Jerzy Janowicz fell to the court, held his head in his hands and wept as if he had just won Wimbledon.
The 21-year-old Polish qualifier actually had saved a match point and shocked third-ranked Andy Murray, this year's U.S. Open and Olympic champion, 5-7, 7-6 (4), 6-2 Thursday in the third round of the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris.
"This was the most unbelievable day in my life," the 6-foot-8 Janowicz told reporters. "I beat Olympic champion, U.S. Open champion. Unbelievable feeling for me. Still, I have feeling like in few minutes I'm going to wake up and it's going to be everything gone.
"I don't know actually what I supposed to say because it's really hard to describe this feeling. It's not easy for me to talk about this week, because I had really tough moments in my life. This is like a movie for me."
Janowicz's parents, former professional volleyball players, sold shops and apartments they owned to help his career.
"I'm from Poland, and I know it's not easy to become professional tennis player," he said. "Actually, I have problem with sponsors. I was fighting my whole life with money, so this week is really important for me to get some sponsors, to get some help."
Janowicz is ranked 69th after beginning the year at No. 221. He has beaten three top-20 players in the BNP Paribas Masters -- No. 19 Philipp Kohlschreiber, No. 15 Marin Cilic and No. 3 Murray -- and will meet No. 9 Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia in today's quarterfinals. The match will begin at about 4 p.m. Paris time (8 a.m. California time, Tennis Channel).
Murray, 25, won the first two of his 24 career singles titles at the 2006 and 2007 SAP Open in San Jose. His loss in Paris leaves the tournament with none of the Big Four.
No. 1 Roger Federer withdrew to rest for next week's ATP World Tour Finals in London. No. 2 Novak Djokovic fell to Sam Querrey on Wednesday, and No. 4 Rafael Nadal has been out with knee tendinitis since losing in the second round of Wimbledon to Lukas Rosol.
Querrey, a 25-year-old San Francisco native and part-time member of the Sacramento Capitals of World TeamTennis this year, beat 14th-seeded Milos Raonic 6-3, 7-6 (1). Raonic, 21, will seek his third straight SAP Open singles crown in February, when the tournament will be held for the 125th and last time before moving to Rio de Janeiro.
Querrey will face Michael Llodra, a 32-year-old French wild card, today at about 9:30 p.m. Paris time (1:30 p.m. California time). Lodra upset seventh-seeded Juan Martin del Potro, the 2009 U.S. Open champion coming off titles in Vienna and Basel in the previous two weeks, 6-4, 6-3.
Del Potro toppled Federer, the hometown favorite, in the Basel final to snap a seven-match losing streak to the Swiss star. Del Potro also victimized Federer for his only Grand Slam title.
In doubles, Paul Hanley and Wimbledon champion Jonathan Marray surprised top-ranked Bob and Mike Bryan, former NCAA champions from Stanford, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 10-5 tiebreak to reach the quarterfinals. The 34-year-old Bryan twins won the Paris title in 2005 and 2007.
Capitals -- Kolleen McNamee has been named the general manager of the Capitals, the team announced.
McNamee, formerly the athletic director at St. Francis High School in Sacramento, has been involved in sports as a player, coach or adminstrator for 35 years. She played soccer at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo and was inducted in the school's Hall of Fame in 2004.
McNamee replaces Jayna Osborne, the wife of 74-year-old Capitals co-owner Ramey Osborne. Jayna took over in June after 28-year-old Matt McEvoy left to run the Frys.com Open, a PGA Tour event in the Silicon Valley.
The Capitals have won a record six WTT titles, most recently in 2007. They lost to the Washington Kastles in this year's WTT Finals, 20-19.
Veteran journalist Paul Bauman, based in Sacramento, covers Northern California professional, collegiate and junior tennis. Contact him at norcaltennisczar@gmail.com and follow him on Bluesky @paulbauman.bsky.com.
Showing posts with label Osborne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Osborne. Show all posts
Friday, November 2, 2012
Monday, July 9, 2012
Loaded on men's side, Capitals to open season
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| No. 13-ranked Mardy Fish, left, is scheduled to play home matches for the Sacramento Capitals on Thursday and Friday. Fish is shown with friend and doubles partner Andy Roddick at Indian Wells in March. Photo by Paul Bauman |
Not so with Jean-Julien Rojer.
Although Rojer has some impressive credentials, it turned out to be a lucky break for the Sacramento Capitals when he withdrew from World TeamTennis in May.
The 30-year-old veteran from the Netherlands Antilles in the Caribbean Sea is ranked 20th in the world in men's doubles after reaching a career-high No. 17 last August. Since the beginning of May, Rojer and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi of Pakistan have won two titles on the ATP World Tour (on clay and grass) and reached the French Open semifinals.
