Australian Open Finals – Serene Serena offers no fairytale comeback for Justine as Federer outshines a dangerous Murray in three.

Serena Williams bt Justine Henin 6-4, 3-6, 6-2

Roger Federer bt Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4, 7-6

So that was that, another stunning fortnight of tennis from the most reliable of the majors – relentless tennis of the highest calibre, and few formalities. The first of the finals saw two great rivals trade momentum and breaks of serve at will as Justine Henin’s Kim-inspired comeback Slam quest was quashed by old rival and current queen of the women’s game Serena Williams. That remarkable US Open aside, Serena continues to stamp her authority on the WTA tour and the history books by collecting her 5th Australian title (an open era record) and her 12th Major victory equalling Billie Jean King’s record. The American proclaimed that Justine can be number one in the world again, with sister Venus continuing to flounder it may just be up to Serena herself and a certain Kim Clijsters to try and stop Henin.

In a high quality match it was ultimately Henin’s still rusty service that proved her undoing, a woeful execution of break point chances didn’t help either. A stunning comeback for a remarkable player, just not perfect enough to match the formidable, irrepressible Williams when it mattered.

The men’s final was eagerly anticipated – during his dark 18 months it was Federer who struggled again and again when facing Andy Murray. The Scot has played phenomenal tennis all week, only dropping one set in his campaign (to the brave Cilic in the previous round), and rightfully fancied his chances against Fedex. But it has been quite clear that apart from a bad-tempered uncharacteristic loss in New York last year – this is the Federer of old. All encompassing, effortless, and fully confident with himself and his game again after regaining that number one spot. This was not the beatable Federer and there were few cracks in his performance to allow Murray in and dig under the Swiss’ nose. Instead Murray, who had looked unflappable and brimming with energy throughout the tournament, was silenced and subdued - hardly error strewn but often just a tad too conservative and uncomfortable.

The magic was nowhere, giving way instead to the sponge-like counter punching that makes up the Briton’s game-plan. A tense tiebreaker finished off the high quality encounter with Murray wasting some golden opportunities to take the set and change the entire story of the match. A wide volley here, a tired backhand into the net there, it was tantalisingly close and for all the ugly roaring of the Murray camp led by lioness Judy it wasn’t to be.

A tearful Murray was gracious in defeat, a surprisingly transparent moment for the Scot who has endeared himself ever so slightly to this fan with some humility. His time will indeed come, but Federer will have to be back in the doldrums to be easily conquered.

All Pics from Australian Open Official Site

Australian Open Day Ten - Venus is shocked and Novak is sick but Serena and FedEx fight-back to win

Match of the Day: Jo Wilfred Tsonga bt Novak Djokovic 7-6, 6-7, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1

Jo Wilfred was again involved in an encounter filled with drama and high quality play. See-sawing momentum shifts with every game, it should have been Djokovic’s match having been up a break in the first set only to then miss out in the breaker. The second set was much the same only this time the Serb manage to close it out. A divine third set should have been enough – Tsonga looked all at sea with no answers and seemingly no gameplan of his own. Then, at the start of the fourth, Djokovic fell ill and was reportedly sick in the locker room – he never fully recovered and despite a brief reprieve in the final set it was always the Frenchmans’s match. Will Tsonga have enough to challenge Federer in the semi’s well, it’s doubtful but anything and everything has happened in this exceptional major so far. Djokovic’s fitness must again be brought into question however.

Federer himself was in serious trouble against the unbeaten Davydenko in the earlier match on Rod Laver Arena. An error-strewn and indifferent Swiss quickly dropped down 2-6, 1-3, 15-40 and it all looked to be a challenge too far after the cakewalk against Hewitt. But, much like at Roland Garros against Del Potro it was one superb winner which changed the match and gave the worlds number one the belief to win. Davydenko was hapless to resist the charge, dropping the next 13 games in a row before a re-focus ensured a tightish finish to the inevitable outcome, losing 6-2, 3-6, 0-6, 5-7. Lets hope that the likeable Russian can maintain his early form throughout the year and continue to be a threat at the summit.

The expected ‘all Williams semi final’ failed to materialise today as Venus Williams lost out to surprise package Li Na in an equally inconsistent match with neither player finding their rhythm at the same time. Like Federer, the Chinese looked down and out at 2-6, 4-5 but as, in her fourth round match, Venus’ serve deserted her at crucial times. It was break-city in the decider with no less than nine games going against the serve – the last two unbelievably to love. Sister Serena proved why she is the world’s best player with a stirring comeback to silence Victoria Azarenka. Again, it was seemingly curtains for the eventual winner, the American was 4-6, 0-4 down and just three points from defeat before wrestling the match into her hands and enforcing the devastating, powerful and at times scintillating shotmaking that makers her such a hard nut to crack for most.

