WTA Aug 30-Sept 12 US Open Flushing Meadows, NY Grand Slam Prize$: $17,750,000 (total) 128 players - outdoor: hard (Deco Turf II) IBM Real-Time Scoreboard - NetCam Matches: order - current - completed Draws: WTA, .pdf - mixed doubles Women's: qualifying - singles - doubles Men's: qualifying - singles - doubles Yahoo! photos - usopen.org photos Audio: USO Radio - click to listen Video: highlights - WTA interviews TV Schedule - news - interviews website map - venue map - history NYC forecast - Radar # 1 Justine Henin-Hardenne # 4 Amelie Mauresmo # 10 Serena Williams #3 Anastasia Myskina

tourney archive: previous tourney page     next tourney page US Open: #6 Elena Dementieva 5'11", 141 lbs, RH, 2H-BH US Open: #9 Svetlana Kuznetsova 5'8½", 161 lbs, RH, 2H-BH

Russian Civil War: On Saturday in the women's singles final of the 2004 US Open, 19-year-old 9th-seeded # 9 Svetlana Kuznetsova of St. Petersburg, Russia defeated 22-year-old 6th-seeded # 6 Elena Dementieva of Moscow, Russia 6-3, 7-5 (both are shown after the match).     The ladies were a bit nervous at the opening; after Elena won the toss and elected to receive, they exchanged service breaks in the first 2 games of the match.

    Then they calmed down and each held serve, and Svetlana held again, bringing the score to 3-2, on serve.

    Although the score was even, Elena was working harder to keep it that way. Svetlana by this time already had Elena running from side to side with very well placed groundstrokes, mostly from her forehand. Svetlana hits her topspin forehand with a western ("frying pan") grip, but she really puts her legs into it, giving the ball plenty of speed. Her backhand is strong also, but she clearly prefers the forehand.
    Svetlana broke Elena's serve in the 6th game of the match, and by that time she had already scored 10 clean winners off her forehand. That break was the difference in the 1st set, and Svetlana finished showing growing confidence, serving aces in each of her last 2 service games as she took the 1st set 6-3.

    Although Elena was now down a set, she was not shaken as she had been in the French Open final. She was playing well, and she did not yet have any double faults (she finished with only 4 double faults for the match). Elena had lost the 1st set by 1 break only because Svetlana was playing well enough to beat anybody.
    Elena served to open the 2nd set, and although Svetlana was controlling the points, Elena held serve as Svetlana hit 3 errors after having a break point. Elena might have seen a chink in Svetlana's armor; in the 2nd game of the set Elena broke Svetlana's serve, hitting winners off both her forehand and her backhand.
    But, with the 2nd set score 0-2 in Elena's favor, Elena started the 3rd game of the set with her first double fault of the match. Svetlana broke back, and they were on serve again, 1-2.

    After this, both players held serve again, then they again exchanged breaks of serve. At times they seemed to be playing evenly; at times Svetlana seemed to be in control. They held serve until the score reached 5-5, on serve.
    In the 11th game of the set, Elena found herself down 15-30, and at this crucial juncture hit her 4th and final double fault of the match to give Svetlana 2 break points. Then Elena hit an error wide, and Svetlana had the championship in her hands.
    Svetlana served out the match at love. Elena did not crumble; she even tried a decent drop shot and lob combination that almost worked (the lob was just long). Then Svetlana became the 2004 US Open champion by hitting a service winner on the first match point. match statistics

    Svetlana said: "Elena's serve, mostly she serves only to the forehand, my forehand is my best shot. So I knew if I do my game, I don't rush, I don't get nervous, I just gonna win it...
    "I was going for maximum I could on my forehand today and it was going well. Sometimes... when the ball was too low, I was missing. But the rest of the shots, I was just going as fast or as hard as I can and the ball was going in. So I was just keep doing this and keep hitting harder and harder." interview

    Elena was playing with a strained adductor muscle in her left leg during her last 3 matches. Although it clearly caused her pain, she didn't let it slow her down very much.
    Elena said: "[Svetlana] was playing absolutely great tennis today. It's not about my injury. I was playing through pain, couple matches already. It wasn't easy to play against such a good player with this kind of leg that I had. But she really played very well today and she deserved to win.
    "...it's been a great tournament for me. I beat some great players. I had some very tough matches here. I'm not really disappointed about this final. I did everything I could here and I feel like I was playing some good tennis." interview

    Svetlana and Elena had played twice before winning once each; both matches were this year and both went 3 sets. Svetlana won on clay in Berlin, and, more recently, Elena won on a hardcourt in Los Angeles.
    Elena and Svetlana both hit the ball very hard, forehand and backhand, and both prefer their forehands. Elena says: "I really like to be aggressive on my forehand side." Although Svetlana uses a 2-handed backhand drive, she also has a 1-handed backhand slice in her inventory, which she a used a fair amount against Lindsay Davenport, but not against Elena. Both ladies run very well. Svetlana has a strong serve, if a bit streaky, but Elena does not.

    Elena's serve has cost her a number of big matches this year, most notably the French Open final, where she lost to her friend Anastasia Myskina 6-1, 6-2. Elena's toss is ungainly, her service speeds and placements vary tremendously, and she frequently double faults.
    Despite this, Elena usually wins anyway. About Elena's serve, after their quarterfinal, Amelie Mauresmo said: "...it's not so easy to return [Elena's] serve... sometimes she serve 100, sometimes it's slow, sometimes it's spin, sometimes it's flat. You have to adjust... She reacts very quickly after [her serve]. I think her serve is maybe little weak, but then she's very quick and very aware that she's gonna have to play a nice shot after..." interview
    Elena said: "I know what kind of serve I have. I know that I'm working in it. I know that I'm improving myself. I'm serving very good on my practice. I need to bring it to the court, to the match. That's what I'm working for... I'm trying to do better, but it takes some time."

