Tennis

[Rasputin]

Rafael Nadal thrashed world number one Roger Federer to win a fourth successive French Open title on Sunday.

The Spaniard, 22, won 6-1 6-3 6-0 in one hour 48 minutes to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1981 to win four Roland Garros titles in a row.

Federer had lost the previous two finals to Nadal, and was broken at the start of each set this time as he struggled to find his best form.

Nadal becomes the seventh man to win a Grand Slam without dropping a set.

[Rasputin]

نادال با غلبه بر جاکوویچ قهرمان کوئینز شد


رافائل نادال نخستین تنیس بازی است که موفق می شود در یک سال هم رولان گاروس و هم کوئینز را فتح کند
رافائل نادال اسپانیایی، تنیس باز شماره دو جهان موفق شد در فینال مسابقات کوئینز لندن در دوست متوالی بر نواک جاکوویچ از صربستان غلبه کند و قهرمان این مسابقات شود.
نادال 22 ساله در این بازی در دو ست نزدیک و با نتایج 7 بر 6 و 7 بر 5 بر جاکوویچ 21 اسله که تنیس باز سوم جهان و قهرمان مسابقات امسال تنیس آزاد استرالیا است، غلبه کند.

مسابقات تنیس کوئینز هر ساله به صورت سنتی یک هفته پیش از شروع مسابقات تنیس ویمبلدون در لندن برگزار می شود.

رافائل نادال هفته گذشته در فینال مسابقات تنیس آزاد فرانسه، رولان گاروس، راجر فدرر سوئیسی را شکست داد و برای چهارمین سال متوالی قهرمان این مسابقات شد.

این نخستین بار است از دوره جدید برگزاری مسابقات کوئینز در سال 1979 است که یک تنیس باز در یک سال هم در رولان گاروس و هم در کوئینز قهرمان می شود.

از آنجا که مسابقات تنیس کوئینز، مانند ویمبلدون و بر خلاف رولان گاروس، بر روی چمن انجام می شود قهرمانی نادال در این مسابقات بخت او را برای قهرمانی در ویمبلدون نیز افزایش می دهد.

راجر فدرر در 5 دوره اخیر ویمبلدون قهرمان این مسابقات شده و رافائل نادال تلاش دارد نوار موفقیت های او در ویمبلدون را پاره کند.

البته راجر فدرر در مسابقات کوئینز شرکت نکرده بود و در همین زمان در آلمان و در مسابقات جری وبر حضور داشت که در آن تورنمنت نیز به سادگی و با غلبه بر حریفان نه چندان شناخته شده قهرمان شد.

مسابقات تنیس ویمبلدون از روز دوشنبه 23 ژوئن آغاز می شود.

[abadani69]

ديويد نعلبنديان تنيس باز آرژانتيني از دور مسابقات بين المللي تنيس ويمبلدون حذف شد.

وي در گذشته هيچگاه پيش از مرحله 32 نفره ويمبلدون از اين مسابقات خارج نشده بود
تنيس باز شماره هفت مردان جهان در اولين روز گرنداسلم ويمبلدون به دست تنيس بازي گمنام از کانادا در سه ست حذف شد.
نعلبنديان آرژانتيني که در فينال سال 2002 اين گرند اسلم به ليتون هيويت باخت ، مقابل فرانک دانچويچ 23 ساله ، 6-4، 6-2 و 6-4 شکست خورد.
نعلبنديان که تا کنون شش بار در رقابتهاي تنيس ويمبلدون شرکت کرده هيچگاه در دور اول اين مسابقات نباخته بود.
اين تنيس باز 26 ساله پس از اين مسابقه که تنها 96 دقيقه طول کشيد گفت : " من خوب بازي نکردم اما تلاش خودم ر انجام دادم و هر امتيازي که از دست دادم ، با اختلاف بسيار کم از دست دادم ."
دانچويچ که براي کسب مجوز حضور در ويمبلدون ، در رقابتهاي وربيتون چلنجر پيروز شده بود، در رقابتهاي کوئينز لندن در دور اول بخاطر آسيب ديدگي از ناحيه مچ دست کنار رفت .
دانچويچ پس از مسابقه گفت : "اين يکي از بهترين بردهاي عمر حرفه اي من بود . با اين مچ ، من حتي از حضور يافتن در ويمبلدون هم خوشحال بودم ."
در ديگر مسابقات مردان ، راجر فدرر اميد اول قهرماني ، با شکست دادن دومينيک هرباتي از اسلواکي با نتيجه 6-3، 6-2، 6-2 گام اول را محکم برداشت .
نواک جاکوويچ ، اميد شماره سه قهرماني مايکل برر را با مشکلات بيشتر 7-5، 2 -6، 6-3 و 6-0 از پيش رو برداشت .
ديويد فرر (اميد شماره پنج )، توماس برديچ (شماره 11)، مارکوس بغداتيس ( شماره 20) و ماريو انچيچ (آخرين تنيس بازي که فدرر را در ويمبلدون شکست داده ) نيز از ديگر تنيس بازان موفق روز اول بودند.
در مسابقات زنان هم آنا ايوانوويچ ، اميد اول قهرماني ، تنها در مدت 58 دقيقه روسانا دلوس ريوس را 6-1، 6-2 شکست داد.
سرنا ويليامز قهرمان پيشين ويمبلدون هم از آزموني زودهنگام مقابل کايا کانپي از استوني موفق خارج شد.
تنيس باز شماره 36 جهان ويليامز را در هر دو ست آزار داد، اما سرنا در نهايت 7-5، 6-3 او را شکست داد.
آملي مورسمو قهرمان سال 2006 اين مسابقات و اسوتلانا کوزنتسووا (اميد شماره چهار قهرماني زنان ) نيز در ديدار مرحله اول خود پيروز شدند.

