Justine Henin retires... again

Justine Henin retired from tennis for a second time.

She announced that on her website yesterday, citing a lingering right elbow injury that cut short her comeback.

(Image by Getty Images)

Weekend winners: Rafael Nadal, Justine Henin

Bite me!

Rafael Nadal's 17th Masters Series, which surpassed Roger Federer and tied with Andre Agassi, is probably the best motivation for me to get back into blogging.

You know what? Agassi achieved the feat at the age of 34 but Nadal is only 23!

Almost like Wimbledon once again - minus Roger Federer

Pure hotness

Nadal defeated compatriot David Ferrer 7-5, 6-2 after two rain delays to capture his 5th Rome Masters title in six years!

Now I can't wait for Madrid Masters and the French Open, where he fell hard last year.

Where are the medals?

In the men's doubles final, Bob and Mike Bryan beat fellow Americans John Isner and Sam Querrey 6-2, 6-3 for their 4th title of the year and 60th in their careers.

The retired Australian pair of Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde hold a record of 61 career titles.

Justine won't be retiring again anytime soon.. perhaps in 2013

Meanwhile, Justine Henin won her first title since coming out of retirement, defeating Samantha Stosur 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 in the final of the Porsche Grand Prix.

In the women's doubles final, Gisela Dulko paired up with Flavia Pennetta to defeat Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik 3-6, 7-6, 10-5

(Images via Yahoo! Sports, Sina Tennis)

Australian Open Day 3 Wrap-up: Brutal end for Dementieva, Blake, Tomic

It's another missed opportunity for Elena Dementieva at the Grand Slam after beaten by comeback queen Justine Henin yesterday.

Fresh from winning in Sydney last week, she came to Melbourne with confidence to clinch a Grand Slam title which is still missing from her trophy list.

Dementieva lost 7-5, 7-6 in the high-pressure match at Rod Laver Arena.

In the men's singles, US Open champ Juan Martin del Potro battled for over four hours before winning 6-4, 6-7, 5-7, 6-3, 10-8 against James Blake to reach the third round of the Australian Open.

Another notable match yesterday was the one between Marin Cilic and local boy Bernard Tomic.

Cilic survived the match with a 6-7, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory over the 17-year old.

Here's the rest of the results from the Australian Open singles and doubles on Day 3 (prefix number denotes seeding):

Round 2 - Men's Singles
14-Marin Cilic (CRO) bt Bernard Tomic (AUS) 6-7(6) 6-3 4-6 6-2 6-4.
4-Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) bt James Blake (USA) 6-4 6-7(3) 5-7 6-3 10-8.
Florent Serra (FRA) bt Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) 3-6 6-4 5-7 7-6(4) 7-5.
5-Andy Murray (GBR) bt Marc Gicquel (FRA) 6-1 6-4 6-3
Ivo Karlovic (CRO) bt Julien Benneteau (FRA) 2-6 6-1 6-3 6-3.
Florian Mayer (GER) bt 29-Viktor Troicki (SRB) 4-6 6-4 7-6(2) 6-1.
12-Gael Monfils (FRA) bt Q-Antonio Veic (CRO) 6-4 6-4 6-4.
19-Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) bt Igor Kunitsyn (RUS) 6-3 6-2 6-2.
24-Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) bt Andrey Golubev (KAZ) 6-3 3-6 6-2 6-3
27-Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) bt Wayne Odesnik (USA) 6-4 3-6 6-3 6-2
Evgeny Korolev (RUS) bt 21-Tomas Berdych (CZE) 6-4 6-4 7-5
Feliciano Lopez (ESP) bt Rainer Schuttler (GER) 6-3 2-6 6-3 6-2
33-John Isner (USA) bt Louk Sorensen (IRL) 6-3 7-6(4) 7-5
2-Rafael Nadal (ESP) bt Lukas Lacko (SVK) 6-2 6-2 6-2
7-Andy Roddick (USA) bt Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) 6-3 6-4 6-4
11-Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) bt Marsel Ilhan (TUR) 6-3 6-4 7-5

