Kvitova wins Madrid championship

Petra Kvitova, the 16th seed at the Madrid Open, went up 3-0 in the opening set of today's championship match, and she was a point away from going up 4-0, but 4th seed Victoria Azarenka then got on the scoreboard and eventually made matters even. The set went to a tiebreak, which Kvitova won. To casual observers, this was a case of the Czech player's obtaining a second chance to do what she "should" have done earlier in the set.

Casual observers would be correct, of course, but such a progression through a set is kind of the "Kvitova way." Because she takes so many risks and plays such intense offensive tennis, the 16th seed makes a lot of errors. Yes, it would be better if she didn't. However, because of Kvitova's excellent serve and her ability to remain calm, she often finds a way to take back what she gave up. In fact, the more important the match, the more likely Kvitova is to rescue herself and take control.

In today's match, Kvitova use her wide serve to her advantage over and over, but she also varied the serve, and she hit second serves that set up winners for her. The Czech player was also careful to avoid Azarenka's backhand as much as possible. Both Kvitova and Azarenka are "first strike" players, producing the type of tennis that I don't especially enjoy watching, but that I can certainly appreciate. The rallies were short in this match, and it was Kvitova who showed more skill in setting up and executing winners. Azarenka was forced into a defensive position much of the time, and--as good as she is--she just didn't have enough answers when Kvitova went for wider and wider angles.

In the second set of today's match, Azarenka had opportunities to draw out the match. She broke Kvitova twice, but Kvitova used her big serve to come back. When she served for the match at 5-4 in the second set, the Czech player put some showy icing on the cake: She hit an ace and three winners--service, forehand and backhand, to hold at love for a 7-6, 6-4 victory.

The stats confirm that this was a "typical" Kvitova match: The champion hit 40 winners and made 34 unforced errors. She will be number 10 in the world when the new rankings are published. Azarenka, who won the doubles championship with Maria Kirilenko, will be number 4.

Kvitova, who made it to the semifinals at Wimbledon last year, is more of a fast-court player. The altitude in Madrid makes the clay surface faster than most, so Kvitova's work may be cut out for her when she arrives in Paris for the French Open, especially if weather conditions make the courts especially slow and the balls become heavy. Winning her third title this year is certainly good for Kvitova's confidence, however, and her ability to keep a cool head is most advantageous.

One final note: The "success" of having a combined tournament is a joke in Madrid. There were not that many people in the stands to watch the women's championship, so perhaps the Madrid organizers could spend less time and energy auditioning models and more time promoting the women's game. Of course, to do that, they would have to actually care.

Azarenka and Kirilenko win Madrid doubles title

5th seeds Victoria Azarenka and Maria Kirilenko won the doubles championship in Madrid today. They defeated 2nd seeds Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik 6-4, 6-3 in the final.

Azarenka isn't finished, however; she will play against Petra Kvitova in the singles championship match tomorrow. Azarenka defeated Julia Goerges 6-4, 6-2 in the semifinals, ending the German player's 10-match win streak. Goerges appeared to be in a state of mental, if not physical, fatigue throughout much of the match.

Kvitova, seeded 16th, easily defeated 6th seed Li Na 6-3, 6-1 in the semifinals. Kvitova's quarterfinal victory puts her in the top 10 for the first time. When the rankings are published next week. she will be number 10 in the world. Azarenka will be number 4.

Goerges and Azarenka to play in Madrid semifinals

People who saw Julia Goerges play (I didn't) in the third round of the Madrid Open said she looked pretty tired. She wasn't too tired to defeat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarterfinals, however. Goerges' 6-4, 6-2 victory places her in the semifinals against 4th seed Victoria Azarenka. In the last two months, Azarenka has either retired from events or won them. She had to retire in the quarterfinals of Indian Wells because of a hip injury (an ongoing problem), and she retired with a shoulder injury in the second round in Stuttgart. Azarenka won titles in Miami and Marbella.

To get to the semifinals, Azarenka defeated Lucie Safarova 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. The Belarusian is now 6-0 against Safarova, who took her first set off of Azarenka today.

