Wimbledon Day 12 highlights: Kvitova crushes Bouchard

PETRA KVITOVA
2014 photo by Paul Bauman

   Women's final -- Sixth-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic whipped 13th-seeded Eugenie Bouchard of Canada 6-3, 6-0 in 55 minutes for her second Wimbledon title. Kvitova, a 6-foot-2 (1.82-meter) left-hander, dominated the 5-foot-10 (1.78-meter) Bouchard with her power and sharp angles. Lindsay Davenport, the 1999 Wimbledon champion, described it as “some of the best tennis I have ever seen.”
   It was the most lopsided Wimbledon final since Steffi Graf thrashed Monica Seles 6-2, 6-1 in 1992. Kvitova became the first woman to win a set at love in a Wimbledon final since Venus Williams wore down Justine Henin 6-1, 3-6, 6-0 in 2001. Kvitova, by the way, came within two points of losing to Williams in the third round this year.
   Kvitova, 24, played in her first Grand Slam final since outclassing Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 at Wimbledon three years ago. Bouchard, 20, became the first Canadian in a major singles final.
   Kvitova lost early in this year's first two Grand Slam tournaments. She fell to then-No. 88 Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand in the first round of the Australian Open and to 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia in the third round at Roland Garros.
   Men's final -- Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Roger Federer (4), Sunday, ESPN, 6 a.m. California time (live).
   Both players are desperate to win another Grand Slam title. Djokovic, 27, won the last of his six major crowns in the 2013 Australian Open. He has lost five of his last six Grand Slam finals. Federer, who will turn 33 next month, seeks his first major title since winning Wimbledon two years ago. This is also his first Grand Slam final since then.
   Federer, who owns a record 17 Grand Slam singles crowns, can break the Wimbledon record of seven that he shares with Pete Sampras (1993-95, 1997-2000) and William Renshaw (1881-86, 1889). Djokovic will play in his third Wimbledon final. He beat Rafael Nadal in 2011 and lost to Andy Murray last year.
   Federer leads the head-to-head series 18-16. He has met Djokovic only once on grass, winning in four sets in the 2012 Wimbledon semifinals.
   Notable -- Second-seeded Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci of Italy became the fifth women's team to earn a career Grand Slam, routing 14th-seeded Timea Babos of Hungary and Kristina Mladenovic of France 6-1, 6-3 with no unforced errors. Errani and Vinci have won five major championships.
   U.S. report -- Unseeded Jack Sock and Vasek Pospisil, playing in their first tournament together, edged top seeds and defending champions Bob and Mike Bryan 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 for the men's doubles title. All but Pospisil, a Canadian, are American.
   The 36-year-old Bryan twins, who last year came within two match victories of becoming the second men's team to achieve a calendar-year Grand Slam, still seek their first major title this year with only the U.S. Open remaining. They own a record 15 Grand Slam men's doubles crowns, including three at Wimbledon.
   It just goes to show that anything is Pospisil. ...
   In boys singles, sixth-seeded Stefan Kozlov and qualifier Noah Rubin will meet in an All-American final.
   Kozlov, 16, of Pembroke Pines, Fla., topped eighth-seeded Johan Sebastien Tatlot of France 6-3, 7-6 (7). Rubin, an 18-year-old resident of Rockville Centre, N.Y., beat unseeded countryman Taylor Harry Fritz 6-4, 6-2.
   Kozlov also reached the doubles final with Andrey Rublev of Russia. They are seeded first. ...
   Unseeded Usue Maitane Arconada of Puerto Rico and Fanny Stollar of Hungary lost in the girls doubles semifinals. 
   Northern California connection -- Bouchard's coach, 58-year-old Nick Saviano, earned All-America honors at Stanford. Bouchard visited the Sacramento area several times in World TeamTennis, including last year as a member of the Texas Wild.
   The Capitals announced in February that they were moving to Las Vegas after 28 years in the Sacramento area. But the team folded the following month when owner Deepal Wannakuwatte was charged with conspiracy and mail, wire and bank fraud. ...
   Sock reached the singles quarterfinals and doubles final (with Nicholas Monroe) in the 2011 Sacramento Challenger at 19 years old. ...
   The Bryans helped Stanford win the NCAA team title in both of their years on the Farm, 1997 and 1998, and captured the NCAA doubles crown in 1998. ...
   Rubin lost to second seed and eventual runner-up Tim Smyczek 7-6 (3), 6-0 in the first round of last year's Sacramento Challenger.
    Fast fact -- Sock, 21, became the third-youngest player to win Grand Slam titles in men's doubles and mixed doubles in the Open era. At 18, the Lincoln, Neb., native captured the mixed championship with American Melanie Oudin in the 2011 U.S. Open. John McEnroe and Todd Woodbridge won both titles by age 20, with McEnroe being younger.  
    Quote -- Kvitova, on fellow Czech native Martina Navratilova's record nine Wimbledon singles titles: "I've a lot of work to do if I want to win as many of these as Martina."

