

...in the women's Wheelchair competition, the Netherlands' Esther Vergeer defeated Dutch countrywoman Aniek van Koot 6-2/6-1 to claim her sixth U.S. Open singles title with her 426th straight match victory. She also won the doubles. Ah, but that's not all -- she also gets the "It (Dominator)" award for this slam.

...and, finally, a small bit of kudos to CBS today, for you just know that it must have taken all the collective will power of the entire production team to keep from airing a clip of Serena's '09 foot-fault-fiasco during the live coverage of today's final once Williams' had her run-in with the chair umpire this time around.



*WOMEN'S SINGLES FINAL*
#9 Samantha Stosur/AUS def. #28 Serena Williams/USA 6-2/6-3

*MEN'S SINGLES FINAL*
#1 Novak Djokovic/SRB vs. #2 Rafael Nadal/ESP

*WOMEN'S DOUBLES FINAL*
#4 Huber/Raymond (USA/USA) def. #3 King/Shvedova (USA/KAZ) 4-6/7-6/7-6

*MEN'S DOUBLES FINAL*
#9 Melzer/Petzschner (AUT/GER) def. #6 Fyrstenberg (POL/POL) 6-2/6-2

*MIXED DOUBLES FINAL*
(WC) Oudin/Sock (USA/USA) def. #8 Dulko/Schwank (ARG/ARG) 7-6/4-6/10-8

*GIRLS SINGLES FINAL*
Grace Min/USA def. #1 Caroline Garcia/FRA 7-5/7-6

*BOYS SINGLES SF*
#13 Oliver Golding/GBR def. #1 Jiri Vesely/CZE 5-7/6-3/6-4

*GIRLS DOUBLES FINAL*
#6 Khromacheva/Schuurs (RUS/NED) def. (WC) Andrews/Townsend (USA/USA) 6-4/5-7 [10-5]

*BOYS DOUBLES SF*
Kern/Lenz (GER/GER) def. Dubarenco/Manfov (MDA/UKR) 7-5/76-4




**MOST SLAMS BEFORE FIRST TITLE**
45 - Jana Novotna (1998 Wimbledon)
39 - Francesca Schiavone (2010 Roland Garros)
34 - SAMANTHA STOSUR (2011 US OPEN)
31 - Amelie Mauresmo (2006 Australian Open)
29 - Jennifer Capriati (2001 Australian Open)
28 - Kerry Melville-Reid (1978 Australian Open)
26 - Lindsay Davenport (1998 U.S. Open)

**LOW-SEEDED U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONS - OPEN ERA**
Unseeded/Wild Card - Kim Clijsters, BEL (2009)
#9 - SAMANTHA STOSUR, AUS (2011)
#9 - Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS (2004)
#7 - Serena Williams, USA (1999)
#6 - Virginia Wade, GBR (1968)

**FIRST-TIME SLAM CHAMPS AT U.S. OPEN**
1968 Virginia Wade, GBR
1979 Tracy Austin, USA
1990 Gabriela Sabatini, ARG
1998 Lindsay Davenport, USA
1999 Serena Williams, USA
2004 Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
2005 Kim Clijsters, BEL
2011 Samantha Stosur, AUS

**"IT" WINNERS**
[U.S. Open]
2005 Sania Mirza, IND
2006 Jelena Jankovic, SRB
2007 Agnieszka Radwanska, POL
2008 Coco Vandeweghe, USA (jr.)
2009 Melanie Oudin, USA
2010 Beatrice Capra, USA
2011 Esther Vergeer, NED (wheelchair)
[2011]
AO: An-Sophie Mestach, BEL (jr.)
RG: Caroline Garcia, FRA (jr.)
WI: Sabine Lisicki, GER
US: Esther Vergeer, NED (wheelchair)

**"COMEBACK" WINNERS**
[U.S. Open]
2007 Vera Zvonareva, RUS
2008 Anna-Lena Groenefeld, GER
2009 Kim Clijsters, BEL
2010 Francesca Schiavone, ITA
2011 Liezel Huber/Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
[2011]
AO: Agnieszka Radwanska, POL
RG: Casey Dellacqua, AUS
WI: Maria Sharapova, RUS
US: Liezel Huber/Lisa Raymond, USA/USA

**CAREER SLAM TITLES - active**
[singles-doubles-mixed]
27...Serena Williams, USA [13-12-2] *
21...Venus Williams, USA [7-12-2] *
10...Cara Black, ZIM [0-5-5]
10...LISA RAYMOND, USA [0-6-4]
7...LIEZEL HUBER, USA [0-5-2]
6...Kim Clijsters, BEL [4-2-0]
6...Rennae Stubbs, AUS [0-4-2]
6...Katarina Srebotnik, SLO [0-1-5]
5...SAMANTHA STOSUR, AUS [1-2-2] *
4...Daniela Hantuchova, SVK [0-0-4]
--
* - players with slam crowns in singles, doubles & mixed

