The Spanish Armada heart hibiscus print shorts

Looks like every hot Spanish tennis player owns a piece of this hibiscus print Hawaiian board shorts.

Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez have the same shorts while Rafael Nadal has quite a similar one.

This shorts is definitely a fashion must-have this summer!

*Yawn* Please wake me up when Ana Ivanovic is back on court

I tried to watch the Open Championship Round 1 on Thursday hoping to catch a glimpse of Ana Ivanovic on the green.

It didn't happen.

I fell asleep so fast I didn't even get to see Adam Scott making his swing.

Last night, the same thing happened to me again just after 5 minutes into the tournament.

Seriously, I don't know how long Ivanovic can stand watching golf... it's such a boring sport!

Even the pro golfers including Scott can't stand it sometimes...


(Images via Zimbio.com)

Roger Federer unveils Basel's Hall of Fame honour plate

Roger Federer, the "housewife killer" (often refers to men who are popular among the aunties/housewives, in Cantonese) is back in Basel!

The world no.1 and living legend is back in his hometown to attend a ceremony to unveil a honour plate bearing his name at the Basel "Hall of Fame" on July 16, 2009.

Federer was named "Ehrespalebaerglemer“, a title that honours people who give outstanding services for the city.

I can't believe it takes 15 Grand Slams to get Federer that piece of plate!

I wonder how many plates are there altogether in Basel.


(Images by Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images)

Richard Gasquet celebrates new found freedom by hitting the golf course

Richard Gasquet is all smile now that he's cleared to return to tour again.

How did he persuade the independent tribunal in London and escape a lengthy doping ban?

AP has the story:

After deciding to withdraw from the tournament he went to a nightclub in Miami with friends to see a French DJ perform at a dance music festival, which the tribunal noted was “notoriously associated with use of illegal recreational drugs including cocaine.”

Gasquet told the tribunal hearing held in London last month that he kissed a woman, identified in the ruling only as “Pamela.”

The tribunal said it was likely she had consumed cocaine during the night, though it had no direct evidence.

Gasquet was “on the balance of probability, contaminated with cocaine by Pamela” and, therefore, not significantly at fault for the doping offense, the ruling said.

“We take into account that the amount of cocaine in the player’s body was so small that if he had been tested only a few hours later, his test result would be likely to have been negative,” the tribunal stated.

Gasquet also argued at the hearing that his positive test was given after he had pulled out of the Key Biscayne tournament. Cocaine is a banned drug for athletes in competition.

The tribunal said Gasquet’s rights to practice his profession would be infringed by a one-year suspension, though it was required to find that a doping offense was committed.

It also noted that Gasquet would be banned for life if he tested positive for a banned drug a second time.

The ruling allowed the Frenchman to keep the ranking points and prize money he gained at tournaments in April.


(Via AP; Images via sports.sina.com.cn)

Serena & Venus Williams at the 2009 ESPY Awards

Tennis sisters Venus and Serena Williams paid tribute to Nelson Mandela, who received the Arthur Ashe courage award at the 17th Annual ESPY Awards today.

Mandela's daughter Zindzi and grandson Zondwa accepted the silver trophy from the Williams sisters.

(Images by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images North America)

Grigor Dimitrov hits the beach volleyball court (with shirt on)

Although defeated by Guillermo Canas in the first round, Bulgaria's tennis prodigy Grigor Dimitrov still showed his significant presence in Bastad by playing in a traditional beach volleyball tournament yesterday.

Dimitrov's team which included his coach Peter Lundgren did a pretty good job defeating a team consisting of beach volleyball players in the semifinal before losing in the final.

Apparently Dimitrov's mother Maria was a former volleyball player. He could be a volleyball player instead of a rising tennis star.

(Via atpworldtour.com; Images by Göran Stenberg)

Rafael Nadal, Richard Gasquet to return to tour

Double good news! Buddies Rafael Nadal and Richard Gasquet are set to get back on tour soon.

Nadal’s publicist, Benito Perez-Barbadillo, said on Tuesday that the six-time Grand Slam title winner was in Barcelona for tests on his sore knees.

Perez-Barbadillo said Nadal will return to practice next Monday and will play in the hard-court tournament at Montreal that begins August 10.

