Li Na has been a pioneer in tennis. Many of the historical firsts in singles for an Asian player belong to her. However, on day 3 of Roland Garros 2014, the Chinese superstar found herself on the wrong side of history. Following Stanislas Wawrinka’s loss the day before, Li Na’s defeat at the hands of … Continue reading
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2014 Internazionali BNL d’Italia Day 5: Ana Ivanovic Defeats Maria Sharapova; Eugenie Bouchard’s Pope Selfie
Ana Ivanovic ended a seven year ache by defeating Maria Sharapova 6-1 6-4 in the third round of the 2014 Internazionali BNL d’Italia . It had been seven years since Ana last beat Masha, then at Roland Garros 2007. In the interim, Ivanovic had lost her last seven matches against Sharapova. As if that weren’t … Continue reading
2014 Mutua Madrid Open First Round Wrap-Up: Top 4 Seeds Williams, Li, Radwanska and Halep Advance
The clay court season is in full swing as the bigger events kick off, starting with the completion of the first round at the 2014 Mutua Madrid Open. The top four seeds, including defending champion Serena Williams, all advanced in straight sets. Serena faced Belinda Bencic, a 17-year old Swiss player who is seen as … Continue reading
2014 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix First Round Wrap-Up: Ana Ivanovic Cruises; Maria Sharapova Survives
Two ladies came into the 2014 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix (Stuttgart) off of tournament victories. Andrea Petkovic won in Charleston while Ana Ivanovic took the title in Monterrey. Only Ana would make it through the first round in Stuttgart. Ivanovic was impressive in taking out the dangerous Sabine Lisicki in front of her home country … Continue reading
2014 BNP Paribas Open At Indian Wells Fourth Round Wrap-Up: Simona Halep Edges Eugenie Bouchard; Dominika Cibulkova Continues Strong Play
I anticipated a hotly contested match between upstarts Simona Halep and Eugenie Bouchard at the 2014 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. That’s exactly what they delivered. Early on, it didn’t look good for the Canadian as Genie came out very much off her game. She double faulted twice in the first game of the … Continue reading
2014 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells 3rd Round Wrap-Up: Eugenie Bouchard and Simona Halep Advance To Set Up Showdown Of Rising Stars; Maria Sharapova Upset By Camila Giorgi
Round 3 of the 2014 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells saw two rising stars of the tour, Eugenie Bouchard and Simona Halep, advance to set up an intriguing 4th round match-up. When she’s on, Simona Halep is one of the best shot makers on tour. However, in her match against Lucie Safarova, Simona was … Continue reading
2014 BNP Paribas Open At Indian Wells 2nd Round Wrap-Up: Li Na, Maria Sharapova Advance
One day after a hobbled Victoria Azarenka was sent packing in straight sets by American Lauren Davis, the rest of the top seeds (save for Angelique Kerber) restored ordered to the draw at the 2014 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. Entering the first of back to back “mini Majors” as the top seed, Li … Continue reading
2014 Australian Open Women’s Singles Day 8; Victoria Azarenka Moves Forward, Maria Sharapova Moves Out
When Serena Williams lost to Ana Ivanovic, some asked who the favorite to win the 2014 Australian Open women’s crown would be, offering up Ana and Li Na as new top guns. Well, have they forgotten that the 2-time defending champion, Victoria Azarenka, is still in the tournament? If they did, Vika reminded everybody who … Continue reading
2014 Australian Open Women’s Singles Third Round Thoughts: Garbine Muguruza Pulls Upset Of Caroline Wozniacki, Tantalizing Fourth Round Match-Ups
In my wrap up of the 2014 Australian Open women’s singles 2nd round, I said the 3rd round match that intrigued me the most was Caroline Wozniacki vs Garbine Muguruza. I questioned whether despite looking like a future top 10 player, if Garbine was far enough in her development to handle Caroline at a Major. … Continue reading
2014 Australian Open Women’s Singles Second Round Thoughts: Maria Sharapova Survives, Players Try To Beat The Heat
With the heat at dangerous levels, the second round of the 2014 Australian Open women’s singles draw concluded with the top 4 seeds still on track for the semis…barely. Karin Knapp looked to spoil the party by upsetting 3rd seed Maria Sharapova. But in the end, Masha showed the heart that has made her a … Continue reading
Fairways and Forehands 