Confusion: Is Juan Martin del Potro playing the U.S. Open or not?

By Chris Chase


If you believe the Thailand Open, Juan Martin del Potro will make his return to the ATP Tour in Bangkok in late September. If you believe the USTA, the Argentinian will return in time to defend his U.S. Open title beginning next month. I believe neither. It's only apparent that del Potro will come back to tennis at some point this year, but it's doubtful that anybody, even him, knows exactly when that will be.

The confusion began on Thursday when organizers from the Thailand Open released a statement saying del Potro would play in their tournament. The press release included a generic quote from del Potro about how he's looking forward to returning to tennis and having a good result in Bangkok. Immediately, stories and blog posts were written (including here) about how del Potro would make his comeback in Thailand and, presumably, miss his title defense in New York.

Not so fast, said the USTA. Within a few hours of the announcement from Bangkok, the USTA issued a press release of its own touting the fact that del Potro was on the entry list for this year's U.S. Open. That was no surprise, since appearing on the list only means that a player is not not playing. If there's a 1 percent chance that a player thinks he or she might be able to compete in a Grand Slam, they're appearing on that list. It's much easier to withdraw at the last minute than it is to get into the tournament. (This is like checking the "maybe" box on an Evite. You're not sure you can go but you don't want to completely rule it out either. My guess is that Delpo has done the same thing here. There's no harm in optimistic planning.)

Tennis people who know what they're talking about realized this was a non-story. To others it seemed like a big deal — Del Potro is back! Wire stories were rushed out with the breathless headlines that the defending champ would return to Flushing Meadows, even though nothing had changed.

But then, sensing that some were excited about the news and others were skeptical, the USTA went a step further and released another statement specifically addressing del Potro's status. This one said del Potro was already hitting. The USTA didn't say whether he was warming up with a coach to test out his wrist or putting in eight-hour days, just that he was "hitting", which evidently is enough to suggest that he's ready to compete in one of the biggest tournaments of the year.

For what it's worth, del Potro himself has been largely silent on the subject. He Tweeted that his doctor is happy with his progress, but didn't specifically adress when he would return.

For others to speculate as to how del Potro's wrist will feel in a month is foolish. Only Juan Martin del Potro knows his plans and, from the sounds of it, he's just as unsure about them as the rest of us.

Aussie tennis ace Lleyton Hewitt loses battle for 'come on'

AUSTRALIAN tennis star Lleyton Hewitt has lost a legal battle over his famous "come on" catchcry.
Lleyton Hewitt Marketing failed to remove a trademark owned by Brisbane man John Sheils which consisted of the words "come on" accompanied by a fist-pumping gesture.

Mr Sheils said he designed the mark with his two daughters and registered it in 2004 with the intention of creating a mark "representative of all Australian sports people."

But Hewitt's team argued the words and fist pump were associated with the tennis star in the eyes of the public.

Hewitt, 29, is not the only tennis player known for the "come on" shout. Maria Sharapova is also known to utter the phrase, accompanied by a fist pump, when she wins a point.

Kim Clijsters: One Year On

A glistening, distorted toddler with blonde bouncing curls pounced closer and closer. Her mouth stretched from ear to ear on the silver reflection of the US Open trophy that her mother grasped tightly to her body.

Later, she was asked if she thought 18-month-old Jada Ellie knew what had just happened. Kim Clijsters simply replied, "No." Little Jada seemed to love the spotlight on court with her mother, aimlessly jumping up and down in celebration, clueless that she would become as much of the storyline as the former world No. 1 Clijsters' triumphant return to tennis.

Clijsters left tennis for two years and four months without a tournament, and in just her third tournament back she won her second, and sweetest, Grand Slam. She became the first unranked and unseeded woman since 1968 and the first mother since Evonne Goolagong-Cawley in 1980 to win a Grand Slam.

In a few weeks, Clijsters' second career will reach one year. In what has been a year of ups and downs, winning three titles and suffering a foot injury that sidelined her for the French, it will be the image of mother and daughter and trophy that will forever define it - not just the year, but perhaps her entire career.

