Top seed out in Estoril

Yesterday, in her Estoril blog, number 1 seed Iveta Benesova remarked that she had played poorly in her first round. Whatever was wrong, she apparently did not overcome it. Jarmila Groth defeated her in the second round, 7-5, 6-4.

Sabine Lisicki (don't you wish she were in Rome?) defeated Elena Bovina 6-4, 7-5. Bovina made it through qualifying and won one match. It must be so tough for a player who was once number 14 in the world to be lucky to squeak out once match. I miss Bovina, and am sorry that she has had so much misfortune.

Slovenia qualifying: good news, bad news

The bad news is that top qualifying seed, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, has been knocked out in the final round of qualifying. The good news is that she was defeated by Elena Bovina.

It has been so long since we have seen Bovina where she belongs--in the top 20. Perhaps this will be a good tournament for her.

Bovina out in 3rd qualifying round in Las Vegas

Yesterday, I wrote about both Elena Bovina and Sesil Karatantcheva, who--for different reasons--are trying to re-establish themselves on the tour. Today, they played each other in the third round of qualifying for the Tennis Channel Open, an ITF event, in Las Vegas. Karatantcheva defeated Bovina, 6-1, 4-6, 7-5.

It makes me sad to report the cheery news that Bovina goes to the 3nd round of qualifying in Las Vegas

Former world number 14 Elena Bovina, whose 2005 right shoulder injury has kept her more or less out of competition for a couple of years, won her second qualifying round today in the Tennis Channel Open, an ITF women's event. Bovina, a talented and delightful Russian player, played two events in 2006. In 2007, she was plagued with Morton's neuroma, and had to withdraw from several tournaments because of continuing injuries to her right foot. She is now ranked number 333 in the world. It makes me sad that it is a big deal that she is into the second round of an ITF contest, but at least she is playing.

In other comeback news, Sesil Karatantcheva also won her second qualifying round in Las Vegas, defeating Amber Liu. Next, she plays Bovina.

Bovina def. Lu Jingjing, 6-3, 6-4

Karatantcheva def. Liu, 6-3, 6-3

Bovina returns--again

Elena Bovina, the talented and charming Russian player who was ranked number 14 in the world when injury struck, has had as hard a time of it as anyone on the tour. First, it was her left foot, at the beginning of the 2005 season, and then it was her right shoulder. She stopped playing after her last Fed Cup match that year, and did not attempt to play again until the end of 2006. She then lost in the first round at both Moscow and Hasselt. Since then, she has withdrawn from all events because of continuing problems with her shoulder.

The good news is that Bovina's name appears in the draw at the Bank of the West Classic in Stanford, which begins Monday. She has a tough first round against Peng Shuai, and is likely to make an early exit. Assuming her shoulder has finally healed, Bovina will have a tough time working her way back up the rankings after so long a lay-off. Flavia Pennetta is struggling with that problem right now, and she wasn't out as long as Bovina. The game changes, new opponents present new problems, momentum is lost, and confidence dwindles. It has taken Daniela Hantuchova (who was not injured, but who had other issues), a former top-five player, four years to get within breathing distance of the top 10.

At any rate, here's hoping the best for Bovina. I, like many other fans, have certainly missed her.