Month of April , 2009

World No. 8 Svetlana Kuznetsova fought off a strong challenge from No. 12 Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-1 to reach the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Open on Tuesday.

The first semifinal spots were snapped up at the Sony Ericsson Open on Tuesday, with former champion Svetlana Kuznetsova the first to advance, splitting sets with Caroline Wozniacki before cruising into the semis. Victoria Azarenka joined her.

World number one Rafael Nadal needed two tie-breaks to outlast Stanislas Wawrinka 7-6 7-6 at the Sony Ericsson Open on Tuesday, the Spaniard's win completing an ominous march into the quarter-finals for the top seeds.

Earlier, second seed Roger Federer enjoyed a comfortable 6-3 6-2 win over American qualifier Taylor Dent to set up a clash against local favorite Andy Roddick, while Britain's Andy Murray crushed Serbian Viktor Troicki in just 58 minutes 6-1 6-0.

Andy Murray insists he will not be gunning for revenge when he meets Fernando Verdasco in the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.

The British number one cruised into the last eight with a 6-1 6-0 demolition of Victor Troicki, while Verdasco was similarly impressive in defeating Radek Stepanek 6-2 6-2.

Murray won all of his first five meetings against the Spaniard but the sixth came in the fourth round of the Australian Open in January and this time Verdasco edged a five-setter.

Maria Sharapova's right arm was in rapid motion, but her afternoon workout was confined to a seat behind a table rather than her customary position patrolling the baseline.

Continuing her recovery from a shoulder injury, Sharapova skipped the Sony Ericsson Open for the second straight year, but was still a fan favorite in South Florida. The three-time Grand Slam champion conducted a meet and greet with fans, signing autographs during her personal appearance at the Cole Haan store in the Village of Merrick Park in Coral Gables, Florida.

Eight of the Top 10 seeds are into the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open for the first time in the tournament’s 25-year history. It is also the first time there are eight seeds in the quarter-finals. In Wednesday’s bottom half of the draw action, three former Sony Ericsson Open champions battle it out. No. 3 and 2007 winner Novak Djokovic takes on No. 10 seed Jo-Wilfired Tsonga (pictured) during the day session and under the lights, No. 2 and 2005-06 champ Roger Federer plays No. 5 and 2004 winner Andy Roddick.

Q. Was it as easy as it looked, or not?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: No, look, nothing is easy in these stages of the tournament. I'm playing top 20 player, and a player who won against basically all top players in this moment, so it's never easy to play, on this surface especially.
So I was trying to stick with him all the time, because I knew he's very aggressive, but not really consistent from the baseline. He makes a lot of unforced errors, especially from the forehand side, so I changed the pace and I played a really good tennis today.

Q. Obviously your serve was dominant today: 85% on your first serve. Is it tough to lose when you're serving like that?
JO-WILFRIED TSONGA: Yeah, it's tough to lose when I play like that, when I serve like that. Yeah, I did a great job today on my serve, and yeah.
Q. Is it tough to play I imagine a friend and countryman?

Q. How did you feel out there?
ANDY RODDICK: Better than you after you finished that race. No, I felt all right. You know, even when I got down that break, I kind of felt like I was playing the way I wanted to and executed -- I just didn't execute that game that I got broken.
Still felt like I was doing the right things. Fortunately for me he gave me another look. From the breaker on I felt like I was in control.
Q. Is that something you're consciously trying to do?

For Serena Williams, few things are as important to her as the music she walks out to before facing off against an opponent. It’s the one thing that really gets her going before a big match. So in an effort to find the perfect song to help her set things off, the ten-time Grand Slam champion has teamed up with Ludacris’s website WeMix.com to give aspiring musicians the chance to create the song she’ll use to take the court at the U.S. Open in New York City in August.

(5) Venus Williams (USA) vs. (26) Iveta Benesova (CZE)

Venus is still not serving her best, but she managed to still beat Agnieszka Radwanska 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. She only got in 53% of her first serves, and this comes the match after she only got 45% of her first serves in play. As the tournament progresses she is going to need to get that up over 60% to have a chance at the title.

World No. 1 Serena Williams moved to within two victories of a record sixth Sony Ericsson Open title after battling past China’s Na Li 4-6, 7-6(1), 6-2 to reach the semifinals in Miami on Wednesday.

Williams suffered a slow start to the match and quickly found herself down 0-5 in the opening set. She rallied to bring the score line back to 5-4, but Li held her nerve to serve out the one-set lead at the third time of asking.

World No. 6 Venus Williams dismissed Czech No. 26 seed Iveta Benesova 6-1, 6-4 on Wednesday evening to reach the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Open, where she will take part in a blockbuster clash with younger sister Serena – who earlier battled past Na Li.

Third-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic reached the semi-finals of the ATP Masters 1000 hardcourt tournament here Wednesday with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

In the semi-finals Djokovic will face the winner of the quarter-final between second-seeded Swiss Roger Federer and fifth-seeded American Andy Roddick.

Djokovic, who had lost his last four encounters with the Frenchman, reversed that trend despite receiving treatment for apparent heat-related symptoms in the second set.

World number two Roger Federer defeated American Andy Roddick 6-3 4-6 6-4 in front of a noisy night-time crowd at Key Biscayne on Wednesday to set up a semi-final with Serbian Novak Djokovic at the Sony Ericsson Open.

Q. Can you just talk about the electricity in the crowd and what that match was like for you? Seemed like an exciting night for everybody.
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I enjoyed it anyway. It was a good match. Crowd really got involved. I think they wanted to see as much tennis as possible, you know, and down-to-the-wire
kind of stuff. It was an interesting match.

Serena Williams did her part to set up a family clash at the Sony Ericsson Open on Wednesday afternoon, edging China's Li Na in a tight three-setter in the quarterfinals, 46 76(1) 62.

Just days before her first match at the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, defending champion Serena Williams dealt with more fashion-related topics than questions regarding her day job of tennis.

Williams announced she will be partnering with the Home Shopping Network to launch a line of apparel and accessories on April 30 called Signature Statement.

"Everything will be under $100," said Williams. "My goal is reaching women to help them look gorgeous, while still being affordable."

If Roger Federer thinks becoming a father will have little impact on his goal of equalling and then breaking Pete Sampras's record of 14 grand slam titles he might be in for a rude awakening.

Federer excitedly announced his news last month, declaring: "It's not going to really disturb my mindset on tennis a whole lot", but any parent who has had to deal with sleepless nights may think the Swiss is deluding himself.