Dulgheru Breaks Kvitova's Spell

Since taking the tennis world by storm with her surreal run to the Warsaw title in 2009, Alexandra Dulgheru kept a low profile. Some wins here and there, but no major breakthrough performance. However, her results were enough to establish her as a constant top 30 figure. Unfortunately though, lately things didn't go that well and, following a string of poor performances which saw her barely drop out of the top 50, she lost her status as Romania's highest ranked player, being surpassed by young gun Irina Begu. With her only highlight this year being the Miami quarterfinal, Alexandra came into her first round clash with Petra Kvitova as the clear underdog. The Czech is still resting on the laurels of her Wimbledon triumph and, after a doubty summer, many were wondering if she can raise her game and shine again. 

The beginning of the match seemed to indicate that we are in for a short encounter, as Petra quickly set up a 2-0 lead. The Romanian fought back and, after a topsy-turvy display, she won the first set on a tiebreak. The second set started in a similar manner, with Kvitova racing in front. However, she was pegged back by an astonishing 53 unforced errors, thus allowing the tenacious Dulgheru to pick up an unexpected 7-6,6-3 win. Kvitova's departure is the first big shock of this year's US Open. It also marks the first time in the Open Era that the Wimbledon champion is dumped out in the first round at Flushing Meadows.

Moreover, her defeat comes to fuel recent debate about a disrupted WTA tour which is desperately lacking its past dominant forces (i.e. Evert, Navratilova, Graf, Seles, Hingis, the Williams sisters or Henin). After Justine's first retirement in 2009, no other player was capable of filling in her place. Ivanovic had a brief moment of glory after winning the French Open but quickly faded away. Serena and Kim both showed potential, but they play only part-time and choose to focus on the majors so, realistically, they cannot issue any claims on the number 1 ranking. Nonetheless, after her cool blooded success at Wimbledon, many were betting on Petra to step up and assume this role. However, following her pre-Wimbledon misfortunate, their prospect looks slightly flawed.

Kvitova was unable to capitalize on her Wimbledon dream run, losing first round at the next Grand Slam. The powerful Czech was beaten 6-7,3-6 by Romanian Alexandra Dulgheru.

photos:  GETTY IMAGES

Hurricane Sabine Hits Dallas

At the same time as Irene hit the American East Coast, another hurricane took over the peaceful, climate friendly inaugural Dallas WTA stop. Sabine Lisicki caught fire after reuniting with her beloved grass courts. A title in Birmingham, a semifinal at Wimbledon and a steady run on the North American hardcourts and the German became one of the hottest player of the moment. Nevertheless, it wasn't until she reached Dallas, that the Sabine hurricane recorded its highest magnitude.

She was quick off the blocks, easily dismissing Indian Sania Mirza in the first round, 6-3,6-0. From there onwards, it was an easy ride for Lisicki, who managed to lose only 13 games on her way to her third career title. Relying on a power serve, tenacious footwork and heavy groundstrokes, the German was far too good for a rather open draw. When faced with her a challenge, all her opponents fell like flies. No one stood a chance to the German bulldozer, Sabine making light work in all of her matches. En route to the final, she destroyed Italian Alberta Brianti, Ukrainean Kateryna Bondarenko and Romanian Irina Begu. If some were expecting a tighter affair in the final against a recently rejuvenated Aravane Rezai, Lisicki proved them wrong. From two all in the first set, she went on to capture ten of the next eleven games and with them, the trophy.

With the prospect of bumping into unseeded Venus Williams in the second round, Sabine requires all the confidence in the world to ensure a long journey at this year's Flushing Meadows. Independent of the result of her US campaign, her comeback is more than spectacular. For a player who has seen her road to fame cut short by a horrible ankle injury, she has done wonders in making it back to the top.  It took her a while, but judging by her recent display, she doesn't look to have any plans of stopping here.

To add to the celebration, she was just announced the winner of the Xperia Hot Shots competition, surpassing fellow young stars Sorana Cirstea, Alize Cornet, Heather Watson, Dominika Cibulkova and Bethanie Mattek-Sands. After the thousands of fans voted for her, Sabine took home the coveted prize of 100k EUR courtesy of Sony Ericsson, the official WTA tour sponsor. Check out her Xperia Hot Shots profile video below:

photos (top-down / left-right): GETTY IMAGES, AP (x2)

She's still the Queen of this Castle

With romance threatening to hinder her professional ambitions, Caroline Wozniacki slapped the critics and retained her New Haven crown, ensuring the perfect preparation one week ahead of the last Grand Slam of the season. The Dane experienced a rather clouded period after hooking up with Golfer Rory McIlroy, losing in the first round in Montreal, to Vinci, and in Cincinnati, to American youngster Christina McHale.

