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Pro Sports Wrap - Sports Personality of the Day:Tony Romo

Pro Sports Wrap - May 2008

French Open Women Round 4 Set

May 31st 2008 21:58
Sharapova, Ivanovic, Jankovic, Kuznetsova, Dementieva image
Top left to right: #1 Maria Sharapova, #2 Ana Ivanovic, Bottom left to right: #3 Jelena Jankovic, #4 Svetlana Kuznetsova, #7 Elena Dementieva. Which one will win at Roland Garros?



On the women's side in Paris it is shaping up to be a showdown between the top four seeds. #2 Ana Ivanovic, and #4 Svetlana Kuznetsova have marched right through their competition with little trouble. #3 Jelena Jankovic, and #1 Maria Sharapova have both had to work much hard in each of their matches. #1 Sharapova nearly lost in the first round, but keeps managing to squeak on by to the next round.

There is no American woman in the fourth round for the first time in more than 40 years. Both Serena and Venus Williams were upset in a round three that was filled with unforced errors. At times Serena just looked confused as to how her shots were so bad. With their exit it opens up the bracket for what will most likelt be a #2 vs. #3 matchup in the semis.

In the other side of the bracket there are five Russians, including Sharapova and Kuznetsova. With the way Sharapova has been playing it might be tough for her to get through three of her countrywomen, which is most likely the path she will have to take.


With Justine Hennin's retirement everything is just so wide open that anything could happen, add in the Williams sisters early exit and everyone's chances go up. One thing is sure, there will be a new French Open Champion this year, and it should be a fun and exciting journey to watch.



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Round Three   Winners
     
Maria Sharapova RUS (1)          7(7), 6  
v         Maria Sharapova RUS (1)         
Karin Knapp ITA (32) 6(4), 0  
     
            
Jie Zheng CHN          2, 5  
v        Dinara Safina RUS (13)        
Dinara Safina RUS (13)         6, 7  
     
     
Vera Zvonareva RUS (11)          6, 6  
v         Vera Zvonareva RUS (11)         
Aleksandra Wozniak CAN 2, 2  
     
             
Olga Govortsova BLR       0, 4  
v         Elena Dementieva RUS (7)        
Elena Dementieva RUS (7)         6, 6  
     
     
Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS (4)         6, 6  
v         Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS (4)        
Nadia Petrova RUS (25)           2, 1  
     
Francesca Schiavone ITA (18)         1, 1  
v       Victoria Azarenka BLR (16)         
Victoria Azarenka BLR (16)          6, 6  
     
     
     
Agnes Szavay HUN (12)        6(5), 6, 2  
v         Petra Kvitova CZE      
Petra Kvitova CZE       7(7), 4, 6  
     
A. Medina Garrigues ESP (29)      1, 7(7), 5  
v        Kaia Kanepi EST       
Kaia Kanepi EST        6, 6(5), 7  
     
     
Venus Williams USA (8)          5, 3  
v         Flavia Pennetta ITA (26)         
Flavia Pennetta ITA (26)          7, 6  
     
Carla Suarez Navarro ESP         6, 6  
v         Carla Suarez Navarro ESP        
Casey Dellacqua AUS          3, 3  
     
     
Agnieszka Radwanska POL (14)         6, 6  
v       Agnieszka Radwanska POL (14)        
Alize Cornet FRA (19)        4, 4  
     
Dominika Cibulkova SVK (28)      5, 3  
v         Jelena Jankovic SRB (3)        
Jelena Jankovic SRB (3)         7, 6  
     
     
     
Serena Williams USA (5)          4, 4  
v         Katarina Srebotnik SLO (27)        
Katarina Srebotnik SLO (27)         6, 6  
     
Emilie Loit FRA     6(4), 7, 2  
v         Patty Schnyder SUI (10)    
Patty Schnyder SUI (10)     7(7), 5, 6  
     
     
Iveta Benesova CZE       3, 3  
v        Petra Cetkovska CZE        
Petra Cetkovska CZE         6, 6  
     
