Martina News
(April - September 2004)
September 12, 2004: Martina fans, I apologize for not being able to update this site for the past month. I am very sorry about this and thank all of you for understanding. The results over the past month haven't exactly been what we had hoped for but Martina soldiers on, committed to playing out the rest of the year and as always, we remain right behind her. A brief recap: in Athens, Martina & Lisa reached the quarterfinals where they lost a heartbreaker to the Japanese team of Shinobu Asagoe & Ai Sugiyama 6-4 4-6 6-4. The following week was a better one at the Pilot Pen event in New Haven, Connecticut where they made the finals, losing to Nadia Petrova & Meghann Shaughnessy 6-1 1-6 7-6. And at the recently-concluded U.S. Open, Martina & Lisa made the quarterfinals where they narrowly lost to Sveta Kuznetsova & Elena Likhovtseva 6-7 7-6 6-1. In the mixed doubles, Martina & Leander did well to reach the semifinals where they fell victim to the cruel super tie-break used at the Open, going down 4-6 6-3 10-3 to Todd Woodbridge & Alicia Molik. Martina next heads home to Sarasota for a well-deserved break. Lisa & she are expected to make their fall debut in Filderstadt, the week of October 4.
August 15, 2004: The Athens Olympics have begun - Martina's raison d'être for continuing to play in 2004. Lisa & she are the #3 seeds and have an extremely difficult draw, placed in the toughest quarter by far. They are scheduled to play their first round match today against the Ukrainians Yulia Beygelzimer & Tatiana Perebiynis, the last scheduled match on Centre Court.
August 15, 2004: The United States Olympic tennis team held a press conference on Wednesday in Athens. The complete transcripts are not available but quotes can be found among the various links that follow: United States Olympic Committee Press Box, Official Olympics website, Official Olympics website (2), The Daily Yomiuiri, The Kansas City Star, Associated Press, BBC, The Los Angeles Times, South African Press Association, Agence France-Presse, The Scotsman, The Sports Network. For various photos from the last couple of days from the press conference, practice session & the Opening ceremony, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine.
August 15, 2004: Since Fed Cup, Martina has played World TeamTennis, the Acura Classic in San Diego and the Nordea Nordic Light Open in Stockholm. For her WTT results, visit the World TeamTennis website here. In San Diego, Martina & Lisa made it to the semifinals where they lost to Cara Black & Rennae Stubbs 7-5 7-6(4). As the #4 seeds, they received a first round bye, then beat Gisela Dulko & Patricia Tarabini 6-3 6-4 in the second round and then Eleni Daniilidou & Liezel Huber 6-4 6-7(5) 6-4 in the quarterfinals. Martina then headed off to Stockholm for the Nordea Nordic Light Open where she partnered Elena Tatarkova. Martina & Elena, the #2 seeds, were upset in their opening match by Maria Elena Camerin & Flavia Pennetta 6-3 7-5. For a possible explanataion, see the last tidbit of Associated Press piece.
July 14, 2004: For the highlights of Martina's recent conference call with the media to promote World TeamTennis, click here. She plays her first WTT match of the season tomorrow in Philadelphia.
July 10, 2004: Martina lost her Fed Cup doubles match in Innsbruck today as the USA went down 4-1 in their quarterfinal against Austria. Martina was forced to play doubles with Jill Craybas, most likely because Lisa was tired after her marathon singles loss today. This was the first time Martina was playing with Jill, so it was no surprise that they lost to the Austrian pair. Martina nexts heads back home to the USA and will be playing World TeamTennis over the next 2 weeks.
July 6, 2004: Click here for a poignant yet fascinating article on Martina by Sue Mott of 'The Daily Telegraph.'
July 4, 2004: Martina's Wimbledon career ended yesterday with defeat in the womens doubles. Lisa & she were upset by the #5 seeds, Liezel Huber & Ai Sugiyama 7-6(4) 7-5 on Court 13. Martina confirmed afterwards that this was her last match ever at Wimbledon. For the transcripts of Martina's & Lisa's press conference following the match, click here. For articles from the tournament website, click on the following links: Article One, Article Two. And here are the photos: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine. Martina next heads to Innsbruck for the USA's quarterfinal Fed Cup tie against the hosts Austria.
July 4, 2004: During the Wimbledon fortnight, it was announced that Martina has made the United State Olympic team to play doubles with Lisa in Athens next month. Congratulations, Martina & Lisa! For the transcripts of the USTA press conference with captains, Zina Garrison & Patrick McEnroe, click here. For a ESPN article, click here. To see the complete Olympic acceptance list, visit the ITF's Olympic tennis website here.
