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There’s No Place Like Home

Wed, 15 Aug 2012 10:00:00 GMT

Varvara Lepchenko walks hurriedly across the grounds of the USTA National Tennis Center, passing Arthur Ashe stadium on her way from the indoor training center to the fitness room in the U.S. Open’s player lounge. She sees Louis Armstrong and the Grandstand courts, the TV booths, the food court with its signs hawking everything from hamburgers and hot dogs to taco salads and crepes. She saunters past the giant reflecting pool with the fountain that spouts water high in the air, the giant Unisphere from the 1964 World’s Fair shining in the distance, beyond the shuttered turnstile gates that burst with energy for two weeks near the end of every summer.

When Lepchenko takes this walk, there are no fans pressing giant tennis balls into the faces of players on the practice courts, no quartets atop platforms playing jazz and no water in the pool outside Ashe stadium. For Lepchenko, a 26-year-old native of Uzbekistan who now plays under the American flag, the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center is her home port, where she trains with Christina McHale, Melanie Oudin and other young Americans when they aren’t playing tournaments. Walking the grounds in the quiet of the U.S. Open offseason is both cathartic and reassuring.

“It’s like my home here,” says Lepchenko, who has, between the qualifying tournament and the main draw, played every U.S. Open since 2005, winning one main draw match along the way. “I now feel like all the other people there are my guests.”

For Lepchenko, who received her U.S. citizenship just last September and in June snagged the fourth and final women’s singles spot on the U.S. Olympic team, the ascent to the upper echelon of women’s tennis has been both slow and methodical, and meteoric at the same time. Ranked No. 110 at the start of 2012 and forced to play qualifying at most WTA tournaments, she jumped to just outside the Top 50 by Wimbledon. Her rise was bolstered largely by a round-of-16 run at the French Open, where she upset former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic and 2010 French champ Francesca Schiavone, 8-6 in the third set, before falling to the No. 4 seed, Petra Kvitova. She also reached the third round at Wimbledon before falling to Kvitova. Though she has more than halved her ranking this year, Lepchenko, whose friends call her “V” or “Big V”, did not exactly burst on the American tennis consciousness.

Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan’s capital city and a Soviet Republic until 1991, Lepchenko says she never felt Uzbekistani and was never treated as a native daughter by the tennis federation there. Her junior highlights include stints as a ball girl during ATP events in Tashkent when she got to have her picture taken with a young Marat Safin and shake the hand of 1998 champion Tim Henman. But while the budget-bound Uzbekistan Tennis Federation found funding for male players like Denis Istomin, currently ranked a career-high No. 33 on the ATP Tour, and even had enough left over for Akgul Amanmuradova, ranked as high as No. 50 on the Women’s Tennis Association in 2008, Lepchenko always felt shunned.

“It was a lot of political stuff,” says Lepchenko, who has always been coached by her father, Petr, though she now also works with Jay Gooding under the USTA training program. “My grandparents were from Eastern Ukraine in the USSR so I wasn’t a real Uzbekistani. I was never accepted as one of their own. I was never chosen for the teams and never given money. It was tough there to become a professional tennis player. My dad just didn’t see me growing.”

The situation came to a head in December 2000 when then-14-year-old Lepchenko came to the United States as part of an Uzbekistan team delegation and decided to play the Orange Bowl junior championships. When the Uzbekistan Tennis Federation refused to enter her, a teary Lepchenko went to the USTA, which agreed to let her play anyway. (Unseeded, she reached the semifinals in the girls’ 14s.) The UTF fired back, trying to force the USTA to reimburse the federation for her airline ticket. Not long afterwards, Lepchenko was summoned home with the promise that if she agreed to play Fed Cup for Uzbekistan, the Federation would consider giving her some financial help and would choose which tournaments she would be allowed to play. She flatly refused.

“It was a shock to me,” says Lepchenko. “I was training and playing junior tournaments in the States and they wanted me to come back and play only a few tournaments they had there, then sit around and wait for the next one.” Instead, Lepchenko, her father and her sister Jane fled their native land—leaving Varvara’s mother to fight for four years for immigration papers before being able to join them—and moved to Sunny Isles, Florida, a Russian-speaking community north of Miami, where they rented an apartment from a family friend and Varvara began training with Jai DiLouie at the USTA’s Key Biscayne training center.

Though she had grown up challenging the likes of Maria Sharapova and Maria Kirilenko, Lepchenko floundered for the next three years, training a bit with top American juniors like Shenay Perry and Ahsha Rolle while also trying to sort out everything from passports and visas to housing for her family, often at the expense of practice time. But life changed when, in 2004, just after she turned 18, she and her father drove their Mazda MPV—a mini-van they often slept in as they traversed the country in search of tournaments to play and ranking points to earn—into Allentown, PA, for a $25,000 USTA Circuit event. While advancing through qualifying to reach the final, Lepchenko was befriended by a tournament staffer named Shari Butz who, upon hearing her story and knowing that her mother was back in Uzbekistan, offered Varvara and her father two rooms in her home and even arranged for unlimited court time at a local club.

“For me, it is such a good place to live,” says Lepchecnko, whose parents still live in Allentown and who goes back for weekend lake-side picnics whenever she can, though she stays with her boyfriend in Queens while training at the National Tennis Center. “We really hated Florida; it’s too hot. I like being outdoors with no one around, being one on one with nature.”

Lepchenko’s game, with its big lefty hook and tricky sidespin, has long been a work in progress. She can play brilliantly one week, as she did in knocking off Schiavone and Anabel Medina Garrigues to reach the quarterfinals of Madrid in May and as she did last week with impressive straight-set wins in Montreal over 24th-ranked Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and 13th-ranked Dominika Cibulkova before bowing to No. 8 Caroline Wozniacki, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. But one week after Madrid, Lepchenko fell to Russian Anna Chakvetadze, a former Top 10 player now ranked 337th in the world, in qualifying for Rome. At Wimbledon, she upset the 31st-seeded Pavlyuchenkova, only to panic against the brute force of the defending champion, Kvitova, in the next round.

“She’s strong and a very physical player,” says Gooding, who also works with McHale and Oudin. “She hits a heavier, different kind of spin than most lefties. She’s also a little bit older, a little smarter and she knows how to play the game. She’s not as fast as some of the other girls so she has to move forward inside the lines a little bit more. And she needs to be more consistent in her level of play.”

“If you’re a tennis player you need a team around you; you can’t just have your mom, dad and sister,” admits Lepchenko, who joined the USTA program last September, just after the Open, and has spent a great deal of time working with trainers to shore up her fitness level. “There were always so many things I had to worry about and struggle with, like not traveling to certain places so I could save pages in my passport. Any tennis player who has that much to deal with outside of tennis is not able to show her best tennis.”

While Lepchenko has spent the better part of a decade sorting out her personal life, nothing matched the feeling of obtaining U.S. citizenship. “Here’s the thing,” Lepchenko chuckled when asked if any questions on the exam stumped her. “I was so scared that I wasn’t going to pass [the test]. I studied so hard for a month. But now I don’t remember anything. It’s because we are tennis players; we’re trained to switch it off and move on to the next point. Obviously, it was a winning point for me.”

Now, the point that Lepchenko really looks forward to is returning to Flushing Meadows when her USTA academy players aren’t the only ones roaming the grounds. The best part, she says, will be when she hears the national anthem, looks up at the American flag flying high over Arthur Ashe Stadium and realizes that it is her flag.

