Henin, Karlovic, Ljubicic Win Titles
Posted on June 25, 2007
WEEKEND WRAP:
The Nottingham Open
Nottingham, England
Singles Final:
Ivo Karlovic (CRO) d. (8) Arnaud Clement (FRA) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
Doubles Final:
(3) Butorac/J.Murray (USA/GBR) d. (WC) Goodall/Hutchins (GBR) 4-6, 6-3, 10-5
"Dr. Ivo" is on fire, winning his second title of the year (and career), dropping 21 aces on Clement to win the title unseeded. Butorac/J.Murray capture their third title of the year in the almost-all-British final.
Ordina Open
's-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands
Singles Final:
(2) Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) d. (Q) Peter Wessels (NED) 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-6(4)
Doubles Final:
(3) Coetzee/Wassen (RSA/NED) d. (1) Damm/Paes (CZE/IND) 3-6, 7-6(5), 12-10
Ljubicic finally wins a grasscourt title, beating the No. 488-ranked qualifier who is returning from various injuries. "He was serving very well and I had everything to lose," Ljubicic said. "I couldn't afford to lose this win even if I know that Peter is a fantastic player. He was really unlucky with injuries. But how do I explain everybody that he's not really No. 488? It's great that we managed to finish tonight, great two matches for the crowd." Coetzee/Wassen fought off two match points to win the doubles title.
International Women's Open
Eastbourne, Britain
Singles Final:
(1) Justine Henin (BEL) d. (2) Amelie Mauresmo (FRA) 7-5, 6-7(4), 7-6(2)
Doubles Final:
(1) Raymond/Stosur (USA/AUS) d. (3) Peschke/Stubbs (CZE/AUS) 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-3
Henin enters Wimbledon as the favorite, winning her tour-leading fifth title of the year and edging the defending Wimbledon champ. "Amelie is definitely one of the best players on grass," said Henin who defended her title from last year. "It's a surface that I find difficult to play her on, so I am happy I was able to turn it around today. At 4-2 in the second set, she raised her level. I wasn't as intense anymore so that was the reason she came back into the match. It was a high level match and I would say better than our Wimbledon final last year." Mauresmo drops to 1-3 in tour finals this year, with a sliding 24-23 career record. Raymond and Stosur captured their fifth title of the year.
Ordina Open
's-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands
Singles Final:
(3) Anna Chakvetadze (RUS) d. (1) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-3
Doubles Final:
(1) Chan/Chuang (TPE) d. (3) Medina Garrigues/Ruano Pascual (ESP) 7-5, 6-2
Chaky wins her second title of the year and improves to 4-0 career in tour finals. Chan/Chaung win their third doubles title of the season, and second straight on grass after last week in Birmingham.
Wimbledon Monday Mens Schedule
Matches of interest Monday at Wimbledon are (1) Roger Federer vs. Teimuraz Gabashvili, (25) Carlos Moya vs. Tim Henman, (3) Andy Roddick vs. Justin Gimelstob, (9) James Blake vs. Igor Andreev, (26) Marat Safin vs. Rik De voest, (15) Ivan Ljubicic vs. Vincent Spadea, (13) Tommy Haas vs. Zack Fleishman, (5) Fernando Gonzalez vs. Robby Ginepri, and an all-French in Arnaud Clement vs. Nicolas Mahut.
Wimbledon Monday Womens Schedule
Matches of interest Monday at Wimbledon are (3) Jelena Jankovic vs. Brit Anne Keothavong, (1) Justine Henin vs. Jorgelina Cravero, (9) Martina Hingis vs. Brit Naomi Cavaday, (7) Serena Williams vs. Lourdes Dominguez Lino, (10) Daniela Hantuchova vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and (19) Katarina Srebotnik vs. Elena Baltacha.
TENNIS-X NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS
Andy Murray has pulled from Wimbledon with his wrist injury...Former USTA president and ITF Board member Gordon Jorgensen died at his home in Indian Wells, Calif. in June at the age of 86. He was a also chairman of the U.S. Davis Cup Committee, chairman of the US Open, a vice president on the ITF Board for four years, and president of the USTA from 1987-88...Roger Federer nuts can rejoice with the release of "The Roger Federer Story, Quest for Perfection," the first U.S.-published book on the Swiss star...From MediaZone: "The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), NBCSports.com, ESPN.com and leading global online broadcaster, MediaZone, today announced the return of their groundbreaking online video service, Wimbledon LIVE. Building on the success of last year's service, Wimbledon LIVE returns to offer the most comprehensive LIVE and on-demand coverage of The Championships, including multi-court, full-match coverage, the entire 2006 archive, additional classic footage, player interviews and other behind-the-scenes extras."...A six-man exhibition is scheduled for Sept. 15 at the O2 Arena in London -- Betfair Turbo Tennis will feature Andy Murray, Tim Henman, Goran Ivanisevic, James Blake, Pat Cash and Jamie Murray, and will be "fast, edgy and urban" according to organizers...Swiss George Bastl, the last man to beat Pete Sampras at Wimbledon, lost in the first round of qualifying this year...Guillermo Coria on Wednesday settled his lawsuit against Universal Nutrition who he blamed for a positive steroid test that cost him millions in earnings. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal was announced after about five hours of closed-door negotiations between the two sides, which at times appeared to include Coria and members of his family, according to the AP...China's Na Li is looking at a long recovery after injuring a rib and will miss Wimbledon...The six-day forecast in the Sunday Times features rain on every single day this week at Wimbledon...From Richard Evans writing for the International Herald Tribune: "Moss was removed from underneath the grass to make the ball bounce higher -- right into the hitting zone of clay-court masters. And the balls, despite official denials, have become slower. The result can be seen in the pattern of worn grass that emerges throughout the fortnight: A furrowed path to the net used to be clearly visible; now, acres of baseline are worn bare. This means that a Nadal or a Lleyton Hewitt, who is playing well enough to become a factor again this year, can spend time in the back court before attempting a sortie to the net. Pure volleyers like Tim Henman are disadvantaged."