WTA: May 25-Jun 8   French Open Roland Garros, FRA Grand Slam Prize$: €6,985,680 (women's total) 128 players - outdoor: red clay matches: statistics Live Scores - OOP - results draws: all WTA, .pdf - mix doub women's: qualif. - singles - doub men's: qualif. - singles - doub photos: Yahoo!: US - France     tourney - WTA Videos: interviews - highlights Radio Roland Garros - TV: ESPN2 text: news - interviews tourney schedule - venue map     website map Paris: radar - forecast     Paris map - news: Paris - France # 1 M Sharapova, # 2 A Ivanovic # 3 J Jankovic, # 4 S Kuznetsova information site for players 2008 RG Players Guide, .pdf

tourney archive: previous tourney page     next tourney page Roland Garros: #14 Dinara Safina 5'11½" 154½lb RH 2H-BH Roland Garros: #2 Ana Ivanovic 6'1" 152lb RH 2H-BH Roland Garros: 1st Grand Slam Title 7th WTA Singles Title

New Champ: On Saturday at Roland Garros, Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris, France, in the final of the 2008 French Open, last year's finalist, 20-year-old 2nd-seeded # 2 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia (res: Basel, Switzerland) defeated this year's Berlin champ, 22-year-old 13th-seeded # 14 Dinara Safina of Russia (residence: Monte Carlo, Monaco), 6-4, 6-3 (photo shown).     Her semifinal victory had given Ana the points to become # 1 in the WTA for the first time in her career; now she has added her first Grand Slam title.

    Retired former # 1 Justine Henin, a 4-time French Open champion, awarded the trophies. Ana's prize is €1,000,000 (about $1,557,780 US), Dinara's is €530,000 (about $825,623 US).

    Ana said: "It wasn't easy match. [Dinara] played really well, I thought. First set I had a double break and she came back...
    "I was really happy that in a key moment I managed to stay strong and calm, in the second set, especially. At 4-2 we had very, very long game. I had few advantages and I wasn't as aggressive, but I kept my composure and stepped up and won my service game and managed to break her again. I'm very, very happy." postmatch interview - interview video

    Dinara thought fatigue resulted in her loss. Dinara said: "If I would be just a little bit fresher it would be different, because I spent way too many hours for those two matches against Maria and Elena [Sharapova & Dementieva, 3rd & 4th rounds]. Two comebacks, because comebacks always take so much heart and mentally.
    "With [Ana], I had to be really aggressive. It was just missing just a little bit more reaction, a little bit come closer to the ball. Of course, she was much fresher. What I had to do to her, she was doing to me." postmatch interview - interview video

    Ana hit 41 winners (1 ace) with only 22 unforced errors (no double faults). Dinara hit 37 winners (2 aces) with 28 errors (5 DFs). Ana won 68% of her 1st serve points, compared to 54% for Dinara, Ana averaged 102mph on 1st serves (115mph fastest) and 87mph on 2nd serves, while Dinara averaged 99mph on 1st serves (111mph fastest) and 86 mph on 2nd serves. match stats - WTA story

    Ana now leads Dinara 3-1 in career matches; they had not played in almost two years. Their prior meeting was in the Montreal semifinals in August, 2006, when Ana defeated Dinara on a hard court, 6-1, 6-4. They had played on clay only once previously, in the 1st round of the 2005 German Open, when Dinara won by the same score.

    Ana is now 7-3 in WTA singles finals; she also won at Indian Wells this year, and last year in Luxembourg, Los Angeles, and Berlin. Ana was a finalist at this year's Australian Open, and at the French Open last year. Ana now has a 27-6 match record in 2008 (82%) and was 10-2 during the clay court season.
    Valencia, Spain-trained Dinara is now 6-5 in WTA singles finals; she won the Berlin title less than 3 weeks ago, her first Tier I title. Dinara had won 12 consecutive matches prior to this final, all on red clay. She was 14-3 for the entire clay court season, and now has a 23-11 match record for the year (68%).

    Men's Final: *s2 Rafael Nadal d s1 Roger Federer 6-1, 6-3, 6-0

WTA SCOREBOARD: French Open, Roland Garros s=seed, #=rank, *=upset, LL=lucky loser ranks are for the previous week How do players get into the "draw"? prizes in US $ are at Apr 29 conversion rate French Open,  Roland Garros, Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris, France   tourney time:        = GMT +2 hours        = US EDT +6 hours        = US PDT +9 hours Paris News - France News Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar     Roland Garros: The 128-player main draw for the French Open has 32 seeds, with no 1st-round byes. There are 12 qualifiers and 8 wild cards in the main draw. Qualifying finals are on Friday.     Main draw play begins on Sunday. Early round play at Roland Garros begins at 11am local time.     Roland Garros, Boulogne-Billancourt - click for broader view venue map - Court Phillipe Chatrier panorama Latitude: 48.846975 Longitude: 2.248002 goto link for World Wind France Geoportail plugin for World Wind (maps & aerial photos) 2008: On Wednesday, May 21, at Roland Garros, new # 1 and top seed Maria Sharapova stretched the calves which had caused her to withdraw from her SF in Rome last week... on Thursday, 2007 finalist Ana Ivanovic was out practicing, as was Serena Williams on Friday... also on Friday, pretty 2007 French Open juniors champ Alize Cornet, this year 19th seed in the main draw, entertained reporters, as did recently retired and relaxed 2003, '05, '06 & '07 French Open champion Justine Henin on Saturday...

