ATP news

no wonder why he played so great ...what a picture

Fedo has lost again Gonzalez in three sets

haha omg that pic! Look at his face the dirty bastard LOL

R Gasquet d. N Djokovic 6/4 6/2

nole is he related to jelena ...

Czech player Jan Hernych says he was approached about losing matches in Russia


PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) -- Czech tennis player Jan Hernych says he was approached in Russia last year and asked to lose first-round matches at ATP tournaments in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

"Someone called me from the (hotel's) reception to my room, asking whether I wanted to sell a match, if I wanted to lose," Hernych was quoted as saying in Friday's editions of the Czech Republic's biggest daily, Mlada Fronta Dnes.
"I rejected. I think that anyone who would accept it is absolutely mad," said Hernych, currently ranked 165th.
The matches allegedly involved were against Italy's Filippo Volandri at the Kremlin Cup, which Hernych won 6-1, 6-4, and against Russia's Evgeny Korolev at the St. Petersburg Open, which the Czech player won 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-6 (7).

Hernych said he was not offered a specific sum of money.
"They wanted to know whether I was willing to negotiate with them," he said.

Talk of match-fixing has swirled around tennis for months.

Online gambling company Betfair voided all bets when fourth-ranked Nikolay Davydenko withdrew against 87th-ranked Martin Vassallo Arguello in the third set of a match in Poland in August, citing a foot injury. Unusually large amounts were wagered on the lowly ranked Argentine throughout the match, even after he lost the first set 6-1. The ATP is investigating.

Since then, several players have said they have been approached about influencing a match. Belgian player Gilles Elseneer said he was offered -- and turned down -- more than $100,000 to lose a first-round match against Potito Starace of Italy at Wimbledon in 2005. Arnaud Clement of France said he turned down money, although he didn't elaborate.

On Thursday, the Italian tennis federation said it was looking into a report that 124th-ranked Alessio Di Mauro bet on other players' matches.

Wow . Thanks Y.

I got this related news from ESPN.

After reviewing video, ATP rescinds Davydenko fine
Updated Nov. 13, 2007

SHANGHAI, China -- The ATP has dropped a $2,000 fine imposed on fourth-ranked Nikolay Davydenko for "lack of best effort" during a 1-6, 7-5, 6-1 loss to Marin Cilic at St. Petersburg last month.

Davydenko, also at the center of an ongoing investigation into unusual betting patterns during a loss to Martin Vassallo Arguello of Argentina at the Poland Open in August, had appealed the fine for a code violation.

"Following an extensive review of the match between Nikolay Davydenko and Martin Cilic that included a full video analysis, it was decided that Davydenko's appeal should be upheld and the US$2,000 fine rescinded," Gayle David Bradshaw, the ATP's executive vice president for rules and competition, said in a statement Tuesday.

Davydenko has blamed his poor performance on exhaustion. With one of the heaviest annual schedules of any player, the 26-year-old Russian has said he plans to cut back next year because he feels his body is breaking down.

Davydenko's fairly low profile, despite his ranking, has vanished since the ATP began investigating his loss to Arguello. Betfair, an online gambling company, voided all bets on the match after unusually large amounts were wagered on the lowly ranked Argentine throughout the contest, even after he lost the first set 6-1. Davydenko retired with an injury in the third set.

Since then, several players -- none in the higher rankings -- have reported being approached and offered money to fix matches.

Davydenko also was jeered by the crowd -- and criticized by the chair umpire -- while committing 10 double faults in a straight-set loss to Marcos Baghdatis in Paris.

He said Monday, after losing to Andy Roddick in three sets in a round-robin match at the season-ending Masters Cup, that he wishes he could go back to being out of the media spotlight.

"That was better," Davydenko said.

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

Roger Federer d. Nikolay Davydenko 6/4 6/3

Andy Roddick d. Fernando Gonzalez 6/1 6/4

Geez, what next?

ITF to investigate whether Haas was poisoned at Davis Cup

STUTTGART, Germany -- The International Tennis Federation is investigating allegations that Tommy Haas was poisoned before Germany's Davis Cup match against Russia.