    Elena and her partner Ai Sugiyama of Japan were scheduled to play a rain-delayed doubles semifinal Friday night against Virginia Ruano Pascual & Paola Suarez. Exhausted, and still with a strained thigh muscle, Elena had to withdraw from the doubles semifinal to save herself for the singles final. This is unfortunate for Ai, but she has been around for a while (she already has 3 grand slams in her 29 doubles titles), and very likely understands the situation.
    Svetlana and her partner Elena Likhovtseva had already reached Sunday's doubles final before the singles semis.

    In the women's doubles final on Sunday, top-seeded Virginia Ruano Pascual & Paola Suarez defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova & Elena Likhovtseva 6-4, 7-5. Current doubles # 1 Virginia has now won 28 WTA doubles titles, and doubles # 2 Paola has won 35; this was their 7th Grand Slam doubles title as a team.
    Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Likhvotseva are ranked # 4 and # 5 at doubles. Svetlana (who has won 10 WTA doubles titles) started teaming up with Elena (who has won 19) this year; neither has yet won a Grand Slam doubles title.

Elena Dementieva Shanghai, Sept., 2003 Svetlana Kuznetsova Paris, May, 2003

19-year-old Svetlana Kuznetsova was born in St. Petersburg, Russia and still resides there (during the few weeks a year she is not globe-trotting on the tour). She has now won 4 WTA singles titles (the others were at Eastbourne this year, and at Helsinki and Bali in 2002), and she had reached 4 other WTA singles finals this year.     Svetlana swings a Head "Liquidmetal Instinct" bat and is attired in Fila togs. Receiving her tennis training at the Sanchez-Casal Academy near Barcelona, Spain (sort of a Spanish version of the Bollettieri Academy in Bradenton, Florida), Svetlana has been coached by Emilio Sanchez, Stefan Ortega, and others.     Svetlana began playing WTA doubles with coach (and former ATP player) Emilio's younger sister, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, a former WTA # 1. When Arantxa retired, Martina Navratilova asked Svetlana to play doubles with her. When Martina chose to play doubles with an American partner this year to prepare for the Olympics, Svetlana teamed up with Elena Likhovtseva.     Svetlana jumped to # 14 in the singles rankings after defeating # 1 Justine Henin-Hardenne in Dubai earlier this year, and has been gradually moving upward since then. Svetlana's father, Alexandr Kuznetsov, is coach of Lokomotiv, the best cycling club in Russia, her mother Galina is a six-times world champion cyclist, and her brother was a 1996 Olympic silver medalist at that sport. Kuznetsova record

    22-year-old Elena Dementieva was born in Moscow, Russia on October 15, 1981, and still "resides" there during her few weeks a year off of the WTA Tour. Elena won all 3 of her WTA singles titles last year (Amelia Island, Bali, and Shanghai). Elena reached the US Open doubles final partnered with Janette Husarova in 2002 (they were defeated by the almost invincable Paola Suarez and Virginia Ruano Pascual). Elena's garb and her bat are both labeled "Yonex" (her racquet was the "MP Tour-1" model, but the WTA reports she now uses a "RDX 500"). Elena's mother Vera travels with her on the tour, and so does former Russian great Olga Morozova, her current coach. Elena has said that the player she has most admired is Martina Hingis, because of her intelligent play, "like playing chess on court". Dementieva record
Elena Dementieva Wallpaper for your PC desktop

Men's final, Sunday: s1 Roger Federer SUI d s4 Lleyton Hewitt AUS 6-0, 7-6(3), 6-0

US Open:
    The main draw for the US Open had 32 seeds, and as with all modern Grand Slam tourneys, there were NO 1st-round byes. There were 16 qualifiers, 2 Lucky Losers (the highest-ranked players to lose in qualifying), and 8 wild cards in the main draw.
    New York time is GMT (UCT, ZULU) minus 4 hours (=US Eastern Daylight Time, PDT +3). The US Open has the very nice IBM live scoring by points, with statistics.

WTA SCOREBOARD: The US Open at Flushing Meadows, New York s=seed, #=rank, *=upset, LL=lucky loser ranks are for the previous week How do players get into the "draw"? Steffi Graf unleashed THE forehand in an exhibition match on Sat, Aug 28 Serena Williams modeled the latest Nike garb in NYC on Fri, Aug 27 Maria Sharapova practiced at the National Tennis Center on Thu, Aug 26

