King upsets Cibulkova at French Open

Though tennis commentators often seem to forget it, Dominika Cibulkova was a French Open semifinalist in 2009. She is a really fine clay court (and hard court) competitor who was seeded 22nd at this year's Open. She lost today in the first round, however, to Vania King. Cibulkova made twice as many unforced errors at King, who defeated her 6-7(10), 6-3, 6-2. The first set lasted an hour and 18 minutes.

Also going out in the first round was 2008 champion Ana Ivanovic, who has been suffering from wrist tendonitis. Ivanovic, the 20th seed, was defeated 7-6, 0-6, 6-2 by Johanna Larsson. Both ESPN commentators said they had never before seen Larsson play.

Barbora Zahlavova Strycova dragged 8th seed Li Na to three sets, but it was Li who advanced to the second round. Andrea Petkovic won a very competitive match (6-4, 7-6) against Bojana Jovanovski, and Charleston runner-up Elena Vesnina lost in three sets to Silvia Soler-Espinosa. Vesnina hit 53 winners to Soler-Espinosa's 35, but the Spaniard made only seven unforced errors in the match.

Stosur and Sharapova to meet in Rome final

Never known for her acumen on clay courts, and considered by many to be "finished" because of injury and confidence issues--Maria Sharapova, the self-proclaimed clay court Cow on Ice--has made it to the final of the Italian Open. Sharapova defeated top seed Caroline Wozniacki 7-5, 6-3 in the semifinals, hitting 36 winners along the way. Of course, this isn't the first time that Sharapova has "failed to meet expectations" on clay. Last year, she played a gritty third round French Open match against Justine Henin, and took Henin to three sets.

The world number 1 has never won a red clay tournament. During this year's red clay season, she has fallen to Julia Goerges twice, and now to Sharapova. Wozniacki did win this year's Family Circle Cup, which is played on green clay.

Sharapova's opponent in the final will be 2010 French Open runner-up Sam Stosur, who defeated Li Na 7-6, 6-0 in the semifinals. Stosur has looked kind of flat lately, but her game has come to life in Rome, and the final will probably be a good one.

In the doubles semifinals, 3rd seeds Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova defeated 2nd seeds Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik 7-6, 62, and Peng Shuai and Zheng Jie defeated Alexandra Dulgheru and Jarmila Gadjosova 3-6, 6-4, 10-5.

King wins first round match in Charleston

Stadium court play in Charleston began today with the upset of 16th seed Vera Dushevina by Vania King. King won the first set 6-4, and the second went to a tiebreak. Dushevina went up a mini-break immediately, and was up 5-3 when King started her comeback. King made an error on her first match point, but at 8-7, she hit an ace, and advanced to the second round.

Qualifier Heather Watson was up 3-0, then 4-2 in the third set of her match against Christina McHale; she had a point to go up 5-2, but McHale broke her. That match also went to a tiebreak, and McHale's aggressive tiebreak play gave her a victory.

It took Zheng Jie over three hours to defeat qualifier Monica Puig 3-6, 7-6(10), 7-5.

Three qualifiers--Irina Falconi, Sania Mirza and Eva Birnerova--won their first-round matches.

Vania King replaces Williams on U.S. Fed Cup team

Venus Williams was supposed to participate in Fed Cup play next month, but her Australian Open injury has precluded that. USA captain Mary Joe Fernandez announced today that Wimbledon and U.S. Open doubles champion Vania King would be added to the team. King will join Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Liezel Huber. This means that team USA has three highly accomplished doubles players available for the first 2011 competition, in which the USA will play Belgium.

The World Group quarterfinal will take place February 5 and 6 on a hard court in Antwerp. The winner will play either the Slovak Republic or the Czech Republic in the semifinals. Defending champion Italy will play Australia. The Australian team will consist of Sam Stosur, Jarmila Groth, Anastasia Rodionova, and Rennae Stubbs. Stubbs is expected to retire from professional tennis at the conclusion of the quarterfinal.

Melbourne miscellany

Tennis Australia's Louise Pleming is acting as Jelena Dokic's temporary coach at the Australian Open. I reported recently that Dokic had hired Glenn Schapp to be her coach, but apparently, that didn't work out. Dokic said she "didn't feel that click" with Schapp.

