Murray advances to final four
2012-01-24 21:40:00
For once he was not the player with the biggest press presence from his home country awaiting the result, but Andy Murray is into the semifinals of his fifth consecutive Grand Slam after a 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 victory over Kei Nishikori, ending the run of the first Japanese man into the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in the Open Era. The two players could not have taken more different routes to this encounter, and ultimately that may have been the greatest factor in determining the scoreline, if not the result. Nishikori had played two five-setters in reaching this point, the last against sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in scorching heat two days ago, and the physical toll incurred was brutally brought home to him by Murray from the very beginning of the match. As Nishikori struggled to hold serve, the pair played a 43-stroke rally which Murray controlled like a puppet-master, yanking his opponent from side to side with his backhand before finally putting Nishikori out of his misery—and taking the initial break—with a backhand winner. Nishikori looked exhausted; Murray was set to cruise. The one-sided scoreline, however, masked a multitude of draining mini-battles, as Nishikori dug in and Murray was unable to totally assert himself. Murray’s fourth-round match was cut short after just 45 minutes when Mikhail Kukushkin retired, and the British No. 1 appeared to be searching for his rhythm today—and never quite able to find it. After the aforementioned rally, Nishikori appeared determined to play as aggressive as possible and shorten the points, and he did it well, attacking the net to produce what Murray afterwards referred to as ‘the fun points’—all-court exchanges of volleys, drop-shots, lobs, and scrambling defense that underlined the great tennis Nishikori can produce when not sidelined by injury, as he has been all too often during his young career. It was the meat-and-potatoes points of the match which were mostly won by Murray, who dictated consistently enough from inside the baseline despite an abysmal first serve percentage (44 percent for the match). It would take the patience of a saint to trace the byzantine twists in momentum, but the fact that Nishikori only converted two out of the 10 break points he earned was testament to the fact that Murray played the big points well. Verbal as always, Murray confined himself to positive reinforcement through the match; after gritting out the second set he told himself, “every point now.” It was enough to take the third set commandingly. The crowd, many wearing kimonos or with Japanese flags painted on their faces, applauded Nishikori’s efforts generously, but it is Murray who moves on to the semifinals to face Novak Djokovic or David Ferrer. It was not his best performance, and the scrappy quality of it must be of some concern at a time in when his rivals are rounding into their most competitive and intense form. But it was more than good enough. —Hannah Wilks

Sharapova tops Makarova to reach SFs
2012-01-24 19:07:00
addCustomPlayer('2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0', 'e9a7403eace74343b99d1524cbf3edd2', '1taenxagpwvgh1owqbdlum9fbu', 620, 429, 'perf2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0-1taenxagpwvgh1owqbdlum9fbu', 'eplayer17'); MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—Former and reigning Wimbledon winners Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova will meet in the Australian Open semifinals after both won in straight sets on Wednesday.After Kvitova beat unseeded Italian Sara Errani 6-4, 6-4, Sharapova set up a repeat of last year’s final at the All England Club with a 6-2, 6-3 defeat of fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova.Kvitova beat Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 in their last Grand Slam meeting to claim her first major title.“Obviously it was a tough one at Wimbledon,” Sharapova said. “She’s full of confidence and playing the best tennis right now. I look forward to it.” Three of the men’s top four are already into the semifinals after Andy Murray ended the run of Japan’s Kei Nishikori with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 win.The No. 4-ranked Murray will face the winner of a later match between defending champion Novak Djokovic and David Ferrer of Spain.Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will meet for the 27th time in the other semifinal, scheduled for Thursday.Nishikori, the first Japanese man to reach the quarterfinals here in the Open era, showed flashes of the form that earned him a surprise win over former finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the previous round.During the first set, Nishikori played a lob shot through his legs on his way to winning the point—but by that time he was already a break down.Murray, who hasn’t dropped a set since the first round, broke seven times in all, although he plans to work on his serve after only landing 44 percent of his first serves.“The returning was good, so that was positive,” said Murray, the beaten finalist the last two years here. “Could hav eserved better, that’s for sure.”In winning their quarterfinals, Sharapova and Kvitova also kept alive their chances of claiming the top ranking, which Caroline Wozniacki will vacate on Monday after her quarterfinal loss to Kim Clijsters.Sharapova must repeat her 2008 Australian title win. Kvitova only has to match or better the run of Victoria Azarenka, the only other player still in the running this week for the No. 1 spot.Sharapova has dropped one set and lost 21 games en route to her first Australian Open semifinal since she won the 2008 final—the last of her three major titles.“It’s been a long road back to this stage,” said Sharapova, who spent 10 months off court with a shoulder injury that required surgery.Kvitova was far from her best against an opponent making her debut in a Grand Slam quarterfinal, and with a 0-24 record against top 10 players. The second-seeded Czech made 44 errors and had to come back from a break down in the second set.“I was a little nervous because I knew that everybody expect it will be easy match,” Kvitova said. “Probably I had in my head that it’s a good draw.”

