I know it's a little early, but here's some sucky news for tennis fans - Monica Seles and Martina Hingis (last year a semifinalist) have withdrawn from the 2002 Italian Open. Seles apparently has a stomach virus ... Martina's foot is hurting. Martina is already dropping to seventh in the rankings ... this could drop her down to eighth or ninth for the French Open - if she even participates at Roland Garros! Monica blows any chance she might have had to capture a #4 seed at the French.

Gosh, I hope they're both around for the next Grand Slam. Both have key storylines to make for a compelling tournament.

Oh, and someone tell the Masters Series that they don't have to COMPLETELY ignore their own upcoming women's tennis tournaments on their Web sites.

Who does that leave in the tournament?

If you ask me, the rankings are finally beginning to look like the way they should (save for Serena still being behind Clijsters and Lindsay D. being a little low)

I think everyone else is playing - both Williamses (they'll be playing doubles, too), JCap, the Belgians, Mauresmo (last year's finalist), Dokic (last year's winner), Mary Pierce (why doesn't she have a protected injury ranking and get seeded by now?????), Hantuchova, Smashnova, Schnyder. I think Majoli may have to qualify to get into the main draw! I don't know whether Kournikova will be here - but as always, if she wants a wildcard, she'll get a wildcard.

Top storyline - the jockeying for #1 between Capriati and Venus. After Rome, I think Capriati's days as a #1 contender are over, so it was nice while it lasted. Hopefully she can regain #1 for at least a few more weeks ... meaning a win in Germany or doing better than Venus in Rome.

Jake, you scooped me... again!

Sucks for the folks running the Italian open to lose Hingis and Seles as ticket sellers.

But hypothetically speaking, if you were looking to drop some pounds before a major, a stomach virus could help, right??

I hope Monica is healthy and, ahem, fit to win the French!

Incidentally, Coetzer is out citing a "muscle problem". Will she be missed?

Coetzer who?

lol

Kournikova Wins..................

Next up, Venus.

Even with the absence of Seles and Hingis, this is a great tournament, and one of the few non-majors to have both Williams in the draw.

Venus has a tough draw: Henin in the quarters, Clistjers in the semis, on the way to the finals. Serena has an easier path to the semi's, which has Capriati waiting for her.

This tournament should decide seeding for the French. Looks like Hingis will be seeded #7 at the French, unless Lindsay plays, than she is #8. Wow, from match point at the Australian Open to a ranking of #8, it has all been a tough year.

What could be worse for Hingis? Lose to Kournikova in the first round of the French.....

Poor Anna can't catch a break to save her life. Maybe she'll upset Venus. (Yeah, I said it with a semi-straight face.)

Don't cry for Hingis YET - she's still having the best year of any player on tour, with a Grand Slam Final, a Tier I victory, and STILL leading the Race to the Championships. This year's Race is turning into an all-out brawl.

Six Tier I or higher tournaments. Six different winners. That just doesn't happen. That's why, when I was looking at the Italian Open draw, I picked the winner to continue the pattern. That excludes Henin, Serena, Hantuchova, and J-Cap. Among those who're left:

Mauresmo - that whole neck thing was just odd. How will it affect her this week? Her draw, meanwhile, is extremely tricky, with Dechy, Dementieva/Maleeva, Capriati/Pierce, Serena/Dokic on her path to the finals. She could lose early, middle, or late. I think, however, that she considers this tournament more important than some of the top seeds, who will be focused more on RG. She's my favorite right now.

Venus - capable of winning on any surface, and a past champion here at Rome. As has been pointed out, her draw is a minefield. I can see her getting past Henin (who could be tired after the German) and Clijsters (Venus hates losing to the same player twice in a row). But first she has to face Kournikova. Don't laugh! An Anna upset special is NOT outside the realm of possibilities.

Clijsters - at #3, the only player in the Top 9 never to have one a Tier One or higher. She's probably not too pissed about the loss to Smashnova - she needed the rest after her Venus take-down. Her draw is really easy - nobody there is having the kind of confidence-building year that Smashnova was able to draw from. A definite threat.

