Tennis Talk - SEOpen

by Savannah

Since the folks who run the BNP Paribas Open and the Sony Ericsson Open don't see fit to turn the cameras on for early round play I don't cover their events until they do.

I'm making a slight exception for the one and only Bernard Tomic of Australia. Everyone blames his father for Bernard's shitty attitude but some of his antics have begun to draw the ire of the American tennis establishment.

One of my Twitter faves, "FootFault_" posted the following:

So, get this; in his last three tournaments (Dallas Challenger, Indian Wells and Miami), Bernard Tomic granted wildcards directly into the main draw of the events. Bearing in mind the fact that he isn’t even from the USA, that’s a pretty bold and generous move from the tournaments, and you would expect Tomic to take advantage of those free passes, right?

Right. But apparently Bernard Tomic doesn’t agree, instead choosing to spit in the faces of all three tournament directors. Last month he pulled out of the Dallas Challenger after falling a set down in his first rounder, citing fatigue for his withdrawal, however it was clear that he just couldn’t give a rat’s ass. In Indian Wells, he scraped past a sub top-500 doubles specialist in three audaciously tight sets before getting dusted aside by Viktor Troicki in straights. And finally he completed the set today, losing in the first round of Miami to Pablo Andujar, a claycourt specialist on a 5 match losing streak with only one win in the main draw of a hardcourt ATP or Challenger event in his 7 years on tour.

2011 should prove an interesting year for him. Talented as he may be, it’s always the attitude and mental side that determines how far a player goes in his career, and I think it’s safe to say that his attitude stinks like a decomposing skunk.

The link is HERE

I've said it before - the sense of entitlement some of these juniors have is startling. Tomic is just getting called on his shit. I've heard similar reports about Coco Vandeweghe and Lauren Davis from the United States and these were from people in the States.

I disagree with my Tweeting buddy though. Australia is part of the Axis. They will blame his youth, his will to win, whatever it takes to make young Bernard appear less of a douche.

I know I'm using strong language and I apologize if it offends anyone but sometimes you have to be blunt. Until someone slows this kid's roll he will continue to spit in the faces of those who are providing his meal tickets.

Miscellany

Apparently people have been trying to get Roger Federer to Tweet. He is not about to and I'm not surprised. He just doesn't strike me as that type of guy. Then again there is that Lindt commercial where two "airline stewardesses" want to strip search him. I'm just saying...

As Craig Hickman reported yesterday Kim Clijsters has already announced that she will not play any Asian events this year citing fear of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear plant. Some fans are in the process of ripping her a new one. I side with Kim on this, especially since she has a child. When news reports like this appear randomly online one has every right to err on the side of caution.

Along the same lines the Fed Cup tie between Japan and Argentina has been moved to Kobe, Japan and will take place July 16-17.


I like this outfit for Maria Sharapova.

Dominika Cibulkova proves she's "bootylicious"

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga melting hearts and butter all over the world.

Just a couple of hombre's chilling.

Bienvenido a Miami!

by Savannah

Both the men's and the women's tours have moved from the California desert to the city of South Beach and Calle Ocho. And right on their heels is no other than Craig Hickman, the man who got me blogging about my favorite sport. He will be posting from Key Biscayne for Tennis Panorama News. For those of you who aren't familiar with Craig's work you can read his reports HERE.

As we know Craig doesn't mince words. I can't wait for his up close and personal revelations.

Kings and Queens of the Desert

by Savannah

Caroline Wozniacki won the BNP Paribas Open 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 over Marion Bartoli. Marion is not as heavy as she once was but if this match does nothing else it will spur her and her father to put fitness at the top of their to do list for 2011. To the cheers of the crowd Marion gave Caroline fits in the second set and it looked as if the third would be a barn burner. Instead it was pretty obvious early in the third set that Marion's arms were tired and that her legs would soon follow.

The crowd dynamic was interesting during the match. Most of the time they seemed totally behind Marion which surprised me since Marion is a polaraizing figure in women's tennis, and is French. I don't recall the talking heads going into "they just want a third set" spiel but I could've missed it. I say that because I missed the gem one of them dropped about Caroline being on track for a career Grand Slam. Watching with the sound down makes things like that happen.

Sania Mirza and Elena Vesnina won the womens doubles title 6-0, 7-5 over the team of Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Meghann Shaughnessy.

The women's doubles matches were obviously judged not ready for prime time. Not enough star power I suppose. It was a different story when it came to the mens doubles.

Tennisheads on Twitter had been gleefully following the exploits of Xavier Malisse and Alexandr Dolgopolov as they fought their way through the men's draw. The Finals found them standing across the net from the Olympic Gold Medal winning team of Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka. The Malisse and Dolgopolov team has it's own hashtag on Twitter, #bunpower. Others simply call them Team Ponytail. Whatever you call them no one expected them to win. When the dust settled they were the ones joyously celebrating victory 6-4, 6-7(5), 10-7. For Dolgopolov playing doubles will help his singles career. Malisse, on the down side of his career, will be able to put a few more trophies on his mantle. Both men have to remain healthy for that to happen though.

Novak Djokovic, the hottest player on the tour right now continued his rampage. After securing the #2 ranking he won the Final against Rafael Nadal 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Before I stopped watching I was thinking that it was disingenuous of the commentators to emphasize how far ahead Djokovic is in Race points. The casual viewer has no idea what that means and could have come away with the impression that Djokovic is the #1 ATP player.

At any rate it was a great tournament and Larry Ellison has set the bar high for other tournament owners. Not only has he made his facility one of the best for top level tennis but sitting courtside, not up in some box, and allowing mere mortals to gaze on his eminence and see him root just like the hoi polloi is a welcome change. Thanks to Mr. Ellison a great time was had by all.

End Note

In the ultimate irony yesterdays' men's finalists, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will play an exhibition tonight in Bogota, Colombia before heading to Miami.

During one of the matches aired on ABC Chris Fowler mentioned someone being all up in another person's grill. I'm just sayin'.

The Indian Wells Women's Final - What It Says About the WTA

by Savannah

Many of the Tweeters watching the match between Maria Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki called it the worst semi final they'd ever seen. There's not much to say to counter that statement. It was clear from the outset that unless Maria did something to force Caroline to play Wozniacki was simply going to stay on the baseline and push the ball over the net.

I think the style of tennis Maria plays, hit hard and harder, along with her limited ability to move around the court works when her opponent lets her set the pace. The problem with that is that when she plays a pusher who doesn't want to try and counter her game plan she is put in the position of having to scramble to find ways to counter her opponent. Scrambling is not something even the most ardent Sharapova fan wants to see her do. We saw a lot of it last night and it wasn't pretty.

