WTA Feb 28-Mar 6: Monterrey & KL Monterrey Open, Monterrey, MEX INTL $220,000 32m/32q/16d outdoor: hard Free Live Video (popup) Live Scores - in popup window draws: WTA: Q - main - D - OOP pics: DL - Y!: sports - news - Mexico     WTA - MexSport - Google Monterrey: weather radar - forecast #6 J Jankovic, #19 A Pavlyuchenkova #23 A Rezai, #34 J Georges BMW Malaysian Open Kuala Lumpur INTL $220,000 32m/32q/16d outdoor: hard Free Live Video (popup) Live Scores - in popup window draws: WTA: Q - main - D - OOP pics: DL - Y!: sports - news - WTA Kuala Lumpur: forecast #5 F Schiavone, #18 M Bartoli #20 A Kleybanova, #31 J Groth

Monterrey: 2010 - 2009   Vina del Mar: 2008   Kuala Lumpur: 2010   Bangalore: 2008 - 2007 - 2006 previous other tourney pages next Kuala Lumpur: #95 Jelena Dokic 5' 9" 132lb RH 2H-BH Monterrey #19 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 5'9" 149lb RH 2H-BH

On Sunday in Kuala Lumpur, in the final of the BMW Malaysian Open, a 2009 Australian Open quarterfinalist, 27-year-old #95 (career high: #4) Jelena Dokic of Australia (residence: Monte Carlo, Monaco), won her first WTA singles title since 2002 by defeating the 2006 champion at Gold Coast, 24 year old 5th seeded #35 (career-high: #22) Lucie Safarova from Brno, Czech Republic, 2-6, 7-6(9), 6-4 (Jelena is shown with the hardware after the match). Jelena's prize is $37,000; Lucie's is $19,000.     Jelena struck 13 aces—though with 11 double faults—Lucie hit 6 aces with 9 DFs. Lucie failed to convert two match points during the 2nd set tiebreak. She also took a 3-1 lead in the 3rd set, but then Jelena won four of the next five games.     Jelena said: "Lucie beat so many good players to reach the final this week. I don't know how I came back against her today... I don't know where I pulled it out from today but I did. I even surprised myself." WTA story     Lucie said: "Congratulations to Jelena. She played very well today and deserved to win."     Jelena and Lucie had met twice before. On red clay last year in the 1st round at Roland Garros, Jelena defeated Lucie 6-2, 6-2. But last month, on a hardcourt in the 1st round of the Paris indoor tourney, Jelena defeated Lucie 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.     Jelena is now 6-7 in WTA singles finals, but she had not won one since 2002 at Birmingham. Her last appearance in a WTA singles final was at Zurich in 2003, but she won 8 ITF singles titles between 2008 and 2010. Jelena's singles match record this season is 13-6.     Lucie is now 4-5 in WTA singles finals; she won the tiny tourney (aub-Tier IV) at Forest Hills in 2008 and 2005, and at Gold Coast in 2006 and Estoril in 2005. Lucie's 2011 singles match record is 10-7.

    On Sunday in Mexico, in the final of the Monterrey Open, the 2010 Monterrey champion, 19-year-old 2nd seeded #19 (career high: #14) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova from Moscow, Russia, won again, defeating the 2010 champ at Indian Wells, 26 year old top seeded #6 (and former #1) Jelena Jankovic, from Belgrade, Serbia, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 (Anastasia is shwon with the glassware after the match). Anastasia's prize is $37,000; Jelena's is $19,000.

    Anastasia struck 8 aces with 5 double faults, and scored on 4 of the 7 break points she reached against Jelena; Jelena hit 5 aces with only 2 DFs, but scored on only 2 of the 15 break points she held against Anastasia. Anastasia won 91 points in the match; Jelena won 88.

    Anastasia said: "Jelena and I played a great final, I hope everyone enjoyed it. It was a pleasure to come back. I love coming here every year." WTA story

    Jelena said: "Congratulations to Anastasia, she played so well tonight. She was the better player. Well done."