French Open, 1st Round Sun-Tue May 25-27 11am WTA story loser's prize: €14,290 = US $22,260; points: 2 Monday: rain halted play - Tue: rain delay, play resumed 6pm #1 s1 Maria Sharapova RUS d #104 Evgeniya Rodina RUS 6-1, 3-6, 8-6 ppd-Wed Maria and Evgeniya serving, and Maria driving a backhand     Maria had a terrible day, striking 68 unforced errors (with only 10 winners) including 17 double faults (with only 2 aces). Evgeniya hit 28 errors with 3 winners, and 5 DFs with one ace. match stats     Maria would not blame high winds for her poor performance. Maria said: "I was very close to losing this match. [Evgeniya] served well after the first set, and I didn’t break her until the end of the third set. Not many things were working for me today after the first set. I just hung in there...     "I've played in a lot of matches where it's been windy, and I've been successful in many of them. These are just days where you're not playing your best tennis. At the end of the day, you're fortunate to get through the match. Because realistically, I don't know if there's any way down from here." tourney story - postmatch interview - interview video #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #52 Sofia Arvidsson SWE 6-2, 7-5 Sun Ana following a forehand, and Sofia driving a backhand     Ana said: "[Sofia] gave me a tough match, especially in the second set. I let my intensity go down for a bit, dropped for a bit, and she used it and she started playing much better. But towards the end I'm happy that I found back my game and managed to break her back, and win the second set...     "I tried to set myself in a position to hit a good stroke and a winner. I wasn't overhitting and overpowering from the first shot on. That was my goal for today, so I'm happy about it." postmatch interview - interview video #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #86 LL Monica Niculescu ROU 7-6(3), 6-2Mon Jelena and Monica driving forehand and backhand, and Jelena after match point #4 s4 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #72 Aiko Nakamura JPN 6-2, 6-3 Tue Sveta and Aiko following backhands     Soggy: The quick win allowed Svetlana to finish the rain-delayed match before another rain delay that lasted until 6pm.     About the wet conditions, which add weight to the ball, Svetlana said: "I hit the ball big, but I also do hit heavy. And when the ball with these conditions was very heavy, it was very comfortable for me.     "[Aiko's] ball was flat and slow, and I did so many errors not going to the ball, because it was way slower than I expected it to be. And then it was just weird. I was starting to imagine it was raining a little bit, and I was, like, 'Oh, I hope we can play. What we do? We go?' And thinking about this I realized I lost first game.     "I then I said, 'Come on. I got to play the match.' I got into the game. I was a bit weaker in the second set. First few games I didn't play very well. I couldn't break her. But in the end I was pretty consistent, and I'm pretty happy with the outcome." postmatch interview - interview video #5 s3 Serena Williams USA d #59 Ashley Harkleroad USA 6-2, 6-1 Sun Ashley about to slice a backhand, and Serena following a forehand     Serena said: "I'm definitely happy with the result today... I have lots of matches under my belt from the clay court season. It is better than coming in with just one or two matches, especially on the clay." #6 s6 Anna Chakvetadze RUS d #82 Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 ppd-Wed Nuria and Anna driving backhands #7 s7 Elena Dementieva RUS d #46 Vera Dushevina RUS 6(6)-7, 6-0, 6-2 ppd-Wed Elena lining up a backhand, and Vera following a forehand #8 s8 Venus Williams USA d #94 Tzipora Obziler ISR 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 Mon Venus twisting a serve, and Tzipora following a forehand     Venus said: "Sometimes tennis isn't always won as quick as you want. I think [Tzipora] really played some good tennis. She made some good shots and fought really hard, fought hard for that second set, and it was just important to close it out in the third." AP story - interview video *#51 Casey Dellacqua AUS d #9 s9 Marion Bartoli FRA 6-7(4) 6-3, 6-2 ppd-Tue-rain-Wed Marion's 2-handed forehand with backhand grip, and Casey's lefty, though conventional, forehand #11 s10 Patty Schnyder SUI d #99 Ekaterina Bychkova RUS 6-3, 6-4 Mon Ekaterina lining up a backhand, and Patty twisting a serve #12 s11 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #124 wc Stephanie Foretz FRA 6-2, 6-1 ppd-Wed Stephanie, in rimless shades, tossing the ball for her serve, and Vera following a forehand #13 s12 Agnes Szavay HUN d #112 Ayumi Morita JPN 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 Mon Ayumi about to swat a backhand (strangely, no photo of Agnes could be found) #14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS d #57 Kateryna Bondarenko UKR 6-1, 6-3 Tue Dinara and Kateryna following forehand and backhand, and Dinara after winning a point     Dinara said: "I think it was a pretty good match for the first round. [Kateryna] is not an easy opponent because she's a very aggressive girl. So with her you really have to dominate first.     "In the second set that's what happened. I got a little too passive and she won the break on me, so I had to turn it again. I'm really happy that I could go through in two sets, especially before the rain started." postmatch interview - interview video #15 s14 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #60 Mariya Koryttseva UKR 6-4, 6-3 Mon-rain-Tue *#68 q Iveta Benesova CZE d #16 s11 Nicole Vaidisova CZE 7-6(2), 6-1 Sun Nicole and Iveta following righty backhand and lefty forehand     The loss was Nicole's 5th in a row, and dropped her record to 11-9 this season, during which she has been sidelined much of the time by a wrist injury. Nicole has won only 3 matches since she lost to Serena Williams in the 4th round of the Australian Open in January; two of those wins were in Fed Cup play the following week. ESPN story     Nicole said: "Iveta played a really good match. It's always hard to play your best friend. She started the tie-break well, and I just have to give her credit. I looked to my box for support. I always do that and I did it today."     Iveta said: "The key point of the first set was the tie-break; I started well and it just went from there. I knew I had to attack. I was going for the big shots, and it was working. After a difficult first game in the second set I played well again, and I don't think [Nicole] was as focused in that set." #17 s16 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #61 Edina Gallovits ROU 6-1, 6-3 ppd-Wed *#150 wc Samantha Stosur AUS d #18 s17 Shahar Peer ISR 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 ppd-Wed Samantha looking to slice a backhand, and Shahar driving one #19 s18 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #62 Jill Craybas USA 6-3, 6-2 ppd-Wed #20 s19 Alize Cornet FRA d #75 Julia Vakulenko UKR 7-5, 6-4 Sun Alize and Julia driving forehands, and Alize at ready *#140 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN d #22 s20 Sybille Bammer AUT 6-0, 6-2 ppd-Wed Aleksandra's backhand drive #23 s21 Maria Kirilenko RUS d #132 Maria Elena Camerin ITA 6-1, 6-0 ppd-Wed #24 s22 Amelie Mauresmo FRA d #79 Olga Savchuk UKR 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 ppd-Tue Amelie and Olga driving forehand and backhand *#76 Petra Cetkovska CZE d #25 s23 Alona Bondarenko UKR 6-3, 6-0 Mon *#55 Klara Zakopalova CZE d #27 s24 Virginie Razzano FRA 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 Sun Virginie and Klara following backhands #28 s25 Nadia Petrova RUS d #45 Aravane Rezai FRA 7-6(4), 6-3 ppd-Wed Nadia following a backhand, and Aravane driving one #29 s26 Flavia Pennetta ITA d #63 Tatiana Perebiynis UKR 6-3, 6-2 Mon-rain-Tue-rain-Wed #30 s27 Katarina Srebotnik SLO d #74 V Ruano Pascual ESP 6-4, 6-2 Mon-rain-Wed #31 s28 Dominika Cibulkova SVK d #96 Angelique Kerber GER 6-2, 6-2 Sun Dominika's forehand drive, and Angelique's backhand #33 s29 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #148 q Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP 6-3, 6-2 ppd-Wed #34 s30 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #91 Yvonne Meusburger AUT 6-0, 6-2 Sun Caroline following a backhand #37 s31 Ai Sugiyama JPN d #103 Alla Kudryavtseva RUS 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 Tue Ai and Alla driving backhands #38 s32 Karin Knapp ITA d #85 Martina Muller GER 6-0, 6-4 Mon #39 Olga Govortsova BLR d #139 Yuliana Fedak UKR 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 ppd-Wed *#84 Sabine Lisicki GER d #40 Elena Vesnina RUS 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 ppd-Tue #41 Gisela Dulko ARG d #53 Sara Errani ITA 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 Sun-dark-Mon Sara's backhand drive, and Gisela's #42 Lucie Safarova CZE d #125 Sandra Kloesel GER 6-1, 6-1 Sun #43 Michaella Krajicek NED d #335 sr  Sanda Mamic CRO 6-4, 6-3 ppd-Wed *#89 Emilie Loit FRA d #44 Zi Yan CHN 1-6, 6-4, 8-6 Mon #47 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL d #80 Yung-Jan Chan TPE 5-7, 6-2, 6-0 ppd-Wed *#71 Timea Bacsinszky SUI d #48 Tamira Paszek AUT 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 Mon *#122 q Carla Suarez Navarro ESP d #49 Pauline Parmentier FRA 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 ppd-Tue #50 Kaia Kanepi EST d #105 Meng Yuan CHN 6-2, 6-2 ppd-Wed #54 Alisa Kleybanova RUS d #69 Tamarine Tanasugarn THA 6-3, 6-0 ppd-Wed Tammy about to swat a forehand, and Alisa waiting to lightly tap a backhand *#78 Marina Erakovic NZL d #56 Tathiana Garbin ITA 6(9)-7, 6-3, 6-3 Mon-rain-Wed #58 Akgul Amanmuradova UZB d #95 q Yanina Wickmayer BEL 6-2, 7-5 Mon-rain-Wed #64 Ekaterina Makarova RUS d #109 Catalina Castano COL 7-5, 6-1 Sun *#66 Shuai Peng CHN d #65 Anastasia Rodionova RUS 6-0, 2-6, 6-3 Mon-rain-Wed *#93 Petra Kvitova CZE d #67 Akiko Morigami JPN 6-4, 6-3 ppd-Wed Akiko serving, and Petra following a backhand *#129 wc Mathilde Johansson FRA d #73 Camille Pin FRA 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 Sun Camille and Mathilde driving backhands #77 Marta Domachowska POL d #83 Rossana de Los Rios PAR 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 ppd-Wed #81 Sorana Cirstea ROU d #131 Anne Kremer LUX 6-0, 3-0 retired ppd-Wed #87 Nathalie Dechy FRA d #100 Julie Ditty USA 7-5, 7-6(3) Sun *#90 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA d #88 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU 7-6(4), 6-3 ppd-Wed *#188 q Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #98 Maria Emilia Salerni ARG 6-1, 6-1 Mon #101 Galina Voskoboeva RUS d #206 wc Youlia Fedossova FRA 6-0, 6(4)-7, 6-1 Sun *#239 q Selima Sfar TUN d #102 Stephanie Dubois CAN 7-5, 6-2 Sun *#171 q Anastasiya Yakimova BLR d #106 Su-Wei Hsieh TPE 6(4)-7, 7-5, 6-4 Sun Su-Wei driving her 2-handed forehand, and Anastasia's backhand drive #108 q Bethanie Mattek USA d #267 wc Madison Brengle USA 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 ppd-Wed Madison lining up a forehand, and Bethanie following one *#157 sr  Milagros Sequera VEN d #114 Lilia Osterloh USA 7-6(5), 7-5 Sun Milagros about to swat a backhand, and Lilia driving one #116 Vania King USA d #271 wc Violette Huck FRA 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 ppd-Wed Vania about to connect with a forehand #117 wc Olivia Sanchez FRA d #197 q Jarmila Gajdosova SVK 7-6(4), 7-6(8) ppd-Tue *#191 q Jelena Pandzic CRO d #119 wc Severine Bremond FRA 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 Mon *#201 q Jie Zheng CHN d #120 Mara Santangelo ITA 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 ppd-Wed Jie and Mara driving backhands #158 q Magdalena Rybarikova SVK d #347 sr  Karolina Sprem CRO 7-6(3), 3-6, 8-6 ppd-Wed

