Family Circle Cup 2012 at Charleston features Williams Sisters, Stosur

>> Saturday, March 31, 2012

The Family Circle Cup 2012 is a WTA tennis tournament held in Charleston, South Carolina and for the 2012 event, matches can be watched live online through video streaming here. This tennis tournament is a WTA premier-level and was first held in 1973. Past champions of the Charleston tennis tournament include tennis legends Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Chris Evert and Martina Hingis. Evert holds the record of eight titles won in this event.

The 2012 Charleston tennis tournament will feature five players in the top 10. Top-seeded is world #4 Agnieszka Radwanska who earlier this year won titles in Dubai and Miami. US Open champion Samantha Stosur is seeded second in the event; Stosur won the title in 2010. Third seed is Marion Bartoli who snapped the perfect record of world #1 Victoria Azarenka in the recently concluded Miami tennis tournament. World #9 Vera Zvonareva is seeded fourth while American top player Serena Williams is the fifth seed. Serena won the title in 2008 and finished runner-up to Justine Henin in 2003.

Other former champions in the 2012 singles draw include 2007 champion Jelena Jankovic and 2004 champion Venus Williams. Venus is a wildcard entry due to a low ranking caused by a low number of tournaments played in the past 12 months. The defending champion in the event, Caroline Wozniacki, is not defending the title this year. Other recent champions who are still active players are Sabine Lisicki in 2009 and Nadia Petrova in 2006.

Tournament Profile:

Tier: Premier
Prize Money: $740,000
Surface: Clay/Outdoors
Tournament Director: Bob Moran
Date: March 30 - April 8, 2012

The singles draw has been completed this Saturday with #1 seed Radwanska and #4 seed Zvonareva drawn in the top half while #2 seed Stosur and #3 seed Bartoli in the bottom half. If seedings hold, the potential quarterfinal match-ups will be Radwanska against #8 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Zvonareva vs Serena, Bartoli vs #6 seed Lisicki, and Stosur vs #7 seed Jankovic. Venus Williams may potentially meet Jankovic in the second round if she gets past a qualifier in the first round.

The winner will receive $115,000 in prize money and 470 ranking points. The finalist will get $59,000 and 320 ranking points. Watch the Family Circle Cup 2012 live online through TennisTv.com.

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WTA Tennis Tournaments - April 2012

After a couple of million dollar tournaments in the United States for the month of March, the WTA calendar shifts to Europe for the start of the clay season. While seven of the tournaments starting this April will be played in the three continents of North America, Africa and Europe, it’s Europe which will be hosting five tournaments in Spain, Denmark, Germany, Portugal and Hungary.

The two biggest WTA tennis tournaments will be premier-level ones held in the green clay of Charleston, South Carolina and the indoors red clay of Stuttgart, Germany. The first tournament of the month will be the Family Circle Cup in Charleston. The 2012 player field is laden with talent that includes world #4 Agnieszka Radwanska, US Open champion Sam Stosur, former #1 player Jelena Jankovic, and top American WTA stars Serena and Venus Williams.

Previous winners of the Charleston tournament include retired tennis stars Martina Hingis, Jennifer Capriati, Justine Henin and current players Serena Williams (2008), Venus Williams (2004), Jelena Jankovic (2007), Samantha Stosur (2010), Sabine Lisicki (2009), and Caroline Wozniacki (2011). Despite being defending champion, Wozniacki will not be joining the 2012 Charleston tennis tournament.

The other major April WTA tournament will be the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany. It will start on the third week of April. The 2012 entry list feature majority of the WTA top ten players led by world #1 Victoria Azarenka and #2 Maria Sharapova. A list of German players in the top ten are also entered including Andrea Petkovic, Sabine Lisicki, Julia Gorges, and Angelique Kerber.

The Stuttgart tennis tournament is a favorite preparation tournament of the top WTA players for the French Open, the second Grand Slam in the tennis calendar. French Open champions Justine Henin, Mary Pierce, Iva Majoli and Svetlana Kuznetsova have been champions in this event. German player Gorges is the 2011 champion when she upset then world #1 Wozniacki in the finals.

Below is a list of WTA tennis tournaments for April 2012:

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/02/2012
Charleston, SC-USA: Family Circle Cup
Premier
Outdoors Green Clay
Total Prize MOney = $740,000

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/09/2012
Barcelona, Spain: Barcelona Ladies Open
International
Outdoors Red Clay
Total Prize Money = $220,000

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/09/2012
Copenhagen, Denmark: e-Boks Open
International
Indoors Hard
Total Prize Money = $220,000

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/23/2012
Stuttgart, Germany: Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
Premier
Indoors Red Clay
Total Prize Money = $740,000

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/23/2012
Fès, Morocco: Grand Prix de SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem
International
Outdoors Red Clay
Total Prize Money = $220,000

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/30/2012
Estoril, Portugal: Estoril Open
International
Outdoors Red Clay
Total Prize Money = $220,000

WTA Tennis Tournament Start Date: 04/30/2012
Budapest, Hungary: Budapest Grand Prix
International
Outdoors Red Clay
Total Prize Money = $220,000

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Watch Miami 2012 Final Live: Djokovic vs Murray

World #1 Novak Djokovic will be defending his Sony Ericsson Open title against #4 Andy Murray when the two took contrasting paths to the finals of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament. The Miami 2012 men’s singles finals will be broadcast live online through video streaming here. Djokovic is one win away from a third Miami title, after defeating 21st seed Juan Monaco 6-0, 7-6(5) in the semi-finals on Friday. Murray advanced to the final after world #2 Rafael Nadal withdrew due to a left knee injury. The final between Djokovic and Murray will mark the third time the two players have met in this tournament having split their first two matches.