Her position atop of the ranking was already much debated, therefore the fact that she faulted miserable at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, combined with her poor North American hardcourt season only fueled the criticism. Even her fans were beginning to worry, as the inexplicable defeats kept on pilling up, a rather surprising 'achievement' for a player renowned for her steel consistency. As in most cases, many attributed her lack of focus to her love fling. She managed to prove them wrong, showing that she doesn't mix business with pleasure.

With Rory cheering from the crowds, Caroline was back to her usual self in New Haven, retaining her title without breaking much sweat. After dispatching Polona Hercog in the first round, she got a chance to avenge her two previous loses to McHale. Stepping up her game when she needed it most, Wozniacki was able to win a rather disputed first set. It was the decisive moment of the dispute, the Dane sailing to a 7-5,6-3 victory after that. She repeated the same scenario in the semis, dismissing Italian Francesca Schiavone, 7-6,6-3. In the final, the world number 1 was even more efficient, ensuring a 6-4,6-1 win over Czech qualifier Petra Cetkovska.

Having now won the title four years running, the first player to emulate Venus Williams' feat, i.e. she won the same tournament between 1999 and 2002, Caroline is definitely the queen of New Haven. Judging by her impressive 17-0 record at Yale, this is surely her favourite WTA stop. Although she isn't the bets’ top choice to capture New York in the upcoming fortnight, the Dane might rely on some newly found love, both on and off court, to guide her path towards Grand Slam glory.

World No.1, Caroline Wozniacki won her fourth consecutive title in New Haven, defeating Czech qualifier, Petra Cetkovska 6-4,6-1. The Dane was cheered on by celebrity boyfriend, golfer Rory McIlroy.

photos:  GETTY IMAGES

The 2011 HARD Fashion Scoop

After Wimbledon, the leading figures of the WTA and ATP tours took some well deserved weeks off to recharge their batteries and to prepare for the last Grand Slam of the season, the US Open. With the North American hardcourt season in full swing, the Fashion Scoop looked at the latest tennis fashion trends.

Adidas wins the clash of the Titans

A sports rivalry as big as any other on court duel is the one between Adidas and Nike. As always, the two most famous sports apparel producers go head to head again this summer in search for fashion supremacy. While Nike is renowned for signing with the most important players (see Sharapova, Federer, Nadal or Serena Williams), Adidas focuses on recruiting the raising stars. In line with their youthful approach, the German manufacturer proposes a fresh line which clearly wins them the race. Lacking the big names, Adidas can always rely on beauty, Maria Kirilenko, Ana Ivanovic, Caroline Wozniacki or Sorana Cirstea being among their most precious assets. I must admit I was always a fan of Adidas as their clothes are more hip, fashion forward and have the salt and pepper needed by any garment. You can feel they don't disregard the design and that adds to their prestige.

Their proposition for this summer is cool, vibrant & joyful and their colour palette well chosen. Contrary to their previous collection, when they've struggled at this department, the purple pink and the light blue they've combined now are a great match.

Also, their more classical line is well represented by Pennetta's red-dark blue outfit. Moreover, they've looked to find a great ambassador in Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who looks very well in their vivid T-shirt propositions.

Maria Kirilenko - Adidas Barricade

Ana Ivanovic - Adidas AdiZero

Christina McHale - Adidas AdiZero

Flavia Pennetta - Adidas AdiPure

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - Adidas AdiZero

I was actually rather disappointed by Nike and what they came up with. They clothes lack imagination, colour or any sort of spark. They are so dull, I have to ask whether someone actually spent time putting together such designs. Although they rely on a powerful portfolio, the manufacturer doesn't seem to be doing much to help their stars stand out on the tennis court. Serena is probably my biggest disillusion. She looks like she's wearing a practicing outfit. The only one that makes an impression is Julia Gorgeous, though it can be argued that the gorgeous German would look hot in anything.

