Down the Line: raw + uncut

PHOTO OP: Kuznetsova's hairy situation

2012-04-18T23:03:00.001-04:00

Maria Sharapova showed a photo of herself with short locks over on Facebook and the tennis world went cray. Then we found out it was a wig.

Svetlana Kuznetsova showed up at the FED CUP presser in Moscow today wearing this hairy situation on her head. Then we found out it's REAL.

So...Alexandr. Give Sveta her hair back.

[Photo(s) credit: AP]

FASHION FIX: adidas for Roland Garros 2012

2012-04-12T22:58:00.000-04:00

Andy Murray
Barricade Crew in dark onix and high energy

Caroline Wozniacki
adidas by Stella McCartney Performance Tank + Skirt in yellow

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
adizero Crew in power green and high energy

Ana Ivanovic
adizero Dress in super green and core energy


Fernando Verdasco adizero Verdasco Crew in electricity and high energy

A couple of more shots including Jo-Willy and a BODY BONUS courtesy of Fer after the jump - click the headline, y'all.

[Photo(s) credit: adidas]

VIDEO VAULT: Nadal + Ronaldo + Nike = BRILLIANT

2012-03-31T12:01:00.000-04:00

Footennis is SO very.

[Via Nike Football]

SIGHTING: Model Zaira Nara all up in Monaco's box

2012-03-29T21:24:00.000-04:00

WAG Zaira Nara watched boy toy, Juan Monaco, back up his win over Andy Roddick by crushing Mardy Fish 6-1, 6-3 to reach the Sony Ericsson Open semifinals, his second trip to a Masters 1000. He'll face top baller Novak Djokovic for a place in Sunday's final.

It was also the Argentine's 28th birthday. Nice present, eh?

[Photo(s) credit: Al Bello/Getty Images]

PHOTO OP: Serena Williams is aghast

2012-03-27T23:45:00.000-04:00

"The purple thing with the white lines...put the ball there!"

Serena Williams couldn't find her game and Caroline Wozniacki took full advantage, ousting the 5-time Sony Ericsson champ 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals and earning her first win over ReRe. The Dane will face off against Maria Sharapova, who finally beat Li Na 6-3, 6-0 after losing the last four, in the semifinals.

Yeah, Wozzi did her usual counter-puncher-thingy but with a little bit more...er...aggression? It's true. She hit her first serve with some pop at times and her forehand held up against ReRe's which found the net more than anything else. Maybe being knocked from the WTA Penthouse will end up being the best thing that could've happened to Wozzi. Maybe.

[Photo(s) credit: Michael Regan/Getty Images]

PHOTO OP: Dolgopolov's hairy situation

2012-03-22T20:46:00.000-04:00

Alexandr Dolgopolov is taking this whole "co-ed on spring break" thing a little too far.

What's next - a tramp stamp?

[Photo(s) credit: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images]

FASHION FIX: Venus Williams returns in Miami, revamps EleVen

2012-03-21T23:11:00.002-04:00

There were two big returns to the court today at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Well, two and a half. First, Alisa Kleybanova. She played her first match since leaving the WTA tour 10 months ago to get treatment for Hodgkin's Lymphoma - and won. Next up was Venus Williams. She hadn't played a singles match since announcing she was suffering from Sjögren's Syndrome 7 months ago at the US Open. She won her opening match as well, routing Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-0, 6-3.

And now for the half. I say "half" not because it's half as good or anything but because it just doesn't compare to these two lady ballers coming back from these serious health conditions. But, it's worth a mention: EleVen is back, too!

V broke out a new dress for her match from the relaunched 2012 Spring Collection which has evolved into more sportswear than just sports apparel. Apparently, she now has an excuse for the full-on cray she had been wearing on court as of late. You know - this, this, this, this, this. It was all an "experiment." Like pairing a brown belt with black shoes. Or chunky bangs. This new EleVen is the rawlness (my word, not hers). And, get this - there's now a men's line. V's planning on having mass distribution for EleVen so more people can wear what she wears on court.

It's a fine restart. Some basics with a bit of fashion thrown in (loving the "Oh & Oh" tagline). And, V definitely upped the quality quotient from what I can tell in the pictures. I'll be interested to see how the collections evolve and where she ends up selling it. But, I give her full credit for continuing to build the Venus Williams brand. Young lady ballers, pay attention. There's life after tennis so be prepared.