“The U.S. Open is a very special Grand Slam for me,” Lepchenko says. “The first time I qualified [in 2006] my mother had just arrived and was watching me. I was only 19 and everything was great and exciting, even the player party. But now that people know that I play for the United States, they will cheer so loud. To play in Arthur Ashe would be so amazing.

“I have felt American from the moment I stepped on this ground,” she adds. “People here are polite, they smile, and they go about things in a very nice way. In the U.S., everyone was an immigrant at one point so they accept you as you are.

“Here,” says Lepchenko with a catch in her throat, “I feel right at home.”

This article was originally published in the July/August issue of TENNIS Magazine.

Two For One: Partnering Federer In Doubles

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 12:00:00 GMT

On the practice court, players draft the designs for the games they aim to build. Then there are those creative souls who blow up blueprints.

It was on a practice court at Crandon Park on Key Biscayne where Jonas Björkman hit with the teenager whose eye-popping shots dazzled like the Art Deco structures dotting South Beach, but the kid's concentration could collapse as quickly as a sand castle party crashed by marauding waves.

Months earlier, a 17-year-old Roger Federer beat a pair of Argentine juniors named David Nalbandian and Guillermo Coria in succession to win the Orange Bowl at Crandon Park, clinching the 1998 year-end junior No. 1 ranking. "That's the best serve I've faced in the juniors," Coria said after Federer's 7-5, 6-3 victory in the final. It was a transformative moment: The Swiss teenager celebrated, adopting a bleach-blonde hair style. Federer's hair had returned to its natural shade, but his head was still in flux when Björkman encountered him at practice that spring day in 1999.

"You could see he had such a massive game, but mentally he was pretty weak at that time," Björkman recalls. "But in one year, he developed so much. You saw him again as a 19-year-old and he was so mature and he had such a tremendous talent you knew he was going to be a phenomenal player."

Federer celebrates his 31st birthday today — weeks after regaining the world No. 1 ranking — looking like a man fully intent on enjoying his tennis golden years.

Perhaps the only experience as exhilarating as facing Federer in singles is partnering him in doubles. What does it feel like to play alongside an all-court improviser capable of hitting between the legs or over an opponent's head? We caught up with some of Federer's former doubles partners to find out.

The 17-time Grand Slam singles champion has played 199 doubles matches in his pro career, partnering 27 different men and a couple of women (Martina Hingis in Hopman Cup and wife Mirka in Hopman Cup and in life). Federer teammates have ranged from Grand Slam champions (Björkman, Lleyton Hewitt, Max Mirnyi, Marat Safin, Marc Rosset) to former junior opponents (Nicolas Escude and Andreas Vinciguerra) to a slew of Swiss friends and Davis Cup teammates, including Yves Allegro, George Bastl, Marco Chiudinelli and Michel Kratochvil.

Kratochvil, two years older than Federer, rose through the ranks with the ball boy from Basel. He recalls the young Federer as "very relaxed" both on and off the court, but says even those closest to him could not envision his evolution.

"I think everybody knew this boy had lots of talent, but when we were young, I don't think anyone could foresee that he could become No. 1 and the best ever," says Kratochvil, who now runs the Michel Kratochvil Tennis Academy. "I think it's a couple of key things that helped Roger reach his success. It was a lot of hard work — you cannot achieve anything without hard work — and Roger has an unbelievable talent. His whole genetic posture, the way he plays a variety of shots, the way he moves, the way he anticipates on court — it all makes him so special. And because of that style, Roger has not had very many injuries and that also gives him the possibilities to do shots that others cannot. I think those are all important reasons for his success."

Federer was still a few years from singles success when he embraced the doubles Beast. Max Mirnyi, "the Beast of Belarus", won three titles with Federer — Rotterdam and Moscow in 2002 and Key Biscayne in 2003 — the most titles of any Federer doubles partnership. But he wasn't exactly banking on Federer re-writing the record book back then.

"To be honest, there was no way I could have predicted that Roger would turn into a superstar and a legend of the game back then," Mirnyi says. "He had some effective shots, but he also had some flaws to his game, as is the case with many promising young players and older, established players as well.

"Playing with him was an absolute pleasure. Even though he was not yet a magician at the time of our partnership he already had plenty of tricks. He was starting to show us, his colleagues, the different dimension tennis could be played at."

While he was developing an all-court game, the young Federer was vulnerable to vets who could get to his backhand, which was not nearly as polished or penetrating as the multi-faceted shot it would become. Former Top 10 singles and doubles player, South African Wayne Ferreira, partnered Federer to the 2000 Wimbledon doubles quarterfinal and points to the work Federer did reconstructing his backhand with ex-coach Peter Lundgren as vital to his development.

"Being South African, as is Roger's mother, I knew him since he was younger and we practiced together a lot," Ferreira says. "As a teenager, he had a really good forehand and he moved extremely well. I remember early on, he had no topspin backhand — he only had the slice backhand. I beat him in singles only because I was able to hit my forehand to penetrate his backhand. So I knew from practicing with him, that Roger was very talented, but his backhand was a weakness. Working with Peter Lundgren, they realized they had to improve that shot and then he began to come over it. Once he developed the topspin backhand, he was fantastic, the full package."

It would be overstating the case to suggest playing doubles was critical to Federer's all-court game. Certainly, doubles sharpens the serve and return through repetition and may have helped Federer refine the rough edges on the backhand and fine-tune his transition game. But some partners believe Federer, who was not above tossing his Pro Staff around in fits of frustration during his younger years, found refuge from immense expectation in singles and a relaxed state of mind playing doubles.

"I think the biggest positive playing doubles was to get away from the pressure as a youngster coming up and people saying you're gonna be the next Pete Sampras," says Björkman, with whom Federer won his first doubles title at the 2001 Rotterdam event. "Obviously, it must be pretty tough to go into every match with those expectations at such a young age. When you play doubles, it's a totally different game. It was a good way for him to get match practice and also be a little bit more relaxed on court. Hopefully, maybe he learned a bit from all of us he played with."

Mastering the mind game may have been as important as working on his net game.

"In my opinion, there was something within Roger himself, his inner psychological world and mental approach to the game that changed from when he began," Mirnyi says. "And then that made the difference in the player that we have all had the pleasure to watch over the last 10 years."

In the years since, Federer has returned to doubles, winning the 2008 gold in Beijing with Wawrinka and paying it forward in partnering lower-ranked Swiss players to give them experience, while several of his former doubles partners continue to follow his career, collectively sharing a similar birthday wish: That he continue playing.

"The most impressive thing to me is the way he has handled all of his success: He is still the same person he was when I met him years ago and he knows the importance of world No. 1," Björkman says. "What's really most remarkable is that you see him winning so much for so long yet every time he wins, like at Wimbledon, you see how genuinely happy he still is and how much he loves it. I don't think we have ever had such a good ambassador in the sport of tennis."

Hingis, Reynolds named World TeamTennis MVPs

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 11:17:00 GMT

NEW YORK, N.Y. (July 31, 2012)—Former world No. 1 Martina Hingis of the New York Sportimes and the Washington Kastles' Bobby Reynolds were named as WTT MVPs today for the World TeamTennis Pro League presented by GEICO.

John-Patrick Smith of the Orange County Breakers and Kristyna Pliskova of the Philadelphia Freedoms were named as WTT Rookies of the Year, while Murphy Jensen of the Washington Kastles was named WTT Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season.

