2015 AUS OPEN: Women's Final Preview and Semifinals Review

Serena Williams (USA) [1] vs Maria Sharapova (RUS) [2]

This is my post previewing the women's final and reviewing the women's semifinals at the 2015 Australian Open. Last year I correctly predicted that Li Na would defeat Dominika Cibulkova in the women's final of the 2014 Australian Open. This year I correctly predicted 2 of 2 women's semifinals, 2 of 4 women's quarterfinals, 2 of 2 men's semifinals and 3 of 4 men's quarterfinals.

How They Got Here: Women's Semifinals Review
Serena Williams (USA) [1] d. Madison Keys (USA) 7-6(5) 6-2. By her performance against the World #1 Madison Keys demonstrated that her breakthrough results of beating 2-time Grand Slam champion Petra Kvitova and 7-time major champion Venus Williams on her journey to the 19-year-old's first major semifinal. Keys rushed to a 3-1 lead in the first set before Serena was able to right the ship and break back to even the score. The match continued on serve until the tiebreak, with Keys demonstrating her ability to match (and perhaps overmatch, on the forehand side) the 18-time major champion's powerful groundstrokes. Then, in the tiebreak Keys was able to save 2 set points with consecutive aces before Serena won the set on her 3rd set point with a service winner. In the second set it was Serena who sprinted out to a 5-1 lead and despite having 7 match points in this Keys service game, Serena was unable to impose her will on her opponent, instead she was forced to serve out the match in her next service game. Hopefully, Keys will take confidence from this result to improve her day-to-day result on the women's tour and try to replicate this success at the other majors.

 Maria Sharapova (RUS) [2] d. Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) [10] 6-3 6-2. Sharapova has been playing some of her sharpest hard-court tennis in years, which her left-handed compatriot discovered right away when Makarova was unable to convert any of the four game points she enjoyed in the first two games of the match and quickly found herself down 0-3. With a lead on the scoreboard Sharapova could really go for her shots and this forced Makarova to go for too much in order to compensate, and making far too many errors to ever make this semifinal much of a match, which was a pity because Sharapova had previously displayed frailty against another Russian earlier in the tournament. In fact, ever since she survived two match points against Alexandra Panova in the second round Sharapova has been playing with increased intensity (which is saying something since it is not like Sharapova plays lackadaisically at the worst of times.)

Who Will Win: Women's Final Preview

By getting to the final, Serena insured that she will retain the World #1 ranking despite what happens in this match. Of course everyone knows that Serena has won their last 15 meetings over the last ten years, and in 2007 played what I consider one of her best matches of her career by demolishing Sharapova 6-1 6-2 in the women's final. It's really hard to explain why the rivalry is so one-sided in Serena's favor but the statistics are ugly. In the last 15 matches the two have played the Russian has struggled to win games, let alone sets. In 7 of those matches Sharapova failed to win more than 5 games! She has only won 3 sets and lost 30.

With that being said, Sharapova is playing excellent tennis and does have the game to beat Serena, it is just hard to see how this will come to pass if Serena is healthy and motivated. And the one person she will always be motivated to beat is Sharapova. It is Serena's 23rd major final and 6th in Australia (she is 18-4 overall and 5-0 in Melbourne). It is Sharapova's 10th final and she is 5-4; she's lost Australian Open finals to Victoria Azarenka (in 2012) and Serena in 2007. She has also lost a Wimbledon final to Kvitova and a French Open final to Serena.

MadProfessah's prediction: Serena in 2 sets.

2014 US OPEN: Women's Semifinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's semifinals at the US Open for 2014. Last year I correctly predicted  4 of 4 women's quarterfinals, 2 of 2 women's semifinals, 2 of 2 men's semifinals and 2 of 4 men's quarterfinals. This year I have correctly predicted 2 of 4 women's quarterfinals and 3 of 4 men's quarterfinals at the U.S. Open.

Serena Williams (USA) [1] vs Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) [17] Victoria Azarenka (BLR) [16].  17-time major champion Serena Williams is only 2 matches away from her long-awaited 18th major title, and 3rd consecutive in New York City. Standing in her way is the lefty Russian who was on the other side of the net when Serena's run in the doubles with her sister Venus Williams came to an end on Tuesday in the quarterfinals. Serena boasts a clear 3-1 head-to-head lead on Makarova. However, that one win came in a grand slam (2012 Australian Open) so Serena knows better than to take this match-up lightly. Makarova is playing some of the best tennis of her life, having reached her first major semifinal of her career.  However, there are only four people who have more than win against Serena Williams in a major (Venus, Jennifer Capriati, Justine Henin and Samantha Stosur). Does anyone think that Ekaterina Makarova is going to be added to this list? PREDICTION: Williams.

Shuai Peng (CHN) vs Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) [10]. Both players are playing some of the best tennis of their lives. Peng still has not dropped a set through 5 rounds of play here and has been one of the best doubles players in the world for the last year. Wozniacki's resurgence has been well-documented and clearly came to fruition with her gutsy 3-set win over Sharapova in the fourth round and her ruthless demolition of Sara Errani in the quarterfinal (giving up only one game!) The Great Dane has a 5-1 head-to-head advantage over Peng, but more than that she wants to get into a major final, especially against her good friend Serena Williams, whom she knows she can win at least one set against, after all she has done it twice in the last month.  PREDICTION: Wozniacki. 

