http://www.gototennisblog.com Tennis blog. Tennis news. Tennis gossip. Wed, 17 Mar 2010 09:07:51 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/24/ana-ivanovic-in-san-diego-confident-with-new-coach-heinz-gunthardt/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/24/ana-ivanovic-in-san-diego-confident-with-new-coach-heinz-gunthardt/#comments Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:03:47 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=16726
I had the chance to speak very briefly with Ana Ivanovic today via a conference call to promote next week’s BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup. Ana, who played in the exhibition last year, is filling in this time for an injured Serena Williams. She called in from San Diego, where she’s [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/24/ana-ivanovic-in-san-diego-confident-with-new-coach-heinz-gunthardt/feed/ 4 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/24/gtt-interview-with-shahar-peers-coach-pablo-giacopelli/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/24/gtt-interview-with-shahar-peers-coach-pablo-giacopelli/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 11:43:42 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=16703
Shahar Peer’s coach, Pablo Giacopelli, blogged last week from the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, keeping us updated on both Shahar’s on-court progress and the surreal security procedures she was subject to as the first Israeli professional sportswoman to compete in the U.A.E. His player’s Dubai debut was a success, with Peer playing her way through [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/24/gtt-interview-with-shahar-peers-coach-pablo-giacopelli/feed/ 8 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/23/gtt-interview-billie-jean-king-cup-is-no-gimmicky-exhibition-says-jerry-solomon/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/23/gtt-interview-billie-jean-king-cup-is-no-gimmicky-exhibition-says-jerry-solomon/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:40:09 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=16667
Venus Williams with Joel Fisher from Madison Square Garden and (left) and Jerry Solomon of StarGames (right). Photo courtesy of Angela Cranford/MSG Photos From the controversial Tennis World Cup proposal, to Maria Sharapova’s scrutinized all-exo preparation for the Australian Open, to the feel-good success of Roger Federer’s Hit for Haiti, the often peripheral world of tennis [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/23/gtt-interview-billie-jean-king-cup-is-no-gimmicky-exhibition-says-jerry-solomon/feed/ 5 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/17/kim-clijsters-looking-forward-to-serena-rematch-back-at-bitter-defeat/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/17/kim-clijsters-looking-forward-to-serena-rematch-back-at-bitter-defeat/#comments Wed, 17 Feb 2010 13:25:17 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=16495
Kim Clijsters called in from Belgium on Tuesday to take part in a media conference call promoting the BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup in Madison Square Garden. (Yes, that rolls off Kim’s tongue with ease.) The one-night exhibition on March 1 features the reigning US Open Champ, Venus and Serena Williams [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/02/17/kim-clijsters-looking-forward-to-serena-rematch-back-at-bitter-defeat/feed/ 1 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/01/12/darren-cahill-on-more-federer-vs-nadal-majors-for-andy-roddick/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/01/12/darren-cahill-on-more-federer-vs-nadal-majors-for-andy-roddick/#comments Wed, 13 Jan 2010 07:38:34 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=15324
Former pro, Super Coach and ESPN 2 commentator Darren Cahill spoke with reporters via conference call on Tuesday (Darren was calling in from Wednesday, Down Under.) Much of the conversation revolved around the WTA (click here for more on that) but he still had plenty to say about Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and the rest [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/01/12/darren-cahill-on-more-federer-vs-nadal-majors-for-andy-roddick/feed/ 11 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/01/12/australian-open-saviours-justine-henin-kim-clijsters-and-the-return-of-first-name-tennis/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/01/12/australian-open-saviours-justine-henin-kim-clijsters-and-the-return-of-first-name-tennis/#comments Wed, 13 Jan 2010 04:02:23 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=15304
For the first time in years, women’s tennis is in the media forefront Down Under. Darren Cahill and Pam Shriver were peppered with WTA-focused questions in an ESPN2-sponsored conference call on Tuesday, and Len DeLuca, the station’s senior V.P. of programming and acquisitions, is counting on the ladies to pull their ratings weight: “Tennis is set [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/01/12/australian-open-saviours-justine-henin-kim-clijsters-and-the-return-of-first-name-tennis/feed/ 3 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/29/us-open-federer%e2%80%99s-fat-nadal%e2%80%99s-diet-and-other-weighty-issues/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/29/us-open-federer%e2%80%99s-fat-nadal%e2%80%99s-diet-and-other-weighty-issues/#comments Sun, 30 Aug 2009 04:19:47 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=11943
