Top New Sport: February 2011

michael ballack

michael ballack with his wife

michael ballack wallpapers

Rodriguez puts up this facade in public that he's this prim and proper guy, but then he goes around and does exactly the opposite, at least when - supposedly - no one has their eyes on him. Then he's shocked when people find out he's scumbag and he tries to play it off with another interview or some other PR-related BS. Am I really supposed to believe he only did steroids for those three years in Texas? And am I supposed to believe his admission was sincere? Hell no. This prick has never been truthful about anything in his life. I'm not even sure he himself knows who he is, since he's constantly trying to be two people at once.

So, needless to say, this story should come as no shock at all to you. As you know, Selena Roberts of SI broke the story about A-Rod doing steroids on Saturday February 7th. But she actually flew to Miami on February 4th to let A-Rod know she had the story done, which would soon be published, and she asked him if he would like to comment on it. His response was the memorable "You'll have to talk to the Union."

Alex Rodriguez pic

Alex Rodriguez smoking

Alex Rodriguez hit the baall

Alex Rodriguez with girl friend

Alex Rodriguez smile

Real Madrid will listen to offers for Kaká

Real Madrid's patience with Kaka is about to end and the white club has decided to listen to offers this summer due to his disappointing performance. Madrid see a shadow of the crack which cost 67 million euros and the last evidence was his poor performance in Riazor where the team, without Kaka in the field, improved significantly (he was replaced in 60 '). A Coruña was the second time Mou gave him the starter position in an away match, the other was in Almeria, two games in which Real Madrid lost four points ...

Kaka

Since he reappeared after his injury, January 3, has participated in 11 games playing only 438 minutes of the 1350' possible, 32.4 percent. He has scored two goals and it was unreleased in four major matches: the semifinals of Cup (Sevilla), League (Espanyol) and Champions (Lyon).

However, Kaka seems immune to criticism that raged: "I feel great. In Riazor I played in a different position than I was playing and I've been normal".

Kaka comes slowly to the exit door and England insist that Ancelotti is crazy to sign him. In return, according to the Daily Mirror, Chelsea would offer Drogba to lower the transfer.

Mourinho was angry with Kaka by walking out of the field when he sawhe was replaced. The coach was desperate and a camera caught him screaming at the Brazilian "Come here quickly¡" Kaka not fived Mourinho and went to the bench with his head down.

League (Day 25): Mourinho reactions

MOURINHO: "ONLY ONE TEAM HAS PLAYED TO WIN"

"Deportivo practically didn't touch the ball in the second half and we played against a goalkeeper and ten defenders. All that matters is the outcome, but I cannot criticize my players. One team played to win and the other worked very hard to take one point. The team that was after the point got what it wanted. I think it would have been fair had the match ended 0-1."

Jose Mourinho

"Deportivo can play however they want. I have nothing to say in that respect. I am sure they are pleased with the point. They played their match and worked hard. If they play this way in every match, I am sure they would be competing for a Europa League spot. Hats off to them, but there is no comparison with other matches."

"Seven points is a lot, but mathematics play an important role and we will continue as long as it's possible."

"I don't like to speak about the referee's performance. I don't know if it was a hand ball because I was too far to see it. In Lyon I did see it from a distance. There was no doubt in my mind. I didn't see this penalty as clearly. I spoke to the fourh referee about being more well-mannered with my players because he was speaking to them in a way that isn't normal."

"I will always try to defend the interests of Real Madrid and its fans. The schedule is decided by people who know what they are doing. Playing on Sunday would have been the normal thing to do. The people who drew up the calendar knew what they were doing. People laugh behind my back, but I will continue speaking out against a situation that is clear to everyone. It is something that is impossible to deny, but that's a whole other matter."

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League (Day 25): Players reactions

CASILLAS: "WE WERE SIMPLY UNLUCKY"

Iker Casillas

"We were simply unlucky. This is a setback because we weren't able to win. We tried hard and had our chances, especially in the second half. We also hit the post, but the ball didn't want to go int. That's football for you. We controlled the match, but if the ball doesn't go in, there is nothing we can do."

"Two matches later we find ourselves in the same situation. We must continue playing hard. There is no other option. Now me must focus on Malaga and not pay attention to what our rivals are doing. We don't control our own destiny, but we must win all our matches if we are to stand a chance of winning La Liga."

"This team has always fought and it will continue to do so until the end."

RAMOS: "THERE IS NO REASON TO BE UPSET WITH THE TEAM"

"There is no reason to be upset with the team. We went out their to win from the very start. We dominated the match in such a way that we deserved to win, but we were unable to score. We capitalized on the open space we had in the second half and we were more mobile, but we didn't score. It leaves a bad taste in our mouths after such an effort. La Liga is not lost; there are still a lot of matches left."

XABI ALONSO: "WE NEED TO WIN A LOT OF MATCHES"

"It's a shame. We had our chances, but the ball didn't want to go in. They are two valuable points that we are leaving here. We tried it every which way. You cannot lay blame on the team because we fought until the final whistle. Winning La Liga won't be easy, but a lot can change in football and we will not give up. We need to win a lot of matches."

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Spanish League: Day 25

DEPORTIVO 0 - REAL MADRID 0

Deportivo goalkeeper Aranzubia made 12 saves and Real Madrid sent two balls off the woodwork in what ended in a 0-0 draw for the Whites at Riazor.

Mesut Özil

Real knew they would be up against a defensive Depor side on Saturday. With that in mind, Benzema and Kaka were given the nod for kick-off. The Whites tried from the very get go, but were unable to elaborate plays with such suffocating defensive pressure. Although they had their chances throughout the first half, the first real opportunity came on 30’ when Ozil fire just wide of goal. Deportivo meanwhile didn’t try their luck once against Casillas.