[abadani69]

Third-seeded Maria Sharapova has advanced to the second round at Wimbledon with a 6-1, 6-4 win over French qualifier Stephanie Foretz.

The 2004 Wimbledon champion broke Foretz’s serve four times and had little difficulty in her first match on grass this season.

Much was made of what the 21-year-old Russian player was wearing when she walked onto Court 1, which she described as a tuxedo inspired coat and shorts.

“Every time I come to Wimbledon, I want to do something classy,” she said.

[abadani69]

With Wimbledon devolving into a fashion contest, former champion Lindsay Davenport’s retro getup may have trumped all other outfits.

Her sleeveless white top and pleated s***t were very 1980s, and the wrap on her right leg—with bandages extending from mid-thigh to mid-calf—looked like something out of the British Museum.

Playing her first match at Wimbledon since 2005, Davenport whacked enough winners to compensate for a sore knee Tuesday, and she hobbled past Renata Voracova 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.

Moving more comfortably into the second round were Maria Sharapova and her new all-white, tuxedo-style outfit, which prompted 13 fashion-related questions at her postmatch news conference. Other winners in straight sets included defending champion Venus Williams, Rafael Nadal and Andy Roddick on a second successive mild, dry day at the All England Club.

While photographers focused on Sharapova’s ensemble, and Roddick poked fun at Roger Federer’s opening-day sweater, Davenport resorted to tactics that had her winning ugly. Back on the women’s tour after a hiatus to have her first child, the 1999 Wimbledon champion showed she still possesses the grass-court game to beat anyone—even on one leg.

“I wouldn’t come here if I didn’t think I would do really well,” Davenport said.

Idle for two months after sitting out the clay-court season, Davenport feared rust would be a problem in the opening round. But she was troubled more by a sore knee that has bothered her in recent weeks.

Playing on Court 2—the “Graveyard of Champions”—Davenport held a match point in the 10th game of the second set but failed to convert it. Before the final set began, she required treatment from a trainer, who probed and stretched her knee, then sprayed and wrapped her right thigh. During a changeover three games later, more tape was applied to the knee.

“Some days it feels OK, and other days it is a problem,” Davenport said. “In the latter stages of the second set, I definitely felt like it was getting worse. I didn’t feel great in the third.”

Limited mobility wasn’t really a problem, however, because Davenport has compensated for that her whole career. She went for a big shot at every opportunity, eager to end points quickly, and often did by swatting a winner.

“I actually felt like I started hitting the ball a little bit better because I felt like I needed to do more with it,” Davenport said.

She had help: Voracova double-faulted to fall behind 5-3 in the final set. Davenport lost the first point of the next game, then ripped an ace, a service winner, another ace and another service winner for the victory. She looked to the sky in relief and limped off the court, but an hour later she sounded optimistic about her chance of moving deep into the draw.

Seeded only 25th, Davenport proudly noted she hasn’t lost before the quarterfinals at Wimbledon since 1997.

“I’ve had some of my greatest memories here,” she said. “What started off as a Grand Slam that I probably liked the least definitely turned into one I liked the most in the latter part of my career.”

She’s still a youngster compared to 36-year-old Jonas Bjorkman, whose 15th Wimbledon ended with a four-set defeat against Arnaud Clement. Bjorkman plans to retire in October.

Another veteran, No. 4-seeded Nikolay Davydenko, lost to Benjamin Becker 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, but it was hardly an upset. The opening-round defeat was Davydenko’s fifth at Wimbledon in seven years.

Afterward the Russian again addressed an investigation into heavy wagering on a match he lost last August at an obscure tournament in Poland. He has repeatedly denied wrongdoing.

“Nobody can prove anything,” Davydenko said. “I think there’s no match-fixing in tennis.”

Nadal began his bid to end Federer’s five-year reign by beating qualifier Andreas Beck 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (0). Nadal, runner-up to Federer the past two years, is coming off his fourth consecutive French Open championship and a win at Queen’s for his first grass-court title.

Three U.S. males reached the second round: Roddick, James Blake and Jesse Levine, who beat fellow American Donald Young. Mardy Fish of the United States lost to No. 8-seeded Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.

Roddick never faced a break point and defeated Eduardo Schwank 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (0). He then weighed in on this week’s fashion buzz, which started with the cardigan Federer wore Monday onto Centre Court.

“I personally don’t care,” Roddick said. “But any attention drawn to tennis for whatever reason is good. If that means wearing the Mr. Rogers sweater, whatever else you got, then so be it. I don’t know if it would be a good look for me or any of my friends. Or relatives.”

Sharapova wore a belted tuxedo warmup jacket onto Court 1, along with a sheer bib-style blouse and—for the first time at a Grand Slam event—shorts. Of secondary interest: She beat qualifier Stephanie Foretz 6-1, 6-4.

