Hingis, Venus Out; Nadal On Today at French Open

The other semifinal will see No. 8 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, who defeated fellow Russian and No. 14 seed Dinara Safina 7-6(5), 6-0, up against the leggy No. 16-seeded Czech Nicole Vaidisova, who out-bashed No. 11 Venus Williams 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3.

Vaidisova took the advantage in the error-strewn match against Williams when the American gagged a second serve to give the Czech a 3-2 break lead in the third, then lost serve again at 3-5 for the match. The Czech committed 57 unforced errors over the three sets, but Williams likewise had difficulty finding the court during rallies.

Kuznetsova reached her first French Open semi by overcoming a nervous start, immediately going down 1-5 before storming back to take the tiebreak, then running through the second set without dropping a game as the wheels came off Safina's game.

"I guess (it was) the nerves. I just couldn't move...I was just playing disgusting points," Kuznetsova said of her early problems. "I looked like junior out there. I mean, I felt ridiculous."

After a 10-minute game where Kuznetsova held serve for 2-5, the doughy, crimson-faced Safina looked spent, and the Russian began moving her opponent side-to-side and employing the dropshot, leading to the tiebreak win and a bagel in the second set.

Kuznetsova beat Vaidisova in their only meeting last year at Wimbledon, while Clijsters leads Henin-Hardenne 10-9 in their career meetings, winning their most recent encounter last year at Toronto. H-H has won four of their five career encounters on clay.

Federer, Nalbandian Book Meeting at French Open

World No. 1 Roger Federer beat a fatigued Mario "Baby Goran" Ancic 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 Tuesday in the quarterfinals at the French Open, putting him just two wins away from attaining the lone Slam title that has eluded him.

Ancic, coming off a long five-setter in his previous match, also complained of dizziness during the contest.

Federer will next face his nemesis, No. 3 seed David Nalbandian who dismissed Russian Nikolay Davydenko 6-3, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.

Federer trails Nalbandian 5-6 in their career meetings, and barely edged the Argentine in a third-set tiebreak in their most recent contest on clay a few weeks back at Rome. Nalbandian also snapped Federer's 24-match winning streak in finals at the end of 2005 with a win at the Masters Cup.

The Ancic defeat was also Federer's 26th consecutive Slam match win, second on the Open Era list behind Rod Laver's 29 in 1969-70.

"It's definitely going to help," said Federer of his easy road to the semis as compared to some of his opponents. "You saw it I think a little bit today with Mario. Can sometimes cost you like a tournament or a match if you play a very tough one, then you come out and you can't really feel like you maybe have to shorten the points and stuff and you have to change your tactics because of fatigue. That's the worst. I feel like I can back up tough matches now. I got two days now, so I guess fitness won't play a factor any more now."

Federer added that he is also a better player than the Roger Federer from 2005 on clay.

"My physical form is quite similar compared to last year but I think my game is better this year," Federer said. "I also have more experience as I have played more games on clay. This is also the second consecutive time I have reached the semifinal so I have a better feeling about it. I would say that I have progressed as a whole and I have also found solutions that allow me to make things better on clay."

On court Wednesday in quarterfinal play are (2) Nadal vs. Djokovic (first meeting), and (4) Ljubicic vs. Benneteau (tied 1-1).