**SERENA's DEFEATS IN SLAM FINALS**
2001 US Open - lost to Venus Williams
2004 Wimbledon - lost to Maria Sharapova
2008 Wimbledon - lost to Venus Williams
2011 US Open - lost to Samantha Stosur

**CAREER WTA SINGLES TITLES**
[Three - active players; w/ last title]
Elena Bovina, RUS (2004)
Michaella Krajicek, NED (2006)
Sabine Lisicki, GER (two in 2011)
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS (1 in 2011)
SAMANTHA STOSUR, AUS (1 in 2011)
Yanina Wickmayer, BEL (2010)
Zheng Jie, CHN (2006)
[Australians - most all-time]
92...Margaret Court, 1968-76
68...Evonne Goolagong, 1970-80
17...Kerry Melville-Reid, 1968-79
15...Dianne Fromholtz-Balestrat, 1973-79
9...Wendy Turnbull, 1976-83
6...Jelena Dokic, 2001-11
5...Alicia Molik, 2003-05
4...Anne Minter, 1987-89
3...SAMANTHA STOSUR, 2009-11
3...Angeles Montolio, 2001-02
3...Nicole Provis-Bradtke, 1992-95
3...Elizabeth Smylie, 1982-87

**WOMEN'S DOUBLES CHAMPIONS**
[recent U.S. Opens]
2005 Lisa Raymond & Samantha Stosur
2006 Nathalie Dechy & Vera Zvonareva
2007 Nathalie Dechy & Dinara Safina
2008 Cara Black & Liezel Huber
2009 Serena & Venus Williams
2010 Vania King & Yaroslava Shvedova
2011 Liezel Huber & Lisa Raymond
[2011]
AO: Gisela Dulko & Flavia Pennetta
RG: Andrea Hlavackova & Lucie Hradecka
WI: Kveta Peschke & Katarina Srebotnik
US: Liezel Huber & Yaroslava Shvedova




TOP QUALIFIER: Romina Oprandi/ITA
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): #28 Serena Williams/USA
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): #9 Samantha Stosur/AUS
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): #9 Samantha Stosur/AUS
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: Alexandra Panova/RUS def. #6q Andrea Hlavackova/CZE 3-6/6-2/7-6(7)
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): 2nd Rd. - Irina Falconi/USA d. #14 Dominika Cibulkova/SVK 2-6/6-3/7-5
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): 3rd Rd. - #9 Samantha Stosur/AUS d. #24 Nadia Petrova/RUS 7-6/6-7/7-5
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): #4 Huber/Raymond (USA/USA) d. #3 King/Shvedova (USA/KAZ) 4-6/7-6/7-6
TOP ASHE NIGHT MATCH: 4th Rd. - #1 Caroline Wozniacki/DEN d. #15 Svetlana Kuznetsova/RUS 6-7/7-5/6-1
=============================
FIRST WINNER: Monica Niculescu/ROU (def. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner/AUT)
FIRST SEED OUT: #5 Petra Kvitova (lost to Dulgheru/1st Rd.)
UPSET QUEENS: Romanians
REVELATION LADIES: Americans
NATION OF POOR SOULS: Czech Republic (2-5 in 1st Rd., Cetkovska walkover in 2nd)
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: Silvia Soler-Espinosa/ESP (3rd Rd)
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: Sloane Stephens/USA (3rd Rd)
LAST AMERICAN STANDING: Serena Williams/USA (RU)
IT: Esther Vergeer/NED (wheelchair champ / 426 straight wins)
MS. OPPORTUNITY: Angelique Kerber/GER
COMEBACK PLAYERS: Liezel Huber & Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
CRASH & BURN: Wimbledon champ, #5 Petra Kvitova/CZE (1st Rd./lost to Dulgheru) & Roland Garros champ, #6 Li Na/CHN (1st Rd./lost to Halep)
ZOMBIE QUEEN: Flavia Pennetta/ITA - sick and nearly throwing up on court late in the 2nd set, overcomes 0-5 hole and saves 4 MP in tie-break vs. Peng Shuai/CHN to escape with straight sets 4th Round win
LADY OF THE EVENING: Samantha Stosur/AUS (two dramatic night wins, neither on Ashe Stadium court)
BROADWAY-BOUND: Francesca Schiavone/ITA (for combined '11 slam dramatic performances)
DOUBLES STAR Melanie Oudin, USA
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: Grace Min/USA




All for Day 14. More tomorrow.

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