Kvitova beats Errani in quarters
2012-01-24 17:53:00
Petra Kvitova straightened the silver tennis ball pendant around her neck, then got back to the business of shaking the ball and chain that dragged her into a 1-4 second-set deficit. A scrappy Sara Errani used her speed and spins to coax a sloppy Kvitova into spraying 44 unforced errors, but the Wimbledon winner found her range in reeling off five straight games to seal a 6-4, 6-4 sweep that sent her into the Australian Open semifinals. The second-seeded Czech was not nearly at her best—she struggled to keep the ball between the lines, and tame frustration boiled into racquet-bouncing angst at times—but she ultimately showed a quality that could carry her to the No. 1 ranking at the end of this event: Winning even when consistency eluded her. If Kvitova equals Victoria Azarenka's Melbourne result, she will wake up Monday morning as new world No. 1. It was a late wake-up call today as Kvitova's shot selection and spirit careened from shaky to jittery in a sporadic opening set that started with three straight breaks. It took 33 minutes to slog through five games as Errani, giving up seven inches in height, hung tough. But Kvitova broke for 5-2 and, despite giving a break back, eventually wandered through a 53-minute minefield of a set with the lead/ Then things got a little ugly. Kvitova clanked shots and was impatient in pulling the trigger prematurely during her second-set slump, but credit Errani for moving the ball around with grunt-aided guile and an energetic attitude normally found only in aerobic instructors and drill sergeants. It was in heavy contrast to Kvitova's mopey lethargy. Standing toe-to-toe with Kvitova in a hard-hitting exchange, Errani drew a backhand into the net to break for a 3-1 second-set advantage. When Errani consolidated for 4-1, an exasperated Kvitova, who was struggling to control simple rally shots down the middle, bounced her Wilson racquet off the blue court in disgust at dropping her fourth consecutive game. After 91 minutes of play, Kvitova hit her first ace to dig out of a deuce game and hold for 2-4. That sparked a break that saw the lefthander lock it in, play with a bit more patience and spin, and take charge. You can view some of Kvitova's missteps today as signs she will be vulnerable against opponents with bigger weapons than the 48th-ranked Errani, or see it as another step forward on the learning curve. Kvitova was erratic in her second-round win over Carla Suarez Navarro as well, but has reached the final four surrendering only one set and will face either Maria Sharapova, in a rematch of the Wimbledon final, or Ekaterina Makarova. A surprising element of this match was how well Errani, who was bidding to become the first Italian woman to reach the Aussie semifinals, attacked Kvitova's second serve at times. Kvitova must hit her second serve with more spin or racquet-head speed—or both—and manage her mood swings better than today. If she does, the top spot will be a launching pad to so much more. —Richard Pagliaro  

Hingis: Wozniacki needs to step forward more
2012-01-24 17:31:00
Martina Hingis says that Caroline Wozniacki must play further inside the court if she is to progress further. The Dane lost her No. 1 ranking after falling to Kim Clijsters in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. Five-time Grand Slam champion Hingis dismissed a comparison between her and Wozniacki, saying that she took a different approach to confronting more powerful players.'Similar? I didn't step back,' Hingis said. 'I tried not to let them push me. Eventually you play one Williams, you play the second, you play Davenport, you play Capriati, who were all pushing forward. They were stronger than me. It's hard to play three, four players like that in a row. It's three-setter after three-setter after three-setter I couldn't come out on top all the time. In the beginning I did most of the time. Today you just can't let yourself get pushed back. That's what she has to do. She has to try to move in, step forward, otherwise there is always going to be somebody coming on top of her at a Grand Slam. She's a great player.'Hingis was not a constant net rusher, but was able to hit reflex winners from inside the baseline as she had remarkable hands and anticipation. Wozniacki is more of a grinder who is more comfortable retrieving from behind the baseline like four-time Grand Slam champion Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario.'You have to have the mentality to try to keep [coming forward] in practice so it becomes automatic,' Hingis said. 'You can't just do to two, three points in a match. Maybe even if you lose a match or two sometimes, even against other players, you just have to try to keep doing it against lower-ranked players to be able to eventually do it against the top players.'—Matt Cronin

Fernandez names Venus, Serena to Fed Cup
2012-01-24 15:24:00
U.S. captain Mary Joe Fernandez has named Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Christina McHale, and Liezel Huber to the Fed Cup team that will face Belarus Feb. 4-5 in Worcester, Mass.Fernandez also named teenager Sloane Stephens as a back-up player in case Venus Williams is unable to compete.Fernandez said that Venus, who has not played since the 2011 U.S. Open and is battling the autoimmune disease Sjorgen’s Syndrome, has assured her that she is ready to play.Venus has also entered a number of unidentified WTA tournaments in the past week.'I’ve been talking to Venus and she wanted to come to Australia but couldn’t, and she called me a week ago and said ‘I feel so much better, I want to go, I’m ready,'' Fernandez told a small group of U.S. reporters in Melbourne. 'I asked Serena and she said that [Venus] sounds good. Fingers crossed and let’s hope she is healthy and playing well.'Fernandez has up until the Friday of the draw to make changes to her team. She is unsure whether she will ask Venus to play singles on either day. 'I don’t know yet,' Fernandez says. 'She says she's ready but I want to see it. I want to see how she is practicing, but I want to see her play practice sets with Christina and Sloane and everybody and see what I see. But if she’s good, there is a pretty good chance [she’ll play singles]. But we have options. Maybe she plays the first day and doesn’t play the second day, or maybe she just plays the doubles. Knowing she can play is a big intimidation factor.'Belarus is lead by No. 3 ranked Victoria Azarenka, whom the No. 101- ranked Venus would have to play on the opening day if she is picked to play singles. Fernandez added that if the tie comes down to the doubles and if Venus is healthy, she will pick the Williams sisters rather then teaming her or Serena with doubles expert Huber.Two other former Fed Cup players who can play both singles and doubles, Vania King and Bethanie Mattek-Sands, have told Fernandez they are available in an emergency, but King has entered Pattaya City and did not want to play Fed Cup unless she was guaranteed to play, as she wants to get her ranking up in hopes of qualifying for the Olympics. Mattek-Sands, who just came back from a shoulder injury, was also considered. She has entered the qualifying for the Paris Indoors, which is the same week as Fed Cup.Fernandez added that she believes that Serena, who is contending with an ankle injury and was upset in the fourth round of the Australian Open by Ekaterina Makarova, should be good to go at Fed Cup.—Matt Cronin

