The ladies are playing their Canadian Open starting today. Sharapova, the top seed, pulled out yesterday because of the pectoral strain. But there are still alot of big names returning to the scene - Mauresmo, Serena, and Justine are all entered in the event, making their first appearances of the hardcourt season.

They seem to have shifted the draw around a bit after Maria's withdrawal. It looks funny without a top seed. But there are some interesting potential matchups.

Kuznetsova is now at the top of the draw and looks clear to the quarters, although the winner of the Sprem vs. Golovin first round might play the Kooz tough in round three.

Hantuchova should keep going strong and meet the Kooz in one quarterfinal, unless she's tired from her run to the JP Morgan Chase final. Myskina is the big name in her section, but I think Daniela beats Myskina on current form.

If Serena's healthy, she should be fine early also. She's got some players that could drive her nuts if she's not 100% or if she's rusty though - Cohen-Aloro, one of the Serra Zannettis, Sanchez Lorenzo, and Flavia Pennetta. Still, figure on Williams making the quarter there. Where she'd probably play Kim Clijsters! I'd really like to see that match. Kim toughest obstacle in getting to the quarters would appear to be Ivanovic in round three.

Mary Pierce has a nice looking early round draw. She should have no trouble getting to the third round and potentially playing Dechy again, who was apparently annoyed with all of Mary's drama during their match in San Diego. Vaidisova is near Dechy. Possible upset if she's playing well. But in the quarters Pierce could run into Henin-Hardenne, if Justine survives Sugiyama in round three. Depending on Justine's form, that might be a fun match, especially if Ai continues playing as well as she did in San Diego.

In the bottom quarter, Petrova plays the winner of Karantcheva vs. Craybas. Interesting. Also a first rounder between Li and Jankovic. Petrova's looked good lately, though, and should make the quarters. Her projected opponent for the quarters is defending champ Amelie Mauresmo, but considering that Amelie hasn't played in over a month, I think she's got a very tricky little section. Dinara Safina or Groenfeld could be her third round opponent. Conchita Martinez is playing Groenfeld in the first round. The best scenario for Mauresmo, I think, would be if Martinez can torture Groenfeld and Safina out of the tourney and make the third round. Still, Petrova in the quarters would be a tough test also for Amelie. If she defends her title this year, she'll have earned it.

[ August 15, 2005, 06:45 AM: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

Some interesting scores from day one. Serena apparently now is having knee trouble in connection with the ankle injury ... she beat Cohen-Aloro in three sets, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2. She was having trouble moving and putting weight into her serve. It will be interesting to see if she's able to shake off the rust and go deep in the draw or not.

Amelie Mauresmo won easily, 6-2, 6-3, but Kuznetsova had to struggle before pulling out a 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 win over Annabel Medina Garrigues.

Safina, Ivanovic, and good ol' Conchie Martinez all advanced as well. Jankovic was upset in three sets by Li. Almost could see that one coming.

Kim and Justine play today.

[ August 17, 2005, 06:35 AM: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

Mary Pierce has pulled out with the lingering quadriceps injury. Shame that's she's gotten hurt, because she's been playing so well. Hopefully she will be better in time for the Open.

Can somebody explain how it is that Conchita Martinez is still playing?? I feel like I've been watching her since I was in the third grade--and I just turned 37 last week.

Her game is painful to watch. Will we never be rid of her?

I didn't like Conchita during her heyday. One time, I told a friend she was like Gaby Lite. To which he replied, "She's more like Gaby Heavy." I will remember that as long as I live.

But now that Conchita is this dinosaur who plays old school tennis and drives the hard hitters crazy, I'm sort of fond of her. There aren't too many players left that are connected to the generation I grew up with in women's tennis, only Conchita, Lindsay, Mary, and JennyCap as far as the top players go. And the latter three all play the more modern style. Viva Conchita!

Speak of the devil, Martinez d. Safina 7-5, 6-2. Thank you, Conchita! Now all you have to do is go down weakly to Mauresmo and life will be perfect.

Some more scores from Canada.

