Topic: THE VICTORIA AZARENKA THREAD- Facts, Articles, Pictures, anything!!

[conchita]

very interesting thread CT! I think maybe you should do the same with the rest of your favorite players: Kirilenko, Kateryna, Vesnina and Dellacqua. I like all of them! 

[Chris1987]

very interesting thread CT! I think maybe you should do the same with the rest of your favorite players: Kirilenko, Kateryna, Vesnina and Dellacqua. I like all of them! 

Thanks Conchita and that would be cool, but I didn't want to be the only 1 posting in a thread 

[conchita]

very interesting thread CT! I think maybe you should do the same with the rest of your favorite players: Kirilenko, Kateryna, Vesnina and Dellacqua. I like all of them! 

Thanks Conchita and that would be cool, but I didn't want to be the only 1 posting in a thread 

I think maybe you will not be the only one posting in those tribute threads.

[Chris1987]

very interesting thread CT! I think maybe you should do the same with the rest of your favorite players: Kirilenko, Kateryna, Vesnina and Dellacqua. I like all of them! 

Thanks Conchita and that would be cool, but I didn't want to be the only 1 posting in a thread 

I think maybe you will not be the only one posting in those tribute threads.

In Maria's thread and look how big she is I've posted like 80-85% of the stuff in there  so thats what ny worry was even more with my other girls.

BTW Dallas seems we'll be getting the original Victoria thread back and losing all today's posts. So you won't have to do all your Fed and Stan stuff again 

[Babblelot]

How on earth was this the only thread restored? My T4U Top 10 Results thread didn't

Did you have to make a special request?

[Dallas]

How on earth was this the only thread restored? My T4U Top 10 Results thread didn't

Did you have to make a special request?

Uhm... maybe you still have a fever.   This thread wasn't restored.  Chris RESTORED it by reposting!  He did a lot of work!

I'm going to wait to see what the final word is from Scott first before I start reposting - but if we don't get the old threads back - Chris - you've done a marvelous job here!

[Babblelot]

How on earth was this the only thread restored? My T4U Top 10 Results thread didn't

Did you have to make a special request?

Uhm... maybe you still have a fever.   This thread wasn't restored.  Chris RESTORED it by reposting!  He did a lot of work!

I'm going to wait to see what the final word is from Scott first before I start reposting - but if we don't get the old threads back - Chris - you've done a marvelous job here!

That's just 

[falcon]

Yeah Chris...but she has to start winning...how old is she? among the younger lot I though Tamira Paszek showed a lot of promise...but i don't see her living up to it...

She's 19 right now Falcon. The first title in Brisbane was so important after the previous 4 Final defeats and I said right from the beginning of this year its a huge one for Victoria and this is where she will make her move. She's moved from 16 to 14 in the first week of the year and I fully expec her to be well inside the top 10 at the end of 2009 and getting to the 2nd weeks of Grand Slams and towards the latter stages much more from this year onwards. She's worked very hard on her fitness and consistency during the offseason and this showed so clearly in Brisbane where Victoria was looking so much better and just crushing her opponents. She didn't drop a set all week and looked so comfortable with her game. The way she applied herself and played in Brisbane she would hav given any player a real match. I've said since early last year this is one to real look out for and I most definitely believe Victoria has got a huge future ahead of her, winning a lot of titles

19 is young Chris...I hope she continues to do well...it would be great if she could take out a big name too.
I don't know much about Vesnina either...gosh there are so many many girls out there! Will have to find some one I like pretty soon...I'm losing interest in the WTA

I'm very confident Victoria will be taking out a few big names this season and turning herself into a big name within the next 12-18 months 
Elena V is a little older at 22 now, and has 7 wins against top 20 players and only last week beat one of the best rising young players Wozniacki in Auckland and then you see this week how close Wozniacki was to beating Serena(holding 3 matchpoints against her) and it makes Elena's win even more significant. Elena's career high ranking is 44 but she's slipped back into the 70s of late, but the 7 wins against top 20 players show she really ought to achieve a much higher ranking than she has. I've followed her now for coming upto 3 years. Elena is a player who will look to finish some points off at the net when she has the chance and is currently ranked Russia's number 1 doubles player. She won the Indian Wells doubles title last year with Safina and made the Amelia Island Final with Victoria. A big part and ever present of the Fed Cup team as well the past 3-4 years for Russia. If she can play with more consistency and show the game more often as she did last week she could make it into the top 30 to begin with and then take it up from there. Elena had a very good offseason and worked very hard on improving her game thats why last weeks result was so satisfying for her. In Melbourne she will be playing Julie Coin of France.

Definitely Falcon you need to get out on the look and find a new WTA player to follow, it makes things much more interesting then  I love to pick a player when they're young and ranked low as I did in particular with Maria, and then to a slightly smaller degree Maria K, Victoria and Elena V as then it feels as if you've followed them all their career and you can understand them more. It makes it so much more special I fel as well then if they do well on win something 

Well said Chris    You were perhaps fortunate to see Maria really climb up the rankings and win so much and become such a good player...but then I get disappointed when a particular player doesn't live up to the billing...anyway, I hope one of these girls really does well...