It’s now two Chinese women in the final four of a slam for the first time but against arguably the best player’s of the last decade, it’ll be tough for either to make the final.

Seeds to have fallen today

Novak Djokovic
Nikolay Davydenko
Venus Williams
Victoria Azarenka

Pic from BBC Sport

Australian Open Day Nine – Different fortunes for the Andy’s as Rafa’s injury makes unwelcome return.

Match Of The Day Marin Cillic bt Andy Roddick 7-6, 6-3, 2-6, 3-6, 6-3

It was a mightily impressive display from the 21 year old Croatian. After already defeating Bernard Tomic and the substantially more difficult Juan Martin Del Potro in two five set marathons, Marin Cillic did the same to Andy Roddick. The American had no answer and no rhythm in the early stages and a shoulder injury in the second set looked to have spelt the end for the big serving American old-skooler. But a surging comeback (now a welcome trademark of this much improved Roddick) forced the match in to a decider after two quick sets pummelled the Croat in to submission. To rise again after such a beating and turn the tables around once more was a superhuman task. Can the Croat overcome an Andy Murray high on confidence? Well there have been so many shocks this tournament I wouldn’t like to say but my instinct says Cillic is just that bit too green to take on the Scot.

Murray himself had a much easier ride to his first semi-finals in Australia. Rafael Nadal never really looked in control or up to speed in the match. The first three or four games saw the Spaniard play phenomenal stuff, but it wasn’t enough and Murray stayed strong to maintain his own rhythm and enforce a gameplan that was perfect in its execution and tactical nous. A tight second set culminated in a tiebreak which seemed to knock Nadal’s right knee into a relapse of last year’s problems – at 3-0 down in the third the warrior uncharacteristically called it a day.

Maria Kirilenko’s dream run at this years open came to a sudden halt against arguably the most accomplished of her opponents this fortnight. Zheng Jie is an extremely solid top 15 player, but not as illustrious or spectacular as Sharapova. Yet her consistent match play was enough here, with undoubtedly a degree of exhaustion creeping into the young Russian’s mental and physical psyche. In the other quarter final, Justine Henin played well enough to conquer an oddly floundering and erratic Nadia Petrova. A frustrating display from the Russian produced none of the rampant consistency shown against Clijsters and Kuznetsova, Henin just had to hang in there and play some percentage shots to win. That and some trademark winners, which always help and come as easy as you like for the Belgian star.

Seeds/noteworthy players to fall today

Rafael Nadal
Andy Roddick
Nadia Petrova
Maria Kirilenko

Picture courtesy of Australian Open Official site.

Australian Open Day Eight – Vocal Victoria wins but Local Lleyton loses out as Davydenko faces Fed.

Match Of The Day – Jo Wilfred Tsonga bt Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 6-7, 9-7

Proof again that the OZ Open consistently spits out thrilling matches at will – another five set spectacular saw the exuberant Frenchman conquer one of the men’s tour’s most underachievbing talents. Spain’s Nicolas Almagro has all the weapons to pose a threat to the top ten, his huge serve and excellent mix of grinding defence and brave shotmaking are enough to consistently worry the best – but this breakthrough has yet to happen. He was close here against the popular Tsonga but just lost out when it came to the crucial crunch points near the cusp. Tsonga should fancy his chances against Novak Djokovic in a rematch of the 2008 final where the Serb achieved his first major title.

Djokovic himself has been a little wayward so far this year, but looked solid against the unseeded Lukasz Kubot of Poland, coming through in three: 6-1, 6-2, 7-5. Nikolay Davydenko was (unsurprisingly) pushed for the first time as last years semi finalist Fernado Verdasco looked to have sealed the winning momentum fighting back from two sets down only to then lose out once more in five gruelling and at times inspiring sets of tennis. The Russian will be a huge test for Federer in the quarters. The Swiss world number one was only real;ly challenged by Lleyton Hewitt in the third set where the Aussie veteran managed to break back and hold points for 5-5.

Amidst the expected Serena onslaught (ousting Stosur in two easy sets) and equally expected Venus wobble (fighting past Schiavone in three) there were shocks as the latest Sharapova-clone Caroline Wozniacki lost out to Li Na of China in straight sets. It was disappointing for the Dane who’s big if graceless game should have been enough to power through. Later on it was an entertaining three way battle on Rod Laver Arena as the rather unlikeable Victoria Azarenka had to face both Vera Zvonareva and a hostile Melbourne crowd still hurting from the loss of Lleyton the previous match. The early exchanges saw the lively supports hound the Belorussian and humorously mimic her overdone ‘WOoh’ exhale with every shot. It mattered little as, just like at Roland Garros last year Azarenka ignored the justified criticism to win in three – her first victory over the brittle 9th seed.


