Forty Deuce

Pic This: [Insert Resigned Sigh]

"I'm Just Mad About Saffron, Saffron's Mad About Me..."

Adidas kits out Ana in yellow to show off her otherworldly tan.  Or something.

Looks good.  Glad they're backing away from any "cutting edge" design elements.

Jesus, that tan. She and Fer would have had some rockin tan kids.

 

As for Masha, Nike's putting her in...this.  I shall reserve judgment.  The stuff usually looks way better on her than on the rack.  But...weird.  She's going to blend right into the AO courts.

Why. So. Serious?

The ladies talk practical jokes.  Here's what I love:

Compare Caro's prank:

We were in Japan playing a junior tournament. I was with my dad, and we knew a player who was staying in another room. I called his room, pretending to be reception. I told him, in very bad English, that he had been upgraded to a suite, and to go down to reception to confirm it. We watched him go down to reception and tell them he got a phone call, and they had no idea what he was talking about. He stood there for like 20 minutes - it was so funny! He went back to his room and I called him again, then he went down again and told them he had spoken to Miss Mashigawa (the name I used!) and they still had no idea what he was talking about, and that there was no Miss Mashigawa. Of course I had to stop somewhere so I went up to him and said 'I am Miss Mashigawa, I have a suite for you.'

...with Ana's:

My fitness coach and I hid in some bushes and jumped out on my old coach and hitting partner as they walked by. They were terrified!

You're not human if you're not laughing right now.

Nads and I Are Total BFF

The Ladies talk about their guilty food pleasures.  Not surprisingly, no one asked Dinara because we all know the answer already.

Nadia Petrova: Burger and french fries with everything on it, and Coke. At a nicer restaurant though!

Elena Dementieva: Chips. It’s my favorite bad habit. Potato chips and pizza. The chips are simple – just sea salt. I like to keep it as natural as possible

Vera Zvonareva: My mom makes this Napoleon cake a few times a year…

Liezel Huber: Chips. Not fries, but as in chips from the packet!

Cara Black: My favorite bad food is ice cream!

Sabine Lisicki: Ice cream. Italian ice cream!

Vania King: Fried chicken.

Dominika Cibulkova: A Slovakian dish my grandma cooks called Bryndzove Halusky… it’s potato dumplings with cheese and bacon… and it’s unbelievable.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands: Dark chocolate-covered almonds and sweet potato fries… not together, of course!

Aleksandra Wozniak: My indulgence is chocolates.

Caroline Wozniacki: Crêpes with nutella… it’s SO good.

Ana Ivanovic: Pancakes with nutella!

Michaella Krajicek: Porridge with pieces of chocolate in it. I really love it.

Katarina Srebotnik: Chocolate

Dude.  Nads.  Indian Wells.  You.  Me.  In n Out.

Wow.  That sounded really dirty.  Also dirty?  Whatever the heck Domi is talking about. 

Not A Fan Of The Andys, I See

Ana was asked how she'd construct the perfect tennis player:

Serve - Ivo Karlovic

Forehand - Juan Martin Del Potro

Backhand - Novak Djokovic

Volleys - Roger Federer

Movement/stamina - Rafael Nadal

Attitude/mental strength - Roger Federer

I'm a little disappointed in her first and last picks, but you can't really fault her, I guess.

Adidas 2010: Now With 100% More Sex Hair.

Ana unveils her Winter/Spring Adilibria kit. I'm loving the yellow.

Pic This: Nice Slap Bracelets, Ana.

Ana at a Zira promotion in Belgrade last month. 

The slap bracelets are killing me.

Multicolored matchy matchy slap bracelets, at that.

 

And we know how much she loves recycling outfits.  Here she is rocking the boho look in Singapore with Adam "Miami Vice" Scott.  If he's Crockett then that would make Ana....

Heh.

Pic This: Oddly, The Ponytail Is An Ugrade.

Ana was in Australia this week cheering on Adam at the Australian Masters (he finished 6th).  Man, she really loves those tights.

But there's good news for those of us who follow Ana's career by the state of her acne-riddled forehead.  It looks all clear, so let's hope the same goes for her mind.

Pic This: Oh, Honey. No.

Ana was in Scotland Singapore last week cheering on Adam at the Singapore Open.  Her support helped.  He finished third. 

But oh, that look.  WOW.  That takes effort.  Someone page Dragana, stat.

BTW -- If you want a good laugh, read this.  These two were so MFEO.

Vania King Is Awesome.

Dinara!  Put.  The Gun.  Down.

WTAers tell you about their love (in Vania's case) or not (Jesus, calm the fuck down, Liezel) of video games:

Ana Ivanovic: "I never did until I was introduced to Guitar Hero, and I love it."

Vania King: "YES. I love video games. I play mostly RPGs, MMORPGs and action/adventure games."

Aleksandra Wozniak: "When I was little, my sister Dorota and I would play Nintendo for hours. Now I just travel around the world with a PSP!"

Katarina Srebotnik: "No, not at all. When I was younger I used to love them and I have to say I was pretty good because I couldn't stand the words GAME OVER on the screen! I played the games over and over again until I would go all the way or at least reach a very high score."

Dominika Cibulkova: "I do - I play tennis video games! I'm not very good at them though, everyone is always beating me..."

Caroline Wozniacki: "I do, with my brother. Race car games, singing star... it's a lot of fun!"

Cara Black: "I don't play video games."

Liezel Huber: "NO!"

