=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://championships.wimbledon.org/

Daniela Hantuchová: "It's so hard to play against somebody that you
know is struggling, and you kind of feel sorry. At the same time, you
have to be tough and still play your game. Mentally, it was very,
very tough."

------------
Fourth round (Monday 2nd July)
------------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] lt. SERENA WILLIAMS [7],
2-6 7-6 (7/2) 2-6

This was the dramatic match in which Daniela led 5-2* in the second
set, then Williams, having fought back to 5-5, collapsed with a spasm-
induced calf-strain, screaming in agony!

But Williams was saved by a two-hour rain-delay, and although that
didn't stop Daniela winning the second-set tiebreak, she choked as
Williams's movement improved in the third set. Williams asked to take
a toilet-break before each of Daniela's last two service-games, the
umpire refused permission, but Williams declined the umpire's offer
to go before her own last service-game!

My full TV-report includes a point-by-point description, and
transcripts of both players' BBC-interviews:
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/wimbledon2007.html

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://championships.wimbledon.org/

Daniela Hantuchová: "I do enjoy it when it gets tight. I think the
more I'm on the court, the better for me because I think physically
I'm fit, and yeah, I don't care if it's 40 minutes or three hours.
Definitely the nerves don't play a role anymore."

--------------------------------
Daniela Hantuchová's third round (Friday 29th June 2007)
--------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] d. KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19], 2-6 6-3 6-4

Katarina played an excellent first set, but the match turned when
Daniela came through a service-game of 7 deuces at *1-1 in the
second, and she extended her head-to-head over Katarina to 6:0
(7:0 after Paris 2008). Daniela hit 52 winners!

My full TV-report includes a point-by-point description:
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/wimbledon2007.html

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

Daniela is on the front cover of the May 2008 issue of British tennis-
magazine Ace! It's a wonderful photo, too: her facial features are
brilliantly defined.

There's another full-page photo of Daniela on p.34 (from the TCN
Fashion Collection photoshoot of 10th February 2008), and an
interview on p.35.

In a nutshell, she says 2007 was her best year yet, that she has
learned to tolerate her mistakes, a bit about the Sánchez/Casal
Academy, that Ai Sugiyama and Ana Ivanovic are her best friends on
tour, that tennis is more important to her than looks or money, that
singles is her priority, that Wimbledon is her favourite Grand Slam,
but that the Olympics are going to be her highlight of 2008 because
it was always her dream to play in the Olympics.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://championships.wimbledon.org/
Second round (Thursday 28th June 2007)
------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] d. Elena Likhovtseva, 7-5 7-6 (7/3)

At last I have got round to finishing my full TV-report of this match
(including a point-by-point description) and uploading it to my
website:
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/wimbledon2007.html

It also includes the first-round scoreboard-report that I posted here
at the time, plus statistics and an additional article.

============================
From Amelia Island with Love
============================

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Three members of Broad's Eternal Fanship were beaten
at Amelia Island. One of them was Hantuchová. What have you to say,
Number Two?

ANNA CHAKVETADZE: They were Broad's choices. His players failed.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: It was your plan! They followed it implicitly!

ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Impossible. It was perfect.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Except for one thing: I was dealing with Šprem!

ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Who is Šprem compared with Broad's Eternal Fanship?

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Exactly. What have you to say to that, Number Three?
Your countrywoman Cibulková is in the final, and the trophy is not
yet in our possession. I have already negotiated with the Russians to
return it to them. We've agreed a price. And Broad's Eternal Fanship
always delivers what it promises. Our whole organisation depends on
our keeping those promises. I warned you. We do not tolerate failure,
Number Three. You know the penalty.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yes, Number One.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Our rules are very simple. If you fail... <kicks
Anna with poisoned toe-blade; Anna stares at her in disbelief before
collapsing>
Twelve seconds. One day we must invent a faster-working venom.
Number Three!

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yes!

MARIA SHARAPOVA: I do not wish to have to tell the Russians there
will be another delay.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: There will be no delay, Number One. There's still
time.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Semi-final: Hantuchová v Ivanovic review

Apologies for the delay.
This was due to Maria going all the way!

---------
1. Photos
---------

Daniela Hantuchová:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/players/99/photos
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/players/wta080394.html
search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7206414.stm

Many players:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

-------------------------------------------
2. Semi-final: Hantuchová v Ivanovic review (Thursday 24th January)
-------------------------------------------

Nice winner, nice loser:
+ ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] d. DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF], 0-6 6-3 6-4

Oh dear! Daniela led 6-0 2-0*, and also had a break-point at 3-2* in
the third set - which went with serve until Daniela at *4-4 netted a
forehand volley that should have been an easy putaway.

Daniela actually won more games (13-12) and more points (83-80) than
Ana, and had better first-serve percentages (in and points won) than
Ana - but if you ignore the first set, Ana's percentages were better.
While they each had 7 BPs, Daniela broke 4 times (before 6-0 2-0),
Ana just 3 times (after 6-0 2-0).

Daniela finished the match with a negative W:UE ratio of 27:33, while
Ana's was a positive 29:25 (not surprisingly, these ratios were the
other way round in the first set).

The match-point: Daniela netted a forehand, Ana celebrated with a
yell, and Daniela gave her a very limp handshake.

Daniela was cross during and after this match, because during her
service-motion, she allowed herself to be distracted by the loud
squeaking of Ana's shoes as Ana prepared to receive. Daniela
complained to the umpire, and later to the press, who relayed
Daniela's comments to Ana, putting the words "deliberately"
and "gamesmanship" in Daniela's mouth, but Ana said she wasn't doing
it deliberately to put Daniela off, and that Daniela was just "picking
on it to get upset".

Without having watched the match myself, I tend to side with Ana on
this issue. Squeaking shoes are a natural byproduct of good footwork
on Plexicushion, and unless there is video 'footage' to show that Ana
was squeaking her shoes on purpose, Daniela's complaint sounds as
ridiculous as the accusations that Sania Mirza has dishonoured the
Indian flag by putting her feet on it - the difference being that
Daniela is not demanding a three-year jail-sentence.

Daniela complained that the umpire ignored her complaint, but it
wouldn't have been right to give Ana a code-violation when you think
it through. What was Ana supposed to do - stop moving? Play barefoot?

As a tennis-player, you can't let such distractions get to you like a
dripping tap - you simply have to block them out.

I hope Daniela can learn from this loss rather than acquiring yet
more psychological scars. It's very encouraging for 2008 that she has
reached her first Grand Slam semi-final on top of all the great
progress she made in 2007.

Daniela at 24 may be drawing ever closer to the average career-
expectancy for a female tennis-player (26 seems to be the mode age
for retirement in recent years, and no member of my Eternal Fanship
has ever played a WTA singles-match in her 30s, though three of my
eleven have reached their 30s now), but she's of a different stature
now than when she was in her early tweens: a stature that could see
her regularly reach Grand Slam quarter- and semi-finals.


2.1 Articles
------------

Ivanovic sets up Sharapova final [CEEFAX 490->492]
>>>
Ana Ivanovic will face Maria Sharapova in the Australian Open final
after a dramatic three-set win against ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová.

Hantuchová started much the stronger, and raced through the first set
6-0.

It took Ivanovic, from Serbia, 45 minutes to win her first game, but
she settled and took the second set 6-3.

The third set went with serve until 4-4, when three errors from the
Slovak helped fourth seed Ivanovic to break, and the Serb closed
things out 6-4.
<<<

Hantuchová blasts Ivanovic tactic [CEEFAX 490->493]
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová has accused Ana Ivanovic of gamesmanship after the
Serb won their Australian Open semi-final.

Hantuchová, who let slip a 6-0 2-0 lead to lose 0-6 6-3 6-4, claimed
she was regularly put off in serving by a squeak when Ivanovic
shuffled her feet.

"I was really surprised by that," said Hantuchová, claiming umpire
Alison Lang ignored her early complaint.

"I think it's unfair. It's a distraction to the server. We played
before and she never did it."
<<<

Ivanovic fights back to reach final [Teletext 495->499]
>>>
Ivanovic stages comeback [Teletext 498]

Fourth seed Ana Ivanovic produced a stirring comeback to book her
place in the final at Melbourne Park.

The 20-year-old Serbian defeated Slovakian ninth seed Daniela
Hantuchová 0-6 6-3 6-4 to set up a meeting with Maria Sharapova in
Saturday's final.

Ivanovic was blown away in the first set, but recovered her
composure, and took advantage of her powerful serve to seal a second
Grand Slam final-spot.


Ivanovic blames fatigue [Teletext 498]

Ana Ivanovic felt her draining quarter-final win over Venus Williams
played a part in her terrible start against Daniela Hantuchová in the
semis.

The world No 3 lost the opening set 6-0, but bravely fought back to
win the next two and reach Saturday's final.

Ivanovic said: "I didn't have a day off in between, and the roof was
closed, so it made it a lot faster. Playing Venus was emotional, and
drained me a little."


Hantuchová made complaint [Teletext 498]

Daniela Hantuchová has revealed she made a complaint to the umpire
because she felt the shoes of opponent Ana Ivanovic were squeaking
too loudly.

The Slovakian was bundled out of the semi-final in three sets, and
felt Ivanovic's shoes had been a major distraction while she was
serving.

Hantuchová said: "I think it's unfair. It's a distraction to the
server. She's never done it when we played before."
<<<

Ana digs deep to down Daniela
By Adam Lucius <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Ana Ivanovic recovered from a disastrous start to pull off a
remarkable semi-final win over Daniela Hantuchová in the second of
the women's semi-finals at the Australian Open.

The Serb surrendered the first set before winning in three - 0-6 6-3
6-4 - in an incredible back-from-the-dead performance.

Hantuchová stunned the big Rod Laver Arena crowd by taking the first
set in just 25 minutes.

It was the first time in 112 sets of Grand Slam tennis that Ivanovic
had been beaten to love.

History augured well for Hantuchová, who had won 49 of 53 Grand Slam
matches after taking the first set.

Ivanovic's problems on serve continued in the second set, the No.4
seed dropping the first game as Hantuchová held to take a 2-0 lead.

Lifted by the crowd, Ivanovic held serve in her next game, and then
broke Hantuchová to level at 2-2.

The turning point came at 4-3 when Hantuchová double-faulted to hand
the Serb the game and a 5-3 advantage.

Ivanovic served out the set to complete stage one of a remarkable
comeback.

The third set went to serve until Ivanovic broke at 4-4, giving her
the impetus to go on and seal an incredible win.

"I tried to stay calm [after losing the first set], but it wasn't
easy. I won because of you guys [the crowd]," Ivanovic said.

"If it wasn't for you, I'd be booking my flight back home."
<<<

Frenchman Tsonga knocks Nadal out of Australian Open for a shot at
title
By John Pye: AP Sports Writer
>>>
On the women's side, No. 4 Ana Ivanovic was down a set and a break
against Daniela Hantuchová before rebounding for a 0-6 6-3 6-4 win to
reach her second Grand Slam final.

Ivanovic won her first game while down 0-2 in the second set. That
brought cheers from the crowd, and she said it was inspiration.

She broke Hantuchová twice to make it one set apiece. After battling
to hold serve in a 10-minute game that went to deuce seven times, she
broke again, and served out to reach her second final in four Majors.
<<<

Ivanovic comes back from the dead to reach Aussie Open final (AFP)
>>>
Serbian fourth seed Ana Ivanovic staged a barnstorming comeback from
eight games down on Thursday to beat Slovak Daniela Hantuchová and
set up an Australian Open final against Maria Sharapova.

Ivanovic, backing up a day after a bruising scrap against Venus
Williams, allowed ninth seed Hantuchová to run away with the match
before roaring back to win 0-6 6-3 6-4.

The 20-year-old looked like wilting in humid conditions under the
closed roof of the Rod Laver Arena, taking 46 minutes to win her
first game, and reviving memories of her choke in last year's French
Open final.

Urged on by the Melbourne Park crowd, the Serb clawed her way back
into the match, admitting she was surprised at the intensity of an
opponent in Hantuchová contesting her first Grand Slam semi-final.

"She was playing really good, and I was always on the back foot and
always defending," Ivanovic said.

"I didn't find my rhythm, and I knew I had to go for the shots before
her, because she likes to dominate. I tried to hang in there.

"But I just tried to tell myself that she can't keep up that level
throughout the whole match. I knew I would get a chance at some
point, and that helped me a lot."

Ivanovic will struggle to recover from such a slow start in the final
against an in-form Sharapova, but can count on the support of the
Melbourne Park crowd, which includes locally-based relatives and
expatriate Serbs.

"If it wasn't for you guys, I would be already booking my flight back
home," the relieved world number three said after the win.

The Serbian beauty, who can live up to her billing as the next big
thing in women's tennis with a tournament-win, said she was
disappointed with her slow start, but encouraged by the way she
fought back.

She also dismissed complaints from Hantuchová that the squeaking from
her shoes as she prepared to return serve was an annoying distraction
that contributed to the win.

"If you see other matches, I was doing exactly the same thing - it's
just the way these courts play," she said.

"I just tried to move my feet, to return the ball, so it really was
not intentional."

Ivanovic, 20, began nervously as her serve misfired, double-faulting
to go down a break in the opening game, and failing to score a point
in the second.

The 24-year-old Slovak, who enjoyed an armchair-ride to the semis
while Ivanovic battled through a bruising clash with Venus Williams,
looked fresher than her opponent.

Hantuchová stunned Ivanovic to take the first set 6-0 after just 25
minutes.

Ivanovic stretched the opening game of the second for eight minutes,
but eventually conceded another break.

She finally held serve in the third game, and went on to score a
crucial break back, for the first time unleashing some of the
aggression that helped her down Williams.

The Serb's recent fitness-work, which included playing in sauna-like
conditions at a British training-centre to prepare for Melbourne's
heat, began to pay off as her movement improved late in the second
set.

She claimed another break in the eighth game, then went on the defend
serve with an ace and take the match to a third set.

It turned into a 59 minute minute arm-wrestle, Ivanovic seizing the
decisive break in the ninth game then serving out the match, slumping
to the floor after Hantuchová netted a return to give her victory.
<<<

Sharapova, Ivanovic to battle for Aussie tennis Grand Slam (AFP)
>>>
A dogged Ana Ivanovic staged a stunning comeback on Thursday to make
the Australian Open final, where a sizzling Maria Sharapova stands
between her and a maiden Grand Slam title.

The Serbian fourth seed looked dead and buried after going down 6-0
in the first set of her semi-final with Slovak ninth seed Daniela
Hantuchová, but turned the tables in emphatic fashion to win the next
two 6-3 6-4.

Ivanovic looked like wilting in humid conditions with the roof of the
Rod Laver Arena closed due to rain, taking 46 minutes to win her
first game, and reviving memories of her choke in last year's French
Open final.

But the 20-year-old recovered after allowing Hantuchová to rattle off
eight straight games, cheered on by an ecstatic Melbourne Park crowd.

"She's a tough player, and I knew I had to go for my shots early in
the rally, and it was frustrating because I couldn't make any - she
was playing really well," she said, applauding the crowd for helping
her regroup.

"I tried to stay calm as much as I could, but obviously it wasn't
easy."
<<<

Ivanovic fights back to reach final (Reuters)
By Simon Cambers (editing by Ed Osmond)
>>>
Serbian Ana Ivanovic recovered from a terrible start to beat Daniela
Hantuchová of Slovakia 0-6 6-3 6-4 and reach the Australian Open
final on Thursday.

Fourth seed Ivanovic looked frozen with nerves as she dropped the
first eight games of the semi-final, but as Hantuchová's level
dipped, she recovered strongly to set up a final against Russian
fifth seed Maria Sharapova.

Ivanovic, runner-up at last year's French Open, said she had only had
one thought when she trailed 0-6 0-2.

"To win a game," she laughed in a courtside interview. "It's actually
not so funny. She's a tough playerm, and I knew I had to go for my
shots early in the rallies and I was missing them. It was
frustrating."

Ivanovic was far too tentative at first as ninth seed Hantuchová, in
her first Grand Slam semi-final, blasted winners on both sides,
romping to a 6-0 2-0 lead.

The Serbian finally held serve in the third game of the second set,
and suddenly the match changed as she became more aggressive, hitting
her groundstrokes with much greater authority.

A fortunate netcord helped her break back for 2-2, and she then
cruised through the rest of the set to level the match.

Hantuchová had a break-point that would have given her a 4-2 lead in
the decider, but Ivanovic held on before some great scrambling gave
her a break when Hantuchová missed a simple volley.

The Serbian then showed no sign of nerves to serve out for victory
after two hours, 10 minutes, and a disappointed Hantuchová did not
look at Ivanovic when the pair shook hands at the net.

Ivanovic, who said she had struggled to focus after an emotional win
over Venus Williams in the previous round, thanked the crowd for
their support.

"I won just because of you guys," she said. "If it wasn't for you
guys, I would be already booking my flight back home."

Ivanovic said she hoped not to repeat the same mistakes when she
plays Sharapova in the final on Saturday.

"She has had a great tournament, beating Justine [Henin]," Ivanovic
said. "We are 2:2 in matches, and hopefully I can start better than
today."
<<<

Sharapova, Ivanovic take contrasting routes to final (Reuters)
By Ossian Shine (editing by Ed Osmond)
>>>
Serb powerhouse Ana Ivanovic staged a sensational fightback to reach
the Australian Open final on Thursday, and will meet Maria Sharapova
when she guns for a first Grand Slam title.

FIRST-SET WHITEWASH

The pair reached Saturday's showpiece in vastly contrasting styles,
Sharapova pummelling Serb Jelena Jankovic 6-3 6-1, while fourth seed
Ivanovic recovered from a first-set whitewash to oust Daniela
Hantuchová 0-6 6-3 6-4.

Ivanovic won just nine points in the first set, and trailed 0-6 0-2
before pulling things around.

"It definitely was a disappointing start for me," the relieved 20-
year-old smiled.

"I just had a feeling she was playing really good, and I was always
on the back foot and always defending. I just couldn't find my
rhythm. I tried to hang in there to stay with her."

"If it wasn't for you guys, I would be booking my flight home," she
told the crowd.

Ivanovic had looked finished when her Slovak opponent swept through
the first set and broke early in the second.

Seemingly frozen with nerves, the fourth seed kept pounding away at
her groundstrokes, however, and finally they began to pay off as
Hantuchová's standard slipped.

She reeled her opponent in, and finally sealed what had seemed an
unlikely victory in two hours, 10 minutes.
<<<

Ivanovic denies gamesmanship accusations (Reuters)
By Simon Cambers (editing by Ed Osmond)
>>>
Serbia's Ana Ivanovic denied accusations that she used gamesmanship
during her 0-6 6-3 6-4 victory over Daniela Hantuchová in the
Australian Open semi-finals on Thursday.

A disappointed Hantuchová let slip a 6-0 2-0 lead, and later
criticised the fourth seed, saying the way she shuffled her feet
before the server hits the ball, which results in loud squeaking, was
off-putting and unfair.

"That was ridiculous, I think," Hantuchová told reporters.

"I was really surprised with that. I think it's unfair. It's a
distraction to the server. We played before and she never did it."

Hantuchová said she had complained to umpire Alison Lang.

"[I told the umpire] in the first or second service-game, but she
didn't do anything about it. I don't think that [the squeaking] was
very nice."

But Ivanovic said she did not deliberately make a squeaking-noise.

"I just tried to move my feet, to return the ball, so it really was
not intentional," Ivanovic said.

"If you see other matches, I was doing exactly the same thing. It's
just the way these courts play. And if you listen to the guys, I
think they're doing the same thing.

"Once I saw she was complaining [to the umpire]. But there was
nothing I could do, because if I want to move my feet to return a
ball, you know, this was the sound I was producing.

"And also, during the point, if I want to run with small steps around
the ball, it was exactly the same thing. So maybe she was just trying
to pick on something, to get upset."

Hantuchová gave Ivanovic little more than a cursory handshake at the
end, having thought the Serbian had not got to the ball on the first
bounce on the point that gave the fourth seed the vital break in the
final set.

But the Slovakian, appearing in her first Grand Slam semi-final, said
she was just disappointed with her defeat.

"It's just tough, tough to accept that you lose. So I just wanted to
get off the court as soon as possible.

"I thought it was a double bounce, but maybe it was just my mistake.
I should have played the point anyway."

Despite the defeat, Hantuchová said her run to the last four promised
much for the rest of the year.

"In the days to come, I think I will go back and look at the
tournament as a very positive thing," she said.

"I proved once again, to myself, that if I play my game, I can beat
anybody. It's just a matter of doing it for the whole match."
<<<

Sharapova, Ivanovic reach final (PA 'first prize' SportsTicker)
>>>
Maria Sharapova will get a chance to redeem herself in the Australian
Open final.

The fifth-seeded Russian capped her dominant run through the top of
the draw on Thursday with a 6-3 6-1 victory over No. 3 Jelena
Jankovic in the semi-finals of the season's first Grand Slam.

Sharapova will be after her third Grand Slam title on Saturday when
she faces fourth-seeded Serbian Ana Ivanovic, who overcame a
disastrous start to rally past No. 9 Daniela Hantuchová: 0-6 6-3 6-4.

Ivanovic, who had not dropped a set here prior to her meltdown in the
opening set, will be appearing in the second Grand Slam championship
match of her career.

Ivanovic was a runner-up to Henin at Roland Garros last season, and
followed up that effort by reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals.

Hantuchová, her own worst enemy with 33 unforced errors and five
double-faults, was bidding for her first Grand Slam final in this her
29th consecutive Major.

"It's very disappointing at the moment, but I think with days to
come, I think I will go back and look at the tournament as a very
positive thing," Hantuchová said. "I think it gives me a lot of hope
for the whole year.

"I think I proved once again, myself, that if I play my game I can
beat anybody. Just a matter of doing it for the whole match."

The 24-year-old Slovakian was strong early as she earned four
consecutive breaks to capture the first eight games of the match.

A shell-shocked Ivanovic finally started showing signs of life,
securing her first break, and holding serve to forge a 3-2 edge in
the second set.

"I had to calm down for today's victory," Ivanovic
said. "[Hantuchová] is a tough player, I had to go for my shots early
in the rally, and it was frustrating because I couldn't make any."

Hantuchová double-faulted on the final point of the eighth game to
hand a 5-3 lead to Ivanovic, who served out the set without losing a
point.

Both players held serve early in the third set, with Ivanovic saving
the first break-point of the set during an extended sixth game that
included seven deuces.

Hantuchová was the first to blink at 4-4, as Ivanovic gained a break
on the heels of three unforced errors by the Slovak, who - trailing
30/40 - dumped a potential winner into the net.

Though friends off the court, Hantuchová was upset that her service-
game was disrupted by Ivanovic's stutter-step footwork - which
resulted in sharp squeaking-sounds.

"That's ridiculous, I think," Hantuchová said. "I was really
surprised with that. I think it's unfair. It's a distraction to the
server. We played before and she never did it.

"[I told the umpire] in the first or second service-game, but she
didn't do anything about it. I don't think that was very nice."

Ivanovic said she has done the same thing in other matches, and it's
a simply a matter of how the courts play.

"I just tried to move my feet, to return the ball, so it really was
not intentional," she said. "Maybe she was just trying to pick on
something, to get upset."

Ivanovic and Sharapova, who will be playing for the $1.2 million
first prize, have split four career-meetings.
<<<

Sharapova rolls into Australian Open final (AP)
>>>
Just when it looked like the Serbian fans were going to head home
very disappointed, Ana Ivanovic gave them something to cheer for.

Seemingly headed for a quick departure after drawing a blank in the
first set, fourth-ranked Ivanovic made a dramatic turnaround and
landed a spot in the Australian Open finals against Maria Sharapova
with a 0-6 6-3 6-4 victory over No. 9 Daniela Hantuchová on Thursday.

Now she gets the unenviable task of trying to derail No. 5 Sharapova,
who was sharp again in overwhelming Serbia's Jelena Jankovic 6-3 6-1.

The second match started as a near-replay. Ivanovic credited her fans
for helping her rally.

"If it wasn't for you guys, I would already be booking my flight back
home," she told the crowd.

Ivanovic appeared to have a letdown at the start after beating Venus
Williams in the previous round. She repeatedly tried to psyche
herself up as she won only nine points in the first set.

Hantuchová had her constantly sprinting side to side with sharp
groundstrokes, mixed with well-placed spins that kept Ivanovic from
finding any rhythm.

"I think she didn't miss a ball," Ivanovic said. "I just tried to
tell myself that she can't keep up that level throughout the whole
match. I knew I would get a chance at some point."

When Ivanovic finally held for her first game while already down 0-2
in the second set, the crowd erupted in cheers of sympathetic relief.

The small victory provided just what she needed: a jolt of confidence.

Finally hitting with authority, Ivanovic broke twice to pull ahead
5-3, then held at love. What had been a rout in the making was even
with a set to go.

Hantuchová shockingly blinked while serving at 4-4. She fended off
one break point at 15/40, and set herself up to save the second with
a drop-volley. Ivanovic scrambled to keep it in play but was out of
court when Hantuchová netted an easy volley.

Hantuchová wasn't sure what happened to her.

"Good question," she said. "If I knew that I think, I would have
changed it while I was still on the court. That's tennis. I had a
great opportunity, but it just didn't happen for me today."

She complained to the umpire that while she was serving, Ivanovic's
shoes were squeaking loudly.

"That's ridiculous, I think," she said. "I think it's unfair. It's a
distraction to the server. We played before and she never did it."

Ivanovic denied she was doing it intentionally.

"If you see other matches I was doing exactly the same thing," she
said. "It's just the way these courts play. And if you listen to the
guys, I think they're doing the same thing. I just tried to move my
feet, to return the ball."
<<<

Sharapova, Ivanovic Reach Australian Open Final
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=2001
>>>
The tension that was missing from the first semi-final was certainly
there during the second, and at the end of the day it was Maria
Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic who were able to battle through to the
Australian Open title match with very contrasting victories.

The straight-set dismissal of one Serb was nearly repeated by
another, as an in-form Daniela Hantuchová played flawless tennis to
build a 6-0 2-0 lead over Ana Ivanovic in the second semi-final match
of the day. But a few critical forehand-mistakes from the No.9 seed
gave No.4 seed Ivanovic hope, and the aggressive Serb played her way
back into things in a hurry, evening it at a set apiece.

The 59-minute third set was full of drama as the two women continued
to hold tightly to their service through the first eight games, with
the sole exception of Ivanovic's 2-3 service-game, in which she saved
break-point (which would have given Hantuchová a 4-2 lead) and
finally held after seven deuces. But the Slovak would be the first to
crack, losing her serve at 4-4 with a putaway volley into the net.
Ivanovic confidently served out the 0-6 6-3 6-4 victory.

"She wasn't missing a ball and was making almost all of her first
serves; but I just tried to tell myself she can't keep up that level
throughout the whole match and I knew I'd get a chance at some
point," Ivanovic said. "I had a chance to win the first game of the
second set but didn't, then I went down a break. But I was so, so
happy to fight through that second set. And once I managed to win it
I felt much more comfortable, and a lot more confident going into the
third set.

"At 2-3 in the third set, we had long game and I managed to win it.
I knew she was probably mentally a bit down about that. I knew I had
to step up and do something different, and I managed to break her.
I think it was a huge moment."

"I was just really pleased with the way I was doing things until that
6-0 2-0 game," Hantuchová said. "I think I proved once again to
myself, if I play my game I can beat anybody. It's a matter of doing
it the whole match. It's really disappointing now, but in the days to
come, I'll look back at the tournament as a very positive thing. It
gives me a lot of hope for the whole year."

The comeback from a first-set bagel has been quite a rare sight on
the Grand Slam stage - only once before had a player pulled it off,
the honour going to She Who Must Not Be Named, who beat Sánchez-
Vicario at Roland Garros in 1992: 0-6 6-2 6-2 [apparently they've
forgotten Daniela's loss to Shinobu Asagoe at Wimbledon 2003].
<<<

Ivanovic edges Hantuchová
By Pippa Davis (Eurosport)
>>>
Fourth seed Ana Ivanovic booked her place in the final of the
Australian Open with a battling 0-6 6-3 6-4 comeback-win over Daniela
Hantuchová.

Trailing by a set and 2-0, Ivanovic looked down and out, but won six
of the next seven games to take the second set, before battling
through a tight third to set up a final-clash with Maria Sharapova on
Saturday.

Ivanovic looked frozen to the spot by nerves in the opening stages of
the match, in much the same state that saw her lose the French Open
final 6-1 6-2 to Justine Henin last year.

Meanwhile ninth seed Hantuchová, high in confidence after reaching
her first Grand Slam semi-final, was blasting winners from all over
the court, and there were just 23 minutes on the clock when the
Slovak served out the bagel first set.

Ivanovic finally managed to get on the scoreboard in the ninth game
of the match, much to the delight of the crowd, and wasted no time in
breaking the Hantuchová serve to level up the second set.

The Slovak held to stop the run of games against, and both players
secured another hold apiece before Ivanovic struck again. Trailing
3-4, Hantuchová threw in a poor game, tamely surrendering her serve
with a double fault to hand Ivanovic the opportunity to serve out the
set.

Ivanovic, who will become the new world number two next week
regardless of the outcome of Saturday's final, duly held to love to
seal the set, and looked to have the momentum going into the third.