2013 WIMBLEDON: Women's Final Preview

Sabine Lisicki (GER) [23] vs. Marion Bartoli (FRA) [15]

The players are set for the 2013 women's final at the Wimbledon Championships. Last year I correctly predicted Serena Williams would defeat Agnieska Radwanska in the Women's Final and I also correctly predicted Roger Federer would defeat Andy Murray in the Mens Final. This year I correctly predicted 2 of 2 women's semifinals and and the 2 of 2 men's semifinals. What follows is my analysis of this year's women's final between Sabine Lisicki and Marion Bartoli.

How They Got Here: Women's Semifinals Review

Sabine Lisicki (GER) [23] d. Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) [4] 6-4 2-6 9-7. Somewhat surprisingly, this was the best match of the tournament so far, which is something I didn't think we would be saying after Lisicki's astonishing 6-2 1-6 6-4 termination of Serena William's winning streak in the Round of 16. Many people expected that Radwanska's "bag of tricks" would be too much for the somewhat one-dimensional "Big Babe" playing style of Lisicki, who is known as Boom-Boom for her big serve and forehand. Radwanska doesn't force a win in her matches, she forces her opponents to go for too much so that they lose the match. This is a brilliant strategy in a game which is built around the mathematics of the zero sum: every point your opponent loses is a point that you win. No one embodies that central rule of tennis into their game like the World #4. Lisicki loves to play on grass and on Centre Court especially. All of her best results (really, all of her major results) have occurred at Wimbledon. But Radwanska loves this tournament too, since she reached her first major final here last year. 

The book on Lisicki is that she can play strongly for periods of time, but that eventually she will go off and that's where your opponent has their chance. Serena thought that's what had happened when she was up 3-0 in the third set and surely Radwanska must have thought the same thing when she was in the same position. The only person at Wimbledon who thought that Lisicki would be able to complete another comeback from such a deficit was Lisicki herself, and she did it. But then Radwanska refused to buckle and the two went deep into the deciding set, past 4-all, to 5-all, 6-all and even 7-all. Radwanska was then broken in the 15th game of the third set after some hard hitting returns and a volley error by the Pole. Boom-Boom did a better job of serving for the match on her second opportunity (she had done so at 5-4 but was only one point on serve that time), going up quickly to 40-0 to triple match point and after blowing one she was able to finish it off with a clear winner on the return of service return. She becomes the first German player to reach a grand slam final since Fraulein Forehand herself, Stefanie Graf did, in 1999. (It should be noted, Graf lost that final to Lindsay Davenport).

Marion Bartoli (FRA) [15] d. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) [20] 6-1 6-2. This match turned out to more of a mismatch, as Bartoli came out with a determined game plan to absolutely crunch ever service return and Flipkens' backhand slice did not prevent the Frenchwoman from pounding the ball into the corners on both wings. Clearly the Belgian did not play her best tennis, seemingly a bit overwhelmed by the occasion, but Bartoli saw her opportunity, grabbed it by the throat and throttled it viciously, reaching only her 2nd major final in 6 years, the longest gap since her countrywoman (and part-time "advisor") Amelie Mauresmo took 7 years between reaching the Australian Open finals in 1999 (l. Martina Hingis) and 2006 (d. Justin Henin). Could the second time be as charmed for this Frenchwoman?

What Will Happen: Women's Final Preview

Sabine Lisicki (GER) [23] vs. Marion Bartoli (FRA) [15]. Mentally you have to give the edge to Bartoli because she has reached the final of Wimbledon before and she has to be less mentally tired having a much easier run to the final (the Frenchwoman has not dropped a set!) compared to Lisicki who had two emotionally draining victories against Serena in the 4th round and Radwanska in the 6th round. I think Bartoli's apparently large mental edge is countered somewhat by the Lisicki's inherent belief that she is destined to win Wimbledon. From the beginning of the tournament she has been telling the press that she knows it takes seven matches to win the tournament, even though she embraces her reputation as a Giantkiller who can put together a great match against any one in the draw. Clearly the bookmakers agree, since they have made the German the betting favorite ever since she eliminated the defending champion from the draw. 

Physically you have to give the edge to Lisicki, primarily because she is in better shape than Bartoli and because she is a better mover, especially on grass. Bartoli plays with two hands on both sides, a la Monica Seles which gives her balanced power on both sides at the expense of reach. She also has surprisingly good hands and can generate spins whenever she wants, which is something Lisicki is not known for. The German is fond of her drop shots, and I expect she will be deploying that fairly often to exploit the deficits in movement of her opponent. But Bartoli is in much better shape than she was when she got to the final in 2007 and is faster than she looks. On the forehand side, Lisicki is clearly superior but on the backhand side Bartoli has the edge, and her edge on the backhand side is bigger than Lisicki's on the forehand side. The serve you have to also give to Lisicki, both  her first and second serve are better than Bartoli, but "The Genius" has shown us that she can produce brilliant serving before, most notably when she took out the defending Wimbledon champion Serena Williams in 2011. (It should be noted that the very next round she played Lisicki and lost a tough 3-set quarterfinal, getting blown out in the 3rd set.) 