Nadal holds off Berdych, gets Federer in semis
2012-01-24 03:00:00
addCustomPlayer('2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0', 'e9a7403eace74343b99d1524cbf3edd2', '1eedaivxakvi21nuq29gm7alnm', 620, 429, 'perf2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0-1eedaivxakvi21nuq29gm7alnm', 'eplayer17'); MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—A dominating win by Roger Federer in his 1,000th career match and a more difficult workout for Rafael Nadal set up a rare Grand Slam marquee semifinal between the former top-ranked players. Four-time Australian Open champion Federer advanced to his ninth straight semifinal at Melbourne Park with a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 quarterfinal win Tuesday over Juan Martin del Potro, the man who beat him for the U.S. Open title in 2009. Federer’s 1,000th match was similar to most in his career—no-nonsense, dominating from the start and some incredible shots. “It’s a lot of matches and a lot tennis,” said Federer, a record 16-time Grand Slam champion. “Either I have been around for a long time or I’m extremely fit. You decide which way you want to describe it. But I’m happy.” In an often tempestuous night match at Rod Laver Arena, Nadal advanced with a tough 6-7 (5), 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-3 win over Tomas Berdych. “Happy with how I finished match physically, I was able to keep running with high intensity,” Nadal said. Federer and Nadal—they were ranked 1-2 for many years—have been on opposite halves of the draw since the 2005 French Open. That was the last time the pair met in a Grand Slam semifinal, won that year by Nadal in four sets. Defending women’s champion Kim Clijsters, still dealing with a left ankle injury, advanced to an Australian Open semifinal against third-seeded Victoria Azarenka by beating No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki 6-3, 7-6 (4) Tuesday. Clijsters’ victory ensured that Wozniacki would lose the top ranking she has held for most of the last 15 months. Azarenka beat No. 8 Agnieszka Radwanska 6-7 (0), 6-0, 6-2. Azarenka is one of three women who could finish at No. 1 in Melbourne—Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova are the others. In the late match, Nadal saved four set points in the first set, including one on an amazing crosscourt passing shot on the 29th point of a rally. But Berdych held firm to win the ensuing tiebreaker. During the tiebreaker, a Berdych shot landed out, and Nadal returned it, then challenged the call. Chair umpire Carlos Bernardes wouldn’t allow the challenge because Nadal hadn’t immediately stopped play, but Nadal responded by saying he didn’t challenge immediately because he thought the linesman had called it out. The replay showed the ball was out. “Carlos, I’ll tell you something, you never get one right, not one correct overrule,” Nadal said in Spanish. “You’re not here as a spectator. You know that ball was out.” Bernardes later had a brief discussion with Berych when the Czech player complained about an apparent “flat” ball. And in the fourth set, Nadal chastised the chair umpire again for allowing a challenge by Berdych, feeling the Czech player waited too long before asking for a review. In the opening game of the fourth set, Nadal hit consecutive down-the-line forehands to break Berdych’s service and the Spaniard was on his way to clinch the match in 4 hours, 16 minutes. Federer’s career can be enhanced even more if he wins the title this year at Melbourne Park. With a 232-34 record in Grand Slam singles matches, he can overtake Jimmy Connors’ mark of 233 wins if he collects the title here. Del Potro, who has recovered from the right wrist injury that sidelined him for most of 2010, played well in flashes. But Federer was at another level, hitting lobs, drop shots, crosscourt winners and generally negating Del Potro’s big forehand. “We have played some big matches against each other, so just knowing how well he’s been playing as of late, I was just hoping that I would get off a good start,” Federer said. “I was able to mix it up well and control the ball, and right away sort of felt confident.” The end of the match came in a most fitting way, one of Federer’s backhand winners. Before that, Federer saved his fourth break point at 5-3 in the second set after a long rally. He let out a loud yell, unusual for a player not prone to big shows of emotion. “That’s why I didn’t celebrate when I won the set, just to make it up,” Federer said, smiling. “I really knew how important that game was for me.” The quarterfinals on the other side of the men’s draw are Wednesday—Andy Murray plays Kei Nishikori of Japan and top-seeded Novak Djokovic takes on David Ferrer. In the remaining women’s quarterfinals Wednesday, Sharapova plays Ekaterina Makarova, who beat five-time champion Serena Williams in the fourth round, and No. 2 Kvitova takes on unseeded Sara Errani of Italy. Clijsters has needed treatment on her ankle since Sunday, when she injured it and had to save four match points in her fourth-round win over French Open champion Li Na, a rematch of the 2011 final. “Instead of really focusing on the match, you’re focusing on trying to get the ankle as good as possible,” Clijsters said of her preparation. “Laying on the couch, every 20 minutes ice, 20 minutes off, 20 minutes ice, 20 minutes off. Leg elevated. Lymphatic drainage, all that stuff.” Wozniacki, 21, needed to reach the semifinals to retain the top ranking. “I will get it back eventually, so I’m not worried,” she said. Critics “talk to me like I’m finishing my career and I only have one year left and time is running out. The fact is I still have quite a few good years in front of me.”  