Gold River Challenger qualifying schedule

   Here is today's schedule for the first round of qualifying in the $50,000 FSP Gold River Women's Challenger at the Gold River Racquet Club in the Sacramento area:

(Starting on each court at 10 a.m.)

Stadium

   Jacqueline Cako (1), United States, vs. Julia Moriarty, Australia.
   Alexandra Cercone, United States, vs. Alina Soltanici, Moldova.
   Abigail Bacharach, United States, vs. Ayaka Okuno (8), Japan.
   Alexandra Champion, United States, vs. Karina Vyrlan, United States.

Court 3

   Maria Meliuk, Belarus, vs. Jennifer Brady, United States.
   Chanelle Van Nguyen, United States, vs. Alaina Miller, United States.
   Anne-Liz Jeukeng, United States, vs. Jessica-Mariama Josiah, United States.
   Ching-Wen Hsu (3), Taiwan, vs. Anna Ustinova, Russia.

Court 4

   Julia Elbaba, United States, vs. Nicole Collie, Australia.
   Kelly Chen, United States, vs. Anamika Bhargava (5), United States.
   Casey Robinson, United States, vs. Natalie Pluskota (7), United States.
   Maria Smith, United States, vs. Macall Harkins (6), United States.

Court 5

   Mari Osaka (2), Japan, vs. Sophia Bursulaya, United States.
   Brianna Morgan (4), United States, vs. Lara Rafful, Italy.
   Mary Weatherholt, United States, vs. Keri Wong, United States.
   Elizabeth Profit, United States, vs. Kristina Smith, United States.

Wimbledon Day 11: Djokovic, Federer in final

Novak Djokovic beat Grigor Dimitrov in four sets to reach his third Wimbledon final.
2012 photo by Paul Bauman

   Match of the day -- Top seed and 2011 champion Novak Djokovic held off 11th-seeded Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (7) to reach his third Wimbledon final and 12th in the past 16 majors. Dimitrov, a 23-year-old Bulgarian playing in his first Grand Slam semifinal, squandered four set points in the fourth set. Three came in the tiebreaker, which he led 6-3 before losing six of the last seven points.
   Other men's semifinal -- Fourth seed and seven-time champion Roger Federer dispatched eighth-seeded Milos Raonic of Canada 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. Federer made his 35th appearance in a Grand Slam semifinal and Raonic, 23, his first. 
   Women's final -- Petra Kvitova (6) vs. Eugenie Bouchard (13), ESPN, today, 6 a.m. California time (live). Kvitova, a 24-year-old Czech left-hander, won Wimbledon three years ago in her only previous Grand Slam final. Bouchard, 20, of Canada will appear in her first major final. Kvitova won their only previous meeting 6-3, 6-2 on a hardcourt in the second round at Toronto last summer.
   U.S. report -- Three of the four men's doubles finalists are American. Top seeds and defending champions Bob and Mike Bryan, natives of Camarillo in the Los Angeles area, will meet unseeded Vasek Pospisil of Canada and Jack Sock of Tampa, Fla., on Saturday. The 36-year-old Bryan twins beat 12th-seeded Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut of France 7-6 (4), 6-3, 6-2. Pospisil and Sock upset fifth-seeded Leander Paes of India and Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-4. ...
   Also, three of the four boys singles semifinalists are American. They are sixth-seeded Stefan Kozlov, unseeded Taylor Harry Fritz and qualifier Noah Rubin. Kozlov, 16, also reached the doubles semis with Andrey Rublev of Russia. They are seeded first. ...
   Both remaining Americans in girls singles, third-seeded Tornado Alicia Black and qualifier Michael Gordon, lost in the quarterfinals. However, unseeded Usue Maitane Arconada of Puerto Rico and Fanny Stollar of Hungary advanced to the doubles semis.
   Northern California connection -- Raonic went undefeated in the SAP Open in San Jose, winning the title from 2011 through 2013. The tournament was replaced on the calendar by Rio de Janeiro beginning last February after 125 years at various sites in Northern California. ...
   Bouchard's coach, 58-year-old Nick Saviano, earned All-America honors at Stanford. Bouchard  visited the Sacramento area several times in World TeamTennis, including last year as a member of the Texas Wild. The Capitals announced in February that they were moving to Las Vegas after 28 years in the Sacramento area but folded the following month when owner Deepal Wannakuwatte was charged with conspiracy and mail, wire and bank fraud.
   The Bryans helped Stanford win the NCAA team title in both of their years on the Farm, 1997 and 1998, and captured the NCAA doubles crown in 1998. ...
   Gordon, 14, lives in Los Altos Hills, near Stanford in the San Francisco Bay Area.
   Statistic -- Even though the 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) Raonic is out of the tournament, he will win the aces title with 164 in six matches for a 27.3 average.
   Quote -- Dimitrov, on his missed opportunities: "I probably won't get an hour of sleep."