What burned a lot of tennisheads is that Wozniacki won the first set 6-1 managing to hit only one winner. That's right: the top ranked woman in the world won a set hitting only one winner. Sharapova had double digit winners in the first set and got served a bread stick. I believe the final stats showed Wozniacki managing a total of six winners for a match she won 6-1, 6-2.

The argument is that Sharapova's unforced errors, which were also double digit, high double digit, were the reason she lost the match. When playing a pusher the opponent tends to start trying to force the issue and once that starts it's hard to stop. That is what I saw last night.

Wozniacki supporters say that as long as no one on the tour is forcing her to hit winners to have to win why should she and of course they have a point. If the WTA tour is so weak that someone can sit at number one doling out breadsticks while managing to hit one winner in a set that is not the pusher's problem. That is the WTA's problem.

As someone noted here awhile ago we are seeing the WTA of the future minus Venus Williams and Serena Williams. As long as the players continue to be mentally frail and content to be known as diva's instead of fierce on court warriors who demand that their opponent have to beat them playing tennis not playing at playing tennis the WTA's product will continue to be considered weak and unappealing.

End Note

Kim Clijsters minced no words about how she felt about the Premier Mandatory WTA tournaments. She said that if Indian Wells hadn't been mandatory for a top ten player she wouldn't have played. She went on to question a system where lower ranked players are able to pick and choose where they play calling it essentially unfair to the top players. No one raked her over the coals for saying that. I'm just saying.

This and That - Indian Wells 2011

by Savannah

It's amazing to me that the announcer working with Lindsay Davenport can't stop whining about how the ATP #1 has played three qualifiers. Doug Adler and Robbie Koenig implied that their favorite, the World #2 would have no trouble in his match against an up and coming American. When that American showed some spunk and didn't roll over and play dead they had to change their tune. Both men got through in straight sets.

I decided to look at the draws and see if one player was getting a free ride while another one had to fight his way through the invading hordes.

The world #2 played his first match against Igor Andreev, currently ranked #96 and won in straight sets 7-5, 7-6(4). He next faced Juan Ignacio Chela, world #32 and won that 6-0, 6-2. His third match was against world #152 Ryan Harrison whom he defeated 7-6(4), 6-3.

The world #1 played his first match against #162 Rik de Voest winning 6-0, 6-2. His next match was against world #105 Ryan Sweeting, and he won that one 6-3, 6-1. His third match was against #84 Somdev Devvarman and saw him win 7-5, 6-4.

I don't think either man had to exactly cut his way through a swarm of invading barbarians. That said Somdev Devvarman gave the world #1 a more difficult time than many expected. I thought that the match would be a tough one because Devvarman, who had never played his opponent before had nothing to lose. Second of all India, especially in the ATP, is fighting to become part of the conversation when power countries are discussed. Thirdly the world #1 sometimes has a hard time against people he's never played before. He still managed to avoid tiebreaks and the scoreline accurately reflects how the match went.

Ryan Harrison showed that he is still playing junior level tennis. Yes he pushed the Monogram more than expected but in the end Harrison's inexperience showed. I also suspect that someone got to him and he kept his nasty attitude confined to his interaction with ball kids. I know a lot of Americans are looking to him as the successor to Andy Roddick but anyone whose tantrums make Roddick's look lame is not someone I want representing my country on the world wide tennis stage.

Speaking of Andy Roddick I'm beginning to wonder if he requests Fergus Murphy to chair his matches. It seems that just the sight of Murphy puts Roddick in a bad mood. As soon as something happens, a questionable call, a fly landing on court, Roddick goes smack off lacing into Murphy who can only be the straight man to Andy's antics. Yesterday it was a let call. When the machine goes off the chair has to call a let whether a let call is justified or not. That's been the case ever since net judges were replaced by the little sensors on the top of the net. This didn't happen last night either. So when a let was called as required Andy took advantage of the opening and lit into Murphy dropping an audible F-bomb along the way. At this point I don't think any fine has been levied against him.

Unfortunately when these tirades happen it usually means Andy is losing.

Richard Gasquet ignored all the drama taking place across the net and managed to win against Roddick in straight sets 6-3, 7-6(5). Gasquet's coaching team now includes Sebastian Grosjean, seen above in the forefront, and Riccardo Piatti. Whatever they're doing seems to be working so far.

There's a new men's doubles team to take notice of. Xavier Malisse and Alexsandr Dolgopolov, already nicknamed Team Ponytail, have taken out the top ranked Bryan Twins and last night, in a match that was dubbed the Ponytails vs the Fro's, took out the Murray Brothers. I haven't seen them play yet. I hope that fans get a chance to see some of the teams playing Indian Wells more often. The doubles have been exciting so far.

I think at this point it's time to give new owner Larry Ellison a huge round of applause. He wants this tournament to become a Slam and right now he's done the upgrades needed to put his plan into action. As a fan he has put Hawkeye on all courts. From what I hear he's done a facilities upgrade. I find it significant that Serena Williams, at the end of her USA Today interview said that she would even play Indian Wells. Of course it was in the context of her coming back and getting to the top of the heap but it is a significant statement and one that I don't think she would have made without the change in ownership.

Congratulations Mr. Ellison. And thank you.

Indian Wells Day 7: Let's Hear It For the Girls

by Savannah

The big news yesterday was that Kim Clijsters retired from her match against Marion Bartoli at 6-4, 1-3 due to the effects of a shoulder injury. After everyone calmed down the talk became all about who would win this event. It was mentioned in passing that Caroline Wozniacki wearing yet another Stella McCartney atrocity, would retain the number one ranking.
There will be no talk of strategic retreats, questioning why the pain became too much to bear when down 1-3 in the second set, or why a woman would simply lop of her hair just because. Those questions are for lesser mortals, not Saint Kim. After all the woman has to struggle traveling with her daughter, her daughter's nanny, her husband and god knows how many other people to get to tournaments. I remember having to haul my daughter in her stroller up and down subway steps but my issues pale in comparison to Kim's.

I'm beginning to wonder if the WTA has decreed that the on court coaching sessions are not shown, at least not on network television in the States. This gives the impression that someone who was having trouble constructing points or figuring out how to neutralize her opponents strategy had a sudden epiphany court side and that that man (it's usually a man) sneaking off court had nothing to do with her suddenly clearer vision. Right.