Petrova held off a spirited fight from trash-talkin' Sesil Karantcheva, advancing 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.

Henin-Hardenne won easily over Diaz-Oliva, 6-1, 6-3. Guess Justine will be fit this tourney and probably win the whole thing, only to disappear for another five months.

Zheng d. Sugiyama, 2-6, 7-6(8), 6-3

Myskina is leading Laura Granville, 6-3, 2-1 (up a break) and I will personally be interested to see how Vaidisova does against Dechy.

Serena withdrew from the Rogers. Good move by her as its obvious she's not in the conditioning to be playing at a top level and the knee is obviously still an issue. In my opinion, Serena should take an L for the rest of the year and come back strong and ready to defend Australia in January. She would have nowhere to go but up in the rankings next year as she has basically had to withdraw from most of her tournaments this year and only has the Aussie Open to her credit. She said because of the ankle injury it caused her to lose strength she had built up in her knee. Serena is going to need at least 3 or 4 months of good conditioning to get it back together and she won't have enough points to get to the year end championships so I say just call it a year and get the body together sista.

Some of the local sportswriters have been complaining how the big name players seem to keep dropping out of the Rogers Cup. This year, of the six women featured in their advertising poster, three have bowed out (Sharapova, Venus, and now Serena Williams). Ironically, there was an article the week before about how the purse at women's tennis tournaments is less than at men's events--but having the stars not show up doesn't help at the gate, with the TV ratings, and ultimately that hurts the amount of money being put up for prize money.

I don't know how true this is for the rest of the Women's tour, but I've always suspected that Venus, Serena, and Davenport just don't spent enough time stretching and taking care of their bodies. The kinds of physical movements they could get away with as 16 year olds just can't happen today without substantial off-court work in terms of body maintenance, stretching, conditioning, etc. You'd never hear about Martina having these kinds of chronic problems.

That said, I'm worried about the tour. I really wish we could see all the ladies competing against each other, since this is an incredibly vibrant time for the WTA, with so many players, when HEALTHY, able to win all of the tournaments--a resurgent Venus, Davenport still stellar near the end, Clijsters on the verge, Pierce having great results, the emergence of Chinese players. I hope they can all get it together physically.

Well Neptune, by Serena's own admission she doesn't like practicing much and that is to her disadvantage. Tennis is a sport where you need to keep the body going even when you aren't in tournaments. I don't think she puts enough time in off the court to prevent her body from injury. The inconsistency of putting your body through the grind of a tournament and then not putting in the conditioning time in between tournaments make you more prone to injury. Most can get away with it in the teens and early 20s but with having surgery already Serena should know that its only going to get more grueling from here on out, especially the power tennis she plays. She has to realize the need for putting in practice time and conditioning off the court, otherwise these injury problems will continue.

On a different note...I love Sesil Karatancheva's backhand! I watched some of the match last night before bed and she can hit the hell out of the ball off her two-handed backhand. I love the deep angle she gets off the ball cross-court, but she can smack it up the line just as effectively. I was really impressed. Let's hope she's around for years to come, and not more on the path of Lucic and Dokic. She might be new favorite player elect, right up there with Kuznetsova. They have to wait though until Monica and Lindsay are gone from the tour (officially of course).

Nicole Vaidisova upset Natalie Dechy. Vaidisova could have a very nice run here, because this is the section where Pierce pulled out. Would be interesting if she meets up with Henin-Hardenne in the quarters. She only has to beat someone I've never heard of - Sromova - to get there. Justine will have to defeat Zheng.

I was also surprised to see Dulko upset Golovin. The scoreline was odd, too. Easy for set for Golovin but then things fell apart and Gisela wins, 2-6, 6-0, 6-1.

Interesting third round match-ups: Clijsters vs. Ivanovic and Petrova vs. Li.

I'm really running out of faith in Tatiana--she seems to have stalled at a top 30 level, kind of like Dinara Safina. Although when you see a scoreline like that, you have to wonder if she was injured. The draw was beautiful for her as well, since neither the Kooz nor Myskina has been in great form. Dulko might have a chance to make some noise here.

