The Australian Open Day 7: Upsets and Comebacks by Nadya Vlassoff
It was the day for comebacks as Day 7 in Melbourne featured a number of thrilling matches between some of the tournament’s big name draws. Dinara Safina was up against the young Frenchwoman Alize Cornet, Roger Federer was playing Czech Thomas Berdych, and Australia’s Jelena Dokic was facing a stiff test against Russia’s Alisa Kleybanova. However, in the biggest upset so far, the 16th seeded Marion Bartoli from France sent the number 1 seed Jelena Jankovic packing in straight sets in an absolutely stunning victory that even Jankovic could not comprehend. The last match of the day saw Novak Djokovic take on Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis who put up some resistance but eventually fell in 4 sets to the Serbian star. Here is a look at the highlights.
Dinara Safina (3) vs. Alize Cornet (15)
On a gorgeous afternoon in Melbourne, Russia’s newest rising powerhouse, Dinara Safina took to the court against another young up-and-comer, Alize Cornet, who in her previous match beat Daniela Hantuchova from Slovakia in 3 sets and looked poised to upset her toughest competition yet. It was Safina who took an early lead by racing through the first set and won it 6-2 as she applied pressure from all angles and keep Cornet off-balance with powerful ground strokes. In the second set it was all Cornet who gave everything she had to break Safina twice as she relied on her finesse game and control to move the ball wall. Her service games were played with more authority as Safina began to falter. After such an impressive performance in the first set, Safina was struggling with unforced errors as Cornet did everything right and waited for Safina to make the mistakes. Cornet walked away with a 6-2 set win and Safina stormed off to her chair struggling to keep her composure for the third set.
In the third set, with Alize Cornet serving for the set at double match point, the ball was called out on Cornet’s forehand return which she challenged. On official review it was out, as Safina breathed a sigh of relief. Several topspin shots for a long rally forced Safina to hit a flat ball and then Cornet fired into the net to bring it back to deuce. A down-the-line winner from Safina allowed her to go AD up but Cornet returned the favor with a forehand smash winner to go back to deuce. Cornet couldn’t take advantage and she again hit the net on a return on an extended rally. Finally, Safina, with some smart shots to get Cornet moving from one side of the court to the other, smashed an overhead winner to take the game on Cornet’s service game to even the set at 5 all.
On her next service game, this time Dinara Safina waited for Alize Cornet to make the mistakes and Cornet didn’t disappoint as she hit shots long and couldn’t focus her game. In a miraculous turnaround, Safina came back from a 2-5 deficit to win the third set 7-5. The “Queen of Comebacks,” as she should be called, Safina managed to hang on and win when it mattered most. For Alize Cornet, who left the court in tears but also received an ovation from the crowd, this is an important lesson for her. With Dinara Safina making so many mistakes, it was really Cornet`s game to win but she couldn’t close it out in the clutch. Expect to see much more from this rising talent in the upcoming clay court season. Who knows, maybe at The French Open on the courts of Roland Garros they will meet again but to a different outcome.
Overall it wasn’t the best tennis of Safina`s career, and she knew that in her post-match interview with Pam Shriver and Mary Carillo. Dinara called her play ``stupid`` and said, "I think it's just lucky that I went through. But really it's sad that I can do these kind of mistakes. Really, it's sad what I did today." However, Cornet did play a good match but Safina did what she does best when she came roaring back. Maybe Dinara Safina plays best when under pressure? Or maybe she reacts with the support of the crowd? No one really knows except for Safina herself but as simply a spectator, myself, her matches are consistently entertaining and come with heart-stopping, fist-pumping moments that have everyone watching Dinara do the impossible yet again.