Hingis finished first in women's singles this season with a .593 winning percentage. Hingis teamed with Ashley Harkleroad to finish as the top-ranked team in women's doubles at .571%. This is the fifth WTT season for Hingis, who led the Sportimes to the 2005 title. Hingis and her Sportimes teammates have advanced to the Eastern Conference Championship against the Washington Kastles on Saturday, Sept. 15, in Charleston, S.C. "I'm proud to win the WTT MVP award," said Hingis. "The 2012 season was both challenging and rewarding. I was part of a great team and much of my success was thanks to my teammates, coach, team owner and great New York Sportimes fans."

Reynolds followed up his 2010 Rookie of the Year award with an even better campaign in 2012 to earn the WTT Male MVP honors. Reynolds finished as the top ranked player in men's singles, with a 64-41 record for a .610 winning percentage. Reynolds teamed with the 2011 Male MVP Leander Paes to finish as the League's top-ranked doubles team with a .620 winning percentage. After Paes left to participate in the Olympic Games, Reynolds kept the Kastles on track to post their second consecutive undefeated regular season. "It's an honor to be named MVP," said Bobby Reynolds. "There have been so many great players who have been MVP over the years of World TeamTennis. The team has been behind me the whole year. I just hope we keep the streak alive."

John-Patrick Smith led the Breakers to their first playoff appearance since 2009, where they will be the top seed in the Western Conference Championship match in Charleston. Smith won 63 of 111 singles games to finish third in the League with a .568 winning percentage. Smith and his partner Travis Parrott are the third-ranked doubles team, with a .537 winning percentage. "It's a great honor," said Smith. "I played well this season and had a great time with my teammates, I really enjoyed it. I am very thankful for the opportunity to play here and the competition was great.

The Philadelphia Freedoms fell short of the playoffs but Kristyna Pliskova's season was memorable Kristyna and her identical twin sister Karolina finished as the third-ranked team in women's doubles and Kristyna was fourth in mixed doubles, partnering with Jordan Kerr. "It was a great season and I enjoyed playing with this team," said Pliskova. "Great matches and a great experience so I am very happy to get rookie of the year."

For the second year in a row, Murphy Jensen was named WTT Coach of the Year. He led the Kastles to their second consecutive undefeated regular season. The Kastles have won 30 matches in a row, the second longest win streak in pro team sports history. This is Jensen's fourth season coaching the Kastles. He led the franchise to the WTT title in 2009 and 2011, and the Kastles are the top seed in the 2012 Eastern Conference finals.

"It feels unreal to be named Coach of the Year for two years in a row," said Jensen. "It means the world to me because I got an opportunity this month to serve some extraordinary athletes. I'm a cheap imitation of all the people who have mentored me along the way, starting with my mom and dad."

The Kastles and the Breakers are both the top seeds in their respective conferences at the WTT Finals Weekend, Sept. 14-16. The Breakers will face the Sacramento Capitals on Friday, Sept. 14, at 6:30 p.m. EDT. The Kastles and Sportimes will renew their rivalry on Sept. 16 for the Eastern Conference title. The Conference Champions face off for the King Trophy on Sunday, Sept. 16 at 3:30 p.m. EDT.

2012 WTT AWARDS:
WTT FEMALE MVP: Martina Hingis (New York Sportimes)
WTT MALE MVP: Bobby Reynolds (Washington Kastles)
WTT FEMALE ROOKIE: Kristyna Pliskova (Philadelphia Freedoms)
WTT MALE ROOKIE: John-Patrick Smith (Orange County Breakers)
WTT COACH OF THE YEAR: Murphy Jensen (Washington Kastles)

SCHEDULE 2012 WTT Finals Weekend presented by GEICO
September 14-16 - Family Circle Tennis Center in Charleston, S.C.

Friday, Sept. 14 - 6:30 p.m. EDT : Western Conference Championship - #1
Orange County Breakers (8-6) vs. #2 Sacramento Capitals (7-7)

Saturday, Sept. 15 - 6:30 p.m. EDT: Eastern Conference Championship - #1
Washington Kastles (14-0) vs. #2 New York Sportimes (9-5)

Sunday, Sept. 16 - 3:30 p.m. EDT: WTT Finals
Eastern Conference Champion vs. Western Conference Champion

Media Contact: Rosie Crews, WTT - PH: 817-691-5424 rcrews@wtt.com

Irina Falconi's World TeamTennis Blog: Last Lobsta Tale

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 11:10:00 GMT

"I have you living life like you should, you said you never had it so good..."

That's the song I'm going to finish the WTT season on. Because, I really have never had it so good.

The season was three weeks long. Fourteen matches. Something like twenty takeoffs and landings. And let's not even talk about how many hours were spent in the car. Probably more than were spent sleeping.

But hey, that's what the season is about.

I am actually writing this blog from D.C. I know that I haven't told you about my last two matches as a Boston Lobster this year, but just wanted to give you a sense of direction if you will.

So Orange County Breakers. The day after we played Philly, we had to get up and hop on a flight early that morning to the west coast. Good thing we went a day earlier so we could get adjusted to the time change and everything because, trust me, it definitely messes you up.

We got there, Carly and I did our girl thing and went shopping because that's what you do when you are near the biggest mall in Southern California. After that, it was time to lay low. Nothing too crazy, just takeout and some Family Guy. Pretty sure that sounds like a pretty perfect evening if I don't say so myself.

The next day, we had a chance to get three more hours of sleep because of the time change, which means that we would technically play our match at 10 pm OUR time. Yeah, how we doing? It was a little rough, and we had some chances, but the Breakers were able to "break" us down. They clinched their conference, which salutes a congrats. Oh, and Kastles. Great job on your run. Making history ain't a easy thing to do and ya'll obviously knew how to do it.

After that, guess what? Sacramento it was. We arrived at the airport, got picked up in a swagger limo, and then got driven to a super nice Marriott that had complimentary laundry and made me VERY happy. The Capitals brought their A game and they took it to us. Hey, you can't always win the last one, but no worries here. The amount of fun and memorable experiences that I had with an amazing group of people is unforgettable.

As cheesy as that may seem, it really was great. Sure, the traveling and the lack of sleep will be completely exhausting, but it truly was great. Oh but wait! The best part about this whole thing was finishing the match and then getting in a car to the airport—again. Oh yea, know what a redeye is? It's the latest and last possible flight out of an airport. I was so glad that I had got the flight because I ended up having a doubles match the next day (in D.C.). One stop in Minneapolis, and then to Baltimore, and then another hour in a car crammed with 10 bags of luggage. Talk about working with adversity...

Oh and yeah, my partner got the W.

That deserves a Holla to yo Lobsta.

Well, everyone, thanks a lot for reading. It's been a great season.

I appreciate all the support, all the good feedback, and the fun questions I was able to answer.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!!!

Deuces!

—IF

NOTE: Irina Falconi completed her WTT season for the Boston Lobsters on Saturday, July 28 in Sacramento then flew overnight to the East Coast where she started a WTA Tour event on Sunday afternoon. Continue to follow her results @irinafalconi or on the WTA Tour.

For more WTT coverage, go to our World TeamTennis page.

Same Place, Different Everything: Wimby and the Games

Tue, 31 Jul 2012 00:31:00 GMT

WIMBLEDON, England—We have heard a lot about how different this Olympic iteration of Wimbledon will be, but after spending the day at the tennis, it’s clear to me that the differences are both greater and more subtle than just alterations in signage and acceptable attire.

