In praise of Serena--and Michelle

Serena Williams was nothing short of spectacular in her Wimbledon first round match against Michelle Larcher De Brito today. Williams had a first serve win percentage of 100, and what can you say about that?--it speaks for itself. She also hit 15 aces, double-faulted only once, hit 47 winners, and won 75% of the times she went to the net. She won the first set 6-0 against a totally frustrated Larcher De Brito, and one wonders if any player could have won many games against her.

But I also want to commend Larcher De Brito for not giving up, for having a very admirable attitude, and for finding a way to win games in the second set. The second set, in fact, was quite entertaining, with the crowd doing everything possible to bolster the 17-year-old. Larcher De Brito hits hard, and can find some really good angles. Known for double-faulting, she did so only three times in this match. She ran, she dove, she fell onto the grass, and her effort made for a good second set.

Next for defending champion Williams is Anna Chakvetadze, a former top 10 player who has had a hard time of it for the last couple of years. Chakvetadze defeated up-and-comer Andrea Petkovic in the first round.

Schnyder advances to 3rd round in Charleston

Patty Schnyder played her second round Family Circle Cup match in the Althea Gibson Club Court this morning, and things couldn't have gone much better for her. She rushed to a 3-0 lead over Michelle Larcher de Brito, but the intense player from Portugal, whose backhand is formidable, got herself back into the match. Schnyder stayed calm and broke again, however, to take the first set 6-3.

It was in the second set that Schnyder brought out all the shots for which she is known. Her service game was outstanding (1st and 2nd serve percentages of 71 and 62), and she looped and spun the ball all around the court, staying patient while her opponent made errors. Schnyder was so dominant in the second set that Larcher de Brito won only one game.

Larcher de Brito is a good hitter, but like some of her contemporaries, she lacks patience. In this case, the veteran took advantage of that impatience. If Schnyder can continue serving at this level, she can be competitive in this tournament.

On-court fashion in Charleston--style and statement

Paszek and Larcher De Brito out of 1st round qualifying in Marbella and Ponte Vedra Beach

Seeded 4th in qualifying, Michelle Larcher De Brito made an early exit from Ponte Vedra Beach today when she was defeated in the first qualifying round by Anna Tatishvili. Tatishvili won no games in the first set, but won the second and third, 6-4 7-5.

The 3rd qualifying seed, Sharon Fichman, was defeated 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 by Sesil Karatantcheva.

Meanwhile, in Marbella, 4th-seeded Masa Zec Peskiric defeated Tamira Paszek 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the first round of qualifying.

Larcher de Brito leaves Bollettieri Academy for new home in France

Michelle Larcher de Brito has departed the Bolletieri Academy and is now training at the Mouratoglou Academy in Paris. The 16-year-old Portuguese player--who is, unfortunately, known more for her screaming than for her significant tour potential--will join young Russian star Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who is among the group known as the elite pros at the French academy.

Larcher de Brito wins Liverpool International exhibition

Michelle Larcher de Brito won the Liverpool International today. The Liverpool International is Europe's largest exhibition tennis tournament. Larcher de Brito defeated Laura Robson, 6-4, 2-6, 10-6 (super tiebreak) in the final. The winner last year was Caroline Wozniacki, who won the AEGON International today. Wozniacki also won the Liverpool exhibition in 2006.

Miscellany

I've already mentioned this--but just in case you're looking for it--Wimbledon Live is no more. This is such a loss to those of us who either want to watch Wimbledon from somewhere other than our homes, or who simply want to watch a match that is not on television. I know I'll really miss the service.

Happy Birthday to Steffi Graf, whose most recent tennis event was the set she played against Kim Clijsters at the ceremony marking the addition of a retractable roof at Wimbledon Centre Court.

Madison Keys has withdrawn from junior Wimbledon competition. She also missed the junior French Open tournament because of ongoing problems with her hips.

Bruce Jenkins, of the San Francisco Chronicle, calls Michelle Larcher de Brito's screaming "juvenile, rude, devious, pathetic, and weak-minded."

A chilling commentary: I took the Nielsen survey for Tennis.com, and, as I have come to expect, "writing" was not included on the very long list of leisure activities. But--here's the frightening part--neither was "reading."

Dulgheru and Larcher de Brito both out of Birmingham qualifying

Alexandra Dulgheru, recent Warsaw champion, lost in the first round of AEGON Classic qualifying. The top qualifying seed was defeated in straight sets by Eleni Danilidou, who is more at home on grass than many players. Michelle Larcher de Brito was defeated in straight sets in the second round of qualifying by Chanelle Scheepers.

Zheng and Petrova both upset at French Open

I was beyond surprised when I learned that Michelle Larcher de Brito had upset Zheng Jie in the second round of the French Open today. Though de Brito has shown promise for some time, she frequently emerges from matches with zeroes in her score. There's that, and there's also the fact that the 15th-seeded Zheng has begun to play much better on clay. But upset she was, 6-4, 6-3.

Nadia Petrova, once a superb clay court player and still not so shabby these days, was upset by an unseeded player from Russia named Maria Sharapova. Sharapova, in fact, dominated the first set, winning it 6-2. The second set was a complete reversal; Petrova took it, 6-1. The third set was something Thrill Ride herself would have loved, with the momentum swinging like a traffic light in a hurricane. Down 2-4 and 15-40, Sharapova found a way to win the game, then broke Petrova. At 4-all, Sharapova served at 40-0, then suddenly had a break point against her, but again, she held. At 6-7, Petrova double-faulted, then hit a ball wide, and that was that.

