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ROLAND GARROS (Paris, France; red clay; Grand Slam)
============= http://www.rolandgarros.com/
Photos
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http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=210331&page=26
http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/players/wtah394.html
Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"

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Fourth round (Sunday 4th June)
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- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [15] lt. KIM CLIJSTERS [2], 6-1 6-4

Daniela was playing this match less than 25 hours after her 2h35m
marathon against Nathalie Dechy, so we can forgive her for not
performing up to her talent.

Sam Smith summed up the difference between the two players:
"Clijsters all power and muscles, Hantuchová so elegant and
graceful."

Daniela kept Clijsters waiting in the corridor, but then joined her
looking very relaxed and smiling. Daniela is obviously good friends
with her.

The match started at 14:29 CEST on Court Lenglen. I saw the whole
match on BBCi - here are my comments as I wrote them at the time:


First Set:
HANTUCHOV _*_____ 1
CLIJSTERS * *@*@* 6

Clijsters serving 0-0: Clijsters backhand long. 0/15. Daniela
backhand just wide. 15/15. Daniela wild backhand out of my screen.
30/15. Daniela played a good spreading rally, forcing Clijsters to
hit a forehand wide. 30/30. Clijsters hit an error-forcing forehand
down the line. 40/30. Clijsters backhand winner.

Daniela serving 0-1: Daniela hit a wide serve to set up a forehand
drive-volley winner. 15/0. Service-winner. 30/0. Clijsters netted
two forehands.

Clijsters serving 1-1: held to love with four Daniela-errors.

Daniela serving 1-2: Daniela hit a beautiful off-backhand volley-
winner. 15/0. Daniela forehand wide. 30/0. Clijsters netted a
forehand. 30/15. Daniela forehand wide. 30/30. Service-winner.
40/30. Daniela backhand wide by an inch. 40/40. Good wide-angled
service-winner. Ad Daniela. Clijsters hit a blistering forehand
winner down the line. Deuce #2. Daniela forehand wide by a whisker.
Ad Clijsters (BP). Clijsters netted an impatient forehand. Deuce #3.
Daniela played a fabulous spreading rally, ending with an off-
backhand winner. Ad Daniela. She poked a forehand into the net.
Deuce #4. Service-winner. Ad Daniela. Clijsters hit a forehand
winner off a short ball. Deuce #5. Clijsters forehand return-winner
down the line off a second serve. Ad Clijsters (BP #2). Broken.

Clijsters serving 3-1: Clijsters backhand lob long (Daniela at the
net). 0/15. Clijsters muscled her way to a hold to 15, finishing
with a forehand winner.

Sam Smith said Daniela must improve her movement around the ball,
contrasting it with Clijsters' busy feet as she sets up for a shot.

Daniela serving 1-4: Service-winner. 15/0. Daniela netted a backhand
as her groundstrokes, though flairsome, failed to damage Clijsters.
15/15. Clijsters forehand just long. 30/15. Clijsters netted a
forehand. 40/15. Clijsters forehand pass-winner. 40/30. Daniela
attempted a backhand dropshot from the baseline, netting it. 40/40.
Clijsters netcord return-winner. Ad Clijsters (BP). Clijsters hit a
backhand winner down the line, which Daniela didn't even begin to
run for.

Clijsters serving for the first set at 5-1: Daniela netted a
forehand pass under pressure. 15/0. Daniela forehand return-winner
down the line. 15/15. Daniela netted a forehand return. 30/15.
Daniela netcord winner. 40/15. Clijsters lob-winner (Daniela at the
net). Daniela netted a backhand to give Clijsters the first set 6-1
at 14:57 (28 minutes).


Second Set:
HANTUCHOV ____*@* *_ 4
CLIJSTERS @*@*___* * 6

Daniela serving 0-0: Ace down the middle. 15/0. Daniela dropped the
ball short, giving Clijsters an off-forehand winner. 15/15.
Clijsters won a close-range net-exchange with a forehand volley-
winner. 15/30. Service-winner. 30/30. Daniela backhand long.
30/40 (BP). Daniela backhand just long. "Just no conviction in
anything she's doing out here" [Sam Smith].

Clijsters serving 1-0: Clijsters held to 15 as Daniela ran down a
dropshot only to net a forehand.

Daniela serving 0-2: Clijsters backhand winner down the line. 0/15.
Ace. 15/15. Daniela netted a backhand off a deep return at her feet.
15/30. Clijsters forehand smash-winner onto the sideline.
15/40 (2 BPs). Clijsters sprayed a backhand wide. 30/40. Clijsters
hit an error-forcing smash to break yet again.

Sam Smith added insult to injury by saying she couldn't see Daniela
getting back to the top ten because she couldn't perform in big
matches. Give her a break - she played a 2h35m marathon yesterday!
:-||

Clijsters serving 3-0: 30/0. Daniela hit a lovely forehand dropshot-
winner. 30/15. Ace down the middle. 40/15. Held to 30.

Chris Bailey confirmed what I and many other Daniela-fans have been
thinking in recent weeks: she looks too frail physically -
especially compared to her opponent!