I feel like Dinara is too slow and doesn't move well enough to move much higher up in the rankings, but I have no good reason why Golovin doesn't win more often. I haven't watched her play too much, but she seems to be solid from most places on the court and moves nicely. Perhaps she just lacks one big weapon?

Dulko is doing just that. Good call, JC. She has taken the first set from the Kooz in a tiebreak, seven points to three.

Kuznetsova needs to stop the bleeding QUICK!! At this rate its clear she will not defend her US Open title from last year. At this rate, she better hope to make it to the second week. Both Dementieva and Kuznetsova are gonna lose big time points because neither is making it to the final. None of the Russians successfully defended their titles this year. The last person to defend their title I believe was Serena at Wimbledon '03. The stars are aligned for Kim to have another good shot to win the Open. Justine isn't the player she was a couple years ago, Serena won't be a factor, and the Russian invasion hasn't been as impressive this year. The only thing standing in the way of Kim is a healthy and rejuvenated Venus. I think Venus may do the Wimbledon, US Open sweep for the third time. Venus has always played well against Kim and the Stanford win was good but Venus was running on fumes. I still think Kim has a good chance of blowing it at a slam. I'll never put her as my top favorite until she wins one.

Dulko did ultimately upset the Kooz, 7-6(3), 7-6(8).

Amelie Mauresmo is a game away from closing out Conchita, 6-0, 5-2.

I'm not as impressed by Kim as the rest of you at the moment. When she won Indian Wells & Miami back to back I was sure she would win a slam, but then she stumbled through the clay court season with that ugly loss to Davenport and then lost again to her at Wimbledon. I realize she's won two tournaments this summer, but the only significant opponent she's beaten is Venus, and Venus didn't play well. Sure she's looked great slaughtering lesser players, but that doesn't tell me whether she can win a tight match in a slam against a top player. I'd like to see Kim win, but I've picked Kim to win three times before. I guess the one thing Kim has going for her is she may be the only contender who's really match-tough.

I'm still not sure of Venus. Her post-Wimbledon performances haven't been that stirring. In 2000 and 2001, she really dominated the summer circuit.

I think your supposition that JHH is not the player she was in 2003 is wishful thinking. I have no idea where Justine's game is right now (we'll know more in a couple days), but she did have the longest winning streak of her career this spring. If she wins here, I wouldn't be surprised to see her win the Open.

Sharapova's injury doesn't sound serious, so she should be healthy by the Open, though lack of match play is a concern. Davenport is supposed to play New Haven--I wouldn't think she'd be a factor with her health, but you never know.

On the other hand, we've had seven different winners at the last seven slams, so if we keep following that pattern it should be Clijsters, Davenport or maybe Mauresmo.

Well Justine won the US Open in '03 which featured an absent Venus and Serena. Since Justine has not beaten certain players on anything outside of clay I'd need to see that happen to say I think she'll win the Open. I'd pick Venus to beat Justine on a hardcourt 10 times out of 10.

While Venus is a better hardcourt player than Henin, I don't think she would win 10 out of 10. Henin is too good a player and too competitive to let that happen. Of course Henin's record against Venus is poor, they haven't met in a long time, and haven't met since Henin started winning majors. Henin is clearly a different player than she once was. I mean this is a player who missed almost the entire year last year and still managed to win the AO and Olympic gold medal.

Venus vs. Henin ... THAT would be a fun match to watch. I would lean towards Venus, but the match would live and die by the Henin-Hardenne serve.

Both players have the potential to dominate their service games, but I think that Venus would be able to attack Justine's serve more than the contrary. If Justine would be able to apply pressure to Venus's forehand, she'd have a solid shot in the match.

On hardcourts, Justine's defense is pretty solid ... solid enough to withstand the pace of Venus ... I dunno. I think that Venus can be frustrated by a player who is able to get the ball back as much as Justine or even Kimbo.