Vera Zvonareva: "Not really. I used to play Super Mario and Tetris on Gameboy. I would play Tetris for such a long time..."

Elena Dementieva: "I don't play video games. My brother is a big fan of them though. I could never understand his passion for them!"

Thoughts:

• We get it, Ana.  You LOVE Guitar Hero.  That answer is getting as canned as her pool story, through no fault of her own, really.

• I can totally see Bepa dominating on Tetris.  I can also see her banging her head into the controller when she realized she flipped the "S" piece one too many times.

• I love that A-Woz's sister shares the same name as this piece of awesome.

• Domi was so that girl who pretended to suck at video games so guys would think she was cute.  Or, you know.  She would just suck.  Dick.

• I would totally pull a Domi if I ever played video games with Caro's brother.

• Vania King rules.  Even I had to look up MMORPGs.

Air Quotes: See? Ana's So Nice Not Even The Pinata Will Rip On Her

“She has her own team. She tries her best. It’s hard. We are athletes. You can’t always be at the top of the game. Our years are long. It’s not like other sports, where you play for a few months then have a few months off. We always try to play our best tennis, but some years are better than others. That’s part of sport, part of life as well. We have a lot of ups and downs in both. It’s important to just be positive and always learn – to keep learning until you die.”

-- JJ's response to being asked about Ana's crap year.

Cheeky British Humor

Ahem. 

So this pic pretty much sums up my impression of the Wimbledon Museum. 

It was unintentionally hilarious.

 

Another gem, which, when you pull back, reveals a third bunny:

 

Random?  Yes.  Awesome?  Absolutely.

 

The Champions display is right when you get to the bottom of the stairs.  I saw this.  I laughed quite hard.  I may have said, "They have the fuckin' Sergeant Pepper jacket???" a little too loud.  I really shouldn't drink before noon.

Fed shoes.

 

Dick shoes.

Muzz's shorts.  Unfortunately I left my glass cutter at the flat. 

Not gonna lie.  Wanted to smell them.

DG kept pointing out ugly pictures of Muzz in the Wimbly Store and asking, "Really, dude?  This guy?"

Yes, dude.  That guy.  To quote Brodie, "I would."

Nice that they gave Lena D some love.  This was her semifinal outfit. 

In a rather impossible feat, it looks even cheaper in person.

 

Billy Jean King and Rod Laver's racquets.  Seemed like something I should geek out at. 

Ashamed to admit I did not. 

There was actually quite a bit of historical stuff about the evolution of lawn tennis.  Here's my problem though: I actually kind of hate grass court tennis.  So it was difficult to actually care.  Also, the whole grass thing seems elitist and Victorian.  As you all know, I am a woman of the people.  It was hard not to roll my eyes at some of the displays.

Enjoyed seeing the white balls though.  Mainly because I like white balls.

Movingrightalong...

 

I was very confused by this.

 

Donkeygrooming found this one.  Shirtless Marat?  Wimbly knows what's up.

 

And in the most random pairing of players on the wall....

All in all it was a fun to see the museum but I wouldn't pay separately to see the stuff that was there.  If you book a tour then the museum admission is included.  One thing that surprised me: How little was made of the GMOAT.  I hope that's because they're trying to figure out how to best commemorate the match.  It would have been really cool to see the grass/dirt stained shirt Rafa wore when he fell to the ground.  Or even some video with commentary.  

Then again, maybe that's not Wimbledon's style.  It's clear from the tour and the museum that they want to focus on the full narrative of Wimbledon and not just singular moments. 

Pic This: It's A Holy Number

Uh, "Seven"?  When did that happen? 

Something tells me Sunshine and Sugar made that for him during Bunny Ranch arts and crafts.

Nice to see these two back together again, even if for only a bit.

 

Pound it out.

Baby Panda Out of Beijing and Pours Her Heart Out

Ana withdraws from Beijing.  More importantly she popped out this heartfelt diary entry:

I guess having to withdraw from Beijing is an appropriate ending to a very disappointing season. This trip to Asia has been a big disappointment and I have struggled with my health pretty much since I arrived. I am sorry to my supporters who were hoping to see me play here in Beijing. It's very disappointing for me as well, to come here, see the amazing facility they have and not have the energy to be able to step onto court. I can only look forward to coming back here next year.

It's especially disappointing because I was hoping to be able to see some improvements before the season ended. I have gone through a lot of training and physical changes over the past few months, which have mostly remained private until now... My body is quite fragile at the moment, because I over-trained during the first part of the year. This was, I think, what caused me to have many small injuries this season.

Instead of being patient and accepting that my best form was almost impossible due to physical limitations, I was always over-thinking things, and I never dealt with it very well. The season was a continuation of going from one disappointment to another. If I had dealt better with these setbacks, I would have had a lot more success.

I also found it very tough to switch off and have a proper break over the past year or so, partly because of these physical problems. Actually, I don't think I can remember the last time I had a proper holiday: I was always doing some kind of fitness or recovery work during my holidays, and that meant that I wasn't able to switch off from tennis. I guess I just want it so badly.

As you may have noticed, I completely changed my serve after Wimbledon. This was because of my shoulder: if I continued serving and training the way I was, I would have almost certainly picked up a serious injury. My team and I are confident that I will be able to go back to my old service motion when I start practising again in November.

On the positive side, I am still No.11 in the world. I have no clue how I am ranked so highly, but to look on the bright side, I can't play any worse than I did this year and I'm still in the top 20!

