+ NETCORDS: Quick hits from around the grounds

- Do you like your women beautiful and athletic? Well, you'll get that and more in Nike's 'Make Yourself Girl Power' campaign shot by famed photog Annie Leibovitz and starring Grand Slammers Maria Sharapova + Li Na along with track-and-field stars Allyson Felix + Perri Shakes-Drayton, soccer's Hope Solo, dancer Sofia Boutella, and surfer Laura Enever. The Double Bagel has additional shots, including Shrieka getting her crunch on.

- Speaking of Li Na, WSJ.com has a good piece on the influence her win at Roland Garros will have on sports in China. One person who's happy about the changes in the Chinese system is Zheng Jie. "I am so thankful for this mini-truce," she said.

- GQ.com showcased some of the best and worst styles worn by Rafael Nadal over the years (pirate pants!) while CNBC.com says Nike's decision to move the Mallorcan Matador towards more conservative attire helped retailers' bottom line.

- Andy Roddick knows how to deal with those pesky rain delays in London. With - what else? -  Angry Birds! Oh, and if you need to know what's been on his iPod while there, click here. For reals.

- So, this is what happens when you reach 20,000 fans on Facebook, for better or worse:



- Andre Agassi was interviewed for The New York Times and discusses everything from his charter schools, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, his controversial memoir "Open" and the 1999 French Open where he and wife Steffi Graf reigned as singles champs: "We don’t really talk about it, but the memory is so alive. But you also live with the fact her experience was way different than mine. This was a hard tournament for me, so to get over the line at that moment was something special."

- Federer likes it FAST.

- Deadspin's Dylan Stableford talks Borg-McEnroe and JMac's man-crush on the iconic Swede: "But did you know McEnroe had something of a heterosexual man-crush on Borg when he first saw Bjorn? 'I'd never seen a tennis player look like this," McEnroe admits in HBO's 'McEnroe/Borg: Fire & Ice,' documentary, which airs on Saturday night. 'He had this sort of perfect Viking godlike look, and I certainly wanted to get the same type of things that he seemed to be getting, which was a lot of interest and a lot of girls. … I think everyone wanted to look like Bjorn. Certainly he had the cool clothes and the sweet headband and the great locks.'"

- Dinara Safina on Rafael Nadal + Novak Djokovic for Sport.ru: "I like them both, I know them both, and they are both nice guys. What I like about Nadal is how he turns the audience on, charges everyone with his emotions, even when something is not going right. But if we take the beauty of the game Djokovic has the advantage."

- TOTALLY OFF-TOPIC: Tracy Morgan still feeling the heat for homophobic rant; Britney Spears covering Madonna's 'Burning Up' on tour (just kill me); Congressman Weiner's sexts get the dramatic (and hilarious) treatment; Well, hello there Jessie Williams; Brief-tastic Francesco Totti moments courtesy of Kickette of course; MTV cans 'Skins'

[Photo(s) credit: Nike]

(UPDATED) QUOTE OF THE DAY: Dinara Safina

Sorry that I had to retire, I felt again my back and got very scared. Just did MRI and CT scan, waiting for the result!

- Dinara Safina after retiring from her match against Victoria Azarenka in Marbella with a back injury

In another tweet a couple of hours later Dinara said she was feeling better and would try playing doubs tomorrow with partner Agnes Szavay. Well, that's very good news. The original back injury had her thinking about retirement, so to hear the Russian feels well enough to attempt playing doubs is awesome.

UPDATE: So all is not well. At all. Via Twitter - "Sadly but the tournament is over... Tomorrow going to Madrid to see my doctor and probably will have to do again some check and some more [s]tuff... Probably 1 more MRI because my doctor needs to do it on his machine... Today when I was warming up i've got again pain in my back...It's very sad... Now I'll have to wait for my doctor and gonna decide what I'm gonna do... Uffff I don't know anymore what to think or to do"

Oy. 

[Photo(s): AndaluciaTennis.com]

Gone, but not forgotten

Hi Rafa. I'm back.