I was extremely blessed with Maria for sure Falcon  I saw her in the Juniors at Wimbledon in 2002 and kept an eye on her results as much as possible, and then when I properly started following her in March 2003 she was ranked almost 160. I saw something I loved about Maria, she for such a young girl had such a focus and determination out there on court. Also at the time it looked like she would develop much more of an all court game(that wasn't to be as much as I'd have liked) but thats why I'm so into Maria and desperate to see her succeed because it feels as if I was with her right from the start of her professional and Tour career. If they don't live upto the billing as you say it is frustrating and there is disappointment but if they do well and maybe win a few things for me anyway there's no greater feeling as a tennis supporter. I could never support a player properly who has already made their mark or very close to the top part of the game. I love picking out a player I see who has something about them and following all their career 
Thanks as well, and I so hope too atleast 1 of my other girls after Maria does really well- I definitely have Victoria down as my big hope there 

You are right about Maria lacking an all court game...as a matter of fact it was exactly the same time last year that she surprised everybody by incorporating that sliced backhand to her repetoire...it was amazing as she had been out almost the entire end of 07 and then coming up with such a drastic improvement in her game...it was really impressive...she' still young..I'd like to see her build up her net game as well...that would also increase her longevity on court. I'd start liking her all the more too  Darn now i really miss her 

Spot on Falcon, that improvement with a completely different shot in Maria's game in the slice backhand was a major improvement and gave her game something else completely. And just look at the results back this time last year with that shot in her armoury, as well as a much improved serve(before the shoulder issue started again) and improved fitness. Thats why I thought Maria was in for a very special year with the new dimension in her game and the serve working so well and setting up the points much better for her. Just a shame the injury had to hit when it did an finish Maria's season really in March. Talking about her makes me miss her so much more as well especially with Australia just 3 days away You are completely right on Maria trying to get more of a net game into her play too. For sure she's never going to have great vollies or be somebody who will serve and volleysay 10 times a match or something but if she could just look at getting to the net more to finish points off it would shorten rallies, matches and give her a little more energy for the latter stages of tournaments. Maria was looking to get this into her game just a little more during the offseason 2007 and early part of 2008 but the shoulder kind of put paid to that. But lets hope WHEN Maria comes back fully fit she will have the excellent serve working again, continue using that slice backhand at times and look to get to net to finish points off much more  Then maybe with all that we may see you too liking her quite a bit more 

I'm sorry Chris I shouldn't have brought up her name....lets enjoy the present field...we'll wait for the day when Maria will win her next slam...we'll continue wit Victoria (aka Steffi ) 

Hey don;t worry Falcon, Maria is always in my head and even more so with the draw being out today and Maria's name missing  so these last 6 months I've very much got used to it and can only continue looking forward to seeing Maria come back  and about the present Victoria being a huge part of that. Seems you may become a fan of Victoria which would be great  With your comparison in looks to Steffi, I just hope Victoria can win 25% of the titles Steffi did 

hey i wished that for Justine so who knows? As you know Ju went on to win more than 25% of steffi's titles 

[Chris1987]

How on earth was this the only thread restored? My T4U Top 10 Results thread didn't

Did you have to make a special request?

Uhm... maybe you still have a fever.   This thread wasn't restored.  Chris RESTORED it by reposting!  He did a lot of work!

I'm going to wait to see what the final word is from Scott first before I start reposting - but if we don't get the old threads back - Chris - you've done a marvelous job here!

Thanks Dallas  took me a lot of time to get the thread completely rebuilt but it was worth it and since we've had Falcon post quite a bit in here  and Conchita's been in too  When I was rebuilding the thread yesterday morning I didn't realise everything might be lost again, but if that happens atleast there should be 1 Victoria thread in place 
Babble what can I say- I'm a huge United follower as you more than know- and we know to never let anything get the better of us 

[Chris1987]

Yeah Chris...but she has to start winning...how old is she? among the younger lot I though Tamira Paszek showed a lot of promise...but i don't see her living up to it...

She's 19 right now Falcon. The first title in Brisbane was so important after the previous 4 Final defeats and I said right from the beginning of this year its a huge one for Victoria and this is where she will make her move. She's moved from 16 to 14 in the first week of the year and I fully expec her to be well inside the top 10 at the end of 2009 and getting to the 2nd weeks of Grand Slams and towards the latter stages much more from this year onwards. She's worked very hard on her fitness and consistency during the offseason and this showed so clearly in Brisbane where Victoria was looking so much better and just crushing her opponents. She didn't drop a set all week and looked so comfortable with her game. The way she applied herself and played in Brisbane she would hav given any player a real match. I've said since early last year this is one to real look out for and I most definitely believe Victoria has got a huge future ahead of her, winning a lot of titles

19 is young Chris...I hope she continues to do well...it would be great if she could take out a big name too.
I don't know much about Vesnina either...gosh there are so many many girls out there! Will have to find some one I like pretty soon...I'm losing interest in the WTA

