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Wimbledon - Venus ready to reign again

When Venus Williams walks onto Centre Court to begin her defence of the Wimbledon title, the American will feel the lush grass under her feet and breathe a sigh of relief.

In the 12 months since she was crowned champion at the All England Club for the fifth time, after brushing aside sister Serena in the final, the American has endured a dispiriting run of results that could easily have left her morale at a low ebb.

Winning only two minor WTA events this year represents an underwhelming effort for the former world number one, but it is the first week exits from the Australian and French Opens against the unheralded Carla Suarez Navarro and Agnes Szavay that really raised eyebrows.

Yet Venus has litte to worry about now she is back on grass because few trophies can have been as aptly named as the Venus Rosewater Dish awarded to the Wimbledon womens' champion.

This is the time of year Venus relishes most. While she has never won the Australian or French Opens, Wimbledon has been a love-affair almost from first sight.

Since winning Wimbledon for the first time in 2000, the 29-year-old has reached six of the following eight finals, with four more victories to her credit.

But for Serena's two victories over her sister in the 2002 and 2003 finals, Venus would be closing on Martina Navratilova's record of nine singles titles.

"That would be the ultimate," That target is still within sight however and Venus said. "Her career spanned three decades, so I'm not sure if I have that much time. But if I did (play that long), I think I would definitely dream of that."

Venus has another aim this year as she bids to become the first woman to win a hat-trick of Wimbledon singles' titles since Steffi Graf claimed three in a row from 1991 to 1993.

The strongest challenge to Venus's dominance is likely to come from across the breakfast table at her Wimbledon base in the leafy south-west London village.

As ever with her sister Serena, results in the lesser Tour events are no indicator of her ability to win Grand Slams, as she proved by failing to win a single tournament since January's victory at the Australian Open.

It is six years since Serena last won Wimbledon but on her day the world number two still has the beating of any of her peers - including Venus.

The same can't be said of world number one Dinara Safina, who will travel to London rocked after compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova thrashed her in the French Open final.

Safina has risen to the top of the womens' rankings without landing a Grand Slam victory.

The 23-year-old Russian may not fancy her chances of ending that frustrating run at Wimbledon as she has yet to make it past the third round.

If Safina can't dethrone Venus, the biggest threat could come from elsewhere in eastern Europe.

Maria Sharapova, the 2004 champion, is working her way back up the rankings after returning to the Tour in May following 10 months on the sidelines with a persistent shoulder injury.

The Russian insists her desire to succeed burns as brightly as ever.

"I've always been a fighter," she said. "If I was mentally weak I wouldn't be doing this, I'd be on some island with a nice cold pina colada. But there is no better feeling than waving to the crowd after you've won."

Another challenger should be Kuznetsova, whose morale is sky-high after her Roland Garros triumph, while world number four Elena Dementieva, a two-time Grand Slam finalist, reached the semi-finals last year.

There is no shortage of motivation for Serbian duo Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, who both failed to make it past the fourth round last year despite being seeded one and two respectively, and have struggled since.

Attention will also be focued on 16-year-old Michelle Larcher de Brito, whose high-pitch on-court screeching has led the International Tennis Federation to consider making "noise hindrance" part of its code of conduct.

LONDON (AFP) - Andy Murray admits his attempt to win Wimbledon for the first time will be fuelled by his vision of what it would be like to serve for the title.

Murray, the world number three, is expected to mount a serious challenge for the mens singles title at the All-England Club when the tournament gets under way on Monday.

The Scot won his first grass-court title at Queen's last week and he can't stop thinking about what it would be like to reach match point in the Wimbledon final.

"I've thought about serving for the title - but the closer you get to a grand slam the less you think about it," he told BBC Radio Five Live.

"In the gym is the time I think about those things - to find a reason for putting in the hard work - and when you're going through it on the running track.

"Sometimes you feel sorry for yourself, you are finding reasons for doing the training. When I get tired and out of breath I think, 'I'm doing this so I can last long enough in the fifth set of a grand slam' - focusing on the last point and hoping your opponent misses."

Murray, seeded third behind Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon last year before being thrashed by eventual winner Nadal.

Bolstered by many hours of physical training in the searing heat of Miami after that defeat, Murray is now a far more dominant player. He has already beaten Nadal and Federer this season and admits his confidence is sky-high.

"It is good for confidence any time you win tournaments," he said. "To win your first event on grass is nice - I had never made a final on grass.

"At Queen's I felt more comfortable on grass than I have in the past. I played well there and I feel good.

"It is a tough thing to do because you are only playing one or two tournaments on grass a year and all of the best players normally play."

