So The Match is Over....Paes-Qureshi lost to Bhupathi-Mario....

No time right now I'll write tomorrow....

No time to write anything, I'll just post the results and some articles today (it's late night, actually and I have to complete my project, I have to submit it in the morning) Here go the results...
Kingfisher Airlines Mumbai Open Tennis, Day 5, Quarter-Finals

Tomas Berdych (CZE) def Bjorn Phau (GER) 6-3, 7-5

Stefan Koubek (AUT) def Mario Ancic (CRO) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) def James Auckland (GBR) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

Tommy Robredo (ESP) def Ramon Delgado (PAR) 6-2, 7-6

Koubek shocks Ancic in quarterfinal
NAOSHIRVAN VAKIL,
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

MUMBAI, Sept 29: It was a massive shock for the No.2
seed Mario Ancic. The Croat was humbled by the brilliant Austrian Stefan
Koubek in a thrilling quarterfinal of the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open at
the CCI. Koubek prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in a match which lasted two hours
and 11 minutes.
Koubek will now play Czech Tomas Berdych in the semifinals.
Berdych outclassed Bjorn Phau 6-3, 7-5. Top seed Tommy Robredo defeated
Ramon Delgado in straight sets 6-2, 7-6 (1).
The Ancic-Koubek duel was definitely the match of the tournament. There were plenty of thrills and the crowd loved every bit of the action. They were rooting for Koubek, but by the third set, they switched to Ancic hoping for the Croat to mount a miraculous recovery. Ancic was not so dominant on his serve managing
only five aces. He did hit plenty of forehand winners but his net play at
crucial times let him down. When he was in trouble he attacked, but his volleying deserted him. Koubek who is ranked 118 in the world is fleet-footed and ran down almost every shot Ancic threw at him. The left-hander troubled Ancic no end with his kicking serves. Koubek also cleverly employed the lob that had the 6-ft-5 inch Ancic foxed.

Ancic got off to a fast start and wrapped up the first set with a break in the fourth. The Austrian hit back in the second hitting wonderful passing shots from the baseline. He sealed the set with breaks in the sixth and 10th games.
As Ancic grew wearier, Koubek got stronger. He continued to hit amazing winners past a bemused Ancic. He broke Ancic and had two match points in the seventh which Ancic saved. The Austrian duly served out the match hitting a lovely forehand volley for match point and winning it when Ancic's backhand slice sailed long.

Ancic bites the dust

BikashMohapatra Friday, September 29,
2006 23:34 IST,
DNA: Daily News and Analysis

Stefan Koubek scores the upset of the tournament even as the other seeds progress to the last four

MUMBAI: Three of the top four seeds at the $380,000 Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open met the expectations of the organisers by making it to the last four stage on Friday even as the fourth bit the dust. Stefan Koubek came up with the upset of
the tournament so far by putting it across Mario Ancic, the second seed. The 29-year-old Austrian scored a come-from-behind 3-6 6-4 6-3 win over the Croat to book his second semifinal berth of the year. Koubek, a former top-20 player now ranked 118 on the list, had made it to the final at Zagreb earlier this year, losing to another Croat, Ivan Ljubicic. Here, however, he was the first player in the whole week to trouble Ancic while the Croat failed to put his act together.
On Saturday, the Austrian will be up against against the third-seeded Czech, Tomas Berdych. Meanwhile, top seed Tommy Robredo of Spain, who beat Ramon Delgado of Paraguay 6-2 7-6 (1), will play Dmitry Tursunov, the fourth seed from Russia, in the other semifinal.

Berdych survived a few anxious moments before outlasting German Bjorn Phau 6-3
7-5 in the opening quarterfinal clash.

Meanwhile, the second semifinal offers a more exciting prospect. Tursunov has this week cultivated the habit of making things difficult for his own self and in the process has ended up making seemingly easy matches interesting. His clash against Briton James Auckland was no different. The Russian dropped the opening set before coming back to score a 3-6 6-3 6-4 win, hitting a terrific crosscourt forehand at match point to leave his opponent —- and the few who were present to support him — in a state of disbelief. But the 23-year-old Russian needn’t worry. For, his opponent, Spaniard Tommy Robredo, may be the highest seeded player in the
tournament, but is by no means a safe bet. In his match against Delgado, he did
something similar to what he had done against Berrer a day earlier.

Fortunately for Robredo his opponent wasn’t able to take advantage of his frailties. With a kind of game he has, it wouldn’t be wise to place money on theSpaniard winning unless he has actually won — or unless you are his hardcore fan.
The head-to-head also suggests the same. The Spaniard may have a 2-1edge over the Russian but is by no means a favourite going into the match. The
duo has split their two matches this year. And going by Tursunov’s philosophy —
“playing three sets is always better” — it is palpable what to expect from this match.

Yes! Tursunov will meet Robredo in the semis!

and Crowds' (should be read as Girls' ) favourite Super Mario is out!!!

Congrats Koubek but Oh Mario...!!! Better luck for tomorrow...

Ancic bites the dust

Bikash Mohapatra Friday, September 29, 2006 23:34 IST,

DNA: Daily News and Analysis

Stefan Koubek scores the upset of the tournament even as the other seeds progress to the last four

MUMBAI: Three of the top four seeds at the $380,000 Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open met the expectations of the organisers by making it to the last four stage on Friday even as the fourth bit the dust.
Stefan Koubek came up with the upset of the tournament so far by putting it across Mario Ancic, the second seed. The 29-year-old Austrian scored a come-from-behind 3-6 6-4 6-3 win over the Croat to book his second semifinal berth of the year.
Koubek, a former top-20 player now ranked 118 on the list, had made it to the final at Zagreb earlier this year, losing to another Croat, Ivan Ljubicic. Here, however, he was the first player in the whole week to trouble Ancic while the Croat failed to put his act together.

