One-Week Countdown to Australian Open Tennis

Last year Hewitt captured his second consecutive and fourth career Sydney title, routing qualifier Ivo Minar 7-5, 6-0 in the final. Hewitt (2005-04, '01-00) is the lone returning champ in the field.

On court Monday in Sydney are (WC) Guccione vs. (5) Ferrero, (1) Hewitt vs. (Q) Spadea, (Q) Clement vs. Dent, Mathieu vs. Calleri, (8) Blake vs. Sanguinetti, (Q) Karlovic vs. Hanescu, and Juan Ignacio "The Spitting Snake" Chela vs. Jurgen "Tuna" Melzer.

Gonzo Gears-Up for Run This Week at ATP Auckland

Top 10 representation is lacking this week at the Heineken Open where Chilean defending champ Fernando "Gonzo" Gonzalez heads the seeds in Auckland, New Zealand.

Spain's Dave Ferrer comes in as the No. 2 seed, followed by American Robby Ginepri, Dominik "The Dominator" Hrbaty, Mario "Baby Goran" Ancic, Olivier "The Roach" Rochus, Finn Jarkko Nieminen, and Spain's Feliciano "F-Lo" Lopez.

Other notables in Auckland this week are Brit-Scot Andy Murray (vs. Kenneth Carlsen first round), Cypriot comer Marcos "Bombs Over" Baghdatis (vs. (7) Nieminen), and Olympic gold medalist Nicolas Massu (vs. (4) Hrbaty).

Mark Philippoussis withdrew from the event over the weekend citing injury.

Last year Gonzalez beat Olivier Rochus in the straight-set final. Gonzo (2005) and The Dominator (2004,'01) are returning champs in the field.

Monday in Auckland will feature (WC) King-Turner vs. Mayer, Carlsen vs. Murray, Vik vs. (8) F.Lopez, (WC) Nielsen vs. (5) Ancic, and Zib vs. Wawrinka.

Four Former No. 1 Women This Week at WTA Sydney

The Medibank International in Sydney is the premier event among the three stops this week on the WTA Tour, featuring four former No. 1-ranked players in No. 1 seed Kim Clijsters, No. 2 Amelie Mauresmo, No. 5 Justine Henin-Hardenne, and wildcard Martina Hingis.

Other seeded players are Swiss Patty Schnyder, Russians Nadia Petrova and Svetlana Kuznetsova, Italian Francesca Schiavone, and Czech teen Nicole Vaidisova.

Front and center on Monday at the event is the first-round draw between (5) Henin-Hardenne and Hingis, who haven't met since 2000 when the Swiss won both their career meetings in straight sets.

"She's more physical than I was, she's faster, but I wouldn't necessarily say that she has a better game," Hingis said of Henin-Hardenne. "We both have our strengths and weaknesses. It's going to be a good match for both of us."

Other opening-round meetings of note are (7) Schiavone vs. Japan's Ai Sugiyama, (8) Vaidisova vs. Aussie riser Sam Stosur, and an all-Russian unseeded meeting in wildcard Vera Zvonareva vs. qualifier Vera Dushevina.

Three potential quarterfinal meetings are Schnyder vs. Vaidisova, Henin-Hardenne vs. Petrova, and Mauresmo vs. Kuznetsova.

Three main draw matches were completed on Sunday in Sydney with winners (6) Svetlana Kuznetsova (d. Asagoe in three), Serb Ana Ivanovic (d. Peng), and Russian Maria Kirilenko (d. Dulko who retired with an abdominal strain).

The singles qualifying was also completed with four more into the main draw in Yuliana Fedak (UKR), Zi Yan (CHN), Na Li (CHN), and Vera Dushevina (RUS).

Lisa Raymond and Stosur are the top seeds in doubles, with the formidable team of Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suarez as the No. 4 seeds, and Anastasia Myskina playing doubles-only with Dinara Safina.

In last year's all-Aussie singles final, the currently-injured Alicia Molik came from a set down to defeat Stosur for the title.

Scheduled for Monday are (5) Henin-Hardenne vs. (WC) Hingis, Hantuchova vs. Mirza, (WC) Stosur vs. (8) Vaidisova, Sugiyama vs. (7) Schiavone, Groenefeld vs. Safina, (Q) N.Li vs. Pennetta, (Q) Z.Yan vs. Chakvetadze, (Q) Dushevina vs. (WC) Zvonareva in an all-Russian match-up, and Likhovtseva vs. (Q) Fedak.