Also, Rojer was named the WTT Male Rookie of the Year last year after helping the St. Louis Aces edge the Capitals 20-19 in the Western Conference finals. St. Louis, which folded during the offseason, then lost to the undefeated Washington Kastles in the WTT Finals.
Indeed, Rojer and 40-year-old Mark Knowles, both ex-UCLA stars, would have formed an excellent pair for Sacramento. Knowles was ranked No. 1 in men's doubles at various times from 2002 to 2005 and won the SAP Open in San Jose in February with Xavier Malisse.
But the Capitals, who open their 27th season today at Boston, drafted Rojer in the second round in March to play singles in addition to doubles. Rojer, who hasn't played singles regularly since 2006, ultimately balked.
Rojer's defection, though, allowed Sacramento to sign the towering trio of 6-foot-8 Kevin Anderson, 6-6 Sam Querrey and 6-5 Ryan Sweeting to split men's singles and doubles duties with marquee player Mardy Fish.
All four players have won singles titles on the ATP World Tour, the major leagues of men's tennis. All but Sweeting have been ranked in the top 30 in the world in singles and are accomplished doubles players.
Sweeting climbed to a career-high No. 64 in singles last year and won the 2005 U.S. Open boys singles title. However, he is 0-5 in doubles on the ATP circuit this year and 7-26 in his career.
"We're much stronger and happier with our new (men's) lineup," conceded Ramey Osborne, who returned as a Capitals co-owner last winter after 12-year hiatus. " ... It worked out to be a blessing."
Except for the expense, which Osborne admitted is a "huge" concern.
"Our salaries are doubled over last year," he said, adding that league rules prohibit him from elaborating.
Still, Osborne didn't hesitate to sign the 13th-ranked Fish for two matches (Thursday and Friday at 7:35 p.m. at Sunrise Mall), Querrey for five, Anderson for four and Sweeting for three.
"We wanted to put the best product we could out there," Osborne said.
Osborne, who will turn 74 on July 20, and Deepal Wannakuwatte bought the team from Bob Cook, a local real estate developer who filed for personal bankruptcy last August. During Osborne's first stint (1988-99), the Capitals won the first three of their record six WTT championships. The team's last title came in 2007 on its home court. Sacramento finished 8-6 in the 2011 regular season after going 6-8 and missing the playoffs in each of the two previous years. The Capitals' only other losing season, in which they also finished 6-8, came in 1991.
Knowles, a three-time WTT Male MVP and Fish's coach, will return for his 11th season with the Capitals.
So will coach Wayne Bryan, the father of doubles stars Bob and Mike Bryan.
"I have a tremendous amount of respect for (Wayne Bryan), more so than before," Osborne said. "I didn't realize how much time and effort he puts into tennis and the Capitals."
Sacramento's women are not as strong as its men, which could be especially damaging. It's more difficult for men to break serve and create gaps in the scoring against each other because of their greater power and the abbreviated format in team tennis (no-ad scoring, sets up to five games and tiebreakers at 4-4 in sets).
Five-foot-10 Yasmin Schnack, a former UCLA All-American ranked No. 145 in doubles and No. 455 in singles, will come back after a solid rookie season with her hometown Capitals. Asia Muhammad, ranked No. 187 in doubles and No. 480 in singles, will play her first full season in WTT after serving as a substitute for Philadelphia in 2009.
Muhammad and Schnack won the doubles title in the $50,000 USTA Gold River Women's Challenger last month at the Gold River Racquet Club, the Capitals' home during Osborne's first tenure as a co-owner.
CoCo Vandeweghe, the 20-year-old niece of former NBA star Kiki Vandeweghe, will join the Capitals for their last five regular-season matches and, if they qualify, for the Sept. 14-16 playoffs. Vandeweghe, 6-foot-1, played for Sacramento as a WTT rookie in 2009 and for Boston the past two seasons. She is ranked No. 120 in singles after climbing to a career-high No. 89 in April 2011.
Half of Sacramento's regular roster in 2011, Vania King and Dusan Vemic, did not return after two years with the team. King, the 2009 WTT Female MVP for Springfield (Mo.), tried to make the U.S. Olympic team but fell short and will play on the regular tour instead. The Capitals chose not to bring back the flashy but inconsistent Vemic, who turned 36 last month.
Visiting marquee players will be ex-Capital Lindsay Davenport, formerly ranked No. 1 in singles and doubles, of the Orange County Breakers on July 24 and two-time Grand Slam singles runner-up Mark Philippoussis of Philadelphia on July 27.
Federer regains top ranking -- Roger Federer returned to No. 1 in the world Monday for the first time in two years after winning his record-tying seventh Wimbledon singles title.
Federer, who had been No. 3, defeated Andy Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 Sunday to tie the mark held by William Renshaw of the late 1800s and Pete Sampras. Federer also tied Sampras' record of 286 weeks at No. 1.