I'm very confident Victoria will be taking out a few big names this season and turning herself into a big name within the next 12-18 months 
Elena V is a little older at 22 now, and has 7 wins against top 20 players and only last week beat one of the best rising young players Wozniacki in Auckland and then you see this week how close Wozniacki was to beating Serena(holding 3 matchpoints against her) and it makes Elena's win even more significant. Elena's career high ranking is 44 but she's slipped back into the 70s of late, but the 7 wins against top 20 players show she really ought to achieve a much higher ranking than she has. I've followed her now for coming upto 3 years. Elena is a player who will look to finish some points off at the net when she has the chance and is currently ranked Russia's number 1 doubles player. She won the Indian Wells doubles title last year with Safina and made the Amelia Island Final with Victoria. A big part and ever present of the Fed Cup team as well the past 3-4 years for Russia. If she can play with more consistency and show the game more often as she did last week she could make it into the top 30 to begin with and then take it up from there. Elena had a very good offseason and worked very hard on improving her game thats why last weeks result was so satisfying for her. In Melbourne she will be playing Julie Coin of France.

Definitely Falcon you need to get out on the look and find a new WTA player to follow, it makes things much more interesting then  I love to pick a player when they're young and ranked low as I did in particular with Maria, and then to a slightly smaller degree Maria K, Victoria and Elena V as then it feels as if you've followed them all their career and you can understand them more. It makes it so much more special I fel as well then if they do well on win something 

Well said Chris    You were perhaps fortunate to see Maria really climb up the rankings and win so much and become such a good player...but then I get disappointed when a particular player doesn't live up to the billing...anyway, I hope one of these girls really does well...

I was extremely blessed with Maria for sure Falcon  I saw her in the Juniors at Wimbledon in 2002 and kept an eye on her results as much as possible, and then when I properly started following her in March 2003 she was ranked almost 160. I saw something I loved about Maria, she for such a young girl had such a focus and determination out there on court. Also at the time it looked like she would develop much more of an all court game(that wasn't to be as much as I'd have liked) but thats why I'm so into Maria and desperate to see her succeed because it feels as if I was with her right from the start of her professional and Tour career. If they don't live upto the billing as you say it is frustrating and there is disappointment but if they do well and maybe win a few things for me anyway there's no greater feeling as a tennis supporter. I could never support a player properly who has already made their mark or very close to the top part of the game. I love picking out a player I see who has something about them and following all their career 
Thanks as well, and I so hope too atleast 1 of my other girls after Maria does really well- I definitely have Victoria down as my big hope there 

You are right about Maria lacking an all court game...as a matter of fact it was exactly the same time last year that she surprised everybody by incorporating that sliced backhand to her repetoire...it was amazing as she had been out almost the entire end of 07 and then coming up with such a drastic improvement in her game...it was really impressive...she' still young..I'd like to see her build up her net game as well...that would also increase her longevity on court. I'd start liking her all the more too  Darn now i really miss her 

Spot on Falcon, that improvement with a completely different shot in Maria's game in the slice backhand was a major improvement and gave her game something else completely. And just look at the results back this time last year with that shot in her armoury, as well as a much improved serve(before the shoulder issue started again) and improved fitness. Thats why I thought Maria was in for a very special year with the new dimension in her game and the serve working so well and setting up the points much better for her. Just a shame the injury had to hit when it did an finish Maria's season really in March. Talking about her makes me miss her so much more as well especially with Australia just 3 days away You are completely right on Maria trying to get more of a net game into her play too. For sure she's never going to have great vollies or be somebody who will serve and volleysay 10 times a match or something but if she could just look at getting to the net more to finish points off it would shorten rallies, matches and give her a little more energy for the latter stages of tournaments. Maria was looking to get this into her game just a little more during the offseason 2007 and early part of 2008 but the shoulder kind of put paid to that. But lets hope WHEN Maria comes back fully fit she will have the excellent serve working again, continue using that slice backhand at times and look to get to net to finish points off much more  Then maybe with all that we may see you too liking her quite a bit more 

I'm sorry Chris I shouldn't have brought up her name....lets enjoy the present field...we'll wait for the day when Maria will win her next slam...we'll continue wit Victoria (aka Steffi ) 

Hey don;t worry Falcon, Maria is always in my head and even more so with the draw being out today and Maria's name missing  so these last 6 months I've very much got used to it and can only continue looking forward to seeing Maria come back  and about the present Victoria being a huge part of that. Seems you may become a fan of Victoria which would be great  With your comparison in looks to Steffi, I just hope Victoria can win 25% of the titles Steffi did 

hey i wished that for Justine so who knows? As you know Ju went on to win more than 25% of steffi's titles 

Hey I'm liking you more and more Falcon with that sort of talk  Justine was a special player no doubt, to see Victoria get close to the amount of titles Justine won would be amazing

[falcon]

Yeah Chris...but she has to start winning...how old is she? among the younger lot I though Tamira Paszek showed a lot of promise...but i don't see her living up to it...