French Open, 2nd Rd Wed-Thu May 28-29 11am Thursday: rain delay, play resumed till dark, 9:40pm loser's prize: €23,760 = US $37,013; points: 60 #1 s1 Maria Sharapova RUS v #108 q Bethanie Mattek USA 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 Thu-dark-Fri Maria ready to lightly tap a backhand, and Bethanie and Maria following backhand drives     Maria said: "Yesterday the points were obviously a lot longer than in our previous meeting. I felt like I had to hit a few more to win the point, and I did a good job of that.     "Then today I wake up and you feel like you're playing a different match in a another tournament, in a way. It's been kind of strange, but the good thing is I still have a match ahead of me." postmatch interview - postmatch interview #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #42 Lucie Safarova CZE 6-1, 6-2 Wed Lucie and Ana following forehands, and Ana after match point     Ana said: "I expected a very tough match, and I prepared myself that I have to work hard for every point. That's what I did out there, and I put a lot of pressure on [Lucie]. Sometimes she even made mistakes when I didn't expect it. But still I'm really happy the way I played. Like I said, I expected a very tough match, so to win with a score like this, it's definitely a great, great proof that I played good today." AP story - interview video #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #78 Marina Erakovic NZL 6-2, 7-6(5) ppd-Thu Marina and Jelena twisting serves     Jelena had to call on the trainer due to pain in her right arm. Jelena said: "It happened I think somewhere in the beginning of the second set and gradually was getting worse and worse. Because for me the balls were a little bit heavier because the weather is humid and the court is wet, and the game is very much slower than usual.     "And so from hitting a lot of balls, my arm got very at first tight, and I started to have pain in my arm. It's swollen now at the moment, and it got swollen in the match. I received treatment from the trainer, and she helped me to finish the match, and I'm glad about that...     "[Marina] played great. She's a very young player, and didn't have anything to lose. Of course, I was the favorite. She had a great performance. She was playing freely, serving unbelievably. She has a great serve, and especially she was winning a lot of points on that part." postmatch interview - interview video #4 s4 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #116 Vania King USA 6-4, 6-2 Thu Svetlana about to swat a forehand, and Vania following a backhand #5 s3 Serena Williams USA d #129 wc Mathilde Johansson FRA 6-2, 7-5 Wed Serena following a backhand, and Mathilde after running down a forehand     Serena said: "I didn't want to go three sets today. I thought I could close it out in two sets and it was getting dark. I'm tired of playing so late and in the dark and I was like, 'Okay, I'm going to close it out before then.'" postmatch interview - interview video *#50 Kaia Kanepi EST d #6 s6 Anna Chakvetadze RUS 6-4, 7-6(2) Thu Anna firing a cannonball, and Kaia following a forehand #7 s7 Elena Dementieva RUS d #77 Marta Domachowska POL 6-1, 6-4 Thu Marta driving a backhand, and Elena after match point #8 s8 Venus Williams USA d #239 q Selima Sfar TUN 6-2, 6-4 ppd-Thu Selima delivering a backhand, and Venus following a forehand on the run     Venus said: "I think I played well, and I just tried to improve literally on every point I'm playing out there, just to play better every point, play better every match." postmatch interview - interview video #11 s10 Patty Schnyder SUI d #71 Timea Bacsinszky SUI 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 Wed Patty's backhand, Timea following a forehand, and Timea congratulating Patty after match point #12 s11 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #90 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA 6-2, 6-4 ppd-Fri Vera driving a backhand, and after match point #13 s12 Agnes Szavay HUN d #84 Sabine Lisicki GER 7-6(3), 6-3 Thu #14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS d #158 q Magdalena Rybarikova SVK 6-0, 6-1 Thu Dinara following a backhand drive #15 s14 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #191 q Jelena Pandzic CRO 6-2, 6-0 Wed #17 s16 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #81 Sorana Cirstea ROU 6-0, 6-0 Thu #19 s18 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #335 sr  Sanda Mamic CRO 6-3, 6-0 Thu #20 s19 Alize Cornet FRA d #41 Gisela Dulko ARG 6-0, 4-6, 6-4 Wed-dark-Thu 2 views of Alize serving, Gisela serving, Alize about to slice a backhand, and after match point *#201 q Jie Zheng CHN d #23 s21 Maria Kirilenko RUS 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 Thu *#122 q Carla Suarez Navarro ESP d #24 s22 Amelie Mauresmo FRA 6-3, 6-4 ppd-Thu Carla about to swat a backhand, Amelie following a forehand, and Carla after match point     Amelie said: "I don't know what to say right now, because there was nothing much on my side, apart from a few games in which I was slightly more aggressive and not letting her play that game that much.     "But I don't know if I lacked rigor in my intentions. I don't know if I let her impose her style too much, because she has a typically Spanish style. It's usually men playing like that, so she has a very long shot, but her balls were not that fast.     "So that's it. It's a bit difficult for me to analyze all this. And all I can say is that I feel sorry about the way I played, especially from a tactical standpoint." postmatch interview - postmatch interview #28 s25 Nadia Petrova RUS d #54 Alisa Kleybanova RUS 6-3, 6-3 Thu-dark-Fri Nadia watching her backhand fly, and after match point #29 s26 Flavia Pennetta ITA d #188 q Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 ppd-Thu Anastasia serving, and Flavia following a forehand drive #30 s27 Katarina Srebotnik SLO d #64 Ekaterina Makarova RUS 6-0, 7-5 ppd-Thu Ekaterina and Katarina following forehand and backhand #31 s28 Dominika Cibulkova SVK d #157 sr  Milagros Sequera VEN 6-3, 6-0 ppd-Thu Dominika ready to field a backhand, and Milagros driving one #33 s29 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #47 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 Thu #34 s30 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #171 q Anastasiya Yakimova BLR 6-0, 6-4 Wed Caroline and Anastasiya about to swat forehands *#39 Olga Govortsova BLR d #37 s31 Ai Sugiyama JPN 6-0, 7-5 Thu Olga driving a backhand, and Ai following one #38 s32 Karin Knapp ITA d #117 wc Olivia Sanchez FRA 6-2, 7-6(4) Thu #51 Casey Dellacqua AUS d #87 Nathalie Dechy FRA 6-4, 6-2 ppd-Thu Casey driving a backhand, and Amelie about to swat a forehand *#89 Emilie Loit FRA d #55 Klara Zakopalova CZE 6-4, 6-3 Wed #58 Akgul Amanmuradova UZB v #140 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN Thu c4 m3 *#68 q Iveta Benesova CZE d #66 Shuai Peng CHN 6-4, 6-3 ppd-Thu Iveta ready to wallop a backhand, and Shuai driving one #76 Petra Cetkovska CZE d #101 Galina Voskoboeva RUS 7-5, 6-3 ppd-Thu #93 Petra Kvitova CZE d #150 wc Samantha Stosur AUS 6-2, 6-1 Thu Petra's forehand drive