Round 1 - Women's SIngles
22-Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) bt Viktoriya Kutuzova (UKR) 3-6 6-1 7-5
29-Shahar Peer (ISR) bt Lucie Hradecka (CZE) 6-7(5) 6-2 6-1
Sofia Arvidsson (SWE) bt Jarmila Groth (AUS) 6-4 2-6 6-4
Tathiana Garbin (ITA) bt 28-Elena Vesnina (RUS) 7-6(5) 6-4
Julia Gorges (GER) bt Tamira Paszek (AUT) 6-0 3-6 6-3
7-Victoria Azarenka (BLR) bt Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (FRA) 6-2 6-0
9-Vera Zvonareva (RUS) bt Kristina Kucova (SVK) 6-2 6-0
Melinda Czink (HUN) bt Stefanie Vogele (SUI) 5-7.
16-Li Na (CHN) bt Marina Erakovic (NZL) 6-2 6-0
Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) bt Galina Voskoboeva (KAZ) 6-4 6-4.
Julia Gorges (GER) bt Tamira Paszek (AUT) 6-0 3-6 6-3.
4-Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) bt Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) 6-4 6-2.
Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) bt Kimiko Date Krumm (JPN) 6-4 6-2
Iveta Benesova (CZE) bt Chang Kai-Chen (TPE) 7-5 6-2.
Agnes Szavay (HUN) bt Stephanie Dubois (CAN) 6-3 6-2

Round 2 - Women's Singles
Justine Henin (BEL) bt 5-Elena Dementieva (RUS) 7-5 7-6(6).
Roberta Vinci (ITA) bt Vania King (USA) 7-6(7) 7-5.
Maria Kirilenko (RUS) bt Yvonne Meusburger (AUT) 6-3 6-1.
8-Jelena Jankovic (SRB) bt Katie O'Brien (GBR) 6-2 6-2.
Sara Errani (ITA) bt Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) 6-2 6-3.
27-Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) bt Sorana Cirstea (ROU) 6-4 6-3.
2-Dinara Safina (RUS) bt Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) 6-3 6-4.
31-Alona Bondarenko (UKR) bt Polona Hercog (SLO) 6-4 7-5.
Angelique Kerber (GER) bt 26-Aravane Rezai (FRA) 6-2 6-3.
Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) bt 12-Flavia Pennetta (ITA) 7-6(2) 6-1.
19-Nadia Petrova (RUS) bt Kaia Kanepi (EST) 6-4 6-4.
Zheng Jie (CHN) bt 24-Maria Jose Martinez (ESP) 2-6 6-2 6-3.
11-Marion Bartoli (FRA) bt Sandra Zahlavova (CZE) 6-4 6-4.
15-Kim Clijsters (BEL) bt Tamarine Tanasugarn (THA) 6-3 6-3.
Elena Baltacha (GBR) bt 30-Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) 6-2 7-5.
3-Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) 6-2 6-2