Other possibilities - Dokic is the defending champion. Unfortunately, she's got Smashnova (probably) in the second round. Survivng that could bring Serna, Myskina, or Hantuchova. Ouch, Jelena. Then would come Serena. In the quarters. If she weren't defending, I'd hope she'd think about skipping this tourney. But that's not how Dokic operates. She plays as much as possible - including next week at Strasbourg! Her results seem to be suffering as a result.

Mary Pierce won her first match in three sets v. Mikaelian. Her draw looks difficult, but I can imagine a couple of wins, including an upset of the looking-to-Paris Capriati. But I highly doubt she'll win here.

Dark Horse - now that the Russian jinx has been broken (congrats to Bovina for winning in Warsaw), could Myskina do some damage? Also, pay attention to how the Italians do in front of their home crowd.

Hey wasn't one of Anna k's best matches this year against Venus? Three sets i believe. Not many players can say they've taken a set from Miss V. And post match Anna had a lot of positive things to say since she was able to hang with a top player.

I think it's mentally harder for Anna going into a match with the possible embarrassment of losing to a no-name-qualifier than to go up against the #1 who she's played well against before. She's got nothing to lose and Venus could be looking too far ahead to take her seriously.

Granted, I'm not saying the upset wouldn't be a huge surprise. I'm just not laughing at the suggestion.

[woah. majorly laughable typo corrected]

[ May 13, 2002: Message edited by: curtj ]

Monica's withdraw does seem a little questionable - I hope she's working out like crazy and practicing on red clay. Or resting and eating wisely. I presume she'll play next week...she always comes back from layoffs with a fire in her belly..and obviously, the fed cup thing was a disaster..

The Italian Open is a good preview for RG - the quarters will be packed with potential winners and all the girls will be reminded how many good matches it takes to even get to the final...I don't think we'll be seeing an all Williams clay court final...Henin, Cljisters, and yes, Dokic, are likely finalists...

Capriati and Serena both looked very frustrated while playing Henin. Justine has definitely found her groove...Now, can she keep it up and will her confidence solidify after these big wins? I hope so, her clay court play is a thing of beauty...

Hey guys, where can I find the draw? The web site listed (Italian Tennis Fedeeration, I think) only seems to have results and upcoming schedules.

Do NOT get me started on the lack of a Web site for this tournament. It's sickening. It's insulting, both to the players and their fans.

Here's the draw.

If you really want to follow live scores, usually fans from around the world post them on www.wtaworld.com.

Hey Guys

An Anna upset over Venus? We certainly aren't wishing that - are we? Why so Anna can lose in the next round to some unknown?

I'd rather see the Top Guns make it to the quarters: Venus, Serena, JenCap, Clijsters, Henin (although the Belgium Two have been pretty erratic - both with some surprising early round exits this year).

I'd love to see Serena win this one and move up to #3. I thought it was a bit ambitious when Serena publicly stated that she wanted to be #1 by the year's end. Now it doesn't look so daunting.

I think Venus will have more to worry about from Ruano-Pascual or Tulyaganova than Anna. Henin, of course, usually plays well against Venus, and you have to wonder how often Venus can keep coming through in the end. But if Henin is tired she might well fall before meeting Venus--Schiavone & Suarez are good on clay, and Asa Svensson is obviously hot.

Clijsters has a fairly easy draw and should reach the semis. I think she'd beat Henin, but Venus might beat her a second time around.

In the bottom half of the draw, Serena should at least make the quarters. Dokic could challenge her there on clay, I think, but Dokic could easily fall early (Smashnova, Hantuchova). Mauresmo's draw is not particularly challenging (though Dechy is playing well). Capriati has not been in top form this clay court season and could have trouble in round 3 against Pierce or Schnyder. Can Schnyder go through Pierce, Capriati, Mauresmo & Serena Williams again? Probably not, but I wouldn't bet against her beating one or two of them. Serena, Capriati, or (ok maybe I'm dreaming) Amelie should reach the final here. But I think the winner will come out of the top of the draw--probably Venus or Clijsters

I had posted something here, but then realized I'm an idiot. To quote Gilda Radner: "Nevermind."

[ May 14, 2002: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

[ May 14, 2002: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

Well, I was right in thinking that Venus might not make the third round. But I had the wrong reason - she withdrew. Instead, Kournikova is now playing Osterloh. Anna's winning 2-0 in the first. WOW!!!!!