Federer cruises past del Potro
2012-01-23 22:30:00
addCustomPlayer('2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0', 'e9a7403eace74343b99d1524cbf3edd2', 'dgng1jxyabmb10wxchqis6mpp', 620, 429, 'perf2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0-dgng1jxyabmb10wxchqis6mpp', 'eplayer17'); MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—Roger Federer’s 1,000th match was similar to most in his career—no-nonsense, dominating from the start, some incredible shots, and yes, victory.Four-time champion Federer advanced to his ninth straight Australian Open semifinal with a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 win Tuesday over Juan Martin del Potro, the man who beat him for the U.S. Open title in 2009.“It’s a lot of matches and a lot tennis,” Federer said. “Either I have been around for a long time or I’m extremely fit. You decide which way you want to describe it. But I’m happy.” In the semifinals, Federer will play the winner of the Tuesday’s other quarterfinal between second-seeded Rafael Nadal and Tomas Berdych, a rematch of the 2010 Wimbledon final won by Nadal.Defending women’s champion Kim Clijsters, still dealing with a left ankle injury, advanced to a semifinal against third-seeded Victoria Azarenka by beating No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki 6-3, 7-6 (4) Tuesday. Clijsters’ victory ensured that Wozniacki would lose the top ranking she has held for most of the last 15 months.Azarenka beat Agnieszka Radwanska 6-7 (0), 6-0, 6-2. Azarenka is one of three women who could finish at No. 1 in Melbourne—Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova are the othersOn Wednesday, Sharapova plays Ekaterina Makarova, who beat five-time champion Serena Williams in the fourth round, and No. 2 Kvitova takes on unseeded Sara Errani of Italy.Federer’s career, including a record 16 Grand Slam singles victories, can be enhanced even more if he wins the title this year at Melbourne Park. With a 232-34 record in Grand Slam singles matches, he’d overtake Jimmy Connors’ mark of 233 wins with victories in the semifinals and Sunday’s final.The quarterfinals on the other side of the men’s draw are on Wednesday— Andy Murray plays Kei Nishikori of Japan and top-seeded Novak Djokovic takes on David Ferrer. They’ll have a tough time matching the quality of the Federer-Del Potro encounter.Del Potro, who has recovered from the right wrist injury that sidelined him for most of 2010, played well in flashes. But Federer was at another level, hitting lobs, drop shots, cross-court winners and generally negating Del Potro’s big forehand.“We have played some big matches against each other, so just knowing how well he’s been playing as of late, I was just hoping that I would get off a good start,” Federer said. “I was able to mix it up well and control the ball, and right away sort of felt confident, which then sort of helped me to use all aspects of my game.”The end of the match came in a most fitting way, one of Federer’s backhand winners.Before that, Federer saved his fourth break point at 5-3 in the second set after a long rally. He let out a loud yell, unusual for a player not prone to big celebrations.“That’s why I didn’t celebrate when I won the set, just to make it up,” Federer said, smiling. “I really knew how important that game was for me.”Clijsters has needed continual treatment on her ankle since Sunday, when she injured it and had to save four match points in her fourth-round win over Li Na, a rematch of the 2011 final.“Yeah, instead of really focusing on the match you’re focusing on trying to get the ankle as good as possible,” Clijsters said of her preparation. “Laying on the couch, every 20 minutes ice, 20 minutes off, 20 minutes ice, 20 minutes off. Leg elevated. Lymphatic drainage, all that stuff.”Wozniacki needed to reach the semifinals to retain the top ranking.“I will get it back eventually, so I’m not worried,” she said. Critics “talk to me like I’m finishing my career and I only have one year left and time is running out. The fact is I still have quite a few good years in front of me.”Azarenka struggled through a match that contained 15 service breaks, including eight in the first set. After being comprehensively outplayed in the opening tiebreaker, Azarenka won seven straight games to gain control.The 22-year-old Azarenka, who makes a distinctive hooting sound as she hits the ball, extended her winning streak this season to 10 matches, including a title at Sydney, where she beat Radwanska in the semifinals. She served six double-faults and had 38 unforced errors.

