Marat Safin overcame a surface he hated and a stubborn Argentine opponent give Russia its first Davis Cup title on home soil, beating Jose Acasuso 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5) on Sunday for a 3-2 victory.
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December 4, 2006
Former football World Cup-winning captain Diego Maradona will attend this weekend’s Davis Cup final between Russia and Argentina, a source in the Argentine embassy in Moscow said on Thursday.
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November 30, 2006
Maria Sharapova and Nikolay Davydenko have been voted Russia’s best players for the second year in a row, the country’s tennis federation announced at its annual award gala on Sunday, Reuters reports.
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November 27, 2006Nikolay Davydenko and Marat Safin will lead Russia in next month’s Davis Cup final against Argentina in Moscow, the Reuters news agency reports.
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November 20, 2006Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova has personally caught a 10-year old boy who tried to steal her mobile phone in a Starbucks cafe in Madrid.
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November 16, 2006World No 16 Anastasia Myskina was last night confirmed as the second player from the WTA’s top 20 for January’s ASB Classic, The New Zealand Herald reports.
Speaking from her home in Moscow, and shivering as snow plummeted temperatures to —3C, Myskina said she was looking forward to the tournament and the chance to play Auckland for the first time.
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November 15, 2006Russian pin-up Maria Sharapova said she was delighted with her season despite seeing it ended in the WTA Championships semi-finals in Madrid against Justine Henin-Hardenne, AFP reports.
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According to the official statement of Russia`s tennis chief Maria Sharapova will play for Russia in next year Fed Cup, the Reuters news agency reported Tuesday.
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November 8, 2006Maria Sharapova won her fifth title of the season Sunday, beating defending champion Nadia Petrova 7-5, 6-2 in the Generali Ladies final and advancing to No. 2 in the rankings, AP reports.
Sharapova has won 16 straight matches and has not lost since before the start of her successful run to the U.S. Open title.
The top-seeded Russian overtook Justine Henin-Hardenne in the rankings and now trails only Amelie Mauresmo. Sharapova needs to win the season-ending WTA Championship in Madrid, Spain, to finish on top.
“It is my dream to end the year on the No. 1 spot again,†Sharapova said.
Petrova, seeded second, won her first career title in Linz last year.
“I am so disappointed,†the Russian said. “I really got my chances in the first set. But after missing them, I just did not play up to my usual standards anymore.â€
Sharapova dominated from the start, breaking serve in the first game. But at 4-3 she double-faulted and lost her serve. Sharapova then saved two set points and later held serve and broke before serving out the set.
In the first game of the second set, Petrova lost serve again. She then had few chances against Sharapova’s strong serve.
“I started very well, but got a bit tired towards the end of the first set,†Sharapova said. “Saving the two set points gave me a huge boost. I always play my best tennis when under pressure.â€
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October 30, 2006Maria Sharapova defeated third-seeded Patty Schnyder of Switzerland 7-5 7-5 on Saturday to reach the final of the Linz Open, the Reuters news agency reports.
The top-seeded Russian will be bidding for her fifth title of the year. Victory by Sharapova effectively ended Schnyder’s hopes of joining the eight-player field for the WTA Championships that takes place in Madrid next month.
Sharapova’s opponent in the final will be second seed and defending champion Nadia Petrova of Russia, or fourth-seeded Czech Nicole Vaidisova, who were playing later on Saturday.
It was largely a forgettable match, despite the closeness of the score. Schnyder did manage to move Sharapova around well but neither player managed to find rhythm or consistency.
Sharapova took an early lead, breaking for 2-1. But, as she did twice in her quarter-final win over Ana Ivanovic, she failed to serve out the set at her first opportunity.
After failing to convert three set points on Schnyder’s serve at 5-3 she lost another on her own serve before Schnyder broke for 5-5.
Sharapova, however, broke again for 6-5 when her opponent hooked a backhand long, but had to hold off a break point before clinching the set on her sixth set point.
Sharapova immediately lost her own serve after breaking for 1-0 in the second set, but then broke again for 6-5 when Schnyder netted a forehand.
Double-faulting on her first match point, Sharapova finally took the match on her third with an ace.
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October 28, 2006
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