Round 1 - Men's Doubles
2-Daniel Nestor (CAN)/Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) bt Samuel Groth/Jason Kubler (AUS) 7-6(5) 6-3.
Kaden Hensel/Greg Jones (AUS) bt Paolo Lorenzi (ITA)/Christophe Rochus (BEL) 7-6(3) 3-6 7-6(2).
Leonardo Mayer/Horacio Zeballos (ARG) bt 12-Marcelo Melo/Bruno Soares (BRA) 7-6 6-4.
Lucas Arnold (ARG)/Horia Tecau (ROU) bt Wesley Moodie (RSA)/Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) 4-6 7-6(4) 7-5.
Colin Fleming/Ken Skupski (GBR) bt Lu Yen-Hsun (TPE)/Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) 7-5 6-4.
17-Jurgen Melzer (AUT)/Philipp Petzschner (GER) bt Marc Lopez/Santiago Ventura (ESP) 6-4 6-1.
8-Marcel Granollers/Tommy Robredo (ESP) bt Matthew Ebden/Brydan Klein (AUS) 6-2 6-4.
5-Lukasz Kubot (POL)/Oliver Marach (AUT) bt Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG)/Daniel Gimeno (ESP) 6-7(1) 6-3 6-1.
Albert Montanes (ESP)/Martin Vassallo Arguello (ARG) bt Jose Acasuso/Sebastian Prieto (ARG) 6-4 6-4
5-Lukasz Kubot (POL)/Oliver Marach (AUT) bt Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG)/Daniel Gimeno (ESP) 6-7(1) 6-3 6-1
Colin Fleming/Ken Skupski (GBR) bt Lu Yen-Hsun (TPE)/Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) 7-5 6-4
17-Jurgen Melzer (AUT)/Philipp Petzschner (GER) bt Marc Lopez/Santiago Ventura (ESP) 6-4 6-1
1-Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan (USA) bt Michael Berrer/Simon Greul (GER) 6-4 7-5.
7-Mariusz Fyrstenberg/Marcin Matkowski (POL) bt Ross Hutchins (GBR)/Jordan Kerr (AUS) 6-4 2-6 7-6(4)
Rik De Voest (RSA)/Scott Lipsky (USA) bt Rohan Bopanna (IND)/Aisam Qureshi (PAK) 4-6 6-1 7-6(6).
Arnaud Clement (FRA)/Jonathan Erlich (ISR) bt 10-Julian Knowle (AUT)/Robert Lindstedt (SWE) 6-7(3) 6-4 6-4
Rameez Junaid/Peter Luczak (AUS) bt 15-Jaroslav Levinsky (CZE)/Travis Parrott (USA) 4-6 7-6(5) 6-2
Johan Brunstrom (SWE)/Jean-Julien Rojer (AHO) bt Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP)/Olivier Rochus (BEL) 6-2 6-3
Philipp Marx (GER)/Igor Zelenay (SVK) bt Nick Lindahl/Matt Reid (AUS) 6-3 6-4
Prakash Amritraj/Somdev Devvarman (IND) bt James Cerretani/Travis Rettenmaier (USA) 5-7 6-4 7-5

(Images via Yahoo! Sports)

Faces we love to see this new ATP/WTA season

Oh, and not forgetting this... *evil grin* :D

(Images via yahoo! Sports)

TENNIS WATCH: On coaches, nudity, money & power, retirement & comeback, etc.

Since I'll be away for a couple of days, here's a longer than usual brief tennis news for you to read. Have a good weekend!

• Finally James Blake has stopped working with long time coach Brian Barker after the US Open. He is now coached by Kelly Jones in Beijing. Although lost to Rafael Nadal 7-5, 6-7, 6-3 in the second round yesterday, Blake saved a match point to claw back to 5-5 and eventually won the second set.

• Ernests Gulbis seems to improve a lot after getting help from new coach Hernan Gumy. He has won back-to-back ATP matches for the first time this season and advanced to the quarterfinals of Tokyo when Juan Monaco retired at 6-3, 4-1 yesterday.

• Have we forgotten about Mario Ancic? I guess not. The Croatian has not retire from tennis to become a full time lawyer. He is expected to get medical clearance (from mononucleosis) to begin training again. Ancic hopes to return to the tour next January.

• No.1 again next week, Serena Williams, on posing nude for the cover of ESPN The Magazine, "ESPN had a body issue, and they told me I had a great body and wanted me to be on the cover. So I was super flattered, but I wanted to do it classy and not trampy, for lack of a better word. It's tasteful and super cool, and I love it."

• It's not a surprise when AskMen.com poll voted tennis stars Roger Federer (no. 8) and Andy Roddick (no. 35) as among the world's most influential men of the year.

• Andy Murray is the 8th highest-earning sportsman in Britain with an annual income of £7 million, according to The Daily Telegraph.
  

• Still on money, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, like many other sportsmen who resides in Switzerland for tax purposes, will be unable to play in Basel. Tsonga's tax agreement with local Swiss authorities would become invalid if he were to earn money inside Switzerland.