Wozniacki: I will get No. 1 ranking back
2012-01-23 22:25:00
With her 6-3, 7-6 (4) loss to Kim Clijsters in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, Caroline Wozniacki has lost the No. 1 ranking. Three women now have a chance to grab the top spot: No. 3 Victoria Azarenka, who overtook Wozniacki with her win over Agnieszka Radwanska; No. 2 Petra Kvitova, who as long as she keeps pace with Azarenka has a 205 point lead over the Belarussian; and No. 4 Maria Sharapova, who must at least reach the final to become No. 1, and win it if Kvitova reaches the semifinals. Sharapova and Kvitova play their quarterfinals on Tuesday. Azarenka will face Clijsters in the semifinals.The 21-year-old Wozniacki has spent 67 weeks at No. 1, but has yet to win a major.'I have been there for a long time already. I finished No. 1 two years in a row,' Wozniacki said. 'We are just in January. In the end of the year you see who has played the best, most consistently all year round. I will get it back eventually, so I'm not worried.' —Matt Cronin

Clijsters tops Wozniacki to reach semis
2012-01-23 20:22:00
addCustomPlayer('2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0', 'e9a7403eace74343b99d1524cbf3edd2', 'tj4sdxv65arm1op5qg0apzznv', 620, 429, 'perf2uduahy6tdk1m2rtl8tizzs0-tj4sdxv65arm1op5qg0apzznv', 'eplayer17'); MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—Kim Clijsters is moving on to the Australian Open semifinals, and Caroline Wozniacki is moving out of the top spot.Two days after saving four match points and spraining her left ankle in a fourth-round win over French Open champion Li Na, Clijsters showed no signs of weakness as she continued her title defense at Melbourne Park with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) quarterfinal win over Wozniacki.The four-time major winner next plays third-seeded Victoria Azarenka, who beat No. 8 Agnieszka Radwanska 6-7 (0), 6-0, 6-2 earlier Tuesday to move into the semis of a Grand Slam for the second time. Wozniacki needed to reach the semifinals to retain the top ranking she has held at the end of the last two seasons. Her place in the rankings has attracted some criticism because the 21-year-old Dane has never won a major.But even after another major setback, Wozniacki remained confident she’ll not only reclaim the top ranking but will get her Grand Slam breakthrough.“You know, I will get it back eventually, so I’m not worried,” she said. Critics “talk to me like I’m finishing my career and I only have one year left and time is running out.“The fact is I still have quite a few good years in front of me.”Clijsters slipped to No. 14 after beating Li Na in the last Australian final, losing in the second round at the French Open and then missing the next two majors due to injuries. But after losing her first four finals in the majors, she’s learned how to win them.She set an example for Wozniacki of how to go about it.Both players started nervously on Tuesday, with three service breaks until Clijsters held in the fourth game. The 28-year-old Belgian dictated play from her first hold until she was serving for the match while a break up in the second.She had the rally on her racket at 30-30, but let her guard down and allowed Wozniacki back into the match. Wozniacki took a chances and got back level, going into the tiebreaker with momentum.Clijsters had never lost any of her eight previous tiebreakers at Melbourne Park, and she hit a backhand down the line to take a 5-4 lead. She set up double match point with a cross-court forehand winner and sealed it with a volley.“It definitely didn’t feel like being up a set and 5-2,” Clijsters said. “I had to work really hard for it. Caroline is a great fighter.“I was happy to get through, and not in a three-setter because it’s so hot,” she said.The crowd at Rod Laver Arena was solidly behind Clijsters from the start, shouting “C’mon Kimmie” in between nearly every point and cheering when Wozniacki missed a shot.Four-time Australian Open champion Roger Federer is another crowd favorite. He had the next scheduled match on Rod Laver against U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro. No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal played Tomas Berdych in a night match.Azarenka opened the action on Rod Laver in a match that contained 15 breaks of serve, including eight in the first set.After being comprehensively outplayed in the opening tiebreaker, Azarenka won seven straight games to move closer to the victory that kept her among the three players who can overhaul Wozniacki at No. 1.The 22-year-old Belarusian, who makes a distinctive hooting sounds as she hits the ball, extended her winning streak this season to 10 matches, including a title at Sydney, where she beat Radwanska in the semifinals. She served six double-faults and had 38 unforced errors, but showed maturing mental resolve but holding her nerve on the big points.“I’m really happy with my win. I think it was very important to see how I could adjust after not playing really well in the first set,” she said. “I completely turned it around.“Today I really tried to forget about the first set and start from zero and really fight hard. So I think that was a different mental approach a little bit.”Five-time champion Serena Williams is already out of the tournament. Her 17-match winning streak at the Australian Open ended in a 6-2, 6-3 loss to No. 56-ranked Ekaterina Makarova.The margin equaled the biggest Grand Slam defeat of Williams’ 17-year career.Makarova will face three-time major winner Maria Sharapova in an all-Russian quarterfinal.Sharapova rallied past Sabine Lisicki 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 before defending men’s champion Novak Djokovic fended off a resurgent Lleyton Hewitt in a dramatic last match of the day, winning 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.With Hewitt’s loss, Australia’s chances of celebrating a home singles winner were over. American hopes had already evaporated with the defeat of Williams— her first in Melbourne since 2008 and earliest since 2006.