I've learnt so much this year. It's a bit little bit like a few years ago, when I was ranked around No.14 for almost an entire year, and everyone was asking me, "when are you going to reach the top 10?" Within a year I was there, and within two years I was No.1. Sometimes you have to go through these experiences in order to become a better player.

Despite my disappointments there is not a single doubt in my mind that I will reach the top again and win Grand Slams.

One other positive to come out of all this is that I realised what a great team I have around me: they never doubted me, they supported me so well and did everything they could to assist me. I am very grateful to them all: my family, coaches and management.

I have appointed a new fitness coach, whom I will tell you more about later. Over the next month or so I can have a great break. I can rest without thinking about any future tournaments, then train and practise hard for the new season.

I have a lot to look forward to. Now is the time to rest, recharge, and come back stronger.

Love
Ana

P.S. I'd like to thank my loyal supporters for their encouragement this year. The journey is never easy!

I have to say.  Good on ya, Baby E.  I think this is a good decision.  Let the ranking go, forget about the season, and start the off season early so that when she has to hit the court again to prepare for Australia she'll actually be well-rested.

Pic This: Wait, I Thought You Left.

Baby E and the constellation could that is her forehead stuck around Tokyo for a few extra days to fulfill some media obligations.  Can't you just leave her alone, WTA?

"Don'tlookherintheeyeDon'tlookherintheeyeDon'tlookherintheeye."

Trust me, wise move my friend.

Add Her To The Introvert List

Man, it's really getting to the point where I'm starting a pro/con list on Boyfriend with a thought towards making a move on Steve Tignor.

Really great piece on Ana published in this month's Tennis Mag which asks a question that has been bouncing around in my mind for quite some time: Do we want her to be something she's not?  I go back and forth on the issue quite a bit.  On one hand, I just refuse to believe that someone with her talent isn't destined to win more Slams, or at least hover around the Top 5 mark for years.  On the other, as someone who (I think) is hardwired somewhat similarly to her, I can totally understand the internal conflict and what's holding her back.  She's a smart kid (Cahill's phrase of "innocent intelligence" is *perfect*) who can't ignore everything that's going on around her.  She's forced, by her makeup, to hear it all, ruminate, and react, generally with negative consequences.  The fact is, in today's game, where the ability to handle pressure and scrutiny is more important than a booming forehand, the kid just might not be built for success.

As for how she's exactly hardwired, well, Tignor does a good job of confirming what most of us already knew:

Ivanovic’s affections extended even to the room where we were sitting, an empty players’ lounge cluttered with video-game consoles and sandwich wrappers. “It’s so quiet here, I love it,” she said in a half-whisper. For a chatty person, Ivanovic talks a lot about the pleasures of solitude.

“Sometimes I wish I could get away from everything and go somewhere where nobody knows me,” she says. Ivanovic laughs as these words leave her mouth; it’s not a melancholy concept to her. Being alone seems less an escape than just another way for her to enjoy herself, not all that different from running around a tennis court. In that sense, the sport fits her. It’s made for that weird paradox, the outgoing loner.

Join the club, Ana.  Seems like us introverts are having a bit of a coming out party as of late.

Thanks to CMS for posting.

UPDATED: Overqualified.

I was in D.C. all weekend without any internet access.  And let's just say I'm not entirely sad about that.  Glad to see I missed the carnage:

(Q) Chang Kai-Chen (TPE) d. (1/WC) Dinara Safina (RUS) 76(5) 46 75


(Q) Andrea Petkovic (GER) d. (5) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 75 46 63

(Q) Katareyna Bondarenko (UKR) d. (3) Elena Dementieva (RUS) 62 67 61

(Q) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) d. (2) Venus Williams (USA) 76(6) 75

Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) d. (6) Vera Zvonareva (RUS) 36 64 62

Roberta Vinci (ITA) d. (9) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) 61 62

Lucie Safarova (CZE) d. (10) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) 64 76(1)

Also, Rybarakova just beat Nads and Maria's on her way to bagel and 'sticking Sam.  And we know how Sam feels about 'sticking.  Not a fan, methinks.

So it's absolute Bedlam in Tokyo as the top seeds are falling left and right in the first two rounds (as of this post, JJ, A-Rad, and Caro still have to play their 2R matches).

[UPDATE: Caro retires down 05 to CanWoz. So the top 6 seeds are out after their first matches.]

I don't have much to say quite yet.  I need some time to process it all.  But I have a feeling Billy Shakes was a WTA fan back in the day:

She should have died hereafter ;
There would have been a time for such a word.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time ;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

Tubby Elephant and Baby Falcon

Some things change (serve). Some things don't (breathe, woman!).

"Who's Looking At Her Ankles?"

New Ana pictures for Adidas' "Me, Myself, and I" campaign. 

She looks great, yada yada, amazing tan, yada yada, she's always best without makeup, fishcakes. 

But this is my favorite set of shots, and let me tell you why.  Back in my pre-FD days I was a regular over at TennisWorld.  Great community of people over there and if there were 10 more hours in the day I'd probably spend just as much time there as I do on my own site.  But one of my early "friends" on TW was a rad guy from Philly named Sam.  Sam was a big Ana fan, for all the typical dude reasons, and we bonded over defending Ana against all the haters that would come out of the woodwork every once in a while.