Caroline Wozniacki DEN (30)        4, 1  
v       Ana Ivanovic SRB (2)      
Ana Ivanovic SRB (2)       6, 6  
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French Open Men's Round 4 Set

May 31st 2008 20:49
Robby Ginepri, Ernests Gulbis, Jeremy Chardy image
French Open surprises Robby Ginepri, Ernests Gulbis, and Jeremy Chardy


The Round of 16 (Fourth Round) is now set for the men. Not surprisingly five of the eight matches will include a Frenchman, Nadal is yet to drop a set, and the American men have fallen one by one. The surprising things the lone American still playing is not James Blake or one of the Williams sisters, but Robby Ginepri. Possibly the biggest shocker on the men's side #3 seed Nikolay Davydenko lost three straight sets to finish his match against #28 seed Croatian Ivan Ljubicic. Only ten of the final sixteen are seeded players. Of course you have Federer, and Nadal, as well as #3 Novak Djokovic who are familiar names. But then there are names like Ginepri, Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, and Jeremy Chardy of France.

Rafa will probably have to go through Davydenko to get to the final and defend his three straight wins at Roland Garros. That is of course if that heavily favored pair can get past the upstart Gulbis and Chardy. Federer on the other side seems to have an easier path. The #5 seed would be his highest seeded competition on his road to the finals, although before then he might have to face Ginepri.

The #5 seed is David Ferrer of Spain who almost dropped his match against the #25 Australian, Lleyton Hewitt. Ferrer took the first set 6-2, and the first three games in the second set. At that point though Hewitt stormed back to win 6 straight games and the set 6-3. Hewitt would get behind in set three also, only to comeback again and win it 6-3. Ferrer recovered though and won sets four and five 6-3, 6-4 to win the match and move on.

It is definitely shaping up to be an exciting second week at Roland Garros. Exciting even for an Open that has been expected to be dominated by Nadal, and probably still will be. It will be fun to see just how much Ginepri, Gulbis, and Chardy can get done in week two.


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Round Three   Winners
     
Roger Federer SUI (1)   6, 6, 6  
  Roger Federer SUI (1)  
Mario Ancic CRO 3, 4, 2  
      
     
Julien Benneteau FRA 1, 7(8), 6, 6  
  Julien Benneteau FRA
Robin Soderling SWE  6, 6(6), 0, 1  
     
     
     
Stanislas Wawrinka SUI (9) 7, 6, 4, 4, 4  
  Fernando Gonzalez CHI (24)
Fernando Gonzalez CHI (24) 5, 2, 6, 6, 6  
     
     
Robby Ginepri USA 6, 6, 6  
  Robby Ginepri USA
Florent Serra FRA 4, 4, 4  
     
     
     
Nikolay Davydenko RUS (4) 6, 6, 3, 2, 4  
v     Ivan Ljubicic CRO (28)
Ivan Ljubicic CRO (28) 4, 2, 6, 6, 6  
     
Jurgen Melzer AUT 6, 5, 6, 0, 2  
v     Gael Monfils FRA 
Gael Monfils FRA  4, 7, 4, 6, 6  
     
     
     
Tommy Robredo ESP (12)     3, 2, 1  
  Radek Stepanek CZE (21)    
Radek Stepanek CZE (21)     6, 6, 6  
     
Lleyton Hewitt AUS (25) 2, 6, 6, 3, 4  
v     David Ferrer ESP (5)
David Ferrer ESP (5) 6, 3, 3, 6, 6  
     
     
Ernests Gulbis LAT 6, 7, 6  
  Ernests Gulbis LAT
Nicolas Lapentti ECU 3, 5, 2  
     
Simone Bolelli ITA  6(2), 4, 6(5)  
v     Michael Llodra FRA   
Michael Llodra FRA    7(7), 6, 7(7)  
     
     
     
Eduardo Schwank ARG  2, 3, 6, 6(9)  
  Paul-Henri Mathieu FRA (18) 
Paul-Henri Mathieu FRA (18)  6, 6, 3, 7(11)  
     
Wayne Odesnik USA 5, 4, 2  
v     Novak Djokovic SRB (3)   
Novak Djokovic SRB (3)    7, 6, 6  
     
