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Tennis star Pat Cash used to promote Harlequin Resorts
Resort derelict, looks nothing like promotions
Harlequin boss claims to be duped by contractors

AUSTRALIAN tennis legend Pat Cash is being used to promote a failed Caribbean investment that looks more like a storm-ravaged disaster zone than a luxury resort.

Around 3,000 Brits invested pension money into luxury hotels marketed by Harlequin Property and dotted around the Dominican Republic, Barbados, St Lucia and Brazil, according to The Daily Mail.

However of the 6,000 villas promised, only 300 have been built, with the proposed Merricks Resort in Barbados looking more like the aftermath of a cyclone than a tropical paradise. Pat Cash is one of a number of sports people associated with Harlequin Hotels and Resorts. He had signed an agreement to build a branch of his Tennis Academy at the resort for holiday makers to practice their serve.

Liverpool Football Club and golfer Gary Player are involved in similar projects at the resort.

However after noticing a spike in pension money pouring into the off-shore investment, the UK Financial Services Authority issued a warning against the company. The Serious Fraud Office has also been asked to investigate, according to The Daily Mail.

A spokesman for the former Wimbledon champ told news-com.au "The negative comments regarding the Harlequin portfolio of resorts in the Caribbean is disappointing and it is clear that the expectations of several purchasers have not been met."

However he added that the Buccament Bay Resort in St Vincent - which has a four and a half star rating on Trip Advisor - is more demonstrative of Harlequin's vision, and the Tennis Academy is operating well at this location.

Harlequin boss David Ames has denied misleading investors and claims to have been duped by contractors.



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Second seed Nadal completed the 6-2 6-2 victory in his first appearance at the tournament in Mexico since he claimed the title in 2005.

That year he went on to become the first man since Mats Wilander to win the French Open at the first attempt.

Fast forward eight years - and an era of utter domination on clay courts - and Nadal is seeking to rediscover his world -beating form after a seven-month lay-off with a knee injury which has seen him slip to fifth in the world.

The Spaniard said before the match against Schwartzman that he is still not 100 per cent happy with the condition of his knee, but he nevertheless eased past the Argentine qualifier with a minimum of fuss.

The 26-year-old is gunning for a second title from the three clay-court events he has played over the past four weeks. He reached the final in Vina del Mar in the first leg of his Latin American tour before winning the Brazil Open title in Sao Paulo.

Earlier, top seed David Ferrer - the man who has supplanted Nadal as Spain's number one men's player - wasted no time in seeing off the challenge of Antonio Veic, the world number four completing a straightforward 6-0 6-3 win.

Ferrer, fresh from retaining his Buenos Aires Open title at the weekend, is defending his crown on the red dirt in Mexico.

Meanwhile, another Spaniard Nicolas Almagro chalked up his 300th career win with a 6-0 6-1 dismissal of Mexican wild card Cesar Ramirez.

"I'm happy for the number and I hope there will be many more [wins] to come," third seed Almagro said. "I want to enjoy the moment a little but I need to keep working hard."

The world number 12 is the 20th active player to reach the milestone. Roger Federer has 886 wins to his name.


Acapulco International results

Round 1

Aljaz Bedene (Slovenia) beat David Nalbandian (Argentina) 4-6 6-0 6-4

2-Rafa Nadal (Spain) beat Diego Schwartzman (Argentina) 6-2 6-2

Andrey Kuznetsov (Russia) beat 6-Thomaz Bellucci (Brazil) 4-6 6-4 6-4

8-Horacio Zeballos (Argentina) beat Simone Bolelli (Italy) 7-5 6-1

Fabio Fognini (Italy) beat 4-Stanislas Wawrinka (Switzerland) 6-2 7-6(3)

1-David Ferrer (Spain) beat Antonio Veic (Croatia) 6-0 6-3

Paolo Lorenzi (Italy) beat 7-Benoit Paire (France) 4-6 6-3 6-4

Tommy Robredo (Spain) beat Filippo Volandri (Italy) 6-2 2-6 6-4

Wayne Odesnik (U.S.) beat Lukasz Kubot (Poland) 6-3 6-4

Daniel Gimeno-Traver (Spain) beat Carlos Berlocq (Argentina) 6-3 6-3

3-Nicolas Almagro (Spain) beat Cesar Ramirez (Mexico) 6-0 6-1




Tennis - Nadal, Ferrer ease through in Acapulco - Yahoo! Eurosport UK

Venus Williams beat Garbine Muguruza of Spain 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 to reach the quarterfinals of the Brazil Tennis Cup on Wednesday.

Williams converted on her fourth match point to beat the 96th-ranked Muguruza in 2 hours, 12 minutes on hard court at the southern Brazilian city of Florianopolis.

The American had squandered three match points at 5-4 after getting back on serve late in the third set, but finally closed out the match with her first break point of the final game.