Tommy Haas, shown here at the Paris Masters, was forced to pull out of the Davis Cup semifinal against Russia with a suspected stomach virus.

Haas was forced out of his match against Mikhail Youzhny with a suspected stomach virus. Russia won both reverse singles matches on Sept. 23 to win the semifinal series 3-2 and reach the Davis Cup final.

"We take this very seriously," ITF spokeswoman Barbara Travers said Wednesday. "The investigation starts today."

German teammate Alexander Waske said he was told by a Russian who manages numerous athletes that it was poisoning, not a virus. Waske didn't say who the manager was.

"He said as an aside that it was bitter that Tommy Haas was poisoned," said Waske, who answered the man by saying that it was a virus. "Thereupon he said, 'No, they poisoned him.'"

Haas said he will fly Thursday from Argentina to his home in the United States for a complete checkup. Germany team doctor Erich Rembeck had done a checkup and run blood tests while the player was sick but said they were only for a virus.

"I'm shocked that something like that appears possible," said Haas, ranked 13th in the world. "When I think of how bad I felt, I can imagine it. I've been feeling weak for weeks."

Rembeck didn't rule out tampering with Haas' food or drinks. He said the German staff drew up meal plans, but the kitchen staff at the hotel prepared what ended up on the players' plates.

"I was the only one ever to order dessert or a Latte macchiato after dinner," Haas said. "If all this is true, since no one else got sick, that must have been when it happened."

However, the German tennis federation (DTB) believes there is no medical evidence to support the rumor.

"As an association, we must rely on facts in judging and assessing the situation and not on speculation," a spokesman for the federation said. "Therefore, because we have no evidence of poisoning and because we do not know how reliable the informant is, we must assume that it's no more than speculation."


The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Nov. 8, 2007

thanks for the articles JOIE

I thought tennis could avoid all those dirty things.. I was wrong

From the official Tennis Masters Cup website -

Fantastic Federer Wins Fourth Title

ATP World No. 1 Roger Federer capped another breathtaking season with his fourth Tennis Masters Cup title in five years after defeating Spaniard David Ferrer 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 in Shanghai Sunday.

Played before a capacity crowd at the futuristic Qi Zhong stadium and set against the backdrop of the sound of Swiss cow bells and a Spanish trumpeter, Federer improved his unbeaten record against Ferrer to 8-0.

Appearing in his 70th career final, Federer improved his record in title matches to 53-17. He is 4-1 in Masters Cup finals, losing the 2005 title match to David Nalbandian in a fifth-set tie-break.
Only three other players - Ilie Nastase, Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras - have won the circuit finale four or more times, with Nastase winning it four times (1971, 1972, 1973, 1975), Lendl winning five times (1981, 1982, 1985, 1986, 1987) and most recently Sampras winning five times (1991, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999).

By winning the title Federer became the first player in history to win more than $10 million in a season. He came into the event with $7.4 million in 2007 earnings and added $1.2 million for winning the title with a 4-1 record. The Swiss also collects $1.5 million from the $3 million ATP Masters Series Bonus Pool, taking his season haul to $10,130,620.

Federer was also presented with a new Mercedes CLS 500.

Coming into the tournament Federer had already won the ATP 2007 Race, locking up the year-end No. 1 South African Airways Ranking for the fourth consecutive year. (Sampras finished year-end No. 1 a record six consecutive times.)

On Monday, November 26, Federer will mark his 200th consecutive week as ATP World No. 1.

Federer finishes the season with a 68-9 record. He won eight titles including his third Australian Open, fifth consecutive Wimbledon and fourth consecutive US Open. For the third time in his career he won three Grand Slam titles in the same season.

In his four seasons at No. 1 Federer has not lost more than nine matches in a year, dropping nine this year, five in 2006, four in 2005 and six in 2004.

Federer suffered just his third loss in six Tennis Masters Cup campaigns when he was beaten 7-5 in the third set by Fernando Gonzalez in his first group match. But he rebounded to claim four straight wins without dropping a set against Nikolay Davydenko, Andy Roddick, Rafael Nadal and Ferrer. The Swiss now boasts a 26-3 lifetime record at Tennis Masters Cup. He has failed to reach the final just once: in 2002 when he fell to Lleyton Hewitt in the semifinals.

