Serena felled, Sharapova survives

Serena Williams trudged out of Roland Garros on Friday after her French Open dreams were pounded into the red clay by a tenacious Slovenian who never lost belief.

Less than 24 hours after the tournament was rocked by the defeat of three top 10 seeds, including David Nalbandian and James Blake, the American joined them at the exit queue as she roared and screamed her way to a 6-4, 6-4 mauling by Katarina Srebotnik in the third round.

“I knew it was going to be a tough match, but what can I say? She just played unbelievable today,” said Williams, who had gone into the match with a 3-0 record against Srebotnik.

The fifth seed’s defeat also meant a new name would be engraved on the Suzanne Lenglen Cup next week as she was the only former champion in the women’s draw.

Her loss cleared the way for a final showdown between Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic, the top two seeds who withstood some fierce resistance on Friday before marching on.

An erratic Ivanovic overcame a slight wobble in the first set before downing Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-1 to reach the fourth round, while Sharapova huffed and puffed her way to a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 second-round win over American Bethanie Mattek.

But no amount of on-court dramatics could save Williams.

On the eve of the championships the 2002 winner had declared herself “100 percent fit” but on Friday it was Srebotnik who always looked in better shape to advance.

BIZARRE CHOICE

She had the younger of the Williams sisters on the backfoot from the start, breaking her with a string of stinging winners and by the closing stages of the set, things went from bad to worse for the former world number one.

After smashing an easy overhead straight into the net, the fans gasped in disbelief while a stunned Serena leaned her forehead on the end of her racket as she stared into the ground.

Moments later the set had vanished from her grasp.

She could have made amends at 4-3 up in the second as she had break point but a bizarre choice of shot, choosing to hit a drop shot when she had an open court at her disposal, put paid to those hopes.

Srebotnik punished Williams’s lack of judgement by wrapping up the match two games later when the American swiped a forehand wide.

“Today, I woke up and knew I had really nothing to lose so I just took my chances. I’m really happy that today it turned my way,” said Srebotnik, who made it through to the last 16 of a slam for only the second time in 35 attempts.

While Ivanovic has so far managed to win all three of her matches in straight sets, the same cannot be said of Sharapova.

If the Russian wants to complete a career grand slam by lifting the Roland Garros title, she will have to take a crash course in how to hit crisp winners after yet another scrappy performance on Friday.

After being two points from defeat in her opening match against fellow Russian Evgeniya Rodina, Sharapova again dropped the second set against Mattek, who is more well known for her outlandish outfits than her tennis pedigree.

However, in a match left hanging in the balance overnight after fading light aborted play, Sharapova regained her poise to make a third-round date with Italian 32nd seed Karin Knapp.

Real seek to defuse anger over Ronaldo

Real Madrid sought to appease Manchester United on Tuesday after the European champions threatened to report them to world football’s governing body FIFA over their interest in Cristiano Ronaldo.

Real have made clear their admiration of Ronaldo in a number of public statements in recent weeks, whilst also acknowledging that the 23-year-old Portugal winger is a United player.
Relieved Ronaldo spared his worst day

“We haven’t done anything and we are not going to do anything that goes against the wishes of a club we regard as a friend like United. We have a magnificent relationship with them,” Real president Ramon Calderon told reporters.

“We aren’t going to start a conflict. If a club doesn’t want to sell a player why would we insist they sell him? We know they aren’t a selling club. It is a problem between the player and his team.”

The English champions are determined to hold on to a player who scored 42 goals for United in the season just ended and was voted English Footballer of the Year for a second year running.

Earlier in the day, United took the unusual step of issuing a club statement on their Web site headlined: “United issue Real warning.”

In it, the club said they had watched with “growing irritation” the comments attributed to Real Madrid.

The statement continued: “The facts are that (1) The player is on a long-term contract and his registration is held by Manchester United. (2) The player is not for sale.

“The club will have no alternative but to report Real Madrid to the world governing body, FIFA, if it continues to behave in this totally unacceptable fashion.

“These public attempts to unsettle the player are completely against the regulations and the club will not tolerate them any longer.”

United also said it believed the pursuit of their player is a “distraction for the Portuguese national squad as they prepare for the European Championships.”

NO DOUBTS

It concluded: “No-one should be in any doubt that Manchester United will do everything in its power to keep its best players.”

Real coach Bernd Schuster last month described Ronaldo as “the best player in the world” and, although he expected United to keep their player in the short term, the coach said he could see him at Real “in a couple of years.”

Calderon said earlier this month that signing Ronaldo would be “a utopia”, but added “We can’t force a player to sign.”

After last week’s final, United manager Alex Ferguson criticised Real at a news conference.

“Schuster’s talking and Calderon’s talking,” he said. “Real think they can ride roughshod over everyone, but they won’t do it with us.

“Real Madrid are not the only club interested in Ronaldo. But the others are not saying so. They don’t get into this nonsense.”

In recent years United have sold David Beckham, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Gabriel Heinze to Real Madrid but Ferguson said last week the case of Ronaldo is different to those deals.