Kalil + I had such a great time in Florida celebrating my parent's 40th anniversary. It was an emotional trip for obvious reasons which always seems to put me in a pensive, introspective mood. I was able to spend time with family and friends I hadn't seen in a long time; it was fun to catch up on their lives and see how they've changed since the last time we spoke. If ever you feel like time is moving at the speed of light, it would be in those moments. Forever young we are not.

The weather couldn't have been better - sunny, 80's, moderate humidity - so we managed to sneak in some hitting with HEAD and Dunlop followed by quick dips in the pool. Now, it wouldn't be a true family gathering (or life) without some drama but all in all it was a beautiful time. A big thanks to those of you who left kind messages for my parents and me in the comments section and on Twitter and Facebook - they read them as well and were moved by your words.

If I'm being completely honest, though, it's always hard to plop my brown arse onto a chair, open up the computer and write something after being away for a bit. You could compare it somewhat to tennis in that you form a 'writing rhythm' when you are posting regularly, but once you stop, it takes a moment to get it back. So I took yesterday to catch up on the happenings and find my motivation. And I think I did.

What was the biggest piece of news to happen while I was away? Aside from all the Brett Favre cock talk (don't be fooled - some penises are not pretty, NSFW) here are the choices:

A) Rafael Nadal wins his seventh title of the year and 43rd of his career in Tokyo over Milli Vanilli (thanks natch)

B) Caroline Wozniacki boots Serena Williams from the WTA Penthouse and takes residence becoming the 20th top lady baller in WTA history at 20-years old

C) Novak Djokovic defends his title in Beijing besting David Ferrer grabbing his second title of the season

D) Wozzi downs Vera Zvonareva in Beijing for her sixth title of the year

E) The Wounded Tennis Association continues its work with Venus Williams, Dinara Safina, Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova ending their seasons and ReRe all but pulling the plug on hers

I guess I'd have to go with choice...uh...'B.' The way Wozzi earned the achievement - by leaping past an inactive and still-injured ReRe - may have been like tripping someone on crutches (no offense V)  on your way to the head of the class but the Dane's season-long consistency earned her the keys and that's all that matters. I keep going back to something TENNIS' Steve Tignor wrote when it seemed likely Woz would usurp the top spot:

Yes, she would be the real No. 1, and she would deserve it. She would not be the best player in the world; that’s still Serena, who won two majors this year. Being No. 1 is a different achievement. It might not sound glamorous, but it’s an honor nonetheless: Wozniacki would be recognized as the best in the world at her job.

Bulls-eye. But, fair or not, the sharks will be swarming and looking for her to legitimize the ranking by winning a major, or as Tigger so eloquently put it, by "mak[ing] something artificial into something real."

Now that's some tough love. Damn, it's good to be back.


[Photo(s): Getty Images]

Samurai, Lleyton and Li get their grass-court games in gear for Wimbledon

Sam Querrey became the first baller to win a title on three different surfaces this season after defeating compatriot Mardy Fish 7-6 (3), 7-5 at Queen's Club. He won his first title of the year on hard at Memphis, second on clay in Belgrade and this week on grass. It's a tremendous win for Samurai especially when you consider who was in the draw at the start of the week: World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Andy Roddick to name just a few. He seems primed to do better than his career-best second round appearance at Wimbledon.


Lleyton Hewitt decided 15 straight losses were enough and shocked Roger Federer 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4 at Halle where the Swiss holds a lifetime contract. It was the Aussie's debut at the tourney and, more importantly, his first win over the 16-time Grand Slammer since he beat Fed in five sets at Davis Cup in 2003. As for Fed he lost for only the second time in his last 78 matches on the slick stuff, the only other one being the epic Wimbledon final in 2008 against Rafa.

