Murray Wins, Baghdatis Tries Not to Puke in Heat at Australian Open

Murray, Nadal Ease Into 2nd Round at Australian Open

Andy Murray, favored by many to win the 2009 Australian Open title even though the Brit has yet to win a Grand Slam title, is having the breaks fall his way. If the 100 degree heat and five-set matches become a factor late in the event, Murray can look back to the first Tuesday when he received a retirement from Andrei Pavel, who was 6-2, 3-1 down when quitting with a back injury.
ADHEREL
“I would have liked to have been on court a bit longer,” Murray said. “It was quite tricky conditions. It probably didn’t feel it from the sides, but it was pretty windy on the court…I guess if you want to do well in the tournament, it’s good to conserve some energy.”

Murray was joined in the blowout category Tuesday by world No. 1 Rafael Nadal who clipped Christophe Rochus 6-0, 6-2, 6-2, the aforethought injured (5) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who blitzed Juan Monaco with a bagel in the third set, and (14) Fernando “Hot Sauce” Verdasco who bageled Adrian Mannarino in the first en route to a straight-set win.

“I played without pain,” said Tsonga, who retired with a back injury last week in Sydney. “So it was a nice match.”

Other seeded winners were (6) Gilles Simon (d. Pablo Andujar), (9) James Blake (d. Frank Dancevic), (12) Gael Monfils (d. Martin Vassalo Arguello), (13) Fernando Gonzalez (d. Lleyton Hewitt and cramps in five sets), (17) Nicolas Almagro (d. Nicolas Massu in five), (18) Igor Andreev (d. Peter Polansky in five), (22) Radek Stepanek (d. Nicolas Lapentti in four), (24) Richard Gasquet (d. Diego Junqueira in four), (25) Ivo Karlovic (d. Daniel Gimeno-Traver), and (31) Jurgen “Tuna” Melzer (d. Kei Nishikori).

Hewitt was upbeat despite his first-round exit.

“The guys that I’ve lost to, especially the last two weeks, they’re both Top 15 at the moment,” said Hewitt, who has played the Hopman Cup and Aussie Open since returning from hip surgery. “The two losses haven’t been the worst losses on paper. I probably could have easily won both those matches, as well. I think it’s a good springboard for the rest of the year.”

Only two seeds were dug-up on Tuesday, with (29) Dmitry Tursunov downed by Flavio Cipolla, and Israel’s Dudi Sela bouncing (30) Rainer Schuettler in four sets.

Unseeded players of note advancing into the second round were big-servers Ernests Gulbis (d. Albert Montanes) and Aussie Chris “Penthouse” Guccione (d. Nicolas Devilder), former Top 5er Ivan Ljubicic (d. Igor Kunitsyn in five), ironman Guillermo Canas (d. Dieter Kindlmann in five), and Croat Mario “Baby Goran” Ancic (d. Wayne Odesnik in four).

Highlights for Wednesday play include French comer Jeremy Chardy vs. (3) Novak Djokovic, Russian Evgeny Korolev vs. (2) Roger Federer, Aussie teen Bernard Tomic vs. Gilles Muller, (7) Andy Roddick vs. Xavier “X-Man” Malisse, Croat comer (19) Marin Cilic vs. wily Serb Janko Tipsarevic, (16) Robin Soderling vs. Marcos Baghdatis, Fabrice “The Magician” Santoro vs. (32) Philipp Kohlschreiber, and (28) Paul-Henri Mathieu vs. (LL) Amer Delic.

Williams Sisters Cruise, but Many Struggle in Heat at Aussie Open

The Williams sisters made a straight-set start to the Australian Open on Tuesday, with No. 2 Serena Williams beating the heat 6-3, 6-2 in little over an hour, defeating China’s Meng Yuan, and No. 6 Venus cruising by Angelique Kerber 6-3, 6-3.

“It was really hot today,” Serena said of conditions that topped 100 degrees. “It was more of a dry heat. It wasn’t so much humidity out there, which is actually better than the humidity. But it was definitely extreme conditions…I think it was pretty important for me not to go crazy out there, try and conserve some energy. Keep in mind, I am playing doubles here, as well. I definitely want to do well in both events.”

No. 9 seed Agnieszka Radwanska the highest-profile seeded loser Tuesday, was ousted by Kateryna Bondarenko 7-6(7), 4-6, 6-1 in a match where the Pole melted in the heat in the third, committing 51 overall unforced errors.

No. 4 seed Elena Dementieva avoided such fate when she shrugged off a second-set loss to beat Germany’s Kristina Barrois 7-6(4), 2-6, 6-1. Dementieva entered Melbourne after winning two titles in her first two events, and you wonder how much she has left in the tank.