After capping his best season on tour with a run to the Shanghai final, Ferrer will finish a career-best No. 5 in the South African Airways Rankings. He went undefeated through the round-robin stage with wins over No. 2 Rafael Nadal, No. 3 Novak Djokovic and No. 8 Richard Gasquet, and in the semifinals dismissed Andy Roddick 6-1, 6-3.

Right from the outset of the final Federer made Ferrer do the running. And in a change of tactics from his semifinal win over Rafael Nadal, Federer used his slice backhand more often to break Ferrer's rhythm and also regularly attacked the net, winning 20 of 27 approaches.

The Swiss hit 30 winners to Ferrer's 10, finishing with a blistering crosscourt pass past the incoming Spaniard to close out the match with his sixth break of serve.

After playing so well in his four Shanghai victories before the final, Ferrer made an uncharacteristic 38 unforced errors to Federer's 29.

Ferrer, who was playing in his first indoor final, was trying to become the first debutante to win the title since countryman Alex Corretja in 1998.

WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID

Federer: "It's been a great season for me. And finishing off the best players in the world in the Masters Cup, it's always a great experience for me. I think it only really is going to start coming down on me like next week, and then especially during holidays.

"It's been in some ways a breakthrough year for me. Especially the way I played in the beginning of the year, not losing a set during the Australian Open, coming here, beating everybody in straight sets after losing against González when people thought, okay, Federer is maybe not playing so well. Beating Nadal for the first time on clay. I've beaten all my closest rivals, Nadal and Djokovic, more times than they've beaten me. It's been one of those years which I'm really, really happy about.

"Maybe I didn't win 10 titles, but it's not necessary to stay No. 1 in the world all the time. If I keep this level of play up, I mean, I'm in a great position for next year as well.

"Obviously this week, every time I came to the net, I felt like I was in a good position, you know, whereas sometimes you come to the net you think like, 'Oh, God, I hope I don't have to play a volley.' I'm actually very happy I could turn it around, because I was playing very passive in Madrid, Basel and Paris. I always knew I had great defensive skills, and I showed that again this week with the great offensive skill. And when both work, it's hard to beat me basically."

Ferrer: "Maybe I play with a little bit nervous, but him do it all, no? Serve, volley, slice. It's very difficult. My game, it's difficult to play with him, no?

"I'm happy for the week because I am playing a very, very good level, and my first final in the Masters Shanghai. My family, they are here. Very happy for that, no? But now maybe I was a little bit angry because the final I lost. But very happy. Very happy for this week."

He is very strong. At the beginning of the tournament, anybody bets on him

No surprise there -

Federer downs Sampras in just 61 minutes
by You Jee-Hon (yahoo sports)
November 20, 2007

SEOUL (AFP) - The world's former number one tennis player was no match for the current champion when they met on court Tuesday for only the second time.

In an exhibition match in the South Korean capital, Roger Federer beat Pete Sampras 6-4, 6-3 in a match lasting just 61 minutes.

Serving for the match leading 5-3, Federer was stretched to deuce when he badly mishit a return on 40-30. But he won the next two points for the victory.

After taking the first set 6-4, Federer took four of the first five games in the second set. Sampras showed signs of life in the sixth, winning it easily with the help of his booming serve.

But the 36-year-old American could only muster one more game against the 26-year-old Swiss, whose effortless performance demonstrated why he has been the world number one for four years running.

The Swiss ace is at the peak of his powers, lifting his fourth Masters Cup title on Sunday, whereas Sampras retired from the professional game in 2002.

But the American legend had been working hard on getting back in shape and is unbeaten in three starts on the Jim Courier Outback Champions seniors tour, his first serious tennis since hanging up his racket.

"It was a little tricky situation. I'd been playing well and Pete's been retired for five years," Federer said. "I expected myself to win tonight.

"I am very happy with my performance but I think Pete's still playing very, very well."

