WTA: Mar 12-23 2008 Pacific Life Open Indian Wells, California Tier I $2,100,000     + ATP 96 players - outdoor: hard Plexipave Live Scores - in popup window WTA pdf.: draws & OOP - notes .html: results - OOP - schedule pics: tourney - Yahoo! - WTA - CBS interviews - mp3 audio clips audio: RadioTennis TV: FSN Indian Wells: radar - forecast - map PS Desert Sun: Pacific Life Open # 2 Ana Ivanovic # 3 Svetlana Kuznetsova # 4 Jelena Jankovic # 5 Maria Sharapova # 8 Daniela Hantuchova # 9 Marion Bartoli # 14 Nicole Vaidisova # 15 Dinara Safina

Tourney pages: Indian Wells: 2009 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 previous other tourney pages next Indian Wells: #3 Svetlana Kuznetsova 5'8½" 161lb RH 2H-BH Indian Wells: #2 Ana Ivanovic 6'1" 152lb RH 2H-BH Indian Wells: 6th WTA Singles Title 3rd Tier I Title

    On Sunday at Indian Wells, California, in the final of the Pacific Life Open, 20-year-old top-seeded # 2 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia (residence: Basel, Switzerland), defeated 22-year-old 2nd-seeded # 3 Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia (residence: Monte Carlo, Monaco), 6-4, 6-3 (both ladies are shown during the match, and Ana with her new Cetacean friend).

    Ana served 5 aces with no double faults. Svetlana: zero aces, 3 DFs.

    Ana said: "It's great victory for me. We always have tough matches... Today I think we both played good tennis from first point on, I was really happy with that. We both kept level.
    "When I managed to break her on 4-All it gave me confidence, and went strong from that point on. Because that game I stepped up a little bit more, and I realized that's what I got to do. I'm happy I managed to do that later...

    "I was most happy about my aggressiveness, so I was staying low and following the shots and taking my opportunities, knowing when she would hit the short ball, I would try to attack and take away time from her. I was serving really well. I had quite a few aces, and that was important." postmatch interview - WTA story - Reuters story

    Svetlana said: "I think [Ana] played incredibly well in the first set. Every important ball she hit winner on the line. It was line on the line, on the line... She had outstanding first set. It's no words. She played better.
    "But for second set, I felt like more pressure because I had to go for it a little bit more, and she broke me twice. She was serving so much better. For her it was so much easier to win games on her serve than I did on mine. But I think I've been just not so great, I should be playing good against her. I played a little bit too much to her forehand...
    "It's always painful to lose, but I prefer to get to the final losing than to lose in second round. I still played pretty good tournament, though." postmatch interview

    Although their previous meetings all were close, Ana now leads Svetlana 5-1 in career matches, and has won the last four times they have played. In the round-robin of last year's WTA Championships in Madrid, Ana defeated Svetlana 6-1, 4-6, 7-5.

    Ana is now 6-3 in WTA singles finals; she won titles 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. She now has a 16-3 match record in 2008.
    2004 US Open champion Svetlana is now 9-15 in WTA singles finals; she lost to Daniela Hantuchova in the Indian Wells final last year. Sveta won the title last year in New Haven when Agnes Szavay retired due to injury; it was her only victory in her last 9 finals. She reached the Sydney final this past January and the Dubai final in February. Her match record this year is now 14-5.

Indian Wells player's blog by Jelena Jankovic

  mp3 Audio Clips

Final Sunday, March 23, 2008: Ana Ivanovic - Svetlana Kuznetsova (match) - Svetlana (record in finals) - Svetlana (painful)

SFs Friday, March 21, 2008: Ana Ivanovic (got through) - Ana (final) - Ana (Kuznetsova) - Jelena Jankovic (tough match)
Svetlana Kuznetsova (Maria's 1st '08 loss) - Svetlana (great here) - Svetlana (final) - Maria Sharapova (bit worn out) - Maria (not her day)

QFs Thursday, March 20, 2008: Ana Ivanovic (Zvonareva) - Ana (match) - Ana (top seed) - Jelena Jankovic (best effort)
Jelena (Davenport's injury) - Jelena (Ivanovic next) - Lindsay Davenport (hurt back) - Lindsay (sore before) - Lindsay (unable to move)

QFs Wednesday, March 19, 2008: Maria Sharapova (poor 1st set) - Maria (18-0 in 2008) - Maria (Sveta next)
Svetlana Kuznetsova (lost to Radwanska in Melbourne) - Sveta (good match) - Sveta (overall game)