“To be able to perform in that, with it being so thin, so mobile, it’s really cool,” Sharapova said.

The day’s most exciting tennis may have occurred in the first set played on Centre Court. The normally serene atmosphere became lively when four-time champion Williams fell behind 2-0 and 3-1 against Naomi Cavaday, an Englishwoman who needed a wild card to make the draw.

Sensing a possible upset, the partisan crowd began cheering shots by the Brit even before points ended. The applause proved premature as Williams rallied to win 7-6 (5), 6-1.

Along with avoiding an embarrassing loss, Williams managed to dodge a bee that bothered her in the opening game.

“I was about to serve. I felt something on my leg. I looked down. It was a bee, a big old bumblebee,” Williams said. “I was trying to get it off without getting stung. You know how they usually fly back at you. Then I ended up losing that service game, so I guess the bumblebee got me off to a bad start.”

[abadani69]

First, there was Roger Federer’s cardigan and Serena Williams’ trench coat. Now, Maria Sharapova has set her own fashion trend at Wimbledon—a tuxedo.

“I love men’s wear in general,” Sharapova said Tuesday after beating French qualifier Stephanie Foretz 6-1, 6-4 in the first round. “I love tuxedo jackets.”

The 2004 champion played the match in a sleeveless top with a tuxedo-style bib front. She strode onto Court One sporting a single-breasted jacket with gold stitching on the collar lapel and front edge, which she hung on her chair.

Sharapova also wore shorts—the first time the 6-foot-2 player has done so in a Grand Slam tournament. But not just any old shorts: ones worn low on the hip with a wide-tailored waistband, pin stripe-effect and gold-stitched buttons.

“It’s hard to do things different with white,” Sharapova said, referring to Wimbledon’s strict dress code. “I thought ‘why not do shorts this year?’ I’ve never done it at a Grand Slam. You know, if there’s one place to do it, it’s here.”

Sharapova didn’t wear the other half of her tailored, tuxedo-inspired warmup suit—wide-legged pants.

“I love things that are actually a bit baggier and wide,” she said. “I loved it when that whole wide-legged pant trend set in. I’m tall and I can pull those things off.”

If Serena Williams can wear a short rain coat on court when there is not a cloud in sight, as she did on Monday, why shouldn’t Sharapova wear men’s clothes? Even if Williams described hers as “ladylike.”

The 21-year-old Russian’s outfit was inspired by “London’s history in bespoke tailoring,” according to her clothing sponsor. It may have been inspired by a man’s suit, but she made the seamless, lightweight vest look feminine. Perhaps the $5,000 Tiffany diamond and platinum dangly earrings helped.

While Federer played up to Wimbledon’s old-style traditions by donning a herringbone-patterned cardigan on Monday, Sharapova’s take on the classic tuxedo caused more of a stir.

Her post-match news conference was dominated by questions about her outfit, to the extent that she remarked it was “amazing.”

She thought Federer’s gold-trim cardigan was “classic and beautiful.” And Serena’s raincoat? “I didn’t see it,” Sharapova said.

What does she think of all the attention being paid to players’ clothes?

“I think it’s great,” she said. “I mean, look, tennis is not a a sport where you have to wear uniforms. It’s an individual sport. I’ve loved fashion since I was very young. … I loved working with thread and needles, making things on my own.”

Sharapova also revealed that because of retail demands she already knows what she’s wearing in fall 2009. But when asked what she will wear next year at Wimbledon, she laughed.

“Oh, goodness,” she said. “I still haven’t finished the tournament. We’ve got a lot in store.”

One player who isn’t particularly interested in all the fashion talk is Andy Roddick, the two-time men’s runner-up.

“I personally don’t care,” he said.

If attention is drawn to tennis for whatever reason, that’s fine, Roddick said. If that means Federer’s cardigan, “then so be it.”

“I don’t know if it would be a good look for me,” he said. “Or any of my friends. Or relatives.”

[abadani69]

Nikolay Davydenko suspects he inadvertently became ensnared in a betting scandal by talking too loudly to his wife during a tournament in Poland last year.

Davydenko spoke at length about the ongoing match-fixing investigation after his 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 loss to Benjamin Becker on Tuesday—the fifth time in seven years he has lost in the first round at Wimbledon.

Davydenko, seeded fourth, said he had done nothing wrong in Poland and was confident he would be cleared in the ATP investigation.

Betfair, an online bookmaker, voided all bets on a match between Davydenko and Argentina’s Martin Vassallo Arguello in Sopot on Aug. 2 after the Russian player retired, citing a foot injury in the third set.

The betting agency said it received about $7 million in wagers on the match, 10 times the usual amount for a similar-level match. Most of the money was on the 87th-ranked Arguello, even after he lost the first set.

Asked for a possible explanation Tuesday, Davydenko said it was a small tournament, with lots of Russian spectators and that some of them might have overheard him talking to his entourage in the stands.

“Everything was going on. I spoke in the center court with my wife … (in) Russian,” he said. “Maybe it’s possible, if I can say something, ‘I don’t want to play or I can retire.’ … some people can understand.

“It may be my mistake because I need to be quiet, I need to be concentrating, I need to do only my job. Not to do something, talking with anyone or something like this in the stadium.”

That sort of inside information could have sparked the flood of telephone or internet betting.