• Justine Henin will make her Grand Slam comeback at the Australian Open, tournament director Craig Tiley confirmed at the official event launch. Henin's first tournment back will probably be Brisbane Open.

• While veteran players are planning a strong comeback, Amelie Mauresmo is considering retiring from tennis. In her website, she said, “Since I came back from the U.S. Open, I’ve been trying to practice but I can’t find again the desire to come back to competition. I don’t want to rush or force things. (I will take) some time to think before making a decision regarding the remainder of my career.”

• Martina Hingis who is now given the green light to return to the tennis circuit after her two-year cocaine ban, chose to return to competition - but in horse riding. She is set to make an appearance in a show jumping contest in Switzerland this week.

• Jelena Dokic's dad, Damir is on a hunger strike to protest his jail sentence for making threats against the Australian ambassador.

• The Spanish tennis federation has narrowed its choice of venue for the Davis Cup final against Czech Republic to Valencia or Barcelona. The final decision to be announced this Saturday.

(Via AP, tennis.com)

VIDEO: Roger Federer's "We Are The Swiss" Music-Remix

Remember the original version of "We Are The Swiss" made popular by Roger Federer?

Looks like Federer not only inspired Justine Henin's return to professional tennis and Rafael Nadal's proposal to Xisca (although it was only a rumour), he also inspired the remix version of that famous Swiss song.

TENNIS WATCH: Does Federer inspire Nadal to propose to Xisca?

• It has been rumoured that Rafael Nadal supposed to propose to Xisca in Krabi while in Thailand this week. Nadal was said to have booked into a five-star Thailand resort of Rayavadee with a three-bedroom villa facing the sea. He also reserved a private boat for a day, private plane and three dedicated butlers. However, Nadal had to drop out from Thailand Open at the last minute because of an injury to an ab muscle. So there goes the possible marriage proposal too. [More]

• Look who's a calendar boy! Andy Murray has released his official 2010 calendar published by Danilo.com. [More at downthelinetennis.com]

• Kim Clijsters welcomed Justine Henin's comeback in her official website. She said, "I think Justine's return is very good news for women's tennis, but even better for Belgian tennis. Justine worked very hard in the past to get the magnificent results she got during her first career. It's magnificent for tennis that she is coming back."

• Next year's Davis Cup draw has been decided and the biggest news buzzing around the internet is the potential Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal face-off when Switzerland meet Spain in their first round tie (March 5-7).

The full draw is as follows (hosting nation first):
Spain vs. Switzerland
France vs. Germany
Russia vs. India
Sweden vs. Argentina
Croatia vs. Ecuador
Serbia vs. USA
Chile vs. Israel
Belgium vs. Czech Republic

Federer inspires Henin's comeback... not Clijsters (maybe subconsciously)

"Maybe subconsciously Kim's return influenced me... but it wasn't the determinant factor. Roger Federer's victory at Roland Garros spoke to me much more because it made me think of a lot of things in relation to Wimbledon."
~ Justine Henin on her comeback

Henin added that for the first time she felt that Wimbledon was missing from her list of trophies and winning the Wimbledon title would be a dream.

She was interviewed on Belgian TV station RTL-TVI yesterday after much speculation about her return to professional tennis.

Henin drove off after the TV appearance

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

TENNIS WATCH: Justine Henin confirms return to tennis

• Former world no.1 Justine Henin confirmed her return to professional tennis on Belgian TV station RTL-TVI yesterday. She is expected to return in January in Australia. [More]

• Beilgium media Le Soir reported that Telecom company Belgacom will be one of Henin's sponsors in her comeback.

• L'Equipe reported that Richard Gasquet is looking for a new coach in his preparation for next year. French great Yannick Noah has advised Gasquet to pick a foreign coach who speaks French and specifically named Brad Stein, the former coach of Jim Courier and Sebastien Grosjean.
  