4th rd Tuesday, March 18, 2008: Maria Sharapova (close match) - Maria (most she's struggled)
Maria (Hantuchova's Indian Wells success) - Jelena Jankovic (has a cold) - Jelena (concealing cold) - Jelena (best year here)
Daniela Hantuchova (great match) - Daniela (next match)

3rd rd Monday, March 17, 2008: Ana Ivanovic (psychology) - Ana (perfect on court) - Lindsay Davenport (2nd set) - Lindsay (mom)
Lindsay (I Wells) - Jelena Jankovic (easy win) - Marion Bartoli (confidence issue) - Marion (match got tight)

3rd rd Sunday, March 16, 2008: Maria Sharapova (awkward match) - Svetlana Kuznetsova (2nd set) - Svetlana Kuznetsova (form)

2nd rd Saturday, March 15, 2008: Ana Ivanovic (overall feeling) - Ana Ivanovic (lost 2nd set) - Ana Ivanovic (hunted)
Lindsay Davenport (playing just one set) - Lindsay Davenport (visited last year)

2nd rd Friday, March 14, 2008: Daniela Hantuchova (Feeling great) - Daniela Hantuchova (perfect court)
Maria Sharapova (not looking at stats) - Amelie Mauresmo (windy conditions) - Amelie Mauresmo (finding form)

Wednesday, March 12, 2008: preview with Daniela Hantuchova, Ana Ivanovic, & Maria Sharapova

WTA SCOREBOARD: The Pacific Life Open at Indian Wells s=seed, #=rank, *=upset, LL=lucky loser ranks are for the previous week How do players get into the "draw"? Pacific Life Open,  Indian Wells, California   NWS weather radar tourney time:        = GMT -7 hours        = US EDT -3 hours        = US PDT San Diego news - California news Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar   click for broader view   Indian Wells Tennis Garden  venue map Lat.: 33.723599 Long.: -116.304295 goto link for World Wind     Indian Wells: The main draw for this 96-player, two week, seven round tourney has 32 seeds, with 32 1st-round byes. There are 12 qualifiers and 9 wild cards in the main draw. Qualifying (2 rounds) starts on Monday, qualifying finals are on Tuesday.     Main draw play begins on Wednesday. 2008: Maria Sharapova, winner of the 2006 Indian Wells title, went to the movies in LA before heading south... on Tuesday, March 11, Maria played a charity exhibition in La Quinta... on Wednesday, Maria got in a little practice before playing Meet the Press... 2002 & 2007 tourney champ Daniela Hantuchova also worked out oncourt and with reporters on Wednesday, row 2: and top seeds Ana Ivanovic, Svetlana Kuznetsova, and Jelena Jankovic alerted the media as well... 2008: row 3: on Saturday, March 15, sisters Alona & Kateryna Bondarenko, and Jelena Jankovic, modeled Trina Turk fashions...

