ISNER WINS

Andy Roddick’s compatriot, John Isner, has defeated Kevin Anderson of South Africa in the final of BB&T Atlanta Open. Isner won the match in three sets by 6-7(3), 7-6(2), 7-6(2).

This is the 7^th ATP title won by Isner in his career. With this win, he earned himself prize money of 98,700 US Dollars.

This win didn’t come easily for Isner. He was made to work hard for each and every point by Anderson who was given the second seed in this tournament. The match went on for 2 hours and 54 minutes.

Talking to the reporters after the match, Isner said, “I have lost so many close finals in the past. So, it’s quite satisfying to end up on the winning side this time around. I never got panicked. I always had that self belief that I could pull it off.”

On the other hand, Anderson was perplexed in the post match interview. The South African player said, “I lost my composure towards the end of the match. It was so close and if I had cashed on the chances in the third set tie breaker, the result could have been different.”

“I congratulate John for winning the title. He hung in there and played well during the crucial moments. He deserved the win.”

It was a strange sort of a match. Neither of the two players dropped his serve in the entire match and all the three sets went into the tie breaker.

The tie breakers were pretty one sided though. The first one of them was dominated by Anderson, while, in the next two, it was Isner who came on top.

This was the 10^th match between these two players and Isner defeated Anderson for the 6^th time.

SHARAPOVA THROUGH

Anna Kournikova’s countrywoman, Maria Sharapova, has defeated Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the semi final of the French Open. Sharapova won the match in three sets by 6-1, 2-6, 6-4.

It was a contest between two great players and it was always going to be a close one. Both the players fought hard, but, at the end, it was Sharapova who proved to be better on the day.

This was the 13^th match between these two players and Sharapova defeated Azarenka for the 6^th time. Read more »

ISNER BEATS ALMAGRO

Andy Roddick’s countryman, John Isner, has defeated Nicolas Almagro of Spain in the final match of the US men’s clay court championship. Isner won the match in the straight sets by 6-3, 7-5.

Isner had reached the finals of this tournament last year, but, couldn’t win the title. He didn’t let that happen this year. With a classy performance, he got better of Almagro and won the title. This is the 6^th title won by Isner in his career.

After winning the title, Isner said, “I was playing on the clay courts after September last year and in the first couple of games, I was not fluent. But, I peaked at the right time.”

“Today, I got exactly the kind of start that I was looking for and once I got on top, I didn’t let the pressure come off him.”

In the opening set, both the players held their serve in the first couple of games. In the third game, Isner dropped his serve to go down by 1-2. The next two games went with the serve before the American broke back in the 6^th game to level the scores.

Isner broke Almagro’s serve again in the 8^th game which gave him a lead of 5-3. He easily won his next service game and sealed the first set by 6-3.

In the second set, Almagro put up a better performance. He was looking good on his serve and was making Isner battle hard for the points.

In the first 10 games of the second set, there were no breakthroughs. But, in the 11^th game, Almagro ruined all his hard work. Some poor shots by him gave Isner a break chance which he pounced on.

That serve break took the American player ahead by 6-5. He didn’t waste the advantage after that. A serve hold by him in the next game secured his win.

HEWITT DEFEATS ROSOL

Lleyton Hewitt has defeated Lukas Rosol of Czech Republic in the opening round of the BNP Paribas Open. Hewitt won the match by 6-4, 3-6, 6-1.

It took Hewitt 95 minutes to get better of Rosol. This was Hewitt’s first match against Rosol.

Talking to the reporters after securing victory in the match, Hewitt said, “It was quite chilly out there and the conditions were definitely not ideal for tennis. In the opening set, I had the opportunity of getting a breakthrough early, but, I lost that chance. Fortunately, that didn’t cost much and I managed to get a breakthrough in the 7^th game which won me the set”

“In the second set, I served really badly. My return shots were also pretty loose and Lukas took advantage of that. In the final set, I was looking for an early breakthrough which I managed to get. Thereafter, I got more confident and played aggressive tennis for the rest of the match.”

In the first set, the first six games went with the serve. Hewitt broke Rosol’s serve in the 7^th game and then, got ahead by 5-3 by serving out the next game.

Rosol decreased the lead to 4-5 by holding his serve in the 9^th game. It was necessary for Rosol to get a breakthrough in the next game in order to take the set further, but, Hewitt didn’t let that happen. He held his serve and finished the opening set in style.

In the second set, Rosol started in a blistering way and won 5 out of the first 6 games with a couple of breakthroughs. However, he dropped his serve in the 7^th game and then, a serve hold by Hewitt in the next game brought down the lead to 3-5. But, Rosol had done so much damage in the first few games that this slight comeback by Hewitt didn’t matter much. The Czech player served out the 9^th game to win the second set.

In the last set, Hewitt’s performance was absolutely brilliant. He broke Rosol’s serve in the 4^th and the 6^th game and held his entire serve to win the decider by 6-1.

In the next match, Hewitt will face John Isner of USA.

VENUS REIGNS SUPREME

Venus Williams has defeated Mirjana Lucic-Baroni of Croatia in the first round of the Brasil Open on Tuesday. Venus won the match in the straight sets by 6-3, 6-3.

The scores suggest that the victory came very easily for Venus, but, it’s not the true story. The 30 years old Croatian veteran showed great resistance in the initial parts of the opening set and towards the end of the second set, but, in between, she played some poor tennis and that’s why, she got defeated by such a profound margin.

In the opening set, the first two games went with the serve. Baroni gave Venus the first blow in the third game, but, the Croatian couldn’t maintain that lead for too long. She dropped her serve in the next game and the scores got equalized at 2-2. Read more »

WILLIAMS NETS WIN

Serena Williams has defeated Ayumi Morita of Japan in the third round of the Australian Open 2013. Serena won the match in the straight sets by 6-1, 6-3. This victory took Serena into the pre quarter finals.

Serena took just 65 minutes to win the match. She had injured her ankle in the last match, but, she looked quite fit in this match and played superb tennis. She smashed a total of 29 winners in the match including 9 aces.

In the first set, both the players held their service in the first two games. But, after that, Serena started dominating. She broke Morita’s service in the fourth game with a backhand winner.

Serena held her service in the fifth game when Morita’s backhand went out of the court and the score became 4-1 in Serena’s favour.

The next game was a comprehensive one. The score reached at deuce. The score became 40-A when Morita didn’t manage to place her backhand shot well and the ball went out of the court again. Serena got a match point and she didn’t waste that. She broke Morita’s service for the second time in the set with another great backhand return shot. The American superstar easily served out the seventh game and won the first set by 6-1.

In the second set, Serena had a poor start. Her service was broken in the second game and she lost the first three games in a row. But, Serena bounced back quite beautifully after that. She just took the match away from her Japanese opponent by playing some brutal shots. She won six games consecutively with three serve breaks and cruised into the final 16.

In the next match, Serena will take on Maria Kirilenko of Russia.