WTA: Apr 14-20 Family Circle Cup, Charleston, SC Tier I $1,340,000 - 56 players outdoor: green clay Har-Tru Live Scores - in popup window WTA pdf.: draws & OOP - notes tourn.: draws - OOP - interviews pics: tourney - Yahoo! - WTA Post & Courier: Sports free reg Charleston: radar - forecast # 3 J Jankovic, # 5 M Sharapova # 7 Chakvetadze, # 8 Dementieva Estoril Open, Estoril, POR +ATP Tier IV $145,000 32 players - outdoor: red clay Live Scores - in popup window WTA pdf.: draws & OOP results - order of play - draw pics: Yahoo! - tourney - WTA Estoril: weather radar - forecast # 25 F Pennetta, # 32 M Kirilenko # 37 K Knapp, # 40 L Safarova

Charleston: 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004   Estoril: 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 previous other tourney pages next Estoril: #32 Maria Kirilenko 5'8" 127lb RH 2H-BH Charleston: #9 Serena Williams 5'9" 135lb RH 2H-BH

    On Sunday in Charleston, South Carolina, in the final of the 35th Family Circle Cup, 26-year-old 5th-seeded # 9 Serena Williams from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, defeated 9th-seeded 23-year-old # 14 Vera Zvonareva from Moscow, Russia, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 (Serena is shown after match point).

    Serena converted only 3 of 12 break points she held against Vera, but it was enough. Vera converted 100% of her break points against Serena--but she held only 2.

    Vera struck 3 aces while suffering from 8 double faults; Serena fired 10 aces, with only 2 DFs.

    Serena's prize is $196,900; Vera's, $100,000.

    Serena said: "I felt like I was making a lot of errors today and needed to relax, more than I did my other matches. I felt if I could just make some more shots I'd be fine. I started making some, buckled down and just did what I needed to do." WTA story

    Vera said: "[Serena] can come up with the big shots at the key moments, and that's what she did today.

    "She never made a mistake when I was up, and she didn't give me any chances. I could have done a much better job holding serve, which I wasn't able to do at the right time, but the match was really even."

    Serena now leads Vera 5-1 in career matches, and also won the last time they played, in the 3rd round of last year's US Open, 6-4 7-6(4). Vera's win came in their previous meeting, in the Cincinnati semis in 2006, 6-2, 6-3.
    Serena is now 31-ll in WTA singles finals (eight of her titles were in Grand Slam tourneys); she also won the titles at her last two tourneys, in Bangalore & Miami, and has a 19-1 match record in 2008.
    Vera is now 5-8 in WTA singles finals. She reached a career-high rank of # 9 in 2004, but has been sidelined off and on by a left wrist injury since then. Vera has not won a title since Cincinnati in 2006; the day after she defeated Serena in the semis there. Vera now has a 24-7 match record in 2008.

    In Portugal on Sunday, in the final of the Estoril Open, 21-year-old 2nd-seeded # 32 Maria Kirilenko from Moscow, Russia, defeated 25-year-old unseeded # 132 Iveta Benesova from Most, Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-2

    After trailing 1-3 at the start, Maria won 11 of the last 14 games. Rain fell during the match. Maria, who had to call on the trainer to strap her right thigh, put 72% of her 1st serves in the box, winning 67% of her 1st serve points as well as 64% of her 2nd serve points. Maria converted 5 of 7 break points against Iveta; Iveta, only 2 of 5 against Maria. Maria's prize is $22,900; Iveta's, $12,345.

    Maria said: "I feel great after winning the first clay court title of my career. I had never won a match in Estoril, and this year I won both the singles and the doubles... This is just great and I am very, very happy how this tournament went. It will be good for my self-confidence going into the clay court season. What else can I say... It has been a fantastic week!." WTA story

    Maria, who reached a career-high ranking of # 20 in 2006, is now 3-2 in WTA singles finals; she won the Beijing title in 2005 and the Kolkata title in 2007. Maria has a 11-7 match record in 2008. Maria had a great week: teamed with Flavia Pennetta, she also won the doubles title in Estoril on Saturday.
    Iveta is now 1-5 in WTA singles finals; she won the Acapulco title in 2004, and was a finalist in Estoril the same year. In 2005 she reached a career-high rank of # 33. Iveta has a 18-10 match record this year.
    Iveta and Maria had played only once before, on red clay in the 1st round in Warsaw in 2005, when Maria won, 6-1, 6-2.