As for the woman in that god-awful kit her match against Alisa Kleybanova of Russia was a predictable as predicting the sun will rise tomorrow. Kleybanova was giving Wozniacki all kinds of fits in the first set. She was taking the ball early, hitting screamers all over the court, and generally wreaking havoc with the computer ranked #1. I said after the first set that if Kleybanova didn't win the second set she would lose the match. No need to look for my toll free number. If you've watched Kleybanova play at all recently it was easy to make that statement. She begins to visibly tire in the middle of the second set and by the third set she can barely lift her arms let alone move her feet. I can almost hear Piotr Wozniacki telling his daughter to let Alisa win the first set and then just send balls in her direction that will make her have to run. Hell it'd be my strategy. Alisa is thinner but not at all fit. Until that happens she's doomed to be a good warm up for better players.

Still think I was kidding about that kit? It looks worse live.

Ana Ivanovic defeated her countrywoman Jelena Jankovic in straight sets 6-4, 6-2. The odd thing was that JJ seemed disinterested. There were no protracted arguments, no vapors, nothing from JJ the entire match. Aside from a dead fish handshake at the net where the two avoided all eye contact there were none of JJ's usual antics. Eh. Maybe she was anxious to get to that new house the commentators were going on about.

Didn't see any of it but Shahar Peer won an epic battle against Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3).

In a battle between two women I wouldn't opt to see live unless there was nothing else going on Victoria Azarenka defeated Agnieszka Radwanska 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(3). I didn't see this match either. Commentator Lindsay Davenport said she thinks Victoria should be contending in the latter stages of a major. We'll see.

There are a lot of people, me included, who liked seeing Dinara Safina looking as if she was ready to get back to the top 20 in women's tennis. Maria Sharapova is not one of them. Maria came out like a house on fire from the first ball and by the end of the match Dinara looked ready to assume the fetal position in a dark corner. The final score 6-2, 6-0 is deceptive. It wasn't that close. New coach Davide Sanguinetti has his work cut out for him. Maybe he should become a tennis whisperer like Ana's new hitting partner who instead of talking strategy with his pupil talked to her about ownership of the court and not letting herself be intimidated. Hell of a statement from Sharapova. Hell of a setback for Dinara.

There was men's tennis yesterday. In a battle of Americans Andy Roddick faced John Isner in a battle of the flame throwers. Roddick, like Sharapova, left his opponent bothered and bewildered, something Isner admitted in his post match presser. The final score was 7-5, 6-2. Wasn't that close at all.

The most anticipated match of the day was the one between Ryan Harrison and
Milos Raonic. Raonic has been on fire early in the year but Harrison had shown some promise as well. I have to say I was pulling for Milos. Yes I'm going to be that person who will not let go of the shit Harrison pulled on court during his prior match. Just like Azarenka's antics from a couple of years ago in Australia those are not moments to let pass. I'm sure people who want to see an American able to duplicate what Raonic has done will cite his age, he's 18, and that he will mature. Bullshit. He wasn't an ass to his opponent but he was surly and mean to the ball kids. There was also that bit of head hunting he did after Raonic frustrated his plans. Nice. Roddick is known to be a nice person off court and always apologizes for his hissy fits afterwards. I don't think Harrison is that guy.

Miscellany

Anna Chakvetadze, seen here before she was forced to retire from her opening round match, spent the night in a hospital and was told to take some time off from tennis. She was diagnosed with neurocardiogenic syncope, a condition that causes fainting. Whatever the reason I hope Anna takes time off and looks into why this has happened.

Andy Roddick, when asked about Serena Williams condition and availability for the 2012 Olympics said he doesn't care if she doesn't play another match until 2012 he wants to play mixed doubles with her. Andy is known to get what he wants.

Serena, in an interview with Doug Robson, admits to being depressed and to be looking forward to being back to her winning ways. Her hitting partner and friend Sascha Baijin has been calling her out on Twitter and she's been responding. That is good.

Novak Djokovic is not a small guy. He's listed at 6'2" (188 cm).

He posted this picture on Twitter last evening of him standing between Pau Gasol of the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers and Ivo Karlovic, tennis player. He looks like the baby brother. The much younger baby brother.
My favorite picture from the tournament so far.

Laissez le bon temps rouler

by Savannah

I know we're well into Lent and that Mardi Gras was last week but as far as the United States tennis establishment is concerned it's time to let the good times roll. I'm betting that their celebration is more like what you'd find in Rio and that I should call this post "Deixe os bons tempos." That's what Google says the expression should be in Portuguese.

Why the celebration? The man pictured above got the party started. I'm sure that when the men's draw came out and showed Andy Murray's name penciled in against Donald Young's quite a few pints were raised in celebration and who would blame the Murray team for heaving a sigh of relief.
I'm sure clan Murray felt that his first match was a no brainer and that he would easily move into the third round.

Instead Murray, still alive in doubles, is watching the singles draw from afar. Sure Young lost his next match but that really isn't the point. Young showed that he can play real man tennis, that he can leave the juniors behind and show some of the potential he's been said to have for so long.

When I saw that 17 year old Sloane Stephens would play Caroline Wozniacki my only hope was that she would make it respectable. If you watched the match you saw a true diamond in the rough. Sloane has a great forehand and can hit the snot out of the ball. She needs to work on her backhand and improve her movement. She may never be a gazelle on court but she has to at least learn to move her feet. Hitting hard will not be enough on the pro level. She has to learn strategy. Still I felt that she had a good showing. Her coach has a very good courtside manner and a la Richard Williams back in the day he takes a lot of notes. It looks like Sloane is in good hands.

Ryan Sweeting, Bahamian by birth but now a United States citizen also showed he can play with the big boys. He had to be frustrated that he had to face the number one player but he didn't stink up the joint. He needs to work on his court smarts and his thought process but like I said he didn't suck.

Young Christina McHale also showed main tour potential. It was experience that allowed veteran Nadia Petrova to pull out a three set win over the young American. The victory was McHale taking the match to three sets. It seems that she is being brought along slowly just like Sloane. This is a good thing.

I'm sure the celebrations reached a fever pitch when Sam Querrey won his match last evening. Querrey, who seemed at times to need a sports psychologist more than a coach defeated Fernando Verdasco who has been struggling with a foot injury. Of course the big thing here is that Querrey didn't go into "woe is me" mode and won in straight sets.

I was unfortunate enough to see Ryan Harrison's match. He was showing his ass so much I couldn't even appreciate his win. He needs to get over himself and fast. Milos Raonic may help him calm down.

Andy Roddick, still the top American, will face pretender John Isner in a steel cage match.

Still the U.S. tennis establishment has to be buoyed by what has taken place so far at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. It will be interesting to see who comes out of the pack to lead the American charge.

The other big upset is news not because it happened but because of who caused it. Dinara Safina, hitting groundies like she used to back in the day ushered the underwhelming (in my eyes) Samantha Stosur to the exit. Under Dinara's onslaught Stosur became tentative and unable to execute her game plan. Maybe Davide Sanguinetti, her new coach, has installed an aura of calm around the volatile Russian. Sure she had her moments - a particularly big one from what I hear - it didn't derail her.