    Anastasia and Jelena had met only once before, on a Plexipave hardcourt in the 2nd round at Indian Wells in 2009, when Anastasia defeated Jelena 6-4, 6-4.

    Anastasia is now 3-0 in WTA singles finals; she won last year at Monterrey and Istanbul. Anastasia's 2011 singles match record is 13-4.
    Jelena is now 12-13 in WTA singles finals; last year she won the Indian Wells title, and was finalist at Rome (where she won in 2008 and 2007). Jelena's singles match record this year is 11-5.

WTA SCOREBOARD: Monterrey & Kuala Lumpur s=seed, #=rank, *=upset, LL=lucky loser ranks are for the previous week How do players get into the "draw"? Abierto Monterrey,  Monterrey, Mexico   tourney time:        = GMT -6 hours        = US EDT -1 hours        = US PDT +2 hours Mexico News Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar     Monterrey: The main draw for Monterrey 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   Sierra Madre Tennis Club, Monterrey, MEX Latitude: 25.644752 Longitude: -100.363042 goto link for World Wind Venue address: Privada María de los Angeles Nº 617 Colonia del Valle, San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo León, Mexico, 66220 2011: Young ladies looking good at the players welcome party in Monterrey on Monday, February 28, included Vania King (who kindly provided the photo), Alize Cornet, Andrea Hlavackova, Aravane Rezai and Virginie Razzano... Johanna Larson participated in a pre-tourney mini-tennis exhibition at the Museum of History... Jelena Jankovic was presented with a cake for her 26th birthday on Monday... Simona Halep and Angelique Kerber teamed up to do the player rep thing at the Monterrey main draw ceremony on Sunday...

Monterrey, 1st Rd, Mon-Tue 11am, Wed 3pm Tue WTA story - Wed WTA story loser's prize: $1,725 US; points: 1 #6 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #51 Lourdes Dominguez Lino ESP 6-4, 6-1 Wed     Jelena said: "Today was tough. [Lourdes] played very well and hit a lot of slices. I feel good about my game though. I only came here a few days ago and the conditions are different, but I'm happy to win. I enjoyed it out here." #19 s2 wc Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #169 q Eleni Daniilidou GRE 6-2, 6(5)-7, 6-4 Tue Anastasia driving a forehand     Anastasia said: "It was a really tough match and Eleni played really well. I asked myself on the court why I lost the second set and the answer was she totally deserved it. The first match of a tournament is always tricky, but I'm glad to have closed this one out." *#70 Alla Kudryavtseva RUS d #23 s3 wc Aravane Rezai FRA 6-2, 6-1 Mon Alla driving a forehand *#88 Ksenia Pervak RUS d #34 s4 Julia Georges GER 6-1, 7-5 Tue Ksenia's forehand drive #37 s5 Anastasija Sevastova LAT d #85 q Laura Pous-Tio ESP 6-2, 6-4 Tue #41 s6 Sara Errani ITA d #74 Johanna Larsson SWE 6-2, 6-4 Tue *#73 Gisela Dulko ARG d #47 s7 Iveta Benesova CZE 6-2, 7-6(3) Wed Gisela spinning a forehand #50 s8 Polona Hercog SLO d #65 Angelique Kerber GER 6-3, 6-3 Mon #54 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE d #69 Romina Oprandi ITA 6-0, 4-6, 6-1 Tue #59 Greta Arn HUN d #104 Sandra Zahlavova CZE 6-0, 6-4 Mon *#66 Alize Cornet FRA d #61 Simona Halep ROU 7-5, 6-1 Tue Alize following a backhand #81 Melanie Oudin USA d #91 Vania King USA 6-4, 6-1 Tue #83 q Lucie Hradecka CZE d #84 Zuzana Ondraskova CZE 6-2, 6-2 Tue #86 Olga Govortsova BLR d #87 Renata Voracova CZE 6-3, 6-1 Tue #89 Sybille Bammer AUT d #99 Andrea Hlavackova CZE 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 Tue #138 q Aleksandra Wozniak CAN d #659 wc Ximena Hermoso MEX 6-2, 6-0 Tue Aleksandra's forehand drive

