Midwest Sports Tennis Blog

How are the women doing in DOHA?

Singles Oct. 30, 2009

White Group
Jelena Jankovic (8)(SRB) d Caroline Wozniacki (4)(DEN) 6-2  6-2
Agnieszka Radwanska (10)(POL) d Victoria Azarenka (6)(BLR) 4-6  7-5  4-1

Maroon Group
Svetlana Kuznetsova (3)(RUS) d Elena Dementieva (5)(RUS) 6-3  6-2

http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/page/Scores/0,,12781,00.html

Agassi admits to recreational drug use

Wednesday stunned the tennis world when Andre Agassi, eight time grand slam champion, admitted to using the recreational drug crystal meth during his tennis career. In his autobiography “Open,” Andre talks about using the drug and lying to the ATP to escape a ban. The American described the moment he ingested the highly-addictive amphetamine for the first time, while his career was in a downward spiral. Agassi was helped by his assistant, “Slim” who was a recreational drug user.

“There is a moment of regret, followed by vast sadness. Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head,” Agassi said.

Beginning his career in the 1980s, Agassi’s performance hit its peak in the mid 1990s, until injuries and form problems caused his rankings to fall drastically during 1997. The 39-year-old gained a second wind and a second chance during 1999 when he won the French Open and then retired in 2006.

At the time, the tennis doping program was not under the WADA code and if it had been, Agassi most likely wouldn’t have begun his second chance with tennis. ITF president Francesco Ricci Bitti said, “The ITF is surprised and disappointed by the remarks made by Andre Agassi…”

What really happened the one time Agassi failed a drug test? He said the case was thrown out after he told the ATP that he had accidentally consumed a drink belonging to Slim that was spiked with crystal meth.

“This is a very serious statement which, if reported accurately, is one that is disappointing coming from a role model such as Andre Agassi,” WADA chief John Fahey said and asked the ATP to ‘shed light’ on the situation surrounding Agassi’s case.

Agassi told people magazine that he is not worried about the impact his autobiography will have. On the other hand, the ATP is most likely worried about the repercussions from his remarks and how these remarks will reflect on the ATP’s image.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/tennis/article6894807.ece http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h8uFXPtAEJuzhE7f0xglBF0yNFBgD9BK5DJG0

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE59Q5IH20091028

2009 Heroes Among Us is Indian woman

Suniti Marathe, a native of Goa, India, has been named the 2009 Heroes Among Us grand prize winner by the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. Marathe has received this honor because of her leadership and commitment to serving as a role model and mentor to young people in her community.

Nominated by her son, she will receive a prize package that includes two tickets to the Doha 2009 final, roundtrip airline tickets, transportation, accommodations, behind-the-scenes access and two tickets to the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Year-End party in Doha, Qatar.

Her son nominated his mother because of her commitment to education in local villages. Marathe, who runs a library and teaches out of her home, was chosen out of five finalists by fans from the Sony Ericsson website. She also travels to other close villages to distribute books to children in need.

The Heroes Among Us program raises awareness of gender equality issues and helps to create leadership opportunities for women all over the world.

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com

Roddick qualifies for spot in ATP World Tour finals

It has been declared that Andy Roddick is certain to receive the sixth qualifying spot for the Barclays ATP World Tour finals at London’s 02 Arena!! This is most likely a huge weight off Roddick’s back to hear he is no longer under pressure to put his fitness to the test for the spot. As you remember, the American injured his left knee a few weeks ago in Shanghai and is still recovering; although, we reassure you there is no serious damage to his knee and he will be able to play in London beginning November 22.

All of the other top names in men’s tennis will most likely be packing their tennis racquets and shoes as they rest in time for the London event. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Juan Martin del Potro have also been assured a place in London. Players like Nikolay Davydenko and Fernando Verdasco currently sit in positions to play in London but there are still other players that may take those spots.

This will be the seventh year Roddick has earned his spot in the ATP World Tour finale. He has made it to the semi finals three times, which is the best he’s done. Who knows, maybe after he heals, this will be his year!

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com

Catch WTA Championships on Tennis Channel

If you haven’t tuned in yet, you can catch the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Championships in Doha, Qatar this week! The Tennis Channel previously announced that they will be screening the championships on a daily basis with more than 30 hours of live coverage in the United States.

Playing for the singles will be defending champion Venus Williams, along with Serena Williams, Dinara Safina, Caroline Wozniacki, Jelena Jankovic, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Elena Dementieva and Victoria Azarenka. For the doubles, playing will be the Williams sisters as well as Cara Black and Liezel Huber, Nuria Llagostera Vives and Maria Jose Martinez, and Samantha Stosur and Rennae Stubbs.

