===================
JPMORGAN CHASE OPEN (Los Angeles, California, hard, WTA Tier II)
===================

Daniela photos:
http://editorial.gettyimages.com/MS_GINS/source/home/home.aspx?pg=1
(search for "hantuchova")

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Second round (Wednesday)
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+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9] d. Angela Haynes [Q], 4-6 6-1 6-2

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Third round (Thursday)
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+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9] d. Kateryna Bondarenko [Q], 6-4 6-4

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Quarter-finals (Friday)
--------------

Daniela on Thursday: "I am looking forward to tomorrow, it should be
a good match. She is under the pressure because she is the No. 1
seed here."

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9] d. MARIA SHARAPOVA [1], walkover

Maria pulled out with a right pectoral muscle strain. ':-( In a way,
it would have been better if Maria had lost to Anna Chakvetadze in
the third round, then we could have had a mouthwatering Daniela v
Anna match instead of a walkover. But a win's a win (for Maria, not
for Daniela), and it's nice to see Daniela in the semi-finals.

It's ironic that Daniela benefitted from the withdrawal of both my
other two fanees at this tournament - Vera Zvonarëva and Maria - to
reach the semi-finals with two fewer matches than she would have had
to play with her original draw.

Daniela: "I'm sorry it happened, I was looking forward to playing
her and you never want to win match like that."

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Semi-finals
-----------

+ DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9] d. ELENA DEMENTIEVA [3], 6-3 6-4

My report:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/danielahantuchova/message/7183

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The Final (Sunday)
---------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [9] lt. KIM CLIJSTERS [5], 6-4 6-1

A very disappointing match after Daniela's brilliant performance
against Elena Dementieva in the semis - particularly her
capitulation in the second set, when I expected Daniela to put up
much more of a fight.

According to those who saw the match, Daniela was actually better
than Clijsters in the first set, particularly after recovering from
2-4 to 4-4, when there seemed to be something wrong with Clijsters.

But just as I started to believe that Daniela might actually win the
match - which would have given her the second WTA singles title of
her career - she lost her nerve, played a bad service-game at 4-5 to
lose the first set, and went to pieces in the second, littering the
court with unforced errors (33 in total, Clijsters 21).


My sources for the following information:

Scores-thread:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=185326&page=2

Articles on Yahoo! Sports:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/


First Set
---------
HANTUCHOV _*__@ @*__ 4
CLIJSTERS * *@ @__*@ 6

The match started at 14:20 PDT.

Clijsters serving 0-0: Daniela return-winner. 0/15. 30/15. 30/30.
30/40 (BP). 40/40. Double fault. Ad Daniela (BP #2). Ad Clijsters.
Held.

Daniela serving 0-1: Good serving and a forehand winner. 40/15. Good
return. 40/30. Daniela opened the court but made an error. 40/40.
Daniela forehand winner down the line. Ad Daniela. Ace out wide.

Clijsters serving 1-1: held to 15 after running into the stands to
retrieve a smash from Daniela - "Clijsters raced into the left
corner and jumped two feet in front of a courtside palm-tree before
throwing up a defensive lob that Hantuchová slammed out."

Daniela serving 1-2: led 30/0, then lost four points in a row to get
broken. :-(
Clijsters serving 3-1: Good return. 0/15. Double fault. 0/30.
Daniela broke back to love!

Daniela serving 2-3: broken to 30.
Clijsters serving 4-2: broken to love - "awesome" return-winner to
finish.
Daniela serving 3-4: Daniela "lovely" forehand winner. 15/0. Ace.
30/0. 40/0. Held to 15. "Commentators think something's wrong with
Kim".

Clijsters serving 4-4: Scorching return. 0/15. Daniela W:UE 16:15,
Clijsters 3:10. Held to 30.