At 30 years and 335 days, Federer is the second-oldest man to hold the No. 1 ranking. Andre Agassi was 33 years and 131 days old when he returned to the top in June 2003.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal each dropped one spot to No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.
Wimbledon -- Second-seeded Mike Bryan and Lisa Raymond of the United States won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title Sunday, defeating fourth-seeded Leander Paes of India and Elena Vesnina of Russia 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.
It was the third Grand Slam mixed doubles title for Bryan, who won the 1998 NCAA men's doubles crown as a Stanford sophomore with twin brother Bob, and Raymond. They won the 2002 U.S. Open and 2003 French Open.
Paes and Vesnina also lost in the Australian Open final, falling to Horia Tecau of Romania and Bethanie Mattek-Sands of Phoenix. Paes has won six Grand Slam mixed doubles titles, the last one coming two years ago at Wimbledon with Cara Black of Zimbabwe.
Bank of the West Classic at Stanford -- Wild card Jana Juricova, making her professional debut after finishing her eligibility at Cal, upset fourth-seeded Alexa Glatch of Newport Beach 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 Sunday to advance to the main draw of the Bank of the West Classic.
Juricova, who won the 2011 NCAA singles title at Stanford and the 2009 NCAA doubles crown with Mari Andersson, will meet eighth-seeded Marina Erakovic of New Zealand on Tuesday in the first round.
Erakovic reached the Bank of the West quarterfinals as a qualifier last year, stunning top seed and defending champion Victoria Azarenka in the second round. Azarenka proceeded to win the Australian Open in January for her first Grand Slam title
Vandeweghe, seeded second in qualifying, lost to fifth-seeded Noppawan Lertcheewakarn of Thailand 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 in the last round but advanced to the main draw when Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia withdrew with an undisclosed injury. Vandeweghe will face unseeded Melinda Czink of Hungary in tonight's second match.
Among Saturday's first-round losers in qualifying were Raquel Kops-Jones, the 2003 NCAA doubles champion with Cal teammate and Sacramento native Christina Fusano, and current Stanford players Kristie Ahn and Ellen Tsay.
Women's Challenger in Denver -- Qualifier Nicole Gibbs, who swept the NCAA singles and doubles titles in May as a Stanford sophomore, subdued unseeded Julie Coin of France 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 to win the $50,000 Colorado International.
It was the 19-year-old Gibbs' first Challenger singles crown. She won the singles championship at a $10,000 tournament in Mexico City at 14 in 2007 and the doubles title at a $50,000 event in Raleigh, N.C., in 2010 with Ahn.
Gibbs, a wild card in the Bank of the West Classic, will play Lertcheewakarn, the 2009 Wimbledon girls champion, on Tuesday for the right to play top seed and defending champion Serena Williams late Wednesday afternoon. Williams, who won her fifth Wimbledon singles title Saturday, received a first-round bye.
Men's Challenger in Winnetka, Ill. -- Unseeded Americans Devin Britton and Jeff Dadamo, the singles finalists in last month's Sacramento Challenger, beat top-seeded Australians John Peers and John-Patrick Smith 1-6, 6-2, 10-6 tiebreak to capture the doubles title of the $50,000 Nielsen Pro Tennis Championships.
Britton, the 2009 NCAA singles champion as a freshman at Mississippi, saved two match points to beat Dadamo, who won last year's NCAA doubles crown as a senior at Texas A&M, 2-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2 at the Park Terrace Swim & Tennis Club.
Smith, a qualifier who recently completed his eligibility after an All-America career at Tennessee, won his first Challenger singles title. He saved two match points to nip seventh-seeded Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (3) for his third victory over a top-200 player in the tournament.
Trivia time -- Not only have the last two NCAA women's champions in singles come from Stanford or Cal, so have the last four in doubles.
Since Andersson and Juricova triumphed in 2009, Stanford teams have prevailed: Hilary Barte and Lindsay Burdette in 2010, Barte and Mallory Burdette in 2011, and Mallory Burdette and Gibbs this year.
CALENDAR
Today -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, first round, 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. www.bankofthewestclassic.com. World TeamTennis, Sacramento Capitals' season opener at Boston, 4 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
West Coast Junior Championships, quarterfinals and semifinals, Rio del Oro Racquet Club, 119 Scripps Dr., Sacramento, www.norcal.usta.com.
Tuesday -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, first round, 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. www.bankofthewestclassic.com.
Capitals at Philadelphia, 4 p.m. http://www.saccaps.com/.
West Coast Junior Championships, finals, Rio del Oro Racquet Club, 119 Scripps Dr., Sacramento, www.norcal.usta.com.
Wednesday -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, second round, 11 a.m. and not before 8 p.m. Exhibition match, Pete Sampras vs. Michael Chang, 7 p.m. www.bankofthewestclassic.com.