The ESPN network, which is showing 100 hours of live US Open tennis on ESPN2 (and 400 online at ESPN360.com), hosted a conference call recently with two familiar voices from the commentary booth: Cliff Drysdale and Pam Shriver. Both had some interesting things to say on the biggest, fattest and meatiest stories going into the [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/29/us-open-federer%e2%80%99s-fat-nadal%e2%80%99s-diet-and-other-weighty-issues/feed/ 12 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/19/john-mcenroe-calls-injury-timeouts-a-tour-epidemic/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/19/john-mcenroe-calls-injury-timeouts-a-tour-epidemic/#comments Thu, 20 Aug 2009 05:43:51 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=11566
John McEnroe said the use of injury timeouts is “absolutely an epidemic” on the tour, speaking Wednesday via an ESPN2 conference call. The latest outbreak of timeout-itis occurred last weekend in Montreal, when Juan Martin del Potro called the trainer twice and took a bathroom break during his championship match against Andy Murray. The Argentine had [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/19/john-mcenroe-calls-injury-timeouts-a-tour-epidemic/feed/ 10 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/06/ana-ivanovic-loses-in-la-vows-to-stay-out-of-self-help-section/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/06/ana-ivanovic-loses-in-la-vows-to-stay-out-of-self-help-section/#comments Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:01:19 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=11091
Ana Ivanovic lost to Sam Stosur, 6-3, 6-2, on Thursday at the LA Women’s Tennis Championships. After the match, the always-thoughtful Ivanovic was disappointed, but still feeling positive about her first tournament back since Wimbledon: “I really went through a lot in the last couple of months,” said Ivanovic, who could be referring to a number [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/06/ana-ivanovic-loses-in-la-vows-to-stay-out-of-self-help-section/feed/ 2 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/05/dinara-safina-reveals-knee-injury-had-her-seeing-stars/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/05/dinara-safina-reveals-knee-injury-had-her-seeing-stars/#comments Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:58:28 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=11046
Dinara Safina beat Daniela Hantuchova 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday in the second round of the LA Women’s Tennis Championships. “It was my first match here in America. It was a solid match” Dinara said of her 2009 US Open Series debut. Solid is a good way to describe Safina’s play all year, and this consistency has been [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/05/dinara-safina-reveals-knee-injury-had-her-seeing-stars/feed/ 2 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/04/vera-zvonareva-on-her-season-interrupted-it-kills-you-inside/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/04/vera-zvonareva-on-her-season-interrupted-it-kills-you-inside/#comments Tue, 04 Aug 2009 21:10:07 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=11002
Yesterday I had a chance to sit down with Vera Zvonareva, the No. 7 ranked player in the world and the No. 2 seed at the LA Women’s Tennis Championships. Vera is coming back from an on again/off again injury layoff, that started in April when she badly injured her ankle chasing down a ball [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/04/vera-zvonareva-on-her-season-interrupted-it-kills-you-inside/feed/ 1 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/04/maria-sharapova-in-la-reality-stinks-sometimes/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/04/maria-sharapova-in-la-reality-stinks-sometimes/#comments Tue, 04 Aug 2009 09:19:47 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10983
“Reality stinks sometimes,” said Maria Sharapova after beating Jarmila Groth 6-0, 6-4 in the first round of the LA Women’s Tennis Championships on Monday. Of course, reality is relative when you’re talking about the life of a glamorous tennis superstar and self-proclaimed global “brand.” “As a 22 year old, you’re almost finding yourself on the old wagon.“ [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/04/maria-sharapova-in-la-reality-stinks-sometimes/feed/ 5 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/03/photo-album-la-womens-tennis-championships-interviews-day-1/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/03/photo-album-la-womens-tennis-championships-interviews-day-1/#comments Mon, 03 Aug 2009 23:59:00 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10956
The LA Women’s Tennis Championships kicks off today in Carson, California, a WTA Tour Premier Level event with a solid draw that includes Dinara Safina, Ana Ivanovic, Caroline Wozniacki, Vera Zvonareva and Maria Sharapova. The top seeds attended today’s all-access media hour, here’s some of what they had to say: Ana Ivanovic on moving up and down [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/03/photo-album-la-womens-tennis-championships-interviews-day-1/feed/ 6 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/01/tommy-haas-sees-the-light-thinks-marat-safin-could-too/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/01/tommy-haas-sees-the-light-thinks-marat-safin-could-too/#comments Sat, 01 Aug 2009 11:39:43 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10861