After the French Open, Venus was really left for dead, and after Wimbledon ... *shrug*, she's back to being a major force. While she got her act together on grass against difficult opposition ... La Pierce, Sharpie and Davenport ... I'm not "10 for 10" on her ability to beat Double H on hardcourts.

Nick

Both in top form, I'd say Venus would take 3 out of 4 on a fast hard court. They've actually only played three matches on hard courts, and they were a long time ago when Justine was not as confident. Serena might win 8 or 9 out of 10 in top form. However, I doubt Serena will meet Justine at the Open, and Venus' form is still open to question (as is Justine's). They're both among the 5 most likely to win the Open, but my guess is they won't play each other, making the question moot. And I have a really hard time picking Kim over Justine. Kim should be the better hard court player, but I think Justine is in her head.

Back to the topic of the current tournament, Kuznetsova is apparently suffering from a back injury. I don't know if it's new or if it's been the cause of her problems all summer. And Golovin has had a foot injry (according to Matt Cronin) that I didn't know about--maybe that's what's holding her back this year. Also Ivanovic withdrew from her match against Kim C.

the women's side is just a mess with injury. Venus really doesn't have anything physically lingering. I mean she should be over the flu by the Open...and of all the current players Venus has the best record at the US Open since 1997

97- Finalist
98- Semi-finalist
99- Semi-finalist
00- Champion
01- Champion
02- Finalist
03- DNP
04- 4th round...nagging injuries and low confidence sandbagged her as well as Davenport getting back into Venus' head with recent wins.

This year with Wimbledon under her belt and a newfound confidence and Serena struggling she should feel better about herself. I don't care how much she loves Serena...I know she didn't like being in her shadow. This is an opportunity for her to show Wimbledon wasn't a fluke. I think making the Bank of West final showed that she's on the comeback. I'd put it as Venus, Davenport (assuming the back is fine by the Open, Clijsters as my top 3 Open picks. I can't put Clijsters as my number one cuz of her past at slams. I don't care how well she's done on hard courts this season. Tier 1s and 2s are not the same as slams and she can't seem to get the mental part under control. If she meets Henin this week and beats her than I will have more confidence in her chances at the Open cuz thats a monkey she needs to get off her back. Henin is in her head. I'll throw Henin and Mauresmo in there but I don't see either winning it. If Serena enters she'll be lucky to make it out the first week. I still think she should withdraw. Last year's finalists, Kuznetsova and Dementieva I don't see doing all that well either. Myskina seems to have injured herself tonight. Mary Pierce, if healthy can do some damage to. This is a good opportunity for someone to take advantage of the injury problems of some of the top players.

[ August 18, 2005, 07:21 PM: Message edited by: ltskinmdterp ]

Venus definitely should be a major factor in this year's open, but I'm not sure how much you can infer from her past results. She's only played one tournament since her Wimbledon win and when she's won the open she had pretty dominant hardcourt results leading into the tournament. Based on form, Clijsters should win, but her spotty play in the final rounds of majors is a bit disconcerting. Lindsay has been injured and who knows how well she feels now. Mary looked awesome in winning in San Diego, but she's pulled out of last couple of tournaments. I wouldn't count out Henin or Sharapova either, both of them are pretty solid competitors and should do well. Serena did not look good in her one match in Canada, but who knows what's going on with her. I think it is pretty wide open this year. I don't anticipate a surprise winner, but the list of contenders is relatively long.

[ August 18, 2005, 10:27 PM: Message edited by: Puddy ]

oh gosh how could I have forgotten about Sharapova? If she isn't 100% because of the injury to her chest than I say no. Because its on the side where she serves and hits from there's no way she's a contender to get far. She says it comes and goes. If its not bothering her than of course she is a factor. Venus proved at Wimbledon that you can be a 14 seed, have crappy results all year, and not play much leading into anything and come out the victor. I think there are only a handful of players who can do that and Venus is one of them. Venus doesn't need to win a bunch of warmup tournaments to win a major. I think Venus and Serena(on hardcourt and grass especially) and Justine(on clay especially) are the only 3 players with that capability. The others need it to feel confident about themselves.