On Saturday, the Austrian will be up against against the third-seeded Czech, Tomas Berdych. Meanwhile, top seed Tommy Robredo of Spain, who beat Ramon Delgado of Paraguay 6-2 7-6 (1), will play Dmitry Tursunov, the fourth seed from Russia, in the other semifinal. Berdych survived a few anxious moments before outlasting German Bjorn Phau 6-3 7-5 in the opening quarterfinal clash.

Meanwhile, the second semifinal offers a more exciting prospect. Tursunov has this week cultivated the habit of making things difficult for his own self and in the process has ended up making seemingly easy matches interesting. His clash against Briton James Auckland was no different.

The Russian dropped the opening set before coming back to score a 3-6 6-3 6-4 win,
hitting a terrific crosscourt forehand at match point to leave his opponent —- and the few who were present to support him — in a state of disbelief.

But the 23-year-old Russian needn’t worry. For, his opponent, Spaniard Tommy Robredo, may be the highest seeded player in the tournament, but is by no means a safe bet. In his match against Delgado, he did something similar to what he had done against Berrer a day earlier.

Fortunately for Robredo his opponent wasn’t able to take advantage of
his frailties. With a kind of game he has, it wouldn’t be wise to place money on
the Spaniard winning unless he has actually won — or unless you are his hardcore fan.

The head-to-head also suggests the same. The Spaniard may have a
2-1 edge over the Russian but is by no means a favourite going into the match.
The duo has split their two matches this year. And going by Tursunov’s
philosophy — “playing three sets is always better” — it is palpable what to expect from this match

Hold on, tonight’s NOT the big nightWeather takes it’s toll as Paes vs Bhupathi clash pushed back to Saturday

Joseph Koraith (Mumbai Mirror)
For all the big names and big serves, this was
the match of the tournament. The doubles encounter between Leander Paes/ Aisam
Qureshi and Mahesh Bhupathi/ Mario Ancic was supposed to light up the
tournament, send sparks flying across centre-court. The Mumbai Open will have to
wait until Saturday for those sparks now.
Late last evening, the doubles
draw was thrown into chaos thanks to a double-withdrawal. First to opt out was
the the German pair of Denis Gremelmayr and Simon Greul, because of a hip injury
to Gremelmayr. Because of this pull-out the winner of the Paes-Bhupathi (only
for convenience) match got a direct entry into the final.
Later, Juan Martin
del Potro and his partner Juan Monaco also pulled out, Del Potro having been
forced to retire from his singles match with an upset stomach earlier.
These
injuries once again brought up the issue of too many matches played in too many
different conditions. From playing on indoor clay in a cold climate to suddenly
playing on hardcourt in a hot and humid country, the players are having a tough
time adjusting.
Del Potro, during his match against Ramon Delgado, seemed
sluggish to begin with, being stranded a lot times by Delgado’ down-the-line
shots.
Having taken a game off Del Porto, Delgado won the first set 6-3.
After the third game of the second set Del Porto was feeling uneasy and went off
court to the washroom where he ended up vomiting. He came back and played the
next game. But the uneasiness continued and in spite of being treated by the ATP
doctor, he retired after the next game with the score at 4-2. Delgado has not
played a complete match so far with his earlier match also being conceded by
Davide Sanguinetti who retired due to gastrointestinal problems.
The Indian
weather is definitely taking its victims and depriving the crowd of interesting
tennis encounters. Dmitry Tursunov agreed that the weather was playing truant.
“Your immune system does tend to give away in this kind of weather,” he said
but also stated that the weather was the same for all the players and everyone
has to adjust to it.

For original article: www.mumbaimirror.com/nmirror/mmpaper.asp?sectid=6&articleid=92820062258522039282006225712296

The Schedules for Todays Quarterfinals....So here it goes:

Centre Court timings in IST

Match Start At 5:00 PM

Bjorn PHAU (GER) VS Tomas BERDYCH (CZE)

2 followed byStefan KOUBEK (AUT) VS Mario ANCIC (CRO)

3 followed byTommy ROBREDO (ESP) VS Ramon DELGADO (PAR)


Court 1

Starting at 6:00 PM

Dmitry TURSUNOV (RUS) VS James AUCKLAND (GBR)

So Good Luck to all- Germans, Czechs, Austrians, Croats, Spanish, Paraguayans, Russians and Britons... and Indians!!!!

the October Heat has started off a few days earlier and still there is moisture in the air so It's getting way too humid here, slightly unusual (but 'unusual' things are becoming common over here now )
I logged on just to announce that THE BIG CLASH between Leander-Aisam and Mahesh-Mario is rescheduled on Saturday, the reason is same-Humidity.
The winner of this QF match will go directly to Final as their SF opponets pulled out due to heat factor....
Anyways, it's good for me as I have an Internal Test Tomorrow and then I can go for the match if I can...It's good that it's Saturday...Huge crowds can be expected

So THE MATCH is Tonight...Can't decide.
My Heart goes with Leander and Aisam and My Brain goes with Mahesh and Mario...
Good Luck to both of them and you too!

Picture from 'Mumbai Mirror'

Singles:
Tommy Robredo (Spain) def. Alexander Peya (Austria) 6-4, 6-2
Dmitry Tursunov(Russia) def. Akash Wagh (India) 6-2, 7-5

Times news Network

It wasnot quite smooth sailing for top seed Tommy Robredo.
The Spaniard won 6-4, 6-2 but his opponent Alexander Peya of Austria made
him work hard. Peya matched the Spaniard stroke for stroke in the first set.
Robredo, who does not have an overwhelming serve, relied on accurate
groundstrokes to wear his opponent down. Errors crept into the Austrian's game
as the match went on.