With the second half under way, it was Aranzubia who stole the show. The keeper made one save after the next and came up huge against Cristiano Ronaldo and Di Maria, both of whom believed their shots had found the back of the net. Even when Aranzubia appeared to be bested by the Whites, it was the woodwork that denied them of glory. Adebayor’s shot on 78’ hit the near post and then deflected off the keeper for a corner kick. Two minutes later, Cristiano sent a rocket off the far post following a magical run.

Real Madrid tried every which way, but there was no answer. Benzema nearly tapped in what would have been the winner on 83’, but Deportivo managed to clear the ball. Mourinho put it all on the line with three changes that saw the back line reduced to three men, but it simply wasn’t the day. Time to begin preparing for Thursday’s match against Malaga at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Summary

Stadium: Riazor
Attendance: 35,000
Goals: -

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Tatiana Golovin

Tatiana Golovin (born January 25, 1988) is an inactive Russian-born French professional tennis player. She is best known for her explosive forehand, which is said to be one of the best at the time. She notably won the 2004 French Open mixed doubles event with Richard Gasquet, and reached the singles quarterfinal at the 2006 U.S. Open, losing to the eventual champion Maria Sharapova. The 23-year-old's highest singles ranking to date is 12. However, just as she began experiencing success, in 2008, she was diagnosed with a career threatening disease, Ankylosing spondylitis, and was forced to quit playing competitive tennis. Golovin spent six years at Nick Bollettieri's tennis camp in Bradenton, Florida. She is currently coached by former World No. 1 Mats Wilander, having previously been coached by Brad Gilbert and Dean Goldfine. Golovin made her ITF Circuit debut at Cagnes-sur-Mer (France) in 2002. She played in three more ITF events (including one semifinal) later that year, but she failed to qualify for the French Open. In 2003, Golovin won her first WTA Tour main draw match at Indian Wells against No.146 Gisela Dulko (losing in the second round to Italian Francesca Schiavone). Golovin lost in the first round at Miami, Strasbourg and Roland Garros. She also played in four ITF Circuit events.

At the Australian Open, Golovin (as No.354, with wild card) upset No.14 seed Anna Smashnova in the second round and No.23 seed Lina Krasnoroutskaya in the third round (on her 16th birthday), before falling to No.25 seed Lisa Raymond in the fourth round. It was just her second Grand Slam tournament and fifth Tour event she entered, and afterwards, on February 2, she rose to No.136 in the WTA ranking. At Roland Garros, Golovin won the mixed doubles trophy with Richard Gasquet, as a Wild Card team, defeating Cara Black/Wayne Black. They became the youngest champions in 23 years (16 for Golovin, 17 for Gasquet). At Wimbledon, she reached the fourth round, with wins over Alina Jidkova, Francesca Schiavone, and Emmanuelle Gagliardi, before falling to World No. 10 Serena Williams. Golovin reached the semifinal at the Paris Indoors, losing to Mary Pierce, after beating world No.10 Elena Dementieva in the quarterfinal for her first Top 10 win. In her first Tour grass court main draw at Birmingham, Golovin reached her first Tour singles final, which she lost to Maria Sharapova in 3 sets. Golovin reached her first Tier I quarterfinal in Montreal at the Rogers Cup, losing to Vera Zvonareva. Afterwards, she also reached the quarterfinal in Luxembourg, losing to eventual champion Alicia Molik. Golovin was a member of the France Fed Cup team, that defeated Italy in the quarterfinal and Spain in the semifinal, before falling to Russia in the final, in which she defeated No.5 Svetlana Kuznetsova. During the year, she debuted in the Top 100 on February 16 (at No.91), and in the Top 50 on June 14 (at No.50).

Aged 17 years and eight months, Golovin reached the final in Tokyo at the Japan Open as No. 3 seed, losing to No. 2 seed Nicole Vaidišová, aged 16 years and five months. Golovin retired with a left achilles tendinitis, trailing 7–6(4) 3–2. She was also five-time semifinalist on four different surfaces: on hardcourt at Gold Coast, losing to Schnyder in 3 sets and later that year again on hardcourt at Seoul, losing to Jelena Janković in three sets; on carpet at Paris Indoors, which was her second straight semifinalthere, losing the third set tie-break against Dinara Safina; clay at Charleston, where she secured her third career Top 10 victory versus No. 8 Venus Williams en route to her first Tier I semifinal, before falling to Justine Henin-Hardenne in 2 sets; and grass at Birmingham, losing to Maria Sharapova. Golovin also reached the quarterfinal at Linz losing to Ana Ivanović. She achieved a career-best performance at Roland Garros, reaching the third round as No.17 seed, before falling to No.12 seed Elena Bovina, and reaching an equal-best performance at the US Open, losing as No.23 seed in the third round to No.15 seed Nathalie Dechy in three sets. Golovin also made back-to-back fourth round appearances at Tier I hardcourt events in Indian Wells and Miami, losing to No.5 Elena Dementieva in three sets at both events. She made her Top 20 debut (at No.18) after her semi-final appearance at Charleston. At her first tournament of the year in Gold Coast, Golovin reached the quarterfinal, losing to finalist Flavia Pennetta in three sets. She then lost in the first round of the Australian Open to Italian Mara Santangelo. Golovin reached her third consecutive Paris Indoors semifinal, defeating Nadia Petrova 3–6, 7–6(7), 6–3 in the quarterfinal, saving match point down 7–6 in tie-break. The victory over world No. 7 Petrova was the fourth top 10 win of her career. She then lost to top seed and eventual champion Amélie Mauresmo 7–6(5) 5–7 2–6 in the semis, having held 4–2 second-set lead and a match point while serving for the match at 5–4.

