Rafael Nadal's return to form exactly what men's tennis neededAt the Monte Carlo Country Club on Sunday afternoon, Nadal bit into a piece of silverware for the first time in almost a year, having dropped just 14 games all tournament in becoming the first player in the modern era to win a title six years in succession. Nadal rightly felt it was the best week of tennis he has played “in a long time”, and soon he could be biting into the trophy in Barcelona, into a cup in Rome, into the prize in Madrid, and into the Coupe des Mousquetaires in Paris. Over the coming weeks, expect Nadal to be showing more teeth than Julia Roberts. Nadal could go back to being the 'Pacman' of clay-court tennis, eating up all the orange dirt, opponents and trophies that come into his path.
Here on the Riviera, Nadal could not have been clearer about his intentions: he wants to go back to dominating 'la tierra battida' once more.
If winning a tournament for a sixth year in a row could ever be classified as a comeback, this was it: yet again, Prince Albert found himself handing the silverware over to Nadal for the Majorcan to chew on. And, in Barcelona this week, Nadal could win another tournament for the sixth consecutive year, as he been undefeated at the city's Real Club since 2005. Even last year, when he was affected physically by the pain in his knees and psychologically by his parents' divorce, when he was hitting the ball "terribly", he still won clay titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome, and finished as the runner-up to Federer in Madrid. In Paris, having won the previous four French Opens, he was beaten for the first time, losing in the fourth round to Sweden's Robin Soderling. As a further indication of the discomfort he would have been in at Roland Garros, he didn't play at all during the grass-court season, unable to defend the titles he had won in 2008 at Queen's Club and Wimbledon. As long as Nadal's physical problems don't return, there is every chance he could win every tournament he plays during the European clay-court season. Federer's reign as the King of Clay could be a short one.
"If Rafa plays like this, no one can beat him," said Fernando Verdasco, who won just one game in the all-Spanish final at the Country Club. This was just what men's tennis needed, for Nadal to be crunching into his first trophy since his success at Rome's Foro Italico last May. Next on the tennis wish list: for Nadal and Federer to play each other again, as they haven't done so since the final of last season's Madrid tournament. Tennis needs those two to be serial thrillers again. While Britain's Andy Murray, who lost on his opening appearance in Monaco, dropped one place from fourth to fifth, Nadal is still ranked third, behind Federer and Novak Djokovic.
The truth is that this clay-court stretch isn't as important to Federer as last season's. Last year, Federer completed his grand slam collection by winning in Paris for the first time, so there is less to play for in 2010, even though he would obviously like to retain his trophy, to perhaps even defeat Nadal in the final, and to reach halfway in a possible calendar sweep of the majors. By the time the Rome tournament begins next week, Nadal could have won ten matches, and two titles, and Federer would not have played at all. Though Federer spent his honeymoon in Monaco last season, the Masters-level tournament is no longer mandatory so he was within his rights to miss it. Federer's preparations for Paris will be made at the Rome Masters, at a smaller tournament in Estoril, and at the Madrid Masters. A volcano in Iceland could cause some disruption to men's tennis, but not as much as if the ash cloud had formed last month, when most of the players were on the other side of the Atlantic, at a tournament in Miami.
If needs be, players can move from tournament to tournament by car or by train, in a throwback to the old days. Nadal was planning to go from the Riviera to Barcelona by car, but he tends to prefer to do that journey by road anyway. The danger for Nadal is that he could play too much tennis before Paris, that he could aggravate his knees before he gets to the Bois de Boulogne. But he seemed to be hinting on Sunday evening that he could give the Madrid tournament a swerve, even though the event at 'La Caja Magica', 'The Magic Box', is compulsory. He has complained in the past that it makes little sense for the last Masters before the French Open to be played at relative altitude, with the balls flying through the thinner air in the Spanish capital, as that can cause all sorts of problems when you return to sea level in Paris.