She's 19 right now Falcon. The first title in Brisbane was so important after the previous 4 Final defeats and I said right from the beginning of this year its a huge one for Victoria and this is where she will make her move. She's moved from 16 to 14 in the first week of the year and I fully expec her to be well inside the top 10 at the end of 2009 and getting to the 2nd weeks of Grand Slams and towards the latter stages much more from this year onwards. She's worked very hard on her fitness and consistency during the offseason and this showed so clearly in Brisbane where Victoria was looking so much better and just crushing her opponents. She didn't drop a set all week and looked so comfortable with her game. The way she applied herself and played in Brisbane she would hav given any player a real match. I've said since early last year this is one to real look out for and I most definitely believe Victoria has got a huge future ahead of her, winning a lot of titles

19 is young Chris...I hope she continues to do well...it would be great if she could take out a big name too.
I don't know much about Vesnina either...gosh there are so many many girls out there! Will have to find some one I like pretty soon...I'm losing interest in the WTA

I'm very confident Victoria will be taking out a few big names this season and turning herself into a big name within the next 12-18 months 
Elena V is a little older at 22 now, and has 7 wins against top 20 players and only last week beat one of the best rising young players Wozniacki in Auckland and then you see this week how close Wozniacki was to beating Serena(holding 3 matchpoints against her) and it makes Elena's win even more significant. Elena's career high ranking is 44 but she's slipped back into the 70s of late, but the 7 wins against top 20 players show she really ought to achieve a much higher ranking than she has. I've followed her now for coming upto 3 years. Elena is a player who will look to finish some points off at the net when she has the chance and is currently ranked Russia's number 1 doubles player. She won the Indian Wells doubles title last year with Safina and made the Amelia Island Final with Victoria. A big part and ever present of the Fed Cup team as well the past 3-4 years for Russia. If she can play with more consistency and show the game more often as she did last week she could make it into the top 30 to begin with and then take it up from there. Elena had a very good offseason and worked very hard on improving her game thats why last weeks result was so satisfying for her. In Melbourne she will be playing Julie Coin of France.

Definitely Falcon you need to get out on the look and find a new WTA player to follow, it makes things much more interesting then  I love to pick a player when they're young and ranked low as I did in particular with Maria, and then to a slightly smaller degree Maria K, Victoria and Elena V as then it feels as if you've followed them all their career and you can understand them more. It makes it so much more special I fel as well then if they do well on win something 

Well said Chris    You were perhaps fortunate to see Maria really climb up the rankings and win so much and become such a good player...but then I get disappointed when a particular player doesn't live up to the billing...anyway, I hope one of these girls really does well...

I was extremely blessed with Maria for sure Falcon  I saw her in the Juniors at Wimbledon in 2002 and kept an eye on her results as much as possible, and then when I properly started following her in March 2003 she was ranked almost 160. I saw something I loved about Maria, she for such a young girl had such a focus and determination out there on court. Also at the time it looked like she would develop much more of an all court game(that wasn't to be as much as I'd have liked) but thats why I'm so into Maria and desperate to see her succeed because it feels as if I was with her right from the start of her professional and Tour career. If they don't live upto the billing as you say it is frustrating and there is disappointment but if they do well and maybe win a few things for me anyway there's no greater feeling as a tennis supporter. I could never support a player properly who has already made their mark or very close to the top part of the game. I love picking out a player I see who has something about them and following all their career 
Thanks as well, and I so hope too atleast 1 of my other girls after Maria does really well- I definitely have Victoria down as my big hope there 

You are right about Maria lacking an all court game...as a matter of fact it was exactly the same time last year that she surprised everybody by incorporating that sliced backhand to her repetoire...it was amazing as she had been out almost the entire end of 07 and then coming up with such a drastic improvement in her game...it was really impressive...she' still young..I'd like to see her build up her net game as well...that would also increase her longevity on court. I'd start liking her all the more too  Darn now i really miss her 

Spot on Falcon, that improvement with a completely different shot in Maria's game in the slice backhand was a major improvement and gave her game something else completely. And just look at the results back this time last year with that shot in her armoury, as well as a much improved serve(before the shoulder issue started again) and improved fitness. Thats why I thought Maria was in for a very special year with the new dimension in her game and the serve working so well and setting up the points much better for her. Just a shame the injury had to hit when it did an finish Maria's season really in March. Talking about her makes me miss her so much more as well especially with Australia just 3 days away You are completely right on Maria trying to get more of a net game into her play too. For sure she's never going to have great vollies or be somebody who will serve and volleysay 10 times a match or something but if she could just look at getting to the net more to finish points off it would shorten rallies, matches and give her a little more energy for the latter stages of tournaments. Maria was looking to get this into her game just a little more during the offseason 2007 and early part of 2008 but the shoulder kind of put paid to that. But lets hope WHEN Maria comes back fully fit she will have the excellent serve working again, continue using that slice backhand at times and look to get to net to finish points off much more  Then maybe with all that we may see you too liking her quite a bit more 

I'm sorry Chris I shouldn't have brought up her name....lets enjoy the present field...we'll wait for the day when Maria will win her next slam...we'll continue wit Victoria (aka Steffi ) 

Hey don;t worry Falcon, Maria is always in my head and even more so with the draw being out today and Maria's name missing  so these last 6 months I've very much got used to it and can only continue looking forward to seeing Maria come back  and about the present Victoria being a huge part of that. Seems you may become a fan of Victoria which would be great  With your comparison in looks to Steffi, I just hope Victoria can win 25% of the titles Steffi did 

hey i wished that for Justine so who knows? As you know Ju went on to win more than 25% of steffi's titles 

Hey I'm liking you more and more Falcon with that sort of talk  Justine was a special player no doubt, to see Victoria get close to the amount of titles Justine won would be amazing

   Of course Chris...Lets back this girl

[Chris1987]

Yeah Chris...but she has to start winning...how old is she? among the younger lot I though Tamira Paszek showed a lot of promise...but i don't see her living up to it...

