WTA Feb 16-22: Dubai, Mem., Bog. Dubai Tennis Champ's, Dubai, UAE PREMIER 5 $2,000,000 56m/32q/28d outdoor: hard (DecoTurf II) live video Live Scores - in popup window WTA pdf.: draws & OOP - notes pics: Y!: sports - news | tourney - WTA video - audio | Dubai: weather # 1 S Williams, # 2 D Safina Cellular South Cup, Memphis, TN INTL $220,000 32m/32q/16d indoor: hard (Plexipave) Live Scores - in popup window WTA pdf.: draws & OOP pics: Y!: sports - news | tourney - WTA # 12 C Wozniacki, # 15 V Azarenka Copa Colsanitas, Bogota, COL INTL $220,000 32m/32q/16d outdoor: red clay Live Scores - in popup window WTA pdf.: draws & OOP pics: Y!: sports - news | tourney video | Bogota: weather forecast # 11 F Pennetta, # 29 C Suarez N

Dubai & Memphis: 2008 - 2007 - 2006   Dubai: 2005 - 2004 Memphis: 2005 - 2004   Bogota: 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 previous other tourney pages next Dubai: #6 Venus Williams 6' 1" 160lb RH 2H-BH Memphis: #15 Victoria Azarenka 5' 10" 132lb RH 2H-BH Bogota: #69 MJ Martinez Sanchez 5' 9¼" 150lb LH 2H-BH

    On Saturday in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in the final of Barclay's Dubai Tennis Championships, last year's Wimbledon champ, 28-year-old 6th-seeded # 6 Venus Williams from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, defeated 25-year-old unseeded # 57 Virginie Razzano from Nimes, France, 6-4, 6-2 (Venus is shown with the hardware after the match). Venus's prize is $350,000; Virginie's prize is $175,000.

    Venus said: "[Virginie] played well. She had a great game plan just to come out and attack, because she would be in trouble if she let me control the point. And I ended up playing a lot of defense. Thankfully, I can play a little defense." BBC story | mp3 audio clips: I - II - III

    Despite the loss, Virginie was quite pleased with her stay in Dubai, which included wins over Dinara Safina, Vera Zvonareva, and Daniela Hantuchova.
    Virginie said: "My best week, of course, of my career... Its a big tournament, and you play a very tough player every day... I felt so good on the court, I was very relaxed." mp3 audio clips: I - II

    Venus and Virginie had played three times before. The first two times they met, Venus won in straight sets. But in their last encounter, in the final of the 2007 Tokyo Japan Open, Virginie defeated Venus, 4-6, 7-6(7), 6-4.

    7-time Grand Slam tourney champion Venus is now 40-22 in WTA singles finals; in addition to Wimbledon last year, she won at Zurich, and also won the season-ending WTA Championships in Doha, Qatar. Venus now has a 7-1 match record in 2009.
    Virginie is now 2-3 in WTA singles finals; both her titles came in 2007, in Tokyo, and the previous week in Guangzhou. Virginie now has a 10-5 match record this season.

    In the Memphis final on Saturday, 19-year-old 2nd-seeded # 15 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus (residence: Scottsdale, Arizona) defeated 18-year-old top-seeded # 12 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark (residence: Monte Carlo, Monaco), 6-1, 6-3 (Victoria is shown with the glassware after the match). Victoria's prize is $37,000; Caroline's prize is $19,000. Victoria and Caroline had played only once before, in the 3rd round of last year's US Open, when Caroline won, 6-4 6-4.

    Victoria said: "I started well, putting a lot of pressure on [Caroline]. I did everything I should have done. I was commanding the points. I think I got more confidence as the match went on, too. I was down 2-0 in the third set in my semifinal, and winning that tough match really helped me against Caroline in the final today." WTA story

    Caroline said: "[Victoria] was just playing great; I didn't feel I was playing badly. I felt like everything I hit just came back faster. I had beaten her before and I was hoping it would turn out that way again, but she just played a great match. There wasn't too much I could do. Hopefully we can come out and win the doubles now."

    Caroline did win a title on Saturday. After a bit of rest, she returned to the court for the doubles final with her partner—Victoria Azarenka—and they defeated Yuliana Fedak & Michaella Krajicek, 6-1, 7-6(2).

    Victoria is now 2-4 in WTA singles finals; she won her first title last month in Brisbane. Vika now has a 13-1 match record this year.
    Caroline is now 3-2 in WTA singles finals; she won in Stockholm, New Haven, and Tokyo (the Japan Open) last year. Caroline now has a 12-5 match record in 2009.

    In the Bogota final on Sunday, 26-year-old 7th-seeded # 69 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez from Barcelona, Spain won her first WTA singles title by defeating 24-year-old 3rd-seeded # 44 Gisela Dulko from Buenos Aires, Argentina, 6-3, 6-2 (Maria Jose is shown receiving the hardware after the match). Maria Jose's prize is $37,000; Gisela's prize is $19,000.

    Maria Jose said: "The final was more difficult than the score suggests, but on the important points I think I played better. It feels great." WTA story

    Surprisingly, Gisela and Maria Jose had never before met on the field of singles combat. However, they got a warmup on Saturday afternoon, when Maria Jose (partnered with Nuria Llagostera Vives) defeated Gisela (partnered with Flavia Pennetta) in the Bogota doubles final, 7-5, 3-6, (10-7).