Daniela serving 0-4: Double fault. 0/15. Clijsters forehand return
wide. 15/15. Daniela hit a beautiful forehand volley-winner. 30/15.
Clijsters netted a forehand. 40/15. Daniela avoided the bagelstick
when Clijsters hit a backhand just long.

Clijsters serving 4-1: Clijsters netted. 0/15. Clijsters forehand
wide. 0/30. Clijsters forehand just long. 0/40 (3 BPs). Daniela ran
down a Clijsters-dropshot, but it was not up. 40/15. Clijsters
forehand winner. 40/30. Service-winner. 40/40. Daniela hit a
backhand dropshot-winner from behind the baseline - Clijsters not
up. Ad Daniela (BP #4). She broke back with a forehand pass-winner!

Sam Smith had said earlier in the match that Clijsters can get
carried away when she's winning too easily, and now it was happening.

Daniela serving 2-4: Daniela hit an error-forcing forehand into
Clijsters's forehand-corner. 15/0. Clijsters backhand return-winner
down the line. 30/0. Clijsters netted a backhand. 30/15. Clijsters
sprayed a wild forehand wide. 40/15. Daniela netted a backhand
volley. 40/30. Daniela backhand just long. 40/40. Clijsters netted a
backhand dropshot. Ad Daniela. She held with a trademark backhand
winner down the line.

Clijsters serving 4-3: Daniela forehand return-winner on the
sideline. 0/15. And again on the other sideline! 0/30. Daniela
forehand long. 15/30. Service-winner. 30/30. Clijsters backhand down
the line virtual winner. 40/30. Clijsters netted a backhand. 40/40.
Service-winner. Ad Clijsters. She hit an off-forehand winner behind
Daniela.

Daniela serving to stay in the match at 3-5: Clijsters backhand
long. 15/0. Double fault. 15/15. Clijsters hit a backhand long with
Daniela at the net after a fun rally. 30/15. Clijsters hit a
backhand into the ground. 40/15. Ace down the middle.

At least Daniela has now won a respectable five games, which didn't
look likely at 0-4. Can she survive her opponent serving for the
match like she did against Dechy?

Clijsters serving for the match at 5-4: Service-winner. 15/0.
Daniela hit a forehand just wide and flung her heaed back in dismay.
30/0. Daniela backhand wide. 40/0 (3 MPs). Daniela hit a forehand
winner down the line, but the umpire checked the mark and called
it "out", drawing boos from the crowd. Clijsters won 6-1 6-4 at
15:35 (1h06m).


Statistics
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Daniela actually had a positive winner-to-unforced-error ratio of
16:14 (7 UEs in each set, but 11 of her winners came in the second
set), but Clijsters even more so at 22:13 (9 of her UEs coming in
the second set).

Daniela won 6 of 11 points at the net, Clijsters 3 of 8.

Daniela got 59% of first serves in, deteriorating from 71% in the
first set to 47% in the second. She won 53% of the points when she
did so (improving from 45% in the first set to 64% in the second),
and 54% on second serve.

Clijsters got 70% of first serves in, winning 73% of the points when
she did so (93% in the first set, 61% in the second), and 56% on
second serve (38% in the first set, 75% in the second).

Daniela served 3 aces and 2 double faults, Clijsters 2 aces and no
DFs.

Clijsters served considerably faster than Daniela: fastest serve 180-
168 km/h, average first serve 168-159 km/h, average second serve 148-
131 km/h.

Daniela broke once from 4 break-points, Clijsters 4 times from 6
(twice in each set) - and that was the big difference between them.

In points, Clijsters won 63-48 (first set 30-20, second set 33-28).


Clijsters quotes
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"She started playing a little more aggressive [at 0-4 in the
second]. I had to adjust a little bit to that. She wrong-footed me a
couple times. She hit it through the middle a couple of times where
I was not behind the ball every time.

"Lucky enough, I served well today. That was very important. It
helped me to get through that second set.

"I feel every match my level is improving, but I still haven't been
consistent throughout a whole match. The better your opponents get,
that's something that definitely has to become better."

---------------
Women's Doubles
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DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ/AI SUGIYAMA [5]:
3r + Marion Bartoli/Shahar Peer, 1-6 7-6 (7/3) 6-2
qf + CARA BLACK/RENNAE STUBBS [2], 6-1 7-6 (7/5)
sf + YAN,ZI/ZHENG,JIE [4], 6-3 3-6 6-3
_f v LISA RAYMOND/SAMANTHA STOSUR [1]

------------------------
Order of Play for Sunday
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Court Lenglen (start 11:00 CEST = 09:00 GMT = 10:00 BST)
1. BS final: Philip Bester v Martin Kližan
2. WD final: LISA RAYMOND/SAMANTHA STOSUR [1] v
DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ/AI SUGIYAMA [5]

For those in the UK: the BBC have made no mention of this being
televised on BBCi - only the Men's Singles final, which starts at
14:00 BST. :-(

Podme Daniela!

Daniela's Roland Garros profile:
http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/bios/ws/wtah394.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/