She's 19 right now Falcon. The first title in Brisbane was so important after the previous 4 Final defeats and I said right from the beginning of this year its a huge one for Victoria and this is where she will make her move. She's moved from 16 to 14 in the first week of the year and I fully expec her to be well inside the top 10 at the end of 2009 and getting to the 2nd weeks of Grand Slams and towards the latter stages much more from this year onwards. She's worked very hard on her fitness and consistency during the offseason and this showed so clearly in Brisbane where Victoria was looking so much better and just crushing her opponents. She didn't drop a set all week and looked so comfortable with her game. The way she applied herself and played in Brisbane she would hav given any player a real match. I've said since early last year this is one to real look out for and I most definitely believe Victoria has got a huge future ahead of her, winning a lot of titles

19 is young Chris...I hope she continues to do well...it would be great if she could take out a big name too.
I don't know much about Vesnina either...gosh there are so many many girls out there! Will have to find some one I like pretty soon...I'm losing interest in the WTA

I'm very confident Victoria will be taking out a few big names this season and turning herself into a big name within the next 12-18 months 
Elena V is a little older at 22 now, and has 7 wins against top 20 players and only last week beat one of the best rising young players Wozniacki in Auckland and then you see this week how close Wozniacki was to beating Serena(holding 3 matchpoints against her) and it makes Elena's win even more significant. Elena's career high ranking is 44 but she's slipped back into the 70s of late, but the 7 wins against top 20 players show she really ought to achieve a much higher ranking than she has. I've followed her now for coming upto 3 years. Elena is a player who will look to finish some points off at the net when she has the chance and is currently ranked Russia's number 1 doubles player. She won the Indian Wells doubles title last year with Safina and made the Amelia Island Final with Victoria. A big part and ever present of the Fed Cup team as well the past 3-4 years for Russia. If she can play with more consistency and show the game more often as she did last week she could make it into the top 30 to begin with and then take it up from there. Elena had a very good offseason and worked very hard on improving her game thats why last weeks result was so satisfying for her. In Melbourne she will be playing Julie Coin of France.

Definitely Falcon you need to get out on the look and find a new WTA player to follow, it makes things much more interesting then  I love to pick a player when they're young and ranked low as I did in particular with Maria, and then to a slightly smaller degree Maria K, Victoria and Elena V as then it feels as if you've followed them all their career and you can understand them more. It makes it so much more special I fel as well then if they do well on win something 

Well said Chris    You were perhaps fortunate to see Maria really climb up the rankings and win so much and become such a good player...but then I get disappointed when a particular player doesn't live up to the billing...anyway, I hope one of these girls really does well...

I was extremely blessed with Maria for sure Falcon  I saw her in the Juniors at Wimbledon in 2002 and kept an eye on her results as much as possible, and then when I properly started following her in March 2003 she was ranked almost 160. I saw something I loved about Maria, she for such a young girl had such a focus and determination out there on court. Also at the time it looked like she would develop much more of an all court game(that wasn't to be as much as I'd have liked) but thats why I'm so into Maria and desperate to see her succeed because it feels as if I was with her right from the start of her professional and Tour career. If they don't live upto the billing as you say it is frustrating and there is disappointment but if they do well and maybe win a few things for me anyway there's no greater feeling as a tennis supporter. I could never support a player properly who has already made their mark or very close to the top part of the game. I love picking out a player I see who has something about them and following all their career 
Thanks as well, and I so hope too atleast 1 of my other girls after Maria does really well- I definitely have Victoria down as my big hope there 

You are right about Maria lacking an all court game...as a matter of fact it was exactly the same time last year that she surprised everybody by incorporating that sliced backhand to her repetoire...it was amazing as she had been out almost the entire end of 07 and then coming up with such a drastic improvement in her game...it was really impressive...she' still young..I'd like to see her build up her net game as well...that would also increase her longevity on court. I'd start liking her all the more too  Darn now i really miss her 

Spot on Falcon, that improvement with a completely different shot in Maria's game in the slice backhand was a major improvement and gave her game something else completely. And just look at the results back this time last year with that shot in her armoury, as well as a much improved serve(before the shoulder issue started again) and improved fitness. Thats why I thought Maria was in for a very special year with the new dimension in her game and the serve working so well and setting up the points much better for her. Just a shame the injury had to hit when it did an finish Maria's season really in March. Talking about her makes me miss her so much more as well especially with Australia just 3 days away You are completely right on Maria trying to get more of a net game into her play too. For sure she's never going to have great vollies or be somebody who will serve and volleysay 10 times a match or something but if she could just look at getting to the net more to finish points off it would shorten rallies, matches and give her a little more energy for the latter stages of tournaments. Maria was looking to get this into her game just a little more during the offseason 2007 and early part of 2008 but the shoulder kind of put paid to that. But lets hope WHEN Maria comes back fully fit she will have the excellent serve working again, continue using that slice backhand at times and look to get to net to finish points off much more  Then maybe with all that we may see you too liking her quite a bit more 

