Kazakh Yaroslava Shvedova Defeats The Chinese Star LI Na By 3-6, 6-2, 6-0.On a windy and cold day in Paris, the fortunes of two Grand Slam champions blew in different directions as Maria Sharapova needed to labor for more than three hours to score a victory, while defending Roland Garros champion Li Na was stunned by a qualifier.Kazakh Yaroslava Shvedova ended Li's hope of becoming the first back to back titlist since Justine Henin won three crowns between 2005-2007 when she hit through the Chinese 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 on Court Suzanne Lenglen in a match where Li completely lost her rhythm in the last two sets.Li, who had looked good in her first three matches and had reached the final of Rome two weeks ago, committed 41 unforced errors and could not stay with the charged-up Shvedova off the ground."Nothing happen," Li said. "I just try to play ball back to the court, but I can't. I mean, just like normal. Tennis, only two players on the court. Only win or is lose. For me is nothing special. If today I lose the match, lose. If I win, just win. If I lose the match, I have to find the reason why I lose the match. I have to try working hard next day."No.142 Shvedova, who reached a career high ranking of no.29 two years ago after reaching the quarter-finals of Roland Garros, had fallen off the map in singles, as she began the year ranked no.201 and had to play ITF Futures events to get her confidence back and her ranking high enough so she'd even have a chance to qualify for the majors."It's the most incredible win for me," Shvedova said. "I always have nice matches against top players, because it's I have no pressure, and I always come to beat them." She will play Petra Kvitova, who seems to have finally found her form on clay and made her class count against Varvara Lepchenko, who looked overawed by the challenge of taking on the Wimbledon champion. Kvitova needed no second invitation to blast the American out of the tournament 6-2, 6-1.
Sharapova and Czech Klara Zakopalova fought tooth and nail in match that featured 21 breaks of serves, but also some searing groundstrokes from both women, who combined for 82 winners. Even though she failed to serve the match out twice in the second set and saw Zakopalova hit through her in a hard-fought contest that tested both players legs and wills, Sharapova came away with a 6-4 6-7(5) 6-2 victory."My opponent I played extremely well, the best that she's played against me," Sharapova said. "She's dangerous. She can play well because first of all, she's had very good wins, so she's confident. On top of that, when she hits the ball, I think some days she goes out there and goes for it, and it seems like everything just goes in and stays so low over the net.A great example is that first match point, she was just drilling the ball. I'm sure some other days she goes out and makes mistakes. And that's probably why she came to this tournament not seeded. But she's certainly dangerous. But I came out strong in the third set, and I guess that's really what matters and nice to be in the quarters again."
With no.1 Victoria Azarenka, defending champion Li as well as 13-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams out of the draw, it may appear that this is Sharapova's best chance to complete a career Grand Slam, but as the 30-year-old Zakopalova showed on Monday, there are plenty of players who do not fear the higher seeds and can stay with them.But perhaps the one positive that came out of Sharapova' near career ending shoulder surgery in 2008 is she spent a tremendous amount of time off court strengthening her body. Plus, she doesn’t panic like she used to on clay."It's more like I felt like I would always have to save myself, because knowing that it's seven matches, I never felt like I recovered that well," said Sharapova who has fizzled during the second week of Roland Garros on seven previous occasions. But I think with experience and just being physically stronger, I'm much better at that. Here you have a day off, so it's like helpful."The second seed added that while she did jam her right wrist during the match that it feels OK.Sharapova will play Kaia Kanepi, who downed Arantxa Rus 6-1, 4-6, 6-0. The Estonian was hugely impressive, especially in that last set, shrugging off her second set blip to crush her young Dutch opponent.
Men's 4th Round Results:
Andy Murray waited out a perfect storm of a first set by his opponent Richard Gasquet before taking the match by the scruff of the neck to win 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2. He was blown away for the first half-an-hour, held his own for the next set before turning the match on its head.The match was a contrast in styles between the old and the new school. One-handed backhands are a dying art that is destined to be "grandfathered" out of the sport once Federer, Wawrinka and Gasquet retire. Coaches refuse to teach youngsters this arcane skill as it is said to put too much stress on the shoulder. In years to come, historians will speak fondly of the continental grip that was all the rage back in the 20th century, but for half-an-hour on a chilly Philippe Chatrier Court, it was back in fashion and the French crowd loved it.