But the 27-year-old Russian shrugged off concerns for the outcome of the investigation, saying he’s denied any involvement in illegal betting for a year, the investigators have no proof of any wrongdoing and “what’s happening is happening.”

“I try to defend me how possible,” he said. “I don’t know how long I can defend me more. Maybe (until) the end of my career.”

Davydenko insisted he had given investigators appointed by the ATP all the information they had asked for, including his and his wife’s phone records, except for some of his brother’s phone records that were not available.

He said he was comfortable about continuing to play, despite the investigation, but it had been a “bad dream.”

“But not one day, (a) few months,” he said.

Davydenko said he does not believe there is a match-fixing problem in the sport. He said he supports bans up to three years for anyone found guilty of serious corruption.

Leading betting agencies last year presented world tennis authorities with a dossier of matches involving irregular gambling patterns over the last five years. Of those, 45 are under investigation, including eight at Wimbledon.

The Association of Tennis Professionals, which runs men’s tennis, this week formally approved a list of 15 recommendations from an independent review panel announced last month to combat potential for corruption.

The All England Club, which runs Wimbledon, is already implementing tougher restrictions on access to player locker rooms—allowing only the player and a coach to enter—during the tournament.

Five of the eight players who lost those Wimbledon matches were in this year’s draw, which contains 18 players involved in the 45 matches under investigation.

Among the recommendations, players will be required to report any suspicious contact from gambling syndicates within 48 hours of being approached. Sanctions range up to life bans for players found guilty of match fixing.

Players and their families and entourages could also be banned from betting on matches.

Five players, all Italians, have been fined and suspended for betting on tennis.

[abadani69]

A match involving Marat Safin is always worth watching. He’s liable to moon the crowd, smash several rackets or dominate the world’s best player, as he did against Pete Sampras in the 2000 U.S. Open final.

For a change, Wimbledon inspired Safin’s best behavior and tennis Wednesday, much to the chagrin of Novak Djokovic. Finally comfortable on the grass he long has loathed, Safin pulled off the biggest upset of the tournament so far with a workmanlike performance to beat the third-ranked Djokovic 6-4, 7-6 (3), 6-2.

Safin has been battling a slump for months, or even years, and the big Russian expressed surprise to find himself in the third round.

“The last time I won two matches in a row was I don’t remember when,” he said.

Djokovic, this year’s Australian Open champion, was dismayed to catch the erratic Safin at a peak.

“I didn’t expect it, honestly saying,” Djokovic said. “Playing him on Centre Court obviously motivates him more to do well.”

Safin’s stunner made a good day even better for No. 1-ranked Roger Federer, who beat Robin Soderling 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3). Djokovic was in the same half of the draw and posed a potential impediment to Federer’s bid for a sixth consecutive Wimbledon title.

While Djokovic made his earliest exit at a major event in 2 1/2 years, a lucky bounce for new No. 1 Ana Ivanovic prevented a double defeat for Serbia. Facing match point in the second set, Ivanovic hit a forehand that hopped over the net cord for a winner, and more than 90 minutes later she completed a victory over Nathalie Dechy, 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 10-8.

“Someone from upstairs made the ball roll over,” Ivanovic said. “If it wasn’t for that net … I would be booking my flight back home.”

Dechy said she cried for an hour after Ivanovic won.

“Maybe today she can go and play the Lotto,” Dechy said. “It would be a good day for her.”

Two-time champion Serena Williams said she was less than thrilled about playing on Court 2, known as the “Graveyard of Champions,” but there were no ghost sightings as she beat 17-year-old Urszula Radwanska 6-4, 6-4.

Williams will next face 2006 champion Amelie Mauresmo, who rallied past Virginia Ruano Pascual 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.

The two other Americans on the schedule also won. Bethanie Mattek reached the third round at a major event for the first time by beating Vera Dushevina 7-6 (6), 6-4, and she next plays 2007 runner-up Marion Bartoli. Bobby Reynolds matched his best Grand Slam showing when he defeated Frank Dancevic 4-6, 7-6 (10), 6-4, 6-4.

As for Safin: The grass-hating, nightlife-loving, racket-throwing Russian with the roller-coaster resume took the court figuring he might soon be back in Moscow.

“There is a flight at 8:30 leaving every evening,” he said with a smile, “so I was almost there.”

Safin’s ranking has been falling faster than the shorts he dropped in glee to celebrate a nifty shot at the French Open four years ago. He arrived in London at No. 75 with a record of 10-13 this year, and he hasn’t won a tournament since 2006.

It has been a humbling, frustrating stretch for a two-time Grand Slam champion once ranked No. 1.

“I was losing left and right,” said Safin, 28. “I started to get a little bit desperate because I’ve been working really hard week after week. The results are not coming, not coming. You need to be really strong mentally to continue.”

After the French Open, Safin was no longer even the most celebrated player in his family. Younger sister Dinara Safina reached a major final for the first time at Roland Garros before losing to Ivanovic.

The first-round schedule at Wimbledon showed how far Safin has slipped: He and Fabio Fognini found themselves playing at the south end of the All England Club, next to the hospitality tents.

“I played on Court 11, which is almost in another club,” Safin said. “My ranking dropped, so where you expect me to play? Not many people care about the match.”