Wild card entrant 16-year-old Akash Wagh got a lesson in tennis on and off the courts on Wednesday from No.4 seed Dmitry Tursunov.
However, Wagh gave a good account of himself even in defeat. Tursunov beat Wagh 6-2, 7-5 to advance to the second round.

On Del Portro having to retire due to heat

"This man is one to watch for...Really, if he keeps himself fit, he CAN do magic. I watch him on TV and watch him play confidently...I know this is not the time to predict anything, But I really liked the way he played, he kept on reminding me of Roger in his ponytale days...He has talent and has a very long way to go."

Sadly, he couldn't go far...

On the Day of Draw, He celebrated his Birth-day...

Nobody noticed him much (fans, I mean, coz I liked his photo in the newspapers, especially that Huge Chocolate Cake...)

then He came accross

former world number 1 (Moya- the one Chennai looked upon and the one Mumbai was looking for)

Portro- The 18 year old from Argentina played fabulously...

And then...his journey in Mumbai ended in the Heat...


Not all fairy-tale can have good ending but this one has just started... he is definately a guy to watch.

Just see his stats:
scoreboards.aol.com/tennis/player/95344/player.aspx

For his ATP profilewww.atptennis.com/3/en/players/playerprofiles/?playernumber=D683

Time for Score-update Thursday, Sept 28
Singles

Tomas Berdych (CZE) def. Simon Greul (GER) 7-6, 6-4

Ramon Delgado (PAR) def. Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) 6-3, 4-1

(Juan Martin Del Potro retired)

Mario Ancic (CRO) def. Stefano Galvani (ITA) 6- 1, 6-7

Stefan Koubek (AUT) def. Nicolas Devilder (FRA) 7-5, 6-3

Bjorn Phau (GER) def. Gouichi Motomura (JPN) 6-3, 6-3

Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) def. Kristian Pless (DEN) 6-7, 6-3, 6-4

James Auckland (GBR) def. Wesley Moodie (RSA) 7-6, 7-6

Doubles

James Auckland / Jamie Delgado (GBR) def.Juan Martin Del Porto / Juan Monaco (ARG) (walkover)

QuoteRobredo and Ancic advance, but Mumbai's humidity troubles players

The Associated Press Published: September 28,
2006

MUMBAI, India Top-seeded Spaniard Tommy Robredo and second-seeded Mario
Ancic of Croatia moved into the Mumbai Open's quarterfinals Thursday, but the
extreme humidity bothered many of the players.
World No. 7 Robredo recovered
from a first-set loss to overcome the 115th-ranked Michael Berrer of Germany
5-7, 6-2, 6-4 in the second round, while Ancic spiked the challenge from Italian
Stefano Galvani 6-1, 7-6 (6).
"These humid conditions here aren't easy to
handle," said Robredo on a day when the humidity in this western Indian
metropolis was measured at 70 percent.
Ancic voiced the same opinion.
"I
felt in good shape, but the humidity is making things very tough," said world
No. 11 Ancic, who earlier this month returned to competitive tennis after a
two-month layoff due to a back injury.
"My back is holding up very well,"
said Ancic, who surged into the final of the China Open in his first outing
after the injury.
Joining them in the quarterfinals was third-seeded Tomas
Berdych of Czech Republic, who posted a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over Germany's
Simon Greul.
Struggling to play in the humid conditions, fourth-seeded
Russian Dmitry Tursunov rallied from a first-set loss to overcome Denmark's
Kristian Pless 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4, but Argentine teenager Juan Martin del Potro
gave up midway in the contest against Paraguay's Ramon Delgado.
Del Potro
retired in the second set, after vomiting on the sidelines of the court, as
Delgado led 6-3, 4-1.
"Luckily we're not playing under the sun," said
Tursunov. "It would have been worse if one had to tackle the sun as well as the
humidity."
World-ranked 22nd Tursunov dropped the first, losing the
tiebreaker after dropping service in the third game and breaking back in the
eighth.
"I took it for granted that I'll win the first set, but it wasn't
easy after Kristian secured a break in the third game," said Tursunov, who did
not drop service again in the next two sets which he won by forcing one break
each. Pless failed to keep up the pressure as Tursunov broke his service in the
fourth game of the second set and the fifth of the deciding third
set.
British qualifier James Auckland continued his good form, defeating
eighth-seeded South African Wesley Moodie 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5) in a contest where
tiebreakers decided both sets after all games went with service.
Also making
the quarterfinals were sixth-seeded German Bjorn Phau, a 6-3, 6-3 winner against
Japanese Gouichi Motomura, and Austrian Stefan Koubek, who downed Frenchman
Nicolas Devilder 7-5, 6-3.

And the Boy he beat...

Akash Wagh the 16 year old from Pune stunned Tursunov a bit. Akash, a mild surprise for Tursunov

(SHIVANI NAIK MUMBAI, SEPTEMBER 27 for Indian Express) GAURAV Sir knew a postmortem could wait until later on Wednesday.

"We'll talk tomorrow," Natekar told his ward when young AkashWagh sought him out after a creditable 2-6, 5-7 defeat to Dmitry Tursunov, a top 25 Russian who had a few days ago broken Andy Roddick's resolve and several American hearts.

Wagh, still leagues away from top-grade Davis Cup tennis - in fact playing his first ever seniors match at the Kingfisher Open Mumbai ATP - was quick to describe his hour-long tennis tete-a-tete with the bigger Russian. "I should've been well-positioned for my forehands ...should've held serve at 5-5 in the second set, I shouldn't have made so many mistakes."

A surprise choice for the third wildcard at Mumbai, informed observers believed it would be mayhem when Wagh met Tursunov. Silencing all speculation, the 16year-old trainee of the Mahesh Bhupathi Academy, picked his first point in a men's competition with an ace, and held serve for the first time in the third game of the first set after he was broken in the opener. Two more aces for a game, before Tursunov wrapped up the set 6-2. They traded breaks in the next, Wagh attacking Tursunov's inert backhand, Tursunov serving his way out of trouble, when the Indian held two break-points.