I'm sorry Chris I shouldn't have brought up her name....lets enjoy the present field...we'll wait for the day when Maria will win her next slam...we'll continue wit Victoria (aka Steffi ) 

Hey don;t worry Falcon, Maria is always in my head and even more so with the draw being out today and Maria's name missing  so these last 6 months I've very much got used to it and can only continue looking forward to seeing Maria come back  and about the present Victoria being a huge part of that. Seems you may become a fan of Victoria which would be great  With your comparison in looks to Steffi, I just hope Victoria can win 25% of the titles Steffi did 

hey i wished that for Justine so who knows? As you know Ju went on to win more than 25% of steffi's titles 

Hey I'm liking you more and more Falcon with that sort of talk  Justine was a special player no doubt, to see Victoria get close to the amount of titles Justine won would be amazing

   Of course Chris...Lets back this girl

Excellent Falcon  So you thinking Victoria may become the one you follow on the WTA?

[falcon]

Yeah Chris...but she has to start winning...how old is she? among the younger lot I though Tamira Paszek showed a lot of promise...but i don't see her living up to it...

She's 19 right now Falcon. The first title in Brisbane was so important after the previous 4 Final defeats and I said right from the beginning of this year its a huge one for Victoria and this is where she will make her move. She's moved from 16 to 14 in the first week of the year and I fully expec her to be well inside the top 10 at the end of 2009 and getting to the 2nd weeks of Grand Slams and towards the latter stages much more from this year onwards. She's worked very hard on her fitness and consistency during the offseason and this showed so clearly in Brisbane where Victoria was looking so much better and just crushing her opponents. She didn't drop a set all week and looked so comfortable with her game. The way she applied herself and played in Brisbane she would hav given any player a real match. I've said since early last year this is one to real look out for and I most definitely believe Victoria has got a huge future ahead of her, winning a lot of titles

19 is young Chris...I hope she continues to do well...it would be great if she could take out a big name too.
I don't know much about Vesnina either...gosh there are so many many girls out there! Will have to find some one I like pretty soon...I'm losing interest in the WTA

I'm very confident Victoria will be taking out a few big names this season and turning herself into a big name within the next 12-18 months 
Elena V is a little older at 22 now, and has 7 wins against top 20 players and only last week beat one of the best rising young players Wozniacki in Auckland and then you see this week how close Wozniacki was to beating Serena(holding 3 matchpoints against her) and it makes Elena's win even more significant. Elena's career high ranking is 44 but she's slipped back into the 70s of late, but the 7 wins against top 20 players show she really ought to achieve a much higher ranking than she has. I've followed her now for coming upto 3 years. Elena is a player who will look to finish some points off at the net when she has the chance and is currently ranked Russia's number 1 doubles player. She won the Indian Wells doubles title last year with Safina and made the Amelia Island Final with Victoria. A big part and ever present of the Fed Cup team as well the past 3-4 years for Russia. If she can play with more consistency and show the game more often as she did last week she could make it into the top 30 to begin with and then take it up from there. Elena had a very good offseason and worked very hard on improving her game thats why last weeks result was so satisfying for her. In Melbourne she will be playing Julie Coin of France.

Definitely Falcon you need to get out on the look and find a new WTA player to follow, it makes things much more interesting then  I love to pick a player when they're young and ranked low as I did in particular with Maria, and then to a slightly smaller degree Maria K, Victoria and Elena V as then it feels as if you've followed them all their career and you can understand them more. It makes it so much more special I fel as well then if they do well on win something 

Well said Chris    You were perhaps fortunate to see Maria really climb up the rankings and win so much and become such a good player...but then I get disappointed when a particular player doesn't live up to the billing...anyway, I hope one of these girls really does well...

I was extremely blessed with Maria for sure Falcon  I saw her in the Juniors at Wimbledon in 2002 and kept an eye on her results as much as possible, and then when I properly started following her in March 2003 she was ranked almost 160. I saw something I loved about Maria, she for such a young girl had such a focus and determination out there on court. Also at the time it looked like she would develop much more of an all court game(that wasn't to be as much as I'd have liked) but thats why I'm so into Maria and desperate to see her succeed because it feels as if I was with her right from the start of her professional and Tour career. If they don't live upto the billing as you say it is frustrating and there is disappointment but if they do well and maybe win a few things for me anyway there's no greater feeling as a tennis supporter. I could never support a player properly who has already made their mark or very close to the top part of the game. I love picking out a player I see who has something about them and following all their career 
Thanks as well, and I so hope too atleast 1 of my other girls after Maria does really well- I definitely have Victoria down as my big hope there 