July 4, 2004: Martina has also made the U.S. Fed Cup team for the quarterfinal against Austria next weekend. She joins Lisa, Chanda Rubin & Jill Craybas on the team, led by captain Zina Garrison. The USA will be the heavy underdogs against the favorites, Austria, on the clay in Innsbruck. For the USTA press release, click here.
July 2, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their semifinal doubles match tomorrow against the #5 seeds, Liezel Huber & Ai Sugiyama. The match is slated to be played first on Court 13.
July 2, 2004: For Martina's latest column for 'The Guardian,' click here.
July 2, 2004: Martina & Leander lost their third round mixed doubles match at Wimbledon today, going down to Wayne & Cara Black 7-6 6-7 13-11. Yesterday, they had been up 4-1 in the final set and also held two match points at 5-4 on Mr. Black's serve. For articles on today's unfortunate result, click on the following links: Tournament website, The Guardian. For a photo from the match, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
July 1, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their semifinal match tomorrow against the #5 seeds, Liezel Huber & Ai Sugiyama on Court 1, the second match on that court. Later, Martina & Leander will return to Court 13 for the continuation of the third round mixed doubles match against Black/Black, scheduled to be played fourth.
July 1, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their quarterfinal match today defeating Marion Bartoli & Emilie Loit 6-2 6-4. This marks the first time Martina has made it to the womens doubles semifinals at Wimbledon since 1994. For an article, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. For photos, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two. Meanwhile, Martina's & Leander's third round mixed doubles match against Wayne & Cara Black was again suspended due to darkness. Our team returned to take the second set in a tie-break and with the score tied at 10-10 in the third, the match was postponed to tomorrow. For an article on the match, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. For a photo, click here.
June 30, 2004: Martina is scheduled to play 2 matches at Wimbledon tomorrow. First, Lisa & she are up on Court 1 for their doubles quarterfinal against Marion Bartoli & Emilie Loit. Their match has been scheduled second on that court. Later in the day, Martina & Leander are scheduled to complete their third round mixed doubles match against Black/Black on Court 13.
June 30, 2004: Martina & Leander lost the first set of their third round mixed doubles match today to the #6 seeds, Wayne & Cara Black 7-6(7) before the match was suspended due to bad lighting. Frequent rain delays had caused the match to begin rather late in the evening on Court 13.
June 29, 2004: Martina & Leander have a tough match ahead of them tomorrow. They are scheduled to take on the #6 seeds, Wayne Black & Cara Black in the fourth match on Court 2.
June 29, 2004: For a web-exclusive interview with Martina, done by 'Newsweek,' click here.
June 29, 2004: Martina & Leander won their second round match at Wimbledon today, defeating Sebastian Prieto & Emmanuelle Gagliardi 6-1 6-3. For an article on the match, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. And for photos, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine, Photo Ten, Photo Eleven.
June 28, 2004: Martina & Leander will make their debut at this year's Championships tomorrow, taking on Sebastien Prieto & Emmanuelle Gagliardi in their second round match. The match has been scheduled third on Court 1.
June 28, 2004: For Martina's latest column for 'The Guardian,' click here.
June 28, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their third round match at Wimbledon today, defeating Jennifer Russell & Mara Santangelo 7-5 6-3. For an article on the match, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. And for a photo, click here.
June 27, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their third round match at Wimbledon tomorrow against Jennifer Russell & Mara Santangelo. The match is expected to be played second on Court 3.
June 27, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their second round match today, defeating Bryanne Stewart & Samantha Stosur 6-3 6-1. For an article on the match, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
June 26, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their second round match tomorrow on Court 3, the third scheduled match on that court. It is only the third time in history that play will take place on the Middle Sunday at Wimbledon.
June 26, 2004: Click here to read Martina's latest column for 'The Guardian.' And yesterday, she was chosen by ABC News as their "Person of the Week." Click here for the report. Paid subscribers can also watch the video.
June 26, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their first round doubles match Friday, defeating Jill Craybas & Marlene Weingartner 6-2 6-4. For photos from the match, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven.
June 26, 2004: On Thursday, Martina's Wimbledon singles campaign came to an end in the second round when she lost to Gisela Dulko 3-6 6-3 6-3. This marks Martina's earliest singles loss at Wimbledon since 1974, when she lost in the first round. For the transcripts of her post-match interview, click here. For a few articles, click on the following links: Tournament Website, The New York Times, The Miami Herald, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe. And here are the photos: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine, Photo Ten, Photo Eleven, Photo Twelve, Photo Thirteen, Photo Fourteen, Photo Fifteen, Photo Sixteen, Photo Seventeen, Photo Eighteen, Photo Nineteen, Photo Twenty, Photo Twenty One, Photo Twenty Two, Photo Twenty Three, Photo Twenty Four, Photo Twenty Five, Twenty Six, Twenty Seven.