Li Na--who has never been known for her performance on clay, and who had experienced quite a downfall since her big Australian Open run--is somewhat of a surprise semifinalist, despite being seeded 6th. Li defeated Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Mattek-Sands gave Li a lot of opposition, but then was easil broken at love in the final game.

Li's opponent will be Petra Kvitova, the 16th seed. Kvitova is a bit of a surprise, too, in that one might not expect her to perform at a high level on red clay. But she defeated a very good clay performer, Dominika Cibulkova, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. Kvitova is just full of surprises, however, and I look forward to seeing what the next one will be.

Azarenka and her partner, Maria Kirilenko, seeded 5th in doubles, defeated the 3rd seeds, Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova, in today's semifinals. Their opponents in the Madrid final will be 2nd seeds Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik. Peschke and Srebotnik defeated Casey Dellacqua and Rennae Stubbs 6-1, 4-6, 10-2.

Passing shots

Andrea Petkovic has hired Heinz Gunhardt on a part-time basis. Petar Popovic will continue to be her regular coach.

According to Matt Cronin, Caroline Wozniacki plans to hire Martina Navratilova as a consultant.

Hannah Wilks writes about Heather Watson.

Marion Bartoli has accepted a wild card into the Barcelona tournament, and is the top seed.

Victoria Azarenka, who has been dealing with a shoulder injury since before Fed Cup, reports that she hopes to be back on the court in Madrid.

Azarenka wins Marbella championship

Miami champion Victoria Azarenka, seeded number 1 at the Andalucia Tennis Experience in Marbella, won the championship today by defeating surprise finalist Irina-Camelia Begu 6-3, 6-2. Begu was a qualifier who upset the 6th and 2nd seeds on her way to the final.

Azarenka will enter the top 5 next week.

The doubles title was won by 3rd seeds Nuria Llagostera Vives and Arantxa Parra Santonja. They defeated top seeds Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci 3-6, 6-4, 10-5.

Azarenka wins Miami

Afraid I might miss a thriller, I left Charleston qualifying (and sacrificed watching the draw) to go back to the hotel in Mount Pleasant and watch the Miami final. I kind of wish I had stayed on Daniel Island. It wasn't a beat-down (well, the first set was), but Azarenka's 6-1, 6-4 victory was a solid one. Sharapova, awash in errors and service problems, and down 0-4 in the second set, eventually came to life. Azarenka got a bit shaky toward the end, too.. But just a bit.

Sharapova was broken eight times, and held serve only once. Azarenka, who won the championship in 2009, has had multiple problems with illness and injury for the past year, so this was a very big win for her.

Azarenka and Sharapova to play final in Miami

Victoria Azarenka, the 8th seed in the Sony Ericsson Open and the champion in 2009, made her way to the final tonight by soundly defeating an error-prone Vera Zvonareva 6-0, 6-3 in the semifinals. Zvonareva was the tournament's 3rd seed; Azarenka took out the 2nd seed, Kim Clijsters, in the quarterfinals. Even though she is a former champion, Azarenka has moved rather quietly through this event, and her level of play has risen with ever new match.

Earlier today, Andrea Petkovic saw her excellent run end when she played Maria Sharapova. Sharapova won, 3-6, 6-0, 6-2, and that scoreline tells you what you need to know. "More than anything," Sharapova said after the match, "I sensed that she was tired--probably a lot of the dancing that she's been doing--and I took advantage of it." That is, of course, a reference to the dance the 21st seed does after a victory. By the way, Petkovic says she is doing away with this routine, so we have seen her last dance, but I may keep calling her Dance Party--it's a habit.

Sharapova, the 16th seed, has a 2-2 record against Azarenka. The final takes place on Saturday, and it's going to be a loud one.

