=============
ROLAND GARROS (Paris, France; red clay; Major)
============= http://www.rolandgarros.com/
Contents
--------

1. UK TV-alert
2. First-round draw
3. Anna Chakvetadze preview
4. Women's Doubles: First-round draw
5. Order of play for Monday

My French Open 2009 master-thread:
http://www.tennisforum.com/showthread.php?t=379808

--------------
1. UK TV-alert
--------------

The French Open will be televised on BBC Red Button from 10:00 BST each day of
the tournament (digital viewers press Red or select the appropriate
Freeview-channel - 301 or 302).

Sunday 24th May to Friday 5th June, 10:00-19:00, BBC Red Button
Women's final: Saturday 6th June, 14:00-16:30, BBC 2
Men's final: Sunday 7th June: 14:00-18:00, BBC 2

-------------------
2. First-round draw (Sunday's losers removed)
-------------------

The players on the left are the ones I want to win.


2.1 Top quarter
---------------

* Anne Keothavong v DINARA SAFINA [1] (let's get rid of Safina)
* Vitalia Diatchenko [Q,S] won
* Julie Coin won
* ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA [27] won

* Polona Hercog [Q] v ALISA KLEYBANOVA [23] (dajmo Polona!)
* Aravane Rezaď v Ai Sugiyama (allez Aravane!)
* Michelle Larcher de Brito [Q] v Melanie South (Brito > this Briton)
* ZHENG,JIE [15] v Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro (jia you Jie!)

* VICTORIA AZARENKA [9] won
* Kristina Barrois won
* Lucie Hradecká [S] v Yvonne Meusburger [Q] (pojdme Lucie!)
* Edina Gallovits v CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO [22]

* IVETA BENEŠOVÁ [32] won
* Alla Kudryavtseva won
* Camille Pin v Tamarine Tanasugarn
* ANA IVANOVIC [8,DF] won


2.2 Second quarter: Lucie Šafárová, Maria Sharapova
---------------------------------------------------

* VENUS WILLIAMS [3] v Bethanie Mattek-Sands
* Lucie Šafárová [EF] v Sabine Lisicki [DF] (my loyalty is to LUCIE)
* Elena Vesnina won
* ÁGNES SZÁVAY [29] v Corinna Dentoni [Q]

* DOMINIKA CIBULKOVÁ [20] v Alyona Bondarenko (my loyalty is to Domi)
* Kirsten Flipkens v Stéphanie Foretz (komaan Kirsten!)
* Gisela Dulko [DF] won
* Anna-Lena Grönefeld won

* NADIA PETROVA [11] won
* Maria Sharapova [EF] v Anastasiya Yakimova (DAVAI MARIA!!)
* Arantxa Rus [Q] won
* Yaroslava Shvedova [Q] won

* LI,NA [25] won
* Timea Bacsinszky won
* Irena Pavlovic [WC,S] v Akgul Amanmuradova (allez Irena!)
* Katie O'Brien [LL] v Olga Govortsova (my loyalty is to Katie)

N.B. Katie O'Brien [LL] replaces VERA ZVONARËVA [6,EF]. :bigcry:


2.3 Third quarter: Chakvetadze, Hantuchová, Dokic
-------------------------------------------------

* Petra Cetkovská v JELENA JANKOVIC [5] (pojdme Petra!)
* Magdaléna Rybáriková [DF] v Kristina Mladenovic [WC] (podme Magda!)
* Jarmila Groth v Kinnie Laisné [WC]
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [26,EF] v Mariana Duque Marino [LL] (DAVAI ANNA!!)

* ALIZÉ CORNET [21] v Maret Ani (allez Alizé!)
* Sorana Cîrstea v Carly Gullickson [Q] (hai Sorana!)
* Tsvetana Pironkova [DF] v Jill Craybas (aide Tsvetana!)
* CAROLINE WOZNIACKI [10] v Vera Dushevina (kom sĺ Caroline!)

* MARION BARTOLI [13,DF,S] v Pauline Parmentier (allez Marion!)
* Ayumi Morita [S] v Tathiana Garbin (ganbatte Ayumi!)
* Daniela Hantuchová [EF] v Virginie Razzano (PODME DANIELA!!)
* Ekaterina Makarova v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [18]

* SAMANTHA STOSUR [30] v Francesca Schiavone
* Urszula Radwanska v Yanina Wickmayer (my loyalty is to Urszula)
* Jelena Dokic [EF] v Karolina Šprem [DF] (my loyalty is to JELENA)
* ELENA DEMENTIEVA [4] v Chanelle Scheepers [Q]


2.4 Bottom quarter: Nicole Vaidišová
------------------------------------

* SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [7] v Claire Feuerstein [WC]
* Sania Mirza [DF] v Galina Voskoboeva (go Sania!)
* Anastasija Sevastova [Q] v Melinda Czink
* Nathalie Dechy v SYBILLE BAMMER [28]

* Kateryna Bondarenko v PATTY SCHNYDER [17]
* Maria Kirilenko [DF] v Olivia Rogowska [WC] (davai Maria!)
* Patricia Mayr v Mariya Koryttseva
* Rossana de los Ríos v AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [12]

* FLAVIA PENNETTA [14,DF] v Alexa Glatch (forza Flavia!)
* Barbora Záhlavová Strýcová v Lourdes Domínguez Lino
* Mara Santangelo v Petra Martic [Q]
* Monica Niculescu [S] v ALEKSANDRA WOZNIAK [24] (hai Monica!)