On the surface, it’s really not that different. The airport-style security is new, but the military presence manning the gates and soldiers strolling the grounds in pairs during their breaks is neither intrusive nor unusual. Even the virulence of the ‘Olympic’ shade—somewhere between the pink of a My Little Pony and the purple of a particularly sickening bruise—on the hoardings is overpowered by the familiar ivy-covered walls and somber dark green of Wimbledon. To paraphrase Terry Pratchett, you can’t stamp your personality on Wimbledon. It stamps back harder.

What is different is the people, both those running the place and the crowd. Instead of the honorary stewards—predominantly white upper-class men; I once met one who told me he was a Russian prince—we have paid and voluntary ‘Gamesmakers’ of all ages and ethnicities, mainly women, in their branded London 2012 gear. The crowd is more diverse in every respect too; more international, more families. It’s hard not to feel that this represents the multicultural Britain showcased in the opening ceremony, and it makes a nice change from the usual hegemony of Wimbledon.

I’ve never seen so many people wearing apparel that represents their home nations, their faces painted, draped in flags, some of them guests of the various Olympic federations in immaculate tracksuits, others just fans. I’ve never heard so much chanting coming from all around the grounds. Small groups of spectators from the Netherlands in bright orange make up for their numbers by being sartorially voluble; the Australians, always good value, seem to be competing with each other to wear the most outlandish green-and-gold outfit; Swiss flags are everywhere; and whenever a Canadian player takes one of the outside courts, it becomes a haven of red and white and maple leaves, accompanied by shouts of ‘You’re doing good, buddy! Right here!’ Every player has home support; when Irina-Carmelia Begu briefly levels her match against Victoria Azarenka, scattered Romanian flags unfurl around Centre Court. As for the Brits, not even when Andy Murray plays during a normal Championships do you see so many Union Jacks, on flags, hats, ‘Team GB’ garments, and even sequined mini-dresses which appear to have been slumbering in the back of wardrobes since the Spice Girls’ last go-round.

Outside these knots and pockets of nationalist fervor, though, the atmosphere feels a little flat. When Roger Federer plays Julien Benneteau, I watch on a sparsely-populated Henman Hill between a man intently discussing redoing his bathroom on his mobile and another who is patiently hand-drawing a sign to wish his mum a happy birthday. The grounds are noticeably emptier than usual, too. Perhaps it’s because there are fewer courts in play, or perhaps it’s the absence of those Wimbledon die-hards, the contingent who queue overnight; wild-eyed with lack of sleep, grimy and determined. Perhaps it’s just the absence of something I was vaguely expecting to feel—some sort of special Olympic inspiration, the possibility of gold medals sparkling tantalizingly in the air, players rising to the occasion and committing heroic feats.

It’s not really there in the singles matches I watch on Centre Court, which is too big to be dominated by a foreign contingent the way some outer courts have been colonized, and without that it’s just, well, tennis—Azarenka punching her backhand with that killer intensity, Juan Martin del Potro’s shots resounding like short snaps of thunder, Federer ghosting silently across the grass. Maybe it will feel different when the medal rounds draw closer, but today it’s just like Wimbledon, except without much of what makes Wimbledon unique, the hush, the white.

As the day wears on, though, doubles largely takes over on the outside courts, and this feels more Olympic. The relaxation of the all-white rule works to its advantage as the pairs largely wear outfits echoing the national colors in the crowds, and just that simple fact lends the matches more of a team ethos. The best match I see is between Slovakia (represented by Dominika Cibulkova and Daniela Hantuchova) and Poland (Agnieszka and Urszula Radwanska). Before the match even starts, the Slovaks lining Court 16 are singing and the Poles are chanting.

The elder Radwanska is by far the strongest player on the court, and from the beginning she’s playing with an intensity and purpose which makes it clear how much she wants to win, having already been knocked out of the singles. She’s unrecognizable as the listless, cranky player I saw in Eastbourne a few weeks ago, ripping outright winners from the baseline—yes, really—and bailing her little sister out of trouble when she struggles with her serve. The Radwanskas eschew the customary handslap after every point whether won or lost, preferring to stay on their own side of the court and mutter darkly to each other, unlike the Slovaks, who put their heads together and giggle. Poland runs away with the match, 6-2, 6-1, but the Slovaks never stop supporting their players until the last point. It’s like a Fed Cup match, except that it’s part of a greater event which is, in itself, part of something greater.

Perhaps this is the strange tension which leaves the experience of the event as fundamentally uneasy. The specialness of Wimbledon, the fact that there is no other tournament like it, means that its brief absorption into the Olympics mothership inevitably occasions a sense of loss, its idiosyncracies and sharp edges flattened beneath the friendly face of globalization. On the other hand, the experience is undoubtedly more inclusive, more democratic, without Wimbledon’s exclusivity. If Olympics tennis inspires—as the London 2012 motto runs—to ‘inspire a generation’, perhaps its potential to succeed in that respect outweighs other considerations in regard to the sport’s place in the Games and the Games’ place at Wimbledon. ‘Olympic Wimbledon’ sometimes creaks under the weight of attempting to satisfy so many different demands, but ultimately it’s a once-in-a-lifetime fusion of the hermetically-sealed cultural enclosures of the All England Club and a larger, more colorful, noisier world.

Hannah Wilks is based in England and a frequent contributor to TENNIS.com.

Kastles take historic win streak into WTT playoffs

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 15:21:00 GMT

The Washington Kastles of World TeamTennis became the first major U.S. pro sports team to complete back-to-back undefeated regular seasons on Saturday, defeating the Springfield Lasers 25-14 for their 30th consecutive victory.

The Kastles are now only three matches away from equaling the longest winning streak in major U.S. pro sports history, set by the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. Since losing to the Boston Lobsters on July 22, 2010, Washington has finished consecutive regular seasons 14-0 and won a pair of matches during the 2011 WTT Finals Weekend to capture the WTT Championship for the second time in three years. The team also won the title in 2009.

"It gives me goosebumps and brings me to tears to think of the experience that we've had," said fourth-year Kastles' coach Murphy Jensen.

The Kastles' undefeated run has been as sublime as it's been surreal, with dominating performances and nail-biting finishes all along the way. Since starting the streak with the 2011 season opener, Washington has won six matches by at least 10 games and six others by just one game.

No team has come closer to ending the Kastles' historic run than their Eastern Conference rivals, the New York Sportimes. On three different occasions against Washington, New York has held match points—10 in total—before the cardiac Kastles rallied to win those matches in a super-tiebreaker.

Venus Williams sparked the largest Kastles' comeback in the five-year history of the franchise against the Sportimes on July 21 in Troy, N.Y. With Washington trailing by six games entering the final set, Williams defeated fellow former World No. 1 Martina Hingis 5-1 in the set, 2-0 in overtime and 7-0 in a super-tiebreaker, saving four match points by sweeping the final 11 points of the match.

The key to the Kastles' consistency has been its depth, a passionate fan base that sells out Kastles Stadium—with over 2,600 screaming fans almost every night—and a culture which gets the most out of every player every single night. Team slogans such as “preparation, mindset, and teamwork” and “you get out what you put in,” combined with the deep support in the community inspire the players to give 100 percent every single night, says Jensen.

“The combination of the dedication of our players, leadership of our coach and strong commitment of our fan base has created an environment in which something this extraordinary and historic can happen.” said Kastles owner Mark Ein. “This streak and the success of the franchise is all about the whole being bigger than the sum of the parts.”

Washington has won nine of the 30 of the matches during the streak with either Venus or Serena Williams in its lineup, but the team has succeeded with a wide array of players over the same time.