And what does this all mean for the grass-court season? This summer, Nadal should return to Wimbledon for the first time since that near-mythical victory over Federer in the 2008 final. Last summer was all about Federer, with a victory in Paris that ended all argument against the Swiss being the finest player of all time, and then a triumph at Wimbledon that gave him a record 15th slam. This summer, he will have to contend with Rafa again. The 'Pacman' has returned.
(c)Copyright of Telegraph Media Group Limited 2010
Shreya rallies to grab tennis title
SHREYA Choudhary was crowned Under-14 Girls Singles champion in the BBK Junior Open Tennis Championship, being held at the Bahrain Tennis Club (BTC) courts.
The Indian youngster, who was the tournament's top seed, picked up a come-from-behind 3-6, 6-0, 10-7 victory over third seed Malak Al Fardan in a neck-and-neck final.
A grade 10 student at the New Millennium School, Shreya kicked-started her campaign with defeating Areej Fareh 6-1, 6-4, which was followed by a hard-fought 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4) win over Croatian opponent Frana Ugarkovic.
Shreya, who started playing at the age of eight and won two titles under her coach Mohammed Ahmed, marched on to reach the final after beating Rana Mohammed 6-2, 6-1 in the semi-final match.
On the other hand, Malak set up the title clash with a tough 6-4, 4-6, 12-10 victory against Sara Jalal.
Receiving a bye in the second round, Malak came from a set behind to edge Anahita Soroush 2-6, 7-5, 10-6 to reach the quarter-finals where she eased past Yara Fareh 6-1, 6-0.
The under-14 boys doubles final also took place last night when Ahmed Abdulrasool teamed up with Mert Ekici to emerge overall champions, beating second seed pair of Mohammed Khonji and Abdulaziz Janahi 6-3, 6, 6-0.
It was yet another impressive victory for Ahmed and Mert, who stunned the tournament's top seed tandem of Omar Qaed and Rayyan Al Fulaij 7-5, 6-4 in their semi-final clash played last Wednesday.
The unseeded pair earlier defeated Mohammed Jelani and his brother Yousif 6-1, 6-2 in the quarter-final match.
Ahmed, who has been playing tennis for the past seven years, is a grade six student at Al Rawabi School. His first coach was Mohammed Ahmed and has six tennis titles to his credit.
Mert is in his fifth grade at St. Christopher's Junior School. He began his tennis career ago under coach Mohammed All Dossary and was champion twice.
Mohammed and Abdulaziz, on the other hand, had two tough games on the way to the final.
They started their campaign beating Ahmed Kadry and Vikram Mohan 6-4, 6-3, which was followed by a 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 win over Yousif Sharaf and Bader Bu Ali in the semi-finals.
In the under-18 girls singles semi-finals, top seed Bahraini Marwa Ahmed lived up to expectations with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Nasha Ghajar yesterday.
Marwa, daughter of former Bahrain national team player and present tennis coach Mohammed Ahmed, will play in the final today against second seed Saumya Choudhary of India who outplayed Layla Jalal 6-0, 6-3.
No matches will be played today. Tournament continues tomorrow with the under-18 boys singles final between second seed Yousef Qaed and Mohammed Al Thawadi, starting at 5pm.
The tournament's final day is scheduled for Sunday when Marwa plays Saumya at 4pm, then top seed Ahmed Abdulrasool clashes with fourth seed Mert Ekici in the under-12 boys singles final.
The finals will be followed by the prize-giving ceremony, during which each age category winners will be honoured.
The current coach of under-16 boys singles champion Abhishek Konar is Mohammed Ahmed, not Renato Mucha as indicated in yesterday's edition.
Copyright 2010 Gulf Daily News
St Saviour field to be used by tennis club?
THE Caesarean Tennis Club are looking at building new premises and the field opposite St Saviour's School could be an option, it is believed.
A number of sites are being considered by the tennis club in order that houses can be built on the land they currently occupy at Grands Vaux.
In 2008 the club applied to Planning for in-principle permission to develop the tennis club site into homes. But Planning said that they could not give permission until they knew where the club would move to, so the application is currently on hold.