Estoril player blog by Michelle Larcher de Brito

WTA SCOREBOARD: Charleston & Estoril s=seed, #=rank, *=upset, LL=lucky loser ranks are for the previous week How do players get into the "draw"? The Family Circle Cup  Charleston, South Carolina   NWS weather radar tourney time:        = GMT -4 hours        = US EDT        = US PDT +3 hours Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar   click for broader view   Family Circle Tennis Center on Daniel Island Latitude: 32.862241 Long.: -79.902041 goto link for World Wind     Charleston: The 56 player main draw for Charleston has 16 seeds, with 8 1st-round byes. There are 8 qualifiers and 4 wild cards in the main draw. Qualifying (2 rounds) is on Saturday & Sunday. Main draw play begins on Monday at 10am.     The Family Circle Cup is the longest-running WTA-only Tier I event in the US. The tourney was held at Hilton Head until the Family Circle Tennis Center was opened in the spring of 2001. A 32-acre facility with a 10,200 seat stadium, the Family Circle Tennis Center has 13 green clay (Har-Tru) and 4 hard courts, all lighted for night play. A 10,000 square foot clubhouse also serves as the corporate headquarters for the Family Circle Cup. The FCTC was built with public help at a cost of $15 million. 2008: row 1: On Monday, April 14, last week's champ at Amelia Island, Maria Sharapova, and Patty Schnyder, a finalist at Charleston in 2002 & '06, and a semifinalist in '04 & '05, applied their signatures to numerous large yellow spheres... Also on Monday, high seeds at the press "All-Access Hour" included Serena Williams (looking like she feels good in her James Brown haircut), Marion Bartoli, 2007 Charleston champ Jelena Jankovic, row 2: Anna Chakvetadze, Dinara Safina, Maria, and Elena Dementieva... row 3: On Tuesday, top seed Jelena attended a parade for the tourney's 35th anniversary, along with other players including Dominika Cibulkova, Alicia Molik, Anastasia Rodionova, and Sorana Cirstea... row 4: Darned good looking healthy young ladies at Tuesday night's player's party at Saks Fifth Avenue included Dominika, Maria Emilia Salerni (checking out a free makeover in the mirror), Tatiana Poutchek, Anastasia, & Biljana Veselinovic (Katarina Srebotnik's coach), Alina Jidkova & Agnieszka Radwanska, and Casey Dellacqua...