But Hantuchová refused to be pressurised into collapsing, and got
back on track with a service-hold in the opening game of the third
set. The 24-year-old even looked the more likely to take the
initiative, holding a break-point during an epic sixth game that
involved seven deuces, and holding to love in her following service-
game.

But Ivanovic stuck with her opponent before breaking in the ninth
game when Hantuchová, who had an entirely open court to play with,
tapped a very nervy forehand into the top of the net.

The Serb then confidently served out the match to love, setting up
the Sharapova-clash after Hantuchová slapped a forehand return of
serve into the net.

Ivanovic said: "It definitely was a disappointing start for me. First
game I was a little bit nervous and my serve didn't work very well,
and I didn't move as good as I should have. I didn't find my rhythm,
and I knew I had to go for the shots before her, because she likes to
dominate. I just couldn't find my rhythm. I tried to hang in there,
you know, to stay with her. I just tried to tell myself that she
can't keep up that level throughout the whole match. I knew I would
get a chance at some point, and that helped me a lot."

Hantuchová said: "[The way Ivanovic moved and squeaked her shoes
while waiting to receive] was ridiculous I think. I was really
surprised with that. I think it's unfair. It's a distraction to the
server. We played before and she never did it. In the first or second
service-game, [I told the umpire] but she didn't do anything about
it. I don't think [the squeaking] was very nice. It's just tough,
tough to accept that you lose. So I just wanted to get off the court
as soon as possible."
<<<

NUMBERS GAME
By Neil Frankland: AP Sports Writer
>>>
Ana Ivanovic's climb up the WTA rankings is catching her by surprise.

Fourth-seeded Ivanovic rallied to beat Daniela Hantuchová 0-6 6-3 6-4
in two hours, 10 minutes to reach the Australian Open final and earn
herself the No. 2 position when the new rankings are released next
week.

Only she didn't realise it.

"Really? No, really? Oh, okay. Well, great," Ivanovic responded when
told of her new ranking. "I really didn't expect that. That's
definitely good, so one more spot to go."

Ivanovic will next face fifth-seeded Maria Sharapova, who cruised
past Jelena Jankovic 6-3 6-1.
<<<

Ana's Australian Open Blog
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/1/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1968
>>>
What a match! I've had a few good comebacks in my career and that was
one of the best. I made a terrible start, but it was more a case of
Daniela playing so well than me not performing. At 6-0 2-0 it was
almost embarrassing. She was playing great tennis and nothing seemed
to be working for me. I think I'm a pretty good fighter, and I just
hung in there and my serve helped me. I knew the longer I stayed in
the match the more chance there was of her level going down. On the
other hand, I was able to focus better in the second set and my form
improved.

In a situation such as that, mental energy becomes just as important
as physical. It was just 24 hours after my win over Venus, and I had
been very excited during that match. I would have liked to have had a
day to recover, to calm down and recharge, but I obviously had to
play another very important match.

Last year I had some good comeback wins against Vaidišová, Jankovic
and also Hantuchová. The most important thing when you are behind –
and this may sound obvious – is to just stay positive and forget
about the score. I didn't panic and think, "I must break here." I
took it point-by-point, and it worked out well.
<<<

Popcorn tennis - day 11
By Darren Saligari <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Ana Ivanovic d Daniela Hantuchová 0-6 6-3 6-4. It looked like it was
going to be a gimme for Hantuchová: she took the first set 6-0 while
Ivanovic looked on helplessly. Then the game changed. Ivanovic
started to move better, shots started hitting the lines, and suddenly
we had a game on our hands. Ivanovic squared the ledger, winning the
second set, and then it was game on in the third.

It'll be a long drive home for Daniela Hantuchová. She looked like
she had this one, but somehow Ana Ivanovic forced her way back into a
match that looked all but over.
<<<

Ana: Struggle makes me strong
By Adam Lucius <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
First-time Australian Open finalist Ana Ivanovic believes the
experience gleaned from her amazing semi-final escape provides the
perfect preparation for a shot at the title.

The Serb will meet Russia's Maria Sharapova in Saturday's decider
after coming from a set down to overpower a stage-struck Daniela
Hantuchová in a thrilling semi on Rod Laver Arena.

Ivanovic was in dreadful touch early, conceding the first set 0-6
before coming home 6-3 6-4 to steal the match and give herself a
massive confidence-boost ahead of her second Grand Slam final.

"It definitely does [give me a lift]," Ivanovic declared.

"I didn't perform the best I could today, and my serve-percentage was
quite low, but I just managed to fight through it."

"It was a little bit flat in the beginning. These things I'm facing
for probably the first time in my career, and it's definitely
something I can learn from."

"I was just really proud of myself [for coming back]."

Asked where it had gone wrong early, the No.4 seed replied: "In the
first game, I was a little bit nervous, and my serve didn't work very
well, and I didn't move as good as I should have."

"I didn't find my rhythm, and I knew I had to go for the shots before
her, because she likes to dominate."

"I tried to hang in there, to stay with her."

"In the second set, I managed to fight through, and then once I
managed to win it, I felt much more comfortable and had a lot more
confidence."

A philosophical Hantuchová said after her first Grand Slam semi-final
appearance: "It's very disappointing at the moment, but I think in
the days to come I will go back and look at the tournament as a very
positive thing."

"I think it gives me a lot of hope for the whole year."

"I think I proved once again to myself that if I play my game, I can
beat anybody."

"It's just a matter of doing it for the whole match."

"It's going to be a great experience for me."

Hantuchová refused to predict a tournament-winner, saying the
finalists were too evenly matched to split.
<<<

Sharapova, Ivanovic move into Australian Open women's final
By Dennis Passa: AP Sports Writer
>>>
Hantuchová wasn't as complimentary of Ivanovic after her three-set
loss, accusing the Serbian player of deliberately squeaking her shoes
on the court-surface when the Slovakian player was in her serving-
motion.

Hantuchová complained to the chair-umpire, to no avail.

"I was really surprised with that," Hantuchová said. "I think it's
unfair. It's a distraction to the server."

Ivanovic said she's done the same thing in her other matches here on
the new Plexicushion surface.

"It's just the way these courts play," she said. "I just tried to
move my feet, to return the ball, so it really was not intentional."
<<<

Sharapova, Ivanovic clash in final (PA SportsTicker)
>>>
A runner-up to Henin at Roland Garros last season, the 20-year-old
Ivanovic had not dropped a set prior to Thursday's improbable 0-6 6-3
6-4 semi-final victory over No. 9 Daniela Hantuchová of Slovakia.

After dropping the first eight games of the match, Ivanovic rallied
to become only the second player to win a Grand Slam match after
losing the opening set 6-0.

She Who Must Not Be Named is the only other player to accomplish
that, posting a 0-6 6-2 6-2 victory against Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario
at the French Open in 1992 [not true! Daniela also lost her second-
round match to Shinobu at Wimbledon 2003 after winning the first set
6-0, while Monica Seles lost likewise to Sandrine Testud in the third
round of Wimbledon 1997].
<<<

Ivanovic focused on keeping emotions in check (Reuters)
By Greg Stutchbury (editing by Ossian Shine)
>>>
Ivanovic has members of her extended family living in Melbourne, and
has enjoyed an enthusiastic expatriate Serbian following during the
tournament, which had also helped her through some of the tight
moments during her run: especially in the semi-final against
Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchová.

Hantuchová had won the first set 6-0 and was leading 2-0 in the
second before Ivanovic made an astonishing fightback to win the match
in three sets.

"When I was in the court, I was so surprised to see how many people
supported me," she said. "They helped me so much to win that match.

"It's obviously a great feeling, because I feel so comfortable out
here, you know, just having so many fans."
<<<

2.2 Daniela's semi-final press-conference
-----------------------------------------

Source: www.australianopen.com

Q. Have you ever played as well as you did in those first eight games?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I think so, yeah. I wasn't really surprised. I
did just like yesterday tactically, whatever I had to do to get to
that point of the match. I was just really pleased the way I was
doing things until that point.

Q. How did it get away from you?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Good question. If I knew that, I think I would
have changed it while I was still on the court. You know, that's
tennis. Sometimes you can do, I think, all the right things, all the
best things. Maybe you just need a little more luck to get through.

Honestly, I thought I was very close. I had a great opportunity, but
it just didn't happen for me today.

Q. How hard is it to accept a defeat after you started so well and
you were up 8-0?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I was up 2-0. Yeah, it's tough. It's very
disappointing at the moment, but I think with days to come, I think I
will go back and look at the tournament as a very positive thing.
I think it gives me a lot of hope for the whole year.

I think I proved once again, myself, that if I play my game I can
beat anybody. Just a matter of doing it for the whole match.

Q. You've said before that you're very, very hard on yourself; you're
a perfectionist. So have you gotten better at not being so hard on
yourself, and will this be the hardest one of all to get over?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, definitely. I think I got much better in
that. I mean, obviously right after match, especially match like
this, you are going to be disappointed no matter if you are
perfectionist or not.

But I think now I'm much more aware of how to take things and how to
learn from them. Definitely this match today, it's going to be great
experience for me in order to learn something new, and hopefully I
can improve that in the matches to come this year.

Q. Do you think Ana's experience to get to the French Open's final
last year came into play at all?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, definitely she had experience being in the
semi-final of a Grand Slam. Obviously it was a new situation for me,
but I think considering that situation, I came up playing pretty
well, I thought, especially the beginning of the match. There was
nothing wrong with that.

So I wasn't really afraid of the situation. I think I did the right
things. And, yes, just one of those days.

Q. After such a long match, you had a very cursory handshake there at
the end. Was that the disappointment, or had she done something to
displease you?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: No, no, no, absolutely. It's just tough, tough to
accept that you lose. So I just, you know, wanted to get off the
court as soon as possible.

Q. Did you have any issues with the double bounce or the...

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, I thought it was a double bounce, but maybe
it was just my mistake. I should have played the point anyway.

Q. So you actually saw it double bounce, though?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah.

Q. Did you raise that with the umpire?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, but she told me it was just the one bounce,
so there was no point to argue at that time.

Q. What about the way she squeaks her feet when she returns?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, that's ridiculous, I think. I was really
surprised with that. I think it's unfair. It's a distraction to the
server. Yeah, we played before and she never did it.

Q. Did you say anything to the umpire?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, in the first or second service-game, but
she didn't do anything about it. I don't think that was very nice.

Q. Is that something you've come across anyone else doing, or that's
the first time that's happened?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah.

Q. When she had the last challenge, and she stopped the ball and she
didn't play the last point, then you had made the point. Instead you
replayed, and then you didn't say anything at this moment.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Talking about luck today, I think there was no
point. I think I saw also a couple of netcords that really the ball
was going so much out, and it came back up to my side.

It was just one of those days that everything was going against me,
but I felt like I still, you know, kept trying, kept fighting. You
know, I mean, what was I supposed to do? It was over. It was no point
of fighting with the umpire or whatever.

Q. How do you break down the final with Maria?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: It's going to be interesting. I mean, you know,
it's tennis, so it can go either way. It's going to be interesting.
I can't predict anybody.

Q. Do you still think you look at this tournament as a breakthrough?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, definitely I think it's been a great
experience. I had a wonderful time here. And, once again, it just
showed me that if I do the right things I really belong to the top,
and right now I think it's just a matter of time, doing more work,
consistent basis, and hopefully I'll get more chances in a Grand Slam
to break even further.


Ana's semi-final press-conference (can't they ever interview her
without using the word "boyfriend", even after she declared her
current single-status?):
http://preview.tinyurl.com/27yduu

It was nice to hear Daniela get a mention in Geoff Pollard's
(president of Tennis Australia) speech at the presentation-ceremony,
without him needing to say her surname! :-)

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Quarter-final: Hantuchová v Radwanska scoreboard-report
3. Semi-final draw / Preview
4. Andrew's wishes
5. Order of Play for Thursday

---------
1. Photos
---------

Daniela Hantuchová:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/players/99/photos
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/players/wta080394.html
search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7203952.stm

Many players:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

----------------------------------------------------------
2. Quarter-final: Hantuchová v Radwanska scoreboard-report
(Wednesday 23rd January)
----------------------------------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] d. AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29], 6-2 6-2

The first set was very straightforward, with Daniela breaking in the
4th and 8th games. She led *4-0 in the second, but then got nervous
and broken twice before closing it out on Radwanska's weak serve.

Daniela compiled a positive W:UE ratio of 27:20 (Radwanska 17:19) and
won an impressive 15 of 17 points at the net. Radwanska won only 42%
of the points on her own serve, and gave Daniela 14 break-points:
Daniela broke 6 times, while Radwanska only broke twice from 6 BPs.

So she finally did what I've been waiting for since 2002: reached her
first-ever Grand Slam semi-final (in singles - she's already won a
career Grand Slam in Mixed Doubles titles, and reached the Australian
Open 2002 Women's Doubles final).

She's also the first Slovak lady ever to reach a Grand Slam semi-
final - almost 12 years after Karina Habšudová twice served for the
match against Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario in their French Open 1996
quarter-final. But perhaps Karina has given birth to two future
tennis-greats: Laura and Nicol Cíleková.

Daniela may have taken advantage of an open draw to reach this semi-
final - after Radwanska and Maria Kirilenko took care of Svetlana
Kuznetsova [2] and Anna Chakvetadze [6] respectively - but she
certainly deserves her luck after all those years of drawing the
Williams-sisters, Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters, who used to appear
as her 3r/4r/QF opponents with the tedious inevitability of an
unloved season.


The match started at 11:17 AEDT, and seeing as it was Daniela's first
Grand Slam quarter-final in five years, I decided to burn the
midnight-oil and follow live scores at www.australianopen.com.

I also used the live-scoring thread at
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=330030


First set
---------
HANTUCHOV * *@* *@ 6
RADWANSKA _*___*__ 2

Daniela serving 0-0: Held to love, courtesy of a backhand winner and
a netcord-winner.
Radwanska serving 0-1: 30/0. 30/15. 40/15. Held.

This is the trouble with women's tennis: it's serve-dominated! ;-)

Daniela serving 1-1: 0/15. 15/15. 15/30. 40/30. Held.

Well recovered from 0/15 and 15/30, with one of her trademark
backhand winners down the line at the latter!

Radwanska serving 1-2: 0/15. 15/15. 15/40 (2 BPs). Broken.

Well, well! Radwanska had a half-chance to break in the previous
game, but now it's first blood to Daniela! Always difficult to serve
after missing a chance to break.

Daniela serving 3-1: 15/0. 15/30. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela. Deuce #2.
Ad Daniela. Deuce #3. Ad Daniela. Held.

Daniela fights through another tough service-game - I guess this is
where experience pays off for the 24-year-old over the 18-year-old.
And the gap in score seems so wide, even though it's just one break.

spriwi: "dani is so concentrated, she is moving aga all over the
court. playing really smart. i dont see much of a chance for the
polish girl as long as dani plays so well..."

Radwanska serving 1-4: 0/30. 30/30. Daniela drive-volley winner.
30/40 (BP). 40/40. Daniela punished an "awful" second serve.
Ad Daniela (BP #2). Radwanska saved it with a backhand winner down
the line. Deuce #2. Ad Radwanska. Held.

Daniela lets an even bigger chance to break than Radwanska had go
begging. I hope she reacts a little more maturely on her own serve
than Radwanska did at *1-2.

I've never seen Agnieszka play, except for an unmemorable 2-6 2-6
thrashing by Kim Clijsters at Wimbledon 2006 (her sister Urszula is
an attractive all-court player - I saw half her Wimbledon 2007 Girls'
Singles final on BBCi). What I'm reading on the live-scores thread is
that she has a "powder-puff" serve. I get the impression she's a
Hingis-type player.

Daniela serving 4-2: 30/0. 30/15. 40/15. Held.

Radwanska serving 2-5: 15/0. 15/40 (2 SPs). 40/40. Ad Daniela
(SP #3). Deuce #2. Ad Daniela (SP #4). Deuce #3. Ad Daniela (SP #5).
Deuce #4. Ad Radwanska. Deuce #5. Ad Daniela (SP #6). Daniela won the
first set 6-2 at 11:58 AEDT (41m).

Good girl! Please finish this in two, Daniela, so that I won't have
to be up until 3am (14:00 AEDT) as I was after Chakvetadze v
Kirilenko!

BK4ever: "Aga is really talented. She just needs a serve and some
aggression. She uses her legs very well."

Reuchlin: "I've never seen Daniela play better."


Second set
----------
HANTUCHOV *@*@ @ @ 6
RADWANSKA ____@ @_ 2

Daniela serving 0-0: 0/15. 15/15. 15/30. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela.
Deuce #2. Ad Radwanska (BP #1). Deuce #3. Ad Daniela. Held.

I see a Girls' Singles match just completed 6-1 6-1 - that's the kind
of efficiency I could do with at this time of night!

WTAworld seems to be down now unfortunately: I'm getting
the "Database Error" page.

Radwanska serving 0-1: Broken to love.
Daniela serving 2-0: 40/0. 40/15. Held.

6-2 3-0*: is Daniela on the verge of her first Grand Slam semi-final,
or the mother of all chokes? One of the dangerous things about young
players is that they don't know when they're beaten - unlike Justine
Henin, who had a look of despair in her eyes at 4-6 *0-3 against
Maria Sharapova yesterday! :-)

Radwanska serving 0-3: 0/30. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela. Deuce #2.
Ad Daniela. Held.

Well fought, Daniela! Let's finish this quickly please!

Daniela serving 4-0: 15/0. 15/30. 30/30. 30/40 (BP). 40/40.
Ad Radwanska (BP #2). Broken.

And Radwanska breaks for the first time in the match, at the third
time of asking. But surely Daniela is too far ahead and too confident
to choke today. She's much stronger mentally now than she was pre-
2007; the days when she used to burst into tears after missing match-
points are a distant memory now.

There have been some incredible turnarounds this tournament,
including the one by Radwanska from 1-6 0-3 against Nadia Petrova in
the previous round.

Radwanska serving 1-4: 15/0. 15/15. 30/15. 30/40 (BP). Broken.
Daniela serving 5-1: 15/0. 15/30. 30/30. 30/40 (BP). 40/40. Ad
Radwanska (BP #2). Deuce #2. Ad Radwanska (BP #3). Broken.

Radwanska breaks for the second time as this match degenerates into
break and counterbreak, but is it too little too late? Is Daniela
thinking too much about reaching her first Grand Slam semi-final? If
she goes on to lose from this position, she ought to be shot, really.

Radwanska serving 2-5: 0/15. 30/15. 30/30. 30/40 (MP #1). The
scoreboard briefly flashed 40/40, but reverted to 30/40 - did Daniela
make a successful challenge? She won 6-2 6-2 at 12:45 AEDT (second
set 47m, match 1h28m).

Wow: all three quarter-finals so far have gone the way I wanted - now
I just need Ana to beat Venus and everything will be perfect! :-)


2.1 Articles
------------

HANTUCHOVÁ MARCHES INTO LAST FOUR [CEEFAX 490->491]
>>>
Ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová marched into her first Grand Slam semi-
final by thumping Polish teenager Agnieszka Radwanska at the
Australian Open.

Radwanska, 18, looked nervous early on, and Hantuchová took full
advantage, dictating play from the baseline, and running away with
the first set.

The Slovakian kept up the tempo in the second set, destroying
Radwanska's serve and completing a 6-2 6-2 victory.

Hantuchová faltered when serving for the match, but regained her
composure to close out a 6-2 6-2 victory.

She will play either Venus Williams or Ana Ivanovic in the last four.
<<<

Hantuchová in first Grand Slam semi [Teletext 495->499]
>>>
No problem for Hantuchová [Teletext 499]

Daniela Hantuchová advanced to the semi-final with a comfortable
straight-sets win over Agnieszka Radwanska.

The Slovakian, seeded ninth, reached the last four of a Grand Slam
event for the first time with a 6-2 6-2 win over the Pole, who had
beaten two seeds on her way to the quarter-final stages.

Hantuchová said: "It feels great. I kept fighting for every single
point - even when I wasn't playing well."


Hantuchová backs strength [Teletext 499]

Daniela Hantuchová claims she now has the mental strength to match
her game as she lined up a semi-final clash with Serbian Ana Ivanovic.

The 24-year-old admitted she has been mentally fragile in the past,
but has now put those problems behind her.

Hantuchová said: "I just needed to improve mentally to believe it.
I do think a lot about things, so maybe it just took me a little bit
longer."
<<<

Hantuchová hammers past Radwanska
By Carla Okai <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Slovakian No.9 seed Daniela Hantuchová has advanced to the semi-
finals with ease as she eliminated Polish Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-2.

Radwanska, 18, had enjoyed a spectacular run at Australian Open 2008,
overpowering second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in the third round.

But her Australian Open hopes were demolished as Hantuchová dominated
the match with her powerful serve and groundstrokes.

Hantuchová broke her opponent's serve in the third game of the
opening set, giving Radwanska little room to move as she controlled
play from the baseline.

The No.9 seed had six break-points in the seventh game, but her
opponent fought back to hold her serve. But the Slovakian finally got
her way, winning the set in 40 minutes.

Radwanska showed glimpses of her natural talent in the second set,
winning with some impressive dropshots from the net. But her serve
let her down and Hantuchová capitalised, breaking early in the set
and again in the fifth game.

Radwanska broke in the seventh game to trail 2-5, but any hope of a
revival was quickly snuffed out by her in-form opponent.
<<<

Hantuchová praises mental strength
By Adam Lucius <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Late developer Daniela Hantuchová says she now has the mental
strength to match her game after powering through to her first Grand
Slam semi-final at the Australian Open.

A ruthless Hantuchová brushed aside Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2
6-2 in 87 minutes on Wednesday, to line-up a last-four meeting with
Serbian Ana Ivanovic.

The Slovakian had previously reached three Grand Slam quarter-finals -
  her last in Melbourne in 2003 - but failed to progress to the last
four, and the 24-year-old admitted she was mentally fragile and not
ready to take the next step - until now.

"I just needed to improve myself mentally, to believe it. I had
people around me saying it to me," she said. "It was a matter of time
[before I started] to believe that, too."

"I guess I had to get through all the tough times and get experience
in order to be able to get to this stage. Everybody has different
times when they mature more. I had to go through all those times and
opportunities that I missed, to be able to get here."

"I do think a lot about things, so maybe it just took me a little bit
longer. But I'm happy for every experience I had to go through.
That's why I can appreciate moments like this much, much more. I'm
definitely enjoying it and really happy."

Hantuchová, who speaks six languages and plays classical piano, has
won four Grand Slam mixed-doubles titles.

But her singles-career has stalled at critical junctions.

"I would just get too hard on myself, and was not able to forgive
myself any mistakes," she revealed.

"I always wanted to have everything perfect, but I just realised that
things are not always going to go your way, and sometimes you have to
work for them."

"Sometimes it's going to be tough, but it's the same in life. You
have to get through some difficult times. If you always give your
best, you can feel good about your yourself."

Hantuchová was on great terms with herself after completely
dominating the hapless Radwanska.

The No.9 seed said of the victory: "I really had to play well in
order to get that score."

"I was real proud how I handled the situation. I felt like I had a
great opportunity to win this match, but I still had to go out there
and play my best, which I think I did at times. I'm just extremely
happy to be in the semis."

Radwanska admitted: "She played very well, and I made too many
mistakes."
<<<

Hantuchová through to first Grand Slam semi-final (Reuters)
Reporting by Greg Stutchbury; editing by Peter Rutherford
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová advanced to her first Grand Slam semi-final when
she ended the fairy-tale Australian Open run of Polish teenager
Agnieszka Radwanska on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old Slovak, who had made three previous Grand Slam
quarter-finals, used her experience to run the 18-year-old around the
court and seal the 6-2 6-2 victory in 87 minutes.

The 29th-ranked Radwanska, who knocked out second seed Svetlana
Kuznetsova and 14th seed Nadia Petrova on the way to her first Grand
Slam quarter-final, produced moments of breathtaking skill, but
lacked experience against the wily ninth seed.

Hantuchová will meet either eighth seed Venus Williams or fourth-seed
Ana Ivanovic, who play later on Wednesday, in the semi-finals.
<<<

Less-than-perfect Hantuchová into semi-final (Reuters)
By Greg Stutchbury (reporting by Greg Stutchbury; editing by Ossian
Shine)
>>>
A refusal to dwell on tiny mistakes vaulted Daniela Hantuchová into
her first Grand Slam semi-final at the Australian Open, the ninth-
seeded Slovak said.

Hantuchová, a former quarter-finalist at Wimbledon, the US Open and
here, made the final four for the first time with a 6-2 6-2 victory
over Pole Agnieszka Radwanska on Wednesday.

"I think I realised that it's okay to make mistakes, and it's okay to
not always play my best tennis," the 24-year-old told reporters.

"I would just get too hard on myself, and was not able to forgive
myself any mistakes," she added of her past attitude.

"I always wanted to have everything perfect. Yeah, I just realised
that, you know, things are not always going to go your way, and
sometimes you have to work for them."

The tall Slovakian, who burst on to the scene as an 18-year-old when
she beat Martina Hingis in the final at Indian Wells in March 2002,
said she had no regrets at taking her time to reach her first Grand
Slam final four.

"I guess everybody has different times when they mature more. I had
to go through all those times and opportunities that I missed to be
able to get here.

"I'm just extremely happy to be in the semis."

Hantuchová, who won titles at Indian Wells and Linz in Austria last
year, used her experience to run the 18-year-old around the court,
forced her deep behind the baseline, and won several points on
delicate dropshots.

"I felt like I had a great opportunity to win this match, but I still
had to go out there and play my best, which I think I did at times."

Hantuchová will now meet fourth-seed Ana Ivanovic in the semi-finals,
and said she would treat the match against the highly-fancied Serb
like any other.

"I've got nothing to lose. I'm in a great position. I'm feeling like
I'm playing well.

I'm just really looking forward to be out on the court again, and
give my best and see what happens."
<<<

Venus ousted as Europeans dominate in Melbourne (Reuters)
By Ossian Shine (editing by Ed Osmond)
>>>
Europe tightened its stranglehold on this year's Australian Open when
America's sole survivor in the women's singles, Venus Williams, was
blasted out of the quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Ivanovic will meet Daniela Hantuchová in the semis after the Slovak
pummelled Pole Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-2.

Venus and Ivanovic took to court after a double-quick opening match
between Hantuchová and Radwanska.

Hantuchová, a former quarter-finalist at Wimbledon, the US Open and
Melbourne Park, made the final four of a Grand Slam for the first
time with a 6-2 6-2 victory.

"I think I realised that it's okay to make mistakes, and it's okay to
not always play my best tennis," the 24-year-old told reporters.

"I always wanted to have everything perfect. Yeah, I just realised
that things are not always going to go your way, and sometimes you
have to work for them."

Things certainly went her way against Radwanska.

Hantuchová used her experience to run the 18-year-old around the
court, forcing her deep behind the baseline.

"I felt like I had a great opportunity to win this match, but I still
had to go out there and play my best, which I think I did at times,"
Hantuchová said.
<<<

Satisfied Radwanska rues lack of experience (Reuters)
By Greg Stutchbury (editing by Ed Osmond)
>>>
A lack of experience, particularly on crucial points, had ended a
satisfactory Australian Open campaign, Agnieszka Radwanska said on
Wednesday.

The Polish teenager, who only finished high school last year, was
beaten 6-2 6-2 by a comparative veteran in 24-year-old Daniela
Hantuchová on a sun-drenched Rod Laver Arena, ending her first Grand
Slam quarter-final in just 87 minutes.

"I was trying everything in first set and then second set," Radwanska
told reporters.

"She was playing very good. She was playing very long balls, close to
the baseline. It was very hard to play.

"I made a few mistakes. I also had many chances, but I didn't use
[them], and the last points always she did better.

"I tried my best, but not my day."

The 18-year-old had a dream run through the tournament, beating
second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova and 14th seed Nadia Petrova on her
way to the quarter-finals.

"I'm very happy that I did my first quarter-final," Radwanska
said. "I beat two Russian good players, both seeded. So I'm happy."
<<<

Hantuchová downs Radwanska to make Australian Open tennis semis (AFP)
>>>
Slovak ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová emphatically announced her Grand
Slam comeback on Wednesday when she outclassed Polish teenager
Agnieszka Radwanska to reach the Australian Open semi-finals.

Hantuchová crushed Radwanska 6-2 6-2 in the quarter-finals to set up
her first-ever Grand Slam semi against either fourth seed Ana
Ivanovic of Serbia or American eighth seed Venus Williams, who play
later on Wednesday.

The win ended Radwanska's giant-killing run at the season-opening
Grand Slam, which included second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova and former
world number three Nadia Petrova.

It also confirmed the 24-year-old Slovak's return to the big time,
exactly five years after her last Grand Slam quarter-final appearance
here five years ago.

"I kept believing, and here I am in the semis," she said.

"It feels great. Every tennis-player knows what I'm talking about
when you get to that point when you feel like everything you touch is
going in, and I want to go on as long as possible."

Hantuchová, who said before the match that she had been unlucky to be
drawn against the likes of Justine Henin and the Williams sisters in
the early rounds of recent Grand Slams, made the most of her chance
against the unfancied Pole.

The opening games went to serve as Radwanska and Hantuchová, who had
only played each other once before, probed for weaknesses.