Srebotnik Leads Starless Field at WTA Hobart

Without a Top 25-ranked player in sight, this week's Moorilla Hobart International in Australia struggles with Slovenia's Karatina Srebotnik looking to do the heavy lifting as top seed.

Other seeded players are Czechs Klara "Kooky" Koukalova and Iveta Benesova, Israel's Anna Smashnova, Americans Amy "Joltin' Joe" Frazier and Jill Craybas, Argentine Mariana Diaz-Oliva, and Spaniard Nuria Llagostera "Pancho" Vives.

Wildcards for the event went to Aussies Casey Dellacqua and Nicole Pratt, while main draw quaifiers were Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP), Christina Wheeler (AUS), Olga Poutchkova (RUS), and Anne "Kosmo" Kremer (LUX).

Main draw play began Sunday in Hobart, with winners (4) Amy Frazier (d. Dominguez Lino 6-0 in the third), (5) Iveta Benesova (d. Sanchez Lorenzo in three), (7) Nuria Llagostera Vives (d. Vesnina, bagel in the second), (8) Jill Craybas (d. (WC) Pratt), France's Stephanie Foretz (d. (6) Diaz-Oliva in three), and American Jamea Jackson (d. Pous Tio in three).

In last year's final, China's unseeded Zheng Jie routed No. 2 seed Gisela Dulko 6-2, 6-0.

Scheduled for Monday are Bremond vs. Wheeler, Kremer vs. Koukalova, Poutchkova vs. Santangelo, Srebotnik vs. Dellacqua, Krajicek vs. Ani, Parra Santonja vs. Brandi, Smashnova vs. Granville, Washington vs. Loit, Linetskaya vs. A.Bondarenko, and Sucha vs. Kostanic.

Medina Cold Comfort as Top Seed at WTA Canberra

With the WTA stars in Sydney this week, No. 32-ranked Spaniard Anabel "Funky Cold" Medina Garrigues is left to head the field in Canberra, Australia at the Richard Luton Properties Canberra International.

No. 2 seed Marion Bartoli, who won her first career title last week at Auckland, withdrew from the event citing a strained hip flexor.

Joining Medina Garrigues among the seeds are last week's Gold Coast winner Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic, Israel's Shahar Peer, Italian Roberta Vinci, Colombian Catalina Castano, Poland's Marta Domachowska, Swede Sofia Arvidsson, and Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano.

Wildcards went to Aussies Sophie Ferguson and Emma Laine.

Winners on the opening day Sunday in Canberra were (4) Shahar Peer (d. Sprem), (5) Roberta Vinci (d. Vento-Kabchi), Hungarian Melinda Czink (d. Ant. Serra Zanetti), Italian Tathiana Garbin (d. Perianu), German Julia Schruff (d. Panova), and Korean Yoon Jeong Cho (d. (8) Arvidsson).

Last year Serb qualifier Ana Ivanovic won the unlikely final against Hungarian lucky loser Melinda "The Fifth Element" Czink in straight sets.

Scheduled for Monday are Poutchek vs. Ferguson, Medina Garrigues vs. Gagliardi, Daniilidou vs. Shaughnessy, McDowell vs. Safarova, Hrdinova vs. Nakamura, Castano vs. Bammer, Kutuzova vs. Razzano, Rodionova vs. Domachowska, and Pironkova vs. Laine.

Unseeded Serra Raises Crown at ATP Adelaide

24-year-old Frenchman Florent Serra endured the over-100-degree temperatures to subdue Belgian Xavier Malisse 6-3, 6-4 in the Saturday final at the ATP stop in Adelaide.

It was the second career title for Serra after Bucharest in 2005.

"I won my first ATP tournament in Bucharest at the end of the season and I thought I did it one time so I was more relaxed," Serra said. "I tried to stay concentrated on my game, to hit the ball strongly and play my game and I felt very good. I'm very happy to win against players like [Dominik] Hrbaty and [Tommy] Robredo but now I have to improve and I hope it will continue."

Malisse was bothered during the final by a blister on his foot, and with the result drops to 1-7 in ATP finals.

"There are no excuses," Malisse said. "He played well and he served good on the big points. He just played too strong and when you can't move at the top level it's tough to beat these guys because they are too good."

In the doubles final, No. 2-seeded Israelis Erlich/Ram edged the top-seeded Aussie/Zimbabwe tandem of Hanley/Ullyett 7-6(4), 7-6(10).

"I think it was a big advantage for us that we were playing our third year together, actually starting our fourth, and they were playing their first tournament together," Ram said following the final. "It's a big advantage and they have to adjust to each other. Our chemistry on the court, not only in the final but all the way through the week was perfect. We are improving from last year and we are going the right way."