Venus Williams pulls out of Kournikova match due to wrist injury

May 14, 2002


ROME (AP) -- Venus Williams pulled out of her match against Anna Kournikova at the Italian Open Tuesday night because of a wrist injury, with the stadium already half-full for the highly-awaited encounter.

The world's top-ranked player told the crowd she injured her right wrist while picking up her bag at practice this week. The 21-year-old American appeared on court and apologized to the crowd minutes before the match was to begin.

Williams, entering her seventh straight week at No. 1, was also entered in the doubles draw with her sister Serena Williams in this $1.22 million event.

Kournikova played Lilia Osterloh of the United States instead

Can Osterloh be given a bye to the second round??

This smells like collusion to me.

I have a feeling that:

1) Venus is not really injured, she just doesn't want to play in the same tourney with her sister. Fair enough.

2) Italian Open officials are aware of this, but would still like her to come to Rome in order to see how far she can get before having to face her sister.

3) Even though the draw puts them on opposite sides of the bracket, there's no need for them to play. Why? Because ANNA, who's more popular than Venus (especially in Europe), is sitting there to play in the second round.

4) Crowd shows up, Venus does damage control, gets her $$$, Anna plays an opponent she can beat (on clay at least), and advances to one more packed round at the Italian Open.

Everyone's happy! Now, let's see if Capriati can get past Schnyder/Pierce and Mauresmo to capture the semifinal spot, the #1 ranking, and the #1 seed in the French Open (keep in mind that the #1 and #2 seeds are totally interchangable, so it's a distinction without a difference).

Yoiks! It's going to be hard to root for Mauresmo, Pierce, AND J-Cap to come out of the same quarter...

Well I am a total Venus fan - so note my bias - but that said I think Venus is over the issue of playing Serena in the same tourney. Both Williams Sisters are in the Top 4 now - that insures that for any tourney they play - they won't meet until at least the Semis.

I hope the injury is not serious because Venus has really upped her game on clay. Two final appearances in two tourneys - not a bad performance.

And what about JenCap - she's been pretty vocal lately. From the Fed Cup fiasco, to dissing Henin and now shrugging off the Number #1 ranking.
It's so hard to imagine that she's still Number #2 given that she hasn't won a tourney since OZ.

Is the match with Osterloh official or is it just an exhibition?? I think normally that would just be a walkover for Kournikova. Did they just have Osterloh play to appease the crowd or does it really count??

I can live with Anna in the third round, but I'm disappointed we won't get to see the sisters trounce the doubles field. There's something about watching them bounce balls off their opponents at the net that makes me snicker.

Oh, and no one has commented on my favorite result of the day: little Sugiyama took out Dementieva in straight sets! Is it wrong for me to think Sugiyama and Tu would make the cutest doubles team??

Just found out - Momo's playing here without the coach that took her to a great spring last year.

[quote]Mauresmo parts from coach

France's Amelie Mauresmo announced on Tuesday she was parting company with coach Alexia Dechaume two weeks before the French Open. Mauresmo, ranked 11th in the world, travelled to Rome for the Italian Open without Dechaume, who had been coaching her for 1-1/2 years.

"I believe we've reached the maximum we could do together," she said. "I need a coach who kicks my behind."

Charged with this task is Frenchman Loic Courteau who used to train France's Fed Cup team.

---

How's this going to affect her at the French? If this coach really does suit her mental game - it could mean a nice run for our favorite tour lesbian.

Well, Osterloh is not Venus, but she's still a pretty tough player. It looks like Kournikova managed to beat her in three sets 6-1, 4-6,  6-1. Most all of Anna's matches seem to be going to three sets, but I'll take it as a good sign that she actually won the first set. She's typically been starting down and coming back.

Must have been tough for Osterloh to suddenly be summoned to play and be match ready. But yay for Anna!

hanknyc, how did Jen dis Henin? It's funny how different people interpret post-game interviews--somebody else thought Jen was highly complimentary. While she did say that the rain slowed down the surface (probably true) favoring Henin, she also said "She played well. If she played like that all the time, she'd be higher ranked". Personally, I regard that as a fairly neutral statement that Henin would doubtless agree with. Or did you see additional comments that I didn't?

In my opinion, if anyone dissed Henin in Berlin it was Serena with her, "If I had gotten a few first serves in, I would have dominated." comment.