Monterrey, 2nd Round, Wed-Thu 3pm Thu WTA story loser's prize: $2,950 US; points: 30 #6 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #89 Sybille Bammer AUT 6-3, 6-4 Thu     Oncourt after the match, Jelena said: "I had a tough opponent tonight. It was not easy at all, but I am happy to win.     I played Sevastova last year and lost. This time I'll try my best to do well. I look forward to playing [her] tomorrow." #19 s2 wc Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #81 Melanie Oudin USA 6-2, 7-6(6) Wed     Anastasia said: "Melanie is a much more aggressive player than my opponent yesterday so I had to pay much more attention. I played much better." #37 s5 Anastasija Sevastova LAT d #66 Alize Cornet FRA 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 Thu *#59 Greta Arn HUN d #41 s6 Sara Errani ITA 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 Wed #50 s8 Polona Hercog SLO d #54 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova CZE 6-4, 6(4)-7, 6-2 Wed #73 Gisela Dulko ARG d #138 q Aleksandra Wozniak CAN 6-4, 6-1 Thu *#86 Olga Govortsova BLR d #70 Alla Kudryavtseva RUS 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 Wed *#88 Ksenia Pervak RUS d #83 q Lucie Hradecka CZE 6-2, 6(4)-7, 6-3 Thu

Monterrey, QFs, Fri 3pm loser's prize: $5,340 US; points: 70 #6 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #37 s5 Anastasija Sevastova LAT 6-1, 7-5 Jelena about to swat a backhand     Jelena said: "I lost to Anastasija in the first round last year and this was my second time playing her, and I really wanted to get a win. I'm happy I was able to do that. She's a tough opponent and has been playing really well." #19 s2 wc Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #59 Greta Arn HUN 6-2, 7-6(3) #50 s8 Polona Hercog SLO d #86 Olga Govortsova BLR 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 #73 Gisela Dulko ARG d #88 Ksenia Pervak RUS 6-1, 6-0

Monterrey, SFs, Sat 4pm loser's prize: $10,200 US; points: 130 #6 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB d #50 s8 Polona Hercog SLO 6-3, 6-2 Polona looking to slice a backhand, and Jelena driving one #19 s2 wc Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #73 Gisela Dulko ARG 6-4, 6-1 Gisela driving a forehand, and Anastasia about to launch one     Last week's champ in Acapulco, and South & Central American #1 Gisela said: "Today she was better than me, anyway I am really happy about my 2 weeks in Mexico and now looking forward to play Indian Wells next week!." Gisela Dulko at Twitter

Monterrey, Final, Sun 4:30pm+ loser's prize: $19,000 US; points: 200 winner's prize: $37,000 US; points: 280 *#19 s2 wc Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS d #6 s1 Jelena Jankovic SRB 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 Jelena and Anastasia driving backhands

Monterrey, Doubles Final, Sun 2:30pm loser's prize: $5,750 US winner's prize: $11,000 US cdr33 s1 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova & Iveta Benesova d cdr60 s2 Vania King & Anna-Lena Groenefeld 6(8)-7, 6-2, (10-6) Monterrey, Qual Finals, Mon Mar 1 11am losers' prizes: q1 $265 1pt; q2 $460 6pts; q3 $860 10pts; qualifier 16 points #83 Lucie Hradecka CZE d #130 Jamie Hampton USA 6-3, 6-1 #85 Laura Pous-Tio ESP d #174 Sesil Karatantcheva KAZ 6-1, 6-3 *#169 Eleni Daniilidou GRE d #114 Alison Riske USA 6-3, 6-4 *#138 Aleksandra Wozniak CAN d #118 Anastasiya Yakimova BLR 6-4, 7-6(6) Monterrey, Withdrawals #32 Tsvetana Pironkova BUL right wrist injury #58 Carla Suarez Navarro ESP right elbow injury #136 Karolina Sprem CRO head injury

