Serena Williams Wins, Venus Bows Out at Madrid
MADRID (WTA/Newsfeed) – Serena Williams beat Elena Vesnina 6-3, 6-1 to reach the Madrid Open’s second round, while sister Venus lost 6-4, 6-1 to Angelique Kerber on Monday. The ninth-seeded Williams had 13 aces and 40 winners against Vesnina, who was struggling with her game on the slippery blue clay court. The Russian lost her balance in the sixth game and set up a break point for Williams, who pulled ahead to lead 4-2. Williams’ ninth ace of the match provided a set point for the ninth-ranked American to take the first set and wrap up the match against the [...]
Publ.Date : Tue, 08 May 2012 17:52:52 +0000

Azarenka, Sharapova Advance to 2nd Round in Madrid
MADRID (WTA/Newsfeed) -Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka and second-seeded Maria Sharapova advanced to the second round of the Madrid Open with straight-set wins Sunday on the event’s new blue-clay court. Azarenka beat Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia 7-6 (5), 6-4 in a tough opening match. The Australian Open champion and Kuznetsova traded breaks in the first set. Just when it looked as if the second set was going to end in another tiebreaker, Azarenka broke again to close out the match. “It was a really close match, so I was just happy that I won because they were difficult games to break,” said [...]
Publ.Date : Mon, 07 May 2012 18:55:43 +0000

Sharapova Beats Azarenka in Porsche Final
STUTTGART (WTA/Newsfeed) – Second-ranked Maria Sharapova cruised past top-ranked Victoria Azarenka 6-1, 6-4 on Sunday to win the Porsche Grand Prix for her first title of the year. Sharapova lost the finals of the Australian Open and Indian Wells this year to Azarenka, and the Russian had never beaten her rival from Belarus in four previous encounters in a final. “I am really pleased to win such a tough tournament, against such tough opponents,” said Sharapova, before collecting the white sports car donated by the sponsor. “Victoria could not perform at her best because of her injury.” Azarenka, who fell [...]
Publ.Date : Wed, 02 May 2012 23:53:00 +0000

Andujar, Lindstedt/Tecau Stop Traffic in Belgrade
BELGRADE (ATP/Newsfeed) – Top seeds Pablo Andujar, Robert Lindstedt & Horia Tecau joined Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic and tournament director Goran Djokovic for a game of mini-tennis Tuesday on the newly opened Ada bridge in Belgrade. “This was a very nice experience,” said Andujar, who is making his Serbian Open debut this week. “I never played on a bridge before. It is very high and nice to look at. We had a great time and a lot of fun today.” The players met the bridge’s construction crew, before bringing traffic temporarily to a halt for their hit. “It’s great, they closed [...]
Publ.Date : Wed, 02 May 2012 00:53:12 +0000

Nadal Beats Ferrer for 7th Barcelona Open Win
BARCELONA (ATP/Newsfeed) – Rafael Nadal became the first player in the Open Era to win two tournaments seven times after beating David Ferrer 7-6 (1), 7-5 in Sunday’s Barcelona Open final. The second-ranked Nadal’s 21st straight victory on clay followed up his eighth straight win in Monte Carlo, as Nadal won the 10th all-Spanish ATP final for a 48th career win. The sixth-ranked Ferrer lost his fourth Barcelona Open final to Nadal, who saved 12 of 15 break points for a 34th straight victory at Barcelona. Nadal skipped toward the net in celebration after hitting a backhand winner on match [...]
Publ.Date : Tue, 01 May 2012 01:54:19 +0000

Nadal Tops Ferrer for 7th Barcelona Title
BARCELONA (ATP/Newsfeed) – Rafael Nadal became the first player in the Open Era to win two tournaments seven times after beating David Ferrer 7-6 (1), 7-5 in Sunday’s Barcelona Open final. The second-ranked Nadal’s 21st straight victory on clay followed up his eighth straight win in Monte Carlo, as Nadal won the 10th all-Spanish ATP final for a 48th career win. The sixth-ranked Ferrer lost his fourth Barcelona Open final to Nadal, who saved 12 of 15 break points for a 34th straight victory at Barcelona. Nadal skipped toward the net in celebration after hitting a backhand winner on match [...]
Publ.Date : Mon, 30 Apr 2012 02:52:59 +0000

Nadal, Ferrer Meet Again in Barcelona
Updated Apr 28, 2012 12:53 PM ET BARCELONA, Spain Six-time champion Rafael Nadal defeated Fernando Verdasco 6-0, 6-4 Saturday to ease into the Barcelona Open final, where he will face fellow Spaniard David Ferrer for a fourth time. Nadal dominated from the start, winning 21 of 27 points to break Verdasco’s first three service games and set him on his way to his 33rd straight win at the competition. In the other semifinal, Ferrer held off Milos Raonic’s powerful serve for a 7-6 (2), 7-6 (5) victory to give him a shot at his fourth title of the year. “Rafa [...]
Publ.Date : Sun, 29 Apr 2012 03:53:19 +0000

Nadal, Raonic Advance in Barcelona
Rafael Nadal dispatched Janko Tipsarevic 6-2, 6-2 Friday to advance to the Barcelona Open semifinals, while Milos Raonic served 14 aces and upset second-seeded Andy Murray 6-4, 7-6 (3). The top-seeded Nadal moved his Serbian opponent around the red-clay court with his powerful forehand. The second-ranked Spaniard broke Tipsarevic in his first service game to set the tone for his 32nd consecutive win at the tournament. Tipsarevic earned three break points in the last game of the first set, but Nadal recovered to win five straight points. Nadal was broken for the first time to make it 2-2 in the [...]
Publ.Date : Sat, 28 Apr 2012 04:52:56 +0000

Nadal, Murray Reach Barcelona Quarters
Updated Apr 26, 2012 7:06 PM ET BARCELONA, Spain Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray cruised into the Barcelona Open quarterfinals with straight-set victories on Thursday. Nadal broke Robert Farah of Colombia in the first game on his way to a 6-2, 6-3 victory for his 31st straight win at the tournament. Nadal set up a quarterfinal match with fifth-seeded Janko Tipsarevic after the Serbian beat Frederico Gil 6-2, 6-2. “It may sound stupid but against players like him you have to go for victory, if you look for a fight you’ve already lost,” Tipsarevic said. “Rafa is playing like he [...]
Publ.Date : Fri, 27 Apr 2012 05:53:34 +0000

Nadal Cruises into Barcelona Third Round
Updated Apr 25, 2012 3:08 PM ET BARCELONA, Spain Rafael Nadal overcame a sore knee to open his bid for a seventh Barcelona Open title with an easy 6-1, 6-2 win over Guillermo Garcia Lopez in the second round Wednesday. Nadal had a bye in the first round after defeating Novak Djokovic in the Monte Carlo Masters final on Sunday and improved to 31-1 on the clay in Barcelona after breaking his fellow Spaniard six times. “My knee bothered me a little, but that’s normal. In 15 days, the discomfort isn’t going to go away, but it doesn’t keep you [...]
Publ.Date : Thu, 26 Apr 2012 06:53:29 +0000