Djokovic quote after winning his semifinal: "As I did yesterday in the quarter-finals, I started very strong, just going for the shots, being very aggressive… Then I just wasn't able to close it out. It was a very similar match to the one against Ferrer... It was [an] exciting match I think for us to play and for the crowd. I didn't expect an easy match and [I'm] just happy to be through…"

Djokovic quote on playing Murray in the Miami 2012 final: "He likes the conditions. He likes to play in the heat, as well, and has a good serve… So we kind of play similar, as well. We grew up together. We know each other really well. We have been rivals since and good friends off the court. It's going to be a good match. I don't think it's going to affect him that much that he hasn't played today, but we'll see what happens."

Nadal quote after withdrawing from the Miami 2012 semifinals: "I waited until today in the morning. I did a lot of treatment yesterday… But I am not ready to compete today. I am very sorry for the fans. I'm very sorry for the tournament. I'm very sorry for everybody who was ready to watch the match on television… I cannot go on court and lie to everybody… I started to have problems on the knee before Indian Wells… But that problem [was] not limiting me to play at 100 per cent. So I played in Indian Wells with the normal conditions, playing in good shape physically. Here, [it] is different."

Djokovic at Miami: The 24-year-old defending champion has a 23-4 career mark at the Miami tennis tournament. Last year was his third final as he rallied to defeat No. 1 Nadal 46 63 76(4) in the finals match. He also won the title in 2007 (d. No. 2 Nadal in QF, Murray in SF, d. Canas in F) and was runner-up in 2009 to Murray. In last year’s tournament, in his first five matches before the finals, he was not broken in 40 service games.

For the 2012 season, Djokovic enters the finals with a 19-2 match record on the season. He lost to American John Isner in the semifinals of Indian Wells 76 36 76. He won first title by winning his fifth career Grand Slam title at Australian Open. His 5 hours 53 minutes five set marathon victory over Nadal was the longest final in Grand Slam history. He is also the current champion at the US Open and at Wimbledon. At his second tournament in Dubai, he reached the semifinals before being beaten by Murray.

Murray at Miami: The 24-year-old British No. 1 has a 14-5 match record in Miami. He won the title in 2009 by defeating Djokovic, and was a semifinalist in 2007 where he lost to Djokovic. He lost his first set in the tournament with a three set victory over Janko Tipsaveric. He received two walkovers – over #26 Milos Raonic due to ankle injury in third round, and #2 Nadal in the semifinals.

For the 2012 season, Murray enters his third final of the year with a 1-1 record in finals and 17-3 match record on the season. He won his 22nd career ATP World Tour title in Brisbane by defeating Dolgopolov and was a semifinalist at the Australian Open, falling in five sets to Djokovic. In February, he was runner-up to Roger Federer after beating Djokovic in the semifinals. Murray has beaten a current world #1 seven times in his career – Nadal three times, Djokovic two times, Federer two times. In his last tournament at Indian Wells, Murray lost in the opening match to Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in the second round.

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Watch Miami 2012 Nadal vs Murray Semifinals Live

>> Friday, March 30, 2012

World #2 Rafael Nadal set-up a tantalizing semifinal with #4 Andy Murray after both players won three set victories over their quarterfinals opponents at the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida. Watch the Miami 2012 Nadal - Murray semifinals live online stream here. Muray advanced for the third time to the semi-final stage of the Sony Ericsson Open when he rallied to beat ninth seed Janko Tipsaveric 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Nadal eliminated sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 and is still seeking his first Miami tennis tournament title.

Murray is aiming to win his second title of this year. He won his first tournament in Brisbane and was a finalist in Dubai where he lost to Roger Federer after beating world #1 Djokovic in the semifinals. He also lost a five set match to Djokovic in the semifinals of the Australian Open. He won the Miami tennis tournament in 2009.

Murray's quote after reaching the Miami 2012 tennis tournament semifinals: "Today's match was really important for me to get through after how it was going, [fighting] back after being a break down a few times in the second set... And then also, at the end of the third set when I was up a break, he had break point in a tight game, and I came up with some big serves and served my way out of trouble, which is important... [They were] tough, tough conditions. But I thought I struck the ball pretty well from the back of the court... I was hitting it pretty clean but needed to make better shot selection. Because of the wind, I was maybe trying to hit it too close to the line and not building the points as much I needed to. So when I did that, I did a bit better."

As for Nadal, he is still looking for his first tournament title of the season. He lost in the finals of the Australian Open to Djokovic and in the semifinals of the Indian Wells tournament to Federer. He reached the semifinals of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament by eliminating Tsonga in two hours and 50 minutes.

