==========================
WISH-ME-LUCK INTERNATIONAL
(Bali, Indonesia; outdoor hard; WTA Tier III)
========================== http://www.wismilakinternational.com/
Photos
------

On- and off-court:
http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?c=news_photos&p=hantuchova
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=261587&page=6 (and pp. 5,7)

On-court:
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=210331&page=91 (HQs)
Search Getty Images for "hantuchova"
See 10 & 12 September in "News & Photos" on the tournament-website

Off-court:
http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/2/photogallery/ (Bali)
http://www.wtaworld.com/showthread.php?t=208809&page=52
See 11 September in "News & Photos" on the tournament-website

Daniela looked so hot at the welcome-party; it's a shame that the
same couldn't be said of her tennis at Bali! ;-) She seems to be
going through one of her lean times at the moment - literally as
well as figuratively. Her arms look so thin in the on-court photos.

-----------
First round (Tuesday 12th September)
-----------

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [5] lt. Czink,Melinda, 5-7 2-6

One of Daniela's worst losses of the year, against a journeywoman
ranked #84.

And I felt even worse about it when I learned that Daniela had
squandered a 5-2* lead with three set-points (on Czink's serve) - an
extremely similar match to her US Open loss to Serena Williams,
except that Daniela won one more game against Williams than she did
against Czink.

Daniela was broken on a double fault to make it 5-4*, and again on a
double fault to make it 5-6*. Then Daniela wasted a break-point as
Czink served out the first set 7-5.

The second set started with three breaks of serve, giving Czink a
*2-1 lead. Czink broke Daniela with a "fine backhand drive" for
*5-2, and unlike Daniela, Czink had no trouble converting a 5-2 lead!

When things start to go wrong for Daniela, she seems to entertain
negative thoughts way too early, and for way too long (one of the
reports on this match even described her as "depressed"). She
admitted that she was haunted by the memory of the Williams match
during the Czink match.

Serena Williams has been the key to Daniela's 2006. Daniela beat her
in a high-profile match at the Australian Open, but has had an
unspectacular season since (aside from reaching the fourth round at
the first three Grand Slams), and now this.


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

"I missed three easy shots in a row, and never put her under
pressure on those set-points, and that's where things started to go
in a bad direction.

"I was thinking about that [US Open] match during this one. It's
tough for me to change that kind of thinking under match-pressure.

"Czink played excellent and without fault. I played terribly and was
pressured by her hits.

"I played badly and she played well, it was one of those days. I had
no rhythm. If I could have won the first set, then I would have had
a chance today.

"I played very bad and she played well on the day, it's as simple as
that. Sometimes you have those days when nothing really works. I
never got into a rhythm, and let her back into the match. She felt
more confidence and went for her shots, and it was a different match.

"It was a combination of me not playing so well and her playing a
very good match. It was just one of those days – you can't expect to
play well every match, but it's disappointing because I've really
enjoyed being here in these beautiful surroundings, and I wished I
could have stayed longer.

"I was just so overwhelmed with this place. It's incredible,
beautiful, and I would love to come back. I never thought I would
find a place so beautiful."


Czink quotes
------------

"I think I started the match a little nervous. But when I was down
4-1 in the first set, I thought to myself `You're playing the world
#19, you've got nothing to lose'. I started to play more freely and
put more pressure on her. I think at that point she started to
tighten up. It's a great win for me.

"It was a delight to be able to play well and not nervous. I was
only trying to play well from the beginning."

www.wismilakinternational.com: "According to her, Hantuchová's play
was not good at the baseline, but she kept pushing herself. What
saved her was her accurate forehand and backhands.

"Earlier in the match, Hantuchová was able to pressure and dictate
her opponent's play. Unfortunately, Czink reversed the situation by
amending her faults, and started to apply pressure to her opponent.
This slim player had a hard time receiving Czink's `weird' left-
handed style of play."

----------------------------------------------------------
ARTICLE: From piano to racket, Hantuchová handles pressure
----------------------------------------------------------

The following article appeared at http://sports.yahoo.com/ten/ on
13th September:
>>>
From piano to racket, Hantuchová handles pressure

By Barry Wood

DENPASAR, Indonesia (Reuters) - Spending her formative years as a
classical pianist became the ideal preparation for handling the
pressurised world of the women's tennis tour, said Slovakia's
Daniela Hantuchová.

The world number 19, seeded fifth for the Bali International this
week, spent her early days at the keyboard, and her deft fingerwork
before large audiences proved a formidable learning curve ahead of
her experiences on the tennis court.

"I did some pretty big concerts, and I can tell you I've never, ever
been so nervous in my life," Hantuchová told Reuters.

"When I was about 13, 14, a couple of hundred at least would be
watching, maybe a thousand. It was scary stuff, but it prepared me
well for the tennis circuit so it was good," said Hantuchová, who
reached the heights of world number five in January 2003.

"I really enjoyed playing. It was very difficult time-wise because I
had my school in the morning, tennis practice, then piano, then
tennis again, and then study in the evening. So I was finishing my
day at 11, 11:30.

"Every day was like that from eight o'clock in the morning, and I
loved it because there wasn't any one second I had some free time."

A winner in Indian Wells in 2002, Hantuchová also overlooked a
promising academic career in order to pursue her first love.

GOOD OFFERS

"It was a really tough one because after finishing high school I
thought for sure I was going to continue, and I had some really good
offers and studying always felt to me like it was part of my life,"
she said.

"Especially for my parents it had been very important too, because
with tennis you never know so you always have to have another option
if something happens to you.

"So it was kind of a tough one, but I knew if I wanted to do this
properly, there wouldn't be enough time for me to do both."

And at what did she excel in her studies?

"Mathematics and physics. The high school I went to is the best in
Slovakia and it mainly goes in that direction, computers. My father
and brother went to the same school. My parents and my brother and
my grandmother are the brainy ones. I don't feel I've done anything
compared to them."

Father Igor is a computer scientist while her mother Marianna is a
toxicologist. Older brother Igor is an architect.

But the 23-year-old has a slightly less academic pursuit in mind
once her tennis career is at an end.

"I am very interested in fashion," she admits.

"I like anything that's glamourous, with a lot of class. Usually I
prefer things that are different to things that people are used to
seeing.

"I just love that part of my life, and it's something that I
definitely want to get involved with more after I finish with my
tennis."

Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited
<<<

--
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/