Anyway, Sam had a nickname for Ana: "Ankles".  And as one who never asks about in-jokes I didn't ask him about it for a long time.  Finally I broke and asked what was up with the nickname.  His response went something like this:

"Well I was watching an Ana match and chatting on TW and bunch of us guys were talking about how hot she was.  But then another female poster chimed in with a comment about Ana's fat ankles.  To which I responded: "Who's looking at her ankles?"  Thus, Ankles."

That story totally cracked me up.  So when I saw that pic of Ana's bare ankles, well, I did a spit-take and thought of my good buddy Sam...

...who I'm sure would love to switch places with that ball right about now.

Happy Elephant Appreciation Day!

It's Elephant Day, folks.  Celebrate your Baby Elephant in the best way you know how. 

And no, boys, that does not mean whacking off to this post.  Inappropriate.

As for me, here are some of my favorite Baby E moments:

Golfing with Rafa

Hanging with Flavs.

Tignor's fanboying.

Showing the coordination of an actual Baby Elephant at IW.

Did you know she grew up in a pool and bombs dropped on her head?

That pink hat.

Ana & JJ.

Sigh...back when there was nothing but promise for 2009.

Sigh...back when Fer had short hair.

Rumblin, stumblin, fumblin...

Hey, remember when Ana was in the mix for actually having the best 2009?  Yeah, I didn't either.

Ana and Nole through the years.

Eurosport does Ana.

Rock Bottom?

Between her presser and her diary entry, it sounds like she's finally accepting what's going on.  Good for her.

It's no secret that this is the most difficult time of my career so far. Losing in the first round of the US Open hurt a great deal, I can tell you that.

I feel mentally exhausted. This season has been very difficult in terms of my health and form: even though I'm in great shape in terms of my stamina and speed, I've been picking up so many small injuries. Just when I felt like I was close to getting back into my rhythm, I would feel pain in a new place, and then I'd feel like I'm starting all over again.

It's obviously affected my confidence and I've overanalysed it too, and let if affect me far too much - not just the injuries, but my desire to get back to the top.

I feel like I haven't had a proper break in such a long time. Now I think the best thing to do is to take a week or two off, to totally switch off from tennis, and come back refreshed for my next tournament, which is in Tokyo at the end of the month.

After that I will play in Beijing: they're two big tournaments, so there is still a lot to play for. It would be great to end the season on a high, going into next year.

Thanks a lot for all your messages of suport. It has been very touching to read them in the past couple of days. At the same time, I would like you all to know that I am fine! Of course, I am very disappointed, but I am really optimistic for the future too!

If you haven't yet I encourage you to watch the partial video from her presser.  Just go to the USO website, Audio & Video, Press Conferences, and select September 1.  One of the many things I love about Ana is how thoughtful she is at pressers and how she takes the questions seriously.  It's like a therapy session.

Thanks For Not Kicking A Girl When She's Down

Bonnie Ford with a nice breakdown of, well, Ana's breakdown.  I liked her final analysis:

Ivanovic suffers from the mixed burden and blessing of intelligence, drive and analytical ability. She picks at the scabs of defeat, trying to figure out how she can keep from being wounded again, and in the process may overlook the fact that all winners accumulate their share of scar tissue. That knowledge comes with the years, which is why she'd be well-advised not to wish time away.

Also nice to hear that MJ has confidence she'll be back.  I do too, but what the hell do I know.

Honest.

After the devastating loss to K-Bond, Ana came out and gave her most honest presser to date. 

Read it after the jump.

How Low Can You Go?

 

Awesome.

What's there to say that hasn't already been said about Ana's game.  Toss, serve, confidence, fishcakes.  There's no shame in losing to K Bond, who beat Venus a few weeks ago.  But this loss hurts because Ana played like crap AND she got outgutted by K Bond.  Her lack of confidence manifested itself by Ana junkballing and K Bond, who was hobbling on one leg, dictating and cracking short balls.  Somehow, despite being 4-1 down in the third, Ana fought her way back to force a tiebreak where she held a match point.  But by the time Ana finally realized that she had to take her game to K Bond and play aggressively, it was too late.  She had zero confidence in her forehand.  It was appropriate that the match ended on a sitting forehand into the net.

The sad thing is that I was chatting with a friend during the match and she kept apologizing for how stressful and horrible it must be to sit through the match.  My response: "Oh, don't worry.  I'm used to it."

You Never Forget Your First Love

Adam who?

Under Pressure.

Interesting and lengthy article on Ana.  Just when you think you've heard it all...

Off the tennis court, Ivanovic often retreats to the nearest bookstore. She began reading Freudian psychology about the same time her slump began – and quickly closed the book. She went in search of fiction – books to help her escape an obsession with tennis that bordered on unhealthy.

Freud created unwinnable mind games for Ivanovic, who at 21 is prone to over-analysis and emotional swings. During a fourth-round loss at the French Open this year, she suffered dizzy spells and, according to her coach at the time, called her trainer onto the court because she was having trouble breathing.

Ivanovic’s publicist. Gaven Versi, said the symptoms stemmed from a medical condition diagnosed after the match, but neither he nor Ivanovic would disclose the condition. By contrast, Craig Kardon, Ivanovic’s coach during the French Open, said he thinks the dizzy spells and breathing trouble stemmed from the intense pressure Ivanovic puts on herself.

“She keeps a lot of things inside of her,” said Kardon, a widely regarded coach whose past clients have included Martina Navratilova, Jennifer Capriati and Lindsay Davenport. “I think she has a lot of emotions inside of her that she doesn’t share with anybody.”