Indian Wells, 1st Rd, Wed-Thu 11am loser's prize: $2,325; points: 1 #46 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #143 q Melinda Czink HUN 6-2, 7-6(4) Wed #47 Gisela Dulko ARG d #92 LL Julie Ditty USA 0-6, 6-3, 6-3 Thu Gisela about to slice a backhand *#111 q Galina Voskoboeva RUS d #49 Pauline Parmentier FRA 7-5, 6-3 Thu #52 Elena Vesnina RUS d #96 Su-Wei Hsieh TPE 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 Thu #53 Aravane Rezai FRA d #81 Camille Pin FRA 7-5, 6-2 Thu #54 Zi Yan CHN d #195 wc Urszula Radwanska POL 2-6, 6-0, 6-2 Wed #55 Casey Dellacqua AUS d #108 Olga Poutchkova RUS 6-1, 6-1 Thu #56 Klara Zakopalova CZE d #69 Maria Emilia Salerni ARG 6-4, 6-4 Wed #57 Kaia Kanepi EST d #60 Martina Muller GER 6-3, 6-2 Thu #58 Shuai Peng CHN d #89 Tatjana Malek GER 6-4, 6-3 Wed #62 Mariya Koryttseva UKR d #70 Nathalie Dechy FRA 6-1, 6-4 Wed Mariya firing a forehand on the fly *#76 Ekaterina Makarova RUS d #63 Meilen Tu USA 6-4, 6-2 Wed Ekaterina ready #64 Edina Gallovits ROU d #66 Yvonne Meusberger AUT 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 Wed #65 Sofia Arvidsson SWE d #135 q Renata Voracova CZE 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 Wed #67 Yung-Jan Chan TPE d #121 q Iveta Benesova CZE 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 Thu #68 Jill Craybas USA d #156 q Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE 7-6(2), 6-4 Wed Jill twisting a serve Barboraward *#218 wc Angela Haynes USA d #71 Sara Errani ITA 7-5, 6-2 Wed Angela after winning a point     Angela said: "I was uptight, nervous. I had too much adrenaline and I was going for a lot. [Sara] just came out solid and I gave her a lot of free points.     "I tried to get back in, sneak back in by holding my serve. If she wins the points, she wins the points, but I was not going to give her the points." Desert Sun story #72 Ashley Harkleroad USA d #78 Tatiana Perebiynis UKR 6-2, 6-0 Wed Ashley driving a backhand     Prior to this match, Ashley had lost 21 consecutive games at Indian Wells. Lindsay Davenport defeated Ashley 6-0, 6-0, in the 2nd round in 2006, and in 2007 Ashley was losing 6-0, 3-0 to Vasilisa Bardina in her 1st round match when she to retire from due to illness.     Ashley said: "I was so sick last year. There was nothing I could do about it. I felt all right in the morning, but it's so hot here. You have to feel good if you play here...     "Sometimes when you sort of have a bad experience, you don't like coming back to that same place. I didn't feel that way at all today. As I get older and mature, I can handle things better." Desert Sun story #73 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL d #80 Marta Domachowska POL 6-4, 6-2 Wed #75 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU d #87 Meng Yuan CHN 6-4, 6-4 Thu #83 Akgul Amanmuradova UZB d #86 Anastasia Rodionova RUS 6-4, 6-3 Wed #85 Angelique Kerber GER d #105 Ekaterina Bychkova RUS 6-1, 6-2 Thu *#114 Olga Savchuk UKR d #90 Yaroslava Shvedova RUS 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(4) Wed *#216 sr Jie Zheng CHN d #91 Emilie Loit FRA 6-0, 6-1 Wed *#129 q Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA d #94 Lilia Osterloh USA 6-1, 6-2 Wed Stephanie's forehand drive #99 q Alla Kudryavtseva RUS d #139 wc Bethanie Mattek USA 6-2, 6-1 Thu *#146 q Julie Schruff GER d #101 q Catalina Castano COL 7-6(2), 6-3 Thu *#119 wc Vania King USA d #102 Anne Kremer LUX 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 Thu Vania about to connect with a backhand     Vania has been recovering from a very bad case of the flu. Vania said: "My body isn't 100 percent. I've been trying the best I can. Every day, I'm playing better and better. I'm just happy to be out here again...     "I feel the courts [at Indian Wells, Plexipave, similar to the new Australian Open surface] are a little slow and for my game, it's actually not so good. I like fast courts, taking the ball early and moving people around." Desert Sun story #120 q Evgenia Rodina RUS d #183 wc Anastasia Pivovarova RUS 6-4, 6-3 Thu *#384 wc Melanie Oudin USA d #123 Maret Ani EST 7-5, 6-2 Thu #128 wc Ahsha Rolle USA d #266 wc Madison Brengle USA 6-2, 6-2 Thu *#145 q Greta Arn HUN d #140 q Sabine Lisicki GER 6-3, 0-6, 6-4 Thu