June 26, 2004: For a photo of Martina during Wednesday's rain delay at Wimbledon, click here.
June 23, 2004: Rain washed out all play at Wimbledon today. Martina's second round match against Gisela Dulko has been rescheduled to tomorrow, still the fourth match on Court 3.
June 23, 2004: The Wimbledon mixed doubles draw was announced today. Martina & Leander are the #9 seeds and receive a first round bye. For the complete draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
June 22, 2004: Martina is scheduled to play her second round singles match against Gisela Dulko tomorrow on Court 3. The match is expected to be played fourth on that court. However, the weather has not been the greatest so far this Wimbledon so there's a likely chance her match might not take place.
June 22, 2004: And now for links to articles & photos on yesterday's historic win. First the articles. The best one by far is our favorite journalist Christopher Clarey's eloquent piece for 'The International Herald Tribune.' This is must-read for all Martina fans. Now for the rest, click on the following links: Tournament website, Tournament website, Reuters, Reuters (2), Associated Press, The Guardian, The Times, The Times (2), The Independent, The Daily Telegraph, The Daily Mirror, The Herald, The Scotsman, The Scotsman (2), The Glasgow Daily Record, BBC, BBC (2), BBC (3), BBC (4), The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Miami Herald, The Miami Herald (2), The Palm Beach Post, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, The San Francisco Chronicle, The San Francisco Chronicle (editorial), The Chicago Sun-Times, The New York Daily News, The (Toronto) Globe & Mail, USA Today, The Dallas Morning News, CNN/SI, ESPN, Planet Out, The (Melbourne) Age, The Daily Telegraph (Australia), The Hindu, Tracy Austin for MSNBC. And now for the photos, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine, Photo Ten, Photo Eleven, Photo Twelve, Photo Thirteen, Photo Fourteen, Photo Fifteen, Photo Sixteen, Photo Seventeen, Photo Eighteen, Photo Nineteen, Photo Twenty. Finally, a few other tennis players had many kinds words for Martina in their press conferences yesterday & today. For more, please check out the transcripts for: Roger Federer, Goran Ivanisevic, Venus Williams, Daniela Hantuchova.
June 21, 2004: Martina opened up her Wimbledon singles campaign in style today, scoring a 6-0 6-1 victory over Catalina Castano on Court 2. I will have links to articles & photos tomorrow. But for now, here are the transcripts of her post-match press conference. And for her second 'Guardian' column, click here.
June 21, 2004: It looks like Martina will be writing columns for 'The Guardian' this Wimbledon fortnight. For her first column, previewing the ladies singles event, click here. And click here for another interesting article on the talented Maria Sharapova and the role Martina played early in her junior tennis life.
June 21, 2004: Martina & Lisa lost their quarterfinal match at Eastbourne last week, upset by Alicia Molik & Magui Serna 6-2 3-6 6-4. Martina has better luck in the consolation singles event, the Eastbourne Cup. She followed up her opening round upset of the world #18 Anna Smashnova-Pistolesi with a 6-3 6-4 victory in the quarterfinals over Rita Grande. She received a walkover in the semifinals after her opponent Elena Baltacha withdrew to rest for Wimbledon. In the finals, Martina was so close to winning the title but unfortunately, she came up short, losing 3-6 7-6(4) 10-7 to the top seeded Silvia Farina-Elia. The final set was a champions tie-break.
June 16, 2004: Martina has entered the consolation singles event at Eastbourne - the Eastbourne Cup - and won her first round match today. She upset the #2 seed Anna Smashnova-Pistolesi (ranked #18 in the world) in straight sets 6-1 6-2. For the complete draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. My apologies to all Martina fans for not informing you of this yesterday. I did not notice the draw until today. After her press conference today, Martina confirmed that she will be playing singles at Wimbledon. For articles, click on the following links: Tournament Website, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Associated Press, The Guardian, PA Sport, The Independent. Martina has two matches on schedule tomorrow. First, she opens up the proceedings on Court 1 for her Eastbourne Cup quarterfinal match against Rita Grande. Later in the day, Lisa & she are scheduled to take on Alicia Molik & Magui Serna in their quarterfinal doubles match which is to be played fourth on Centre Court.
June 15, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their first round match in Eastbourne today, defeating Rita Grande & Samantha Reeves 6-1 6-4. For photos from today's match, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three.