Unheralded Arina Rodionova played the best tennis of her career and earned WTT Female Rookie of the Year and Finals MVP honors as part of Washington's perfect 2011 season. Her sister, Anastasia, joined the team in 2012, and finished this season with the second-highest winning percentage of all women's singles players.

In 26 appearances for the Kastles during the streak, two-time WTT Male MVP Leander Paes won 20 mixed doubles sets and 21 men's doubles sets.

When Paes missed the team's final four matches of 2012 to prepare for the Olympic Games, his Kastles' doubles partner Bobby Reynolds took a leadership role. Reynolds won five straight men's singles sets to end the season, outscoring opponents 25-6 during that stretch.

While Paes, Anastasia Rodionova, and Venus Williams were practicing on the grass courts of Wimbledon for the Olympics, a trio of Kastles' substitutes finished what their predecessors had started.

Treat Huey and Raquel Kops-Jones went 4-0 in mixed doubles and Edina Gallovits-Hall won three of four singles sets to help the Kastles improve from 10-0 to 14-0 after their Olympians had left for London.

"We just fight for each other," said Reynolds. "We're a family out there and we leave it all out on the court. It's unbelievable to do it two years in a row and hopefully we finish it off and win the trophy at the end."

The 2012 Kastles joined the 2011 Kastles and 1994 Newport Beach Dukes as the only three teams in World TeamTennis history to finish a regular season 14-0. The 2011 Washington squad is the lone team in 37 years of WTT play to capture the King Trophy with a perfect 16-0 mark.

This year's Kastles can repeat that feat at the WTT Finals Weekend presented by GEICO, Sept.14-16 at the Family Circle Tennis Center in Charleston, S.C. The Orange County Breakers and the Sacramento Capitals face off for the Western Conference title on Friday, Sept. 14 at 6:30 p.m. EDT. Washington meets New York for the Eastern Conference Championship on September 15 at 6:30 p.m. EDT. The Conference Champions will battle for the WTT title on Sunday, Sept. 16 at 3:30 p.m. EDT.

For more WTT coverage, go to our World TeamTennis page.

World TeamTennis Previews: July 27-28

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Friday, July 27: Live Stream of the Day

Boston Lobsters at Orange County Breakers, 10:00 p.m. EDT (WATCH LIVE HERE)
This live stream of the day has major playoff implications. If Boston loses, they cannot make the playoffs. If Orange County wins, they clinch a spot in the Finals Weekend presented by GEICO. It doesn't get much bigger than this with two matches remaining in the season.

Friday, July 27: Other Matches

New York Sportimes at Springfield Lasers, 8:05 p.m. EDT
For the second match in a row, the Sportimes can clinch a spot in the playoffs with a win, or a Boston and Philly loss. The Lasers have reemerged as a playoff contender after an 0-6 start to the season. However, Springfield does need to win their final two matches to have a chance at making the postseason.

Washington Kastles at Kansas City Explorers, 8:35 p.m. EDT
The Kastles look to extend their win streak to 29 in Kansas City tonight, while the Explorers look to extend their playoff chances. The Kastles are two matches away to becoming the first professional sports team to achieve two consecutive undefeated regular seasons.

Philadelphia Freedoms at Sacramento Capitals, 10:35 p.m. EDT
Philadelphia’s Mark Philippoussis makes another appearance as the Freedoms hope to win a tough road match against Sacramento. The Capitals currently stand in second place, but have not clinched a playoff spot. The Freedoms need to win and hope for a New York loss to remain in the playoff hunt. The last time these two teams met in Philadelphia, Sacramento won by six.

Saturday, July 28: Live Stream of the Day

Philadelphia Freedoms at Orange County Breakers, 10:00 p.m. EDT (WATCH LIVE HERE)
The last time these two teams met, the Freedoms were able to defeat the Breakers behind great play from the Pliskova twins. Orange County has been strong this year at home, winning four out of five matches. Orange County is in good shape in the standings, owning the head-to-head tiebreakers in the West. A win on Friday or Saturday would allow them to advance to the playoffs. Philadelphia needs a three-way tie in the East for a chance to make the postseason.

Saturday, July 28: Other Matches

Washington Kastles at Springfield Lasers, 8:05 p.m. EDT
The Kastles clinched the East earlier this week, but that has not stopped them from continuing their win streak. With wins Friday and Saturday night, they would become the first professional sports team to complete two consecutive undefeated regular seasons. Springfield, even after starting the season 0-6, can make the playoffs, but a number of different scenarios have to happen in order for that to occur. Ultimately, Springfield needs to take care of what they control and let the pieces fall where they may.

New York Sportimes at Kansas City Explorers, 8:35 p.m. EDT
With one win in the last two matches, New York can seal up the second spot in the East. The Explorers, along with the other three teams in the West, are right in the thick of the playoff hunt. Overall, the Sportimes are in the best position out of the seven teams fighting for the playoffs right now.

Boston Lobsters at Sacramento Capitals, 10:35 p.m. EDT
Sacramento had a firm grip on first place before this week, but a pair of losses to Orange County changed that. They have a good chance to make the playoffs if they can get back on the winning track this weekend. Boston needs a little more help. The Lobsters will be pulling for Western Conference teams to shut out their Eastern Conference opponents this weekend.

For more WTT coverage, go to our World TeamTennis page.

Irina Falconi's World TeamTennis Blog: July 26

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 00:00:00 GMT

So we have turbulence.

Three babies crying.

Passengers sitting next to Jan Michael that don't speak a lick of English.

And the ring. Now the ring was a fun one today. It's not something that happens on every flight. Two hours into our flight from Philly to LAX, we suddenly hear a phone alarm ringer thing. So we hear it for a few seconds and we figure that the person responsible will go ahead and shut it off. After about two minutes, we start looking around with daggers in our eyes. Everyone has their heads turned to a specific corner. And we keep looking and looking hoping that the person will get the hint. They turn to us, let us know that it's not them, so we shake our heads and go to the next possible candidate—the cat sleeping. He says it's not him. And then after five minutes of everyone being extremely loud and vocal about the stupid ring—a lady takes her headphones off, laughs, turns her ringer off and pleads an apology to us. Meh, I guess you have to forgive and forget right?

The babies. You know when they say, "Oh, let's hope we don't have a crying baby" in the plane? Well, how about you make that plural? Yeah, and not only that, but they have very unique wailing sounds. And no, it's not just a little cry—it's a full on the-world-is-coming-to-an-end-and-my-ears-hurt-because-I-can't-pop-them kind of wail. Ha, that was fun. Pretty sure after a few minutes of that, all you can do is just laugh and thank goodness that it's not your kid. Because you obviously have the most behaved and sweetest angel EVER!

The turbulence speaks for itself. We have a few players on our team that aren't big fans of sudden jerks and movements 36,000 feet above land. Yeah, I guess I can see that.

Anyway, that's right! This is a tennis blog right? Yeah, alright alright.

So once again, I have decided to do a little three-day recap. I mean, we had three matches, three days in a row, so that's what I decided to do. Bam!

First match—Philly.

Now, as you now know, sometimes marquee players will come and play one, even a few matches for a specific team. So who did WE get for our match against the Philadelphia Freedoms at home? The Big Man—John Isner.

Now, let me tell you a little story about how I met John Isner.

Back in the dizzle, when he was first starting out and we were both on the Pro Circuit tour, I saw him play against this cat in Lexington, Kentucky. The reason why he left such a "tall" impression on me wasn't only because of his height—but because the guy he was playing tried to lob him. It was honestly REALLY funny.

