Five years ago, Svetlana Kuznetsova had nothing to lose when she captured her first and only Grand Slam title. Today, the woman who has been hounded by frail nerves and stage-fright fiascoes finally grew up as a tennis player. Kuznetsova–one of the most talented yet unimposing performers on the WTA Tour–registered what should be viewed [...]
It could well be that the first Tuesday of June in 2009 will represent a mere blip on the radar screen of Dominika Cibulkova’s tennis career. Then again, if this tireless Slovakian becomes a powerhouse in her profession, she’ll look back on a magical afternoon in Paris as the moment when her life changed forever. [...]
Less than three years ago, the career arc of Jelena Jankovic appeared to be headed for the highest heavens. After a miserable Monday in Paris, a struggling Serbian finds herself at a crossroads, her plans for Roland Garros reduced to rubble. Jankovic, the No. 5 seed at the French Open, lost her women’s singles fourth-round [...]
Sunday, May 31, 2009, will be remembered for one thing and one thing only in the history of tennis. The date has become etched into eternity as the day Rafael Nadal lost his first match at Roland Garros, to Sweden’s Robin Soderling. Anything else that happened in Paris on 5/31/09 will be forgotten by casual tennis [...]
Through the first two rounds of the French Open, Venus Williams–who is as comfortable on red clay as a snowman in the Sahara Desert–possessed enough guile and grit to fight past opponents who lacked the chops to take her down. But as a Grand Slam event progresses and a field of 128 shrinks to 32, [...]
American female tennis players have a way of winning on native soil. Australian and British girls don’t get many chances to wow the home crowd in Melbourne or suburban London. As for the females of France, the comforts of home just aren’t comfortable enough, and never seem to be sufficient on any day, in any time or [...]
The women’s portion of the 2009 French Open is developing a clear narrative through the first five days of action at Roland Garros: Champions rise under pressure, while pretenders fall by the wayside. In the lastest example of an elite player coming through under fire, Venus Williams–the No. 3 seed in Paris–turned back a bold [...]
After ten months away from the WTA Tour, Maria Sharapova might be in the midst of re-learning the finer points of tennis technique, but while her groundstrokes still need polishing, there’s one thing the Russian superstar never forgot how to do: fight like hell. Displaying the mental toughness and combative spirit that made her a [...]
Klara Zakopalova has never gone past the third round in any Grand Slam tournament she’s entered. Yet, the 27-year-old from the Czech Republic is someone Serena Williams won’t want to see in any future claycourt event. Zakopalova–whose third-round showing at the 2003 Australian Open is her best result in 20 slam appearances–played far beyond her No. [...]