In a fast-paced opening set the two players traded two games apiece before Sampras broke Federer's serve in the fifth game. The American won the following game with his signature serve and volley attack to establish an early advantage.

But Federer came back to win the next four games and the set, breaking his opponent's serve twice in the process with an array of shots.

Sampras, known for his powerful serve in his playing days, hit 10 aces in the match compared to Federer's six and put up a good fight. But it was not enough.

"I feel a little disappointed," Sampras said. "But I made Roger sweat a little bit tonight.

"I can still serve quite well but the hardest thing for me is movement," the former number one said. "I was a little careless up on the net and missed a few easy balls. But I think I will play well in the next match."

Federer admitted he was "tensed up a bit" because he was facing one of his heroes. But once he found his rhythm, the Swiss was off and running.

"When I found my range, Pete missed a few too many shots," Federer said. "I was maybe lucky to win the first set. Then I got on a roll and started to relax. I enjoyed the match very much."

The two met at competitive level only once in their careers, in the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2001.

Next up for Sampras and Federer in their three-match exhibition series is Kuala Lumpur on Thursday. Their final Asian stop is Macau on Saturday.

Now that's a surprise

Third time the charm as Sampras wins in straight sets
Associated Press
Updated: November 24, 2007, 4:09 PM ET

MACAU -- Pete Sampras notched a win to wrap up a three-match exhibition series against Roger Federer.

Sampras never faced a break point and handed Federer a 7-6 ( 8 ), 6-4 defeat Saturday at the Venetian Macao arena, finishing 1-2 against the top-ranked Swiss player.

Sampras downplayed his victory, noting Federer was coming off a long season and he was helped by his big serve and the fast indoor carpet surface. His goal was to win one set during the three-match series.

"Let's not get carried away," he said at a news conference.

Sampras ruled out a comeback from retirement, telling the audience after the match, "I had my time in the '90s."

The two players have won a combined 26 Grand Slam titles, but the 36-year-old Sampras retired five years ago after winning the U.S. Open in 2002. Federer, 26, won three Grand Slams this year and the Masters Cup last week en route to a 68-9 record.

"I'm sort of surprised. This guy can play tennis, you know," Federer said after his loss.

He put on a positive spin on the match, saying he wasn't embarrassed to lose to his idol.

"It's been tough beating my idol the last two times," Federer said. "I'm happy that he got me at least once."

Federer beat Sampras 6-4, 6-3 in Seoul on Tuesday and edged the American 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5) in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.

"I hope we can do it again in the future," Federer said. "I'd like to get him back."

Federer said he thought Sampras could beat the top five players on a fast surface. Sampras predicted Federer could beat his record of most Grand Slam wins "if not next year, pretty soon."

"He's a great, great player. He's got things in his game that I couldn't do," Sampras said.

On Saturday, Federer outhit Sampras early in the match. But Sampras held his own with the powerful serving and crafty volleying that helped him win seven Wimbledon titles.

The first set went on serve. In the tiebreak, Federer had set points at 6-5 and 8-7 but Sampras saved both. The American went up 9-8 on a missed return by Federer and then took the set with a forehand service return winner.

Federer ran into trouble early in the second set, falling behind 30-40 in the third game, but recovered to hold serve.

At 4-4, Federer fell behind on his serve again. A forehand error gave Sampras break point, which he converted with a forehand winner. Sampras held serve and closed out the match when Federer's backhand return sailed long.

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

the 2008 Adidas line

Federer

Nadal

his shorts



women's collection coming as soon as I can get them

they are showing the Copa de Tenis in Argentina free on ESPN360

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index

it's safe and easy to install.They will show more live tennis as of next year so keep this link in mind if that's true.

Haas Signs With K-Swiss
By Richard Pagliaro
Thursday, December 13, 2007


Tommy Haas is starting the new year with a new look. The two-time Australian Open semifinalist is changing his stripes and will wear the distinctive five-striped trademark of K-Swiss when the 2008 season opens in Australia. Haas has 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.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Nadal's 2008 Aussie shirt and Federer's new shoes