More shots from the EleVen capsule collection after the jump - click the headline!

[Photo(s) credit: EleVen by Venus Williams Facebook page]

GUEST POST: The German 5 on the rise

2012-03-19T07:50:00.000-04:00

By Anna Nartova

In the semifinals of Dubai Duty Free Tennis Open, Julia Goerges defeated Caroline Wozniacki for the third consecutive time, so I thought it was high time to document the whirlwind revival of German women’s tennis. Although these girls haven’t reached the heights of Steffi Graf yet, having 5 players rising to the WTA Top 40 is more than ‘fantastisch.’

Read the rest of "The German 5" after the jump. Click the headline, y'all.

When Graf, one of the greatest players in women’s tennis history, left the game to become a mother, German tennis was virtually on the brink of extinction. Yes, there was Anke Huber, Barbara Rittner, and the talented, yet injury-prone, Anna-Lena Groenefeld; but, Germany was desperately looking for bright young talents. It looks like their prayers were heard. Today, with 5 ladies in the Top 40 of the WTA rankings, Germany holds the second place by the number of representatives only behind Russia. As they continue their road to the top of the game, let’s check their so different, yet so similar, success stories.

Andrea Petkovic
24 years old; 2 WTA titles; career-high ranking in singles: 9; best Grand Slam result: Quarterfinals - Australian Open 2011, Quarterfinals - French Open 2011, Quarterfinals - US Open 2011.

The best dancer and entertainer in the WTA tour was the first and only player from the new generation of German ballers to reach the Top 10, which Andrea Petkovic did after Beijing in 2011. She was also the only player on the WTA tour to reach the quarterfinals of three Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, US Open) that year.

Okay, maybe it is not an outstanding performance for a 24-year old player, if comparing her achievements with the ones of the Williams sisters, Maria Sharapova or Justine Henin; but, in the case of Petkovic we should take into account her biography. And her biography says it all – at the age of 20, Andrea reached Top 100 for the first time, and severely injured her knee, putting her career in jeopardy. But after being sidelined for almost 9 months, she returned to the tour to prove she could beat the best players.

If Petkovic was less prone to injuries (she had to withdraw from this year’s Australian Open due to a back injury), she could become a major threat to the top players with her powerful serve and giant-killing forehand. But, while she is able to defeat the leading ladies who may be having bad day in the office, like she did last year in Miami vs. Wozniacki or at the Australian Open vs. Sharapova, Petkovic still has to work hard to prove she is a force to consider.

Sabine Lisicki
22 years old; 3 WTA titles; career-high ranking in singles: 14; best Grand Slam result: Semifinals - Wimbledon 2011

In 2011, Sabine Lisicki became the first German player to reach a Grand Slam semifinal in 12 years. But, it was in Charleston in 2009 when she won the prestigious Family Circle Cup without dropping a set that the talented Bradenton resident woke up famous. She beat Venus Williams, Marion Bartoli and Wozniacki on her way to the title.

While Lisicki’s powerful hardcore game, tough serve and great personality both on and off the court has won her a lot of fans across the world, a series of injuries almost made her consider retirement. Yet, she kept going, training, and never stopped believing in order to get back to the top of the game at the All England Club last year.

Sabine is still dealing with injuries and lack of consistency, but she is a real workaholic and--who knows?--maybe one day she will be able to win 7 consecutive matches at her favorite Wimbledon. She has all the weapons to secure a major victory and, in my humble opinion, has the best chance of all the German players to lift a Grand Slam trophy in the near future.

Julia Goerges
23 years old; 2 WTA titles, career-high ranking in singles:16; best Grand Slam result: 4th round - Australian Open 2012

In contrast to Lisicki and Petkovic, Julia Goerges avoided injuries during her first years on the WTA tour, so her delayed rise can be explained by other factors. Tall and good-looking (often named ‘Gorgeous’ by the fans and even chair umpires), with a playing style similar to Mary Pierce and Ana Ivanovic in their best years, Goerges is highly prone to inconsistency. One day she can show some brilliant tennis, and next day she looks dull and clumsy. But during those days when the super-talented German lady finds her rhythm, she can leave people breathless like last year in Stuttgart and Madrid when Julia became the only player to hand then-reigning number one Wozniacki two consecutive defeats.