     
     
Jeremy Chardy FRA  7(7), 6, 6  
  Jeremy Chardy FRA 
Dmitry Tursunov RUS (30)   6(1), 3, 4  
     
Nicolas Almagro ESP (19)  6, 6(3), 6, 7  
v     Nicolas Almagro ESP (19) 
Andy Murray GBR (10) 3, 7(7), 3, 5  
     
     
     
Mikhail Youzhny RUS (15)  6(5), 7, 5, 1  
  Fernando Verdasco ESP (22) 
Fernando Verdasco ESP (22)  7(7), 5, 7, 6  
     
Jarkko Nieminen FIN (26)     1, 3, 1  
v     Rafael Nadal ESP (2) 
Rafael Nadal ESP (2)  6, 6, 6  
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Foul or Fisher?

May 29th 2008 07:53
Thanks for coming to the party San Antonio. Now it’s time to screw ya.

That’s basically what the NBA said Wednesday when it said a foul should have been called against the Lakers in the final second of the game against the Spurs on Tuesday.
The Spurs Brent Barry had the ball and was bumped badly by Los Angeles’ Derek Fisher. No foul, no whistle. Barry was off balance and put up a desperate 3 that missed badly.
Derek FIsher
The NBA admitted that a fould should have been called on Derek Fisher in Tuesday's game

Today the NBA said that a foul should have been called and Barry should have gotten two free throws. Oh, so that’s supposed to make the Spurs feel better, being down 3-1 in the series now.
It should be noted the Spurs were down by 2 at the time, and Barry, had he made both shots only would have tied the game sending it to overtime. And there’s no guarantee he would have made them (although he did shoot 95 percent this year). Nor is there anyway of knowing what happens in OT had it got there.
But to have the NBA come out and say after the game that they screwed up is an insult. They aren’t going to pick up the game, it’s over.
Seems like just yesterday we had a post about the umpires in baseball not doing their jobs. Now it’s the NBA.

For their part, the Spurs players and coach said they didn’t think there was a foul. But of course not. The Spurs are a championship team and don’t want the focus to be about a no foul/foul controversy. They moved past it as soon as the game ended. They know they are down 3-1, and that was their own doing (spoiling a 20-point lead in one game), not the NBA.

It would be nice though if the NBA at least made it a fair fight.
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Women's 2nd Round Pairings Section 1
 
Maria Sharapova RUS (1)           
v      
Bethanie Mattek USA  
 
          
Olivia Sanchez FRA            
v      
Karin Knapp ITA (32)           
 
 
 
Maria Kirilenko RUS (21)           
v      
Jie Zheng CHN   
 
         
Magdalena Rybarikova SVK            
v      
Dinara Safina RUS (13)           
 
 
 
Vera Zvonareva RUS (11)           
v      
Stephanie Cohen-Aloro FRA   
 
         
Akgul Amanmuradova UZB            
v      
Aleksandra Wozniak CAN            
 
 
 
Ai Sugiyama JPN (31)           
v      
Olga Govortsova BLR  
 
          
Marta Domachowska POL            
v      
Elena Dementieva RUS (7)           
 
 
 
Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS (4)           
v      
Vania King USA      
 
      
Alisa Kleybanova RUS            
v      
Nadia Petrova RUS (25)           
 
 
 
Francesca Schiavone ITA (18)           
v      
Sanda Mamic CRO     
 
       
Sorana-Mihaela Cirstea ROU            
v      
Victoria Azarenka BLR (16)           
 
 
 
Agnes Szavay HUN (12)           
v      
Sabine Lisicki GER
 
            
Petra Kvitova CZE            
v      
Samantha Stosur AUS            
 
 
 
A. Medina Garrigues ESP (29)           
v      
Tsvetana Pironkova BUL   
 
         
Kaia Kanepi EST            
v      
Anna Chakvetadze RUS (6)       
 
 



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Women's 2nd Round Pairings - Section 2 Scores if match has been played. X denotes winner
   
Venus Williams USA (8)             
v        
Selima Sfar TUN    
   
            
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS              
v        
Flavia Pennetta ITA (26)             
   