Larcher de Brito pulls out of Gold River Challenger

   For the second straight year, Michelle Larcher de Brito of Portugal withdrew from the $50,000 FSP Gold River Women's Challenger after reaching the third round of Wimbledon as a qualifier.
   This year, however, the Challenger is being held one week later. Qualifying begins Saturday at the Gold River Racquet Club in the Sacramento area, and the main draw is scheduled for Monday through July 12. 
   Also pulling out of the tournament on Thursday was American Allie Kiick, the daughter of former Miami Dolphins running back Jim Kiick.
   Larcher de Brito, 21, was the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 102 in the world, and Kiick, 19, was third at No. 143.
   The top remaining players are No. 128 Olivia Rogowska of Australia, No. 146 An-Sophie Mestach of Belgium, No. 149 Madison Brengle of Bradenton, Fla., and No. 150 Nicole Gibbs of Santa Monica. Also entered is 33-year-old Alexandra Stevenson, a 1999 Wimbledon semifinalist.
   Brengle, suffering from a stomach problem, fell in last year's Gold River final to Mayo Hibi, then 17. Hibi plans to play in a $25,000 Challenger in Gatineau, Canada, rather than defend her title in the tougher Gold River tournament.
   Gibbs starred at Stanford, winning the 2012 and 2013 NCAA singles titles and the 2012 doubles crown with Mallory Burdette.
   Larcher de Brito stunned multiple Grand Slam singles champions Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova at Wimbledon last year and this year, respectively.
   At 14 in 2007, Larcher de Brito helped the now-defunct Sacramento Capitals win the last of their record six World TeamTennis titles.

Wimbledon Day 10 highlights: Bouchard, Kvitova in final

Eugenie Bouchard, 20, advanced to her first Grand Slam
women's singles final. 2013 photo by Paul Bauman

   Match of the day -- No. 13 seed Eugenie Bouchard became Canada's first Grand Slam singles finalist, defeating No. 3 Simona Halep of Romania 7-6 (5), 6-2. Halep, who gained her first major final last month in the French Open, sprained her left ankle early in the first set. Bouchard, 20, triumphed on her sixth match point in her third consecutive major semifinal.
   Other women's semifinal -- No. 6 seed Petra Kvitova, the 2011 champion, beat No. 23 Lucie Safarova 7-6 (6), 6-1 in a matchup of Czech left-handers.
   Notable -- British wild cards Neal Skupski and Naomi Broady needed 11 match points to outlast Florin Mergea of Romania and Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in the mixed doubles round of 16.
   Friday's men's semifinals -- Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Grigor Dimitrov (11), ESPN, 5 a.m. California time (live); Roger Federer (4) vs. Milos Raonic (8), ESPN, following first semifinal (live). Djokovic leads Dimitrov 3-1 in their head-to-head series; Federer leads Raonic 4-0.
   U.S. report -- Unseeded Jack Sock of Tampa, Fla., and Vasek Pospisil of Canada ousted second-seeded Alexander Peya of Austria and Bruno Soares of Brazil 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4 to reach the men's doubles semifinals. Sock and Pospisil could meet Americans Bob and Mike Bryan, the top seeds and defending champions, in the final. ...
   The United States has three boys -- sixth-seeded Stefan Kozlov, unseeded Taylor Harry Fritz and qualifier Noah Rubin -- and two girls -- third-seeded Tornado Alicia Black and qualifier Michaela Gordon -- in the singles quarterfinals.
   Northern California connection -- Bouchard's coach, 58-year-old Nick Saviano, earned All-America honors at Stanford. ...
   Broady, 6-foot-2 (1.89 meters), and Storm Sanders of Australia won the doubles title in last year's $50,000 FSP Gold River Women's Challenger in the Sacramento area. Broady withdrew from next week's Gold River Challenger, but Sanders, 19, is entered. ...
   Gordon, a 14-year-old resident of Los Altos Hills in the San Francisco Bay Area, dominated wild card Maia Lumsden of Great Britain 6-2, 6-1. ...
   The 36-year-old Bryan twins, who played at Stanford in 1997 and 1998, will face 12th-seeded Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut of France in Friday's men's doubles semifinals.
   Fast fact -- Bouchard has won three Wimbledon junior titles. She prevailed in singles two years ago and in doubles in 2011 and 2012 with Americans Grace Min and Taylor Townsend, respectively.
   Quote -- The private Kvitova, on winning Wimbledon at 21 and needing three years to advance to her second Grand Slam final: “There were a lot of positive things I got, but definitely when I won here in 2011, I needed to change a little bit myself on the court and off the court, as well, to get used to the pressure, media, and everything like that.”