Charleston, 1st Round, Mon-Tue 10am loser's prize: $3,455 US; points: 1 #14 s9 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #417 q Chia-Jung Chuang TPE 6-2, 6-2 Mon Chia-Jung driving a forehand, and Vera motoring toward a yellow orb #15 s10 Agnes Szavay HUN d #107 Yuliana Fedak UKR 6-0, 7-6(4) Mon Yuliana being pretty while straightening her strings with a Sharapova-ish grin, and Agnes driving a forehand #16 s11 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #87 Marta Domachowska POL 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 Mon Agnieszka ready, and compatriot Marta firing a forehand drive #26 s12 Katarina Srebotnik SLO d #64 Timea Bacsinszky SUI 7-6(4), 6-3 Mon Timea, apparently looking to slice a backhand, and Katarina ready to field one #28 s13 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #187 q Chanelle Scheepers RSA 6-1, 6-0 Tue Chanelle and Victoria driving forehands *#74 Tatiana Perebiynis UKR d #29 s14 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP 4-6, 6-0, 7-5 Tue *#77 Anastasia Rodionova AUS d #34 s15 Dominika Cibulkova SVK 6-4, 1-0 retired-- low back injury Tue     Dominika hurt her left thigh at the previous tourney (Amelia Island). She did not want to risk further injury, because she will be playing in the Fed Cup playoffs next weekend vs Uzebekistan.     Dominika said: "I was trying to protect my leg, and it went out to my low back, so I think it's a little bit stuck because I was trying to protect my left leg...     "Before the match I was tired, I felt my leg and everything, but I felt like, 'Okay, I will go on the court and I will see,'... But in the match I just didn't feel like I could end the match, so that's why I decided to retire, because I didn't want to get hurt more." postmatch interview *#49 Alize Cornet FRA d #36 s16 Michaella Krajicek NED 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 Tue Michaella and Alize about to swat backhands #38 Ai Sugiyama JPN d #114 Aymui Morita JPN 6-4, 6-1 Mon #43 Olga Govortsova BLR d #45 Elena Vesnina RUS 6-3, 6-2 Tue Olga fielding a low backhand, and Elena following a serve #46 Gisela Dulko ARG d #116 Alicia Molik AUS 6-2, 6-3 Mon Gisela and Alicia volleying backhands #50 Aravane Rezai FRA d #97 sr Milagros Sequera VEN 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 Tue #53 Casey Dellacqua AUS d #76 Maria Emilia Salerni ARG 7-5, 6-4 Mon #56 Edina Gallovits ROU d #63 Meghann Shaughnessy USA 6-3, 3-0 retired-- left knee injury Tue Meghann, who hurt her knee in January, volleying (or slicing?) a backhand, and Edina following a backhand drive *#149 q Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE d #59 Yung-Jan Chan TPE 6-3, 6-2 Mon #65 Sara Errani ITA d #92 Julie Ditty USA 6-2, 6-3 Mon #72 Jill Craybas USA d #156 q Varvara Lepchenko USA 6-2, 6-2 Tue Varvara driving a forehand, and Jill's backhand #81 Virginia Ruano Pascual ESP d #118 Olga Puchkova RUS 4-6, 7-5, 6-0 Tue Vivi's backhand volley, and Olga's backhand drive *#133 LL Julia Schruff GER d #89 Galina Voskoboeva RUS 7-6(2), 6-4 Mon #90 Sorana Cirstea ROU d #111 wc Vania King USA 6(5)-7, 7-5, 6-1 Mon Vania driving a forehand on the run, and Sorana's backhand drive #93 Lourdes Dominguez Lino ESP d #115 q Aleksandra Wozniak CAN 6-1, 6-1 Mon *#152 wc Bethanie Mattek USA d #101 Meng Yuan CHN 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 Tue Meng about to swat a forehand, and Bethanie driving a backhand     Bethanie said: "It's funny, because it was neck and neck in the third set and then I wiped out, and for some reason I started playing better after that. I had to call a trainer because I was bleeding. But I mean really we were both grinding it. I mean she hits pretty heavy, and we had some long rallies. I think the first game of the second set was like 25 minutes long or something, so it was definitely a grind, and I just pulled it out at the end in the third set." postmatch interview *#257 q Tiantian Sun CHN d #137 wc Ahsha Rolle USA 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-2 Mon *#385 q Alexandra Stevenson USA d #169 q Alina Jidkova RUS 7-6(6), 6-1 Mon

Charleston, 2nd Round, Tue-Wed 10am Tue WTA story - Wed WTA story loser's prize: $6,775 US; points: 35 #3 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #385 q Alexandra Stevenson USA 7-5, 6-0 Wed Jelena after match point     About the difference between the 1st and 2nd sets, Jelena said: "[Alexandra's] backhand was really good and I kept hitting to her backhand which was wrong. That's what happens when you don't know the player well but then I found my way. I saw how she was playing, her strengths and weaknesses and I was able to play the tactics a lot better." postmatch interview #5 s2 Maria Sharapova RUS d #152 wc Bethanie Mattek USA 6-0, 6-0 Wed Bethanie and Maria driving backhands, and Maria after match point     Maria won the 12 games in less than an hour by scoring 53 points--5 more than the fewest possible. She put 69% of her 1st serves in the box with 3 aces and 2 double faults, and won 83% of her 1st serve points & 55% of her 2nd serve points. Maria also won 69% of her return points against both 1st and 2nd serves.     Maria said: "I played a lot tennis in Amelia [Island] last week. You just try to get the job done out there, and do it as fast as you can, and hopefully get the 'W' and leave." postmatch interview *#90 Sorana Cirstea ROU d #7 s3 Anna Chakvetadze RUS 6-2, 1-6, 6-2 Tue Sorana's forehand, Anna driving a backhand, and Sorana after match point of the biggest win of her career     Sorana said: "Until now I thought hard was my best surface, but I think I'll change that to clay; this is also my first tournament on green clay. I went on the court really positive and wanted to win, and even though she started playing better after the first set and won the second set and went up 2-0 in the third, I just kept trying to play my best. I'm happy I was able to beat [Anna]." postmatch interview     Anna was very unhappy with her performance. Anna said: "I think it's just the way I'm playing right now... [Sorana] just stopped [making] mistakes and started to push the ball back, and I just couldn't put three balls on court." postmatch interview #8 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS d #72 Jill Craybas USA 6-0, 6-2 Wed Elena's forehand drive #9 s5 Serena Williams USA d #46 Gisela Dulko ARG 6-3, 6-4 Tue Serena calculating how lightly she should tap this forehand, and Gisela about to slice one     Serena said: "[Gisela] had a lot of variety. Like she would hit a winner and then she would hit really soft balls, and then she'd hit a drop shot and a slice. She has a lot of variety in her game...     "I just feel like it's good to win this match. I don't feel like I played great on any level. I'm just glad it's over..." postmatch interview #11 s6 Marion Bartoli FRA d #53 Casey Dellacqua AUS 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 Tue Marion driving a backhand, and Casey's forehand drive #12 s7 Patty Schnyder SUI d #43 Olga Govortsova BLR 7-6(2), 6-0 Wed #13 s8 Dinara Safina RUS d #93 Lourdes Dominguez Lino ESP 6-1, 6-4 Tue Lourdes and Dinara driving backhands, and Dinara after winning a point #14 s9 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #81 Virginia Ruano Pascual ESP 6-1, 6-0 Wed Vivi appears to be slicing a backhand (although she does drive 1-handed), Vera driving one, and Vera after match point #15 s10 Agnes Szavay HUN d #38 Ai Sugiyama JPN 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 Tue Ai and Agnes driving backhands #16 s11 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #56 Edina Gallovits ROU 6(7)-7, 6-2, 7-5 Wed #26 s12 Katarina Srebotnik SLO d #149 q B Zahlavova Strycova CZE 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 Wed Katarina after match point #28 s13 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #257 q Tiantian Sun CHN 7-6(4), 6-0 Wed Victoria after match point #49 Alize Cornet FRA d #65 Sara Errani ITA 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 Wed *#77 Anastasia Rodionova AUS d #50 Aravane Rezai FRA 6-3, 6-4 Wed #74 Tatiana Perebiynis UKR d #133 LL Julia Schruff GER 6-4, 6-3 Wed