Maria Sharapova has been playing very well. Even though my ears still ring for a while after she leaves the court she is showing that she is able to win the matches she should.

I was surprised that Vera Zvonareva lost to Dominika Cibulkova. I shouldn't say the loss is that surprising it was the way she lost. Then again, Dominika, when she's on, can beat almost anyone. She was on. Vera was flat.

And I'm sure everyone was expecting Ivo Karlovic to defeat Gilles Simon right?

The commentators seemed to hope that they could will Robin Soderling to a victory over Philipp Kohlschreiber but Soderling, who had been in bed for five days with a fever, and suffering with a foot injury, wasn't able to put Kohlschreiber away. Doesn't mean Kohlschreiber's victory is less surprising or wasn't earned. It's just that the illness has to be mentioned.

End Note

I apologize for this being my first post about Indian Wells. My computer battery decided it had had enough and I was just able to replace it today. I have been watching every day since Tennis Channel here in the States decided we deserved to see live tennis. The good thing is they're doing wall to wall coverage and sometimes the commentators actually manage to talk about the matches taking place. That is a good thing.

Serena Updates Her Condition

by Savannah

In her first public comments related to the pulmonary embolism and hematoma that led to her hospitalization Serena Williams makes it clear just how serious her condition is.

NEW YORK (AP) — Serena Williams still has blood clots in her lung but hopes to return to tennis this summer after recovering from a pulmonary embolism, which she called the "scariest moment in my life."

The 13-time Grand Slam champion spoke on NBC's "Today" show Wednesday from Los Angeles, saying she hasn't left her house much since going to the hospital nearly three weeks ago.
"I had a lot of swelling in my leg, which really is a telltale sign of an embolism, and I could not breathe," Williams said.

She said doctors couldn't find anything in her leg and then ordered a CAT scan of her lungs.
"That's when they found several blood clots," Williams said. "They told me that they had to check me in immediately or else ... it wasn't going to be a good result."

Treating the blood clots required Williams to inject herself with a blood thinner, she said. Feeling a need to get out, she didn't let her condition deter her from attending several Oscar parties.

"I had been through so much in the past eight months," she said. "Just really kind of low on energy, but I was like 'I've got to do something, kind of just to get my spirits up."

Then she wound up back in the hospital on Feb. 28 because of a large hematoma on her stomach. The gathering of blood under the skin grew from a "golf ball" to the size of "a grapefruit."
"I apparently must of hit something," said Williams, who was injecting herself twice a day. (The doctors said) 'We can't drain this, we have to surgically remove it.'"

Her absence from tennis could stretch to almost a year since she won the Wimbledon title last July. Williams has had two surgeries on her right foot since cutting it on glass at a restaurant shortly after Wimbledon.

Her comeback has been delayed repeatedly by complications from the injury. The second surgery was in late October, and she said she spent 10 weeks in a cast and 10 weeks in a walking boot.

Surgery is among the risk factors for blood clots, as are prolonged periods of inactivity and long airline flights.
Williams said she wasn't "moving and not doing as much as I normally do. I started flying a lot ... thinking I was OK. And obviously, I wasn't."

The 29-year-old Williams realizes it was a dangerous situation.


"Mine went from my leg to my lung and it traveled fast," Williams said. "I still have several clots in my lung. They're just there, and they have to eventually dissolve. So I'm just taking it one day at a time. Just on the road to recovery.

"I said I wanted to return this summer, and I was hoping to return way sooner than that. Being so close to ... the scariest moment in my life, I really just want to come back and be able to do well."

SOURCE

I'm guessing that this is detailed enough for the haters out there who think anytime Serena and her sister Venus Williams say they are injured they're punking tennis. These are the same people who take any blather from other players as gospel truth.

The bizarro world reactions had gotten so ridiculous that Emma Carmichael spoke about them in an article posted on the online sports site "Deadspin".

A few summers ago, Serena Williams was a part of an exhibition match on Randall's Island, and I went to see her play. The infamous Jason Whitlock column — the one that "seriously" asked, among other things, "how else can Serena fill out her size 16 shorts without grazing at her stall between matches?" — had been published just a few days before. I asked her how she felt about the column, especially after having spent the afternoon teaching forehands and volleys to self-conscious sixth-grade girls from around New York City. She gave it approximately two seconds of thought: "It doesn't bother me."
(...)
I thought of Serena's reply during the hubbub over her most recent round of medical woes — a hematoma caused by a pulmonary embolism, which required emergency medical treatment last Monday and which will sideline her indefinitely.
(...)
The initial response to the injury was skepticism, with maybe a hint of the usual grievance that Serena is a malingerer who holds herself at a haughty remove from the sport and its press. Nothing that is said about her seems to bother her, and that bothers the media to no end. She has been covered in this vaguely petulant way for so long that, when news of the injury broke in People magazine, of all places, the first instinct for a lot of people was to roll their eyes. "More Serena drama," as one of L. Jon Wertheim's readers put it. It was as if she'd just blown off a date because she had to wash her hair.
(...)
Williams, along with her sister Venus, has always been subject to intense media scrutiny — not least because she is a muscular black woman who has once or twice let her emotions overrun tennis's conventions, but also because the only time she will not regard the sport with a cool detachment is when she is playing. Because of this, people in media have attempted engage Williams over the years — sometimes with thoughtful commentary, but mostly with what amounts to public taunting. It is said that she's too focused on fashion. That her clothes are distracting. That she grunts too loudly in matches. That her ass is too big. That she should really play in more meaningless matches for cash and publicity. That she's not properly dedicated to the cause of American tennis or of tennis in general, as if 13 Grand Slam titles weren't commitment enough. That her injuries "need explanation," as if seven months in a cast weren't explanation enough. That she cares too much about fame, as if the press weren't the machine that made her fame possible in the first place.

With any luck, the next few months will provide a brief reprieve from that scrutiny. Maybe the initial skepticism will pass, the rhetoric will shift, and Williams will settle into the unlikely role of victim in the case of Tennis v. Serena. You can see that happening in places. She faces her "toughest battle yet," according to The New York Times, and there's a mounting fear that tennis will lose her for good to something beyond anyone's critical control. A pulmonary embolism and a hematoma represent an entirely different kind of distraction than, say, a new fashion line.

Carmichael ends her piece, which appeared before Serena's comments on NBC's Today Show hoping that Serena will return to the sport that so desperately needs her.

I hope that Serena takes whatever time she needs, and pays attention to what her doctors tell her. What this fan wants is for Serena to complete her regimen and then see where she stands in terms of the sport she loves and any possible return.