...

Despite the fourth-round loss, Kardon said he was relieved the French Open was behind them, that Ivanovic could stop worrying about defending her title at Roland Garros and start preparing for grass and the hardcourts, – playing surfaces Kardon considers his specialties.

But then Ivanovic fired Kardon. She never explained why, and Kardon said he’s not at liberty to discuss the specifics.

“She’s a perfectionist and she wants everything perfect,” Kardon said. “It’s a continual struggle.

“Obviously she’s a very talented player and she’s capable of playing at a high level and winning Slams. But I think she puts way too much pressure on herself.”

What is it with the Serbs and odd breathing illnesses that seem to be related to stress?  Nole and Ana really are MFEO.

Pic This: Nice

Apparently the two practiced together as well. 

Less Giggling. More Charm.

More video and some interviewing from the Ana/Caro street fight.

Pic This: Blink and You'll Miss It

Baby E returned to Arthur Ashe Kids Day to play an mixed doubles exo match, which she's done a few times now.  And she debuted her day dress. 

You might want to Right-Click-Save.  Who knows how many times you'll see it.

The New Serv. Act. of Ana I.

In case you haven't seen it, here's Ana's new abbreviated service motion.

And As Pinky and the Brain Do Every Week, They Fail.

One day after Venus fell in straight sets to K-Bond, well, all fucking hell breaks lose.  Dinara, the Oracle that she is, foreshadowed her loss to Rezai last week during her post-match interview with Rezai.  What seemed like a random funny would prove creepily true as Rezai took her out in three sets.  The highlight/lowlight of the match?  Zeljko deciding he had had enough and leaving the court for good in the third set.  Oh, and somehow, Dina would still get a coaching violation from the chair.  It's always something with the Coconut.

The next big name to fall on Wednesday was Flavia, who played like crap apparently in her loss to The Gypsy.  Then Caro, who is officially in a slump going into the USO, lost to the always dangerous Jay Z in straight sets.  

The Kimpossible Comeback Train chugs on in Toronto, as Kim scored her most impressive victory so far, taking out Vika 75 46 61.  

Yet another three set loss from Vika who just seems to go away or get dominated in third sets.  Very peculiar from a kid, though I might not like her, seems to have a great competitive streak and be in good shape.  I went back to check her results since Madrid:

• Lost to JJ in Cincy 75 76(4)
• Lost to Pova in Cincy 67(4) 64 62 
• Lost to Serena at Wimby 62 63 
• Lost to Dina at RG 16 64 62 
• Lost to Szavay at Madrid 46 62 62

Peculiar, no?  I really don't know what happens to her in those three setters.

So how else to cap off a spectacularly craptastic day then to watch Ana play solidly (in fact, play *well*) for a set and a half to Lucie, only come back to see that she's been blown off the court in three sets.  I mean, honestly, a loss to Lucie isn't something to lose that much sleep over.  The woman has weapons and from what I can tell, even in the first set, she was on, swinging freely and hitting crazy angles.  Hopefully Ana can take something positive from her early level of play.  I wonder if she'll take a WC into New Haven.  She really really should and I'm sure they'll have a bunch of players withdraw (Sam and Flavs, for example).

Singles – Second Round
Aravane Rezai (FRA) d. (1) Dinara Safina (RUS) 36 62 64
(2) Serena Williams (USA) d. (Q) Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) 63 62
(4) Elena Dementieva (RUS) d. Ai Sugiyama (JPN) 63 62
(5) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) d. Patty Schnyder (SUI) 75 64
(7) Vera Zvonareva (RUS) d. (Q) Roberta Vinci (ITA) 63 63
Zheng Jie (CHN) d. (8) Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) 75 63
(WC) Kim Clijsters (BEL) d. (9) Victoria Azarenka (BLR) 75 46 61
(Q) Lucie Safarova (CZE) d. (11) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) 36 75 63
Virginie Razzano (FRA) d. (12) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) 63 61
(14) Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) d. Agnes Szavay (HUN) 61 61
Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) d. (16) Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) 61 46 76(4)
Alona Bondarenko (UKR) d. (Q) Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) 63 60
Maria Sharapova (RUS) d. Sybille Bammer (AUT) 63 76(5)
Shahar Peer (ISR) d. Francesca Schiavone (ITA) 76(2) 64

Doubles – Second Round
(1) Black/Huber (ZIM/USA) d. Kirilenko/Vesnina (RUS/RUS) 64 75
(4) Hantuchova/Sugiyama (SVK/JPN) d. A.Radwanska/Wozniacki (POL/DEN) 64 62
Amanmuradova/Kudryavtseva (UZB/RUS) d. (5) Hsieh/Peng (TPE/CHN) 46 76(2) 105
(6) Llagostera Vives/Martínez Sánchez (ESP/ESP) d. (WC) Kuznetsova/Mauresmo (RUS/FRA) 63 60
Kleybanova/Makarova (RUS/RUS) d. Jans/Rosolska (POL/POL) 76(5) 63

Doubles – First Round
Benesova/Zahlavova Strycova (CZE/CZE) d. Dulko/Peer (ARG/ISR) 61 46 100
Hradecka/Voskoboeva (CZE/KAZ) d. Bondarenko/Bondarenko (UKR/UKR) 61 46 108

Killin' Me.

26 63 62.  Pfft.

"OK, Let's Do It."