Thursday -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, second round, 11 a.m. and not before 8 p.m. Exhibition match, Sampras vs. Jim Courier, 7 p.m. www.bankofthewestclassic.com.
2012 Northern California Tennis Hall of Fame Brunch and Induction Ceremony (Nick Saviano, Andrea Norman, Steve Cornell and Martha Downing), Stanford, Pac 12 Plaza/Cardinal Plaza, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., tickets $75 each at http://www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=230538.
Capitals' home opener (with Mardy Fish) vs. Kansas City, Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., www.saccaps.com.
Friday -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, quarterfinals, noon and 7 p.m. Exhibition match, Chang vs. Courier, not before 8 p.m. www.bankofthewestclassic.com.
Capitals (with Fish) vs. Orange County, Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
Saturday -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, semifinals, 1 and 7 p.m. www.bankofthewestclassic.com.
Capitals at Orange County, 7 p.m.
Sunday -- WTA, Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, singles final at 1 p.m., doubles final to follow. www.bankofthewestclassic.com.
July 16 -- Capitals (with Sam Querrey) vs. New York, Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
July 18 -- Capitals at Washington, 4:10 p.m.
July 19 -- Capitals at Springfield, 5:05 p.m.
July 20 -- Capitals at Kansas City, 5:35 p.m.
July 22 -- Springfield at Capitals (with Querrey, Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
July 24 -- Orange County (with Lindsay Davenport) at Capitals (with Kevin Anderson, Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
July 25 -- Capitals (with Vandeweghe) at Orange County, 7 p.m.
July 27 -- Philadelphia (with Mark Philippoussis) at Capitals (with Anderson, Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
July 28 -- Boston at Capitals (with Anderson, Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
July 28-Aug. 5 -- OLYMPIC TENNIS TOURNAMENT, Wimbledon, www.london2012.com.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Capitals likely to draft two new singles players
INDIAN WELLS -- Ramey Osborne knows all about building a World TeamTennis champion.
Even though Sacramento made considerable progress last season, Osborne has his hands full in his first year back as a Capitals owner. The Summer Olympics in London complicate matters.
Osborne and Deepal Wannakuwatte bought the team last December from real estate developer Bob Cook, who had filed for bankruptcy with debts of $48 million. Under Osborne's previous ownership from 1988 to 1999, the Capitals won the first three of their four straight WTT titles (1997-2000).
"I forgot how hard it is and how stressful it is," Osborne, the president of a real estate company in the Sacramento suburb of Gold River and a member of the Sacramento Tennis Hall of Fame, said Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open. "I'm 73 years old, and I've never encountered anything with so many moving parts. You have very little control over most of them."
Half of the regular roster, longtime doubles star Mark Knowles and Sacramento-area resident Yasmin Schnack, will return for the July 9-28 regular season (see schedule below), Osborne said. But he must replace Vania King, the team's foundation since being acquired from the Springfield (Mo.) Lasers in a draft day trade two years ago, for all or part of the season. Also, Osborne said he does not plan to protect Dusan Vemic, 35, in Tuesday's WTT roster draft.
The Capitals have the seventh pick in the eight-team draft after tying for first place in the Western Conference at 8-6 last season and losing to the St. Louis Aces 20-19 in the conference finals. The Aces folded during the offseason.
"We hope to find two new singles players," Osborne said. "If we pick up a really good women's doubles player, Yasmin (also) will play singles."
The Capitals selected Mardy Fish, the top-ranked American man in the world at No. 8 in the world, in last month's marquee draft. He is scheduled to play home matches for the Capitals on July 12 and 13.
King, a two-time Grand Slam women's doubles champion and the 2009 WTT Female MVP, said this week at the BNP Paribas Open that she will skip the Capitals' season if she qualifies to play in the Olympics.
Eligibility for the July 28-Aug. 5 tennis event in London will be based on the June 11 world rankings in singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
Even if King does not qualify for the Games, the 23-year-old Long Beach product will play only a partial season for the Capitals, Osborne said. He added that he does not know how many of the team's 14 regular-season matches King would play. She missed the first week last season to rest after Wimbledon but finished third among nine regulars in women's singles (33-28 record in games, .541), third of 19 in women's doubles (38-22, .633) and seventh of 19 in mixed doubles (37-30, .552).
Vemic finished third among 10 regulars in singles (51-45, .531) but last among 18 in men's doubles (41-54, .432) in 2011, his second season with the Capitals and sixth in WTT. He has not played on the tournament circuit since early last August. Osborne would not say whom the Capitals might draft to replace Vemic.
Knowles, 40, will return for his 11th season with the Capitals. The former world No. 1 in doubles has won three WTT Male MVP awards. Last year, Knowles oddly finished 17th of 18 regulars in WTT men's doubles (48-62, .436) but eighth of 19 in mixed doubles (56-47, .544). Since then, he was won two doubles titles on the ATP World Tour (both with Xavier Malisse of Belgium), including last month in San Jose.