“I can’t even describe how I served, to be honest,” said Williams, who finished with seven double-faults, including four in one game in the second set. “My lefty serve is actually better than that. Maybe I should have started serving lefty.”Williams tried not to blame her left ankle injury from a tuneup tournament in Brisbane two weeks ago. But she didn’t move well and seemed to have particular difficulty running to her left. She said if it hadn’t been a Grand Slam, she wouldn’t have played at all.“Usually I play myself into the tournament,” Williams said. “But I don’t have a huge problem with an injury. So this is a completely different situation. Usually it’s easier for me to play myself in because I’m usually physically OK.”Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova had a 6-2, 7-6 (2) win over former top-ranked Ana Ivanovic on Monday and will next play Sara Errani of Italy, who beat 2010 semifinalist Zheng Jie 6-2, 6-1.Djokovic had won 23 straight sets at Melbourne Park before he suddenly wobbled against Hewitt, a two-time Grand Slam champion who has slipped to No. 181 in the rankings after a series of injuries.Hewitt, a wild-card entry in his 16th straight Australian Open, rallied from 3-0 down in the third set in front of a raucous home crowd to force a fourth set, but Djokovic gathered his composure.Next up for Djokovic is fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain, who had a surprisingly easy 6-4, 6-4, 6-1 win over Richard Gasquet.Two-time finalist Andy Murray advanced when Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan retired after 49 minutes with a left hip injury while trailing 6-1, 6-1, 1-0. After knocking out the first player from Kazakhstan to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam, Murray’s next opponent will be another history-maker.Kei Nishikori beat sixth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 2-6, 6-2, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to become the first Japanese man to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open since the Open era began in 1968.

Azarenka tops Radwanska in QFs
2012-01-23 17:26:00
MELBOURNE—There was a lot going on in today’s quarterfinal between Victoria Azarenka and Agnieszka Radwanska: a contrast in styles, plenty of breaks, a momentum swing every three minutes, well-stung winners followed by fumbled errors, and a full-on meltdown from each player. But what the match came down to was simple: How would Azarenka’s hard-hitting attack measure up against Radwanska’s clever craft and defense? In the end, the answer was: Pretty well. After an up-and-down first set, in which Radwanska outwitted and out-defended her, Azarenka ran away with the last two, qualifying for her second Grand Slam semifinal with a 6-7 (0), 6-0, 6-2 win. She ended it in style, by powering an authoritative, and sonically satisfying, overhead past Radwanska at match point. In hindsight, we can see that Azarenka has been working toward this moment for the better part of the last year. She has tried hard to control her strong emotions, without burying them so deeply that she loses her competitive fire on court. After a shaky first set that concluded with an error-filled, 0-7 meltdown in the tiebreaker, Azarenka settled easily into an assertive mental groove. The match was on her racquet; Azarenka routinely took her shots from inside the baseline, and had good swings at Radwanska’s weak second serves. It was a matter of the Belarussian executing, and having the patience to construct points assuming that her opponent was going to get a lot of balls back. Azarenka passed this psychological test with flying colors. As the match progressed, she began to read Radwanska’s drop shots, and to work the rallies so she could find the open court without taking huge risks. Azarenka’s backhand was the decider. Aga, while a rare natural talent, has no point-ending shot to match it. Azarenka finished with 39 winners to Radwanska’s 16, while making just seven more unforced errors. It was the calmer Radwanska who struggled mentally—she was too calm compared to her opponent, and very quick to get down on herself when things went south in the second set. Getting killed on her second serve, she tried to hit her first one in safely, and got killed on that, too. Radwanska won just 47 percent of points on her first serve, and an abysmal 29 pecent on her second. She was broken 10 times, and spent most of the last two sets with her shoulders slumped and face scrunched in annoyance and frustration. Azarenka moves on to face the winner of Caroline Wozniacki and Kim Clijsters. She has, judging from the evidence provided today, everything she needs to go farther. —Steve Tignor

WTA exploring ways 'to reduce excessive grunting'
2012-01-23 17:25:00