I think Kim's chances hinge alot on how aggressively she plays. She's always a backboard, but the early season hardcourt tourneys, she would be more aggressive when her defense forced short or weak replies. The last couple of tourneys, Kim has gone through patches of defensive play ... standing way too far behind the baseline and waiting for the other girl to miss.

You know, everyone said Lindsay Davenport couldn't win the big ones before she broke through at the Open. Kim Clijsters was runner-up the last time she played the US Open and she's the only player going into this thing that seems 100% physically fit and match tough. I'm still feeling Kim and praying Mauresmo, at least in advance of the draw.

Kim's through, which isn't really a suprise, but love and one over Pennetta...that is, to me anyway. Myskina's win over Dulko is a bit suprising too, considering her struggles and her turned ankle. I mean, you just don't know what to expect from her.

MoMo and Petrova are knotted at 4-4 in the first set. I hope Amelie can win, but I definitely feel like Nadia can score the upset here. A toss up, really. But it's tough for Amelie from here on out ... figure if she beats Petrova, she'll most likely face Justine in the semis and then the winner there will most likely play Kim in the final.

[ August 19, 2005, 12:15 PM: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

Oh! And just noticed that not only is it 4-4, 15-15 ... they're in a rain delay. frown

its definitely a toss up between those two...although I'm more apt to go with Amelie. She does better at Tier 1s and 2s than Petrova. Its the slams that Mauresmo chokes at. I'd like to see Kim win this tournament. Anyone but Juicetine Henin

Yes, it's a rain delay Gaby...actually 7 inches of rain according to Yahoo! That would be interesting to see people play in. Guess we won't see completion of the quarters until tomorrow.

Somehow after the deluge, they managed to complete the matches. After all the injuries, the tournament organizers must be thankful that they've arrived at the semis with four reasonably big names.

"JUICETINE" Henin! THAT'S HILLARIOUS!!!

Ya know...you'd think for a lesbian Amelie Manresmo would be a little bit more mentally tough. She choked the first set away, nearly choked the second set away and then just disappeared in the third. I would've rather she lost in str8s than go down 6-1 in the third. I am SO ROOTING for Kim to beat Juicetine tomorrow. If Kim can beat Justine I think that will give her SO much confidence going into the Open. I think Justine is in her head. I still think its more the occasion that causes Kim to choke and not necessarily the player, ie up 5-1 against Serena at the Australian Open and chokes, up a set and a break against Davenport at the French. At slams she just doesn't seem to be able to win when it counts

I hope so, too! I can't stand Henin!

I really don't think sexuality and mental toughness are that correlated. There've been plenty of mentally tough heterosexuals in all sports, including women's tennis. Not sure I follow you on that.

I was being facetious with the Amelie should be mentally tough because she's a lesbian thing. I know better than that. I'm just so pissed off at her blowing matches. I hope Kim wipes the court with her tomorrow.

I hear ya. Amelie's a talented player, with enough talent to hold a few slams by now. I think she needs a good run for confidence, one long enough to raise her spirits and for her not to get injured. Injuries with her, like so many others on the tour, I think have kept her from gaining that momentum. It would be awesome if her first came at the French.

I think this US Open series on the women's side will be similar to last year. Last year Davenport dominated the North American summer hardcourt season but lost at the US Open.

Even if she loses tomorrow's match against Henin-Hardenne, Clijsters could be the one to dominate this year only to lose in the end.

Has anyone else noticed how Mauresmo, an out lesbian, is more feminine than Henin-Hardenne, who is married?

Dedric

WONDERFUL!!!!!! Kim steps it up and beats Juicetine Henin. That was a big win for Kim as Justine has dominated the rivalry and won all the recent finals between the two. I'm still not saying Kim is gonna win the Open but I think that will give her a big confidence boost. She is the favorite going in because she's done the best on hardcourts this year but I still have doubts about her because of her history in slams, finding a way to choke. But I'm just so glad she beat Juicetine and beat her convincingly cuz I can't stand the girl. I knew by watching the Mauresmo match that Kim was not gonna let her get away with those loopy, moonball shots. This is not a clay court. Mauresmo really should've won last night but she's not exactly consistent and mentally tough either.

