Li Na wins French Open
Li Na became China’s first champion at a Grand Slam, after beating last year’s winner Francesca Schiavone for the French Open title. The combined age of the two finalists was the highest since 1998, and both were proud to show that their age was no obstacle to their achievements. In fact this has been shown more and more in the women’s game, especially since Kim Clijsters came back from retirement and having a child to win a grand slam.
Li Na’s performance was powerful from start to finish, but there were some wobbles in her game and Schiavone made her work hard for her points, particularly in the second set where it moved to a tie-break. Li was dominant in serve and although Schiavone’s powerful topspin and kick serve were meant to serve her well and make her the favourite on this surface, Li put up a strong resistance and found a rhythm with her own style. Li won the key break points at the key times, and soon the lead added to her confidence and more beautiful cross-court shots that left Schiavone skidding in the clay.
The rain which was predicted to come held off as well, which must have added to Li’s confidence as she won the first set and moved confidently into the second. But this was where the Italian started to impress, and she began to claw her way back up onto the score board. When the tie-break came, however, it was Li’s show. She took the points superbly, quickly, and with immense composure for a player who had lost last time she played in a Grand Slam fina more »
Written by:The Women’s Final
The women’s semi final battles have borne another thrilling French Open semi final. The controversial side of me wants to say that this could be because the Williams sisters are not a) able to play or b) at their top form. The women’s side of tournaments has been bemoaned as boring simply because the Williams sisters dominate it so much. This is probably less true with the comeback of Kim Clijsters and a host of lower ranked players emerging as the Williams sisters slowly lose some of their form.
Two of these such exciting names are Francesca Schiavone and Li Na. These are the two players that promise to make the women’s finals one to watch. One thing about these two players is their age; their combined years is the biggest in a Grand Slam final since 1998, when Jana Novotna and Nathalie Tauziat battled in the Wimbledon finals. Schiavone, who won the French Open last year, is 30, and LI Na is 29.
Schiavone looks top favourite as a returning champion. But Li Na has a Grand Slam final under her belt as well – the Australian Open this year – after she battled through to the finals where unfortunately she fell to Kim Clijsters. Li promises to bring in the Chinese fans of the sport, who have been growing in number as Li’s form has started to grow more and more impressive. And the two players are both so interesting and exciting to watch, that this could be a strong showing in the crowd seats. Which would be fantastic; the women’s game has lacked some support over the last f more »
Written by:Roland Garros is buzzing
Today is one of those days when the French Open just teems with excitement, when there is a buzz in the air that lets you know that even in this amazing tournament: today is something special. This is because there are two world class semi finals being played out today. Andy Murray will be playing Rafael Nadal to make it into the French Open for the first time, and Novak Djokovic is up against Roger Federer in a delectable set up to who will reach the finals this year.
I’m not sure even sure if predictions is the best thing for a day like today. This is going to be a day to be remembered, until of course the final comes and likely blows these competitions out of the water. The four top players in the world do battle, and then there will only be 2 left to fight it out for the ultimate title.
On the one hand, there are the Andy Murray doubters; myself among them. He is not the best on clay, he is struggling with an ankle injury, and his quarter final against Juan Ignacio Chela was hardly an epic match up to test his strength. Troicki unnerved Murray, and if that can be done by a low seeded player then what will Rafa, the King of Clay, do to him? On the other hand there are the Murray-believers (made up predominantly of the British press who would have dropped interest in the French Open if it weren’t for Murray, but that is a different debate for a different time), who are stalwartly behind him. This is his moment. He has played well so far, he has a certain grit, and Raf more »
Written by:Fourth Round and Quarter Finals
The action and drama at Roland Garros has yet to abate, and it will only get better, With the weekend being full of the typical tears and tantrums of the advancing rounds, today will be the culmination of many player’s best efforts. Today is the first quarter final day, and the mood is excitable.
The events leading up to this point in the tournament have been just as exciting. Andy Murray had to battle his way into the quarters after a laborious game against Viktor Troicki, who played probably the best tennis of his life but was unfortunately undone by a halt due to poor light, and then nerves at the prospect of advancing as he started the match on the next day. Andy Murray was at times desperately poor as he struggled with an ankle injury. But experience and grit pulled him through against a player whose experience in these late-stage rounds is considerably less. Congratulations are definitely deserved for Troicki though, a valiant effort at very nearly putting off the British number one. Andy Murray now faces Juan Ignacio Chela to reach the semi-finals.
Despite the Brit’s frothing at the mouth at this quarter-final match up none is more exciting than the semi final which was decided yesterday. Roger Federer defeated Gael Monfils in straight sets, and then Novak Djokovic beat Fabio Fognini after the Italian retired due to a thigh injury. Yes that’s right, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic will be squaring up o each other in the semi-finals tomorrow. Just thinking about more »
Written by:Round One
Now that the first round has been tied up, we can start to enjoy the excitement that the second round on a glorious day four at Roland Garros brings. The first round was not, as usual, without its upsets. But my heart broke for my fantasy team when I saw that Thomas Berdych, who has reached the semi finals in this tournament before, fell to the French qualified Stephane Robert in five sets.
Winning 3-6 3-6 6-2 6-2 9-7, Robert whipped the French crowd into a frenzy as he won his first ever match in his home country’s greatest tournament. He is ranked 140th in the world and got a raucous round of applause for his victory over the Czech who currently stands at number eight.
Apart from the Berdych upset, there were few losses for the big names at Roland Garros . Gael Monfis beat Phau of Germany, and Mikail Youzhny of Russia and Viktor Troicki of Serbia made their mark on their tournament in straight set wins over their first round opponents.
The big American John Isner, who will always be remembered for taking part in the longest running match in tennis history at Wimbledon last year, pushed his opponent to the limit in his first round. Was his opponent a gutsy no-namer who eventually battled past the huge American forehand and got through to the second round in an epic upset? No, his opponent was one Rafael Nadal. You may have heard of him. The fact that Rafa could drop a point on clay is still something of a shock. Television viewers with high sensitivity o more »
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