The 20th-ranked Williams is the top-seeded player in Brazil. She is playing her first tournament since losing to Maria Sharapova in the third round of the Australian Open in January. Williams will now play fifth-seeded Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia, who defeated qualifier Beatriz Garcia Vidagany of Spain 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. The 52nd-ranked Rybarikova saved 13 of the 21 break opportunities she conceded in the match that lasted 2 hours, 33 minutes.

Earlier Wednesday, Timea Babos of Hungary beat fourth-seeded Chanelle Scheepers of South Africa 6-1, 6-2. The 133rd-ranked Babos broke Scheepers' serve five times. Scheepers, ranked 60th in the world, had eight break points but converted only one of them.

Babos will play Monica Niculescu of Romania, who easily beat defeated Tereza Mrdeza of Croatia 6-1, 6-1.

Olga Puchkova of Russia continued her remarkable run with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over Caroline Garcia of France. Puchkova upset third-seeded Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium in the first round.

Puchkova will play the quarterfinals against Jana Cepelova of Slovakia, who beat eighth-seeded Annika Beck of Germany 7-6 (6), 6-4.

Melinda Czink of Hungary, who eliminated second-seeded and 34th-ranked Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan in the first round, defeated Brazilian Bia Haddad Maia 1-6, 6-2, 7-6 (3) to set up a quarterfinal match against Frenchwoman Kristina Mladenovic, who cruised past Tatjana Malek of Germany 6-2, 6-1.



Venus Williams beats Garbine Muguruza at Brazil Tennis Cup - ESPN

Rafael Nadal says he agrees with Roger Federer’s stance that results of doping tests should be made public.

“I’m glad we agree on this, it’s important,” Nadal told reporters in Acapulco.

Two weeks ago in Chile, the Spaniard also said most fans don’t know how many tests players do or do not undergo.

When told of Nadal’s comments in Dubai, Federer reiterated that he was all for transparency.

“I’m for aggressive tests, and I have always been like that,” he said. “For me, it’s just important that we make sure that the integrity of the game is kept where it’s supposed to be and that the tour and everybody, the players, has to agree and that we should be trying to do that. There is a big sense of urgency that we make sure that our sport stays as clean as possible. It’s very important.”

Nadal said that the public’s perception of tennis players does matter.

“That’s what I would do with all the hype that has arisen around the [Lance] Armstrong case,” he said. “It’s necessary for us all to make an effort for sport to be transparent and very clean, because there are very few doping cases.”


tennis-com - Nadal and Federer agree on making doping tests public

Under US Tour rules, spectators are not allowed to take pictures or video of players on competition days.

A short video posted on CBS Sports' website shows a tournament official pulling Williams's phone down as she was about to snap a photograph with her phone during the second round of the Honda Classic and she then tweeted about the episode.

"Apparently you can't take pictures of golfers. In my defense peeps always take pics of tennis players," Williams tweeted.

Williams, who did manage to post a picture of Woods driving from the tee on her Twitter account, although it was not clear if she herself had taken the picture, also said the security was "mad" and "yelled" at her during the episode.

Nadal, ranked fifth in the world, needed just over an hour to dispatch top seed Ferrer and was delighted with his form.

"For me, I played almost perfectly," said Nadal following the match. "My knee responded well all week."

Nadal also confirmed he would play in next week's Indian Wells hard-court tournament, despite speculation he might skip the event to spare his knee.

"My heart tells me I should continue competing, that I need to move on to the next tournament," he added.

Nadal had been sidelined for more than seven months due to a partially torn tendon in his knee. He made his return early last month at the Chilean Open, losing in the final to Argentine Horacio Zeballos. A week later he claimed the Brazil Open title.

The former world number one charged out of the blocks and won the first eight games against three-time defending champion Ferrer, who saw his 19-match winning streak at the clay-court event come to an end.

"Rafa was just better than me today," said Ferrer.

World No.4 Ferrer waited 44 minutes to win his first game of the final, the crowd erupting in applause as he put away a service winner to trail 2-1 in the second set.

With Ferrer serving down 3-1, an extended rally in which both players scrambled back and forth from the net ended with a top-spin lob winner by Nadal, bringing the crowd to its feet and the score to 30-30.

Second seed Nadal, the 2005 Mexican Open champion, won the next two points to go up two breaks in the set and virtually put the match away.

He pocketed $291,800 in prize money for the win.


Tennis - Nadal crushes Ferrer to win Mexican Open - Yahoo! Eurosport UK

Roger Federer can still win Grand Slam titles. He is the No. 2 player in the world, the Wimbledon champion and has been a near lock for the semifinals the past decade. His astonishing records and numbers have spilled gallons of ink about his tennis immortality.

But winning is only part of the Federer legacy. Electronic and social media feature fan blogs and discussions about how Federer wins. Never mind the technical analysis and tactics. His artistry and style has inspired tennis appreciation with reverence usually reserved for poetry and classical music.