June 14, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their opening match tomorrow against Rita Grande & Samantha Reeves. The match has been scheduled fourth on Centre Court.
June 13, 2004: The Eastbourne doubles draw was announced today. Martina & Lisa are the #2 seeds and will take on a pair of qualifiers in their opening match. For the complete doubles draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
June 13, 2004: Martina played in the singles qualifying event at the Hastings Direct International Championships in Eastbourne this weekend. She won her opening match against Mara Santangelo 6-4 6-3 before losing the second to Elena Likhovtseva today 6-4 6-2. Unfortunately, Martina has been troubled by an ankle & knee injury this week and she is reevaluating her decision to play singles at Wimbledon the week after next. Please keep Martina in your thoughts and hope she is able to make a full recovery in time for Wimbledon. For articles, click on the following links: Lawn Tennis Association (1), PA Sport (1), The Independent, Lawn Tennis Association (2), PA Sport (2), Associated Press.
June 13, 2004: Martina has been given a singles wildcard to the Championships at Wimbledon later this month. This will mark Martina's first appearance in the singles there since that sad day ten years ago when she lost in the finals.
June 13, 2004: Martina & Lisa lost in the semifinals at Roland Garros earlier this month. They were beaten by the #2 seeds, Sveta Kuznetsova & Elena Likhovtseva 6-2 6-4. Nevertheless, it was a great effort for Martina to make the semifinals - the first time she had made a semifinal at Roland Garros since 1988! She was later quoted in an article in 'The Independent' on the rise of the Russian women into the upper ranks of the womens tennis scene. Martina briefly talked about a former tour player in the Soviet Era who was not so fortunate. I'm assuming she was referring to Natasha Chmyreva. Click here for the article.
June 2, 2004: Martina & Lisa reached the semifinals at Roland Garros today, upsetting the #4 seeds, Nadia Petrova & Meghanna Shaughnessy 7-6(5) 6-3. For a photo from today's match, click here. For a brief 'Associated Press' article, click here. Martina & Lisa will next play the #2 seeds, Sveta Kuznetsova & Elena Likhovtseva in the semifinals, expected to be played Friday.
June 2, 2004: Martina spoke to the 'New York Times' recently for an article about the upcoming Athens Olympic Games & the various security concerns that exist among athletes. For the complete article, click here.
June 2, 2004: On Monday, unfortunately, Martina & Leander were upset in their second round mixed doubles match, going down to Lucas Arnold & Angelique Widjaja 7-5 7-5. For an 'Agence France-Presse' article, click here.
May 30, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their third round match today, defeating Bryanne Stewart & Samantha Stosur 6-2 6-3. For a photo from today's match, click here. Martina & Leander are scheduled to play their second round mixed doubles match tomorrow against Lucas Arnold & Angelique Widjaja. That match has been scheduled fourth on Court 1.
May 29, 2004: Martina & Leander won their first round match at Roland Garros today, defeating Martin Rodriguez & Magui Serna 6-3 6-2. Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their third round doubles match against Bryanne Stewart & Samantha Stosur tomorrow. That match has been scheduled fourth on Court 2.
May 28, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their second round match at Roland Garros today over Tathiana Garbin & Samantha Reeves. They won the first set 6-2 before Garbin was forced to withdraw due to muscle cramps. For a photo from today's match, click here. Martina & Leander are scheduled to play their first round match tomorrow against Martin Rodriguez & Magui Serna. That's the fifth scheduled match on Court 2. Leander has a second round doubles match to play earlier in the day.
May 27, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their first round match at Roland Garros today, defeating Lubomira Kurhajcova & Libuse Prusova 6-3 3-6 6-2. They are scheduled to play their second round match tomorrow against Tathiana Garbin & Samantha Reeves. That match has been scheduled fourth on Court 2.
May 26, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to play their opening doubles match tomorrow at Roland Garros. They will take on Lubomira Kurhajcova & Libuse Prusova in the day's fifth match on Court 3.
May 26, 2004: The Roland Garros mixed doubles draw was announced today. Martina & Leander are the #6 seeds and will take on Martin Rodriguez & Magui Serna in their opening match. For the complete draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
May 26, 2004: Click on the following links for a few more articles on yesterday's first round loss: The Sydney Morning Herald, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, The Boston Globe, The Los Angeles Times, The Miami Herald.