Indian Wells, 2nd Rd, Fri-Sat 11am Fri WTA story - Sat WTA story loser's prize: $4,650; points: 25 #2 s1 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #75 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU 6-1, 5-7, 6-0 Sat Iona Raluca's forehand, Ana volleying a backhand, and after winning a point     Ana said: "I wasn't really happy with the way I played in the second set. The windy conditions were very tough and it made it even more difficult that it was my first match. The third set I think I played really well, and I did exactly what I wanted to do.     "It's hard to judge your game in such conditions, because when it's so windy it becomes who is mentally stronger and who can move and work better in the situation." #3 s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #76 Ekaterina Makarova RUS 6-1, 6-1 Fri Ekaterina and Sveta driving backhands #4 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #128 wc Ahsha Rolle USA 6-0, 6-2 Sat Jelena driving a backhand, and about to deliver some balls to the crowd after the match     High winds affected play, an annual occurence in March at Indian Wells. Jelena said: "The first rounds are always tough, especially in the windy conditions, and you have to be really focused and try to move your feet. That's what I did today, so I'm really glad with my performance. I'm happy to get through. The conditions are the same for both of us, but that's the game and that's the challenge that we have." Reuters story #5 s4 Maria Sharapova RUS d #129 q Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA 6-1, 6-0 Fri Maria serving, following a running forehand, and after match point     2006 Pacific Life Open champ Maria said: "I've been playing good enough tennis to not be nervous before my first round. Obviously you never know what kind of tennis you're going to produce in these kind of [windy] conditions. But, you know, I think against an opponent that didn't give me much rhythm, I think I handled it pretty well." #8 s5 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #218 wc Angela Haynes USA 6-1, 6-2 Fri Daniela serving, and Angela & Daniela driving backhands     2002 & 2007 Pacific Life Open champ Daniela said: "I wish I could play every match of the year on these courts. I don't know what it is. I guess it's the bounce. It's not too slow, not too fast and it seems to suit my game." #9 s6 Marion Bartoli FRA d #52 Elena Vesnina RUS 6-0, 6-4 Sat *#55 Casey Dellacqua AUS d #14 s7 Nicole Vaidisova CZE 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 Sat #15 s8 Dinara Safina RUS d #68 Jill Craybas USA 7-6(3), 7-5 Fri Dinara after winning a point #17 s9 Shahar Peer ISR d #83 Akgul Amanmuradova UZB 6-1, 6-4 Fri Shahar driving a forehand #19 s10 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #62 Mariya Koryttseva UKR 6-1, 7-6(3) Fri *#67 Yung-Jan Chan TPE d #20 s11 Sybille Bammer AUT 6-1, 6-3 Sat #21 s12 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #53 Aravane Rezai FRA 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 Sat Vera ready to lightly tap a forehand #22 s13 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #384 wc Melanie Oudin USA 6-1, 6-1 Sat #24 s15 Alona Bondarenko UKR d #73 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL 6-3, 7-6(2) Fri *#120 q Evgenia Rodina RUS d #26 s16 Virginie Razzano FRA 6-0, 6(2)-7, 6-2 Sat Evgenia about to swat a backhand #27 s17 Amelie Mauresmo FRA d #64 Edina Gallovits ROU 6-2, 6-4 Fri Amelie's running forehand, and Edina driving a backhand *#46 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #29 s18 Maria Kirilenko RUS 6-2, 6-0 Fri Caroline's forehand drive, and Maria reaching for a backhand #30 s19 Flavia Pennetta ITA d #57 Kaia Kanepi EST 6-2, 6-1 Sat #31 s20 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #99 q Alla Kudryavtseva RUS 6-2, 6-4 Sat #32 s21 Sania Mirza IND d #114 Olga Savchuk UKR 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 Fri *#111 q Galina Voskoboeva RUS d #33 s22 Michaella Krajicek NED 6-3, 6-3 Sat *#58 Shuai Peng CHN d #35 s23 Karin Knapp ITA 6-1, 6-3 Fri Karin following a forehand, and Shuai leaning into a backhand #36 s24 Lindsay Davenport USA d #47 Gisela Dulko ARG 6-2, retired--right quadriceps strain Sat Lindsay serving, Gisela having her strained muscle strapped, Gisela chasing a forehand, and Lindsay's backhand drive     Lindsay said: "I could tell [Gisela] was having a really hard time moving to her right or to the forehand. I wasn't surprised when she stopped. She really didn't seem like she could push off to her right side much at all.     "It was really tough out there today, especially since we had such a perfect week leading up to the windstorm that has come. I was happy to end the match at that time. I feel fine with one set and have no plans to go hit again." #37 s25 Eleni Daniilidou GRE d #56 Klara Zakopalova CZE 1-6, 7-6(1),6-2 Fri Eleni's forehand drive *#72 Ashley Harkleroad USA d #38 s26 Lucie Safarova CZE 7-6(2), 2-6, 6-4 Fri #39 s27 Ai Sugiyama JPN d #145 q Greta Arn HUN 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 Sat #40 s28 Dominika Cibulkova SVK d #65 Sofia Arvidsson SWE 7-5, 6-4 Fri *#85 Angelique Kerber GER d #41 s29 Olga Govortosova BLR 7-5, 6-2 Sat *#216 sr Jie Zheng CHN d #42 s30 Kateryna Bondarenko UKR 6-2, 6-4 Fri Jie after winning a point #44 s31 Tathiana Garbin ITA d #119 wc Vania King USA 6-3, 6-3 Sat #45 s32 Tamira Paszek AUT d #146 q Julie Schruff GER 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 Sat *#104 LL Aiko Nakamura JPN d #54 Zi Yan CHN 6-2, 0-6, 6-4 Fri