Gasquet dispatched every ball which landed to his left like a ringmaster cracking his whip. Each backhand seemed to speed like a tracer bullet low and true over the net and into the corners. The fans on Chatrier roared, stood to applaud and feted his 6-1 first set with a Mexican wave which did three laps of the stands and lasted for the whole changeover. The "Mozart of French tennis" as he is often known here – the child prodigy destined for greatness ever since he appeared on the cover of a sports magazine at the tender age of nine – was finally coming of age.Or so we thought. The second set settled into more of a conventional rhythm and Murray even got his nose in front, only for Gasquet to break back, amid more roaring, standing and waving. But then Mozart tried an audacious arpeggio which turned into a bum note. At 4-5 advantage Murray, Gasquet attempted to find the outside of the box with a second service. The crowd groaned as it failed to clip the white line and Murray was handed the second set.Never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, the Scotsman set about converting this unexpected slice of fortune into hard currency. And while Gasquet tried desperately to conjure up the magic of the first set, Murray picked his spots and dismantled an opponent who, rather than consolidating, decided unwisely to chase the game.For the neutral it was a great spectacle. There were more drop shots than we had seen in this part of Paris since Justine Henin hung up her racquet, and Murray began to showcase the art of the two-handed backhand which, while less aesthetic than its one-handed cousin, is every bit as effective. When Gasquet smashed, Murray retrieved. When he sliced, Murray hared in and outdropped him. And when he missed, Murray pounced.
The third and fourth sets were as one-sided as the first as Murray parlayed his greater experience into the kind of win that would have eluded him earlier in his career. Gasquet saved two match points to the delight of the crowd, but it was delaying the inevitable. And speaking of inevitable, the Frenchman will once again face an inquest into his big-match temperament.Murray meanwhile moves on to the quarter-finals to face David Ferrer, an altogether different animal and one who loves clay with a passion bordering on obsession. The Scotsman's coach Ivan Lendl, seen nodding sagely throughout the contest today, will be pleased with his new charge's performance but is well aware that he will have to raise his game a notch or two if his Grand Slam duck is to be broken here in Paris.
Rafael Nadal’s 6-2, 6-0, 6-0 win over Juan Monaco was that it somehow took one hour and 46 minutes to compile. Still, credit where it’s due; at one stage the Argentinean was actually ahead in the match, albeit at 2-1 in the first set. It was the next 17 games that Monaco will need to forget, as Nadal took him apart, displaying terrifying form. The result bears testament to the Spaniard’s lethal potency at Roland Garros – but even allowing for that, the scoreline was embarrassing alongside the name of any player seeded 13 in a Slam tournament.On a really cold afternoon on Suzanne Lenglen court, it was not as if Monaco was frozen with fear. In the first set he actually really gave the impossible task a go, doing his best to provide some kind of creative challenge to the perennial tournament favourite. He had two break points (albeit unconverted), did not make significantly more unforced errors than his opponent, and his first serve percentage was way better than Nadal's at 86% to 66%, Yet he could make no headway. By the middle of the second set, Monaco's stock of ideas had run dry. Nadal, meanwhile, was simply stunning. Hitting the lines as if the ball was drawn there on a wire every time, he has only dropped 19 games in four matches. He will play his compatriot Nicolas Almagro in the last eight.Nadal was almost regretful after the match, quick to reassure his friend Monaco: "In my opinion, he was unlucky, unlucky in the first set. That's my feeling, no? 6‑2 was too much. Later, sure, very happy the way I played. I feel very, very sorry for him. I think he's playing probably the best tennis of his career, but probably not today after, especially the last set, no, when he start to miss, you know. I saw him a little bit, you know, suffering a little bit on court at the end. He's one of my best friends on tour. I feel very sorry for him."