French Open, 3rd Rd Fri-Sat May 30-31 11am Fri WTA story - Sat WTA story loser's prize: €39,400 = US $61,377; points: 90 #1 s1 Maria Sharapova RUS d #38 s32 Karin Knapp ITA 7-6(4), 6-0 Sat Maria serving, Karin and Maria following forehands, and Maria after winning a point     Maria, who almost lost her 1st round match, and whose 2nd round match also went 3 sets, was pleased with her play in the 2nd set this time.     Maria said: "I still managed to play for two hours out there. I kind of forgot what it felt like to finish it in two, but it's good. It was good quality in that second set. I definitely became a lot more aggressive and stepped in and didn't give her too many easy balls. I made it quite difficult for her in the second set...     "[Karin is] tall and a pretty strong girl. She's very deep and big strokes. I don't think she's a great mover. I felt like when I could take advantage, and see the opportunities, I was on the offensive, and then I felt like I was doing the right things." tourney story - interview video     Maria will play Dinara Safina in the 4th round on Monday. Maria leads Dinara 3-2 in career matches, and won their last encounter, on a hard court in the 2006 Los Angeles quarterfinals, 6-2, 6-4. They are tied at 1-1 in matches on clay. Their last dirt court meeting was in the 4th round at Roland Garros in 2006: Maria lead 5-1 in the 3rd set, but Dinara won the match, 7-5, 2-6, 7-5.     Maria said: "[Dinara is] playing with a lot of confidence. She's also playing on a surface that she likes to play on and sort of grew up on as well. The last time, that's one match that I don't want to remember. Obviously it's going to be a new day, and I'm obviously going to have to play better than I have and step it up. It will be a challenge, but it will be a good challenge." #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #34 s30 Caroline Wozniacki DEN 6-4, 6-1 Fri Ana and Caroline driving forehand and backhand, and Ana after match point     Ana said: "[Caroline] gave me a tough match today, and I struggled a little bit with my rhythm. I wasn't moving towards the net as much as I wanted to.     "Because she's tough opponent, I had to be aggressive and step up. That's something I wasn't doing and I wasn't happy about in the first set. But I was just so happy after I lost that service game on 4-3 that I managed to stay calm and win the next two games, which were really important.     "And then in the second set I started doing a little bit better and moving towards the net more." postmatch interview - interview video     Caroline said: "It was really close in the first set at 4-all, and I had my chances. I think the second set was also close, but I just didn't take my chances. I had some short balls in points I should've finished. When I was attacking she came out better, too. I think that was the difference today...     "[Ana] has a good forehand and is attacking lots with it. On the important points she hit some great serves that were difficult for me to catch so I think those are her strengths. But in general she's a great player." #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #31 s28 Dominika Cibulkova SVK 7-5, 6-3 Fri-dark-Sat Jelena following a forehand (she has her name painted on her racquets, possibly to avoid stringing mixups... main strings: Luxilon Big Banger Alu Power ~73 lbs; cross strings Prince Natural Gut ~71 lbs), Dominika (who recently switched from a Volkl bat to an uncredited Dunlop) driving a backhand, and Jelena's backhand     Jelena said: "[Dominika is] a very tough, young player. She returns so many balls. She makes me really play, and if I want to win points I really have to earn them. She doesn't make any errors. I think she made four in the first set - that is what they told me. That shows I really have to construct my points well, especially because the courts are quite slower and the balls get big. Every point counts, and it's very important for me to finish in two sets, which I'm glad I did." #4 s4 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #28 s25 Nadia Petrova RUS 6-2, 6-1 Sat Svetlana serving, Nadia about to swat a backhand, and Sveta driving one     Svetlana said: "I did change my serve after Miami. It took me three weeks. I played Warsaw [exhibition tourney], I played better in Rome. It was inconsistent, but now it's getting better... The same toss. A bit different movement... Serving all the time one way, to change it it's a bit difficult... Much more smoother, the movement. So I feel really good when I can get everything together." postmatch interview - interview video *#30 s27 Katarina Srebotnik SLO d #5 s3 Serena Williams USA 6-4, 6-4 Fri Katarina serving, Serena following a flying backhand, Katarina driving a forehand, and after match point     Katarina reached the 3rd round in 8 of the last 9 Grand Slam tourneys, but her only previous 4th round appearance, also at Roland Garros, was in 2002, when she defeated # 79 Emilie Loit in the 3rd round, 6-0, 6-1, but was defeated by # 9 Jelena Dokic in the 4th, 7-6(3), 6-2. Serena is the highest-ranked player that Katarina has defeated since a win over then # 4 Svetlana Kuznetsova (6-2, retired) in the 2nd round at Sydney in January, 2007.     Katarina said: "Serena's a big hitter and likes to have a perfect hitting zone. So, I tried to mix it up with slice on my backhand, and then from the forehand I was aggressive. And I went to the net as soon as I could. It definitely worked out for me today." WTA story     Serena said: "The last time I played her, [Katarina] was really, really aggressive, and she played really, really well. So I knew it was going to be a tough match going in today...     "I felt like I was able to get into it, but I just felt like I missed a lot of easy shots and a lot of key points that I felt like could have turned the match around. I wasn't able to capitalize on a lot of that...     "She was getting a lot of balls back, and I might have let that get into my head. I should have just made my shot. She was just making some shots I don't think she's ever made before, or she probably would be in the top 2... I knew it was going to be a tough match, but what can I say? She just played unbelievable today." postmatch interview - interview video #7 s7 Elena Dementieva RUS d #39 Olga Govortsova BLR 6-0, 6-4 Sat Elena driving a forehand, Olga's backhand, and Elena after match point *#29 s26 Flavia Pennetta ITA d #8 s8 Venus Williams USA 7-5, 6-3 Fri Flavia driving a forehand, Venus and Flavia driving backhands, and Flavia after winning a point     Flavia also won their previous meeting, on a hard court in the 2007 Bangkok semis, 6-4, 7-6(8), and now leads Venus 2-1 in career matches. This is the first time Flavia has reached the 4th round at Roland Garros; she reached the 4th round at Wimbledon in 2005 and 2006.     Flavia said: "I was very focused; I got on court thinking I could win. I played a great match and I'm very happy about it...     "If I played fast like [Venus] does I wouldn't get anywhere, so I tried mixing it up more, not hitting the same thing twice. It was one of the best matches of my life."     Venus said: "[Flavia] played well, and I think that was the main problem. She played great and hit a lot of great shots, a lot of lines. I wish her the best of luck in the tournament. It just wasn't a good day for our family today, but we always learn and get more determined after our losses." #11 s10 Patty Schnyder SUI d #89 Emilie Loit FRA 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-2 Fri Patty and Emilie driving forehands, and Patty following a backhand #12 s11 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #140 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN 6-2, 6-2 Sat Aleksandra serving, and Vera ready to deliver a backhand *#93 Petra Kvitova CZE d #13 s12 Agnes Szavay HUN 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-2 Sat Agnes and Petra following backhands #14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS d #201 q Jie Zheng CHN 6-2, 7-5 Sat Jie serving, Dinara driving a backhand, and after match point     Dinara said: "It's good that I could close it up in two sets. Second set, the way I was feeling inside was one thing, and then when I was talking with my coach it was completely different. He said that I was just way too passive. That's why I started complicating everything. And he said for the next rounds I have to be much more aggressive." postmatch interview - interview video     About playing # 1 Maria Sharapova in the 4th round on Monday, Dinara said: "Once you give [Maria] a chance, she won't give you more chances. So with her I really have to be aggressive every time." #15 s14 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #20 s19 Alize Cornet FRA 6-4, 6-4 Fri Alize and Agnieszka driving backhands, and Agnieszka after match point #17 s16 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #19 s18 Francesca Schiavone ITA 6-1, 6-1 Sat Francesca serving, Victoria following a backhand, and after match point *#50 Kaia Kanepi EST d #33 s29 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP 6-1, 6(5)-7, 7-5 Sat Anabel and Kaia driving backhands, and Kaia after match point *#122 q Carla Suarez Navarro ESP d #51 Casey Dellacqua AUS 6-3, 6-3 Fri *#76 Petra Cetkovska CZE d #68 q Iveta Benesova CZE 6-3 6-3 Fri Petra driving a forehand, Iveta about to slice a backhand, and Petra after match point