    Maria Jose is now 1-1 in WTA singles finals; she reached the Barcelona final last year. Maria Jose, who has won 12 ITF singles titles, has a 8-2 match record for 2009.
    Gisela is now 3-3 in WTA singles finals; she won the Fes, Morocco title last year. Despite the loss, Gisela is off to a good start this year, with a 9-3 match record, not including January exhibition wins over Agnes Szavay and Anna Chakvetadze in Hong Kong.

Bogota player's blog by Flavia Pennetta

  mp3 clips

Final Sat Feb 21 postmatch: Venus Williams: I - II - III - Virginie Razzano: I - II
SF Fri Feb 20 postmatch: Venus Williams: I - II - Serena Williams I - II - Virginie Razzano: I - II - III - Kaia Kanepi
QF Thu Feb 19 postmatch: Serena Williams: I - II - Elena Dementieva - Venus Williams - Kaia Kanepi: I - II
rd3 Wed Feb 18 postmatch: Kaia Kanepi - Jelena Jankovic: I - II - Venus Williams - Ana Ivanovic: I - II - Elena Vesnina: I - II
Tue Feb 17 postmatch: Serena Williams - Jelena Jankovic - Venus Williams: I - II - Virginie Razzano - Dinara Safina: I - II
Mon Feb 16 postmatch: Ana Ivanovic: I - II - Sania Mirza - Elena Vesnina: I - II
Mon Feb 16 pretourney: Serena Williams: I - II - Jelena Jankovic
Sun Feb 15 pretourney: Jelena Jankovic - Elena Dementieva - Svetlana Kuznetsova

WTA SCOREBOARD: Dubai, Memphis & Bogota s=seed, #=rank, *=upset, LL=lucky loser ranks are for the previous week How do players get into the "draw"? Dubai Tennis Championships,  Dubai, United Arab Emirates   tourney time:        = GMT +4 hours        = US EDT +9 hours        = US PDT +12 hours United Arab Emirates News Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar     Dubai: The main draw for Dubai has 16 seeds, with 8 1st-round byes. There are 8 qualifiers in the main draw. Qualifying (2 rounds) starts on Friday, qualifying finals are on Saturday, and main draw play begins on Sunday.   click for broader view   Dubai Tennis Stadium at top center Latitude: 25.24243 Longitude: 55.342475 goto link for World Wind 2009: On Sunday & Monday, Feb 15-16, high seeds Serena Williams, Venus Williams, and Ana Ivanovic met the press in Dubai... row 2: At the Dubai player party on Tuesday night, Ana and Zi Yan did the "hold the falcon" thing, and other darned good looking healthy young ladies like Jelena Jankovic partook of fine food and beverages...

Dubai, 1st Rd, Sun-Mon noon loser's prize: $5,400 US; points: 1 *#120 q Urszula Radwanska POL d #10 s9 Agnieszka Radwanska POL 6-4, 6-3 Mon Urszula watching her serve fly Agnieszkaward, Agnieszka running down a forehand, and Urszula driving a backhand #13 s10 Alizé Cornet FRA d #63 Anna-Lena Groenefeld GER 6-4, 6-1 Mon #14 s11 Marion Bartoli FRA d #25 Ai Sugiyama JPN 6-0, 4-6, 7-6(6) Mon #18 s12 Dominika Cibulkova SVK d #38 Sorana Cirstea ROU 6-4, 6-2 Mon Sorana and Dominika following backhand and forehand #19 s13 Jie Zheng CHN d #110 q Anastasia Rodionova RUS 6-1, 6-1 Sun Jie serving to Anastasia #20 s14 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #133 LL Andreja Klepac SLO 6-3, 6-1 Mon *#83 LL Ayumi Morita JPN d #22 s15 Anna Chakvetadze RUS 7-5, 6-2 Mon #23 s16 Kaia Kanepi EST d #79 q Tamira Paszek AUT 2-6, 6-2, 6-0 Sun #26 Sybille Bammer AUT d #81 Mariya Koryttseva UKR 6-1, 6-4 Sun #27 Alisa Kleybanova RUS d #121 q Anna Lapushchenkova RUS 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 Sun *#84 q Elena Vesnina RUS d #28 Na Li CHN 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 Sun Elena serving to Na *#105 LL Camille Pin FRA d #30 Agnes Szavay HUN 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 Mon #31 Alona Bondarenko UKR d #49 Olga Govortsova BLR 6-4, 6-3 Mon #33 Sara Errani ITA d #62 Yung-Jan Chan TPE 6-4, 6-4 Sun *#47 Monica Niculescu ROU d #35 Shuai Peng CHN 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 Mon c2 m1 noon Monica following her 2-handed forehand, which she delivers Bartoli-style (with backhand grip) *#45 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #36 Maria Kirilenko RUS 6-2, 6-4 Sun #37 Francesca Schiavone ITA d #88 Casey Dellacqua AUS 6-1, 6-1 Mon #39 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #122 wc Stephanie Voegele SUI 7-5, 6-2 Mon Stephanie about to swat a backhand, and Daniela following one #42 Samantha Stosur AUS d #51 Magdalena Rybarikova SVK 6-4, 6-3 Mon *#137 q Julia Schruff GER d #43 Petra Kvitova CZE 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 Sun Julia serving to Petra #46 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL d #142 q Viktoriya Kutuzova UKR 6-2, 6-3 Sun *#126 wc Sania Mirza IND d #53 Ekaterina Makarova RUS 7-5, 6-2 Mon *#57 Virginie Razzano FRA d #55 Kateryna Bondarenko UKR 7-5, 6-2 Mon #75 wc Vera Dushevina RUS d #117 q Zi Yan CHN 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 Sun Vera serving to Zi