“I think it was very tough match, especially because of the weather condition today,” Dementieva said. “And also it was not easy for me to come here after playing so many matches in a row. So I’m sure I wouldn’t have minded one or two extra days before. But those are kind of days you have to survive. I’m just very glad I was able to do it.”

Other players orchestrating upsets Tuesday were China’s Shuai Peng who downed (28) Francesca Schiavone, Sabine Lisicki topping (30) Aleksandra Wozniak, and Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ousting (32) Tamarine Tanasugarn, all in straight sets.

Other seeded winners on the day were (8) Svetlana Kuznetsova (d. Anastasia Rodionova in three), (12) Flavia Pennetta (d. Mara Santangelo in three), (13) Victoria Azarenka (d. Petra Kvitova), (14) Patty Schnyder (d. Kristina Mladenovic from a set down), (18) Dominika Cibulkova (d. Chanelle Scheepers in a doubles bagel), (20) Amelie Mauresmo (d. Olga Govortsova), (21) Anabel Medina Garrigues (d. Isabella Holland), (22) Jie Zheng (d. Camille Pin), and (31) Alona Bondarenko (d. Olivia Rogowska from a set down).

Aussie Jessica Moore was a highlight winner among the unseeded, defeating American wildcard Christine Mchale 9-7 in the third set. Aussie Sam Stosur was another winner over Klara Zakopalova, as was former doper Sesil Karatancheva, who came from a set down to defeat Nuria Llagostera Vives.

Highlights on tap for Wednesday at the Aussie Open are the shaky (5) Ana Ivanovic vs. Italy’s Alberta Brianti, the embattled Jelena Dokic representing Australia vs. (17) Anna Chakvetadze, (1) Jelena Jankovic vs. Belgian Kirsten Flipkens, and (10) Nadia Petrova vs. Sania Mirza.

“I didn’t really have any goals or expectations for myself for the first three or four months of the year,” Dokic said. “I just wanted to work really hard and see what I can do. I’m just trying to work hard every day, every practice session, every gym session. For me, this is what I need to do right now. It would be great to be the No. 1 Australian, of course. But at this stage this is not my goal. I still have a long way to go.”

TENNIS-X NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS

Temperatures exceeded 104F for a few hours Tuesday in Melbourne, yet no matches were stopped and the roof was never closed. The heat abated mid-afternoon as a wind change dropped the thermometer down to 80F, where it should hover for the next few days…

The Fab Four men lost a combined total of zero sets in the first round…

For playing little over a set Andrei Pavel earned over $13,000…

The U.S. only has two women and four men left in the field…

Talk about pressure and expectations — 16-year-old Bernard Tomic will headline the Rod Laver Arena Wednesday night against Gilles Muller. Tomic has one career match win, which came in the first round over Potito Starace. But will Bernie wear those funky shades under the lights?…

Andy Roddick’s coach, Larry Stefanki, has taken three different players to the Australian Open final — Fernando Gonzalez, Marcelo Rios and Yevgeny Kafelnikov (won)…

Andy Roddick and Serena Williams both play their best tennis in Melbourne in the odd years. That’s odd…

Would Christophe AND Olivier Rochus be able to beat Rafael Nadal? Nadal cannot lose his No. 1 ranking this week no matter what happens. Nadal is also 20-0 lifetime in the first round of Grand Slam matches…

Three former Australian Open winners are playing Wednesday in Roger Federer, Marat Safin and Novak Djokovic….

In all, 12 5-setters in the first round, eight alone on Tuesday…

Jeremy Chardy is the same age as Novak Djokovic, 21…

Andy Roddick has lost two career sets in seven matches against Xavier Malisse…

German qualifier Florian Mayer is ranked No. 450…

David Nalbandian is three wins from 300…

Andrei Pavel announced his retirement, apparently, maybe, following his loss to Andy Murray in Melbourne that was cut short with a chronic back injury. “I don’t want to try it again,” he said. “I don’t want to damage my health. I played in enough tournaments, I guess.”…

Jelena Jankovic writing for The Age: “Looks can be deceiving. I may look quite strong and quiet from the outside when you don’t know me, but I am not really like that. I am a positive person who laughs a lot and am always happy, but deep down on the inside, I am also a very sensitive person. Believe it or not I am a bit of a crier! I do tend to be quite emotional and cry easily. It is not something that I particularly like about myself, but that is how I am as a person. I am not as cold as a rock. But I don’t pay too much attention to what others say about me.”…

You can blame marketing agency The Big Shot for the ATP’s space-age “Feel It” campaign, complete with PR douche-speak: “ATP were very interested in seeing how original content could be used taking an editorial approach leading to all aspects of communication,” said Matt Donegan and Oliver Russell, joint managing directors of The Big Shot. “‘Feel it’ was a video content brief that has turned into a truly global advertising campaign. We are now looking at how we can further develop the campaign on other platforms.”…