Best of Day 7:
In the next match, Roger Federer took on the young Czech Thomas Berdych. Federer started off slow as Berdych broke early to take a lead at 4-1 in the first set. But the Fedster was nowhere near done as he went to break Berdych’s serve with good movement and efficiently placed shots. Shockingly, Berdych took an early two set lead and looked poised to take the third, with Federer never looking completely comfortable, especially with his forehand that kept hitting the net for errors. In a stunning turnaround, like that of Fernando Gonzalez only a day earlier, Federer came back from two sets down and showed his prowess on the court as Berdych had break chances, even match point, but couldn’t convert as Federer looked stronger after each point. In the fifth set, Berdych, hampered by a left leg injury, was able to hold serve but not for long as Federer broke twice to finally clinch the match. Berdych played the match of his life in a showdown reminiscent of last year’s tournament when Janko Tipseravic took Federer to five sets in the third round. Upset or not, Federer is definitely riding a wave of confidence into his next round match against towering Argentine, Juan Del Potro. Let’s see if del Potro can find the mental game to defeat Roger Federer.
After an already chaotic day, Jelena Dokic entered Rod Laver Arena for the third time, three more times than anyone would have expected, against Alisa Kleybanova of Russia. Kleybanova, playing against the crowd but coming off the biggest upset of her career against Ana Ivanovic in the third round, played her heart out against Dokic. Although Dokic had to break back in the 11th game of the first set, and hit two double faults, she somehow found the will to win and managed to hold serve and go up 6-5. Kleybanova hit her backhand wide to give Dokic double break point to take the first set. In the second set, Jelena Dokic began to tighten up against Kleybanova’s deep ground game that had Dokic running all over the court in a desperate attempt to keep the rallies going. Her composure began to fade as Dokic failed to earn back a break on the Kleybanova serve. Spurring herself on, Kleybanova yelled out in triumph as she took the second set 7-5 and demonstrating great control as 15,000 fans waited for her to lose.
In the third set, Dokic had a scary fall when she rolled her left ankle and went down. The crowd was hushed, wondering if their last chance for a hometown champion would be able to continue with so much on the line. Slowly, Dokic lifted herself up while the chair umpire ran over to see if she was okay. But Dokic, driven by determination in this entire tournament, shook it off and walked back to take her place on the court. The crowd spurred her on with cheers but collectively groaned each time the replay was shown of Dokic rolling completely over her ankle. With Dokic serving at 40-30, Kleybanova netted her return, giving Dokic the game of which she celebrated with a big fist pump in front of the roaring crowd. Kleybanova netted two returns on her own serve and then Dokic hit a bobbled winner to get triple match point on a service break. Finally, with a sizzling backhand down-the-line winner, Dokic fell to her knees in triumph, trying to control her emotions. The crowd was on its feet, watching their girl continue to defy the impossible. Kleybanova played with power while Dokic played with determination. Although Kleybanova walked off in defeat with the knowledge that she made a name for herself in an increasingly crowded Russian contingent. As for Dokic, Jelena’s story continues as the world waits with baited breath to see if she can continue to beat the odds. Dokic faces a stiff test in the quarterfinals against Dinara Safina.
Worst of Day 7:
Jelena Jankovic (1) vs. Marion Bartoli (16)
It was at Wimbledon in 2007 that the little known Marion Bartoli took out the then world number 1 Justine Henin in the women’s singles semi-final in the biggest upset of her career. Since then Bartoli has struggled to remain consistent against top ranked opponents but on Day 7, facing the number 1 seed Jelena Jankovic, Bartoli shed her nerves and reservations and stormed past her opponent. Jankovic never looked in control as she hit errors, had bad service games, and was just outplayed by Bartoli who had another stunning performance. Bartoli went for Jankovic’s weaker backhand return in order to control the pace of the match. Jankovic had no answers as Bartoli won the first set 6-1. Jelena tried to level back in the second and looked like she might win it but Bartoli put an end to that thought quickly by hitting a gorgeous winner that Jankovic couldn’t return. In less than 90 minutes, Bartoli took the match 6-1, 6-4 in the biggest upset of the tournament. With this loss Jankovic loses more than just her pride, as the number 1 ranking will no longer be hers after the Australian Open is over. If this was the year to silence the critics, Jelena did a good job of it but not in the way she would have liked.