Hantuchová, enjoying a significant height-advantage over the Pole,
opted to attack the net, and was rewarded with a service-break in the
fourth game.

"At the beginning, I was a little bit tight, but once I warmed up, I
felt like I was hitting the ball well, and tactically I think I
played quite a smart game," she said.

Hantuchová received a warning for time-wasting when serving in the
fifth game, but retained her composure to go up 4-1.

Radwanska risked being overwhelmed as Hantuchová pushed her to break-
point, but held on, unable to prevent the Slovakian making it 5-2 in
the next game.

The Pole then scrambled to save five set-points - two of them with
aces - in the next, but then netted a forehand return to concede the
first set after 40 minutes.

She tried to regather, stretching out the first game of the second
set for nine minutes, but Hantuchová's experience won out, and she
went on to score another break in the next.

Radwanska never recovered and looked a spent force as Hantuchová ran
away with the second set.

The Pole managed to stop Hantuchová serving out the set at 5-1 but
the Slovak then broke her again to win the match after 87 minutes.
<<<

Hantuchová into semi-finals, back among the women's elite after
reaching Australian Open semis
By Neil Frankland: AP Sports Writer
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová was on the brink of becoming one of the Tour's
elite women's players five years ago.

At the Australian Open on Wednesday, she finally took another step to
fulfilling the promise.

When Hantuchová reached the Wimbledon, US Open and Australian Open
quarter-finals in succession to earn a career-best ranking of No. 5
in 2003, many predicted a Grand Slam title would be just around the
corner.

It didn't work out that way.

In the ensuing years, the Slovak player faced a series of personal
trials, and her ranking plummeted to No. 31 at the end of 2004.

With newfound confidence and maturity, the ninth-seeded Hantuchová
will play her first Grand Slam semi-final after easing past No. 29
Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-2 on Wednesday.

Now she feels she's where she was always destined to be: among the
top women's players in a Grand Slam semi-final.

"I just needed to improve myself mentally, to believe it," she
said. "I had people around me saying it to me. It was a matter of
time for myself starting to believe that, too. I definitely feel like
I belong there, as well."

And despite the tough times, there are no regrets over the path she
took.

"I do believe strongly that everything happens for a reason," she
said.

Hantuchová has learned a lot of lessons from the lean times,
including the realisation that it's okay to make mistakes.

"I always wanted to have everything perfect. I just realised that
things are not always going to go your way, and sometimes you have to
work for them. And sometimes it's going to be tough," she said. "But
it's the same in life. You have to get through some difficult times."

Hantuchová dominated her quarter-final from the opening game on
Wednesday, taking the first set and a 4-0 lead in the second.

Radwanska then broke serve and held to stay in it, before Hantuchová
closed out.

The relief was palpable.

"I guess I had to get through all the tough times and get experience
in order to be able to get to this stage," Hantuchová said. "That's
why I can appreciate moments like this much, much more."

Not that Hantuchová missed every opportunity after 2003.

In 2005, while partnering with India's Mahesh Bhupathi, Hantuchová
added the French Open and US Open mixed-doubles titles, to the ones
she collected at Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2001 and 2002.
That puts her in a league with one-time mentor Martina Navrátilová,
Margaret Court and Billie Jean King who have completed mixed-doubles
Grand Slams.

Now her focus has shifted squarely to a Grand Slam singles-title.

"After winning all four Grand Slams, I kind of retired," she said.
"I felt like it's time to move on and focus on my singles."
<<<

Ivanovic comes through vs. Williams (PA SportsTicker)
>>>
Beating Williams for the first time in five meetings, Ivanovic set up
a semi-final encounter with No. 9 Daniela Hantuchová, who took down
Agnieszka Radwanska earlier in the day.

Ivanovic figures to be the clear-cut favourite to emerge from the
bottom of the draw, especially after the rising star Radwanska had
her surprising run halted [hmph!].

Despite being five years removed from her last appearance in the
quarter-finals of a Major, Hantuchová had a comfortable win over
Radwanska.

Hantuchová made the semi-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time in
her career with a 6-2 6-2 victory over the 29th-seeded Pole on Rod
Laver Arena.

"I felt like I had a great opportunity to win this match, but I still
had to go out there and play my best, which I think I did at times,"
Hantuchová said. "Yeah, I'm just extremely happy to be in the semis.
It means a lot."

This was the fourth time that Hantuchová had been in the quarter-
finals of a Grand Slam, with the last coming here in 2003 in a
straight-sets loss to Venus Williams.

"I guess I had to get through all, you know, the tough times and get
experience in order to be able to get to this stage," she
said. "That's why I can appreciate moments like this much, much more.
I'm definitely enjoying it and really happy."

Radwanska was unable to exert any real pressure on the Slovakian,
despite showing glimpses of the form that had allowed her to upset
second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova and 14th-seeded Nadia Petrova on her
way to the round of eight.

It was Hantuchová who struck first with a break early in the opening
set before converting a sixth set-point on Radwanska's serve to take
it 6-2.

The Pole managed to pressure the ninth seed's serve at the start of
the second set, but Hantuchová held on before breaking Radwanska once
again. Another break saw Hantuchová race into a 4-0 lead, but the 18-
year-old Radwanska hit back with one of her own.

The Slovakian broke again immediately afterwards to move to the brink
of victory, but Radwanska was still fighting, securing another break
with a forehand down the line.

However, it merely delayed the inevitable as Hantuchová wrapped up
the match with a forehand that her opponent was unable to return.

Radwanska had beaten the 24-year-old Hantuchová in the only previous
encounter: a second-round matchup in Zürich in October.

"Actually, I was playing against Daniela in Zürich, in winter, so not
so long time ago," Radwanska said. "I beat her in two sets. But today
was different. You know, she was playing very good. I made a few
mistakes. I also have many chances, but I didn't use it. So next
time."

Struggling with her serve, Radwanska was unable to put together the
kind of comeback she had in her fourth-round match against Petrova.
Despite facing deficits of 0-3 and 4-5 in the second set, the Pole
rallied for a 1-6 7-5 6-0 win.

An owner of just one career singles-title, Radwanska was playing in
her first Grand Slam quarter-final.
<<<

Hantuchová reaches last four
By Pippa Davis (Eurosport)
>>>
Ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová reached the semi-finals of a Grand Slam
for the first time with an impressive 6-2 6-2 win over talented
teenager Agnieszka Radwanska at the Australian Open.

Hantuchová was in control from the very first game, and only at the
end suffered a bout of nerves that saw her drop serve twice before
breaking to close out the match.

Radwanska, playing in her first Grand Slam quarter-final, looked
nervous and restricted throughout, failing to really compete with
Hantuchová until it was too late in the final couple of games.

The 24-year-old Slovak is currently enjoying some of the best form of
her life, and opened with a love service-game before breaking in the
fourth and eighth games to seal the first set with ease.

Hantuchová then looked to be cruising towards a comfortable second
set win as she broke in the second and fourth games to race out to a
4-0 lead.

But the nerves, that have never been too far away from Hantuchová's
game, began to kick in as she headed towards the end of the match,
and Radwanska broke back to apply some pressure.

However, while the Pole was able to break serve, she was unable to
hold and was broken again in the sixth game, before Hantuchová broke
for a sixth time to seal the win with a blistering forehand passing-
shot down the line.

Hantuchová will now face fourth seed Ana Ivanovic in the semi-finals
after the Serb dismissed Venus Wililams 7-6 6-4.

Daniela Hantuchová said: "I kept believing, and here I am in the
semis. It feels great. Every tennis-player knows what I'm talking
about when you get to that point when you feel like everything you
touch is going in, and I want to go on as long as possible. At the
beginning, I was a little bit tight, but once I warmed up, I felt
like I was hitting the ball well, and tactically I think I played
quite a smart game."

Agnieszka Radwanska said: "I was trying everything in first set and
then second set. She was playing very good. She was playing very long
balls, close to the baseline. It was very hard to play. I made a few
mistakes. I also had many chances, but I didn't use [them], and the
last points always she did better. I tried my best, but [it was] not
my day. I'm very happy that I did my first quarter-final. I beat two
Russian good players [Svetlana Kuznetsova and Nadia Petrova], both
seeded. So I'm happy."
<<<

Ivanovic Finally Overcomes Williams; Hantuchová Next
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1998
>>>
Ana Ivanovic and Daniela Hantuchová both defied the odds on
Wednesday; having never taken a set off of their quarter-final foes,
they powered into the Australian Open semi-finals in straight sets.

First to advance was No.9 seed Hantuchová, who fired 27 winners
during a 6-2 6-2 victory against No.29 seed Agnieszka Radwanska. In
their only previous encounter a few months ago at the indoor
tournament in Zürich, it was Radwanska who eased to victory 6-3 6-3;
but this time it was Hantuchová who was on her game, winning through
to her career-first Grand Slam singles semi-final.

"I had to play well to get that score," Hantuchová said. "I was very
proud of how I handled this situation - I felt like I had a great
opportunity to win this match, but I still had to go out there and
play my best, which at times I think I did. I'm just extremely happy
to be in the semis."

"I tried my best, but it just wasn't my day; she was playing very
well and I made some mistakes, so next time," Radwanska said. "But
I'm happy that I reached my first Grand Slam quarter-final - I beat
two good Russian players, both seeded. So I'm happy."

Although it's only the beginning of the season, reaching the final
four in Australia is something of a culmination of a return-to-form
last 12 months for Hantuchová, who won the second WTA Tour singles-
title of her career at Indian Wells last February, and has since
returned to the Top 10 and won her third career-title: at Linz last
November. Her best results at the Majors were three quarter-final
finishes in 2002 and 2003; now, five years later, she reaches her
very first Major semi, with a realistic shot at her first final.

"I think it means a lot - I guess I had to get through all the tough
times and get experience to get to this stage. That's why I
appreciate moments like this much, much more. It's going to be a new
experience for me. Whoever I play, it's going to be a tough match.
But I have nothing to lose. I'm in a great position. I'm just looking
forward to being out on the court again."
<<<

2.2 Daniela's quarter-final press-conference
--------------------------------------------

Source: www.australianopen.com

Q. Was the match as easy as the scoreboard indicated?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, definitely was a tough match. I mean, I
really had to play well in order to get that score. I was real proud
how I handled the situation. I felt like I had a great opportunity to
win this match, but I still had to go out there and play my best,
which I think I did at times.

Yeah, I'm just extremely happy to be in the semis.

Q. Is this an extension to your good form of last year?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I don't know. I don't look at it like that.
I just try to give my best in every match. Obviously it's a great
start for this year. I couldn't ask for anything better.

Yeah, I mean, it's been great the last few months. I just hope to
continue like this.

Q. Do you think it might be a different story if you didn't get rid
of your doubles-game?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I don't really think about that at all. I think
all the top players do that. Once you know you are in the later
stages of the singles-tournament, you want to just focus on that.

Yeah, I think it was important that I save my energy for this match
today.

Q. Is it a nice change to have everyone talking about your tennis as
opposed to things going on in your personal life or your appearance?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, definitely that's what I always try to say,
that I think we should be recognised more for what kind of athletes
we are than perhaps the way we look and what kind of stuff we do
outside the court. I think all of that, once we get on the court, we
just want to play our best tennis, and don't really care what we look
like.

Q. You've been playing a number of years now. First Grand Slam semi-
final. What does this mean to you?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: It means a lot. I guess I had to get through all,
you know, the tough times and get experience in order to be able to
get to this stage. That's why I can appreciate moments like this
much, much more. I'm definitely enjoying it and really happy.

Q. Do you notice anything you're doing differently this time that got
you to this stage?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Like I said already a couple days ago, I think I
realised that it's okay to do mistakes and it's okay to not always
play my best tennis. But, you know, it's a nice challenge to have to
always find a way how to get through a match, even not playing well.
And I think it's something that I've improved a lot the last few
months.

Q. In the past, when you would make those mistakes, what would go
through your head?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I would just get too hard on myself and was not
able to forgive myself any mistakes. I always wanted to have
everything perfect. Yeah, I just realised that, you know, things are
not always going to your way, and sometimes you have to work for
them. And sometimes it's going to be tough, but it's the same in
life. You have to get through some difficult times.

But at the end of the day, if you always give your best, you can feel
good about yourself.

Q. How much do you miss Kim Clijsters?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, I've been thinking about her a lot because
last year I lost to her here. Now she's expecting baby. She's been
such a great friend of mine. I was just so happy the way things
worked out for her. She's very, very happy with her family and the
baby and stuff.

So, yeah, I'm just very happy for her.

Q. Are you in touch still?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah.

Q. Have you spoken to her during the tournament?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Not during the tournament. But before we texted
each other.

Q. Did you get nervous serving for the match the first time?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Not really, no. That's always going to be the
tougher side because of the sun. So I didn't really see too much
after hitting the serve. I was kind of just guessing where the ball
was going.

Yeah, I was not really too tight.

Q. Is it tough playing out there? The match at the moment: six of the
first seven games went against serve.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: It's not easy, especially on the side you are
against the sun, especially this time of day, it's really tough.
Sometimes people don't realise, you know, that there are effects like
sun or wind that we have to manage. Yeah, it was also pretty hot. But
thank God there was no wind. So no complaints.

Q. Can you tell us how working with Marco has helped you out?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, he's been such a great help to my game,
too, obviously joining the Sánchez/Casal Academy has helped me
incredibly improve my game. I think physically Marco has been a great
help for me. Having a team around me like this gives me a lot of
confidence, and I'm really happy with them.

Q. How did you come across each other?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: A friend of mine suggested him. I mean, I heard
that he was very, very good, which he obviously is. We tried it for a
couple of weeks and it worked out well so we kept going.

Q. Are you surprised a little bit that, as good as you were even five
years ago, that it took you this long to reach a semi-final of a
Grand Slam?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Not really. I mean, I guess everybody has
different times when they mature more. And I guess, like I said, I
had to go through all those times and opportunities that I missed to
be able to get here.

I do think a lot about things, so maybe it just took me a little bit
longer. But I'm happy for every experience I had to go through.

Q. You see other players walk around, like the Williams sisters and
Maria Sharapova. They give the sense they feel as though they should
be in Grand Slam finals. Do you feel you should be in a Grand Slam
final?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Oh, definitely I feel like my game always
belonged there. I just needed I guess to improve myself mentally, to
believe it. I had people around me saying it to me. It was a matter
of time actually myself starting to believe that, too.

I definitely feel like I belong there as well.

Q. Was there a moment that you can remember believing that - a
specific moment made you think you do belong?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, it's tough to say. I don't really remember
the moment when it happened. I think it was just a matter of time, as
well.

Q. You'll face a stiff test either way in the semi-finals. You'll
probably know whether your game is at the point you can beat an elite
player. What do you have to do to bring your best?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, it's going to be, again, a new experience
for me, which I'm really excited about. Either way, whoever I play,
it's going to be a tough match.

But I've got nothing to lose. I'm in a great position. I'm feeling
like I'm playing well. I'm just really looking forward to be out on
the court again and give my best, and see what happens.

Q. Could you clarify for us how many languages you speak?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Slovak, which is my native language. Obviously,
with that you can understand Czech, Croatian a little bit. German,
English. Little bit Italian as well.

Q. How would you rate your opponent's game today compared to your
last meeting in Zürich last year?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, I knew I had to play really well to be able
to [beat?] Agnieszka. That's why I'm really proud the way I handled
it. She's tough. I thought she was playing well. But I felt like I
didn't give her too many chances to get into the match. I felt like I
did everything right that I supposed to.

I think tactically I played quite a smart game.

Q. You said it's taken you some time to build the maturity and
experience to be able to play at this level. Have you got any regrets
from the past five years?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Absolutely not. I do believe strongly that
everything happens for a reason.

Q. Do you still have any time to play piano?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Not too much any more. I mean, occasionally
sometimes a little bit. But, yeah, I've been pretty bad on that.

Q. Is it something that in the past helped you to relax?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, it was a great way to relax, especially
after a tough practice, tough day at school. I came back home and I
had to practise for like 45 minutes every day. I was always so tired
and sometimes falling asleep there.

But, yeah, it was really helping me to relax and just completely get
away from everything.

Q. What are your favourite types of pieces to play when you do have
time?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, I used to play all the classical things, so
Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, that kind of stuff.

Q. The easy stuff?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: That's more difficult than I think the normal
songs.

Q. For your home-country, I think you're the best Slovakian player so
far going that far. Does it mean something for you coming from that
small country?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, obviously it makes me very, very proud. I
think, like you said, we are a small country. But I think we've got a
great people. Being, you know, one of them, it's a great pleasure and
honour. I always said it's so nice to be able to represent my country.

I can't really say if I'm the best or not. I'm sure there's been a
lot of great players before me, and hopefully after me. But it's
definitely nice to be part of that.

Q. Will you celebrate this victory, or do you have to put it behind
you immediately and focus on the semi-finals?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Just focus on the semi-finals. Obviously there
will be time after the tournament when I can sit back and enjoy all
this. But at this stage of the tournament, I just want to focus on my
next match, relax as much as I can tonight. But tomorrow is another
day. I want to make sure I'm prepared as well as I can.

Q. How much does the doubles-game help you to be successful in
singles?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, I think definitely it helped me a lot to
improve my game, coming to the net, having to serve and volley.
Especially playing mixed doubles, having to return the guy's serves.

For me doubles and mixed doubles, it's just been always about fun,
going out there and really enjoying the game.

Yeah, I had some great memories, especially from the Grand Slams.
It's been nice to be able to play those parts of the events, as well.

Q. You're not playing mixed doubles here. Is there any reason?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: After winning all four Grand Slams, I kind of
retired, felt like it's time to move on and focus on my singles.

----------------------------
3. Semi-final draw / Preview
----------------------------

* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v JELENA JANKOVIC [3] (DAVAI MARIA!!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] (my loyalty is to
Daniela)


3.1 Preview of Daniela's semi-final
-----------------------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
1r + Vania King, 6-3 7-5
2r + Alizé Cornet, 6-2 7-5
3r + Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-2 6-3
4r + MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF], 1-6 6-4 6-4
qf + AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29], 6-2 6-2

ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF]:
1r + Sorana Cîrstea, 7-5 6-3
2r + Tathiana Garbin, 6-0 6-3
3r + KATARINA SREBOTNIK [28], 6-3 6-4
4r + Caroline Wozniacki, 6-1 7-6 (7/2)
qf + VENUS WILLIAMS [8], 7-6 (7/3) 6-4

A mouthwatering semi-final full of talent and beauty, which
guarantees that I will have at least demi-fanship interest in the
final.

I saw Ana's second-round match on BBCi, and she was just awesome:
hard hitting, spreading rallies, many winners - she looked like she
could do whatever she wanted with the ball! But she did get nervous
and tentative at 6-0 4-0*, and the scorelines of her other matches
aren't so impressive - though I'm certainly very pleased that she got
a win over a Williams-sister at last!

BBCi haven't televised Daniela so far this Australian Open - and nor
will they, unless she reaches the final, or they have decency to show
the semi-finals recorded tomorrow. In fact, the very last time I saw
Daniela play was the end of her loss to Ana at the Sony Ericsson
Championships in November 2007.

Ana had a stellar year in 2007, becoming the first player younger
than Maria Sharapova ever to beat her (once by retirement, and again
6-2 6-1 in the French Open semi-finals), winning Berlin over world #4
Svetlana Kuznetsova, reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals by winning
the match of the tournament over Nicole Vaidišová, and winning Los
Angeles and Luxembourg.

Daniela is coming off what I consider to be the best year of her
career in 2007 (by a narrow margin over 2002), and is so much
stronger mentally than she was pre-2007. But she did wobble from 6-2
*4-0 in her quarter-final, and she wouldn't get away with that
against Ana, who stays in a match like a wasp at a barbeque.

Daniela said: "It's going to be a new experience for me, which I'm
really excited about. It's going to be a tough match, but I've got
nothing to lose. I'm in a great position. I'm feeling like I'm
playing well. I'm just really looking forward to being out on the
court again, and giving my best and seeing what happens."

Ana said: "She's definitely on a roll; she's playing some great
tennis here. It's going to be a very hard match, and it's a semi-
final, but it is a great chance for both of us. We both have a good
chance, and I really hope it will be a good match. We had tough
matches last time we played in Madrid, and also before that in
Luxembourg, and once more also last year on grass. I'm really looking
forward to the challenge."

Ana leads Daniela 2:1 head to head, with all three meetings in 2007.
Daniela crushed Ana 6-3 6-1 at 's-Hertogenbosch, which was surprising
after Ana had reached the French Open final, and given that she went
on to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals!

Ana beat Daniela 3-6 6-4 6-4 in the Luxembourg-final, after Daniela
had led 6-3 3-0* - not so much Daniela's choke as Ana's fightback.
And Ana beat Daniela 6-2 7-6 (11/9) at the Sony Ericsson
Championships - a 2h12m marathon with numerous deuces, and set-points
for Daniela in the tiebreak.

So I don't expect Daniela to go quietly, although I have to say I
would be astounded if she reached her first Grand Slam singles-final
by beating Ana, who has improved even more during the off-season.

Ana is the player most likely to become the next first-time Grand
Slam champion: perhaps even on Saturday, although Maria Sharapova is
absolutely on fire at the moment, while Ana could struggle to get
over the finishing-line. That's what Daniela has to look to exploit.


Ivanovic Finally Overcomes Williams; Hantuchová Next
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1998
>>>
Hantuchová has been a difficult opponent for Ivanovic. She won their
first match on the grass of 's-Hertogenbosch last June
comprehensively - 6-3 6-1 - and although Ivanovic did win their other
two meetings later that year, they were close: the Slovak was leading
6-3 3-0 before falling in three sets in the Luxembourg final, and
held set-points in the second set of a two-set round-robin defeat in
Madrid.

"We both have a good chance now, and I really hope it will be a good
match," an elated Ivanovic said. "We had tough matches last time we
played: in Madrid, and before that in Luxembourg. I think it's going
to be an interesting match, and I'm really looking forward to the
challenge."
<<<

3.2 Articles about all semi-finalists
-------------------------------------

Fresh faces feature on semi-final day
By Adam Lucius <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
No Venus. No Serena. And no Justine. For the first time since 2002,
the surname Williams or Henin won't feature on the Rod Laver Arena
scoreboard when this year's Australian Open women's final is played
on Saturday.

Day 11 of the Melbourne Park tournament on Thursday sees four
players - Daniela Hantuchová, Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova and
Jelena Jankovic - slug it out on a semi-final day with a difference.

Sharapova meets Jankovic in the first of the afternoon's centre-court
battles before making way for the intriguing Hantuchová-Ivanovic
clash.

In a clear sign there is a changing of the guard in the women's game,
Sharapova is the only one of the four semi-finalists with a Grand
Slam title to her name.

"I think it's interesting for everyone to see new faces and fresh
faces," Ivanovic said. "Most of us are very young - Maria is 20,
Jelena is 22, Daniela also very young [24] - so I think it's great
for women's tennis."

"We all have a great opportunity here this year. It's just a matter
of who can stay stronger and do it."

Hantuchová is the only one of the four without Grand Slam semi-final
experience.

But Ivanovic insists that doesn't give her a clear advantage.

"She's had a great run. She had a lot of good wins," the Serb
said. "Obviously there is no easy match in a Grand Slam. But she
obviously has a lot of confidence coming into the semi-final. It's
going to be a very tough match."

Hantuchová countered: "It's going to be a new experience for me,
which I'm really excited about. It's going to be a tough match, but
I've got nothing to lose. I'm in a great position."

"I'm feeling like I'm playing well. I'm just really looking forward
to being out on the court again, and giving my best and seeing what
happens."

Sharapova holds a 3:1 win-loss record over Jankovic but is taking
nothing for granted.

"Previous matches don't count. This is a new encounter, a new match,"
she pointed out. "This is a great opportunity for both of us. I'm
very excited about the match-up."

"Ever since the juniors, we've always played really tough and we've
always battled it out, and it's great to see her in the semis."
<<<

With Henin, Williams sisters out, it's all eastern Europeans at the
Australian Open semis
By Dennis Passa: AP Sports Writer
>>>
With the Williams sisters and No. 1 Justine Henin gone, the
Australian Open women's semi-finals are an all-eastern-European
affair.

And two not-so-similar Serbians are in the hunt for their first Grand
Slam singles-title.

No. 3 Jelena Jankovic and No. 4 Ana Ivanovic both advanced to last
year's French Open semi-finals, signalling the start of a Serbian
move into the top five of women's tennis.

At this year's Australian Open, the two could meet in the final, if
Jankovic can get past Maria Sharapova in one of Thursday's semi-
finals and Ivanovic, who beat Venus Williams 7-6(3) 6-4 in the
quarter-finals Wednesday, beats Daniela Hantuchová of Slovakia in the
other.

The two Serbians share only their nationality: Jankovic is outspoken,
whereas Ivanovic has a quiet manner about her and is more private,
describing herself as "sensitive" in her WTA Tour biography.

Ivanovic is taking a finance course by correspondence, reads Greek
mythology, listens to pop and rhythm-and-blues music, and has studied
Spanish. Jankovic likes techno music, considers herself competitive,
and learned French at a diplomatic school in Serbia.

On the court, they become more similar: both are right-handed with
two-handed backhands that produce powerful groundstrokes.

Ivanovic says tennis is growing in Serbia, which has a population of
just over 10 million.

"We get a lot of support from back home," she said. "Every time I
speak to my father, he always says how many people are following us.
I think it's great for our tennis, and it's becoming one of the major
sports back home.

"It's just amazing to have two of us playing semi-finals at a Grand
Slam: a dream coming true."

Jankovic has lost three of four matches against Sharapova, and the
two were junior teammates together at a Florida tennis-academy.
Sharapova lost last year's final here to Serena Williams, but looked
ever so powerful in ending Henin's 32-match winning-streak in the
quarter-finals this year.

The last time Jankovic and Sharapova played - at the Birmingham
grasscourt tournament last year - Jankovic beat the Russian in three
sets, including 7-5 in the decider. Sharapova has beaten Jankovic
twice on hard courts, including the US Open's second round in 2004.

Sharapova says that makes little difference to her.

"Previous matches don't count; this is a new encounter, a new match,"
Sharapova said. "Ever since the juniors, we've always played really
tough and we've always battled it out, and it's great to see her in
the semis."

Jankovic beat defending champion Serena Williams in the quarter-
finals: one of the biggest wins of her career.

The 22-year-old Jankovic has been nursing a variety of injuries since
straining her right hamstring at the Hopman Cup in Perth. As well,
she says she's sore all over.

"They put me in an ice-tub, and I freeze, actually, to kind of help
my muscles recover," Jankovic said. "But I'm doing fine. I just
wanted my body to get stronger so that I can play without pain. But
it just shows that I'm not really in the best shape."

Hantuchová, who beat Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-2 6-2 on
Wednesday, is playing in her first Grand Slam semi-final. She made
the quarter-finals of three straight Grand Slams - Wimbledon and the
US Open in 2002, and the Australian Open in 2003 - but it's been a
dry spell since.

"I guess I had to get through all the tough times and get experience
in order to be able to get to this stage," said No. 9-seeded
Hantuchová, who is the oldest of the semi-finalists at 24. "That's
why I can appreciate moments like this much, much more."

Ivanovic leads their career head-to-heads 2:1, all in 2007. Ivanovic
beat her at the WTA Tour Championships in November, including an 11/9
score in the second-set tiebreak.

Hantuchová was asked before she knew her semi-final opponent -
Ivanovic or Venus Williams - what kind of match she expected.

"You'll face a stiff test either way in the semi-finals," Hantuchová
said. "But I've got nothing to lose. I'm in a great position."

Ivanovic agreed.

"She's had a great run, a lot of good wins," Ivanovic said. "She
obviously has a lot of confidence coming into the semi-final."
<<<

Serb women and Nadal ready for final push
Editing by Ossian Shine (Reuters)
>>>
A first all-Serbian Grand Slam final is on the cards when Jelena
Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic tackle Maria Sharapova and Daniela
Hantuchová in the Australian Open semi-finals on Thursday.

Fifth seed Sharapova, fresh from her straight-sets demolition of
world number one Justine Henin, has won three of her four matches
against Jankovic, and will fancy her chances of reaching the
Melbourne Park final for the second successive year.

The Russian - a former Wimbledon and US Open champion - has cruised
through the draw, and produced a scintillating performance to knock
out top seed Henin.

But third seed Jankovic ousted champion Serena Williams in the
quarter-finals, and seems to be making light of recent injury-
problems.

Ivanovic made it a Serbian double over the Williams sisters when she
proved too strong for Venus, and the fourth seed has beaten Slovakian
Hantuchová twice in three matches.
<<<

------------------
4. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
sf + ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF]
_f + MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF]

-----------------------------
5. Order of Play for Thursday
-----------------------------

Rod Laver Arena: day-session (start 11:00 AEDT = 00:00 GMT)
MD sf: Jeff Coetzee [S]/Wesley Moodie v (ARNAUD CLÉMENT/MICHAEL
LLODRA)[7]
|
(not before 13:30 AEDT = 02:30 GMT)
WS sf: MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v JELENA JANKOVIC [3]
WS sf: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF]
|
Rod Laver Arena: evening-session (start 19:30 AEDT = 08:30 GMT)
MS sf: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga v RAFAEL NADAL [2]
XD qf: (CARA BLACK/PAUL HANLEY)[1] v (SUN,TIANTIAN/NENAD ZIMONJIC)[5]

Doesn't sound like BBCi has any plans to show the women's semi-
finals! :fiery: In 2006, BBCi showed them recorded after the live
men's match in the evening-session, but not in 2007.

