Just a quick roundup of today’s round one action at the WTA Finale at Doha. Elena Dementieva survived her opening match against Venus Williams. Venus was up a set and a break but Elena managed to tough it out and win 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2. Venus had multiple opportunities to close out the match but couldn’t figure out a way to win which is a recurring pattern for her this year.
In other matches, Victoria Azarenka easily cruised over a weary Jelena Jankovic 6-2, 6-3 while Serena Williams overcame an ankle injury to defeat Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-6 (6), 7-5.
Dinara Safina will play tomorrow in hopes of remaining number one at the end of the year as she has a slight edge over Serena in the rankings.
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The Top Eight WTA Players Pose at the Doha Event Party
I don’t normally discuss fashion on this blog as there are other sites that do a better job, ala StyleSlam, Down The Line Tennis, and Tennis Served Fresh, but I had to comment upon seeing this photo of the top eight ladies at Doha.
I have to give the “most photogenic” award to Elena Dementieva who looks stunning. But apparently the other ladies (Kuznetsova, Wozniacki, Azarenka, and Jankovic) got the same memo about wearing something “long and white”, but not quite pulling it off. “Sveta” looks especially uncomfortable.
And then Serena, Venus and Dinara Safina got the other memo about dressing in black. Safina looks decent enough but Venus’s “ballerina” outfit doesn’t work on her tall frame while Serena, who usually pulls off fashion risks, can’t pull off the “Mary Jane Girls” catsuit.
The draw aka Round Robin matchups for the WTA Season Finale in Doha is out.
The White Group Matches
[1] Dinara Safina (RUS) vs [4] Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)
[1] Dinara Safina (RUS) vs [6] Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
[1] Dinara Safina (RUS) vs [8] Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
[4] Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) vs [6] Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
[4] Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) vs [8] Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
[6] Victoria Azarenka (BLR) vs [8] Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
The Maroon Group Matches
[2] Serena Williams (USA) vs [3] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)
[2] Serena Williams (USA) vs [5] Elena Dementieva (RUS)
[2] Serena Williams (USA) vs [7] Venus Williams (USA)
[5] Elena Dementieva (RUS) vs [7] Venus Williams (USA)
[3] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) vs [5] Elena Dementieva (RUS)
[3] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) vs [7] Venus Williams (USA)
One could say top seed Dinara Safina has the “easier” draw as she has Jelena Jankovic and Caroline Wozniacki both who have struggled with injuries in the last few weeks and Victoria Azarenka who, let’s face it, hasn’t played well in the last six months.
Kuznetsova is the darkhorse again as no one expects her to win and yet she plays best when there’s no expectations. All eyes will be on Serena to get through her tough section and finally meet Safina in the final to determine the top ranking. If Safina could somehow win the whole thing, it would certainly redeem her in the eyes of many.
So what will shake out? Well for the doubles, I see Serena and Venus winning. For the singles, you have to like Serena again but I still think Kuznetsova has a shot at the upset. What do you think?
Interesting Q&A interview posted today in the New York Times with the head of the WTA Stacey Allaster which you can read here. One of the questions asked was about a recent poll of the top players in which they ranked the season ending championships tenth in terms of importance after the Slams and major events like Miami.
Obviously Doha offers those who qualify major bonus money and points for their rankings. And this year’s event will finally determine the number one ranking between Dinara Safina and Serena Williams. It’s certainly great to see the top eight ladies play each other, and you know you want to see the final match come down to Serena/Safina battle it out for number one, but at the end of the day, it all still feels like a big asterisk next to the Grand Slams.
What do you think?
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Adjusting the Net 