Indian Wells, 3rd Rd, Sun-Mon 11am Sun WTA story - Mon WTA story loser's prize: $9,475; points: 40 #2 s1 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #44 s31 Tathiana Garbin ITA 6-3, 6-0 Mon Ana serving, Tathiana and Ana driving forehands, and Ana after winning a point     Ana said: "I definitely feel there was a big improvement from my second round match. That's positive, and I finished the match very strongly and did some things I was working on during my practice session, so I'm happy about that too." #3 s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #40 s28 Dominika Cibulkova SVK 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 Sun Svetlana and Dominika driving backhands     About dropping the 2nd set, Svetlana said: "I just stopped a little bit and lost my concentration. I had chances to break her straight, and I didn't do that.     "I have to figure out how to start playing better earlier after being 5-0 down in the second set. I didn't want to go to the third set 6-0 down so I changed that to give me the key to play better in the third." Reuters story #4 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #39 s27 Ai Sugiyama JPN 6-1, 6-1 Mon Ai and Jelena driving backhands, and Jelena after match point     Jelena said: "I was very focused on the court and I really tried to do my job out there. I didn't want to let [Ai] get into the match. Especially with the wind, you cannot lose your concentration because, as soon as you do that, you start making a lot of errors and lose your rhythm." Reuters story     In the high winds, Jelena had 6 double faults. Jelena said: "I had a different toss every time. I was trying to find a rhythm but I couldn't. But I was focused on the returns so I could kind of manage to finish the match." #5 s4 Maria Sharapova RUS d #37 s25 Eleni Daniilidou GRE 7-5, 6-3 Sun Maria serving, Eleni's forehand, Maria about to swat a backhand, and after winning a point     Maria said: "I wasn't moving quite well throughout the first set. I was Grandpa Joe out there. [Eleni] is always plays tough because you never really know what to expect from her." Desert Sun story #8 s5 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #216 sr Jie Zheng CHN 6-4, 6-2 Sun Daniela's forehand drive, Jie pouncing on a backhand, and Daniela after match point     Daniela said: "I was really pleased with the way I played. I felt great and like I've said many times, I feel like it's my court in Indian Wells. So even though it was cold and little bit windy, I still felt good and was just enjoying being out there." #9 s6 Marion Bartoli FRA d #85 Angelique Kerber GER 6-3, 7-6(3) Mon Angelique driving a lefty backhand, and Marion following her forehand (she maintains a 2-handed backhand grip on both sides)     Marion said: "I was feeling good until 6-3, 5-1. But then I just struggled to close out the match and sometimes this happens. [Angelique] got some luck on a few shots, like with that dropshot that she will never make on another match point. You have to try to finish in two sets, which thankfully is what I managed to do." *#72 Ashley Harkleroad USA d #15 s8 Dinara Safina RUS 7-5, 6-2 Sun Ashley and Dinara driving forehands, and Ashley fielding a backhand-- this was a huge win for Ashley, but these were the only pics available     This was the 3rd best win of Ashley's career by ranking, the top two were both over then # 9 Daniela Hantuchova in 2003, when Ashley defeated Daniela 6-3, 6-3, in the Charleston quarterfinals, and then again, in the 2nd round at Roland Garros, 7-6(2), 4-6, 9-7. *#32 s21 Sania Mirza IND d #17 s9 Shahar Peer ISR 6(7)-7, 7-5, 6-3 Sun Sania and Shahar driving backhands, and Sania after winning a point     Although the 34-game match lasted 2½ hours. Sania said: "I probably could have gone on. I wasn't like dead tired, and I was still running down balls. I wasn't feeling like I wanted to collapse on the court, which is a very good sign for me." Desert Sun story     About playing Daniela Hantuchova in the 4th round, Sania said: "I think I've played a couple of good matches now, and I have to go out there thinking I have nothing to lose. [Daniela is the higher] seed, she's the big player and she's also the defending champion, so I have to just focus on what I want to do instead of what she's going to do." #19 s10 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #58 Shuai Peng CHN 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 Sun #21 s12 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #111 q Galina Voskoboeva RUS 6-0, 6-3 Mon #22 s13 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #30 s19 Flavia Pennetta ITA 6-3, 6-4 Mon #24 s15 Alona Bondarenko UKR d #27 s17 Amelie Mauresmo FRA 6-1, 6-2 Sun Alona's backhand drive     Alona and sister Kateryna won their career first doubles title at the Australian Open, then won the doubles at the Paris indoor tourney also. But they were not doing well at singles early this year, and decided to skip the doubles at Doha and Dubai (they have reached the doubles quarterfinals at Indian Wells).     Alona said: "We played doubles well, but not singles. We were playing more doubles … too much. We played good together, but I want to play singles the same way: well." #31 s20 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #120 q Evgenia Rodina RUS 6-3, 7-5 Mon Anabel's forehand drive #36 s24 Lindsay Davenport USA d #67 Yung-Jan Chan TPE 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 Mon Lindsay driving a forehand, Yung-Jan's backhand, Yung-Jan after winning the 2nd set, and Lindsay's backhand drive     Lindsay said: "I really felt like I should have and could have, played a little better and focused more. I was up in the second and had a lot of chances and a lot of opportunities that just kind of slipped away. Having said that, I'm happy to walk off the court playing the way I did the last four games, taking back control and playing better. Next time, hopefully I can keep my cool a little better and focus in on the task at hand." *#55 Casey Dellacqua AUS d #45 s32 Tamira Paszek AUT 6-1, 4-0 retired--illness Mon #46 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #104 LL Aiko Nakamura JPN 6-0, 6-2 Sun Aiko's service toss, and Aiko congratulating Caroline after the match