Full order of play:
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Fourth round: Hantuchová v Kirilenko review
3. Semi-final draw: Top half
4. Quarter-final draw: Bottom half
5. Andrew's wishes
6. Women's Doubles
7. Order of Play for Wednesday

---------
1. Photos
---------

Daniela Hantuchová:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/players/99/photos (Daniela)
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/players/wta080394.html
search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7198528.stm (Day 7)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7199468.stm (Day 8)
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/

Many players:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

----------------------------------------------
2. Fourth round: Hantuchová v Kirilenko review (Monday 21st January)
----------------------------------------------

Nice winner, nice loser:
+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] d. MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF], 1-6 6-4 6-4

Maria led 6-1 *3-1 (30/0)! But Daniela fought back with 17 points in
a row for 5-3*, then won the second set after they both held.

Third set: Sam Smith (commentating on Hewitt v Đokovic) described it
as a "sticky third set". With Maria serving first, it started with
three breaks, then Daniela recovered from *15/40 to lead 3-1*, and
broke again for *5-2.

But she squandered two match-points at *5-2 and another at 5-3*
(there's nothing more nerve-wracking in tennis than watching Daniela
squander match-points - not that I got to watch or even follow live
scores of this match), before serving out the match to love at *5-4.

Daniela had a positive W:UE ratio of 32:30, while Maria's was even
better at 32:27. Daniela turned it around with a spectacular W:UE of
19:9 for the second set, while Maria had a negative 12:17 in the
third.

Maria had better first-serve percentages (in and winning) than
Daniela, but only won 22% of the points on her second serve, while
Daniela won 38% on hers. Maria didn't win a single point on her scond
serve in the third set.

Daniela broke 5 times from 8 break-points, Maria 6 times from 12 BPs -
  but 3 of Maria's breaks occurred in the lopsided first set, while
she was more wasteful of break-points in the second and third.

Maria won one more game (14-13) and two more points (88-86) than
Daniela!


2.1 Articles
------------

Hantuchová edges past Kirilenko [CEEFAX 490->494]
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová recovered from a set and 1-3 down to beat 27th
seed Maria Kirilenko in two hours, 20 minutes.

The 24-year-old will next face Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska, who saw
off 14th seed Nadia Petrova 1-6 7-5 6-0.

"It was hard to see a way out of it, but I just kept fighting for
every point, and tried to change my game a little bit," said
Hantuchová.

"I freed up a little. Until then, it wasn't really me out there, so I
tried to focus a bit more."
<<<

Hantuchová battles back for victory [Teletext 495->497]
>>>
Hantuchová battles back [Teltext 498]

Ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová fought back from losing the first set
to defeat Russian Maria Kirilenko.

Kirilenko, seeded 27, made a flying start and easily took the first
set 6-1 after hitting 10 winners.

But Slovakian Hantuchová hit back to take the second 6-4, and
although a spirited Kirilenko saved two match-points in the decider,
her older opponent closed it out 6-4.
<<<

Hantuchová passes Kirilenko test
By James Ranson <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
No. 9 seed Daniela Hantuchová has recovered from a first-set setback
against Maria Kirilenko to progress to the quarter-finals in style:
1-6 6-2 6-4.

In a tussle of the glamour-girls, Kirilenko got off to a flying start
in the first set, hitting 10 winners and only one unforced error. The
180cm Slovakian forged her way back into the contest in the second
set, taking it 6-4.

In the decider, it was Hantuchová again who took the initiative.
Neither player could hold serve until Hantuchová did so in the fourth
game to lead 3-1.

From that point on, she was always going to be tough to beat, as her
array of deep, flat, probing forehands started to trouble the young
Russian.

At 5-2 and facing two match-points Kirilenko didn't hold back,
digging her way out of a hole to take the set to 5-3. Hantuchová was
less than impressed as an unsuccessful challenge led to the break.

Another strong service-game from Kirilenko to go 5-4, and the
pressure was back on Hantuchová to hold serve.

Kirilenko requested the trainer for an inner-thigh problem, but the
treatment did her little good; Hantuchová held serve with a minimum
of fuss, and took the match in two hours and 20 minutes.

Despite the loss, Kirilenko described the tournament as a success and
a good building-block for the year ahead, but was at pains to explain
how she fell away.

"It was so quick: first I won the first set comfortably, then
everything turned around, and before I knew it I had lost."

"She's a top-ten player, so you have to concentrate for the entire
match - you can't just expect to win because you've taken the first
set."

The impressive Hantuchová will face Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in
the quarter-finals.
<<<

Hantuchová caps comeback with Grand Slam quarter-final
By Neil Frankland: AP Sports Writer
>>>
It's been a tumultuous five years since Daniela Hantuchová last
reached a Grand Slam quarter-final.

She rallied to beat No. 27 Maria Kirilenko 1-6 6-4 6-4 in the fourth
round of the Australian Open on Monday, answering lingering doubts
about her capacity to return to the second week of a Grand Slam.

"I always believed I could do it. I thought it was just a matter of
time, probably getting a little bit more mature and understanding
myself better," she said. "There was never a time that I thought I
was not being able to do it again."

After finishing the 2002 season ranked No. 8 following quarter-final
appearances at Wimbledon and the US Open, she reached a career-high
No. 5 shortly after making the Australian Open quarter-finals.

Then she faced a series of personal trials, including constant
speculation about her weight, and her ranking plummeted to No. 31 at
the end of 2004.

The 24-year-old Slovakian player, seeded No. 9 in Melbourne, says the
maturity she's gained in the ensuing years is now showing on the
tennis-court.

"I think I realised that it's okay to make mistakes sometimes, and
it's okay not to be perfect all the time," she said. "And I think
that made me much, much calmer and more relaxed, on the court and off
the court."

Hantuchová next faces Polish teenager Agnieszka Radwanska, who beat
Nadia Petrova to reach her first Grand Slam quarter-final.

"She's a very tough player: very talented," Hantuchová said. "I think
we've both got a great opportunity to get to the semis, so it's going
to be a very good match. I'm really looking forward to it."
<<<

Ivanovic, Williams move into quarters (PA SportsTicker)
>>>
Off an impressive third-round upset of Russian countrywoman and sixth
seed Anna Chakvetadze, Kirilenko got off to a good start against
Hantuchová before caving to the Slovakian.

After Kirilenko handily won the first set, Hantuchová battled back to
overcome the 20-year-old despite committing 30 unforced errors and
winning just 43 of 68 (63%) first-serve points.

"Yeah, it feels great. Definitely an exciting time," said Hantuchová,
who was upset in the first round of the US Open last season. "I was
very proud the way I fought today because it was not easy - I was not
playing well, especially in the first set.

"But I just kept fighting. I eventually turned it around. I was
losing, I mean, being a set down and a few breaks, doesn't really
make it easy. Honestly, I didn't really see the way out of it. I just
tried to focus on every point at one time and just keep fighting.
And, yeah, it paid off."

The 24-year-old Hantuchová - bidding to reach her first Grand Slam
semi-final in this her 29 consecutive Major - lost her only previous
encounter with Radwanska in the second round at Zürich last season.
<<<

Hantuchová, Radwanska notch come-from-behind fourth-round wins
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1992
>>>
The top half of the draw played the fourth round on Sunday, and all
of the Top 8 seeds in action won through to set up a pair of quarter-
final blockbusters. On Monday the bottom half played their fourth-
round matches and, at the end of the day, Ana Ivanovic and Venus
Williams made a third duel between top seeds while Daniela Hantuchová
and Agnieszka Radwanska posted clutch turnaround-victories to come
through in the bottom quarter of the draw.

The two most unlikely quarter-finalists at the 2008 Australian Open
were also very much down and out in matches they eventually won to
get there. Hantuchová, the No.9 seed here, rallied back from a
6-1 3-1 hole to make it past No.27 seed Maria Kirilenko 1-6 6-4 6-4.
The Slovak turned it all around with 17 straight points from 6-1 3-1
(30/0) down in the second set, and although she had problems closing
(she had two match-points at 5-2 in the third and another at 5-3),
she served the match out comfortably at 5-4 and moved into her fourth
career Grand Slam quarter-final.

"It's definitely an exciting time," said Hantuchová, whose most
recent Grand Slam quarter-final came right here in 2003. "I was very
proud of how I fought today, because it was not easy. I wasn't
playing well - especially in the first set - but I just kept fighting
and eventually turned it around. I always believed I could make the
quarter-finals of a Grand Slam again; I just thought it was a matter
of time."
<<<

2.2 Daniela's fourth-round press-conference
-------------------------------------------

Source: www.australianopen.com

Q. A few years since you've been to the quarter-finals. How are you
feeling?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, it feels great. Definitely an exciting
time. Yeah, I was very proud the way I fought today, because it was
not easy. I was not playing well, especially in the first set.
But I just kept fighting. I eventually turned it around.

Q. The past couple of years, going out in the fourth round, has that
been tough to take?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I feel like, you know, the last few years I
always gave it my best in the Grand Slam. I was just sometimes a
little bit unlucky with the draws. I played the Williams-sisters a
couple of times, Justine. So, yeah, the draws were quite tough.

So I was really glad for the opportunity I had here, and really glad
to be in the quarters.

Q. You fought to come back and get this win.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, definitely. I was losing, I mean, being a
set down and a few breaks, doesn't really make it easy. Honestly,
I didn't really see the way out of it.

I just tried to focus on every point at one time and just keep
fighting. And, yeah, it paid off.

Q. For the last few years, have you ever thought you wouldn't get
back to this point?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Absolutely not. I always believed I could do it.
I thought it was just a matter of time, probably getting a little bit
more mature and understanding myself better. And, you know, there was
never a time that I thought I was not being able to do it again.

Q. What's the difference between you as a tennis-player now and five
years ago?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, I guess being five years older. <smiling>
Just for sure being more mature. I think I realised that it's okay to
make mistakes sometimes, and it's okay not to be perfect all the
time. And I think that made me much, much calmer and more relaxed, on
the court and off the court.

Q. You've played against Radwanska once. What are your thoughts about
her?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, she's a very tough player: very talented.
I think she's proved it here once again. I played her in Zürich: I
lost. Obviously, I will have to change something and make sure I play
my best tennis.

I think we both got a great opportunity to get to the semis, so it's
going to be a very good match and I'm really looking forward to it.

Q. Apart from the two Williams and Justine Henin, there are five
players coming from Eastern Europe. Do you think the reason is
because you have more motivation there? Now even Poland is producing
good players. Is it the country where you're born that pushes you to
do your best?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: I think it was just a matter of time for more
players to come from this part of the world, I think, because we are
prepared to work hard. Also in my country, I've seen so many talents
around me.

You know, some players from Poland, a lot of Russian players, I think
just proves that probably the way we are taught how to play, it's
very good. I think all the players got very good techniques. Yeah,
I think it was just a matter of time for more players to come.

Q. You've said you're calm and relaxed on the court. Anything you've
done special to create this?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: No. Like I said, I think I just realised that,
you know, we are all humans. Not every match is going to be perfect -
always going to be my way.

Once I understood that, I think that was the reason why I started to
be more relaxed and much, much easier with myself.

Q. The fact that you have to play Radwanska instead of Kuznetsova, or
instead of Petrova, does that make you more optimistic about your
future in this tournament?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Well, I think you have to watch out for every
player that is in the quarters, so I cannot underestimate anybody.
I have to make sure I go out there and play my best tennis, no matter
who is on the other side.

----------------------------
3. Semi-final draw: Top half
----------------------------

* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v JELENA JANKOVIC [3] (DAVAI MARIA!!)

----------------------------------
4. Quarter-final draw: Bottom half
----------------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v VENUS WILLIAMS [8] (ajde Ana!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29] (PODME
DANIELA!!)


4.1 Preview of Daniela's quarter-final
--------------------------------------

This is Daniela's first Grand Slam quarter-final since the Australian
Open 2003, and her fourth overall, but instead of a Williams-sister,
she's up against a Radwanska-sister: the elder, less attractive
sister.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
1r + Vania King, 6-3 7-5
2r + Alizé Cornet, 6-2 7-5
3r + Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-2 6-3
4r + MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF], 1-6 6-4 6-4

AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29]:
1r + Olga Savchuk, 6-0 6-1
2r + Pauline Parmentier, 7-5 6-4
3r + SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [2], 6-3 6-4
4r + NADIA PETROVA [14], 1-6 7-5 6-0

So a couple of big scalps for Radwanska, but as always in the case of
such upsets, the perpetrator has less chance to progress than the seed
(s) she upset would have had - especially with Radwanska being young
(18) and inexperienced.

On the other hand, that does put the pressure of expectation on
Daniela to see off the lower seed - especially with a place in her
first-ever Grand Slam semi-final at stake.

Radwanska, who won the Girls' Singles at Wimbledon 2005, pulled off a
couple of major scalps in 2007: she beat world #6 Martina Hingis to
reach 4r Miami, then stunned second seed and defending champion Maria
Sharapova 6-4 1-6 6-2 in the third round of the US Open, after Maria
had dropped 2 games in her first two rounds! Radwanska stood right up
to the service-line to receive Maria's second serves, and Maria's
serve went to pieces.

But Radwanska folded in the next round after that US Open upset,
losing 6-4 6-1 to Shahar Pe'er. She's done one better here, courtesy
of an astonishing collapse by Nadia Petrova from 6-1 3-0!

Radwanska also won the ITF Biella and WTA Stockholm titles in 2007,
finishing the year with an impressive 39:23 record. And she beat
Daniela in their only previous meeting: 6-3 6-3 at Zürich 2007, when
Daniela was tired and ill.

What's worrying is that Daniela pulled out of the Women's Doubles
with a foot-injury. I sincerely hope it's just a precaution. At least
she doesn't have to play this quarter-final until Wednesday.

It's not easy to predict the outcome of this match. Logically,
Daniela should be the favourite because of her much higher ranking
and far greater experience, but as discussed above, there are plenty
of variables.

I guess the deciding factor will be what kind of pressure Daniela
puts on herself to win this match: whether she finds the happy medium
between complacency and the nerves of expectation.


Hantuchová promises focus [Teletext 498]
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová has vowed not to take the challenge of Polish
teenager Agnieszka Radwanska lightly, ahead of their quarter-final
tie in Melbourne.

The Slovakian got past Maria Kirilenko in three sets, and now faces
Radwanska, who has knocked out two major seeds in the previous two
rounds.

Hantuchová said: "She beat me last time, so I'll have to change
something and make sure I play my best tennis."
<<<

Hantuchová, Radwanska notch come-from-behind fourth-round wins
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1992
>>>
Hantuchová and Radwanska have met once before, with Radwanska winning
handily, 6-3 6-3, at Zürich last fall.

"She's a very tough player and very talented," Hantuchová
commented. "She is proving it here once again. I played her in Zürich
and lost, so obviously I'll have to change something and make sure I
play my best tennis. I think we both have a good opportunity to get
to the semi-finals. It's going to be a very good match and I'm really
looking forward to it."
<<<

Radwanska: "I am very happy to have gone a few rounds in Melbourne
and reached my first [Grand Slam] quarter-final."


Australian Open: Day 10 Preview
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1997
>>>
(9) Daniela Hantuchová (SVK) vs. (29) Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) -
Radwanska leads 1:0

Teenage sensation Radwanska's run to her maiden Grand Slam quarter-
final has been one of the stories of the tournament, and she will
enter her clash with world No.9 Hantuchová brimming with confidence.

After a promising 2007, which saw her break into the Top 30 and
capture her very first WTA Tour title, the 18-year-old Pole has made
a fantastic start to the new season in Melbourne. After negotiating
the opening two matches with relative ease, Radwanska faced the
daunting prospect of a match-up against Svetlana Kuznetsova in the
round of 32, and she certainly rose to the occasion by defeating the
No.2 seed 6-3 6-4. In the next round, she faced another Russian, in
the form of Nadia Petrova, and despite a sluggish start, the Kraków-
based star came roaring back to wrap up a 1-6 7-5 6-0 win over the
world No.14.

Hantuchová was on cruise-control in the opening week Down Under,
brushing aside her opening three opponents with consummate ease.
However, in the fourth round she came up against an in-form Maria
Kirilenko, who pushed the 24-year-old all the way before finally
going down 1-6 6-4 6-4.

The Slovak No.1 enjoyed something of a renaissance in 2007 - winning
her second and third career-titles and qualifying for the prestigious
Sony Ericsson Championships - and her performances in Melbourne Park
have been rewarded with a place in the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam
event for the fourth time in her career.

The pair's only previous meeting on Tour came three months ago in
Zürich when Radwanska emerged with an impressive straight-set
victory, and despite sitting 19 places below Hantuchová in the world-
rankings, she certainly has the ability and the temperament to spring
a surprise.
<<<

Ivanovic attempts to solve Williams (PA SportsTicker)
>>>
While the Ivanovic-Williams winner is the clear-cut favourite to
emerge from the bottom of the draw, rising star Agnieszka Radwanska
can't be overlooked at this point.

The 29th-seeded Pole has sent shockwaves through the bracket with
upset victories over No. 2 Svetlana Kuznetsova and 14th-seeded Nadia
Petrova.

In her fourth-round match with Petrova on Monday, the 18-year-old
Radwanska rallied for a 1-6 7-5 6-0 win despite facing deficits of
0-3 and 4-5 in the second set.

An owner of just one career singles-title, Radwanska will be
appearing in her first Grand Slam quarter-final when she faces No. 9
Daniela Hantuchová: a 1-6 6-4 6-4 winner against 27th-seeded Maria
Kirilenko on Monday.

The 24-year-old Hantuchová - bidding to reach her first Grand Slam
semi-final in this her 29th consecutive Major - lost her only
previous encounter with Radwanska in the second round at Zürich last
season.

"[Radwanska is] a very tough player, very talented," Hantuchová
said. "I played her in Zürich and lost, so obviously I will have to
change something and make sure I play my best tennis."

Though her career has been marked by several baffling defeats in big
spots, Hantuchová showed some character in her fourth-round win over
Kirilenko.

The Slovakian claimed the match despite dropping the first set,
committing 30 unforced errors and winning just 43 of 68 (63%)
first-serve points.

"Yeah, it feels great. Definitely an exciting time," said Hantuchová,
who was upset in the first round of the US Open last season. "I was
very proud the way I fought [on Monday] because it was not easy;
I was not playing well, especially in the first set.

"But I just kept fighting. I eventually turned it around. I just
tried to focus on every point and just keep fighting. And, yeah, it
paid off."
<<<

------------------
5. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
qf + AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29]
sf + ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF]
_f + MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF]

------------------
6. Women's Doubles
------------------
6.1 Third-round result (Monday 21st January)
----------------------

- Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport lt. Alyona
Bondarenko/Kateryna Bondarenko, walkover (Daniela foot-injury)

------------------------------
7. Order of Play for Wednesday
------------------------------

Rod Laver Arena: day-session (start 11:00 AEDT = 00:00 GMT)
WS qf: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29]
WS qf: ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v VENUS WILLIAMS [8]
MS qf: NOVAK ĐOKOVIC [3] v DAVID FERRER [5]
|
Rod Laver Arena: evening-session (start 19:30 AEDT = 08:30 GMT)
MS qf: ROGER FEDERER [1] v JAMES BLAKE [12]
MD qf: (BOB BRYAN/MIKE BRYAN)[1] v (MAHESH BHUPATHI/MARK KNOWLES)[6]

I'm disappointed that there's no women's match on the Rod Laver Arena
evening-session = no BBCi-coverage of Daniela (all tournament) or Ana
(since the second round). I don't know whether this is more misogyny,
or whether they think it would have been unfair to put a women's
quarter-final in the evening when the winner has to play her semi-
final on Thursday.

Full order of play:
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Third round: Hantuchová v Ruano Pascual review
3. Fourth-round draw: Bottom half
4. Quarter-final draw: Top half
5. Andrew's wishes
6. Women's Doubles
7. Order of Play for Monday

---------
1. Photos
---------

Daniela Hantuchová:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/players/99/photos
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/players/wta080394.html
search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7198528.stm
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/

Many players:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

-------------------------------------------------
2. Third round: Hantuchová v Ruano Pascual review
(Sunday 20th January)
-------------------------------------------------

Nice winner, nice loser:
+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] d. Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-2 6-3

A very satisfactory result, as Daniela moves into her 6th fourth
round in the 9 Grand Slams since the start of 2006, with her best
chance of reaching her first Grand Slam quarter-final since the
Australian Open 2003.

In the first set, games went with serve until Daniela broke for *4-2;
in fact she won the last four games of the set to take it 6-2.

Daniela was broken in the first game of the second set, but broke
back immediately, and again for *3-1. The rest of the match went with
serve, thus Daniela won 6-3.

Daniela had a spectacular W:UE ratio of 33:27, while Ruano Pascual's
was a woeful 5:14 - it seems obvious from this that Daniela was able
to dominate the match with her flairsome power and spreading rallies.
She also came to the net quite a bit, winning 10 of 14 points there.

Daniela's serves were much faster than Ruano Pascual's; she won 73%
of the points on her own serve (including an amazing 80% on second
serve), and 47% on Ruano Pascual's - eating up first /and/ second
serves. Daniela broke 4 times from 8 break-points, while Ruano
Pascual could only manage one break from 3 BPs.


2.1 Articles
------------

Hantuchová breezes into last 16 [CEEFAX 493]
>>>
Ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová made short work of her rain-delayed
third-round match against Virginia Ruano Pascual at the Australian
Open.

The Slovakian saw off her Spanish opponent 6-2 6-3 to set up a last-
16 clash with Russia's Maria Kirilenko.

Nadia Petrova, seeded 14, had to work a bit harder to see off fellow
Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-1 7-6 (10/8).

And Poland's Marta Domachowska surprised 24th seed Li,Na of China 2-6
6-2 6-4.
<<<

Domachowska shocks Li [Teletext 497]
>>>
Polish qualifier Marta Domachowska reached the fourth round of a
Grand Slam for the first time with a battling win over 24th seed
Li,Na.

The Chinese star took the first set, but 22-year-old Domachowska hit
back to claim a 2-6 6-2 6-4 victory.

Ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová and Nadia Petrova, seeded 14th, also
won delayed third-round matches along with Danish teenager Caroline
Wozniacki.
<<<

Hantuchová on track for finals
By Adele Holland <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová breezed through to the fourth round today, winning
her third-round match against Virginia Ruano Pascual in straight sets.

Despite hitting 27 unforced errors, Hantuchová dominated the match,
winning in just over an hour.

Spain's Ruano Pascual, fought for her serve early in the match,
Hantuchová getting an early break in the first set despite Ruano
Pascual's aggressive play.

Hantuchová didn't seem worried though: despite a slight lack of
concentration, her return was strong, and she took out the first set
easily: 6-2.

Ruano Pascual took advantage of Hantuchová's unforced errors in the
second set, breaking the Slovakian in the first game.

Hantuchová came back with a vengeance though, breaking back
immediately to even out the score.

Ruano Pascual had difficulty pulling off important shots, and
struggled at the net, while Hantuchová hit 33 winners.

Looking like she wanted to get the match over and done with,
Hantuchová really made her mark late in the second set, and showed
the crowd why she is the No.9 seed. She looked relaxed as she took
the final set 6-3.
<<<

2.2 Fourth-round preview
------------------------

This sets up a mouthwatering fourth-round clash with Maria Kirilenko,
even though I would have preferred it to be Anna Chakvetadze who came
through.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
1r + Vania King, 6-3 7-5
2r + Alizé Cornet, 6-2 7-5
3r + Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-2 6-3

MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF]:
1r + Meilen Tu, 6-4 4-6 6-3
2r + Akiko Morigami [S], 6-1 6-1
3r + ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF], 6-7 (6/8) 6-1 6-2

Maria seems to be a confidence-player: when she's confident, she
plays dynamic all-court tennis and can beat lots of players (she's
won two WTA singles-titles: Beijing 2005 and Kolkata 2007). When
she's not confident, she hangs back, doesn't transfer her weight
forwards into the ball, and can't beat anybody.

Maria spent the first half of 2007 in a slump, with a 6-match losing-
streak from March to May, but played very well in front of me to
reach the third round of Birmingham and really push Jelena Jankovic
as hard as Big Maria did in the final. She did well in the US Open
Series, won 9 matches in a row at Kolkata (won) and Seoul (r/u to
Venus Williams), but then her form suddenly evaporated and she lost 5
matches in a row.

But Maria won $75k ITF Dubai in December, and won her first two
matches at Auckland, where Tamira Paszek inflicted a 6-1 6-3 hurting
in the quarter-finals. With her lopsided thrashing of Akiko Morigami
in the second round, and her upset of Anna Chakvetadze in the third
round, Maria comes into her first-ever Grand Slam fourth round quite
possibly in the form of her life.

Daniela leads Maria 3:1 head to head (just as Anna did going into
their third round). But all those matches have had either a third set
and/or a tiebreak, and Maria won the last one: 4-6 6-2 6-1 at Kolkata
2007 en route to the title.

I would put Daniela as a slight favourite going into this match,
because at this stage of her career she has become much more
consistent and mentally strong than when she was Maria's age (21 next
Friday), while Maria is more fragile as she relies heavily on
confidence, and based on what I saw at Birmingham 2007, I can imagine
her struggling to impose the net-game she'd like to use on Daniela,
let alone managing to live with her from the baseline.

Anna Chakvetadze isn't on good form right now, whereas Daniela's
third-round statistics are very impressive.

---------------------------------
3. Fourth-round draw: Bottom half
---------------------------------

* Marta Domachowska [Q] v VENUS WILLIAMS [8] (dawaj Marta!)
* ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v Caroline Wozniacki (my loyalty is to Ana)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF] (mouthwatering
match; my loyalty is to Daniela)
* NADIA PETROVA [14] v AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29]

-------------------------------
4. Quarter-final draw: Top half
-------------------------------

* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v JUSTINE HENIN [1] (DAVAI MARIA!!)
* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7]

------------------
5. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
4r + MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF]
qf + AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29]
sf + ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF]
_f + MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF]

------------------
6. Women's Doubles
------------------
6.1 Second-round result (Sunday 20th January)
-----------------------

+ Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport
d. Gabriela Navrátilová/Klára Zakopalová, 6-2 6-1


6.2 Third-round draw
--------------------

* Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport
v Alyona Bondarenko/Kateryna Bondarenko

---------------------------
7. Order of Play for Monday
---------------------------

Vodafone Arena (start 11:00 AEDT = 00:00 GMT)
MD 3r: Rohan Bopanna/Rajeev Ram v Jeff Coetzee [S]/Wesley Moodie
WS 4r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF]
WD 2r: Olga Govortsova/Darya Kustova v Jelena Jankovic/Bethanie Mattek
MS 4r: JUAN CARLOS FERRERO [22] v DAVID FERRER [5]

Full order of play:
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Fourth-round draw
2. Andrew's wishes
3. Order of Play for Sunday

--------------------
1. Fourth-round draw
--------------------

* Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] v JUSTINE HENIN [1] (jia you Su-Wei!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [11] (DAVAI MARIA!!)
* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Casey Dell'Acqua
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7] (POJDME NICOLE!!)

* (3r: Marta Domachowska [Q] v LI,NA [24]) v VENUS WILLIAMS [8]
* ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v (3r: Sabine Lisicki [Q] v Caroline Wozniacki)
* (3r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Virginia Ruano Pascual) v MARIA
KIRILENKO [27,DF]
* (3r: NADIA PETROVA [14] v Ekaterina Makarova) v AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA
[29]

------------------
2. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
3r + Virginia Ruano Pascual
4r + MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF]
qf + Ekaterina Makarova
sf + ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF]
_f + NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF]

---------------------------
3. Order of Play for Sunday
---------------------------

Show-Court 2 (start 11:00 AEDT = 00:00 GMT)
WS 3r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Virginia Ruano Pascual
MD 2r: Carsten Ball/Adam Feeney v (LEOŠ FRIEDL/DAVID ŠKOCH)[16]
WD 2r: Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport v Gabriela
Navrátilová/Klára Zakopalová
XD 1r: Jessica Moore/Greg Jones v Rennae Stubbs/Todd Perry
XD 1r: (KVETA PESCHKE/MARTIN DAMM)[7] v Isabella Holland/Brydan Klein

Full order of play:
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Second round: Hantuchová v Cornet review
3. Third-round draw: Bottom half / Preview
4. Fourth-round draw: Top half
5. Andrew's wishes
6. Women's Doubles
7. Order of Play for Saturday

---------
1. Photos
---------

Daniela Hantuchová and Alizé Cornet, and Daniela shopping:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/players/99/photos
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/players/wta080394.html
search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/

Many players:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

-------------------------------------------
2. Second round: Hantuchová v Cornet review (Thursday 17th January)
-------------------------------------------

Nice winner, nice loser:
+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] d. Alizé Cornet, 6-2 7-5

Daniela was 1-3* down in the second set, then up a break *4-3, then
serving to stay in it at *4-5, then won the last three games.

Daniela had a poor W:UE ratio of 16:31, but Alizé was worse with
13:34. The big difference between them was their second serves:
Alizé's was faster, but she won only 33% of the points on it, while
Daniela won 70% on her own second serve. Daniela broke 5 times from
10 break-points, Alizé twice from 3.