"This wasn't a part of the plan," Clijsters said shortly after winning the 2009 US Open. "Not in my wildest dreams could I ever imagine this happening."

Check out photos of Kim's Flushing Meadows triumph here.

Clijsters is a winner of 37 titles, 11 doubles titles and reigned as the No.1-ranked player for 19 weeks. Her return to the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour became heavily anticipated, only to be eclipsed by her fellow compatriot Justine Henin's return. However, it was Clijsters in the end that cast the shadow over Henin, defeating her in the final in Brisbane, again on her way to winning the title in Miami and finally holding off the hopes of Henin getting the Slam she never won.

The media has played up the Belgians' return, creating an older, more powerful women's tennis demographic that leaves no mercy for teenage burnouts. That trend looks as if it will continue as critics are quick to point that Clijsters may be better than she's ever been. Clijsters doesn't seem to always disagree. As a mother, she has more balance in her life and a fresher outlook on her career.

"Well, the motivation was missing then," Clijsters said about her game before her retirement. "I came to an age where I felt like, combined with the injuries, I wasn't 100% focused on my tennis anymore."

Now, Clijsters says she is much more organized than she was during her first career. As a mother, everything has to be a little more planned, and she has translated that ability to adjust on the court with her skill and emotion.

But to everyone's surprise, it's her even stronger body that has tennis bracing itself. The daughter of a former professional soccer player and a Belgian champion in gymnastics, pure genetics have always been the culprit behind Clijsters' raw power, but her new body as a mother has caused a stir in what scientists call the "baby boost." Researchers have claimed that childbirth can leave some women more able to cope with the demanding activity of professional sports. The body produces more red blood cells during pregnancy, improving the amount of oxygen that reaches muscles by nearly one third.

See 20 of Kim's best pre-retirement moments in this special gallery.

Debuting Fila's new Heritage Apparel Collection this year, there's no doubt that Clijsters is finding the perfect fit in her dual role as a mother and tennis player. The balance has given her a sharper focus. She is unwavering in her priorities as a mother and wife first and tennis player second, but she has also found ways to be much more beyond that - after winning Brisbane, she donated her $37,000 winner's cheque to the Royal Brisbane Hospital children's wing.

Now Clijsters is back in the Top 10 rankings, and even if her return to tennis isn't long term, she has let everyone know it is where she belongs. The 2009 US Open was an early statement in the comeback of her career, making history as a mother and player. She defeated Serena Williams in a controversial match, but now Williams is back to the top of her game as the Wimbledon champion, and tennis around the world will be holding their breath for a rematch.

Clijsters, of course, would embrace the challenge. For all the new passions in her life, tennis was by far the first.

"I feel very lucky that I've been able to do what I love to do for so long. But everything else that comes with it... I don't say to Bryan or Jada, Mommy is going off to work. I say, Mommy is going to try to train to get better."

Dulko & Pennetta Add To Title Haul

In this week's doubles finals on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, No.1 seeds Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta topped No.2 seeds Renata Voracova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in Bastad, while No.2 seeds Timea Bacsinszky and Tathiana Garbin defeated No.1 seeds Sorana Cirstea and Anabel Medina Garrigues in Budapest.

Dulko and Pennetta's 76(0) 60 victory on Saturday at the Collector Swedish Open Women gave them their fourth title of 2010 together, the most by a duo so far this year. They now have seven Tour titles in their careers together, including Bastad last year as well.

"In the beginning we were a little nervous, but we fought hard and in the tie-break we played really well," said Pennetta, who now has 10 Tour doubles titles to her name. "The second set was perfect."

Interestingly enough, Dulko beat Pennetta the previous day in a singles semifinal before falling to Aravane Rezai in Saturday's final.

"It was nice to finish the day like this," said Dulko, who now has 13 Tour doubles titles to her name. "It was tough to come back on court after losing the singles, but Flavia makes it easier for me."

As for Bacsinszky and Garbin, their 63 63 win on Sunday at the GDF SUEZ Grand Prix gave them their first Tour title together, with their previous best result having been a runner-up showing in Barcelona earlier this year.

This was Bacsinszky's first Tour doubles title and Garbin's ninth, but her first since Canberra in 2005. She also won Budapest in 2001 with Janette Husarova.