The Tennis Channel commentating team waited until Agnieszka Radwanska was down 1-4 in the third set of the first round before casually mentioning that she had had foot surgery in October and wasn't sure, until the last minute, that she would play in Melbourne. Radwanska hadn't played since September, and not discussing her injury and surgery felt like a major omission. (She did win the match, but that's another story.

One more time: Alla Kudryavtseva did not make a disparaging remark about Maria Sharapova's tennis dress when she upset her in the 2008 Wimbledon tournament. She made a sarcastic little joke as a response to what she thought was a less-than-intelligent question from a member of the sports media. It shocked her that dozens of journalists didn't get that she was being ironic. It didn't exactly shock me.

While I'm on the subject of the tennis media....ESPN's Australian Open commentators' discussion of the "great cloud" concerning Serena Williams' foot is beyond tiresome. A drunken, irresponsible person threw a bottle and cut Williams' foot. It was a significant injury. She had to have two surgeries. Great cloud.

Vania King is walking, shopping in Melbourne's Chinatown, singing, and preparing to play Australian Open number 1 seed Caroline Wozniacki.

This is one of the funniest things I've ever seen occur in a professional tennis match:

Doubles draw made in Doha

The doubles draw has been made in Doha, and Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta will play Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova in the semifinals. Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik will play Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs in the other semifinal match.

The first semifinal is of particular interest. Dulko and Pennetta--close friends who have been occasional doubles partners for years and decided to play as a consistent team this year--are the top-ranked team, with six 2010 doubles titles. They won Miami, Stuttgart, Rome, Bastad, Montreal, and Moscow. They also reached the finals in Madrid and Beijing.

King and Shvedova, on the other hand, had played together in only two tournaments--both this year--when they won the 2010 Wimbledon title. In their next three events, they failed to get beyond the second round. But then they won the U.S. Open, defeating Dulko and Pennetta along the way.

Miscellany

A reminder to U.S. viewers: Unmatched, a documentary about the rivalry between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, will have its premier showing tomorrow night, September 14, at 8 p.m. EST on ESPN. It will also be shown at 11 p.m. on the 14th on ESPN2. Viewers can also watch at 8 p.m., Thursday, September 16 on ESPN Classic, and Saturday, September 18 at 1 a.m on ESPN 2.

Navratilova was given the Eugene L. Scott Award on Friday at the Legends Ball in New York.

USTA spokesman Chris Widmaier says that putting a roof over Arthur Ashe Stadium would mean there would be no money available to fund grassroots tennis in the U.S.

Vania King says that she began playing doubles with Yaroslava Shvedova because Anna-Lena Groenefeld, with whom she had been playing, sustained a stress fracture in her foot. She expected Groenefeld to return for the clay season, but that didn't happen. King and Shvedova formed a team during the grass season and decided--for obvious reasons--to stay together.

This is the second year in a row that Esther Vergeer has won the U.S. Open women's wheelchair singles final with a score of 6-0, 6-0. 

The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour "Looking Back at a Legend" series continues with a look back at Tracy Austin.

Wild card Rebecca Marino has advanced to the second round of the Bell Challenge in Quebec. She defeated countrywoman and wild card Heidi El Tabakh 7-6, 7-6.

They did it again! King & Shvedova win U.S. Open title

Yesterday, the rain came when Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova were down 2-6, 6-4, 4-5, 0-15. It was also Shvedova's birthday, but, as it turns out, she had to wait a day to receive her most lavish gift. Today, at 3 p.m. New York time, King and Shvedova--and their opponents, number 2 seeds Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova--returned to Arthur Ashe Stadium to complete the U.S. Open championship match.

The circumstances could not have been more tense. Huber and Petrova were only three points from the title, and suddenly, King was serving at 30-40. King saved that championship point (the second onw the team saved) with a ferocious forehand swipe down the line. Later, spectators would cheer loudly when Shvedova hit a backhand lob with heavy topspin and painted the back line. Despite increased aggression by Petrova, some formidable volleys from Huber, and a fast service game for the 2nd seeds at 5-all, King and Shvedova were able to force a tiebreak. Under the most challenging conditions, they held serve.

