Tag: kim clijsters

Wimbledon Gentlemen’s & Ladies’ Semifinals

The Men’s Quarterfinals were today, and boy were there some surprises. Shock of the day came when Roger Federer lost to Tomas Berdych in 4 sets. We almost had another shocker with Nadal, but he was able to bounce back and win his match against Soderling. The draw for the Semis stands as thus:

Berdych vs Djokovic
Murray vs. Nadal

Predictions: I would love to see a Djokovic-Murray Final match, but I also realize Murray will have a real fight if he wants to beat Nadal. For that matter, anyone who beats Roger Federer is someone to watch out for, so Djokovic better be careful if he doesn’t want to be eliminated.

The Ladies Semifinals are tomorrow, and unfortunately do not include my favorite player that from the Quarters – Kim Clijsters. Instead we can look forward to Serena Williams vs Kvitova and Zvonareva vs Pironkova. The only player I even know anything about here is Serena, and I’ll be shocked if she doesn’t at the very least make it to the Finals. Then again, none of my predictions from the Quarters proved to be right (except Serena winning her match) so I guess I’m not one to judge the Ladies side of this tournament. Like I said in a previous post though, I am much more familiar with the Men’s draw. That’s probably why the only one I got wrong on that side was Federer losing (and let’s be honest – no one saw that coming).

Who do you think will make it to the finals this year at Wimbledon? Is it the person you are routing for or someone else? Sound off in the comments section below.

Wimbledon Gentlemen’s & Ladies’ Quarterfinals

Wimbledon is in week 2, which means we are getting down to the wire here. Tomorrow will be the Ladies Quarterfinals. Matches are as follows:

On Centre Court – first match is Clijsters vs. Zvonareva followed by Serena Williams vs. La Ni of China.

On Court 1 – first up is Pironkova vs. Venus Williams followed by Kvitova vs. Kanepi

Predictions: Clijsters, both Williams sisters, and… I’m not sure. That last match features two people I am not familiar with, as I tend to follow Men’s Singles much more closely than the Ladies, as of late.

Wednesday will be the Men’s Quarterfinals, which looks like it will be much more interesting (in my opinion). The draw stands as thus:

Federer vs. Berdych
Djokovic vs. Lu (who beat Andy Roddick for a spot in the Quarters)
Tsonga vs. Murray
Soderling vs. Nadal

Predictions – Federer, Djokovic, Murray, and… I’m not sure. I want to say Nadal but I know he is having knee problems, so that makes this tricky. He might make it past the Quarters, but if he plays Murray in the Semifinals then I think it will at least be a pretty decent battle to the Finals. I’d personally love to see Murray vs. either Federer or Djokovic in the Final match. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though. After all, in this tournament anything is possible.

Clijsters climbs to top, wins US Open Championship

Kim Clijsters must have been happy she came out of retirement, because she has had quite a run since her return. This comment she posted on Twitter says it all:

The fairy tale goes on – some how, I’m in the US Open final on Sunday beating both Venus and Serena along the way… am i dreaming???

No, Kim, you’re not dreaming, but it must feel that way after the splendid run you have had throughout this tournament. You had a tough draw, including both Serena and Venus Williams, but you managed to make it to the finals. And oh what a night it was.

It was a night of first. For the first time in the history of the sport, an unseeded player won a major final. Also a first was the two women involved ever facing each other. Kim Clijsters and Caroline Wozniacki gave everyone in Arthur Ashe stadium a show Sunday night when Clijsters battled her way to a 7-5, 6-3 win. The first set was tight, with both players struggling to hold serve. Each game was another epic battle, many going to deuce. Eventually Clijsters was able to take the set 7-5.

The second set was not nearly as eventfully, at least until Clijsters broke for a 4-2 lead. The players stayed on serve and Clijsters eventually served it out to take the second set at 6-3 with a spectacular display in her final game. After making her climb to the top of the charts complete she proceeded to climb to the top of the stands for a congratulatory kiss from her husband, as well as hugs from the rest of her box. With trophy in one hand and daughter Jada in the other, this is one dream Clijsters won’t want to wake up from.

The Rising Star of Women’s Tennis

I have always said that men’s tennis was infinitely more interesting than watching the ladies play. Maybe there was a day when they were equally enjoyable, but now that the final match is usually a question of “Serena or Venus?” the sport has lost its hold on me. That was until this year, however. In a strange twist of fate the men’s section has become the predictable one with Roger Federer’s dominance of play, while the ladies draw has me waiting with anticipation to see who will make the finals. Kim Clijsters continues to make her bid at reclaiming the title with her family supporting her every step of the way. Meanwhile, a new star has come across my path: Melanie Oudin. Her fourth round victory over Nadia Petrova put her in the Quarterfinals, and she’s only seventeen. To get to her match with Petrova she also had to beat Maria Sharapova and Elena Dementieva, all matches that were with tough opponents and went to three sets. This is one girl you don’t want to mess with. If both Clijsters and Oudin can keep this up they may just see each other in the finals. That will be a match I won’t want to miss, and neither should you.

Encore

The tennis world has been lacking in female greats not named “Williams” for a few years now, but one shining star is ready to make a comeback.

Throughout her career, Clijsters was known for her outstanding athleticism and defense and moved around the court arguably better than anyone in the world, with her speed and ability to slide on almost any surface. Her slides usually ended in a famous Clijsters split, showcasing her flexibility. (Quote from title linked article)

That’s right folks, Kim Clijsters is looking to come out of retirement and become a full time tennis professional again. So far her encore has been going well. She made it to the third round with her victory over Marion Bartoli 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 in the second round and a first round victory over Viktoriya Kutuzova 6-1, 6-1 before that. It will be interesting to see how far she can make it, especially since her last tournament was her winning the title here at the U.S. Open in 2005. Stayed tuned for continuing coverage of Clijsters and the remains of the tournament.