New WTA Tour Promotion Produces Porn; Bryan Brothers Continue Rip-the-ATP Tour
Posted on July 27, 2005
Agassi Rolls in Return at ATP Los AngelesAndre Agassi made his triumphant return from injury Tuesday at the ATP stop in L.A., destroying French lucky loser Jean-Rene Lisnard 6-1, 6-0 in 47 minutes to advance into the second round at the Mercedes-Benz Cup.
"Certainly coming out here for the first match in such a long time, I couldn't have expected that standard, to be that comfortable," said Agassi, who missed the entire grasscourt season and pulled from Indianapolis last week with his chronic nerve/back issue. "I just settled in early. Sometimes you can really get too anxious and never find your rhythm and fight yourself a little bit. I trusted my legs and found a nice rhythm with my shots. Six days of practice, I'd advise it for anybody."
The win ended a two-match losing streak for the former No. 1 who was coming off claycourt losses at the Masters Series-Hamburg and the French Open.
"I feel like I missed Wimbledon two years in a row, and I feel I've missed the French two years in a row," Agassi said. "I was out on the court in Paris and I literally couldn't move. Everything was hurting me...to sit down, it was hurting me to stand, it was hurting me to walk. And it was just helpless. I don't like that feeling."
After losing top draw Andy Roddick ("sore knee"), the tournament took another blow Tuesday when two other American fan favorites pulled from the event, No. 5 Taylor Dent out with illness after wilting in Sunday's Indy final, and Mardy Fish out with his ongoing wrist injury.
"I am extremely disappointed to still feel the affects of the final match in Indianapolis," said Dent, in some serious trouble being out of shape in the midst of the grueling heat of the U.S. summer circuit. "I'd be doing the tournament and myself a disservice to go out there at 50 percent. I'm going to take a few days to recover and prepare for the ATP Masters Series events."
Other seeded winners on the day were (2) Dominik Hrbaty (d. Beck) and (4) Tommy Haas (d. Karlovic), while two seeds were uprooted in (3) Nicolas Kiefer (l. to (WC) Blake, retiring in the first set with illness), and (9) Vince Spadea (l. to (Q) Fleishman in three).
Other un-seeds into the second round on the hardcourts were the pride of Luxembourg Gilles Muller (d. (Q) De Chaunac, saving four match points), Czech Jan Hernych (d. (Q) Bjorkman), Israeli qualifier Amir Hadad (d. (WC) Mamiit from a set down), Indy winner Robby Ginepri (d. Arthurs), and Russian (LL) Dmitry Tursunov (d. (LL) Okun).
Scheduled for Wednesday on a star-challenged day in L.A. are Hernych vs. (2) Dominik "The Dominator" Hrbaty, Juan Ignacio "The Spitting Snake" Chela vs. (LL) Tursunov, (4) Haas vs. Xavier "X-Man" Malisse, and Ricardo Mello "Yello" vs. (Q) Hadad.
Moya, Ferrero Win, Guga Loses at ATP Umag
Two former No. 1s and French Open winners cruised Tuesday at the ATP claycourt stop in Umag in (6) Carlos Moya (d. Ulihrach, who retired with an elbow problem) and (7) Juan Carlos Ferrero (d. Nieminen, who retired with stomach illness), while a troublesome return from hip surgery continued for another with Gustavo Kuerten losing in straight sets to (3) Tommy Robredo.
No. 4 seed David Ferrer also advanced (d. Starace in three), joined in the second round by un-seeds Fernando Vicente (d. Ionita), Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (d. O.Hernandez), and Felix Mantilla (d. Mackin) of Spain, and Serbs Janko Tipsarevic (d. D.Norman 0-and-0) and Novak Djokovic (d. Calatrava).
On tap for Wednesday on the dirt are (Q) Portas vs. (5) Novak, Mantilla vs. (2) Coria, (7) Ferrero vs. Djokovic, and Dlouhy vs. (Q) Bozoljac.
Austrians Koubek, Koellerer Thrill Homies at ATP Kitzbuhel
For the second consecutive day the homecountry Austrian players gave fans something to cheer about at the ATP dirt stop in Kitzbuhel, with Stefan Koubek (d. (Q) Armando) recording only his second ATP win of the year, and wildcard Daniel Koellerer (d. Tabara in three) making it two more Austrians into the second round.