So I was with my best friend, Nina Pantic, and we're walking towards the courts, and I see him walking towards me. I look at Nina and say, "I gotta ask how tall he is." Now, for those of you that know me, I am quite the shorty. 5'4" on a good day—so the doc tells me. So, I went up to him, stopped him in his tracks, and asked him, "Hey man, look I gotta ask you, how tall are you?" And he answers "Eh about 6'9", 6'10"." So me, being the unfiltered little teenager that I was, looks at him in astonishment and says "Dang, you're a TREE!" And I walked off.

That was my first ever encounter.

Whether he knows or even remembers that encounter, is a different story, but I just felt the need to share my embarrassing story—of myself.

Anywhoozer, Johnny came and went—rather quickly. He actually went out of his way to come and play a match for us, and then right from there—he had to go to the airport and go represent the USA in the Olympics. Pretty cool if I don't say so myself.

So yeah, he came in, played singles, mixed, and doubles, and then had to leave. It was a quick trip, but it was worth it because he totally gave us a win! Carly and I finished off strong in the end with a great doubles match to clinch the match. Holla!

So side note—he totally had an awesome presentation for when he left. There was a patriotic song playing, he had a cop follow the taxi, and everything was just awesome. I bet he felt like the president. And because of that—he'll probably end up winning the gold. No big deal.

Alright, so that was that night. The next day? "ON THE ROAD AGAIN!" If you haven't heard that song, you should. Very fitting for a tennis player.

So yeah, we got in our automobiles and headed to Albany, New York. TOTALLY underrated city! I've been to Albany before but I had never seen this part of it! It was totally historic and reminded us of San Francisco.

We got a little hit in to feel the courts out before we played the match—it was quite different. It was in a gym called the Fieldhouse and it was just different. Indoors is always a little different.

At the end of the night, we didn't get the win, but we didn't get much time to mope around—we had another match the next day. And guess who? Yup, Philly. But this time we played them at home.

I'll tell you what, a total of 10 hours in a car, with four hours of playing, and little sleep—will get ya. It'll hit ya out of nowhere, and when you least want it to show up knocking.

It was a super close match—8-17. I mean, it was down to the nitty gritty. Side note: Mark Philippoussis was the marquee player for the Philadelphia Freedoms and during doubles, he hit a drop shot that Jan-Michael ran his heart out on, but just missed it. To take out his frustration, he resorted to kicking my racquet. Yup, this supposedly "grown man" went on like a little kid and kicked my racquet after missing my shot. Tisk tisk JM.

So yeah, the next day, once again, we were off like a prom dress!

Off to the West Coast.

Off to the home of In-N-Out burger.

Yum.

GIVE A HOLLA TO YO LOBSTA ALL THE WAY FROM THE EAST!

—IF

Irina Falconi of the Boston Lobsters has been blogging for us throughout the WTT season. To read more of her entries, go to our World TeamTennis page.

2012 London Olympics Predictions

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 09:00:00 GMT

The editors and writers of TENNIS.com make their medal predictions for the 2012 Olympic Games, being held at Wimbledon.

Men's Singles

	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Peter Bodo Senior Writer	Novak Djokovic: He'll olé like the Nole of 2011 and complete one of his two stated goals for 2012, after failing to close the deal in Paris.	John Isner: The American will overcome his Wimbledon hex and use that big serve and familiarity with the tiebreaker to rip through best-of-three-set matches.	Andy Murray: Murray will finally win something at Wimbledon: The Olympic bronze medal.
Ed McGrogan Online Editor	Roger Federer: He's currently tied with Pete Sampras for most Wimbledon titles, but a gold medal at the All England Club would give the Swiss undisputed claim to best grass-court player ever.	Andy Murray: His second-place finish will actually be recognized with a medal, but once again, it's more heartbreak for the British.	Milos Raonic: The Canadian will send Djokovic out before the final four and give his country a treasured singles medal.
Richard Pagliaro Senior Editor	Roger Federer: Revitalized by winning his seventh Wimbledon title and regaining the world No. 1 ranking, Federer figures to be confident playing for his first singles gold.	Novak Djokovic: Though he's in the same quarter as some of the biggest servers in the field, Djokovic often plays his best representing his country and will be eager to medal.	Andy Murray: The first British man to reach the Wimbledon final since 1938 owns two grass-court titles and will have a nation behind him.
Steve Tignor Senior Writer	Roger Federer: He's won on Centre Court seven times, and he's never lost to the next highest seed in his half of the draw, David Ferrer.	Novak Djokovic: He doesn't have an easy draw, but the 2008 bronze medalist is still the man to beat in his half.	Tomas Berdych: He's coming off a first-round Wimbledon loss, but he's been to the final here before.

Women's Singles

	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Peter Bodo Senior Writer	Serena Williams: Serena will add the only individual honor that has eluded her thanks to the deadly combination of her massive serve and ability to play her best tennis on the biggest points.	Petra Kvitova: The Czech has been slowly finding her game, and while the loss of her Wimbledon title hurts, a singles silver medal in her first Olympics will provide balm for her wound.	Angelique Kerber: The German will continue her remarkable makeover as a competitor, drawing on her recent experience at Wimbledon to take third place.
Ed McGrogan Online Editor	Serena Williams: With the all-white clothing rule cast aside for the Olympics, maybe Serena should come out in all-gold attire.	Sabine Lisicki: She's had some memorable matches recently at Wimbledon and will use that experience, along with her serve, to reach the final.	Agnieszka Radwanska: Tough to see the Pole not using her three-set loss to Serena in the Wimbledon final in a positive light.
Richard Pagliaro Senior Editor	Serena Williams: Serena swept singles and doubles titles at Wimbledon earlier this month, is undefeated against Top 5 opponents in 2012, and is hungry for her first singles gold.	Petra Kvitova: Though she hasn't won a title this year, the 2011 Wimbledon champion owns the lefty serve and all-court skills that play well at SW19.	Victoria Azarenka: The two-time Wimbledon semifinalist is a sniper on the return and has reached the finals in six of her 10 tournaments this season.
Steve Tignor Senior Writer	Serena Williams: There's no other pick: She just won Wimbledon, and she wants her first singles gold even more.	Petra Kvitova: You never know with her, but she's been a champ here and has a good draw to the semis.	Victoria Azarenka: She had a good Wimbledon and played Serena tough; it could happen all over again.

Doubles

	Men's Gold	Women's Gold
Peter Bodo Senior Writer	Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan: Decades of dedication and nuanced teamwork will pay off for the Bryans, as they strike a blow for doubles specialists by triumphing over teams featuring singles stars.	Serena Williams and Venus Williams: The Williamses are a formidable pair of servers; put them on a grass court that rewards the serve and they'll win their third doubles gold.
Ed McGrogan Online Editor	Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Michael Llodra: The Bryans have been surprised with greater frequency at Slams of late, and this made-for-grass French side will be their latest conquerors, with gold on the line.	Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond: In a likely all-American final, this elder doubles team will post the most stunning result in all the tennis events.
Richard Pagliaro Senior Editor	Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan: They won Wimbledon two years ago, have reached the finals in three of their last four tournaments, and the Beijing bronze medalists should bring their chest-bumping exuberance to the Games.	Serena Williams and Venus Williams: The two-time gold medalists are undefeated in Olympic doubles and are fresh off winning their fifth Wimbledon doubles title.
Steve Tignor Senior Writer	Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan: They were upset by Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka in Beijing, but they're the top seeds and still the team to beat.	Serena Williams and Venus Williams: Do you even need to ask?