Dubai, 2nd Rd, Mon-Tue losers' prize: $10,275 US; points: 60 #1 s1 Serena Williams USA d #33 Sara Errani ITA 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 Tue Sara following a flying backhand, Serena running down a forehand, and after match point *#57 Virginie Razzano FRA d #2 s2 Dinara Safina RUS 6-4, 6-2 Tue Virginie about to slice a backhand, and Dinara driving one #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #47 Monica Niculescu ROU 6-3, 6-2 Tue Jelena running down a forehand, Monica driving a backhand, and Jelena volleying one #4 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS d #26 Sybille Bammer AUT 7-5, 6-2 Tue Sybille and Elena driving lefty and righty backhands in Elena's 500th career match victory Elena 500th video #5 s5 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #75 wc Vera Dushevina RUS 6-0, 6-3 Tue Vera D following a backhand, and Vera Z driving a forehand #6 s6 Venus Williams USA d #45 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS 6-0, 6-1 Tue Venus serving, Anastasia serving, and Venus driving a forehand *#84 q Elena Vesnina RUS d #7 s7 Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS 6-4, 3-6, 6-0 Mon Elena serving, Svetlana about to swat a forehand, Elena's running forehand, and after match point     It was the biggest win of Elena's career. Elena's previous best win (by rank) was over then #11 Francesca Schiavone in the 2nd round in Miami in 2006, 6-2, 6-3. Elena has also defeated # 12 twice (Patty Schnyder and Caroline Wozniacki), but she had never before defeated a top 10 player or a Grand Slam champion. Although Elena lost in the 1st round of this year's Australian Open, she is having the best start of her career, and is now 7-2 for the season, having reached the Auckland final (where she lost to compatriot Elena Dementieva).     Elena Vesnina audio clips 1 - 2 #8 s8 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #27 Alisa Kleybanova RUS 7-5, 6-4 Mon Ana serving, and driving a backhand     Anna had lost to Alisa last month in the 3rd round of the Australian Open, 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-2. This time Ana broke Alisa's serve very late in each set. #13 s10 Alizé Cornet FRA d #137 q Julia Schruff GER 6-1, 6-2 Tue #14 s11 Marion Bartoli FRA d #37 Francesca Schiavone ITA 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3 Tue #18 s12 Dominika Cibulkova SVK d #46 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL 7-6(5), 6-4 Tue #19 s13 Jie Zheng CHN d #42 Samantha Stosur AUS 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 Tue #20 s14 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP d #31 Alona Bondarenko UKR 6-2, 7-5 Tue #23 s16 Kaia Kanepi EST d #126 wc Sania Mirza IND 7-5, 6-2 Tue #39 Daniela Hantuchova SVK d #83 LL Ayumi Morita JPN 7-6(1), 6-2 Tue Daniela driving a backhand #105 LL Camille Pin FRA d #120 q Urszula Radwanska POL 6(6)-7, 7-5, 2-0 retired—heat illness Tue

Dubai, 3rd Rd, Wed losers' prize: $20,000 US; points: 110 #1 s1 Serena Williams USA d #19 s13 Jie Zheng CHN 6-4, 6-2 Jie about to swat a backhand, and Serena following one *#23 s16 Kaia Kanepi EST d #3 s3 Jelena Jankovic SRB 6-2, 7-5 Jelena serving, Kaia driving a backhand, and after match point     Kaia said: "I think I played good. My tactic was to mix it up... I think that worked well... My serve was good when it needed to be good. [Jelena] obviously didn't play great." mp3 audio clip     Jelena said: "I couldn't put two balls together in the court. I basically gave [Kaia] the match... I just played so badly it was tough for me to even be there... This was one of the worst matches of my career." mp3 audio clips: I - II #4 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS d #20 s14 Anabel Medina Garrigues ESP 6-1, 6-3 Elena driving a forehand, Anabel volleying a backhand, and Elena's backhand drive #5 s5 Vera Zvonareva RUS d #14 s11 Marion Bartoli FRA 5-2 retired—foot blisters Marion and Vera driving forehands #6 s6 Venus Williams USA d #13 s10 Alizé Cornet FRA 6-3, 6-2 Venus about to lightly tap a forehand, and Alizé's backhand drive #8 s8 Ana Ivanovic SRB d #105 LL Camille Pin FRA 6-2, 7-6(5) Ana serving, Camille fielding a backhand on the run, and Ana driving one *#84 q Elena Vesnina RUS d #18 s12 Dominika Cibulkova SVK 4-6, 6-1, 4-0 retired—heat illness Elena and Dominika driving backhands     Elena said: "It’s a great surprise for me to be in the quarterfinals, and it’s great to be in the quarterfinals of such a big tournament. In the warm-up I was feeling really great but then I started to play and something happened and all my energy left. [Dominika] was playing good but I was a bit slow and not moving well.     "Then at 5-0, I told myself to just do my job and try to play some long rallies and don’t give her free points. It started to work and my serve started to be a little bit more aggressive towards the end of the first set...     "At the end of the second set, I thought she had an injury, but she’s sick and I feel very sorry about her having to retire today. We’re very good friends. I talked with her after the match and she told me she’s been sick since the Pattaya Open." tourney story | mp3 audio clips: I - II *#57 Virginie Razzano FRA d #39 Daniela Hantuchova SVK 6-2, 1-6, 6-2

