2013 Tennis Thread

[Smallville22]

Petkovic injury hands Wozniacki walkover

Caroline Wozniacki received a walkover into the quarter-finals of the WTA Charleston event after Andrea Petkovic was ****** to withdraw with a calf injury.
Petkovic had admitted after her first round victory over Taylor Townsend that she was having some problems.
"I was really having trouble in Miami after the long match I had against Alja Tomjanovic," she said.
"My knee swelled up pretty big because we played three hours so I had to rest for three days and try to get it back to normal. And I’ve been having troubles with my calf because I was compensating because of the knee. So I was really scared for the past few days but now it’s calming down with the clay."
However, she tweeted that she was not quite fit enough to face Wozniacki.
"You guys, I had to pull out from my match with Caroline because of my right calf. It's been troubling me for the past days & it got worse this morning," she wrote.
"With the experience I've had with injuries in the past year, I've come to the conclusion it's better to be precautious now.
"Thank you for your understanding and I truly hope it's just a matter of days before I get better. I'll keep you updated."
Meanwhile, organisers at the event may struggle to get any matches completed on Thursday due to heavy rain in South Carolina.

 

[rivasky]

The girls in Monterrey are doing probably the worst Harlem Shake ever to ******** this planet

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[Smallville22]

Wozniacki advances in Charleston, Williams sisters delayed

Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki advanced to the last eight of the ****** Circle Cup without hitting a shot, while matches involving Serena and Venus Williams were postponed after a lengthy rain delay in Charleston, South Carolina.
A rain delay of nearly seven-and-a-half hours ****** organisers to push back top seed Serena's round of 16 match with qualifier Mallory Burdette and Venus's battle with Varvara Lepchenko to Friday.
Second seed Wozniacki was given a free pass to the quarterfinals when Andrea Petkovic withdrew with a calf injury just a few hours before their scheduled match.
Petkovic had admitted after her first round victory over Taylor Townsend that she was having some problems.
"I was really having trouble in Miami after the long match I had against Alja Tomjanovic," she said.
"My knee swelled up pretty big because we played three hours so I had to rest for three days and try to get it back to normal. And I’ve been having troubles with my calf because I was compensating because of the knee. So I was really scared for the past few days but now it’s calming down with the clay."
However, she tweeted that she was not quite fit enough to face Wozniacki.
"You guys, I had to pull out from my match with Caroline because of my right calf. It's been troubling me for the past days & it got worse this morning," she wrote.
"With the experience I've had with injuries in the past year, I've come to the conclusion it's better to be precautious now.
"Thank you for your understanding and I truly hope it's just a matter of days before I get better. I'll keep you updated."
Third seeded Australian Samantha Stosur went down to Canadian qualifier Eugenie Bouchard, retiring hurt with a leg complaint after losing the first set 6-1 and trailing 2-0 in the second.
Serbia's Jelena Jankovic ousted 19-year-old American Jessica Pegula in just 64 minutes 6-0 6-4 but was affected by the lengthy delays.
The former world number one was too strong for professional debutant Pegula, who won her first two matches before getting completely outclassed in straight sets.
"I wanted to take a ***, but I couldn't," Jankovic said. "We joked that if they rained it out, we have a shopping day.
"At the end of the day, I was lucky. I came out and played quite well."
Switzerland's Stefanie Voegele prevailed 3-6 6-1 6-3 over 10th seed German Julia Goerges.

****** Circle Cup results

Round 3

Eugenie Bouchard (Canada) beat 3-Samantha Stosur (Australia) 6-1 2-0 (Stosur retired)

Stefanie Voegele (Switzerland) beat 10-Julia Goerges (Germany) 3-6 6-1 6-3

9-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) beat Jessica Pegula (U.S.) 6-0 6-4

2-Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) beat Andrea Petkovic (Germany) WO

Monterrey Open results

Round 2

1-Angelique Kerber (Germany) beat Alla Kudryavtseva (Russia) 6-4 4-6 6-2

3-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) beat Jovana Jaksic (Serbia) 6-0 4-6 6-1

Lauren Davis (U.S.) beat Coco Vandeweghe (U.S.) 6-4 7-6(8)

 

[Bloodshot Scott]

Isner got his clock cleaned (sort of) by Djokovic in Davis Cup today.