I'm sure Brodie's in there somewhere screaming like a little girl.

Square One.

 

And if you come undone
As if you've been run through
Some catapult it fired you
You wonder if your chance will ever come
Or if you're stuck in square one

Here's all you need to know about Ana's current form: In 2004 she won her first WTA title in Canberra.  Know who she beat in the final?

That's right.  Melinda Czink, who beat her today 76 75.

In other words, its back to square one for Baby Elephant.  Not entirely sure she realizes that yet, which is why losses like this one will keep piling up until she realizes she has to stop and completely regroup.  Unfortunately, the tennis season doesn't really allow for that.  It's a treadmill you can't hop off, especially when you're a top player (and yes, I'm using "top player" loosely here). 

Amazing what can happen in the span of five years.

Puppet No More

More from yesterday's post match presser from Ana.  Interesting to hear her say that the service motion changed because her toss went off the rails, that she's enjoying her new-found independence, and that she does intend to hire a new team.

Q. Why did you change [your serve] it in the first place?
ANA IVANOVIC: That's a good question.

Q. Because you had a good serve.
ANA IVANOVIC: Yeah, I had a really good serve. But then I had some issues with the ball toss. I think it was just at the moment, because I was maybe tight in one of the matches. You know, it just happens.

But then I start changing it and I started making a big issue out of it. The more I thought about it, the more pressure I put on myself trying to hit the perfect serve instead of just relaxing, so it went down the pipe pretty far.

Just happy that now I'm feeling, you know, a lot better with it. Obviously, you know, ball toss, it's gonna be off few times. But it's just normal, and now I feel confident to stop it and to start again.

Q. You parted company with Scott?
ANA IVANOVIC: Yes.

Q. What was behind that?
ANA IVANOVIC: You know, working with someone three years it's a long time. He was coming from Australia and we spent a lot of time together because he wasn't going back that often. It just gets to a point when you stop maybe learning from each other and stop improving. It's best to take some break. It was just, I think, best for both of us to have some break and some fresh opinions.

Q. Is it sort of funny him not being here?
ANA IVANOVIC: It is. You know, you get used to being around. So now I'm actually traveling with my mom mostly, and before I used to have four or five people. So I'm like, Where has everyone gone?
No, I feel really good, because also made me realize more thing on my own, what I'm doing and what helps me to play good, these kind of things, rather than relying on people telling me certain things. I think it's a learning process, and it made me also a lot more mature.

Q. Do I think you'll sort of go a while without having a proper coach?
ANA IVANOVIC: ...  In a couple week's, month's time, I'm gonna look into that again, having a full time coach for preparation, obviously, for next year.

Q. Stop thinking for now.
ANA IVANOVIC: Thanks. Yeah, relax and enjoy.

Hold On To Your Butts...

Ana's tinkering with her serve. 

"I started changing it and I started making a big issue out of it," she said. "The more I thought about it, the more pressure I put on myself trying to hit the perfect serve.

"Instead of just relaxing... it went down the pipe pretty far."

Ivanovic joked: "I'm so confused right now it doesn't matter. In the past two months, I changed it five or six times, trying to figure out what feels most natural.

The Serb believes she is close to fixing the problem with the shorter swing.

"Hopefully I found what is going to give me the most power and most consistency," she said. "I just tried it in practice the other day and it felt pretty good straightaway, so hopefully it will stay that way."

An oddly refreshing quote, though let's face it, it's a bit disconcerting that she's tinkering with her serve while she's got no coach and no fitness trainer.  We'll see.

Friends Don't Let Friends Lose To Friends.

Interesting quotage from James LaRosa's blog on friendships on tour.  Much like James, I too am obsessed with wanting these girls to (a) be buddies on tour and (b) be buddies with me (well not all of them, just the awesome ones, cuz that's how I roll).  It's cute to see CanWoz down on court and congratulating Caro in her semifinal win in that fake clay tournament that I can't think of right now, or Caro coming standing courtside cheering on Sorana, despite the fact that she was already out of the tournament.  And I like to think that, especially among the veteran players, that as crazy as I make these women out to be, they're actually way awesome people that I just want to drink beers with and watch get into bar fights (I'm looking at you, Flavs). 

Unfortunately, it looks like the stakes are just too high these days, for both the men and the women.  Per Marat:

Lest we think this is all just a chick thing, Marat Safin chimed in last week declaring the ATP tour too is full of loners in the locker room. "Nobody is friends with anybody," said Safin.  "Everyone travels with his group, there is no more friendship like when I could hang out with [Patrick] Rafter or [Mark] Philippoussis.  I don't have any friends on the tour."
...

"Sometimes it's really tough," says Cibulkova.  "Like at Roland Garros, I played against Agnes Szavay to go into the quarterfinals.  We're great friends, and to be against her on this very important match, it was tough.  But I handled it.  At first she was pissed.  We didn't actually look for each other in the locker room.  A few days after she was fine, she said well done."
...
It's that inability to separate the professional from the personal that motivated Ivanovic's original statement.  One she stands by.  "Obviously there are friends [on tour]," Ivanovic elaborates for the Sweet Spot.  "You chat with all the girls here.  [But] it's very hard to build a close friendship.  A friendship that would last after a tennis career.  It's very hard because of [that] competition."

So what you're saying is that *after* tennis you and Dina will be BFFs?  Sigh.  Fine, I'll take it.