May 25, 2004: Martina lost her first round singles match at Roland Garros today, going down to Gisela Dulko 6-1 6-3. Martina put up a brave fight in the second set and was up a break at 3-2 but unfortunately, was unable to capitalize on it and lost the next 4 games and the match. She now turns her attention to the doubles & mixed doubles in Paris. The Roland Garros website has always been the worst of all the Grand Slam tournament websites and this year is no different. The transcripts of Martina's post-match press conference are not available on the site. For a match report, click here. Now for the photos. Click on the following links for photos from today's match: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine, Photo Ten, Photo Eleven, Photo Twelve, Photo Thirteen, Photo Fourteen, Photo Fifteen, Photo Sixteen, Photo Seventeen, Photo Eighteen, Photo Nineteen, Photo Twenty, Photo Twenty One, Photo Twenty Two, Photo Twenty Three, Photo Twenty Four. Now for the articles. First the articles by the various wire agencies: Reuters (1), Reuters (2), Agence France-Presse, Associated Press (1), Associated Press (2). And here are articles from various newspapers or news websites. Please note that some of the articles might not be 100% positive in tone and therefore might not be suitable reading for the more sensitive among us fans! The BBC article has a short audio clip from Martina's press conference: BBC, The International Herald Tribune, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, Bud Collins for MSNBC, The Independent, ESPN.com, The Washington Post, The Scotsman. And for a brief interview with Martina after the match with Sport24.com, click here. For translation help, try Google's Language Tools. Martina gets tomorrow off and will probably get to join Lisa for their first round doubles match on Thursday.
May 25, 2004: After negative comments were made by a few players on the decision to award Martina a singles wildcard, Martina received support from Serena & Venus Williams & Mary Pierce today on her decision to play singles. Said Serena, "I just was thinking, how do you play at that age? She's really an amazing athlete, an amazing woman." Venus added: "I think that she's just such a great player and just so motivated. Really, if any of us can be doing what she's doing, more power to anyone who can do it." And finally, Mary Pierce refused to criticize the Roland Garros organizers for awarding Martina the wildcard as some of her fellow Frenchwomen had done. Said Mary, "Martina is just amazing, she's an amazing player. Physically how she is at her age, I mean, to be able to play, she can still play really well. Maybe it doesn't feel that she can move as well as she used to. The game now is different also from when she was dominating. So it's not really for me to say that it's good or bad or anything. It's her own decision and it's the tournament's decision." Well said, ladies!
May 24, 2004: Martina is scheduled to play her first round singles match against Gisela Dulko at Roland Garros tomorrow. The match has been scheduled third on Court 1.
May 24, 2004: The Roland Garros doubles draw was announced yesterday. Martina & Lisa are the #5 seeds and will take on Lubomira Kurhajcova & Libuse Prusova in their opening match. For the complete draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
May 22, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their first title of the year today, defeating the #2 seeds, Cara Black & Rennae Stubbs 6-2 7-5 to win the Wien Energie Grand Prix in Vienna. Congratulations, Martina & Lisa! For articles, click on the following links: Associated Press, WTA Tour website, ORF, Austria Presse Agentur. For a photo of Martina & Lisa with their trophies, click here. Martina & Lisa next head to Roland Garros for the second Grand Slam event of the year.
May 22, 2004: Martina has entered the Nordea Nordic Light Open in Stockholm this summer. The event takes place the week of August 2, two weeks before the Athens Olympics. My special thanks go out to Merimae for informing me of this.
May 22, 2004: For a nice article from 'The Palm Beach Post,' in commemoration of Martina's return to Grand Slam singles competition next week, click here.
May 21, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their semifinal match in Vienna today, defeating the #3 seeds, Ting Li & Tian Tian Sun 6-1 3-6 6-2. They have an extremely difficult final coming up against the #2 seeds, Cara Black & Rennae Stubbs. That match has been scheduled second on Center Court tomorrow. There was a nice article on Martina in the newspaper 'Die Presse' earlier this week. Among other things, Martina talked about her current form, her dogs & politics. Click here for more. For translation help, check out Google's Language Tools.
May 21, 2004: The Roland Garros singles draw was announced today. Martina will take on Gisela Dulko in her opening match. For the complete draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. For a few articles, click on the following links: Christian Science Monitor, Associated Press. Former tour player, Sue Barker, has written a positive piece for the BBC website here and click here for a nice write-up from 'The Independent.'
May 20, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their quarterfinal match in Vienna today, defeating Mervana Jugic-Salkic & Marlene Weingartner 6-1 3-6 6-1. Martina said afterwards she thought they played well in sets one and three but would rather not talk about the second set! For a few articles from the tournament website on this week's activities, click on the following links: May 18, May 19, May 20. Martina & Lisa have a difficult semifinal ahead of them against the #3 seeds and defending champions, Ting Li & Tian Tian Sun. That match has been scheduled third on Center Court.
