Kvitova's Journey From An Unknown To Wimbledon Champ

Kvitova's Journey From An Unknown To Wimbledon Champ

Petra Kvitova is a Wimbledon champion.The 21-year-old Czech, who has worked her way up the rankings from 34th at the end of last season to No. 7 on Monday, beat Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 in the women's final Saturday.

And moments after finishing the match with an ace and dropping to her knees in celebration, Kvitova giggled when she saw her name etched in gold on the winner's board inside the All England Club."I don't know about this still. It's still (an) unbelievable feeling," said Kvitova, who was playing in her first Grand Slam final.

"Maybe I'll accept it after, I don't know, some days." Kvitova is the first left-handed woman to win the Wimbledon title since Martina Navratilova in 1990.

And it was the nine-time champion that was giving her two thumbs up from her seat in the Royal Box as she was accepting well-wishes from anyone that could get her attention.

"She played brave tennis and she deserved to win. She was by far the better player," said Navratilova, who was born and raised in Czechoslovakia. "It didn't happen overnight, but she's a champion. It's great.Kvitova is only the third Czech woman to win the title at the All England Club, following Navratilova and Jana Novotna.

Both were in the Royal Box, along with a host of other former champions. And both congratulated her after the match. "I cried after I met them," Kvitova said.

Kvitova was playing in her first major final, but it was 2004 Wimbledon champion Sharapova that showed nerves. The 24-year-old Russian double-faulted six times, including twice to get broken to 4-2 in the first set. Then, when the ball was in play, Kvitova used a fast-paced and well-placed forehand to keep Sharapova on the run, finishing the match with 19 winners.

"It was about the serve, for sure, and the return," said Kvitova, who lost in the semifinals last year. "I know that she return very well, but I know that I can return her serve also. I knew that she make some double-fault."

When the match started, Sharapova was the clear favorite. Besides winning the title at the All England Club in 2004, she also won the U.S. Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008 before shoulder surgery in October 2008 slowed her career. She managed to break Kvitova in the opening game on Centre Court, but was broken right back in the second and then again in the sixth.

"She was hitting really powerful and hitting winners from all over the court. She made a defensive shot into an offensive one," Sharapova said."She was just more aggressive than I was, hit deeper and harder, and got the advantage in the points."

Sharapova had not lost a set heading into the final. But she struggled with her serve in the semifinals, double-faulting 13 times before beating German wildcard Sabine Lisicki.Her serve wasn't as bad as that against Kvitova, but there were other problems with her game. "Maybe I wasn't as ready after the serve as I should have been, and she just got the first good hit," Sharapova said. "I was always kind of late."

Another difference between the opponents may have been in attitude. While Sharapova was worried about her serve and how she was playing after it, Kvitova went into the match believing in her chances.

"Last year was like I hadn't many chances to win. Serena played so well," Kvitova said of her 2010 semifinal loss to the younger Williams sister. "I was young and I didn't think that I can beat her. "Today, I felt that I can

 

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Nadal's Reign Ends, Djokovic Wins His First Wimbledon Title

Nadal's Reign Ends, Djokovic Wins His First Wimbledon Title

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic won his first Wimbledon title and proved himself the best player in the world with a stunning win over Rafael Nadal.

Djokovic came through 6-4 6-1 1-6 6-3 to end Nadal’s reign as Wimbledon champion, before overtaking the Spaniard as world number one on Monday.
It was his 50th win in 51 matches and his fifth win over Nadal this year.

Djokovic becomes the first Serbian man to win Wimbledon, his third Grand Slam title after two Australian Open victories.

Djokovic  came into the match having beaten the Spaniard in four finals already this year, but Nadal - on a 20-match winning streak at the All England Club - was still favoured by many to claim a third Wimbledon title as he had won all five Grand Slam meetings with Djokovic.

In a desperately tight opening set, the pace and accuracy of the Serbian’s groundstrokes began to draw errors from the usually faultless Nadal and earned him the first break point of the day at 5-4.

A Nadal forehand into the net gave Djokovic the set and the Spaniard appeared rattled, firing a smash over the baseline in a rare moment of promise at 30-30 at the start of the third.