Yet, her opponents often use her weak backhand and inability to survive in longer points, but as Goerges says, she continues to get better and better step by step. I am pretty sure this girl has Top 5 potential, if she is able to cope with her nerves.

Angelique Kerber
24 years old; 1 WTA title; career-high ranking in singles: 19; best Grand Slam result: Semifinals - US Open 2011

“Dreams come true” was what Angelique Kerber wrote in her personal blog after her sensational run at Flushing Meadows last year. The little-known leftie from Bremen had only two career victories over Top 20 players and reached only 1 WTA final. But, in New York she defeated Flavia Pennetta and Agnieszka Radwanska in great style, and was one step from the US Open final after taking the first set against eventual winner Samantha Stosur.

Though she looks a little heavyset at first sight, Kerber likes and knows how to run and put her opponents out of temper, has impressive tactical skills, and a sizzling forehand. She has some weak sides too, but who’s perfect?!

The more important thing is that after her US Open success, Angelique kept improving and her efforts were repaid in Paris at the GDF SUEZ where she demonstrated dominant play to win her first title defeating Sharapova and Marion Bartoli.

In addition, she has some great ranking perspectives since she's only defending 250 ranking points up to the US Open. Her rise to the Top 20 is just a question of time (her semifinal run at Indian Wells this past week should help) if she continues to show the game we saw in Paris.

Mona Barthel
21 years old; 1 WTA Title; career-high ranking: 37, best Grand Slam Result: 3rd round -Australian Open 2012.

Five. That’s the number of matches Mona Bathel had won in the main draws of WTA tournaments before this season. During the first two months of 2012 this number tripled, and she became one of the few players to win a WTA title as a qualifier when she won her maiden trophy in Hobart. Barthel is not a hard hitter, but she is a great mover and plays some very intelligent tennis combining huge top spins with slices, drop shots and ground strokes. If she manages to improve in her attacking shots and psychological stability, she could easily become a Top 20 player very soon as evidenced by her near defeat of Victoria Azarenka in the opening round of Indian Wells last week.

There is no doubt German players are establishing a real force in women’s tennis, and they have no intention of stopping.

Anna Nartova is full-time copywriter from Moldova, and an avid tennis fan, who enjoys watching and writing about tennis on her blog, TennisZoom. You can follow her on Twitter @tenniszoom.

[Photo(s) credit: Petkovic: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac, Goerges: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images, Lisicki: Karim Sahib/AFP/Getty Images, Kerber: AFP PHOTO / Robyn BECK, Barthel: Karim Jaafar/AFP/Getty Images]

(UPDATED) QUOTE OF THE DAY: Victoria Azarenka

2012-03-13T23:59:00.000-04:00

If I relax my butt a little bit, somebody's going to come and kick it.

- Victoria Azarenka on being the top lady baller

And by "somebody" she means the "little magician." And by "little magician" she means, er, a Polish lady baller who can't wait to do just what Vika said after what she said about Vika.

Ay, what a telenovela. Can't wait to read into all of the stare downs, fist pumps and other on-court dramz during their Indian Wells quarterfinal. Just grab your popcorn and ENJOY.

UPDATE: Forget a telenovela. More like a mini-commercial break. Ouch.

[Photo(s) credit: Jeff Gross/Getty Images]

Persistence pays off for McHale

2012-03-12T15:50:00.000-04:00

Then world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki. Current No. 1 Victoria Azarenka. Svetlana Kuznetsova. Marion Bartoli. Petra Kvitova knows exactly what they were thinking when they went down to the unassuming Christina McHale (something close to "What the hell???"). The Wimbledon champ was ousted from Indian Wells by the American 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the third round.

It's hard to pinpoint what it is that Christina does to fluster these bigger lady ballers. She doesn't have obvious weapons and she moves fine. Let's see. The 19-year old likes the big stage, that's for sure. But what else? She's pretty solid off the ground. But what I think gets to them is her dogged persistence. Like a terrier, she wouldn't let go of her fun, squeaky chew toy once she got hold of it (that being Petra and her squawk). The American could've gone into shell shock mode after getting spanked by Petra's piercing ground game in the first set but she waited for her opportunity - and you just know you'll get at least one with the Czech. And when Christina found her opening she held on.

Continued good signs for her development. Let's see how she builds off this win.

[Photo(s) credit: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images]