Lleyton will be, what's the word, RELIEVED to have that monkey off his back and he'll no doubt like his chances to make a good run at Wimby now. But what about Fed, who hasn't won a title since capturing the Aussie Open in January? Well, he's on his best surface entering the tourney he loves the most so he should be feeling good about that. But his confidence isn't living at its usual heights (as evidenced by his recent losses) which might make him vulnerable early on at Wimby. He's an expert at managing his game over the two weeks of a major, though, so if he gets through the first one relatively unscathed he could still go all the way.


Li Na went one further this year in Birmingham but needed to defeat Maria Sharapova again to get there. The Chinese lady baller, who ousted Shrieka last season in the semifinals but lost in the final, once again bested the Russian 7-5, 6-1 to claim the crown. Nice win for Li and a good effort by the former Wimby champ to get to another final. But Shrieka threw down 7 DF's in the match after smacking 12 aces in the semifinals which shows real inconsistency in her serve. She'll be looking at another early round loss at The All England Club if she doesn't get that part of her game under control.

Noticeable Notables:

Dinara Safina lost her fifth straight match going down this time to Magdalena Rybarikova 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of 's-Hertogenbosch. I'm not feeling too good about her chances to defend the Wimby semifinal appearance from last year or even make it past the first week, and that could mean a big tumble down the rankings. Like out of the Top 30 even.

Novak Djokovic & Jonathan Erlich were REALLY happy about the men's doubles title they won at Queen's Club:


Let's hope they double up s'more.

[Photo(s): Getty Images]

Date Krumm stuns Safina in first round of Roland Garros

Seniors Tour her ass.

Thirty-nine year old Kimiko Date Krumm made it seem like the 1990's all over again - complete with a continental FH - when she shocked last year's finalist Dinara Safina in the first round of Roland Garros today. The Japanese lady baller hobbled back on one good leg (she had her right calf heavily taped) from 1-4 down in the decider to earn the big win. She became the second-oldest woman to win a match at Roland Garros in the Open Era after Virginia Wade in 1985. Awesome.

Kimi will face Aussie Jarmila Groth for a spot in the third round.


She knew, as we all did watching, that her Russian foe was feeling the moment:

"I didn't want to stop," Date Krumm said. "My condition was very bad, but she was getting a little nervous, and she started making mistakes. So I tried many things, like drop shots and hitting wider, slower... and she kept making mistakes. I tried everything."

As for Dinara it was a disastrous performance particularly by PUTA!, her nasty wayward serve that gave up 17 double faults. She'll most likely fall back into the 20's when the rankings are released after RG. Add to this her split from coach Zeljko Krajan prior to the start of the tourney and her recent injury woes and you have one scattered lady baller on your racquet.

P.S. Loving the adidas duds Kimi!

[Photo(s): Getty Images]

Dinara undone by injury while Kiri reaches first major quaterfinal

You gotta feel for Dinara Safina.

The former top lady baller was forced to withdraw from her fourth round match against Maria Kirilenko at the Aussie Open due to a recurrence of the back injury that knocked her out of the WTA Championships last season.

A disappointed Dinara discussed the painful injury in her post-match presser:

Q. Have you managed to speak to your doctor since you came off court?

DINARA SAFINA: No, not yet. I'm sure my coach is talking to him.

Q. How does this feel compared to last year when you had the back injury?

DINARA SAFINA: Exactly the same like in Doha. Exactly the same. I just cannot move anywhere.

I mean, the physio asked me to lie on the table. I said, I cannot lie. I cannot make any movement. Whatever I try to move, it hurts terribly.


Q. So it's gotten worse after you came off the court today?

DINARA SAFINA: Yes. Like because I took pain killer before the match, because I was feeling stiff. I think, Okay, I going to take it as a discomfort so I forget about the pain. Then at 3‑2, I said, Okay, can you please give me some more painkillers? I kept on trying because I thought like, Okay, it's going to work, it has to.

My coach told me at 4‑3 to retire. I'm like, Okay, I'm going to try. But it's no way.

Q. Do you think you may have done more damage by playing the extra two games?

DINARA SAFINA: Yeah, I'm think so. But, you know, you always hope that it cannot get worse. If it would be the same, you think, Okay, like pain killer, whatever, it can help. You always hope.