Djokovic, brimming with energy and confidence, needed little encouragement and came haring in to chase down a drop shot in the next game, angling away the backhand to break before turning to his supporters to celebrate.

What followed was a breathtaking set that flew by as the Serbian fired 13 winners in what must rank among the best passages of play seen on Centre Court.

Nadal was in desperate trouble and needed a lifeline, which was handed to him when Djokovic played backhand into the net in the third to slip behind.

The champion grabbed the initiative, powering through a 6-1 set of his own and threatening a real comeback with a thumping forehand that made it 30-40 at the start of the fourth.

It was Djokovic who now had to change the momentum of the match and he saw off the danger with a forehand that Nadal just failed to return down the line.
The Nadal storm had passed for now and Djokovic sensed it, stealing into the net to play a beautiful drop volley and then forcing an error with some superb, deep groundstrokes to move 2-0 clear.

Victory was within sight for the Serbian but the match was quickly back in the balance in the cruellest of manners, when a Nadal return on break point clipped the net and rolled over.

The contest remained on a knife-edge but Nadal was always flirting with danger having dropped two sets, and a poor game at 4-3 down saw him broken to 15 and gave Djokovic the chance to serve for the title he had described beforehand as “a dream”.

A very nervous forehand was hardly the way Djokovic would have chosen to start but two Nadal errors helped him out, and a brave serve volley at 30-30 brought up championship point.

Djokovic moved forward behind a heavy forehand and fell backwards onto the Centre Court turf in celebration as Nadal’s desperate backhand flew long to give him the title.

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Sania, Bopanna Enter Wimbledon Mixed Doubles QF

Sania, Bopanna Enter Wimbledon Mixed Doubles QF

Indian pair Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna on Thursday  breezed into the mixed doubles quarterfinals of the Wimbledon Championships.

Sania-Bopanna crushed  the Czech duo  of Martin Damm and Renata Voracova 6-3 6-0.

There was no stopping the sixth-seed Indians after they took the first-set lead and then it proved just a stroll in the park.

They will next face the winner of the other third round match between 15th seed Andy Ram  and Meghann Shaughnessy and unseeded pair of  Paul Hanley and Su-Wei Hsieh.

Sania has also reached the women’s doubles semifinals along with Russian partner Elena Vesnina.

She  however  made a first round exit from the singles as she played through pain in her left knee.

Sharapova advances to Wimbledon semifinals

Sharapova advances to Wimbledon semifinals

Maria Sharapova looked like a champion under the Centre Court roof at Wimbledon, advancing to the semifinals at the All England Club for the first time since 2006 with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Dominika Cibulkova on Tuesday.

Sharapova, the only Wimbledon champion remaining in the women’s draw after the Williams sisters were eliminated a day earlier, won eight straight games to win the first set and take control of the second.

The fifth-seeded Russian has not lost a set at this year’s tournament, and she was nowhere near losing one Tuesday.

“It’s been a few years since I got past the fourth round, and now I’m in the semifinals,” said Sharapova, who won the tournament in 2004 and also reached the semifinals in ‘05. “So this a great chance for me to take it a step further.”

Sharapova will next face German wild-card entry Sabine Lisicki. She reached her first Grand Slam semifinal by beating 2007 finalist Marion Bartoli 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-1 on another wet day at Wimbledon.

“This is a player that’s playing with a tremendous amount of confidence right now and playing really great grass-court tennis, so it’ll be a really tough match but I certainly look forward to it,” Sharapova said.

Cibulkova held serve in the first game against Sharapova, but couldn’t hold another. The only hiccup in the match for Sharapova came in the third game of the second set when Cibulkova broke.

Sharapova won her first Grand Slam title at the All England Club when she was only 17. She added the U.S. Open title in 2006 and the Australian Open title in 2008, but has not won another since—mainly due to shoulder problems.

“Well, to be in the semis of Wimbledon is a bonus,” said Sharapova, who finished with 23 winners and five aces. “To be able to come back and play tennis after a big injury—I was just quite happy to be back on the court. So to achieve this is wonderful. But the tournament isn’t over.”
But with the Williams sisters, who have combined to win nine of the last 11 Wimbledon titles, both losing in the fourth round, Sharapova may be the one with the experience needed to win.