US Open, 1st Rd Mon-Tues Aug 30-31 loser: $14,000 2 points #1 s1 Justine Henin-Hardenne BEL d #126 q Nicole Vaidisova CZE 6-1, 6-4 Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Justine Henin-Hardenne   Nicole Vaidisova     Justine was down 2 breaks at 1-4 in the 2nd set, then recovered. Justine said: "I played well in the first set. I was serving pretty good. And then I started to go to sleep a little bit at the beginning of the second and [Nicole] started to play better. I wasn't fully ready for it.     "This kind of player, they're all hitting the ball very hard, always not at the same rhythm. They're hitting the ball as hard as they can.     "I need to use my game to play against this kind of game. I think that with my slice and with all my variations and everything I can [defeat] this kind of game. That's very important tactically.     "Change the rhythm, that's for sure. That's what I did pretty good in Athens. I wasn't playing always at the same rhythm. I was playing high balls, then I was coming to the net, then I was playing slowly. I think that's my game and I have to play like this."     15-year-old Nicole said: "I missed my chances. I had definitely chances in the second set and I let them slip away. I was excited to play the No. 1 player in the world, my first Grand Slam, Arthur Ashe Stadium. It's a great experience for next year." #2 s2 Amelie Mauresmo FRA d #84 Marissa Irvin USA 6-4, 6-2Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Amelie Mauresmo #3 s4 Anastasia Myskina RUS d #80 Ludmila Cervanova SVK 6-1, 6-0 Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Anastasia Myskina     Anastasia said: "The score was really easy, but the game was not really easy because I know if you give [Ludmila] a little chance, she can take it and play her game." #4 s5 Lindsay Davenport USA d #72 Lubomira Kurhajcova SVK 6-4, 6-0 Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Lindsay Davenport #6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS d #41 Dinara Safina RUS 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Elena Dementieva #7 s7 Maria Sharapova RUS d #68 Laura Granville USA 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Maria Sharapova     Maria said: "My game went off for a while. I went to La-La Land, but I came back to Earth... Tonight was a very tough match, especially as it was my first big night match on Arthur Ashe. I was making lots of errors and was out of it at times but thankfully I was able to come through.     "Since my victory [at Wimbledon] everybody has wanted a piece of me and that's not easy. But you know that you are going to have to go through difficulties like that. I don't think I'm perfect just because I won a grand slam [tournament]. I know there are many things I need to work on, you can't just win match after match, you have to develop it." #8 s8 Jennifer Capriati USA d #54 Denisa Chladkova CZE 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Jennifer Capriati #9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #178 q Sesil Karatantcheva BUL 6-2, 6-0 Tues Svetlana Kuznetsova   Sesil Karatantcheva #10 s10 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #82 Henrieta Nagyova SVK 6-1, 6-1 Mon #11 s3 Serena Williams USA d #83 Sandra Kleinova CZE 6-1, 6-3 Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Serena Williams #12 s11 Venus Williams USA d #62 Petra Mandula HUN 6-3, 7-6(3) Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Venus Williams #13 s12 Ai Sugiyama JAP d #108 Teryn Ashley USA 7-5, 6-2 Mon Ai Sugiyama #14 s13 Paola Suarez ARG d #197 q Nan-Nan Liu CHN 6-1, 7-5 Tues Paola Suarez #15 s14 Nadia Petrova RUS d #59 Jie Zheng CHN 6-0, 6-1 Tues #16 s15 Patty Schnyder SUI d #100 q Roberta Vinci ITA 7-6(3), 6-0 Mon Patty Schnyder #17 s16 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #55 Klara Koukalova CZE 6-1, 6-3 Mon Francesca Schiavone #18 s17 Alicia Molik AUS d #111 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA 6-0, 6-2 Mon *#40 Jelena Kostanic CRO d #19 s18 Karolina Sprem CRO 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 Mon Jelena Kostanic #20 s19 Silvia Farina Elia ITA d #144 q Abigail Spears USA 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 Tues Silvia Farina Elia #21 s20 Chanda Rubin USA d #44 Maria Sanchez Lorenzo ESP 6-2, 6-2 Tues #22 s21 Amy Frazier USA d #131 wc Kelly McCain USA 6-2, 6-2 Tues #23 s22 Magdalena Maleeva BUL d #43 Flavia Pennetta ITA 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 Mon #24 s23 Fabiola Zuluaga COL d #88 Myriam Casanova SUI 6-3, 6-4 Mon Fabiola Zuluaga *#60 Shinobu Asagoe JPN d #25 s24 A Smashnova-Pistolesi ISR 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 Tues Shinobu Asagoe *#104 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #26 s25 Elena Likhovtseva RUS 7-6(3), 6-3 Tues Maria Kirilenko #27 s26 Elena Bovina RUS d #64 Marta Marrero ESP 6-3, 6-0 Tues #28 s27 Mary Pierce FRA d #39 Emilie Loit FRA 6-1, 6-2Tues #29 s28 Nathalie Dechy FRA v #37 Jelena Dokic SCG 3-6, 6-0, 7-5 Mon #30 s29 Eleni Daniilidou GRE d #112 Silvija Talaja CRO 3-6, 6-3, 5-7 Tues #31 s30 Tatiana Golovin FRA d #53 Anca Barna GER 6-2, 6-4 Mon #32 s31 Maria Vento-Kabchi VEN d #35 Conchita Martinez ESP 0-6, 6-2, 6-3 Mon Maria Vento-Kabchi *#50 Marion Bartoli FRA d #33 s32 Meghann Shaughnessy USA 6-4, 6-4 Mon Marion Bartoli was not stopped by a blistered right hand #34 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #103 LL Camille Pin FRA 1-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9) Mon #36 Lisa Raymond USA d #71 Alina Jidkova RUS 7-5, 6-3 Tues #38 Gisela Dulko ARG d #52 Tamarine Tanasugarn THA 7-6(3), 6-3 Mon #42 Jelena Jankovic SCG d #99 LL Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP 6-3, 6-4 Tues #45 Kristina Brandi PUR d #73 Milagros Sequera VEN 6-1, 6-2 Tues #46 Nicole Pratt AUS d #102 Catalina Castano COL 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 Tues #47 Iveta Benesova CZE d #164 wc Bethanie Mattek USA 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 Mon #48 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #66 Barbora Strycova CZE 7-5, 6-3 Tues *#63 Jill Craybas USA d #49 Tina Pisnik SLO 6-1, 6-2 3-3 Tues *#89 Lindsay Lee-Waters USA d #51 Claudine Schaul LUX 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 Mon #56 Saori Obata JPN v #275 q Shikha Uberoi USA 3-6, 6-3, 0-0 Tues #57 Arantxa Parra Santonja ESP d #70 Marlene Weingartner GER 6-2, 7-6(5) Tues #58 Tathiana Garbin ITA d #78 Mara Santangelo ITA 6-2, 6-1 Mon *#87 Vera Douchevina RUS d #61 Aniko Kapros HUN 6-1, 6-3 Mon #65 Akiko Morigami JPN d #97 Emmanuelle Gagliardi SUI 6-2, 6-2 Mon #67 Maria Elena Camerin ITA d #101 Melinda Czink HUN 6-4, 6-2 Tues #68 Virginia Ruano Pascual ESP d #142 wc Alexandra Stevenson USA 6-4, 7-5 Tues *#86 q Severine Beltrame FRA d #74 Martina Sucha SVK 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-1 Mon #75 Magui Serna ESP d #162 q Maureen Drake CAN 6-2, 6-4 Mon #76 Katarina Srebotnik SLO d #90 Tatiana Panova RUS 6-3, 6-2 Tues *#190 wc Angela Haynes USA d #77 Tatiana Perebiynis UKR 6(4)-7, 6-1, 7-6(5) Mon *#174 q Anna Chakvetadze RUS d #79 Barbara Schett AUT 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 Tues *#116 q Antonella Serra Zanetti ITA d #81 Mashona Washington USA 7-5, 7-5 Tues *#107 q Els Callens BEL d #85 q Anna-Lena Groenefeld GER 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 Mon *#119 q Eugenia Linetskaya RUS d #92 Rita Grande ITA 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 Mon *#114 q Stephanie Foretz FRA d #91 Shenay Perry USA 7-6(1), 6(5)-7, 6-4 Mon #95 Samantha Stosur AUS d #106 Virginie Razzano FRA 7-5, 6-4 Tues #96 Dally Randriantefy MAD d #252 wc Jessica Kirkland USA 6-4, 6-4 Tues #105 Julia Vakulenko UKR d #428 wc Amber Liu USA 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 Mon *#136 q Julia Schruff GER d #117 Jennifer Hopkins USA 6-3, 6(4)-7, 6-1 Mon #133 q Tzipora Obziler ISR d #138 q Angelique Widjaja INA 7-5, 6-3 Tues #146 Cara Black ZIM v #198 wc Jamea Jackson USA 7-6(2)- 5-7, 6-4 Mon