In their career head-to-head Lisicki leads 3-1, although the two have split their two meeting here at Wimbledon on grass, with Lisicki winning their last meeting in 2011 and Bartoli winning their first in 2008 when both players were very different players. This is a pretty hard match to call, but just as the Li-Radwanska and Lisicki-Radwanska matches, I have to go with the power over control, with the better athlete. (I was wrong in the first example, but vindicated in the second.) I have been told that it is likely that this match will be first-strike tennis, with lots of short points. If this does happen, it would greatly favor Bartoli, and she could win in two lopsided sets (especially if Lisicki is overwhelmed by the occasion.) But I think that Lisicki can scramble enough to complicate things for Bartoli fairly often, and with good serving on Lisiki's end, more of the scoreboard pressure will be on Bartoli, who may also have more pressure because she wants it too much. At age 28 she knows how rare these opportunities arise in a career. That being said, it is a great day for women's tennis when a new Grand Slam champion is crowned and regardless of who wins tomorrow will be a great day.

PREDICTION: Lisicki. 

Celebrity Friday: Clijsters Withdraws From US Open

2-time defending US Open champion Kim Clijsters today withdrew from the 2012 US Open with an abdominal strain. Clijsters had won the title in New York the last three times she played in the tournament, in 2005 (d. Mary Pierce), 2009 (d. Caroline Wozniacki) and 2010 (d. Vera Zvonareva) maintaining a winning streak which dates back to her final loss to Justine Henin in 2003.

Clijsters also won the Australian Open this year but Serena Williams did not defend her 2010 title. Since her return, Serena has won 12 hard-court matches in a row which netted her two titles and must now be considered the favorite to win her 14th major title in New York this year.

Justine Henin Retires From Tennis (Again)

On Wednesday, 7-time major champion Justine Henin announced her retirement from tennis for the second time. Henin had previously retired on May 14, 2008 but announced the end of her retirement 18 months later on Septermber 22, 2009. Suspicious tennis fans noted that the duration of her "retirement" closely matched the duration of a fine would receive for a doping violation. That being said, Justine has never failed a drug test as far as I know.

From USA Today:

"The past few weeks, there was a little bit more pain every day, but I thought my willpower would prevail. Today, the tests and my doctors are adamant," Henin said.

She was ranked No. 1 when she abruptly announced her retirement in 2008, only to return 20 months later and reach last year's Australian Open final. She partially tore a ligament in the elbow in a tumble at Wimbledon last year and hasn't been the same since.

"It is clear now that I have to accept that my career ends for good," said Henin, currently ranked No. 13. "Even if it is hard, very hard, at a time when I came back with enormous fighting spirit."

Somehow I think that her Belgian compatriot will not be following her example. Wouldn't it be something if Kim Clijsters could match Justine's 7 majors before her retirement next year?

Best (Women's) Tennis Matches of 2010

Here are my picks for the "best" (most memorable) tennis matches by women in 2010. These are basically the matches that had the most impact on me while they were occurring, feature some of the best play, had the most impact on the rest of the year or would be ones that I would most likely to watch again in the future. You can see my previous lists: Best Women's Tennis Matches of 2009 ,Best Women's Tennis Matches of 2007, and  Best Women's Tennis Matches of 2006.

1. S. Williams USA d. J. Henin BEL, 6-4 3-6 6-2, 2010 Australian Open final, Melbourne.

The finals of the 2010 Grand Slam tournaments (Australian, French, Wimbledon, U.S.) are often contenders for the most memorable matches of the year, due to the historic and reputational stakes at play depending on the result which sometimes (but not often) leads to high-quality tennis. The set up for this match was Justine Henin's return to professional tennis after a "retirement" of just over 18 months. The two had never been friendly and Henin had beaten Serena Williams in three consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinals the last year they had met in 2007. Williams had won this tournament 4 times before (always in an odd year) and had never been able to successfully defend an Australian Open title. She had also had a near-death experience on her way to the final against Vika Azarenka; it was unclear if this would strengthen or weaken her confidence. What resulted was a match for the ages; Henin (inexplicably) decided to radically modify her game and go for broke on her return-of-serve and basically hit the ball as hard as she could whenever she had the opportunity. She also repeatedly rushed the net. Williams was placed into the unusual position for her of facing someone who was being even more aggressive on court. It was a high-stakes gamble for Henin which in one 10 minute period towards the end of the second set appeared to be paying dividends when the Belgian was able to win 4 games in a row (barely losing a point). However, in the third set Williams steadied her game and Henin's match inexperience with her own new service motion led to her downfall as the double faults and missed serves began to pile up, allowing Serena to win her 5th Australian Open title and 12th major title overall.

2. S. Stosur AUS d. S. Williams USA, 6-2 6-7(2) 8-6, 2010 French Open quarterfinal, Paris.

This was the match that decided the 2010 Roland Garros title. I am absolutely convinced that if Serena Williams had won this match she would have gone on to win her second French Open title. Amazingly, Williams actually possessed a match point late in the third set but hit an attempted winner down-the-line (instead of cross-court!) an inch or two long. Samantha Stosur had been widely regarded as a very talented doubles player but not really much of a singles threat at a major prior to this tournament. In fact, Williams had easily beaten Stosur in straight sets in Australia earlier in the year. However, in the 2010 clay court season Stosur had the most match wins of anyone on tour and her universally respected serve had become more of a weapon as her confidence increased in direct proportion to her match-win total. Always an excellent mover and possessing a great top-spin forehand as well as a both a slice and two-handed backhand, Stosur's Achilles heel had been her mental toughness. However, after beating Justine Henin, the 4-time French Open champion in the round before, Stosur showed that she had made significant progress towards erasing those doubts and took the rightful place her talent indicated in the Top 5 of Women's Tennis and a perennial threat to win major titles in the future.