Nevertheless, Nike is willing to invest in keeping their stars satisfied. This thing is obvious in the case of Maria Sharapova. The Russian Diva is back at her utmost best wearing her signature pieces, white for the day, brown for the night.

Serena Williams - NIKE

Julia Goerges - NIKE

Na Li - NIKE

Victoria Azarenka - NIKE

Maria Sharapova - NIKE, Maria Sharapova Group

...and now the rest of the field

After concluding the dispute between moguls Adidas and Nike, it's now time to look at what the other producers put forward this summer. Unfortunately, the first two examples are a definite 'No No'. Nadia Petrova recently admitted that she is not a fierce fan of what her sponsor, Ellesse, designs for her. And she has all the reasons in the world to be worried, as you don't need to be fashion gifted to reach that conclusion. Lacking any form of style, the Russian bulldozer is a constant presence on the worst dressed list. Although, this time she resumed to white separates, Nadia's heavy demeanor and that shabby ribbon under her breast totally destroyed the poor garment. Galina Voskoboeva, her Ellesse companion might have stirred some waters with her wins over Marion Bartoli and Maria Sharapova in Toronto, but she'd come far to making a fashion impression with her silly cinderella-wannabe dress. The piece strengthens the claim that Ellesse's fashion aesthetic is out-dated and shabby.

Keeping her company on the oops list is fashionista-wanna-be, Jelena Jankovic. She was always one to showcase ugly pieces, but after signing with the Chinese company Anta, her style went from bad to hideous. This time she wore a peachy beach dress, which she pimped by adding some purple shapes on the side. The problem with her is that she is actually trying to be hip. She assumes this fashion icon status, but she's the epiphany of bad taste.

On the brighter side, K-Swiss and their partnership with Monfils produced spectacular results once more, the athletic Frenchman always managing to look great in the vividly coloured clothes. This summer he wore two garments, both hip, youthful and joyful: the light blue T-shirt and shorts and the sleeveless red top and the white shorts. With a style perfectly reflecting his exuberant personality, he is one of the best dressed players on the tour.

Galina Voskoboeva - Ellesse

Nadia Petrova - Ellesse

Jelena Jankovic - ANTA

Gael Monfils - K-SWISS

photos: GETTY IMAGES

New York Loses Its Queen

What an unfortunate season this has been for Kim Clijsters! It started perfectly with a first Australian Open trophy and the recapturing of the number 1 spot, but, soon after, injuries took their toll and the Belgian was sidelined since. She missed the entire claycourt season due to a foot injury she sustained while dancing at her cousin's wedding. Nevertheless, she returned for the French Open but lost in the second round to Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus. She reinjured her foot while playing at the Unicef Open and thus was forced to miss Wimbledon. This was a big blow to her plans, as Kim made the capturing of the grasscourt Slam title her top priority. "At this moment I feel frustrated that it has to happen now before one of my favourite tournaments," she said. "I've always enjoyed being a part of the Wimbledon atmosphere but I have no other choice now but to rest."

She did just that and was now looking forward to a busy schedule ahead of the US Open, her favourite WTA tour stop. She is the undisputed queen of the American hardcourts, having won the crown in her last three showings, i.e. in 2005 (final win against Pierce), in 2009 (defeated Wozniacki) and in 2010 (dismissed Zvonareva). Once again her plans didn't go as scheduled, leaving the cute Belgian in sheer frustration. She picked up an abdominal injury in her first match in Toronto against Chinese Jie Zheng. She had to retire from that encounter and, after undergoing further investigations, doctors concluded she won't be able to recover in due time for Flushing Meadow. This means that the two times defending champions won't be there to protect her crown. "Two weeks of rehab was not enough to heal this injury. Obviously I'm very disappointed," she said. "I trained very hard this summer and felt in a good shape to play the U.S. Open."

It's such a pity that Kim's limited schedule is restricted even more. She was already a part-time player on the tour, featuring in only the biggest tournaments. Moreover, she made it clear that she was no concrete plans after the 2012 Summer Olympics, fueling speculations that her clock is ticking. She is such a nice players, so gracious in win or defeat and she's so loved that it's really a shame that her fans are deprived of enjoying her more.