US Open, 2nd Rd Wed-Thur Sept 1-2 loser: $25,000 32 points #1 s1 Justine Henin-Hardenne BEL d #133 q Tzipora Obziler ISR 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 Thu video: 56Kb | 250Kb Justine Henin-Hardenne     Justine said: "I was out of my rhythm today. I think that [Tzipora] didn't give me the opportunity to find a good rhythm... I think I played a correct first set... at the end of the second set, I was in a rush to finish the match. That didn't help me to conclude this match. So then she has the right to push me in three sets. She had the right to beat me today.     "...she was running all over the court and she was covering the court pretty good actually. I had to work very hard on every point. It was a lot of rallies. And I think that she didn't give the rhythm that most of the players are giving. I think that now the woman's tennis, everybody is hitting the ball very hard, always at the same rhythm. But today was different. She used her slice more than the other players, and I'm not very used to play against this kind of game. So I think she played a great match, and probably I wasn't at my best level, that's for sure. But I need to accept that and just try to be better the next day."     Tzipora said: "I think it was great... beginning of the third set, you never know, game here, game there. I mean, it was a tough match. Justine is a very good player. That's it. I did my best, I guess [smiling]." #2 s2 Amelie Mauresmo FRA d #105 Julia Vakulenko UKR 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 Wed video: 56Kb | 250Kb     Amelie said: "Yeah, pretty bad first set. A lot of unforced errors. Obviously wasn't really into the rhythm. My feet were not working really well around the ball. So got into a little bit of trouble being down 4-Love in that first set. [Julia] had nothing to do but just to put that ball in and I was making all the errors. Then I tried to think a little bit more and make sure I put that ball in." *#174 q Anna Chakvetadze RUS d #3 s4 Anastasia Myskina RUS 7-6(3), 6-3 Thu video: 56Kb | 250Kb Anna Chakvetadze   Anastasia Myskina     Anna turned pro last year. She was ranked # 756 at the end of 2002, and # 374 at the end of 2003. Prior to this week Anna's career prize money totaled $19,566; she has more than tripled that figure now. Although her rank is low, there were prior indications she can play: Anna reached the 2003 Wimbledon Juniors final, losing to Kirsten Flipkens in 3 sets. Anna has reached 3 ITF tourney finals and won 1. And Anna almost defeated top-20 regular Silvia Farina Elia in the 1st round in Stockholm a few weeks ago, but Silvia pulled out the win, 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-3.     Anna said: "I'm so excited that I beat Myskina today, but she played not so well. But I'm happy that I won... I couldn't believe that I could win. I just wanted to play my game, you know. I couldn't believe. Now I still don't believe that I beat Myskina, and she's like first in Russia. She won Roland Garros. It's unbelievable." interview     Only 47% of Anastasia's 1st serves were good; only 23% in the 2nd set. Although she hit 14 winners to Anna's 10, Anastasia hit 37 unforced errors to Anna's 16. This is a terrible day for Anastasia, whose strategy is usually to keep her error total down, while forcing her opponents to hit errors. match stats     Anastasia said: "...that was pretty bad match for me, and I'm not happy with that. But I'm human being. I cannot to play good every day... Today was serve, backhand, forehand, today everything wasn't good...     "It's not that I take something from [Anna]. She's play pretty well today, as well...I don't know her really well, but I know her because we practice in the same club [Spartak] right now. She's one of the good Russians who are coming [up]. Hopefully she's going to be good. interview #4 s5 Lindsay Davenport USA d #57 Arantxa Parra Santonja ESP 6-4, 6-2 Thu video: 56Kb | 250Kb Lindsay Davenport     Lindsay said: "[Arantxa] came out hitting the ball pretty hard. I was maybe just a little bit on my heels in the beginning, not expecting that much of an aggressive play from especially probably a claycourt player and Spaniard. I felt like it took me a while to get going my last two matches, until I've been able to get that lead in the first set in the break, then I feel like I play really well. I'm definitely going to have to do something to try to get off to a quicker start in the next match." #6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS d #86 q Severine Beltrame FRA 6-3, 6-2 Wed video: 56Kb | 250Kb #7 s7 Maria Sharapova RUS v #42 Jelena Jankovic SCG 6-0, 6(5)-7, 6-1 Thu Maria Sharapova     Maria said: "[Jelena is] that type of a player that can turn it on. Doesn't matter even though I won [the 1st set] 6-0, I knew that she can come up with the goods later on. I was ready. But, you know, it was just too good from her side...     "After the first game [of the 3rd set], I thought I was pretty much in control. When I broke her, I felt that I could hit any shot from anywhere from the court. That's a good feeling to have when you're in the third set." #8 s8 Jennifer Capriati USA d #75 Magui Serna ESP 6-0, 6-2 Wed video: 56Kb | 250Kb Jennifer Capriati     Jennifer said: "...tonight I just felt I was a little bit into it a little more [compared to the 1st round, I got] a lot of the kinks out, felt more comfortable out there moving. I know Magui can be a really tough, tricky player. I just was more concentrated... I hit a couple of good backhands that I was like pretty happy with... I popped a few good [serves] in... [And I handled Magui's] slice pretty good, because it can be tricky." #9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #46 Nicole Pratt AUS 6-3, 6-3 Thu Svetlana Kuznetsova #10 s10 Vera Zvonareva RUS d 107 q Els Callens BEL 6-3, 6-3 Wed Vera Zvonareva #11 s3 Serena Williams USA d #89 Lindsay Lee-Waters USA 6-4, 6-3 Wed video: 56Kb | 250Kb Serena Williams warmed up in her new "boot-look" leg warmers     Serena said: "It was a great test. [Lindsay] hits the living daylights out of the ball. She was killing everything..."     "I wasn't going for too much out there, I was just doing what I needed to do to go through... I was pretty relaxed out there, I didn't want to put too much pressure on myself." story #12 s11 Venus Williams USA d #275 q Shikha Uberoi USA 7-5, 6-1 Thu video: 56Kb | 250Kb Venus Williams     Venus said: "[Shikha] played a very good match. In the first set, I was just very weak off the ground. But really as the match continued, returned a lot better also and just was a lot better on the groundstrokes...     "She's a great player. She has to keep improving and working hard and enjoying as much as she is right now."     Shikha said: "I had such a good time. I'm actually so sad it's over. I was just crying because this is like the biggest party I've ever been to in my whole life... But this is just incredible with the people. I've never had anyone cheer for me that loud in my whole life." #13 s12 Ai Sugiyama JAP d #38 Gisela Dulko ARG 6-2, 6-4 Wed Ai Sugiyama #14 s13 Paola Suarez ARG d #96 Dally Randriantefy MAD 6-2, 6-2 Thu #15 s14 Nadia Petrova RUS d #95 Samantha Stosur AUS 6-2, 6-2 Thu Nadia Petrova #16 s15 Patty Schnyder SUI d #47 Iveta Benesova CZE 6-4, 6-1 Wed Patty Schnyder #17 s16 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #114 q Stephanie Foretz FRA 6-2, 6-3 Wed Francesca Schiavone *#34 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #18 s17 Alicia Molik AUS 6-4, 6-3 Wed video: 56Kb | 250Kb Daniela Hantuchova     Daniela made 64% of her 1st serves good, and she won 77% of those points. She was also successful on 17 out of her 20 trips to the net.     Daniela said: "It was much easier for me. The pressure was on [Alicia], nobody expected me to win. I was the one with nothing to lose." story     Alicia said: "I am very disappointed. I didn't bring out my best tennis. I didn't play my 'A' game the whole time. I just let [Daniela] dictate and work me around. You know you can't walk on the court and just expect to win just by walking out there, regardless of my form in the past month. You have to play point after point." story #20 s19 Silvia Farina Elia ITA d #76 Katarina Srebotnik SLO 6-2, 6-1 Thu #21 s20 Chanda Rubin USA d #116 q Antonella Serra Zanetti ITA 7-5, 6-3 Thu Chanda Rubin #22 s21 Amy Frazier USA d #45 Kristina Brandi PUR 6-4, 6-1 Thu *#190 wc Angela Haynes USA d #23 s22 Magdalena Maleeva BUL 6-2, 6-3 Wed video: 56Kb | 250Kb     Angela said: "I was just going out there trying to play the best that I could. My first-round match was excellent. I was just trying to take that energy and actually play like I did today... It is the biggest win [of my career]. But I can't dwell on this match; I really have to stay focused here, and the week is really just beginning." #24 s23 Fabiola Zuluaga COL v #58 Tathiana Garbin ITA 6-3, 6(7)-7, 6-2 Wed Fabiola Zuluaga #27 s26 Elena Bovina RUS d #67 Maria Elena Camerin ITA 6-2, 7-5 Thu Elena Bovina #28 s27 Mary Pierce FRA d #68 Virginia Ruano Pascual ESP 6-0, 6-1 Thu #29 s28 Nathalie Dechy FRA d #146 Cara Black ZIM 6-2, 7-5 Wed #30 s29 Eleni Daniilidou GRE d #48 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 Thu #31 s30 Tatiana Golovin FRA d #65 Akiko Morigami JPN 6-4, 6-4 Wed Tatiana Golovin     Tatiana said: "Morigami played very well. I was surprised with the way she played. She plays pretty aggressively. Definitely was tough for me to get out there and really play all my shots. But I think, you know, mentally I stayed strong and I battled, and I think that's what made the difference." #32 s31 Maria Vento-Kabchi VEN d #136 q Julia Schruff GER 6-1, 2-6, 6-2 Wed #36 Lisa Raymond USA v #104 Maria Kirilenko RUS 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-2 Thu #40 Jelena Kostanic CRO d #119 q Eugenia Linetskaya RUS 6-4, 6-3 Wed *#87 Vera Douchevina RUS d #50 Marion Bartoli FRA 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 Wed #60 Shinobu Asagoe JPN d #63 Jill Craybas USA 7-5, 6-3 Thu Shinobu Asagoe