An inconsistent forehand meant the youngster couldn't quite capitalise, but Wagh jaunted along with a steady serve, picking 7 aces in the match, as against the Russian's six, to stay level at 5-5. Tursunov, troubled a wee bit by the humidity and a change in surface from clay to hard court, managed to break thereafter, and went on to win the match comfortably, but not before commending Wagh on a serve, which the Russian believes can be developed into a weapon.

"He can hit a lot of good shots, but is fairly inconsistent right now," he said.Mentor Mahesh Bhupathi was satisfied. "He (Wagh) obviously an exciting talent. But most importantly, it was his lack of fear that was a standout. I wouldn't have been disappointed if he had lost 0-6, 1-6; I just wanted to give him the feel of the pressure that he will be up against two years from now. But looks like it won't take him two years," he claimed.

Dmitry Tursunov... The Russian who beat Andy Roddic in a 5-setterDavis Cup tie aganist US...spoke to Shivani Naik of 'Indian Express' (September 28 )

Tursunov's Top Ten...

Dmitry Tursunov is quite amused
about the funny-man tag that dilutes his formidable reputation as a hard-hitter.
"People don't take me seriously because I joke around a lot. I guess
that's the price you pay for being funny," he says with an exaggerated
shrug.

So, seriously speaking, how does the World No 22 plan to get into the Top 10 and win Grand Slams?"I think I should make fun of people on court," says the Russian, whose blog, specializing in self-deprecating humour and contempt for clay - is a rage in cyberspace.

Here's Tursunov's Top lO in a rapid-fire chat:

Your dream surface to play tennis on .... not clay, carpet, grass .. ,

Ans: Ice

How'd you best describe clay-courts?

Yakky!

Whats the toughest bit about recovering from a bad back?
Running up the hill. It's the hardest to get your back in shape; you only keep
hoping whatever you are doing is working.

One way you'd like to emulate your screen idol Jackie Chan.

Jump from the rooftop and not break anything.

What inspired the Estoril blogs that made you a full-time Tour writer?

I was asked to write, and it was a good windowforthe fans to look into a tennis players' life.

The strangest player you've played.

Fabrice Santoro: you don't know what the hell he's doing. He is gifted, but has a weird technique, and is just so ugly to watch.

Playing 15-16 year-olds ....

This Indian-one (Wagh) was harderto beatthatthe previous guy. I fear what will happen of me playing the third one.

What's tougher - writing blogs! stretching for a backhand?

Writing's tough because sometimes you can't stop thinking about what all you can write, but in tennis there s no fear of getting fired, so tennis is easier.

The best compliment after you won the Davis Cup tie for Russia beating Roddick in a marathon five-setter ....

I do'n't remeinber-the two hours after the match. People just came and talked. The former President (Boris Yeltsin) was there, and he came down and said' Good match.' Atthe end of five hours, he was so excited, it was hard to tell if he had been playing, or I was. Moreover, the whole stadium said 'Thank You.' It's nice when people enjoy my tennis too. I know they like my writing for sure.

What's the worst excuse you've given for a loss?

It's not my fault. It's the coach's fault.

waw! Paes-Qureshi won!
waw! WAW! It's gonna be Paes against Bhupathi!! Can't wait till Friday....



Results

Doubles

Leander Paes (India) and Aisam Qureshi (Pakistan)
defeated
Ramon Delgado (Paraguay) and Konstantinos Economidis (Greece) 6-4, 6-4

Paes-Qureshi win the first round match to set up a clash with Bhupathi-Ancic.

MUMBAI: The stands never looked so full. The noise was never so deafening. After
two days of relative calm, Wednesday night saw signs of a storm. One, which in a
day’s time could well prove to be the defining moment of the ongoing Kingfisher
Airlines Tennis Open.
No, the action on court wasn’t of top quality. But
when Leander Paes is wielding the racquet, there can never be a dull moment. The
doubles ace, with new partner Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi of Pakistan, steamrollered
past the Paraguay-Greece pairing of Ramon Delgado and Konstantinos Economidis
6-4 6-4 in an opening round clash to set up a mouth-watering second round duel
with Mahesh Bhupathi and Mario Ancic of Croatia.
With Paes’ regular partner
Martin Damm of Czech Republic giving this event a miss — owing to other
commitments back home — the Indian turned to “good friend” Qureshi to save him.
The handsome Pakistani jumped at the offer.
It was never going to be easy.
Both being serve-and-volley players, the coordination never looked perfect. Many
a time, both were seen stranded at the net, while the ball whizzed past. Only,
their opponents were too inexperienced to take advantage of that.
The first
set went on serve, till the Indo-Pak combine broke through in the fifth. They
managed to keep their serve to romp home 6-4 in just 22 minutes. The second set
went along a similar script. Only, this time the break came in the seventh game,
and Paes’ ace in the 10th sealed their opponents’ fate.
The result, in fact,
was a foregone conclusion. The opening hurdle of any event, though tricky, is
normally easy, particularly when one considers a seasoned campaigner like Paes.
The difficult task begins now. More than the double-faults and unforced errors,
they have to get the combination’s balance going right. Though Qureshi’s serve
played a big role in the win, Paes should be a little concerned about his
returns. But in the end, it’s the win that matters, and that came easy.
Paes
admitted as much after the match. “I think we played well considering that we
are pairing up for the first time. Qureshi served extremely well and mine too
wasn’t that bad. We covered the net well. Our game is more instinctive than
strategic. Yes, our returns could have been better. But we’ll improve with every
match,” he said.
He realises the next hurdle will be a tough one. “Yeah,
they (Mahesh and Ancic) are top players. We know what to expect. I consider
ourselves the underdogs,” he added.
Qureshi was modest. “I am playing with
the master. I know even if I make a mistake, he’s there to take care of it. I am
really happy with my serve today,” he said.
Did he learn anything from Paes’
game? “I won’t disclose that,” he laughed. “You’ll see on Friday what I
learnt.”
Courtesy: DNA (Daily News and Analysis)