Oh, and just because I can and should, y'all should follow James on Twitter.  You'll thank me later: http://www.twitter.com/JamesLaRosa

Well That Was Unexpected.

Um, phew, I guess.  Ana survives to lose another day, after playing like crap but somehow beating Melanie, 26 61 61.  Let's see, she served at 45% and had 9 double faults.  So this will be fun.  She'll play Czink next, who bounced The Cone, 3 and 2.  At least having The Cone around reminds me that *all* is not lost.

CanWoz took a whoopin' stick to CSN, serving up a bagel and 3 to move on to play fellow Polish ex-pat, Caro.

And she won.  Congratulations.  Or something.

Results so far:

Singles - First Round
(9) Victoria Azarenka (BLR) d. Kaia Kanepi (EST) 63 76(2)
(11) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) d. (Q) Melanie Oudin (USA) 26 61 61
Anna-Lena Groenefeld (GER) d. (16) Virginie Razzano (FRA) 63 36 64
Patty Schnyder (SUI) d. Gisela Dulko (ARG) 64 60
Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) d. Carla Suárez Navarro (ESP) 60 63
Lucie Safarova (CZE) d. Iveta Benesova (CZE) 63 76(7)
Roberta Vinci (ITA) d. (Q) Tatjana Malek (GER) 64 61
Melinda Czink (HUN) d. Alizé Cornet (FRA) 63 62
(Q) Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) d. Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) 62 62
(Q) Olga Govortsova (BLR) d. Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) 61 63

"He's Such a Copycat."

A few of you have written inquiring as to when the next installment of the Forty Deuce podcast would be up.  Here's the deal: It is SUPER awkward to do a podcast by yourself.  And with my partner in crime (heh), Love All, off at an undisclosed location for much of this year, I've had to shelve the podcasts.  Unfortunately my dog has very little to say about tennis.

But you can't say that I don't listen so here's the next installment, wherein I've roped in Forty Deuce regulars Sodapop, Carrie, and Victoria, to talk about everything from my general apathy towards Ana's losses, illegal immigration, and Stan's second fiddle, to how badly the WTA marketing department has failed, our love for tennis umpires, and the intimate details contained in Sodapop's diary.  You'll have to excuse any technical issues.  I'm still trying to master it all.  But I'll get it all worked out and I can promise your tech savvy and topically focused p-casts in the future.

I'm warning you, it's a long one and very WTA heavy.  Perfect for sitting in traffic while you're on your way to wherever you don't want to be.

Download Here.

Jesus, Get The Kid Some Twilight or Something.

FreakyFrites is keeping it real this week, covering the LA Tourney better than any other "news outlet" would/could/or should.  Check out his write up (and more pics) on Ana's post-match presser.

So she's reading Krakauer's Into This Air?  How apropos.  Maybe she'll follow it up with the ever cheery Under The Banner of Heaven, or the always hilarious Into The Wild.  You know, light reading.

Meh.  I couldn't be mad at her if I tried.  She's starting to veer towards my "I just want you to be happy" category of players, once monopolized by Dani.  Read your books, drink your coffee, nerd out, and bang your way hot boyfriend.  I won't judge, girl.

Well At Least We Didn't Have To Watch It Happen.

Ana lost in straights to Sammy Stones.  But really, there's no shame in losing to Sam and from various tweets from the match it sounds like Sam played solid tennis.  Ana had her chances to break and couldn't convert.  But it didn't sound like she played horribly or anything.

Whatever.  Moping over Ana is *so* 2008 ("and you're 2000 and late", heh).  So instead I'm going to focus on the awesomeness of Sam making it to the quarters and Bepa gutting out a three hour match to beat Wickmayer.

See?  I'm all sunshine and unicorns, baby.

LA Scores so far:
(2) Vera Zvonareva (RUS) d. Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) 76(5) 46 64
(10) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) d. (5) Nadia Petrova (RUS) 63 63
(8) Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) d. Anna Chakvetadze (RUS) 63 62
(13) Samantha Stosur (AUS) d. (6) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) 63 62
Urszula Radwanska (POL) d. (12) Li Na (CHN) w/o (right knee injury)

Oh, Adidas. You're Adorable.

 So Adidas came up with two dresses for Ana to wear at the US Open. 


This is her day dress.


This is her night dress. 

Pardon me while I pat little Adidas on the head. 

Heh.  Two dresses.  SO many assumptions built in there.

Pic This: "My Pokerface, My My Pokerface..."

(Pic from Victoria)

OhThankGod.

(warning: i'm a bit tipsy right now)

Yay! The pretty girl won.  She beat Vania King 64 46 61.  Apparently her backhand and toss were wonky.  But tell me something new.   A win is a win and she'll fight another day.  She'll play the winner of MaKiri/Stosur.  I love you, Sam, but I gotta root for MaKiri, even though that's the most pathetic thing ever.

In other good news, Dani beat Melanie Oudin (sorry, Mel) 67(3) 62 62.  I hate to root against Melanie but it's nice to see Dani beating quality competition.  Dani went on to team with Ai to win their dubs match.  I'm sure there were smiles all around.

And in other news, even if it means I get my ass handed to me by German teenagers, I would like to state for the record that I want Kimiko's body when I'm 38 years old.  She lost to Sabine but she's still an inspiration.

Finally, after brokering the release of the US journalists from North Korea, Bepa returned to beat Peng Shuai, 36 63 76(6).  Sure, the US press gives credit to Slick Willy, but we all know what's up.