Perhaps, the apotheosis for Federerolatry was most famously penned by the late David Foster Wallace, who crafted the masterpiece “Federer as Religious Experience” in Play Magazine. For those who are new to tennis, or to future generations of Federer fans, this article must be read and passed on to others in order to more fully understand what it is like to watch Federer play.

It’s impossible to completely describe Federer’s tennis beauty. Said Wallace:

…none of it really explains anything or evokes the experience of watching this man play. Of witnessing, firsthand, the beauty and genius of his game. You more have to come at the aesthetic stuff obliquely, to talk around it, or — as Aquinas did with his own ineffable subject — to try to define it in terms of what it is not.

The Federer Effect

Though Federer is no longer in his prime years, he has continued to mesmerize fans with his aesthetically pleasing tennis. There are still those Federer moments when he can turn back the clock to when the ATP tour was his personal dominion.

For many fans, this is important. Federer is the embodiment of tennis form and beauty that have been seen for generations. He is in part the heritage to the intelligent shot making of Rod Laver, the quiet perfection of Bjorn Borg and the efficient athleticism of Pete Sampras. He is the bridge from tennis past to future legacies. Federer is also an original savant, and tennis fans understand that this will not be replaced.

By contrast, Federer’s chief rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are often accused of playing a blander, more blunted expression of tennis. They have cornered the market on tenacity and baseline grinding, but their usual dose of groundstrokes is more relentless than creative.

This has led many fans to bemoan that tennis is increasingly less art and more warfare. Per example, Nadal and Djokovic dueled for nearly six hours in the 2012 Australian Open final, and it drew consideration by many to be one of the greatest matches of all time. But there were also detractors who claimed it was an offense of predictable patterns and monotonous returns.

This is the Federer effect. He has created a particular standard of style as well as winning. It differs from Agassi or Borg, but their common denominator is they created a presence of personality as well as tennis style. Fans hope the Federer effect will retain its beautiful existence long after the creator has hung up his racket.

The Artful Roger

Federer wins are typically hailed with as much discussion about his feathery touches, changes of spins and opportunistic mentality. He is one of history’s rare players who can paint a masterpiece with his performances as much as his results.

It’s a peculiar kind of fascination, like watching a master paint rather than exclusively enjoy his paintings. It’s understandable given Federer’s style and success.

Would a dilettante not want to watch Leonardo da Vinci at his craft? In the end, there is more to enjoy than wondering if or when Federer will win another Grand Slam title. He is a technician setting up patterns and improvising with his talents. There is always another potential great shot carved from his vision, discovering new edges of the outer limits.

So Federer plays on, filling up arenas and delivering more wonderful tennis to delight fans of all allegiances. Even when the results may be uneven, he is the sole reminder of his former greatness. To appreciate his career is to anticipate that the artist can produce just one more classic original. His next great scene could be a few strokes away.

Predictions aside, Federer’s upcoming matches are a gift to tennis fans.



Roger Federer: Tennis Fans Appreciate His Artistry as Much as His Winning | Bleacher Report

The five-time Grand Slam singles champion Martina Hingis leads the 2013 class for the International Tennis Hall of Fame. The other new members are Cliff Drysdale, Charlie Pasarell and Ion Tiriac.

Goolagong Cawley and her husband, Roger Cawley, were at Nambour Hospital on the Sunshine Coast on Wednesday when their son Morgan's fiancee, Sophia, gave birth to daughter Beau Maya.

The first grandchild for the seven-time Grand Slam champion weighed 3.8 kilograms.

"I used to say during my career that the biggest gift was having my children," Goolagong Cawley said. "But this is my second-best gift and better than any trophy. I'm very excited. Both are well and looking fantastic. I can't wait to babysit."

Goolagong Cawley won Wimbledon in 1980, three years after the birth of the couple's other child, daughter Kelly.

Kim Clijsters won the US Open in 2009 after a two-year retirement and following the birth of her daughter Jada, a 29-year gap of mothers winning Grand Slam singles titles.

Fellow Australian Margaret Court won three Grand Slam titles in 1973 after the birth of her first child a year earlier, the only other woman in the Open era to win a major after childbirth.

Read more: Tennis star Goolagong Cawley is a grandma | News-com.au

Rohan Shastri wasn't sure what was next.

By last fall, the Mount Greylock senior had reached No. 1 in the United States Tennis Association's 18-and-under New England rankings, and his national standing had risen as high as 74. He was well on his way to getting into his first-choice school, nearby Williams College. What else was there left to prove?

If all goes according to plan, maybe a state championship with the Mounties.

"This will be different," Shastri said." It's playing for your school, with your friends. This is definitely a team thing. This is not for me, for winning matches. It's purely for helping my school."

Shastri will suit up for Greylock this spring for the first time since his eighth grade year, when he helped the Mounties to the state final. After a couple successful years on the junior tour -- including making it through three rounds at last summer's National Clay Court championships -- the Williamstown resident said he'd met all his goals. It was time to relax and enjoy his senior year.