Singles:
Tommy Robredo (Spain) def. Alexander Peya (Austria) 6-4, 6-2
Dmitry Tursunov(Russia) def. Akash Wagh (India) 6-2, 7-5

Times news Network
It wasnot quite smooth sailing for top seed Tommy
Robredo.
The Spaniard won 6-4, 6-2 but his opponent Alexander Peya of
Austria made him work hard. Peya matched the Spaniard stroke for stroke in the
first set.
Robredo, who does not have an overwhelming serve, relied on
accurate groundstrokes to wear his opponent down. Errors crept into the
Austrian's game as the match went on.

Wild card entrant 16-year-old Akash
Wagh got a lesson in tennis on and off the courts on Wednesday from No.4 seed
Dmitry Tursunov. However, Wagh gave a good account of himself even in defeat.
Tursunov beat Wagh 6-2, 7-5 to advance to the second
round.

Paes On Bhupathi:
These Two from India are such a fascinating pair... It's sad that they had to part but they have respect to each other and the news is that They will be pairing up agin in Doha. Paes sopke on his long-time mate and told that he is here in Mumbai for his respect to Bhupathi and his love for the City and for the Country.


Difficult to partner Bhupathi: Paes

PTI
MUMBAI, Sept 26: Indian tennis ace Leander Paes on Tuesday said he might go into the Doha Asian Games without playing tune up events with Mahesh Bhupathi because of his ATP Tour commitments.
Paes said he had considered pairing up with his former triple Grand Slam-winning partner at the $380,000 Kingfisher Airlines Open but Bhupathi had already struck a successful partnership with Croatian Mario Ancic.
"I am going to partner Martin Damm (Czech Republic) in the winter and we are to play three indoor tournaments in Europe in the run-up to the World Doubles championships in Shanghai which we are focusing on winning," the 33-year-old said.
"Actually I thought of partnering Mahesh here in view of the Doha Asian Games but he had already partnered with Mario (Ancic) who are the favourites here and that option was ruled out.
"I looked at the draw here and found Aisam (Qureshi of Pakistan) who I admire for the way he plays, conducts himself responsibly on court and I decided to ask him," said Paes.

"I don't have the luxury of taking a different partner for three or four weeks with the Shanghai tournament coming up. I am working very hard for Shanghai," he said. He said he was taking part in the Mumbai tournament mainly to offer support for Bhupathi whose event management company Globosport is organizing the event here.
"I have come here mainly to support Mahesh's venture. He is conducting WTA event and now an ATP event. The second reason is I am happy to play any tournament in India," he said.
Looking forward to the Asian Games, Paes said that since the field there in doubles would in no way be comparable to the ones on the ATP circuit, he and Bhupathi should win the title. "In Asian Games we are the favourites. If we end up not doing well it will be disappointing. I am playing at my best and we have played together for eight years. The only thing we need to be cautious about would be complacency," said Paes and insisted he would concentrate on men's doubles and mixed doubles (with Sania Mirza) at Doha.
Talking about the year so far, Paes said it has been a fantastic year with Damm
and he could not have asked for a better doubles partner. "No one on the tour expected us to reach a Grand Slam final let alone win one," said Paes who, partnering Damm, won the US Open title earlier this month.

Here are some pictures from the Opening Ceremony......

Dr. Vijay Mallya of
KFA (Kingfisher Airlines)
with Mahesh Bhupathi
on their way to the
Opening
Ceremony..




Tournament
director
Gaurav
Natekar,
Mahesh Bhupathi
and others...


Dr. Vijay Mallya of Bullon-Stunt-fame
Shines here too! He teamed up with Bhupathi to play some shots..
Funny to see him Serve...

This is something I found Really Funny...

Deepak Narayanan of "Mumbai Mirror" on Mario Ancic.
"His other big
achievement is, of course, being the last man to beat Roger Federer at Wimbledon
- a statistic that he looks likely to take to his grave given Federer's form on
grass since 2002."

And Something I didn't like much....

Carlos Moya in Mumbai for Kingfisher ATP Mumbai Open:
"Things were different
in the 90s. There were quite a few great players like (Pete) Sampras, (Boris)
Becker, (Andre) Agassi, (Patrick) Rafter with virtually the same kind of skills.
They were all in the same league. But today; there's a big gap between the top
two-three players and the rest. See (Roger) Federer and (Rafael) Nadal. There is
hardly anyone who can come close to them," he says. But for him, Sampras was
and' always will remain the best. "He was a class apart. Federer and Nadal are
good, but not in his league," Moya says. And he does feel that Federer is n not
unbeatable. "Nadal has beaten (him twice this year. Murray beat n him recently.
He's after all human.He has his weaknesses," he says. -(from ' DNA' (Daily News
and Analysis), Mumbai, Tuesday, Sep.26, 2006)
Moya, once a mentor of Rafael
Nadal, feels Nadal has it in him to win Wimbledon?"He got to the fmal but he was
unfortunate to face Federer. But, give him two years. Time will change and
Federer will stop winning." -(from The Times Of India,Mumbai Tuesday, Sep.26,
2006)

I wish he will have to wait for ages for that to happen....
and by the way, today Moya lost to Argentine Juan Martin Del Porto 3-6, 2-6 in the singles first round in Mumbai...

On Del Portro's victory...

On Del Portro's victory:

This man is one to watch for...

Really, if he keeps himself fit, he CAN do magic. I watch him on TV and watch him play confidently...