Golovin reached her second career Tier I semifinal at Miami, where she defeated world No.8 Elena Dementieva in the fourth round for the fifth career top 10 victory and 100th career singles match win. In the semifinal, Golovin overcame a 5–1 deficit and four match points while down 5–3 in second set versus Maria Sharapova, pushing the match to a third set before she sprained her left ankle and retired at 3–6 7–6(5) 3–4. She made her return to the WTA Tour at Roland Garros, falling in the first round to Jie Zheng. Golovin went 2–1 in France's 3–2 Fed Cup World Group I Play-off victory over the Czech Republic. Golovin's third semifinal of the season was at Stanford, where, as an unseeded player, she upset Ai Sugiyama and Anna-Lena Grönefeld on the way, losing to No. 2 seed Patty Schnyder. Golovin then reached the quarterfinal of the U.S. Open, defeating Nadia Petrova for the second time in 2006 in the third round and Anna Chakvetadze in the fourth. She then lost to No. 3 seed and eventual champion Maria Sharapova 6–7(4), 6–7(0) in over two hours. After a first round exit in Luxembourg following the U.S. Open, Golovin reached her first final since the Japan Open Tennis Championships in 2005 at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart by defeating Elena Likhovtseva in the first round, Iveta Benešová in the second, Michaëlla Krajicek in the quarterfinal, and 5th seed Patty Schnyder in the semifinal. Golovin then lost to Nadia Petrova 3–6 6–7 in the final. At the Zürich Open, Golovin reached the second round, defeating Nicole Vaidišová (6–2, 6–0) in the first, before retiring with a foot injury against Maria Kirilenko while leading 4–2 in the fist set. Golovin started 2007 at the Hopman Cup in Perth, Australia, a non-Tour event. She won her first singles match, defeating American Ashley Harkleroad 6–3, 4–6, 6–2. She pulled out of the mixed doubles match with partner Jérôme Haehnel, citing an ankle injury. She then defeated Australian Alicia Molik, but then lost to Russian Nadia Petrova 7–6, 6–0. Her first event of the WTA season was the Medibank International held in Sydney. In the first round, she beat Peng Shuai 6–4, 7–5 before falling to the top seed Amélie Mauresmo in the second round 6–7(4), 7–5, 6–1.

At the Australian Open Golovin fell in the third round to 16th seed Shahar Pe'er in a three-hour match 3–6, 7–5, 7–5, who eventually made the quarterfinals. Her next event was the Paris Indoors, where she lost lost 6–2, 3–6, 6–3 in the third round to Justine Henin, who was playing her first tournament since she came back after her divorce. She lost. She beat Alizé Cornet and Ekaterina Bychkova prior to the meeting with Henin. At the 2007 Proximus Diamond Games held in Antwerp, she beat Katarina Srebotnik, fifth seed Patty Schnyder and Elena Likhovtseva en-route to the semifinals, where she lost to Belgian Kim Clijsters 6–4 6–3. In the Tier I Indian Wells, Golovin came in as the thirteenth seed. In the first round, she beat Aiko Nakamura 6–0, 7–5 and followed it up with a 6–2, 6–0 win over Samantha Stosur. During her fourth round match-up against Nadia Petrova, the Russian retired, trailing 6–2 1–0, allowing Golovin to set up a quarterfinal match-up with surprise quarterfinalist Sybille Bammer. Golovin was the heavy favourite for this match, however she eventually lost 6–2, 6–3. On April 8, 2007, Golovin won her first WTA title at the Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida, defeating Nadia Petrova 6–2, 6–1 on green clay. Along the way, she defeated Venus Williams in straight sets 6–2, 6–3 and Ana Ivanović in three sets. At Wimbledon, Golovin lost in the second round to 16-year-old, unseeded Tamira Paszek. This was considered to be a major upset. Golovin attracted attention from the media and Wimbledon officials by wearing bright red undergarments — prompting a check of the "predominantly white" rule. At the Acura Classic in California, she lost to top seed Sharapova in the third round with a score of 6–0, 6–3. Golovin returned to action at the Rogers Cup in Toronto, Canada where she reached the semifinals, eventually losing to Jelena Janković by a score of 5–7, 6–3, 6–2. She entered the 2007 U.S. Open Women's Singles event as the No. 17 seed, but was upset in the first round by American wildcard Ahsha Rolle. However, Golovin went on to win her second career title in Portorož, defeating home favourite Katarina Srebotnik 2–6, 6–4, 6–4 in the final. She then competed in Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, a tournament that had eight of the world's top 10 players entering. She equalled her previous year's finish, reaching the final and defeating number two seed Svetlana Kuznetsova 6–2, 6–4 in the semis. Despite taking the first set off Justine Henin, she lost the final 2–6, 6–2, 6–1. A fortnight later, Golovin had the chance to her avenge her loss to Henin at the 2007 Zürich Open. This was her first final in a Tier I tournament, however this time the impervious Henin beat her in straight sets, 6–4, 6–4.