Marat Safin and Tommy Haas played Friday night’s marquee quarterfinal at the LA Tennis Open. There are two “Major” differences between these two friends – Marat has two slams, Tommy has never made it to a major final – otherwise, they have a lot in common: flashy backhands, over a decade on tour, and the [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/08/01/tommy-haas-sees-the-light-thinks-marat-safin-could-too/feed/ 5 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/30/edberg-chang-and-courier-on-the-tremendous-nadal-federer-era/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/30/edberg-chang-and-courier-on-the-tremendous-nadal-federer-era/#comments Fri, 31 Jul 2009 00:11:18 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10813
For some tennis fans, the main draw at the LA Tennis Open isn’t the Main Draw but the “Legends.” Pete Sampras (a two time champ in L.A.) played an exhibition against Marat Safin on Monday night before an enthusiastic crowd. Stefan Edberg, Jim Courier and Michael Chang – all past champs in Los Angeles – [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/30/edberg-chang-and-courier-on-the-tremendous-nadal-federer-era/feed/ 19 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/30/stressed-out-marat-safin-wonders-where-the-good-times-have-gone/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/30/stressed-out-marat-safin-wonders-where-the-good-times-have-gone/#comments Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:56:43 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10795
“I’d rather come here (to L.A.) without tennis. It’s much more pleasant than coming here and playing tennis. Even though the tournament is great.” So said Marat Safin after beating Ernests Gulbis, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Wednesday at the LA Tennis Open. For Marat fans, Wednesday’s match was a rare gem – a hard-fought, hard-hitting, rollercoaster ride [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/30/stressed-out-marat-safin-wonders-where-the-good-times-have-gone/feed/ 8 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/28/the-unbearable-lightness-of-pete-sampras-on-federer-goathood-and-the-good-life/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/28/the-unbearable-lightness-of-pete-sampras-on-federer-goathood-and-the-good-life/#comments Tue, 28 Jul 2009 08:29:19 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10709
To the die-hard Pete Sampras fans who are mourning the loss of his greatest record – stuck down by Roger Federer at Wimbledon this year – you have reason to cheer! Pete Sampras, at age 37, is still a great champion: humble, thoughtful and just a touch melancholic. Oh, and Sampras can still S&V with [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/28/the-unbearable-lightness-of-pete-sampras-on-federer-goathood-and-the-good-life/feed/ 7 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/10/video-great-roger-federer-interview-with-boris-becker/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/10/video-great-roger-federer-interview-with-boris-becker/#comments Sat, 11 Jul 2009 07:51:22 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=10244
Yes, I know we’ve had our fill of Roger Federer Wimbledon videos (right?) but this is probably one of the best video interviews I’ve ever seen of him. Roger talks frankly to Boris Becker and Greg Rusedski about being amongst legends, watching Mirka in the stands and how he feels about breaking the records. I would [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/07/10/video-great-roger-federer-interview-with-boris-becker/feed/ 13 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/06/09/strokes-of-genius-jon-wertheim-talks-federer-vs-nadal-kit-kats/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/06/09/strokes-of-genius-jon-wertheim-talks-federer-vs-nadal-kit-kats/#comments Wed, 10 Jun 2009 06:45:11 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=9110
I admit I picked up my copy of Jon Wertheim’s new book, Strokes of Genius: Federer, Nadal and the Greatest Match Ever Played after Sunday’s Roland Garros final. Watching Federer celebrate his historic victory gave me the courage to face one of his most brutal losses: the 2008 Wimbledon final against Rafael Nadal. I read half [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/06/09/strokes-of-genius-jon-wertheim-talks-federer-vs-nadal-kit-kats/feed/ 29 http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/06/01/french-open-video-roger-federer-talks-mirka-murray-and-mojo/ http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/06/01/french-open-video-roger-federer-talks-mirka-murray-and-mojo/#comments Mon, 01 Jun 2009 20:15:41 +0000 freakyfrites http://www.gototennisblog.com/?p=8772
I hope we’ve all recovered from the five set match Roger Federer eventually won today over Tommy Haas in the Rd. of 16 at Roland Garros. Roger spoke afterward about his comeback from two sets down, his pick for the top half finalist (hint: NOT Murray), and how Mirka is not giving him any French [...]]]> http://www.gototennisblog.com/2009/06/01/french-open-video-roger-federer-talks-mirka-murray-and-mojo/feed/ 9