That victory earned him a promotion to the most famous stage in tennis, where Safin has rarely enjoyed much success. He hasn’t been beyond the third round at Wimbledon since 2002 and has often complained about the surface, the weather and even the food.

“What did I say? `The strawberries are too expensive.’ It’s true. `They don’t have enough for dessert.’ It’s true. … I was right I think in what I said. I didn’t make any lies.”

While Safin’s criticism failed to bring down concession prices, the club has slowed down the courts, much to his delight. A higher bounce allows him to stay in the backcourt, where he can whack his muscular groundstrokes.

“The courts have been getting slower and slower throughout the years,” Safin said. “It’s not any more like they used to be like eight years ago. It was really fast, and now you can play from the baseline and nobody even getting close to the net.”

With Safin in his comfort zone, Djokovic found himself in trouble from the start, falling behind love-40 on his serve in the first game. He rallied to hold but was broken twice in a row to fall behind 4-3.

Two games later, when Safin served for the first set, he shanked a serve that landed 10 feet beyond the baseline, then fell behind love-30. It was a pivotal moment: If Safin let the game slip away, he might well go into meltdown mode.

“He’s known for his, you know, mental instability,” Djokovic said.

Instead, Safin calmly closed out the game and the set, and it was Djokovic who unraveled. He double-faulted five times in the last set, including on the final two points, and his tournament ended not with a trophy but with a stinging critique from Safin.

“He didn’t impress me with his game today,” Safin said. “I could read his serve. I could return. I could stay with him from the baseline, and that’s it.”

Safin next faces No. 29-seeded Andreas Seppi, and it’s a safe bet the match won’t take place on Court 11.

[abadani69]

Nathalie Dechy thinks it might be a good time for Ana Ivanovic to buy a lottery ticket.

Facing match point in the second set of her second-round match at Wimbledon, the top-ranked Ivanovic drove a forehand into the top of the net—it somehow trickled over.

From the brink of an embarrassing exit to a player ranked 97, she recovered to beat veteran Frenchwoman Dechy 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 10-8, in a match lasting 3 hours, 24 minutes.

“Someone from upstairs made the ball roll over,” Ivanovic explained, laughing. “I just feel so lucky.

“I felt like time stopped for a moment. … I just thought the match would be over.

“After that point I felt like it was a new match for me and I had a new opportunity.”

Dechy had an instant of thinking she had won. “Then I saw,” she said. “I was like, gee, there’s maybe somebody in the sky who help(ed) her on that one.

“Maybe today she can go and play lotto also a little bit. It would be a good day for her.”

In her first tournament as a Grand Slam titlist and the No. 1-ranked woman, the 20-year-old Ivanovic seemed to be in a big rush, trying to finish points quickly.

It worked to start. The Serbian star won the first three games in six minutes.

But Dechy, determined, patient and no-frills, rallied and took the first set in a tiebreaker.

The second set began in a similar fashion with Ivanovic up 3-1, only to fall behind 3-4, with Dechy serving well and Ivanovich having problems returning.

So it went to Ivanovic serving to stay in the match in the 10th game.

Facing two match points, she fired a big serve and followed with a forehand winner.

One to go.

The pressure compounded with a fault. But rather than back off, Ivanovic produced a big second serve and charged in, driving a forehand into the net. That’s when time stopped for both players. Ivanovic’s ball clipped the net, and dropped over.

She smiled nervously, then pulled her sun visor down over her face to stifle a laugh.

Dechy grimaced and looked up. She pushed Ivanovic for the rest of the match, but never seemed to get on top again after Ivanovic dominated the tiebreaker.

The Frenchwoman was broken twice in the deciding set to fall behind 2-4 and then 3-5. But she clawed back again to 5-5, when another slice of fortune fell Ivanovic’s way.

Dechy played a forehand volley which ought to have sent her 15-30 up on the Ivanovic serve, but her hat fell off in the process. It was extremely unlikely Ivanovic could stay in the point, but she asked for and was granted a replay—a fair call under the strict definition of the rules.

Ivanovic won that point and regained some momentum. After converting her fourth match point, Ivanovic went over to kiss the net because she felt “so lucky.”

“If it wasn’t for that net and that place, I would be booking my flight back home.”

Dechy sat down on court with a towel over her head and cried. It was her 13th trip to Wimbledon and “for sure one of my best matches so far this year.”

Ivanovic praised Dechy’s game. “She deserved to win also because she played really well,” Ivanovic said. Asked if she was still feeling lucky about the Championships, she laughed and replied: “Well, I don’t know,” she said. “I think I used a lot of luck today.”

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Serena Williams knows the “graveyard of champions” tag for Wimbledon’s No. 2 Court is given for very good reason.

The two-time champion was ousted on Court 2 in the third round in 2005, so she was anxious after discovering the court would be the venue for Wednesday’s second-round clash against Polish teenager Urszula Radwanska.

The sixth-seeded Williams was determined not to put her name again to a long list of upsets out there which have included her sister Venus Williams, Martina Hingis, Pete Sampras, Lleyton Hewitt and Andre Agassi over the years.

This time, she survived, and had a comprehensive 6-4, 6-4 victory over Radwanska.

“That did kind of cross my mind,” she said. “I just didn’t want to go out on Court Two, but I was just happy to get it over.
“It was windy too, the conditions weren’t great.”

