Top seed Ana Ivanovic upset by Tsvetana Pironkova in Rome

Ana IvanovicSeed No.1 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia suffered a shock 6-4 5-7 6-2 loss to Bulgarian qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova in the second round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome.

The fact that Ivanovic lost so early into a tournament would have been a much bigger news item, but now that Justine Henin has retired so unexpectedly, everything else in tennis will be in shade for some time.

Anyway, Ivanovic, who became top seed when Justine Henin pulled out, was never comfortable on the clay and committed 59 unforced errors to Pironkova's 26. Also, in the second set Ivanovic twice surrendered a break advantage.

Both the Williams sisters advanced on Wednesday – Serena defeated Alona Bondarenko 6-2 6-0, and Venus beat Samantha Stosur 6-4 6-1. Also, defending champion Jelena Jankovic beat Flavia Pennetta 6-1 6-4. (via BBC)

German Open champion Dinara Safina withdraws from Rome

Dinara SafinaLast week was one of the most memorable times in Dinara Safina's career, as she won the Qatar Telecom German Open beating three Top 10 players on the way. Today, the Russian has withdrawn from the tournament following the one in Berlin.

World No.14 Safina is out of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome and the official reason for her withdrawal is a back injury. Read more »

Tatiana Golovin won’t play Rome, Strasbourg and Roland Garros

Tatiana GolovinWorld No.21 Tatiana Golovin has withdrawn from the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, Internationaux de Strasbourg, and from her home Grand Slam, Roland Garros.

It's a pity, Golovin skipped Roland Garros last year too, the reason was an ankle injury. This year, she has withdrawn, presumably, because of a failure to recover completely from surgery — she had to remove a cyst from her hip. Well, at least Tati has a boyfriend to lick her wounds.

At this week’s Qatar Telecom German Open, Golovin lost in the first round, to Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark. The next tournament the Frenchwoman should be playing is the International Women's Open in Eastbourne. (via Women Who Serve, photo: Getty Images)

Justine Henin withdraws from Italian Open, to be fined $20,000

Justine HeninWorld No.1 Justine Henin has pulled out of the next week's Internazionali BNL d'Italia due to fatigue, and the WTA Tour said she will be fined $20,000 for the late withdrawal.

Before the ongoing Qatar Telecom German Open, Henin took a month off with a knee injury. She had hoped to restore her confidence in Berlin in time for the French Open, which she has won four times. But that didn't happen.

Henin has struggled for form all year. On Thursday, the Belgian lost to Dinara Safina in the third round of the Qatar Telecom German Open. Last month, Henin was beaten by Serena Williams at the Sony Ericsson Open with the worst score for a No. 1 player in nine years, 6-2 6-0. Also, Maria Sharapova defeated her in straight sets at the Australian Open. (via CBS Sports, photo: Getty Images)

Jankovic lifts her second Tier I trophy

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Jelena Jankovic defeated world number three and second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-5 6-1 to win the Internazionali BNL d'Italia and join Justin Henin as the only WTA players who have won three tournaments this year. In January, Jankovic took the Tier IV title in Auckland, then the Tier I in Charleston last month, and today another Tier I in Rome.

Today's victory takes the 22-year-old Serb to number 4 in the world. In addition, this trophy, being her second on clay this year, establishes her as one of the favorites for Roland Garros.

As for Kuznetsova, this is the fourth final she lost in 2007. The Russian was also runner-up in Doha, Indian Wells, and Berlin. (source: ESPN)

The third-seeded JJ reached the final of Italian Open by beating Tamira Paszek, Alona Bondarenko, Elena Dementieva, and Patty Schnyder.

After beating Kuznetsova, Jelena was very excited. She said that the victory in Rome means a lot to her; last year, from late January to early May, she hasn't won a single match and she was thinking about quitting tennis!


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