Somdev Devvarman got a walkover into the final of the Chennai Open after his semi-final opponent Rainer Schuettler withdrew from the tournament due to a wrist injury.Somdev will face Marin Cilic who has beaten Marcel Granollers in another semifinal match 6-4, 6-3.After withdrawing from the tournament, a dejected Rainer Schuettler said, "During yesterday's doubles match I started feeling pain in my left wrist. As I warmed up for the semifinal I wasn't able to hit a double handed backhanded, I felt a strong pain. I would only be able to slice and I'm also afraid that the injury would get worse. I had the same a few years ago but it wasn't as bad as now."
"I also have to pull out of Sydney. I will now fly to Melbourne and see if I can be ready in time for the Australian Open."
"I feel sorry for the crowd and the tournament. It is a very disappointing moment for me", added Schuettler.
Somdev now becomes the first Indian to make it to the Chennai Open final and also the second Indian after Leander Paes to reach the semifinals of the 14-year old prestigious event.He had a great run in front of his home crowd after beating former world no.1 and two-time champion Carlos Moya on Thursday and continued his giant killing act and upped his game by several notches to beat fourth seeded Ivo Karlovic of Croatia 7-6(4), 6-4 and storm into the semifinals.I'm crossing my fingers and hope Somdev will get his first ATP title here tomorrow.
(Via NDTV.com)
Olympic champion Elena Dementieva eased to a 6-4 6-1 victory over fellow Russian Elena Vesnina to capture the Auckland Classic title today.
Dementieva, 27, wrapped up the victory in just 88 minutes and completed the tournament without dropping a set. What a great start for the long tennis season. “I played some good tennis, especially in the semi-final and final. It’s been a great beginning of the year,” she told a news conference.
The win was world number four Dementieva’s 12th title of her career and fourth in the last 12 months, highlighted by winning the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in August.
The unseeded Vesnina, 22, was playing in her first WTA final after teaming up with Dementieva in the doubles.
“Maybe I was bit tired,” she said.
“It was long week for me, a lot of long matches. Maybe I was a bit nervous today.”
(Via Reuter; Images via sports.sina.com)
Check out the draws and OOP here.
Dima will be defending his title here. He's definitely an interesting player to watch out for, whether it's on court or off court. If you have missed his 'off court adventurous ride' recently in MTF or DtL, check it out here. Click for a larger version.