David Ferrer continued his charge through the men’s draw with another efficient display to win through to the last eight. Today’s casualty was his Davis Cup team-mate Marcel Granollers, seeded No.20 here. For the fourth time in as many outings at Roland Garros 2012, Ferrer was never in anything you could seriously call trouble. He won 6-3, 6-2, 6-0 in an hour and 51 minutes, to equal his best career display at Roland Garros.Granollers too has had a good tournament, with this fourth round appearance his best Slam performance to date. But on a frankly chilly Philippe Chatrier court, he became the latest contender to fall victim to Ferrer’s trick of making his opponents play badly, a skill noted by Mats Wilander. The seven-time Slam winner (including three on the Parisian clay) says Ferrer’s expertise is so subtle that he leaves opponents puzzled as to exactly how he wins so many matches. But Wilander made it plain he would be delighted if Ferrer can capture a Slam title because it would be a triumph of dedication.Certainly many here see Ferrer as a worthier member of the Big Four than his potential quarter-final opponent Andy Murray. But whether he can translate that into an actual Slam victory, particularly this year, is harder to see. Nonetheless, this fourth-round outing was right up his street, as he took his opponent to multiple deuces in Granollers’ opening service game. It was only a matter of time before the defences crumbled. At 3-2 Ferrer brought up his third break point of the game by outfoxing Granollers with a drop shot followed by a perfect ball down the line (not the last time he would use that combination to crushing effect). Granollers, who is just the sixth-ranked Spaniard here despite his seeding, double faulted and it was 2-4. Aside from one thoroughly atypical love game, he always looked vulnerable on service.Granollers did however manage to carve out two chances. Ferrer was serving for the set and unexpectedly put the ball wide for break point. A 23-stroke rally forced Granollers further and further into a defensive corner and left him nowhere to go. Then Ferrer sent the ball long again, and another long rally drew a further error from Granollers. That was the nearest Ferrer came to a crisis, even though it was a set where he made more errors than Granollers. Crucially Ferrer produced even more winners, and he served it out 6-3 in 44 minutes.The second set opened with a 13-minute game as Ferrer cemented his advantage. He brought up his fourth break point with a backhand volley, and converted with a wrong-footing forehand. At 0-2 it was raining on Granollers’ parade and also on Chatrier, although play continued. At 3-1 Ferrer forced the pace once more, racing to the net to reach a seemingly perfect drop shot and send it down the line to move clear at 4-1. Granollers had little left to give and captured just one more game before the match was done.Commented Ferrer after the win: "It's a series of reasons why I have reached quarterfinals, why this year is my best performance at Roland Garros. It's true that in the past three or four ‑ well, four matches ‑ I felt really comfortable. I felt really at ease. I think I have to continue this way. Next match I will be playing will probably be a difficult match to play, but I'll have to continue and be positive. I should try and reach semifinals. I've never managed to go beyond the level of quarterfinals. I managed at the US Open but never on clay, so I will have to continue and make even more effort."
Nicolas Almagro, meanwhile, continued his incredible run that began in the first round of the Nice Open. Since that match, the Spanish no.12 seed has yet to drop a set, winning the tournament in the south of France and racing into the quarter-finals here. Almagro's latest victim was Janko Tipsarevic, no less, the no.8 seed from Serbia. Tipsarevic was outplayed in every part of the game by the Spaniard who must be starting to feel invincible, such is his form. The clay-court specialist is about to find out, as he faces the winner of the Juan Monaco-Rafael Nadal match this afternoon.Almagro was understandably delighted to reach the last eight: "Yes, of course I'm very happy. I think I played great tennis today. The day was a little bit cloudy, but now it's really sunny for me. (Smiling.) Now that win is one of the best moments of my career, and I want to enjoy and I'm very happy with my tennis."
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was a mightily relieved man when he converted his second match point on Stanislav Wawrinska's serve to win 6-4, 7-6(6), 3-6, 3-6, 6-4. The French fifth seed had come into the match carried over from last night with a 4-2 lead and lost the first game to relinquish his precious break. The Swiss then drew level at 4-4 and a potentially tight, drawn-out conclusion looked likely. No doubt annoyed at letting his lead slip, Tsonga had other ideas, running around his forehand to smash winners in the next two games and grasp victory from the valiant Wawrinka. Providing he makes full use of that devastating forehand in tomorrow's quarter-final, the Frenchman must have a (small) chance. Especially if Djokovic starts as sluggishly as he did against Andreas Seppi in the last round...Juan Martin Del Potro took up where he left off last night, carving out a 7-6(6), 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 win over Tomas Berdych by taking the fourth set he required. Leading two sets to one overnight, the Argentinean no.9 seed broke to lead 2-0, only to relinquish that break in the seventh game. Del Potro looked the more dangerous throughout though, and after he raced into a 0-40 lead in the 12th game he clinched his place in the quarter-final on his first match point when Berdych hit long.
Del Potro was bothered by his heavily strapped knee in the early rounds, but gave no sign of discomfort either yesterday or today. His groundstrokes have been wreaking havoc and Roger Federer will need to bring his A-game against the former US Open champion in the quarter-final. Since missing nearly all of 2010 with a wrist injury, tennis fans have been waiting for the giant South American to get back to his devastating best. He is not there yet, but there are growing signs that the Del Potro of old is back, and the 'Big Four' may become a 'Big Five' on this evidence.Looking forward to his quarter-final with Roger Federer, Del Potro was upbeat: "I (need to) play an unbelievable match, try to take my opportunities, serve 100%, trying to play winners with my forehand, with my backhand, and put him to raise his game. I don't like to run too much, so I will try to be more aggressive than his game and looking at unbelievable shots."
