Davydenko defeats Gonzalez 2-0 at Shanghai Masters

Davydenko defeats Gonzalez 2-0 at Shanghai Masters

 

Nikolay Davydenko of Russia returns the ball during the third round match of men’s singles against Fernando Gonzalez of Chile in 2009 Shanghai ATP 1000 Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai, east China, October 15, 2009. Davydenko defeated Gonzalez 2-0(6-3, 7-5). (Xinhua/Fan Jun)

Roddick injury highlights ATPs dilemma

Roddick injury highlights ATP’s dilemma

Andy Roddick’s injury-enforced withdrawal from the Shanghai Masters on Tuesday graphically illustrated the American’s gripes about the relentless demands placed on the world’s best tennis players.

Andy Roddick of the U.S. holds himself up after an sustaining injury during a match against Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland during the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament October 13, 2009. Roddick’s body finally gave up on him when he limped out of the Shanghai Masters after retiring in the first set of his second-round match against Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka on Tuesday. [Agencies] 

The 27-year-old, who on Monday said governing body the ATP must give players a proper off-season or risk shortening the careers of its billboard names, went lame against Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka citing a knee injury.
His second-round pull-out was a further blow to the tour’s Asian swing that has lost some big draws this year, sparking further debate about the overcrowded schedule.
It also illustrated the dilemma faced by the ATP as it juggles the needs of the tournament organisers, sponsors and the players.
World number one Roger Federer and Andy Murray missed last week’s Japan Open and Shanghai because of fatigue and wrist injury respectively while world number two Rafael Nadal, who missed Wimbledon this year with a knee injury, skipped the Thai Open.
Asian tennis fans, in particular, feel short-changed, especially with Federer and Murray’s faces staring down at them from promotional posters splattered across Shanghai.
“Trust me, as frustrated as (the fans) are that we’re not here, I promise you we’re more frustrated,” Roddick told reporters after lasting just seven games against Wawrinka.
Roddick said he spoke to ATP officials in Shanghai on Tuesday regarding his widely-reported comments of the day before in which he labelled the season ridiculous.
“I had a good discussion with one of the representatives today. You know, they were receptive. To be fair, there has been a kind of a new leadership this year that’s kind of stuck picking up the pieces, which is a tall task, an unenviable one at best. There does need to be something changed.”
While the women’s WTA tour concludes in Doha on Nov. 1 the men’s top eight contest the ATP World Tour finals at the end of November while the Davis Cup final is in December, less than a month before the new season begins on Jan. 1.
This year the ATP reduced the amount of mandatory ATP Masters 1000 events from nine to eight while there are further concessions to players who have either played 600 career matches, are over 31 or who have been on tour for 12 years.
However, with half of the ATP’s six-man Board made up of tournament representatives there seems little chance of events being axed and there remains no real off-season for their most prized assets, the likes of Federer, Nadal, Roddick, Murray, Novak Djokovic and U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro.
“The ATP is in constant discussions with all players about all matters relating to the season, its structure and length,” a statement said on Tuesday.

Nadal through in Shanghai, Del Potro retires

Nadal through in Shanghai, Del Potro retires

Top seed Rafa Nadal marched into the last 16 of the Shanghai Masters with a thoroughly entertaining 6-2 6-7 6-4 victory over American James Blake on Wednesday.

Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts as he wins his match against James Blake of the U.S. during the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai October 14, 2009. [Agencies] 

U.S. Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro, however, joined the growing casualty list at the $3.24-million tournament, retiring because of a wrist injury while 7-5 2-1 down to Austrian Jurgen Melzer.

Juan Martin Del Potro (R) of Argentina chats with medical personnel after he was injured and before retiring in his match against Jurger Melzer of Austria during the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai October 14, 2009. [Agencies] 

World number two Nadal beat Blake in three sets on his way to the semi-finals in Beijing last week and on Wednesday needed more than two hours to get past the man he rates as having one of the best returns in the game.
After Nadal raced away with the first set, the pair contested two absorbing sets filled with high-quality winners before Nadal, with Blake serving to take the match into a decisive tiebreak, unleashed a sizzling forehand to clinch victory.
“It’s been a difficult year for me, so every victory is really important for me,” said the Spaniard. “I thought I deserved to win the match because most of the time I think I played better than James.”
Nadal has not reached a final since the Madrid Masters in May and will continue his comeback from knee and abdominal injuries against compatriot Tommy Robredo on Thursday.
“If I continue like this, with this motivation…I’m going to come back to playing my best tennis,” he added.
Third seed Del Potro followed American fourth seed Andy Roddick in departing the tournament early through injury.
“I had this injury in Miami this year and I don’t want to risk for the end of the season,” said the 21-year-old Argentine.
“I’m a little sorry. It’s a big tournament here in Shanghai, very important for me, but if I want to have a good finish this season, I have to recover.”
With world number one Roger Federer and number three Andy Murray skipping the tournament because of fatigue and a wrist injury respectively, Del Potro’s departure is certain to intensify the debate over the length of the men’s season.
“It’s difficult to play 11 months at a high level but we know they are working on that, so we hope that there will be a good change for the future,” said the world number five.
In-form second seed Novak Djokovic picked up where he left off in the final of the China Open on Sunday, notching up his 15th win in his last 17 matches with a straightforward 6-3 6-1 victory over Italian qualifier Fabio Fognini.
The Serbian, who won the final Masters Cup title here last year, has lost only to Federer in his last three tournaments, in the Cincinnati Masters final and the U.S. Open semi-finals.
Fifth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France took exactly an hour to dismiss Chinese wild card Zeng Shaoxuan 6-3 6-3 and set up a third-round clash with Swedish ninth seed Robin Soderling.
Croatian Ivan Ljubicic proved it was possible to play at the top level after 30, despite the gruelling schedule, by upsetting Spanish seventh seed Fernando Verdasco 6-4 7-6.
Eighth seed Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils, the 11th seed, ensured France would have three players in the third round when they beat Viktor Troicki and Lleyton Hewitt respectively.