French Open, 4th Rd Sun-Mon Jun 1-2 11am Sun WTA story loser's prize: €66,250 = US $103,203; points: 140 Monday: play resumed after rain delay *#14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS d #1 s1 Maria Sharapova RUS 6-7(6), 7-6(5), 6-2 Mon Dinara serving, Maria driving a backhand on the run, Dinara following a forehand, and after match point     Dinara has now won 10 consecutive matches, all on red clay.     Maria held match points at 5-2 and 5-3 in the 2nd set, but could not convert. Maria also led 5-2 in the 2nd set tiebreaker, 2 points from victory-- but Dinara won the next 5 points.     Dinara said: "[Maria] was 5-2 up. She had match point. It was all in her hands. And then at 5-3 my serve, she had match point. Then I hit a winner on her match point.     "And then suddenly it changed... I could not slow down anymore... If you start to focus on your opponent, you're keep on going focusing on her... In the third set... maybe she went a little bit down, but then I started not to wait for her mistakes. I had the chance and I had to hit the ball, so you have to focus on yourself." postmatch interview - interview video     Maria said: "Physically you have to stick with [Dinara]. She's had great success on clay and is a really tough opponent on this surface... It's a thin line between winning and losing. This stuff [clay] isn't easy, but I want to do everything perfectly." BBC story     Dinara will play Elena Dementieva in a quarterfinal on Wednesday. Elena now has a 14-3 match record during this year's clay court season; she reached the semis in Charleston, and the finals in Berlin and Istanbul. But Valencia, Spain-trained Dinara leads Elena 3-2 in career matches, and leads Elena 3-0 on red clay. Their last meeting was a couple weeks ago in the Berlin final, when Dinara defeated Elena, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #76 Petra Cetkovska CZE 6-0, 6-0 Sun Ana watching her serve fly Petraward, Petra driving a forehand, Ana's backhand, and after match point     Ana said: "It was much tougher than it probably looked, or the results indicates. I had to work really hard, and I played almost without mistake today.     "[Petra is] a good player, and she started first game well and she had a lot of chances afterwards in the second set. But I stepped up and I was really playing my game and really making really few unforced errors. So that causes the result like that." postmatch interview - interview video     Petra had won two red clay ITF tournaments in the weeks preceding the French Open, so the loss was an abrupt end to a 13-match winning streak.     Petra said: "6-0, 6-0 is pretty tough; I think Ana is really just a great player, but I don't think I played my best today. I was maybe expecting a little bit too much and put too much pressure on myself. I was trying to do more than I would do two days ago, for example. So I made too many unforced errors where I normally wouldn't make them. But then, of course, she played really well."     20-year-old Ana will play 29-year-old Patty Schnyder in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. Patty leads Ana 4-3 in career matches, but Patty won their first four meetings (all in 2005), and Ana has won their last three. Ana leads Patty 2-1 on clay. They have not played since Stuttgart last October, when Ana defeated Patty in the 1st round (on an indoor hardcourt), 6-0, 6-2. #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #15 s14 Agnieszka Radwanska POL 6-3, 7-6(3) Sun Jelena serving, Agnieszka and Jelena driving backhands, Jelena's overhead smash, and after match point     Jelena led 5-1 in the 2nd set, and held 3 match points at 5-2. Then Agnieszka began to catch up. Jelena said: "I made it a lot harder than it should've been; I should've finished the match earlier, but I let her come back into the match. I was having problems with my arm, and I just didn't do what I was supposed to do to finish the match. I made a really tough task for myself but somehow I managed to come back and finish in two sets. I won in the end, which is the important thing."     It was Jelena's 9th consecutive win, but she has had much trouble at Roland Garros this year from pain in her right arm. Jelena said: "I had everything under control, but the pain in my arm affected my shots. I started to feel it in the beginning of the second set.     "It is getting better, but the other muscles are having to compensate for the injury. The whole arm is a mess. I worked so hard to with the match. I didn't want to play a third set, so thankfully I won the tie-break." BBC story #4 s4 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #17 s16 Victoria Azarenka BLR 6-2, 6-3 Mon-dark-Tue Svetlana and Victoria driving forehand and backhand, and Sveta after match point     This match had been scheduled for the Chatrier court, but the schedule was running late due to rain delay and long ATP matches. At 5:30pm, Court 1 became available, but officials did not move this match to Court 1 until 8:30pm, and consequently it could not be completed before darkness on Monday.     Svetlana said: "It was getting late. I came to referee, I say, 'Look, are we go to play now, or you cancel us so we can play earlier tomorrow?' They say, 'Yeah, but we want to keep everybody even because we have only court No. 1... So we want you guys to be even [with Kanepi and Kvitova].'     "I say, 'Yeah, we're not even to other players if we play today, tomorrow, and after tomorrow the winner, three days in a row, if you look forward.'     "But anyway, they decided us to play like they did, and this was, I think, the right decision. But they could make it a bit earlier, I think." postmatch interview - interview video #7 s7 Elena Dementieva RUS d #12 s11 Vera Zvonareva RUS 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 Mon Elena serving, Vera following a backhand, Elena about to swat one, and after match point     Elena now has a 14-3 match record during this year's clay court season; she reached the semis in Charleston, and the finals in Berlin and Istanbul.     Elena had lost to Vera in April in Charleston. Elena said: "I think that really helped me, the match that we play in Charleston in the semifinals [Vera defeated Elena 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-3]. I think it was a tough match, but I learned my lesson.     "Today on the court when I lost the second set I was trying to stay more positive, more aggressive with [Vera], because I know she's a great clay court player. You don't want to go too much rally with her, because she's moving so well." postmatch interview - interview video #11 s10 Patty Schnyder SUI d #30 s27 Katarina Srebotnik SLO 6-2, 6-4 Sun Patty delivering a serve with lots of topspin, Katarina and Patty driving backhands, and Patty after match point     5' 6¼" Patty has fired 18 aces in the first 4 rounds, leading the players still in the running; 6' 1" Ana Ivanovic is second with 12 aces. *#122 q Carla Suarez Navarro ESP d #29 s26 Flavia Pennetta ITA 6-3, 6-2 Sun Carla serving, Flavia and Carla driving backhands, and Carla after match point     Although Carla converted only 4 break points in 15 opportunities, Flavia managed to convert only 1 break point in 9 chances. match stats     Having gone through qualifying, Carla has now won 7 straight matches. Carla said: "Right now I'm feeling pretty good. During the first set in this match I thought that my muscles were a bit more tired, but that was mostly due to pressure. It had nothing to do with my being tired. I think I'm at 100%, and I think I will be in the same position [next round]." postmatch interview - interview video #50 Kaia Kanepi EST d #93 Petra Kvitova CZE 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 Mon-dark-Tue Petra driving a backhand, Kaia's forehand, and after match point