"I've been going to all the games, football and basketball games [at Greylock]," Shastri, who is expected to play for Williams next year, said. "Everybody comes to watch. There's so much emotion. Being a senior and doing that for your school, and three of my closest friends are on the team."

One of those friends is Jonah Majumder, Greylock's top singles player last year. Majumder led the Mounties to an 11-4 record and the No. 7 seed in the Western Massachusetts Division III tournament in 2012. Greylock lost to eventual Western Mass. champion Lenox, 4-1, in the semifinals.

With Shastri as the Mounties' new projected No. 1, Greylock's depth should be tough to match.

"I think you'd have a hard time finding a team that deep in Western Mass.," Majumder said. "I know that just in terms of Rohan's level, there's few kids in the state that can play with him. The depth, that's going to be really rare." It's also going to be a boost for the league, said Lenox coach Phil Cohen. He said he understood why Shastri left the high school ranks to play on the junior tour, but having the 18-year-old back will be "great."

"It definitely strengthens the league a lot," Cohen said. "Having a player like Rohan in the league, someone who's going to the Western Mass. [individual] tournament and most likely is going to dominate that whole thing, is good for the league overall."

Shastri said his friends have ribbed him a little about being an overwhelming favorite to win every match this spring. He has the best chance to unseat two-time All-Eagle MVP Tanner DeVarennes in Lee.

Expectations aren't what this "comeback" is about, though. After performing under the pressure to rise up the regional rankings and get into a good school, Shastri just wants to have fun and enjoy a new challenge away from the junior circuit.

"When I was on the court, it was boring," Shastri said. "It was the same guys, the same places. There was nothing new. I thought, ‘Why not just try to practice almost every day as much as I can and try to get better like that?' "

The International Tennis Federation announced Thursday that it would stiffen the sport’s drug testing this year by adopting the biological passport program, which tracks an athlete’s blood profile over time, and increasing the number of blood tests and out-of-competition tests. The move followed increased pressure on the federation from some of its players, most notably Roger Federer and Andy Murray, to improve its antidoping program. The system will go into effect this year on the men’s and women’s tours.

Tennis has been criticized for its paucity of blood testing and scarcity of out-of-competition tests. The World Anti-Doping Agency said it conducted only 21 tests outside of tournaments in 2011, out of 2,150 tests over all. It also said that only 131 of those were blood tests that checked for human growth hormone, the performance-enhancing drug E.P.O. or other blood doping substances.

The biological passport program is considered more effective because it measures athletes’ blood profiles against their own baseline. It is used in cycling and track and field, two sports trying to reverse their reputations for widespread doping.

“In order to protect the rights of clean athletes, it is important that any antidoping program include no-notice out-of-competition blood testing as well as longitudinal data collection," the United States Anti-Doping Agency said in a statement. “As there are potent performance-enhancing drugs and methods that can only be tested for in blood, it is vital that rigorous blood testing be implemented in all sports.” Although more blood testing was promised in the announcement, the federation did not say how many tests would be performed under the new program.

“The implementation of the athlete biological passport is an important step in the evolution of the tennis antidoping program, as it provides us with a great tool,” Francesco Ricci Bitti, president of the International Tennis Federation, said in a statement.

Bitti’s announcement came after a meeting of antidoping officials from the international federation, the Women’s Tennis Association, the ATP World Tour and the Grand Slam tournaments. They had been facing increased pressure to improve testing. After the cyclist Lance Armstrong’s participation in an extensive doping scheme was uncovered by the United States Anti-Doping Agency last year, that spotlight also was turned on sports that appeared to be lagging in the fight against doping.

That prompted Federer to say at a tournament in December, “I feel I am being tested less now than six or seven years ago,” and to add that he had been tested only a handful of times in recent years. “Whatever number it is, I do not think it is enough. I think they should up it a little bit, or a lot. It is vital that the sport stays clean. We have had a good history in terms of that, and we want to ensure it stays that way.”

Murray has called for tennis to increase its antidoping budget, said to be less than $2 million.

“If one in a hundred players is doping, in my eyes that isn’t a clean sport,” Murray recently told Britain’s Daily Mail. “I know that I’m clean, and I would hope that’s the same for all tennis players. We need to ensure everyone competing is clean, and that comes with biological passports and more blood testing.

“It comes down to cost. Whoever is putting the money in, even if it means taking some of the money off the players’ earnings, that’s what we have to do. Not just tennis, all sports need to look very closely at this. A lot has been learned from the Lance Armstrong situation. I don’t want that happening for my sport or any sport.”