Marat Safin leaves Shanghai tournament

Marat Safin leaves Shanghai tournament

 

Marat Safin of Russia reacts after a missed point during the second round match of men’s singles against Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic in 2009 Shanghai ATP 1000 Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai, east China, October 14, 2009. Safin lost 1-2(6-3, 4-6, 4-6). (Xinhua/Ren Long)

Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic returns the ball during the second round match of men’s singles against Marat Safin of Russia in 2009 Shanghai ATP 1000 Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai, east China, October 14, 2009. Berdych defeated Safin 2-1(3-6, 6-4,6-4). (Xinhua/Ren Long)

Roddick limps out, Hewitt through

Roddick limps out, Hewitt through

Andy Roddick was forced to retire with left knee pain while leading Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland 4-3 in the second round of the Shanghai Masters at the Qizhong Tennis Center yesterday.

The fourth-seeded Roddick, who limped into the post-match news conference, quit after wasting a break point.

“I just felt I pushed off, and then Michael (Novotny, ATP trainer) came on court and did some tests and advised that it probably wasn’t worth the risk,” Roddick said.

Roddick, who is vying for one of the final three spots at the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London next month, is more concerned about taking care of his health than qualifying for the eight-man event.

“At this point, my concern is more along the lines of figuring out what we’re dealing with,” said Roddick, who has finished the last seven seasons ranked in the top 10.

The 22nd-ranked Wawrinka will next play 13th-seeded Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic in the third round.

“I hope he’s going to be fine for the rest of the season,” Wawrinka said of Roddick.

“For sure, it’s not the way you want it to go. But I’ll take it and play the next match.”

Sixth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko also moved into the third round, improving his perfect record against Igor Kunitsyn of Russia to 5-0 after a 6-4, 6-2 win, and 10th-seeded Fernando Gonzalez of Chile beat Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil 6-3, 6-4.

Fifteenth-seeded Tommy Haas beat Benjamin Becker 7-6 (5), 6-4 in an all-German match.

“It’s never easy to play a countryman or a player that you like and I’m pretty good friends with,” Haas said.

“It’s never easy, but I think the first set was quite important.

“I had one good break in the second set and served it out, so I’m pretty happy.”

In an all-French match, 11th-seeded Gael Monfils defeated Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-2, 6-2.

Former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt cut big-serving American John Isner down to size with a 6-2, 6-4 victory in the first round.

The 28-year-old Australian, back at No. 23 in the world after sliding outside the top 100 following hip surgery, is nearly a foot shorter than the towering Isner but came up with some fine returns to disarm the Floridian.

Isner managed just five aces and racked up a whopping 37 unforced errors, leaving Hewitt to seal a second round tie against Monfils when the big American netted after 76 minutes.

“He’s had a lot of success earlier in the year … beating guys like (Andy) Roddick over five sets so I knew it was going to be a tough match,” said Hewitt.

“It’s a matter of just taking your chances when you get into it against those guys and I did that exceptionally well today,” he said.

Read more: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=416218&type=Sports#ixzz0TsB2D1T3

Henin gets wild card to Australian Open

Henin gets wild card to Australian Open

Belgian Justine Henin Monday was given a wild card to January’s Australian Open.
Henin, 27, said she would return to competitive tennis after more than a year in retirement.
She was obviously encouraged by her compatriot Kim Clijsters’ successful return in which Clijsters clinched this year’s US Open.
Henin won the Australian Open in 2004 and played the 2006 final. The last appearance there for the winner of 41 career titles was a 2008 quarter-final before she retired in May that same year.

Davydenko beats Kunitsyn at Shanghai Masters

Davydenko beats Kunitsyn at Shanghai Masters

 

Nikolay Davydenko of Russia plays a shot to Igor Kunitsyn of Russia during the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai October 13, 2009.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

Roddick blasts tour calendar

Roddick blasts tour calendar

An exasperated Andy Roddick said the ATP men’s tour must give players more time to rest during the season or risk shortening the careers of the “stars” of the sport.