Malaysia Open,  Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia   tourney time:        = GMT +8 hours        = US ET +13 hours        = US PT +16 hours Malaysia News Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar     Kuala Lumpur: The 32-player main draw for Kuala Lumpur 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   Bukit Kiara Equestrian and Country Resort Latitude: 3.143237 Longitude: 101.64237 goto link for World Wind Mslaysia Open venue address: Bukit Kiara Resort Bhd. Jalan Bukit Kiara, Off Jalan Damansara, 60000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia     2010 was the first year of the Kuala Lumpur tourney. New Straits Times story 2011: Ladies dressing their best for the Kuala Lumpur players party included Urszula Radwanska, Jarka Groth, Misa Krajicek (who frequently uploads nice pics like this one), Lucie Safarova, Bojana Jovanovski and Marion Bartoli... row 2: Francesca Schiavone, Noppawan Lertcheewakarn, and Ayumi Morita baked cookies for a photo op at "The Food Store" on Saturday, February 26...

Kuala Lumpur, 1st Rd, Mon-Tue loser's prize: $1,725 US; points: 1 *#95 Jelena Dokic AUS d #5 s1 wc Francesca Schiavone ITA 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-4 Mon Francesca and Jelena following forehand and backhand     Francesca fell and injured her right ankle during the 2nd set tiebreaker, but decided not to retire from the match.     Francesca said: “My troubles started when I fell during the tie break. I was in tremendous pain and I could not run and it affected my play. But I decided to soldier on, because retiring for me was not an option, as I have enjoyed a lot of support during my time here at the tournament. And this was my way of thanking the supporters for their unwavering support, although staying on court somewhat aggravated my injury, which I suspect could be ligament damage. I will return to Milan for further treatment with my personal doctor." tourney story     Jelena said: "I had a tough start to the match as I could not adjust my game to the flow and rhythm of the match, and Schiavone played with a lot more top speed. I made too many mistakes at the beginning of the match...     "As the game got on I managed to hit a couple of good shots... Even when Schiavone got injured, I maintained my focus and to my advantage, Schiavone went for some shots and committed some unforced errors which enabled me to win the match.     "My aim now is to maintain my fitness and consistency, which will allow me to achieve the high standards I have set for my game." #18 s2 Marion Bartoli FRA d #113 Maria Elena Camerin ITA 6-0, 6-1 Tue Marion watching her backhand fly #20 s3 Alisa Kleybanova RUS d #186 q Jing-Jing Lu CHN 6-1, 6-1 Tue #31 s4 wc Jarmila Groth AUS d #232 q Shengnan Sun CHN 7-6(2), 6-3 Tue #35 s5 Lucie Safarova CZE d #154 Zarina Diyas KAZ 7-5, 6-1 Mon #48 s6 Ayumi Morita JPN d #164 Darya Kustova BLR 6-2, 6-0 Mon *#167 q Anne Kremer LUX d #53 s7 Kimiko Date-Krumm JPN 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(5) Tue #55 s8 Bojana Jovanovski SRB v #97 Tamarine Tanasugarn THA 6-0, 6-1 Tue #78 Shuai Zhang CHN d #123 Kai-Chen Chang TPE 6-4, 6(3)-7, 6-4 Mon *#165 Noppawan Lertcheewakarn THA d #102 Alberta Brianti ITA 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 Mon *#187 wc Urszula Radwanska POL d #107 Junri Namigata JPN 6-1, 6-3 Mon #112 Dinara Safina RUS d #125 Xinyun Han CHN 6-2, 6-0 Tue #126 Misaki Doi JPN d #208 q Tetiana Luzhanska UKR 6-2, 6-3 Tue #129 Kurumi Nara JPN d #201 Elena Bovina RUS 6-3, 6-3 Tue *#158 Ekaterina Ivanova RUS d #133 Nina Bratchikova RUS 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 Tue *#151 Michaella Krajicek NED d #142 Tatjana Malek GER 6-3, 6-2 Tue