^PIGEON REPRIEVE: Ana Ivanovic wasn’t the only one to win a reprieve Wednesday. The pigeons around the All England Club are also safe—for now.

Wimbledon organizers came under fire from animal rights groups for using marksmen to eradicate some pesky pigeons Sunday, but they have pledged to use only two hawks to keep the birds away for the remainder of the tournament.

Wimbledon organizers said the extreme pest control response had only been deemed necessary because pigeons were creating a health risk around the players’ lawn and a restaurant.

Ivanovic’s reprieve was more her own doing against Nathalie Dechy, who was lining up a major upset.

Ivanovic had to save two match points in the second set before winning it more than an hour later in the third set, on her fourth match point.

^SAFIN’S SURPRISE: Marat Safin was pleasantly surprised by Russia’s run at the European Championship. He was amazed by his progress at Wimbledon.

Despite being a former No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam winner, the furthest he had advanced at Wimbledon is the quarterfinal stage in 2001.

But after the 75th-ranked Safin’s lopsided 6-4, 7-6 (3), 6-2 upset over No. 3 Novak Djokovic on Centre Court he spoke of the inspirational force Guus Hiddink’s Russian soccer team has been.

Russia opened its Euro 2008 campaign with a crushing 4-1 loss to Spain, but rallied to beat defending champion Greece and Sweden to advance from the group stage. The Russians then pulled off a spectacular 3-1 victory to oust tournament favorite the Netherlands to set up another match with Spain in the semifinals on Thursday.

“I’ll try to keep up, the guys are surprising me in soccer,” Safin said. “I never expected them to play such great soccer, aggressive, playing unbelievable game …

“After the 4-1 against Spain it was a joke … then they killed the Dutch players.”

The 28-year-old Safin thinks Russia will capture the trophy Sunday night in Vienna, Austria.

“Now we’re the favorites to win the European Championship,” he said. “With the game they’re playing right now, they should. They deserve to win.”

Safin thought he’d be back in Russia to watch the final on TV.

“There is a flight at 8:30 leaving every evening, so I was almost there,” Safin said. “There is a flight every day arriving at 4:00 in the morning in Moscow … It’s one phone call.”

^CLOCKING OFF: There’s a touch of symmetry about the second-round wins of Marat Safin and Roger Federer on Wednesday.

Safin needed 121 minutes for his upset over No. 3 Novak Djokovic, the same time Federer took to beat Robin Soderling. With Djokovic out, Safin is growing as a contender for a possible semifinal showdown with five-time champion Federer.

^ARRESTED: Two Australian fans were thrown out for rowdy behavior while Lleyton Hewitt, the 2002 Wimbledon champion, beat Albert Montanes on Court 2.

The stewards’ appeals for men to keep the noise down went unheeded and the pair were swiftly ejected. Wimbledon organizers said one was arrested, although police did not release any details of the charge.

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Moments after Maria Sharapova walked off the court in defeat, her father stomped away from the stadium down a Wimbledon walkway, spitting out words in Russian as he gestured to a companion.

Upon climbing a stairway to the players’ patio, Yuri Sharapov encountered the father of two other former Wimbledon champions, Richard Williams. They shook hands without a word, and Williams began to giggle at the seething Sharapov, who couldn’t resist cracking a rare smile.

They belong to an exclusive club of dads who know what it’s like to watch their little girl flop as the world watches. Sharapov endured the experience Thursday, when his daughter lost 6-2, 6-4 in the second round to Alla Kudryavtseva, a fellow Russian ranked 154th.

“There’s only one winner in the tournament, and everybody else is disappointed,” Sharapova said. “I’m one of them.”

While Sharapova never really gave herself a chance, missed opportunities doomed Andy Roddick. The two-time Wimbledon runner-up went 0-for-8 converting break points, squandered three set points in the final set and lost to Janko Tipsarevic 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

“Any chance I got, I pretty much just choked it,” Roddick said. “It’s like you want something so bad you almost squeeze too tight.”

Other title contenders gave their parents more to cheer about. No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal showed a rare flash of anger at a questionable call in the opening set but regained his composure to beat 19-year-old Ernests Gulbis 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (2), 6-3. Williams’ daughter, Venus, seeking her fifth Wimbledon title, needed 26 points to win a single game but eventually shook stubborn Anne Keothavong of Britain, 7-5, 6-2.

Venus and sister Serena also won their second-round doubles match shortly after being named to the U.S. Olympic team.

But 1999 Wimbledon champion Lindsay Davenport withdrew before her second-round match because of a lingering knee injury. Davenport, back at Wimbledon for the first time in three years after becoming a mother, said she still expects to play in the Olympics.

American men went 0-for-3. The elimination of Roddick, Jesse Levine and Olympian James Blake left the United States with one player in the third round of gentlemen’s singles: No. 102-ranked Bobby Reynolds.

U.S. fans might want to claim Kudryavtseva, who was born in Moscow but lives in Boca Raton, Fla. She sent Sharapova to her earliest exit at a Grand Slam tournament since 2003.

Adding insult to the result, Kudryavtseva trashed the tuxedo-style ensemble worn by Sharapova that had been the talk of the tournament.

“I don’t like her outfit,” Kudryavtseva said. “It’s a little too much of everything. … It was one of the motivations to beat her.”