The world No 6 lost to qualifier Lukasz Kubot in the first match of his title defense at the China Open last week and said then that the top players were playing too much tennis.
He renewed his attack at the Shanghai Masters yesterday while admitting the ultimate negotiating tool, a players’ strike, was unlikely.
“I think it’s ridiculous to think that you have a professional sport that doesn’t have a legitimate offseason to rest, get healthy and then train,” the 27-year-old said at his 16th tournament of the season.
World No 1 Roger Federer pulled out of Shanghai citing fatigue, while No 3 Andy Murray blamed a wrist injury for his absence from the inaugural $3.24 million tournament.
“I don’t think that’s all one big coincidence and I just hope that the shortsightedness doesn’t affect the length of careers,” he said. “I think in tennis you definitely want your stars around as long as possible.”
The top 30 men’s players are obliged to play the four two-week Grand Slam events and eight of the nine Masters Series tournaments.

Kutznetsova claims her second China Open title

Kutznetsova claims her second China Open title

Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia holds up the trophy during the awarding ceremony after winning women’s singles final match against Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland at the 2009 China Tennis Open Tournament in Beijing, Oct. 11, 2009. Kuznetsova beat Radwanska 2-0, and claimed the title. (Xinhua/Gong Lei)

World number six Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Agnieszka Radwanska to grab the second China Open title on her fourth appearance at China Open tournament finals on Sunday, climbing to the fourth spot in the world.
Kuznetsova began the match by a break to take a 2-0 lead. In the following games, Kuznetsova didn’t drop any of her own serve games, and broke twice to establish a 5-2 lead. The 24-year-old Russian seized the second of the two set points to end the first set 6-2.

Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia holds up the trophy and bonus cheque during the awarding ceremony after winning women’s singles final match against Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland at the 2009 China Tennis Open Tournament in Beijing, Oct. 11, 2009. Kuznetsova won 2-0, and claimed the title. (Xinhua/Luo Xiaoguang)

In the second set, Kuznetsova broke again to lead 2-0. She continued her masterful form by hitting a number of powerful attacks. Although Radwanska didn’t drop any of her serve points in the rest part of this set, one break was enough for Kuznetsova to seal the victory 6-2, 6-4.
“I am not feeling very well today,” said runner-up Ranwanska after the match. “but it’s really a good feeling to play the top players in strong tournaments like this.”

Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia (R) and Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland hold up their trophies during the awarding ceremony after women’s singles final at the 2009 China Tennis Open Tournament in Beijing, Oct. 11, 2009. Kuznetsova beat Radwanska 2-0, and claimed the title. (Xinhua/Chen Jianli)

Kuznetsova told a news conference that she treated the final as a single match.
“I think good players are always performing their best in every match,” she said. “so I tried my best, and this is what I did.”

Djokovic beats Cilic to win China Open final

Djokovic beats Cilic to win China Open final

Novak Djokovic of Serbia kisses the trophy after winning the men’s singles final against Marin Cilic of Croatia at the China Open tennis tournament in Beijing October 11, 2009. [Agencies]

Novak Djokovic of Serbia kisses the court after winning the men’s singles final against Marin Cilic of Croatia at the China Open tennis tournament in Beijing October 11, 2009. [Agencies]
Second-seeded Novak Djokovic beat error-prone Croatian Marin Cilic 6-2 7-6 in a rain-interrupted final to win his third title of the season at the China Open on Sunday.
The 22-year-old Serbian, who will move up to number three in the world later this month, kept his 100 percent career record against the world number 15 intact in a contest long on rallies but short on quality.
Djokovic kissed the ground and threw his shirt into the crowd after his victory at the venue where he won Olympic bronze at the Beijing Games last year.

Cilic had been inspired during his two-set demolition of world number two Rafa Nadal in the semi-finals and the more dangerous of the pair before the rain break, but struggled to pick up the pace after the 90-minute interruption.
Djokovic, who had saved six break points in his first three service games, seized on his chance and some deft touches and Cilic errors quickly put him a set up.
Cilic, who had never lost a tour final, rallied immediately by breaking Djokovic with his whipped returns to open the second set.
That turned out to be only the first of six breaks in a topsy turvy set punctuated by long rallies with Djokovic claiming the last to bring up a tiebreak.
US Open semi-finalist Djokovic always looked the most likely winner and secured his third victory in eight finals this year when Cilic made the last of his 25 unforced errors by going wide with a forehand.
Djokovic’s path to the title was eased by Cilic’s upset victory over top-seeded Rafael Nadal in Saturday’s semifinal.
“Even though it was a straight-sets win it could easily have gone the other way. I think I was a little bit saved by the rain delay,” said Djokovic, who has won all four meetings between the two. “I kind of got together my nerves to play well.”
Cilic said the rain delay may have affected him.
“First time I went out on the court I started pretty good but when we came back the conditions were a little bit different. It was a little cooler and Novak started really good and I missed my shot to get back into the game,” Cilic said.