With heavy rain causing a racket as it pelted down on the retractable white cover over the court, Lisicki used drop shots to perfection in the first two sets, becoming only the second wild-card entry to reach the women’s semifinals at the All England Club.

“I cannot explain how I feel at the moment,” said Lisicki, the first German Grand Slam semifinalist since Steffi Graf in 1999. “It was just such a tough road back and it’s so wonderful to be standing on Centre Court in Wimbledon which I love so much. I’m just so happy.”
Lisicki served for the match at 5-4 in the second and held three match points, but Bartoli saved them all. On the second, Lisicki went to her go-to drop shot but put it into the net.

Bartoli eventually broke back—when Lisicki double-faulted for the first time—and then won the tiebreaker.

“I was very disappointed with myself how I played at 5-4, that game, because I missed easily,” said Lisicki, who has won 15 of her last 16 matches on grass and eliminated French Open champion Li Na in the second round. “I felt that I was the better player today and I knew I just had to focus and fight again in the third set to win it.”

In the third set, Lisicki broke to take a 3-0 lead, and then again to make it 5-1. She won when the tiring Bartoli put a forehand into the net.
“My mind was trying extremely hard, but just my body couldn’t do anything anymore,” said Bartoli, who beat four-time champion Serena Williams in the fourth round. “I still fought very hard, especially in that second set. ... I have no regrets.”

Lisicki, who finished the match with 52 winners to Bartoli’s 12, reached the quarterfinals at the All England Club two years ago but lost to Dinara Safina.

Lisicki survived a scare early in the match, but it had nothing to do with tennis or even her opponent. After serving at 30-15 in the second game of the match, Lisicki shuddered when a loud blast of thunder rang out overhead.

She then lost the next two points and eventually the game, but recovered and broke for the second time in three games to take a 2-1 lead.
Lisicki is now 3-1 against Bartoli. Her only loss came in the first round at Wimbledon in 2008, a year after Bartoli reached the final at the All England Club but lost to Venus Williams.

The rain briefly delayed the start of play as the roof was closed. The match on Court 1 between No. 8 Petra Kvitova and Tsvetana Pironkova started about 2½ hours late. The second match was to pit Tamira Paszek against fourth-seeded Victoria Azarenka.

Earlier Tuesday, Rafael Nadal said his left foot, which he injured during Monday’s fourth-round win over Juan Martin del Potro, is not seriously injured and he will play in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.

“Yesterday after the match I went to take an MRI at a London hospital,” Nadal said in a statement. “During the match I thought I had something serious but as the match went through the pain got better and thankfully the tests don’t show an injury.”

Nadal is scheduled to play Mardy Fish in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.

“Today I will practice at 4:30 p.m. and I’ll play tomorrow,” Nadal said.

Nadal, a two-time champion at the All England Club, hurt his foot in the first set of Monday’s win over del Potro. He twice called for a trainer during the set, but still managed to win 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4.

Nadal is 30-2 at Wimbledon since the start of the 2006 tournament. He lost to Roger Federer that year and the next in the final, but then beat the Swiss in the 2008 championship match. Nadal was unable to defend his title in 2009 because of injury, but he won again in 2010.

Also Tuesday, U.S. Open golf champion Rory McIlroy paid a visit to Wimbledon, meeting Andy Murray and John McEnroe.

INDIA Aim for Series Victory, and History

India are looking to wrap up their second straight Test series victory over West Indies in the Caribbean, when the second Test begins at Kensington Oval here on Tuesday.
The Indians hold a 1-0 lead in the three Test series, following a 63-run victory inside four days in the first Test at Sabina Park in Jamaica.
The visitors also looked set to create a piece of history by becoming the first Indian team to win a Test and One-day International series in the Caribbean Island - but India will also have to rail against their history at the ground to accomplish that feat here.
The World No.1 side have an unflattering record at the ground, locally referred to as 'the Mecca of Caribbean cricket'.
India have lost their last five Tests since they drew with Garfield Sobers' side in 1971, and have hardly pushed West Indies in the seven Tests they have played at this venue over the years.
The current state-of-play between the two sides means that the Indians have an excellent opportunity to jettison the failures of past Indian teams here.