You are right about Maria lacking an all court game...as a matter of fact it was exactly the same time last year that she surprised everybody by incorporating that sliced backhand to her repetoire...it was amazing as she had been out almost the entire end of 07 and then coming up with such a drastic improvement in her game...it was really impressive...she' still young..I'd like to see her build up her net game as well...that would also increase her longevity on court. I'd start liking her all the more too  Darn now i really miss her 

Spot on Falcon, that improvement with a completely different shot in Maria's game in the slice backhand was a major improvement and gave her game something else completely. And just look at the results back this time last year with that shot in her armoury, as well as a much improved serve(before the shoulder issue started again) and improved fitness. Thats why I thought Maria was in for a very special year with the new dimension in her game and the serve working so well and setting up the points much better for her. Just a shame the injury had to hit when it did an finish Maria's season really in March. Talking about her makes me miss her so much more as well especially with Australia just 3 days away You are completely right on Maria trying to get more of a net game into her play too. For sure she's never going to have great vollies or be somebody who will serve and volleysay 10 times a match or something but if she could just look at getting to the net more to finish points off it would shorten rallies, matches and give her a little more energy for the latter stages of tournaments. Maria was looking to get this into her game just a little more during the offseason 2007 and early part of 2008 but the shoulder kind of put paid to that. But lets hope WHEN Maria comes back fully fit she will have the excellent serve working again, continue using that slice backhand at times and look to get to net to finish points off much more  Then maybe with all that we may see you too liking her quite a bit more 

I'm sorry Chris I shouldn't have brought up her name....lets enjoy the present field...we'll wait for the day when Maria will win her next slam...we'll continue wit Victoria (aka Steffi ) 

Hey don;t worry Falcon, Maria is always in my head and even more so with the draw being out today and Maria's name missing  so these last 6 months I've very much got used to it and can only continue looking forward to seeing Maria come back  and about the present Victoria being a huge part of that. Seems you may become a fan of Victoria which would be great  With your comparison in looks to Steffi, I just hope Victoria can win 25% of the titles Steffi did 

hey i wished that for Justine so who knows? As you know Ju went on to win more than 25% of steffi's titles 

Hey I'm liking you more and more Falcon with that sort of talk  Justine was a special player no doubt, to see Victoria get close to the amount of titles Justine won would be amazing

   Of course Chris...Lets back this girl

Excellent Falcon  So you thinking Victoria may become the one you follow on the WTA?

Just have to watch her playing a little more Chris....who knows?   

[Chris1987]

Yeah Chris...but she has to start winning...how old is she? among the younger lot I though Tamira Paszek showed a lot of promise...but i don't see her living up to it...

She's 19 right now Falcon. The first title in Brisbane was so important after the previous 4 Final defeats and I said right from the beginning of this year its a huge one for Victoria and this is where she will make her move. She's moved from 16 to 14 in the first week of the year and I fully expec her to be well inside the top 10 at the end of 2009 and getting to the 2nd weeks of Grand Slams and towards the latter stages much more from this year onwards. She's worked very hard on her fitness and consistency during the offseason and this showed so clearly in Brisbane where Victoria was looking so much better and just crushing her opponents. She didn't drop a set all week and looked so comfortable with her game. The way she applied herself and played in Brisbane she would hav given any player a real match. I've said since early last year this is one to real look out for and I most definitely believe Victoria has got a huge future ahead of her, winning a lot of titles

19 is young Chris...I hope she continues to do well...it would be great if she could take out a big name too.
I don't know much about Vesnina either...gosh there are so many many girls out there! Will have to find some one I like pretty soon...I'm losing interest in the WTA

I'm very confident Victoria will be taking out a few big names this season and turning herself into a big name within the next 12-18 months 
Elena V is a little older at 22 now, and has 7 wins against top 20 players and only last week beat one of the best rising young players Wozniacki in Auckland and then you see this week how close Wozniacki was to beating Serena(holding 3 matchpoints against her) and it makes Elena's win even more significant. Elena's career high ranking is 44 but she's slipped back into the 70s of late, but the 7 wins against top 20 players show she really ought to achieve a much higher ranking than she has. I've followed her now for coming upto 3 years. Elena is a player who will look to finish some points off at the net when she has the chance and is currently ranked Russia's number 1 doubles player. She won the Indian Wells doubles title last year with Safina and made the Amelia Island Final with Victoria. A big part and ever present of the Fed Cup team as well the past 3-4 years for Russia. If she can play with more consistency and show the game more often as she did last week she could make it into the top 30 to begin with and then take it up from there. Elena had a very good offseason and worked very hard on improving her game thats why last weeks result was so satisfying for her. In Melbourne she will be playing Julie Coin of France.

Definitely Falcon you need to get out on the look and find a new WTA player to follow, it makes things much more interesting then  I love to pick a player when they're young and ranked low as I did in particular with Maria, and then to a slightly smaller degree Maria K, Victoria and Elena V as then it feels as if you've followed them all their career and you can understand them more. It makes it so much more special I fel as well then if they do well on win something 

Well said Chris    You were perhaps fortunate to see Maria really climb up the rankings and win so much and become such a good player...but then I get disappointed when a particular player doesn't live up to the billing...anyway, I hope one of these girls really does well...