Club chairman Paula Allbut would neither confirm nor deny rumours about whether the field opposite St Saviour's School was an option, but said: 'We are examining the feasibility of relocation and the development committee are looking at a variety of possible sites.'
thisisjersey.com
Wayland's Sullivan chases professional tennis dreamAfter year after starring on the women's tennis team at Boston College, Wayland's Alina Sullivan has embarked on a promising professional career.
The daughter of former Harvard tennis captain Paul Sullivan, Alina won in both singles and mixed doubles last month at the Chrysler Cup in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, earning $2,000, and is ranked 1,106th in the world in singles and 726th in doubles.
"It's always something I wanted to do, it's been a dream of mine, but at first the traveling was really hard, and for the most part I've been playing against women younger than me," said Sullivan, who teamed with her mother, Jeannine Balbiers, who played for Arizona State, to win the 2007 US Mother & Daughter doubles title in Newport, R.I.
Sullivan, who graduated from BC last spring, played in several tournaments recently in Mexico, where her mother lives. With that connection, Sullivan was asked by the Mexican Tennis Federation to represent the country at the Group II Federation Cup championships in Ecuador next month. Her later plans include playing in Spain before taking a shot at the US Open's New England qualifying tournament, being held in June at Harvard.
Sullivan plays mainly on the International Tennis Federation's women's circuit, a developmental series of tournaments. Her goal is to earn sufficient points to be eligible for the qualifying draw or main entry to the more prestigious, and lucrative, Women's Tennis Association events.
"Getting the world rankings last December has been a good start. It was a goal of mine when I started playing pro last fall," said Sullivan, a four-year scholarship player at Boston College who has also played in Nicaragua and Colombia.
On trips home, she works on her game at the Longfellow Tennis Club in Wayland with her father and the club pro, Eric Wescott.
"My mother and grandmother saw me play in Mexico, and my family has really been helpful and supportive," she said. "Being half-Mexican, the crowds have been behind me, which is great because the level of tennis is higher than in college, and it's a different lifestyle, and it's great to be able to stay with my mom rather than stay in a hotel," said Sullivan.
A communications major in college, Sullivan said she may eventually go back to school for a second degree while coaching tennis at the college level. But not just yet.
"At least I feel now that I have the confidence to believe I can win. Many of us are at the same skill level. That makes the mental approach so important," said Sullivan, whose father and two aunts, Edy McGoldrick and Patty Thompson, are in the USTA New England Hall of Fame.
To view a recent NCAA video of Sullivan and her mother talking tennis and the impact of Title IX on women's athletics, go to www.youtube.com and search for Alina Sullivan.
(c)Copyright 2010 Globe Newspaper Company
Ljubicic's Upset of Nadal Was Sport at its Best
Rafael Nadal's return to his superb form had been the story thus far of the BNP Paribas Masters, currently taking place in Indian Wells, California (the event is one of two major hard-court events taking place in the United States in March, the other being the Sony Erricsson in Miami which starts next weekend). The third ranked southpaw seems to have - for the time being at least - recovered from his nagging, career-threatening knee problems and has regained both power and consistency on his trademark topspin groundstrokes, augmenting his always-present competitive intensity.
And after the other three players ranked in the top four - Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray - all fell in the quarterfinals or earlier, it seemed a lock for Rafa to reach the final with a chance to defend his 2009 championship. Especially when his semifinal opponent on Saturday was 31 year old Croat Ivan Ljubicic, who counted only one victory over Nadal in their six meetings and that was five years ago before Nadal was a household name.
But after having been run around the court in the first set and appearing very much like a competitor most decidedly in tennis old age (he also looks about 10 years older as well), Ljubicic started to serve superbly and was able to capitalize on the increasing numbers of unforced errors from Nada, especially on the forehand side. And after forcing a decisive third set, Ljubicic played what he stated was the "best tiebreaker of my life", winning the breaker 7-1 and with it notching one of the bigger upsets of the young tennis season.
After securing the victory, Ljubicic broke out into a celebration that is usually reserved for victory at a Grand Slam final. His palpable joy and elation was refreshing as he ran over to the spectator's box to kiss his wife and longtime coach. And he deserved it.