This match "deserved" a tiebreak, so to speak, for only a tiebreak could increase the drama for spectators who had waited overnight for a result. Throughout the match, but especially during the tiebreak, King and Shvedova did the same thing they did at Wimbledon--they enjoyed themselves. And when Shvedova hit yet another line-skimming lob--this one with her forehand--at match point, it was the perfect ending to a great doubles championship match.

King and Shvedova had a quite a tournament. They defeated the top seeds, Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta, in straight sets in the quarterfinals.  And in the third round, they won a wild three-hour thriller against Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova.

King and Shvedova had played together only twice when they entered the 2010 Wimbledon tournament and won it. Now they have done it again. In her speech, King said that, two years ago, she wasn't sure she wanted to play tennis anymore, and she didn't know if she believed in herself. How fortunate--for us, and for Yaroslava Shvedova--that King decided to keep going.

King & Shvedova 1 match away from back-to-back championships

The surprise champions of the 2010 Wimbledon tournament, Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova, advanced to the final of the U.S. Open today with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over 9th seeds Cara Black and Anastasia Rodionova. The third set was especially entertaining, as Rodionova brought up the level of her play and challenged the 6th seeds. Shvedova blew some volleys by being over-eager, but then steadied herself.

There was one amazing moment when a ball flew through the center of the court. King yelled "me!" but Shvedova, who probably didn't hear King, went for it. Standing side by side, each woman--one with a backhand and one with a forehand--was a mirror image of the other. Shvedova's racquet got the ball over the net. For just a moment, though, the synchronized swings created a really beautiful sight.

In the women's wheelchair singles quarterfinals, Esther Vergeer had to fight harder than usual to defeat Florence Alix-Gravellier 7-5, 7-5. Korie Homan is not playing in the U.S. Open (I'm not sure why--possibly continued wrist problems), so the Vergeer-Homan team will not be competing. Vergeer's partner will be Sharon Walraven. Vergeer was hitting today with Martina Navratilova.

Top seeds Dulko & Pennetta out of U.S. Open

1st seeds Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta were taken out of the U.S. Open today in the quarterfinals. The number 6 seeds, Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova, defeated Dulko and Pennetta 6-3, 6-3. Dulko and Pennetta looked a bit shaky yesterday, so this wasn't a complete surprise. Their opponents were simply too aggressive for them today. In the last game, the top seeds were broken at love when Flavia Pennetta double-faulted.

King and Shvedova won the Wimbledon championship.

King & Shvedova win 3-hour thriller

If ever there were a match you hated to see someone lose, it was the riveting 3rd round doubles match played at the U.S. Open today by Wimbledon champions Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova and their opponents, Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova. It lasted over three hours, and featured play that was, at times, breathtaking. Seeded 6th, King and Shvedova won the first set in an 11-9 tiebreak, and Benesova and Zahlavova Strycova won the second, 6-3.

The final set was tension-filled, like a tightrope walk between two buildings that appear to be close together--unless you're on the rope. Benesova was a stand-out throughout much of the set, using her strong forehand to attack her oppenents' serve, and Zahlavova Strycova often shone at the net. At times, King and Shvedova put on the same kind of show they put on at Wimbledon, though not as consistently. King is steady and calm and can retain focus and accuracy for an extended period of time, and Shvedova is a risk-taker who moves splendidly at the net.

King and Shvedova served for the match at 5-3, but were broken. Serving a 6-5, Zahlavova Strycova double-faulted twice during the game, and a tiebreak ensued. The Czech went up a quick mini-break in the tiebreak, but then Benesova, who had served very well throughout the match, double-faulted twice in a row. Later in the tiebreak, each team held a match point but could not convert it. The Czech team held a match point at 7-6, but Benesova hit an easy volley into the net. Benesova and Zahlavova Strycova held another match point at 8-7, but that one was saved by Shvedova.

Benesova then mis-hit a ball, but got her team back on track with a huge serve. There was another big serve from the Benesova at 9-all, but King--stretched out wide at the net--hit an even bigger return. It was then Shvedova's turn to serve, and this time, she hit it long and flat, got an error in return, and she and King won the match 7-6, 6-3, 7-6.