The coach Mauresmo will work with through the French is only temporary, unless there's an amazing rapport and something wonderful happens. On her web site, Amelie said that she had worked with the guy during Fed Cup in years past and since he already knows her game, he was the logical interim choice. She'll be searching for a more permanent replacement after Roland Garros.

In response to the idea that it might be bad timing to change coaches with the French Open a week away, Amelie pointed out that she had a great spring last year and lost in the first round, so who's to say what this year will bring.

I'm glad to see Amelie acknowledging that improvements need to be made and making some tough decisions. Hopefully, she'll do well in Rome and that'll give her a confidence boost going into Paris.

[ May 15, 2002: Message edited by: Gaga4Gaby ]

Dark horse candidate for a finals spot: Silvia Farina Elia. She's got Testud in the next round, and with the home crowd behind her and Testud's general unreliability, I can definitely see Silvia getting past there. Next up would be Clijsters - a tough but surmountable obstacle - and then Henin (or Kournikova!!! ). It's about time she lives up to her ranking with a truly strong result at a big tourney. How great would that be for the home crowd?!?

hey jc

here's how i see it - serena was talking about her own performance and not blaming the loss on the rainy weather

Good for Anna to get into the third round. Henin and Serena are the two players playing the best right now. I pick Henin for her second tournament in a row.

Did anyone else see the story that Martina Hingis' injuries might end her career? Melanie blames the Tacchini shoes. I think that's just a legal ploy, but the joint problems are apparently real. With Hingis out the French presumably, I gotta think the Belgians, Capriati or Mauresmo will win there.

Pierce beat Patty S., no easy feat. I think Cljisters can beat both Serena and Henin, but Henin's played the most impressive clay court tennis as of the last couple weeks.

If it's true about Hingis, that would be awful. She's so young still and it would be interesting to see how the next year or two plays out in the top ten. I hope she recovers quickly. But that does take another top 8 girl, and a semifinal contender, out of the French, keeping the luck of the draw as important as ever.

Anna falls in two sets, it just isn't her year..

No surprises as Henin, Williams, and Mauresmo win so far today.

The best quarterfinal looks like Mauresmo's, should be an intersting match.

[ May 16, 2002: Message edited by: bostonlob ]

Well, at least she GOT to the third round. Better than in Warsaw.

Kournikova l. to Qualifier Ruano Pascual, 6-3 6-2.

Henin, Serena, and Mauresmo also advance. The best matches are coming up - Farina Elia v. Testud (currently tied at 3 in the first set), Dokic v. Myskina, and of course, Cappy v. Pierce. I still can't decide who I want to win this tourney ... damn!

Wow, the seeds are holding!
There's a beautiful picture of Serena at the WTA site (wtatour.com); looks like one of those neo-realist, communist sculptures that would fit right over the hills of the Budapest of yesteryear.
Sorry about your tragic heroine losing, BPJ. Does anybody think Pierce have enough diva qualities, or is she just grumpy? I'm rooting for her over Jennifer.
I haven't heard about any of this being on TV; has anybody?

I wish I could watch the Pierce/Capriati matchup - not only to see where Pierce's game is but to see the tour's #1 grump, Capriati, in action....I doubt Pierce is ready to beat a top 5 player but for Mary it's always been about how she's feeling on any given day, so ya never know..

AK apparently got treatment on her leg again. She can't be 100%, but VRP is no slouch on clay. Are we ready for an all-Belgian semi? If that's what happens, can Henin get over the hump? If she does, will she exhaust herself ala Mauresmo last year, and get kicked out early at RG?

As far as TV, here's the schedule:

Friday, June 17, ESPN, 8:30 p.m. EDT
Saturday, June 18, ESPN, 8:00 p.m. EDT
Sunday, June 19, ESPN2, 12:30 p.m. EDT

This according to TV Guide

Mary has never beaten Jennifer (as far as I know) so I doubt she'll get by her this evening. We can hope though. Nice to see Navratilova finally get some wins this week.

Capriati is 2-0 vs. Pierce, but they haven't played in almost 9 years ('93 French Open) (!). I guess it's not that surprising, given Capriati's lengthy absence followed by Pierce's numerous injury breaks. Still, I wish Pierce were a little further down the recovery road for this match-up to even things out a bit. Capriati just seems to be in better form for this match up.

