Enjoy here ATP Tour Tennis tournaments, for Men matches of in ESPN. Watch today 17th ATP Challenger Marrakech match free online on your PC.
ATP Challenger Tour
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| Isabella Holland(AUS) / Sally Peers(AUS) or Christina McHale / Ajla Tomljanovic(CRO)[6] | vs. | Alexandra Krunic(SRB) / Sandra Zaniewska(POL) or Beatrice Gumulya / Noppawan Lertcheewakarn(THA)[2] |
Open 2009 matches of Junior Girls' Doubles - Finals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Junior Girls' Doubles - Finals free online on your PC.
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live Australian Open 2009 matches of Junior Boys' Doubles - Finals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Junior Boys' Doubles - Finals free online on your PC.
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You can enjoy here Isabella Holland(AUS) /Sally Peers(AUS) vs Christina McHale(USA)[6] /Ajla Tomljanovic(CRO)[6] live Australian Open 2009 matches of Junior Girls' Doubles - Semifinals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Junior Girls' Doubles - Semifinals free online on your PC.
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You can enjoy here ksenia peevak (RUS)3 vs Ana Boqdan(ROU)2 live Australian Open 2009 matches of Junior Girls' Singles - Semifinals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Junior Girls' Singles - Semifinals free online on your PC.
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You can enjoy here Henri Leconte(FRA) & Mark philippoussis(AUS) vs wayne Arthurs & Pat Cash(AUS) live Australian Open 2009 matches of Legends' Doubles in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Legends' Doubles free online on your PC.
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You can enjoy here Alwxandros-ferdinandos (GER) vs Julen Uriquen (GUA) live Australian Open 2009 matches of Junior Boys' Singles - Semifinals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Junior Boys' Singles - Semifinals free online on your PC.
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You can enjoy here Noppawan Lertcheewakarn (THA)1 vs Laura Robson(GBR)5 live Australian Open 2009 matches of Junior Girls' Singles - Semifinals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Junior Girls' Singles - Semifinals free online on your PC.
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You can enjoy here Rafael Nadal (EPS)1 vs fernando Verdasco (EPS)14 live Australian Open 2009 matches of Men's Singles - Semifinals in ESPN. Watch today Friday, 30 January men's Men's Singles - Semifinals free online on your PC.
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This is news of australian Open Tennis 2009 that Williams ends Dementieva's unbroken run
Women’s second seed Serena Williams has eased through to the women’s singles final at Australian Open 2009, defeating Russia’s Elena Dementieva 6-3 6-4 in their semifinal on Thursday afternoon.
With the roof closed on Rod Laver Arena as Melbourne swelters through another day of temperatures well into the 40s, the nine-time Grand Slam singles champion knocked off the fourth-seeded Russian, who had yet to lose a singles match in 2009 before today.
Williams, the women’s singles champion here in 2003, 2005 and 2007, will play the winner of this afternoon’s Vera Zvonareva/Dinara Safina semifinal in the final, which will be held on Saturday night.
The first set proceeded on serve until the eighth game, where Williams broke the Russian to take a 5-3 lead. She served out the set soon after, Dementieva’s eighth unforced error of the opening set coming on an errant backhand chip down the line. Williams served six aces and no double faults in the opening set, which lasted 44 minutes and saw the second seed win 94 per cent of points where she landed her first serve.
The early stages of the second set produced some spectacular tennis, with Dementieva eventually holding after saving three break points in a game that went to deuce six times and lasted 14 minutes. Dementieva then broke Williams for the first time in the match in the next game, sealing the break by drilling a backhand down the line for a 2-0 advantage.
Games then went on serve until the fifth game of the set, where back-to-back double faults by the Russian, her fourth and fifth of the second set, saw Williams break back for 2-3. The game featured the point of the match, a rally of more than 40 shots that only ended when Williams took a tumble on the baseline in her attempts to reach a fiercely-struck crosscourt forehand by Dementieva.