Recently, a Spanish doctor on trial in the Operation Puerto blood doping case in Madrid, Eufemiano Fuentes, said he had tennis players as clients as well as cyclists, but he has not disclosed their names. “The important thing is that those who cheat pay for their cheating,” Rafael Nadal said at a news conference at a tournament in Chile last month. “With Armstrong the image of sport has been damaged, especially in the case of cycling. The important thing is for sport to clean up its image, that the controls are made public. They should do the tests they need to do, but they should be done respecting the athlete. From my point of view, this has not always happened.”


www-nytimes-com/2013/03/08/sports/tennis/tennis-federation-strengthens-drug-testing-html

Taylor Townsend has both confidence and charm.

The 16-year-old can smile when she talks about some hubbub caused last year at the U.S. Open when it was publicly suggested the teenager might be too chubby.

Since the suggestion was made by the United States Tennis Assn., which offers funding and coaching help to top athletes, the criticism carried more, um, weight. But Townsend has gone on her tennis way, which is to hit big ground strokes and use USTA coaches and trainers to keep making her better.

Townsend is noticeably slimmer than she was at the Open last fall, and she was a first-round winner Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

She is also part of a generation of American women's players who seem to be on the upswing and ready to inherit the top spots that have been in the grasps of Serena and Venus Williams for more than a decade.

Nineteen-year-old Sloane Stephens upset a hobbled Serena at the Australian Open to make her first semifinal of a major tournament this year.

Besides Townsend, 18-year-old Madison Keys, 22-year-old Mallory Burdette, 20-year-old Christine McHale, and 23-year-olds Jamie Hampton and Maria Sanchez have won first-round matches here. On Friday, McHale couldn't quite pull off a second-round upset — she lost to 13th-seeded Russian Maria Kirilenko, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1. Stephens hasn't played yet because she's seeded 15th. Lauren Davis, 19, and Grace Min, 18, were also in the main draw, Min through the tough process of qualifying.

And Friday night, Sanchez, who recently graduated from USC, used her wild-card invitation to at least experience the big Stadium 1 court in her second-round match, a 6-2, 6-1 loss to third-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska.

Ten Americans (including No. 1 Serena Williams) are in the top 100, but it is the performances here of Townsend, Keys, Burdette and Hampton in particular, along with Stephens' Australian Open semifinal appearance, that make the future seem bright for American women's tennis.

"A lot of us train together," said Hampton after her 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 first-round win over American veteran Bethanie Mattek-Sands. "We like each other. We eat together, we practice together."

Townsend said it is nice in a friends' kind of way to have so many good players on tour from the same country and good in a competitive way that there are so many close in age. "Yes, we can feed off each other," Townsend said.

"We push each other, we practice with each other, we help each other."

"It's good for us to have each other," said McHale, who is trying to rebuild her game after missing a part of last year with mononucleosis.

McHale has already been as far as the third round at each of the four major tournaments and said she expects that she and the other American youngsters will do that and more in the coming years.

Second-seeded Maria Sharapova, who was part of a large group of talented Russians who seemed to rise together, said it helps to be part of a pack.

After her businesslike 6-2, 6-1 win over former French Open finalist Francesca Schiavone, Sharapova said, "It helps having compatriots, not only to set an example for you, but that you're competitive with enough to raise your own level, to want to beat them.

"At that age you're very competitive. You want to be that first one to win a Grand Slam or get farther in the rankings than the rest, to prove yourself." The 25-year-old Sharapova proved herself with her four major titles. So she wants to wait and see what the new sensations can do. "There is a thin line of achieving a great result in one event," she noted. "Consistency is one of the biggest keys."

On the court

A young American man, 20-year-old Jack Sock, squandered a match point and lost to big-serving veteran Ivo Karlovic, 3-6, 7-6 (8), 6-2.

"When you have match point," Sock said, "the match seems like it's pretty much in your hands. I had a pretty routine backhand up the line to make, and I missed it by a couple of inches and missed a simple forehand to lose the set."

Off the court

Tournament owner Larry Ellison conducted a groundbreaking ceremony to symbolize the plan for a new and permanent Stadium 2 court that will have 8,000 seats and, said Ellison, two restaurants, one of which will be a Nobu sushi eatery. There will also be four additional practice courts built.

Top-seeded Novak Djokovic did an introductory news conference. He was at a recent Lakers game and said he met Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Steve Nash.

"Great athletes and great personalities," Djokovic said. "I was really surprised that they like tennis. Dwight Howard, in his own way, in words, was describing to me how much he was playing tennis and how he won a tournament in eighth grade because his teachers made him play tennis for the first time. So maybe, with those shoulders, he can have a big serve."

Lakers fans would probably settle for big dunks and rebounds.


New generation of U.S. women's tennis players looks promising - latimes-com

She's Worth It.

Sorry but I don't like she.

Tennis legend Jennifer Capriati gained glory with her wicked swing on the court, but she's now being accused of assault off the court by her former boyfriend, who police say was punched by the three-time Grand Slam champion on Valentines' Day.