And moment ago, Gasquet has been cleared by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to return to the tour after tested positive for cocaine.

The ITF said Gasquet's 'inadvertent contamination' in a nightclub the night before his scheduled match meant a 12-month suspension would be disproportionate and instead handed him a ban of 2 months and 15 days which expired today.

Statement from Richard Gasquet said, "It has been terrible. It was an unbelivable suffering not to go to Roland Garros and Wimbledon. I maintain that I have never taken cocaine.

"I am happy that I can return to the courts. It's a huge joy to play tennis again. What will I retain? That I can play tennis. Justice has been done.

"I thank those close to me, who have been with me. There were one or two people who said things against me. To them, I say: look at the sanction... I'm eager to play again. I'm eager to get back in the top 10."

(Via AP, Reuters)

Caroline Wozniacki's new Stella-style makeover revealed

On Monday, July 13, Caroline Wozniacki has been announced as the representative for the new fall/winter 2009 adidas by Stella McCartney tennis range starting with the US Open.

The world no. 9 replaces Maria Kirilenko as the new face for Stella McCartney.

Do you realise that Wozniacki not only had her wardrobe changed, it seems like her hair has gone dark blonde and wavy (gone are the curly hair) in these latest ads too?


(Images via tennisforum.com)

Malaysian Open 2009: Lleyton Hewitt confirms participation

Tournament Director Nick Freyer and President of LTAM Datuk Abdul Razak Latiff watching the video message by Lleyton Hewitt.

Lleyton Hewitt is the latest player who confirmed his participation at the Malaysian Open scheduled to run from September 26 to October 4, 2009.

This will be Hewitt's first visit to Malaysia.

"I have played in many other parts of Asia and I have always had a great time so I am keen to enjoy Malaysian hospitality which I have heard a lot about," Hewitt said.

"To have guys like Verdasco and Soderling and Davydenko playing makes it a very strong tournament and that will make it exciting for all the fans there."

Is Hewitt going to bring along his wife Bec Cartwright and their children Mia and Cruz?

I really hope so!

(Image by IMG)

Venus Williams promotes EA Sports’ fall lineup

Venus Williams comparing guns with Dwight Howard. I bet Serena can do better than this.

Venus Williams joined Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic), Milan Mucic (Boston Bruins) and Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA) at the annual EA Sports media event today at EA Canada in Burnaby.

The sports pros were brought up to highlight EA’s fall lineup which included NBA Live, NHL 10, FIFA 10, and Grand Slam Tennis.

“It was really cool being able to play with so many world-class athletes here,” Williams said.

“The hardest was probably basketball. I did better at hockey than I thought I would.”

There's nothing Venus can't do.

After teaching everyone how to serve on the real court, Venus showed off some virtual moves on the new Grand Slam Tennis on the Wii.

“This is a lot tougher than it looks,” Williams said.

“It’s not much fun losing to yourself.”

(Via straight.com, theprovince.com; Images by EA Sports)

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gael Monfils pay tribute to Mathieu Montcourt

The late Mathieu Montcourt was laid to rest at Mount Valérien Nanterre last Friday and followed by a memorial service at Roland Garros.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils made an appearance at the memorial service and gave a moving tribute to Montcourt.

(Images via people.premier.fr)

2009 Davis Cup: Croatia, Czech Republic, Spain through to the semifinals

Croatia, Czech Republic and Spain join Israel to qualify for the September's Davis Cup semifinals.

CRO-USA 3-2: The Croats remain undefeated against the Americans in Davis Cup, having now won all three meetings between the two nations.

Marin Cilic wrapped up this quarterfinal tie 3-1 by defeating James Blake 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 and setting up a meeting with the Czech Republic in September's semifinals.

CZE-ARG 3-2: Juan Martin del Potro began the day by defeating Tomas Berdych 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 to put the Argentines back on level terms and send the tie to a deciding fifth rubber.

But the Czechs' decision to rest Radek Stepanek in the opening singles paid off – he clinched the tie 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-2 against Juan Monaco.

ESP-GER 3-2: The Germans pushed the tie into a deciding fifth rubber when Philipp Kohlschreiber prevailed 6-4, 6-2, 1-6, 2-6, 8-6 against Fernando Verdasco.