Williams leveled at 3-3 and then broke Dementieva again for a 4-3 advantage, punishing the Russian for her high unforced error count (17 in the first seven games of the set) and wayward first serve.
Dementieva stood her ground in the eighth game, producing a series of blistering forehands that saw her break back after Williams sent a backhand sailing over the baseline, but the American produced the fifth break of serve for the set in the next game, serving out the match soon after in 98 minutes.
Quick facts
Williams served 10 aces to Dementieva’s three, while Dementieva had eight double faults, all of them in the second set
Williams had 27 winners to Dementieva’s 18, while Dementieva had 28 unforced errors to the American’s 34
Williams converted four of her 10 break point opportunities, while Dementieva was 2-for-6 on break point chances
Dementieva served at just 42 per cent in the second set
Fernando Verdasco’s Australian Open campaign remained in full swing as he carved out a victory over last year’s runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to earn a place in a semifinal of a major for the first time in his career.
As the temperatures soared to 43 degrees outside, it was a cool and composed Verdasco that took to the roof-covered Rod Laver Arena stage to make his first Grand Slam quarterfinal appearance and etch out a 7-6(2) 3-6 6-3 6-2 victory.
The No.14 seed, who recorded a shock defeat over Andy Murray in the fourth round, may have appeared nervous moments before the match – he spilt a drink and dropped an apple in the player restaurant - but by the time he was called to do battle, he appeared to have everything under control.
The first set was a close affair largely played from the back of the court. After games went on serve, it was Verdasco that assumed control of the tiebreak. A combination of two aces and backhand and forehand winners set the Spaniard in good stead. Meanwhile, Tsonga began missing first serves, fired off a wild forehand and netted a backhand to lose the first set.
The Frenchman soon regained form, however, firing on all cylinders to snap up the second 6-3.
Come the third, Verdasco was on fire. He moved the Frenchman all over the court, and when the opportunity arose, he blasted the life out of the ball. A tired Tsonga, meanwhile, was struggling, and when Verdasco found himself in possession of two set points on serve, the third set looked destined to be his.
But then he tightened up, serving a double fault. An astonishing point then followed when a Verdasco stroke clipped the net and Tsonga returned the ball through his legs to eventually win it.
A third set point chance arose when Tsonga netted a volley. Controversy then ensued. The Spaniard hit what appeared to be a winning groundstroke, but it was called out. Verdasco challenged; he was right and the point had to be replayed.
Instead of becoming agitated, the 25-year-old simply smiled and remained calm. He then served what appeared to be an ace, but a let was then called. When the point finally got underway, Tsonga hit the ball out to give Verdasco the set.
The Spaniard continued to grow in confidence in the fourth, approaching the net as the Frenchman began to fade. Interestingly, the Spaniard capitalised on all four of his break point opportunities throughout the match, whereas Tsonga only took two of his 13 chances.
"I'm feeling pretty good and I just want to go out there for first time in semifinals in Grand Slam and enjoy that moment, do my best, just enjoy and try my best," said Verdasco after the match. "Right now I'm believing so much about me, about my game, I'm feeling pretty good, and I just think that I can beat anyone. But, you know, the same way that I can win, I can lose. I'm playing with the best players in the world. Of course, they are always tough matches."
The Spaniard, who has been working with Andre Agassi's fitness trainer Gil Reyes, has also taken on board some words of wisdom from the four-time Australian Open champion, who just happens to be his idol.
"He was just giving me advices about, you know, what he thinks about all this, about what tournaments I need to play or which weeks I need to practice and be ready for the big tournaments. Also about tactics, and about my game, how he thinks that I should play more and take more advantage of my game. We was speaking for two hours, so we spoke a lot. But he really help me so much. I'm so happy to had that conversation with him."
If Rafael Nadal defeats Gilles Simon tonight, it will be the first time in Australian Open history that two Spanish men have met in the semifinals.