Nadal's quote after reaching the Miami 2012 tennis tournament semifinals: "I didn't play very well tonight... I think I started the match playing really well, but later when I had the break in the second [set], I started to play more defensive... My feeling was Jo was having much more mistakes than usual, so the match didn't have the right rhythm... Playing Andy is a pleasure for me, and exciting playing against a player like him [who] pushes you [to] the limit on everything... The negative thing is I have to recover well."

The Sony Ericsson Open is one of the biggest tournament that Nadal hasn't won to date. No Spanish player has ever hoisted the Miami tennis tournament trophy. Nadal did finish runner-up in the tournament in 2005, 2008, and 2011. He holds a 13-5 advantage against Murray in their head-to-head career match-up, but the Murray won their last match in the Tokyo finals last October. The winner will take home $659,775 in prize money and 1000 ranking points; the runner-up will win $321,990 and 600 ranking points.


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Watch Miami 2012 Final Live: Sharapova vs Radwanska

The Miami 2012 women's singles final at the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open can be viewed through online live stream here. In a tournament which produced some major surprises including the end of world #1 Victoria Azarenka's perfect 2012 season, two of the more consistent players this year are fighting for their first ever Sony Ericsson title. #2 Maria was first into the final when she beat #4-seed Dane Caroline Wozniacki 4-6, 6-2, 6-4. She will face off with #5-seed Agnieszka Radwanska who advanced to her first Sony Ericsson Open final on Thursday, eliminating #7-seed Marion Bartoli 6-4, 6-2.

Sharapova is now through to her fourth Miami tennis tournament final, but she is still aiming for her first title. She was runner-up in 2005 to Kim Clijsters, in 2006 to Svetlana Kuznetsova, and she lost last year's final to Azarenka. The Sony Ericsson Open is the second biggest tournament she has not yet won behind the French Open, where she has reached the semifinals twice. Even if Sharapova wins the tournament, she will stay as world #2 behind Azarenka, but will definitely close the gap in reclaiming the top women's tennis position. She was on her way to a quick first set victory after leading 4-1, but she dropped the first set with a myriad of costly errors and had to rally back for the three set victory in two hours and 34 minutes. Wozniacki was aiming to continue her quarterfinal win momentum where she beat 5-time champion Serena Williams for the first time in four tries.

Sharapova Miami 2012 quote after reaching the final: “I'm really pleased that after losing that first one, being up and playing really well and then backing off and her stepping up, I could have easily just went down in the second set... But I really stepped it up again. I went out there and started being aggressive. I didn't stop after I put myself in a good position. I'm extremely pleased that I pulled it out today."

Wozniacki Miami 2012 quote after losing in the semifinals, her best career result at the Sony Ericsson Open: "Overall I'm pretty happy with my game. I think this week I've been playing some really good tennis... I didn't do that today, but I can definitely take some positives from this tournament and bring them with me further this year... I just kept fighting and just kept playing for every point... Maria started off really well and played aggressively. She played some good tennis out there. I tried to do my best, and it just wasn't enough today. I was very close. This is tennis. One time you win; one time you lose."

Sharapova's final opponent, #5-seed Agnieszka Radwanska advanced to her first Sony Ericsson Open final, beating Bartoli who earlier stopped Azarenka's unbeaten run this year. Radwanska improved her unbeaten record against Bartoli to 7-0. Poland's #1 player is now 25-4 this year, with all four losses coming to Azarenka. She won the Dubai tournament for her first title of the year. She will be the underdog in the finals as she has lost to Sharapova in their last six matches.

Radwanksa quote after winning her first trip to the Miami tennis tournament final: "I'm just very happy that [I've played] my best tennis since the beginning of the year and [have won] a lot of great matches against top players... I'm still going to work hard and step by step, [try] to go even higher." Radwanska has earlier indicated that her goal is to reach the #1 ranking. Watch the Miami 2012 final live between Sharapova and Radwanska at TennisTv.com. Coverage starts on Saturday, March 31 at 12 noon CDT.

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Why Mardy Fish will not win the Miami 2012 Tennis Tournament

>> Monday, March 26, 2012

Last season was a banner year for the current top ranked American Mardy Fish. He finished in the Top 10 for the first time in his career in a season where he won his personal best of 43 matches, which included winning his sixth title in Atlanta. He successfully defended his Atlanta title beating now #2 American John Isner by saving two match points. He entered the top 10 for the first time in April and achieved his best Wimbledon result with a quarterfinal showing before losing to Rafael Nadal in 4 sets. He took home a career high of $1,657,091 in earnings for the year.

Fish's 2012 season is not turning out to be a good follow-up of his success last year. As of this writing, he has reached the fourth round of the 2012 Miami tennis tournament and scored his first back-to-back wins this year only in this tournament for a 6-4 record. By contrast, he had a 10-5 record at this time last year. In last year's Sony Ericsson Open, he reached the semifinals by downing then #6 ranked David Ferrer in the quarterfinals before losing soundly to eventual champion Novak Djokovic.