Schnack, a 23-year-old Elk Grove resident, performed well as a WTT rookie last year. The former UCLA All-American finished fifth of 19 regulars in women's doubles (59-44, .573) and went 16-15 (.516) filling in for King in women's singles.
Also returning for his 11th season with the Capitals will be coach Wayne Bryan, Osborne said.
King, Querrey advance -- Eighth-seeded Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany and King edged Chia-Jung Chuang of Taiwan and Galina Voskoboeva of Kazakhstan 7-5, 3-6, 11-9 tiebreak in the first round as glorious weather returned to Indian Wells.
King said her regular partner, Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan, did not come to Indian Wells because she's focusing on singles but was not ranked high enough to get into the qualifying draw. They won the Wimbledon and U.S. Open women's doubles titles in 2010 and reached last year's final at Flushing Meadows, losing to Americans Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond 4-6 7-6(5) 7-6(3).
Groenefeld and Knowles won the Wimbledon mixed doubles crown in 2009.
King is scheduled to face 13th-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, a former Capital from Russia, today in the second round of singles. They met in the second round of the Australian Open in January, with King prevailing 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.
In a battle of 24-year-old Americans, wild card Sam Querrey defeated qualifier Tim Smyczek 7-6 (1), 6-4 on the stadium court in the first round. Querrey, however, is a 6-foot-6 San Francisco native, and Smyczek is a 5-9 Milwaukee product.
Afterward, the right-handed Querrey pronounced himself "100 percent healthy" after undergoing operations for bone spurs in his right elbow and an umbilical infection last summer and suffering a sore left knee in December and January.
Ranked No. 85, Querrey said he hopes to return to the top 20 by the end of the year. He reached a career-high No. 17 in January 2011.
Querrey, who next plays 12th-seeded Nicolas Almagro of Spain, has been working with renowned coach Brad Gilbert of San Rafael in the San Francisco area for the past month.
"I like what he's talking about," Querrey said. "I'm 6-6, and he wants me to play a big man's game -- big serves, big forehands. 'If the ball's ever in your zone, pop it -- no questions asked.' "
Hadn't anyone told Querrey that?
"No," he said.
Tuesday, July 10 -- At Philadelphia (James Blake plays Freedoms).
Thursday, July 12 -- Vs. Kansas City (Mardy Fish plays for Capitals).
Friday, July 13 -- Vs. Orange County (Fish plays for Capitals).
Saturday, July 14 -- At Orange County (Lindsay Davenport plays for Breakers).
Monday, July 16 -- Vs. New York.
Wednesday, July 18 -- At Washington.
Thursday, July 19 -- At Springfield.
Friday, July 20 -- At Kansas City.
Sunday, July 22 -- Vs. Springfield.
Tuesday, July 24 -- Vs. Orange County (Davenport plays for Breakers).
Wednesday, July 25 -- At Orange County (Davenport plays for Breakers).
Friday, July 27 -- Vs. Philadelphia (Mark Philippoussis plays for Freedoms).
Saturday, July 28 -- Vs. Boston.
Sept. 14-15 -- Conference championships in Charleston, S.C.
Sept. 16 -- WTT Finals.
For more information, go to www.saccaps.com.
Even though Sacramento made considerable progress last season, Osborne has his hands full in his first year back as a Capitals owner. The Summer Olympics in London complicate matters.
Osborne and Deepal Wannakuwatte bought the team last December from real estate developer Bob Cook, who had filed for bankruptcy with debts of $48 million. Under Osborne's previous ownership from 1988 to 1999, the Capitals won the first three of their four straight WTT titles (1997-2000).
"I forgot how hard it is and how stressful it is," Osborne, the president of a real estate company in the Sacramento suburb of Gold River and a member of the Sacramento Tennis Hall of Fame, said Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open. "I'm 73 years old, and I've never encountered anything with so many moving parts. You have very little control over most of them."
Half of the regular roster, longtime doubles star Mark Knowles and Sacramento-area resident Yasmin Schnack, will return for the July 9-28 regular season (see schedule below), Osborne said. But he must replace Vania King, the team's foundation since being acquired from the Springfield (Mo.) Lasers in a draft day trade two years ago, for all or part of the season. Also, Osborne said he does not plan to protect Dusan Vemic, 35, in Tuesday's WTT roster draft.
The Capitals have the seventh pick in the eight-team draft after tying for first place in the Western Conference at 8-6 last season and losing to the St. Louis Aces 20-19 in the conference finals. The Aces folded during the offseason.
"We hope to find two new singles players," Osborne said. "If we pick up a really good women's doubles player, Yasmin (also) will play singles."