Quick facts
Verdasco served at 79 per cent for the match, and served seven aces to Tsonga’s nine
Tsonga hit 46 winners to Verdasco’s 36, but made 40 unforced errors to Verdasco’s 29
Verdasco capitalised on all four of the break point chances he had on Tsonga’s serve, while the Frenchman was just 2-for-13 on break point opportunities (15 per cent)
The Spaniard won 14 of the 20 points where he approached the net
Here is the news of Australian open Tennis tournament.Lets have alook...
Confidence is a funny thing. Worse, it is a fickle thing. Just when you think you can rely upon it, it vanishes and then, when you think you will never master it, it becomes your best friend.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had barrow loads of it as he marched to the final here last year, his maiden appearance in a Grand Slam decider. Coming back this year, the pressure of being expected to repeat last year's result or – whisper who dare – go one better could have derailed him, while the back injury he picked up before the tournament could have distracted him. But instead, his old mate Confidence put his arm round his shoulder and led him all the way to the quarterfinals. Unfortunately, that is where it all went wrong.
However much belief Tsonga had in his own abilities and his own chances, it was nothing compared to Fernando Verdasco’s. If Tsonga thought he could win the Australian Open, then Verdasco believed he could fly. Or walk on water. Or heal the sick, feed the poor and split the atom.
You see, Verdasco won the Davis Cup last year - and he just hasn't been the same since. The Davis Cup may be a team competition, but it is a team of individuals, and as Spain took on Argentina in the final, the fourth – and, it turned out, deciding – match fell to Verdasco. If he could find a way to beat Jose Acasuso, the huge and historic trophy would be on its way to Spain and Verdasco would become a national treasure. No pressure, then, Fernando …
Until that point in his career, the 25-year-old from Madrid had done well enough on the tour but he had never taken the world by storm. He had collected a couple of tournament titles, he had earned several million dollars, but he was a world away from the likes of Roger Federer, Andy Roddick and that generation while the new, young stars of the game – the Nadals, the Djokovics and the Murrays – knew how to beat him.
It was Emilio Sanchez, Spain's Davis Cup captain, who made the surprise decision to drop David Ferrer on the third day of the final and call up Verdasco. Sanchez then sat beside the world No. 15 and talked him through the five sets it took to beat Acasuso and turn Verdasco's career around.
Now, whenever he gets into a spot of bother on the tennis court, he thinks back and remembers what Sanchez told him that day. Then anything seems possible. Down two sets to one against Andy Murray in the fourth round? What was it Emilio said again? Dropped a set to Tsonga on Wednesday? Just remember, you won the Davis Cup.
And so, with Confidence standing at his shoulder, Verdasco has powered his way through to the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his career. He absolutely walloped Tsonga 7-6(2) 3-6 6-3 6-2.
"I think that that Davis Cup final made me much stronger mentally," Verdasco said. "I was believing in myself because I feel so good. That's help me so much: to go to the court and try to really win the match because sometimes you go to the court when you don't have this big confidence. That's so important: to believe in yourself."
What has also helped is the work he did with Gil Reyes during the off-season. It was Reyes who kept Andre Agassi at the peak of fitness into his mid-30s and who also taught him a few of life's truths. Agassi credits him not only for helping him with the physical challenge of winning Grand Slam trophies on a regular basis, but also with the mental approach to dealing all the stresses and problems that professional sport throws up.
The most obvious change in Verdasco since his trip to Las Vegas to see Reyes is his serve. The extra upper body strength has helped the speed, and the confidence has helped the consistency. Just as he had against Murray in the previous round, he served like a demon against Tsonga. In the fourth set, his first serve accuracy was up to 88 per cent, while his average for the match was a staggering 76 per cent.
And now he is in a Grand Slam semifinal.
Two weeks of hard labour with Reyes has given him some extra muscle, but not enough to become a world-beater. But one match in Argentina back in November has changed his life.
Fernando Verdasco and his new friend Confidence are through to the last four - and they’re happy to take on all comers.
Watch & Enjoythe highlights of Thursday's evening session at the Australian Open, featuring Tsonga, Ljubicic, Murray, Granollers.