Daniela serving to stay in the first set at 4-5: Daniela missed a
forehand (unforced). 0/15. Daniela backhand wide. 0/30 -> 30/30.
Clijsters UE. 40/30. Double fault. 40/40. Service-winner.
Ad Daniela. Backhand wide. Deuce #2. Daniela netted a dropshot.
Ad Clijsters (SP). One source says Clijsters hit an off-forehand
winner, another says Daniela netted a crosscourt backhand. Clijsters
won the first set 6-4 at 15:03.


Second Set
----------
HANTUCHOV ___*___ 1
CLIJSTERS *@* *@* 6

Daniela serving 0-1: broken to love (backhand return-winner off a
short second serve).
Clijsters serving 2-0: Daniela had a BP, but Clijsters saved it with
a good serve. Daniela hit an easy smash into the crowd.

Daniela serving 0-3: held from 0/30. Daniela 27 unforced errors.
Clijsters serving 3-1: held to love?
Daniela serving 1-4: broken to love on a double fault.

Clijsters serving for the match at 5-1: 0/30 -> 30/30. Ace (102mph).
40/30 (CP). "Clijsters smacked a forehand winner down the line off
Hantuchová's weak service return" to win 6-4 6-1 at 15:29 (69
minutes).


Daniela quotes
--------------

"I felt like in the first set I had a lot of chances. She just
proved that she really deserves to be one of the best players in the
world. Certainly she is one of the toughest to beat. If you don't
take your chances and she starts to feel like she is getting on top,
it's so hard to stop her.

"I had lots of chances in the first set but I wasn't holding serve
the way I wanted to. I was really disappointed that at 4-5, I went
for some stupid shots and was not patient enough. I didn't play the
right shots the right way.

"Basically, against her you have to hit like 10 winners before you
get a point because she just gets every single ball back. If you
give her a few chances, she gets on top of you and it's hard to stop
her. It was really frustrating because I had to work so hard to move
her around and then she gets it back. When you give it away, it
kills me and that's where I lost my head at the beginning of the
second set.

"Again she just proved to be one of the best players in the world.
I'm sure she's the toughest at the moment to beat because she's just
playing unbelievable tennis.

"I felt like I was little but running out of the strength.
Physically she was much stronger in the second set.

"There is not doubt she's going to be one of the favourites [for the
US Open] if you look at the way she's been playing the last couple
of tournaments. The court really suits her. The only concern that
she hasn't won one [a Grand Slam] before and that can be a little
bit hard mentally for her to make the mental breakthrough because
she's been very close a couple of times. But I'm sure if she keeps
playing the way she is at the moment, she has a very good chance.

"I couldn't ask for better preparation before the US Open. I have
enjoyed every week of the summer so far."


Clijsters quotes
----------------

"At the start we were really playing well. She was returning really
well and I wasn't putting in enough first serves, and she was
definitely taking advantage of that.

"Today I started playing well, moving her around and she hit the
lines, but the closer we got to the end of the set, I got a few more
back and it made her think a little more.

"When I'm defending they'll go for winners and they'll get in. But
the more you keep pushing them to go for more and the more they know
the ball is coming back, they're going to go for more risks and
you're going to get them out of their comfort-zone. That's what
sometimes makes a difference.

"She kept hitting the lines and going for shots; all credit to her.
But the closer it gets, she misses a smash. It's not that I'm
hitting it harder, I'm making them think more.

"In the second set, she started to make a little bit more unforced
errors and I just kept trying to put the pressure on her - and it
helped. I could see after the first set that she wasn't on it
anymore."

Re. the incident at 1-1 in the first set: "I was out in the jungle.
I actually cut my leg."


Further reading
---------------

Frank Riley's match-report:
http://inside-tennis.net/index.php?action=topstory&id=35

Wintermute's match-report:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showpost.php?p=5974202


==========
ROGERS CUP (Toronto, Canada, hard, WTA Tier I)
==========------
First-round draw
----------------

* DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [13] v Alina Jidkova [Q]


==================================
Andrew's Wimbledon 2005 TV-reports
==================================

I have completed my Daniela Hantuchová reports by adding her doubles
quarter-final:
http://www.geocities.com/andrewbroad/tennis/hantu/wimbledon2005.html

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

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