Following the loss of its queen, the New York draw is more open than ever. Serena Williams is now the hot favourite, but nowadays one can never know who is in for the run of her life.

photos:  GETTY IMAGES

Tennis Moods Style: Mary Pierce

Before Kournikova, Sharapova, Kirilenko, Ivanovic or Wozniacki, there was Mary Pierce. Due to her sophisticated manners, her moodiness and her fashion statements, the gracious Frenchwoman was quick in taking charge of the Diva status just upon joining the tour. She will always be referred to as the game's maiden Modern Diva.

The Maiden Tennis Fashionista

The Canadian born Frenchwoman joined the WTA tour in 1989, quickly making an impression by winning her first title in 1991 in Palermo. At the beginning of the 90s, she undertook a major transformation from the strange looking geekish teenager into a stylish young lady. She was soon offered an important sponsorship deal with Nike, for which she was the leading spokesperson for several years.

It is hard to identify a general pattern in Mary's fashion style, at least in the beginning. She always followed her guts, her range varying from simple garments to more elaborated, colour rich outfits. The dresses that stand out are definitely the black-white one she wore when collecting the Roland Garros title in 2000 or the stripped apparels she showcased at the 1997 French Open and at the 2000 Australian Open.

early 90s: a geekish looking Mary was making her debut on the WTA tour as an ambassador for Ellesse.

Australian Open 1994 marked the beginning of a fruitful relation with Nike.

@French Open 1994: in her breakthrough year she stunned world no.1 Steffi Graf to reach her maiden Grand Slam final. The home pressure took its toll though, and an inexperienced Mary lost to Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain.

1995: her first Grand Slam title in Australia, defeating Arantxa Sanchez in the final.

@Australian Open 1996: Mary fails to defend her title.

@ 1996 Wimbledon & Olympic Games

@Australian Open 1997: Mary returns to the final, but loses to new teen sensation, the Swiss Miss Martina Hingis.

@French Open 1997

@US Open 1997

@Chase Championships 1997: Mary reaches the final, having disposes of world number 1 Hingis in the quarterfinals. She succumbs to Czech Jana Novotna.

@Australian Open 1998

@Australian Open 1999

@French Open 1999

@US Open 1999

@Australian Open 2000

@Roland Garros 2000: not sure how fair it would be to accuse Julia Roberts of inspiring her 2001 Oscar winning Valentino look from Mary's outfit, but there are definitely similarities between the two. It was a fairytale fortnight for a royal looking Pierce, who went on to capture her second Grand Slam title, to the delight of a partisan French crowd.

Proud Mary kept on rolling

After winning her second Grand Slam trophy, Mary's career went through a lot of ups and downs. Her years on the tour were marred by numerous injuries, the Frenchwoman becoming a sort of a part-time player. However, she was always able to rebound every time, managing to achieve some spectacular results. 

Due to her efforts to increase the power of her shots and to cope better with the Williams sisters, Davenport or other killer players, Mary's once fragile figure started to deteriorate. She gained some extra kilos and  began losing her agility on the court. 

Along with her recently acquired silhouette came a toning down of her fashion style. With a few examples, Mary became one of the Nike block. During this span, she took some very unfortunate decisions, which made her look ridiculous (i.e. the extremely tight pink geometrical garment she showcased in 2001 or the mega dull piece she chose to wear in 2003). In spite of everything, proud Mary kept on rolling. With a limited schedule, the Frenchwoman managed to get back to top form in 2005 when she experienced a fairytale end to the season. She put fashion second and decided to focus on her game. It paid off for a period, but in the end it was again the injuries that took their toll. This time, the 31 years old Frenchwoman throw in the tower. She ended her career after failing to recover from a knee injury she sustained in 2006 at Linz.

@US Open 2000

During the 2001 season.

@Australian Open 2002

@Rome 2002

@Hilton Head 2002

@Roland Garros 2002

@Wimbledon 2002

@Australian Open 2003 

@Montreal 2003

@US Open 2003

@Roland Garros 2004

@Rosmalen 2004

@US Open 2004

@Australian Open 2005

@Roland Garros, US Open & Masters Cup 2005: an excellent period comprising 5 finals in 6 tournaments. For the first time in her career she reached two Grand Slam finals (i.e. Roland Garros and US Open), plus the final of the Masters in the same year. Unfortunately, she lost then all.

@Melbourne 2006

@US Open 2006

@Stuttgart 2006

@Zürich 2006

photos: taken from the official Mary Pierce fan page