 

[Smallville22]

Hole in court sees Pakistan Davis Cup tie handed to NZ

New Zealand have been awarded their Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group II tie against Pakistan after a hole about "an inch deep and half a foot wide" developed on the court in Myanmar.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said match referee Asitha Attygalla made the decision because of the unplayable surface on the grass courts in the neutral venue of Yangon, which was used because of security concerns in Pakistan.
"It has been a rough court from day one, concerns which we voiced," New Zealand captain Alistair Hunt told Radio Sport.
"The court only lasted about a match and a half before a reasonably good hole opened up on the baseline, which proved too dangerous to play on and the referee has called it."
Hunt said earlier that the hole had developed to "about an inch deep and half a foot wide" by the time Sri Lankan referee Attygalla called the tie off and awarded it to New Zealand 4-1.
The court also had issues with uneven bounce, while the players were unsure of their footing, Hunt said.
Pakistan's Aqeel Khan won the first singles rubber against Artem Sitak while Aisam Qureshi was leading Dan King-Turner 3-0 in the third set of the second when the tie was abandoned.
Hunt said the facility at the Pun Hlaing Golf and Country Club had only two grass courts available for the tie, which both teams practised on throughout the week.
"It's a brave ask for two grass courts to support that all week," Hunt said. "The court was definitely not up to scratch from day one.
"From Myanmar's point of view they did everything they could and have treated us very well... but I don't think they really understood what was expected of a court for a Davis Cup match and it was a pretty tough ask for them to come up with it at short notice."
New Zealand will play the winners of the Thailand-Philippines tie for a place in Group I next year.

 

[Smallville22]

Great Britain fall twice to Russia

James Ward and Dan Evans were both edged out in five-set thrillers as Great Britain lost the opening two matches of their Davis Cup encounter with Russia in Coventry.
Evans pushed world number 67 Dmitry Tursunov the distance before going down 6-4 6-7 6-4 5-7 6-4 in just under four hours.
The 22-year old was initially dropped from the team by captain Leon Smith, whose change of heart was nearly rewarded in a battling performance against a player ranked 258 places above him.
"It was a good match, I’m proud of my efforts but I'm a bit sore now," said Evans.
"He played well. I can’t really knock how I played and maybe a bit of experience came through."
And experience was also the difference as world number 80 Evgeny Donskoy defeated British number two Ward, who bravely saved two match points before going down 4-6 4-6 7-5 6-3 8-6.
Russia were always favourites for the encounter, especially with world number two Andy Murray continuing his sabbatical from Davis Cup to focus on next month's French Open.
It's just seven years since they won the title and six since they were runners-up and Great Britain must now win the remaining three rubbers to progress to a World Group play-off in September.
Team captain Smith said, “I am so proud of both Dan and James today. It was excellent international tennis, very high level, more than eight hours and great value for money.
"The team spirit was great today and we have it still all to play for tomorrow in the doubles and in Sunday’s singles.”
Wimbledon doubles champion Jonny Marray and Colin Fleming take on Igor Kunitsyn and Victor Baluda in Saturday's men's doubles.

 

[Smallville22]

Murray management deal could pave way for tennis IPL

Andy Murray has signed a contract with an Asian sports marketing company that looks set to pave the way for an IPL-style tennis tournament featuring the sport’s biggest stars.
Murray’s management company, Simon Fuller’s XIX Entertainment, struck the deal with Globosport, which is run by Indian doubles star Mahesh Bhupathi.
Under the guise of the XIX Globosport partnership, the Asian company have been given the brief to investigate opportunities in China and India, the world’s most populous countries.
Bhupathi has gone on record as saying he is keen to convince the world’s leading players to sign up for an Indian Premier League style tournament in the winter off-season, which would see a number of big clashes take place across Asia in November and December.
The Cricket IPL pits some of the world's best players against each other in a seven-week Twenty20 tournament, with teams selected using an auction system.
The format would be slightly different for tennis: it would be called the International Tennis Premier League and played across a variety of nations in a shorter period.
But the principle would be the same, with the likes of Murray, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka auctioned alongside others to form teams that would compete for a $5million (£3.26mil) prize.
India in particular is an untapped market for tennis, with a joint statement saying they would explore "the burgeoning sports and entertainment opportunities in India and the Middle East".
Murray said: "I believe a mix of Simon's experience and Mahesh's understanding of the sport will create the perfect team for my off-court interests and will allow me to continue to dedicate myself and focus on my goals on the court.”
He did not, however, mention the proposed tournament – probably for the best given he is skipping this weekend’s Davis Cup clash with Russia in order to preserve his fitness.
However, the prize money on offer means players would be tempted to skip other ATP and WTA events, with Australian Open director Craig Tiley saying "we support anything that will put more money into the back pockets of players.
"It will create more global interest in the sport beyond the traditional tennis fan. Tennis needs a big uplift in compensating players beyond the Grand Slams".