Daniela on this sort of form should get by Virginia Ruano Pascual,
but will find it very tough in the fourth round against Anna
Chakvetadze - or even Maria Kirilenko, who I think will be tough for
Anna in the third round.


Kuznetsova battles back [Teletext 497]
>>>
Sixth seed Anna Chakvetadze was a 6-3 6-4 victor against Alise
Kleybanova, while Daniela Hantuchová, seeded ninth, saw off Alizé
Cornet 6-2 7-5.
<<<

Hantuchová rides into round three
By Bronwen Largier <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Women's No.9 seed Daniela Hantuchová has eliminated France's Alizé
Cornet in straight sets to advance to the third round of Australian
Open 2008.

Hantuchová survived a late surge from her opponent to take the match
6-2 7-5.

Hantuchová broke Cornet twice in the opening set to win it
comfortably, but Cornet began to put up a fight early in the second
set when, after a correct challenge using the new video line-calling
system on Vodafone Arena, she was left with three break-points.

She broke the Slovakian on her first attempt after Hantuchová's ball
hit the tape. Hantuchová broke back immediately and broke her again
in her next service-game, to lead the set 4-3.

Not one to give up, Cornet produced another break in the next game
with a crosscourt volley to level the set at 4-4.

However, Hantuchová broke her opponent again in the 11th game and
served out the match, winning with two match-points up her sleeve.

Hantuchová really pushed her opponent around the court throughout the
match, and although Cornet put on an impressive show chasing down
balls, it meant she struggled to produce winners as she expended most
of her energy keeping the ball in play.
<<<

Venus Williams overcomes tough test (PA SportsTicker)
>>>
Also lurking in the bottom of the draw are No. 6 Anna Chakvetadze of
Russia and ninth-seeded Slovakian Daniela Hantuchová, who both
advanced on Thursday.

Hantuchová moved into the third round with a 6-2 7-5 triumph over
Alizé Cornet of France.

While Hantuchová is a top-10 player and taking part in her 29th
consecutive Grand Slam, the 24-year-old has never been able to shine
in a Major.

Including her stunning first-round exit at last summer's US Open, she
has failed to reach the quarter-finals in 19 consecutive Grand Slams.
She matched her best effort in a Major when she reached the round of
eight here in 2003.
<<<

------------------------------------------
3. Third-round draw: Bottom half / Preview
------------------------------------------

* SANIA MIRZA [31,DF] v VENUS WILLIAMS [8] (go Sania!)
* Marta Domachowska [Q] v LI,NA [24] (dawaj Marta!)
* Sabine Lisicki [Q] v Caroline Wozniacki (komm jetzt Sabine!)
* ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v KATARINA SREBOTNIK [28] (ajde Ana!)

* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF] v MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF] (mouthwatering
match - my loyalty is to Anna)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Virginia Ruano Pascual (PODME DANIELA!!)
* NADIA PETROVA [14] v Ekaterina Makarova
* AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29] v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [2]


3.1 Hantuchová v Ruano Pascual preview
--------------------------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
1r + Vania King, 6-3 7-5
2r + Alizé Cornet, 6-2 7-5

Virginia Ruano Pascual:
1r + Roberta Vinci, 6-4 6-4
2r + Catalina Castańo, 6-2 6-4

Daniela has never played Virginia before, which is surprising,
considering that they are 24 and 34 years old respectively.

Virginia has won numerous Grand Slam doubles-titles (particularly
with Paola Suárez) and been #1 in the doubles-rankings, but has only
been as high as #28 in singles. She knocked an injured 16-year-old
Serena Williams out of Wimbledon 1998, and created the upset of
Wimbledon 2001: a 6-4 6-2 thrashing of world #1 Martina Hingis in the
first round.

Virginia was a quarter-finalist at the Australian Open 2003 - the
same as Daniela - and fourth-rounder in 2006 - both times losing to
Justine Henin-Hardenne.

Virginia didn't have a good year in 2007, just breaking even at
18:18, and losing 6-0 6-0 to Jelena Jankovic at Beijing. The
highlight was probably beating world #26 Anabel Medina Garrigues en
route to the third round of Wimbledon. She hasn't played any pre-AO
tournaments in 2008.

Although their scorelines at this tournament don't look dissimilar,
Daniela should just have too much class for Virginia, especially when
Virginia is giving away 10 years.

------------------------------
4. Fourth-round draw: Top half
------------------------------

* Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] v JUSTINE HENIN [1] (jia you Su-Wei!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [11] (DAVAI MARIA!!)
* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Casey Dell'Acqua
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7] (POJDME NICOLE!!)

------------------
5. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
3r + Virginia Ruano Pascual
4r + ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF]
qf + Ekaterina Makarova
sf + SANIA MIRZA [31,DF]
_f + NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF]

------------------
6. Women's Doubles
------------------
6.1 First-round results (Thursday 17th January)
-----------------------

+ Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport
d. (MARIA KIRILENKO [DF]/ÁGNES SZÁVAY)[11], 6-2 7-5


6.2 Second-round draw
---------------------

* Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport
v Gabriela Navrátilová/Klára Zakopalová

-----------------------------
7. Order of Play for Saturday
-----------------------------

Margaret Court Arena: day-session (start 11:00 AEST = 00:00 GMT)
MS 3r: JUAN MÓNACO [21] v TOMÁŠ BERDYCH [13]
WS 3r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Virginia Ruano Pascual
XD 1r: Jessica Moore/Greg Jones v Rennae Stubbs/Todd Perry
WD 2r: Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport v Gabriela
Navrátilová/Klára Zakopalová
|
Margaret Court Arena: evening-session (start 19:30 AEST = 08:30 GMT)
MS 3r: DAVID NALBANDIAN [10] v JUAN CARLOS FERRERO [22]

Full order of play:
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. First round: Hantuchová v King review
3. Second-round draw: Bottom half
4. Third-round draw: Top half
5. Andrew's wishes
6. Order of Play for Thursday

---------
1. Photos
---------

Daniela 'Dani-long-legs' Hantuchová:
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/players/wta080394.html
search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7188629.stm
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

----------------------------------------
2. First round: Hantuchová v King review (Tuesday 15th January)
----------------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] d. Vania King, 6-3 7-5

They were playing first up, in the heat of a very hot Australian day,
so it was nice to get this done in straight sets, despite Daniela
being a break down in the second (she was *0-2 down, but broke back
for *2-2).

Daniela went for broke in typical fashion, with a W:UE ratio of
34:35. She served 5 aces, but will need to improve her first-serves-
in percentage from 57% if she is to trouble, say, Anna Chakvetadze in
the fourth round (the next mouthwatering match for me to look forward
to now that Lucie Šafárová is out).


2.1 Articles
------------

Kuznetsova in a hurry [Teletext 497]
>>>
Sixth seed Anna Chakvetadze played only six points before German
opponent Andrea Petkovic retired, while ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová
also won.
<<<

Hantuchová too good for American
By Carla Okai <www.australianopen.com>
>>>
Daniela Hantuchová has overpowered Vania King from the USA to win her
first round match at the Australian Open 2008 6-3 7-5.

Both players had shaky starts, breaking each other's serves
repeatedly in the first set.

King soon took advantage of Hantuchová's weaker second serve,
returning backhands her opponent just couldn't handle.

Although slow to start, Hantuchová finally began to show some form
warranting her No.9 seeding, covering the court with agility.

The 24-year-old Slovakian overpowered King from the baseline, her
height giving her the advantage she needed. Both players rarely
ventured to the net, preferring to slog it out.

In the second set, Hantuchová was tested early as her serve let her
down. But her dominating forehand proved too much for King, taking
the match in 110 minutes.
<<<

Favourites keep cool in Australian sun (Reuters)
By Ossian Shine (editing by Greg Stutchbury)
>>>
Women's ninth seed Daniela Hantuchová survived a decent workout
before downing American Vania King 6-3 7-5, though she too refused to
speculate on her chances.

"I was just really pleased to get through in two sets - it was tough
out there," the Slovak smiled.

"It was very tight. I was just pleased with the way I hung in there
and played the big points well. That was crucial today.

"I'm fully fit, and so I just want to go out there and enjoy it."
<<<

Daniela's press-conference:
>>>
Q. Summarise that game for us. It was a good one first up?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, definitely.

Q. Very tight.

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yeah, it was very tight. I was really glad to get
through in two sets. I mean, it was quite a big fight, especially in
the second set. I thought Vania was playing very well.

I was just pleased the way I hang in there and play the big points
well. That was, I think, crucial today.

Q. What is your goal for this year?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Not really putting any expectations. I mean, just
want to go out there and play my best in every match, and how far I
get in the tournaments, we'll see.

Obviously I feel like I'm playing well and I'm pretty confident. So,
yeah, I just want to enjoy it and always do my best.

Q. Fully fit?

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ: Yes, fully fit.
<<<

She sure is! ;-)

---------------------------------
3. Second-round draw: Bottom half
---------------------------------

* VENUS WILLIAMS [8] v Camille Pin
* SANIA MIRZA [31,DF] v Timea Bacsinszky [Q] (my loyalty is to Sania)
* Maria Elena Camerin v LI,NA [24] (forza Maria Elena!)
* Marta Domachowska [Q] v Sofia Arvidsson (dawaj Marta!)

* Sabine Lisicki [Q] Mariya Koryttseva (komm jetzt Sabine!)
* ALYONA BONDARENKO [21] v Caroline Wozniacki (my loyalty is to
Alyona)
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [28] v Anastasia Rodionova (dajmo Katarina!)
* ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v Tathiana Garbin (ajde Ana!)

* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF] v Alisa Kleybanova [Q] (DAVAI ANNA!!)
* MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF] v Akiko Morigami [S] (my loyalty is to
Maria)
* Virginia Ruano Pascual v Catalina Castańo (ˇvamos Virginia!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Alizé Cornet (I like Alizé, but PODME
DANIELA!!)

* Anne Kremer v NADIA PETROVA [14] (dajee Anne!)
* Yvonne Meusburger v Ekaterina Makarova
* AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29] v Pauline Parmentier
* Tsvetana Pironkova v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [2] (aide Tsvetana!)


3.1 Preview of Daniela's second round
-------------------------------------

1r: Alizé Cornet d. Clarisa Fernández, 6-3 6-3

Alizé is one week shy of her 18th birthday. Daniela beat her in the
first round here last year: 6-4 6-1 (their only meeting).

But Alizé has come so far since then, winning the French Open Girls'
Singles title. Playing a mixture of WTA and ITF Women's Circuit
tournaments, Alizé compiled an impressive 42:18 record for 2007,
winning ITF Dnepropetrovsk, and winning five matches in a row to
qualify and reach the third round of the US Open, where she took a
set off world #3 Jelena Jankovic.

Alizé was also runner-up at ITF Bordeaux last September, but starting
with the final there, she lost four matches in a row, including her
only pre-AO match of 2008: a 6-3 6-3 loss to Olga Savchuk in the
first qualifying-round of Sydney.

I don't think Alizé has the form to beat Daniela right now, but she's
a solid counterpuncher who could make life difficult for a set at
least, if Daniela has one of her customary walkabouts. My prediction:
Daniela 6-3 5-7 6-2.


Venus Williams returns to action (PA SportsTicker)
>>>
Also lurking in the bottom of the draw are No. 6 Anna Chakvetadze of
Russia and ninth-seeded Slovakian Daniela Hantuchová.

While Hantuchová is a top-10 player and taking part in her 29th
consecutive Grand Slam, the 24-year-old has never been able to shine
in a Major.

Including her stunning first-round exit at last summer's US Open, she
has failed to reach the quarter-finals in 19 consecutive Grand Slams.
She matched her best effort in a Major when she reached the round of
eight here in 2003.

A 6-3 7-5 winner over American Vania King on Monday, Hantuchová's
second-round opponent is unseeded Frenchwoman Alizé Cornet.
<<<

http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1978
>>>
Former quarter-finalist Daniela Hantuchová required almost two hours
to dispose of Vania King in the first round, and will be looking for
an improved performance when she meets Alizé Cornet in the day's
second match on the Vodaphone Arena.
<<<

-----------------------------
4. Third-round draw: Top half
-----------------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [25]
* Aravane Rezaď v Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] (my loyalty is to Aravane)
* SHAHAR PE'ER [17] v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [11] (kadima Shahar!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v Elena Vesnina (I like Elena, but DAVAI
MARIA!!)

* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v VIRGINIE RAZZANO [30] (I want Jankovic to win)
* Casey Dell'Acqua v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [18] (anyone but Mauresmo)
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF] v Ai Sugiyama (POJDME NICOLE!!)
* VICTORIA AZARENKA [26] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7] (Azarenka may be
growing on me, but I'd still prefer Nicole to have the honour of
putting the defending champion out of my misery)

------------------
5. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
2r + Alizé Cornet
3r + Virginia Ruano Pascual
4r + ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF]
qf + Tsvetana Pironkova
sf + SANIA MIRZA [31,DF]
_f + NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF]

-----------------------------
6. Order of Play for Thursday
-----------------------------

Vodafone Arena (start 11:00 AEST = 00:00 GMT)
WS 2r: VENUS WILLIAMS [8] v Camille Pin
WS 2r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Alizé Cornet
MS 2r: NOVAK ĐOKOVIC [3] v Simone Bolelli
MS 2r: DAVID NALBANDIAN [10] v Peter Luczak

Full order of play (including Daniela's WD 1r):
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

===============
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
(Melbourne, Australia; outdoor hard (Plexicushion); Grand Slam)
=============== http://www.australianopen.com/

This is a Daniela-filtered subset of my Australian Open preview. You
can follow my full reports at any of the following:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=328704
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

--------
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. UK TV-alert
3. First-round draw: Bottom half
4. Second-round draw: Top half
5. Daniela Hantuchová preview
6. Andrew's wishes
7. Women's Doubles: First-round draw
8. Order of Play for Tuesday

---------
1. Photos
---------

Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Many players:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

--------------
2. UK TV-alert
--------------

The evening-sessions of the Australian Open will be televised on BBCi
from 08:25 GMT each day of the tournament (digital viewers press Red
or select the appropriate Freeview-channel: either 301 or 302 - today
it was 301).

My understanding is that this coverage will consist of the women's
match on the evening-session of the Rod Laver Arena (Kanepi v Molik
on Monday), followed by the men's match, followed by recorded
coverage of the "best" match of the day on a continuous loop.

But don't set your hopes too high - last year, only 7% of BBCi's
Australian Open coverage was of the women! :mad: There isn't a
women's match on the Rod Laver Arena evening-session every day.

Other Australian Open coverage on BBC television:
* Sunday 20th January on BBC 2 (12:30 to 14:00 GMT);
* Saturday 26th January: Women's Singles final on BBC 1 (from 02:20
GMT);
* Saturday 26th January: repeat of WS final on BBCi (from 07:00 GMT);
* Saturday 26th January: highlights of WS final on BBC 2 (13:00 to
14:00 GMT);
* Sunday 27th January: Men's Singles final on BBC 2 (from 08:30 GMT);
* Sunday 27th January: repeat of MS final on BBCi (from 10:00 GMT).

--------------------------------
3. First-round draw: Bottom half
--------------------------------
3.1 Third quarter: Iroda Tulyaganova
------------------------------------

* Yan,Zi [S] v VENUS WILLIAMS [8] (jia you Zi!)
* Camille Pin v Monica Niculescu [Q]
* Timea Bacsinszky [Q] v Sophie Ferguson [WC] (hopp Timea!)
* Iroda Tulyaganova [WC,EF] v SANIA MIRZA [31,DF] (I like Sania a
lot, but DAVAI IRODA!!)

* Séverine Brémond v LI,NA [24] (allez Séverine!)
* Maria Elena Camerin v Christina Wheeler [WC] (forza Maria Elena!)
* Marta Domachowska [Q] v Mathilde Johansson [WC] (my loyalty is to
Marta)
* MARION BARTOLI [10,DF,S] v Sofia Arvidsson (allez Marion!)

* Sabine Lisicki [Q] v DINARA SAFINA [16] (komm jetzt Sabine!)
* María Emilia Salerni v Mariya Koryttseva (ˇvamos María Emilia!)
* Gisela Dulko [DF] v Caroline Wozniacki (my loyalty is to Gisela)
* ALYONA BONDARENKO [21] v Alla Kudryavtseva (davai Alyona!)

* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [28] v Lourdes Domínguez Lino (dajmo Katarina!)
* Angelika Bachmann v Anastasia Rodionova
* Tathiana Garbin v Eleni Daniilidou
* ANA IVANOVIC [4,DF] v Sorana Cîrstea (my loyalty is to Ana)


3.2 Bottom quarter: Chakvetadze, Šafárová, Hantuchová
-----------------------------------------------------

* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF] v Andrea Petkovic (DAVAI ANNA!!)
* Peng,Shuai [S] v Alisa Kleybanova [Q] (jia you Shuai!)
* Michaëlla Krajícek [DF] v Akiko Morigami [S] (my loyalty is to
Michaëlla)
* MARIA KIRILENKO [27,DF] v Meilen Tu (davai Maria!)

* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [22,EF] v Catalina Castańo (POJDME LUCIE!!)
* Roberta Vinci v Virginia Ruano Pascual (may the better win)
* Alizé Cornet v Clarisa Fernández (allez Alizé!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Vania King (PODME DANIELA!!)

* NADIA PETROVA [14] v Nicole Pratt
* Anne Kremer v Evgenia Linetskaya (dajee Anne!)
* Laura Granville v Yvonne Meusburger
* Ekaterina Makarova v ÁGNES SZÁVAY [20] (I did a Google Image search
for "Ekaterina Makarova" and found an absolute stunner, but
unfortunately she wasn't the tennis-player)

* AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA [29] v Olga Savchuk
* Martina Müller v Pauline Parmentier
* Tsvetana Pironkova v Olga Govortsova (my loyalty is to Tsvetana)
* Nathalie Dechy v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [2] (allez Nathalie!)

------------------------------
4. Second-round draw: Top half
------------------------------

* Olga Poutchkova v JUSTINE HENIN [1] (davai Olga!)
* Angelique Kerber v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [25]
* Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] v SYBILLE BAMMER [19] (jia you Su-Wei!)
* TATIANA GOLOVIN [13,DF] v Aravane Rezaď (my loyalty is to Tatiana)

* ELENA DEMENTIEVA [11] v Anabel Medina Garrigues (davai Elena!)
* SHAHAR PE'ER [17] v Jessica Moore [WC] (kadima Shahar!)
* Elena Vesnina v Jill Craybas (davai Elena!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [5,EF] v Lindsay Davenport (DAVAI MARIA!!)

* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Edina Gallovits
* Flavia Pennetta [DF] v VIRGINIE RAZZANO [30] (forza Flavia!)
* Yaroslava Shvedova v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [18] (davai Yaroslava!)
* Casey Dell'Acqua v PATTY SCHNYDER [15]

* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF] v Alicia Molik (POJDME NICOLE!!)
* Tatiana Perebiynis v Ai Sugiyama (davai Tatiana!)
* VICTORIA AZARENKA [26] v Sandra Klösel [Q]
* Yuan,Meng [Q] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7]

-----------------------------
5. Daniela Hantuchová preview
-----------------------------

After losing 6-4 6-3 to Anna Chakvetadze at Hong Kong, Daniela pulled
out of the exhibition-tournament (doubles and losers' play-off) with
abdominal pains that reportedly made her a doubt for the Australian
Open. But she bounced back at Sydney with a 5-7 6-4 6-4 win over the
very dangerous Dinara Safina, before losing 6-4 6-2 to the very
brilliant Nicole Vaidišová.


5.1 First round
---------------

When then-17-year-old Vania King swept to the Bangkok title in
October 2006 winning six sets 6-1, I feared that my girls had a major
new force to reckon with. But King (presumably no relation to Billie
Jean) had a disappointing 2007 with a 21:24 win/loss record, dropping
out of the top 100. She finished the year with two Tier III quarter-
finals (her only quarter-finals of the year), and began 2008 with one
win and one loss in qualifying for Hobart.

Daniela has never played King before. King does pose a slight threat
to Daniela based purely on her Bangkok 2006 form, but her eyes are
too far apart for my liking, and if Daniela were to lose to her, she
should hang her head in shame.

I don't have time to preview beyond the first round now, save to
acknowledge that the seedings decree a mouthwatering third-round
match with Daniela Hantuchová - it's a shame that one of them will
have to lose earlier than she did last year.

------------------
6. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF]:
1r + Vania King
2r + Alizé Cornet
3r + LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [22,EF]
4r + ANNA CHAKVETADZE [6,EF]
qf + Tsvetana Pironkova
sf + Iroda Tulyaganova [WC,EF]
_f + NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [12,EF]

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

* Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Lindsay Davenport v (MARIA KIRILENKO
[DF]/ÁGNES SZÁVAY)[11]

----------------------------
8. Order of Play for Tuesday
----------------------------

Margaret Court Arena (start 11:00 AEST = 00:00 GMT)
WS 1r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9,EF] v Vania King
MS 1r: Lee,Hyunk-Taik v Chris Guccione
MS 1r: Mariano Zabaleta v Peter Luczak
Evening-session (not before 19:30 AEST = 08:30 GMT)
MS 1r: Konstantinos Economidis v FERNANDO GONZÁLEZ [7]

Full order of play:
http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

I have just updated Daniela's biography on my website:
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/biography.html

It is *not* a copy of Daniela's standard WTA Tour biography, but my own
detailed appreciation of her game, followed by a review for every year
of her career. I have edited the introduction, and added a review of
2007.

I can confirm that I will be reporting on the Australian Open 2008. I
have also vowed to follow the French Open, Wimbledon and the Olympics.

I wish Daniela and all her fans a happy new year.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

===========
DFS CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA Tier III)
=========== http://birmingham.lta.org.uk/
Contents
--------

1. My photos
2. Quarter-final eyewitness report: Hantuchová v Bartoli

------------
1. My photos
------------

I have uploaded all my photos for Sunday 17th June 2007, in one big
zip-file, to:
http://www.divshare.com/download/1917585-f12
(seems to be down just at the moment - if so, try again later)

Sunday's players:

Maria Sharapova (62 photos)
Jelena Jankovic (27)
Daniela Hantuchová (26)
Marion Bartoli (21)
Cara Black (2)
Liezel Huber (2)
Meilen Tu (2)
Sun,Tiantian (2)

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as "Copyright 2007 Andrew Broad".
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.

--------------------------------------------------------
2. Quarter-final eyewitness report: Hantuchová v Bartoli
--------------------------------------------------------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] lt. MARION BARTOLI [5,S] 7-5 4-6 5-7

A frustrating match for me as a Daniela-fan, because I believe that
Daniela is much more talented than Marion, especially on grass
(I wrote this before Marion went on to reach the Wimbledon-final!),
but she failed to impose herself at the right times.

Play was suspended on Saturday night with Daniela facing break-point
at 30/40 in the very first game of the third set. I had already
posted a report on Saturday's play when I had to break off for
Wimbledon. This report covers the resumption of play on Sunday.

The third set resumed on Centre Court on Sunday, and both players
were pretty nervous. Marion did convert that break-point, and was
never behind in the game-score, though she did look very choky when
serving for the match at 5-4. But instead of seizing the momentum,
Daniela helped Marion on her way to the semi-finals with some cheap
errors in the last two games.

My full match-report, with a description of every point, can be found
at...
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/reports.html

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Fourth-round TV-report: Hantuchová v S.Williams
3. Wooden-Spoon List

---------
1. Photos
---------

Searches Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Daniela at Wimbledon.org (awesome waterbottle-shot!):
http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/players/wtah394.html

Many players including Daniela:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/?Event=wimbledon_r4
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/6274978.stm (Daniela in Days
2, 4, 7)

--------------------------------------------------
2. Fourth-round TV-report: Hantuchová v S.Williams (Monday 2nd July)
--------------------------------------------------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] lt. SERENA WILLIAMS [7],
   2-6 7-6 (7/2) 2-6

When Serena Williams collapsed, writhing in agony at 6-2 5-5* (15/30),
and screaming like Darth Vader on the black sands of Mustafar, I
thought that Daniela was through to her first Grand-Slam quarter-
final since the Australian Open 2003. It didn't look as though
Williams was going to be able to walk off the court, let alone play a
single point more of the match!

But, like the Emperor's shuttle flying to save the one he cared about
from dying, a rain-cloud saved the cramp-stricken Williams from
certain defeat with Daniela leading the second set 6-6 (4/2*) while
Williams hobbled between points and walked into her shots.

Daniela made a brilliant resumption to take the second set 7-6 (7/2) -
a set in which she had originally led 5-2* - and when she had
Williams - who was still not moving properly - serving at 0/30 in the
first game of the third set, it appeared that it was there for the
taking.

But as Williams came up with her trademark huge serves, and her
movement gradually improved until it was better than most players on
the WTA Tour - despite being denied the umpire's permission to go to
the toilet - Daniela choked horribly under the pressure of this
golden opportunity, and will no doubt long be remembered by many as
the girl whom Williams beat whilst hobbling with a spasm-induced calf-
strain.

Daniela was close to tears when she lost, and I hope that she won't
dwell on this defeat too long.

A wounded tiger is a very dangerous animal.


I'll post my full TV-report at a later date.

--------------------
3. Wooden-Spoon List
--------------------

1. VENUS WILLIAMS (23)
2. MARION BARTOLI (18)
3. ANA IVANOVIC (6)
4. JUSTINE HENIN (1)
5. SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (5)
6. MICHAELLA KRAJICEK (31)
7. NICOLE VAIDISOVA (14)
8. SERENA WILLIAMS (7)
9. MARIA SHARAPOVA (2)
10. JELENA JANKOVIC (3)
11. NADIA PETROVA (11)
12. PATTY SCHNYDER (15)
13. Tamira Paszek
14. Laura Granville
15. AMELIE MAURESMO (4)
16. DANIELA HANTUCHOVA (10) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
17. Akiko Morigami
18. SHAHAR PE'ER (16)
19. Aravane Rezai
20. Elena Vesnina
21. Agnieszka Radwanska
22. ANNA CHAKVETADZE (8)
23. Victoria Azarenka
24. Milagros Sequera
25. AI SUGIYAMA (26)
26. LUCIE SAFAROVA (25)
27. Virginia Ruano Pascual
28. ALYONA BONDARENKO (24)
29. ELENA DEMENTIEVA (12)
30. MARTINA HINGIS (9)
31. MARA SANTANGELO (28)
32. KATARINA SREBOTNIK (19)
33. Hana Sromova (Q)
34. Olga Govortsova (Q)
35. Meilen Tu
36. Vera Dushevina
37. Bethanie Mattek
38. Katie O'Brien (WC)
39. Nicole Pratt
40. Alicia Molik
41. Severine Bremond
42. Jarmila Gajdosova
43. Sania Mirza
44. Roberta Vinci
45. TATIANA GOLOVIN (17)
46. SYBILLE BAMMER (20)
47. Yvonne Meusburger
48. Elena Likhovtseva
49. DINARA SAFINA (13)
50. Kaia Kanepi
51. FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE (29)
52. Emilie Loit
53. MARTINA MULLER (32)
54. Tatiana Poutchek
55. TATHIANA GARBIN (11)
56. SAMANTHA STOSUR (27)
57. Alize Cornet (LL)
58. Eleni Daniilidou
59. Tatiana Perebiynis
60. Agnes Szavay (Q)
61. Iveta Benesova
62. Aiko Nakamura
63. Caroline Wozniacki (WC)
64. Nika Ozegovic (Q)
65. Alla Kudryavtseva
66. Flavia Pennetta
67. Melinda Czink
68. Jorgelina Cravero (Q)
69. Julia Vakulenko
70. Tzipora Obziler
71. Karin Knapp
72. Lourdes Dominguez Lino
73. Chan,Yung-Jan
74. Anne Keothavong (WC)
75. Vania King
76. Camille Pin
77. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (Q)
78. Aleksandra Wozniak
79. Jamea Jackson
80. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (WC)
81. Alberta Brianti
82. Tamarine Tanasugarn
83. Shenay Perry
84. OLGA POUTCHKOVA (30)
85. Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova
86. Angelique Kerber
87. Jelena Kostanic Tosic
88. Julia Schruff
89. Melanie South (WC)
90. Zuzana Ondraskova
91. ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES (22)
92. Jill Craybas
93. Nathalie Dechy
94. Naomi Cavaday (WC)
95. Ayumi Morita
96. Elena Baltacha (WC)
97. Peng,Shuai
98. Greta Arn
99. Edina Gallovits
100. Timea Bacsinszky
101. Vasilisa Bardina
102. Sandra Kloesel
103. Casey Dell'Acqua (Q)
104. Anastasia Rodionova
105. Ekaterina Bychkova
106. Meghann Shaughnessy
107. Yaroslava Shvedova
108. Ashley Harkleroad
109. Hsieh,Su-Wei
110. Varvara Lepchenko
111. Virginie Razzano
112. Maria Elena Camerin
113. Kateryna Bondarenko
114. Tatjana Malek
115. Anne Kremer
116. Sun,Tiantian
117. Anna Smashnova
118. Viktoriya Kutuzova (WC)
119. Yan,Zi (Q)
120. Kristina Brandi (Q)
121. Maria Kirilenko
122. Gisela Dulko
123. Emmanuelle Gagliardi
124. Eva Birnerova
125. Catalina Castano
126. Martina Sucha
127. Anastasiya Yakimova
128. Anna-Lena Groenefeld

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Third-round TV-report: Hantuchová v Srebotnik
3. Third-round draw: Bottom half
4. Fourth-round draw: Top half
5. Andrew's wishes
6. Order of play for Monday

---------
1. Photos
---------

http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova

Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

For completists:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

2r: Various players including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/?Event=wimbledon_r2

3r: Various players including Daniela (oh-hhh!):
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/?Event=wimbledon_r3

------------------------------------------------
2. Third-round TV-report: Hantuchová v Srebotnik (Friday 29th June)
------------------------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] d. KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19], 2-6 6-3 6-4

I saw the whole match on BBCi, and I'll post my full TV-report at a
later date.