The Capitals selected Mardy Fish, the top-ranked American man in the world at No. 8 in the world, in last month's marquee draft. He is scheduled to play home matches for the Capitals on July 12 and 13.
King, a two-time Grand Slam women's doubles champion and the 2009 WTT Female MVP, said this week at the BNP Paribas Open that she will skip the Capitals' season if she qualifies to play in the Olympics.
Eligibility for the July 28-Aug. 5 tennis event in London will be based on the June 11 world rankings in singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
Even if King does not qualify for the Games, the 23-year-old Long Beach product will play only a partial season for the Capitals, Osborne said. He added that he does not know how many of the team's 14 regular-season matches King would play. She missed the first week last season to rest after Wimbledon but finished third among nine regulars in women's singles (33-28 record in games, .541), third of 19 in women's doubles (38-22, .633) and seventh of 19 in mixed doubles (37-30, .552).
Vemic finished third among 10 regulars in singles (51-45, .531) but last among 18 in men's doubles (41-54, .432) in 2011, his second season with the Capitals and sixth in WTT. He has not played on the tournament circuit since early last August. Osborne would not say whom the Capitals might draft to replace Vemic.
Knowles, 40, will return for his 11th season with the Capitals. The former world No. 1 in doubles has won three WTT Male MVP awards. Last year, Knowles oddly finished 17th of 18 regulars in WTT men's doubles (48-62, .436) but eighth of 19 in mixed doubles (56-47, .544). Since then, he was won two doubles titles on the ATP World Tour (both with Xavier Malisse of Belgium), including last month in San Jose.
Schnack, a 23-year-old Elk Grove resident, performed well as a WTT rookie last year. The former UCLA All-American finished fifth of 19 regulars in women's doubles (59-44, .573) and went 16-15 (.516) filling in for King in women's singles.
Also returning for his 11th season with the Capitals will be coach Wayne Bryan, Osborne said.
King, Querrey advance -- Eighth-seeded Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany and King edged Chia-Jung Chuang of Taiwan and Galina Voskoboeva of Kazakhstan 7-5, 3-6, 11-9 tiebreak in the first round as glorious weather returned to Indian Wells.
King said her regular partner, Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan, did not come to Indian Wells because she's focusing on singles but was not ranked high enough to get into the qualifying draw. They won the Wimbledon and U.S. Open women's doubles titles in 2010 and reached last year's final at Flushing Meadows, losing to Americans Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond 4-6 7-6(5) 7-6(3).
Groenefeld and Knowles won the Wimbledon mixed doubles crown in 2009.
King is scheduled to face 13th-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, a former Capital from Russia, today in the second round of singles. They met in the second round of the Australian Open in January, with King prevailing 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.
In a battle of 24-year-old Americans, wild card Sam Querrey defeated qualifier Tim Smyczek 7-6 (1), 6-4 on the stadium court in the first round. Querrey, however, is a 6-foot-6 San Francisco native, and Smyczek is a 5-9 Milwaukee product.
Afterward, the right-handed Querrey pronounced himself "100 percent healthy" after undergoing operations for bone spurs in his right elbow and an umbilical infection last summer and suffering a sore left knee in December and January.
Ranked No. 85, Querrey said he hopes to return to the top 20 by the end of the year. He reached a career-high No. 17 in January 2011.
Querrey, who next plays 12th-seeded Nicolas Almagro of Spain, has been working with renowned coach Brad Gilbert of San Rafael in the San Francisco area for the past month.
"I like what he's talking about," Querrey said. "I'm 6-6, and he wants me to play a big man's game -- big serves, big forehands. 'If the ball's ever in your zone, pop it -- no questions asked.' "
Hadn't anyone told Querrey that?
"No," he said.
2012 CAPITALS SCHEDULE
Home matches at Sunrise Marketplace Stadium, 7:35 p.m.
Monday, July 9 -- At Boston. Tuesday, July 10 -- At Philadelphia (James Blake plays Freedoms).
Thursday, July 12 -- Vs. Kansas City (Mardy Fish plays for Capitals).
Friday, July 13 -- Vs. Orange County (Fish plays for Capitals).
Saturday, July 14 -- At Orange County (Lindsay Davenport plays for Breakers).
Monday, July 16 -- Vs. New York.
Wednesday, July 18 -- At Washington.
Thursday, July 19 -- At Springfield.
Friday, July 20 -- At Kansas City.
Sunday, July 22 -- Vs. Springfield.
Tuesday, July 24 -- Vs. Orange County (Davenport plays for Breakers).
Wednesday, July 25 -- At Orange County (Davenport plays for Breakers).
Friday, July 27 -- Vs. Philadelphia (Mark Philippoussis plays for Freedoms).
Saturday, July 28 -- Vs. Boston.
Sept. 14-15 -- Conference championships in Charleston, S.C.