Leif Shiras as well as Lindsay Davenport and Corina Morariu will host as the commentary team, giving you analysis and news as it happens. The coverage by the Tennis Channel will be live and will include all round-robin matches, singles semifinals and doubles play for the six-day event. Prime-time encore replays will air every evening at 8 p.m. ET.

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com

Aussie Tennis Pro Stosur Wins First WTA Tour Title at Japan Open

While the men were struggling through their Asian tennis tour, Samantha Stosur made her mark and won her first WTA Tour title at the Japan Open. In her final match, the Australian defeated world No. 24, Francesca Schiavone 7-5  6-1 to win.

“I just told myself not to panic, keep doing the same things as I did in the first set and stay positive. I’m very pleased to win my first title after losing five previous finals. It has been a personal goal for a while, so I’m glad to have achieved it and it’s the perfect way to finish my year in singles,” Stosur told the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour after the match.

Not only did Stosur claim a win over No. 1 seed Caroline Wozniacki 6-0  4-6  6-4, she did it without dropping a set on her way to that semi final. Neither Stosur nor her final opponent had strong finals records, but the Australian pulled it off and is now 4-1 lifetime against Schiavone.

http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/news/sams-singles-breakthrough-20091018_2256076_1829520

http://thetennistimes.com/samantha-stosur-wins-her-first-wta-tour-title-at-japan-open/

Sony Ericsson struggles could be bad for WTA

The global title sponsor for the WTA Tour, Sony Ericsson, hasn’t made a profit since the second quarter in 2008 –although their losses were down in third quarter 2009– thanks to the challenging market and stiff competition from BlackBerry and the iPhone. Now the question is whether the mobile phone company will end sponsorship after their contract with the WTA expires December 31, 2010.

“Sony Ericsson has been a tremendous partner for the Tour and women’s tennis has delivered very strong return on investment for Sony Ericsson,” maintained Senior Vice President for the WTA Tour Andrew Walker.

The WTA has said they are in conversation with Sony Ericsson regarding a continuation of the sponsorship. Sony Ericsson has sponsored the WTA since January 2005 when they signed a deal for $88 million. Sony Ericsson is also under new leadership as of last week when Bert Nordberg became the new president.

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com

Tennis innovation

World-class tennis promoter Charlie Smith has a new idea for tennis. After seeing so many Chinese fans adoration for some of the sport’s top players, Smith bore the idea to create an “Elite Fans Club” for the Shanghai Masters 1000. As of now, it is for Chinese fans only, but within the next year it is expected to expand with an English website.

To join the group you have to upload proof that you have attended at least three pro events as a fan. You can upload a photo of you at the tournament or a ticket stub from ATP, WTA, Olympics or Slams. The best part: right now it’s free!

There are currently 800+ members of this club who receive very cheap ticket prices to the daily 120 courtside seats the tournament has formed for these passionate tennis fans. It is the first tournament to give ordinary fans this close access to the court – it also puts these fans front and center for autographs. The club will also have social functions and tournaments to keep fans engaged throughout the year.

Are these the kind of perks you would want to join this club? We wonder how they will continually promise courtside seats to club members once the club grows beyond the club seating they have.

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com

Excited for the 2010 Australian Open Warm-Up?!

We hope you’re excited because some big names in Tennis are too! Serena Williams has announced she will be in attendance – her only warm-up announced so far. Elena Dementieva, Victoria Azarenka and our US Open winner Kim Clijsters are planning on attending! Clijsters compatriot Justine Henin –undefeated in her last three appearances—will also compete for the women while Lleyton Hewitt is the big excitement for the men.

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com

Agassi sees a change in the future

“Now we have possibly the changing of the guard. You have those top two who are now losing ground to the likes of Djokovic and Murray and Del Potro” Andre Agassi said to reporters in Hong Kong.

Agassi views Roger Federer as a continued threat, despite the distraction of his family, but sees Rafael Nadal’s injury problems to mean a limited future. The 39-year-old believes Andy Murray has the talent to push forward ahead of these two ‘fading stars’ while many “young players [are] already snapping at the heels of the top two” as USRSA Tennis Daily said it.

“From a talent standpoint, Murray is a person who should win multiple Slams. When I look at his game compared to the other players, he has what it takes to win and to win against anybody on any surface…” Agassi said of the fellow tennis pro.

As for the man who Agasi believes is closing out his career; Rafael Nadal sees things a different way.

“It might be correct, there are lot of young players who are very competitive and Roger and me are on top for long time, but I am still 23, let’s not forget that,” Nadal said. “Whenever someone young emerges, it looks like there is a big bang, but things stabilize later, there comes pressure and only then the real worth is visible.”

Nadal believes that there are many good players out there that will not replace him but will make tennis more attractive in the future.

DailyTennisNews@racquettech.com