3. K. Clijsters BEL d. V. Williams, 4-6 7-6(2) 6-4, 2010 U.S. Open semifinal, New York City.

A major tournament is always diminished by the absence of the #1 player in the world, even if they are not the defending champion. Serena Williams' absence at the 2010 US Open loomed over the tournament like the very dark stormclouds which disturbed play in the later rounds. Serena's absence led to speculation that it could help her sister Venus Williams to her best performance at a non-Wimbledon major tournament since 2003. Venus was not at her best physically but had a dream draw until she ran into defending champion Kim Clijsters after winning 5 matches relatively easily. The result was another curious showdown between Venus and Kim (but not as curious as 2009's 6-0 0-6 6-4 quarterfinal result) where the Belgian was able to come out on top by simply playing the big points better even though Venus basically dictated play for most of the match. Venus failed to respond to the call of history when the big moments showed up (2nd set tiebreak and 4-all in the third). Clijsters went on to win her 3rd US Open title in three tries and has a remarkable winning streak in New York dating back to 2005. Hopefully she can broaden her success to the other majors before she leaves the tour again in 2012.

4. K. Clijsters BEL d. J. Henin BEL, 6-3 4-6 7-6(6), Brisbane International final, Brisbane.

This was the first match that I saw in 2010 that I knew would end up on this list of the most memorable of the year. Despite their public protestations to the contrary, it is clear the "Belgian sisters" Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin do not like each other and that became blindingly clear in as this match progressed. Henin was playing in one of her first matches back on the tour, and Clijsters was coming off her 2009 US Open win. Clijsters easily won the first set and was cruising up 4-1 in the second when suddenly the wheels fell off and she couldn't buy a first serve or keep the ball in play. Henin, always one to take advantage when seeing an opponent in distress, easily won the 2nd set and was up a break in the third when Kim woke up from her "walkabout" and resumed playing high-quality tennis. In fact, the third set contained some of the best tennis played by any two women on tour all year. Clijsters came back from down a break (twice!) at 3-1 and 5-3 but fought back to take the match to a third-set tie-break. Henin was not done, saving 3 match points in the tie-break before finally succumbing. The length of the rallies, brilliant shot-making, and impossible defense were breathtaking and made this tennis fan very happy that both of these great champions had un-retired and returned to the Tour.

5. F. Schiavone ITA d. S. Stosur AUS, 6-4 7-6(2), 2010 French Open final, Paris.

No Italian woman had ever been in the Top 10 of the women's tour and certainly never in the final of a major championship. At nearly 30 years old, who would have expected Francesca Schiavone to lose the first set she played at the 2010 Roland Garros tournament and then never lose another, eventually holding the Coupe de Suzanne Lenglen after outplaying a stronger, bigger (and arguably more talented) player in the final? But that's exactly what happened and the tennis world was the better for it. By winning Schiavone again demonstrated why we watch sports: you never know what could happen; impossible dreams can come true. Schiavone ended the year at World #7.

6. V. Zvonareva RUS d. K. Clijsters BEL, 3-6 6-4 6-2, 2010 Wimbledon quarterfinal, London.
This year's Wimbledon was an odd tournament for me because I was actually in London for the final 5 days of the tournament (but only had tickets to the men's final). Anyway, because of this I actually saw much less of the latter round matches than usual (but still predicted the winners with better than average accuracy). Vera Zvonareva had her great breakthrough in 2010 at last, when her other, more famous Russian contemporaries (Dinara Safina, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva) either flamed out, wimped out or limped away from the court. That Zvonareva was talented was never in doubt; she's an excellent mover, has a world-class two-handed backhand and great hands at the net. Similar to Samantha Stosur, it was her emotional fortitude that had been tested and found wanting (her 2009 meltdown to Flavia Pennetta is legendary). Somehow, this year, on the grass of Wimbledon, trading backhand after backhand with Kim Clijsters, Vera found a way to play through the mental tumult by realizing the game of tennis is actually quite simple: just hit the ball into the court more times than your opponent. Surprisingly, it was the 2-time major champion who wilted first, handing the Russian just her second major semifinal berth of her career. Vera did not squander this opportunity and made it all the way to her first major final where she ran into an unstoppable force named Serena Williams. It's not clear that this tournament's winner was ever in doubt when both Williams sisters were in the draw, but this match at Wimbledon was a crucial turning point for women's tennis for 2010 when Zvonareva proved that she had reached the very pinnacle of women's tennis, ending the year at World #2.

7. S. Williams USA d. V. Azarenka BLR, 4-6 7-6(4) 6-2, Australian Open quarterfinal, Melbourne.

Serena Williams was down 6-4, 4-0 against the hard-hitting Victoria Azarenka when suddenly both players realized that Serena Williams, the 4-time defending Australian Open champion could lose this match. This realization had immediate and opposite impacts on both players. Azarenka started playing more tentatively (and was probably impacted by the fact that it was almost exactly a year before that she had had Serena in a similar position on this same court after easily winning the first set when Vika was forced to retire from the match due to the extreme heat). Serena on the other hand was enraged with herself and basically willed herself not to lose, slowly but surely making up the huge deficit against Azarenka point by point and game by game. Everyone watching the match was pretty convinced that the 2nd set tie-breaker would be determinative. If Vika won, the match would be over (obviously) but if Serena could come back to even the match score the mental and physical advantage would be hers. The tie-break was a taught, nervy affair but Serena was the more aggressive player and won the tie-break and went on to win the match. She was never really in much danger of not defending her title after that moment.