Sept. 16 -- WTT Finals.
For more information, go to www.saccaps.com.
Friday, December 9, 2011
Capitals' sale leads to many happy returns
Thursday's announcement of the Sacramento Capitals' sale to a group led by Ramey Osborne has something for everyone.
Fans get their World TeamTennis franchise back for its 27th season and an owner who launched the team to a glorious 11-year run.
Osborne, a tennis fanatic who owned the Capitals from 1988 through 1999, gets his team back.
Matt McEvoy, the Capitals' 27-year-old general manager, keeps his job.
And WTT not only is spared the embarrassment of losing its longest-running team and holder of a record six league titles, it gets an experienced, passionate owner who knows the market intimately.
Previous owner Bob Cook, a local real estate developer, filed for personal bankruptcy in August with debts of $48 million. His financial woes stem largely from the development of Le Rivage, a struggling luxury hotel on the banks of the Sacramento River two miles south of downtown Sacramento.
The Capitals' future was in doubt until Osborne came to the rescue.
"I love tennis, and I've enjoyed it from the day (the Capitals) came, and so I want to keep it going," Osborne, the president of a real estate company in Gold River and member of the Sacramento Tennis Hall of Fame, told The Sacramento Bee. "It's been on my mind for quite a while, and when I realized or saw that there were some problems with the past ownership, I thought that somebody needed to step up, and so I did."
Terms were not disclosed. The team will continue to play at a temporary facility, which now will be called Sunrise Marketplace Stadium, in the parking lot at Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights.
"Ramey played a major role in building the winning tradition and success of the Capitals both on and off the court," WTT CEO/Commissioner Ilana Kloss said in a statement. "We are fortunate to have him back leading their franchise along with general manager Matt McEvoy."
Under Osborne's ownership, the Capitals won the first three of their four straight WTT titles (1997-2000). The initial crown was based on the team's regular-season record because the final was rained out in Orlando, Fla., and the next two came on the Capitals' home court.
From 1997 through 2007, Sacramento compiled a record of 108-35 (.755) in the regular season and won all six of their WTT crowns.
When Osborne -- whose wife, Jayna, also was active in the Capitals' operations -- sold the team to Lonnie Nielson in March 2000, the outgoing owner told The Bee: "What better time to get out than right now after the success we have had the last three years. Besides, I haven't had a summer vacation with my family in 13 years. This job really took over our lives.
"And it wasn't as much fun as it used to be. Owners used to be able to go out and talk to players, recruit them for their teams and sign them. But now we have to deal with agents and the politics of the league, both of which make it harder to get players."
But Osborne added: "It's going to be tough sitting back and watching. Just announcing this has made me happy one minute, sad the next."
Since 2007, the Capitals have gone 30-30 in the regular season, including two of the three losing seasons (all at 6-8) in team history. Retirements and aging have been major reasons.
Russian star Elena Likhovtseva quit at 33 at the end of 2008 after playing on four WTT championship teams in her nine seasons with the Capitals. Sam Warburg, a Sacramento native and key member of the Capitals' 2007 title team, retired at 26 in September 2009. Mark Knowles, a three-time WTT Male MVP for Sacramento and former world No. 1 in doubles, turned 40 last September but remains active.
In addition to Cook's problems, Nielson pleaded guilty last year to grand theft related to his real estate business and is serving a seven-year prison sentence.
After Nielson's plea and Cook's declaration of bankruptcy, WTT briefly revoked Sacramento's franchise.
The Capitals went 8-6 in the regular season last year and returned to the playoffs for the first time in three years, losing to the St. Louis Aces 20-19 in the Western Conference final.
This year's roster consisted of Knowles; Dusan Vemic, playing his sixth WTT season; Vania King, a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles; and Yasmin Schnack, a WTT rookie who lives in the Sacramento area.
The Capitals' roster for next season will be formed during the WTT draft in March.
Orange Bowl -- All remaining players with Northern California ties were eliminated from the Orange Bowl, featuring many of the world's top juniors, Friday on clay in Plantation, Fla.
In the girls 16 doubles final, the unseeded San Francisco Bay Area team of Hadley Berg (Greenbrae) and Mary Closs (Menlo Park) lost to fifth-seeded Charlotte Petrick and Erin Routliffe of Canada 6-3, 6-4.
Also falling were:
--Unseeded Krista Hardebeck, a Santa Ana resident who will enroll as a freshman at Stanford next fall, and Chalena Scholl of Pompano Beach, Fla., in the girls 18 doubles quarterfinals.
--Sixth-seeded Connor Farren of Hillsborough and Marco Aurelio Nunez of Mexico in the boys 18 doubles quarters. Unseeded Markos Kalovelonis of Greece and Trey Stobel, a Bradenton, Fla., resident who is headed to Stanford, lost in a separate match in the same event.