 

[Smallville22]

Holders Czechs lead Kazakhstan after first day

Holders Czech Republic overcame the absence of their top two players, Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek, to take a 2-0 lead against Kazakhstan in their Davis Cup quarter-final.
Jan Hajek had little trouble disposing 156th-ranked Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3 6-2 6-4 in the opening singles before Lukas Rosol prevailed over world number 205 Andrey Golubev 4-6 6-4 6-2 7-6 to put the defending champions in command after the first day.
"It's not that easy to play the first match so I had to keep my focus and followed my plan for most of the match and it paid off in the end," 94th-ranked Hajek said.
World number six Berdych was ****** to pull out of the three-day indoor tie, played on clay at the National Tennis Centre in Astana, after injuring his shoulder at last week's Sony Open in Maimi, while 45th-ranked Stepanek was rested for the singles matches.
Stepanek, who has not played since undergoing neck surgery in January to relieve stress on a nerve, will have the chance to seal victory for the Czechs when he makes his competitive comeback in Saturday's doubles rubber.
"Radek wants to play tomorrow to finish our tie so I hope that they can finish it," Czech Republic captain Jaroslav Navratil said.
Berdych and Stepanek led the Czechs to their first Davis Cup title as an independent nation last year.
Kazakhstan, with all four of their players coming from Russia, shocked the Czechs 3-2 in their only previous Davis Cup tie in Ostrava in 2011 when they made their debut in the World Group as an independent nation but must produce a miracle to stage another upset this time round.
Juan Monaco beat Gilles Simon 7-6 6-2 6-4 in a duel of world top-20 players to put Argentina level 1-1 with France in their Davis Cup quarter-final.
The favourites took the first point when Jo-Wilfried Tsonga overcame Carlos Berlocq 4-6 6-2 6-3 5-7 6-2 after a slow start during which the Frenchman was broken in the opening game.
Visiting captain Arnaud Clement chose 13th-ranked Simon over Richard Gasquet in a calculated ****** for the second singles because the world number nine was suffering from fatigue and a nagging ankle problem.
Monaco, ranked 19th in the world, had not made a good start to the season but home advantage paid off on Friday as he was lifted by the passionate and noisy home crowd at Parque Roca.
He is from the Buenos Aires provincial capital La Plata where 50 people died in floods this week.
"We expected two very tight matches," Clement said before looking ahead to Saturday's doubles between Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra, and Argentine pair David Nalbandian and Horacio Zeballos.
Argentine captain Martin Jaite said: "What was positive for me and makes me very proud was the performance of both my players. We have taken one point, we need two more."
Tsonga, who took nearly four hours to defeat Berlocq, said: "We knew it would be complicated. The crowd shout a lot between the first and second serves.
"I decided not to say anything (to the umpire). Each time they made a noise I had time to get more concentrated."
Berlocq, a 30-year-old journeyman who has spent most of his career in challenger tournaments, is enjoying belated recognition in the Davis Cup thanks in part to Juan Martin del Potro's decision to concentrate on his tour career.
"I was close to the best victory of my career but I didn't get it," said Berlocq.
In other last eight ties this weekend a Novak Djokovic-led Serbia take on 32-times champions United States in Boise, Idaho, while Canada face Italy.

 

[Smallville22]

Williams sisters to meet in Charleston semis

Venus and Serena Williams both won two matches in one day to set up a ****** affair in the semi-finals of the WTA Charleston event.
Fifth seeded Venus needed three sets to defeat Varvara Lepchenko 6-2 4-6 6-2 but then dusted herself off to defeat teenager Madison Keys 6-4-6-4.
****** Serena, the top seed, defeated Mallory Burdette 6-4 6-2 in her first match of the day before downing sixth seed Lucie Safarova 6-4 6-1 - her 13th consecutive win - to book her place in the final four.
The last time the ********, who are doubles partners, faced off on opposite sides of the net was in 2009 at the Tour Championships in Qatar. They have met a total of 23 times, with Serena holding a slight edge with a 13-10 record.
Tournament organisers are playing catch-up after *******ial rain meant there was limited play on Thursday.

****** Circle Cup results

Quarter-finals

1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat 6-Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) 6-4 6-1

9-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) beat Eugenie Bouchard (Canada) 6-2 6-1

5-Venus Williams (U.S.) beat Madison Keys (U.S.) 6-4 6-4

Round 3

6-Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) beat 11-Sorana Cirstea (Romania) 6-3 5-7 6-1

1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat Mallory Burdette (U.S.) 6-4 6-2

Madison Keys (U.S.) beat Bethanie Mattek-Sands (U.S.) 7-6(4) 6-4

5-Venus Williams (U.S.) beat 12-Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) 6-2 4-6 6-2

Monterrey Open results

Quarter-finals

Monica Niculescu (Romania) beat Timea Babos (Hungary) 7-5 6-2

 

[Smallville22]