Kuala Lumpur, 2nd Rd, Wed-Thu 1pm Wed WTA story - Thu WTA story loser's prize: $2,950 US; points: 30 #18 s2 Marion Bartoli FRA d #158 Ekaterina Ivanova RUS 6-2, 6-1 Thu *#151 Michaella Krajicek NED d #20 s3 Alisa Kleybanova RUS 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 Thu     Michaella won the s'-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, title in 2006, defeating Flavia Pennetta, Klara Zakopalova, Jelena Jankovic, Elena Dementieva, and Dinara Safina along the way, but has struggled since then. This was her first win over a top 20 player since 2007, when she defeated #8 Nicole Vaidisova at Charleston, and #7 Anna Chakvetadze at Wimbledon.     Michaella fired 13 aces in the match. Misa said: "I think I actually served well throughout the match, except for a patch near the end of the first set when I couldn't put a first serve in...     "It's a long time since I've beaten someone in the Top 20, so I'm really going to enjoy this win. I've been playing well lately and to finally win two matches in a row at a WTA event and reach a quarterfinal is a first step. I'll take it one match at a time." WTA story #31 s4 wc Jarmila Groth AUS d #126 Misaki Doi JPN 7-6(6), 6-3 Thu #35 s5 Lucie Safarova CZE d #112 Dinara Safina RUS 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 Thu     Lucie said: "[Dinara has] been struggling the last year, but I think she's on her way back to her former tennis. I had chances to draw level at 5-5 in the second set, but she served really well and closed it out. The third set, I think, was good tennis from both sides but I tried to use my lefty serve and push her wide as much as possible." #48 s6 Ayumi Morita JPN d #78 Shuai Zhang CHN 6-0, 6-4 Wed Ayumi after winning a point #55 s8 Bojana Jovanovski SRB d #187 wc Urszula Radwanska POL 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 Wed     Bojana said: "It was so hot today, and I didn't have too much time to prepare for these conditions. I came from Doha, where it wasn't nearly as hot and I played a long match today. So I'm very glad I won."     Bojana has never played her next opponent, Jelena Dokic of Australia, who was born in Belgrade, Serbia. Bojana said: "I will try to be recovered and ready for that match. I will try to serve better to get some easy points. Jelena is a good player. It will be an interesting match for sure." #95 Jelena Dokic AUS d #129 Kurumi Nara JPN 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-2 Wed Jelena driving a backhand     Jelena said: "I'd never played [Kurumi] before. I didn't know what to expect and how to play her. She was really getting everything back. She didn't make one mistake until the third set. I knew if I won the second set I would have a chance in the third. I really fought to the end in that second set and it paid off." *#167 q Anne Kremer LUX d #165 Noppawan Lertcheewakarn THA 7-6(4), 6-3 Wed     Anne said: "Today's match was my fifth match in five days, so I am quite exhausted, as it has been quite tough playing through the qualifiers. I will rest for a day before my next match, so hopefully that will do me good."