I know this is not the time to predict anything, But I really liked the way he played, he kept on reminding me of Roger in his ponytale days...

He has talent and has a very long way to go.

my little tribute to his victory

On the Day of Draw, He celebrated his Birth-day...

Nobody noticed him much (fans, I mean, coz I liked his photo in the newspapers, especially that Huge Chocolate Cake...)

then He came accross former world number 1 (Moya- the one Chennai looked upon and the one Mumbai was looking for)

Portro- The 18 year old from Argentina played fabulously...

And then... got a birthday gift...

For his ATP profile
www.atptennis.com/3/en/players/playerprofiles/?playernumber=D683

On other results:

by IANS

It was bad news for another India pair, Karan Rastogi and Sanam Singh, who lost
their first round doubles match to Rik De Voest of South Africa and Igor Kunitsyn of Russia 3-6, 3-6.

Wild card holder Rohan Bopanna lost to Wesley Moodie of South Africa 6-3, 6-7, 4-6 in singles first round.

Bopanna started the game well and he matched the South African by every
shot and won the first set. But luck was not in the Indian's favour as he lost
the second set in a tiebreaker and eventually went on to lose the third set as
well.

Kristian Pless of Denmark defeated German Dennis Gremelmayr 7-5,
7-5. Gremelmayr's compatriot Simon Greul defeated Yen Hsuntu of Chinese Taipei
7-6, 6-3.

Ramon Delgado of Paraguay had an easy win over Italian Davide Sanguinette of 6-3, 2-1. The Italian retired after hurting himself in the second
set.

The " Super-Mario" Showed It....

Just days after coming to the City, Mario Ancic showed why he is among top players.

On the opening day of the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open at the CCI on Monday the Croat beat Russia's Igor Kunitsyn 6-3, 6-2 in the first round.

It was sweet revenge for him as he had lost to Kunitsyn in an ATP Challenger in Seoul in 2002. On whether he was playing at his best, Ancic said: "Every match is of huge importance.

Hopefully I will get better and better. I served very well and did not give him time to return."

As Indiatimes says, "The No.2 seed and world No.11 had plenty in his armoury to
dispatch his hapless Russian opponent. His serves thudded into hoardings.
Kunitsyn had his hands full trying to guess which corner Ancic would serve to.
It was not only the serve, his forehands were also on song. His volleying was
slightly wayward as he muffed up a few sitters."

and The Baby-faced croat also showed that he is famous among Girls... I am not biased, I am just his fan...GO MARIO...

There was disappointment for India as Karan Rastogi went down tamely to Germany's Bjorn Phau 0-6, 3-6.

Source: Indiatimes"Germany's Phau was fast off the blocks in his match against
Rastogi. His backhand was poetry in motion. He belted down winners with ease. He
was equally at ease going crosscourt or down the line with his favourite shot.
One backhand especially was breathtaking as he somehow managed to hit a winner
from a tight angle. However, it was the depth of the German's shots which had
Rastogi on the backfoot. He was unable to deal with the pace and accuracy of the
German's groundstrokes. "

And the Day's Biggest upset... Top Seeds Stunned!!!Rohan Bopanna and Mustafa Ghouse ousted top seeds Alexander Peya and Bjorn Phau 6-3, 6-4 in a doubles first round match. Celebrations please...

from Indiatimes: The Indians combined well to roll to a facile victory. While
the Indians attacked relentlessly their opponents stayed rooted to the baseline.
"It was quite funny because we knew we were playing together just half an hour
before the draw," said Ghouse.

bThe Day one Report:

The weather was what every fan, player or organizer would wish to be like- fresh and cool.

However the day was a bit disappointment for organizers as there were not big crowds who turned up. may be this is because of the Festival of Navratri going on.

Results:

Singles:

(2)M Ancic (CRO) def I Kunitsyn (RUS) 6- 3, 6-2

(6)B Phau (GER)def (WC)K Rastogi (IND) 6-0, 6-3

M Berrer (GER)def K Economidis (GRE) 6- 2, 7-6(3)

(Q) J Auckland (GBR) def (Q)F Moser (GER) 6-1, 6-4

(Q) G Motomura (JPN) def (Q)J Smit (NED) 3-6, 6-0, 7-6(5)

S Galvani (ITA) def R Vik (CZE) 5-7, 6-4, 6-4

Doubles:

Bopanna/Ghouse def (1) Peya/Phau 6-3, 6-4,

Del Potro/Monaco def Koubek/Moser 6-3, 6-4

Gremelmayr/Greul def Lu/Pless 6-4, 1-6 (10-8 Match TB)

OK!

The matches will start from tomorrow and before they start, let me share some clippings with you all.....

here they go

The Logo of Mumbai Open...

One of the courts at CCI (Cricket club of India) 

Bollywood Actress Soha Ali Khan, Mahesh Bhupathi of Globosports, Dr. Vijay Mallya and Mario Ancic..   

Bhupathi looks forward to doubles clash

(This was written before the final draws were announced.)

PTI

MUMBAI, Sept 19:

............The country's two top players, who were nicknamed the 'Indian Express' when they were at the peak in combination on the ATP doubles circuit, are currently playing with different partners and may end up on opposite sides of the net in the tennis tournament here.

Paes and his Czech partner Martin Damm are the reigning US Open Champions following their triumphant run in this year's last Grand Slam event in New York while 32-year-old Bhupathi partnered young Croatian Mario Ancic for the first time at Beijing last week and won the China Open doubles crown.

"We (Bhupathi and Ancic) may not be seeded and I am hoping that the two teams (Bhupathi-Ancic and Paes-Damm) would meet in the final," said Bhupathi at a press conference held to announce a new associate sponsor - Aviva Life Insurance - for the Mumbai ATP event here on Tuesday. Bhupathi refused to draw a comparison between his new 22-year-old partner Ancic and Paes, saying he and the Croat have joined hands only recently.