US Open, 3rd Rd Fri-Sat Sept 3-4 loser: $40,000 56 points #1 s1 Justine Henin-Hardenne BEL v #36 Lisa Raymond USA 6-4, 6-3 Sat video: 56Kb | 250Kb     About her upcoming 4th round match against Nadia Petrova, Justine said: "I think it's going to be a tough round for me. [Nadia] had great fight today, and probably it's going to give her lot of confidence. Next round she will have nothing to lose, like always for me, this kind of situation. But she has big serve. She's hitting the ball very hard. So I'll have to be physically hundred percent and being very quick, move well on the court, and just try to play my game one more time." #2 s2 Amelie Mauresmo FRA d #32 s31 Maria Vento-Kabchi VEN 6-2, 6-0 Fri Amelie Mauresmo #4 s5 Lindsay Davenport USA d #27 s26 Elena Bovina RUS 7-6(7), 6-2 Sat video: 56Kb | 250Kb Lindsay Davenport   Elena Bovina #6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS d #29 s28 Nathalie Dechy FRA walkover-- left thigh strain Fri *#28 s27 Mary Pierce FRA d #7 s7 Maria Sharapova RUS 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 Sat video: 56Kb | 250Kb Mary Pierce     Maria had 14 double faults, but remained composed. Maria said: "Even though it's a tough loss, even though I was up a break, these things happen. You can't win all of them. Unfortunately, I didn't win today.     "...there was nothing really wrong with my serve. I think I just tried to go for too much at the wrong times. I think on a few balls she put some pressure on me, and that made me want to hit the ball harder. Those are the things I just have to sort of realize and learn from them." #8 s8 Jennifer Capriati USA d #87 Vera Douchevina RUS 6-0, 6(4)-7, 6-3 Fri Jennifer Capriati     After Jennifer won the 1st set at love, Vera took a 5-2 lead in the 2nd before Jennifer was able to recover and get to the tiebreak. But Vera was still able to force a third set.     Jennifer said: "...it was a combination of me coming out really pouncing on her, [and Vera] made quite a few mistakes - probably nerves. The second set, she definitely played a lot better, a lot better. She came up with some really good shots. And I think I let up a little bit or started getting into her game a little bit. The third set, I really took it up a notch." interview - match stats #9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS v #22 s21 Amy Frazier USA 7-6(3), 7-5 Sat Svetlana Kuznetsova #10 s10 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #24 s23 Fabiola Zuluaga COL 6-4, 7-5 Fri Vera Zvonareva #11 s3 Serena Williams USA d #31 s30 Tatiana Golovin FRA 7-5, 6-4 Fri Serena Williams     Serena said: "[Tatiana] played a really good game out there. She was really consistent. I can see that she improved so much since just the last time I played her at Wimbledon." interview     Tatiana said: "It was a positive experience. It was my first time out there. I really enjoyed it. I think the crowd liked it, too, so that was important. And I had my chances out there. Obviously I'm pretty happy because I played better than I did when I played [Serena] at Wimbledon . So obviously that's positive. I'm there. I had my chances. I'm with her. So that's a good thing." interview #12 s11 Venus Williams USA d #21 s20 Chanda Rubin USA 7-6(4), 6-3 Sat video: 56Kb | 250Kb Venus Williams #13 s12 Ai Sugiyama JAP d #40 Jelena Kostanic CRO 6-1, 6-3 Fri Ai Sugiyama #60 Shinobu Asagoe JPN d #14 s13 Paola Suarez ARG 6-4, 6-4 Sat Shinobu Asagoe #15 s14 Nadia Petrova RUS #20 d s19 Silvia Farina Elia ITA 4-6, 7-6(6), 7-6(3) Sat Nadia Petrova #16 s15 Patty Schnyder SUI d #34 Daniela Hantuchova SVK 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(6) Fri Patty Schnyder     Daniela hit 45 winners in the match (to Patty's 29), but she also had 57 unforced errors (to Patty's 32). match stats     Daniela was unable to convert 2 match points in the 3rd set. Daniela said: "...I was trying to be aggressive all the way till the end. [Patty] hit some great shots at the end... in the third set, I was always the one that had the momentum. In the tiebreaker, I think I was little unlucky. I should have finished it on the 5-3 game when I was 30-15 and I missed that easy smash. I think that was the main point of the match.     "...she didn't give me anything. I had to fight for every single point, and it was very tense at the end. But, you know, I felt like I was little unlucky in the tiebreaker, but I still think she played a very good match, as usual, against me.     "I'm more aware of what I'm doing on the court [than last year] and I'm enjoying myself even though there are some tough moments on the court. I feel like if I keep going and if I keep working hard, that the results will come." interview Patty said: "I think we had a funny match today. We had some games we didn't play at all. Some we served good and we hit some great winners. It was a strange match. Also in that tiebreak, [Daniela] hit three lines unbelievably, and then me with a little bit of frame, that lob... sometimes things like this happen and you get exciting matches. Saving match points and winning after, it's just a great win for me. interview #17 s16 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #190 wc Angela Haynes USA 6-3, 7-6(3) Fri Francesca Schiavone #30 s29 Eleni Daniilidou GRE d #174 q Anna Chakvetadze RUS 6-4, 6-2 Sat Eleni Daniilidou