May 19, 2004: Martina & Lisa will take on Mervana Jugic-Salkic & Marlene Weingartner in the quarterfinals in Vienna tomorrow. That match has been scheduled fourth on Center Court.
May 18, 2004: Martina & Lisa won their first round match in Vienna today, defeating Bryanne Stewart & Samantha Stosur 6-2 6-4. For photos from today's match, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two.
May 18, 2004: Martina has been accepted into the doubles draw at Eastbourne which begins in a month's time and is in negotiations with the tournament organizers for a singles wildcard. For the 'PA Sport' article, click here. The article states that Martina has been given a "wildcard" to the doubles draw which does not sound right, since her's & Lisa's ranking is high enough to warrant direct acceptance.
May 18, 2004: For the complete transcripts of Zina's press conference in New York City yesterday, click here. She had some great things to say about Martina!
May 17, 2004: Martina & Lisa play their first round match in Vienna tomorrow. They are scheduled to take on Bryanne Stewart & Samantha Stosur in the fifth match on Center Court.
May 16, 2004: US Olympic captain, Zina Garrison, announced today the names of the players she is considering for the US Olympic team. Speaking at the U.S. Olympic Media Summit in New York City today, the players in consideration are: Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Chanda Rubin, Lisa Raymond, Meghann Shaughnessy & Martina Navratilova. Said Zina, "Each player that I've talked about is willing to go over and play, and they're looking forward to playing in the Olympics." The USA is allowed 4 singles players and two doubles pairs with a maximum of 6 playing members on the team.
May 16, 2004: The draw for the Wien Energie Grand Prix in Vienna was announced today. Martina & Lisa are the #1 seeds and will take on Bryanne Stewart & Samantha Stosur in their opening match. For the complete draw, courtsey of the tournament website, click here. For articles, click on the following links: Official tournament website, Associated Press, ORF. For help with translating the German articles, click here.
May 16, 2004: Martina has been awarded a wildcard to the singles draw at Roland Garros which begins in a week's time. This will mark Martina's first participation in a Grand Slam singles event since Wimbledon 1994. For articles, click on the following links: Official tournament website, Agence France-Presse, Reuters, Associated Press, France 2, The Daily Telegraph.
May 16, 2004: Martina & Lisa lost their opening match at the Telecom Italia Masters in Rome earlier this week. They were upset by Elena Likhovtseva & Anastasia Myskina 7-6 6-7 6-3 in the second round. Our team scored a thrilling second set comeback, from 6-7 3-5 down. They saved a match point at 4-5 and then three more in the tie-break which they finally won 8-6. However, they quickly got down an early break in the third and never really got ahead after that. For the transcripts of Martina's post-match press conference, click here. Martina's & Lisa's next tournament is the Wien Energie Grand Prix in Vienna.
May 11, 2004: Martina & Lisa are scheduled to take on Elena Likhovtseva & Anastasia Myskina in their second round match in Rome tomorrow. That match has been scheduled fourth on the Pallacorda.
May 9, 2004: The Telecom Italia Masters draw was announced today. Martina & Lisa are the #3 seeds and receive a first round bye. Their second round opponents will either be Elena Likhovtseva & Anastasia Myskina or Abigail Spears & Alina Jidkova. For the complete draw, courtesy of the tournament website, click here.
May 2, 2004: The German Open draw was announced today and Martina's name is not in it. This is the first time Martina has skipped this event since she returned to the tour in late May of 2000. So it appears her next tournament is going to be the Telecom Italia Masters in Rome the week after next.
April 27, 2004: Martina paid tribute today to John Parsons, tennis writer for 'The Daily Telegraph' (a British newspaper) since 1981, who passed away yesterday at the age of 66. Said Martina, "John's insight and wit will be greatly missed. It's just too sad for tennis to lose such a knowledgeable historian. When he interviewed me, I always learned something, and he made everyone think." For the complete article from the 'Daily Telegraph,' featuring quotes by other players, click here.
April 26, 2004: My special thanks go out to Aleksandra once again for helping with the translation of yesterday's Slovenian articles from Siol.net. I have posted the translations on the message boards here. For two more photos of Martina from her doubles match yesterday, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two.