Overall, the men’s draw continues to impress as the favorites have fought off set and match points to get to the quarterfinals. This time it is Andy Roddick who seems to be the surprising sleeper pick since he continues to dominate. Having only lost one set so far, he could cause an upset in week 2. On the women’s draw, it really is anyone’s game. With Jelena Dokic having the tournament of her life, and Serena Williams taking on Elena Demenetieva in the next round, it really will come down to who wants it more. Dokic vs. Williams? We can only dream.
Does this sort of rioting happen at other grand slams as well? It's stupid, it's childish and it's pathetic! I don't wat to view this sort of crap on video, or tv unless people love to see others getting hit with chairs!!!!!
Daddy-V
January 26, 2009 - 21:45
Subject: Awesome
Cool report.
Did you see the fans rioting? Serbs and Croats, I think.
On a gorgeous afternoon in Melbourne, Russia’s newest rising powerhouse, Dinara Safina took to the court against another young up-and-comer, Alize Cornet, who in her previous match beat Daniela Hantuchova from Slovakia in 3 sets and looked poised to upset her toughest competition yet. It was Safina who took an early lead by racing through the first set and won it 6-2 as she applied pressure from all angles and keep Cornet off-balance with powerful ground strokes. In the second set it was all Cornet who gave everything she had to break Safina twice as she relied on her finesse game and control to move the ball wall. Her service games were played with more authority as Safina began to falter. After such an impressive performance in the first set, Safina was struggling with unforced errors as Cornet did everything right and waited for Safina to make the mistakes. Cornet walked away with a 6-2 set win and Safina stormed off to her chair struggling to keep her composure for the third set.
In the next match, Roger Federer took on the young Czech Thomas Berdych. Federer started off slow as Berdych broke early to take a lead at 4-1 in the first set. But the Fedster was nowhere near done as he went to break Berdych’s serve with good movement and efficiently placed shots. Shockingly, Berdych took an early two set lead and looked poised to take the third, with Federer never looking completely comfortable, especially with his forehand that kept hitting the net for errors. In a stunning turnaround, like that of Fernando Gonzalez only a day earlier, Federer came back from two sets down and showed his prowess on the court as Berdych had break chances, even match point, but couldn’t convert as Federer looked stronger after each point. In the fifth set, Berdych, hampered by a left leg injury, was able to hold serve but not for long as Federer broke twice to finally clinch the match. Berdych played the match of his life in a showdown reminiscent of last year’s tournament when Janko Tipseravic took Federer to five sets in the third round. Upset or not, Federer is definitely riding a wave of confidence into his next round match against towering Argentine, Juan Del Potro. Let’s see if del Potro can find the mental game to defeat Roger Federer.
It was at Wimbledon in 2007 that the little known Marion Bartoli took out the then world number 1 Justine Henin in the women’s singles semi-final in the biggest upset of her career. Since then Bartoli has struggled to remain consistent against top ranked opponents but on Day 7, facing the number 1 seed Jelena Jankovic, Bartoli shed her nerves and reservations and stormed past her opponent. Jankovic never looked in control as she hit errors, had bad service games, and was just outplayed by Bartoli who had another stunning performance. Bartoli went for Jankovic’s weaker backhand return in order to control the pace of the match. Jankovic had no answers as Bartoli won the first set 6-1. Jelena tried to level back in the second and looked like she might win it but Bartoli put an end to that thought quickly by hitting a gorgeous winner that Jankovic couldn’t return. In less than 90 minutes, Bartoli took the match 6-1, 6-4 in the biggest upset of the tournament. With this loss Jankovic loses more than just her pride, as the number 1 ranking will no longer be hers after the Australian Open is over. If this was the year to silence the critics, Jelena did a good job of it but not in the way she would have liked.