8. S. Stosur AUS d. E. Dementieva RUS, 6-3 2-6 7-6(2), 2010 US Open 4th Round, New York City.

The latest finish of any professional women's match of all time was an incredible slugfest between two great players who have never won a major title. This match was what Pam Shriver calls a "barn burner." On both sides of the net one saw world-class ground-strokes, excellent net play, incredible movement and mental anguish. Both players became tentative on their serve and both players blew leads which should have been insurmountable. This was really Dementieva's match to win. She broke Stosur impressive serve four consecutive times in the second set and in the third had a match point at 5-3 on her own serve as well as three more on Stosur's serve in the next game. Amazingly, almost all of these match points were decided by winners by Stosur who kept on going for her shots, despite being pummeled by powerful ground-strokes from the Russian. After that excitement it was only fitting that it came down to a 3rd set tiebreak, where surprisingly, it Dementieva's game which broke down first and she lost the match on a series of forehand errors at 1:36am.

9. E. Dementieva RUS d. L. Safarova CZE, 6-7(5) 6-1 6-4, Open Gaz de France Suez final.

In a curious twist of fate, Elena Dementieva won what was her last career tour title in front of Amelie Mauresmo, who had won this final hometown title the year prior to retiring at the end of 2009. This year it was Dementieva's turn for one last hurrah as she faced a determined Lucia Safarova who played "out of her head," aiming for the corners and regularly connecting to send winners screaming to the baseline out of reach of the Russian. There were some incredible, hard-hitting baseline rallies until finally Safarova's inconsistency caught up with her and she succumbed to the greatest player never to have won a major championship. I wonder who Dementieva will be watching win this title from the stands in 2011?

10. S. Williams USA d. V. Zvonareva, 6-3 6-2, 2010 Wimbledon final, London.

It's not very often that the Wimbledon final is not one of the top 5 most memorable matches in the final but that's exactly what happened this year. The reason why this match is even on this list because it was the very last match Serena Williams played in 2010, and it demonstrated how dismissive she could be of the player who ended the year ranked World #2 and had an envious second half of the year, with two consecutive Grand Slam final appearances, something no woman has done since Serena in 2008. There was never really any doubt who would win this match, or the 2010 Wimbledon title. Hopefully, Serena will return early enough in 2011 to make another impressive mark on the majors next year.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

S. Williams USA d N. Li CHN, 7-6(4) 7-6(1), 2010 Australian Open semifinal, Melbourne.

K. Clijsters BEL d. C. Wozniacki DEN, 6-3 5-7 6-3, WTA Championships final.

S. Kuznetsova RUS d. A. Radwanska POL, 6-4 6-7(7) 6-3, Southern California Open final.

V. Zvonareva RUS d. C. Wozniacki DEN, 6-4 6-3, 2010 U.S. Open semifinal.

C. Wozniacki  DEN d. M. Sharapova RUS, 6-3 6-4, 2010 U.S. Open 4th Round.
K. Clijsters BEL d. S. Stosur AUS, 6-4 5-7 6-3, 2010 U.S. Open quarterfinal.

J. Jankovic SRB d. S. Williams USA, 4-6 6-3 7-6(5), Rome semifinal.

J. Jankovic SRB d. V. Williams USA, 6-0 6-1, Rome quarterfinal.
K. Clijsters BEL d. J. Henin BEL, 2-6 6-2 6-3, 2010 Wimbledon Championships 4th round.

S. Stosur AUS d. J. Henin BEL, 2-6 6-1 6-4, 2010 Roland Garros 4th Round.

K. Clijsters BEL d. V. Williams USA, 6-1 6-2, Sony Ericsson Championship final.

P. Kvitova CZE d. K. Kanepi EST 4-6 7-6(8) 8-6, 2010 Wimbledon Championships quarterfinal.

J. Henin BEL d. E. Dementieva RUS, 7-5 7-6(6), 2010 Australian Open 2nd Round.

AUS OPEN 2011: Serena Williams Won't Defend Title

Serena Williams tweeted this picture about 2 weeks ago but this week dashed the hopes of her fans hoping to see her add to her 13 major titles any time soon by announcing she would not defend her 2010 Australian Open title due to injury:

As I continue to rehabilitate my foot after the second surgery last month, it is with the utmost regret that I am withdrawing from the Hopman Cup and the 2011 Australian Open Championships. As I recently learned, pushing myself back into my intense training too early only caused me further injury and damage. While I desperately want to be back on the court and competing in the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, it is imperative for my health that I continue to work with my doctors to ensure my foot heals properly. This decision, though heavy on my heart, is the right one. I am praying for a healthy recovery and I promise my Aussie fans and my fans around the world that I will be back better than ever as soon as I can be.

In 2010, Serena won her 5th Australian Open by defeating Justine Henin in the final in 3 tense sets. By failing to defend her title Serena will probably fall out of the Top 10. In 2010 she only played in 6 tournaments, winning 2 majors (Australian and Wimbledon).

US OPEN 2010: Women's Final Preview

Kim Clijsters BEL (2) vs Vera Zvonareva RUS (7). For the second consecutive major championship this summer Vera Zvonareva will be playing in a Grand Slam final which she has almost no chance of winning. At Wimbledon in London it was a final against the defending champion Serena Williams, at the US Open in New York she will be playing against the defending champion Kim Clijsters.Vera has defied expectations before, particularly taking out last year's finalist and this year's top-seeded player, Caroline Wozniacki. The Great Dane's dismissal was a surprise to some, but not to yours truly, who watched some of Vera's early matches and realized that she had the weapons to dismiss the young counter-puncher.