Dubai, QFs, Thu 2pm WTA story losers' prize: $40,000 US; points: 200 #1 s1 Serena Williams USA d #8 s8 Ana Ivanovic SRB 6-4, 6-4 Ana about to slice a backhand, and Serena driving one     Ana took a 3-0 lead in the 2nd set, and was up 4-1 before Serena broke back.     Serena said: "[Ana] was really trying to hit hard. I think her goal was to go for broke. I was feeling a bit tired at the start of the second set, but wasn’t too worried about her going 3-0 up as I knew I was just a break down. I knew I could pull it off." AP story | mp3 audio clips: I - II *#6 s6 Venus Williams USA d #4 s4 Elena Dementieva RUS 6-3, 6-3 Venus and Elena driving forehand and backhand, and Venus after match point     Venus said: "[Elena] has been playing great this year and she is a great player. She likes to control the match, and I also like doing the same. So, I am pleased that I was able to do that." mp3 audio clip     Venus will play her sister Serena will play in a semifinal on Friday. They are tied at 9-9 in career matches.     Venus had the best of Serena until 2002 and 2003, when Serena won five straight from her older sister. Then Venus won their next two matches, both in 2005. They did not play again until last year, when Serena defeated Venus in the Bangalore semis. Then Venus defeated Serena in the Wimbledon final, after which Serena defeated Venus in the US Open quarters, 7-6(6), 7-6(7). Their most recent meeting was in the round robin of the 2008 WTA Championships, when Venus defeated Serena 5-7, 6-1, 6-0. It is Serena's turn. *#57 Virginie Razzano FRA d #5 s5 Vera Zvonareva RUS 7-6(7), 7-5 Virginie following a forehand, Vera driving a backhand, Virginie about to connect with one, and after match point     Vera said: "Today I wasn't ready to stay out there for three hours like [Virginie] was. It was mentally tough for me because I was fighting through so many matches in a row [including winning the Pattya title last week]. I had concentration lapses throughout the whole match. I would play a game or two and then I would completely go down for a game or two, and you cannot do it at such a level against a player who is in form." #23 s16 Kaia Kanepi EST d #84 q Elena Vesnina RUS 6-3, 7-5 Kaia about to swat a forehand, Elena driving a backhand, and Kaia after match point     Kaia said: "It was difficult. I didn't play my best game and [Elena] hit some uncomfortable shots for me. I had so many chances in the first few games to break her but didn't take my chances. Then when I was serving for the match I rushed too much."

Dubai, SFs, Fri 2pm & 7pm loser's prize: $87,500 US; points: 350 *#6 s6 Venus Williams USA d #1 s1 Serena Williams USA 6-1, 2-6, 7-6(3) Venus serving, Serena following a backhand, and Venus driving one     Venus said: "That 1st set I was really dominating with my serve... [Serena] had a lot of pressure on her to get into the match. Then you try for more and more." mp3 audio clip     Serena appeared to be having some pain in her left leg. Serena said: "I didn't serve that well, and I thought Venus served really well, which I think ultimately helped her win the match... I'm just playing every match as hard as I can whether I'm hurt or not. I've just been playing a lot of matches, more than I have in my career, and I'm a little tired." BBC story | mp3 audio clips: I - II *#57 Virginie Razzano FRA d #23 s16 Kaia Kanepi EST 6-1, 6-2 Kaia driving a forehand, Virginie following one, and Virginie while signing autographs for French fans after match point     It has been the best week of Virginie's career, reaching her first big tourney final with wins over Dinara Safina, Vera Zvonareva, and Daniela Hantuchova.     Virginie said: "I try to make a lot of pressure all the time and play aggressive. I put a lot of pressure on Kaia, and I played very good tennis. I don't want to give her any luck - it's me the boss today. I want to win too!...     "I have had a good preparation in November and December at home. I thought after the Australian Open [where she beat 14th seed Patty Schnyder] that I am feeling good. I am able to try my best every time because I have worked hard. I was feeling good before I came here. I knew I had practised a lot and I know my tennis and what I can do when I have worked a lot. It is a surprise because I have beaten players in the top ten or the top 20 but I have played my best every time. Sometimes I don't have a result and it's difficult because I don't understand why when I have a lot of motivation for my career. But now my schedule is better this year and I can give one hundred percent game after game, match after match. I don't want to make the same error as last year when I played too many tournaments and was not feeling good."     Asked if she could win the final, Virginie said: "I have to have my spa first, and talk with you, and enjoy my boy-friend! I want to enjoy a good restaurant and a good sleep. When I go to the warm-up in the morning tomorrow, that's when I will think about the tennis." AFP story - mp3 audio clips: I - II - III     Venus will play Virginie in the Dubai final on Saturday. They have played three times before. The first two times they met, Venus won in straight sets. But in their last encounter, in the final of the 2007 Tokyo Japan Open, Virginie defeated Venus, 4-6, 7-6(7), 6-4.     After that match, Venus said: "[Virginie] managed to play really well at all the right moments, so congratulations to her. I wasn't tired - I was feeling pretty fit. It's a very good win. She's having a great year."