2012 London Olympics Profile: Venus Williams

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Part-time fashion designer Venus Williams is most devoted to one colorful collection—that of her Olympic pins.

Venus has maintained her extensive pin collection since her debut at the 2000 Sydney Summer Games and counts it among her most valued mementos—along, of course, with her three Olympic gold medals she cites among her most treasured trophies.

This month, the only three-time tennis gold medallist in U.S. Olympic history will become the first American tennis player to compete in four Olympic Games when she returns to the familiar lawns of the All England Club. The five-time Wimbledon champion is excited by her latest Olympic appearance, as she and sister Serena, who have posted a 10-0 Olympic doubles record together, will try to capture their third doubles gold after winning the Sydney and Beijing Olympics.

"[The Olympics is] just the ultimate level in sports," said Venus, who swept singles and doubles gold medals in Sydney 12 years ago. "It's about participating. It's about having that experience. It's about having the honor to be good enough to be there."

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Sydney, 2000: Won gold-medal match against Elena Dementieva
Athens, 2004: Lost in third round to Mary Pierce
Beijing, 2008: Lost in quarterfinals to Li Na

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Sydney, 2000: Won gold-medal match with Serena Williams against Kristie Boogert and Miriam Oremans
Athens, 2004: Lost in first round with Chandra Rubin to Ting Li and Tiantian Sun
Beijing, 2008: Won gold-medal match with Serena Williams against Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual

More Olympic Profiles:

—Agnieszka Radwanska
—Ana Ivanovic
—Andy Murray
—Andy Roddick
—Angelique Kerber
—Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
—John Isner
—Juan Martin del Potro
—Kei Nishikori
—Kim Clijsters
—Li Na
—Maria Sharapova
—Milos Raonic
—Novak Djokovic
—Petra Kvitova
—Roger Federer
—Serena Williams
—Tomas Berdych
—Venus Williams
—Victoria Azarenka

2012 London Olympics Profile: Kim Clijsters

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

The London Olympics represent a debut and departure for Kim Clijsters, who will make her first Olympic appearance while playing at the All England Club for the last time. The former No. 1, who plans to close the curtain on her career after the U.S. Open, says the traditions of both the Games and SW19 create an ideal Olympic atmosphere.

“I'm really excited about it. It's such a special place to be playing tennis at,” Clijsters said. “I've never played the Olympics, so it's going to be a whole new experience for me there, as well.”

The Games give Clijsters the rare opportunity to be both athlete and audience.

“We don't get to play a team sport, but when we play the Olympics, besides your individual goal, you feel like a team,” Clijsters said. “I look forward to going to watch all the other Belgian athletes at the Olympics.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

None

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

None

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Ana Ivanovic

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Ana Ivanovic was on top of the world when a thumb injury forced the then-world No. 1 out of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, an experience she recalls as “one of the worst moments of my career.”

Disappointment has dissipated, though, and the 2008 French Open champion is eager to make her long-awaited Olympic debut this month. Ivanovic is a 2007 Wimbledon semifinalist, whose imposing forehand, flat strokes, and baseline aggression are suited for the All England Club’s lawns.

“Playing at the Olympics has been a dream of mine for many years,” Ivanovic said. “I was so disappointed when I was injured and could not play in Beijing four years ago. It's going to be a little strange, playing two huge tournaments at Wimbledon less than one month apart, but it's going to be very special too. I love London, and I'm really excited to be back here.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

None

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

None

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Li Na

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

The last Olympic Games were a homecoming for Li Na, who hopes to bring a medal home this time around.

Li thrilled the home crowd at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when she knocked off former Grand Slam champions Svetlana Kuznetsova and Venus Williams en route to the semifinals, where she suffered a 7-6 (3), 7-5 loss to world No. 6 Dinara Safina.

Contesting her third career Olympics, the 2011 French Open champion hopes several weeks of practicing on grass will serve as ideal preparation for the Olympic tennis event.

“The Beijing [Olympics] for me is very special year because it’s the first time have Olympics in Beijing,” Li said. “But of course this year also more important for me, so I was changing my schedule after Wimbledon. Between Wimbledon and the Olympics I practiced on the grass court, because in China we never have grass court we can play.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Sydney, 2000: Lost in semifinals to Dinara Safina; lost in bronze-medal match to Vera Zvonareva
Beijing, 2008: Lost in first round to Yen-Hsun Lu

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in first round with Ting Li to Joana Cortez and Vanessa Menga

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Angelique Kerber

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Angelique Kerber is the seventh German woman to crack the Top 10 and the highest-ranked player on a talented Olympic team that features four Top 25 players. Germany's depth was on display at Wimbledon this year, as Kerber and compatriot Sabine Lisicki squared off in the quarterfinals. Kerber rallied from a 3-5 third-set deficit to pull out a hard-fought, 6-3, 6-7 (7), 7-5 victory that sent her into her second major semifinal.

The left-handed Kerber’s accuracy, consistency, flat strokes, and quick court coverage all play well on grass. Ranked a career-high No. 7, Kerber will carry a 9-2 grass-court record on the season into Olympic debut.

“We have so many good players right now in Germany, that's really good to have it,” Kerber said. “I think now it's our time. I think we all practicing together like from a young age and we know each other very well. I think now it's our time.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

None

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

None

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Petra Kvitova

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

The All England Club's traditional white will be accompanied by the Czech Republic’s red and blue when 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova returns to SW19 as a medal contender in her Olympic debut.

“I'm really looking forward to play by my country,”Kvitova said. “It will be very strange and unique to play not with the white but in the colors of our countries and see Wimbledon differently. For me the Olympics is the fifth Grand Slam, it's big event, and I will try my best.”

The left-handed Kvitova and Radek Stepanek, the compatriot she chose over 2010 Wimbledon finalist Tomas Berdych as her mixed doubles partner, form a formidable team capable of playing for a medal. The 33-year-old Stepanek won the Australian Open doubles title in January.

“As an experienced doubles player, Radek will be the leader,” Kvitova said of Stepanek.

Previous Olympic Singles Results

None

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

None

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Agnieszka Radwanska

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Agnieszka Radwanska will realize an Olympic dream before she even strikes a shot. The Wimbledon finalist will lead her country by carrying the Polish flag in the opening ceremonies in London. Two days after Radwanska pushed Serena Williams to three sets in the Wimbledon final, the Polish Olympic Committee announced it selected the 23-year-old from Krakow as its nation's flag bearer.

The first Polish player to reach a major final in 73 years, Radwanska will be busy in her return to SW19. She is entered in both singles and doubles, partnering her younger sister, Urszula.

“The Olympics are always very important event for everyone,” said Radwanska, the 2005 Wimbledon girls’ champion. “I'm just ready for it. The Olympics are on grass, so for sure it's going to be a little bit different because I think it's for the first time. I like grass, so I just hope I can play better than in the last Olympics.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in second round to Francesca Schiavone

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in first round with Marta Domachowska to Alona Bondarenko and Kateryna Bondarenko

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Victoria Azarenka

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Victoria Azarenka has played on tennis’ grandest stages and regards the Olympic Games as sport’s ultimate platform.

“For me it's a huge deal,” Azarenka said of the Olympic experience. “For me, it's history. It's the biggest event the athlete in any sport can have. So I'm really excited for me and for our country. It's going to be amazing.”