Golovin started 2008 participating on the French team in the Hopman Cup in Perth, Australia. In her first match of the competition, Golovin defeated Gisela Dulko of Argentina 6–4 6–3. She then partnered with Arnaud Clément to defeat the team of Dulko and Juan Ignacio Chela. She won her second singles match over Serbia's Jelena Janković, after Janković suffered a strained muscle in her buttock after just one (albeit, high quality) game in the singles to hand Golovin the win. However, after scans cleared Janković of any serious damage, she came out for the doubles with Novak Đoković and after losing the first set, Serbia claimed the second and the third in a match tie-break to pull off a remarkable victory over Golovin and Clement. In their final tie, France defeated Chinese Taipei 3–0 with the then world No. 13 Golovin dominating to win her singles 6–1, 6–1. After Clement was successful for the first time in the singles, they teamed up to defeat Chinese Taipei 6–4 4–6 (10/3) in the doubles. Serbia's win over Argentina, however left Tatiana Golovin and Arnaud Clément just short of their country's first Hyundai Hopman Cup final and so France finished second in their group behind Serbia. Golovin entered January's Australian Open as the No.13 seed, her first top 16 and highest ever seeding in a slam but lost in the second round to French player, Aravane Rezaï, and this time was on the wrong side of a 3–6 6–3 3–6 scoreline. Golovin was then scheduled to represent France in the Fed Cup team competition versus China before going on to defend her semi-final points in Antwerp, Belgium. However, due to yet another injury for Golovin, this time to her back, she was forced to pull out of both competitions. A small consolation in this time period was the fact that, due to Nadia Petrova failing to defend her title at Paris in 2007, she climbed a spot to a career high ranking of 12. Golovin entered the Memphis tournament and was the second seed. However she lost in the first round to Bethanie Mattek easily, 6–4, 6–4. After missing a total of four successive months due to medical concern with her back, it appears that Golovin will not be playing anytime soon as she has pulled out of the 2008 Olympics and the 2008 U.S. Open. Golovin has now fallen to outside the top 200, at 251. It was revealed that she may have Ankylosing spondylitis, a form of arthritis. This may cause a variance in athletic performance.

Tatiana Golovin performance at field

Tatiana Golovin and her trophy

Tatiana Golovin sexy costume

Vera Zvonareva

Vera Igorevna Zvonareva (born September 7, 1984) is a professional tennis player from Russia. She was introduced to tennis at the age of six and turned professional in 2000. She has reached a career high ranking of World No. 2 and is currently ranked World No. 3 by the WTA. Zvonareva has won eleven WTA Tour singles titles and reached the finals of the 2008 WTA Tour Championships, 2010 Wimbledon Championships and 2010 US Open. She also was a bronze medalist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.Zvonareva was born September 7, 1984 in Moscow to Igor Zvonarev and Nataliya Zvonareva (née Bykova). Igor played Bandy in the USSR championship with Dynamo Moscow, while Nataliya played field hockey and was the bronze medalist at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. Vera was introduced to tennis at the age of six by her mother, although no other members of her family play tennis.Zvonareva started to compete on the ITF Circuit in 1999, debuting at an ITF tournament in Tbilisi, Georgia. She won three qualifying matches there to reach the main draw before losing in the first round. The next year, she won an ITF event in Moscow, Russia without dropping a set, despite being unranked. The event was just the second event she had played in her professional career. Five weeks later, she made her WTA-level debut at the Tier I tournament in Moscow, beating World No. 148 Elena Bovina before losing to World No. 11 Anna Kournikova in the second round. In 2001, she failed to qualify for WTA events in Key Biscayne, Florida and Moscow, but reached a semifinal at the ITF Circuit tournament in Civitanova, Italy. During this time, she also showed her adeptness in juniors' competition by winning the Orange Bowl under-18s event in 2000 and 2001.

Zvonareva won her second ITF Circuit title in Naples, Florida and in July reached her first singles final on the WTA Tour at Palermo, losing to Mariana Díaz-Oliva in three sets. She also achieved semifinal finishes in Warsaw and Sopot plus a quarterfinal finish in Bol. Zvonareva won three qualifying matches at the French Open to reach the main draw for the first time at a Grand Slam tournament. She lost there in the fourth round to eventual champion Serena Williams 4–6, 6–0, 6–1. Her ranking was high enough for a direct entry into Wimbledon where she lost in the second round to 23rd-seeded Iva Majoli 7–6(5), 6–2. At the US Open, Zvonareva lost to World No. 7 Kim Clijsters of Belgium in the third round 1–6, 7–5, 6–4. Her ranking rose into the top 100 after the French Open and into the top 50 after the US Open.Zvonareva won the title at the Tier III event in Bol, beating Conchita Martínez Granados in the final, and reached three other semifinals (including the Tier II event in Linz). She defeated a top 10 player for the first time when she beat World No. 10 Anastasia Myskina in Berlin. At the French Open, Zvonareva defeated World No. 3 Venus Williams in the fourth round before losing in the quarterfinals to World No. 76 Nadia Petrova. Her French Open results caused her ranking to enter the top 20. She reached the quarterfinals in six out of the seven Tier I events she contested. Her debut for the Russian Fed Cup team was in the World Group quarterfinals against Slovenia. Russia won 5–0 but lost to France 3–2 in the semifinals. In doubles, she reached her first WTA final at Moscow with Myskina. She ended the year ranked World No. 13.

