Beijing Champ Triumphed in Luxemburg
Russia's Elena Dementieva crashed Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki during the final of the WTA Fortis Championships in Luxembourg, Sunday Sept. 26, 2008. Another Russian, Vera Zvonareva failed to extend the winning record by losing to ex-No. 1 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia at the Linz Open in Austria. Nevertheless, Zvonareva’s progress in Linz enabled her to advance to the season’s final champinships that start November 3 in Doha. In the men’s tennis, Andy Murray retained the St. Petersburg Open title and Roger Federer triumphed in Basel for the third time in a row.
Dementieva had booked a place at the season-ending WTA Championships in Doha early in October and went to Luxembourg more for the additional playing practice on the eve of the year’s most vital competition that begins November 3. But the Luxemburg event is of the third category and the beautiful Russian easily triumphed there without taking any super efforts. In the end, Dementieva overwhelmed Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki in Luxembourg, Sunday Sept. 26, 2008 (6-2, 4-6, 6-7) to add the third victory to this year’s record – Elena had triumphed in Dubai in addition to Beijing Olympics.
Another Russian, Vera Zvonareva failed to win for the third time this year. Unlike Dementieva, Zvonareva faced Ana Ivanovic at the Linz Open in Austria, who had recently headed the WTA rating and is still one of the Top 5 of the world. Top seed in Linz, Ivanovic crashed second seed Zvonareva 6-2 6-1 in Sunday's final. Ivanovic had injured her thumb in August and hadn’t reached a final since winning the French Open in June. Both Ivanovic and Zvonareva secured qualification for the season-ending WTA Championships.
So, four Russians – Elena Dementieva, Vera Zvonareva, Dinara Safina and Svetlana Kuznetsova - have reached Doha championships. Their competitors are Ana Ivanovic and Yelena Jankovic of Serbia and Serena and Venus Williams of the United States. But the tournament has been stripped of the main intrigue. No matter the outcome, Yelena Jankovic will remain the world number one in the women’s tennis. Of interest is that as many as five players topped the WTA rating this year – Justine Henin, Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams were once the world number one in addition to Ivanovic and Jankovic. In Doha, eight best players will share the enormous prize fund of $3.7 million.
In the men’s tennis, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Nikolay Davydenko and Andy Murray have advanced to the Masters Cup that is scheduled to begin November 9.
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All the Article in Russian as of Oct. 27, 2008
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