Clijsters upset by Azarenka in Miami

It was anything but an exciting match, but 8th seed and 2009 champion Victoria Azarenka probably doesn't care. Azarenka faced a completely flat Kim Clijsters in the Sony Ericsson Open quarterfinals tonight, and pulled off a 6-3, 6-3 victory without having to break much of a sweat. Not that Azarenka didn't have her own problems: She served really well, but she would frequently make unforced errors just when she had set up those good serves to produce winners. Still, the 2nd seed gave the impression that she wanted to be put out of her misery, and Azarenka obliged.

Clijsters has been having some problems with her shoulder ever since the Australian Open, and I don't know whether the injury factored into tonight's meltdown. "I just didn't feel good out there," she said after the match. We haves seen this type of thing before; when Clijsters goes off, she goes way off. But, after getting what looked like an impossible victory against Ana Ivanovic, it did seem odd that the defending champion would have so much difficulty in the quarterfinals.

Vera Zvonareva, the tournament's 3rd seed, was another story. She defeated 9th seed Agnieszka Radwanska 7-5, 63, and will play Azarenka in the semifinals. Meanwhile, on the other end of the draw, Andrea Petkovic will play Maria Sharapova, assuming that Sharapova's ankle is stable enough for her to play.

In doubles, 3rd seeds Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova defeated wild cards Sloane Stephens and Yanina Wickmayer in straight sets to advance to the semifinals.

Passing shots

Ana Ivanovic has withdrawn from Marbella. She and Andrea Petkovic have also withdrawn from doubles in Miami.

Today is Sam Stosur's birthday. The defending champion was given a party in the Althea Gibson Clubhouse at the Family Circle Cup site. Also on the site is Patty Schnyder, who has begun practicing.

The Charleston qualifying field includes Sania Mirza, Heather Watson, Sloane Stephens, Coco Vandeweghe, Irina Falconi, Michelle Larcher De Brito, Jamie Hampton, and Alison Riske.

Greg Garber writes about Victoria Azarenka.

WTA Backspin looks back at some special players.

"I lost a match. It happens. If she had a plan, good for her," Caroline Wozniacki said of her loss to Andrea Petkovic in Miami.

It's time to get to know Noppawan Lertcheewakarn.

Dulko & Pennetta win Australian Open doubles championship

When Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta left the court after their semifinal victory, right before they went into the tunnel, they did one final "keep the faith" high-five. On Friday, as they came out of the tunnel and walked onto the court to play the final, they turned and looked at each other for just a moment. It was subtle, but it was an unmistakable "this is it" exchange, maybe with a touch of "let's kick some ass" thrown in. The top seeds served so well and played so well in the semifinal against Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova, it was easy to believe they had the confidence to win their first major.

But it didn't play that way--not for a while, anyway. Dulko, in particular, looked like a shadow of herself, and had a hard time serving. Victoria Azarenka and Maria Kirilenko, on the other hand, played very aggressively. Azarenka hit the ball really hard, and made a number of flashy volleys. In no time, the 12th seeds had won the first set 6-2.

The pattern continued, with Dulko and Pennetta occasionally showing their number 1 style, but they just didn't have enough going for them to resist the speed and precision of Azarenka, and it didn't seem to occur to them to launch an attack on Kirilenko, who was not playing quite up to her partner's level. Azarenka and Kirilenko went up 4-1, and were a point from going up 5-1, when--perhaps inspired by Li Na--Dulko woke up, so to speak, and went all crazy on them at the net. For the next few games, Dulko was unstoppable.

Azarenka and Kirilenko weren't the same after that, and neither were Dulko and Pennetta. The signature Dulko lobs and Pennetta steady groundstrokes and penetrating volleys began to appear in great numbers, as Azarenka increasingly missed her volleys and hit balls outside the lines. The top seeds won the second set 7-5, and they cruised throught the third, winning it 6-1.

I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone as happy lifting a trophy as Dulko and Pennetta were, especially Pennetta, who is the first Italian player to win a championship at the Australian Open. The two have been very close friends for many years, and they have always played doubles together when they felt like it. Last year, however, they made a commitment to be a regular doubles team, and they shot up to the number 1 spot in the world. This is their first major championship, however, and they won it in a very dramatic way.

