Ana Ivanovic advances at Wimbledon defeating Nadia Petrova

In a match interrupted by rain four times (why am I even mentioning this, it goes without saying) sixth seed Ana Ivanovic of Serbia defeated eleventh seed Nadia Petrova 6-1 2-6 6-4.

"Mentally it was very tough, with lots of stops and ups and down in my game. I had to fight for every point and I hope to have the chance to play better tomorrow," said the 19-year-old Ivanovic.

Ivanovic will next face Nicole Vaidisova who beat the defending champion Amelie Mauresmo earlier in the day. (via BBC Sport)

Ana Ivanovic's new outfits

Two preview photos of Ana's new Adidas outfits have been published on her official website.

Ana Ivanovic new outfits

The white one she’ll be wearing at Wimbledon, the purple one at the US Open. At the moment I prefer the purple outfit, I find the model more interesting. However, I’m sure they'll both look perfect when Ana puts them in action on the court. Which one do you prefer?

Before Wimbledon, world No. 6 Ivanovic will be playing at Ordina Open in the Netherlands. This grass-court tournament starts on Sunday, June 17th. Ana is seeded second, which is her highest ever seeding in a Sony Ericsson WTA Tour event. She has a bye in the first round, so her opening match will take place on Tuesday or Wednesday, where her opponent will be either Eleni Daniilidou of Greece or Frenchwoman Severine Bremond.

Ivanovic to play in Fed Cup; cuts down on doubles

World number six Ana Ivanovic announced on her official website that she will play in the Fed Cup against the Slovak Republic. Ana enjoys playing for her country; so far she missed only one tie, in April, due to a busy schedule.

The first Serbian Grand Slam finalist said that she’s very excited because she believes that together with Jelena Jankovic, ranked third in the world, their team can achieve some great results. “We want so much to reach the World Group,” said the 19-year-old Ivanovic.

Furthermore, Ana made the decision to play less doubles, so as to be able to focus more on singles. “Doubles is great fun, but it can cause problems for singles, especially when there is a rain delay, or you need extra recovery time.”

“The worst thing would be if I had to withdraw from the doubles competition during a Grand Slam, because I was tired and needed to rest for singles – I would feel very bad, letting down a partner like that. Actually I would play anyway out of obligation, and that would not be a good situation.”

Therefore, Ana decided it was best not to commit to anything; her doubles partner Maria Kirilenko believes that Ana made the right decision.

Justine unbeatable in Paris, Ana gains experience

Justine Henin totally dominated in the women’s final of Roland Garros on Saturday. She crushed seventh-seeded Ana Ivanovic 6-1 6-2, the first Serbian player to reach the final of a grand slam. Ivanovic was only the shadow of the exciting newcomer who had thrilled the Paris crowd earlier in the tournament; she challenged the top seed in the first couple of games but then collapsed.

Taking the trophy once again, the 25-year-old Henin became the first woman to win three successive French Open titles since Monica Seles in 1992. In addition, the Belgian is the first woman since tennis turned professional in 1968 to win back-to-back Roland Garros crowns without dropping a set; the last time she dropped a set in Paris was in the fourth round in 2005. She also became fifth woman since 1925 to win the French title four or more times, joining Chris Evert (7), Steffi Graf (6), Margaret Court (5) and Helen Wills Moody (4).

As for Ana Ivanovic, she is still young, and there is no doubt that great results are ahead of her. In the final against superb Henin, her nerves had let her down, but she promised she would remember the lesson. Earlier in the tournament Ana easily beat second-seeded Maria Sharapova, but she wasn’t strong enough for the queen of the French Open.

"In the beginning I felt okay but then all of a sudden I started feeling nervous," said the 19-year-old Ivanovic.

"I did everything I could. I felt comfortable being in the final but once on the court, I started to think about the situation and there were just too many emotions."

"This was a great experience," Ivanovic said. "I can learn from Justine. I'm sure she was nervous too but she dealt with it better because she's such a great champion.

"If I could have controlled my emotions better, it would have been a different match."

Ivanovic, who said here how she had started hitting balls at the bottom of an empty swimming pool and later struggled to get visas to leave her war-torn country to play abroad, then reminded everybody she had shone in Paris before the final.

"It's been an amazing tournament for me," she said. "I beat great players and I'm proud of what I have achieved. I'm excited about the tournaments I'm going to play and the next chances I'm going to get."

Convinced that she will learn to handle her emotions in important matches, Ivanovic doesn’t lack confidence and determination.

"My ambition is to win grand slams and reach number one," she said. "In order to do that I have to learn how to deal with pressure. I feel I'm on the right way." (source: Reuters, photo: BBC)

Ivanovic eager to play in Fed Cup

I listened to a short interview of Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic in which the rising tennis star talked about how she would love to represent her country together with Jelena Jankovic.

The 19-year-old Ivanovic thinks that Serbia has a very good Fed Cup team, and that they deserve a place in the World Group.

With united powers of these two great players, Serbia can certainly achieve a lot and become a real power in the Fed Cup.


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