Most players have to survive at least one gruelling five-set match en route to a Grand Slam success and Murray, who reached the US Open final last year, believes he can last the pace as well as anyone.

"I needed to get even stronger to be able to play back-to-back five-set matches over the whole tournament," he said.

"After Wimbledon last year, I went to train in Miami for three or four weeks and that is pretty tough weather to train in around this time of year.

"That made a difference going into the hard court stretch and I made my first slam final. I have that belief that I can play the whole of the slams now.

"I would love to win Wimbledon one day, there is no question about that, but I try not to think about it too much."

Andy Seeded 6th for Wimbledon

The Wimbledon Championships begin next week, and on Wednesday, the AELTC announced this year’s seeding for the Championships.

Andy, who is currently 6th in the ATP rankings, has also been awarded that seeding for Wimbledon. This means Andy is seeded to meet one of the top 4 in the quarterfinals.

Unlike other Grand Slams, due to the specialist surface on which Wimbledon is played, the AELTC have the option to change a player’s seeding depending on his performance on grass in previous years.

Winning the French Open was not just a personal milestone for Roger Federer, it was the making of him.

Armed with the belief that he can win titles even when he is not on top of his game, the Swiss master is determined to snatch back the Wimbledon crown from his nemesis Rafael Nadal when the grass-court Grand Slam begins next Monday.

"I feel like I've definitely become more a man now than in the last few years since I'm not scared of five setters anymore. I can handle the pressure," said Federer, who became only the sixth man to achieve a career Grand Slam with his triumph at Roland Garros 10 days ago.

"I had to show my fighting spirit more than ever and it's nice to have had a chance to show those qualities because before everybody was just used to my dominance. It's good to know for myself that I can also do it differently," added Federer, who for the first time had to play two five-set matches during a successful run to a major.

"Now going into the grass season, and Wimbledon, and being on top of the world it's a fantastic feeling."

In his previous 13 assaults to Grand Slam titles, it seemed as if Federer's aura was enough to beat most opponents before the warm-up had even finished.

If that was not enough, the Swiss quickly outwitted his opponents with his silky shots and killer instinct.

But none of that was on display in Paris and if anything, Federer's cloak of invincibility looked tattered and torn when he was just five points from defeat in the fourth round against Germany's Tommy Haas.

That win from two sets down against Haas not only set Federer on his way to a record-equalling 14th Grand Slam title, it also boosted his chances of regaining the number one ranking Nadal took from him last August.

"For me it's about the majors because right now Wimbledon is around the corner," said 27-year-old Federer.

"From Paris until Wimbledon, this is when you want to play your best tennis. So the ranking will always follow when you do play well.

"I know it will take a special effort to get back to number one because Rafa has set the bar high. It's going to be hard to take it away from him because he has so many great tournament victories in his 365-day rankings. But I feel I'm a step closer now by winning in Paris and winning my 14th."

That triumph led to a chorus of players declaring Federer was the greatest of all time and Martina Navratilova even suggested the Swiss could "just go on and sip Margaritas for the rest of his life".

However, Federer does not have it in him to simply put his feet up and soak up the sun.

For him it is all about timing and with a baby on the way, he feels there is no better way to prepare for the new arrival in his family by breaking the record of 14 Grand Slam titles he shares with Pete Sampras at Wimbledon.

"I do think I'm the favourite actually, with the success I've had. I came close again last year," said Federer, whose run of five consecutive Wimbledon titles ended with a heart-stopping five-set loss to Nadal in last year's final.

"Once you arrive in London, you start getting into the frame of mind and it's like 'let's go again', I know what it takes. It only takes a couple of hours to feel at home.

"With no disrespect to the other players ... I feel like I've got the game, I've got the mental approach and I've got the experience to win at Wimbledon many more times."

Can Roger Federer Win Grand Slam Title 15 at Wimbledon in 2009?
By Richard McDuff

On June 22nd the Wimbledon Grand Slam Tennis Championship starts. Can Roger Federer win his 15th Tennis Grand Slam? Can he prove unequivocally that he is indeed the greatest tennis play in the world? Federer is only 27 years of age. Somewhere along the way he can win another Tennis Grand Slam title. He will break the record that he shares with Pete Sampras of 14 Grand Slam titles. Pete Sampras was 31 when he won his 14th tennis Grand Slam record. Can Roger win at Wimbledon in 2009, and win his 15th Grand Slam.