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—Maria Sharapova’s shriek when she hits the ball is “pretty annoying” and “just too loud,” according to one of her rivals. No. 8-ranked Agnieszka Radwanska spoke out on Tuesday at the Australian Open after her loss to Victoria Azarenka, whose high-pitched hoot has also attracted plenty of criticism. The WTA, which runs the tour, said it is looking at ways to reduce grunting. Currently, the umpire can penalize a player for “a deliberate act” of hindrance but the rule is rarely enforced when it comes to grunting. “Of course everybody can make some noise. This is tennis,” Radwanska said. “But I think it’s just too loud. I don’t think it’s very necessary to scream that loud. So if they (the WTA) want to do something, why not?” During Azarenka’s matches in Melbourne, some people in the crowd have been mimicking the unusual sound she makes. Host broadcaster Channel 7 has what it calls a “Whoo! Meter,” which registered the sound at 91.4 decibels on Tuesday. Grunting in women’s tennis has been an issue as far back as the heyday of Monica Seles in the 1990s. No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki said in October she thought “there are some players who do it on purpose.” The WTA issued a statement Tuesday, saying it is “aware that some fans find it bothersome.” “We are currently in the process of exploring how to reduce excessive grunting, especially for younger players just starting out, without adversely affecting players who have developed their game under the current training, rules and procedures,” the statement said. “We do believe that we need to address the concerns expressed by some fans and take a careful look at our rules and education policies.” Radwanska said she was used to the noise from Azarenka, but added: “About Maria (Sharapova), I mean, what can I say? For sure that is pretty annoying and it’s just too loud.” Azarenka, through to her first Australian Open semifinal, said she started grunting when she was growing up and needed extra power to hit her shots. The 22-year-old Belarusian said she didn’t think she and Sharapova “are the only players who actually grunt.” “I cannot speak for any others. I only speak for myself,” she said. It’s the way I am, the way I play. “If you want to a little bit more on insight, I think it’s the way that made me breathe, made me move. It’s part of my movement.”

Djokovic tops Oz favorite Hewitt in four
2012-01-23 04:20:00
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Sharapova rallies past Lisicki
2012-01-23 00:58:00
After Serena Williams' surprising loss, Maria Sharapova held her nerve and survived a tough challenge from Sabine Lisicki to move into the quarterfinals, winning 3-6, 6-2, 6-3. Having dropped just five games in her first three matches, it initially looked like another crushing victory for Sharapova as she raced to a 3-0 lead against a clearly nervous Lisicki. The German, whose young career has been plagued by injury, lost in qualifying here last year, but the way she roared back to win the next six games and take the first set demonstrated the form that took her to last year's Wimbledon semifinals. Cracking deep returns and hitting clean forehand winners, Lisicki unsettled Sharapova—who played her poorest set in the tournament so far—hitting only two winners to 16 unforced errors. Sharapova opened the second set with a double fault and was forced to save a break point with a good attacking rally. With crows cawing loudly in the rafters of Rod Laver Arena, Sharapova visibly dug in and started to read Lisicki’s serve, hitting two clean return winners and forcing errors off others to break and lead 3-1. It bodes well for Sharapova’s chances here that, facing her first real test of the tournament, she lifted every aspect of her game, hitting her second serve better and holding her nerve when faced with some surprisingly good defending from Lisicki. Serving at 2-5 down, a double fault from Lisicki gave Sharapova her second set point, and a scorching cross-court backhand sealed the second set. The most noticeable aspect of Lisicki’s performance today was what looked like a calculated tactical decision to back off from the all-out hitting which earned her the first set, taking pace off her serve and groundstrokes in an attempt to trade blows with Sharapova and capitalize on her errors. The fourth seed, however, was too good for that tactic. Lisicki had her best chance with Sharapova serving at 1-1 in the third, a 13-minute game which saw five break points come and go for the German, making up for her poor first serving with well-placed second serves and precise attacking. The contrast was clear when Lisicki’s first serve deserted her at 2-3, as her soft second serves sitting up for Sharapova’s powerful returning. A poor unforced error gave Sharapova her first break point of the set, and the Russian immediately converted. Lisicki saved a match point on her own serve to force Sharapova to serve out the match, but Sharapova was up to the challenge. It was in a sense a missed opportunity for Lisicki, who never recaptured her free hitting of the first set, but the win must be attributed to Sharapova, whose competitive intensity was matched—as it sometimes fails to be—by cool-headed, aggressive tennis. By the end of the match, she was placing the ball rather than overhitting it, keeping herself from panicking, and earning her return to the final eight in Melbourne for the first time since 2008—when she won it all. —Hannah Wilks

Injured Serena wouldn't have played if not Slam
2012-01-22 22:52:00
After her 6-2, 6-3 loss to unseeded Russian Ekaterina Makarova in the fourth round of the Australian Open, Serena Williams says she would not have played the tournament had it not been a major. Williams, a five-time Australian champion, tore two ligaments in her ankle at the tournament in Brisbane two weeks ago.'No, no way. I probably shouldn't have played. But no way,” Serena told reporters. 'I never blame any injury that I have because I feel like she played really well and she deserved the win…Obviously I'm not 100 percent, and I haven't been. But it's no excuse.'Williams did add that she is planning on playing the United States’ Fed Cup tie against Belarus February 4-5 in Worcester, Mass. She said that she thinks her elder sister Venus, who has not played since the U.S. Open due to a battling an autoimmune disease, will be able to play.'She's been training, so I think she'll be there,' Serena said.This is the first time that Serena has failed to advance to the Aussie Open quarterfinals since 2006. She said that she is thinking about adding another tournament to her schedule, but can’t find one that works. She is scheduled to play a tournament in Monterrey, Mexico in late February and also Miami. She has not competed at the tournament in Indian Wells since 2001 (which is between Monterrey and Miami) because she believes that she and Venus were subject to racist taunts by the crowd.'I was just thinking I want to pick up a tournament because I did so awful here,' she said. 