THE LOW DOWN: When tennis players don't pay the bills...

During our daily perusal through the many tennis player sites, we came across this note on Rafael Nadal's: 'Account for domain www.rafaelnadal.com has been suspended'. Say what? Our first thought was the Spaniard is revamping his site, but the fact the notice says the account was suspended left us wondering. Could it be Rafa's team neglected to pay his bills?

There seem to be more miscommunications in the Rafa camp recently. We suppose we can chalk this up to another PR blunder for the World No. 2.

UPDATE: It seems the Rafa camp paid their bill, and now the site's back up!

(image via natashayong.blogspot.com)

FASHION FIX: Will Maria Sharapova be wearing this Nike gear at the '08 Aussie Open?

Snoop dog: Being the good journalists we (think) we are, we did some snooping and stumbled across these sketch drawings of some new Nike gear on a tennis forum thread titled 'Maria's Possible Outfits for Aussie 2008'. Apparently this group has our favorite screecher's name, Maria "Shriek"apova, in its title and includes the tanks and skirts below (though we think if she's wearing anything from this group, it'll most likely be the dresses.)

We like all of the colorways except for the purple - we've never really been big fans of purple because it's a pretty tough color to work into a good outfit. Of course, we're loving the gray and tank dress with the pink (?) graphic design on the skirt; the white is clean and classic.

Can anyone confirm Maria will be wearing any of the pieces above during the Australian Open next month?

FASHION FIX: Autographed Nike 'RF' caps available via Roger Federer Shop

Ask and you shall receive: A few of you have been asking, searching, and pleading for more information on purchasing the black Nike RF cap that Roger Federer has been wearing recently. Now comes word the cap is available at the Roger Federer Shop and has been autographed by the World No. 1.

But move fast - only 200 are available. The cap is priced at 250 CHF/Swiss Francs (equivalent to $217.00.) All proceeds will go to the Roger Federer Foundation.

To purchase a cap, click here!

(images via AP Photo)

BREAKING: Anna Chakvetadze and family robbed at country home in Russia, parents tied up

BREAKING: Reuters is reporting Anna Chakvetadze and her parents were victims of a house invasion at the country home in southwest Russia early this morning. Anna was not harmed but her father suffered cuts and bruises from the incident.

The group of five to six men were wearing masks and climbed over the fence of the home, tied up her parents, and took over $200,000 worth of valuables. According to Anna's father Jamal,

"They started to beat me up, I resisted, then they hit me either with their hands or a pistol. It was dark, told me I had a child there, reminded me about it, so that I gave them everything. So I did."

UPDATE: New reports are saying Anna was tied up along with her parents and according to Shamil Tarpishchev she "tried to resist but it was useless."

(image via usopen.org)

THE LOW DOWN: To grunt or not to grunt, that is the question...

Grunt it up: We don't call her Maria "Shriek"apova for nothin'. And apparently former Wimbledon finalist Judy Dalton agrees with our assessment of the former World No. 1. Judy, holder of nine Grand Slam doubles titles, believes, however, that the grunting must be stopped and told The Age she would even forfeit a match if faced with Maria "Shriek"apova on the other side of the net saying,

"If that was me and I was playing Sharapova, I would be saying, 'If you continue with that you can have the match, I'll walk off, and I'll lodge a complaint,' [...] The other girls should say 'Fine, I'll forfeit the match.'[...] Will it happen? I don't think so."

But is grunting considered gamesmanship, or worse, cheating? According to the article, "Under the rules of tennis, the chair umpire must be convinced that they are excessive and intentional. If so, 'any continual distraction of regular play, such as grunting, shall be dealt with as follows: for the first offence, a let should be called and the player should be told that any such hindrance thereafter will be ruled deliberate. Any hindrance caused by a player that is ruled deliberate will result in the loss of a point.'"

Maria's noise level was famously measured by the London tabloids "grunt-o-meter" during Wimbledon at 101.2 decibels — "the equivalent, apparently, of a police siren at close range or a small aircraft landing nearby."