Now I see I did worse.

Q. Can you travel tomorrow with your back?

DINARA SAFINA: The plan for me is to see the doctor as soon as possible to see exactly what happened. I don't know how I will pack my bags. I guess I will ask my team to help me to pack my bags, because I really don't know how to move now.

Maybe I stay here one more day and I fly the other day. I don't know.

Wow, it sounds extremely painful. All the best in your recovery Dinara. Let's hope you can get this injury under control because these back issues have a tendency to become chronic.

But let's send a huge CONGRATS to Kiri for making her first Grand Slam quarterfinal. She's been playing some outstanding stuff this tourney and has a tremendous opportunity to reach the semifinals when she faces Chinese baller Jie Zheng next.

[Photo(s): Getty]

HE SAID/SHE SAID: Oz Open Day Five

Q. You looked really relaxed out there. What did you do on your day off?

DINARA SAFINA: Well, yesterday what I do? Nothing. Practice as early as possible because I want to have as much rest as possible. So I practice early. Then I come back to the hotel. I eat somewhere close to the hotel. Then just hanging around in the room, watching movies.

The only thing I did yesterday, I went to the bookstore, and I bought from Julie and Julia cookbook. This is what made me walk out of the room.

Q. Did you see the movie?

DINARA SAFINA: That's what made me buy the book. I had to buy two books. I like cooking. I'm having new apartment in Moscow. I'm like, Okay, instead of library of books, I'll have cookbooks. I want to cook.

Q. Are you a good cook?

DINARA SAFINA: I'm just starting, you know. Until now nobody got sick, so this is the positive (smiling.) They might like, not like, but if they have problems with the stomach, it's not good.

But until now, nobody would complain about the stomach (laughter).

Q. What is your signature dish?

DINARA SAFINA: Actually, I can make not bad asparagus, risotto with asparagus. This is the thing that I can do. And, of course, green salad with olive oil.


Q. Pat Rafter said you could be the next man to dominate men's tennis in the world. What do you think of that?

JUAN MARTIN DEL POTRO: I don't know. He knows about this sport. But I don't want extra pression (sic). I have too much pression with me. So thank you to Patrick, but I have a long way to be the next No. 1 or to be better.


Q. You talked the other day about feeling nerves at the end of the Dementieva match. When you were down 3‑1, were you more relaxed today?

JUSTINE HENIN: I just tried to stay calm. I just tried to, you know, wait for that things were going better, and that paid. That was the most important thing. If you get crazy at that time, I mean... I just tried to play point after point, be focused on every moment, even if it's not easy.

Proved again that that's probably a good attitude to have. But sometimes it's okay, and sometimes you lose. But today I feel like I'm very happy to be in the tournament, to have another opportunity to play another match.

It's been more than what I could expect when I arrive in Australia. Now, even if I have the ambition to go further and win every match that I'll play, everything's bonus for me.

Q. Is there a story behind the new diamond ring you have on?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it's not coming from a lover, if that's the question (laughter).

Q. Is it just something you've treated yourself with?

JUSTINE HENIN: It's a gift from a friend. But nothing else, yeah (smiling). I was surprised the question didn't come earlier actually.


Q. Beyond just this match, how do you strike the balance between playing with passion but managing emotion?

ANDY RODDICK: Is, I don't know, an acceptable answer (laughter)?

As far as point to point, I think I approach matches maybe a lot more even keel than I used to. I kind of negotiate my way through the match. I'm assuming this is in reference to the other day [when he argued the umpire an cursed.]

Q. Overall.

ANDY RODDICK: Yeah, overall I'd say I've definitely learned the balance. You know, obviously some things change in the heat of the moment. But what was a little bit lost the other day was the fact that, you know, it happened. I went and finished the match, then had my ‑ we'll call it an episode.


Q. In the first set up two breaks, were you thinking that you were playing really well?

NADIA PETROVA: I wasn't actually thinking anything. That was a good thing (laughter).