In dark, windy, low-bouncing conditions, Daniela struggled against
the excellent play of Katarina in the first set: Katarina was hitting
big forehands, sliced backhands, coming to the net, and hitting old-
fashioned punch-volleys.

But I don't know anyone who has less self-belief for her talent than
Katarina does.

The match turned on Daniela's service-game at 1-1 in the second, when
she saved two break-points and came through seven deuces to hold for
2-1. Daniela played a brilliant game to break for 3-1, and Katarina
was suddenly looking tight: slow and tentative.

Daniela broke at the start of the third set, but was broken back for
3-3. But she reestablished her break immediately, and served out the
match to extend her head-to-head over Katarina to 6:0.

--------------------------------
3. Third-round draw: Bottom half (Saturday's losers removed)
--------------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [6,DF] v Aravane Rezaď, 6-4 0-0* (ad Rezaď)
* Virginia Ruano Pascual v NADIA PETROVA [11], 3-6 *1-3
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [14,EF] v Victoria Azarenka, 6-4 *3-2
* AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4] won

* SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [5] v Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-2 *4-3
* Tamira Paszek v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [12], 3-6 1-0* (30/0)
* Akiko Morigami [S] v VENUS WILLIAMS [23], 2-6 *4-1
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] won

------------------------------
4. Fourth-round draw: Top half
------------------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v PATTY SCHNYDER [15]
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7] (podme Daniela!)
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v JELENA JANKOVIC [3] (allez Marion!)
* MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31] v Laura Granville (kom op Michaëlla!)


Daniela quotes
--------------

"I don't know at the moment, but she was the best player around. Even
though she is not playing enough, mentally she's always there. She's
got a champion-quality that, no matter how bad she plays, she's
always there and she's never going to give up. All credit to her for
that. I really admire that."

[Re. the best player in the world]
"It's a very close call. I would say at the moment Justine is the
best player."

I believe that a peak Maria Sharapova could overpower Henin on grass -
  and Maria didn't look far from her best in her third round! :-)


Hantuchová gunning for revenge against Serena
By Pritha Sarkar
>>>
LONDON, July 1 (Reuters) - Daniela Hantuchová will want to settle an
old score against Serena Williams on Monday.

The last time the slender Slovakian met Williams at Wimbledon, she
managed to win just five games as her elegant strokeplay was blunted
by the fierce power of the American.

Five years on from that quarter-final drubbing, Hantuchová feels she
is better equipped to deal with Williams, and will no longer be cowed
by her opponent's reputation.

"I think I need to step up my game to beat her, but I'm looking
forward to the match. I think I've got a good chance," said 10th seed
Hantuchová, who has worked her way back among the elite after
spending years in tennis-wilderness.

"I'm starting to feel very good on grass, and I just can't wait to be
on the court again."

Many feel the match will serve as a dress-rehearsal for the contest
fans really want to see: a repeat of the French Open quarter-final
between Williams and world number one Justine Henin. [Boo!]

The American holds an overall 5:1 advantage over Hantuchová, but
Williams, champion here in 2002 and 2003, is not being complacent.

"I know it's definitely going to be a tough match," said Williams,
who won her eighth Grand-Slam crown at the Australian Open in January.

"Daniela is serving well, moving well. She's really fit. I'm serving
well, I'm moving well, and I'm really fit. It's going to be exciting."

Williams started off the tournament rating her first-round win a "two
out of 10", but after shaking off a hamstring-strain, she is more
confident about her chances.

"My hamstring is a lot better, which I'm really excited about. It's
the first time it's felt this good.  So it's just, you know, all
coming together.

"I'm playing really well. I'm feeling really good. I'm feeling really
positive. I'm feeling like I'm going to get there.

"This is one of my favourite tournaments, and I couldn't be more
ready to compete."
<<<

Serena brimming with confidence [CEEFAX 495] (Friday 29th June)
>>>
Serena Williams gave herself a "six or seven" out of 10 after
thrashing Milagros Sequera 6-1 6-0 to reach the fourth round.

"I'm feeling pretty good all round. I played really well, I'm feeling
really positive. I'm feeling like I'm going to get there," she said.

"My hamstring injury is a lot better - which I'm really excited
about. It's the first time it's felt this good.

On playing Daniela Hantuchová next, she added: "It will definitely be
tough."
<<<

Serena Williams: "I have a very tough fourth-round match. I have to
get over that hump first. I'm just focusing on my fourth-round match.
I know it is going to be tough. She beat me before in a Grand Slam,
and she is serving well, moving well, and she is really fit. It is
going to be exciting."

------------------
5. Andrew's wishes (updated after Saturday)
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF]
4r + SERENA WILLIAMS [7]
qf + JUSTINE HENIN [1]
sf + MARION BARTOLI [18,S]
_f + MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF],
      7-6 6-7 18446744073709551616-18446744073709551614

---------------------------
6. Order of play for Monday
---------------------------

Centre Court (start 11:00 BST = 10:00 GMT)
1. WS 4r: JUSTINE HENIN [1] v PATTY SCHNYDER [15]
2. WS 4r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v SERENA WILLIAMS [7]
3. MS 4r: ANDY RODDICK [3] v Paul-Henri Mathieu
4. MS 4r: RICHARD GASQUET [12] v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Full order of play:
http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/scores/schedule/

*** NOTE THE EARLY START-TIME ON >ALL< COURTS! ***

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. Second-round results
2. Third-round draw
3. Women's Doubles: First round
4. Order of play for Friday

----------------------
1. Second-round result (Thursday 28th June)
----------------------

Nice winner, nice loser:
+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] d. Elena Likhovtseva, 7-5 7-6 (7/3)

My TV-report for Hantuchová v Likhovtseva will be posted at a later
date.

Daniela and Elena both played much better than when they met at
Eastbourne 2006. Daniela was brilliant at times, but deliberate and
self-conscious at others - notably when she served for the first set
at 5-4. Elena put up very solid, professional resistance, and seemed
annoyed that the match was going against her.

-------------------
2. Third-round draw
-------------------

* Elena Vesnina v JUSTINE HENIN [1] (davai Elena!)
* ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v PATTY SCHNYDER [15] (davai Alyona!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19] (both nice;
podme Daniela!)
* Milagros Sequera v SERENA WILLIAMS [7]

* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v JELENA JANKOVIC [3] (pojdme Lucie!)
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v SHAHAR PE'ER [16] (both nice; allez Marion!)
* MARTINA HINGIS [9] v Laura Granville (hopp Martina!)
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF] v MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31] (both nice; davai
Anna!)

* ANA IVANOVIC [6,DF] v Aravane Rezaď (both nice; ajde Ana!)
* Virginia Ruano Pascual v NADIA PETROVA [11] (ˇvamos Virginia!)
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [14,EF] v Victoria Azarenka (pojdme Nicole!)
* MARA SANTANGELO [28] v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4] (forza Mara!)

* SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [5] v Agnieszka Radwanska
* Tamira Paszek v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [12] (both nice; gemma Tamira!)
* Akiko Morigami [S] v VENUS WILLIAMS [23] (ganbatte Akiko!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v AI SUGIYAMA [26] (davai Maria!)

-------------------------------
3. Women's Doubles: First round (Andrew's selections)
-------------------------------

- Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Ana Ivanovic [DF] lt.
   (CHAN,YUNG-JAN/CHUANG,CHIA-JUNG)[3], 6-7 (4/7) 4-6

---------------------------
4. Order of play for Friday
---------------------------

Court 13 (start 11:00 BST = 10:00 GMT)
1. WS 3r: ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF] v MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31]
2. WS 3r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19]
3. MS 3r: RICHARD GASQUET [12] v Edouard Roger-Vasselin
4. WD 1r: (KATARINA SREBOTNIK/AI SUGIYAMA)[4] v Andreea Ehritt-Vanc/
Anastasia Rodionova
5. XD 1r: Jelena Jankovic/Jamie Murray v Sarah Borwell/Richard
Bloomfield
6. XD 1r: Gisela Dulko [DF]/Fernando González v Roberta Vinci/
František Cermák

Full order of play:
http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/scores/schedule/

*** NOTE THE EARLIER START-TIME ON OUTSIDE COURTS! ***

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/shara/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/vaidi/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/chakv/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. Second-round draw
2. Andrew's wishes
3. Order of play for Thursday

--------------------
1. Second-round draw (Wednesday's losers removed)
--------------------
1.1 Top half: Daniela Hantuchová, Anna Chakvetadze
--------------------------------------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] won
* Elena Vesnina won
* ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v Ágnes Szávay [Q] (davai Alyona!)
* Roberta Vinci v PATTY SCHNYDER [15] (forza Roberta!)

* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Elena Likhovtseva (both nice; podme
Daniela!)
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19] v Nika Ožegovic [Q] (dajmo Katarina!)
* Milagros Sequera won
* SERENA WILLIAMS [7] won

* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] won
* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v Eleni Daniilidou, 6-4 3-6 *4-2 (40/40)
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] won
* SHAHAR PE'ER [16] won

* MARTINA HINGIS [9] won
* Laura Granville won
* MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31] v Katie O'Brien [WC] (both nice; kom op
Michaëlla!)
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF] v Tatiana Poutchek (davai Anna!)


1.2 Bottom half: Nicole Vaidišová, Maria Sharapova
--------------------------------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [6,DF] v Meilen Tu (ajde Ana!)
* Aravane Rezaď v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [29] (allez Aravane!)
* Tatiana Perebiynis [Q] v Virginia Ruano Pascual (may the better
win!)
* Sania Mirza [DF] v NADIA PETROVA [11] (chal Sania!)

* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [14,EF] v Nicole Pratt (pojdme moja krasná Nicole!)
* Victoria Azarenka v TATHIANA GARBIN [21]
* Caroline Wozniacki [WC] v MARA SANTANGELO [28] (kom sĺ Caroline!)
* Yvonne Meusburger v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4] (jeder außer Mauresmo...)

* SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [5] v Bethanie Mattek (...und bitte Kuznetsova
auch nicht)
* Agnieszka Radwanska v MARTINA MÜLLER [32]
* TATIANA GOLOVIN [17,DF] v Tamira Paszek (both nice; allez Tatiana!)
* Iveta Benešová v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [12] (both nice; pojdme Iveta!)

* Akiko Morigami [S] v DINARA SAFINA [13] (ganbatte Akiko!)
* Hana Šromová v VENUS WILLIAMS [23]
* Alizé Cornet [LL] won v AI SUGIYAMA [26] (allez Alizé!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Séverine Brémond (both nice; davai Maria!)

------------------
2. Andrew's wishes (updated after Wednesday)
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF]:
2r + Elena Likhovtseva
3r + KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19]
4r + SERENA WILLIAMS [7]
qf + (3r: ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v Elena Vesnina)
sf + ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF]
_f + MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF],
      7-6 6-7 18446744073709551616-18446744073709551614

-----------------------------
3. Order of play for Thursday
-----------------------------

Court 2 (start 11:00 BST = 10:00 GMT)
1. WS 2r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Elena Likhovtseva
2. MS 2r: JAMES BLAKE [9] v Andrei Pavel
3. MS 2r: Amer Delic v NOVAK ĐOKOVIC [4]
4. WS 2r: Yvonne Meusburger v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4]
5. MD 1r: Oscar Hernández/Potito Starace v Eric Butorac/Jamie Murray

Full order of play:
http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/scores/schedule/

*** NOTE THE EARLIER START-TIME ON OUTSIDE COURTS! ***

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. First-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Pavlyuchenkova
2. First-round draw: Bottom half
3. Second-round draw: Top half
4. Order of play for Wednesday

-------------------------------------------------------------
1. First-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Pavlyuchenkova
    (Tuesday 26th June)
-------------------------------------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] d. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [WC], 6-0 6-1

The match was first on Court 11, and started at 12:17 BST.


First round
-----------
HANTUCHOVÁ @*@*@* 6
PAVLYUCHEN ______ 0

Pavlyuchenkova serving 0-0: 15/15. 15/40 (2 BPs) to 40/40.
Ad Daniela (BP #3). Broken.

Daniela has a bad habit of squandering break-points, so it's good
that she pulled out that game.

Daniela serving 1-0: Held to love.
Pavlyuchenkova serving 0-2: 0/15. 15/30. 15/40 (2 BPs). Broken.
Daniela serving 3-0: 30/0. 40/15. Held.
Pavlyuchenkova serving 0-4: 15/0. 15/40 (2 BPs). Broken.
Daniela serving 5-0: 0/15. 15/15. 40/15 (2 SPs). Daniela won the
first set 6-0 at 12:35 (18m).


Second round
------------
HANTUCHOVÁ _*@*@*@ 6
PAVLYUCHEN *______ 1

Pavlyuchenkova serving 0-0: 30/0. 40/15. Held.

Aww, no double bagel! ;-) Sometimes when you win a first set so
easily, you relax at the start of the second, and your opponent is
determined to do better. And then you get broken early in the second,
can't get back, and all of a sudden you're in a third set - that is
what happened to Daniela against Shinobu Asagoe at Wimbledon 2003,
when she went on to a tearful loss. But Daniela is a lot more mature
now - not so mentally fragile when things start to go wrong.

Daniela serving 0-1: Held to love.
Pavlyuchenkova serving 1-1: Broken to love.
Daniela serving 2-1: 0/15. 40/15. Held.
Pavlyuchenkova serving 1-3: Broken to love.
Daniela serving 4-1: 0/15. 15/15. 30/15. Held.
Pavlyuchenkova serving 1-5: 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (2 MPs).
Daniela won 6-0 6-1 at 12:56 (second set 21m, match 39m).


Hantuchová too strong [Teletext 498]
>>>
Tenth seed Daniela Hantuchová made swift progress on Tuesday by
thrashing unseeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in their first-round
contest.

The tall Slovakian, who reached the quarter-finals in 2002, was
dominant against her Russian opponent, clinching a 6-0 6-1 victory in
under an hour.

Hantuchová will now face Elena Likhovtseva in the second round, after
the Russian beat Maria Elena Camerin.
<<<

--------------------------------
2. First-round draw: Bottom half (Tuesday's losers removed)
--------------------------------
2.1 Third quarter: Nicole Vaidišová
-----------------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [6,DF] v Melinda Czink (ajde Ana!)
* Edina Gallovits v Meilen Tu
* Aravane Rezaď v Shenay Perry (allez Aravane!)
* Anne Kremer v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [29] (dajee Anne!)

* Virginia Ruano Pascual v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [22] (ˇvamos
Virginia!)
* Tatiana Perebiynis [Q] v Emmanuelle Gagliardi (davai Tatiana!)
* Sania Mirza [DF] won
* NADIA PETROVA [11] won

* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [14,EF] v Karin Knapp (pojdme Nicole!)
* Nicole Pratt v Casey Dell'Acqua [Q]
* Victoria Azarenka v Jelena Kostanic Tošic
* Yan,Zi [Q,S] v TATHIANA GARBIN [21] (jia you Zi!)

* Ayumi Morita [Q,S] v MARA SANTANGELO [28] (ganbatte Ayumi!)
* Caroline Wozniacki [WC] v Anastasiya Yakimova (kom sĺ Caroline!)
* Yvonne Meusburger won
* AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4] won


2.2 Bottom quarter: Maria Sharapova
-----------------------------------

* SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [5] won
* Bethanie Mattek won
* Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova v Agnieszka Radwanska (aide Tsvetana!)
* Anna Smashnova v MARTINA MÜLLER [32]

* TATIANA GOLOVIN [17,DF] v Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] (allez Tatiana!)
* Tamira Paszek v Barbora Záhlavová Strýcová [Q] (auf jetzt Tamira!)
* Iveta Benešová v Catalina Castańo (pojdme Iveta!)
* ELENA DEMENTIEVA [12] v Nathalie Dechy (davai Elena!)

* Kateryna Bondarenko v DINARA SAFINA [13] (davai Kateryna!)
* Akiko Morigami [S] v Alberta Brianti (ganbatte Akiko!)
* Hana Šromová won
* VENUS WILLIAMS [23] won

* AI SUGIYAMA [26] won
* Alizé Cornet [LL] won
* Séverine Brémond v Ekaterina Bychkova, 6-4 *4-3
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] won

------------------------------
3. Second-round draw: Top half
--------------------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v Vera Dushevina
* Elena Vesnina v Emilie Loit (davai Elena!)
* ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v Ágnes Szávay [Q] (davai Alyona!)
* Roberta Vinci v PATTY SCHNYDER [15] (forza Roberta!)

* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Elena Likhovtseva (both nice; podme
Daniela!)
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19] v Nika Ožegovic [Q] (dajmo Katarina!)
* SAMANTHA STOSUR [27] v Milagros Sequera
* Alicia Molik v SERENA WILLIAMS [7] (go Alicia!)

* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Jarmila Gajdošová
* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v Eleni Daniilidou (pojdme Lucie!)
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v Olga Govortsova [Q] (both nice; allez
Marion!)
* SHAHAR PE'ER [16] v Kaia Kanepi (kadima Shahar!)

* Aiko Nakamura [S] v MARTINA HINGIS [9] (ganbatte Aiko!)
* Laura Granville v SYBILLE BAMMER [20]
* MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31] v Katie O'Brien [WC] (both nice; kom op
Michaëlla!)
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF] v Tatiana Poutchek (davai Anna!)

------------------------------
4. Order of play for Wednesday
------------------------------

Court 2 (start 12:00 BST = 11:00 GMT)
1. MS 2r: FERNANDO GONZÁLEZ [5] v Alejandro Falla
2. WS 2r: JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Jarmila Gajdošová
3. MS 2r: JAMES BLAKE [9] v Andrei Pavel
4. WS 2r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Elena Likhovtseva

Full order of play:
http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. First-round draw
2. Women's Doubles: First-round draw
3. Order of play for Tuesday

When the sun shines, we'll shine together
Told you I'll be here forever
That I'll always be your friend
Took an oath, I'mma stick it out 'till the end
Now that it's raining more than ever
Know that we still have each other
You can stand under my umbrella

[Rihanna, "Umbrella"]

-------------------
1. First-round draw (Monday's losers removed)
-------------------
1.1 Top quarter: Daniela Hantuchová
-----------------------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] won
* Vera Dushevina
* Sun,Tiantian v Emilie Loit
* Elena Vesnina v OLGA POUTCHKOVA [30] (may the better win!)

* ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v Jill Craybas (davai Alyona!)
* Eva Birnerová v Ágnes Szávay [Q] (pojdme Eva!)
* Roberta Vinci won
* PATTY SCHNYDER [15] won

* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [WC] (podme
Daniela!)
* Maria Elena Camerin v Elena Likhovtseva (both nice; forza Maria
Elena!)
* Nika Ožegovic [Q] v Anna-Lena Grönefeld
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19] v Elena Baltacha [WC] (dajmo Katarina!)

* SAMANTHA STOSUR [27] v Kristina Brandi [Q]
* Milagros Sequera v Julia Schruff
* Alicia Molik won
* SERENA WILLIAMS [7] won

But Serena was far from convincing, and complained of a tight
hamstring.


1.2 Second quarter: Anna Chakvetadze
------------------------------------

* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Anne Keothavong [WC]
* Meghann Shaughnessy v Jarmila Gajdošová
* Gisela Dulko [DF] v Eleni Daniilidou, 7-5 3-6 *0-0 (15/30)
* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] won

* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] won
* Olga Govortsova [Q] v Greta Arn, 6-7 (5/7) 0-0*
* Kaia Kanepi won
* SHAHAR PE'ER [16] won

* MARTINA HINGIS [9] won
* Aiko Nakamura [S] won
* Laura Granville won
* SYBILLE BAMMER [20] won

* MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31] v Tzipora Obziler, 6-2 6-7 (6/8) *0-0
* Sandra Klösel v Katie O'Brien [WC], *3-5
* Viktoriya Kutuzova [WC] v Tatiana Poutchek
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF] v Angelique Kerber (davai Anna!)


1.3 Third quarter: Nicole Vaidišová
-----------------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [6,DF] v Melinda Czink (ajde Ana!)
* Edina Gallovits v Meilen Tu
* Aravane Rezaď v Shenay Perry (allez Aravane!)
* Anne Kremer v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [29] (dajee Anne!)

* Virginia Ruano Pascual v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [22] (ˇvamos
Virginia!)
* Tatiana Perebiynis [Q] v Emmanuelle Gagliardi (davai Tatiana!)
* Sania Mirza [DF] v Yaroslava Shvedova (both nice; chal Sania!)
* Vania King v NADIA PETROVA [11]

* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [14,EF] v Karin Knapp (pojdme Nicole!)
* Nicole Pratt v Casey Dell'Acqua [Q]
* Victoria Azarenka v Jelena Kostanic Tošic
* Yan,Zi [Q,S] v TATHIANA GARBIN [21] (jia you Zi!)

* Ayumi Morita [Q,S] v MARA SANTANGELO [28] (ganbatte Ayumi!)
* Caroline Wozniacki [WC] v Anastasiya Yakimova (kom sĺ Caroline!)
* Virginie Razzano v Yvonne Meusburger
* Jamea Jackson v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4] (anyone but Mauresmo!)


1.4 Bottom quarter: Maria Sharapova
-----------------------------------

* Julia Vakulenko v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [5] (davai Julia!)
* Bethanie Mattek v Vasilisa Bardina
* Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova v Agnieszka Radwanska (aide Tsvetana!)
* Anna Smashnova v MARTINA MÜLLER [32]

* TATIANA GOLOVIN [17,DF] v Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] (allez Tatiana!)
* Tamira Paszek v Barbora Záhlavová Strýcová [Q] (auf jetzt Tamira!)
* Iveta Benešová v Catalina Castańo (pojdme Iveta!)
* ELENA DEMENTIEVA [12] v Nathalie Dechy (davai Elena!)

* Kateryna Bondarenko v DINARA SAFINA [13] (davai Kateryna!)
* Akiko Morigami [S] v Alberta Brianti (ganbatte Akiko!)
* Peng,Shuai [S] v Hana Šromová (jia you Shuai!)
* Alla Kudryavtseva v VENUS WILLIAMS [23]

* AI SUGIYAMA [26] v Melanie South [WC]
* Maria Kirilenko v Alizé Cornet [LL] (both nice; davai Maria!)
* Séverine Brémond v Ekaterina Bychkova (both nice; allez Séverine!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Chan,Yung-Jan (davai Maria!)

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

* Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Ana Ivanovic [DF]
v (CHAN,YUNG-JAN/CHUANG,CHIA-JUNG)[3]

----------------------------
3. Order of play for Tuesday
----------------------------

Court 11 (start 12:00 BST = 11:00 GMT)
1. WS 1r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [WC]
2. MS 1r: Robert Kendrick v TOMMY ROBREDO [11]
3. WS 1r: Maria Kirilenko [DF] v Alizé Cornet [LL]
4. MS 1r: Kristof Vliegen v JUAN MÓNACO [32]
5. WS 1r: Anne Kremer v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [29]

No chance of Daniela's match being televised now! :-(

Full order of play:
http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/scores/schedule/

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

=================
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS (Wimbledon, England; grass; Grand Slam)
================= http://www.wimbledon.org/
Contents
--------

1. First-round draw
2. Andrew's wishes
3. Daniela Hantuchová preview
4. Order of play for Monday

This is a Daniela-filtered subset of my full analysis of the draw:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=305015

-------------------
1. First-round draw
-------------------
1.1 Top quarter: Daniela Hantuchová
-----------------------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v Jorgelina Cravero [Q]
* Timea Bacsinszky v Vera Dushevina (hopp Timea!)
* Sun,Tiantian v Emilie Loit
* Elena Vesnina v OLGA POUTCHKOVA [30] (may the better win!)

* ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v Jill Craybas (davai Alyona!)
* Eva Birnerová v Ágnes Szávay [Q] (pojdme Eva!)
* Ashley Harkleroad v Roberta Vinci (both nice; go Ashley!)
* Camille Pin v PATTY SCHNYDER [15]

* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [WC] (podme
Daniela!)
* Maria Elena Camerin v Elena Likhovtseva (both nice; forza Maria
Elena!)
* Nika Ožegovic [Q] v Anna-Lena Grönefeld
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19] v Elena Baltacha [WC] (dajmo Katarina!)

* SAMANTHA STOSUR [27] v Kristina Brandi [Q]
* Milagros Sequera v Julia Schruff
* Alicia Molik v Anastasia Rodionova (go Alicia!)
* Lourdes Domínguez Lino v SERENA WILLIAMS [7]


1.2 Second quarter: Anna Chakvetadze
------------------------------------

* JELENA JANKOVIC [3] v Anne Keothavong [WC]
* Meghann Shaughnessy v Jarmila Gajdošová
* Gisela Dulko [DF] v Eleni Daniilidou
* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v Zuzana Ondrášková (both nice; pojdme
Lucie!)

* Flavia Pennetta [DF] v MARION BARTOLI [18,S] (both nice; forza
Flavia!)
* Olga Govortsova [Q] v Greta Arn (davai Olga!)
* Tatjana Malek v Kaia Kanepi (ich wünsche, daß Tatjana gewinnt)
* SHAHAR PE'ER [16] v Tamarine Tanasugarn (kadima Shahar!)

* MARTINA HINGIS [9] v Naomi Cavaday [9] (hopp Martina!)
* Martina Suchá v Aiko Nakamura [S] (my Reason says Aiko, but my
Passion says Martina)
* Aleksandra Wozniak v Laura Granville
* Varvara Lepchenko v SYBILLE BAMMER [20] (davai Varvara!)

* MICHAËLLA KRAJÍCEK [31] v Tzipora Obziler (kom op Michaëlla!)
* Sandra Klösel v Katie O'Brien [WC]
* Viktoriya Kutuzova [WC] v Tatiana Poutchek
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF] v Angelique Kerber (davai Anna!)


1.3 Third quarter: Nicole Vaidišová
-----------------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [6,DF] v Melinda Czink (ajde Ana!)
* Edina Gallovits v Meilen Tu
* Aravane Rezaď v Shenay Perry (allez Aravane!)
* Anne Kremer v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [29] (dajee Anne!)

* Virginia Ruano Pascual v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [22] (ˇvamos
Virginia!)
* Tatiana Perebiynis [Q] v Emmanuelle Gagliardi (davai Tatiana!)
* Sania Mirza [DF] v Yaroslava Shvedova (both nice; chal Sania!)
* Vania King v NADIA PETROVA [11]

* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [14,EF] v Karin Knapp (pojdme Nicole!)
* Nicole Pratt v Casey Dell'Acqua [Q]
* Victoria Azarenka v Jelena Kostanic Tošic
* Yan,Zi [Q,S] v TATHIANA GARBIN [21] (jia you Zi!)

* Ayumi Morita [Q,S] v MARA SANTANGELO [28] (ganbatte Ayumi!)
* Caroline Wozniacki [WC] v Anastasiya Yakimova (kom sĺ Caroline!)
* Virginie Razzano v Yvonne Meusburger
* Jamea Jackson v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [4] (anyone but Mauresmo!)


1.4 Bottom quarter: Maria Sharapova
-----------------------------------

* Julia Vakulenko v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [5] (davai Julia!)
* Bethanie Mattek v Vasilisa Bardina
* Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova v Agnieszka Radwanska (aide Tsvetana!)
* Anna Smashnova v MARTINA MÜLLER [32]

* TATIANA GOLOVIN [17,DF] v Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] (allez Tatiana!)
* Tamira Paszek v Barbora Záhlavová Strýcová [Q] (auf jetzt Tamira!)
* Iveta Benešová v Catalina Castańo (pojdme Iveta!)
* ELENA DEMENTIEVA [12] v Nathalie Dechy (davai Elena!)

* Kateryna Bondarenko v DINARA SAFINA [13] (davai Kateryna!)
* Akiko Morigami [S] v Alberta Brianti (ganbatte Akiko!)
* Peng,Shuai [S] v Hana Šromová (jia you Shuai!)
* Alla Kudryavtseva v VENUS WILLIAMS [23]

* AI SUGIYAMA [26] v Melanie South [WC]
* Maria Kirilenko v Alizé Cornet [LL] (both nice; davai Maria!)
* Séverine Brémond v Ekaterina Bychkova (both nice; allez Séverine!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Chan,Yung-Jan (davai Maria!)