Dubai, Final, Sat 7pm loser's prize: $175,000 US; points: 550 winner's prize: $350,000 US; points: 800 #6 s6 Venus Williams USA d #57 Virginie Razzano FRA 6-4, 6-2 Venus serving, Virginie and Venus driving backhands, and Venus after match point

Dubai, Doubles Final 5pm losers' prize: $50,000 US winners' prize: $100,000 US cdr2 s1 Cara Black & Liezel Huber d cdr81 Maria Kirilenko & Agnieszka Radwanska 6-3, 6-3 Dubai, Qual Finals, Sun Feb 14 losers' prizes: q1 $1,500 1pt; q2 $2,900 20pts; qualifier 30 points #79 Tamira Paszek AUT d #191 Kristina Kucova SVK 6-2, 7-5 *#142 Viktoriya Kutuzova UKR d #83 Ayumi Morita JPN 6-1, 6-2 #84 Elena Vesnina RUS d #201 Selima Sfar TUN 6-2, 6-2 *#137 Julia Schruff GER d #105 Camille Pin FRA 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 #110 Anastasia Rodionova RUS d #133 Andreja Klepac SLO 6-1, 6-4 #117 Zi Yan CHN d #153 Tatiana Poutchek BLR 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 #120 Urszula Radwanska POL d #300 Raquel Kops-Jones USA 6-0, 6-4 *#121 Anna Lapushchenkova RUS d #170 Vesna Manasieva RUS 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 Dubai, Withdrawals #9 Nadia Petrova RUS right foot injury #17 Maria Sharapova RUS not yet ready to play, 2008 right shoulder injury #21 Katarina Srebotnik SLO left achilles injury #40 Bethanie Mattek USA left hip injury #41 Tamarine Tanasugarn THA Pattaya doubles final #71 Nicole Vaidisova CZE right wrist injury

Regions Morgan Keegan Championships & Cellular South Cup (Kroger St. Jude),  Memphis, Tennessee   NWS weather radar tourney time:        = GMT -6 hours        = US EDT -1 hour        = US PDT +2 hours Tennessee news Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar   click for broader view   Racquet Club of Memphis Lat.: 35.116135 Long.: -89.890534 goto link for World Wind     Memphis: The main draw for Memphis has 8 seeds, with no 1st-round byes. There are 4 qualifiers in the main draw.     Qualifying (2 rounds) starts on Friday, qualifying finals are on Saturday.    Memphis Commerical Appeal: Tennis 2009: On Wednesday, February 18, Vania King tried out a flight simulator at the Memphis airport... On Thursday, players including Julie Coin, Stephanie Foretz, Caroline Wozniacki, and Victoria Azarenka attended the "Teen Bash," a party for young fans...

Memphis, 1st Rd Sun-Tue 10am loser's prize: $1,725 US; points: 1 #12 s1 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #90 q Jelena Dokic AUS 6-1, 6-2 Tue Caroline about to return a serve from Jelena     Former #4 Jelena had defeated Caroline in the 3rd round of last month's Australian Open, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.     Caroline said: "[Jelena is] a really good player. I lost to her in Australia. It's so much different to play her in Australia. It's different outdoors from indoors. I'm really happy to be through. I feel like I was playing really well, serving well. I'm really happy about the game today." Memphis Commercial Appeal story #15 s2 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #124 Varvara Lepchenko RUS 6-2, 6-2 Mon #50 s3 Lucie Safarova CZE d #102 Melanie South GBR 6-2, 6-2 Mon #52 s4 Anne Keothavong GBR d #119 Maria Elena Camerin ITA 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 Mon #56 s5 Marina Erakovic NZL d #107 Julie Ditty USA 7-6(4), 6-0 Sun #61 s6 Sabine Lisicki GER d #141 Ekaterina Bychkova RUS 6-3, 6-3 Mon *#199 q Michaella Krajicek NED d #64 s7 Alla Kudryavtseva RUS 6-1, 6-4 Mon #67 s8 Pauline Parmentier FRA d #87 Julie Coin FRA 7-6(6), 4-6, 6-1 Mon *#123 wc Michelle Larcher de Brito POR d #72 Sofia Arvidsson SWE 6-2, 6-0 Mon *#112 Stephanie Foretz FRA d #80 Melinda Czink HUN 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 Tue #86 Severine Bremond FRA d #94 Kirsten Flipkens BEL 6-4, 6-0 Tue *#91 Kristina Barrois GER d #89 Jarmila Groth SVK/AUS 6-2, 5-7, 7-6(3) Sun #92 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA d #136 q Alexa Glatch USA 6-3, 6-3 Mon *#147 wc Melanie Oudin USA d #93 Jill Craybas USA 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 Sun *#158 q Chanelle Scheepers RSA d #115 Lucie Hradecka CZE 6-1, 5-7, 7-6(5) Tue #118 Vania King USA d #189 wc Alexandra Stevenson USA 6-2, 7-6(5) Mon