Spraying shots from the start, cover girl Sharapova disproved the adage that anybody looks good in a tux. The 2004 Wimbledon champion had eight double-faults, including three in one game, and wore the net out with her groundstrokes.

“I guess it wasn’t my day,” Sharapova said. “I was just pretty tentative.”

And why was that?

“Not sure. Very good question. A question I’ll be asking myself later today.”

The second-ranked Sharapova won her third Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January but has experienced dismal defeats at two major events this month. She blew a big lead in a fourth-round loss to Dinara Safina at the French Open.

Kudryavtseva, the daughter of a world champion in Greco-Roman wrestling, has been ranked as high as 59th. She came within two points of upsetting Venus Williams in the first round last year.

“I was so close to winning, and then just played a little too passive in the end,” Kudryavtseva said. “So today I was like, `There’s no way I’m going to do the same mistake again,’ so I went for my shots.”

In the final game, Sharapova shanked two shots, then double-faulted to reach match point. Kudryavtseva fulfilled her pledge to stay aggressive, smacking a forehand winner for the victory, then hopped backward toward the net with glee.

“She beat me, and it probably made her tournament,” Sharapova said.

Sharapova walked off wearing a frown and not her tuxedo warm-up jacket, which instead was tucked in her bag, not to be seen again in the tournament.

Also gone for good is the sixth-seeded Roddick, who failed three times to put returns in play when he had set points in the fourth set. When he chipped one of the returns awkwardly into the net, he cursed himself, and he was just as self-critical an hour after Tipsarevic closed out the upset.

“I just didn’t make anything happen out there,” Roddick said. “Zero, zero, zero.”

Tipsarevic advanced one day after fellow Serbian Novak Djokovic was upset in the second round by Marat Safin.

“This means the world to me,” Tipsarevic said. “I’m just glad that I won and Serbia will have more representatives in the men’s singles draw.”

The elimination of Roddick eases the path to the final for Nadal, seeking to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to win the French Open and Wimbledon back to back.

Facing a tough second-round opponent in the precocious Gulbis, a French Open quarterfinalist, Nadal looked unusually edgy early. He threw a brief tantrum at 5-all in the first set when the chair umpire awarded a point to Gulbis, ruling the ball had bounced twice before Nadal hit it.

“I say, `That’s unbelievable how you can’t see something like this,”’ Nadal said. “I said, `Probably your fault I’m going to lose the set.’ But … I lose the set because I played terrible, terrible next game.”

There was also a tense moment in the second set of the Williams match, when she and Keothavong exchanged shots at point-blank range. Keothavong ripped a backhand that hit Williams in the neck area.

“It hurt,” Williams said. “This is tennis. You’ve got to be ready for whatever. I’ve hit some people, too. That’s just how it goes sometimes. I don’t think she was aiming for me. And if she was, she didn’t tell me about it.”

It has been an eventful week for Williams, who was attacked by a bumblebee in her first match. But she’s into the third round without any stings or bruises, so who can blame her dad for giggling?

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Second-ranked Rafael Nadal has advanced to the third round at Wimbledon with a 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (2), 6-3 win over Ernests Gulbis.

Nadal, who has lost the last two Wimbledon finals to Roger Federer, was broken in the 12th game of the first set Thursday but rallied to dominate the second and fend off the big-serving Latvian in the third-set tiebreaker.

He broke in the eighth game of the last set and then held, closing with a forehand winner down the line.

Four-time French Open champion Nadal is bidding to become only the third man in the Open era after Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg to win both the French and Wimbledon titles in the same year.

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Lindsay Davenport’s Wimbledon comeback was curtailed Thursday by a lingering knee injury.

The 1999 champion, who hobbled through a first-round victory, withdrew hours before her second-round match against Gisela Dulko.

Davenport’s knee has bothered her for several weeks. She said an MRI exam this week showed no structural damage, but she struggled warming up Thursday morning.

“I felt like I was about 25, maybe 30 percent,” she said. “In a first-, second-round match, it’s just not good enough. It’s not going to get better the more I play on it.”

Davenport said she was told to rest for three or four weeks. She was selected Thursday to the U.S. Olympic team and said she expects to be healthy enough to play in Beijing.

The 32-year-old Davenport, who returned to the women’s tour last year after becoming a mother, played her first match at Wimbledon since 2005 on Tuesday. With her knee heavily taped, she beat Renata Voracova 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.

The MRI after the match revealed inflammation and fluid behind the kneecap.

“I worked hard to get ready to play here,” she said. “If I learned anything over my career, this is the way it goes sometimes.

“I was like almost in tears the other night. I was so relieved it was nothing major, like doesn’t require surgery. So that actually put me in probably a better mood than I should be.”

Davenport has flirted for years with retirement, and she hesitated when asked if she expects to be back at Wimbledon in 2009.

“I guess not, but it didn’t go into my mind today like, `Oh, this is my last chance to play here,”’ she said. “I haven’t analyzed it to that point yet.”

Davenport beat Steffi Graf in the 1999 final and was second in 2004 and ‘05. She had not been eliminated before the quarterfinals since 1997.

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Serving for a place in the Wimbledon semifinals at 6-1, 5-1, Elena Dementieva wobbled.

This time, she managed to recover.