Police say Capriati, 36, punched Ivan Brannan in the chest at the Oxygen Gym and Spa in North Palm Beach Fla., Feb. 14, before the altercation had to be broken up by a yoga instructor. Brannan, a former college golfer, was able to flee and "lock himself in the [men's] locker room and call police," according to a police report.

Brannon's hands were shaking and it was apparent "he was in fear of physical harm," according to the report. Brannan, 28, also complained to police about Capriati's allegedly stalking or harassing him seven times, saying that she even called his workplace 50 times in a single day in January, and then showed up there and banged on the windows.

Steven Sessa, Capriati's attorney, said the facts will prove otherwise. "I am sure that the police report is one-sided," he said. "Once all the facts are examined, Ms. Capriati will be vindicated."

The 2001 Australian and French Open women's singles champ, who last year was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, was defended Sunday by Christine Corley, an ex-girlfriend of Brennan's who has appeared on the reality-TV competition show MasterChef.

Corley tweeted an accusation that Brannan cooked up unfounded allegations against her.

"He is doing the same thing to you as he did to me!!" she wrote, to which Capriati responded, "He has gone too far trying to destroy our lives!!"

Corley, who provided no details, wasn't charged with a crime for the allegations she says Brannan made.

Capriati burst into the tennis world at age 13 and flamed out three years later, quitting the sport and getting arrested for marijuana possession and shoplifting in 1994. She later fought back, becoming the world No. 1 women's singles player in 2001 before quitting again and then overdosing on prescriptions medication in 2010.

"This is sadly for Jennifer Capriati a continuation of this roller-coaster life that she has been living in the public eye for more than 20 years," "Good Morning America" sports contributor Christine Brennan said.




Tennis Ace Jennifer Capriati Accused of Assaulting, Stalking Former Boyfriend - ABC News

Tennis legend Billie Jean King is hoping World Team Tennis, specifically the teams in Orange County and Sacramento, can help fill a void that was created when the men’s ATP Tour lost two tournaments in California, leaving the BNP Paribas Open as the only tour event in the state.

WTT is a co-ed team tennis league founded by King and is her passion project. The new season begins July 24, with the conference championships July 25, and the finals July 28.

King is hoping the eight-team league will provide fans in areas without teams a chance to experience professional tennis. One of those areas is California, which lost men’s events in San Jose and Los Angeles in the last year.

“Hopefully, we’ll have tennis in more people’s backyards, which I think is vital for the sport,” said King, whose WTT had its draft Tuesday at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden prior to the start of play at the BNP Paribas Open. “The thing that was important for me was going to the Pacific Southwest in the old days to watch the best players. I learned what great meant and what good meant.

“As a kid, you’ll say you want to be No. 1 in the world, but they don’t know what it looks like. You can see it on TV, but it’s not the same as live. Live is where you see the intensity, it’s a different look when you can go live.” One example King pointed to was the popularity of American Bobby Reynolds, who has become popular while playing for the Washington Kastles.

“Bobby Reynolds is a big deal in Washington D.C.,” King said.

King also points out that top American players Venus and Serena Williams were fans of King when she played WTT matches at the Forum in Inglewood.

King not only has a long history with the Williams sisters, but also with this tournament. In 2006, King, Pete Sampras, Chris Evert and golfer Greg Norman joined an investment group that bought out half-owners IMG and prevented the BNP Paribas Open from being sold to China.

So King is torn that Venus and Serena Williams have not returned to Indian Wells since a 2001 incident. Venus pulled out of her semifinal match against Serena just minutes before ESPN was supposed to begin its telecast. With a walkover to the finals, Serena was booed throughout the match. Father Richard Williams and Venus were in the stands and said ugly slurs were directed at them. “I wish they would come back. I wish they could forgive and just move on,” King said. “But I was here that day and it was terrible. I understand why they don’t. I think forgiveness is one of the most important words, and most powerful words in our language. I wish they could find it in their hearts and minds to forgive it, but if they don’t, I understand. I have to understand their truth, not mine.

“I’m just prejudice to — I’m a Southern California girl, they’re from Compton, and I want them to come back because it’s home in a way.”

King’s ownership stake in the tournament lasted three years before the investment group sold the entire BNP Paribas Open and Indian Wells Tennis Garden to Oracle founder and CEO Larry Ellison for $100 million.

With Ellison at the helm, the tournament has grown exponentially. After this year’s tournament, construction of an additional 8,000-seat stadium and 2,000 added parking spots will allow the BNP Paribas to shoot for an attendance goal of 500,000 for one event in the next five years.

If the BNP Paribas Open does attract 500,000 fans in a year, it would surpass two of tennis’ majors, Wimbledon and the French Open.

“If anybody can do it, Larry Ellison can,” King said. “He’s got the funds to do it. It’s about money, space and they are going to build a new stadium. And the most part it’s a destination. People love coming here. It’s spring break for the kids and families. “Larry continually reinvests in the tournament. He can afford it. He doesn’t take money out. He puts it back in, which means revenues go up. It’s good business if you can do that.”