The world No. 1 is a dual threat to medal in London: Azarenka plans to play mixed doubles with long-time friend and doubles world No. 1 Max Mirnyi, reprising the partnership that saw the pair win the 2007 U.S. Open mixed doubles title.

“It's one of my main goals, and I'm really excited to play there,” Azarenka said. “It's going to be my second one, so I'm going to go there with more experience and I would really love to win the medal.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in third round to Venus Williams

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in second round with Tatiana Poutchek to Lindsay Davenport and Liezel Huber

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Andy Roddick

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

American teammates call Andy Roddick “The Closer” for his conviction in clinching Davis Cup ties. At the All England Club, Roddick hopes his grass-court prowess can help him create more happy endings at the London Olympics.

“If you're in London, I think you have to play at the best venue in tennis, and that has to be on grass at Wimbledon,” Roddick said. “Selfishly it's not stressing me out too much because I played a lot of grass-court tennis and I enjoy it.”

The three-time Wimbledon finalist has won five grass-court titles, including last month’s Eastbourne crown. Roddick can be a triple threat: He will play singles, is scheduled to partner John Isner in doubles, and plans to support American athletes at other events as well.

“I would go to any Olympic event,” Roddick said. “It's a very simple thing. You see the stars and stripes and you want to cheer for that.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Athens, 2004: Lost in third round to Fernando Gonzalez

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Athens, 2004: Lost in first round with Mardy Fish to Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: John Isner

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Tennis’ marathon man is committed to making another extended run in London.

John Isner and Nicolas Mahut played the longest match in tennis history, an 11 hour and five-minute epic that spanned three days at Wimbledon in 2010. After an opening-round Wimbledon exit last month, Isner is determined to stick around longer when the Olympics get underway at SW19.

The 6’9” American should benefit from the Olympics’ best-of-three-set format, which diminishes the prospect of marathons and should save the big man’s strength, both for singles and doubles. Isner will partner Andy Roddick, giving the USA one of the biggest-serving doubles teams in Olympic history. Isner has played some of his best tennis for his country: He beat both Roger Federer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Davis Cup play earlier this year.

“It's a very big priority. It's my first Olympic Games,” said Isner. “The goal is to try to medal for our country.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

None

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

None

More Olympic Profiles:

2012 London Olympics Profile: Juan Martin del Potro

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Juan Martin del Potro has never contested a grass-court final and has yet to surpass the fourth round in five Wimbledon appearances, but if his creaky left knee is healthy, the man with the mammoth forehand can contend for Argentina’s first Olympic medal in men’s singles.

While del Potro concedes that grass is his most challenging surface, the best-of-three set Olympic format should make the 6’6” baseliner even more dangerous, as shorter matches maximize his explosiveness and minimize the beating on his big body.

Though he is just 4-9 against Top 10 opponents this season, with five of those losses coming to Roger Federer, del Potro is a threat to anyone at his best, as he showed winning the 2009 U.S. Open.

“I still prefer the hard court,” del Potro said. “I'm playing better day to day, training hard on grass court for the Olympics also.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

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2012 London Olympics Profile: Milos Raonic

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Milos Raonic will make his Olympic debut in London, and if the powerful Canadian is landing his atomic serve, he may just extend his stay into the medal rounds.

“It will be an honor. It's one that not many tennis players get, considering how rare of an event it is,” Raonic said of the Olympics. “It’s an honor to have that opportunity and not only play for the nation, but be there with so many great athletes and sort of feed off each other and hopefully have a really successful two weeks.”

Raonic started the 2011 season ranked No. 156 and has rocketed up the rankings, winning two titles this year. The 21-year-old possesses the imposing serve and attacking game suited to grass, and gives Canada—which won its lone tennis gold in 2000 when Sébastien Lareau and Daniel Nestor won the doubles in Sydney—a genuine singles threat.

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2012 London Olympics Profile: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Few in the Olympic field have embraced the All England Club’s lawns as literally as Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who has repeatedly hurled his 6’2” frame around the grass with determined dives—to great effect. The Frenchman fought back from a two-set deficit to upset Roger Federer in the 2011 Wimbledon quarters and reached his second straight Wimbledon semifinal earlier this month. The 2011 Queen’s Club runner-up can play serve-and-volley tennis and is at his best when attacking.

Tsonga, who held match points against Novak Djokovic at the French Open, may be even more dangerous at the Olympics than he was at Wimbledon, where he played with a sprained right pinky sustained after crashing to the turf. The former Australian Open finalist has often produced some of his most inspired tennis in the game’s most important events.

“Of course I have a lot of confidence,” Tsonga said. “Because my game fits better on grass than on clay.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

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2012 London Olympics Profile: Andy Murray

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Andy Murray captivated a nation by snapping Britain’s 74-year drought for a men’s Wimbledon finalist. The fourth-ranked Scot will try to end another streak as he tries to become the first British man in 104 years to capture an Olympic singles medal.

Neil Broad and Tim Henman won the silver medal in doubles at the 1996 Atlanta Games, but the last time a British man won a singles medal was, fittingly, at the 1908 London Games, when the nation won two of the three medals.

Murray’s last Olympic appearance was brief: He was upset by 77th-ranked Yen-Hsun Lu in the 2008 Games in a loss he says was both painful and educational.

“I think maybe 10 years ago a Grand Slam was probably viewed as being bigger in tennis. But now all the top players are playing the Olympic Games,” Murray said. “So I think winning a medal for your country is a big achievement.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in first round to Yen-Hsun Lu

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in second round with Jamie Murray to Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra

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2012 London Olympics Profile: Novak Djokovic

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

He’s been world No. 1, won three of the four major titles, and led Serbia to its first Davis Cup championship. But when Novak Djokovic scans the sporting landscape, he views the Olympic Games as the peak.

“The Olympic Games are the pinnacle of all sports, in my opinion,” Djokovic said. “I had this honor to be representing my country four years ago in Beijing. I won the bronze medal, so it was one of the best achievements and best feelings I had as a professional athlete.”

In the aftermath of his Wimbledon semifinal loss to Roger Federer, the 2011 Wimbledon champ is eager to medal in London and joins Federer as the two favorites for gold.

“Knowing that I had great success in 2011 on Wimbledon grassa ctually gives me confidence before this year's Olympic Games,” Djokovic said. “It is very emotional because it is not just you who matters there, it's the whole nation.”

Previous Olympic Singles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in semifinals to Rafael Nadal; won bronze-medal match against James Blake

Previous Olympic Doubles Results

Beijing, 2008: Lost in first round with Nenad Zimjonic to Martin Damm and Pavel Vizner

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2012 London Olympics Profile: Maria Sharapova

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 08:00:00 GMT

In preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, we're profiling 20 of the top medal contenders.

Maria Sharapova left Paris last month with the Roland Garros title in hand—and a memorable text message embedded on her cell phone. Following her third-round win at the French Open, Sharapova received a request asking her to carrying the Russian flag during the Olympic opening ceremonies.

“I had to read the text message five times and read it to other people to make sure I got it correct,” said Sharapova. “I am so honored, and especially excited as it will be my first Olympics. It’s something I've dreamed of since I was a young girl, so I really can't wait.”

The 2004 Wimbledon champion will be a favorite to win a medal on the lawns of SW19, and her Olympic experience might include the Winter Games as well: Sharapova served as an ambassador for her former home city of Sochi’s successful bid to host the 2014 Winter Games, which she may attend.

Previous Olympic Singles Results

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