Archive for: french open

Novak Hits The Court @ Roland Garros

A short video of Novak having a hit today on Chatrier.

Novak Djokovic prepares the 2012 French Open by rolandgarros

Video: Roger Federer’s First Practice Roland Garros 2012

Roger Federer is already at Roland Garros practicing ahead of the French Open 2012 start next week.

Roger Federer Already Practicing at Roland Garros ahead of French Open 2012

Roger Federer is ready!

I am excited to be in Paris for Roland Garros. I just finished my hit and am walking past the wall with all the players signatures who have played on center court.

via Facebook

Brian Baker is Back and Strong Than Ever on the Tennis Court

Brian Baker has had an amazing come back to tennis. Baker had six years off with injury, but now he is back and better than ever.

A few weeks ago Baker won a challenger event which won him a wildcard into French Open 2012 main draw. This week he has qualified for the ATP Tour event in Nice and has also won the first round main draw match!

Baker reached the Boys’ Singles final at Roland Garros – losing to former top 10 player Stanislas Wawrinka. Thus, if he can stay fit, he is going to be a top 20 player at the very least! Look out for Brian Baker in the French Open next week!

Rafael Nadal Relaxing at Home Before French Open 2012

Rafael Nadal is enjoying his week off before the French Open 2012 at home in Mallorca.

Todd Woodbridge Talks About Aussies at French Open 2012

Todd Woodbridge looks ahead to the 2012 French Open and the chances of the Australian players in Paris.

French Open 2012 USA TV Schedule on ESPN

2012 French Open on ESPN2 & ESPN2 HD

2012 French Open on ESPN3

Lleyton Hewitt Talks about His Preparation for the French Open 2012

Lleyton Hewitt has been lucky enough to receive a wildcard into the French Open 2012. He sat down to talk about the French Open 2012 and how he is going to prepare.

Victoria Azarenka 2012 French Open Dress for Roland Garros

Here is what Victoria Azarenka will be wearing at the 2012 French Open at Roland Garros. This Nike dress is going to look amazing up against the clay backdrop.

Serena Williams’ 2012 French Open dress!

This is what former world No. 1 Serena Williams is going to wear at this year’s French Open:

The pink/purple dress could be an option too, but the mint green dress is more likely to be seen.

These dresses look really cool to me, and I think that they are bright and memorable. Serena should look good in either of these, and I hope she goes a long way at Roland Garros.

Maria Sharapova’s 2012 French Open dress!

Sorry for my previous post about the dress… I got it wrong. Anyway, here is Maria Sharapova’s 2012 French Open dress:

I like the serious dark color, although I wouldn’t have minded something bright and colorful. Overall, this looks good and comfortable, and I hope Masha will play well, and maybe even win, in this dress!

Kim Clijsters out of French Open

Four-time Grand Slam champion Kim Clijsters will not play the French Open held in Paris, France due to still needing recovery from a hip surgery.

The 28-year-old, previously stating that she will end her career after this season, has been suffering from ankle and hip injuries for a while now. Clijsters admitted to having an injury after being defeated by Yanina Wickmayer in the Sony Ericsson Open last month.

The Belgian has also stated that she will mainly focus on the grass-court season that comes after the clay-court season, which includes Wimbledon and the Olympic Games.

Good luck to getting better and playing well again, Kim!

Gustavo Kuerten Elected to International Tennis Hall of Fame

Gustavo Kuerten has been elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Guga was the French Open champion in 1997, 2000 and 2001. Guga was one of my favourite players of all time.. he had such a relaxed forehand and backhand and a very funny grunt.

The 2012 class will be inducted on July 14.

Maria Sharapova’s 2012 French Open dress!

This is what Maria Sharapova will be wearing at the 2012 French Open. It seems to be a very nice blue in which has great air slits on the chest.

Rafael Nadal’s, Roger Federer’s 2012 French Open outfits!!

This is what Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will wear at the 2012 French Open, where Rafa will try to win his 7th French Open title!!

Ana Ivanovic’s 2012 French Open dress!

This is what former World No. 1 Ana Ivanovic will wear at the 2012 French Open!

Baby Federer Produces Yet Another Magic Shot

I love watching Roger Federer hitting amazing shots. Here is an old shot that I came across recently.

Something about Grand Slams

Tennis has many tournaments in each season or year, but there are only four tournaments that mean the most to players who desire praise. The four Grand Slam tournaments are the Australian Open, the French Open, the Championships Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open. Let me tell you a little bit about the history of each of these four glorious events of tennis. First up, the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open. It has been played in seven different locations since 1905, when it was first played on grass. In 1988, the surface changed to hard courts, and the location of the Grand Slam stayed permanently in Melbourne, Australia. And here is a twist: the Australian Open was not even a Grand Slam until 1924! Since this tournament is played in the summertime of the southern hemisphere, there is a extreme-heat policy, since the temperatures can reach dangerous levels that could harm players.

Next up is the French Open, also known as Roland Garros, which is played in the city of love: Paris, France. This event has been played in four different venues since it started in 1891, (1897 for the women), and it was not official a Grand Slam tournament until 1925, when it was known as the French Championships. The French Open played on clay, is usually played around the end of May, and carries on for two weeks, just like all of the other Grand Slam tournaments. There was talk in 2010 about the French Open venue, as it was thought as being too small, and there was talk that it would be played in a bigger venue, but the rumors were put to a halt when the French Tennis Federation decided to keep the venue and build bigger stadiums, as well as build a roof on the main stadium.

The third Grand Slam of the year is quite special, as it is played on grass that is mowed down to a length on 8 millimeters! This event is called The Championships Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon, and is played in Wimbledon, London, England. Here are some cool facts about this Grand Slam: it is sometimes called SW19, because that is the post code of the area where Wimbledon’s venue is, which is the All England Club; the event started all the back at 1877; and Wimbledon was not played twice in its history, due to the outbreak of Word War I and Word War II. Wimbledon has had a roof since 2009, when it was decided that at least one court, the main stadium, should have a roof due to the annual rain reports at the tournament.

The last Grand Slam of the year is the U.S. Open, which is held in the Big Apple: New York, USA. Some fun facts about it are that it was first held in 1881 the state of Rhode Island; the U.S. Open has been played on three different surfaces, grass, then clay, then hard, in its history; it is held every year for two weeks, with one week before the Labor Day weekend, and one week after; and the main stadium of the venue is Arthur Ashe Stadium, which is the largest outdoor tennis-only stadium in the world!

The Grand Slams have a great history behind them, and that is why the history of these great tournaments is well worth knowing!

Li Na Returns to China After Her French Open 2011 Ladies Singles Win

Li Na has not been able to travel home to China since her French Open win. After she lost in the early rounds of Wimbledon she was able to travel home and show off her win to the Chinese tennis fans.

Her big French Open win watch watched by over 116 million people according to CCTV.

The public celebration took place at Sanlitun SOHO.

ESPN Win the Right to Wimbledon TV Coverage for Next 12 Years

ESPN has been able to sign a very lucrative 12 year TV deal for the rights to Wimbledon. ESPN were already running coverage via the Tennis Channel of the event, but now they will be able to carry first and final weekend coverage.

NBC lost the bidding war, but they will keep control of the French Open coverage in the USA.