Sharapova served fairly conservatively, except when she needed to do otherwise. She hit seven aces.

French Open qualifying continues

Playing on an injured leg, Lenka Wienerova lost her second round French Open qualifying match today to Lauren Albanese. I was disappointed, and I hope she is healthy soon.

Michelle Larcher de Brito advanced to the third round of qualifying, with a win over Yuliana Fedak.

Dokic and Larcher de Brito both out of Indian Wells

Jelena Dokic told us, after the Australian Open, that she thought she would have a letdown. Somehow, I don't think most of us thought it would occur in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open, but it did. Jill Craybas defeated wild card Dokic 6-4, 6-2. Dokic double-faulted eight times, which didn't help.

Michelle Larcher de Brito saved two match points in her contest with Urszula Radwanska, only to have Radwanska win the match on de Brito's serve. Once again, de Brito got herself through qualifying, only to lose in the first round.

Another losing wild card was Michaella Krajicek, who was defeated by Nicole Vaidisova. Vaidisova will face Alona Bondarenko in the second round.

Larcher de Brito watch--into Indian Wells main draw

Michelle Larcher de Brito has made it through qualifying in Indian Wells, defeating Galina Voskoboeva and Alberta Brianti.

Joining Larcher de Brito as qualifiers are:

Varvara Lepchenko
Petra Cetkovska
Stephanie Dubois
Angela Haynes
Kristina Barrois
Evgeniya Rodina
Stephanie Foretz
Anastasiya Yakimova
Yaroslava Shvedova
Petra Martic
Virginia Ruano Pascual

Top qualifying seed Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez was defeated in the first round of qualifying by Masa Zec Peskiric. 2nd seed Mathilde Johansson was defeated in the final round. 3rd seed Julie Coin retired toward the end of the second set of her final qualifying round, giving the win to Virginia Ruano Pascual.

Larcher de Brito watch--into the 2nd round in Memphis

Michelle Larcher de Brito finished off Sofia Arvidsson, 6-2, 6-0, in thirty-nine minutes today in Memphis, in the first round of the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships. Qualifier Michaella Krajicek upset Alla Kudryavtseva, and Julie Coin was defeated by Pauline Parmentier.

Larcher de Brito watch--Michelle out of Melbourne qualifying

Portugal's Michelle Larcher de Brito has lost her second Australian Open qualifying round. Larcher de Brito, seeded 14th in the qualifying competition, lost in straight sets (6-2, 6-3) to Alberta Brianti. She defeated Margit Ruutel in the first round.

Other players who have been eliminated from qualifying include Yuliana Fedak (2nd round), Yan Zi (2nd round), Arantxa Rus (2nd round), former world no. 14 Elena Bovina (1st round), Emelie Loit (1st round), Ioana Olaru (2nd round), Andreja Klepac (2nd round), Eleni Daniilidou (2nd round).

Jankovic and Larcher de Brito win Hong Kong exhibition match

World number 1 Jelena Jankovic and her doubles partner, Michelle Larcher de Brito, took Team Europe to a doubles victory in the Hong Kong exhibition tournament today. They defeated Team Americas--Venus Williams and Coco Vandweghe, 6-4, 7-5. Jankovic and Williams will play one another tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Team Russia defeated Team Asia Pacific. Vera Zvonareva, who came from behind in both sets, defeated Zheng Jie, 7-6, 6-4, and Anna Chakvetadze defeated Sania Mirza 6-4, 6-4.

Larcher de Brito watch--Michelle out of Bell Challenge

Michelle Larcher de Brito is out of the Bell Challenge before it even begins. She lost in the first qualifying round to Aniko Kapras, who defeated her 6-2, 6-2.

Larcher de Brito receives Revelation Award

Michelle Larcher de Brito is the recipient of the 2008 Revelation Award, presented by the Fundacao Luso-Brasilier. The organization--which promotes political, economic and cultural relations among Portuguese-speaking countries--presents four awards: Politics, Economics, Culture & Science, and Revelation.

Rus out in 2nd round in Tashkent

Arantxa Rus, the world's top junior, has been eliminated from the Tashkent Open in the second round. She was defeated by Peng Shuai, 6-1, 7-5.

Michelle Larcher de Brito is still around, however, and will play Sorana Cirstea in the quarterfinals.

Larcher de Brito watch--no U.S. Open for Michelle

Ioana Raluca Olaru won the first set in her third round U.S. Open qualifying match against Michelle Larcher de Brito, with a comfortable 6-2 score. In the second set, she served for the match at 5-2, and was broken. Larcher de Brito then saved four match points on her own serve, but Olaru won the match on her fifth match point. As always, Larcher de Brito did not give up, but this wasn't her day.

Olaru def. Larcher de Brito, 6-2, 6-3

Larcher de Brito reaches the third round

Michelle Larcher de Brito has reached her second Tier I quarterfinal round, after defeating Flavia Pennetta, 6-3, 0-6, 6-3 in Montreal today. I could not watch the match, so I don't know whether Pennetta's blister played a role, but regardless, the real news is that Larcher de Brito has advanced to a third round in another big event.

The Portuguese player has a 9-9 win-loss record for this season, and is ranked number 169 in the world. If that doesn't impress you, please bear in mind that she is 15 years old, and did not enter the rankings until the end of September last year. Earlier this year, she defeated Agnieszka Radwanska in the second round of the Sony Ericsson Open, and she took Serena Williams to three sets in Stanford earlier this month.