As soon as the point was over, my priority was the next point. I really wanted to win it badly. You know, that way I start collecting point by point, game by game.

[Photo(s): AP, Reuters]

HE SAID/SHE SAID: Oz Open Day One

Q. You seem a bit slimmer than last year, a bit lighter.

RAFAEL NADAL: Can we bring scales tomorrow? Everybody ask me the same. If we bring something here, I gonna put... I have the same weight than last year. I weigh the same five years ago. I didn't change.


Q. Is it hard as a returner to know what to expect with Maria's serve?

MARIA KIRILENKO: I mean, yes, her serve ‑‑ she didn't do too much double‑fault actually today. I expected to get more (laughter).


Q. Who takes care of your dog when you're away?

ANDY RODDICK: Who takes care of my dog when I'm away? Questions I didn't think I was going to get today.

Q. You tweet about your dog.

ANDY RODDICK: Yeah, my dog is at the in‑law's right now. Sometimes when I leave, the dog wants to stay in Austin, because it just tells us, and my friend Neal Boban, who graduated from Dartmouth, takes care of it, takes it out thrice daily, emails us updates (laughter).


Q. What do you think about the comeback of Justine Henin? You were the one who beat her, and now she's come back.

DINARA SAFINA: I think it's great for her that she's back.

Q. And for women's tennis?

DINARA SAFINA: I guess so.


Q. Having changed your buildup to this Open, starting with a new sponsor, does it feel different this year in any particular way?

ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, a lot of things have changed, you know, especially in the buildup to the event. Obviously I got here a lot earlier. Today was the first, you know, match on the tour, I guess, after quite a long break.

So that changes things a little bit, whereas I've come in the last years having played a lot of matches in Doha. Obviously, play with new clothes and changed the weight and stuff of my racquet a little bit at the end of the year. Less people with me this year. So changed quite a few things up. [Hmmm, talking about Kim perhaps?]


Q. Did you think it was wrong you had to play qualifying?

YANINA WICKMAYER: Well, I'm 16 in the world, so I think I should be main draw. I mean, I've asked myself that question a lot of times. I knew I was going to have to play quallies. I knew it a couple of weeks before, so I could prepare myself for the qualifying matches, which was, in a way, positive. I knew I was gonna play them and I could prepare myself mentally.


Q. But you are playing well, too, now.

ELENA DEMENTIEVA: You're asking me or you're telling me?

Q. Telling you or asking you. Whatever.

ELENA DEMENTIEVA: Telling me. Thank you (laughter.)

[Photo(s): AP, Getty]

(UPDATED) PHOTO OP: Dinara Safina or Frank N. Furter? You decide.

Dinara Safina is featured in all her glorious gothness in the November issue of Russian Harper's Bazaar.

In the issue she "reveals how to become the top-seeded tennis player in the world, and what she would do if she didn’t play tennis."


Question: Why does every lady baller have to be marketed as some kind of pouty model? Dinara is one of the last ladies (next to Sveta, maybe) that I would've imagined showing up trying to sell clothes in a fashion rag. It's not her schtick and now we can all see why.

It would've been great to see a few images Dinara smiling, looking relaxed and wearing some fun, youthful fashion to go along with the article. I mean, she's only 23-years old but looks so much older here. Ugh.




WAIT! So now I'm thinking Frank N. Furter was the mag's inspiration for Dinara's styling and just in time for Halloween. Now it all makes sense. I was so wrong.


UPDATE: Dinara just retired from her round robin match against Jelena Jankovic in Doha. There are unconfirmed reports she is suffering from a back injury. She left the court in tears. Vera Zvonareva will replace D in the White Group tomorrow if she's unable to play. Of course, Serena Williams will grab the year-end ranking if she doesn't show as well. Stay tuned.

UPDATE #2: Back injury reports now confirmed. Her participation is still in doubt.

UPDATE #3: Dinara's out of the YEC and ReRe's in as year-end No.1. How very anticlimactic, but the right lady baller got the big prize in the end.