Clijsters leads Zvonareva head-to-head 5-2, but surprisingly the two victories by the Russian have occurred in the last two matches the two have contested, including a 3-set win at Montreal en route to the final where she had lost to Wozniacki. Clijsters played an excellent, tough-minded match (one of the best of the tournament) to defeat 2-time U.S. Open champion Venus Williams in 3-sets. Clijsters lost the first set, and was up a break in the second set, lost that lead but still managed to win the set when Venus played an awful tiebreak (4 double faults!). However, at 4-all in the third set, Clijsters played an amazing topspin lob winner on breakpoint and coolly served to hold serve and collect the W. There's not much to stop her from doing so again, and becoming the first person since Venus to defend her US Open title.

MadProfessah's prediction: Clijsters in 2 sets.

US OPEN 2010: Women's Semifinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's semifinals at the 2010 US Open. I previously predicted 4 of 4 women's quarterfnals correctly.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (1) vs. Vera Zvonareva RUS (7). Interestingly, these two have a tied career head-to-head (2 and 2, 1 on 1 on hard courts), with Wozniacki winning the last time these two played in the final of the Rogers Cup 6-3 6-2 in Montreal during the Dane's great run through the US Open Series this summer. They have both been in one major final (Wozniacki US Open 2009, Zvonareva Wimbledon 2010) with Zvonareva being in 3 major semifinals to Wozniacki's 2. Can Zvonareva play real big babe tennis more consistently than Maria Sharapova was able to? I say yes. There's a reason why Zvonareva is ranked #8 in the world.. Then again Wozniacki is ranked #2 in the world and is the top seed here, thanks to the absence of World #1 Serena Williams. Even though I was convinced by her performance against Sharapova that Wozniacki is "for real" I still have a feeling that Vera will not go away quietly. Regardless, I think the eventual titleholder of this year's event will not come from this semifinal. PREDICTION: Zvonareva in 3 sets.    

Venus Williams USA (3) vs.  Kim Clijsters BEL (2). Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters have played each other twelve times and their career head-to-head is tied at 6-all. However, on hard courts Clijsters leads 4-3 with Clijsters winning every hard court match the two have contested since 2005. Additionally, Clijsters has won 19 matches in a row at the US Open dating back to 2005 (she did not play the event in the years 2006 through 2008). Venus has not really been tested (despite 2010 French Open champ Francesca Schiavone's best efforts), and has somehow managed to make it to the semifinals of the US Open (for the first time since 2007, when Justine Henin took out both Serena and Venus to win the title over Svetlana Kuznetsova) without losing a set. That will almost certainly change on Friday, especially since Venus' mobility is clearly sub-optimal. These two played one of the most bizarrely lopsided matches of all time (6-0, 0-6, 6-4) won by Clijsters on the way to the title. It is very likely Clijsters will become the first player in 9 years (since her opponent did it in 2001) to defend her US Open title. PREDICTION: Clijsters in 3 sets. 

WIMBLEDON 2010: Women's Quarterfinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's quarterfinals at the Wimbledon Championships for 2010.

Serena Williams USA (1) vs Na Li CHN (9). The only year this century that there has not been a Williams sister in the Wimbledon final was 2006 (Mauresmo beat Henin) and that fluke will not be repeated in 2010. Li Na is one of my favorite players (my dog is named after her!) and is an excellent grass-court tennis player. She won the warm-up tournament in Birmingham this year (defeating Maria Sharapova) and is the first Chinese player in the world's top 10. These two players met in the Australian Open semifinals this year, after Li had beaten Venus Williams in the quarterfinals and Serena beat Li in a very tight match (in two tiebreak sets) despite not playing her best tennis and experiencing movement difficulties. Serena looks 100% at Wimbledon right now and is serving like a woman on a mission. She has yet to drop a set in this year's tournament and is unlikely to do so on her way to the final. PREDICTION: Serena in 2 sets.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (3) Petra Kvitova CZE vs. Kaia Kanepi EST. This is the "anonymous" quarterfinal which will probably not get any television coverage. However, it should be a barn burner. Kvitova has ended her last two matches by bagelling her opponents, World #3 Caroline Wozniacki and former Top 10 Victoria Azarenka. The only person she has lost a set to is last year's semifinalist Zheng Jie. Kaia Kanepi is no joke either, and has long been regarded as a player to watch. Both players simply crush the ball on both wings. However, they are both in uncharted territory playing in their first Grand Slam quarterfinal with a chance to reach a major semifinal for the first time (where they are likely to face defending champion Serena Williams). I believe Kvitova is ready to reach that level. PREDICTION: Kvitova in 3 sets.

Kim Clijsters BEL (8) vs. Vera Zvonareva RUS (21) Jelena Jankovic SRB (4). Many, many commentators were salivating over the 4th round clash between the "Belgian sisters"--their first meeting in a major since they both un-retired. Before that sabbatical, Clijsters had a very unremarkable 2-5 record against Henin and only had won one major (and did not face her nemesis) t her rival's seven. Since their return Clijsters has won another major and has beaten Justine all three times they met. It appears as if the 18-month gap of parenthood and maturity have done wonders for Clijsters' mental toughness. Mental toughness are NOT two words one associates with Vera Zvonareva. She was in the process of demolishing World #4 Jelena Jankovic when the Serbian fell on the court and retired from their 4th round match soon after. Zvonareva has great weapons, but as Svetlana Kuznetsova and Dinara Safina have repeatedly demonstrated, the most important weapon in a player's arsenal is not one that can be developed in the gym or the practice court. PREDICTION: Clijsters in 2 sets.