Williams sisters to meet in Charleston semis

Serena and Venus Williams set up a tantalising semi-final against each other after both won twice in one day in the rain-affected ****** Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina.
The American sisters will face off for the first time since the 2009 Sony Ericsson Championships.
But second seed Caroline Wozniacki will be able to head to Augusta National early to watch boyfriend Rory McIlroy contest The Masters next week after being bundled out by Switzerland's Stefanie Voegele 3-6 6-4 6-3 in the late quarter-final.
With their third round matches postponed from Thursday due to rain, the Williams sisters both faced a full schedule on Friday.
Venus started proceedings with a 6-2 4-6 6-2 win over fellow American Varvara Lepchenko while top seed Serena disposed of American qualifier Mallory Burdette 6-4 6-2.
Madison Keys earned a quarter-final match up with Venus after getting by wildcard Bethanie Mattek-Sands 7-6 6-4 in another all-American clash while sixth-seed Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic set up a showdown with Serena when outlasting Romanian Sorana Cirstea 6-3 5-7 6-1.
Venus duly despatched Keys 6-4 6-4 in just 70 minutes in the afternoon while Serena beat Safarova 6-4 6-1 to extend her winning streak at the event to 13 matches.
"For the record, we've never played two matches on the same day," Serena told the stadium crowd. "You guys had a real treat."
"I was thinking it was a quadruple-header," Venus added.
"I don't know if that's ever going to happen again."
While Serena holds a 13-10 lead in matches against Venus, the sisters have only played on clay twice with each sharing a win.
Serena won the title in her last two appearances in 2008 and 2012 while Venus won the event in 2004.
In the other quarter-final, Serbian former world number one Jelena Jankovic halted Canadian qualifier Eugenie Bouchard's hot run with a 6-2 6-1 demolition and posted the 500th win of her professional career.

****** Circle Cup results

Quarter-finals

Stefanie Voegele (Switzerland) beat 2-Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) 3-6 6-4 6-3

1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat 6-Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) 6-4 6-1

9-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) beat Eugenie Bouchard (Canada) 6-2 6-1

5-Venus Williams (U.S.) beat Madison Keys (U.S.) 6-4 6-4

Round 3

6-Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) beat 11-Sorana Cirstea (Romania) 6-3 5-7 6-1

1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat Mallory Burdette (U.S.) 6-4 6-2

Madison Keys (U.S.) beat Bethanie Mattek-Sands (U.S.) 7-6(4) 6-4

5-Venus Williams (U.S.) beat 12-Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) 6-2 4-6 6-2

Monterrey Open results

Quarter-finals

3-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) beat 7-Urszula Radwanska (Poland) 6-1 6-4

5-Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Russia) beat Lauren Davis (U.S.) 6-2 7-5

1-Angelique Kerber (Germany) beat 8-Ayumi Morita (Japan) 6-2 6-1

Monica Niculescu (Romania) beat Timea Babos (Hungary) 7-5 6-2

:update:

 

[Smallville22]