Zheng Jie - China's Brightest shinning tennis star

Zheng Jie (simplified Chinese: 郑洁; traditional Chinese: 鄭潔; pinyin: Zhèng Jié; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tēⁿ Chia̍t, Mandarin pronunciation: [tʂə̂ŋ tɕjɛ̌]; born 5 July 1983 in Chengdu, Sichuan) is a Chinese professional tennis player. Her career high ranking is World No. 15 which she achieved on May 18, 2009. As of May 17, 2010, Zheng is ranked World No. 24 in singles and World No. 16 in doubles.

Zheng is one of the most successful tennis players in China's history. She has won three WTA singles titles at Hobart in 2005 and Estoril and Stockholm in 2006. She has also won twelve doubles titles, eleven of them with Yan Zi including Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2006. Her career high doubles ranking is World No. 3. Zheng has reached the singles semi-finals at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships, becoming the first Chinese player to reach the semi-finals at a Grand Slam, and at the 2010 Australian Open. She also won the bronze medal in doubles with Yan Zi at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and was the first Chinese player to defeat a World No. 1 (by defeating Ana Ivanović at Wimbledon in 2008) as well as the first Chinese player to reach the top 15.

Country People's Republic of China
Residence Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Date of birth 5 July 1983 (1983-07-05) (age 27)
Place of birth Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Height 1.64 m (5 ft 4+1⁄2 in)
Turned pro 16 January 2003
Plays Right-handed; two-handed backhand
Career prize money US $3,531,187
Singles
Career record 267–155 (63.3%)
Career titles 3 WTA, 4 ITF
Highest ranking No. 15 (18 May 2009)
Current ranking No. 23 (5 July 2010)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open SF (2010)
French Open 4R (2004)
Wimbledon SF (2008)
US Open 3R (2008, 2009)
Doubles
Career record 281–121 (69.9%)
Career titles 12 WTA, 16 ITF
Highest ranking No. 3 (10 July 2006)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open W (2006)
French Open SF (2006)
Wimbledon W (2006)
US Open QF (2005, 2006, 2008, 2009)
Last updated on: May 24, 2010.

Woodies, Davidson Inducted Into International Hall Of Fame

Australians Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, known throughout the tennis world as the "Woodies", were both inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, the venue of the Campbell's Hall of Fame Tennis Championships at Newport, on Saturday.

“This is an amazing day for the Woodies,” said Woodforde, during the 65-minute ceremony that started in heavy rain.

“I don’t know if any of us said we’re just going to be doubles players. We just excelled on the doubles court a little more than we did on the singles. As much as we would have loved to win more in the singles titles, we did in doubles.”

Together, Woodbridge and Woodforde won 11 major doubles championships and 61 tour-level titles overall from 1991 to 2000. Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan equalled their overall title-record earlier this year.

Watch Video Tribute To The "Woodies"

“I think we won our fourth tournament [sixth event at 1991 Brussels] we played together,” said Woodbridge. “It was close on average to every fourth tournament we won the next 10 years. That’s pretty good business.

“I figured if I could team up with Mark we’d do well together. We did better than well, we did bloody great.”

They had a 508-137 lifetime record. Woodforde retired after the duo won the silver medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

Woodbridge, now aged 39, won an Open Era record 83 doubles trophies. He spent 204 weeks at World No. 1 and finished his career with a 782-260 match record. He was a member Australia's Davis Cup winning team in 1999 and 2003. He reached the Wimbledon singles semi-finals in 1997 (l. to Sampras).

Woodforde, 44, captured 67 doubles titles, four singles titles and fived mixed doubles crowns. He was World No 1 for 84 weeks and upon retirement in December 2000 he held the No. 1 individual ranking plus the No. 1 team ranking with Woodbridge. He represented Australia in Davis Cup over a 10-year period, participating in three finals in 1993, 1999-2000.

Another Australian, 65-year-old Owen Davidson, nicknamed “Davo”, was also inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. During a 15-year career he won 12 major doubles titles and is one of just 12 people who have won a personal Grand Slam in tennis history.

Source: ATP.com