"It's tough to compare (Ancic with Paes). We have just come
together (as doubles partners). He (Ancic) is a great player, a top ten player
in singles (Ancic is currently ranked 11th)," Bhupathi said.
The Indian star also recalled the bronze medal play-off loss in combination with Paes against Ancic and his compatriot Ivan Ljubicic in the Athens Olympic Games two years ago.
"We had lost to Ancic and Ljubicic in the Olympics bronze medal play-off," said the Indian player who has ten Grand Slam men's doubles and mixed doubles titles under his belt.
Looking forward to the tournament, which is being promoted by his celebrity Management firm Globosport, Bhupathi hoped that the rains which have been lashing the city over the last week, stayed away.
"Rains willing, hopefully, we will get to see some tennis," he said.

Some 'Antic' Talk

PTI

MUMBAI, Sept 21: Mario Ancic feels that his decision to play in men's doubles events has benefited him by improving his game as well as helping him in his recovery process from a recent knee injury.
The 22-year-old Ancic, one of the big draws in next week's $3,80,000 Kingfisher Airlines ATP Tennis Open, had combined forces with Indian doubles ace Mahesh Bhupathi for the very first time in his career to lift the China Open in Beijing last week.
"Last week I played with Mahesh. We played really well. I did not play for seven weeks earlier because of my knee ligament injury. Playing doubles has helped me in the recovery process and has also improved my volleying," Ancic said.
"I have planned to play 10-15 doubles events next year, hopefully some of them with Mahesh as partner," said the Croat who became the youngest to win a match on Wimbledon's famed centre court after Swedish great Bjorn Borg.
Saying Bhupathi had influenced him to enter for the tournament in Mumbai organised by the former's marketing company Globosport, Ancic said the courts at the CCI were similar in nature to those he played on in Beijing recently and lost in the singles final in straight sets to Cypriot Marcos Baghtatis.
"The courts are more or less similar, but it's a lot more hot here than in Beijing. But I come from a warm place (Split)," he said. Ancic, who partnered compatriot Ivan Ljubicic to the bronze medal in the Athens Olympics two years ago at the cost of the Grand Slam-winning Indian pair of Bhupathi and Leander Paes, sounded very pleased over that performance and in helping his country Croatia to win the Davis Cup.
"I am proud of these two achievements. Not many players in the world can boast of similar feats," he said. Ancic, nicknamed 'Baby Goran' for his resemblance to the former Wimbledon champion Groan Ivanisevic, insisted that though he idolised his countryman, like the other current players of Croatia, but insisted his game was different.
"He (Ivanisevic) has been a big influence on me. I do talk to him and he advises me. We come from the country and place (Split). We all idolise him, but our games are different," Ancic said.
Ancic felt that the US Open champion duo of Paes and Martin Damm were the favourites for the doubles title in Mumbai and added he knew how good Mahesh was in doubles play after partnering him to the China Open crown.
"Paes and Damm are the favouries. Whether we meet them in the final here would depend on the draw. But I realised how great was Mahesh as a doubles player in Beijing," the 6-foot, 5-inch reed-thin Ancic said.
The Indo-Croat doubles partnership will split after the Mumbai tournament as Ancic would renew his combination with Belgian Olivier Rochus, who was his partner at the beginning of the year, he said.

The Mumbai Boy Speaks:

PTI

MUMBAI, Sept 21: India No 3 Karan Rastogi is geared up to take part as a wild card entrant in next week's $3,80,000 Kingfisher Airlines ATP Tennis Open and is thrilled to be rubbing shoulders with several big names in the tennis world during the event.
"I am excited to be playing the ATP event in my home town after having played in the ABN Amro qualifiers in Rotterdam and the Chennai Open. This tournament has an impressive and strong field. Perhaps, it is the strongest in India recently," the 19-year-old told reporters at the Cricket Club of India on Thursday.
"The wild card into the main draw (that he has received from the organisers) is motivational and I am looking forward to playing in the tournament," he said. Rastogi said he had improved as a player and become stronger too by putting on some weight.
"I have improved quite a bit, got a bit stronger and put on some weight. My serve has got better and I am looking forward to a great week here. I am happy with the way I am playing".
Indian Davis Cup coach and former national champion Nandan Bal also saw a lot of improvement in Rastogi's game and predicted that the Mumbai youngster is a future India No 1.
"It will be a great experience to play with the top boys in the game. Karan has put on more muscle on his body and can match these guys (physically). He has strong legs too. He needs to develop only match maturity. He's going to be our number one in future," Bal said. Bal said all he could teach Rastogi at this stage before the tournament was tactics and not technique.
"He's much better than what his world ranking (361) suggests. He has to string together four or five wins on-the-trot to improve it. All I can do with his game is make tactical correction and not technical correction.
"I am also looking forward to see other Indian players' performance in this tournament," he added. Rastogi, who has done training stints at the famous Nick Bollettieri Academy in the USA, said that the tournament would help him gain experience which would stand him in good stead to improve as a player.
"I am trying to break into the top 300. I know I can do better. Hopefully this experience will help me. I like hard courts, medium fast, like the ones here," the Mumbai player said.