US level with Serbia, Holders Czechs lead

Top American Sam Querrey picked a good time to pull off his first five-set Davis Cup victory when he stopped Victor Troicki 7-6 3-6 4-6 6-1 6-4 to level the United States' tie against Serbia 1-1.
Querrey's victory boosted the hosts after world number one Novak Djokovic earlier raced past John Isner 7-6 6-2 7-5.
Querrey, who just took over the top American ranking last month, looked tired and without confidence after Troicki won the second and third sets.
But with the charged-up crowd screaming in his ears, Querrey revived and powered through the fourth set before a tooth and nail battle for the fifth.
Querrey fought off two break points in the fourth game of the deciding set, and then broke the Serbian to 5-4 with a big forehand return that Troicki couldn't lift over the net.
The American then served out the match to love, ending it with a forehand winner on the run and a big serve.
"I'm a pretty mellow player generally and the crowd was awesome today," Querrey said.
"Winning that fourth set, they're on their feet and cheering. Then that fifth set, every game on my serve, on Troicki's serve, when it was a 30-all or deuce, they were loud and vocal, and it helped a lot."
Djokovic started off slowly against Isner and was broken in the third game when he double faulted twice, but the tall American handed the break back in the sixth game when he committed three straight unforced errors.
The two went into a tiebreaker where the big serving Isner usually flourishes, but he committed a key forehand error when serving and went down 2-0.
Djokovic successfully rode the lead to take the tiebreaker 7-5 when he deceived the American with an off-speed serve.
Djokovic played more aggressively after that and flew about the court, decisively winning the last 12 points of the match.
"These kind of matches are very intense and there is a lot at stake," said Djokovic, who finished the match with 24 winners and 10 unforced errors.
"You're playing for your country. You get more involved with the emotions and you really want to start well; you want to bring the first point to Serbia."
Djokovic was not originally scheduled to play doubles on Saturday, but he said he had left open the possibility of teaming with Nenad Zimonjic against the world's top team of Bob and Mike Bryan.
Serbian captain Bogdan Obradovic said he was yet to make a decision on the combination, however.
Holders Czech Republic overcame the absence of their top two players, Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek, to take a 2-0 lead against Kazakhstan in their Davis Cup quarter-final.
Jan Hajek had little trouble disposing 156th-ranked Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3 6-2 6-4 in the opening singles before Lukas Rosol prevailed over world number 205 Andrey Golubev 4-6 6-4 6-2 7-6 to put the defending champions in command after the first day.
"It's not that easy to play the first match so I had to keep my focus and followed my plan for most of the match and it paid off in the end," 94th-ranked Hajek said.
World number six Berdych was ****** to pull out of the three-day indoor tie, played on clay at the National Tennis Centre in Astana, after injuring his shoulder at last week's Sony Open in Maimi, while 45th-ranked Stepanek was rested for the singles matches.
Stepanek, who has not played since undergoing neck surgery in January to relieve stress on a nerve, will have the chance to seal victory for the Czechs when he makes his competitive comeback in Saturday's doubles rubber.
"Radek wants to play tomorrow to finish our tie so I hope that they can finish it," Czech Republic captain Jaroslav Navratil said.
Berdych and Stepanek led the Czechs to their first Davis Cup title as an independent nation last year.
Kazakhstan, with all four of their players coming from Russia, shocked the Czechs 3-2 in their only previous Davis Cup tie in Ostrava in 2011 when they made their debut in the World Group as an independent nation but must produce a miracle to stage another upset this time round.
Juan Monaco beat Gilles Simon 7-6 6-2 6-4 in a duel of world top-20 players to put Argentina level 1-1 with France in their Davis Cup quarter-final.
The favourites took the first point when Jo-Wilfried Tsonga overcame Carlos Berlocq 4-6 6-2 6-3 5-7 6-2 after a slow start during which the Frenchman was broken in the opening game.
Visiting captain Arnaud Clement chose 13th-ranked Simon over Richard Gasquet in a calculated ****** for the second singles because the world number nine was suffering from fatigue and a nagging ankle problem.
Monaco, ranked 19th in the world, had not made a good start to the season but home advantage paid off on Friday as he was lifted by the passionate and noisy home crowd at Parque Roca.
He is from the Buenos Aires provincial capital La Plata where 50 people died in floods this week.
"We expected two very tight matches," Clement said before looking ahead to Saturday's doubles between Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra, and Argentine pair David Nalbandian and Horacio Zeballos.
Argentine captain Martin Jaite said: "What was positive for me and makes me very proud was the performance of both my players. We have taken one point, we need two more."
Tsonga, who took nearly four hours to defeat Berlocq, said: "We knew it would be complicated. The crowd shout a lot between the first and second serves.
"I decided not to say anything (to the umpire). Each time they made a noise I had time to get more concentrated."
Berlocq, a 30-year-old journeyman who has spent most of his career in challenger tournaments, is enjoying belated recognition in the Davis Cup thanks in part to Juan Martin del Potro's decision to concentrate on his tour career.
"I was close to the best victory of my career but I didn't get it," said Berlocq.
Milos Raonic, riding his booming serve, helped Canada level their Davis Cup quarter-final with Italy.
Raonic cracked 25 aces to defeat Fabio Fognini 6-4 7-6 7-5 to square the tie at 1-1 after the opening day singles.
Italy took the lead when Andreas Seppi staged a mighty comeback to win the opening rubber against lowly-ranked Vasek Pospisal.
The Canadian, ranked 140th in the world, 118 places behind Seppi, threatened an upset when he won the first two sets.
But the more experienced Seppi wore him down to seal victory 5-7 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-3 to give the visitors the early lead.

:update:

 

[Smallville22]

Fleming dedicates GB doubles victory to Hutchins

Colin Fleming dedicated his and Jonny Marray's Davis Cup doubles rubber victory over Russian duo Igor Kunitsyn and Victor Baluda to Ross Hutchins with Britain now back in the tie in Coventry.
Fleming and Wimbledon doubles champion Marray took to the court at the Ricoh Arena needing to defeat Kunitsyn and Baluda to keep Britain's hopes of winning the five rubber tie alive after two losses on Friday.
Dan Evans and Jamie Ward lost to Dmitry Tursunov and Evgeny Donskoy respectively in five-set thrillers as Russia took a 2-0 lead however Fleming and Marray prevented them taking the tie.
They saw off Kunitsyn and Baluda 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in less than an hour and a half to make it 2-1 in the Euro/Africa Zone Group I second round clash with a place in the World Group play-off on offer.
Fleming is playing in his ninth Davis Cup rubber and usually partners Hutchins, who is recovering from Hogdkin's lymphoma but has helped the British team prepare for the tie.
Ward faces Tursunov and Evans Donskoy on the final day of singles matches on Sunday and Fleming devoted his and Marray's win to Hutchins while also issuing a rally cry to his other team-mates.
"I love playing Davis Cup. I want to dedicate this win to Ross, he is a big part of this team," said Fleming. "Let's do it tomorrow boys. We can do this. Let's go."
And Britain captain Leon Smith is daring to ***** of wins for Ward and Evans which would secure the team a place in the World Group play-off.
"That was outstanding what they did there; they stamped their authority on to the match from start to finish," said Smith.
"Also the crowd were excellent so thank you very much. Upsets can happen. Give the guys whatever you have got tomorrow please."