Ilana Kloss, the CEO and commissioner of WTT feels the success of the BNP Paribas Open could provide a trickle-down effect.

While the BNP Paribas Open has grown throughout the start of the century, many other tennis events and businesses have struggled.

“Let’s face it, the rest of the world is expanding and the U.S. has been shrinking,” Kloss said about tennis. “It’s been a challenge for all of us in the tennis business. But I think things are turning around. When you have a tournament like this be successful, it elevates everyone. People are thinking tennis is successful and it’s really cool.”


www-mydesert-com/article/20130312/SPORTS0701/303120042/Billy-Jean-King-hopes-World-Team-Tennis-can-fill-California-void

Duncanville High School senior Jocelle Rudico has won so many awards, it's hard to keep up with them. Her mother found Jocelle's 3rd place medal from the state tournament stuffed in a bag.

It's clear from the number of trophies and medals that winning tennis matches is important to Jocelle, and she's hoping to win enough to go to state for the third year in a row.

But what she did at a recent tournament showed that winning is not the most important thing.

During a match against a rival player, Jocelle thought one of her serves went out of bounds. "I heard everyone's reaction," she said.

This happened during a tie-breaker. The point would have let her opponent win the first set; instead, Jocelle won it.

In between sets, she decided she made the wrong call and changed it, losing that set... and eventually the match.

The Rudicos are a tennis family. They have their own court in their backyard.

Jocelle's dad taught her, and continues to teach young players.

And the thing about tennis at the lower levels is that the players make all the calls.

The match Jocelle lost last month could affect her seeding for regionals.

But it was the right call, and she said she would do it again.


Duncanville tennis champ makes the right call | wfaa-com Dallas - Fort Worth

Where were you the first time you saw Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal play?

For me, it was my final day at my previous job here at ESPN. I was sitting at my desk, packing boxes and glued to the final of the 2005 NASDAQ-100 Open in Key Biscayne (now the Sony Ericsson). It was the second time they had meet. Federer was far and away the preeminent player in the game. Nadal was a phenom, one of the few Next Big Things who would actually pan out.

Federer beat him, but he fell behind two sets to love against Nadal before winning. I remember thinking back then, "Hmmm, this could be a good rivalry for years to come." Turns out my prescience was pretty good. OK, so apparently, anyone who knew anything about anyone who hit little yellow fuzzy balls on blue, green and red tennis courts knew this, too. But I maintain I said it unsolicited -- albeit with no one around, under my breath and without ever telling a soul until right now. Anyway, watching Federer and Nadal at Indian Wells on Thursday night had a much different vibe than just one moment in this storied history. We've spent so many years dissecting game plans and shot-making and turning points between these two. So much time parsing each match, each set. This one, though, spoke less about the current state of their respective games than it did about nostalgia and cherishing what's left of these glorious, insatiable battles.

You see, a year had passed since they last played. A year. You can blame Nadal, er the world's most famous teetering knee that is, for the sojourn this rivalry took. They last played here at Indian Wells. Did we mention that was a year ago?

In the 29th chapter in this rivalry, Nadal beat down an ailing Federer 6-4, 6-2 to reach the semifinals of the first Masters 1000 tournament of the year. But this clash was merely a sidebar to a much bigger storyline: How much longer? How many more memories?

This isn't to say the offing is bleak and that we won't have many more Federer-Nadal matches. But we waited so long, and the future, as bright and hopeful as we want it to be, is more tenuous with each passing tournament.

What if Rafa can't withstand the intensity of the circuit the way he once did? What if Federer's tennis dotage finally catches up to him? It has to at some point, no? The squirrely back he had at Indian Wells, especially against Nadal, will only become more pervasive as time passes. What if Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray take the game over week in, week out. Sure, perhaps we're overreacting and being a little hyperbolic here, but the questions are legit, the forlorn justified.

Imagine no more Fed-Nadal, a rivalry that has withstood a generation of players and one that resonates well beyond tennis circles. Does anything in tennis even come close to giving you chills when they walk on the court? Is there a greater contrasting of styles between two stalwarts anywhere in sports?

But maybe the staying power of these two isn't going anywhere. Rafa is back and Federer never went anywhere. There aren't players outside Djokovic and Murray who can beat these two with any kind of consistency. Rafa's knee looks strong right now and we've been constantly proven wrong by Federer's capacity to ignore those vexing suggestions of what he should and shouldn't do. And, oh by the way, he's still the No. 2 player in the world. And the last time he lost any Grand Slam match before the quarterfinals since guys like Coria, Schuettler and Grosjean were relevant. So there's that.

And though we don't know what's left, we've reached the point in the Federer-Nadal history in which the rivalry itself far surpasses any singular, salient moment, or any one championship along the way. The collective credentials they've accrued is mind-numbing. Twenty-eight Slam titles, each owns a career Slams and they've now snared an unthinkable 43 Masters 1000 titles. But the zeal that penetrates the sport when they meet is real -- and that's what matters now.