Melbourne miscellany

Caroline Wozniacki had a go at playing cricket.

The Heineken Beer Garden is featuring a brass band whose members are dressed in kangaroo costumes.

Todd Woodbridge will never again send a text message to Rennae Stubbs.

I really need for Martina Navratilova and Lindsay Davenport to stop saying "disinterested" when they mean "uninterested."

Sam Stosur's blue-framed Oakleys make the best possible finishing touch to that nice Lacoste dress.

Speaking of fashion, Dannli Minogue dressed Victoria Azarenka in her new Project D line.

Alicia Molik is taking a break to get married, but will be playing at Indian Wells. (Note to the Montreal Gazette: Molik's marital status is not going to affect her volleys.)

Azarenka and Vinci win Moscow & Luxembourg titles

There was no report yesterday on the Moscow and Luxembourg matches because I was traveling and did not have Internet access. As everyone knows by now, 6th seed Maria Kirilenko defeated Vera Dushevina in the Kremlin Cup semifinals, and 2nd seed Victoria Azarenka defeated 8th seed Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez.

Today, Azarenka won the Kremlin Cup by defeating Kirilenko 6-3, 6-4. Top seeds Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta won the doubles title, defeating 3rd seeds Sara Errani and Martinez Sanchez 6-3, 2-6, 10-6.

Roberta Vinci won the Luxembourg Open, defeating 8th seed Julia Goerges 6-3, 6-4. In the semifinals, Vinci defeated Anne Keothavong, and Goerges defeated Angelique Kerber. The doubles title was won by 2nd seeds Timea Bacsinzky and Tathiana Garbin. They defeated top seeds Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 6-4, 6-4.

Miscellany

Victoria Azarenka has qualified as the final woman to play in the WTA Championships, which begin on Doha on October 27. (Not to put too fine a point on it, but the alternate should be practicing seriously.)

The New Haven tournament has been saved, but in the future, it will be a women's only event. Unlike many, I consider this a good thing. Now that Pilot Pen is gone, there will be no main sponsor; the sponsorship will be shared by several entities, including Yale University, Aetna and American Express. The tournament has been re-named the New Haven Open.

Yanina Wickmayer has received a Fed Cup Heart Award.

Rebecca Marino and Alison Riske have been grabbing ITF titles right and left. Marino is now Canada's number  1 player.

As previously mentioned by a reader of this blog, Svetlana Kuznetsova's relationship with coach Loic Courteau has ended after only two months. Courteau did not want to go to Moscow to train with Kuznetsova during the off-season. Don't you sort these things out before your hire someone?

Azarenka's collapse leaves unanswered questions

"What have been initially diagnosed as the mildest of concussions have sometimes turned into multi-year ordeals of headaches, light sensitivity, depression, and inability to focus, so let's hope for the best, as should certainly the medical team that cleared Azarenka to play.

It was those doctors who had the holes in their heads, not the USTA for refusing to leave a hole in its schedule, insisting on playing in temperatures that on Arthur Ashe court yesterday, reached 111 degrees at 3:05 p.m."

These are the words of Jay Greenberg. He is referring to what is called post-concussion syndrome, which--if it occurs at all--usually lasts no longer than three months, though there are cases that linger beyond that time period. The existence of post-concussion syndrome does not correlate to the severity of one's injury; a mild concussion can lead to continued symptoms.

Victoria Azarenka, who fell and hit her head prior to playing her second-round match at the U.S. Open yesterday, was examined by doctors and was supposedly being monitored while she was on court. She exhibited obvious symptoms of concussion, and--while she may have been cleared to play because she seemed just fine at the time--there is a question about why the onset of obvious symptoms did not result in early medical intervention.

Azarenka sustains concussion, collapses on court

It was a scary moment today, when we saw Victoria Azarenka--who was clearly suffering from some malady--suddenly just go limp and drop to the court surface during her first set against Gisela Dulko at the U.S. Open. Though it was very hot, it appeared from the beginning of the set that something else was bothering the 10th seed. It was easy to flash back to the 2009 Australian Open, when Azarenka--who had vomited incessantly the night before because of food poisoning--became exceedingly weak and had to retire, after winning the first set against Serena Williams.