I was extremely blessed with Maria for sure Falcon  I saw her in the Juniors at Wimbledon in 2002 and kept an eye on her results as much as possible, and then when I properly started following her in March 2003 she was ranked almost 160. I saw something I loved about Maria, she for such a young girl had such a focus and determination out there on court. Also at the time it looked like she would develop much more of an all court game(that wasn't to be as much as I'd have liked) but thats why I'm so into Maria and desperate to see her succeed because it feels as if I was with her right from the start of her professional and Tour career. If they don't live upto the billing as you say it is frustrating and there is disappointment but if they do well and maybe win a few things for me anyway there's no greater feeling as a tennis supporter. I could never support a player properly who has already made their mark or very close to the top part of the game. I love picking out a player I see who has something about them and following all their career 
Thanks as well, and I so hope too atleast 1 of my other girls after Maria does really well- I definitely have Victoria down as my big hope there 

You are right about Maria lacking an all court game...as a matter of fact it was exactly the same time last year that she surprised everybody by incorporating that sliced backhand to her repetoire...it was amazing as she had been out almost the entire end of 07 and then coming up with such a drastic improvement in her game...it was really impressive...she' still young..I'd like to see her build up her net game as well...that would also increase her longevity on court. I'd start liking her all the more too  Darn now i really miss her 

Spot on Falcon, that improvement with a completely different shot in Maria's game in the slice backhand was a major improvement and gave her game something else completely. And just look at the results back this time last year with that shot in her armoury, as well as a much improved serve(before the shoulder issue started again) and improved fitness. Thats why I thought Maria was in for a very special year with the new dimension in her game and the serve working so well and setting up the points much better for her. Just a shame the injury had to hit when it did an finish Maria's season really in March. Talking about her makes me miss her so much more as well especially with Australia just 3 days away You are completely right on Maria trying to get more of a net game into her play too. For sure she's never going to have great vollies or be somebody who will serve and volleysay 10 times a match or something but if she could just look at getting to the net more to finish points off it would shorten rallies, matches and give her a little more energy for the latter stages of tournaments. Maria was looking to get this into her game just a little more during the offseason 2007 and early part of 2008 but the shoulder kind of put paid to that. But lets hope WHEN Maria comes back fully fit she will have the excellent serve working again, continue using that slice backhand at times and look to get to net to finish points off much more  Then maybe with all that we may see you too liking her quite a bit more 

I'm sorry Chris I shouldn't have brought up her name....lets enjoy the present field...we'll wait for the day when Maria will win her next slam...we'll continue wit Victoria (aka Steffi ) 

Hey don;t worry Falcon, Maria is always in my head and even more so with the draw being out today and Maria's name missing  so these last 6 months I've very much got used to it and can only continue looking forward to seeing Maria come back  and about the present Victoria being a huge part of that. Seems you may become a fan of Victoria which would be great  With your comparison in looks to Steffi, I just hope Victoria can win 25% of the titles Steffi did 

hey i wished that for Justine so who knows? As you know Ju went on to win more than 25% of steffi's titles 

Hey I'm liking you more and more Falcon with that sort of talk  Justine was a special player no doubt, to see Victoria get close to the amount of titles Justine won would be amazing

   Of course Chris...Lets back this girl

Excellent Falcon  So you thinking Victoria may become the one you follow on the WTA?

Just have to watch her playing a little more Chris....who knows?   

Definitely Falcon  I hope then you will get to see atleast a couple of matches of hers in Australia 

[Dallas]

So Chris what do you know about this Petra girl Victoria has to play first?

[Chris1987]

So Chris what do you know about this Petra girl Victoria has to play first?

Its just a real bad draw Dallas whichever way we try to look at it  Kvitova actually won the tournament in Hobart last week so is riding on a 5 match win streak and with a title under her belt. She's beginning to get a little more recognised with some of the results she's been posting the last 12 months and is a pretty solid player out there on court. Its a very tough first match for Victoria but if she can bring her Brisbane form here then it'll actually work out as a good first match for Victoria as Kvitova will allow her to build some rhythm up and get in her stride. Add to that beating a pretty good player who has just won the Hobart title will be a nice confidence booster for our Victoria

Tough one but if Victoria is on her game then we can expect her to get off to a good start in Melbourne with a good straight sets win

[Dallas]

So Chris what do you know about this Petra girl Victoria has to play first?

Its just a real bad draw Dallas whichever way we try to look at it  Kvitova actually won the tournament in Hobart last week so is riding on a 5 match win streak and with a title under her belt.

But so is Victoria!   She won the title the week before so she should come into this tournament with confidence.

[Chris1987]

So Chris what do you know about this Petra girl Victoria has to play first?

Its just a real bad draw Dallas whichever way we try to look at it  Kvitova actually won the tournament in Hobart last week so is riding on a 5 match win streak and with a title under her belt.

But so is Victoria!   She won the title the week before so she should come into this tournament with confidence.

Thats the way we think here Dallas- I like it  Unfortunate that 2 title winners have to meet 1st round but we know our title winner from Brisbane is much better than the Hobart title winner 

[falcon]

GO VICTORIA!!

[Dallas]

GO VICTORIA!!

Well that's 3 people here pulling for her!