April 25, 2004: Team USA defeated Slovenia 4-1 in their Fed Cup first round match this weekend in Portoroz and Martina did her part by winning her doubles match with Lisa. Well done team! Martina's match was a dead rubber as the USA had already clinched the tie at that point with Lisa's dramatic 5-7 6-3 6-4 singles victory over Katarina Srebotnik. In the doubles, the ladies defeated Tina Krizan & Srebotnik 6-1 1-6 6-0. After cruising through the first set, Martina & Lisa found themselves at 1-0 in the second with a break point to go up 2-0. Inexplicably & quite unexpectedly, they then proceeded to lose the next 6 games in a row as their opponents tied them at one set apiece. However, just as suddenly, our team followed up by winning the [i]next[/i] 6 consecutive games to close out the victory by this strangest of scorelines! That set dropped was the only second set Martina had lost in Fed Cup doubles and the first since 1982. Now for the links. For the transcripts of Martina's press conference with Zina Garrison today, click here. For two earlier articles, featuring quotes by Martina, click on the following links: Tennis Week, USTA.com. Matthew Cronin of "Tennis Reporters" has been covering the Fed Cup for the USTA's website; click here for the excellent coverage. He has more in-depth coverage on the Tennis Reporters website but unfortunately, those articles are available to subscribers only. If anyone has access to these articles, please let me know. For photos from the weekend, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine, Photo Ten, Photo Eleven, Photo Twelve, Photo Thirteen, Photo Fourteen, Photo Fifteen. There has been some good Fed Cup coverage on the Slovenian website Siol.net. They have an interview with Martina here, an article on today's doubles match here & another quote on this page. All articles are accompanied by photos. Again, if anyone can help with the translation, I'd be most grateful! The Fed Cup website also includes audio clips of interviews with the players & coaches this weekend. Unfortunately, there is no interview with Martina but both team coaches, Zina Garrison & Mima Jausovec had nothing but praise for her: Interview with Zina, Interview with Mima. I'm not sure what Martina's next event is going to be. Either Berlin or Rome. I will keep you informed as soon as I hear something new...really!
April 25, 2004: My special thanks go out to Aleksandra for helping with the translation of the interview with Martina in the Slovenian newspaper 'Delo'. She has posted the translation for everyone on the message boards here.
April 22, 2004: It appears Martina is already in Portoroz, Slovenia for the upcoming Fed Cup tie which begins on Saturday. There is an interview with her in the Slovenian newspaper Delo, which can be read here. Unfortunately, it is in Slovenian and I have been unable to find a Slovenian-English translation tool. Can anyone help with the translation? Many thanks in advance!
April 22, 2004: The 2004 World TeamTennis schedule was announced today. Martina has committed to 6 matches for the New York Buzz in 6 different locations. The following is a rundown of her WTT schedule: July 15 at Philadelphia; July 17 at Mamaroneck, New York; July 21 at Schenectady, New York; July 22 at St. Louis, Missouri; July 23 at Springfield, Missouri; July 25 at Sacramento, Calif. For the complete schedule along with team locations, contact information etc. visit the World TeamTennis website here.
April 18, 2004: This week in Charleston, Martina played her second straight singles event, falling to Amy Frazier 6-4 6-4 in a hard-fought first round match. She had better fortune in the doubles with Lisa, getting to the finals. Back to the singles, Martina got off to a good start by breaking Frazier early to lead 2-0 in the first set, but she was unable to hold on to the lead. At one point in the second set, she was down 0-4, but true to form, she did not give up and kept fighting till the end before conceding the set 6-4. In the doubles, Martina & Lisa, the #2 seeds, received a first round bye. In the second round, they defeated Teryn Ashley & Laura Granville 6-1 6-3. In the quarterfinals, they beat the #5 seeds, Tian Tian Sun & Meilen Tu 6-2 6-4. In the semifinals, they beat the #8 seeds, Nicole Pratt & Patty Schnyder 6-4 7-6(7). Unfortunately, in the finals, they lost to the top seeds, Virginia Ruano Pascual & Paola Suarez 6-4 6-1. Nevertheless, it was a good week for our team, their first final of the year. For articles from this week, click on the following links: The State, The Columbia Post & Courier, WTA Tour website. For the transcripts of Martina's two press conferences this week in Charleston, click on the following links: Tuesday, Sunday. You can watch a video clip of the entire first press conference here. For photos from Martina's first round singles match, click on the following links: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three, Photo Four, Photo Five, Photo Six, Photo Seven, Photo Eight, Photo Nine, Photo Ten, Photo Eleven. Like Amelia Island the week before, Martina was very active this week, donating her time to a number of causes as the following photos demonstrate: Photo Twelve, Photo Thirteen, Photo Fourteen, Photo Fifteen, Photo Sixteen, Photo Seventeen. And finally for photos from today's presentation ceremony: Photo Eighteen, Photo Nineteen, Photo Twenty. Martina & Lisa will next head to Portoroz in Slovenia for the Fed Cup tie against the host country. They will be joined by Venus Williams & Laura Granville, who replaced a fatigued Serena Williams this week.