Zvonareva won her first career Grand Slam title, winning the mixed doubles competition at the US Open. She won one singles title, in Memphis, Tennessee, and reached the final of the events in Cincinnati, Ohio and Philadelphia, losing to top ten players Lindsay Davenport and Amélie Mauresmo respectively. In the final of the Memphis event, Zvonareva trailed hometown favorite Lisa Raymond 5–2 in the third set before saving three match points and winning the last five games of the match to win the title 4–6, 6–4, 7–5.[3] In addition to this, she reached the semifinals of three Tier I tournaments in Rome, San Diego, and Montreal. She lost in San Diego to fellow Russian Anastasia Myskina, in a match that featured a final set tiebreak that finished 17–15. Zvonareva and Myskina teamed up in the final of the Fed Cup, playing in the crucial final rubber against Marion Bartoli and Émilie Loit, which the pair won 7–6(5), 7–5 to seal Russia's first ever Fed Cup title. Zvonareva ended the year ranked World No. 11, her best year-end ranking back then. In August, she reached her career high of World No. 9. Because of several withdrawals, Zvonareva was able to compete at the WTA Tour Championships, an event reserved for the top eight players in the world. She was unable to win a match and exited at the round robin stage. She defended her Memphis title in this year when she defeated Meghann Shaughnessy, but she was injured in the second half of 2005 (from June to December). Her ranking dropped from No. 11 to No. 42.In 2006, Zvonareva won her first regular doubles Grand Slam tournament in the US Open, partnering Nathalie Dechy of France. She obtained a second mixed doubles title at Wimbledon, in partnering Andy Ram of Israel. They defeated Americans Bob Bryan and Venus Williams 6–2, 6–3. She garnered some success in singles competition, winning two titles in a season for the first time in her career. This included her first tournament win on grass, at the DFS Classic in Birmingham, England. Her other title came in Cincinnati, where she played a nearly flawless match against Serena Williams in the semifinals, and beat Katarina Srebotnik in the final.

The 2007 season produced a year of mixed fortunes for Zvonareva. At the 2007 Pacific Life Open, she stunned World No. 1 Maria Sharapova, who was the defending champion, 4–6, 7–5, 6–1 in the fourth round. It was her first ever victory over a reigning World No. 1; however, she fell in the next round to Chinese player Li Na. At her next tournament, the Family Circle Cup, she was forced to retire when playing Dinara Safina and down a set, due to a left wrist injury. This injury kept her out of the European clay court season, the grass court season and most of the North American hardcourt season. Once returning to the tour, she reached the third round of the U.S. Open, losing to Serena Williams. At the remaining tournaments on her schedule, she reached the quarterfinals or better at four out of five, with semifinal finishes coming in Luxembourg and Quebec. Her one final came during the first week of the year, in Auckland, New Zealand. Zvonareva began the year by losing to wildcard Marina Erakovic, then ranked World No. 153, at the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand. She then reached the final of the Tier IV Moorilla Hobart International in Hobart, Australia, where she did not play the final against Eleni Daniilidou because of an ankle injury. This injury also forced her to retire in her first round match at the Australian Open against Ai Sugiyama while trailing 6–3, 1–1. Still playing on hard courts, she then reached the final of the Tier I Qatar Total Open in Doha, beating Dinara Safina, Sybille Bammer, and Li Na along the way. In the final against World No. 5 and fourth-seeded Maria Sharapova, Zvonareva lost in three sets. In March, at the Bangalore Open, Zvonareva lost in the quarterfinals to Venus Williams. Zvonareva then reached the quarterfinals of the Tier I Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California before losing to eventual champion Ana Ivanović 6–1, 6–4. Two weeks later, Zvonareva reached the semifinals of the Tier I Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida where she lost to fourth-seeded Jelena Janković 6–1, 6–4.

On clay, Zvonareva then reached her third final overall and second Tier I final of the year at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina. En route to the final, she defeated World No. 5 Janković and World No. 8 Elena Dementieva, the first time in her career that she defeated two top 10 players in the same tournament. In the final, she lost to fifth-seeded Serena Williams in three sets. In May, Zvonareva won her first WTA title in nearly two years. At the Tier IV ECM Prague Open, Zvonareva defeated third-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the final. This was her sixth career singles title. She then lost to Venus Williams in the third round of the Tier I Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome and to Dementieva in the fourth round of the French Open. On grass, Zvonareva lost her first match at the International Women's Open in Eastbourne, United Kingdom and her second round match with Tamarine Tanasugarn at Wimbledon. During the North American summer hardcourt season, commonly known as the US Open Series, she lost in the first round of the Bank of the West Classic in Stanford, California, the second round of the East West Bank Classic in Los Angeles, and the first round of the Tier I Rogers Cup in Montreal. At the Beijing Olympics, Zvonareva lost in the semifinals to fifth seeded Dementieva 6–3, 7–6(3) but then defeated Chinese player Li Na 6–0, 7–5 to win the bronze medal, her first medal of any kind. These results caused Zvonareva's ranking to rise to a career-high-equaling World No. 9. Two weeks later, Zvonareva was seeded eighth at the US Open but lost in the second round to Tatiana Perebiynis of Ukraine 6–3, 6–3. In September, Zvonareva helped Russia to victory against Spain in the final of the Fed Cup. Zvonareva won the opening match of the tie in Madrid, defeating Anabel Medina Garrigues 6–3, 6–4. At the Guangzhou International Women's Open, a Tier III event, she defeated Zheng Jie in straight sets in a semifinal before beating Peng Shuai in the final. She then reached the semifinals at the China Open in Beijing, losing a three-set match to top-seeded Janković. At the Tier II Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Zvonareva lost in the quarterfinals, again to Janković, 7–6(8), 7–6(5). In her hometown event, the Kremlin Cup in Moscow the week after, Zvonareva beat second-seeded Safina in straight sets in a semifinal but lost to Janković for the third time in three weeks in the final in straight sets. In a second round match against Medina Garrigues at the Zurich Open, Zvonareva retired from the match while trailing 6–3, 3–0. However, she then reached the final of the Generali Ladies Linz in Austria, beating Marion Bartoli in the semifinals 6–0, 6–1 before losing the final to Ivanović in straight sets, hitting 32 unforced errors.