"After the season I've had, every match is very important, especially here in Kitzbuhel," Koubek said. "Finally I can play again and I'm very happy about this match today because I played unbelievable tennis. I played exactly the kind of tennis I play in practice which isn't easy...It's a very old tournament. I used to watch it on TV when I was a kid and now I'm allowed to play on centre court in front of a lot of people so it's a lot of fun."
Another wildcard, Ecuador's former force and Anna Kournikova boy toy Nicolas Lapentti (d. Calleri who retired in the second with a back injury), and qualifiers Irakli Labadze of Georgia (d. (Q) Ramirez Hidalgo) and Serb Dusan Vemic (d. (WC) Hipfl in three) also moved safely into round two.
Other unseeded winners on the day were Germans Philip Kohlschreiber (d. Costa) and Rainer Schuettler (d. D.Sanchez), Spaniards Fernando Verdasco (d. Seppi) and Nicolas Almagro (d. Sabau), Gaucho Mariano Zabaleta (d. Haehnel), and Czech Ivo Minar (d. (Q) Schukin).
On Wednesday's schedule the seeds finally sprout on the red clay in (1) Davydenko vs. Zabaleta, (7) Massu vs. (WC) Koellerer, (WC) Marach vs. (4) Fernando "Gonzo" Gonzalez, Koubek vs. (12) Christophe "The Roach" Rochus, (Q) Vemic vs. (9) Jurgen "Tuna" Melzer, (8) Olivier "The Other Roach" Rochus vs. Fernando "Hot Sauce" Verdasco, (3) Gaudio vs. Kohlschreiber, (11) Acasuso vs. Florian "Oscar" Mayer, Di Mauro vs. (5) Feliciano "F-Lo" Lopez, (10) Pavel vs. Rainer "Shine" Schuettler, (Q) Irakli "Freak Show" Labadze vs. (2) Mari-"nandro" Puerta, Vik vs. (16) Mathieu, Almagro vs. (13) Andreev, (14) Luis "Me So" Horna vs. (WC) N.Lapentti, Minar vs. (6) Youzhny, and (15) Hanescu vs. Behrend.
Shaughnessy Upsets Zvonareva at WTA Stanford
American qualifier Meghann Shaughnessy took a step toward turning her brutally-poor 2005 season around Tuesday at the WTA stop in Stanford, uprooting No. 5 seed Vera Zvonareva 7-6 in the third in opening-round play on the California hardcourts.
"I played three pretty good matches in qualifying and that helped me," said Shaughnessy, who saved a match point, and was coming off a loss to the Russian last week in Cincinnati. "I always say there's nothing worse than being sent home by the same player in two consecutive tournaments. I'm glad to win if for nothing else to protect my own sanity."
Shaughnessy began the year with opening-round losses at Canberra and the Australian Open, and has reached the quarterfinals or better just once since a runner-up effort at Memphis in February, dropping to No. 69 on the WTA Rankings.
The other two seeds in action advanced in straight sets in (7) Jelena Jankovic (d. (Q) Irvin) and (8) Francesca Schiavone (d. Jidkova).
Unseeded players into round two were Czech Iveta Benesova (d. Peng), Indian lucky loser Sania Mirza (d. (WC) Daniilidou in three), Germany's Anna-Lena Groenefeld (d. (Q) Peer), and former Top 10er Daniela Hantuchova (d. (WC) Stevenson).
"With her I knew I didn't have to go for it too much," said Hantuchova of the erratic Stevenson who is coming off shoulder surgery. "There's no pressure on me and I can just work on my game. I can enjoy myself on the court with no expectations."
On tap Wednesday in Stanford are Bartoli vs. Schnyder, Raymond vs. Dechy, Jankovic vs. Amy "Joltin' Joe" Frazier, and the day's highlight in India's (LL) Mirza vs. Venus Williams.
"I played Serena at the Australian Open and was a little bit nervous there, but I'm looking at playing Venus as an opportunity," said the wildly-popular Mirza, gainly as much attention for her physical assets as her grounded approach to life. "She's one of the best players in the world but no one is unbeatable."