Seeds/noteworthy players to fall today

Lleyton Hewitt
Fernando Verdasco
Nicolas Almagro

Samantha Stosur
Caroline Wozniacki
Vera Zvonareva
Francesca Schiavone

Picture from BBC Sport

Australian Open Middle Weekend roundup

Certain events this weekend hindered the daily reports but nevertheless it was an eventful three days. The women’s competition saw a gutsy display from the darkest of horses in Justine Henin fighting back against the super-qualifier Wickmayer whilst it was more heartbreak for Dinara Safina who limped out of the tournament. The obligatory ‘darling’ of the tournament Maria Kirilenko benefited most from the second seed’s misfortune. Elsewhere the Williams sisters and the strong looking Petrova marched on. It’s always sad for me to see Hantuchova lose, especially as – once again – it was against a beatable player in Na Li of China.

There were more high profile retirements in the men’s competition as both Marcos Baghdatis and Mikhail Youzhny withdrawing thanks to injury, the latter never making it to the court after a suspected broken wrist. The seeds all progressed however with Murray, Nadal, Djokovic and Roddick powering through to the quarters. Five setters are so frequent here and Marin Cillic and Juan Martin Del Potro treated the crowds to one such thriller, the Croatian the surprise winner.

Seeds/noteworthy players to have fallen over the middle weekend:

Tommy Haas
Marcos Baghdatis
Alberto Montanes
Juan Monaco
Mikhail Youzhny
Fernando Gonzalez
Stanislas Wawrinka
Juan Martin Del Potro
Gael Monfils
Ivan Ljubicic
Phillip Kohlschreiber
Ivo Karlovic

Dinara Safina
Yalina Wickmayer
Shahar Peer
Agnieska Radwanska
Casey Dellacqua
Daniela Hantuchova

Aussie Open Official site for the original pics

Australian Open Day Five – Clijsters crumbles as Nadal is tested

Some issues at home will render these posts fairly short. Today saw one of the biggest shocks of the tournament so far with Kim Clijsters – many peoples favourite for the title and certainly Justine Henin’s quarter final opponent – was dumped out by Nadia Petrova 6-0, 6-1. Yes it really was that bad from the Belgian who never found her feet, rhythm or basic game. More importantly it really was that good from the Russian, who is playing better and moving stronger than at any time in her solid top 15 career.

On a quietish day for the seeded women, Henin herself had a little wobble before overcoming Alisa Kleybanova in three sets whilst Alona Bondarenko and Dinara Sfaina both came through their matches with relative ease, ousting the poor Jelena Jankovic 6-2, 6-2 and Elene Batacha 6-1, 6-2 respectively. Svetlana Kuznetsova advanced as did the unseeded pair of Maria Kirilenko and Jie Zheng who beat Marion Bartoli. The danger player for Henin now is giant-killer Yanina Wickmayer.

Andy Roddick and Rafael Nadal both had to fight through tough matches against Felicano Lopez and Phillip Kohlschreiber at either ends of the days play. Both came through in four gruelling sets. Ivo Karlovic and Marin Cillic both came four setters themselves to advance. It was easier elsewhere though with Andy Murray, Juan Martin Del Potro (who faces Cillic) and Fernando Gonzalez all going through in straight sets.

Seeds/noteworthy players to fall on Day 5

Ivan Ljubicic
Feliciano Lopez
Stanislas Wawrinka
Gael Monfils
Phillip Kohlschreiber

Kim Clijsters
Alisa Kleybanova
Jelena Jankovic
Marion Bartoli
Elena Baltacha

BBC Sport supplied the Image

Australian Open Day Four – The gals have a swagger as the guys slog it out

Match of the Day – Marcos Baghdatis bt David Ferrer(17) 4-6, 3-6, 7-6, 6-3, 6-1

The fourth day saw the majority of the seeded ladies breeze through their matches with the loss of a handful of games. The men’s competition saw another five matches go the distance. The highlight of these, for sheer emotion as well as – on paper at least – a considerable upset, was Marcos Baghdatis fighting back from the brink to beat David Ferrer. The Spaniard seeded 17th does have an unfortunate habit of under performing or choking in far too many Grand Slam matches whatever the stage. Yes his Cypriot opponent is one of the toughest challenges on any day (particularly here in what is essentially Baghdatis' home tournament), but Ferrer should be closing these ones out if he is to get back to the top ten. A two set deficit is familiar ground for Bagdhatis, especially here in Melbourne where drama frequently comes guaranteed with any match featuring the 2006 finalist. An actual home-grown hero looms next for the sparkling Cypriot – if the match is even half as good as their 2008 fourth round brawl then it will be a thriller.


