Stosur, Vika and Clijsters Reach Eastbourne Quarters; Simon Back to Winning Ways

Kim Clijster's return to the tour after a 6-week layoff due to an ankle injury has been a triumphant one. The Belgian looks primed for a good run at Wimbledon, as she has lost 2 games in 2 matches to reach the Eastbourne quarterfinals. After crushing Yanina Wickmayer, Clijsters handed a similar beat down to Lucie Safarova, earning a 6-1, 6-0 win in a whopping 38 minutes. Sam Stosur's win took on a different storyline, as the Aussie ousted Daniela Hantuchova 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 after having 3 match points.

Aravane Rezai retired down 6-2, 3-0 to Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, and Victoria Azarenka punished junior Heather Watson 1 and 1. Marion Bartoli worked hard for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 comeback win against Agnes Szavay while Nadia Petrova was crushed by Ekaterina Makarova, 6-2, 6-0. Svetlana Kuznetsova is unseeded at the Wimbledon warm-up, as her ranking has tumbled to 20th, but she pulled off an impressive 3-set victory against Sorana Cirstea, 4-6, 7-6 (6, 7-6, (4).

In the men's tournament, Gilles Simon, who had yet to play a match before his first round win over Evgeny Korolev, and the Frenchman continued his triumphant return with a a 3-set victory against Alex Kuznetsov, 6-1, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (2). Top seeded Nicolas Almagro was taken off the court on a stretcher after slipping at the baseline and suffering a hip injury against Denis Istomin. The Spaniard was down 6-4, 1-0. Julien Benneteau won in straights to reach the quarters, along with 8th seeded Michael Llodra, a 3 set winner.

Roland Garros Women's Predictions

Serena and Venus Williams enter Roland Garros ranked 1 and 2, respectively, for the first time in 7 years, but that doesn't mean they are the top two favorites. Serena can never be counted out at a major, because when she wants it she goes and gets it, but it's no mystery that the American struggles mightily on the red dirt. In her illustrious career she has only won the French once, while Venus has never won it. Older sis has the best record of any woman on tour this year, at 26-4, but those four losses have been strange. Blowouts at the hands of Jelena Jankovic and Kim Clijsters, and unforced error-filled disasters against Aravane Rezai and Li Na. Justine Henin is probably the most-picked 22nd seed in Major history, while Svetlana Kuznetsova, the defending champ, could repeat or get double-bageled in round one. once again with the ladies, it's anyone's guess.

1st Quarter

So much for being the top seed, right? Serena's quarter is LOADED. Serena's chances are already greatly diminished on clay, but with a stacked quarter to get through, the tennis gods were not on ReRe's side at the draw ceremony. Here lies Justine Henin, 4-time FO winner, Sam Stosur, 2009 semifinalist, playing incredibly well this year and Maria Sharapova, 2009 quarterfinalist. Henin has obviously proved herself as the best clay-courter in women;s tennis, but she's had to win ugly a lot this year, and with motivation on her side, Sam Stosur could very well defeat the Belgian in their potential 4th round match. Of course, Henin will have to get by Sharapova, who won in Strasbourg this week, but that doesn't seem to be much of an issue. Serena will have her hands full with Shahar Peer, seeded 18th, and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, a big hitting Russian that could give Williams trouble. Here's your first surprise of the women's draw.

Early rounder to keep an eye on: Sharapova vs. Henin

Quarterfinals: Stosur def. Williams

2nd Quarter

Jelena Jankovic headlines a tricky 2nd section that won't be easy to conquer. Agnieszka Radwanksa is a surprise 8th seed followed by Dinara Safina, who's comeback from back surgery hasn't gone as planned, causing the Russian to fall out of the top 8, to number 9. Vera Zvonareva, Alisa Kleybanova and Yanina Wickmayer all pose serious threats to make a deep run. Jankovic enters Roland Garros having had a solid clay-court campaign, reaching the finals in Rome, beating both Williams; along the way. Radwanska has been off the radar and isn't playing well enough to make any noise, and the same goes for two-time runner-up Safina. Zvonareva was impressive in Charleston, while Kleybanova can outhit anyone when she's hot. WIckmayer is tricky to figure out, but was trounced by Jankovic in Rome. Ana Ivanovic, the 2008 Roland Garros champion, also lies in the 2nd section, and impressed in Rome, but she's not ready to be a contender again. It's evident that JJ will have a difficult time reaching the semis, but she won't have to see Radwanska, Safina, Zvonareva or Kleybanova till the quarters, and once she's on a roll she's hard to stop.