Indian Wells, 4th Rd, Tue 11am WTA story loser's prize: $19,350; points: 65 #2 s1 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #22 s13 Francesca Schiavone ITA 2-6, 7-5, 6-2 Ana and Francesca driving forehands, and Ana after winning a point     Ana said: "It was a tough match. In the first set, I had quite a few miss hits and I was disappointed, but I fought well. In the second set, I started to play better. [Francesca] really didn't drop her level much. We had a good point at 15-0 (at 5-5 in the second), and then she had two double faults and I saw my opportunity." Desert Sun story #3 s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #46 Caroline Wozniacki DEN 6-2, 6-3 no photo available     Svetlana said: "I played much better in this match. I think I was just more focused when the second set started. I didn't let what happened in the last match happen [losing the 2nd set], and this was key. Just being much more consistent and maintaining my concentration." #4 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #31 s20 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP 6-3, 6-3 Jelena's forehand drive, Anabel following a backhand, and Jelena following another forehand     Jelena said: "I woke up with a cold, the same cold my mom just got over. She says it's not her fault and that I got it because I wasn't wearing warm enough clothes, but it's probably her fault and she just doesn't want to admit it! Now she's feeling 100% fine... I couldn't even open my mouth this morning!     "I got myself going in the morning with some exciting music (I also danced a bit in my room), so I was still able to pump myself up, and I still played well enough to win my fourth round match with Medina Garrigues in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3. I was actually up 4-1 in the second set and she broke me back for 4-3, but then I was able to break her again and finish it off. It was pretty tough because my nose was runny and my eyes were watery, but I'm hoping my day off tomorrow will help me recover for my quarterfinal match on Thursday against Davenport or Bartoli. I've been playing better and better here and I don't want that momentum to stop." Indian Wells player's blog by Jelena Jankovic #5 s4 Maria Sharapova RUS d #24 Alona Bondarenko UKR 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 Maria serving, Alona and Maria driving backhands, and Maria after winning a point     Maria said: "I felt like I was pretty close to being down and out because I wasn't able to produce good points for a long period of time. I would play a good game, I would get down again and then I would miss three returns in a row. I was just giving her so many opportunities out there. I wasn't playing my best tennis, far from it, but I was just tough in the end and it gets me through a lot of matches." #8 s5 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #32 s21 Sania Mirza IND 6-1, 7-6(4) Daniela serving, Sania driving a backhand, and Daniela after match point     Daniela said: "I thought it was a great match. Sania is a great hitter and I was expecting a really tough one today. Just being able to be in the quarters without losing a set feels really great.     "I feel like I'm hitting the ball well again. I'm doing it the same way as last year so those two are pretty good signs. We'll see what's going to happen." Reuters story     Sania has been plagued by pain in her right wrist, a result, she says, of her very Western forehand grip. Sania said: "It's almost a chronic problem. Either I change my grip, which I'm not going to do, or I probably have to get surgery or something...     "It's very hard for me because I'm almost defying nature every time I hit a forehand because I'm going in a very weird way because I have a very extreme grip. Usually it doesn't get this sore, so I'm a little worried right now. Usually, it gets sore and then it gets OK when I ice and do whatever I have to do."     Asked if she could change her grip, Sania said: "Easier said than done. I've been doing it for the last 16 years of my life. It's a big step to even change it half an inch because my game is my forehand. It's not easy to change a grip at the stage where you're like No. 30 in the world. But if I have to, I will, but that's not an option. I would obviously like to look at other options before that." Desert Sun story *#36 s24 Lindsay Davenport USA d #9 s6 Marion Bartoli FRA 6-2, 7-5 Lindsay's forehand, Marion's 2-handed forehand, and Lindsay's backhand #19 s10 Agnieszka Radwanska POL d #72 Ashley Harkleroad USA 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 Agnieszka serving, and Ashley & Agnieszka driving backhands #21 s12 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #55 Casey Dellacqua AUS 6(5)-7, 6-0, 6-4 Vera following a forehand (only photo available)