Ljuby Saves Match Point in ATP Chennai Title Win

Croat top seed Ivan Ljubicic, a last-minute wildcard at Chennai after the pull-out of the injured Rafael Nadal, made the trip worthwhile Sunday with his first title of the year.

Ljubicic saved one match point in the resumption of his rain-delayed semifinal with a 7-6-in-the-third win over unseeded Belgian Kristof Vliegen, then later in the day defeated No. 3 seed and two-time defending Chennai champ Carlos Moya 7-6(6), 6-2 for the title.

"I played the best tennis of the week in the final," said Ljubicic, who delivered 10 aces against Moya. "It's a great way to start the year. I don't remember the last time I played two matches in one day but today it really worked out well. I think playing this morning definitely gave me some advantage to get into the match and quickly find my rhythm."

Moya tired in the second after failing to convert opportunities in the first-set tiebreak.

"In the second set I had no energy left, it's been a very difficult week, but I must be happy about how things turned out," Moya said. "Although I started the year better the last two years, it's definitely been a great way to start 2006, and I really hope this year will be different than the last one. I hope things will go well from now on, I am motivated and I think it can be a good year for me."

In the doubles final the unseeded team of Michael Mertinak/Petr Pala disappointed the homecountry Chennai fans with a 6-2, 7-5 win over the wildcard Indian team of Prakash Amritraj and Rohan Bopanna. It was the first team title for the Slovak/Czech pair, who trailed 0-5 in the second set before running off seven consecutive games to close the match.

"We were a little bit unlucky in the first game of the second set where we should have taken their serves," Pala said. "The match then turned completely and they started playing much better. At 5-0 for them, they may have thought that the second set was in their pockets."

From Saturday Finals:

Same as It Ever Was, Federer Wins ATP Doha
http://www.tennis-x.com/story/2006-01-08/h.php

Teen Safarova Pummels Pennetta for WTA Gold Coast Title
http://www.tennis-x.com/story/2006-01-08/k.php

Bartoli Breaks Through for 1st Title at WTA Auckland
http://www.tennis-x.com/story/2006-01-08/l.php