The Orange Bowl boys and girls 14s and 12s are scheduled for Dec. 17-23 Coral Gables, Fla.
Fans get their World TeamTennis franchise back for its 27th season and an owner who launched the team to a glorious 11-year run.
Osborne, a tennis fanatic who owned the Capitals from 1988 through 1999, gets his team back.
Matt McEvoy, the Capitals' 27-year-old general manager, keeps his job.
And WTT not only is spared the embarrassment of losing its longest-running team and holder of a record six league titles, it gets an experienced, passionate owner who knows the market intimately.
Previous owner Bob Cook, a local real estate developer, filed for personal bankruptcy in August with debts of $48 million. His financial woes stem largely from the development of Le Rivage, a struggling luxury hotel on the banks of the Sacramento River two miles south of downtown Sacramento.
The Capitals' future was in doubt until Osborne came to the rescue.
"I love tennis, and I've enjoyed it from the day (the Capitals) came, and so I want to keep it going," Osborne, the president of a real estate company in Gold River and member of the Sacramento Tennis Hall of Fame, told The Sacramento Bee. "It's been on my mind for quite a while, and when I realized or saw that there were some problems with the past ownership, I thought that somebody needed to step up, and so I did."
Terms were not disclosed. The team will continue to play at a temporary facility, which now will be called Sunrise Marketplace Stadium, in the parking lot at Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights.
"Ramey played a major role in building the winning tradition and success of the Capitals both on and off the court," WTT CEO/Commissioner Ilana Kloss said in a statement. "We are fortunate to have him back leading their franchise along with general manager Matt McEvoy."
Under Osborne's ownership, the Capitals won the first three of their four straight WTT titles (1997-2000). The initial crown was based on the team's regular-season record because the final was rained out in Orlando, Fla., and the next two came on the Capitals' home court.
From 1997 through 2007, Sacramento compiled a record of 108-35 (.755) in the regular season and won all six of their WTT crowns.
When Osborne -- whose wife, Jayna, also was active in the Capitals' operations -- sold the team to Lonnie Nielson in March 2000, the outgoing owner told The Bee: "What better time to get out than right now after the success we have had the last three years. Besides, I haven't had a summer vacation with my family in 13 years. This job really took over our lives.
"And it wasn't as much fun as it used to be. Owners used to be able to go out and talk to players, recruit them for their teams and sign them. But now we have to deal with agents and the politics of the league, both of which make it harder to get players."
But Osborne added: "It's going to be tough sitting back and watching. Just announcing this has made me happy one minute, sad the next."
Since 2007, the Capitals have gone 30-30 in the regular season, including two of the three losing seasons (all at 6-8) in team history. Retirements and aging have been major reasons.
Russian star Elena Likhovtseva quit at 33 at the end of 2008 after playing on four WTT championship teams in her nine seasons with the Capitals. Sam Warburg, a Sacramento native and key member of the Capitals' 2007 title team, retired at 26 in September 2009. Mark Knowles, a three-time WTT Male MVP for Sacramento and former world No. 1 in doubles, turned 40 last September but remains active.
In addition to Cook's problems, Nielson pleaded guilty last year to grand theft related to his real estate business and is serving a seven-year prison sentence.
After Nielson's plea and Cook's declaration of bankruptcy, WTT briefly revoked Sacramento's franchise.
The Capitals went 8-6 in the regular season last year and returned to the playoffs for the first time in three years, losing to the St. Louis Aces 20-19 in the Western Conference final.
This year's roster consisted of Knowles; Dusan Vemic, playing his sixth WTT season; Vania King, a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles; and Yasmin Schnack, a WTT rookie who lives in the Sacramento area.
The Capitals' roster for next season will be formed during the WTT draft in March.
Orange Bowl -- All remaining players with Northern California ties were eliminated from the Orange Bowl, featuring many of the world's top juniors, Friday on clay in Plantation, Fla.
In the girls 16 doubles final, the unseeded San Francisco Bay Area team of Hadley Berg (Greenbrae) and Mary Closs (Menlo Park) lost to fifth-seeded Charlotte Petrick and Erin Routliffe of Canada 6-3, 6-4.
Also falling were:
--Unseeded Krista Hardebeck, a Santa Ana resident who will enroll as a freshman at Stanford next fall, and Chalena Scholl of Pompano Beach, Fla., in the girls 18 doubles quarterfinals.
--Sixth-seeded Connor Farren of Hillsborough and Marco Aurelio Nunez of Mexico in the boys 18 doubles quarters. Unseeded Markos Kalovelonis of Greece and Trey Stobel, a Bradenton, Fla., resident who is headed to Stanford, lost in a separate match in the same event.
The Orange Bowl boys and girls 14s and 12s are scheduled for Dec. 17-23 Coral Gables, Fla.
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