Paris: The top-seeded players had early starts at the French Open on Wednesday, and both Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka made it to the third round without a problem. Djokovic was first up on Court Suzanne Lenglen, and he was barely troubled by Blaz Kavcic, winning 6-0, 6-4, 6-4 for his 23rd straight Grand Slam victory. In the main stadium at Roland Garros, Azarenka defeated Dinah Pfizenmaier of Germany 6-1,...
06:07 PM, May 30, 2012
Paris: Novak Djokovic advanced to the third round at the French Open by beating Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia 6-0, 6-4, 6-4 Wednesday. The top-ranked Djokovic has won the last three Grand Slam singles titles, but has never won the French Open. Last year, he lost to Roger Federer in the semi-finals, ending a 43-match winning streak. Djokovic was broken once by Kavcic, but otherwise had little trouble on Court Suzanne...
05:11 PM, May 30, 2012
Former India player Vijay Amritraj tips six-time champion Rafael Nadal as red-hot favourite to win the French Open. ...
11:32 AM, May 30, 2012
Winning a first-round match is old hat to Andy Murray. And it's something he always does wearing old socks. The fourth-seeded Murray beat Tatsuma Ito of Japan 6-1, 7-5, 6-0 Tuesday in the first round of the French Open, and after the match he revealed some of his secrets for success. "I only wear old socks," Murray said. "I don't like new ones. My feet slip in the shoe a...
08:59 AM, May 30, 2012
Paris: For more than a decade, whatever the state of her health or her game, no matter the opponent or arena, Serena Williams always won first-round matches at Grand Slam tournaments. Always. Until Tuesday at the French Open. Until Williams came within two points of victory nine times, yet remarkably failed to close the deal against unheralded and 111th-ranked Virginie Razzano of France. Until a theatrical, 23-minute final game filled...
08:47 AM, May 30, 2012
Paris: Rafa Nadal's campaign for a record seventh French Open title began with a straight-sets victory over outclassed Italian Simone Bolelli on Tuesday, while Maria Sharapova opened with a whitewash of Romanian Alexandra Cadantu. Nadal, defending champion and second seed, thrashed Bolelli 6-2 6-2 6-1 in just short of two hours on the sunny Philippe Chatrier court. Playing in a shocking-pink shirt, Nadal completely dominated an error-prone Bolelli, who summed...
09:31 PM, May 29, 2012
Paris: India's Sania Mirza and American Bethanie Mattek-Sands were knocked out by Russian-Romanian combine of Nina Bratchikova and Edina Gallovits-Hall in the women's doubles first round at the French Open on Tuesday. The fifteenth seeds went down fighting. Recovering from a set down, they, however, failed to win points on their serve to finally lose 3-6, 6-4, 5-7 to the unseeded pair. The loss is a blow for the Indian,...
08:39 PM, May 29, 2012
Paris: Maria Sharapova was nearly perfect in the first round of the French Open, winning all 12 games to produce a "double bagel." The second-seeded Russian easily beat Alexandra Cadantu of Romania 6-0, 6-0 Tuesday, needing just 48 minutes to advance to the second round. She finished the match with 18 winners, while Cadantu had zero, but had to save three break points. Sharapova, who lost in this year's Australian...
05:53 PM, May 29, 2012
Paris: Only a short time after reaching yet another tennis milestone, Roger Federer was stumped. He had just won his 233rd match at a Grand Slam tournament, equaling the Open era record set by Jimmy Connors, and he couldn't remember who he beat to get that first victory. "Well, I should (know), shouldn't I?" Federer said after defeating Tobias Kamke of Germany 6-2, 7-5, 6-3 Monday in the first round...
03:32 PM, May 29, 2012
Paris: Roger Federer's bid for a record 17th major tennis title began with another landmark on Monday, when he won his 233rd match at a Grand Slam event, equalling the achievement of Jimmy Connors. Federer beat German Tobias Kamke 6-2 7-5 6-3 in the first round of the French Open and can surpass American Connors's professional-era record by continuing his progress here. Women's world number one Victoria Azarenka was lucky...
11:43 PM, May 28, 2012
Paris: World number one Novak Djokovic showed great composure to beat Italian Potito Starace 7-6 6-3 6-1 and reach the second round of the French Open on Monday. The Serbian was dragged into a first-set tiebreak, which he won 7-3, before gradually outpacing the world number 97 as he bids to become the first man in 43 years to hold all four grand slams simultaneously. Starace put up a decent...
10:11 PM, May 28, 2012
Paris: Roger Federer equalled Jimmy Connors' record of 233 career Grand Slam match wins by beating Tobias Kamke of Germany 6-2, 7-5, 6-3 in the first round of the French Open on Monday. Federer, who owns a record 16 major championships, is 233-35 at tennis' top four tournaments, a .869 winning percentage. Connors was 233-49. Kamke, meanwhile, fell to 6-10 in Grand Slam matches. He's never been past the third...
07:39 PM, May 28, 2012
Paris: Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka survived a scare in the first round of the French Open. The Australian Open champion, who took over the No. 1 ranking by winning in Melbourne, came back to beat Alberta Brianti of Italy 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-2 on Monday. Brianti, a 32-year-old veteran who has won one WTA title in her career, won the first set and then led 4-0 in the second before losing...
05:15 PM, May 28, 2012
Paris: Two-time Grand Slam finalist Vera Zvonareva of Russia withdrew from the French Open shortly before her first-round match Monday, citing an injured right shoulder. "My shoulder injury has still not healed," Zvonareva said. "So it's definitely not the best year. It's part of the sport and I have to find a way to get back and to be healthy again, so I can compete without pain." The 11th-seeded Zvonareva...
04:44 PM, May 28, 2012
Paris: Venus Williams, who says she is still learning to live with a chronic illness, battled into the second round of the French Open on Sunday with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Argentine Paula Ormaechea. Seven-time Grand Slam champion Williams, who returned to the tour in March after dropping out with Sjogren's Syndrome, a fatigue-inducing autoimmune disease, looked to be struggling early in the match but found the resources...
02:20 PM, May 28, 2012
Paris: Battling to be in the top 10 before the June 11 cut-off mark for the London Olympics, Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna were drawn against the French team of Marc Gicquel and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in their men's doubles opening round of the French Open. Bopanna and Bhupathi, ranked 12th and 13th respectively, need to be in top 10 to make a direct entry into the men's doubles event of...
11:49 AM, May 28, 2012
Paris: Venus Williams bounced back from a poor start at the French Open on Sunday, beating 19-year-old Paula Ormaechea 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 in her first Grand Slam match since revealing she has been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. The seven-time major champion seemed taken aback by her opponent's early aggressive play, but still managed to turn the match her way and reach the second round. The 31-year-old Williams, a former...
12:29 AM, May 28, 2012