US Open, 4th Rd, Sun-Mon Sept 5-6 loser: $70,000 90 points *#15 s14 Nadia Petrova RUS d #1 s1 Justine Henin-Hardenne BEL 6-3, 6-2 Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Nadia Petrova     Nadia had lost all 5 of her previous matches against Justine. Nadia said: "Today I was more mentally stronger. I kept my nerves down. I really focused on every point. I tried to give her as many balls as possible and also come to the net, put kind of a pressure on her. I really was holding my serve well. A little bit in the first set, I little bit struggled because I was a little bit getting used to the atmosphere of the stadium. But the rest of the match, I play very good."     Nadia kept Justine pinned to the baseline for most of the match; Justine made only 9 trips to the net (scoring 6 times), compared to Nadia's 28 approaches (winning 19 of those points). Nadia had 21 unforced errors to Justine's 30, and hit 16 winners, to Justine's 14.     Justine said: "I think [Nadia] played well. For sure, she played good match. I cannot say anything else. It wasn't my day. She served well. She took the opportunities. It was very hard for me." #2 s2 Amelie Mauresmo FRA d #17 s16 Francesca Schiavone ITA Sun video: 56Kb | 250Kb #4 s5 Lindsay Davenport USA d #12 s11 Venus Williams USA 7-5, 6-4 Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Lindsay Davenport     Lindsay said: "I wanted to win so badly, and I played such a great calm match until [the last game], and then let a few errors creep in. [Venus] definitely hit some good shots, too.     "...I felt okay until I lost about the second match point. Then you get a little like, "Oh, no, don't do this ." But when I went back to serve, I felt good. I came up with some good serves and good forehand winners to set it up. But then, wrongly so, I was then waiting for her to make the error. You probably shouldn't play like that, but she was giving me so many errors, it's hard to then go for shots and miss them. Then saving like the third or fourth breakpoint, finally I was able to win.     "...[When Venus] plays great and she's hitting her forehand well, she's going to be tough to beat... Right now she hasn't shown the last few months that her forehand has been on. I want to try to pick on that... Overall I think I won by virtue of a lot of errors." #6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS v #10 s10 Vera Zvonareva RUS 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 Sun video: 56Kb | 250Kb Elena Dementieva #8 s8 Jennifer Capriati USA d #13 s12 Ai Sugiyama JAP 7-5, 6-2 Sun video: 56Kb | 250Kb Jennifer Capriati #9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #28 s27 Mary Pierce FRA 7-6(5), 6-2 Mon video: 56Kb | 250Kb Svetlana Kuznetsova #11 s3 Serena Williams USA d #16 s15 Patty Schnyder SUI 6-4, 6-2 Sun video: 56Kb | 250Kb Serena Williams *#60 Shinobu Asagoe JPN d #30 s29 Eleni Daniilidou GRE 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-3 Mon Shinobu on Monday   Shinobu on Tuesday