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TENNIS-X NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS
How great has the return of Martina Hingis been, with the former No. 1-ranked Swiss already popping off about the other top players with just one week in the books? Hingis on facing Justine Henin-Hardenne: "She's more physical than I was, she's faster, but I wouldn't necessarily say that she has a better game. We both have our strengths and weaknesses. It's going to be a good match for both of us."...Roger Federer says the Doha title is proof that his foot injury is history: "I couldn't have had a better start to the season. I am really excited especially after the trouble with my foot. It really showed I am over it, I really think that."...James Blake in his ATP blog this week from Sydney: "The player hotel at Darling Harbor is in a great location and there is a casino on the corner. That could be dangerous for me because I'm addicted to poker. It's tough being away from the US when the football playoffs are underway. I try to follow the matches on-line at ESPN.com and my team, the New York Giants, are playing Sunday. The Giants play Carolina at 1 pm US time, which is 5 am over here. You've got to be pretty committed to get up and follow the scores at that time of the morning. I may not make it for kickoff but I may get up around 7am or so to follow some of the second half. I do play a first round match Monday against Davide Sanguinneti on Court 2, not before 5 pm. I remember two years ago being in Australia when the Giants had their huge collapse against the 49ers. They had a huge lead when I went out to practice and after practice Mardy Fish told me they had lost. I didn't believe him for a couple of hours. I hope history doesn't repeat itself."...From the Sydney Morning Herald on former fiancees Kim Clijsters and Lleyton Hewitt being at the same event this week in Sydney: "Clijsters said she had run into Hewitt at the US Open, and knowing that he would be at Sydney Olympic Park this week (Hewitt is in the men's draw) was not awkward. "For us, it is not a problem," she said. But Clijsters, 22, said while she and Hewitt were on friendly terms, Hewitt had not shown her a picture of his new baby, Mia. Clijsters, who is dating Belgium-based US basketballer Brian Lynch, has focused her immediate energies on sponsoring four children through World Vision. "I have three girls now and a boy," she said proudly. Clijsters doesn't have a coach at present, but said that was through choice rather than any shortage of money. "If I felt like I needed one I would get one," she said. "It is not an issue of me paying for one, I just don't feel like I need one. It is more important to me to have someone to hit with than have someone talk to me in practice, that would drive me crazy. I am independent, I like to solve things myself." Clijsters's entourage is limited to a friend called Caroline, her cousin Tim, who is her physiotherapist, and a New Zealand hitting partner."...With two wildcards remaining to be handed out, the Aussie Open wildcards so far have gone to Mark Philippoussis, Nicole Pratt, Peter Luczak, Sophie Ferguson Marc Kimmich, Chris Guccione, Denis Istomin, Amer Delic, Michael Llodra, Martina Hingis, Jelena Dokic, Casey Dellacqua, Akgul Amanmuradov and Alize Cornet...Aussie Open organizers say they are hoping to hear today whether defending champ Marat Safin will pull from the event with his injured knee...Playing the Kooyong exo this week are Roger Federer, Andy Roddick, Guillermo Coria, Ivan Ljubicic, David Nalbandian, Gael Monfils, and Tommy Haas...ESPN commentator Pam Shriver pubbing herself on the ESPN website about predicting Martina Hingis' comeback: "I don't usually make this type of prediction on-air with this kind of certainty. In the first two years following Martina Hingis' retirement, ESPN commentator Cliff Drysdale and I had a back-and-forth running bet about whether she would ever return. I was so sure she was going to come back and he was so sure she wouldn't. One of the reasons I never asked Hingis about a possible return was because I knew it was going to happen. It was just a question of when. Players who are that great, that great, and walk away at such a young age can't move on to the next phase of life until they come back and play their hand out. That time is now."...Vince Spadea blogging for the Smash Tennis website: "Word has it that Venus and Serena are focused and recommitted for a sibling rivalry/dominance, while Maria is on an exhibition tour in Japan collecting zillions for her Christmas shopping. I spoke to Miss Capriati and her injury has been a tough setback, but she's trying really hard to make it back. Roddick finished off '05 strong with a blazing charity event that raised mad cash for disadvantaged kids in South Florida. I played in Chris Evert's Charity in Boca Raton, Florida, which was quite amazing -- even Diddy showed up. All in all, although short, this off-season has given me and the other players a chance to have fun, appreciate what we do, work hard, and give back to the needy. Look out in 2006, lots of cool stuff is gonna happen, I can feel it."...WebIndia123.com says Indian kids are taking to the small Sania Mirza-type nose rings, and the adults are not amused: "The Sania nose-rings are in great demand in the weekly market at Bhimpura block's Damjipura and dozens of villages including Chillaur and Mohra, shopkeepers say. "Nowadays nobody sports traditional large rings and all my friends are also wearing smaller variety, just like the heroine in the poster," says young Jayawanti from Chillaur. According to small-time cosmetics dealer Ramdeen, the tribals are fast catching up in the fashion race. "While young men purchase goggles, the fairer sex eyes lipstick, bindis, hair clips and the small nose rings," he added. However, the older generation is not amused. Sixty-year-old Ramrati said that sporting a large nose ring is a tribal tradition that should be followed."...Linda Pearce of The Age on Rennae Stubbs some other les-be-friends on the WTA Tour: "She has been called a trouble-maker, a nutcase, a big mouth, an attention-seeker. She admits to being aggressive, passionate, outspoken. "I've never been one to skirt the issue," she admitted. "I'm not one to say, 'I'm not going to comment on that.'" Spend a few hours in her company, and you will learn the truth of those words, for no subject is off-limits: Damir Dokic's violent tyranny, the heartbreak of her great friend Alicia Molik's career-threatening inner-ear virus, the woes of Australian tennis, lesbianism. "If people want to know anything about me," she said, "they just have to ask." Stubbs travels with her girlfriend of two years, a former U.S. professional softballer, having shared a long-term relationship with her former doubles partner, Lisa Raymond. It has only been relatively recently that Stubbs has fully embraced her sexuality, and she hopes that by speaking openly, it will help teenagers who might be grappling with gay issues. "I always say to my friends, 'Wouldn't it be great if everybody who was gay said they were? If we said: February 21, or whatever, this is the coming out day. So, if you are, you have to come out to everybody you know.' It would be phenomenal. And it would be nice if everybody could just accept that it's not a choice, this is who you are. You would never, ever choose this, choose to be gay. It's such a difficult thing to deal with and coming out to people and talking about it, and coming out to your family. But I don't hide who I am any more. Everyone in the tennis world pretty much knows who's gay and who's not; the only reason I would like it spoken about publicly more is that I wish everybody would realize that, 'See all those people you admire? Out of 10 of them, four are gay, and I just want you to know that your child can still idolize them.'"