Wimbledon Day 9 highlights: Dimitrov topples Murray

Grigor Dimitrov reached his first Grand Slam
semifinal. 2014 photo by Paul Bauman

   Match of the day -- There will be no royal repeat. Third-seeded Andy Murray, who last year became the first British man to win Wimbledon in 77 years, fell to 11th-seeded Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-2 in the quarterfinals. Murray underwent "minor" back surgery last September and hired 2006 Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo as his new coach last month on a trial basis. Dimitrov, 23, reached his first Grand Slam semifinal.
    Men's semifinal matchups -- Novak Djokovic (1), Serbia, vs. Dimitrov and Roger Federer (4), Switzerland, vs. Milos Raonic (8), Canada.
   Djokovic, the 2011 champion, topped 26th-seeded Marin Cilic of Croatia 6-1, 3-6, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-2. Federer, seeking a record eighth Wimbledon men's singles title, outplayed ailing countryman Stan Wawrinka, seeded fifth, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-4.
   Raonic, 23, advanced to his first Grand Slam semifinal and ended the run of 19-year-old wild card Nick Kyrgios of Australia 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4). Kyrgios, who saved nine match points against 13th-seeded Richard Gasquet in the second round, had less than 24 hours to prepare mentally after ousting top-ranked Rafael Nadal.   
   Women's semifinal matchups -- Simona Halep (3), Romania, vs. Eugenie Bouchard (13), Canada, and Petra Kvitova (6), Czech Republic, vs. Lucie Safarova (23), Czech Republic.
   Halep, who reached her first Grand Slam final last month in the French Open, defeated 19th-seeded Sabine Lisicki, last year's Wimbledon runner-up to Marion Bartoli, 6-4, 6-0.
   Bouchard, the 2012 Wimbledon girls singles champion, dispatched ninth-seeded Angelique Kerber 6-3, 6-4. Bouchard, 20, is the only woman to reach the semifinals at all three Grand Slam tournaments this year.
   Notable -- In women's doubles, top seeds and defending champions Hsieh Su-Wei of Taiwan and Peng Shuai of China lost to 14th-seeded Timea Babos of Hungary and Kristina Mladenovic of France 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 in the third round.
   U.S. report -- Only Bob and Mike Bryan, the top seeds and defending champions in men's doubles, and Jack Sock, unseeded with Vasek Pospisil of Canda in men's doubles, remain in men's or women's events. Seventh-seeded Raquel Kops-Jones of San Jose and Abigail Spears of San Diego lost in the round of 16 in women's doubles, and second-seeded Bob Bryan and Kveta Peschke (Czech Republic) fell in the last 16 in mixed doubles.
   Northern California connection -- The Bryans, 36-year-old twins from Stanford, advanced to the semifinals with a 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-4 victory over ninth-seeded Julian Knowle of Austria and Marcelo Melo of Brazil. ...
   Kops-Jones and Spears lost to 11th-seeded Alla Kudryavtseva of Russia and Anastasia Rodionova of Australia 7-5, 6-4. Rodionova, a Russia native, formerly played for the now-defunct Sacramento Capitals of World TeamTennis. ...
   In girls singles, 14-year-old qualifier Michaela Gordon of Los Altos Hills in the San Francisco Bay Area edged Isabelle Wallace, 17, of Great Britain 6-2, 5-7, 8-6 in the second round.
   Fast fact -- Djokovic will play in his fifth consecutive Wimbledon semifinal.
   Quote -- Murray, on his loss to Dimitrov: “He was the better player from start to finish. I started the match badly, and I think that gave him confidence."