The fifth-seeded Russian squandered her commanding lead Tuesday against Nadia Petrova, dropping five straight games and losing a tiebreaker at Centre Court.

Dementieva’s thought at the moment? “Oops, I did it again,” she said.

At the French Open against Dinara Safina, Dementieva was ahead by a set and up 5-2 before losing the tiebreaker and then the match in the third set.

Dementieva regained her stride against Petrova and pulled out a 6-1, 6-7 (6), 6-3 victory to reach her first Wimbledon semifinal.

“I took some time (after the second set) to change my dress,” she said. “I really want to win this match because I don’t want to have this experience again. Somehow I just found a way to stay strong and positive.”

Dementieva cruised to a 5-1 lead in the second set and, just as she was preparing for a quick escape from the searing temperatures, she paid for the errors and double faults that littered her game.

Dementieva came back strong and raced to a 4-0 lead in the third. She knows there will be no room for error in the semis against defending champion Venus Williams.

“It’s all pressure on her, I really have nothing to lose,” she said. “All I need is just to have a day off to recover, just to play my game, just to enjoy the moment.”

TOO HOT

The 93-degree heat at Centre Court took its toll Tuesday as 50 spectators fainted at Wimbledon.

“People don’t like to leave the tennis when a good match is going on, but they should make sure they’ve got enough water to drink,” St. John Ambulance official Mike Gibbons said. “Both young and old were affected and we helped people in difficulties on a number of different courts.”

Defending champion Venus Williams said she had never played with the sun in her eyes during her 11 previous visits.

“The challenge this year has been the sun,” she said after sweeping past Tamarine Tanasugarn 6-4, 6-3. “I’ve never had to serve in the sun at this tournament. I’ve played every day at noon or 1 o’clock and it’s always cloudy.

“I can’t see the ball after I serve—it’s pretty interesting.”

Elena Dementieva, who ousted Nadia Petrova, wasn’t prepared for such a grueling and draining encounter.

“Nobody put sunblock and nobody had the ice. I mean, we didn’t have an ice pack in the beginning of the match because, I mean, it doesn’t feel like Wimbledon at all,” she said.

Petrova complained about not being shielded from the heat during breaks.

“I thought that today was very hot weather conditions, and I was very surprised that we were not treated as we should,” she said. “For the first two sets there was not a ball boy putting the umbrella behind us,” she said. “It was pretty warm today, so I had to go off and cool down a little bit.”

MURRAYMANIA

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was quick to bask in the glory of fellow Scot Andy Murray, who came back from two sets down to oust Richard Gasquet in near-darkness on Monday night to reach the quarterfinals of Grand Slam for the first time.

“I don’t know if you saw him at Wimbledon, it was an amazing victory,” Brown told a group of school children in London on Tuesday.

Brown acknowledged his own shortcomings on the tennis court.

“I played a lot of tennis, for example, but I never really got taught properly how to swing the racket,” he said. “So I could serve well, but I could never be like Andy Murray was last night.”

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For at least the next few days, tennis on grass is going to be a lot more popular in China than tennis on a table.

Zheng Jie became the first Chinese player to reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament Tuesday, beating Nicole Vaidisova 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 at Wimbledon.

“China has quite a lot of sports in which it is a world leader,” the 24-year-old Zheng said through a translator. “Unfortunately tennis is not one of them.”

Zheng noted that China, the world’s most populous country, is among the best at table tennis and diving, but she’s hoping her success at Wimbledon will help the sport grow back home.

“With more and more people doing better in tennis, I believe more people will love this sport in the future,” said Zheng, who also became the first female wild-card entrant to ever reach the semifinals at the All England Club and second at any Grand Slam.

In only her third appearance at Wimbledon, the 133rd-ranked Zheng has so far beaten French Open champion Ana Ivanovic and three other seeded players. On Thursday, she will face eight-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.

“I think many people (will) watch this match in China,” Zheng said.

Williams, who beat 19-year-old Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-4, 6-0 on Tuesday, has won the title at Wimbledon twice in her career, something Zheng is well aware of.

“So far I haven’t found any weak link about her,” said Zheng, who has won three WTA Tour titles in her career—28 fewer than Williams. “But as a first-time semifinalist, I would rather now enjoy the game more than anything else.”

Zheng and Williams have only met once before, with the American winning in straight sets in the first round at Wimbledon in 2004.

“I’ve been watching her play,” Williams said. “I think she’s doing a fabulous job and I don’t think it’s luck.”

On Tuesday, Zheng landed 65 percent of her first serves and broke the 18th-seeded Vaidisova five times.

“I was just trying to hang in there and try to turn it around in the second set. It worked a little bit,” Vaidisova said. “Actually, I have to give her credit. She played great.”

Zheng made her breakthrough in 2006 when she teamed with Yan Zi to win doubles titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. But the victory at the All England Club didn’t get a lot of attention in China during a busy period for sports.

“It was the same time as the World Cup, therefore it was not received as sensational,” said Zheng, who has said she will donate her winnings to the victims of the May 12 earthquake in Sichuan.

“Apart from that, I will do as much as I can to help the Sichuan region’s people because I’m from Sichuan province as well,” Zheng added. “When I go back, I will do more charity work and encourage more people come to support the stricken region and hope people from Sichuan will have their new homes as soon as possible.”