As for the haters, to the left. Now.

The Once and Future Stars

by Savannah

It's going to be Spain vs the United States and one again the Battle Royale will take place on U.S. soil.

The Spanish team, anchored by Rafael Nadal, routed the Belgian team on its home turf in Charleroi 4-1 with Nadal playing what was essentially a dead rubber on Sunday.

The United States team, anchored by Andy Roddick was up against Chile on what else, red clay. It fell to Roddick to pull out the tie by defeating Paul Capdeville in reverse singles on Sunday. It was Roddick who took Team USA on his shoulders winning both of his singles matches. Bob and Mike Bryan won the doubles making the final tally 4-1 United States.

Speculation has already begun as to where the United States will choose to play the tie scheduled for the week after Wimbledon ends in July. An on air report by Justin Gimelstob made it seem as if the choice would be Austin,Texas, Andy Roddick's home, on grass. That assertion was modified to include both San Antonio, Texas and Albany, New York.

The choice of a grass court would be interesting to say the least. Both teams have good grass court players so the surface would in effect be neutral. If grass is the ultimate choice the United States can't be accused of stacking the deck like it was when the last tie against Spain was played on a surface that may have been better suited for a hockey team.

Personally I think we're going to see a hard very fast surface no matter where the tie is played. I should mention that Albany is about 2 1/2 hours from New York City. I'm just saying.

The Weekend's Winners

I don't think anyone was rooting against Jelena Dokic yesterday. I for one have nothing against Lucie Safarova but seeing Jelena win her first title since 2002 left me with a warm and fuzzy feeling. I had wondered if she was serious about her return since it seemed that she would take one step forward and two steps back but in Kuala Lumpur, away from the pressure she has to feel playing in Australia or the States she was able to pull out a win. How she will do in the two big United States tournaments remains to be seen. It would be nice to see her playing Bali at the end of the year.

The other woman hoisting a trophy for the first time in awhile is Dinara Safina who along with doubles partner Galina Voskoboeva won the doubles crown in Malayasia. I'm glad to see Dinara not being too proud to work on her game by playing doubles instead of beating her head against the brick wall of major titles just now. Nice win for her.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova successfully defended her title in Monterrey, Mexico by defeating a listless Jelena Jankovic. Maybe listless isn't the right word. JJ's court sense seems to have deserted her. Her shot selection and ball placement was completely off and the match was always on Pavs' racquet. I am at a loss to explain JJ's decision to play here when she is defending her title at Indian Wells starting this week. Maybe she felt she needed to play on a hard court. Maybe they offered her enough cheese to make the trip worthwhile. Whatever the reason for playing she has certainly lowered expectations for Indian Wells. Then again that could be a good thing.

The doubles team of Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova are the Monterrey doubles champions.

Davis Cup Results

Listed below are the Davis Cup Results sent out by the ITF late yesterday.

WORLD GROUP FIRST ROUND

SERBIA defeated INDIA 4-1

Venue: Spens Sports Center, Novi Sad, SRB (hard – indoors)

Viktor Troicki (SRB) d. Rohan Bopanna (IND) 63 63 57 36 63

Somdev Devvarman (IND) d. Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) 75 75 76(3)

Ilija Bozoljac/Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) d. Rohan Bopanna/Somdev Devvarman (IND) 46 63 64 76(10)

Viktor Troicki (SRB) d. Somdev Devvarman (IND) 64 62 75

Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) d. Karan Rastogi (IND) 60 61

SWEDEN defeated RUSSIA 3-2

Venue: Borashallen, Boras, SWE (hard – indoors)

Robin Soderling (SWE) d. Igor Andreev (RUS) 63 63 61

Joachim Johansson (SWE) d. Teymuraz Gabashvili (RUS) 63 76(4) 64

Simon Aspelin/Robert Lindstedt (SWE) d. Igor Kunitsyn/Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) 64 67(6) 76(6) 62

Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) d. Simon Aspelin (SWE) 75 62

Igor Andreev (RUS) d. Joachim Johansson (SWE) 76(8) 64

KAZAKHSTAN defeated CZECH REPUBLIC 3-2

Venue: CZE Arena, Ostrava, CZE (hard – indoors)

Andrey Golubev (KAZ) d. Jan Hajek (CZE) 76(4) 67(3) 16 76(4) 63

Tomas Berdych (CZE) d. Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) 76(5) 63 62

Tomas Berdych/Lukas Dlouhy (CZE) d. Evgeny Korolev/Yuriy Schukin (KAZ) 64 64 76(4)

Andrey Golubev (KAZ) d. Tomas Berdych (CZE) 75 57 64 62

Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) d. Jan Hajek (CZE) 64 67(4) 76(8) 60

ARGENTINA defeated ROMANIA 4-1

Venue: Parque Roca, Buenos Aires, ARG (clay – outdoors)

David Nalbandian (ARG) d. Adrian Ungur (ROU) 63 62 57 64

Juan Monaco (ARG) d. Victor Hanescu (ROU) 76(5) 16 61 61

Juan Ignacio Chela/Eduardo Schwank (ARG) d. Victor Hanescu/Horia Tecau (ROU) 62 76(8) 61

Eduardo Schwank (ARG) d. Victor Crivoi (ROU) 76(3) 62

Adrian Ungur (ROU) d. Juan Monaco (ARG) 64 26 63

USA defeated CHILE 4-1

Venue: Estadio Nacional, Santiago, CHI (clay – outdoors)

Andy Roddick (USA) d. Nicolas Massu (CHI) 62 46 63 64

Paul Capdeville (CHI) d. John Isner (USA) 67(5) 67(2) 76(3) 76(5) 64

Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan (USA) d. Jorge Aguilar/Nicolas Massu (CHI) 63 63 76(4)

Andy Roddick (USA) d. Paul Capdeville (CHI) 36 76(2) 63 63

John Isner (USA) d. Guillermo Rivera-Aranguiz (CHI) 63 67(4) 75

SPAIN defeated BELGIUM 4-1

Venue: Spiroudome, Charleroi, BEL (hard – indoors)

Fernando Verdasco (ESP) d. Xavier Malisse (BEL) 64 63 61

Rafael Nadal (ESP) d. Ruben Bemelmans (BEL) 62 64 62

Feliciano Lopez/Fernando Verdasco (ESP) d. Steve Darcis/Olivier Rochus (BEL) 76(0) 64 63

Rafael Nadal (ESP) d. Olivier Rochus (BEL) 64 62

Steve Darcis (BEL) d. Feliciano Lopez (ESP) 67(4) 76(6) 76(3)

GERMANY defeated CROATIA 3-2

Venue: Dom Sportova, Zagreb, CRO (hard – indoors)