Venus Williams USA (2) vs. Tsvetana Pironkova BUL Marion Bartoli FRA (11). Mademoiselle Marion Bartoli did not hold up her half of the bargain to have this quarterfinal be a repeat of the 2007 Women's final by losing in two tight sets to Pironkova. Venus was relatively lucky herself to slip past hard-hitting Aussie Jarmila Groth in two very close sets. Pironkova and Venus have played before, most notably at the 2006 Australian Open where the Bulgarian bounced the American out of the tournament in the 2nd round, winning 9-7 in the third set. I'd be shocked if Venus allows Pironkova to win 9 games in the entire match this time. PREDICTION: Venus in 2 sets.

WIMBLEDON 2010: Serena and Venus Into 4th Round

Venus Williams and Serena Williams are both into the fourth round of the Ladies' Singles and in the quarterfinals of the Ladies' Doubles at Wimbledon. Serena will play Maria Sharapova in the round of 16, a reprise of the 2004 Women's final won by the 17-year-old Russian 6-1 6-4. Venus faces Australian Jarmila Groth and has a reasonably clear path until the semifinal, where she will likely face the winner of the Kim Clijsters/Justine Henin 4th round match (or possibly Jelena Jankovic). Once Serena gets past Sharapova, she has an easier path to her 3rd consecutive women's final, where, for the 9th time in 11 years, a Williams sister will win the title again.

FRENCH OPEN 2010: Women's Final Preview

Francesca Schiavone ITA (17) vs.

Samantha Stosur AUS (7)

One of the most surprising grand slam tournaments in recent tennis history is coming to a conclusion with a final where for the first time in 6 years neither of the combatants has been in a a major final previously. World #7 Samantha Stosur has reached this point by beating a series of excellent clay court players, one after another starting with a tight dismissal of Justine Henin, followed by outlasting Serena Williams and ending with a 2-set blowout of Jelena Jankovic. On the other hand, Francesca Schiavone has had the best luck of anyone in the tournament, having won every set she has played except for the very first, all the while facing a significantly lower level of competition. In her last match, her opponent Elena Dementieva retired after losing a close tie-break set!

In 2009 Schiavone and Stosur met in the first round of Roland Garros and the Australian won easily 6-4 6-2. Head-to-head Schiavone won the first match the two played in 2005 and has not won in 4 attempts, with two of these matches occurring on clay.

Although Schiavone is a big match player and will probably handle the pressure of playing in her first major final than Stosur, the Australian has so much more power in her game that even with a slump she should still win her first major singles title relatively easily.

MadProfessah's pick: Stosur in 2 sets.

FRENCH OPEN 2010: Women's Semifinals Preview

I previously made predictions of the four women's quarterfinals and four men's quarterfinals and got 4 of 8 results correct at this year's French Open. The 2010 Roland Garros women's semifinals are now set.

Serena Williams USA (1) Samantha Stosur AUS (7) vs. Jelena Jankovic SRB (4). Samantha Stosur has the most clay court wins of anyone on tour this year. She showed that she can take out players who are expected to beat her with two exceptional, consecutive 3-set wins over 4-time French Open champ Justine Henin and 12-time major champion Serena Williams. She may possess the best serve in women's tennis right now. It was this difference which was most glaring in her defeat of Serena in the quarters. Stosur had quieter (but more effective) service stats (6 aces to one double fault) than Serena (13 aces, 9 double faults). Her second serve has a wicked kick which will push almost any opponent deep behind the baseline. Her next opponent is Jelena Jankovic who has lived up to her seeding (the only member of the Top 4 to do so) and is appearing in her sixth career major semifinal. Stosur is appearing in her second. Jankovic also sports a 3-1 career head-to-head edge over the Australian, but then again so did Serena Williams, with all their previous encounters occurring on hard courts. I actually like and appreciate both players' games so I will not be upset which ever player wins. In this case, I think Stosur will have the larger momentum and greater boost of her confidence having already beaten two great champions to reach this point. I think she will not stop until Stosur becomes a grand slam champion herself.
MadProfessah's pick: Stosur in 3 sets.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (3) Francesca Schiavone ITA (17) vs. Elena Dementieva RUS (5). This was supposed to be where Venus Williams was supposed to take advantage of the top heavy draw and finally make her way to another French Open final. Sadly, that dream was deferred by the excellent play of Nadia Petrova who then could not sustain a lead against her friend and doubles partner Elena Dementieva, an ended up choking on 3rd-set bagel. Francesca Schiavone is a big match player. A few weeks before her 30th birthday she is in her first major semifinal, the first woman from Italy to be in a major final in over a generation. Although I love her game (that one handed backhand! the shotmaking!), I predicted that the World's 3rd ranked player would take her out easily but Schiavone flipped the script aruond and dismissed Caroline Wozniacki 6-2 6-3 in a match that was not as close as the score indicates. This match is the hardest one for me to predict. The two have played 10 tour matches, with only one on clay (won by Dementieva) and with the Russian holding a slight 6-4 edge. Just as Schiavone has indicated her mental toughness in big matches, Dementieva has shown the opposite. I think that either Dementieva will be so nervous that Schiavone will blow her off the court in straight sets, or if Dementieva is able to win a set, she will be able to gut out an ugly 3-set win for her 3rd major final, her first in over six years. MadProfessah's pick: Schiavone in 2 sets or Dementieva in 3 sets.