This year, it is hard to see him duplicate that effort, yet alone win the tournament. He is scheduled to play #12-seed Nicholas Almagro as his next opponent in the fourth round. Almagro is one of two players this year with 20 wins or more, the other player being Roger Federer. The Spaniard has performed better than Fish in hard-court surfaces reaching the round of 16 at the Australian Open and the quarterfinals of Indian Wells. Fish does hold a 2-0 advantage in their career head-to-head but if he gets past the Spaniard, he will most likely face world #3 and 16-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer. Federer holds a 7-1 advantage over Fish although their last two matches won by the Swiss went into a deciding set.

If Fish happens to beat Federer, he will reach the semifinal stage against world #1 Novak Djokovic. The top-ranked Serb holds a 7-0 record over Fish and has been victorious in all six of their hard court matches. Fish has hope though, knowing he can draw some inspiration with how fellow American John Isner topped Djokovic at the 2012 Indian Wells tournament. But Isner and Fish are in opposite trajectories this year: Isner is climbing up the rankings this season as compared to Fish who is about to be supplanted by Isner as the top American player.

If somehow Fish does the improbable and beat Federer and Djokovic in back-to-back matches, he will most likely face Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray in the finals. Nadal holds an 8-1 advantage over the American but Fish did beat Nadal in straight sets at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Cincinnati quarterfinals last year. As for Murray, Fish has a respectable 4-4 record against UK's top player although Murray beat Fish in their last meeting. While fans of the amicable American, this blogger included, are wishing for his success, it would take a huge reversal on his current form, and a lot of unexpected results for the top players to lose, to pave way for Fish to have a shot at winning the Miami 2012 tennis tournament.




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Federer vs Roddick Miami 2012 Match Highlights

Roddick shocks Federer. For only the third time in 24 career meetings, Andy Roddick defeated Roger Federer. The two-time Sony Ericsson Open champion knocked out the Swiss world #3 7-6(4), 1-6, 6-4 to deal Federer his earliest loss at a tournament in the past six months. The win ensures Roddick advances to the fourth round and potentially may earn a quarterfinal match-up against top American Mardy Fish. Of the three wins against Federer, two of these wins are at the Miami tennis tournament.

The following match highlights of the Federer vs Roddick third round match can be found at TennisTv.com VIDEO section. Match Highlight 1: Federer vs Roddick Highlights (Miami 3R): Former champions Roger Federer and Andy Roddick met for the 24th time and third at the Sony Ericsson Open. Match Highlight 2: Federer Interview (Miami 3R): The Swiss talks to the media after taking on Andy Roddick in the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open. Match Highlight 3: Roddick Interview (Miami 3R): The American was seeking his third victory against Federer for a place in the fourth round.

Preview: The highly anticipated match between former #1 players Roger Federer and Andy Roddick will be broadcast live from the 2012 Miami tennis tournament here. The third round match is the featured night match on Monday, March 26 at the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open. World #3 Federer is coming into the match as the highly favored player having been the most successful ATP star in the past six months winning six of his eight tournaments including the 2012 Indian Wells and two other titles this year. Roddick is down to his lowest ranking at #34 in more than a decade due to injuries and inconsistent play. Federer holds a staggering 21-2 record against the American including an epic 5-7, 7-6(6), 7-6(5), 3-6, 16-14 victory in the 2009 Wimbledon finals. He has won their last six matches with Roddick last beating Federer in the 2008 Miami tennis tournament at the quarterfinal stage.




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Serena dumps Stosur in Miami; avenges US Open final loss

Last summer, former #1 player and 13-time Grand Slam champion went into the US Open finals as the heavy favorite to win her 14th Grand Slam title against Australia's Samantha Stosur. Serena was the best player in the hard-court season winning 2 consecutive titles and held a huge advantage in Grand Slam finals experience over Stosur who has never won a Grand Slam by then. She also beat then #1 Caroline Wozniacki in the semifinals. The finals was a stunner, considered by many as a huge upset - Stosur played near perfect tennis in doing the almost impossible - overwhelming Serena at a hard court major, in the US, in straight sets, with Serena coming in at peak form.

It's been six months before another rematch in a similar environment could materialize - a top hard-court US tournament, but this time around, it was Serena who bundled the Australian out of the Sony Ericsson Open 2012 with brilliant shot-making in a 7-5 6-3 victory. Serena is a 5-time champion at the Miami tennis tournament, and with her fourth round victory over Stosur, she now advances for the 11th time to the quarterfinals of this tournament. It was the best match played during the day session, which posted an attendance record for a Monday with 15,491 visitors.

Serena, seeded 10th in this tournament, is aiming to win her 40th career title. Amongst active players, she is currently ranked third with sister Venus (43 titles), and Kim Clijsters (41 titles) ahead of her. Her previous title came at Stanford last year. She has played two tournaments after that win, both in the Grand Slams where she fell in the finals of the US Open and the fourth round of the Australian Open. She will now attempt to move to the semifinals to be two wins away from winning a record 6 Miami tennis tournament titles. With the win, Serena improved her record against Stosur to 5-3. Serena's opponent in the quarterfinals will be the winner of the fourth round match between fourth seed Caroline Wozniacki and # 23 seed Yanina Wickmayer. Earlier in the tournament, Wickmayer eliminated fellow Belgian Clijsters to prevent a Serena - Clijsters showdown.