 

[Smallville22]

Pakistan complain after Davis Cup disqualification

Pakistan officials have complained to tennis governing body the ITF that their players were left distraught and the team suffered financial loss after they were disqualified from a Davis Cup tie against New Zealand.
Pakistan were on course to take a 2-0 lead in the three-day Asia/Oceania Group II tie on Friday when Sri Lankan referee Asitha Attygalla abandoned the contest due to an "unplayable court" in the neutral venue of Yangon, Myanmar.
As the encounter had been a designated 'home' tie for Pakistan, who are unable to host matches due to security concerns, Attygalla awarded victory to New Zealand.
Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) president Kaleem Imam told Reuters that Attygalla's decision was a "disaster" and added: "Our manager said the players were very distraught after the referee's decision.
"We spent thousands of dollars on preparing for this tie and sending a full-fledged squad to Yangon. We were desperate to win this tie and confident we could do it.
"We had no option but to complain to the ITF (International Tennis Federation) after the referee awarded the entire tie to New Zealand claiming the playing surface was dangerous."
Pakistan's Aqeel Khan beat New Zealand's Artem Sitak in the opening singles while Pakistan doubles specialist Aisam Qureshi was leading Daniel King Turner 6-2 3-6 3-0 in the second singles when the Sri Lankan referee halted the tie.
New Zealand captain Alistair Hunt said on Friday the match had to be abandoned because a hole about "an inch deep and half a foot wide... opened up on the baseline, which proved too dangerous to play on".
Pakistan, however, feel the court was still playable.
"What we have complained is that when the grass surface was okay for the first match, what went wrong in just a few hours time that it turned unplayable? We also met all requirements asked for by the referee," Imam said.
The PTF official said Pakistan had chosen Yangon, Myanmar as a venue over Dubai and India because of the grass courts which Pakistani players favour.
Pakistan have been ****** to host international matches in many sports at neutral venues as foreign teams have refused to travel to the country after eight Pakistanis were ****** following an ****** on the Sri Lanka cricket team in March 2009.

 

[Smallville22]

Holders Czech Republic stunned in doubles by Kazakhstan

Outsiders Kazakhstan stayed alive in their Davis Cup quarter-final against holders Czech Republic after winning the doubles rubber on Saturday.
The Czechs were looking to wrap up the tie after winning both of their singles matches on Friday, but Andrey Golubev and Yuri Schukin stunned Radek Stepanek and Jan Hajek 7-6 6-4 6-3 to take the contest into a third day.
Stepanek, who had not played since undergoing neck surgery in January to relieve stress on a nerve, teamed up with Hajek for the first time after his regular doubles partner Tomas Berdych pulled out of the indoor tie in Astana with a shoulder injury.
After losing the first set in a tie-breaker 7-2, the Czechs were gradually outplayed by the newly-made pair of Golubev and Schukin, who also won their previous doubles encounter in Davis Cup by beating Austria at the same venue in February.
"We're a young team, playing against the Davis Cup champions and nobody thinks we can beat them," said Russia-born Schukin, who has been representing the Central Asian nation for the past few years, just like his other three team mates.
"But we battled hard for every single point and never thought of giving up."
Kazakhstan are now hoping for another shock victory over the Czechs after beating them 3-2 in their only previous Davis Cup encounter in Ostrava in 2011 when they made their debut in the World Group as an independent nation.
On Sunday, Czech Lukas Rosol is scheduled to meet 156th-ranked Mikhail Kukushkin in the first reverse singles while Hajek must face Golubev in the last rubber, but visiting captain Jaroslav Navratil said he might alter the plan.
"We have to sit down tonight and I have to decide who is coming in for tomorrow. I have to speak to Radek. Normally I would want to put him in for a match on Sunday," Navratil told the Davis Cup website.