Again the biggest obstacle for Roger will be Rafael Nadal. Nadal has a 13-7 lead against Federer. This Nadal dominance against Roger has also shown up on the face of Federer. Rafael Nadal has recently started to dominate Roger Federer over the last couple of years. In the July 2009 of Tennis magazine, there is an article about a psychologist called Dr Vic Braden who used the same facial techniques used by security forces that are used to identify terrorists to analyze Roger Federer. When he was facing his opponents, he would focus straight ahead, eyes wide open, and his mouth turned upwards. But when Federer faced Rafael Nadal, Roger would look down and frown, whether they were warming up or playing a match. It is very clear that Rafael has a negative psychological impact on Roger which affects his play against Nadal.

Roger was clearly optimistic when he did not have to face Nadal in the French Open. When Federer had to play Robin Soderling, I am sure that Roger was not concerned about his chances against Soderling, as Federer has not lost to someone ranked below 20, and Soderling is ranked at 25.

Rafael Nadal's 4th round exit in the French Open is being blamed on knee problems. Was Nadal exhausted, he has played a lot of tennis on clay courts lately. Maybe, it was a psychological ploy to give Roger Federer a sense of over confidence going into Wimbledon or maybe it was just an excuse to explain Nadal's early exit in the French Open. Nadal has played matches and won championships with bandaged knees before. Maybe Rafael's love of the hard courts are paying a price. We will not know for sure until July 5th whether Nadal is ready to repeat as the winner of Wimbledon 2009.

Both Andy Murray(Rank #3) and Novak Djokovic (Rank #4) have beaten Federer twice each in major tournaments in 2009, and each one could very easily spoil Federer's quest for the 15th Grand Slam victory at Wimbledon. Murray and Djokovic are both are 22 years of age, and either one is capable of breaking out and winning at Wimbledon. Djokovic has won the Australian Open (2008), and competed in the finals of the 2007 US Open. Andy Murray competed against Roger Federer in the 2009 Finals of the US Open.

Richard McDuff has been selling on the internet for 9 years. He has dedicated a whole website to 2009 Wimbledon Grand Slam. If you are interested in the Wimbledon Grand Slam Tennis Championship, visit the website.

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2009 Wimbledon Championship Predictions
By Todd Hicks

Are you a major tennis lover like me? Is it true that you crave watching professional tennis matches and live for the tennis grand slam tournaments? How about Wimbledon? Wimbledon provides beautiful green grass tennis courts and it is the oldest, most storied and most cherished grand slam tournament in tennis.

I guess it is safe for me to gamble that you are highly looking forward to watching the Wimbledon tournament in 2009. I will discuss who I believe will win the Wimbledon tournament this year.

I will first discuss the women's side. I believe the tennis player who possesses the premier shot at winning Wimbledon in 2009 on the ladies' side is Venus Williams. One reason is she possesses tremendous strength and a powerful serve, which are two characteristics that are very important for helping a player to win a tournament that features grass courts such as Wimbledon. Another reason is Venus is extremely dominant at Wimbledon and she has won the majority of her grand slam titles there.

I believe the tennis player who has the second best shot at winning Wimbledon this year on the ladies' side is Venus' sister, Serena. Although Serena is very strong and possesses a very quick serve like her sister and is a few years younger than she is, Venus is still playing at a very high level and she has held an edge against Serena at Wimbledon.

We will now discuss the men's side. In my book, Roger Federer is the favorite to win the Wimbledon title in 2009. He can hit the ball with plenty of power and spin and he can create special angles when hitting the ball. It is said that he is a genius with the racket. Another thing he has going for him is he stays mentally strong throughout long matches and can get inside an opponent's head. He can come back and win after losing the first two sets of a best-of-five match. He almost always prevails in the deciding fifth set. Winning set tie breaker games is his forte and he can serve aces in those crucial situations. Finally, he tends to play his best tennis in finals and he has the most success playing on grass courts.

I think Rafael Nadal is the second favorite to win this year. He is the only player who can match Federer at making magical shots and he has the youth and speed to run down Federer's corner shots; furthermore, he has won 13 of his 19 matches against Federer and he has developed the ability to win big events on grass and hard courts like Federer. Nadal is catching up to Federer at Wimbledon. He lost to Federer in four sets in 2006, lost to him in five sets in 2007 and beat him in a five-set marathon last year.

Federer seems to be enduring a microscopic decline in his late twenties but he should win this year. He still plays at a very high level; he is still very good and intimidating and he knows he must step up a notch and win two more grand slam titles quickly to pass Pete Sampras' mark of 14 while he is still relatively young. Look for him to succeed as his hunger exceeds his greatness.

Todd Hicks owns Skill Development Institute, an enterprise that provides a keyboard typing lesson and academic study guide. To become a great typist or student, visit Skill Development Institute. http://sdinst.blogspot.com

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