Sixteen-year old Portuguese tennis sensation Michelle Larcher de Brito has been given a wild card into the main draw of next week’s LA Women’s Tennis Championships. Larcher de Brito, who trains at the IMG Bollettieri Tennis Academy, is currently the youngest player ranked in the top 100 (#91) and is coming off of a very [...]
Two young Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy students, Sabine Lisicki and Michelle Larcher de Brito, continued to move up in the rankings after solid performances at Wimbledon. Lisicki, 19, reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career at Wimbledon, beating seeds Anna Chakvetadze, Svetlana Kuznetsova (2009 French Open champion) and [...]
Dinara Safina (RUS) vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)
If you just see the box score from Safina’s win over Dominika Cibulkova you won’t get the full story. Cibulkova played her extremely tough and really tested Safina’s mental and physical strength. This is Safina’s third Grand Slam final and her second consecutive appearance in the finals [...]
Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) vs. Robin Soderling (SWE)
Gonzalez was able to keep Murray pinned way back behind the baseline throughout the entire quarterfinal match. This allowed Gonzalez to hit drop shots, angled shots, and control the court with his forehand preventing Murray from making a run. This is Gonzalez’s first time reaching the semis [...]
Dinara Safina (RUS) vs. Dominika Cibulkova (SVK)
As thought, Safina got her first big test of the tournament when she faced Victoria Azarenka in the quarters. She dropped the opening set, but fought back to advance in three. The win puts her into the semis for the second-straight year and now she is two [...]
Robin Soderling (SWE) vs. Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)
Soderling pulled off the upset of the tournament, ending Rafael Nadal’s 31-match winning streak at the French Open. The win is the biggest of Soderling’s career and put him in the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam for the first time. Now, everyone will be watching the 24-year old [...]
Dinara Safina (RUS) vs. Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
Nobody has even come close to challenging Safina as of yet. In four matches she has lost a total of five games! She certainly looks unstoppable as of right now, but then again so did Nadal! If she captures this title, it would be the first Grand [...]
Stay tuned to Nick’s Picks throughout the French Open for predictions and analysis of the tournament. Yesterday, we began with our breakdown of the Men’s Field. Today we have the Women’s Breakdown and Friday we will take a look at the Draws.
Top 10 Ranked Players
Dinara Safina (RUS)
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 154 lbs.
D.O. B: 04/27/1986
Turned Pro: 2000
Plays: Right-handed [...]
In preparation for the upcoming European clay court season, including the French Open starting May 24, Serena Williams today arrived at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy/IMG Academies to train with Nick on the campus’ clay courts.
“I’ve known Nick since I was 10 years old,” she said. “He’s always been a great person and a help [...]