 

[Smallville22]

Serena Williams cruises past ****** Venus in Charleston

World number one Serena Williams breezed past ****** Venus 6-1 6-2 in their first meeting since 2009 in the semi-finals of the ****** Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina on Saturday.
Serena, who won her fifth match in a row against Venus, will face Jelena Jankovic who beat Stefanie Voegele 6-4 6-7 6-2 in Sunday's final as she goes for her third ****** Circle title.
She needed only 22 minutes to take the first set against the fifth seed, delivering eight winners to zero unforced errors.
Serena, 31, then took the second set over 32-year-old Venus in 54 minutes to prevail for the 14th time in 24 matches against her ******.
"Venus has had a great week, and honestly, if she hadn't had to play so many matches, it would have been a much tougher match," Serena told reporters.
The semi-final came a day after both had played third-round and quarter-final matches on Friday because of weather.
"She'll never admit it, but I don't think she was 100 per cent," Serena said. "But you will never get that out of her. And quite frankly, three matches for her is much tougher than three matches for me. It's definitely not easy - because I'm struggling, and I can't imagine what she must be feeling."

WTA Charleston semi-final results

1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat 5-Venus Williams (U.S.) 6-1 6-2

9-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) beat Stefanie Voegele (Switzerland) 6-4 6-7(6) 6-2

WTA Monterrey semi-final results

1-Angelique Kerber (Germany) beat 3-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) 6-4 2-6 6-2

5-Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Russia) beat Monica Niculescu (Romania) 3-6 6-2 6-4

 

[Smallville22]

Canada win doubles to lead Italy

Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil won an epic doubles match against Fabio Fognini and Daniele Bracciali in Vancouver on Saturday to give Canada a 2-1 lead over Italy in their Davis Cup quarter-final.
After squandering a two-set lead, the Canadians held their nerve in the deciding fifth set to triumph 6-3 6-4 3-6 3-6 15-13 after nearly four and a half hours.
The win left Canada needing to win just one of Sunday's two reverse singles rubbers to reach the elite World Group semi-finals for the first time.
Canada's top ranked player Milos Raonic can seal the win if he beats Andreas Seppi in Sunday's rubber. If he loses, the tie will be decided in the fifth match.

 

[Smallville22]

Serbia shock Bryans in United States to take lead

In a shock of the world's number one doubles team, the patchwork duo of Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac overcame the United States' Bob and Mike Bryan 7-6 7-6 5-7 4-6 15-13 to give Serbia a 2-1 lead in the Davis Cup quarter finals.
After mulling throwing world number one singles player Novak Djokovic into the doubles, captain Bogdan Obradovic opted instead for Bozoljac, who had only won six tour level doubles matches in his career and had a singles ranking of 338.
But the tall Serbian responded brilliantly, clocking huge serves, groundstrokes and returns in partnership with the experienced Zimonjic to seal victory in four hours and 23 minutes.
"I know that I had that in myself," Bozoljac said. "Through the years, I struggled a lot with injuries and I couldn't really play consistent so that is the reason why I was not ranked higher.
"But I knew that if I give my 100 percent for one match, I can play on a really high level and I can match up with these good players."
While the Bryans had lost their last Davis Cup match in the United States victory over Brazil in February, they were favoured to beat the Serbs as they came into the match with a 20-3 record in Davis Cup and had won a tour high four doubles titles this year, including their record 13th Grand Slam at the Australian Open.
But while they staged a furious comeback in third and fourth sets in front of their home crowd, they could not come up with enough clutch play in the deciding set to hold off the Serbs.
The Bryans were two points from winning the contest on three different occasions, but with their backs against the wall, the Serbians stood tall.
With the score at 11-12, 30-30 and former top-ranked doubles player Zimonjic serving, the big Serbian hit two hard serves that produced netted returns by the Bryans to hold.
Mike Bryan had not been broken in the entire contest, but serving at 13-13 on break point, Bozoljac hit a screaming crosscourt backhand winner for the break to 14-13.
The Bryans have two chances to break back in the final game, but Zimonjic shut the door with two booming aces, blasting a huge serve down the middle to seal the match.
He and Bozoljac then hugged and danced around while Djokovic bounced up and down on the sidelines chanting Serbian songs.
"If this isn't the best performance of all time from me, it certainly is in Davis Cup," said Zimonjic.
The Serbians ended up with 125 winners to just 80 from the Bryans.
"We've seen a lot of people in this competition rise up," said US captain Jim Courier.
"You look at the numbers next to the (Bozoljac's) career, you see the performance today, something doesn't add up. You clearly see there was some inspiration, chemistry with Nenad on the court, and you say, 'too good'."
On Sunday, Djokovic will face top American Sam Querrey in the first match, which will be followed by the final rubber between Serbian Viktor Troicki and John Isner.