A small aircraft landing nearby? Wow, that's pretty loud Maria, but we still love your grunting ways. Is it excessive? Probably. Is it dramatic?? Of course, but so is Judy's claim that she'd forfeit a match (what about a Grand Slam final, Judy?) Besides, we'd have to drop Maria's nickname and that's never fun.

(image via answers.com)

SIGHTING: Jelena Dokic bags two wins in Oz Open qualies, needs tennis tan back

A pale comparison: After finally stuffing her pride aside and accepting help from Tennis Australia, Jelena Dokic began her quest for an Australian Open wildcard. The former top-fiver won her second match in qualifying this weekend defeating Christina Wheeler 3-6 7-6 (7-0) 6-3. and now moves into the quarterfinals after her two wins.

We knew Jelena wasn't playing much tennis over the last few years - but was that an excuse to stay out of the sun? The girl looks translucent - though she has nothing on you, Casper. Get thee to a sunnery!

(images via AP Photo, Getty)

Tommy Haas signs 3-year endorsement deal with K-Swiss

Tommy Haas is joining Russian Anna Kournikova under the K-Swiss flag. The German tennis star recently signed a three-year endorsement deal as a new spokesman for K-Swiss and will wear K-Swiss clothes and apparel on court starting in January. Tommy was most recently with German sports brand Limited Sports and Nike prior to that sponsorship. Asked about the partnership, the World No. 12 said,

"I remember seeing K-Swiss as a kid when I was starting my tennis career and am thrilled to be associated with a brand with such a strong heritage, [...] I am obviously excited about the performance tennis styles but also eager to collaborate on off court opportunities as well."

The new global K-Swiss advertising campaign will make its debut in February, 2008. The campaign will be showcased in television, print, on-line, and outdoor venues. Tommy joins Alona Bondarenko, Australian Open women's doubles champions Cara Black and Liezel Huber, and the aforementioned Kournikova, who recently shot a TV spot for the sportswear label in LA, as the current tennis stars for the K-Swiss brand.

(images via tennisweek.com)

THE LOW DOWN: Is James Blake dating Victoria's Secret model Selita Ebanks?

More from the gossip mill today: James Blake seems to be following Davis Cup teammate Andy Roddick's lead in the dating department these days. The New York Post's Page Six is reporting sightings of James with Victoria's Secret model Selita Ebanks in LA. According to a source,

"They met in LA and have been dating seriously."

Selita was previously linked to Nick Cannon, the actor recently picked to portray the legendary Arthur Ashe in his biopic.

(images via askmen.com, si.cnn.com)

THE LOW DOWN: Czech mates? Stepanek and Vaidisova rumored to marry

We couldn't believe the rumors swirling around this past weekend about Radek Stepanek and 18-year old Nicole Vaidisova. According to the Bradenton Herald in Florida, the Manatee County Clerk of Circuit Court said the pair, who are both from the Czech Republic, applied for a marriage license on December 10. Huh?

Remember not so long ago, the 29-year old Radek was on the fast track to becoming Mr. Martina Hingis until their engagement was ended before the US Open in August under mysterious circumstances (we're thinking her failed drug tests might have been a reason). Talk about moving on.

In any case, to say this news is shocking is an understatement. No word yet today on whether the pair has confirmed the engagement. Stay tuned...

(images via AP Photo)

INSTANT REPLAY: a look back at this week's top tennis plays

COURTSIDE

A-Rod hosts Charity Weekend
Aussie Open '08 fashion preview: Serena, Fed, and Rafa (well, maybe...)
When Anna K. models and blogs
TENNIS 2007 Award: Male and Female Style Maven
A-Rod brings Brooklyn to Manhattan
James hosts Anthem LIVE!
Gallery of the Unknown Tennis Player
Renaissance woman
How Chris met Greg


+ NETCORDS

THURSDAY: Jelena, Boris, A-Rod, Venus vs. Serena...Sania makes amends, Becks makes us cry and more