------------------
2. Andrew's wishes
------------------

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF]:
1r + Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [WC]
2r + Maria Elena Camerin
3r + KATARINA SREBOTNIK [19]
4r + Alicia Molik
qf + (3r: ALYONA BONDARENKO [24] v
(1r: Elena Vesnina v OLGA POUTCHKOVA [30]))
sf + ANNA CHAKVETADZE [8,EF]
_f + MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF],
      7-6 6-7 18446744073709551616-18446744073709551614

-----------------------------
3. Daniela Hantuchová preview
-----------------------------

Daniela's return to the top ten was short-lived, as she drops from
#10 to #12 on the WTA Singles Rankings as of 25th June, despite
reaching the semi-finals of 's-Hertogenbosch with the following
results:
1r + Olga Poutchkova, 6-2 6-1
2r + Meghann Shaughnessy, 3-6 6-3 5-3 retired (left-ankle sprain)
qf + ANA IVANOVIC [2,DF], 6-3 6-1
sf - ANNA CHAKVETADZE [3,EF], 3-6 4-6

Despite increasing her points-total to 1813, Daniela has been
overtaken by Nadia Petrova (#9 with 1862) and Nicole Vaidišová (#10
with 1819) after their exploits at Eastbourne.

But I would certainly have signed for a year in which Daniela won her
first WTA singles-title since 2002, and returned to the top ten for
the first time since 2003!

Daniela's draw to the fourth round bears a striking resemblance to
her Wimbledon 2006 draw, but there she is projected to meet Serena
Williams, who is many people's idea of co-favourite for the title
along with Justine Henin, whom the winner of Daniela v Serena would
meet in the quarter-finals.


3.1 First round
---------------

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova will not be 16 until 3rd July, but she is #1
on the ITF Junior Girls' Singles Rankings; she has won the Girls'
Singles titles at the Australian Open 2006 and 2007, and US Open 2006.

She's not so good on grass, though - nothing to indicate that Daniela
won't give her a good lesson in their first head-to-head meeting!

I actually saw Pavlyuchenkova play Nicole Vaidišová at Moscow 2006:
she's a good little player: a competitive counterpuncher with deep
groundstrokes, who takes the ball early. But her serve was vastly
inferior to Nicole's, who just overpowered her in general.

This will be Pavlyuchenkova's first main-draw appearance in a Grand
Slam Women's Singles, having fallen in the third round of qualifying
for the Australian Open 2007. Since then, her adult activity has been
restricted to four ITF tournaments, with very modest results.

Daniela should be disappointed if she drops more than four games to
the 15-year-old.


3.2 Second round
----------------

I hope for a repeat of Daniela's 1r Wimbledon 2006 match against
beautiful Maria Elena Camerin, although a match against Elena
Likhovtseva would also be nice - provided that they both played a lot
better than they did in 1r Eastbourne 2006!

Likhovseva won that one 6-4 7-6 against a rusty Daniela who had
pulled out of Birmingham that year with a wrist-injury, but Daniela
won their other two meetings: 2001 Fed Cup (6-1 6-3) and 2005 Dubai
2r (7-5 6-4).

Likhovtseva was going to retire at the end of 2006, and has done more
losing than winning this year (13:14), but she's just coming off a
run to the quarter-finals of Birmingham (where she lost to Maria
Sharapova) and a successful qualification for Eastbourne (then she
lost to Shahar Pe'er). Daniela should be too good for her - it would
take a very disappointing performance, as at Eastbourne 2006, to lose
to Elena.

Daniela thrashed Camerin 6-2 6-1 at Sydney 2002, but made a meal of
beating the journeywoman in 1r Wimbledon 2006 (6-4 4-6 6-1).

Camerin is currently on a 4-match losing-streak, and since
Likhovtseva thrashed her 6-0 6-1 in their last meeting, it's not too
likely that Daniela will be meeting Camerin in the second round.


3.3 Third round
---------------

Daniela beat Katarina Srebotnik in 3r Wimbledon 2006, and a rematch
looks likely as I don't think much of the other three players in
Srebotnik's sector.

Srebotnik is a fluid player with spider-like court-craft, but Daniela
owns her 5:0:
+ 2002 Leipzig 1r: 4-6 6-3 6-3
+ 2003 Indian Wells 3r: Daniela 7-6 6-2
+ 2003 San Diego 2r: Daniela 3-6 7-5 7-6 (8/6)
+ 2006 Berlin 2r: Daniela 6-4 0-6 6-1
+ 2006 Wimbledon 3r: Daniela 6-4 7-6

Srebotnik is having a respectable year with a win/loss record of
15:14: she beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-2 retired to reach the quarter-
finals of Sydney; other highlights include reaching the third round
of the Australian and French Opens, and quarter-finals of Charleston.
But losing 6-3 6-2 to Tatjana Malek in 1r 's-Hertogenbosch wasn't an
encouraging sign ahead of Wimbledon.


3.4 Fourth round
----------------

Daniela is projected to meet two-time champion Serena Williams in the
fourth round, so this is as far as I'm looking ahead at this stage.

Daniela knocked Serena out of the Australian Open 2006 - when Serena
was defending champion - 6-1 7-6 in the third round, but Serena leads
their head-to-head 5:1.

Everyone was writing off Serena at the Australian Open 2007, but in
one of the most unbelievable comebacks in tennis-history, she won the
title with a ranking of #81, beating red-hot favourite Maria
Sharapova in the final. Serena also won Miami, beating Justine Henin
in the final.

Serena's claycourt-season was less impressive, culminating in a
6-4 6-3 loss to Henin in the quarter-finals of the French Open. It
remains to be seen whether she has lost her form, or if it was just a
bad run on her worst surface.

---------------------------
4. Order of play for Monday
---------------------------

To be scheduled on a free court later in the day:
* WS 1r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [10,EF] v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [WC]

I hope that Federer, Moyá and Jankovic get through their matches
quickly on Centre Court, then we might get to see Daniela on TV at
approximately 17:00 BST! :-)

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

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

===========
DFS CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA Tier III)
=========== http://birmingham.lta.org.uk/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Third-round result
3. Quarter-final eyewitness report: Hantuchová v Bartoli
4. Doubles round-up

I still have Sunday's report & photos to write up and post, but these
will have to wait for either a large gap in Wimbledon, or possibly
after Wimbledon.

---------
1. Photos
---------
1.1 My photos from Wednesday
----------------------------

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as "Copyright 2007 Andrew Broad".
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.

I have uploaded all my photos for Wednesday 13th June 2007, in one
big zip-file, to:
http://www.divshare.com/download/1031004-107

Wednesday's players:

Maria Sharapova (17)
Sania Mirza (7)
Alyona Bondarenko (7)
Marion Bartoli (6)
Kateryna Bondarenko (6)
Daniela Hantuchová (4)
Mara Santangelo (4)
Lilia Osterloh (4)
Yuliana Fedak (3)
Vera Zvonarëva (1)
Tsvetana Pironkova (1)
Urszula Radwanska (1)
Angelique Kerber (1)
Naomi Cavaday (1)

Daniela did not play on Wednesday, but I saw her buying a crępe and a
bottle of Diet Coke from the crępe-stand at 15:25 BST!


1.2 My photos from Saturday
---------------------------

I have uploaded all my photos for Saturday 16th June 2007, in one big
zip-file, to:
http://www.divshare.com/download/1049942-b32

Saturday's players:

Daniela Hantuchová (50 photos)
Alyona Bondarenko (38)
Maria Sharapova (36)
Marion Bartoli (28)
Séverine Brémond (17)
Nathalie Dechy (15)
Tamira Paszek (10)
Jelena Jankovic (7)
Liezel Huber (6)
Cara Black (5)

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as "Copyright 2007 Andrew Broad".
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.


1.3 Other photos
----------------

http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/1/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1435
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/1/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1440

---------------------
2. Third-round result (Saturday 16th June)
---------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] d. ELENI DANIILIDOU [15], 7-6 (7/3) 6-4

This win was enough to move Daniela up to #10 in the rankings on 18th
June - her highest since she dropped from #9 to #14 on 8th September
2003.

--------------------------------------------------------
3. Quarter-final eyewitness report: Hantuchová v Bartoli
    (Saturday 16th June)
--------------------------------------------------------

Suspended until Sunday:
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] v MARION BARTOLI [5,S],
   7-5 4-6 *0-0 (30/40)

A frustrating match for me as a Daniela-fan, because I believe that
Daniela is much more talented than Marion, especially on grass, but
she failed to impose herself at the right times. Indeed, Daniela
started the match like she was going to sweep Marion aside, winning
the first six points of the match to go 1-0* (30/0) up. But after
squandering two break-points at 15/40 in that game, it was Marion who
broke first to go *3-2 up. Marion took an off-court medical time-out
when she was about to serve for the first set at 5-4. She resumed
with two double faults as Daniela reeled off the next three games to
take the first set.

Daniela was broken in the first game of the second set, and then just
couldn't make any impression on Marion's serve as Marion clung to
that break like a limpet. Marion is a Selesian player (two hands both
sides), and she hit plenty of groundstroke-winners throughout the
match, particularly crosscourt ones.

It was a high-quality match - unfortunately I can't say the same
about the view, as the first two sets were played on the very humble
setting of Court 4 after rain had caused a terrible backlog; the
match attracted a large crowd, and my decision to watch Alyona
Bondarenko v Jelena Jankovic beforehand cost me a seat by Court 4, so
I actually had to stand by Court 3 and watch the match from an angle
(it was actually scheduled for Court 3, which the rain had made
unplayable, so I had no idea when it was going to start).

By the end of the second set, it was getting cold, dark and slippery.
With Daniela facing break-point at 30/40 in the first game of the
third, both players stopped playing, went to the net, and after a
lengthy discussion with the officials, it was suspended overnight,
with both players agreeing to play the final on Sunday should the
winner happen to defeat Maria Sharapova in the semi-finals.

My full match-report, with a description of every point up to the
overnight suspension, can be found at...
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/reports.html

...along with a brief report on Daniela's third-round match against
Eleni Daniilidou (which I missed because I chose to watch Maria
Sharapova v Tamira Paszek instead - and a wonderful match it was,
too).

The win over Daniilidou was enough to move Daniela up to #10 in the
rankings on 18th June - her highest since she dropped from #9 to #14
on 8th September 2003.

-------------------
4. Doubles round-up
-------------------
First round
-----------

- (DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [EF]/SANIA MIRZA [DF])[4] lt.
   Sun,Tiantian/Meilen Tu, walkover

There were walkovers left, right and centre in the doubles-event, as
rain prevented much play on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, leaving
the tournament with a huge backlog in both singles and doubles. The
organisers wanted to use the indoor-courts, but none of the players
had the appropriate footwear.

Daniela pulled out of the doubles on Saturday evening, following the
suspension of her singles quarter-final. It's a shame I didn't get to
see her play with Sania - another player with groundstrokes of
flairsome power!

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

===========
DFS CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA Tier III)
=========== http://birmingham.lta.org.uk/
Contents
--------

1. Photos
2. Second-round eyewitness report: Hantuchová v Govortsova

---------
1. Photos
---------
1.1 My photos
-------------

I have uploaded all my photos for Tuesday 12th June 2007, in one big
zip-file, to:
http://www.divshare.com/download/1012525-599

Tuesday's players:

Daniela Hantuchová (35 photos)
Maria Kirilenko (32)
Olga Poutchkova (13)
Yaroslava Shvedova (11)
Alicia Molik (10)
Séverine Brémond (9)
Ayumi Morita (6)
Yuliana Fedak (5)
Olga Govortsova (5)
Angelique Kerber (4)
Li,Na (3)
Jamea Jackson (2)
Tsvetana Pironkova (1)
Michaëlla Krajícek (1)
Vasilisa Bardina (1)

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as "Copyright 2007 Andrew Broad".
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.


1.2 Other photos
----------------

http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players off-court, including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/photogallery/?Event=birmingham

----------------------------------------------------------
2. Second-round eyewitness report: Hantuchová v Govortsova
(Tuesday 12th June)
----------------------------------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] d. Olga Govortsova, 6-2 6-4

Olga Govortsova is tall, blonde and mildly attractive, with a grunt
like Karolina Šprem's. IMO, she plays ordinary WTA tennis. In her
first-round match against Eva Birnerová, she saved five match-points,
including *4-5 (0/40) in the third set!

Daniela made a dreadful start, spraying unforced errors left, right
and centre as she lost 9 of the first 10 points. However, she soon
got into her stride, and from 0-2* down she reeled off six games in a
row (saving two break-points at *1-2) to take the first set 6-2 with
a brilliant display of groundstrokes of flairsome power, and an
amazing backhand drop-volley winner at 4-2*!

The second set was decided by a single break of serve in the third
game, but although Daniela had to save a break-back point at *3-2,
the outcome never seemed in doubt as she romped to a 6-2 6-4 victory.

My full match-report, with a description of every point, can be found
at:
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/reports.html

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

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

1. Photos
2. Third-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Medina Garrigues

---------
1. Photos
---------

http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/players/wtah394.html
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

Various players including Daniela:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/ (3r, Week 1)
http://www.tennis.info/Paris7.html (Second round - day 1 and 2)
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/gallery?pg=1&cap=1

---------------------------------------------------------------
2. Third-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Medina Garrigues
(Saturday 2nd June)
---------------------------------------------------------------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] lt. ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [24],
   6-4 6-7 (2/7) 5-7

Well, I always said this was a 50/50 match, with Daniela being the
better tennis-player in general, but Medina Garrigues being a feisty
claycourter, and so it proved.

Daniela won the first set, then staged an amazing comeback from *1-5
in the second, only to play a disastrous tiebreak. She saved 8 set-
points in the second set, and a match-point at *4-5 (30/40) in a
serve-dominated third set, only to be broken in the final game of the
match after over three hours.

The match started at 13:18 CEST, but I was so busy watching Lucie
Šafárová beat Amélie Mauresmo on BBCi, whilst following live scores
for Anna Chakvetadze, that I didn't even notice Daniela's match on
the scoreboard until three games into the match! ;-)


First set
---------
HANTUC * * * * *@ 6
MEDINA _* * * *__ 4

Medina Garrigues serving 1-2: 15/0. 15/15. 40/30. Held.
Daniela serving 2-2: 40/0. Held.
Medina Garrigues serving 2-3: 40/15. Held.
Daniela serving 3-3: 15/0. 40/15. Held.
Medina Garrigues serving 3-4: 40/0. Held.
Daniela serving 4-4: 0/15. 30/30. Held.
Medina Garrigues serving 4-5: 0/15. 15/15. 30/30. 30/40. Ad Daniela
(SP). 40/40. Ad Daniela (SP #2). She won the first set at 13:54 (36m).


Second set
----------
HANTUC __*___*@*@ @_ 6(2)
MEDINA @* *@*____@ T 7(7)

Daniela serving 0-0: 0/15. 15/30. 15/40 (2 BPs) to 40/40. Broken.
Medina serving 1-0: 15/15. 40/15. Held.
Daniela serving 0-2: 0/15. 15/30. 30/40 (BP). 40/40. Ad Daniela. Held.
Medina serving 2-1: 30/0 to 30/30. 30/40 (BP). 40/40. Ad Medina. Held.
Daniela serving 1-3: 30/15. 30/30. 30/40 (BP). Broken.
Medina serving 4-1: 15/0. Held.
Daniela serving 1-5: 15/0. Held.
Medina serving 5-2: 0/30. Broken.

At last I can give this match my undivided attention, because I've
just been watching Lucie Šafárová beat Amélie Mauresmo on BBCi, and
it was fantastic! :-)))

Daniela serving 3-5: 0/40 (3 SPs). 15/40. The scoreboard briefly said
that Medina won the set, but she didn't! 40/40. Ad Medina (SP #4).
Deuce #2. Ad Daniela. Held.

(OT: David Mercer just said that Marcos Baghdatis had made "an erotic
start"!)

Medina serving 5-4: 0/15. 15/15. 15/40 (2 BPs) to 40/40.
Ad Medina (SP #5). Deuce #2. Ad Daniela (BP #3). Deuce #3.
Ad Medina (SP #6). Deuce #4. Ad Daniela (BP #4). Broken.

Wow - what an amazing comeback from *1-5! Daniela has saved 6 set-
points! Possibly more, if Medina had some during the closing stages
of Šafárová d. Mauresmo.

Daniela serving 5-5: 30/0 to 30/40 (BP). Broken.

What a shame, after such a great comeback and then 30/0.

Medina serving 6-5: 15/0. 15/40 (2 BPs) to 40/40. Ad Daniela (BP #3).
Broken.

6-6 Tiebreak (all scores Hantuchová/Medina Garrigues): *0/0. 0/1*.
0/2*. *0/3. *0/4. 0/5*. 0/6* (SP #7). *1/6 (SP #8). *2/6 (SP #9).
Medina won the second set 7-6 (7/2) at 15:09 (second set 1h15m).

The third set didn't start until 15:15.


Third set
---------
HANTUC _* * * * *__ 5
MEDINA * * * * * *@ 7

Medina serving 0-0: 0/15. 15/15. 15/40 (2 BPs) to 40/40. Ad Medina.
Held.

Daniela's back to her old habit of squandering break-points. It would
be a bummer if she were the only member of my Eternal Fanship to lose
before the fourth round (apart from Iroda Tulyaganova, who lost in
qualifying), having played so well in her first round.

Daniela has an excellent record in third sets this year, as she is
physically fitter than the vast majority of players, and that gives
her the confidence that she can outlast them.

Daniela serving 0-1: 15/0. 15/15. 30/15. 30/30. 40/30. Held.
Medina serving 1-1: 30/0 to 30/30. 40/30. Held.
Daniela serving 1-2: Held to love.
Medina serving 2-2: 0/30 -> 40/30. Held.

Another opportunity (0/30) goes begging. It this to be the first main-
draw loss for my Eternal Fanship this French Open?

Daniela serving 2-3: 0/15. 30/15. 30/40 (BP). 40/40.
Ad Medina (BP #2). Deuce #2. Ad Daniela. Deuce #3. Ad Daniela. Held.

Phew - two break-points saved!

Medina serving 3-3: 40/0. 40/15. Held.

All too easy.

Daniela serving 3-4: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15 to 40/40. Ad Medina (BP).
Deuce #2. Ad Medina (BP #2). Deuce #3. Ad Daniela. Held.

Phew! 40/15 up, then Medina had two break-points to serve for the
match!

Medina serving 4-4: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15. Held.
Daniela serving 4-5: 15/0. 15/30. 30/30. 30/40 (MP #1). 40/40.
Ad Daniela. Deuce #2. Ad Daniela. Held.

Phew - Daniela saved a MATCH-POINT! I can't just think of a match in
Daniela's career where she's saved match-point and won, so it would
be cool if she could do so here. She saved 8 set-points in the second
set.

Medina serving 5-5: 30/0. 30/15. 40/15. 40/30. Held.
Daniela serving 5-6: 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (MP #2).
Medina won 4-6 7-6 (7/2) 7-5 at 16:21 (third set 1h12m, match 3h03m).

Oh well - at the start of the tournament, I would certainly have
signed to have 3 out of 4 in the fourth round, as they had all been
injured in the lead-up to the French Open.


Articles
--------

>>>
Spaniard claims epic win [Teletext 496]

Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues reached the fourth round of a Grand
Slam for only the second time with a tight three-set win over Daniela
Hantuchová.

The Slovakian 12th seed took the first set but Medina Garrigues, at a
career-high ranking of 23, hit back to triumph 4-6 7-6 7-5 after
three hours.

Shahar Pe'er, seeded 15, fought back from 3-0 down in the decider to
beat Katarina Srebotnik 6-1 4-6 6-3.
<<<

Hantuchová falls after three-hour battle
>>>
PARIS, June 2 (Reuters) - Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues edged a
three-hour battle against Slovakian 12th seed Daniela Hantuchová,
winning 4-6 7-6 7-5 to reach the fourth of the French Open on
Saturday.

On the warmest day of the championships so far, the 24-year-old from
Valencia wore down the former world number five with some gritty
tennis.

Hantuchová saved one match-point at 4-5 in the deciding set with a
brave drive-volley, but there was no escape two games later when
Garrigues got a second chance.

Medina Garrigues, who has matched her best run at a Grand Slam, will
face Israel's Shahar Pe'er in the last 16 after she beat Katarina
Srebotnik, also in three sets. [Not true: Medina Garrigues faced Ana
Ivanovic, while Pe'er faced Svetlana Kuznetsova.]
<<<

{Second-round preview - Wednesday 30th May}
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/1/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1394
>>>
(12) Daniela Hantuchová (SVK) vs. Olga Poutchkova (RUS) -
First Meeting

The final match of the day on Court 2 sees Slovakia's No.12 seed
Hantuchová do battle with promising Russian teenager Poutchkova in
the pair's first career-meeting. This season has been a memorable one
for the 24-year-old Slovak, the highlight being her spectacular run
at Indian Wells where she blazed through the draw to capture her
second career-title. Poutchkova has enjoyed a meteoric rise over the
past 12 months, making a leap of almost 100 places in the world
rankings, and establishing herself as one of up and coming forces on
the Tour. Hantuchová has never made it beyond the round of 16 at
Roland Garros, and despite not being at her most comfortable on clay,
will come in as the sizeable favourite against a player who only made
her début in Paris on Wednesday.
<<<

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

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

1. Second-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Poutchkova
2. Third-round draw (bottom half)
3. Fourth-round draw (top half)
4. Order of play for Saturday

----------------------------------------------------------
1. Second-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Poutchkova
(Friday 1st June)
----------------------------------------------------------

Nice winner, nice loser:
+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] d. Olga Poutchkova, 7-6 (8/6) 6-3

The match was scheduled second on Court 3, and started at 13:18 CEST.


First set
---------
HANTUCHOVÁ *__@ @* *__@T 7(8)
POUTCHKOVA _*@ @__* *@__ 6(6)

Daniela serving 0-0: 30/0. 30/15. 40/15. Held.
Olga serving 0-1: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15. Held.
Daniela serving 1-1: 15/0. 15/30. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela. Deuce #2.
Ad Olga (BP). Broken.

Well, I'm surprised that Olga got the first break, after her terrible
claycourt-season and Daniela's fine-form of the first round! I still
feel very confident of Daniela winning this match.

Olga serving 2-1: 0/40 (3 BPs). Broken.

But I'm not surprised that Daniela broke back immediately.

Daniela serving 2-2: 30/0 to 30/40 (BP). Broken.

Broken by Olga from 30/0 up - I certainly wasn't expecting that!

Olga serving 3-2: 0/40 (3 BPs) to 40/40. Ad Daniela (BP #4). Broken.

Back to Daniela's bad old habit of squandering break-points -
thankfully not forever!

Daniela serving 3-3: Held to love.
Olga serving 3-4: Held to love.
Daniela serving 4-4: 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (2 BPs) to 40/40. Ad Daniela.
Held.

Well recovered from 15/40 - Olga could have been serving for the set
now!

Olga serving 4-5: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15. Held.
Daniela serving 5-5: 0/15. 40/15 to 40/40. Ad Daniela. Deuce #2.
Ad Daniela. Deuce #3. Ad Olga (BP). Deuce #4. Ad Daniela. Deuce #5.
Ad Olga (BP #2). Broken.

And now Olga /will/ serve for the first set! This is a very different
first set from what I expected.

Olga serving 6-5: 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (2 BPs). Broken.

6-6 Tiebreak (all scores Daniela/Olga): *0/0. 0/1*. 1/1*. *1/2. *1/3.
2/3*. 2/4*. *2/5. *3/5. 4/5*. 5/5*. *5/6 (Olga SP #1). *6/6. 7/6*
(Daniela SP #1). Daniela won the first set 7-6 (8/6) at 14:23 (1h05m).

A much, much closer set than I expected. It'll be interesting to see
how Olga reacts in the second set, because she can sometimes have an
immature attitude and tank matches when they're not going well.
According to Iroda Tulyaganova, the key to playing Olga is to show
her that you have twice her self-belief.


Second set
----------
HANTUCHOVÁ _*@* * *@ 6
POUTCHKOVA *___* *__ 3

Olga serving 0-0: 40/0. 40/30. Held.
Daniela serving 0-1: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15. Held.
Olga serving 1-1: 0/40 (3 BPs). 15/40. Broken.

At last it looks plain sailing for Daniela at a set and a break up.

Daniela serving 2-1: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15. 40/30. Held.
Olga serving 1-3: 0/15. 15/15. 15/30. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela (BP).
Deuce #2. Ad Olga. Held.

Ferrero v Youzhny has just finished on Court 2, so soon Vaidišová v
Stosur will be competing for my attention!

Daniela serving 3-2: 15/0. 15/15. 30/15. 30/30. 40/30. Held.
Olga serving 2-4: 15/0. 15/15. 40/15 to 40/40. Ad Olga. Deuce #2.
Ad Olga. Deuce #3. Ad Olga. Held.

Good for Olga. It really would have been the final nail in her coffin
if she had dropped serve after 5 game-points. (Vaidišová v Stosur has
just started.)

Daniela serving 4-3: 40/0. 40/15. Held.
Olga serving 3-5: 0/15. 40/15 to 40/40. Ad Daniela (MP #1).
Daniela won 7-6 (8/6) 6-3 at 15:04 (second set 41m, match 1h46m).


Statistics
----------

Daniela got 64% of first serves in, winning 62% of the points when
she did so, and 57% on second serve. Her first-serve percentages
could be better, but they did improve from (61%, 53%) in the first
set to (73%, 81%) in the second! :-)

The corresponding percentages for Olga were 68%, 61% and 32%.

Daniela served 3 aces and 2 double faults, Olga 2 aces and 8 DFs.

Daniela had a negative W:UE ratio of 12:29, but Olga's was an abysmal
5:46 - which is quite surprising, given that she achieved a close
score. Their W:UE ratios were similar in the first set, but in the
second set, Daniela's was 6:7 to Olga's 0:19.

Daniela won 8 of 10 points at the net, while Olga won all 5 of /her/
points at the net.

Daniela broke 5 times from 10 break-points (3 times in the first set,
twice in the second), Olga 3 times from 6 BPs (all in the first set).

In points, Daniela won 85-72 (first set 49-45, second set 36-27).

-------------------
2. Third-round draw (bottom half)
-------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [7,DF] v Ioana Raluca Olaru [Q] (ajde Ana!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [24] (podme
Daniela!)
* SHAHAR PE'ER [15] v KATARINA SREBOTNIK [17] (both nice; my loyalty
is to Shahar)
* Dominika Cibulková [Q] v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [3] (podme Dominika!)

* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [5] (pojdme Lucie!)
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [9,EF] v AI SUGIYAMA [21] (davai Anna!)
* PATTY SCHNYDER [14] v Karin Knapp
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Alla Kudryavtseva [Q] (davai Maria!)

--------------------
3. Fourth-round draw (top half)
--------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v SYBILLE BAMMER [20]
* DINARA SAFINA [10] v SERENA WILLIAMS [8]
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v JELENA JANKOVIC [4] (allez Marion!)
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [6,EF] v TATHIANA GARBIN [19] (pojdme Nicole!)

-----------------------------
4. Order of play for Saturday (Daniela-filtered)
-----------------------------

Court 2 (start 11:00 CEST = 09:00 GMT = 10:00 BST)
1. MD 2r: Michael Kohlmann/Rainer Schüttler v (MARTIN DAMM/LEANDER
PAES)[3]
2. WS 3r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [24]
3. MD 1r: Daniele Bracciali/Ivan Ljubicic v Gaël Monfils/Josselin
Ouanna
4. MS 3r: Fernando Verdasco v DAVID FERRER [12]

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

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

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

1. Third-round draw
2. Order of play for Friday

Today was for Dani a pain
She had to wait for the rain
But tomorrow she'll volley
And then we'll be jolly
And Olga will be on a plane

-------------------
1. Third-round draw
-------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v MARA SANTANGELO [28]
* SYBILLE BAMMER [20] v LI,NA [16]
* DINARA SAFINA [10] v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [23]
* Michaëlla Krajícek v SERENA WILLIAMS [8] (kom op Michaëlla!)

* JELENA JANKOVIC [4] v VENUS WILLIAMS [26]
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [13] (allez Marion!)
* Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro [WC] v TATHIANA GARBIN [19]
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [6,EF] v SAMANTHA STOSUR [27] (pojdme Nicole!)

* ANA IVANOVIC [7,DF] v Ioana Raluca Olaru [Q] (ajde Ana!)
* (2r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v Olga Poutchkova) v ANABEL MEDINA
GARRIGUES [24]
* SHAHAR PE'ER [15] v KATARINA SREBOTNIK [17] (both nice; my loyalty
is to Shahar)
* Dominika Cibulková [Q] v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [3] (podme Dominika!)

* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v AMÉLIE MAURESMO [5] (pojdme Lucie!)
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [9,EF] v AI SUGIYAMA [21] (davai Anna!)
* PATTY SCHNYDER [14] v Karin Knapp
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Alla Kudryavtseva [Q] (davai Maria!)

---------------------------
2. Order of play for Friday (Daniela-filtered)
---------------------------

Court 3 (start 11:00 CEST = 09:00 GMT = 10:00 BST)
1. WD 1r: Mathilde Johansson/Selima Sfar v Aravane Rezaď/Julia
Vakulenko
2. WS 2r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v Olga Poutchkova

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

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

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

1. First-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Kostanic Tošic
2. Second-round draw (bottom half)
3. Third-round draw (top half)
4. Order of play for Thursday

-------------------------------------------------------------
1. First-round scoreboard-report: Hantuchová v Kostanic Tošic
-------------------------------------------------------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] d. Jelena Kostanic Tošic, 6-3 6-1

Daniela dropped serve in the first game of the match, but then turned
in a very impressive display to cruise to an easy victory, winning
the last six games of the match.