   
   
Amelie Mauresmo FRA (22)             
v        
Carla Suarez Navarro ESP     
           
Nathalie Dechy FRA              
v        
Casey Dellacqua AUS              
   
   
   
tr="Agnieszka Radwanska POL (14) ">Agnieszka Radwanska POL (14) 6  6          
v       
tr="Jelena Pandzic CRO  ">Jelena Pandzic CRO  2  0       
   
     
Gisela Dulko ARG              
v        
Alize Cornet FRA (19)             
   
   
   
Dominika Cibulkova SVK (28)             
v        
Milagros Sequera VEN    
   
            
Marina Erakovic NZL              
v        
Jelena Jankovic SRB (3)             
   
   
   
Serena Williams USA (5)             
v        
Mathilde Johansson FRA    
   
            
Ekaterina Makarova RUS              
v        
Katarina Srebotnik SLO (27)             
   
   
   
tr="Klara Zakopalova CZE  ">Klara Zakopalova CZE  4  3          
v       
tr="Emilie Loit FRA  ">Emilie Loit FRA  6  6          
   
tr="Timea Bacsinszky SUI  ">Timea Bacsinszky SUI  4  6  1       
v       
tr="Patty Schnyder SUI (10) ">Patty Schnyder SUI (10) 6  4  6 
   
   
   
Iveta Benesova CZE              
v        
Shuai Peng CHN   
   
             
Galina Voskoboeva RUS              
v        
Petra Cetkovs.a CZE              
   
   
   
tr="Caroline Wozniacki DEN (30) ">Caroline Wozniacki DEN (30) 6  6          
v       
tr="Anastasiya Yakimova BLR  ">Anastasiya Yakimova BLR  0  4    
   
        
tr="Lucie Safarova CZE  ">Lucie Safarova CZE  1  2          
v        
tr="Ana Ivanovic SRB (2) ">Ana Ivanovic SRB (2) 6  6          
   
   

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TV Tennis

May 29th 2008 00:52
Early round matches at major tennis tournaments are usually yawners. The top seeds win, and except for one or two top 10 seeds falling, everything falls into place. Of course, there are moments where top players get tested, as Maria Sharapova showed us this morning. Usually the main attraction is watching young faces make a name for themselves. Usually though, you are limited to what the TV station is showing while you are watching.
Lleyton Hewitt
Lleyton Hewitt won his first-round match over Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.

This year though it doesn’t have to be that way. The tennis channel, who is showing early rounds of the French Open, is showing live streams on the main courts and Dish Network is also expanding its coverage offering six total feeds of tennis coverage. Tired of watching Rafa dominate? Switch over to a match between two unknown Russians who may be the next Maria Sharapova


[ Click here to read more ]
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Sharapova Taken to the Limit

May 28th 2008 13:01
Maria Sharapova image
MAria Sharapova survives her first round match with Evgeniya Rodina


The wind is whipping around in Paris today. You are going to want to remember the name Evgeniya Rodina. She came into Roland Garros ranked at #103 in the world, and never having a match in a Grand Slam event. The barely 19 year old Russian’s first Grand Slam match was today against the #1 ranked woman in the world, Maria Sharapova.
[ Click here to read more ]
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Maria Sharapova image
Maria Sharapova No. 1 seed will have to wait till Wednesday to start her run at the French Open title.


The story of day three at Roland Garros was a continuation of day two. A total of 15 matches had to be suspended on Tuesday due to the rain, including No. 2 seeded Rafael Nadal’s match. Only 13 matches were completed, eight on the women’s side and five on the men’s. Wednesday’s schedule is loaded with round 1 and round 2 matches interlaced throughout the day. There are about 60 round one matches that still need to be played including #1 Maria Sharapova, #25 Lleyton Hewitt’s matches which didn’t even get started Tuesday, as well as Rafa’s match finishing, it got to 1-1 before being suspended. The rain better let up soon or we could be looking at three weeks at Roland Garros instead of two.
[ Click here to read more ]
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Nascar Points Part II (5-27-08)

May 28th 2008 01:56