Charleston, 3rd Round, Thu 11am ESPN2-TV & Eurosport WTA story loser's prize: $13,285 US; points: 60 #3 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #77 Anastasia Rodionova AUS 6-0, 6-2 Jelena's backhand drive #5 s2 Maria Sharapova RUS d #74 Tatiana Perebiynis UKR 7-5, 6-2 Maria serving to Tatiana, and driving a forehand #8 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS d #28 s13 Victoria Azarenka BLR 6-4, 7-5 Elena's forehand drive #9 s5 Serena Williams USA d #26 s12 Katarina Srebotnik SLO 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 Katarina and Serena driving backhands, and Serena after winning a point     Serena said: "It wasn't pretty out there for me today. I should have won the first set easy, and I made some errors. I had a couple break points on a couple game points. I missed some easy overheads, that would have put me to win the first set. So it wasn't the best tennis for me." postmatch interview *#14 s9 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #11 s6 Marion Bartoli FRA 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 #12 s7 Patty Schnyder SUI d #16 s11 Agnieszka Radwanska POL 6-3, 6-2 Agnieszka volleying a backhand, Patty's forehand drive, and after match point *#15 s10 Agnes Szavay HUN d #13 s8 Dinara Safina RUS 6-2, 7-5 Dinara about to serve, and Agnes driving a backhand #49 Alize Cornet FRA d #90 Sorana Cirstea ROU 6-1, 7-5 Sorana driving a backhand, and Alize after winning a point