Later, the experienced Juan Carlos Ferrero sealed a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win over Andreas Beck to send the Spanish Armada into the semifinals against Israel.

(Images via Yahoo! Sports)

Lucky loser Rajeev Ram captures first ATP title

Rajeev Ram beat third-seeded Sam Querrey, 6-7 (3), 7-5, 6-3, in the Hall of Fame Tennis championships Sunday for his first ATP title.

Ram, a lucky loser after top-seeded Mardy Fish withdrew on Monday to replace Andy Roddick in the United States Davis Cup team, won the first all-American final on Newport’s grass courts in seven years.

It was the first ATP final for Ram, the 181st ranked player entering the week, and the lowest ranked to win an event this year.

“These days don’t come around very often unless you’re (Roger) Federer or (Rafael) Nadal. There’s definitely pressure,” Ram said.

“I tried to play tennis instead of thinking about what the moment was.”

Ram withdrew from his qualifier match on Monday, knowing he’d be placed in the draw when Fish pulled out.

“Winning tournaments is not normal on the tour for 99 percent of us,” he said.

Ram earned $79,000 for his singles title while Querrey collected $41,500.

Ram went on to win the doubles title as he partnered Jordan Kerr to defeat Michael Kohlman and Rogier Wassen 6-7(6), 7-6(7), 10-6.

(Via AP; Images via Yahoo! Sports)

Agnes Szavay defeats Patty Schnyder to win Budapest title

Hungarian Agnes Szavay captured her home tournament at the Budapest Grand Prix on Sunday, beating Patty Schnyder 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the final.

It was Szavay’s third WTA Tour singles title.

“In the first set, I was too excited and that gave the set to the more experienced Patty,” Szavay said.

“I’m glad I managed to turn the score around and please the home crowd.”

(Via AP)

WTA Tour Budapest Players' Party

Check out what the WTA players' were up to while "partying" on a cruise ship in Budapest in conjunction with the GDF Suez Grand Prix recently.

Click here for more pictures.

(Via WTA Tour Budapest official website)

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez wins Swedish Open; spoils Caroline Wozniacki's birthday

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez beat top-seeded and defending champion Caroline Wozniacki 7-5, 6-4 Saturday to win the Swedish Open for her second WTA Tour title.

The unseeded Spaniard won her first title in Bogota in February.

“This was the most enjoyable tournament for me so far this season,” Martinez Sanchez said.

“I felt right at home here and I hope to come back next year. I played very well today and I’m happy I played my own game.”

“I’m sorry I spoiled your (birthday) celebrations, but I promise I will buy you something instead,” Martinez Sanchez told Wozniacki at the post-match news conference.

Wozniacki, who turned 19 Saturday, is ranked ninth in the world and has won five WTA titles.

“Maria played better than me. She played smart and it was difficult to get a rhythm with her stop volleys,” Wozniacki said.

“But I’m still happy to have reached the final.”

In the doubles final, Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta denied Martinez Sanchez a double, who partnered with Nuria Llagostera Vives with a 6-2, 0-6, 10-5 victory.

The men’s Swedish Open starts Monday.

(Via AP; Images via Swedish Open Women's Flickr photostream)

Si Yew Ming delivers all 3 points to help Malaysia stay in DC Group II Asia/Oceania Zone

Malaysia no.1 Si Yew Ming helped Malaysia sealed their campaign with a 3-1 win over Kuwait in the Davis Cup BNP Paribas Group II Asia/Oceania Zone 2009 relegation play-off at the National Tennis Centre in Kuala Lumpur today.

Yew Ming had minimal problems defeating Kuwaiti player Hassan Al Moussa 6-2, 6-1, 6-1 in under two hours in the 4th rubber.

The second singles match of the day was called off after the Kuwaiti team decided not to field their player who was injured.

The win ensures Malaysia stays in Group II of the tournament.

An elated Yew Ming credited the team for his excellent performance throughout the three day tournament.

“It was a team effort. We all played our parts well,” said Yew Ming.

“It’s a whole new experience for me in the Davis Cup and everything is going well. We’re getting better after every tournament and it’s a good sign.”

Yew Ming stressed he will continue training hard to improve his playing ability.

Thanks to Rahida for the press release.

(Image by LTAM)