(Photos: Harper's Bazaar via Forty Deuce)

Top lady ballers dress it up in Doha, attend draw ceremony for WTA Championships

The top eight lady ballers in the world have gathered in Doha for the 39th WTA year-end Sony Ericsson Championships.

They have been divided into two groups for the round robin format based on the colors of the Qatari flag: the White group features No.1 seed Dinara Safina, No.4 seed Caroline Wozniacki, No.6 seed Victoria Azarenka and No.8 seed Jelena Jankovic. The Maroon group is made up of No.2 seed Serena Williams, No.3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, No.5 seed Elena Dementieva and No.7 seed Venus Williams, who is the defending champ.

Alternates Vera Zvonareva + Agnieszka Radwanska also made the trip to Doha.

Check out the official site here.

Images of the ladies going glam for the draw ceremony below. My fave? Elena. Simple elegance. My least fave? V. It's not your 1985 senior prom girl.

Dinara

ReRe

Sveta

Wozzi

Elena

Vika

V

JJ

(Photos: Getty, Reuters)

USTA offers apology for Dinara dust up

The USTA has offered an apology for the handling of Dinara Safina's third round match which saw the top lady baller ousted by Petra Kvitova.

The Russian, whose match was first up that evening, was none too pleased about being moved to Louis Armstrong so James Blake's match could be started.


According to WTA tour CEO Stacy Allaster,

The U.S.T.A. has acknowledged they should have notified Dinara and the players much earlier in the process of what was going to happen. I think they’ve apologized for that and I think that what’s most important now is we move forward. They’re going to look at their procedures and try to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

Serena Williams was asked about the incident in her post-match presser and came to D's defense:

Q. Safina, because the day session ran long, her match was supposed to be the first on at night on Ashe got moved to Louis Armstrong. She was disappointed in that. She thought it was disrespectful that the women's match got moved. Any opinion on that? If placed in a situation like that, would you be upset?
SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, why didn't they move the men's match again? They were second on.

Q. She said they told her they wanted to give fans the chance to see a best of five set match and they moved her to Armstrong.
SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah, I think that was just a good thing to tell her to silence her at that moment. But I have to take her side on this. I think that she was first on. She should've played at 7:00. They should have moved the men's match. Simple as that, that's how it should be done. If you're supposed to play a match, you're supposed to play it, and then you move the next match.

Firstly, nice to see the ladies' stick up for each other here even amongst all the smack talk that's been going around.

It was a total slap in the face to the top seed Dinara and I'm glad the USTA acknowledged their unfortunate mistake.

(Photo: Getty)

A-Rod + Dinara join other sidelined seeds at the UpSet Open

Upsets at this year's US Open are becoming as ubiquitous as those pesky double faults.

Andy Roddick's quest for a second US Open title came crashing down in defeat to compatriot John Isner 7-6 (3), 6-3, 3-6, 5-7, 7-6 (5) in their third round match. He becomes the highest seeded casualty in the boys' draw so far. The giant American will now face Fernando Verdasco for a spot in the quarterfinals.

I'd say A-Rod is probably still dealing with some lingering effects from that epic loss to Roger Federer after his early exit here. It was definitely a winnable match for him but his confidence and self-belief may be a bit shaken at the moment.


Dinara Safina used up her last lifeline at Flushing Meadows late last night. After scraping through her first two matches, the top lady baller was unable to close out her third round match against Petra Kvitova and fell 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (5). Dinara even held three match points in the decider and couldn't seal the deal. The Sisters Sledge are the only ladies in the Top 5 to still be alive at the Open. Color me NOT shocked.

Clearly, this result is not surprising based on her recent results and sketchy serve of late. I feel for her, though, after her match was moved to Louis Armstrong so James Blake could play his on Arthur Ashe. Plus, all the talk of not D not deserving the WTA Penthouse keys has taken its toll but I think even she will have a hard time defending that stance now.

(Photos: Getty)