 

[Smallville22]

Argentina eye France upset in Buenos Aires

Argentina came from a set down to upset France in the doubles and take a 2-1 lead in their Davis Cup quarter-final at Parque Roca in Buenos Aires.
David Nalbandian and Horacio Zeballos beat Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra 3-6 7-6 7-5 6-3 after a remarkable comeback from 4-1 down in the third set.
Zeballos, who had a poor opening set, lifted his game to complement experienced Davis Cup campaigner Nalbandian, a former world number one, and stun the French pair who won only three of the last 14 games in windy conditions.
World number eight Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who won the opening point for France when he beat Carlos Berlocq in five sets on Friday, is scheduled to meet Juan Monaco in Sunday's first singles and will be trying to save the tie for France.
French captain Arnaud Clement was still hopeful.
"The two matches tomorrow will be just as hard to win for the Argentines," he said.
"I'm still confident, we still have our chances to pass this round. If we want to win the Cup we have to be able to turn this situation around."
Gilles Simon, who lost Friday's second singles to Monaco, is due to face Berlocq in the fifth rubber.
But Simon, chosen in preference to Richard Gasquet who has ankle trouble, complained of back pain during the second set on Friday and could be a doubt for Sunday.

 

[Smallville22]

Rosol propels champions Czech Republic into semis

Lukas Rosol beat Evgeny Korolev 7-6 6-7 7-6 6-2 to give Czech Republic an unassailable 3-1 lead over Kazakhstan and propel the defending champions into the Davis Cup semi-finals.
Rosol battled Korolev, who had replaced Kazakh number one Mikhail Kukushkin for the first reverse singles, for more than three-and-a-half hours before sealing the quarter-final tie, played on clay at the National Indoor Tennis Centre in Astana.
The Czechs had built up a 2-0 lead after winning both of their singles matches on Friday but the home team avoided an early exit by taking Saturday's doubles.
The visitors were missing their top player, world number six Tomas Berdych, who pulled out of the tie after injuring his shoulder at last week's Sony Open in Miami.
Kazakhstan shocked the Czechs 3-2 in their only previous Davis Cup encounter in Ostrava in 2011 when they made their debut in the World Group as an independent nation, but could not repeat their heroics this time.
The Central Asian country, whose entire line-up is made up of Russian-born players, put their faith in 187th-ranked Korolev for the crucial fourth rubber.
Moscow-born Korolev, a ****** of former Russian number one Anna Kournikova, fought tooth and nail against his more experienced opponent for three sets before running out of steam.
After snatching the third set in a tie-breaker 7-5, Rosol broke a tired-looking Korolev twice in the fourth to clinch the match and the tie.
"I'm very proud of Lukas because it was one of the toughest matches for him as he does not have too many chances to play matches like this. He was the leader of this team this week," Czech captain Jaroslav Navratil told the Davis Cup website ( Premium Link Upgrade ).
Rosol, who beat Kazakh number two Andrey Golubev on Friday, added: "It's a great feeling to win two matches for your country in Davis Cup in one weekend. Tomas Berdych had it last year and now I also know a little bit of this feeling."
Berdych led the Czechs to their first Davis Cup title as an independent nation last year.
In September's semi-finals, the Czechs face Argentina or France. Argentina led their quarter-final 2-1 going into the final day in Buenos Aires on Sunday.

 

[Smallville22]

Berlocq upsets Simon to give Argentina victory

Carlos Berlocq upset world number 13 Gilles Simon 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-4 to hand Argentina a surprise 3-2 victory over France in their Davis Cup quarter-final on Sunday.
Argentina captain Martin Jaite's team went through to a semi-final away to holders Czech Republic, the nation that beat them in Buenos Aires at the same stage last year.
World number eight Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had earlier bamboozled Juan Monaco 6-3 6-3 6-0 to bring France level at 2-2 and take the tie into the final rubber at Parque Roca.
"We were confident. We played against a very good team, we deserved to win... The fans were incredible," Jaite said after Berlocq had thanked the crowd for lifting him in the more difficult moments with their passionate support.
Thirty-year-old journeyman Berlocq became an unlikely hero for Argentina in the absence of top 10 player Juan Martin del Potro.
Having given Tsonga a run for his money in a five-set defeat in Friday's opening singles, Berlocq made a mockery of the rankings as he took the first and third sets against Simon before running up a 5-2 lead in the fourth.
Simon put up some dogged resistance at the end, saving five match points before Berlocq clinched it on the sixth for Argentina's first win over France in six meetings.
Tsonga was too good for Monaco, who had surprised with his win over Simon in Friday's second singles after a dismal start to the season.
Breaking Monaco in the Argentine's first service game was enough for Tsonga to cruise to the first set and two more breaks gave him the second after fine shot placing and positioning at the baseline before a superb lob to seal it.
The deciding set turned into a nightmare for Monaco, who failed to take a point in the opening three games and only one in the next as Tsonga broke him almost at will.
"Every time I've played against Juan, it's me who's on the court and he is chasing the balls," Tsonga told a news conference.
"He doesn't have the weapons to destabilise me, make me run. He regularly plays the diagonal (shots), I don't need to be explosive, just position myself well."