Serena Williams quotes after the match: "I thought it was a super high quality match... I think we both went really, really for our shots, and she hit little to no errors. It was a really well-fought match... Every match for me is a joy to win... Every time I go out there and win it's good for me. I like it and I enjoy it. It makes me really happy."

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Miami Tennis 2012 Match Highlights: Federer, Djokovic, Roddick in 2nd Round

>> Sunday, March 25, 2012

Watch Sony Ericsson Open 2012 Miami tennis match highlights here. 03/24 Updates: Match highlights featured include the following: Roger Federer ATP Miami: Saturday Round-up Second round action from Miami saw in-form Federer take on Harrison and Djokovic meet Baghdatis. | Andy Roddick ATP Miami: Saturday Hot Shot (Roddick) Andy Roddick showed great hustle to chase down this short angle against Gilles Muller. | Djokovic vs Baghdatis Highlights (Miami 2R): Top seed Novak Djokovic began the defence of his title against Marcos Baghdatis in Miami. | Novak Djokovic Djokovic Interview (Miami 2R) The World No. 1 faced a tricky opener against Marcos Baghdatis at the Sony Ericsson Open.

Other Featured Sony Ericsson Open 2012 Miami Tennis Tournament Match Highlights include the following:

- Del Potro vs Karlovic Highlights (Miami 2R)| A clash of the titans as Juan Martin Del Potro met Ivo Karlovic for a place in the third round.
- Juan Martin Del Potro Del Potro Interview (Miami 2R) | The World No. 11 gives his thoughts after taking on Ivo Karlovic in the second round in Miami.
- Mardy Fish | Fish vs Dancevic Highlights (Miami 2R) Eighth seed Mardy Fish met Canada's Frank Dancevic in the second round at the Sony Ericsson Open.
- Mardy Fish | Fish Interview (Miami 2R) The American talks to TTV after his second round clash with Canada's Frank Dancevic.
- Roger Federer | Federer vs Harrison Highlights (Miami 2R) Roger Federer was looking to extend his winning run as he faced rising American Ryan Harrison.
- Roger Federer | Federer Interview (Miami 2R) The former champion came into his second round clash with Harrison having won 39 of his past 41 matches.
- Andy Murray | Focussed on Miami Start The British No. 1 was looking to make a good start in Miami after early losses the last two years.
- Novak Djokovic | Djokovic Aims to Bounce Back The defending champion has put the disappointment of Indian Wells behind him and is ready to challenge.
- Gael Monfils | Monfils vs Bubka Highlights (Miami 2R) Frenchman Gael Monfils met qualifier Sergei Bubka in the second round in Miami.
- Gael Monfils | Monfils Interview (Miami 2R) The No. 15 seed came up against qualifier Sergei Bubka in the second round.
- Andy Roddick | Roddick Interview (Miami 2R) The two-time winner reflects on his second round encounter with Gilles Muller in Miami.
- Ferrer vs Tomic Highlights (Miami 2R) | Fifth seed David Ferrer faced rising Australian hope Bernard Tomic in the second round.
- ATP Miami Preview | The second Masters 1000 of the season begins in Miami with the world's top stars battling for the title.

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Sony Ericsson Open Prize Money and Ranking Points

How much money will winners at the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open held in Miami win? Outside of the Grand Slams, the 2012 Miami tennis tournaments offers one of the biggest prize money earnings for players. The men's singles tournament winner will take home $659,775 with the men's singles runner-up winning $321,990. The women's singles tournament winner will take home $712,000 while the runner-up wins $352,000. The men's doubles winning team will split $216,190 while the women's doubles team will share $241,010. Both world #1 players Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka are the defending champions. Both players also lead the 2012 prize money earnings in men's and women's tours with Djokovic earning $2,664,106 to date and Azarenka having a haul of $3,927,423.

Tennis Miami 2012 - Men's Singles Prize Money

Winner $659,775
Runner Up $321,990
Semifinalist $161,375
Quarterfinalist $82,270
Fourth Round $43,370
Third Round $23,210
Second Round $12,530
First Round $7,680

Tennis Miami 2012 - Women's Singles Prize Money

Winner $712,000
Runner Up $352,000
Semifinalist $164,000
Quarterfinalist $79,000
Fourth Round $39,000
Third Round $21,000
Second Round $12,725
First Round $7,700

Tennis Miami 2012 - Men's Doubles Prize Money

Winning Team $216,190
Runners Up $105,500
Semifinalist $52,880
Quarterfinalist $26,950
Round of 16 $14,210
First Round $7,610

Tennis Miami 2012 - Women's Doubles Prize Money

Winning Team $241,010
Runners Up $121,000
Semifinalist $55,000
Quarterfinalist $25,965
Round of 16 $12,750
First Round $6,000

Tennis Miami 2012 - ATP Rankings Points

Winner 1000
Runner Up 600
Semifinalist 360
Quarterfinalist 180
Fourth Round 90
Third Round 45
Second Round 25

Tennis Miami 2012 - WTA Tour Points

Winner 1000
Runner Up 700
Semifinalist 450
Quarterfinalist 252
Fourth Round 140
Third Round 80
Second Round 50