Indian Wells, QFs, Wed-Thu 11am Wed WTA story - Thu WTA story loser's prize: $39,375; points: 115 #2 s1 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #21 s12 Vera Zvonareva RUS 6-1, 6-4 Thu Vera driving a backhand, and after losing a point, and Ana driving a backhand, and after match point     Ana hit 18 winners in the match; Vera, 10. Ana said: "I started really well. I thought I played some of my best tennis here so I was really happy about that. In the second set, I had a break up and then lost a little bit of concentration. I started to get a bit emotional and tried to go for too much. I lost my rhythm a little bit. I was just happy that at the end of the second set, I managed to keep calm and play good...     "Obviously Vera is a tough opponent, we had tough matches in the past. She beat me few times quite easy, so obviously I knew I had to be active and sharp from the first moment on to put pressure on her. Because I think, you know, she's kind of player who can play really well. But if you get her little bit out of her zone she can make some mistakes, so that was my goal today, and that's what I tried to keep doing." postmatch interview - Reuters story #3 s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #19 s10 Agnieszka Radwanska POL 6-2, 6-4 Wed Agnieszka and Svetlana driving backhands, and Sveta after winning a point     Svetlana said: "I played pretty good. I think I played better in the first set, but in the second she played a little bit better and I missed a few chances, but it was pretty good still and I'm confident playing out there. It was good win for me after losing to her at the Australian Open. I was dictating the game more and just maintained my focus and tried to stay calm." postmatch interview #4 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #36 s24 Lindsay Davenport USA 6-2, retired--low to mid back injury Thu Lindsay serving, and Jelena firing a forehand on the fly     Jelena said: "I didn't know that [Lindsay] was hurt. I just came out on the court with the goal I wanted to play her really aggressive and take the initiative from the first strike, and that's what I did today...     "I love to play a full match, but unfortunately, this is the sport. We all get injuries... I wish her to recover as fast as possible and to come back." postmatch interview     Lindsay said: "I just hurt my back, and... like, okay, 'I will go out there and maybe it will loosen up.'     "It was pretty obvious to me after two games that I was pretty sore out there, and it was quite hard to rotate. Obviously with playing tennis you need your rotation, so I tried to do the best I could...     "It was injured before I came here, and I got it better, got it better, and then this morning woke up and just couldn't move. I actually don't know what caused it, but I got here at 9:30 this morning, was with the trainers for three hours or something before I played, and I was hopeful that with all the medication I took and the treatments, but just didn't happen." postmatch interview #5 s4 Maria Sharapova RUS d #8 s5 Daniela Hantuchova SVK 7-6(2), 6-1 Wed Maria's forehand, Daniela driving a backhand, and Maria after match point     Maria finished with 23 winners (6 aces) and 21 unforced errors (5 double faults); Daniela with 9 winners and 25 errors. It was Maria's 18th consecutive match victory; she is undefeated in 2008.     Maria said: "In that first set, I didn't feel like I belonged on that court. I finally got my groove back and it just felt like I finally belonged out there. To be honest, [Daniela] did everything better than me in that first set, and somehow I ended up winning it and that gave me confidence." postmatch interview - Desert Sun story     Daniela said: "I had my chances and didn't take them today. I feel like I lost my concentration in that first set and [Maria] took advantage of that. But she's playing very well. She hasn't lost this season, so she really deserves it."

Indian Wells, SFs, Fri WTA story loser's prize: $80,000; points: 210 #2 s1 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #4 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB 7-6(3), 6-3 Ana's forehand drive, Jelena's backhand, Ana running down a forehand, Jelena driving another backhand, Ana volleying a backhand, and Jelena congratulating Ana after match point     Ana said: "I think the first set we both were a little bit nervous, so I think the tennis wasn't that great. But I was just really happy that I kept my composure throughout the match. Even when I had set points I didn't play really well, but still I stayed right there with her and I fought really hard for the tiebreak. Taking the set gave me motivation to start better the second set and I managed to come through." postmatch interview     Jelena said: "It was a difficult match. I think the main strokes for me, the serve and the return, I wasn't able to do very well... [Ana] was very solid, but I made a lot of mistakes from my side... I lost the match. She was the better one today, so good luck to her in the final." postmatch interview     Ana now leads Jelena 5-1 in career matches, however, all but one of their matches have been close. Their previous meeting was last August in the semifinals in Los Angeles, where Ana defeated Jelena 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. #3 s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS d #5 s4 Maria Sharapova RUS 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 Svetlana driving a forehand, Maria's backhand, Maria delivering a forehand on the run, Sveta's backhand, Maria driving a forehand, Sveta another backhand, and Maria congratulating Svetlana after match point     Svetlana said: "The first [set] was so-so, the second better and in the third we got both our game. It was a good match and I feel great winning. I'm not a player who is used to defending so much as I did in the end of second set, so that's why probably lost it. But Maria started to hit the ball very well, and she has such good coverage it was really hard to move her around and the ball comes pretty flat, so you got to really need very good reactions. I know Maria's not loser and she's going to play until the last point, and I really took it away from her in the third." postmatch interview     Maria said: "I was just playing with a much slower pace than I normally play with. I wasn't going for my shots as I normally do... There were a couple important points that could have changed the match, and she ended up winning them. I think from that [Svetlana] gained confidence and kind of steamrolled after that in the third set...     "She's a very tough, tough player. She's not No. 2 or 3 in the world for nothing... and this court definitely suits her, her game and her serve as well, because the ball kind of jumps up... today she used that to her advantage." postmatch interview     Maria and Svetlana are now tied at 4-4 in career matches, but Maria had won four of their previous five encounters. Their prior meeting was on an indoor carpet last November in the round-robin of the WTA Championships in Madrid, where Maria defeated Svetlana 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.