* PENG,SHUAI [31,S] v María José Martínez Sánchez (jia you Shuai!)
* Viktoriya Kutuzova v Zuzana Ondrášková [Q] (my loyalty is to Viktoriya)
* Nicole Vaidišová [EF] v Virginia Ruano Pascual (my loyalty is to NICOLE)
* Klára Zakopalová v SERENA WILLIAMS [2] (pojdme Klára!)

---------------------------
3. Anna Chakvetadze preview
---------------------------

Anna is, at #26, the highest-ranked representative of my Eternal Fanship at the
French Open, but if 2008 was a poor year for her,
2009 has been even worse: her win/loss record is in the red at 8:9.

Of course, we still have to qualify any discussion of Anna's form by remembering
that she was tied up by burglars who broke into her house in December 2007. But
while 2008 did have its highlights - a title at Paris, a Tier I semi-final at
Rome and a final at New Haven - 2009 has begun as a continuation of Anna's
slump, but without any such highlights so far.

The best that can be said of the first two months of 2009 is that Anna won her
first-round match at the Australian Open, and turned in a great performance for
Russia to thrash Yan,Zi 6-1 6-2 in Fed Cup. But she lost to Ayumi Morita - the
lucky loser who replaced Shahar Pe'er - at Dubai, and to Shahar herself at
Indian Wells.

A second-round effort at Miami was more encouraging, considering that Anna
thrashed Daniela Hantuchová 6-3 6-1 before losing to eventual champion Victoria
Azarenka, but she then suffered two humiliating losses in a row to Flavia
Pennetta: 6-4 6-0 in Fed Cup, and 6-2 6-0 at Stuttgart.

Anna got her act together at Rome, as she thrashed Fčs-champion Anabel Medina
Garrigues 6-2 6-3 in the first round, and overcame Aleksandra Wozniak 5-7 7-6(2)
6-3 in the second round before losing 6-0 6-7 6-4 to world #5 Venus Williams.

At least Anna's fighting-spirit - which had been questioned in the weeks leading
up to Rome - was well and truly back: she fought back from 3-5* to win the
second set against Venus, and from *0-4 to 3-4* in the third.

And Madrid was a very similar tournament for Anna: she beat #118 Virginia Ruano
Pascual 6-4 6-3, then staged a terrific fightback to beat #31 Samantha Stosur
1-6 6-2 7-6 (7/4): Stosur led *4-1 in the third set, and served for the match at
*5-4!

Anna lost 6-0 2-6 6-3 to Alyona Bondarenko in the third round of Madrid, but
that doesn't seem so bad now that Bondarenko has beaten Maria Sharapova en route
to the Warsaw-final.

But by now, a clear pattern in Anna's matches has emerged: she loses the first
set easily, then fights back to at least take the second set...

Anna has been handed a kind draw for the first two rounds: lucky loser Mariana
Duque Marino, then either journeywoman Jarmila Groth (née Gajdošová), or French
wild card Kinnie Laisné whom I've never even heard of. After that, a potential
third-round meeting with world #5 Jelena Jankovic awaits... although I hope
Magdaléna Rybáriková will have something to say about that!


3.1 First-round preview: Chakvetadze v Duque Marino
---------------------------------------------------

Anna has never played Mariana Duque Marino: a 19-year-old ranked #124. I
remember her best for the fact that she reached the French Open 2007 Girls'
Singles final (losing to Alizé Cornet).

Duque Marino is having an even worse year than Anna, with a win/loss record of
6:11 - ten of those matches coming in qualifying for various WTA tournaments.

In fact, Duque Marino had to wait until March for her first win since October,
when she snapped a 9-match losing-streak by successfully qualifying for Miami -
only to lose in the first round to the notorious Alla Kudryavtseva.

First-round exits at Charleston and Fčs followed, but like Anna, Duque Marino
managed to get two wins at Rome - the difference being that they were in
qualifying. She lost to Patty Schnyder in the first round.

And again at Madrid, Duque Marino won two matches to qualify, then lost 6-3 7-6
to world #57 Anne Keothavong in the first round.

Duque Marino lost in the third round of qualifying here: after beating #197
Silvia Soler Espinosa 6-3 6-3 and #214 Frederica Piedade 6-3 6-4, she lost 6-7
6-4 6-1 to #163 Polona Hercog, but got into the main draw as a lucky loser.

If Anna manages to lose to Duque Marino, then her slump will have plumbed a new
depth that I don't even think she's capable of.

------------------------------------
4. Women's Doubles: First-round draw
------------------------------------

* Anna Chakvetadze [EF]/Maria Elena Camerin
v Gisela Dulko [DF]/Ágnes Szávay

---------------------------
5. Order of play for Monday
---------------------------

Court 16 (start 11:00 CEST = 09:00 GMT = 10:00 BST)
MS 1r: Mikhail Youzhny v Gilles Müller
WS 1r: Edina Gallovits v CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO [22]
MS 1r: José Acasuso v Santiago Ventura
WS 1r: ANNA CHAKVETADZE [26,EF] v Mariana Duque Marino [LL]

Full order of play:
http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://tinyurl.com/andrewbroad-chakv