Elena Dementieva wins Olympic gold, Russians take all medals

Elena Dementieva wins Olympic gold, Russians take all medalsElena Dementieva is the singles gold medalist at the Beijing Olympics, having defeated fellow Russian Dinara Safina 3-6 7-5 6-3.

What an achievement for Russian tennis, all the three medals were taken by Russian players with Dementieva winning the gold, Safina silver and Zvonareva bronze with a victory 6-0 7-5 over China's Li Na.

Dementieva took advantage of 17 double-fault committed by Safina, plus, the eventual champion Dementieva hit twice as many winners, 26 to 13.

"I never expected a medal — gold, silver or bronze," said Dementieva. "It's unbelievable. For me this is the best moment in my career. I'll never forget it."

The 26-year-old Dementieva won the silver medal in Sydney in 2000. (source: ESPN, photo via Tennis Info Blog)

Vera Zvonareva wins Prague Open, Gisela Dulko victorious in Fes

Vera Zvonareva wins Prague Open titleTop seed Vera Zvonareva of Russia won her sixth career title on Sunday by defeating third seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 7-6 (2) 6-2 in the Prague Open final. On the same day, Argentina’s Gisela Dulko beat top-seeded Anabel Medina Garrigues 7-6 (2) 7-6 (5) at the Grand Prix SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem.

The Prague Open victory brought Zvonareva her first title in two years in her fourth final of the year. Zvonareva's opponent in the Prague Open final, Victoria Azarenka, played in her fourth WTA final without winning a title. Zvonareva said that the match was really difficult, and that she had a bit more luck.Gisela Dulko wins Grand Prix SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem in Fes, Morocco

The match between Dulko and Garrigues was a tense two-setter which contained 10 service breaks—five by each player. Winning it, Dulko won her first title this season and third career title.

Both the Prague Open and the Grand Prix SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem are Tier IV tournaments. (via Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, Yahoo Sports)

Jelena Jankovic beats Vera Zvonareva, confidently advances to Sony Ericsson Open final

Jelena Jankovic advances to Sony Ericsson Open finalWorld No.3 Jelena Jankovic didn't look back in her semifinal against world No.20 Vera Zvonareva and beat the Russian 6-1 6-4 to set up a meeting with defending champion Serena Williams in the Sony Ericsson Open final.

Fourth seed Jankovic started the match with her service game, which she won after quite a long fight. But as soon as JJ warmed up nothing could hold her back, and she quickly established a 4-0 lead in the first set. Then Zvonareva, seeded 19th, broke Jankovic without losing a point, but her luck was short lived. Jankovic rebroke right away, and decisively took the first set.

Nothing seemed to go Zvonareva's way. She made unforced errors and double faults. Jankovic's game, on the other hand, was very solid. After losing the first set, demoralized Zvonareva broke her racquet in frustration. Read more »

Ana Ivanovic beats Vera Zvonareva for a place in Indian Wells semis

Ana IvanovicTop seed Ana Ivanovic defeated Vera Zvonareva 6-1 6-4 to reach the last four of the Pacific Life Open and join Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova there.

Playing her fourth quarterfinal in five tournaments this year, world No.2 Ivanovic broke twelfth-seeded Zvonareva four times and lost only one of her own service games. In the Indian Wells quarterfinal the Serb produced one of her best ever first serve percentages of 73, and powerful groundstrokes enabled her to defeat world No.21 Zvonareva without much difficulty.

If Jelena Jankovic beats Lindsay Davenport in the remaining quarterfinal, we will have an all-Serbian semifinal at Indian Wells. (photo: Getty Images)

Maria Sharapova beats Vera Zvonareva for Qatar Total Open title

Maria Sharapova wins Qatar Total Open in DohaWorld No.5 Maria Sharapova needed three sets to beat fellow Russian Vera Zvonareva 6-1, 2-6, 6-0 for the Qatar Total Open title, but the important thing is she won and kept her perfect season intact as she extended her match record this year to 14-0.

This is Sharapova’s second title at Doha, previously she won the tournament in 2005. Also, it’s her 18th career title and second of the year following her triumph at the Australian Open last month.

The fourth-seeded Sharapova quickly took the first set against unseeded Zvonareva, but it was not to be another easy win for Sharapova. World No.27 Zvonareva dominated the second set thanks to just three unforced errors, but things completely turned against her in the third. Sharapova gained a quick break for a 1-0 lead and broke again at love in the third game. Zvonareva never recovered, winning a total of just eight points in the decisive set.

The 23-year-old Zvonareva played her second final of the season, and was trying for her sixth singles title.

Winning the Qatar Total Open, Sharapova earned $414,000, while Zvonareva took home $211,000. (via Sports Network)


Page 23 of 24« First...10...2021222324