It was 2011, in the tunnels connecting Louis Armstrong Stadium and the Grandstand on the grounds of the U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Leaving a quick practice session, Robin Soderling, perhaps the most dangerous player in the draw at any event he competed in, left the tunnel to head…
Victoria Azarenka returned to the court on Tuesday as she took on Italian Camilia Giorgi in the first round at the Aegon International. It was the Belarus native’s first match in more than three months as she has been dealing with a serious foot injury since January. Her comeback was only brief, however, as Giorgi…
The seventh-ranked player in the world David Ferrer says he is unsure if he will be able to compete at Wimbledon next week after withdrawing from the grass-court Topshelf Open on Monday. The Spaniard cited stomach problems as the reason for his withdrawal from the event, which is used by many players to get used…
Top-seeded Ana Ivanovic defeated Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova in the Aegon Classic final on Sunday to notch the first grass-court title of her career. She cruised past Zahlavova-Strycova 6-3, 6-2 in a little over an hour in what was a very cleanly played match. After Ivanovic had her serve broken early in the first set, she regained…
Roger Federer captured the Gerry Weber Open for the seventh time in his career on Sunday, defeating Colombian Alejandro Falla 7-6(2), 7-6(3) in Halle, Germany. The Gerry Weber Open is one of the first grass-court tournaments of the year and prepares its participants for the upcoming Wimbledon, which the Swiss native has also won seven…
Second-seeded Tomas Berdych was knocked out of the Aegon Championships at The Queen’s Club in London on Friday, as tenth-seeded Feliciano Lopez pulled off the upset 6-4, 7-6(7) in a quarterfinal matchup. The Spanish Lopez used a powerful serve to dispose of Berdych, smashing 13 aces over the course of the match. With the match…
In one of the more exciting matches of the season so far, German Philipp Kohlschreiber hung on to defeat fellow German Dustin Brown 6-4, 5-7, 7-6(16) to reach the Gerry Weber Open semifinals in Halle, Germany on Friday. The unseeded Kohlschreiber saved five match points in the third set tiebreaker to capture the match. He…
Third-seeded American Sloane Stephens was sent home from the Aegon Classic on Friday, falling to China’s Zhang Shuai 3-6, 1-6 in the quarterfinals from Birmingham, England. Zhang looked poised from the onset, smashing a couple of nice returns early in the first set to put Stephens back on her heels. She broke Stephens which turned…
French Open champion and top-seed Rafael Nadal fell in his first match since Roland Garros as he was stunned by German Wild Card Dustin Brown 6-4, 6-1 in the Gerry Weber Open on Thursday. Brown broke Nadal’s serve in his fifth try late in the first set to jump ahead and capture the opening frame…
American Sloane Stephens advanced to the quarterfinals of the Aegon Classic on Thursday, defeating fellow American Alison Riske, 7-6(4) 2-6, 6-1. Riske, who is the fourth highest ranked American behind the Williams sisters and Stephens, is one of the rising American stars on the women’s side and provided a tough challenge for the third-seeded Stephens….