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Miami Tennis 2012: Djokovic beats Murray for third Sony Ericsson Open title

>> Saturday, March 24, 2012

04/01 Update: World #1 Novak Djokovic stamped his class by defending his Miami title with a straight set win over world #4 Andy Murray in the finals of the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open. He won his sixth straight set match with his 6-1, 7-6(4) victory over Murray to win the Miami tennis tournament without dropping a set - a feat he accomplished also in 2007. He now improves to 20-2 for the season and won his first tournament after the Australian Open in January. He improves to 8-5 against Murray, and also has a 11-7 finals record in ATP Masters 1000 finals. Since the beginning of the 2011 season, Djokovic has compiled an outstanding 89-8 match record. Djokovic extends his reign at the top of the world rankings and he will be spending his 40th week as #1 when the new rankings are released on Monday, April 2.

03/29 Update: Top ranked defending champion Novak Djokovic set-up his third meeting with #4 Andy Murray after both took contrasting paths to the Miami 2012 tennis tournament men's singles final. Djokovic eliminated #21 seed Juan Monaco in straight sets 60 76(5) while Murray registered a walkover after his semifinal opponent, world #2 Rafael Nadal withdrew due to a knee injury. Djokovic and Nadal split their two meetings this year with Djokovic winning the Australian Open semifinals in five sets and Murray beating Djokovic in straight sets at the Dubai semifinals. Both players also met two times previously at the Sony Ericsson Open, splitting their head-to-head career match-up in this tournament.

Miami 2012 Tennis ATP Results - Men's Singles - Semifinals, Friday, March 29, 2012

[4] A Murray (GBR) d [2] R Nadal (ESP) walkover (knee)
[1] N Djokovic (SRB) d [21] J Monaco (ARG) 60 76(5)

03/28 Update: Three of the top four seeds reached the semifinals of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament with world #1 Novak Djokovic leading the pack. Djokovic will be gunning for his second straight final appearance at the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open against the surprise semifinalist Juan Monaco of Argentina. Monaco advanced with a straight set 61 63 win over top American Mardy Fish. Monaco took Roger Federer's spot in the draw after he beat Andy Roddick, Federer's conqueror in the third round. The other semifinalists was determined on Wednesday when world #2 Rafael Nadal and #4 Andy Murray posted three set victories to advance.

Miami 2012 Tennis ATP Results - Men's Singles - Quarterfinals, Thursday, March 28, 2012

Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
[21] J Monaco (ARG) d [8] M Fish (USA) 61 63
[1] N Djokovic (SRB) d [5] D Ferrer (ESP) 62 76(1)

Men's Doubles - Semifinals
[2] M Mirnyi (BLR) / D Nestor (CAN) d [6] M Bhupathi (IND) / R Bopanna (IND) 62 64
[7] L Paes (IND) / R Stepanek (CZE) d [1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) 64 64

03/27 Update: After his Monday's shock defeat of #3 seed and tournament favorite Roger Federer, American #31 seed Andy Roddick lost steam and went out to #21 Juan Monaco, the lowest seed left in the draw in straight sets, losing 75 60. Meanwhile, the three other favorites all advanced to the quarterfinals. World #1 and defending champion Novak Djokovic advanced with a straight set win over Richard Gasquet 75 63. His projected final opponent, world #2 Rafael Nadal advanced by beating #16 seed Kei Nishikori 64 64. Andy Murray, looking to spoil a Djokovic - Nadal final advanced to the last eight with a 63 64 victory over #13 Gilles Simon. Other seeds reaching the quarterfinals included #6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, #8 American Mardy Fish, and #9 Janko Tipsaveric. The last quarterfinal slot will be decided with winner of the fourth match between #5 David Ferrer and #11 Juan Martin del Potro

Miami 2012 Tennis ATP Results - Men's Singles - Fourth Round, Tuesday, March 27, 2012

[1] N Djokovic (SRB) d [17] R Gasquet (FRA) 75 63
[2] R Nadal (ESP) d [16] K Nishikori (JPN) 64 64
[4] A Murray (GBR) d [13] G Simon (FRA) 63 64
[6] J Tsonga (FRA) d [19] F Mayer (GER) 63 62
[8] M Fish (USA) d [12] N Almagro (ESP) 63 67(2) 63
[9] J Tipsarevic (SRB) d G Dimitrov (BUL) 76(3) 62
[21] J Monaco (ARG) d [31] A Roddick (USA) 75 60

03/24 Update: World #1 Novak Djokovic stayed on collision course with red-hot world #3 Roger Federer as both title favorites started their Miami 2012 tennis tournament campaigns with straight set victories over unseeded opponents. Djokovic downed former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis 64 64 while Federer eliminated young American wildcard entry Ryan Harrison 62 76. Other top ten seeds advancing into the third round included #5 David Ferrer who downed Australian Bernard Tomic 64 64 and #8 Mardy Fish who was a 63 76(1) victor over Frank Dancevic of Canada. Five other top 20 seeds advanced including Juan Martin del Potro (#11), Nicolas Almagro (#12), Gael Monfils (#14), Richard Gasquet (#17) and Fernando Verdasco (#20). In doubles action, the top seeded pair of Bob and Mike Bryan advanced into the second round.