French Open, QFs, Tue-Wed Jun 3-4 2pm loser's prize: €132,500 = US $206,406; points: 250 #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #11 s10 Patty Schnyder SUI 6-3, 6-2 Tue Ana serving, Patty about to slice a backhand, Ana driving one, and after match point     Many matches at this year's French Open have been characterized by large numbers of errors, and few winners. In this match Patty hit 31 winners with 31 unforced errors, a good ratio, particularly on clay. But Ana had 39 winners with only 19 errors, a very impressive performance. match stats     Ana said: "I think it was a pretty tough game. We had lot of tough matches in the past. Going out on the court, I knew I had to work hard for every point, because [Patty] doesn't give you many free points.     "I did that very well today. Obviously the score indicates a little bit easier match than it actually was.     "I was just so happy to close match in that last game because it started to rain a bit, and I started to rush. So I was happy to calm down and still win the game." postmatch interview - interview video     Ana will play Jelena Jankovic in the semifinals on Thursday. Ana, who is 25-6 for the year (81%) and 8-2 during the clay court season, leads Jelena 5-1 in career matches, although all of their meetings except the first have been close. They have played on clay only once before, in the 2007 Amelia Island quarterfinals, when Ana won, 7-5, 6-3.     About playing Jelena, Ana said: "We played many times before, and we always have touch matches. I think we played only once on green clay, and never at a Grand Slam... She's a tough opponent and she defends really well. I try to step in and be aggressive and play my game. Every match is a new match, a new experience, and I just have to keep playing like I played so far." #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #122 q Carla Suarez Navarro ESP 6-3, 6-2 Tue Jelena serving, Carla driving a forehand, Jelena driving a backhand, and after match point     Jelena has now won 9 consecutive matches, all on red clay. She is 13-2 for the entire clay court season, and has a 33-9 match record for the year (79%).     Jelena was in good form, firing 32 winners with only 19 unforced errors; Carla had 18 winners with 34 errors. match stats     Jelena said: "It was raining the whole time, like spitting a little bit, and the balls were very, very heavy. It was different conditions than what we are used to, but we still had to play. I had to be very focused, and especially I didn't know my opponent that well. I didn't know the way she plays.     "[Carla] has come a long way from the qualifying. Getting into quarterfinals is great achievement for her, so I had to be really ready and really focused out there. I wanted to do my job the best that I could, so I'm happy to get to the semifinals...     "She hits a very strong topspin, you know. It's a typical Spanish game. If you let her play her game it can be very difficult, because her ball can be quite heavy and she can push you very far back in the court. So I had to be close to the baseline and try to get all those balls on the rise, and try to not let her play what she wants to play." postmatch interview - interview video     Jelena, who has been plagued by pain her right arm since the 2nd round, flew to Serbia on Sunday for treatment, and flew back to Paris on Monday. Jelena said: "I had some treatments and I feel a lot better. Today I was fine. I didn't have problems with my arm, for which I was very, very pleased."     About playing Ana Ivanovic in the semis, Jelena said: "She plays a different game. For me, it has been hard to follow. It's hard to read what she's going to hit, because she likes to play short points. She just goes for broke most of the time.     "I had troubles in the past against her, but I don't think we played on clay many times. So it's a different game and it's different circumstances, so I think it will be a completely different match. So we will see how it will go this time." #4 s4 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #50 Kaia Kanepi EST 7-5, 6-2 Wed Svetlana serving, Kaia skying for a backhand, Svetlana's best shot, her forehand drive, and Sveta after match point     The increased quality of play in Tuesday's QFs continued: Sveta hit 41 winners with only 19 unforced errors (Kaia: 32 winners, 31 errors). match stats     Svetlana said: "[Kaia's] ball was really heavy, and I was a bit tight also in the start, because I'm nervous and I want to do well. But then I figured my way, and it became so much easier for me...     "She started very well. She was hitting so hard and everything, and she took a lead 4-2 ahead and 40-love. But I still stayed there and I showed her that I was tough, and so at some moments she started to miss more. I beat her by playing point by point." postmatch interview     Svetlana will play Dinara Safina in the semifinals on Thursday. Svetlana, who is 26-8 for the year (76%) and 8-2 during the clay court season, leads Dinara 4-3 in career matches, leads Dinara 3-2 on clay, and won their last two matches, both on clay, in straight sets. But they have not played in over a year, and Dinara is now playing the best tennis of her career.     About playing Dinara, Svetlana said: "It's going to be very tough match. Dinara is playing very well on clay court. She won Berlin, she won two matches here with match balls down. She has too many lives, so I have to be careful with her." *#14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS d #7 s7 Elena Dementieva RUS 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-0 Wed Dinara serving, Elena and Dinara driving backhands, and Dinara after match point     Dinara has now won 11 consecutive matches, all on red clay. She is 13-2 for the entire clay court season, and has a 22-10 match record for the year (69%).     Dinara struck 66 winners with 34 unforced errors, with 15 winners and 4 errors in the 44-point 6-0 3rd set; Elena had 50 winners with 47 errors, but only 6 winners against 15 errors in the 3rd set. match stats     Elena failed to convert a match point while leading 5-4 in the 2nd set. Dinara said: "In this case, I can say [Elena] gave me a free point on the match point. She made a mistake, and then I just said, 'Okay, I'm going to stay in the match and just keep on playing, keep on fighting, just do what I can do today...'     "She was pretty confident today on the baseline. I just had to play soft to her and wait really for an opportunity." postmatch interview - interview video

French Open, SFs, Thu Jun 5 2pm WTA story loser's prize: €265,000 = US $412,812; points: 450 #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 Ana serving, Jelena reaching for a backhand, Ana driving a forehand, Jelena's forehand drive, Ana's backhand, after match point, and Jelena congratulating Ana     The win guaranteed that, win or lose in the final on Saturday, on Monday Ana will be # 1 in the WTA for the first time in her career.     Jelena put 72% of her 1st serves in the box, Ana, 55%. Jelena finished with 51 winners against 28 unforced errors, Ana, 45 winners with 43 errors. But Ana scored 7 more points than Jelena, 96-89, and scored when she needed to to win the match, breaking Jelena twice while winning the final three games. match stats - BBC game-by-game     Jelena had won 7 straight games to take the 2nd set and go up a break in the 3rd. Ana said: "[Jelena] just started playing really good tennis, and I maybe started to be too static and not stepping up like I should... I’m glad I’ve got a day off now to prepare for Saturday." tourney story     Jelena said: "The match could have gone either way... I had the lead in the third and just let it slip away. I'm very disappointed that I lost this match. I didn't go to the final and I lost a chance to become No.1. This match was very important. But I'll keep working hard, and my time will come."     About playing Dinara Safina in the final on Saturday, Ana said: "[Dinara has had] a great run, and she played a lot of matches. Two matches she came from match points down to win. She's showing some great strengths, so it's going to be another tough match." postmatch interview - interview video *#14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS d #4 s4 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS 6-2, 6-3 Dinara serving, Svetlana driving a backhand, Dinara driving a forehand, Sveta driving a forehand and Dinara following one, and after match point     Dinara struck 39 winners with 23 unforced errors, and broke Svetlana's serve on 6 of 11 opportunites; Sveta had 20 winners with 23 errors, and broke Dinara's serve 3 times in 9 chances. match stats - BBC game-by-game     Dinara who said she played "soft" and waited for opportunities in her quarterfinal win over Elena Dementieva, used different tactics against Svetlana. Dinara said: "With [Svetlana], I really had to be aggressive, especially with [returning serve]. Just always to keep her under pressure. Maybe just I had it so much in my mind, so just whatever was coming I knew that I had to hit. I was moving much more aggressive to the ball by having this already in my mind." postmatch interview - interview video     Svetlana said: "I want to give [Dinara] lots of credit. She has been playing very well. She was pushing me away from the court, so I was pretty far behind the baseline. And I couldn't fight her because I was also fighting against myself. I couldn't serve, I couldn't hit my forehand, I was probably playing my worst. I just wasn't comfortable out there and it showed."     About the final, Dinara said: "I think just take it as another match, and just take focus on myself and what I have to do. Like there is only the ball, and I have to do the things that I know to do, and try to avoid thinking as much as I can about, 'This is the final...' Like it's still the same court and still the same ball. It's just how I take it in my mind, how I will prepare for the final."