FRENCH OPEN 2010: Women's Quarterfinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's quarterfinals at Roland Garros this year.

Serena Williams USA (1) vs. Samantha Stosur AUS (7) Justine Henin BEL (22). For the second year in a row, the winner of the tournament will be decided in the quarterfinal in which Serena Williams competes. Last year, Serena lost a nervy, tension-filled (frankly, ugly) quarterfinal match to eventual champion, Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova. This year instead of playing the 4-time Roland Garros champion Henin (who had a 24-match winning streak since Tathiana Garbin beat the 2003 defending champion in the second round at this tournament in 2004) Serena will face last year's semifinalist Samantha Stosur. The Serena-Justine showdown had been the most anticipated match on either side of the draw, even in a section of the draw called the "quarter of death" by Brad Gilbert. However, thanks to the hard-hitting, brilliant-serving Sam Stosur, that storyline is now dismissed from the tournament. Serena and Sam have only played four times (all on hard courts) with Stosur winning once, in Stanford last year. Serena is a woman on a mission, and will not be denied her chance to reach another Roland Garros final. PREDICTION: Serena in 3 sets.

Yaroslava Shvedova KAZ vs. Jelena Jankovic SRB (4). Surely Jelena Jankovic is too strong a defensive player to go through her entire career without winning a major? She made it to the 2008 U.S. Open final (losing to Serena in two close sets) but I believe that it is clay where her particular skills should be rewarded the most. Following that first major final Jankovic fell into a major downward spiral (although not as precipitous a decline as her Serbian countrywoman Ana Ivanovic, who although she possesses the 2008 French Open title still does not own a reliable second (or first) serve.) Jankovic has played well on clay this year, having beaten both Williams sisters on her way to the Rome final (which she lost). She should seize on the good fortune of not being in the "quarter of death" and sneak into her second major final. PREDICTION: Jankovic in 2 sets.

Francesca Schiavone ITA (17) vs. Caroline Wozniacki DEN (3). Wozniacki can regain the World #2 ranking by getting to the final, although I suspect her current Italian opponent and future Russian opponent will do their best to help maintain Venus Williams' hold on that position. This is the veteran Schiavone's 4th career quarterfinal, her second in Paris since reaching that lofty height in her debut at the tournament in 2001. The young Dane had never been past the 4th round of a major despite being on the tour for 3 years until her major breakthrough in New York (over Svetlana Kuznetsova in one of the very best matches of 2009) last year, where she lost the final to Kim Clijsters. In these clashes between wily veteran and talented youngster it is often the older player who comes out the loser because they more viscerally understand the significance (and rarity) of the moment and I expect this case to be no different. Youth will be served, again. PREDICTION:Wozniacki in 2 sets.

Elena Dementieva RUS (5) vs. Nadia Petrova RUS (19) Venus Williams USA (2). Oh, Venus! After getting past her 3rd Round Roland Garros jinx easily she meekly went out to the hard-hitting, mentally fragile Petrova on a cold wet day in straight sets, losing to someone she had never lost to on any surface. Sigh. Soon to turn 30 years-old, and for once blessed with a draw that had all the deadliest players in the other half for once, Venus couldn't keep it together long enough to make another deep run at the clay major, despite having amassed a very good record on clay this year. Petrova has always done well in Paris, first breaking through here at age 17 into the semifinals in 2003. Her opponent, Elena Dementieva, has quietly snuck through the draw, losing only one set in a tiebreak to Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada, with almost no one discussing her chances despite being a finalist here in 2004 and having played the best women's match on tour last year. Matches between the Russians are very often hideous, very tight affairs with one player losing worse than the other instead of one player winning decisively. That's what I expect to see in this match. Head-to-head there's not much between these two, they are tied 7-7 in career matches, 2-2 in clay court matches and 1-1 in grand slam matches. Petrova has won exactly 2 major quarterfinal matches before, here in Paris, while the 6-month-older Dementieva has won 8 major quarterfinals, although only one in Paris. PREDICTION: Dementieva in 3 sets.

FRENCH OPEN 2010: Venus Stunned By Petrova

Nadia Petrova took out World #2 Venus Williams 6-4 6-3 in the fourth round of the French Open today. World #1 Serena Williams recovered from experiencing dizziness against 18-year-old Anastasia Pavyluchenkova to win in 3-sets 6-1 1-6 6-2 to make the 4th round.

In other results, Maria Sharapova and Justine Henin played a taut, high-quality match in which ended at 1-set all on Saturday and then resumed on Sunday. The third set started with Sharapova leading 2-0 and 40-0 on Henin's serve, but the diminutive Belgian managed to hold serve there and break Sharapova twice for a 4-2 lead. Sharapova struck back and had a point to even the match at 4-all when Henin again managed to win three points in a row to break for 5-3and served out the match easily to win 6-2 3-6 6-3.

If Serena and Justine get through their next match (against Shahar Peer and Samantha Stosur) they will meet in the most anticipated quarterfinal of the tournament (in either draw). The other quarterfinal will feature the winner of Jelena Jankovic and Daniela Hantuchova.

The other half of the quartfinalists are set: Elena Dementieva versus Petrova, Caroline Wozniacki versus Francesco Schiavone. One of these four will make it to the 2010 Roland Garros women's final. Who will it be?