First set
---------
HANTUCHO _@* * *@* 6
KOSTANIC @__* *___ 3

The match started at 12:32 CEST.

Daniela serving 0-0: 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (2 BPs). 30/40. Broken.
Kostanic serving 1-0: 0/15. 30/15. 30/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela (BP).
Broken.
Daniela serving 1-1: 15/0. Held.
Kostanic serving 1-2: 30/0. 30/30... I have to concentrate on Maria
Sharapova's match right now, because it's reached a vital stage of
the second set, which Maria is actually in danger of losing (Emilie
Loit served for the second set at 6-5, but Maria won it on a
tiebreak).

Kostanic serving 2-3: 0/15. 40/15. Held.
Daniela serving 3-3: 30/15. 30/40 (BP). 40/40. Ad Kostanic. Deuce #2.
Ad Daniela. Held.
Kostanic serving 3-4: 30/0. 30/15. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela (BP).
Deuce #2. Ad Daniela (BP #2). Broken.

Maria just won, so this match now has my undivided attention.

Daniela serving 5-3: 30/0 to 30/30. 40/30 (SP). Daniela won the first
set 6-3 at 13:08 (36m).

My TV is now showing Safin v Tipsarevic on Court Suzanne Lenglen, and
I can see that it is raining quite heavily now (at least on that
court).

Barry Davies: "It's quite possible to play in this kind of weather on
clay, provided it doesn't get any harder."


Second set
----------
HANTUCHO _*@*@*@ 6
KOSTANIC *______ 1

Kostanic serving 0-0: The scoreboard said that play was suspended
when it wasn't, so I didn't see by what score Kostanic held.
Daniela serving 0-1: Held to love.
Kostanic serving 1-1: 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (2 BPs). 30/40. Broken.
Daniela serving 2-1: 30/0. 30/15. 40/15. Held.
Kostanic serving 1-3: 0/40 (3 BPs). 15/40. Broken.
Daniela serving 4-1: 40/0. 40/15. Held.
Kostanic serving 1-5: 0/15. 15/15. 15/30. 40/30. 40/40. Ad Daniela
(MP #1). Daniela won 6-3 6-1 at 13:33 (second set 25m, match 1h01m).

An excellent win for Daniela, especially after pulling out of
Strasbourg with a left-leg injury, and being broken in the first game
of this match. She's made it a perfect 4/4 for members of my Eternal
Fanship in the first round, even though they were all injured in the
lead-up to Roland Garros! :-)


Statistics
----------

Daniela had a positive W:UE ratio of 11:10, which is nice to see
after all the negative ratios for my Eternal Fanship so far this
French Open! Kostanic had a very negative W:UE ratio of 5:13.

Daniela got 76% of her first serves in, winning 80% of the points
when she did so, and 36% on a second serve which used to be one of
the best in women's tennis back in 2001, but which now, sadly,
is "there to be hit". Daniela won a perfect 100% of points on her
first serve in the second set!

Daniela served 3 aces and 2 double faults, Kostanic just one DF.

Daniela broke 5 times from 10 break-points, while Kostanic broke just
once from 4 BPs (all in the first set).

Daniela won 8 of 12 points at the net, Kostanic 3 of 4.

In points, Daniela won 60-41 (first set 34-29, second set 26-12).

--------------------
2. Second-round draw (bottom half)
--------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [7,DF] v Sania Mirza [DF] (both nice; my loyalty is to
Sania)
* Tatiana Poutchek v Ioana Raluca Olaru [Q]
* ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [24] v Elena Likhovtseva
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v Olga Poutchkova (both nice; my loyalty
is to Daniela)

* SHAHAR PE'ER [15] v Edina Gallovits (kadima Shahar!)
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [17] v Vera Dushevina (dajmo Katarina!)
* Dominika Cibulková [Q] v MARTINA MÜLLER [32] (podme Dominika!)
* Meghann Shaughnessy v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [3]

* AMÉLIE MAURESMO [5] v Nathalie Dechy
* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v Nicole Pratt (pojdme Lucie!)
* AI SUGIYAMA [21] v Meilen Tu
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [9,EF] v Ágnes Szávay [Q] (davai Anna!)

* PATTY SCHNYDER [14] v Kateryna Bondarenko
* ALYONA BONDARENKO [22] v Karin Knapp (davai Alyona!)
* GISELA DULKO [29,DF] v Alla Kudryavtseva [Q] (ˇvamos Gisela!)
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Jill Craybas (davai Maria!)

-------------------
3. Third-round draw (top half)
-------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v MARA SANTANGELO [28]
* SYBILLE BAMMER [20] v LI,NA [16]
* DINARA SAFINA [10] v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [23]
* Michaëlla Krajícek v (2r: Milagros Sequera v SERENA WILLIAMS [8])

* JELENA JANKOVIC [4] v VENUS WILLIAMS [26]
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [13] (allez Marion!)
* Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro [WC] v TATHIANA GARBIN [19]
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [6,EF] v SAMANTHA STOSUR [27] (pojdme Nicole!)

-----------------------------
4. Order of play for Thursday
-----------------------------

Court 2 (start 11:00 CEST = 09:00 GMT = 10:00 BST)
1. WS 2r: Vera Dushevina v KATARINA SREBOTNIK [17]
2. MS 2r: Stanislas Wawrinka v IVAN LJUBICIC [7]
3. MS 2r: DMITRY TURSUNOV [21] v Fernando Verdasco
4. WS 2r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v Olga Poutchkova

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

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/

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

1. UK TV-alert
2. Photos
3. First-round draw (bottom half)
4. Second-round draw (top half)
5. Daniela Hantuchová preview
6. Order of play for Wednesday

This report is derived from my full tournament-reports (preview +
Day 3):
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=300336

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

The French Open will be televised on BBCi from 09:50 BST each day of
the tournament (digital viewers press Red or select the appropriate
Freeview-channel - 301 or 302).

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/6102132.stm
>>>
Sunday 27th May to Sunday 3rd June, 10:00-19:00, BBCi
Monday 4th to Wednesday 6th June, 11:00-19:00, BBCi
Thursday 7th June, 13:00-19:00, BBCi
Friday 8th June, 12:00-19:00, BBCi
Saturday 9th June: Women's final 14:00-16:30, BBC Two
Sunday 10th June: Men's final 13:45-19:00, BBCi
Sunday 10th June: Highlights of men's final 16:00-17:30, BBC Two
<<<

---------
2. Photos
---------

Nouf's photos - various players including Daniela:
http://www.teamwta.com/content/view/996/91/

-------------------
3. First-round draw (bottom half)
-------------------
3.1 Third quarter: Hantuchová
-----------------------------

* ANA IVANOVIC [7,DF] v Sofia Arvidsson [LL] (ajde Ana!)
* Sania Mirza v Alberta Brianti (go Sania!)
* Tatiana Poutchek v Youlia Fedossova [WC]
* JULIA VAKULENKO [30] v Ioana Raluca Olaru [Q] (davai Julia!)

* Varvara Lepchenko v ANABEL MEDINA GARRIGUES [24] (davai Varvara!)
* Elena Likhovtseva v Chan,Yung-Jan (davai Elena!)
* Olga Poutchkova v Eleni Daniilidou (davai Olga!)
* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v Jelena Kostanic Tošic (podme Daniela!)

* SHAHAR PE'ER [15] v Kaia Kanepi (kadima Shahar!)
* Edina Gallovits v Vasilisa Bardina
* Vera Dushevina v Camille Pin
* KATARINA SREBOTNIK [17] v Anastasia Rodionova (dajmo Katarina!)

* MARTINA MÜLLER [32] v Rossana de los Ríos [Q]
* Dominika Cibulková [Q] v Sun,Tiantian (podme Dominika!)
* Anastasia Myskina v Meghann Shaughnessy (davai Anastasia!)
* Ekaterina Bychkova v SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA [3] (davai Ekaterina!)


3.2 Bottom quarter: Chakvetadze, Sharapova
------------------------------------------

* AMÉLIE MAURESMO [5] v Laura Granville
* Caroline Wozniacki v Nathalie Dechy
* Flavia Pennetta [DF] v Nicole Pratt (forza Flavia!)
* LUCIE ŠAFÁROVÁ [25,DF] v Yulia Beygelzimer (pojdme Lucie!)

* AI SUGIYAMA [21] v Eva Birnerová
* Romina Oprandi v Meilen Tu
* Anne Kremer v Ágnes Szávay [Q]
* ANNA CHAKVETADZE [9,EF] v Alicia Molik (davai Anna!)

* Martina Suchá v PATTY SCHNYDER [14] (podme Martina!)
* Zuzana Ondrášková v Kateryna Bondarenko (pojdme Zuzana!)
* Karin Knapp v Victoria Azarenka
* Iveta Benešová v ALYONA BONDARENKO [22] (both nice; my loyalty is
to Iveta)

* GISELA DULKO [29,DF] v Hsieh,Su-Wei [Q,S] (ˇvamos Gisela!)
* Julia Schruff v Alla Kudryavtseva [Q]
* Lourdes Domínguez Lino v Jill Craybas
* MARIA SHARAPOVA [2,EF] v Emilie Loit (davai Maria!)

--------------------
4. Second-round draw (top half)
--------------------

* JUSTINE HENIN [1] v Tamira Paszek
* Tamarine Tanasugarn v MARA SANTANGELO [28]
* SYBILLE BAMMER [20] v Olga Savchuk [Q]
* Pauline Parmentier [WC] v LI,NA [16]

* DINARA SAFINA [10] v Tzipora Obziler
* Timea Bacsinszky [Q] v FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE [23] (hopp Timea!)
* Michaëlla Krajícek v Shenay Perry (kom op Michaëlla!)
* Milagros Sequera v SERENA WILLIAMS [8]

* JELENA JANKOVIC [4] v Catalina Castańo
* Ashley Harkleroad v VENUS WILLIAMS [26] (go Ashley!)
* MARION BARTOLI [18,S] v Andrea Petkovic [Q] (allez Marion!)
* Mathilde Johansson [WC] v ELENA DEMENTIEVA [13] (allez Mathilde!)

* Kveta Peschke [Q] v Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro [WC]
* Nuria Llagostera Vives v TATHIANA GARBIN [19]
* Maria Kirilenko [DF] v SAMANTHA STOSUR [27] (davai Maria!)
* NICOLE VAIDIŠOVÁ [6,EF] v Akgul Amanmuradova [Q] (pojdme Nicole!)

-----------------------------
5. Daniela Hantuchová preview
-----------------------------
French Open: Six to watch [Teletext 497] (Friday 25th May)
-------------------------
>>>
DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ Reached the fourth round last year and has been
one of the season's most consistent performers.
<<<

Well, her red-clay season hasn't exactly been consistent! After
losing to both Lucie Šafárová and Nicole Vaidišová as Czechia
whitewashed Slovakia in the Fed Cup World Group II, Daniela suffered
a disastrous 6-1 6-3 loss to another Czech, Zuzana Ondrášková, in the
first round at Berlin.

But then Daniela reached her first-ever claycourt semi-final on the
WTA Tour at Rome, where she beat Constantinople-finalist Aravane
Rezaď 4-6 6-1 6-2, Anna Chakvetadze 6-2 6-3, and claycourt-specialist
Anabel Medina Garrigues 7-6 7-5. But that match took almost 2˝ hours
on Friday night, and Daniela had to play her semi-final on Saturday
afternoon, losing 6-4 6-2 to her victim in the Indian Wells final:
Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Daniela pulled out of Strasbourg with a left-leg strain, so I hope
that's just a precaution after her gruelling Roman exploits, rather
than something serious that could jeopardise her French Open campaign.


5.1 First round
---------------

Jelena Kostanic Tošic is an awkward player with a vicious command of
spin, who has often beaten members of my Eternal Fanship, but Daniela
has never played her.

She beat Samantha Stosur at the Australian Open, which was a big
surprise to me as Stosur always does well in Australia. Her recent
results haven't been so impressive, as she has lost three of her last
four matches, and has a negative win/loss ratio of 12:14 for 2007 so
far.

If Daniela is healthy, and doesn't have one of her off-days as at
Berlin, she should come through this one fairly comfortably.


5.2 Second round
----------------

Olga Poutchkova may be capable of flashes of brilliance, but she's
had a terrible claycourt-season, losing her last two matches 6-2 6-2
to Julia Schruff at Prague, and 6-1 6-2 to Michaëlla Krajícek at Rome.

So I guess we'll be stuck with the manly Eleni Daniilidou, a
dangerous floater who famously beat Justine Henin at Wimbledon 2005.
Daniela is 2:2 head-to-head against Daniilidou, winning their last
meeting 6-7 6-3 6-3 at Doha this year. But Daniilidou has lost her
last four matches, including a 6-0 6-2 thrashing by Martina Müller at
Berlin, so even cute little Olga might have a chance against her.


5.3 Third round
---------------

Daniela beat claycourt-specialist Anabel Medina Garrigues 7-6 7-5 in
a 2˝-hour match at Rome, and in fact has a 3:0 head-to-head against
her, courtesy of two hard-court wins.

But Medina Garrigues just beat Amélie Mauresmo in the Strasbourg
final, which reduces Daniela's chance of beating her here to about
50%.

Is it too much to ask for the attractive Varvara Lepchenko to come
through instead? ;-)


5.4 Fourth round
----------------

Two members of my demi-fanship - Ana Ivanovic and Sania Mirza - could
meet in the second round, which is a shame because I slightly prefer
Sania, but Ana deserves a good French Open after her recent form
which brought her, at Berlin, a second Tier I title.

Sania's year so far has been much more modest than Ana's, with Tier
IV semi-finals at Hobart and Pattaya City. She suffered a serious
knee-injury at Doha that required an operation, and only came back at
Fes two weeks ago, losing in the first round there and again at
Constantinople.

So it's only realistic to consider a Daniela v Ana fourth round.
They've never met before, but I think it would be a tall order for
Daniela to beat Ana, who seems well on her way to becoming one of the
very top players in women's tennis, and is already up to #7 in the
rankings.

Julia Vakulenko might just spring another surprise, though: she beat
Kim Clijsters at Warsaw (prompting Clijsters to announce her
retirement), and at Berlin she beat Mauresmo and Dinara Safina back
to back to reach the semi-finals! There she retired with a right-
forearm injury, and also pulled out of Rome.

Daniela won her only meeting with Vakulenko 6-0 7-6 at the US Open
2003, but was frustrated by Vakulenko's moonballing which would be
even more effective on clay, and Daniela's eyes filled with tears
after she failed to close out the match at the first opportunity - it
was her next Grand Slam since that infamous emotional meltdown
against Shinobu Asagoe at Wimbledon.


I do think Daniela has a chance to reach her first Grand Slam quarter-
final since the Australian Open 2003 and complete the full set of
Grand Slam quarter-finals, but I've got to stop here or I'll never
get this finished on time!

------------------------------
6. Order of play for Wednesday (Daniela-filtered)
------------------------------

Court 16 (start 11:00 CEST = 09:00 GMT = 10:00 BST)
1. WS 1r: Anastasia Myskina v Meghann Shaughnessy
2. WS 1r: DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [12,EF] v Jelena Kostanic Tošic
3. WS 2r: DINARA SAFINA [10] v Tzipora Obziler
4. MS 2r: Potito Starace v Carlos Berlocq

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

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/daniela_hantuchova/

I regret to announce my semi-retirement from writing tennis-reports,
with immediate (and indeed retrospective) effect.

I have just started a new job which means that I will have many fewer
hours to pursue my hobbies than I did before, and there is no way
that I would be able to sustain the effort currently required to
research and write my lengthy reports.

Just as tennis-players don't make it without hard work and
sacrifices, so too must I work hard and make sacrifices to progress
my career as a computer-scientist.

It pains me greatly to make this decision, but it's something I did
foresee when I made my vow for each member of my Eternal Fanship:
>>>
From now on, and until the end of her career (or my life), I will
follow her with the same level of dedication as the players of whom
I'm already an Eternal Fan, to the maximum extent that my personal
circumstances and available resources will allow.
<<<

The maximum extent that my circumstances and resources now allow is
the following:

1. I will continue to update the Matchographies on my website.

2. I will continue to update the Biographies on my website at the end
of each year.

3. During the French Open, Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon,
Australian Open, and the Olympics, I will follow these tournaments
with the same dedication as I did before. But I will not be doing any
more /extended/ reports for these tournaments (except the ones that I
actually attend).

4. I will follow other tournaments privately, without posting
reports. This even includes the US Open, which is not televised on
any channels to which I have access, and is therefore not worth
demanding two weeks' extra leave for.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sharapova_vaidisova_hantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/daniela_hantuchova/

===========================
BAUSCH & LOMB CHAMPIONSHIPS
(Amelia Island, Florida, USA; green clay; WTA Tier II)
=========================== http://www.blchamps.com/

DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF]:
1r   bye
2r + Nuria Llagostera Vives, 6-1 6-3
3r + Dominika Cibulková [WC], 6-1 6-4
qf - SYBILLE BAMMER [13], 6-2 2-6 2-6

I'm pretty satisfied with these results overall. Clay is Daniela's
worst surface, but she's competent on all surfaces, and it's a
measure of her general class as a tennis-player that she beat two
good claycourters by convincing scorelines.

Sybille Bammer has become very dangerous this year, but if it wasn't
for her, Daniela might not have won Indian Wells. The reason I was
confident, going into the Indian Wells final, was that Bammer had
detained Svetlana Kuznetsova for 2h40m in their semi-final, which
finished 4h31m later than Daniela's semi-final (but nothing should
detract from Daniela's brilliant performance in the final the next
day).

Njay16 <http://tennisrulz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5902>:
>>>
Her patience has improven tremendously, as shown in Indian Wells.
I think she has a nice chance to sneak through and get to the
quarters [of claycourt-tournaments].
<<<

------
Photos
------

Off court:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/photogallery/?Event=ameliaisland

On court:
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova

Daniela looked particularly delectable in her second-round
match! :hearts:

Golden scans:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showpost.php?p=10452148
http://www.wtaworld.com/showpost.php?p=10431987

Daniela practising at Miami:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=278875&page=30


------------
Second round (Tuesday 3rd April)
------------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] d. Nuria Llagostera Vives, 6-1 6-3

Llagostera Vives is a good claycourter, who won Tier IV Rabat in May
2005 (her lone WTA singles-title), followed by a fourth-round
appearance at the French Open 2005, where she lost 6-2 6-3 to Maria
Sharapova.

But she didn't play at all from April to December 2006 - sidelined
with a right-wrist injury. She's been on the comeback-trail since
January, with modest success and a current ranking of #422 - up from
#571 after winning her first WTA main-draw singles-match of the year
to reach the second round here.


First set
---------
HANTUCHOVÁ *@* *@* 6
LLAGOSTERA ___*___ 1

Llagostera Vives serving 1-4: 40/15 -> 40/40, ad D (BP), Deuce #2,
ad D (BP #2), broken.
Daniela serving 5-1: 0/15, 40/15, first set Daniela.


Second set
----------
HANTUCHOVÁ _*@* *@ @ 6
LLAGOSTERA *___*__@_ 3

Daniela serving 0-1: 0/30 -> 40/30, held.

Llagostera Vives serving 1-3: 0/15, 40/15 -> 40/40, ad D (BP),
Deuce #2, ad LV, Deuce #3, ad D (BP #2), Deuce #4, ad LV, held.

Llagostera Vives serving 2-4: 0/40 -> 40/40, ad D (BP #4), broken.

Daniela serving 5-2: Ace. 15/0. Double fault. 15/15, 30/15, 30/30,
30/40 (BP), 40/40, ad LV (BP #2), Deuce #2, ad LV (BP #3), broken.

Llagostera Vives serving 3-5: 0/40 (3 MPs) -> 40/40, ad D (MP #4),
Daniela won 6-1 6-3.

So Daniela wobbled quite a bit towards the end: twice 0/40 -> 40/40,
and broken for the first time in the match when she served for it.


-----------
Third round (Thursday 5th April)
-----------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] d. Dominika Cibulková [WC], 6-1 6-4

http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1249
>>>
...and finally No.3 seed Daniela Hantuchová, who won an evening match
against her Slovak compatriot, Dominika Cibulková, 6-1 6-4, rallying
from 3-0 down in the second set.
<<<

I expected a tougher match than this. Domi had upset 14th seed Anabel
Medina Garrigues 7-6 6-2 in the first round here, followed by a
6-1 6-3 thrashing of #75-ranked Vera Dushevina in the second round,
and when Dani and Domi met in the first round of Auckland, Daniela
won 6-1 3-6 6-2.

I've never seen Domi play, but from what I've read, her speed is her
greatest asset. She has a very pretty face, but her legs have become
muscular and unattractive in the last year or so.

It's nice to see a pretty, young Slovenka beginning to establish
herself on the WTA Tour. But somebody is coming, somebody who is more
powerful than Domi is, and Domi is not fit to undo the strap of her
sandal.

I'm referring to Magdaléna Rybáriková, who reached the Girls' Singles
final at Wimbledon 2006 - which she would have won if she had
persisted with the tactics that won her the first set, rather than
reverting to sliced backhands.

Magda is the closest thing to a Daniela-clone I've ever seen:
combining wonderful facial beauty with a tall, slender figure, she
even emulates Daniela's trademark backhands down the line and
backhand drop-volleys - albeit not with quite the same flair as
Daniela.

Unfortunately, Magda was sidelined from July to October 2006 with a
serious foot-injury that set her back a long way, and she's now
struggling on the ITF Women's Circuit instead of establishing herself
on the WTA Tour as Domi is now doing. So Domi is fast becoming more
famous than Magda, even though Magda is sexier and more talented.


First set
---------
HANTUCHOV _@*@*@* 6
CIBULKOVÁ @______ 1

Domi serving 1-0: 40/30, 40/40, ad Dani (BP), Deuce #2,
ad Dani (BP #2), Deuce #3, ad Dani (BP #3), broken.

Dani serving 3-1: 40/30, 40/40, ad D, Deuce #2, ad Domi (BP),
Deuce #3, ad Domi (BP #2), Deuce #4, ad Dani, held.
Domi serving 1-4: broken to love.
Dani serving 5-1: 30/0, 30/15. Ace. 40/15, first set Dani.


Second set
----------
HANTUCHOV ___*@*@
CIBULKOVÁ *@*____@

Dani serving 0-1: 30/15, 30/40 (BP), 40/40, ad Domi (BP #2),
Deuce #2, ad Dani, Deuce #3, ad Domi (BP #3), broken.

Dani serving 2-3: 0/15, 15/15, 15/30, 40/30, 40/40, ad Domi (BP),
Deuce #2, ad Domi (BP #2), Deuce #3, ad Dani, Deuce #4,
ad Domi (BP #3), Deuce #5, ad Dani, held.

Domi serving 3-3: 40/0 -> 40/40, ad Dani, broken.
Dani serving 4-3: 0/15, 15/15, 15/40, broken.
Domi serving 4-4: 15/0, 15/15, 40/15 -> 40/40, ad Dani (BP), broken.

Dani serving 5-4: 15/0. Ace. 30/0, 30/15, 40/15 (2 MPs), Dani won 6-1
6-4.


-------------
Quarter-final (Friday 6th April)
-------------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] lt. SYBILLE BAMMER [13], 6-2 2-6 2-6

Daniela is mistress of the three-setters this year - especially when
she's won the first set - but this was the first time since August
2006 that she won the first set but lost the match.

Bammer will be 27 on 27th April, but she's having by far her best
year on the WTA Tour: she's the only player to defeat Serena Williams
in 2007 so far (at Hobart), and has followed that up with her maiden
WTA singles-title at Pattaya City, and a semi-final at Indian Wells
where she beat #14 Ana Ivanovic and #19 Tatiana Golovin for the first
top-20 scalps of her career; Daniela, at #14, was her third top-20
scalp.

Bammer is just in that awkward category where it's not a great scalp
to beat her because she's inconsistent (she's lost to Vasilisa
Bardina, Sara Errani and Emilie Loit this year, as well as twice to
the brilliant Anna Chakvetadze), but she's a very dangerous floater.

So the pressure was all on Daniela, but there's no shame in losing to
Bammer IMO.

Jeff Elliott for Reuters:
>>>
Bammer seemed to wear down Hantuchová in the match that took two
hours, eight minutes to complete. Bammer was only able to convert
five of 17 break-opportunities, but it was enough to knock out the
world's 14th-ranked player.
<<<

http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/3/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1250
>>>
Next up for Petrova is No.13 seed Sybille Bammer, who continued her
breakout-year with a hard-fought 2-6 6-2 6-2 victory against No.3
seed Daniela Hantuchová in the afternoon. The win was her third over
a top-20 player; she earned her first two during her semi-final run
at Indian Wells just a few weeks back.
<<<

First set
---------
HANTUC *@*__@*@ 6
BAMMER ___*@___ 2

Bammer serving 1-3: 15/40 -> 40/40, ad B, held.

Daniela serving 3-2: 0/15, 30/15, 30/40 (BP), 40/40, ad B (BP #2),
Deuce #2, ad B (BP #3), Deuce #3, ad B (BP #4), Deuce #4,
ad B (BP #5), Deuce #5, ad B (BP #6), Deuce #6, ad B (BP #7), broken.

Bammer serving 2-5: 0/30, 15/30. Double fault. 15/40 (2 SPs).
First set Daniela.


Second set
----------
HANTUC ____* *_ 2
BAMMER @*@* * * 6

Daniela serving 0-0: 40/30, 40/40, ad B (BP), Deuce #2, ad B (BP #2),
broken.
Bammer serving 1-0: 40/15 -> 40/40, ad B, Deuce #2, ad B, held.
Daniela serving 0-2: 30/0 -> 30/40 (BP), broken.

There was a delay at 0-3...

Daniela serving 1-5: 30/15, 30/40 (SP #1), 40/40, ad D, held.
Bammer serving 5-2: Ace. 15/0, 40/0 (SP #2), second set Bammer.


Third set
---------
HANTUC __*___*_ 2
BAMMER @* *@* * 6

Daniela serving 1-3: 0/30 -> 40/30, 40/40, ad B (BP), broken.
Bammer serving 4-1: 40/0 -> 40/40, ad B, held.
Daniela serving 1-5: 0/40 (3 MPs) -> 40/40, ad B (MP #4), Deuce #2,
ad D, held.
Bammer serving 5-2: 0/15, 40/15 (MP #5), 40/30 (MP #6), 40/40,
ad B (MP #7), Bammer won 2-6 6-2 6-2.


Bammer quotes
-------------

"I wasn't playing well in the first set; after that, I decided to
forget about it and just try to play my best in the second and third
set. At the end, I was a little tight, but I was lucky and closed it
out. It gives me a lot of confidence to reach the semi-finals here."


Sybille Bammer's Player Blog
<http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/1/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=1244
>:
>>>
{Thursday, April 5, 2007}

My next match is against Hantuchová or Cibulková - they're playing
now. I don't know so much about Cibulková; I have read her name a few
times but that's all, so my coach is on the court watching that match
and will tell me about it when he gets back. I played Hantuchová
once, in Stuttgart last year, and I lost in three sets. She's in
great form, winning Indian Wells. She'll be a really tough match. But
I'll give my best whoever it is, and keep fighting. I'll try
everything to win!

{Friday, April 6, 2007}

Well I won my quarter-final against Daniela Hantuchová today, 2-6 6-2
6-2, and I'm very happy about it. In the beginning I was a little
nervous and didn't play well; I made lots of unforced errors and she
was playing great. But after I lost the first set, I really started
to play my game and it worked well. In the second and third set, I
was playing more like a clay-court player, being aggressive but also
using angles and getting a lot of balls back.

Before Indian Wells I had never beaten a Top 20 player, but this is
my third Top 20 win. I'm doing better and better against the best
players. I'm more relaxed and believe in myself more. In today's
match I fought really hard, and because of that I made her hit a lot
more balls than her previous opponents, I think. I tried to get as
many balls back as I could, trying to get them really deep in the
court, and so she had to start the point over again. When we played
half a year ago, I don't think I played as well and I still had my
chances, so today I was confident I could do better.

I'm also thrilled because this is my first clay-court semi-final on
the WTA Tour. Actually, this was the first time I even made the
quarter-finals on clay! Before Indian Wells, I got to play on clay in
Acapulco; I thought going there would help me prepare for the clay-
court season. Unfortunately, I didn't move so well in that tournament
and lost against a qualifier in the first round. But she was playing
really well and I think I was sliding too much!
<<<

=======
FED CUP
======= http://www.fedcup.com/
World Group II: First round {21st-22nd April}
---------------------------

* SLOVAK REPUBLIC v CZECH REPUBLIC (Bratislava, Slovakia; outdoor red
clay)

Mojmír Mihal is captain of the Slovak team, and not Daniela as
previously stated. It seems that I read a faulty Slovak->English
translation (even UK Teletext said Daniela would be captain), and I
apologise for propagating this misunderstanding.

Players have yet to be assigned to either team, but I am already
looking forward to mouthwatering matches among Daniela, Nicole
Vaidišová, Magdaléna Rybáriková, Lucie Šafárová, Dominika Cibulková,
Iveta Benešová, Martina Suchá, and so on.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/
http://geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/ (+2 external links)

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeldani/