Safina cruises past Cibulkova to reach French Open final Thursday, June 04, 2009
Dinara Safina shanked shots, endured a flurry of double-faults, screamed profanities at herself and still advanced to the French Open final.
The combustible Russian beat Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia 6-3, 6-3 in the semifinals Thursday and needs one more win for her first Grand Slam title.
It was a mistake-filled match, with the top-ranked Safina winning despite seven double-faults and 24 unforced errors.
Safina was runner-up to Ana Ivanovic last year at Roland Garros, and lost this year's Australian Open final to Serena Williams. Her opponent Saturday will be the winner of the second semifinal between Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia and Samantha Stosur of Australia.
Safina improved to 20-1 since she became No. 1 for the first time April 20. Her brother, Marat Safin, is a former No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion.
The family's notorious temper was evident on occasion in the semifinal. At least twice, Safina screamed a vulgarity at herself in English that TV microphones picked up, and an announcer apologized to the European audience.
Her language was cleaner when she shanked a backhand into the dirt at her feet.
"That was a great shot," she said.
Later in the same game, Safina misfired so badly on a first serve that she drove the ball into the clay in front of the net. She held anyway for a 4-2 lead in the second set.
Safina kissed the corner with a forehand winner to reach match point and closed out the victory when Cibulkova put a backhand in the net.
The match was played from behind the baseline, and it was into the seventh game before either played attempted a volley. Cibulkova found herself at a disadvantage in rallies because she often had to hit the ball above eye level, while high-kicking shots were right in Safina's hitting zone.
On a sunny, cool afternoon, Safina started slowly. She fell behind 2-love, then began to find the range and won five consecutive games.
She struggled to close out the set, sailing returns long on three successive set points, but converted on the fourth try with a booming forehand.
A lob winner over Cibulkova helped Safina earn the first break of the second set for a 3-2 lead, and she closed out the win despite some fitful moments.
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posted by Brandon Schenz @ 10:11 AM,
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Federer rallies into quarters, Roddick falls at French Open Tuesday, June 02, 2009
Roger Federer knows full well, of course, that Rafael Nadal is no longer around this year to befuddle him, to beat him, to stand between him and a French Open title.
Federer insists he is not thinking about that, not thinking ahead. Still, Federer sure did play as if preoccupied for the better part of two hours Monday, dropping the first two sets of his fourth-round match against 63rd-ranked Tommy Haas of Germany.
One point from letting Haas serve for the victory, Federer conjured up one particularly spectacular forehand that managed to change the entire flow of things. That shot spurred a run of nine consecutive games for Federer, sending him to a 6-7 (4), 5-7, 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 victory over Haas and a berth in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros.
"I knew I was going to look back on that shot. That saved me," Federer said. "I was in quite some danger."
But he escaped. With two more victories, Federer will reach a fourth consecutive final at the French Open, the only Grand Slam championship he hasn't won. Federer lost to Nadal in each of the past three finals and in the 2005 semifinals, but the Spaniard's 31-match winning streak at the clay-court major tournament ended Sunday against Robin Soderling.
"You're aware of it," Federer said. "Definitely changes it up, if I were to make the final. But we're not there yet, so honestly it hasn't changed a whole lot for me."
Federer now tries to reach the semifinals at a 20th Grand Slam event in a row, which would extend his own record, when he meets 11th-seeded Gael Monfils of France, a 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 winner over No. 6 Andy Roddick, the last American man in the tournament.
Federer is 4-0 against Monfils, including a victory in the French Open semifinals a year ago. Monfils dominated Roddick, even out-acing him 17-4, and Roddick began complaining in the second set that it was too dark to see.
"Don't tell me what's OK and what's not," the 2003 U.S. Open champion snapped at chair umpire Enric Molina. "You're not the one playing."
It was the day's last match on Court Suzanne Lenglen, and the start was delayed by No. 5 Jelena Jankovic's loss to the 41st-ranked Sorana Cirstea of Romania 3-6, 6-0, 9-7, which lasted 2 hours, 44 minutes.
"It wasn't easy at the end," said Cirstea, two points from defeat when Jankovic served for the match at 5-4, 30-love in the third set. "I saw she was tired, also. So I knew it was also a little bit mental: Who is going to stay stronger?"
Elsewhere, 2002 champion Serena Williams beat No. 24 Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada 6-1, 6-2; No. 7 Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated No. 12 Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-4, 1-6, 6-1; and No. 30 Samantha Stosur beat Virginie Razzano of France 6-1, 6-2.
"This," Williams said, "is when everything counts."
No one knows that better than Federer, whose 13 major championships are one shy of Pete Sampras' record. With Nadal, Roddick and No. 4 Novak Djokovic all gone, Federer is the only man left with a Grand Slam title.
"For a lot of players," Federer said, "I think it must be quite a big opportunity, and their heads must be spinning right now."
The other matchup on his half of the draw is No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina against No. 16 Tommy Robredo of Spain — two men who are a combined 0-6 in Grand Slam quarterfinals. Del Potro beat No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-4, and Robredo eliminated No. 29 Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (4), 6-2.
"Expectations? Everyone has expectations, even myself," Robredo said.
There are two ways to look at what Nadal's loss means for Federer. A potential obstacle is out of the way. And now Federer is expected to win the title, which could be a burden.
Consider: Dating to 2005, Federer is 0-4 against Nadal at the French Open, 27-0 against everyone else.