After all, it had been a very long while since the formerly third ranked player in the world had managed any meaningful victory. One has to be the possessor of a cold heart to not have been warmed by the utter happiness that he exuded. It was obviously a very important occasion for him - he knew that days like this will become rarer, if not impossible, in the months and years to come and he obviously felt as if he proved something to himself; as if to outwardly declare that yes, I indeed do still have a place out here even if my ranking has dropped considerably.
And perhaps Ljubicic's upbringing had something to do with his effervescent and jubilant display. This is a man who had to flee war torn Bosnia as a child. He was lucky to have displayed an acumen for the sport at a young age and found a coach - and friend - in Italian Ricardo Piatti to help guide him since the age of 17. It must count for something his character and loyalty, this fact that Ljubicic has never sought another coach.
Tennis, like other individual sports, is so focused on just a few top pros. Even though Grand Slam events consist of 128 players, there are really only four or five that merit significant attention over the span of those tournaments. Contrast this to March Madness where even the 16th seeded teams get relatively plentiful consideration as upsets are common; i.e. Northern Iowa v. Kansas.
And in team sports, even when a club is languishing near last place, there are still possible narratives to follow. A player can be competing for an MVP or Cy Young award, a pitcher can throw a no-hitter, a running back for a team going nowhere can accumulate record setting yardage in a game or a player can score 80 points in an NBA contest. There's always a chance that any game can carry some significance.
Tennis is so different. There are few chances to revel or dwell on success for a lesser known. Which is why Ljubicic's triumph today was so gratifying. It was sport at its best as an unassuming, former higher ranked player refuse to disbelieve and played the match of his life against one of the best in the world. And the loss proved to be damaging to Nadal's ranking as he now falls to number four in the world (though that is somewhat misleading as he'll most likely gain ranking points back quickly considering he missed Wimbledon last year and lost early in the French Open).
Tomorrow Ljubicic will take on another married veteran in Andy Roddick. Roddick will be the clear favorite but don't be surprised if Ljubicic pulls off another upset. For in some ways this is his US Open or Wimbledon. He wants to prove his victory over Nadal today wasn't some abbreviated flashback to when he was a legitimate threat, albeit one unknown to the general sports fan. How could one not root for him?
(c) RealClearSports 2010
Changes to tennis club lights proposal
PEPPARD Tennis Club is still planning to install new floodlights.
Officials at the Colliers Lane club applied for planning permission for nine lights for two of its six hard courts to add to the eight existing ones.
But neighbours and Peppard Parish Council's planning committee objected on the grounds that this would create unnecessary light pollution in a rural area.
Now South Oxfordshire District Council has said it is working with the club to produce an amended application.
Club secretary Kym Fry said: "We need the new lights as we have got a new coaching programme called Attack Tennis, which is doing a fantastic job for local schools.
"We need to keep people active. It is not bad in the summer months but at this time of year, when it gets dark earlier, we need all-round playing time."
The objectors claim there is no demand for more night-time play or training and sometimes the lights are left on when no one is playing. There are also concerns about parking, which is made worse by visitors to the Red Lion pub.
The club, which dates back to the Thirties, has about 200 adult and 80 junior members.
(c)Higgs & Co (Printers) Limited 2010
Special Olympics tennis event starts today
The Professional Tennis Registry is hosting the 11th annual Special Olympics North America National Invitational Tennis Championships (SONA) today through Wednesday. More than 100 Special Olympics athletes -- representing eight different states -- are expected to compete in the tournament, held at Van Der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club.
Spectators are encouraged to attend tonight's lighting of the torch at 6 p.m. An exhibition match featuring area tennis teaching professionals will follow it.
Matches will begin Tuesday at 8 am. and continue until 5 p.m., with championship rounds concluding the tournament on Wednesday. The medal presentations will follow the final matches Wednesday.
What: Special Olympics North America National Invitational Tennis Championships
When: Today through Wednesday
Where: Van Der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club
(c)2010 The Island Packet & The Beaufort Gazette
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