Miami 2012 Tennis ATP Results - Saturday, March 24, 2012

Men's Singles - Second Round
[1] N Djokovic (SRB) d M Baghdatis (CYP) 64 64
[3] R Federer (SUI) d [WC] R Harrison (USA) 62 76(3)
[5] D Ferrer (ESP) d B Tomic (AUS) 64 64
[8] M Fish (USA) d [Q] F Dancevic (CAN) 63 76(1)
[11] J Del Potro (ARG) d I Karlovic (CRO) 75 64
[12] N Almagro (ESP) d [Q] D Goffin (BEL) 64 62
[14] G Monfils (FRA) d [Q] S Bubka (UKR) 64 64
A Ramos (ESP) d [15] F Lopez (ESP) 64 76(5)
[17] R Gasquet (FRA) d C Stebe (GER) 63 67(6) 62
[20] F Verdasco (ESP) d [Q] B Phau (GER) 63 60
[21] J Monaco (ARG) d Y Lu (TPE) 50 Retired
[23] M Cilic (CRO) d I Kunitsyn (RUS) 63 76(1)
[27] V Troicki (SRB) d [Q] G Garcia-Lopez (ESP) 46 61 64
[28] K Anderson (RSA) d S Querrey (USA) 63 67(3) 63
[30] J Benneteau (FRA) d B Becker (GER) 36 63 76(4)
[31] A Roddick (USA) d G Muller (LUX) 63 62

Men's Doubles - Second Round
[3] M Llodra (FRA) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d K Anderson (RSA) / M Raonic (CAN) 21 Retired

Men's Doubles - First Round
[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) d [WC] P Hanley (AUS) / B Tomic (AUS) 63 62
[2] M Mirnyi (BLR) / D Nestor (CAN) d E Butorac (USA) / B Soares (BRA) 63 76(4)
L Kubot (POL) / J Tipsarevic (SRB) d [5] M Fyrstenberg (POL) / M Matkowski (POL) 63 62
[6] M Bhupathi (IND) / R Bopanna (IND) d J Melzer (AUT) / J Murray (GBR) 75 63
S Gonzalez (MEX) / S Lipsky (USA) d T Berdych (CZE) / L Dlouhy (CZE) 75 61

03/23 Update: The first day of seeded men's singles players in action started on Friday at the Miami 2012 tennis tournament. #2 Rafael Nadal and #4 Andy Murray led six other seeded players ranked in the top 10 to advance to the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida. Nadal and Murray dealt straight set eliminations to a couple of Colombian players. Nadal beat Santiago Giraldo 62 60 in a ruthless night match victory while earlier in the day, Murray advanced with a 62 63 trashing of Alejandro Falla. Nadal and Murray are seeded to meet in the semifinals if both players make it that far. It was an assuring victory for Murray especially as he lost in the second round in his last tournament at Indian Wells.

Most seeded players advanced to the next round. #6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France beat veteran Xavier Malisse of Belgium in straight sets 75 75. #7 Tomas Berdych downed Nicholas Mahut 75 61, while #9 Janko Tipsaveric gained revenge by beating David Nalbandian of Argentina 75 63. America's #2 and #10 seed John Isner downed veteran Nikolay Davydenko but he had to rally for a 26 63 64 victory. Isner was an Indian Wells finalist last weekend and could very well be the top American player after this tournament if he gains enough points to overtake current world #8 Mardy Fish. Other seeded players advancing included #13 Gilles Simon, #16 Kei Nishikori, #19 Florian Mayer, #22 Jurgen Melzer, #25 Radek Stepanek and #26 Milos Raonic. Marc Granollers was the only seeded player in action on Friday who lost going down to L Rosol of the Czech Republic in three sets 26 63 61.

Top seeded and world #1 Novak Djokovic and world #3 Roger Federer start their Miami 2012 tennis tournament campaigns on Saturday, March 24.

Miami 2012 Tennis - Friday. 23 March, 2012

Men's Singles - Second Round
[2] R Nadal (ESP) d S Giraldo (COL) 62 60
[4] A Murray (GBR) d A Falla (COL) 62 63
[6] J Tsonga (FRA) d X Malisse (BEL) 75 75
[7] T Berdych (CZE) d N Mahut (FRA) 75 61
[9] J Tipsarevic (SRB) d D Nalbandian (ARG) 75 63
[10] J Isner (USA) d N Davydenko (RUS) 26 63 64
[13] G Simon (FRA) d [Q] R Bautista-Agut (ESP) 64 62
[16] K Nishikori (JPN) d L Lacko (SVK) 63 63
[18] A Dolgopolov (UKR) d [Q] A Veic (CRO) 64 75
[19] F Mayer (GER) d I Dodig (CRO) 64 75
[22] J Melzer (AUT) d R Haase (NED) 76(2) 36 64
L Rosol (CZE) d [24] M Granollers (ESP) 26 63 61
[25] R Stepanek (CZE) d T Haas (GER) 76(4) 61
[26] M Raonic (CAN) d [Q] A Clement (FRA) 76(7) 62
[32] P Kohlschreiber (GER) d F Gil (POR) 62 75