I'm looking forward to seeing how Kim Clijsters does at the US Open. I'm really hoping she can finally win her first grand slam. It was great to see her beat Justine today.

I'm happy for Kim, particularly for her being able to grab the #4 ranking and thus avoid a potential quarterfinal against Davenport in the US Open. Too much Davenport is bad for Kim's complexion. AND it means she can avoid a potential Venus matchup in the 4th round, which is pretty important.

But the big story of the tournament is Martina Navratilova's ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY-FIFTH DOUBLES TOURNAMENT WIN! In a Tier One, no less. Just f**king remarkable

She could still meet Venus as early as the 4th round. Venus' is only #10.

Obviously a very important win for Kim. She's beaten two of the three players who have troubled her the most in her career this summer, and the third (Serena) seems unlikely to be a factor. Lindsay has been a problem lately, but her health is uncertain. She's never lost to Sharapova, though they've only played once since 2003. I still worry about how her head will hold up in a Grand Slam semifinal or final though.

Kim has the game to beat anyone in the world and should definitely have a few majors under her belt. The question is always about her head, and how she'll handle the pressure. She is the best defensive player in the world and has enough power to hit her fair share of winners. I wonder how she would've fair if she hadn't faced Henin in her last 3 major finals. You almost forget she gave an amazing effort the first time she made it to a final against Capriati at the French. I always thought that it was more a problem facing Henin in the finals than just a general choking nature. Hopefully we'll get to find out and hopefully she'll come through. It's interesting that after last year and the Russian dominance that all of this year's majors could go to the Belgiums and Williames. Maybe just picking up where they left off.

[ August 21, 2005, 07:40 PM: Message edited by: Puddy ]

It's funny. When they first came up, Justine was the one who had the reputation as a choker and Kim was the fighter. I have to say that my confidence is Kim was severely shaken by the semifinal loss to a badly injured Venus at Wimbledon and that ghastly match against Davenport at the French.

Yes JC...and thats why I still have doubts about Kim winning the Open even though she's had the best hard court record this year. Tier 1s and 2s are not slams. Kim had a 5-1 lead on Serena one year at the Australian and should've beaten Lindsay at the French. Lindsay, Kim, and Amelie have won their share of Tier 1s and 2s yet both Kim and Amelie still have no slams and Lindsay hasn't won a slam since 2000, and all of these ladies are top 5 players. I mean I have always said ranking shmanking. You can win enough tournaments or play well enough in them to be top 5 or even end up #1 at the end of the year but when you go slamless it puts into question your ability to win on tennis' biggest stage. Majors are part of what your legacy will be and Lindsay blew opportunities in the past year. She was prime to win last year's US Open and this years Australian and Wimbledon, thus doubling her slam total from 3 to 6. Venus proved that being ranked outside the top 10 and seeded 14th at Wimbledon doesn't mean a hill of beans. But, she is a former #1. The draw for the Open will be interesting and could determine who will get where. Pierce is outside the top 10 and I wouldn't want to face her after the way she's been playing, assuming she will be healthy for the Open. Venus will probably be seeded 10 so thats a round of 16 match I wouldn't want to be in either.

I am thrilled for Kim. Great win to cap off her prep for the Open.

And I really enjoyed watching the Mauresmo/Henin match. It's nothing but my favorite style of tennis and when they go backhand-to-backhand, the rallies are incredible. So much fun to watch. I wish Amelie could have pulled it out, but actually, it's better for her this way. Amelie has a pattern of playing close with Kim in one match and then losing badly to her the next time they face off. Had Amelie made the final against Kim, it may have been a close match and then any potential US Open meeting could be a blowout.

I'm secretly hoping for a Mauresmo-Clijsters final. That would be sweet. Crazy, but sweet. And then Amelie would win of course ...

[ August 22, 2005, 07:59 AM: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

I guess Kim's gonna be US open champ this year