Australian Open: The Most Blessed and Cursed Star—Ana Ivanovic

By Bill Simons MELBOURNE, Australia—Could it possibly be? Could Ana Ivanovic be both the most blessed and the most cursed female star in tennis? After all, you wouldn’t be all that wet if you claimed that she sports one of the more poignant back stories around. (As a kid, during frigid winters she played in […]

US Open: Petko—”Women Have to be Tougher Than Men”

PETKO—”WOMEN HAVE TO BE TOUGHER JUST TO BE VIEWED AS STABLE”: German Andrea Petkovic, who beat Monica Puig in a third-set tiebreak to reach the third round, is one of the best thinkers in tennis. Here in New York, she reflected on the testy question of women’s emotions, the ways in which female athletes are perceived, and how all […]

She’s Back: Strong and Solid Serena Wins Third Bank of the West Title

Was this the best Bank of the West Classic ever? Maybe so. The tennis world was waiting to see how Serena Williams would recover after Wimbledon—was she okay? Sister Venus Williams, at 34, seemed to drink from the fountain of youth, hitting an incredible 10-stride sprint shot during a straight-set victory over a former No. […]

French Open Preview: The Women

By John Huston TOP-HEAVY: Congratulations, LI Na and Simona Halep! Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova are not only on the other side of the draw, they’re in the same quarter, while you’re paired with the comparatively struggling Serbian sisterhood of Ana and Jelena. Also in the top quarter: Dominika Cibulkova, Sam Stosur, and Kaia Kanepi. […]

US Open Buzz: Djokovic Opposes Airstrikes—”War is the Worst Thing for Humanity”

Once again, the boys and girls of tennis take to the courts in their skirts and shorts, while men with long faces talk of war. But some top players have firsthand experience of military aggression. Asked by IT whether—like her Serbian compatriot, Novak Djokovic—she carries memories of the 1999 NATO bombings, Ana Ivanovic replied, “Yeah, […]

US Open Buzz: Could Picasso Paint With a Bigger Brush?

  STRETCHING THE TRUTH: After Mary Carillo noted that Serena Williams said she wasn’t the favorite going into her match against Sloane Stephens, John McEnroe called it “the lie of all time.” NO SHAME IN HER GAME,  FOR NOW: Discussing her chances of reaching the top 10 by the end of the year, Sloane Stephens […]

Rafa: ‘Nole Has Good Chance At No. 1’

Inside Tennis Notebook

WORD FROM SERENA: She stopped short of giving a timeframe for her return, but Serena Williams, in Washington, D.C. for a junior clinic, said, “I’m feeling better. Just starting training. I’m a little later than I suspected and hoped.  But it’s going steady. Slow and steady, I think, always works out when it’s a race.” […]

Marx, Hemingway and the German Renaissance

Inside Tennis Notebook

GERMAN RENAISSANCE?: Not since Steffi Graf put down her racket has Germany enjoyed a run quite like this.  In April, Andrea Petkovic, Julia Goerges, Anna-Lena Groenfeld and Sibine Lisicki led Germany to a 5-0 rout of the U.S. in the Fed Cup Playoffs, relegating the Americans to the World Group II.  Plus, Goerges recently upset […]

Bartoli Finally Gets Over Ivanovic at BOW Classic

Defending Champ Hopes to Use 6-3, 6-4 Win as Springboard to U.S. Open Success

STANFORD, CALIF — The last time they met was in Zurich in viagra pill 2008. Ana Ivanovic was just a few months removed from her Roland Garros title and was comfortably camped inside the top 5. Marion Bartoli, then ranked No. 16 and struggling with her confidence, came out on the short end of a […]

Your Serb: Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic

Former No. 1s Jankovic, Ivanovic Searching for On-Court Identity

When the WTA Tour returns to the La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., after a two-year hiatus in the form of the newly minted July 31-Aug. 8 Mercury Insurance Open, two former No. 1s from a tiny Balkan nation of 10 million will be trying to find themselves. Call it an on-court identity […]