French Open, Final, Sat Jun 7 3pm (9am EDT 6am PDT NBC-TV) loser's prize: €530,000 = US $825,623; points: 700 winner's prize: €1,000,000 = US $1,557,780; pts: 1000 #2 s2 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #14 s13 Dinara Safina RUS 6-4, 6-3 Ana serving, Dinara about to lightly tap a forehand, Ana driving one on the run, Dinara's backhand drive Ana following a forehand, Dinara driving one, Ana driving a backhand, and after match point

French Open, Doubles Final, Fri Jun 6 losers' prize: €150,000 = US $233,667 winners' prize: €300,000 = US $467,334 cdr40 s10 Anabel Medina Garrigues & Virginia Ruano Pascual     d cdr185 Francesca Schiavone & Casey Dellacqua 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 Anabel & Virginia-- it was Anabel's 10th WTA doubles title and first Grand Slam title; it was Vivi's 40th WTA doubles title, 9th Grand Slam doubles title, and 5th French Open doubles title (+1 mixed, also at RG) French Open, Mixed Doubles Final, Thu Jun 5 postponed to Fri losers' prize: €35,000 = US $54,522 winners' prize: €70,000 = US $109,045 *s3 Victoria Azarenka & Bob Bryan d s1 Katarina Srebotnik & Nenad Zimonjic 6-2 7-6(4) Bob & Victoria-- Vika also won the 2007 US Open mixed doubles, with Max Mirnyi French Open, Girls Singles Final, Sun Jun 8 c2 m2 wta#545 s9 Simona Halep ROU d wta#721 s10 Elena Bogdan ROU 6-4, 6(3)-7, 6-2 Simona driving a backhand, after match point, and with the hardware French Open, Girls Doubles Final, Sat Jun 7 noon c2 *s8 Polona Hercog SLO & Jessica Moore AUS d s7 Lesley Kerkhove NED & Arantxa Rus NED 5-7, 6-1, 1-0(7) Polona & Jessica French Open, Qualifying Finals Fri May 23 11am Q-1st losers: €2,000 = US $3,116; 2 points     Q-2nd losers: €3,750 = US $5,842; 15 points     Q-Final losers: €7,500 = US $12,683; 25 points #68 Iveta Benesova CZE d #216 Sandra Martinovic BIH 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 *#191 Jelena Pandzic CRO d #86 Monica Niculescu ROU 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 #95 Yanina Wickmayer BEL d #151 Emmanuelle Gagliardi SUI 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 *#171 Anastasiya Yakimova BLR d #107 Julia Goerges GER 6-4, 6-3 #108 Bethanie Mattek USA d #184 Oxana Lyubtsova UKR 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 *#122 Carla Suarez Navarro ESP d #118 Olga Puchkova RUS 6-2, 6-0 *#188 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #130 Anna Lapushchenkova RUS 7-5, 6-2 #148 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP d #155 Mariana Duque Marino COL 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 #158 Magdalena Rybarikova SVK d #214 Christina Wheeler AUS 6-2, 6-0 *#239 Selima Sfar TUN d #183 Tetiana Luzhanska UKR 6-1, 6-4 *#197 Jarmila Gajdosova SVK d #187 Betina Jozami ARG 7-6(6) 6-3 #201 Jie Zheng CHN d #202 Kristina Barrois GER 6-3, 7-6(4) French Open, Withdrawals #1 Justine Henin BEL retired #10 Daniela Hantuchova SVK right heel stress fracture #21 Tatiana Golovin FRA WTA says "back injury;" still recovering from March surgery? #26 Lindsay Davenport USA personal reasons #32 Sania Mirza IND right wrist #70 Meghann Shaughnessy USA left knee #113 Meilen Tu USA

The 64 doubles teams, arranged in drawsheet order; teams in red have been eliminated:

TOP HALF s1 Cara Black ZIM & Liezel Huber USA SF Klaudia Jans POL & Mervana Jugic-Salkic BIH r1 Alisa Kleybanova RUS & Ekaterina Makarova RUS r2 Vera Dushevina RUS & Tatiana Perebiynis UKR r1 Darya Kustova BLR & Klara Zakopalova CZE r1 Sophie Lefevre FRA & Aurelie Vedy FRA r2 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU & Arantxa Parra Santonja ESP r1 s15 Mariya Koryttseva UKR & Vladimira Uhlirova CZE r3 s12 Lisa Raymond USA & Samantha Stosur AUS r3 Akgul Amanmuradova UZB & Jasmin Woehr GER r1 Amandine Hesse FRA & Kristina Mladenovic FRA r1 Julie Coin FRA & Violette Huck FRA r2 Maria Elena Camerin ITA & Gisela Dulko ARG r1 Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP & Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP QF Sara Errani ITA & Bethanie Mattek USA r2 s5 Alicia Molik AUS & Mara Santangelo ITA r1 s4 Yung-Jan Chan TPE & Chia-Jung Chuang TPE QF Akiko Morigami JPN & Aiko Nakamura JPN r1 Rossana De Los Rios PAR & Tsvetana Pironkova BUL r2 Olivia Sanchez FRA & Laura Thorpe FRA r1 Sybille Bammer AUT & Sabine Lisicki GER r1 Lucie Hradecka CZE & Renata Voracova CZE r2 Natalie Grandin RSA & Raquel Kops-Jones USA r3 s13 Iveta Benesova CZE & Janette Husarova SVK r1 s10 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP Virginia Ruano Pascual ESP Agnieszka Radwanska POL & Urszula Radwanska POL r1 Marina Erakovic NZL & Michaella Krajicek NED r1 Emilie Loit FRA & Pauline Parmentier FRA r2 Maria-Emilia Salerni ARG & Selima Sfar TUN r1 Edina Gallovits ROU & Monica Niculescu ROU r2 Alla Kudryavtseva RUS & Martina Muller GER r1 s8 Zi Yan CHN & Jie Zheng CHN r3