US Open, QFs, Tues-Weds Sept 7-8 loser: $130,000 162 points Wednesday start delayed by rain until 7:30pm *#6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS d #2 s2 Amelie Mauresmo FRA 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(1) Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Elena Dementieva     Elena gutted it out to win despite an adductor muscle strain (her left thigh was heavily taped), an upset stomach (she was treated with IV fluids after the match), and her usual trouble with her serve (she had 15 double faults). match statistics     After the match (and the intravenous fluids) Elena said: "...it was tough to play [injured] but it really helped my game. I had something with my leg, and I start to do serve and volley. I finish second set like this, and I did surprise my coach by making this. But I was looking for some other way to win. I like to move, but when you can't move, you have to use your arm, something else. And that's really interesting because you have to think a lot when you have something [wrong]. You have to be smart on the court."     Amelie said: "...it is a big disappointment, especially 7-6 in that third set. I thought I had some occasions I didn't take. So I am pretty disappointed with that and a little bit angry with myself as well, not being able to take these opportunities. Because I felt that at some points during the match I had some good occasions, but didn't make it.     "...it's not so easy to return [Elena's] serve. And I'm not happy with my net game. She passed me really well. But I thought I should have done better with that.     "...sometimes she serve 100, sometimes it's slow, sometimes it's spin, sometimes it's flat. You have to adjust. Everybody's talking about her serve, but she still make the semifinal, maybe more, was the final of the French. She reacts very quickly after [her serve]. I think her serve is maybe little weak, but then she's very quick and very aware that she's gonna have to play a nice shot after. And that she did pretty well today." interview #4 s5 Lindsay Davenport USA d #60 Shinobu Asagoe JPN 6-1, 6-1 Weds    career matches Lindsay leads 2-0     video: 56Kb | 250Kb Lindsay Davenport     Lindsay hit only 16 winners while taking the match by the lopsided score. Lindsay said: "It was a very long day, a very tough day. I think [Shinobu] started off with more errors than she normally does, and I was able to maintain that. I felt comfortable returning her serve. And I felt like I always had a chance to break her." #8 s8 Jennifer Capriati USA d #11 s3 Serena Williams USA 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 Tues video: 56Kb | 250Kb Jennifer Capriati   Serena Williams     Although there some very poor calls were made in the match, Jennifer played well enough to win, and Serena hit enough errors to lose. Serena hit 25 winners (to Jennifer's 12), but she also hit a whopping 57 unforced errors (to Jennifer's 29). match statistics     One of the bad calls, however, was inexcusable. In the first game of the 3rd set, on Serena's serve, with the score at deuce, Serena hit a backhand down the line that was clearly in, and was called in by the line judge. Although the ball was hit on the far side of the court from the chair, Chair Umpire Mariana Alves overruled the call and awarded the point to Jennifer instead of Serena. Serena immediately protested vehemently, but Alves would not listen.     After the match, tournament referee Brian Early acknowledged that the overrule was incorrect. Alves will not work at the US Open again. A similar incident occurred in the match between Serena's sister Venus and Karolina Sprem at Wimbledon, although that event involved a miscall of the score, rather than an overrule.     The misawarded point gave Jennifer the advantage, but Serena won the next point to bring the score back to deuce. Capriati then went on to break Serena's serve in that game, but Serena immediately broke back on Jennifer's service.     Serena said: "I'm very angry and bitter right now. I feel cheated... But I'm not making excuses. I didn't lose because of that. I probably should have closed [Jennifer] out in the second set."     Jennifer said: "I fought hard and I prevailed because of that. One point, I don't think, changed the match." #9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #15 s14 Nadia Petrova RUS 7-6(4), 6-3 Weds video: 56Kb | 250Kb Svetlana Kuznetsova     Svetlana said: "This has been a strange year for me, it's been good but could have been so much better. At the French Open I had a match point against Myskina and didn't take it and she went on to win a grand slam. Then I had a big disappointment at Wimbledon where I lost in the first round, so this makes up for that.     "...After waiting all day [due to rain delay] I was pleased to play on a smaller court [court 11, instead of the Ashe court] because I wasn't so nervous. I played on that court in the second round so I felt comfortable there.     "...It will be great to play Lindsay on a big court here, all the crowd will be with her and she is in the form of her life, but I will go and play my game and enjoy it."