Charleston, QFs, Fri 11am ESPN2-TV & Eurosport loser's prize: $26,050 US; points: 110 *#14 s9 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #3 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 Jelena and Vera driving backhands     Jelena defeated Vera 6-1, 6-4 two weeks ago in the Miami semifinals. Vera said: "I think after the match in Miami I sort of knew how [Jelena] was playing, because I haven't played against her for a couple of years before the match in Miami, and she definitely improved. She's one of the top players, so I had to figure out and find another way, and I just tried everything that I didn't try in Miami today, I guess, and it worked better for me today." postmatch interview *#9 s5 Serena Williams USA d #5 s2 Maria Sharapova RUS 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 Maria driving a forehand, Serena's backhand, and after match point     Although she fired 8 aces, Maria was plagued by 9 double faults, and won only 38% of her 2nd serve points. Serena fired 11 aces with just 2 DFs, and won 52% of her 2nd serve points. Reuters story     Serena said: "All I did was fight well, and I served okay, but it just shows me that I still have a lot to work on and I can improve leaps and bounds still." postmatch interview     Maria said: "I thought the first two sets were pretty good quality of tennis. There were a few key points in the match which I think could have obviously made the score line a little bit different... When you don't take your chances against a player like [Serena] it's difficult to keep that intensity up for three sets... I gave it all I had in the first two, and in the third I think I ran a little bit short." postmatch interview #8 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS d #12 s7 Patty Schnyder SUI 6-4, 6-4 Patty and Elena driving backhands, and Elena after match point *#49 Alize Cornet FRA d #15 s10 Agnes Szavay HUN 7-5, 6-4 Agnes driving a forehand, Alize's backhand, and after match point     Alize said: "I think the quality of the match was not so good because I think we were nervous, both nervous. And you know, it was just more so that her, in the important point I played better, and I think that's why I win today, but now I'm so happy I can't talk about the match because I just think about tomorrow, about Serena and it's so exciting for me...     "I never played against [Serena] before, but I saw her match, before my match, against Maria Sharapova, and they hit so hard. And I said, 'Oh, my God, if I win, if I play Serena tomorrow, I hope not to be ridiculous,' you know. But I think I will take my chance and I will do my best." postmatch interview

Charleston, SFs, Sat 1pm ESPN2-TV & Eurosport WTA story loser's prize: $51,000 US; points: 195 *#14 s9 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #8 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS 6-3, 6(2)-7, 6-3 Elena and Vera driving forehands, and Vera after match point     Vera said: "I wasn't thinking about the score when I was on the court. I was just trying to find a way to win that match, and I kept fighting, and I think it worked for me today...     "[Elena is ] a great player and she never gives up, so I had to do the same. I had to fight for every point and no matter what, just try to come out there and think about what should I do about the next point, and that's it." postmatch interview     Elena said: "[Vera] was on fire. I think she played really well today. It seems like she's very ready for the clay court season, moving so well, and the whole game was pretty solid. So for me if you want to beat someone like her, you really have to play from the first point till the end, and I had like ups and downs in my game, and it was very difficult, because she was always up in the score, and it just put a lot of pressure on me." postmatch interview #9 s5 Serena Williams USA d #49 Alize Cornet FRA 7-5, 6-3 Alize and Serena driving backhands, and Serena after match point     Alize took a 4-1 lead in the 1st set. Alize said: "It was a tough match for me, of course, because [Serena] serves very hard, and each important point she did a good serve, so it was very tough for me. After that I had really a lot of fun in this match. I like the central, I like the crowd. It was so nice for me, and I just tried to do my best, and I think it's what I did...     "[My coach and I] have a lot of work to do. I have to be more aggressive in backhand. I can do it, but I have to take on me to go more on backhand. And after that I have to work my topspin and forehand. I think it can be a weapon against all these players, even Serena... postmatch interview

Charleston, Final, Sun 1pm ESPN2-TV & Eurosport loser's prize: $ 100,000 US; points: 300 winner's prize: $ 196,900 US; points: 430 #9 s5 Serena Williams USA d #14 s9 Vera Zvonareva RUS 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 Serena and Vera driving forehands, and Serena's backhand drive

Charleston, Doubles Final after singles losers' prize: $30,000 US winners' prize: $59,000 US cdr7 s2 Katarina Srebotnik & Ai Sugiyama d cdr344 Edina Gallovits & Olga Govortsova 6-2, 6-2 Charleston, Qual Finals, Sun Apr 13 10am losers' prizes: q1 $900 1pt; q2 $1,765 10pts; qualifier 15 points #115 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN d #275 Melissa Torres Sandoval MEX 6-3, 6-3 *#385 Alexandra Stevenson USA d #133 Julia Schruff GER 6-3, 6-2 *#417 Chia-Jung Chuang TPE d #140 Tatiana Poutchek BLR 7-5, 7-5 *#257 Tiantian Sun CHN d #142 Melinda Czink HUN 6-2, 7-5 #149 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE d #178 Angela Haynes USA 6-3, 6-3 #156 Varvara Lepchenko USA d #721 Mirjana Lucic CRO 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 *#187 Chanelle Scheepers RSA d #164 Monique Adamczak AUS 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 #169 Alina Jidkova RUS d #274 Alexa Glatch USA 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 Charleston, Withdrawals: #1 Justine Henin BEL right knee pain #6 Venus Williams USA medical tests #18 Tatiana Golovin FRA had surgery on March 12 to remove a left hip cyst that was     causing pain, appendix was removed as well--hopes to be playing by French Open #20 Nadia Petrova RUS right quadriceps tear and/or hip injury #23 Sybille Bammer AUT illness #35 Eleni Daniilidou GRE right knee #39 Caroline Wozniacki DEN left ankle injury #41 Julia Vakulenko UKR right wrist #42 Zi Yan CHN left elbow #52 Akiko Morigami JPN left knee and/or hip injury #54 Vera Dushevina RUS abdominal strain #57 Shuai Peng CHN left hamstring injury #60 Ashley Harkleroad USA recovering from surgery #61 Mariya Koryttseva UKR upper respiratory illness #75 Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP left quadriceps strain #78 Meilen Tu USA left hip #84 Nathalie Dechy FRA fatigue #108 Ekaterina Bychkova RUS "Admin"