Marin Cilic (CRO) d. Florian Mayer (GER) 46 60 46 63 61

Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) d. Ivan Dodig (CRO) 64 36 46 76(6) 64

Christopher Kas/Philipp Petzschner (GER) d. Ivan Dodig/Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 63 36 57 63 64

Marin Cilic (CRO) d. Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 62 63 76(6)

Philipp Petzschner (GER) d. Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 64 76(3) 76(5)

FRANCE defeated AUSTRIA 3-2

Venue: Vienna Airport Hangar 3, Vienna, AUT (clay – indoors)

Jeremy Chardy (FRA) d. Jurgen Melzer (AUT) 75 64 75

Gilles Simon (FRA) d. Stefan Koubek (AUT) 60 62 63

Oliver Marach/Jurgen Melzer (AUT) d. Julien Benneteau/Michael Llodra (FRA) 64 36 63 64

Jurgen Melzer (AUT) d. Gilles Simon (FRA) 76(7) 36 16 64 60

Jeremy Chardy (FRA) d. Martin Fischer (AUT) 26 76(4) 63 63

AMERICAS ZONE GROUP I FIRST ROUND

CANADA defeated MEXICO 4-1

Venue: Club Deportivo La Asuncion, Estado de Mexico, MEX (clay – outdoors)

Daniel Garza (MEX) d. Frank Dancevic (CAN) 26 46 62 63 64

Milos Raonic (CAN) d. Manuel Sanchez (MEX) 62 62 61

Vasek Pospisil/Milos Raonic (CAN) d. Luis Diaz-Barriga/Miguel Angel Reyes Varela (MEX) 46 63 64 64

Milos Raonic (CAN) d. Daniel Garza (MEX) 75 63 62

Peter Polansky (CAN) d. Manuel Sanchez (MEX) 64 61

URUGUAY defeated COLOMBIA 3-1

Venue: Carrasco Lawn Tennis Club, Montevideo, URU (clay – outdoors)

Pablo Cuevas (URU) d. Alejandro Falla (COL) 26 61 62 64

Santiago Giraldo (COL) d. Martin Cuevas (URU) 62 60 62

Pablo Cuevas/Marcel Felder (URU) d. Juan Sebastian Cabal/Robert Farah (COL) 16 76(6) 16 76(5) 62

Pablo Cuevas (URU) d. Santiago Giraldo (COL) 62 63 64

Martin Cuevas (URU) v Alejandro Falla (COL)

ASIA/OCEANIA ZONE GROUP I FIRST ROUND

CHINA, P.R defeated CHINESE TAIPEI 3-2

Venue: Shanghai Xianxia Tennis Center, Shanghai, CHN (hard – indoors)

Mao-Xin Gong (CHN) d. Tsung-Hua Yang (TPE) 57 61 76(5) 46 86

Di Wu (CHN) d. Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) 64 36 36 75 97

Yen-Hsun Lu/Tsung-Hua Yang (TPE) d. Mao-Xin Gong/Zhe Li (CHN) 75 64 67(3) 76(4)

Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) d. Mao-Xin Gong (CHN) 61 62 62

Di Wu (CHN) d. Tsung-Hua Yang (TPE) 63 62 26 60

JAPAN defeated PHILIPPINES 3-1

Venue: Plantation Bay Resort & Spa, Lapu-Lapu City, PHI (clay – outdoors)

Tatsuma Ito (JPN) d. Cecil Mamiit (PHI) 64 67(5) 63 67(3) 97

Go Soeda (JPN) d. Johnny Arcilla (PHI) 63 63 63

Treat Huey/Cecil Mamiit (PHI) d. Hiroki Kondo/Takao Suzuki (JPN) 61 76(5) 62

Go Soeda (JPN) d. Cecil Mamiit (PHI) 76(5) 62 36 63

Johnny Arcilla (PHI) v Tatsuma Ito (JPN) – NOT PLAYED

UZBEKISTAN defeated NEW ZEALAND 3-2

Venue: Sport Complex Pahlavon, Namangan, UZB (clay – indoors)

Farrukh Dustov (UZB) d. Artem Sitak (NZL) 60 63 61

Denis Istomin (UZB) d. Jose Statham (NZL) 62 63 63

Farrukh Dustov/Denis Istomin (UZB) d. Marcus Daniell/Michael Venus (NZL) 76(5) 63 64

Artem Sitak (NZL) d. Murad Inoyatov (UZB) 61 67(2) 63

Michael Venus (NZL) d. Vaja Uzakov (UZB) 63 60

EUROPE/AFRICA ZONE GROUP I FIRST ROUND

SLOVENIA defeated FINLAND 3-2

Venue: Sportno Rekeacijski Center Tivoli, Ljubljana , SLO (clay – indoors)

Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) d. Grega Zemlja (SLO) 36 63 64 63

Blaz Kavcic (SLO) d. Harri Heliovaara (FIN) 46 62 63 64

Luka Gregorc/Grega Zemlja (SLO) d. Harri Heliovaara/Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) 67(5) 64 64 75

Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) d. Blaz Kavcic (SLO) 63 64 46 64

Grega Zelmja (SLO) d. Micke Kontinen (FIN) 26 63 63 63

NETHERLANDS level with UKRAINE 2-2

Venue: Palace of Sports Lokomotiv, Kharkiv, UKR (hard – indoors)

Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) d. Robin Haase (NED) 61 64 67(2) 46 62

Thiemo de Bakker (NED) d. Iliya Marchenko (UKR) 76(3) 76(6) 64

Thiemo de Bakker/Robin Haase (NED) d. Sergei Bubka/Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 76(6) 67(5) 64 76(9)

Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) d. Jesse Huta Galung (NED) 61 64 36 67(4) 64

Iliya Marchenko (UKR) v Robin Haase (NED)

PORTUGAL defeated SLOVAK REPUBLIC 4-1

Venue: Centro Desportivo Nacional do Jamor, Cruz Quebrada, POR (clay – outdoors)

Frederico Gil (POR) d. Lukas Lacko (SVK) 62 62 61

Rui Machado (POR) d. Martin Klizan (SVK) 64 64 16 26 64

Michal Mertinak/Filip Polasek (SVK) d. Frederico Gil/Leonardo Tavares (POR) 63 64 16 61

Rui Machado (POR) d. Lukas Lacko (SVK) 64 36 64 60

Joao Sousa (POR) d. Martin Klizan (SVK) 62 41 ret.