Memphis, 2nd Rd Tue-Wed 10am loser's prize: $2,950 US; points: 30 #12 s1 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #86 Severine Bremond FRA 6-1, 7-6(1) Wed Caroline reaching for a backhand     Caroline said: "I think that I’m in good shape right now and that I’m playing well. Hopefully I can continue. I just try to take one match at a time and see how far I can go this year. The quarterfinals have been the stop for me so far so hopefully I can break the barrier this time." Memphis Commercial Appeal story #15 s2 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #92 Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA 6-2, 6-2 Tue #50 s3 Lucie Safarova CZE d #118 Vania King USA 7-6(1), 6-3 Wed #52 s4 Anne Keothavong GBR d #123 wc Michelle Larcher de Brito POR 7-6(2), 6-4 Wed #56 s5 Marina Erakovic NZL d #147 wc Melanie Oudin USA 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 Tue #61 s6 Sabine Lisicki GER d #112 Stephanie Foretz FRA 6-2, 6-4 Wed #67 s8 Pauline Parmentier FRA d #158 q Chanelle Scheepers RSA 6-4, 6-1 Wed *#199 q Michaella Krajicek NED d #91 Kristina Barrois GER 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(0) Tue

Memphis, QFs, Thu 10am WTA story loser's prize: $5,380 US; points: 70 #12 s1 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #199 q Michaella Krajicek NED 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 Michaella driving backhand, and Caroline following one, watching the ball drop in for a point after striking the net cord     Caroline said: "Michaella was playing really well and didn't really let me play the game I wanted to play, but I'm just happy to be through. She was serving well, so when I broke her the first time it gave me confidence to keep going forward.     "This is my first time in the semifinals of Memphis so hopefully it'll go well." #15 s2 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #67 s8 Pauline Parmentier FRA 6-4, 6-2 Pauline and Victoria driving backhands, and Vika after winning a point     Victoria said: "I wasn't as aggressive as I needed to be early on, but I changed my game in time. I hope to play better in my next match. I think I'm getting better with each match; I'm getting more comfortable with the courts."     Pauline said: "It was my first tournament of the year because I've been injured, so it's a good visit to the States for me. I played very good this week, winning two matches and playing well today. I'm happy." *#61 s6 Sabine Lisicki GER d #50 s3 Lucie Safarova CZE 6-3, 6-4     Sabine said: "It was a very close match where every point was so important. I served really well and on the big points I really went for my shots. I've been seeing how all of the Top 10 and Top 20 players play and I'm learning from it." #52 s4 Anne Keothavong GBR d #56 s5 Marina Erakovic NZL 6-2, 1-6, 6-2 Anne departing after the win     Anne said: "Today's match was a little up and down, the first set was pretty solid from me and then I went walkabout in the second. My first serve percentage wasn't good enough in the second set but I still had game points and break points in almost every game.     "There were a few close calls and over-rules from the umpire that didn't go my way but I managed to regroup and was very fired up for the third set where I came up with some good tennis. My next match against Wozniacki will be a tough one but I feel ready and will give it my best shot." BBC story - annekeothavong.co.uk

Memphis, SFs, Fri 10am WTA story loser's prize: $10,200 US; points: 130 #12 s1 Caroline Wozniacki DEN d #52 s4 Anne Keothavong GBR 6-1, 6-0 Anne serving to Caroline, and Caroline watching her backhand fly     The match lasted just 54 minutes. Caroline said: "I expected it would be longer, but I'm happy it turned out this way. It's always nice to have fast matches. That's what you're going for. Now I'm focused on doubles - hopefully Victoria and I can play in both finals."     Anne said: "Obviously, I'm very disappointed. I just played terribly. It was the worst I'd played all week. When you get to a semifinal, that's not how you want to play. It was just one of those days where nothing was working. But, you have good days and bad days—today was definitely a very bad day." #15 s2 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #61 s6 Sabine Lisicki GER 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(1) Sabine about to swat a forehand, and Victoria's backhand drive     Victoria said: "Normally I'm in a good mood when I'm playing, but today I was frustrated with the mistakes I made. I'm happy I was able to play well in the big points today, though - I just have to forget about these problems and focus on tomorrow's match now."     Sabine said: "It was just a few points in the end that determined it all. I never stopped fighting—that's the most important thing for me, even if you're not playing well, you have to try your best."

Memphis, Final Sat 7pm loser's prize: $19,000 US; points: 200 winner's prize: $37,000 US; points: 280 *#15 s2 Victoria Azarenka BLR d #12 s1 Caroline Wozniacki DEN 6-1, 6-3 Caroline and Victoria driving forehand and backhand, and Vika after winning a point

Memphis, Doubles Final, Sat after singles & rest loser's prize: $5,750 US winner's prize: $11,000 US cdr104 s2 Victoria Azarenka & Caroline Wozniacki d cdr241 Yuliana Fedak & Michaella Krajicek 6-1, 7-6(2) Woz & Vika, and Yuliana & Misa Memphis, Qual Finals, Sat Feb 14 11am losers' prizes: q1 $350 1pt; q2 $700 6pts; qualifier 10 points #90 Jelena Dokic AUS d #186 Alexandra Panova RUS 6-3, 6-1 *#199 Michaella Krajicek NED d #114 Stephanie Dubois CAN 6-1, 6-1 #136 Alexa Glatch USA d #197 Olga Puchkova RUS 6-3, 6-0 #158 Chanelle Scheepers RSA d #172 Meng Yuan CHN 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 Memphis, Withdrawals