Wimbledon Day 8 highlights: Sharapova, Nadal fall

ANGELIQUE KERBER
2014 photo by Paul Bauman

   Match of the day -- Ninth-seeded Angelique Kerber needed seven match points to subdue fifth-seeded Maria Sharapova 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-4 in 2 hours, 37 minutes and reach the quarterfinals. Sharapova, who's notorious for her mental toughness, won Wimbledon 10 years ago at 17 for her first Grand Slam title. Although she has not repeated at the All England Club, she has won four other majors and earned a career Grand Slam.
   Kerber, a Wimbledon semifinalist in 2012, will face 13th-seeded Eugenie Bouchard, 20, of Canada. Bouchard is the only woman to reach the semifinals at both previous Grand Slam tournaments this year.
   Third-seeded Simona Halep of Romania will meet No. 19 Sabine Lisicki of Germany in another quarterfinal. Lisicki, last year's runner-up to Marion Bartoli, took a medical timeout for a shoulder and neck problem early in the third set of her 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 victory over Yaroslava Shvedova. Halep reached her first Grand Slam final last month in the French Open.

Nick Kyrgios, 19, shocked top-ranked
Rafael Nadal. 2013 photo by Paul Bauman

   Biggest upset -- Top-ranked Rafael Nadal lost the first set for the fourth straight time in the tournament, but he couldn't recover against hard-hitting Nick Kyrgios (pronounced KEER-ee-ose). The 19-year-old wild card from Australia shocked the No. 2 seed and two-time champion 7-6 (5), 5-7, 7-6 (5), 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals.
   This was no fluke. If the 144th-ranked Kyrgios stays healthy, his combination of overwhelming power and supreme confidence eventually could take him to No. 1. He saved a Wimbledon record nine match points in the second round against 13th-seeded Richard Gasquet of France and played fearlessly against Nadal.
   Here's a link to my story on Kyrgios during the $100,000 Sacramento Challenger last October: http://norcaltennisczar.blogspot.com/2013/10/potential-star-kyrgios-upsets-klahn.html
   Men's quarterfinal matchups -- Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Marin Cilic (26), Andy Murray (3) vs. Grigor Dimitrov (11), Roger Federer (4) vs. Stan Wawrinka (5), Milos Raonic (8) vs. Kyrgios.
   Notable -- Sharapova and Nadal won the French Open last month. ...
   Czechs Petra Kvitova and Lucie Safarova advanced to a semifinal showdown. Kvitova, the sixth seed and 2011 champion, beat unseeded countrywoman Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 6-1, 7-5, and 23rd-seeded Safarova routed No. 22 Ekaterina Makarova of Russia 6-3, 6-1. ...
   In women's doubles, No. 8 seeds and five-time champions Serena and Venus Williams retired from their second-round match against Kristina Barrois of Germany and Stefanie Voegele of Switzerland at 0-3. Serena suffered from dizziness caused by a virus.
   U.S. report -- The only remaining American men or women are in doubles. Top-seeded Bob and Mike Bryan and unseeded Jack Sock of Tampa, Fla., and Vasek Pospisil of Canada reached the men's doubles quarterfinals, seventh-seeded Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears advanced to the round of 16 in women's doubles, and second-seeded Bob Bryan and Kveta Peschke (Czech Republic) moved into the round of 16 in mixed doubles.
   Northern California connection -- The 36-year-old Bryan twins, the defending and three-time men's doubles champions from Stanford, defeated 15th-seeded Juan Sebastian Cabal of Colombia and Marcin Matkowski of Poland 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (5). ...
   In women's doubles, Kops-Jones of San Jose and Spears of San Diego topped Alize Cornet and Caroline Garcia of France 6-7 (8), 6-4, 6-2. ...
   In mixed doubles, top-seeded Mike Bryan and Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia lost to Chris Guccione of Australia and Oksana Kalashnikova of Georgia 2-6, 6-4, 6-3. Although Bob Bryan and Peschke advanced, 11th-seeded Cabal and Kops-Jones lost to Russians Mikhail Elgin and Anastasia Rodionova 6-2, 7-5. ...
   In the first round of girls singles, second-seeded CiCi Bellis, 15, of Atherton lost to wild card Maia Lumsden of Great Britain 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-4. Qualifier Michaela Gordon, 14, of Los Altos Hills eliminated No. 14 seed Sandra Samir, 16, of Egypt 6-1, 3-6, 6-0.
   Fast facts -- Kyrgios is the first player ranked outside the top 100 to defeat a world No. 1 at a Grand Slam since No. 193 Andrei Olhovskiy beat Jim Courier in the third round at Wimbledon in 1992. ...
   Kyrgios' 37 aces were the most ever against Nadal. The previous high was 35 by Ivo Karlovic in the quarterfinals at Queen's in 2008. Nadal won the match.
   Quote -- Kyrgios, on his victory over Nadal: "I'm going to draw so much confidence out of that, no matter where I play now. To have that under my belt, it's massive. I definitely had nothing to lose out there."