He told reporters: “Yes, we sold them Van Nistelrooy and Beckham but we did that because we wanted to.”

Ronaldo scored United’s goal in the 1-1 draw with Chelsea in last week’s Champions League final in Moscow [Images] and although he missed his penalty in the shoot-out, United went on to lift the trophy winning 6-5 on penalties.

Asked about his future after the final, Ronaldo told reporters: “I don’t promise nothing. I don’t promise nothing to my mum, I don’t promise nothing to supporters.”

Rain delays put Rafael Nadal at disadvantage

Roger Federer was not spotted in the French Open environs yesterday. He was probably back in his snug accommodation, enjoying a snigger at the juicy irony of it all. An opponent of Sunday starts at grand-slam tournaments, the world No1 was far away from the madhouse as those who were forced to wait until Tuesday for their first-round appointment kicked their heels – if they could find enough space in the clustered corridors of Roland Garros to move a leg.

It is because of days such as these that Wimbledon, after years of sticking to the belief that a Centre Court roof was a monstrosity, decided it was the right thing to do and next year, we shall see the beauty unveiled in all its glory. The “should they/shouldn’t they?” debate may be about to consume the leaders of the French Federation, who usually respond to suggestions of what they might do with their championship with sniffy indifference.

Rafael Nadal was in a chirpy mood in the morning, to the extent that he was happy to be shown an excerpt for the Headcases TV show that features an Andy Murray Misery Line. Once it had been translated for him, Nadal shook his head, amazed that a country could treat a professional sportsman with such disdain. At 7.25, the three-times champion knew what misery was, for it was only then that he was summoned, a very un-jolly giant dressed in green, for his first-round match against Thomaz Bellucci, a Brazilian qualifier. Nadal, who stayed on for only 20 minutes before it poured again, is at a distinct disadvantage to many in the field.

At Wimbledon last year, the Spaniard required five days to complete a match against Robin Söderling, of Sweden. Yesterday, Söderling crushed Juan Monaco, the No13 seed from Argentina, 6-2, 6-3, 6-1, playing the final rally with a gigantic smile on his face. Another who salvaged something was Stanislas Wawrinka, of Switzerland, the No9 seed and BNL D’Italia Masters finalist in Rome a fortnight ago, who thrashed Philipp Kohlschreiber, of Germany. The more you watch Wawrinka, the more he looks to be a possible contender here.

Far from the damp and drizzle of France, in Izmir, Turkey, it was 80F (26.5C) and that, and George Bastl, 33, a Swiss whose best days are long behind him, was a mite too hot for Alex Bogdanovic, who lost in the first round of an ATP Challenger event, 6-3, 6-1. In Bogdanovic’s company was Brad Gilbert, notionally the British No3’s coach for the past seven months, during which time his ranking has fallen from No161 to No242.

Gilbert, it is understood, will be back behind the microphone at Wimbledon next month, working for ESPN, the American network. One has to assume, therefore, that his partnership with Bogdanovic has almost run its unsatisfactory course.

Chennai Super Kings seal semi-final spot

Mahendra Singh Dhoni lost the toss but everything else went right for his team, beginning with some tight bowling, as the Chennai Super Kings won the match against the Deccan Chargers and a spot in the semi-finals at the expense of the Mumbai Indians. Chennai will face Kings XI Punjab, whom they have defeated twice, in one semi-final, while Rajasthan Royals take on Delhi Daredevils in the other.

Chennai had conceded 211 against Rajasthan in their previous game but the bowlers were up to the task this time as Deccan’s final attempt to win at home win went awry. Chennai’s opening bowlers were on the mark from the start: Makhaya Ntini bowled with pace and got good bounce and carry, while Manpreet Gony, the team’s leading wicket-taker, stuck to an impeccable length on off-stump and bowled through his four overs for 21. And they reaped the rewards soon, as both Herschelle Gibbs and Adam Gilchrist found the fielder at third man – Gibbs with a slash, Gilchrist with a thick outside-edge.

Deccan’s early runs came mainly in singles and Scott Styris, who’s had a terrible tournament, looked to be getting into rhythm with boundaries in the arc between midwicket and mid-on till he was bowled by Muttiah Muralitharan while trying to hit one across. At 57 for 3 after 10.1 overs, Deccan needed a partnership and Venugopal Rao and Ravi Teja came up with a 76-run stand that lent respectability to the eventual total. Muralitharan was hard to get away but the two went after Balaji in the 14th over, which cost 14.

They managed to up the run-rate with a boundary every over, and Rao, often at the centre of Deccan’s rearguard actions, hit one to bring up the 100 in the 16th over. There was a flurry of runs, Teja slashing one high into the stands off Ntini in an over where he was taken for 15 runs. That he ended with figures of 1 for 24 off his four told the full story.

That burst was followed by a flurry of wickets, including three – one of them a run-out – in three balls in the 19th over. The crowd had chanted Shahid Afridi’s name but he lasted two balls as Deccan limped to 147.