Early rounder to keep an eye on: Kleybanova vs. Ivanovic

Quarterfinals: Jankovic def. Kleybanova

3rd Quarter

There isn't really a nice way to put this. The 3rd quarter of the women's draw sucks. Sure, the 2009 French Open winner, Svetlana Kuznetsova, is here, but Kuzzie is so sporadic it's anyone's guess what she could do. And Caroline Wozniacki, seeded 3rd, comes in with zero confidence, with just 3 wins in her last 4 tournaments and a serious ankle injury. While Kuznetsova is underplayed, Wozniacki is overplayed, and it's coming back to hurt her. Obviously, one person from this section is going to reach the semis, but none have the current form needed to do it. So it's safe to go out on a limb and pick someone out of a hat. Fine, you wouldn't be too smart to go with Misaki Doi of Japan, but perhaps Elena Vesnina, a powerful Russian with years of experience on her side, wouldn't be too far of a limb? She'll have to get by Wozzi, Kuzzie, Li Na, Francesca Schiavone, Lucie Safarova and Flavia Pennetta, and that's no easy task, but there isn't a safe choice.

Early rounder to keep an eye on: Polona Hercog vs. Safarova

Quarterfinals: Vesnina def. Safarova



4th Quarter

Like her sister, Venus got the short end of the stick with the extremely deep draw she'll have to get through. Elena Dementieva isn't playing her best tennis right now, but as a former French Open finalist and the best groundstroker in women's tennis, she'll always have a chance. Victoria Azarenka, Aravane Rezai, winner in Madrid, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, winner in Rome, and Nadia Petrova all have the game to knock off Venus or Elena. Rezai did it just last week with her straight set win over Williams and Martinez Sanchez's crafty serve and volley game sets her apart from hers peers. Azarenka reached the quarters here last year and Petrova is a one-time semifinalist. Venus could meet Petrova in the 3rd round, while Azarenka and Sanchez are slated to face in that same round for a shot at Dementieva. Whoever comes out of this section triumphant, one thing is assured: It'll be quite the thriller.

Early rounder to keep an eye on: Martinez Sanchez vs Azarenka

Quarterfinals: Dementieva def. Petrova

Semifinals: Jankovic def. Stosur, Dementieva def. Vesnina

The two best women on tour that have yet to win a major will square off in the final that is guarenteed to be exciting. Both have reached a major final and lost, and a Grand Slam crown is long overdue for both. But more for Dementieva. Time for the WTA's resident screacher to lose that "best to never win a major" title.

Finals: Dementieva def. Jankovic

Madrid Results: Federer Advances, Dementieva and Wozniacki Ousted on Day 3 in Madrid

Madrid Results postings have been slow 'cuz I've been totally bogged down with school shit and all the rest....ya catch my drift?

But I forced myself to bring you all some of the happenings from Madrid so far. As I'm sure you know, Kuzzie, Maria, Dinara and Vika have all been upset. Serena won in an epic match against Vera Dushevina 7-6, 6-7, 7-6 and Venus won her opening round match on Sunday. Ferrer, Monfils (debuting K-Swiss) and Almagro all advanced and that should catch you up. Now, on to today.

Roger Federer looked better than he did last week (thankfully) in beating Benjamin Becker today, winning in 2 sets 6-2, 7-6 (4). Ernests Gulbis picked up right where he left off in his fantastic run in Rome, defeating last week's Estoril winner Albert Montanes 6-1, 7-5. Mikhail Youzhny earned a comeback victory, 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 as did John Isner 5-7, 6-2, 6-2. Stanislas Wawrinka and Thomaz Bellucci both won in straight sets.

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez was showered with publicity for her brilliant victory in Rome last week, but Sam Stosur has been just as impressive, and proved to the world that she is without a doubt a Roland Garros contender by ousting Martinez Sanchez in Madrid today, 7-6 (2), 6-4. 16th seeded Nadia Petrova won 6-2, 7-5 against Klara Zakopalova, who beat Safina yesterday. Shahar Peer won in a lopsided match against Alisa Kleybanova, 7-6 (4), 6-0. Li Na beat Dominika Ciblukova 7-5 in the third.

Fernando Verdasco overcame a tall task in beating 6'10 Ivo Karlovic 7-6 (6), 6-3, while Sam Querrey was narrowly defeated by Daniel Munoz- De La Nava 6-7 (3), 6-5, 7-5. Marcos Baghdatis beat Marco Chiudinelli 3 and 4, joining others such as Victor Hanescu, Phillip Petzschner and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in the 3rd round.