BOTTOM HALF s6 Victoria Azarenka BLR & Shahar Peer ISR QF Catalina Castano COL & Kaia Kanepi EST r1 Severine Bremond FRA & Mathilde Johansson FRA r2 Su-Wei Hsieh TPE & Vania King USA r1 Marta Domachowska POL & Alicja Rosolska POL r2 Chunmei Ji CHN & Shengnan Sun CHN r1 Tathiana Garbin ITA & Roberta Vinci ITA r1 s11 Shuai Peng CHN & Tiantian Sun CHN r3 s16 Tatiana Poutchek BLR & Anastasia Rodionova RUS r2 Ekaterina Dzehalevich BLR & Olga Govortsova BLR r1 Casey Dellacqua AUS & Francesca Schiavone ITA F Nadia Petrova RUS & Patty Schnyder SUI r1 Elena Vesnina RUS & Vera Zvonareva RUS r2 Sofia Arvidsson SWE & Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE r1 Petra Cetkovska CZE & Lucie Safarova CZE r1 s3 Kveta Peschke CZE & Rennae Stubbs AUS r3 s7 Alona Bondarenko UKR & Kateryna Bondarenko UKR SF Dominika Cibulkova SVK & Eva Hrdinova CZE r1 Timea Bacsinszky SUI & Alize Cornet FRA r2 Gabriela Navratilova CZE & Tamira Paszek AUT r1 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA & Camille Pin FRA r1 Maria Kirilenko RUS & Flavia Pennetta ITA r2 Stephanie Foretz FRA & Olga Savchuk UKR r1 s9 Dinara Safina RUS & Agnes Szavay HUN r3 s14 Nathalie Dechy FRA & Elena Likhovtseva RUS r2 Virginie Razzano FRA & Yanina Wickmayer BEL r1 Sorana-Mihaela Cirstea ROU & Aravane Rezai FRA r3 Yaroslava Shvedova RUS & Tamarine Tanasugarn THA r1 Youlia Fedossova FRA & Virginie Pichet r1 Ashley Harkleroad USA & Galina Voskoboeva RUS QF Jill Craybas USA & Caroline Wozniacki DEN r1 s2 Katarina Srebotnik SLO & Ai Sugiyama JPN r2

    Anna Chakvetadze & Jelena Jankovic withdrew from doubles (possibly due to Jelena having pain in her right arm, and wanting to save it for singles) and were replaced by Natalie Grandin & Raquel Kops-Jones.

    The no-ad rule was used in all doubles competition at Roland Garros in 2008: the first point won after 40-40 won the game.

The Draw     (May 23, 2008) Top seed Maria Sharapova's biggest hurdle on her path to the 2008 French Open semifinals is # 14 Dinara Safina, whom Maria would face in the 4th round. Valencia, Spain-trained Dinara plays well on clay, and she has won her last six matches, defeating Justine Henin, Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, and Elena Dementieva on her way to the Berlin title. Actuality: Dinara did defeat Maria in the 4th round.     In the semifinals Maria would likely face # 4 Svetlana Kuznetsova, who, training in Barcelona, Spain, is also quite adept on clay (unless Svetlana is stopped in the 3rd round by recently-slumping 2003 & 2005 semifinalist # 28 Nadia Petrova). Maria and Sveta are tied at 4-4 in career matches; they have never met on a dirt court.     Other top half contenders include 2004 finalist # 7 Elena Dementieva, and # 12 Vera Zvonareva, both of whom have been playing well lately. Elena and Vera will likely meet in the 4th round; the winner might face Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals, and Svetlana Kuznetsova in the semis.     Early threats await # 6 Anna Chakvetadze, who has not been having much fun in Tennisgrad lately. After winning the Paris Indoor title in February (she likes Paris, anyway...) Anna went 5-7 until she got to Rome and reached the semis. In the top half, Anna, a French Open quarterfinalist in 2007, faces experienced clay-courters in the 1st round (# 82 Nuria Llagostera Vives) and the 3rd round (# 33 Anabel Medina Garrigues), on her path to a 4th round meeting with # 13 Agnes Szavay or # 18 Shahar Peer. Actuality: Anna lost to # 50 Kaia Kanepi in the 2nd round.     In the bottom half of the draw, the toughest obstacle for Ana Ivanovic, the 2nd seed and 2007 finalist, would be a quarterfinal encounter with # 5 Serena Williams, who has a 23-2 record this year, losing only to Dinara Safina in Berlin and Jelena Jankovic in Melbourne. # 11 Patty Schnyder could remove Serena in the 4th round, however: Patty is 2-0 against Serena on clay. Actuality: Serena lost to # 30 Katarina Srebotnik in the 3rd round; Patty lost to Ana in the quarterfinals.     In the semis, Ana would likely play her compatriot, # 3 Jelena Jankovic, last week's champ in Rome. Jelena must get past # 8 Venus Williams to reach the semis, but all-terrain Jelena leads Venus 4-3 in career matches, has won 3 of their 4 meetings on clay, and defeated Venus last week in the Rome semis, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3. Actuality: Venus lost to # 29 Flavia Pennetta in the 3rd round. Ana and Jelena? Surprisingly, Ana leads Jelena 5-1 in career matches.     The dark horse is 18-year-old # 20 Alize Cornet, who defeated # 19 Francesca Schiavone, # 4 Svetlana Kuznetsova and # 6 Anna Chakvetadze last week to reach the Rome final, where she was defeated by Jelena Jankovic. In the bottom half, Alize would likely have to defeat # 15 Agnieszka Radwanska in the 3rd round, Jelena Jankovic in the 4th round, and Venus Williams in the quarters, to reach that semi against Ana Ivanovic, Serena Williams, or Patty Schnyder. Actuality: Alize lost to Agnieszka Radwanska in the 3rd round.

From the 2008 Roland Garros Players' Guide     15% of players' prize money is witheld from their checks for French taxes. US taxes are also witheld from the checks of players who reside in the US. Racquet stringing and personal match video costs can be deducted from prize money.     Main draw players receive €240 per diem for accomodations (ending 2 days after elimination). Rates at recommended hotels range from €150/day to €335/day (as of April 29, 1 euro (€) is $1.56 US; €240 is $374.40). Qualifiers per diem: €120.     Players in singles receive a maximum of 3 guest badges for family, coach, or friends (permanent, nominally non-tranferable, if in doubles only, 2 badges). Those playing on Court Philippe Chatrier are entitled to 14 reserved seat invitations for that match; on Court Suzanne Lenglen 12 reserved seat invitations. Invites include access to players lounges and restaurants.     There are 3 players’ lounges reserved for competitors, their family and coaches. The main players’ lounge at Court Philippe-Chatrier is reserved for players and their family. The lounge upstairs at Court Philippe Chatrier is also accessible to badges with the letter "Y," as is the lounge at Court Suzanne Lenglen.     Each player has €30 "credited to their badge" for meals each day, until 2 days after their elimination from the draw. This can be spent at the restaurants located at Court Philippe Chatrier and Court Suzanne Lenglen.     For some strange reason, "a large number of towels get lost."

Justine Retires Aussie Open SFs, 2006: WTA Champs final, 2007: Roland Garros final, 2007: US Open final, 2007: #1 Justine Henin     5' 5¾" 126lb RH 1H-BH     41 WTA Singles Titles     7 Grand Slam Titles     (May 14, 2008) 25-year-old # 1 Justine Henin has announced her retirement from the WTA Tour, effective immediately. Justine won 41 WTA singles titles, starting with Antwerp in 1999 and ending with Antwerp in 2008, including the 2003, '05, '06, & '07 French Open, the 2003 & '07 US Open, and the 2004 Australian Open. Ten of her titles were won in 2007. Justine won a career-total of $19,461,375 in prize money, with a 493-107 record in singles matches.     Justine said: "This is a definitive decision. Those who know me know it is serious... I thought long about this. I started thinking about it late last year. I was at the end of the road. I leave with my head held high."     Justine is the first player ever to retire while # 1 in the WTA rankings (she has spent 117 weeks at # 1, 6th highest all-time). Justine has requested that the WTA now remove her from the rankings: thus Maria Sharapova will be # 1 in the WTA next week. Justine's official website AP story WTA story 1 WTA story 2 Justine Henin Wallpaper WTA Photos Justine after the 2006 French Open

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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.

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