Defending champ Dokic is out, but that's not a huge surprise in my opinion.

In mostly unrelated news, today -- May 16th -- is Gaby Sabatini's 32nd birthday (My only way to justify the mention is that she was a four-time Italian Open champion!) But, you know, I felt like I needed to share.

The dreaded double bagel.

Capriati d. Pierce 6-0 6-0

Ouch! Not pretty, any way you look at it. I wonder if Mary was that rusty or Jennifer was just on fire tonight.

Oh, that hurts. Come on, Mary, get your ass in gear. That kind of a loss sniffs of retirement...She was so much happier while taking creatine and dating Alomar...get some supplements and a new boyfriend, for god's sake!

All I can say is that it serves Mary right, for having double bageled Martina Hingis at the 1995 Canadian Open. Martina was 14. Fortunately, she recovered to, at least once, win every Tier I event and three of the four grand slams and the season-ending championships. But consider this karma by way of Cappy.

Okay, tomorrow's matchups:

Ruano Pascual v. Henin
First meeting. Ruano Pascual's one of them journeywomen who's never had great results (except in doubles). She did beat Hingis at Wimbledon (!) last year, though, and so is NOT to be taken lightly. Justine's good enough not to let this qualifier win a set, however.

Clijsters v. Testud
First meeting. About time these two met. Kim's played everyone else in the Top Ten (welcome back, Sandrine), with mixed results. Sandrine can catch you napping, and Clijsters is probably not in TOP form (witness losing the second set to Panova) but doesn't want to mess up another meeting of the Belgian Bashers. Clijsters in three.

S. Williams v. Myskina
First meeting. Slowly coming into her own, the woman they call "Nastya" is within spitting distance of the Top 20. This is her fifth quarterfinal of the year, but she hasn't been able to take the next step. But upsetting Dokic is one thing (even in Rome)...lots of women seem to be able to do that these days. Upsetting Serena is another. She may not make the finals, but Serena will make the semis. Serena in two.

Mauresmo v. Capriati
Cappy leads 2-1. The two wins were on hard courts at the last two majors. The loss was in three sets at last year's Berlin final. Expect some heavy hitting maybe? Momo desperately wants to get back on track, defend points, and gain confidence for the French. She can definitely win this match. Capriati was apparently spectacular in her win over Pierce. But she's one only one title this year, and there's some big question marks over her head. This, my friends, is a close call. If Jennifer wins? Number 1 in the world again. Loses? May never see it again. WOW! Gut says Cap in three. I'm rooting for a three-set tiebreak. I assume this will be the televised match tomorrow.

No surprises so far today. The two Belgium's win in two sets, quite easily. Henin vs Clistjers should be a great semi, either one is capable of winning this tournament and the French.

The closer matches are yet to come, especially JenCap vs. Mauresmo, should be a close one.

JenCap and Mauresmo split the first two sets and are tied at 2-2 in the third. It is a close one.

JenCap wins 6-4 in the third.

I really want JenCap to play Serena again especially after all Serena's arrogant comments yesterday. She's got a big head right now and I hope JenCap's ready to play her best this semifinal. Of course, Serena's got to get past one of the hottest young players in Myskina...

Well, it's official. The top seeds, minus limp-wristed Venus, have made their way into the semis. Myskina lost in a respectable 6-3, 6-4 match.

If Henin can get past her mental wall and play a good match against Clijsters, I will have trouble saying which match will be more interesting. I would say we've got two sets of rivals matching up for bragging rights.

I think the title is up for grabs between all four of them.

Curtj, I couldn't agree more. At this point, the title is up for grabs. I give a slight edge to the Serena/Jennifer winner, but not by much.

Let's just hope Monica is ready for the French! Did you all hear that Martina is having ankle surgery and out for a while? No French for her again this year.

GO MONICA!!

Henin won the first set 7-5. I expect both semi-final matches and the final to be tense.

Thus far in the clay court season, the Belgians lead the top Americans (Les Williams & Cap) 3-1. Of course, they're also 0-2 against Smashnova.

Henin took Clijsters in two sets. I knew the numbers were there for her to go up to number five after this tournament pretty much no matter what, but she's doing it in style.