EUROPE/AFRICA ZONE GROUP I SECOND ROUND

ISRAEL defeated POLAND 3-2

Venue: Canada Stadium, Ramat Hasharon, ISR (hard – outdoors)

Dudi Sela (ISR) d. Marcin Gawron (POL) 61 63 64

Amir Weintraub (ISR) d. Jerzy Janowicz (POL) 46 62 62 67(4) 63

Jonathan Erlich/Andy Ram (ISR) d. Mariusz Fyrstenberg/Marcin Matkowski (POL) 46 64 63 61

Jerzy Janowicz (POL) d. Dudi Sela (ISR) 76(5) 64

Amir Weintraub (ISR) v Marcin Gawron (POL) - FORFEIT

AMERICAS ZONE GROUP II FIRST ROUND

PERU defeated NETHERLANDS ANTILLES 5-0

Venue: Club Lawn Tennis de la Exposicion, Lima, PER (clay – outdoors)

Ivan Miranda (PER) d. David Josepa (AHO) 60 60 61

Mauricio Echazu (PER) d. Alexander Blom (AHO) 62 63 75

Duilio Beretta/Sergio Galdos (PER) d. Alexander Blom/Martijn van Haasteren (AHO) 64 62 36 62

Sergio Galdos (PER) d. David Josepa (AHO) 61 62

Duilio Beretta (PER) d. Nick van Rosberg (AHO) 60 60

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC defeated EL SALVADOR 5-0

Venue: Maya Country Club, Santa Tecla, ESA (clay – outdoors)

Jhonson Garcia (DOM) d. Marcelo Arevalo (ESA) 63 63 61

Victor Estrella (DOM) d. Rafael Arevalo (ESA) 26 76(3) 64 61

Victor Estrella/Jose R. Hernandez (DOM) d. Marcelo Arevalo/Rafael Arevalo (ESA) 64 64 46 64

Luis Delgado (DOM) d. Andres Weisskopff (ESA) 64 62

Jhonson Garcia (DOM) d. Alberto Alvarado (ESA) 60 61

PARAGUAY defeated PUERTO RICO 4-1

Venue: Universidad de Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PUR (hard – outdoors)

Daniel-Alejandro Lopez Cassaccia (PAR) d. Ricardo Gonzalez-Diaz (PUR) 62 62 64

Alex Llompart (PUR) d. Diego Galeano (PAR) 63 36 46 75 61

Daniel-Alejandro Lopez Cassaccia/Gustavo Ramirez (PAR) d. Chris Brandi/Alex Llompart (PUR) 46 63 61 46 75

Daniel-Alejandro Lopez Cassaccia (PAR) d. Alex Llompart (PUR) 63 60 64

Diego Galeano (PAR) d. Chris Brandi (PUR) 64 63

VENEZUELA level with HAITI 2-2

Venue: Centro Nacional de Tenis, Caracas, VEN (hard – outdoors)

Olivier Sajous (HAI) d. Luis David Martinez (VEN) 76(2) 63 36 64

Piero Luisi (VEN) d. Jean Marc Bazanne (HAI) 62 62 61

Piero Luisi/Roberto Maytin (VEN) d. Joel Allen/Olivier Sajous (HAI) 67(3) 36 76(0) 62 62

Olivier Sajous (HAI) d. Piero Luisi (VEN) 67(3) 64 64 06 64

Luis David Martinez (VEN) v Jean Marc Bazanne (HAI)

ASIA/OCEANIA ZONE GROUP II FIRST ROUND

KOREA, P.R. defeated SYRIA 4-1

Venue: Changwon Municipal Tennis Courts, Changwon, KOR (hard – outdoors)

Hyun-Joon Kim (KOR) d. Marc Abdulnour (SYR) 63 61 61

Soong-Jae Cho (KOR) d. Issam Tawil (SYR) 61 64 61

Soong-Jae Cho/Hyun-Joon Kim (KOR) d. Majdi Salim/Roman Radwan (SYR) 62 61 61

Marc Abdulnour (SYR) d. Suk-Young Jeong (KOR) 36 64 76(3)

Yong-Kyu Lim (KOR) d. Issam Tawil (SYR) 62 62

PAKISTAN defeated HONG KONG, CHINA 3-1

Venue: Victoria Park, Hong Kong, HKG (hard – outdoors)

Hiu-Tung Yu (HKG) d. Aisam Qureshi (PAK) 76(3) 46 67(2) 75 64

Aqeel Khan (PAK) d. Martin Sayer (HKG) 75 75 64

Aqeel Khan/Aisam Qureshi (PAK) d. Jonathan Chu/Coenie van Wyk (HKG) 76(4) 64 64

Aisam Qureshi (PAK) d. Martin Sayer (HKG) 76(8) 63 76(4)

Hiu-Tung Yu (HKG) v Aqeel Khan (PAK)

INDONESIA defeated IRAN 3-2

Venue: Shiroodi Sports Complex, Tehran, IRI (clay – indoors)

Anoosha Shahgholi (IRI) d. Sunu-Wahyu Trijati (INA) 63 64 26 46 75

Christopher Rungkat (INA) d. Shahin Khaledan (IRI) 76(3) 61 63

Christopher Rungkat/Sunu-Wahyu Trijati (INA) d. Anoosha Shahgholi/Omid Souri (IRI) 63 61 75

Christopher Rungkat (INA) d. Mohsen Hossein Zade (IRI) 63 63 60

Shahin Khaledan (IRI) d. Aditya Hari Sasongko (INA) 61 67(5) 63

THAILAND defeated PACIFIC OCEANIA 5-0

Venue: Hilton Tennis Club, Guam, POC (hard – outdoors)

Danai Udomchoke (THA) d. Cyril Jacobe (POC) 60 62 63

Kittiphong Wachiramanowong (THA) d. Michael Leong (POC) 63 63 60

Sonchat Ratiwatana/Sanchai Ratiwatana (THA) d. Cyril Jacobe/Leon So’onalole (POC) 64 75 62

Danai Udomchoke (THA) d. Michael Leong (POC) 64 60

Kittiphong Wachiramanowong (THA) d. Cyril Jacobe (POC) 62 62

EUROPE/AFRICA ZONE GROUP II FIRST ROUND

GREAT BRITAIN defeated TUNISIA 4-1

Venue: Bolton Arena, Bolton, GBR (hard – indoors)

Malek Jaziri (TUN) d. Jamie Baker (GBR) 46 63 75 62

James Ward (GBR) d. Sami Ghorbel (TUN) 60 62 60

Colin Fleming/Jamie Murray (GBR) d. Slim Hamza/Malek Jaziri (TUN) 61 36 63 64

James Ward (GBR) d. Malek Jaziri (TUN) 36 63 36 63 86

Jamie Baker (GBR) d. Slim Hamza (TUN) 61 64

LUXEMBOURG defeated IRELAND 3-1

Venue: David Lloyd Riverview Lawn Tennis Club, Dublin, IRL (hard – indoors)