Smashnova Advances, Two Seeds Uprooted at WTA Budapest
Top-seeded Israeli Anna Smashnova led the seeds into the second round Tuesday at the WTA claycourt stop in Budapest (d. (Q) Dominguez Lino), joined by fellow elites (2) Katarina Srebotnik (d. (Q) Foretz) and (7) Martina Sucha (d. (Q) Kachlikova in three).
Two seeds made early flight reservations homeward Tuesday in (5) Antonella Serra Zanetti (l. to Birnerova), and (8) Zuzana Ondraskova (l. to (WC) Kapros).
Un-seeds into the second round were Spain's Laura Pous Tio (d. Nooni), Japan's Rika Fujiwara (d. (LL) Klaschka from a set down), Czech Michaela Pastikova (d. Sfar), Croat Sanda Mamic (d. Martinez Granados), and Ukrainian qualifier Olga Savchuk (d. Gagliardi who retired in the second with injury).
Battling Wednesday in Budapest are Kostanic vs. Schruff, Sanchez Lorenzo vs. Szavay, Diaz-Oliva vs. Pous Tio, and Bychkova vs. Srebotnik.
DAILY TENNIS-X E-NEWSLETTER
Read what tennis industry insiders read each morning to get the latest news, insight and opinion on pro tennis. Get the Tennis-X Daily Dish in your e-mail in-box, even before it's posted on the web, by signing up for the net's most complete daily e-newsletter at http://www.tennis-x.com/subscribe.php
TENNIS-X NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS
The Houston Chronicle's Scott Riley jumping on the kick-Andy wagon: "If it's progression you're looking for, I'm not so sure we're seeing it right now from one Andy Roddick...Sure, Roddick reached the Wimbledon final for a second straight year, only to lose to the amazing Roger Federer once again. But how much does that prove right now, considering the current depth (or lack thereof) of grasscourt specialists on the circuit?...My question is: Has Roddick leveled out?..Roddick fired coach Brad Gilbert late last year and replaced him with Dean Goldfine, but what does the Nebraska native have to show for that move thus far? The 6-foot-2 star has yet to beat any of the game's upper-echelon studs this year (i.e. the Federers, the Hewitts, etc.)...Is Roddick a one-hit wonder -- the 2003 US Open?...Obviously you can forget about him ever excelling on red clay, while he'll continue to remain a threat whenever he's on his beloved hardcourts or grass...I'm not suggesting by any means that A-Rod's washed up. Far from it. But I am, perhaps, suggesting that he's about as good as he's gonna get...There was a lot of hype surrounding Roddick a few years ago, but it's safe to say for now that he's a far cry from such American legends as Pete Sampras, (Andre) Agassi, John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors. Heck, the aforementioned Gilbert (20) still owns more career titles than A-Rod (18)." Ouch, brutal -- a little too brutal. Hard to agree that Andy is washed up at this young point in his career, a bit off the mark on the clay rant too...31-year-old former player and Mexican-American Angelica Gavaldon has invited members of Mexico's Fed Cup team to spend six weeks with her at Loews Sea Spa in Coronado where she teaches tennis: "When I go to Mexico, people ask me why there aren't more players from there," Gavaldon told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "It's not lack of talent; there are a lot of girls there who have the talent, but they don't have the support of sponsors or a federation...In six weeks, it is too hard to make changes; they need to have a program that has continuity for them to improve. My goal was to give each of them something they could take home with them. They have a lot of bad habits; they have to be exposed to good coaching." And taken out of Mexico City and given respirators...How l-a-m-e are those ringtones on the new "Girls on Tour" website by WTA Tour sugardaddy Sony Ericsson? That was the best your marketing people could think of, the same tired ringtone for each featured player then a voiceover with the player saying something corny? Ugh. Next time remember that we do tennis consulting, with contributors that have worked for the men's and women's tours -- come to think of it, in light of the tours' efforts, that suddenly doesn't sound impressive. At least we could have given you some guidance on the overall project, such as "This blows." But most entertaining is that the site is not at girlsontour.com -- that address, likely bought by the WTA/Ericsson, is listed as under construction but does offer a number of porn links. Another sterling WTA p.r. effort...Kim Clijsters on her year thus far entering the US Open Series of tournaments: "My claycourt season was a little disappointing for me and as soon as I finished at the French Open, I got really motivated and decided to work harder again and to get myself ready. I played some good tennis on grass, but those whole two or three months, I was really looking forward to coming out here and to play on hardcourt again. I mean, there must be something in the water here because I have always enjoyed playing here."