April 18, 2004: Martina will be playing World TeamTennis this summer. She was the 3rd overall draft pick for the New York Buzz. Martina previously played for the Buzz in 1999 & 2000, under their previous name, the Schenectady County Electrics. Her Buzz teammates will be Marissa Irwin, Bryanne Stewart, Justin Bower & Shaun Rudman. The teach coach is Jolene Watanabe. The season schedule has not been announced yet.
April 18, 2004: Martina is quoted in this 'New York Times' article on the rivalry between Serena Williams and Justine Henin-Hardenne.
April 18, 2004: Martina lost her opening singles match at the Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Fla. last week but not without a fight. Her scheduled opponent Kristina Brandi pulled out before the match due to left foot plantar fascitis and was replaced by lucky loser, Milagros Sequera. Martina got off to an amazing start and was soon a set and a break up at 6-1 1-0. After that, however, things didn't go so well and Sequera ended up winning 1-6 6-3 6-2. Nevertheless, it was an impressive showing from Martina in what was her first singles match on clay in 10 years. Martina did not have better luck in the doubles, unfortunately. Liezel & she were upset in the first round by Silvia Farina-Elia & Francesca Schiavone 6-2 2-6 6-3. For news articles on Martina's singles loss, click on the following links: WTA Tour website, Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The best coverage, however, came from the 'Florida Times-Union.' Here are a few links to articles from last week: Article One, Article Two, Article Three, Article Four. The Times-Union's notebook feature contained a lot of interesting tidbits throughout the week, from the doubles upset to words of praise from none other than Richard Williams, father of Serena & Venus: April 7, April 8, April 9, April 10, April 11, April 12. On Tuesday, Martina took part in a Parade of Champions to mark the tournament's 25th anniversary. And on Friday, she was honored in a special on-court ceremony as the tournament's first champion. Now for the all-important photos! The WTA Tour gallery has 3 photos from last week: Photo One, Photo Two, Photo Three. The Florida Times-Union gallery also has some great photos, separated by day. Click on the following links: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. The tennis.info website also featured some great photos of Martina in Amelia Island. Click on the following links: Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. And finally, Merimae, who was at Amelia Island last week, shared with us her experiences there in this excellent report posted on the message boards. Thanks, Merimae!
April 4, 2004: In Amelia Island, Martina has drawn Kristina Brandi for her first round singles match. For an article from the 'Florida Times-Union,' click here. Martina is also playing doubles with Liezel Huber this week and they are the #2 seeds with a very difficult draw. In the first round, they will take on Silvia Farina-Elia and Francesca Schiavone. For the singles draw, click here. The doubles draw has been posted on the message boards here.
April 4, 2004: Martina is expected to play singles & doubles (with Lisa) at the Wien Energie Grand Prix in Vienna, the week of May 17. For a related article, in the German, click here.
April 4, 2004: Martina will play both singles & doubles at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina which begins April 12. She accepted a wildcard to the singles draw this week and will be playing doubles with Lisa. For a nice write-up from the 'Charleston Post and Courier,' click here.
April 4, 2004: Martina has accepted a singles wildcard into the Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida which begins tomorrow. This will mark Martina's first tour singles event since Eastbourne in 2002. Here are a few links, in chronological order: The Florida Times-Union, The Daily Telegraph, Agence France-Presse, Associated Press, Reuters, WTA Tour. Former world #1 Serena Williams had encouraging words for Martina: "If you can do it, you should do it. You know, she's just an unbelievable athlete, unbelievable person. And, you know, I think she'll win a few rounds." Serena is also inspired by Martina's efforts: "It keeps me motivated. When I'm 48, I hope I can be standing, let alone competing on a professional level with such professional athletes. It's gonna be good, so I'm excited." Well said, Serena! And congratulations on your successful comeback!
April 4, 2004: Martina & Lisa reached the semifinals at the Nasdaq-100 Open this week, where they were defeated by the #2 seeds, Sveta Kuznetsova & Elena Likhovtseva 6-4 6-4. In their first round match, they had defeated Jennifer Embry & Mara Santangelo 7-6 6-3. In the second round, they defeated Shinobu Asagoe & Janet Lee 6-1 6-4. And in the quarterfinals, they beat Alicia Molik & Magui Serna 6-2 3-6 6-4. For photos of Martina signing autographs in Miami, courtesy of the tournament website, click here. Martina next heads to Amelia Island for the Bausch & Lomb Championships.