Copa Colsanitas,  Bogota, Colombia   tourney time:        = GMT -5 hours        = US EDT        = US PDT +3 hours Colombia News Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar     Bogota: The main draw for Bogota has 8 seeds, with no 1st-round byes. There are 4 qualifiers in the main draw. Qualifying (3 rounds) starts on Saturday, qualifying finals are on Monday.   click for broader view   Club Campestre El Rancho Latitude: 4.77497 Longitude: -74.046736 goto link for World Wind 2008: Players being pretty at the Bogota party (or parties) on Wednesday (and/or Thursday--the WTA gallery indicates there were 2 parties) included: Rosanna de los Rios & retired former Colombian # 1 and 4-time Bogota champ Fabiola Zuluaga; Jelena Kostanic Tosic & Klara (Koukalova) Zakopalova; Arantxa Parra Santonja, Lourdes Dominguez Lino, Betina Jozami & Nuria Llagostera Vives; and Betina again, with Jorgelina Cravero and Maria Emilia Salerni...

Bogota, 1st Rd Mon 1pm, Tue 10am loser's prize: $1,725 US; points: 1 Monday: rain stopped play *#135 Masa Zec Peskiric SVK d #11 s1 Flavia Pennetta ITA 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(4) Tue #29 s2 Carla Suarez Navarro ESP d #176 q Johanna Larsson SWE 7-6(4), 6-4 Tue Carla's forehand drive #44 s3 Gisela Dulko ARG d #296 q Tamaryn Hendler BEL 6-2, 6-4 Tue Gisela following a backhand #65 s4 Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP d #111 Olga Savchuk UKR 6-2, 6-0 ppd-Tue #66 s5 Klara Zakopalova CZE v #321 sr Romina Oprandi ITA 3-6, 7-6(7), 7-6(5) Mon #68 s6 Mathilde Johansson FRA d #165 Catalina Castano COL 6(2)-7, 6-4, 6-4 Mon-rain-Tue Mathilde after match point #69 s7 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP d #103 Anastasiya Yakimova BLR 6-1, 6-3 Tue *#127 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU #73 s8 Lourdes Dominguez Lino ESP 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(3)Tue *#77 Edina Gallovits ROU d #76 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE 6-2, 6-2 Mon #85 Petra Cetkovska CZE d #167 Sandra Zahavlova CZE 7-5, 6-2 Mon #95 Rossana De Los Rios PAR d #159 Olivia Sanchez FRA 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 Tue #96 Patricia Mayr AUT d #179 q Tzipora Obziler ISR 6-2, 6-3 Tue *#132 Betina Jozami ARG d #104 Mariana Duque Marino COL 5-7, 6-0, 6-1 Tue Betina driving a forehand #109 Maret Ani EST d #239 wc Maria Emilia Salerni ARG 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 ppd-Tue *#181 q Katalin Marosi HUN d #154 Greta Arn HUN 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 Tue #292 wc Arantxa Parra Santonja ESP v #543 wc Viky Nunez Fuentes COL 6-2, 6-1 Tue

Bogota, 2nd Rd Wed-Thu 10am loser's prize: $2,950 US; points: 30 *#132 Betina Jozami ARG d #29 s2 Carla Suarez Navarro ESP 4-0 retired Thu #44 s3 Gisela Dulko ARG d #95 Rossana De Los Rios PAR 5-7, 6-1, 6-3 Thu *#96 Patricia Mayr AUT d #65 s4 Nuria Llagostera Vives ESP 7-6(8), 6-3 Wed *#77 Edina Gallovits ROU d #66 s5 Klara Zakopalova CZE 6-3, 6-4 Wed #68 s6 Mathilde Johansson FRA d #181 q Katalin Marosi HUN 6-4, 6-1 Thu #69 s7 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP d #292 wc A Parra Santonja ESP 6-4, 6-3 Thu *#135 Masa Zec Peskiric SVK d #85 Petra Cetkovska CZE 6-4, 6-3 Wed *#127 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU d #109 Maret Ani EST 6-4, 6-2 Wed

Bogota, QFs, Fri 10am loser's prize: $5,340 US; points: 70 #44 s3 Gisela Dulko ARG d #68 s6 Mathilde Johansson FRA 6-1, 6-2 Gisela serving to Mathilde #69 s7 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP d #132 Betina Jozami ARG 6-3, 6(6)-7, 6-4 #77 Edina Gallovits ROU d #135 Masa Zec Peskiric SVK 6-3, 6-0 #96 Patricia Mayr AUT d #127 Ioana Raluca Olaru ROU 6-1, 6-2

Bogota, SFs, Sat 10am loser's prize: $10,200 US; points: 130 #44 s3 Gisela Dulko ARG d #77 Edina Gallovits ROU 6-2, 6-3 #69 s7 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP d #96 Patricia Mayr AUT 7-5, 7-5

Bogota, Final Sun 1:15pm loser's prize: $19,000 US; points: 200 winner's prize: $37,000 US; points: 280 *#69 s7 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez ESP d #44 s3 Gisela Dulko ARG 6-3, 6-2 Gisela waiting to swat a backhand, Maria Jose driving one, and after match point