Venus Williams didn't get the best draw in Rome, as she was set to play Vera Zvonareva, only unseeded because she has fallen out of the top 20, in the 2nd round. Despite this difficult task, Venus handled the Russian with ease, winning the late-night encounter in 2 sets. The upsets in the ladies' draw continued as Caroline Wozniacki,now in jeopardy of losing her number 2 ranking, was bested by Alona Bondarenk0 6-2, 6-3. Elena Dementieva was beaten in 3 sets by Alexandra Dulgheru, 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 while Agnieszka Radwanksa, Marion Bartoli and Flavia Pennetta, all seeded in the top 15 this week, were upset.

Martinez Sanchez Stuns Jankovic; Captures Rome Crown

In an age where baseline tennis dominates the game, few expect old-fashioned serve-and-volleyers to have much success, but Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez defied the odds in Rome this week, taking out Caroline Wozniacki, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, in the final, to win the prestigious title. After the Spaniard's 7-6 (5), 7-5 victory, which included a stunning display of drop-shots and picture-perfect volleys, she told the press, "It was really an unbelievable tournament for me. What can I say? It’s incredible."

The 26th-ranked Martinez Sanchez blew a 5-2 lead in the first set, but was able to pull herself together when Jankovic took a 6-5 lead, snatching the first set from the Serb.

“She played so well,” said Jankovic, who also had a stellar week, defeating both Williams sisters to reach the final. “She really killed me with all those drop shots, and I killed myself falling all over the place.”

Rome Womens Results: Jankovic Saves 1 MP to Reach Finals, Martinez Sanchez Dominates

One day Jelena Jankovic is pummeling her opponents, like in Thursday's match with Venus Williams, and the next day she is hanging on by a thread, like today. Serena Williams held a match point against the Serbian in their semifinal match in Rome, but JJ gritted her way to a huge victory to reach her 2nd final of the year. Serena served for the match twice in the final set and had a 5-2 lead in the 3rd set tiebreak, but Jankovic proved that no lead is ever safe, bringing herself back into the match and eventually coming out on top.

“To beat both Williams sisters in two days is really amazing,” said Jelena. “I’m really proud of myself. It doesn’t happy too often.” Serena, though, felt like it was her match to win, telling the press, “I wasn’t playing the points right. I feel like I should have won, could have won. I think I had an apple in my throat, but it is what it is.”

Jelena's final round opponent will be someone no one expected, as Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez had an easy time beating Ana Ivanovic, the story of the tournament, in their semi. Ivanovic struggled mightily with Martinez Sanchez's serve and volley approach, along with her varying slices, which caused the Serb to make many mistakes.

The Spaniard is ranked 26th, and following her 6-4, 6-2 victory, is guaranteed to improve her ranking by several spots. Ivanovic has slipped all the way down to 58th, but will also be assured of a significant ranking increase after her surprisingly impressive showing in Italy.

Rome Womens Results: Ivanovic, Serena, JJ and Martinez Sanchez into Semis

After Ana Ivanovic beat Elena Vesnina in the first round we were all happy that she atleast won a match. After she took out Victoria Azarenka, we were impressed, but made sure we didn't hype this whole thing up too much. Then she gritted out her match with Elena Dementieva and beat one more Russian, Nadia Petrova, today, 6-2, 7-5, to reach the semis. Now I think it's appropriate to conjure up the possibilities of Ana *gulp* possibly becoming a contender again. She has been extremely poised all week while managing her usually erratic ball toss and keeping those fiery emotions in check.

Next, she'll take on Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, who beat Caroline Wozniacki on Wednesday and Lucie Safarova 7-6 (6), 6-4. The Spaniard hit 7 aces in the win, which was interrupted by a 15 minute rain delay near the end of the first set.

If anyone has shown that they are ready to contend at the French open, it's Jelena Jankovic. After dominating Yanina Wickmayer, the Serb played even better today, if that's possible, in steamrolling Venus Williams 6-0, 6-1. When asked if she was expecting to beat venus so easily, JJ replied, "Of course not. I had so many tough matches against Venus. It’s great to win—6-0, 6-1 is really unbelievable."

Things won't get any easier for the top-ranked Serb, though, as next up is Serena Williams, amazed she is still in the tournament despite coming off numerous injuries. Serena played her best match of the tournament in dispatching Maria Kirilenko 6-1, 6-4. Williams struggled mightily with her serve but was solid off the ground, preventing Krilenko from getting back in the match during a rough stretch in the second. "My knee is feeling good so far," the world number 1 said. "I can’t believe I’m still in the tournament—it’s weird."