Also, Sorana took out the loud mouthed Burrito in three, and CanWoz beat Bethanie in a tight two setter, 75 75.

Singles - Second Round
(2) Vera Zvonareva (RUS) d. Peng Shuai (CHN) 36 63 76(6)
(6) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) d. (WC) Vania King (USA) 64 46 61

Singles - First Round
(12) Li Na (CHN) d. Ayumi Morita (JPN) 60 20 ret. (GI illness)
(13) Samantha Stosur (AUS) d. Monica Niculescu (ROU) 61 62
(14) Zheng Jie (CHN) d. (Q) Olga Savchuk (UKR) 75 16 62
(17) Sabine Lisicki (GER) d. (Q) Kimiko Date Krumm (JPN) 76(5) 26 75
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) d. (Q) Melanie Oudin (USA) 67(3) 62 62
Sorana Cirstea (ROU) d. (WC) Michelle Larcher de Brito (POR) 64 75
Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) d. Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) 75 75
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) d. Melinda Czink (HUN) 36 64 61
Maria Kirilenko (RUS) d. (Q) Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) 46 63 61
Urszula Radwanska (POL) d. Julie Coin (FRA) 61 62

Doubles - First Round
(2) Hantuchova/Sugiyama (SVK/JPN) d. (WC) Craybas/Gullickson (USA/USA) 64 61
Garbin/Schiavone (ITA/ITA) d. Shaughnessy/Spears (USA/USA) 61 64
A.Bondarenko/Vesnina (UKR/RUS) d. Kleybanova/Makarova (RUS/RUS) 64 76(4)

Tuesday OOPs

pleasedon'tlosepleasedon'tlosepleasedon'tlose
(Pic from GoToTennis)

Stadium (from 19.00hrs)
1. King vs. Ivanovic
2. Peng vs. Zvonareva

Court 4 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Oudin vs. Hantuchova
2. Cirstea vs. Larcher de Brito
3. Wozniak vs. Mattek-Sands
4. Craybas/Gullickson vs. Hantuchova/Sugiyama

Court 5 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Date Krumm vs. Lisicki
2. Scheepers vs. Kirilenko
3. Stosur vs. Niculescu

Court 7 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Savchuk vs. Zheng
2. U.Radwanska vs. Coin
3. Garbin/Schiavone vs. Shaughnessy/Spears

Court 8 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Czink vs. Makarova
2. Morita vs. Li
3. A.Bondarenko/Vesnina vs. Kleybanova/Makarova


Matches to Watch: Somdev vs. Cilic, Dancy vs. Haas, Rendy vs. Elf, and Ernie vs. Big Berd.
 

The WTA: Now With 100% Less Dan Brown

Giggles at Twilight, Gone With The Wind, and Elena not answering the question.

FYI, Ana Ivanovic Is The Most Boring Human Being Ever

Ok, I'm not saying that the kid is all personality and charm, but Jesus, these are the commercials that get cut for her?

See Ya, Scotty

Apparently there's only room for one Aussie in Ana's life.

Ana announced on her website that she and Scott are parting ways.  It was only a matter of time.  He's clearly done all he can for her and taken her fitness as far as he can.  I've always liked scott, even if he did insist on prancing around Indian Wells shirtless and in mandals.  Not entirely sure Dragana was ever a fan though. 

It'll be interesting to see who she brings in to replace him.

I Don't Know, Cones. You Might Want To Start Thinking About It.

The Michelle Obama of Tennis

You know, or not.

Here's Ana's interview from Vogue.  Despite the author's stupidity (The Williamses suck? Justine was just plain miserable? Michelle Obama?  REALLY?) it's not a bad interview.  Nothing new but some interesting bits:

On being Baby E:

Her workout is so rigorous, she goes through a new pair of sneakers (size 9) every two weeks. “You have to do it,” she says. “Tennis is much more powerful and aggressive these days.” Also, the tennis press will mercilessly grill you about your “fitness,” one of those code words journalists use for overweight. Until she hired a fitness coach who amped up her workout and got her to cut out pizza, cheese, and desserts (she’s got a sweet tooth), it was a question she occasionally had to confront. “When I was sixteen, I had a little baby fat,” she admits. “But in the last three years, I have worked really hard to change that.” It has paid off. At six feet one and 152 pounds, Ivanovic is all muscle.

On being the nice girl in a mean girl world:

“Having your mother with you gets rid of the loneliness. When I first came on the tour, I thought I was going to make friends, but I would try to talk to people and they would all look at me funny. I realized, OK, that’s not going to happen.” In the beginning, her mother, a slim blonde who keeps a watchful eye on her daughter in public, used to remind her she didn’t have to play tennis if she didn’t want to. “She doesn’t say that anymore,” says Ivanovic, “but whenever I get really stressed, she reminds me that tennis should make me happy, not miserable.”

Tignor on Ana:

“Ana Ivanovic is very good for women’s tennis, and not just because she’s good-looking,” says Steve Tignor, the executive editor of Tennis Magazine. “She doesn’t just hit the ball hard; she’s smooth. She makes it look effortless. She also happens to be a nice, well-rounded person. She comes into the press conference and makes jokes. She’s not defensive. The fact that she’s a normal person at the top of her sport is really rare—the normal people tend to get weeded out as they go up.”
...
“I don’t know if she can really dominate the game,” he said. “I don’t know if she has the fierceness to do it. Ana is more motivated by the joy of playing.” 

Heaven forbid.