DAILY TENNIS-X E-NEWSLETTER
Who cares if you need it or not, show your love for Tennis-X, contribute to the fund, only eight bucks for one year of daily tennis news! Pay as you go! Read what tennis industry insiders read each morning to get their heads around the latest news, insight and opinion on pro tennis. A year's subscription costs less than a meal and a pint. 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
Looks like the rain and cold are history in Paris as temps are expected to only climb through to the finals...Roger Federer has won 26 straight in Grand Slams, passing Pete Sampras' 25. Rod Laver owns the record at 29...Roger Federer has dropped one set en route to the semifinals. Last year he dropped zero sets...Dinara Safina won just three points in the second set against Svetlana Kuznetsova. Nice effort, get in shape...Rafael Nadal has won 57 straight on clay but has lost more sets (2) in the last two rounds than his opponent Novak Djokovic...Donald Young can't win on the pro tour, and now he can no longer win in the juniors, falling in three sets in the boys' third round. Next stop for The Donald, the Wimbledon juniors...The highest-ranked player Ivan Ljubicic has beaten at Roland Garros is No. 79 Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo and now he gets No. 95 Juliean Benneteau...Dinara Safina really did only win three points in the second set...17-year-old Nicole Vaidisova has won her last two matches over Slam champions, and to win the title will have to play two more...Mario Ancic remains the last guy to beat Roger Federer on grass...Justine Henin-Hardenne has won her last 12 matches at Roland Garros, and 20 of her last 21...USA Today tennis writer Doug Robson says don't look for Kim Clijsters to keep her word about retiring at the end of 2007: "It's hard to imagine a player giving up status, fame, and millions of dollars in their tennis prime that isn't suffering from a debilitating injury -- which Clijsters isn't. The Belgian 22-year-old (she turns 23 June 8) insists -- as she did earlier this week in Paris -- that she wants to retire healthy to start a family. When you see her goo-goo eyes around American boyfriend Brian Lynch and the unrequited affection she showers on children, it seems feasible. But if I were betting, I'd say she'll reconsider and play longer than she intends -- if she is injury-free."...Should Rafael Nadal and Ivan Ljubicic win Wednesday it will be the first time the top four seeds have advanced to the semifinal since 1985 when John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Jimmy Connors and Mats Wilander last set the mark...Nicole Vaidisova on, you know, picking up, you know, experience this year: "Definitely, you know, played a little more matches, you know, tried to get a little more experience, you know, on the big stages. You know, in Australia I played on center court and US. By picking up those matches, it's definitely great. You know, you can take a lot of it to your next matches."...Nicole Vaidisova's uncle is Daniel Vacek...Justine Henin-Hardenne on the logically-difficult life of the tennis pro: "It's a very difficult life. You do a lot of sacrifices. It's quite logical. Probably some years ago players didn't feel it so much because they didn't play so fast, it wasn't so physical as it is today. Today, it's a very difficult life. I think it's rather logical." And H-H on her new buddy-buddy relationship with countrywoman Kim Clijsters: "We discuss things normally. We'll probably go out for lunch during Roland Garros. In Liege, we put the problems of the past aside. We were both professionals. We were happy to have this experience together. We were part of a team. Today we're competitors again. We don't have any problems between us. We have a lot of respect for each other. We each know what each of us has done is quite fabulous. Of course, we need to respect each other, so we do. We have a very healthy relationship. I think that is very important. It's best that way."...Punter alert: unless she has an extended case of the nerves as she did in the beginning of her match against Dinara Safina, look for Svetlana Kuznetsova to exploit the still-developing claycourt movement of Nicole Vaidisova in a straight-set win...Here's ESPN's Mary Joe Fernandez's waffling no-pick for the all-Belgian semifinal: "Belgians Justine Henin-Hardenne (the defending champion) and Kim Clijsters (the No. 2 seed) have a long history together, playing each other since they were kids. But their semifinal match is going to come down to who is stronger mentally on the given day and who wants it more. On clay, Henin-Hardenne's game is a little more complete -- she uses more of the court and the angles. But for me, Clijsters' game is ideal for this surface. She can defend until the very end and hits heavy enough where she can hurt you and open up the court. But it's going to come down to who can handle the stage because their games are so similar. We'll see if Henin-Hardenne feels the pressure since everyone thinks she's now the one to beat. However, it's a semifinal and not a final, so maybe that will help Clijsters. There are a lot of components that go into this matchup."...ESPN's Luke Jensen picked two of Tuesday's six matches correctly, double ouch, you and Brad Gilbert should get together, start an on-line tennis betting advice column...From tennis blogger Peter Bodo: "I went before the board of the International Tennis Writer's Association to discuss my having gone public with information that the ITWA board felt was strictly internal and confidential material (the backstory is at my Whistle-Blower Me blog). It isn't necessary or relevant for me to discuss the specifics of the meeting, and I think ITWA's request to keep the substance of the discussion confidential is reasonable and fair. But I also feel obliged to tell you all that my position has not changed on the public's "right-to-know" issues, and I will report on any relevant developments at the appropriate time."...From tennis writer Joe Drucker writing for CBS Sportsline.com under the headline "Radical Proposal": "Fifteen days for a (Slam) event is ridiculous, testing the stamina not just of players but of fans trying to follow these superb Slam events. I'm convinced one reason tennis has such a hard time generating traction for itself in the U.S. is that its four most important tournaments take too long. I'm certain many will vilify for me this, but here's my suggestion: Cut Slams draws in half to 64. This will make entry into a Slam something that must be earned rather than exist as the ongoing welfare state for those who haven't played as well throughout the year...And, yes, make every match for both genders two-out-of-three sets." -- Think that's already being done Joel, they're called Masters Series and Tier I events respectively...Roger Federer has reached eight consecutive Slam semifinals, second only to Ivan Lendl's 10 (1985 US Open-1988 Australian Open).