US Open, SFs, Fri Sept 10 CBS-TV loser: $260,000 292 points *#9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #4 s5 Lindsay Davenport USA 1-6, 6-2, 6-4    career matches: Svetlana leads 1-0     video: 56Kb | 250Kb Svetlana Kuznetsova     Svetlana looked good holding serve with 2 aces in the first game of the match, but she seemed to fall apart after Lindsay broke her serve in the 3rd game of the set. It appeared Lindsay might win in a blowout.     But Svetlana turned things around in the 2nd set, and after breaking Lindsay's serve in the 3rd game of that set, Svetlana appeared to be in control.     Svetlana said: "I was trying just to hang there. I knew if [Lindsay] break me against the wind, I can break her, too. That's what I did. After, I was just trying to keep my serve and give her much more problem as I could on her." interview Lindsay had strained a left thigh muscle while practicing on Friday before the match. Lindsay said: "...it felt okay in the beginning, just midway through the second set it seemed to pull a little bit more... Svetlana did play well. I just felt like I was working from a little bit of a disadvantage and that's never easy." interview match statistics #6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS d #8 s8 Jennifer Capriati USA 6-0, 2-6, 7-6(5)    career matches: Jennifer leads 3-1     video: 56Kb | 250Kb Elena Dementieva     Elena said: "It was very difficult to play with the wind today so I was trying to stay closer to the ball and just go to the net because that was the only way I could win this match. Especially from one side, when you play against the wind, there is no other choice to win the point; you have to go to the net...     "I was surprised because last time we play, [Jennifer] usually start very well, the match. I was surprised that she was so nervous. She could not play well in the beginning. It was so easy 6-Love. I don't like the score 6-Love, because it's always something going on after the score... finally we play much better in the second and third sets. Finally I think we both played well today." interview     About the wind, Jennifer said: "...that's got to be the hardest conditions to play in. You can tell that both of us were probably not able to play our tennis. [Elena] played the conditions better than me. She was smart with the wind." interview

US Open, Final, Sat Sept 11 8pm CBS-TV loser: $500,000 456 points title: $1,000,000 650 pts *#9 s9 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #6 s6 Elena Dementieva RUS 6-3, 7-5    career matches: Svetlana leads 2-1     video: 56Kb | 250Kb Elena Dementieva   Svetlana Kuznetsova

US Open, Qualifying Finals Fri Aug 27 losers' prize: $9,375 US #85 Anna-Lena Groenefeld GER d #134 Alyona Bondarenko UKR 6-3, 6-3 #86 Severine Beltrame FRA d #189 Delia Sescioreanu ROM 6(7)-7, 6-3, 6-0 *#126 Nicole Vaidisova CZE d #99 Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP 6-4, 7-5 #100 Roberta Vinci ITA d #113 Mervana Jugic-Salkic BIH 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 *#136 Julia Schruff GER d #103 Camille Pin FRA 7-6(6), 2-6, 6-2 *#133 Tzipora Obziler ISR d #109 Marta Domachowska POL 7-5, 6-4 #114 Stephanie Foretz FRA d #150 Sybille Bammer AUT 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 #116 Antonella Serra Zanetti ITA d #156 Capucine Rousseau FRA 6-1, 6-1 #119 Eugenia Linetskaya RUS d #200 Patricia Wartusch AUT 6-4, 6-3 *#178 Sesil Karatantcheva BUL d #132 Eva Birnerova CZE 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 *#275 Shikha Uberoi USA d #137 Vilmarie Castellvi PUR 6-4, 6-2 Shikha Uberoi #138 Angelique Widjaja INA d #236 Angelika Bachmann GER 6-4, 6-1 #144 Abigail Spears USA d #226 Dominika Nociarova SVK 6-3, 6-1 #162 Maureen Drake CAN d #203 Laura Pous Tio ESP 6-1, 7-6(5) #174 Anna Chakvetadze RUS d #218 Rika Fujiwara JPN 7-6(5), 6-2 #197 Nan-Nan Liu CHN d #235 Dessislava Topalova BUL 7-6(5), 6-4 US Open, Doubles Final, Sun Sept 12 loser: $200,000 champ: $400,000 s1 Virginia Ruano Pascual & Paola Suarez d s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova & Elena Likhovtseva 6-4, 7-5 Paola Suarez & Virginia Ruano Pascual US Open, Mx Doubles Final, Fri Sept 10 loser: $70,000 champ: $150,000 s4 Vera Zvonareva & Bob Bryan d Alicia Molik & Todd Woodbridge 6-3, 6-4 Vera Zvonareva during mixed doubles play US Open, Girls Singles Final, Sept 12 s3 Michaella Krajicek NED d s4 Jessica Kirkland USA 6-1, 6-1 Michaella Krajicek US Open, Girls Doubles Final, Sept 12 s3 Marina Erakovic NZL & Michaella Krajicek NED d s5 Madalina Gojnea ROM & Monica Niculescu ROM 7-6(4) 6-0 US Open, Withdrawals/Non-entries #5 Kim Clijsters BEL left wrist tendonitis #93 Ashley Harkleroad USA shoulder? #309 Sandrine Testud FRA right foot Amanda Coetzer RSA rest and recovery Iroda Tulyaganova UZB right elbow, 2003 Anna Kournikova RUS chronic lumbar injury Monica Seles USA left foot stress fracture

    # 93 Ashley Harkleroad, who was awarded a wild card for this year's US Open (her ranking was # 115 at the entry deadline), is not listed in the draw. There has been no news as to why Ashley has withdrawn; Ashley had a right shoulder injury earlier this month, and it might be the cause. Hopefully Ashley is OK and will be back on the tour soon.

    Lindsay Davenport commented on September 2nd about the special higher seeding that Serena Williams has received all year, and Venus Williams received earlier this year [both due to injuries last year]. This has resulted in Lindsay getting the 5th seed at Grand Slam tourneys all year, and, as Lindsay pointed out, "there's obviously a big difference between 4 and 5. That's probably the biggest difference you can get in draws." Lindsay also said: "...this is the fourth Grand Slam of the year that I got bumped to 5 because of special seeding purposes, so it's a little disheartening. You know, when I got my special ranking [in 2002 after knee surgery] I was only given one Grand Slam. I didn't get to use all my tournaments, and they took it away from me and said, "Okay, you've had three months." They definitely made it eight months for these players now. I just wish that the rules were fair across the board and not changed every time that the tour wants to change a rule for a player... They just kind of make them up as they go."

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