Conor Niland (IRL) d. Mike Vermeer (LUX) 61 60 62

Gilles Muller (LUX) d. Barry King (IRL) 46 61 63 63

Laurent Bram/Gilles Muller (LUX) d. James Cluskey/James McGee (IRL) 76(4) 76(4) 64

Gilles Muller (LUX) d. Conor Niland (IRL) 64 64 64

James McGee (IRL) v Mike Vermeer (LUX)

BELARUS defeated BULGARIA 4-1

Venue: Republic Olympic Training Center for Tennis, Minsk, BLR (hard – indoors)

Uladzimir Ignatik (BLR) d. Todor Enev (BUL) 62 36 67(4) 62 62

Dimitar Kutrovsky (BUL) d. Siarhei Betau (BLR) 75 64 26 76(2)

Uladzimir Ignatik/Max Mirnyi (BLR) d. Valentin Dimov/Dimitar Kuzmanov (BUL) 62 64 64

Uladzimir Ignatik (BLR) d. Dimitar Kutrovsky (BUL) 36 62 61 64

Alexander Bury (BLR) d. Dimitar Kuzmanov (BUL) 62 63

HUNGARY defeated CYPRUS 5-0

Venue: National Tennis Centre, Nicosia, CYP (hard – outdoors)

Adam Kellner (HUN) d. Rares Cuzdriorean (CYP) 64 64 63

Attila Balazs (HUN) d. Philippos Tsangaridis (CYP) 61 62 62

Attila Balazs/Kornel Bardoczky (HUN) d. Rares Cuzdriorean/Christopher Koutrouzas (CYP) 61 64 63

Attila Balazs (HUN) d. Sergis Kyratzis (CYP) 64 76(6)

Marton Fucsovics (HUN) d. Philippos Tsangaridis (CYP) 64 63

BOSNIA/HERZEGOVINA defeated MOROCCO 3-2

Venue: Royal Tennis Club de Marrakech, Marrakech, MAR (clay – outdoors)

Reda El Amrani (MAR) d. Amer Delic (BIH) 62 76(4) 64

Aldin Setkic (BIH) d. Talal Ouahabi (MAR) 64 26 57 63 64

Amer Delic/Ismar Gorcic (BIH) d. Reda El Amrani/Talal Ouahabi (MAR) 63 62 16 64

Reda El Amrani (MAR) d. Aldin Setkic (BIH) 26 62 60 61

Amer Delic (BIH) d. Talal Ouahabi (MAR) 61 63 46 61

ESTONIA defeated LITHUANIA 3-2

Venue: Rocca al Mare Tennisekeskus, Tallinn, EST (hard – indoors)

Richard Berankis (LTU) d. Jaak Poldma (EST) 76(3) 62 63

Jurgen Zopp (EST) d. Laurynas Grigelis (LTU) 45 ret.

Mait Kunnap/Jurgen Zopp (EST) d. Richard Berankis/Dovydas Sakinis (LTU) 62 63 36 63

Richard Berankis (LTU) d. Jurgen Zopp (EST) 16 46 64 63 119

Jaak Poldma (EST) d. Dovydas Sakinis (LTU) 61 64 16 61

DENMARK defeated MONACO 3-2

Venue: Bramdrupdam Hallerne, Kolding, DEN (carpet – indoors)

Jean-Rene Lisnard (MON) d. Martin Pedersen (DEN) 76(3) 46 64 26 62

Frederik Nielsen (DEN) d. Thomas Oger (MON) 75 62 75

Thomas Kromann/Frederik Nielsen (DEN) d. Guillaume Couillard/Jean-Rene Lisnard (MON) 62 63 61

Frederik Nielsen (DEN) d. Jean-Rene Lisnard (MON) 63 62 64

Benjamin Balleret (MON) d. Soren Wedege (DEN) 62 76(5)

LATVIA defeated GREECE 4-1

Venue: Thessaloniki Tennis Club, Thessaloniki, GRE (clay – outdoors)

Andis Juska (LAT) d. Theodoros Angelinos (GRE) 63 75 62

Deniss Pavlos (LAT) d. Alexandros Jakupovic (GRE) 63 61 61

Andis Juska/Deniss Pavlos (LAT) d. Konstantinos Economidis/Alexandros Jakupovic (GRE) 64 63 63

Deniss Pavlos (LAT) d. Paris Gemouchidis (GRE) 63 64

Konstantinos Economidis (GRE) d. Mikelis Libietis (LAT) 61 62

Serena Williams Hospitalized Due to Pulmonary Embolism

by Savannah

Fox Sports reports that Serena Williams under went emergency treatment for a blood clot on her lungs that resulted in a hematoma.

Update

Statement from Serena Williams publicist regarding her condition. Thanks to Tennis Panorama for posting the complete statement.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Statement Regarding Serena Williams’ Recent Health Scare

(Los Angeles, CA – March 2, 2011) – “Serena did indeed suffer from a pulmonary embolism last week, and the hematoma was another unexpected scare. Thankfully everything was caught in time. With continued doctor visits to monitor her situation, she is recuperating at home under strict medical supervision.”

Says Serena, “Thank you everyone for all of your prayers, concerns, and support. This has been extremely hard, scary, and disappointing. I am doing better, I’m at home now and working with my doctors to keep everything under control. I know I will be ok, but am praying and hoping this will all be behind me soon. While I can’t make any promises now on my return, I hope to be back by early summer. That said, my main goal is to make sure I get there safely.”

She will undoubtedly be on blood thinners for awhile. While on blood thinners she can't work out so I think saying she will be back by early summer is ambitious to say the least. Still waiting for a statement from the WTA.

LOS ANGELES
Tennis ace Serena Williams underwent emergency treatment at a hospital after suffering a blood clot in her lungs, People magazine reported Wednesday.

Williams, 29, turned out for Elton John's AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party on Sunday, however her health took a turn for the worse Monday.


"Monday Serena Williams underwent emergency treatment at Cedars [Medical Center] for a hematoma she suffered as a result of treatment for a more critical situation," a representative for Williams, Nicole Chabot, told the magazine.

"Last week, Serena suffered from a pulmonary embolism (a blood clot in the lungs) which was discovered upon her return to L.A. She had been in New York for doctor appointments for the ongoing issues with her foot," she added.

The former world No. 1 was aiming to return to the court after an extended break from the game due to injury in time for the French Open in May.

Williams recently had a cast removed from her right foot and was due to begin training soon. She had surgery after cutting her foot on broken glass after her win at Wimbledon last July.

Williams, currently ranked 12th in the world, has won 37 WTA titles.

Doctors were continuing to monitor her condition closely Wednesday.

Serena we love you. Get yourself completely healthy before even thinking about returning to tennis.