'There's no tournaments, unless I pick up Indian Wells, and we all know I'm not going there. It crossed my mind very briefly, like a nanosecond.'Williams could choose to play the tournament in Acapulco on red clay right after Monterrey, but does not think it’s a good option. 'I'm not that desperate,' she said. 'Maybe I'll just work out for a long time.'—Matt Cronin

Serena ousted from Aussie by Makarova
2012-01-22 22:51:00
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She’s 54-7 since playing here for the first time in 1998, and she hasn’t gone out this early here since 2006.“I’m not physically 100 percent, so I can’t be so angry at myself, even though I’m very unhappy,” Williams said. “I know that I can play a hundred times better than I did this whole tournament.”Without Williams, who injured her left ankle in Brisbane two weeks ago, the only major winners still in contention were Maria Sharapova, defending champion Kim Clijsters and Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova.Sharapova earned the right to play Makarova in the quarterfinal when she beat Germany’s Sabine Lisicki 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 in a night match. The 2008 champion blew a 3-0 lead in the opening set, needed three set points to win the second and advanced on her second match point despite making 47 unforced errors and eight double-faults.“A lot of ups and downs today—fortunately I finished on a high note,” she said. “Even though I didn’t play my best tennis I fought to the end and sometimes that’s what gets you through.”Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, still in search of her first Grand Slam title, played Clijsters in a quarterfinal on Tuesday. The Belgian advanced to the quarterfinals with a comeback win over Li Na on Sunday in a rematch of the 2011 decider, while Kvitova had some trouble late before beating former top-ranked Ana Ivanovic 6-2, 7-6 (2) Monday.Kvitova will next play Sara Errani of Italy, who beat 2008 semifinalist Zheng Jie 6-2, 6-1.In the late match, defending champion Novak Djokovic reached the quarterfinals for the fifth straight year with a 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win over former No. 1-ranked Lleyton Hewitt.Djokovic is aiming to become only the fifth man in the Open era to win three consecutive majors after winning Wimbledon and U.S. Open titles last year. He was up two sets and a break before Hewitt won six straight games to force a fourth set.But after losing a set for the first time in the tournament, Djokovic regained his composure to ensure all of the top five men reached the quarterfinals. He will next play No. 5 David Ferrer, who had a 6-4, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Richard Gasquet of France.Earlier, two-time runner-up Andy Murray was leading 6-1, 6-1, 1-0 when Mikhail Kukushkin retired from their fourth-round match with a left hip injury, giving Murray an easy path into the quarters.“It’s obviously good for me, I get to conserve some energy,” Murray said. “Tough for him, first time in the fourth-round of a Slam.”Murray will next play Kei Nishikori, who had a 2-6, 6-2, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 win over sixth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the 2008 finalist.The 22-year-old Nishikori became the first Japanese man in the last eight at the Australian Open in 80 years, and only the second man from his country to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal since the Open Era started in 1968. Shuzo Matsuoka reached the 1995 Wimbledon quarterfinals.“Feeling unbelievable. My first quarterfinal and beating Tsonga, makes me really happy,” Nishikori said. “I hope it’s big in Japan.”Makarova, a 23-year-old Russian left-hander, was equally thrilled about her win over Williams. And considering she’d lost in the first round of the last six tournaments she’d played, in awe over who she beat.“Yeah, I’m surprised because she’s a great player and it’s really tough to play against her. But, I don’t know, I just feeling so good and so focused,” Makarova said. “So I played my game, and that’s it. I won against Serena. That’s amazing.”Makarova overcame plenty of crowd support for Williams. Oracene Price, Williams’ mother, was in the players’ box with her sunglasses on and a wide-brimmed hat.In the fourth game of the second set with Makarova serving, Williams netted an easy forehand return. She made an angry sound, and there was a bit of laughter in the crowd. Price just turned away, shaking her head.After Williams’ fourth double-fault in the fifth game of the second set, which gave Makarova the game and a 3-2 lead—Williams shouted “Oh, my God.” She looked ready to smash her racket, but in the end bounced it on the court and caught it on the rebound.The 13-time Grand Slam winner had only played two competitive matches since losing the U.S. Open final to Sam Stosur in September, and her light preparation was curtailed when she badly twisted her ankle when she won her second-round match at Brisbane earlier this month.For that reason, Williams wasn’t about to beat herself up over Monday’s loss.“Am I usually angry? I don’t know. Crying? I don’t cry. So I don’t know what I usually project,” she said. “I feel like I didn’t play well today. I don’t feel like I can’t get better.”