Zvonareva was the seventh-seeded player at the Australian Open. She defeated tenth-seeded Nadia Petrova in the fourth round 7–5, 6–4 and sixteenth-seeded Marion Bartoli in the quarterfinals 6–3, 6–0. She then lost to World No. 3 Dinara Safina in the semifinals 6–3, 7–6. This tournament, however, caused Zvonareva's ranking to rise to World No. 5, the highest of her career. In February, she won the Pattaya Women's Open, an International Event in Thailand, where she defeated Sania Mirza in the final. She also played the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, a Premier 5 Event, where she defeated Marion Bartoli in the third round before losing to Virginie Razzano in the quarterfinals 7–6(7), 7–5. In March, Zvonareva was the fourth seed at the first Premier Mandatory event of the year, the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. She won the title, overcoming Santa Ana winds and defending champion Ana Ivanović in the final. In the doubles final, she and Victoria Azarenka beat fellow unseeded tandem Gisela Dulko and Shahar Pe'er. At the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, the second Premier Mandatory event of the year, Zvonareva beat Tathiana Garbin of Italy in the second round before being upset in the third round by Li Na of China 6–4, 3–6, 6–2. Zvonereva had beaten Li the previous week in the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open. At the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina, Zvonareva was the third seed and received a first round bye. She beat Rossana de los Ríos in the second round 6–3, 6–2. In the third round against Virginie Razzano, Zvonareva was forced to retire due to an ankle injury. Zvonareva torn two ligaments in her ankle, which later forced her to withdraw from Russia's Fed Cup tie with Italy. The ongoing ankle injury forced her to withdraw from the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome and the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open and ultimately the 2009 French Open.

At the 2010 Dubai Tennis Championships, Zvonareva defeated compatriot Elena Vesnina in three sets in the first round, and then following it up with a double bagel against qualifier Kirsten Flipkens. She then defeated Jelena Janković in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals, where she lost to Azarenka 6–1, 6–3. Despite being the defending champion at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, Zvonareva lost her 4th round match against Samantha Stosur 6–2, 7–5. With this loss, she fell out of the top 20. In the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open Zvonareva lost to Justine Henin 6–1, 6–4 in the fourth round after defeating Melanie Oudin and Sara Errani in straight sets. Her next tournament was the 2010 Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina where she was the 7th seed. She beat Melanie Oudin in straight sets 7–5, 6–2 in the quarterfinals. She advanced to her 2nd final of the year and 2nd Family Circle Cup final after top seed and World No.2 Caroline Wozniacki retired while trailing 5–2 in the semifinals due to a sprained ankle. Zvonareva was then overwhelmed in the final against Australian Samantha Stosur, losing 6–0, 6–3. Zvonareva's next tournament was the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, where, as the 15th seed, she lost surprisingly to Petra Kvitová, 6–4 6–0 in the second round. At the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open she lost to Venus Williams 7–5, 6–3 in the second round after defeating Melanie Oudin 6–3, 6–4. Zvonareva was seeded 21st at the 2010 French Open. She defeated Alberta Brianti in the first round, but was then upset by Anastasia Rodionova in the second round in straight sets. Zvonareva's next tournament was the 2010 AEGON International in England, where she lost to María José Martínez Sánchez in three tight sets 6–3, 3–6, 7–5 in the opening round. Zvonareva's first tournament after the US Open was the 2010 Toray Pan Pacific Open, where she was seeded 2nd. She advanced to the quarterfinals before falling to World No. 10 and 7th seeded Elena Dementieva. She then competed in the 2010 China Open, rallying from a set down against Kirilenko in the third round 5–7, 6–4, 6–2 and crushing French Open champion Schiavone 6–2, 6–0 in the quarterfinal. This was her tenth victory over the Italian in ten career meetings. This win ensured that Zvonareva will rise to World No. 3, a new career high record. She then defeated Li Na in the semifinals, before falling to top seeded Wozniacki in the final. Zvonareva qualified for the season ending 2010 WTA Tour Championships in Doha, Qatar, where she was the second seed. She was in the White Group with Kim Clijsters, Jelena Janković, and Victoria Azarenka. Zvonareva went 3–0 in her group and advanced to the semifinals, where she lost to Caroline Wozniacki. She finished the year's season ranked number 2.

At the 2011 Hong Kong Tennis Classic, Zvonareva joined Russia's group and won in the final against Europe. As the second seed at the 2011 Medibank International Sydney, Zvonareva received a bye into the second round, where she was defeated by Flavia Pennetta 5-7, 5-7. Zvonareva was seeded No. 2 at the 2011 Australian Open in singles. She defeated Sybille Bammer 6–2, 6–1 in the first round breaking Sybille Bammer 4 consecutive times. Zvonareva defeated unseeded Bojana Jovanovski in the second round 2–6, 6–3, 6–1. In the third round Zvonareva defeated No. 31 seed Lucie Šafářová in straight sets 6–3, 7–6(9). Zvonareva defeated unseeded Iveta Benešová in the round of 16, 6–4 6-1. She then defeated No. 25 seed Petra Kvitová in the quarterfinal 6–2, 6–4. In the semifinal she was defeated by No. 3 seed Kim Clijsters and winner of the 2011 Australian Open 3–6, 3–6. In the doubles competition she was seeded No. 13 with her partner Elena Vesnina. In the first round they defeated the unseeded pair Monique Adamczak and Isabella Holland of Australia, but were defeated in the second round by unseeded pair Chuang Chia-jung and Hsieh Su-wei. At the 2011 PTT Pattaya Open, Zvonareva was the top seed and was seeking her third consecutive title and second title defense. She defeated Tamira Paszek 6-4, 6-2 in the first round, qualifier Nungnadda Wannasuk 6-1, 7-5 in the second round, and Peng Shuai 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Zvonareva was upset by the No. 4 seed Daniela Hantuchová 6(3)-7, 4-6. As the second seed at the 2011 Dubai Tennis Championships, Zvonareva received a bye into the second round. There, she defeated Roberta Vinci 6-3, 6-1. In the third round, she was upset by the No. 15 seed Alisa Kleybanova 3-6, 2-6. Zvonareva picked up her first title of 2011 in late February at the 2011 Qatar Ladies Open. She was the No. 2 seed, receiving a bye into the second round, where she defeated Dominika Cibulková 6-1, 6-2. In the quarterfinals, she defeated Daniela Hantuchová 7-5, 6(5)-7, 7-5 in a match lasting over three hours after trailing 5-4 in the third set. She defeated former world No. 1 Jelena Janković 6-1, 2-6, 6-4 in the semifinals, and current world No. 1 and top seed Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-4 in the final. It was Zvonareva's first title in over a year.