"It kicks the door open for Roger, but suddenly: 'Yeah, step up.' Now the pressure's really on," three-time French Open champion Mats Wilander said. "The pressure before was to just give Nadal a good match. Now, it's like, 'Hey, listen, if you can't win it now, then you're definitely not considered the greatest player of all time — until you do."'
Asked about Nadal, Federer joked: "Um, he didn't retire, right?"
"My dream scenario is to beat Rafa here in the finals," Federer continued, "but I've got to concentrate on my part of the draw and make sure I come through like today."
Good as he was at the start against Haas — Federer won the first 24 points on his serve — there were moments when his signature forehand let him down. Federer missed two in a row to fall behind in the opening tiebreaker.
When Haas took the second set, too, the prospect of the No. 2-seeded Federer following No. 1 Nadal on the way out was a distinct possibility. Then came the third-set point both Federer and Haas considered pivotal: With Federer serving at 3-4, 30-40 — five points from losing — he ran around his backhand side for an inside-out forehand winner that landed right near a line.
"We both knew there was a chance for me to finish him off," Haas said. "Just got to tip your hat and say, 'That's why he's Roger Federer."'
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posted by Brandon Schenz @ 9:43 AM,
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Murray weathers heat, defeats Djokovic for Sony Ericcson title Sunday, April 05, 2009
Andy Murray hit second serves for aces, slipped passing shots through the narrowest openings and rarely made a mistake.
It was a performance worthy of a trophy, and Murray became the first Brit to win the Sony Ericsson Open by defeating Novak Djokovic 6-2, 7-5 Sunday.
The Scotsman used his vast repertoire of shots and took advantage of two wobbly stretches by Djokovic, who struggled with the 85-degree heat.
Djokovic rushed his strokes at the start and fell behind 4-love. In the second set, Murray rallied from a break down at 1-4, overcame two set points and won 10 of the final 11 points.
The No. 4-seeded Murray committed only 19 unforced errors, patiently mixing the pace and direction of his shots to keep the No. 3-seeded Djokovic off balance.
"It's my way of dictating how the match is getting played," Murray said. "A lot of people might not necessarily think my game looks the most aggressive or offensive, but very few times will I not have the points played how I like them to be played."
Twice Murray hit second serves for aces, and he threw in several effective change-up first serves, including a 76 mph ace. He mixed in some power, too, finishing one point with a leaping overhead a la Pete Sampras.
When rallying from the baseline didn't work for Djokovic, he tried charging the net, and Murray repeatedly beat him with crosscourt passing shots.
"You have to say, 'Well done,"' Djokovic said.
It was a matchup between Nos. 3 and 4, instead of the anticipated showdown between Nos. 1 and 2. Top-ranked Rafael Nadal lost in the quarterfinals to Juan Martin del Potro, and Djokovic upset Roger Federer in the semifinals.
Lately Murray has won more than anyone. He's the first three-time titlist this year on the men's tour thanks to a career-best 26-2 start, and since July his record is 57-7, best on the tour.
With U.S. tennis fortunes flagging, maybe Americans can claim Murray, who owns a condo near Key Biscayne and trained during the winter at the University of Miami. Back home, he's touted as a threat to become the first British man since 1936 to win Wimbledon.
The benefits of Murray's conditioning regimen showed as he repeatedly scrambled into the corners to retrieve shots.
"Physically he's moving much better all over the court," Djokovic said. "The balls he wasn't getting before, he is now."
Despite the sweltering sunshine, Murray's legs looked fresh throughout the match, while Djokovic appeared to wilt quickly and consulted with a trainer early in the second set. The Serb has a history of not finishing matches, most recently at this year's Australian Open quarterfinals against Andy Roddick on a 95-degree day.
"Yet again I was, I think, the biggest enemy to myself," Djokovic said. "I was struggling again adjusting to the heat. That's just the way it is. I can't fight it. It has been for a while like this."
Warm weather wasn't a problem for Djokovic when he won the Key Biscayne title in 2007, but the steamy conditions had him panting from the outset Sunday.
"He has been struggling with it this year, but he's obviously a great player," Murray said. "You need to get him to that point where he feels like it's very tough and the points are long. That's not an easy thing to do."
Following Djokovic's visit with the trainer, he began playing riskier tennis to keep the points short, and for a while the strategy worked. He broke twice to win four games in a row, and Murray needed 16 points in the next game to hold for 2-4.
"He started to come to the net on 60, 70% of the points," Murray said. "I started mishitting some balls and lost my rhythm for a little while."
Djokovic had two set points serving in the ninth game, but on the first he was unable to handle a sharp return, and on the second he double-faulted.
Forehand errors by Djokovic on consecutive points gave Murray the break, cutting the margin to 5-4. Murray hit three aces to hold for 5-all, broke in the next game at love and swept the final four points to close out the match.
The statistics reflected Murray's well-rounded game: He won 26 of 34 points on his first serve, broke Djokovic five times and won 10 of 11 points at the net.
The tour now moves to clay, where Murray hopes to gain ground in the rankings on Nadal, Federer and Djokovic.
"The clay-court season will be very important for me," Murray said. "On the hard courts, I think my game is up there with the top guys. On grass it definitely got better last year. I need to improve my results on clay. If I do that, there's a chance I'll get higher."
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posted by Brandon Schenz @ 9:58 PM,
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