Azarenka, who has now been discharged from a hospital, says that she not only felt weak--she had a headache and some vision problems. Those are symptoms of a concussion, and that's exactly what she has. Prior to beginning the second-round match, Azarenka fell and banged her head on the court when she fell while running a sprint in a training session.

Victoria Azarenka is either quite fragile, or she has a lot of bad luck. She retired during a Fed Cup match in February, saying she felt sicker than she had ever felt. She has also had a run of leg and thigh injuries this season.

Azarenka was among the players favored to win the U.S. Open. I hadn't counted her out at all, though--just last night--I remarked to someone that I thought Dulko might give her trouble. Instead, Dulko gave her ice as she lay crumpled on the baking hard court in Flushing Meadows. This is a most unfortunate turn of events, but the good news is that Azarenka is not seriously ill.

U.S. Open miscellany

As Cole Porter said, brush up your Shakespeare! You've never before experienced this deconstruction of Hamlet.

During Arthur Ashe Kids' Day, both Roger Federer and Kim Clijsters were interviewed. Federer, the father of one-year-old twins, was asked about this year's Open compared with last year's; Clijsters was asked how she "balances" playing tennis and being a mother.

The U.S. Open promotional spot with the players on famous leaning New York skyscrapers is wonderful.

Geoff MacDonald suggests we watch Victoria Azarenka, Kaia Kanepi and Coco Vandeweghe.

There are great practice and training photos all over Forty Deuce.

Cibulkova--good for her--was the lone player to attend the Dunlop party, where she tended bar.

Pre-U.S. Open Miscellany

Anastasia Pavlyuchenko began her stay in New York by doing a photo shoot for Babolat.

Laura Robson defeated Jelena Dokic 6-1, 6-4 in the first round of U.S. qualifying. Of note: Robson hit eleven aces.

"Even though she’s a mom, success still matters a great deal to her," says Matt Cronin of defending champion Kim Clijsters. (Because we all know that having a child wipes out all desire and ambition in women.)

Vera Zvonareva and Lisa Raymond are two of the players who have designated tomorrow as a shopping day in New York.

To prepare for the Open, Maria Sharapova has been training at the Bollettieri Academy.

Serena Williams was co-commentator for Nike's Prime Time Knockout last night at Pier 54 in Manhattan. Victoria Azarenka was one of the participants.

GOOD day, Sunshine!

2nd seed Caroline Wozniacki won the Rogers Cup today. Because of the constant rain in Montreal, Wozniacki had to play her semifinal match this morning, and then play the final this afternoon. She easily defeated a rather flat 11th seed, Svetlana Kuznetsova, 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinals.

8th seed Vera Zvonareva won her semifinal match 7-6, 1-0 when 10th seed Victoria Azarenka retired because of a left foot blister. When Azarenka retired, all I knew was that she had a problem with her foot, and I thought "Oh, no--there goes another ankle." But a blister, though most unfortunate for Azarenka, is something that will heal in plenty of time for the U.S. Open.

In the final, Wozniacki defeated Zvonareva 6-3, 6-2. Wozniacki now heads to New Haven, where she is the defending champion. Lucky for her, that tournament is running behind because of rain, also.

Kirilenko wins consecutive doubles titles

Last week, Maria Kirilenko and partner Zheng Jie won the doubles championship in San Diego. Today, the Russian, paired with Victoria Azarenka, won the championship in Cincinnati. Azarenka and Kirilenko defeated 4th seeds Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs 7-6, 7-6.

Azarenka withdraws from San Diego

Citing a problem with her shoulder, Stanford champion Victoria Azarenka has withdrawn from the Mercury Insurance Open. Melanie Oudin was scheduled to play Azarenka in the first round, but will now play a qualifier. Oudin lost to Azarenka in Stanford.