Yanina Wickmayer

Yanina Wickmayer (born 20 October 1989 in Lier, Belgium) is a Belgian professional tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 25. She rose to prominence with her semi-final appearance at the 2009 US Open. She is noted for her distinctive "whoopee" scream every time she hits the ball. She is a baseline player who is mentally very strong on court, and has been known to say she does not consider herself to be very talented.Wickmayer's mother died at an early age. Her father's name is Marc Wickmayer, of Austrian origin. Her name was inspired by the name of former Argentine soccer player Diego Armando Maradona's daughter. Yanina speaks Dutch, English and French. She personally admires Kim Clijsters.Wickmayer obtained her first real successes: 3 singles ITF titles and 2 ITF doubles (see below).Wickmayer continued her success on the ITF circuit by winning several tournaments in Asia during the fall season (see external links). It was around this time that Wickmayer surpassed Caroline Maes as the number two Belgian female tennis player. At the start of the year, Wickmayer was number 534 in the world but by November 2007 was around number 170. Wickmayer has now won 8 singles titles and 7 doubles titles on the ITF circuit. She was also selected by team captain Sabine Appelmans to represent the Belgium Fed Cup team at the 2007 Fed Cup. She lost to Venus Williams 6–1, 6–2 in her World Group match before winning one rubber and losing the other against Chinese opposition.

In the 2008 Fed Cup tie versus Ukraine, Wickmayer sprung a surprise victory over reigning Australian Open women's doubles champion Kateryna Bondarenko. Wickmayer qualified in singles for the French Open, but lost 2–6, 5–7 in the first round to Akgul Amanmuradova of Uzbekistan. She reached the final of the DFS Classic, but lost 6–7, 6–3, 6–7 to Kateryna Bondarenko of Ukraine. At Wimbledon she lost in the first round to Japan's Ai Sugiyama 6–4, 6–2. Wickmayer started the year with first round losses in both Brisbane and the Australian Open. She won her first tour match of the year at Indian Wells, defeating Magdaléna Rybáriková 6–3, 6–2. She lost to Daniela Hantuchová in the second round, despite holding two match points. She then lost her first round matches in Miami, and Charleston. Wickmayer won her first ever WTA Tour singles title, in Estoril. She beat 3rd seed Sorana Cîrstea 6–4, 1–6, 6–4, en route to the final, where she defeated Ekaterina Makarova 7–5, 6–2. At the 2009 French Open, she was beaten by Samantha Stosur in the second round 6–3, 4–6, 6–4.

Wickmayer lost to a newly returned Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals at the 2009 AEGON Classic in Birmingham, UK 6–1, 2–6, 6–3. At the 2009 Ordina Open, Wickmayer reached both the singles final and the doubles final, losing to Tamarine Tanasugarn in the singles final. The doubles final was a close contest, she lost in three sets to an Italian pairing. At Wimbledon, she lost in the first round to Elena Vesnina. During the summer hard court season, Wickmayer reached the third round in Los Angeles, losing to Vera Zvonareva. She was defeated in the early rounds of her three other summer tournaments. At the 2009 U.S. Open, Wickmayer defeated a seeded Virginie Razzano in the first round. In the second round she recovered from a set down to beat Shuai Peng in three sets. In the third round Wickmayer dispatched Italian Sara Errani 6–3, 6–4. In the fourth round Wickmayer defeated Petra Kvitová 4-6, 6-4, 7–5 to reach the quarterfinals where she beat Kateryna Bondarenko 7–5, 6–4 to reach the semifinals before losing to Caroline Wozniacki 6–3, 6–3. With this semifinal finish, Yanina reached a career high no. 22. Wickmayer fell in the first round in Beijing, to Alisa Kleybanova. She has qualified for the year-end championships in Bali. Her next tournament was in Linz. She won through to the semis, where she upset top seed Flavia Pennetta, for her biggest career win. She beat Petra Kvitová in the final 6–3, 6–4, and as a result made it into the Top 20 for the first time. One week later at the 2009 BGL Luxembourg Open she won through to the semi-finals, where she was edged by Timea Bacsinszky 3–6, 6–2, 7–5.