So when was the first time you saw Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal play each other? Was it the gutsy 2008 Wimbledon final? Perhaps one of their one-sided French Open affairs? The Aussie? World Tour Finals? Nonetheless, just relish the rivalry from here on out. Don't sweat the results. Because whether you are an ardent Rafa lover or a Fed fanatic, one doesn't feel right without the other.



Tennis - Rafael Nadal-Roger Federer rivalry renewed at Indian Wells, but for how long? - ESPN

Big-time tennis is on its way back to the Delaware Valley. Tickets for Philadelphia Freedoms matches go on sale on Monday and Grand Slam champions are in the lineup.

Philly’s World Team Tennis roster includes Sloane Stephens. The No. 2-ranked American has a wicked backhand.

“She defeated Serena Williams in the Australian Open this year. She’s going to be really great to watch,” says Freedoms general manager Barbara Perry.

The team will face John McEnroe, perennial doubles champs Bob and Mike Bryan and the recently-retired Andy Roddick.

“We’re extremely excited about that,” says Perry. “It’s been several years since Andy’s played here in Philly. He’s a real crowd favorite.” Roddick, who plays for the Springfield Lasers, will be at the Freedoms’ first match at The Pavilion at Villanova University on July 10th.

Also on the Freedoms lineup: seven-time Grand Slam doubles champ Liezel Huber; the rising young American Jessica Pegula, who’s coached by Maria Sharapova’s former instructor; and Australian Jordan Kerr, who’s ranked among the top 125 doubles players in the world. And watch out for Sam Groth.

“He’s credited with striking the fastest recorded serve in tennis history — over 163 miles an hour,” explains Perry.


Grand Slam Tennis Champs Headed To Main Line For Philadelphia Freedoms Season « CBS Philly

Australian Open champion Djokovic squandered a 3-0 lead in the final set as he was broken twice by the towering Argentine before losing a wildly fluctuating contest that lasted two hours and 49 minutes.

Serving for the match, the seventh-seeded Del Potro sealed victory with a 133 mph ace to claim only his third win over the Serb in 11 career meetings, and book a place in Sunday's final against Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard beat Tomas Berdych 6-4 7-5 in the earlier semi-final

The top-seeded Djokovic had not previously lost since his defeat last October to big-serving American Sam Querrey in the second round of the ATP Masters 1000 event in Paris.

"I didn't deserve to win today," Djokovic, 25, said after falling short in his bid to reach the final for a fourth time at Indian Wells, where he won the title in 2008 and 2011.

"You know, whenever I had chances, in the second and third sets, I throw them away with some unforced errors. My movement was poor, and I congratulate to my opponent."

Asked what had turned the tide when he led 3-0 in the final set, Djokovic replied: "His fighting spirit and my lack of concentration. He deserved to win because he was more composed in the important moments and he played the right shots.

"He stepped into the court, where, on the other side, me, I made a lot of unforced errors and was at back of the court too passive.

"I didn't use my backhand along the line as I usually do. It's one of my best shots. Today I just wasn't there. It's okay, you know. It happens. It's sport, and I just didn't make it this time."

Djokovic had been a perfect 17-0 for the season after winning his sixth grand slam title at the Australian Open in January and then the Dubai Championships before heading to Indian Wells.

On a stifling hot afternoon, Djokovic and former US Open champion Del Potro treated the near-capacity crowd to some absorbing tennis on the Stadium Court as their opening set went with serve until the 10th game.

Del Potro, who had saved four breakpoints in a marathon eighth game, staved off a set point at 30-40 with a backhand volley winner but failed to repeat the feat on the second as he mistimed a forehand after a protracted baseline rally.

A set up, Djokovic surprisingly failed to hold in the first game of the second after hitting a forehand wide, then hurled his racket to the ground in disgust.

Though the Serb immediately broke back, he was again broken in the third when Del Potro steered a two-fisted backhand winner down the line.

Djokovic looked increasingly irritated and also failed to hold in the seventh when the towering Argentine struck a rasping forehand winner down the line to go 5-2 up.

Del Potro, who clinched the 2009 US Open, failed to serve out in the eighth, denied a set point at 40-30 by a Djokovic forehand crosscourt winner before being broken when the Serb struck a backhand winner.

However, Del Potro finally levelled the match in the 10th, on his third set point, after his opponent netted a backhand.

Djokovic came storming back in the final set, breaking the Argentine in the second game to race into a 3-0 lead but he failed to hold in the fifth as Del Potro pegged him back to 3-2.

The Serb did well to hold in the seventh, after trailing 15-40, but he was broken for the final time in the ninth when he hit a backhand long for Del Potro to serve out for the match.


Tennis - Djokovic's unbeaten run ends against Del Potro - Yahoo! Eurosport UK