This match had everything, and all four players are to be commended for providing the ultimate in excitement for fans. Both tiebreaks went to 11 points, and the momentum swung relentlessly. Commentators and writers pay attention to singles only, but the real thriller of the tournament, so far, was this one.

Pre-U.S. Open miscellany

Venus Williams says she will not play women's or mixed doubles at the U.S. Open.

The Mets played the Astros on Friday, and Kim Clijsters threw the first pitch, on behalf of the Mets. She was introduced as "one of the best female athletes in the world." God forbid she should be introduced just as one the best athletes.

Vera Zvonareva did a photo shoot for the Vanity Fair website today.

Vania King says the U.S. Open is the least accommodating of all the majors.

Sabine Lisicki and Maria Sharapova have been hitting together at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Panasonic has signed a three-year contract to sponsor the U.S. Open. The company will team with CBS Sports and the USTA to produce 3-D versions of the high-def matches shown on both weekends.

Wimbledon champions upset in New Haven 1st round

Since they won the championship at Wimbledon, Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova have had a hard time getting past early rounds in tournaments. They were knocked out in the first round in Cincinnati; in Montreal, they lost in the second round. And yesterday, they lost their opening match to Chuang Chia-Jung and Olga Govorstova.

Gisela Dulko, the tour's current leader in doubles wins, played with Ipek Senoglu this week, and they lost in the first round to top seeds Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik. 4th seeds Cara Black and Anastasia Rodionova also lost in the first round. They were defeated 6-4, 3-6, 12-10 by Anabel Medina Garrigues and Yan Zi.

King & Shvedova win Wimbledon doubles championship

A casual observer who had just turned on the television could never have guessed that Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova were playing doubles with the 2010 Wimbledon championship at stake. They were having so much fun, smiling so much, it looked more like two friends were just out to have a good time on a Sunday evening.

Those two friends defeated Elena Vesnina and Vera Zvonareva 7-6, 6-2 to become the first unseeded team to win Wimbledon since 1977, when Helen Gourlay Cawley and JoAnne Russell won the trophy. Both of the teams in today's final were unseeded, in fact, and both played very impressively throughout the tournament. To get to the final, the champions defeated Alberta Brianti & Alexandra Dulgheru, 14th seeds Monica Niculescu & Shahar Peer, 3rd seeds Nadia Petrova & Sam Stosur, 6th seeds Kveta Peschke & Katarina Srebotnik, and 5th seeds Liezel Huber & Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

The Russian team also pulled some big upsets, including the defeat of top seeds Serena and Venus Williams, in a match that featured a consistently stunning performance from Vesnina. Today, however, was not the team's brightest day. Zvonareva lost the singles championship to Serena Williams, and the mood on the Russian side of the net was a decided contrast to the good cheer emanating from the other side.

The first set was so close that it went to a tiebreak, which King and Shvedova won 8-6 after saving a set point. Zvonareva was never quite the same after that, and--set up by the steady baseline play of King, Shvedova proceeded to become a one-woman attack force, repeatedly slamming unreturnable volleys from the net. She didn't look too shabby in other parts of the court, either, serving forcefully, and hitting winners down the line. She and King got better as the match wore on, and won the second set 6-2, which gave them the match.

The champions' interview was as entertaining as their performance on the court. Apparently, Shvedova and King invited practically everyone they met recently--at the French Open, in an English pub, etc.--to come to Wimbledon. They came, too, and were part of a huge cheering section for the two women. I was quite disappointed that neither the champions nor the runners-up were invited to speak at the trophy ceremony, and cannot imagine why such a slight would be permitted to occur.

No matter whom you wanted to win the doubles title, it was almost impossible to be anything but excited for King and Shvedova, whose expert play and on-court charm made this a special championship.

Vesnina & Zvonareva advance to Wimbledon doubles final

The unseeded team of Elena Vesnina and Vera Zvonareva advanced to the Wimbledon final today, with a 6-3, 6-1 defeat of 4th seeds Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta. That means that Zvonareva will play in both the singles and doubles final. She has one major title; in 2006, she and Nathalie Dechy won the U.S. Open.