Bogota, Doubles Final, Sat m3 2pm+ loser's prize: $5,750 US winner's prize: $11,000 US cdr40 s1 Nuria Llagostera Vives & Maria Jose Martínez Sánchez     d cdr114 s2 Gisela Dulko & Flavia Pennetta 7-5, 3-6, (10-7) Nuria & Maria Jose Bogota, Qual Finals Mon Feb 16 10am losers' prizes: q1 $265 1pt; q2 $460 6pts; q3 $860 10pts; qualifier 16 points *#176 Johanna Larsson SWE d #149 Arantxa Rus NED 6-4, 6-2 *#181 Katalin Marosi HUN d #173 Soledad Esperon ARG 6-4, 6-2 *#296 Tamaryn Hendler BEL d #175 Candela Estrella Cabeza ESP 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 #179 Tzipora Obziler ISR d #235 Chayenne Ewijk NED 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 Bogota, Withdrawals #32 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN right shoulder injury #54 Tathiana Garbin ITA abdominal injury #78 Roberta Vinci ITA left foot injury #134 Emilie Loit FRA right calf strain

(Feb 15-19, 2009 re-revised) Shahar Peer of Israel was unexpectedly denied a visa to enter the United Arab Emirates to play in the Dubai Tennis Championships. The UAE has no diplomatic relations with Israel. Shahar played in the Qatar Total Open in Doha, Qatar (also lacking relations with Israel), last year without any difficulty.     The incident will place the future of the Dubai tourney in jeopardy. WTA CEO Larry Scott said: "Ms Peer has earned the right to play in the tournament and it's regrettable that the UAE is denying her this right... No host country should deny a player the right to compete in a tournament for which she has qualified by ranking."     On Feb 17, The Tennis Channel, which had been scheduled to broadcast later rounds of the tournament, announced that it would not do so because Shahar was denied a visa. On Feb 18, the Wall Street Journal Europe, a corporate sponsor of the Dubai Tennis Championships, withdrew their sponsorship from the tourney.     On Feb 19, it was announced that the UAE would grant Israeli ATP player Andy Ram a visa for the ATP tourney in Dubai the week following the ladies' tourney. And WTA CEO Larry Scott said that UAE authorities had assured him that all Israeli athletes henceforth would be given "a special permit" to enter the country if they have qualified for a tournament. Reuters story - Statements by Shahar Peer & Larry Scott     On Friday, Feb 20, the WTA announced:     • That the Dubai Tennis Championships would be fined $300,000 due to the denial of a visa to Shahar Peer, the largest tourney fine in WTA history.     • $44,250 of the fine will be awarded to Shahar, the average prize money she earned per tournament in 2008. The WTA is also awarding Shahar 130 ranking points.     • Shahar's intended doubles partner in Dubai, Anna-Lena Groenefeld, who had to withdraw from the doubles, will be awarded $7,950 of the fine. The balance of the fine will go to charity.     • The Dubai tourney will have to prove there is an approved entry permit for any Israeli player at least 8 weeks prior to the 2010 Dubai tourney.     • If Shahar does not qualify for the Dubai tourney by ranking next year, she must be awarded a wild card entry. WTA story - LA Times story - BBC story     Dubai tourney organizers are considering whether to appeal the fine, or simply pay it. Managing director of Dubai Duty Free Colm McLoughlin said: "If we decide we have to pay the fine then we will pay it. But we have not made that decision. We have to sit down and just look at it... Neither Dubai Duty Free nor the tournament issues visas. We request them. It is the immigration authorities and sometimes the security people who make the decisions." Reuters story

    (Feb 13, 2009) In Memphis, former # 4 Jelena Dokic said: "This is an indoor court that suits my game, and it's hardcourts, and that suits me as well. It's a little bit smaller tournament, but in having to play qualifying I'll be able to get a few more matches in. I don't mind playing qualifying. There's only two rounds and if I play well and get my game going, I'll have a couple of matches in before the main draw." Memphis Commercial Appeal story

    (Feb 12, 2009) Eye of Dubai reports that # 36 Maria Kirilenko and # 124 Stephanie Voegele have arrived in Dubai for Barclay's Dubai Tennis Championships and are staying at Habtoor Grand Resort & Spa on Jumeirah Beach. Maria, no doubt, brought her bikini.

    (Feb 4, 2009 revised Feb 5 & 6) Former # 1 Maria Sharapova has withdrawn from both the Paris indoor tourney (Feb 9) and the following week's tourney in Dubai (Feb 16). Maria is not yet ready to play as she recovers from a torn right shoulder rotator cuff tendon she incurred in the Spring of 2008.
    Maria said: "I'm very disappointed to be unable to compete in the upcoming Open GDF SUEZ and Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, both of which are great events that I was very much hoping to be able to play. My shoulder continues to improve every day and I am working very hard on the practice court...
    "I have been training in Florida the last few weeks and really working hard on getting the strength back in my arm. It's really amazing how you can do all the exercises and rehab in the world but nothing substitutes the time you spent on court running and hitting hundreds of balls. The biggest lesson I have learned throughout this whole process is that it takes so much patience to get back to where you were physically. You are never really going to forget 'how' to hit a tennis ball but what you do forget is how much work and repetition you must put into every single day in order to get back to where you were. And the only way to get back into good shape is by playing tennis. Unfortunately just because the doctor fixes the problem and gives you the green light to practice doesn't mean that you can just go out there playing tournaments. Yesterday I played my first few points with serves in about 6 months which was pretty exciting! Right now I'm aiming for Palm Springs [Indian Wells], or Miami, depending on how things shape up. I cannot wait to get back to playing tournaments!" mariasharapova.com

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

Current WTA Results & Tennis News (tennis home page) - 2009 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.