Kuala Lumpur, QFs, Fri WTA story loser's prize: $5,340 US; points: 70 *#35 s5 Lucie Safarova CZE d #18 s2 Marion Bartoli FRA 6-1, 6-4 Marion launching a backhand on the run, and Lucie following one #31 s4 wc Jarmila Groth AUS d #48 s6 Ayumi Morita JPN 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 Ayumi and Jarmila following two handed forehand and backhand *#95 Jelena Dokic AUS d #55 s8 Bojana Jovanovski SRB 7-6(4), 6-2 Jelena following a forehand     The win put former #4 Jelena into her first WTA semifinal in seven years. Jelena said: "I played a couple of good games at the end of the first set, and she made a couple of errors. The tie-break I think was crucial… I played a really good tie-break, and that was the key to the whole match...     "I've been getting better and better here with each match and I just want to carry my form into tomorrow. I seem to improve really quickly the more matches that I win—I gain confidence fast and that helps my game." WTA story #151 Michaella Krajicek NED d #167 q Anne Kremer LUX 6-2, 6-3 Misa alerting the media after the match     The win put Michaella into her first WTA semifinal in six years. Misa said: "I wasn't serving as well as yesterday [against Alisa Kleybanova], which was a bit of a pity because I think it could have made the match a little easier. On the other hand I wasn't going for too much in the rallies, but staying solid and being aggressive enough. But the scoreline sounds easier than it actually was."     About her semifinal opponent, Jelena Dokic, Misa said: "She's a former Top 5 player, so I think she knows how to play! It's gonna be a very tough match. I know she hits hard and can really take the game to you, so that's why I'll definitely have to serve better tomorrow."

Kuala Lumpur, SFs, Sat 6pm WTA story loser's prize: $10,200 US; points: 130 *#35 s5 Lucie Safarova CZE d #31 s4 wc Jarmila Groth AUS 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 Lucie about to swat a forehand, and Jarmila and Lucie driving backhand and forehand     Lucie said: "Jarka really upped her game in the second set—she really pushed me. The only way for me to get out of that was to try to overpower her more, and with that came some mistakes. But then I tried again to be more patient and wait for the opportunity—and it came."     "That service game for 4-3 [in the 3rd set] was the key game of the whole match, because I was down a couple of break points and I saved it. I think that brought me up a little bit again, and her down maybe a bit, and that made the difference in the end." #95 Jelena Dokic AUS d #151 Michaella Krajicek NED 6-2, 6-3 Jelena following a forehand, Misa fielding a drop shot, and Jelena's backhand drive     Jelena struck 15 winners with 16 unforced errors; Michaella hit only 7 winners, with 27 errors.     Jelena said: "I tried to really neutralize her serve and really move her around the court and dictate, because I don't think she likes that. I think I did it well."     About reaching her first WTA singles final since 2003, Jelena said: "It's a good feeling to be in a final again. I was nearly out of this tournament near the beginning twice and fought my way back somehow. No matter what happens tomorrow, I've been playing better and better. Today I was very on top of things—I'm very happy with my form. It's been a great start to the year for me."

Kuala Lumpur, Final, Sun 8pm+ loser's prize: $19,000 US; points: 200 winner's prize: $37,000 US; points: 280 *#95 Jelena Dokic AUS d #35 s5 Lucie Safarova CZE 2-6, 7-6(9), 6-4 Jelena driving a forehand, Lucie and Jelena driving backhands, Jelena after match point, and Lucie congratulating Jelena

Kuala Lumpur, Doubles Final, 6pm loser's prize: $5,750 US winner's prize: $11,000 US Dinara Safina & Galina Voskoboeva d Noppawan Lertcheewakarn & Jessica Moore 7-5, 2-6, (10-5) Galina and Dinara Kuala Lumpur, Qual Finals, Mon Feb 22 1pm losers' prizes: q1 $265 1pt; q2 $460 6pts; q3 $860 10pts; qualifier 16 points #167 Anne Kremer LUX d #336 Galina Voskoboeva KAZ 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 *#208 Tetiana Luzhanska UKR d #182 Kristina Kucova SVK 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 #186 Jing-Jing Lu CHN d #258 Jessica Moore AUS 6-2, 6-3 *#232 Shengnan Sun CHN d #222 Nudnida Luangnam THA 6-4, 7-5 Kuala Lumpur, Withdrawals #38 Shuai Peng CHN right knee injury #62 Akgul Amanmuradova UZB right elbow injury #67 Magdalena Rybarikova SVK left abdominal strain #115 Zuzana Kucova SVK illness #120 Sania Mirza IND right knee injury #155 Regina Kulikova RUS abdominal strain

    (Jan 12, 2011) BMW on board as title sponsors for WTA Malaysian Open tennis

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