Estoril Open,  Estoril, Portugal   tourney time:        = GMT +1 hour        = US EDT +5 hours        = US PDT +8 hours Portugal News - Portugal Weather Radar Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar     Estoril: The 32-player main draw for Estoril has 8 seeds, with no 1st-round byes. There are 4 qualifiers and 3 wild cards in the main draw. Qualifying finals are on Monday.   click for broader view   Estadio Nacional   Estoril map - venue map Latitude: 38.707683 Longitude: -9.253299 goto link for World Wind 2008: Top singles seeds Flavia Pennetta & Maria Kirilenko were partners for an easy doubles win on Monday... On Tuesday, Maria signed autographs in the Sony Ericsson booth... Also early in the week, 15-year-old Portuguese wildcard Michelle Larcher de Brito posed for a pretty pic to accompany her first WTA player's blog...

Estoril, 1st Round, Mon-Tue 11am losers' prize: $1,035 US; points: 1 #25 s1 Flavia Pennetta ITA d #83 Yvonne Meusburger AUT 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 Tue #32 s2 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #207 q Stefanie Vogele SUI 6-4, 6(2)-7, 6-1 Tue #37 s3 Karin Knapp ITA d #290 wc Frederica Piedade POR 6-3, 6-0 Mon Karin and Frederica driving forehands *#199 Kirsten Flipkens BEL d #40 s4 Lucie Safarova CZE 7-5, 6-4 Tue #51 s5 Tathiana Garbin ITA d #231 q Yuliya Beygelzimer UKR 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 Tue #60 s6 Klara Zakopalova CZE d #104 Evgenia Rodina RUS 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 Mon #62 s7 Sofia Arvidsson SWE d #95 Lilia Osterloh USA 7-5, 6-4 Mon #69 s8 Camille Pin FRA d #80 Angelique Kerber GER 7-6(6), 6-3 Tue *#100 Petra Cetkovska CZE d #70 Alisa Kleybanova RUS 6-2, 6-2 Tue #71 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL d #105 Stephanie Dubois CAN 6-0, 6-1 Mon #91 Olga Savchuk UKR d #109 Sandra Kloesel GER 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 Tue *#192 q Corinna Dentoni ITA d #96 Rossana de Los Rios PAR 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 Tue *#138 Maret Ani EST d #103 Anne Kremer LUX 7-5, 6-2 Tue *#189 q Mariana Duque Marino COL d #122 Monica Niculescu ROU 64 63 Tue #132 Iveta Benesova CZE d #190 Neuza Silva POR 6-0, 6-2 Tue Iveta's backhand drive *#470 sr Sanda Mamic CRO d #232 wc Michelle Larcher de Brito POR 2-6, 6-0, 6-4 Tue Michelle about to swat a backhand, and Sanda's forehand drive     Michelle said: "I'm feeling pretty sad that I lost today. It was my first clay tournament and it was a really good match, though. I had two points to make it 3-all in the third set but Sanda was able to get the break and ended up winning that last set, 6-4." Estoril player blog by Michelle Larcher de Brito