The Russians' opponents in the final will be the unseeded team of Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova, who upset the 5th seeds, Liezel Huber and Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

In the mixed doubles semifinals, 2nd seeds Cara Black and Leander Paes defeated 9th seeds Iveta Benesova, and Lukas Dlouhy, and 11th seeds Lisa Raymond and Wesley Moodie defeated 10th seeds Rennae Stubbs and Marcelo Melo. Raymond and Stubbs are women's doubles partners (Dlouhy and Paes are partners in men's doubles, also).

Williams sisters upset in Wimbledon doubles

The William sisters' attempt to win the Grand Slam in 2010 was derailed in the Wimbledon quarterfinals today by the unseeded team of Elena Vesnina and Vera Zvonareva, who defeated them 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. The Russian pair had not played together since 2008, but they quickly found their groove this month at the All England Club, and Vesnina's serve was not broken once by the Williams sisters. Zvonareva has now reached the semifinals in both singles and doubles.

Also on quite a roll are Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova, who upset the 6th-seeded team of Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik today. In the third round, they upset 3rd seeds Nadia Petrova and Samantha Stosur. Also winning in the quarterfinals were 4th seeds Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta, who defeated Julia Goerges and Agnes Szavay, and 5th seeds Liezel Huber and Bethanie Mattek-Sands, who defeated 7th seeds Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs.

In mixed doubles, Kim Clijsters and Xavier Malisse upset top seeds Stosur and Nenad Zimonjic in straight sets. Also advancing were the teams of Iveta Benesova and Lukas Dlouhy, Chan Jung-Jan and Paul Hanley, and 2nd seeds Cara Black and Leander Paes.

Petrova & Stosur upset in 3rd round of Wimbledon

Today at Wimbledon, the unseeded team of Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova upset 3rd seeds Nadia Petrova and Sam Stosur, 6-4, 6-4.

There were no other upsets. However, of interest is the 6-2, 6-2 defeat of 11th seeds Cara Black and Daniela Hantuchova by the 7th-seeded team of Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs.

In mixed doubles, the top-seeded team of Sam Stosur and Nenad Zimonjic advanced, as did the team of Kim Clijsters and Xavier Malisse, who defeated 15th seeds Elena Vesnina and Andy Ram. 2nd seeds Cara Black and  Leander Paes also won their second round match today.

Sharapova wins in Strasbourg

Maria Sharapova, the top seed (and wild card) won the Strassbourg tournament this morning, defeating Kristina Barrois 7-5, 6-1.

The doubles title was taken by Alize Cornet and Vania King. They defeated 2nd seeds Alla Kudryattseva and Anastasia Rodionova 3-6, 6-4, 10-7.

Huber & Petrova win 2010 Family Circle Cup doubles championship

For the second year in a row, Nadia Petrova held a trophy after the championship doubles match in Charleston. Last year, Petrova and Bethanie Mattek-Sands saved three match points and won the championship. Today's match was not thrilling like that one was, but it still a good final. Petrova and Liezel Huber--who had never before played together--defeated Vania King and Michaella Krajicek 6-3, 6-4.

Petrova had not planned to play doubles at the tournament, since her partner, Sam Stosur, decided to play singles only. But Tony Huber, Liezel Huber's coach and husband, asked Petrova if she would be Huber's partner. "How could I say 'no'?" Petrova said, and I'm sure she's glad she didn't.

Since Petrova won the Charleston singles title in 2006, and the doubles title two years running, she was asked what was left for her to do at the Family Circle Cup, and she quickly suggested adding a mixed doubles competition.

Huber & Petrova to play King & Krajicek in Charleston final

The ad hoc team of Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova totally dominated Ekaterina Makarova and Marie-Eve Pelletier in today's semifinals in Charleston. Huber and Petrova, seeded number 1, defeated Makarova and Pelletier 6-2, 6-2.

In the other semifinal, Vania King and Michaella Krajicek defeated Nathalie Grandin and Abigail Spears 6-4, 7-6. This was the first match of the day, and was well-played and entertaining. King and Krajicek won the tiebreak 7-4.