• Andy Murray's camp confirmed that the Scot suffered "no long-term damage" to his wrist following his Davis Cup injury. Murray plans to be back on tour soon for the Japan Open.

• 2009 US Open junior champ Bernard Tomic has left the Bollettieri tennis academy and will be based in Australia again.

(Via Yahoo! Sports, tennis.com)

TENNIS WATCH: Belgian media reports say Justine Henin to return to tennis

• Justine Henin is set to announce her return to competitive tennis today, according to two top Belgian newspapers. La Derniere Heure and Le Soir reported the comeback on Monday.

• Serena Williams appears in Procter & Gamble Co.'s lighthearted new print ad campaign for its Tampax brand, just weeks after her U.S. Open outburst. With the theme “Outsmart Mother Nature”, we believe that's Serena's promise that we will not see the same incident happen again in the future.

• Taylor Dent won the Oklahoma challenger, defeating Wayne Odesnik in the final. With this win, Dent continues to climb in the rankings (started the year at 865) and will be ranked 122 in the world this week. IMG also announced that Dent has been offered a wildcard into the Malaysian Open next week and he will fly there early to prepare for yet another big step in his comeback.

• Martina Hingis became the first person eliminated on BBC's celebrity dancing show Strictly Come Dancing despite earning respectable debut scores from the judges for both her waltz and her rumba.

(Image via tampax.com)

Justine Henin to make theatre debut in 'Stop Crying, Penelope!'

No wonder Justine Henin has no interest to go back to tour.

She's slowly and surely building up her career in the entertainment line.

In her next project, Justine Henin will make her threatrical debut in October with a role in the comedy "Arrête de pleurer Pénélope" (Stop Crying, Penelope!).

The production will tour in the French-speaking area of Belgium this winter.

The former world no. 1 has appeared in several TV productions since retiring from tennis, including a reality series called "The 12 Tasks of Justine Henin" and a cameo in the primetime French soap opera "Plus Belle La Vie."

(Via tennis.com)

Justine Henin retires from tennis

Coach Carlos Rodriguez is sad now that he has lost his job due to Henin's retirement.

It is confirmed. Top-ranked Justine Henin has announced her retirement from professional tennis at a press conference in her native Belgium. So this means that the no. 1 spot on the WTA Rankings will go to Maria Sharapova and tailed very closely by Ana Ivanovic.

After her loss to Safina in Berlin, following a month of rest, Henin said:

"What I am have just gone through is not very reassuring."

"I was hoping to rediscover my confidence, and it is not easy."

"I don't know if something is broken, but I seem to lack the ability. I need to think about."

The 25-year-old Belgian, who has won seven Grand Slam titles, is making the surprising announcement at a press conference on Wednesday.

Henin’s decision comes less than two weeks before the start of the French Open. She has won that clay court tournament four times. The only Grand Slam still out of reach is the Wimbledon.

Henin won 10 tournaments last year, but has been in one of the worst slumps of her career this season. She lost last week in the third round of the German Open and pulled out of this week’s Italian Open, citing fatigue.

Henin admitted she'd like to have some time to study and travel away from tennis.

(Image from DOMINIQUE FAGET/AFP/Getty Images)

Tennis players are NOT boring

Well, you might not be a tennis fan simply because you judge the sports as boring. Here's what you might missed on the court (or on sports channel) at the 2008 Australian Open.

Novak Djokovic was demanded by the spectators to impersonate Maria Sharapova. He is more likely to kick ass(es) rather than being kicked at the Australian Open.

Jelena Jankovic is a charismatic player on court and off court. No wonder everyone wants to take a peep into her life right now.

Venus Williams is concentrating on the Grand Slam to fall on her laps.

Anna Chakvetadze might not be able to match Maria Sharapova's popularity when they came to Singapore recently, but trust me, many fans would love to know what's behind the towel.

Justine Henin might have a failed marriage but I'm sure she's balancing well between her personal life and tennis.

Well, that's all for today. Hope there will be more interesting photos to be shared here. All pictures are from Getty Images.