Someone from Pune

MUMBAI, Sept 23:

Pune colt Akash Wagh was given a dream start to his fledgling career when he became the third wild card recipient for the $3,80,000 Kingfisher Airlines men's Tennis Open that is to commence at the cricket club of India on September 25.
Wagh, a trainee at Mahesh Bhupathi's tennis academy in Bangalore, has got the nod ahead of Indiano. 2 Harsh Mankad, Davis Cup player Prakash Amritraj, both of whom had expressed their inability to take part in the event due to different reasons, and better known youngsters like Vivek Shokeen, Sanam Singh and Jeevan Nedunchezhian.
Sanam and Jeevan had to go through the qualifying stage in which, by luck of the draw, they met each other in the very first round in which the former prevailed in three sets (3-6, 6-4, 4-1 (retired) to enter the second qualifying round.
Shokeen is not playing in the qualifiers even.
Tournament director Gaurav Natekar, who is also employed by tournament organisers globosport, was hard pressed to justify the granting of the third wild card, after having handed over the first two to India's no. 1 and no. 3 players Rohan Bopanna and Karan Rastogi, at the players' draw On Saturday. Mankad told us he cannot take part in the tournament due to personal reasons while Prakash has injured his wrist.
Akash is a very exciting talent. He's 16 and has already won the under-18 singles title at the Nationals held in Chennai. Very few have done so.
We thought he's well suited to get a wild card because of his young age and talent ahead of others who may be better but are also older, Natekar said.
Natekar also drew a parallel with Leander Paes, Ramesh Krishnan and Vijay Amritraj and said Wagh could go places like the others and that the tournament has given a huge opportunity for him to take advantage of with both hands.
Wagh is from Pune, Maharashtra and this tournament is happening in his backyard. He needs to take advantage of this opportunity, the former tennis player and contemporary of Paes said.

Here goes the link for the Singles Draw:

www.msnspecials.in/kingfisheropen06/smdraw.asp

And for Doubles Draw

www.msnspecials.in/kingfisheropen06/dmdraw.asp
Here in India, they are showing the matches live on STAR SPORTS. They will broadcast it in more than 100 countries.

Sad news to start with...

Five International players have pulled out of the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open.

Radek Stepanek (Czech Republic) ranked 10 in the world has got a back injury and won't play. Nicolas Kiefer (Germany), Fernando Gonzalez (Chilie),Fabrice Santoro (France) have pulled also out (may be for injuries)
Something strange : Greg Rusedski(Great Britain) have also pulled out, he was representing Britain against Uzbekistan in the Davis Cup and withdrew late. ATP supervisor Ed Hardisty "Rusedski faces a fine for his late pull-out".

Indian Wild- Card Entrants Rohan Bopanna and Karan Rastogi will face 'tricky' first round opponents- No. 8 Wesley Moodi (South Africa) and Rastogi meets No.4 Bjorn Phau (Germany).

ATP Mumbai Open-
the tournament I was waiting for will soon begin.People- who talk of making Mumbai like Shanghai- here is a good news for you....In 2006, The Cricket Club of India in Mumbai will stage the ATP tournament. It was held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam last year, and prior to that, in Shanghai, between 1996 to 2004. Jonas Bjorkman defeated Radek Stepanek 6-3, 7-6(4) to win the inaugural 2005 Vietnam Open.

So here is the ATP Evet Profile:

Place: Mumbai, India

Date: Sept. 25 - Oct. 1, 2006

Draw Size: 32

Surface: Indoor Hard

Prize Money: US$380,000 Tournament Director: Amit Naor Ticket Hotline:

TBA http://www.msnspecials.in/kingfisheropen06/index.asp


Round Points Prizemoney
W 175 $52,000
F 120 $30,600
SF 75 $18,000
QF 40 $10,600
R16 15 $6,225
R32 5 $3,650

Official Links....

Official Hotline:
www.msnspecials.in/kingfisheropen06/index.asp

ATP Tournament Profile Link
www.atptennis.com/en/tournaments/profile/890.asp

For Contest:
http://www.kfaopen.indiatimes.com/

Orgenizers:
http://www.globosportworld.com/

Unofficial Link :) -my blog ofcourse!

It's here....

We are a country obsessed with Cricket.
Mumbai is known for love for sports and Cricket is like a religion-an invincible part of life....
Still we also love other sports too.

A few months ago the Breborn Stadium owned by CCI (Cricket Club of India) played host for the DC tie on Grass between INDIA and PAKISTAN which was a big hit and which of course India won...
After the match, Leander Paes who lived in the City and Mahesh Bhupati who owns Sports management Company "Globosoprts" and All India Tennis Association promissed to bring more Tennis to the City of Mumbai- The City which surprised people with their love and increased interest for the game.

Then ATP too helped by shifting a tornament from Vietnam.(People of Ho Chi Minh, I'm sorry for them)

So Mumbai Open, is an ATP event, first of its kind in Mumbai... Some of the Top players like Mario Ancic(yes, Ancic the last man to beat Roger on Grass- ages ago), Tommy Roberdo and Carlos Moya are here in the City that's why we all are so excited, despite it being a festive season of 'Navratri'... (Imagine what will happen if Roger comes here.... )

and to add to this excitement, Leander Paes (India's Davis Cup Man) and Aisam Qureshi (Pakistan's Davis Cup Team) are playing together in doubles....
The will most probably meet Mahesh Bhupati and Mario Ancic (the pair that won in Beijing last week)in Second Round of Doubles.
Paes and Bhupati were once on top but because of some differences of opinion they parted and now they play together only when playing for India. (in DC, CWG, Olympics, etc.) They are known for their commitment to their game and to the Country and are biggest Tennis Icons- bigger than even Sania Mirza.

Besides, there are other Indian players like Rohan Boppanna, Pune Boy -wild card entrant Akash Wagh, Mumbai-Boy Karan Rastogi who are playing

We have had great players like Ramanathan Krishnan, Vijay Amrutraj. Most opt for Cricket and now a days Racing (Thanks to F1 and Karthikeyan) and Shooting, after Rathore won a Silver at Athens. This is slight deviation but even Sania once said "If I was a boy I may have played Cricket only"
This tournament is therfore looked upon as a boost for Local Tennis I others to support us... So please keep on sneaking in to the Thread and sharing your thoughts too and Write me in when you get time