Estoril, 2nd Round, Wed-Thu 11am losers' prize: $1,925 US; points: 15 *#132 Iveta Benesova CZE d #25 s1 Flavia Pennetta ITA 6-2, 6-2 Wed Iveta & Flavia after match point #32 s2 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #100 Petra Cetkovska CZE 6-3, 6-2 Thu Petra's forehand, Maria driving a backhand, and after match point #37 s3 Karin Knapp ITA d #189 q Mariana Duque Marino COL 6-3, 6-4 Wed Karin after winning a point #51 s5 Tathiana Garbin ITA d #470 sr Sanda Mamic CRO 6-2, 6-2 Thu #60 s6 Klara Zakopalova CZE d #192 q Corinna Dentoni ITA 6-4, 6-1 Wed *#91 Olga Savchuk UKR d #62 s7 Sofia Arvidsson SWE 6-2, 6-2 Thu #69 s8 Camille Pin FRA d #71 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL 6-3, 6-4 Wed #138 Maret Ani EST d #199 Kirsten Flipkens BEL 6-0, 6-2 Thu

Estoril, QFs, Fri 11am WTA story losers' prize: $3,580 US; points: 30 #32 s2 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #51 s5 Tathiana Garbin ITA 6-0, 6-1 Maria's service toss, Tathiana's forehand drive, Maria's backhand, and after match point     Maria won the Beijing title in 2005 and the Kolkata title in 2007, but had struggled lately. Between the Australian Open in January (where she lost in the 4th round to Daniela Hantuchova in 3 sets) and this week, she won only one match, and had 5 straight losses. Now Maria has reached her first semifinal since Kolkata last year, when she won her last title. *#60 s6 Klara Zakopalova CZE d #37 s3 Karin Knapp ITA 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 *#132 Iveta Benesova CZE d #69 s8 Camille Pin FRA 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 *#138 Maret Ani EST d #91 Olga Savchuk UKR 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-4

Estoril, SFs, Sat noon WTA story losers' prize: $6,650 US; points: 50 #32 s2 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #60 s6 Klara Zakopalova CZE 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 Maria driving a forehand, Klara following one, Maria's backhand, and after match point #132 Iveta Benesova CZE d #138 Maret Ani EST 6-2, 6-1 Maret's backhand drive, Iveta's forehand, and after match point

Estoril, Final, Sun noon WTA story loser's prize: $12,345 US; points: 80 winner's prize: $22,900 US; points: 115 #32 s2 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #132 Iveta Benesova CZE 6-4, 6-2 Maria driving a backhand, Iveta's lefty version, Maria driving another while running netward, and after match point

Estoril, Doubles Final, Sat losers' prize: $3,640 US winners' prize: $6,750 US cdr111 s1 Maria Kirilenko & Flavia Pennetta d Mervana Jugic-Salkic & Ipek Senoglu 6-4, 6-4 Flavia & Maria after match point, and with the glassware     Maria said: "Flavia and I had a lot of fun on court, and I think that was one of the reasons we played so well here. It wasn't easy today with the weather conditions, but we managed and I am very happy we could win this tournament."     Flavia said: "It is the first time we played together, and it is just great that we were able to win here at Estoril right away. I think we played very well together. Winning a title is not so easy, so I am very happy how this week went. I hope it won't be the last tournament we play together." Estoril, Qual Finals, Mon Apr 14 11am losers' prizes: q1 $175 1pt; q2 $300 2pts; q3 $555 3pts; qualifier 7 points *#192 Corinna Dentoni ITA d #124 Carla Suarez Navarro ESP 6-1, 6(4)-7, 6-1 Mon *#231 Yuliya Beygelzimer UKR d #171 Eva Hrdinova CZE 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 Mon *#207 Stefanie Vogele SUI d #183 Oxana Lyubtsova UKR 6-2, 6-3 Mon #189 Mariana Duque Marino COL d #238 Andrea Hlavackova CZE 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 Mon Estoril, Withdrawals # Martina Muller GER # Emilie Loit FRA # Marta Domachowska POL Charleston # Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP Charleston # Lourdes Dominguez Lino ESP Charleston # Tatjana Malek GER illness # Sara Errani ITA Charleston # Iona Raluca Olaru ROU # Tzipora Obziler ISR injury

    (April 1-4, 2008 revised) Maria Sharapova has entered both the Bausch & Lomb Championships at Amelia Island, April 7-13, and the Family Circle Cup at Charleston, April 14-20. Maria had withdrawn from the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami to rest her sore right shoulder.

See also: QuickShop: Sporting Goods - Martina Hingis - Anna Kournikova

Current WTA Results & Tennis News (tennis home page) - 2008 WTA Schedule with links & photos

Link to many postmatch interview & match highlight videos of WTA players at the 2008 WTA Player Videos page.

WTA PhotoRankings: the current top 20 Women's Tennis rankings with player photos, links, and bio info.