Her last tournament of the year was at the year-end championships in Bali. Drawn into Group C, she defeated Kimiko Date Krumm in her first match in straight sets: 7–6(5), 6–3. She was supposed to face Anabel Medina Garrigues next but was disqualified from the tournament due to doping allegations. This was her last tournament of 2009. On 1 October 2009, it was announced that Wickmayer and fellow Belgian tennis professional Xavier Malisse were to defend themselves before the Flemish anti-doping tribunal for failing to properly fill out their whereabouts. Wickmayer replied in a press release that the failure to follow procedure was due to her not being able to log on to the relevant website, not being able to contact the right people when needed, and not being in the country when written admonitions arrived by mail. At the tribunal on 22 October 2009 the prosecution did not ask for a ban, but rather for a "principal restraint" of the facts that they were being accused of, and as such it was expected that this would not cause any problems for both sporters. However, on 5 November 2009 the decision of the tribunal was announced, an effective one-year ban for both players. Wickmayer as well as Malisse appealed the final decision, and her ban was lifted on 16 December 2009 after the appeal was granted.
Yanina accepted a wildcard into the first tournament of the year, the ASB Classic in Auckland. Seeded third, she defeated first seed Flavia Pennetta in the final, winning the tournament without dropping a set. This title was her first title of the year and third of her career.

Due to her suspension being lifted after the deadline for the Australian Open, Yanina was forced to enter the qualifying draw. After a nervous first round qualifying, she easily won through to the main draw. Being a dangerous floater, she drew Alexandra Dulgheru first round. In a match that included numerous rain delays, she prevailed 1–6 7–5 10–8. Yanina defeated two Italian players, the 12 seed, Flavia Pennetta and Sara Errani in the second and third round respectively, but lost in three sets to Justine Henin in the fourth round. Despite the loss she moved up to a career-high of no.15. Wickmayer was selected to represent Belgium at the World Group II Fed Cup tie against Poland. Wickmayer won both her rubbers against Marta Domachowska and Agnieszka Radwańska, thus allowing Kirsten Flipkens to secure the tie for Belgium with a win against Domachowska, to advance to the World Group Playoff. In her next two tournaments, the Open GDF Suez tournament in Paris and the 2010 Dubai Tennis Championships in Dubai, Wickmayer lost in first-round matches – in Paris to Petra Martić; and in Dubai to Shahar Pe'er. She fared better in the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, where she won two matches before losing in the round of sixteen to María José Martínez Sánchez of Spain, who had upset sixth seed Victoria Azarenka in the previous round. She then travelled to Miami for the Premier Mandatory Sony Ericsson Open. Seeded 12th, in the fourth round she thrashed Timea Bacsinszky 6–0 6–1. Despite losing 6–4 7–5 to Marion Bartoli in a close quarterfinal match, her strong performance has brought her to a new career-high ranking of World no. 13, moving to 12 without playing the next week. She was again selected to represent Belgium at the Fed Cup World Group Playoff tie against Estonia. When Kim Clijsters and Yanina won their singles rubbers on Saturday, Belgium was in a comfortable lead. However, Clijsters had injured her foot, and had to be replaced by Justine Henin, who herself had been injured earlier that week. Henin lost her rubber, so it fell on Yanina to bring home the tie during the fourth, which she did in three sets: 2–6, 6–1, 6–1. At the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix held in Stuttgart, Yanina moved to the 2nd round before falling for the 2nd consecutive time to fellow Belgium and former World No. 1 Justine Henin 6–3, 7–5. Her next tournament was the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, where she was seeded 11th. She defeated Karolina Šprem and Aravane Rezaï in the first two rounds before losing to 7th seeded Jelena Janković in the third round, 6–2 6–0. As she was defending the points for her 2009 Estoril win during this week, but lost too early in the tournament, this week marked the first in a long time when she lost ranking points.

She pulled out of her next tournament, citing a right elbow injury, and underwent surgery. Though Roland Garros was only two weeks later, she managed to be fit in time, and played there as 16th seed. She defeated Sandra Záhlavová in the first round 6–1, 6–1 and Sybille Bammer 7–6(4), 1–6, 7–5 before falling to Daniela Hantuchová 7–5, 6–3; despite her recent injury, this was her best French Open performance so far. Yanina reached the quarterfinals in Birmingham where she lost to qualifier Alison Riske. The next week she had 200 ranking points to defend from her 2009 's-Hertogenbosch final. She decided to play in Eastbourne however, where she wasn't seeded due to the strong players field. She lost to fifth seed Kim Clijsters, 6–1 6–1. Yanina defeated Riske in a tough first round match at the Wimbledon Championships, her first Wimbledon main draw win. She reached the third round after defeating compatriot Kirsten Flipkens, but lost to no. 21 seed Vera Zvonareva. The day before their second round match, Flipkens and Yanina played doubles together, which they lost. Yanina also lost her first mixed doubles match with Dick Norman. After Wimbledon she will rise to No. 16 once again, the third Belgian after Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin. At the 2010 Bank of the West Classic, Wickmayer fell to top seed Sam Stosur in the quarterfinals. She was seeded 8th at the 2010 Mercury Insurance Open, but fell to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the first round. Wickmayer was seeded 15th at the 2010 US Open, with semifinal ranking points to defend. She advanced to the 4th round, before falling in three sets to 31st seed Kaia Kanepi. Wickmayer returned to Auckland to defend her 2010 championship. Seeded second, she started well with a tough three-set first-round victory over Dinara Safina, 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-1. She made it to the final after defeating Peng Shuai, but lost in the final to Gréta Arn, 3-6, 3-6. Wickmayer was seeded 21st at the 2011 Australian Open. She won her first match against Australian Jarmila Groth 6–3, 2–6, 6–4, but lost in the second round to Lativan Anastasija Sevastova 4–6, 2–6. Next, Wickmayer reached the quarterfinals of the 2011 Open GDF Suez, where she lost to Petra Kvitová in a tight three-sets match, 7-5, 3-6, 6-7(3). At the Dubai Free Open she defeated Bojana Jovanovski and Na Li in three sets, the latter after saving four consecutive match points in the second set tiebreak. She lost to Shahar Peer in the third round, 6-3, 4-6, 1-6.