Deccan, and Mumbai, needed a wicket early and RP Singh nearly got the breakthrough as Stephen Fleming fended at one that swung away, but both Gilchrist and Styris were late to react. Fleming and his fellow left-hand opener Parthiv Patel cashed in when the bowlers erred: short and wide deliveries were dispatched for fours. P Vijaykumar then decided to go round the wicket, and it worked, as Fleming got a thick outside-edge while trying to force a drive through the covers.

In came Suresh Raina and he soon found his rhythm, slapping one riskily in the air through the covers, before punching one through the same region. Afridi was brought into the attack as early as the fifth over, and he put a brake on the scoring. At the other end, Raina got consecutive boundaries in Sarvesh Kumar’s first over, but the pressure applied from Afridi worked as Parthiv played straight to cover in Sarvesh’s next, Afridi taking the catch.

Raina was joined by Dhoni, and the 55-run stand between the two put Chennai on course for victory. Dhoni started with two streaky boundaries – he hit one straight to Sarvesh first-up, who fluffed a chance, and a thick outside-edge flew to the third-man boundary. With left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha and Styris managing to curb the runs, Dhoni decided to take a few risks. He stepped out to deposit Ojha over long-on, and after a miscued pull nearly landed in Gibbs’ hands at midwicket, he cut Styris for four. Afridi came back with 52 needed off 42 balls, and Dhoni hit one dead-straight for four, before Raina powered a shorter delivery over midwicket for six.

Chennai were cruising towards the target, but had a brief wobble after Dhoni found Gibbs at long-on. That Ojha over, the 16th, went just for three, and when Styris conceded the same in the next, Chennai were left needing 28 off 18. Another tight over and Deccan could have still been in the hunt, but Raina found the gap at midwicket as Ojha bowled a full toss. He was dropped by RP in the 19th over, and hit the winning six – which brought up his fifty – as Chennai reached their target with four balls to spare.

While Dhoni and Co were relieved and celebrated the win, Gilchrist looked ahead after a disastrous first season, in which last-placed Deccan won just two of their 14 games. “I do not have any excuses. It depends which way you look it.,” he said. “It’s not end of the world. We should settle down, make a self-assessment and think over where we went wrong and plan for the future.”

Manchester United could report Real over Ronaldo

Manchester United say they may report Real Madrid to Fifa over their public pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Premier League and European champions are upset at comments from the Spanish club they perceive are designed to unsettle their Portugal winger.

A club statement said: “Manchester United has watched with growing irritation the comments attributed to Real Madrid over their alleged desire to sign Cristiano Ronaldo. The facts are: the player is on a long-term contract and his registration is held by Manchester United; The player is not for sale.

“The club will have no alternative but to report Real Madrid to the world governing body, Fifa, if it continues to behave in this totally unacceptable fashion. These public attempts to unsettle the player are completely against the regulations and the club will not tolerate them any longer.

“In addition, the club is certain that they are a distraction for the Portuguese national squad as they prepare for the European Championships. No one should be in any doubt that Manchester United will do everything in its power to keep its best players.”

Bernd Schuster, the Madrid coach, today confirmed Ronaldo is his club’s number one summer transfer target. But Sir Alex Ferguson, the United manager, is sure to be infuriated by Schuster referring to the 23-year-old in a manner that would suggest the signing has virtually been completed.

“There are other players we have been looking at but everything has slowed down a little due to all this Cristiano Ronaldo business, seeing as he is the big priority for the club,” Schuster said.

“The English way has been a perfect education for a player with such exceptional individual talent. There he has learned to enjoy his football as a complete professional. This means we would get a Cristiano who would arrive here with his lessons learned.”

He added: “Cristiano would help us in a lot of ways, without a doubt, but we can’t stop with just him. He’ll be expensive and we’ll have to pay a lot of money, but we need more players because he won’t be enough.”

Last week, Ferguson launched a scathing attack on Spanish club accusing them of having no morals over their relentless pursuit of Ronaldo and reiterating that the Portugal forward will not be sold at any cost.

Paes, Bhupathi to clash in French Open mixed doubles

Squabbling former partners Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi are pitted against each other in the opening round of the mixed doubles at the French Open.

While Paes will team with Russia’s Nadia Petrova, Bhupathi will partner China’s Jie Zhang.

Both teams are unseeded.

Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles draw, released on Tuesday, Paes will play alongside Czech Lukas Dlouhy, after parting ways with Australian Paul Hanley.

The duo, seeded ninth, have been handed a first-round match against the unseeded Thai pair of Sanchai and Sonchat Ratiwatana.

Fourth seeds Bhupathi and his Bahamian partner Mark Knowles have also been drawn against an unseeded team, Australian Stephen Huss and Brit Ross Hutchins.

Paes and Bhupathi, who have been at loggerheads for years now, were embroiled in a fresh war of words after Bhupathi wrote to the All India Tennis Association, saying he wants to team with Rohan Bopanna in the Beijing Olympics instead of Paes.

Meanwhile, Bopanna and his Pakistani partner Aisam-ul Haq Qureshi have a tough opener as they take on top seeds Americans Bob and Mike Bryan.

With Sania Mirza rendered out of action due to a wrist injury, the Indian challenge at the clay-court Grand Slam has been restricted to doubles only.