...More on the new WTA promotion: Sony Ericsson's new "Girls on Tour" promotional mobile website with updated scores, ringtones, etc. is looking -- pretty crappy. Pull the site up on a Treo 650 and half the site functions don't work, then today we get this message off a direct link off the WTA website: "Uh oh! Sony Ericsson makes attractive mobile phones and mobile phone accessories, and develops powerful mobile computing technology. Unfortunately, the server encountered an internal error and could not complete your request. Please check that you typed the address (URL) correctly." Doh! Maybe wait for the product release until you get the bugs out next time?...The L.A. Times Bill Dwyre on the MusicCares Foundation charity event at the ATP stop in L.A. Monday night: "It was a schlocky show that started half an hour late and dribbled on endlessly through check presentations to dull dignitaries while awaiting the arrival of a rock band that was apparently redoing its pancake makeup. The disorganized proceedings were kept alive only by the efforts of Mrs. George Lazenby, five months pregnant with twins and also known as Pam Shriver in her tennis life. She sat in the umpire's chair, and tried out some one-liners while lots of yuppies with headphones and clipboards ran around and Hollywood types took pictures of other Hollywood types with their cell phones. Finally, 92 minutes after the evening's proceedings were scheduled to begin, they introduced (Andre) Agassi, to the biggest applause of the night. Finally, they had the promised celebrity tennis match that had been the centerpiece of this event for years. Shriver got them going -- "The team of James Blake and Jon Lovitz has won the toss and elected to have Lovitz not serve" -- and once it started, Agassi kept it going on the court."...Word is that the video replay system allowing players to question line calls during matches will not be ready in time for the US Open -- even though it has been used successfully at World Team Tennis events. Ouch...Mark Philippoussis, not real happy about being passed over for a wildcard at L.A. then losing in the qualifying to someone ranked outside the Top 400...20-year-old Ashley "Anna 2.0" Harkleroad on being married to fellow touring pro Alex Bogomolov, Jr.: "Being married, you have to make decisions together; you can't be selfish. Being a tennis player, I would say that selfishness comes naturally: you almost have to be selfish in certain ways because you're out for yourself," Harkleroad told Tennis Week. "But in a lot of ways, I'm out for us and he's out for us."...Boris Becker announced an advertising deal with Koenig Pilsener beer and a split with three-year ballet dancer-girlfriend Caroline Rocher: "It's a fact. The love couple of Caroline and Boris is no more," said Becker, doubling as his own p.r. person. "The relationship was in a state of crises for almost half a year, now especially because I'm always out of town."...Are Andy Roddick and Maria Sharapova just friends the way Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were just friends?...If our Swedish is correct, Sport Bladet has reported that Joachim "The Jackhammer" Johansson has had shoulder surgery and could be out as long as eight months...After doing their bit to help the ATP to promote tennis, the Bryan brothers are none too happy about the ATP surprising players with a new scoring experiment in doubles, scheduled to begin after the US Open. The ATP Communication's staff, rather than launching into patended spin mode, perhaps due to the lack of an active CEO have been twiddling their thumbs while the Bryans and other unhappy players rake the ATP over the coals: "We are at the highest level of tennis, and we are going to be playing five games while the women's league across the street is playing six games," Bob Bryan said. "Doubles is going to be seen as an exhibition now. The ruling is absolutely ridiculous." Mike Bryan: "(The ATP tournaments) are unsuccessful in their promoting their tournaments the right way, so they are pointing the finger at doubles instead of doing their jobs. Every player is disgusted at the ruling. The ATP has taken the voices away from the players once again. They should start calling it the tournament director's union. You work so hard your whole life and put blood into the sport, and to see businessmen who are frustrated they are not getting the job done on their end do this to the game is a joke. You might as well just take the doubles alleys off the court."