Men
Tommy Haas and Janko Tipsarevic also sweated over a five set duel full of power, precision and gusto – the German finally prevailing 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 and still looking as polished and pristine in these twilight years. Juan Monaco defeated Michel Llodra in five engaging sets offering the always fascinating spectacle of a serve and volleyer pitched against a baseliner. Nicolas Almagro is no stranger to long matches and was given just that from promising and progressively consistent youngster Benjamin Becker finally coming through 6-3 in the fifth. Elsewhere it was more comfortable for the aforementioned Hewitt and the big boys Davydenko, Tsonga and Roger Federer, the latter of which sailed through a tough encounter with Romanian Victor Hanescu. Novak Djokovic laboured slightly in his four set win over Switzerland’s Marco Chiudinelli, but still looks good enough to stake a serious title claim.


Women
Some of the girls had to play again in less than 24 hours today to allow the schedule to return to order by the fourth day’s play. It made little difference as a horde of seeds posted comfortable wins in the ever increasing Melbourne heat. Serena and Venus looked ominous in their straight set victories over Petra Kvitova and danger player Sybille Bammer respectively. There were also impressive straight set wins for Vera Zvonareva, Victoria Azarenka, Agnieska Radwanska, Daniela Hantuchova and Francesca Schiavone. Caroline Wozniacki was again strong setting up a third round meeting with the in-form Shahar Peer of Israel – the pick of the third round match ups in this half. The shocks were few and far between but still significant – the quickly falling Ana Ivanovic looked all at sea against a fiery and greatly impressive Gisela Dulko as the Argentine came through an up and down encounter to win in three. It was a case of going down before fighting back into a winning position, only to then ultimately lose with a whimper. Casey Dellacqua (surprisingly picked over the higher ranked Aussie Stosur) was given the night match on Rod Laver – the recovering local girl triumphed over a resurgent Karolina Sprem in two tight sets 7-6, 7-6.

Seeds/players of note to have fallen today

David Ferrer
Donald Young
Janko Tipsarevic

Sabine Lisicki
Ana Ivanovic

Picture from Australian Open Official site

Australian Open Day Three – Justine and Elena deliver the goods on a day of five setters

On another thrilling day at this years Open it was a case of fulfilled promise as the highly anticipated meeting between white hot 5th seed Elena Dementieva and comeback queen Justine Henin lived up to the hype. True it was far from dramatic – for that you could take your pick on a third day full of five set epics – but the level of quality shown by both players was both devastating and unbelievably consistent. There are few players who can match Dementieva for current form at the moment and it showed with a typically gutsy display that now has real substance and variation. But Justine looks evergreen and back to her best which unfortunately for the Russian Tsarina, is far too good for anyone. During two close sets played over almost three hours there was zero let up in quality, alertness and concentration from the two. The respect given and deserved from the two veterans was just the icing on the cake.

Men
An angry Andy Roddick hissed and spat his way through an otherwise comfortable straight sets victory over Thomaz Bellucci after a match point was called wrong by the umpire. He now faces Feliciano Lopez after he came through past Rainer Schuettler the battle of the veterans. There were solid wins for Fernando Gonzalez, Stanislas Wawrinka, Gael Monfils and the Croatian pair of Karlovic and Ljubicic, who meet in round three. Hot tips Nadal and Murray eased through their respective matches. But the drama was supplied in full force from two 5 set epics. First, as Henin and Dementieva wowed the crowds Juan Martin Del Potro and the ever-impressive James Blake fought it out in a four hour tussle finishing 10-8 to the Argentine in the fifth. Finally 17 year old local wunderkid Bernard Tomic pushed the nu-Ivanisevic Marin Cillic all the way into the night. After a tight but – from Cillic’s point of view surely disappointing – match it was the tall Croat who came through in the early hours of the morning.

Women
A case of some comfortable wins for the seeds today as the second half of the draw (Henin aside) has followed suit with seeds meeting seeds. Kleybanova, Kirilenko, and Svetlana Kuznetsova all advanced for Russia and will be joined in the third round with Safina, Bartoli and Jelena Jankovic. Kim Clijsters meets Nadia Petrova after they both advanced. The main news today for the ladies is delightful for us Brits, with Elena Baltacha keeping the fairytale down under alive dumping out 30th seed Kateryna Bondarenko in straight sets. In the delayed matches from Day one there were wins for Vera Zvonareva, Na Li, Agnieska Radwanska, Caroline Wozniacki and Daniela Hantuchova…just.

Seeds/noteworthy players to have fallen today:

Men
Tomas Berdych
Viktor Troicki
Jarkko Nieminen

Women
Elena Dementieva
Elena Vesnina
Kimiko Date Krumm
Flavia Pennetta
Aravine Rezai
Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez
Kateryna Bondarenko