Indian Wells, Final, Sun, noon loser's prize: $163,000; points: 325 winner's prize: $332,000; points: 465 #2 s1 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #3 s2 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS 6-4, 6-3 Ana serving, Svetlana driving a backhand, Ana's backhand, Sveta firing a cannonball serve, Ana running down a forehand, Svetlana's forehand drive, Ana driving a forehand, and Ana after match point

Indian Wells, Doubles Final, Sat 11am WTA story losers' prize: $45,500 winners' prize: $91,000 cdr70 Dinara Safina & Elena Vesnina d cdr31 s3 Zi Yan & Jie Zheng 6-1, 1-6, (10-8) Dinara & Elena... it was Dinara's eighth WTA doubles title, and Elena's third Indian Wells, Qualifying Finals, Tue Mar 11 10am losers' prizes: q1 $585 1pt; q2 $1,170 10pts; qualifier 15 points *#121 Iveta Benesova CZE d #92 Julie Ditty USA 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 #99 Alla Kudryavtseva RUS d #NR Riza Zalameda USA 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(5) #101 Catalina Castano COL d #125 Olivia Sanchez FRA 6-4, 6-1 *#129 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA d #104 Aiko Nakamura JPN 6(2)-7, 6-2, 6-2 #111 Galina Voskoboeva RUS d #134 Anne Keothavong GBR 7-5, 0-6, 6-1 *#120 Evgenia Rodina RUS d #116 Rosanna de Los Rios PAR 6-3, 6-2 *#146 Julie Schruff GER d #118 Tatiana Poutchek BLR 6-3, 6-3 *#156 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE d #124 Katie O'Brien GBR 6-4, 6-4 #135 Renata Voracova CZE d #186 Rika Fujiwara JPN 6-2, 6-2 *#145 Greta Arn HUN d #138 Emmanuelle Gagliardi SUI 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 #140 Sabine Lisicki GER v #147 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN 7-6(6), 6-4 #143 Melinda Czink HUN d #184 Alberta Brianti ITA 6-3, 3-2 retired Indian Wells, Withdrawals #10 Elena Dementieva RUS #13 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 #23 s14 Na Li CHN right knee #28 Victoria Azarenka BLR #34 Julia Vakulenko UKR #43 Vera Dushevina RUS #48 Alize Cornet FRA #50 Akiko Morigami JPN #61 Meghann Shaughnessy USA left knee #77 Virginia Ruano Pascual ESP #84 Lourdes Dominguez Lino ESP #95 Laura Granville USA left wrist #97 Alicia Molik AUS #252 sr Vasilisa Bardina RUS

    (Mar 10, 2008) Schedule change: This year's Indian Wells women's singles final will be held on (Easter) Sunday (same as the men's) with the doubles final on Saturday. Previously the women's singles final was held on Saturday and the women's doubles final on Sunday, "Grand Slam style."

    (Mar 10, 2008) Former WTA # 35 Sesil Karatantcheva won the Indian Wells pre-qualifying tourney, earning a wild card into the qualifying draw.
    Sesil, however, was then promptly defeated by Evgenia Rodina, 7-5, 6-2. 18-year-old Sesil, who completed a 2-year suspension in January, is 17-4 this year in ITF and qualifying matches, and has won 2 ITF titles. Desert Sun story

    Not at Indian Wells, but playing again, is former # 14 Elena Bovina. Elena, who won the Pilot Pen Open in New Haven in 2004, has had countless injuries since then. Elena started playing again this month, and was defeated by Sesil last week in an ITF Las Vegas qualifying final, 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 (Sesil lost to Madison Brengle in the 1st round of the main draw).

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.