Jelena Jankovic on her new clothing line and shoes: “Yeah, you have seen the dress on the court. I think it’s a nice dress. You know, I like the green. It’s bright. It’s a quite comfortable dress. I think it looks feminine. No, I also like my shoes. The whole outfit is kind of coordinated. I have white and green shoes. I have my little wristband, my dress. I think it looks like — I’m happy that I’m working with this new company, which is called ANTA. This dress I haven’t designed, but in the future I will be working with a designing team and I will have my own dresses and a whole range of clothes with my name on it. So it’s quite cool. You know, I’m happy, really happy about it. They are new in tennis. For me, it’s an honor that they have chosen me as their first spokesperson. They want to grow in tennis, as well, worldwide. They want to have a big name.” The deal with the China-based sportswear company is reportedly worth $5.1 million over three years…

Andy Roddick on new ATP CEO Adam Helfant: “I actually was lucky enough to have dinner with him the other night. I was pretty impressed. He didn’t come in with kind of this braggadocio attitude of what he’s done, whatever. He kind of came in and he had his notepad and his pen and he asked questions and he wrote down notes. He didn’t come in like a know-it-all. He was kind of very concerned about a number of issues. If he didn’t quite understand it, he would ask why we thought that. It was an impressive meeting, that’s for sure. After the meeting, I was glad that they had chosen him.”…

Jelena Dokic is taking bids from clothing sponsors…

American Taylor Dent after returning to tennis from three back surgeries, losing to fellow American Amer Delic in the first round in Melbourne: “I was wracking my brain thinking of stuff I wanted to do, and honestly nothing gave me the fire in my belly like competing and playing professional tennis. So I said if I get the chance I’m going to take it, and I’m going to try to be better than I was.”…

From TVNZ on last week’s ATP Auckland event: “After working up the courage for few days, one female reporter decided to try a light hearted line of Spanish on Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro. ‘Sos muy bueno, un Potro.’ Loosely translated, this Argentine slang means ‘You are very handsome, a bit of a hottie.’ ‘No, soy muy feo,’ he replied laughing. There was a moment of confusion, but what the good-natured Del Potro had said was ‘No, I’m very ugly.'” After winning the Auckland title, Del Potro sat outside on the stadium eating a meal from a paper plate, chatting with friends and fans and enjoying the outdoor after-tournament party festivities on the grounds…

Marcos Baghdatis on the difficult heat at the Aussie Open: “The conditions, the sun, the sun, it’s just very strong. Just even being out there, you cannot breathe. I just want to, you know, puke. But I’m happy I went through.”…

Marat Safin, who says he is competing in his last Australian Open (and last year on tour): “I don’t want to get stressed. I don’t want to plan anything. I want to play and be relaxed, no stress. Whatever comes, comes. It’s great for me. Just try to be in shape, be able to run around the court. Like this it’s much easier to play tennis. At least I want to enjoy it. I don’t want to suffer anymore. I don’t want to get stressed. I don’t want to feel bad on the court anymore. No expectation. No stress. No drama. Just play, enjoy. Whatever comes, it’s great. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t…Tennis is stressful, of course…You don’t want to play any more because, like I said, it’s too much stress.” — Stop beating around the bush, are you trying to make a statement about being stressed? Is it something to do with stress?…

38-year-old Kimiko Date-Krumm, the Japanese qualifier and former Top 10er, says she will play the qualifying at the remaining three Slams in 2009…

The testy Novak Djokovic on mentally making the switch to his new racquet: “I already done it, so I don’t want to talk about it anymore.” The Serb failed to reach the final in his first two events of the year…

Former No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt says look for him in the Top 10 again: “I’m still as driven and motivated as I think I’ve always been. Probably more so after having the injury, having to put in all the hard yards to try and get back, just to get back on the court, doing a whole heap of rehab, fitness stuff, just to be able to play here. If the motivation wasn’t there, then I wouldn’t be playing. So for me, I still feel that I’ve got things to do in the sport. I still feel I can get back into the Top 10 and push those better guys at the top of the rankings. I’ve obviously got to play a lot more matches, get in that rhythm of hopefully being a hundred percent fit on the court and playing week in and week out as well.”…

The ATP Auckland final between 6-foot-6 Sam Querrey and 6-foot-6 Juan Martin Del Potro is believed to be the tallest final in men’s tennis history…

Georgina Chang, ESPN-Star Sports presenter and host, asked about her least-favorite interview encounters: “[Maria] Sharapova is cold and unfriendly. Once she just stood and glared at me as we waited for the cameraman to frame the shot. All I had said to her was ‘Hi, Maria!’ But she was suddenly all smiles and girly when the camera rolled…she is arrogant, unfriendly…I know plenty of her male fans are hissing at this, but her likability rating on the tour among players, officials and now the media is very low. She’s probably got a nice side, but doesn’t feel it’s necessary to be decent to people in general.”…