Men's Doubles - First Round
D Marrero (ESP) / F Verdasco (ESP) d [4] R Lindstedt (SWE) / H Tecau (ROU) 76(5) 62
M Melo (BRA) / J Monaco (ARG) d [WC] J Blake (USA) / R Harrison (USA) 63 36 14-12
A Qureshi (PAK) / J Rojer (NED) d P Andujar (ESP) / C Berlocq (ARG) 61 64
F Lopez (ESP) / M Lopez (ESP) d F Mayer (GER) / V Troicki (SRB) 62 62
C Fleming (GBR) / R Hutchins (GBR) d M Fish (USA) / M Knowles (BAH) 61 76(5)

Miami 2012 Tennis Results - Thursday, 22 March, 2012

Men's Singles - First Round
M Baghdatis (CYP) d L Mayer (ARG) 61 64
[Q] G Garcia-Lopez (ESP) d [Q] R Ram (USA) 64 76(7)
C Stebe (GER) d F Cipolla (ITA) 63 75
A Ramos (ESP) d [Q] S Bolelli (ITA) 63 61
I Karlovic (CRO) d L Kubot (POL) 63 67(2) 76(2)
I Kunitsyn (RUS) d [WC] J Levine (USA) 76(8) 76(3)
B Becker (GER) d O Rochus (BEL) 57 63 62
B Tomic (AUS) d S Stakhovsky (UKR) 76(4) 63
[WC] R Harrison (USA) d P Starace (ITA) 67(6) 64 64
G Muller (LUX) d A Bogomolov Jr. (RUS) 57 64 76(5)
Y Lu (TPE) d J Nieminen (FIN) 64 63
[Q] S Bubka (UKR) d E Gulbis (LAT) 64 64
[Q] D Goffin (BEL) d D Young (USA) 75 64
[Q] B Phau (GER) d C Berlocq (ARG) 64 62
S Querrey (USA) d M Ebden (AUS) 61 57 75
[Q] F Dancevic (CAN) d J Chardy (FRA) 75 76(0)

Men's Doubles - First Round
[3] M Llodra (FRA) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d A Dolgopolov (UKR) / X Malisse (BEL) 63 76(4)
D Bracciali (ITA) / J Cabal (COL) d [8] F Cermak (CZE) / F Polasek (SVK) 76(5) 64
M Granollers (ESP) / R Nadal (ESP) d M Cilic (CRO) / I Karlovic (CRO) 61 63
K Anderson (RSA) / M Raonic (CAN) d N Mahut (FRA) / G Simon (FRA) 46 62 10-7
O Marach (AUT) / A Peya (AUT) d N Almagro (ESP) / T Bellucci (BRA) 76(5) 76(5)

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Serena, Sharapova, Wozniacki, Clijsters advance at Miami

>> Friday, March 23, 2012

The women’s favorites at the bottom half of the draw at the Miami 2012 tennis tournament all advanced by posting victories over unseeded opponents. World #2 Maria Sharapova, #4 Caroline Wozniacki, 5-time champion Serena Williams and former #1 Kim Clijsters moved to the third round with victories on March 22, Thursday. #2 Maria Sharapova had to come from behind to beat former semi-finalist Shahar Peer 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 on Stadium Court. After dropping serve twice in the first set, Sharapova was broken just once over the next two sets, defeating Peer in two hours and 24 minutes to improve to a 6-0 record against the Israeli.

In the featured ladies night match, #4-seed Wozniacki advanced by beating Barbora Zahlavova Strycova. Wozniacki, who had not reached a tournament final this year and has dropped out of the Top 5 rankings despite being ranked #1 in January won the last seven games of her match for a 6-4 6-0 victory.

Five-time Sony Ericsson Open winner Serena beat Chinese wild card entry Zhang Shuai by breaking serve three times in the first set en route to a 6-2, 6-3 win. Serena is playing her first tournament after losing in the fourth round of the Australian Open last January. She is seeded 10th and advanced to the third round where she will face No. 21 Roberta Vinci of Italy. The 13-time Grand Slam champion is now 53-6 in the Miami tennis tournament and holds the record for the most match wins among all active players

Four-time Grand Slam winner Kim Clijsters indicated her title ambitions by eliminating #14-seed German and Dubai finalist Julia Goerges 6-2, 7-5. Clijsters is unseeded this year after dropping out of the top 32 rankings and did not draw a bye in the first round. She’ll meet fellow Belgian #23-seed Yanina Wickmayer in the third round.

#8-seed Li Na also advanced, beating qualifier Melinda Czink 6-2, 7-5. Na will next face Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic in the third round.

Two notable losses on Thursday’s action included Young American Christina McHale losing to Petra Cetkovska, the #29-seed. McHale was leading 6-0, 4-0 when her more experienced opponent won 13 of the last 15 games to eliminate McHale in two hours and 10 minutes. Svetlana Kuznetsova, the 2006 champion, lost to Benesova 1-6, 7-6(7), 7-6(7).

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Tennis Miami 2012: Radwanska beats Sharapova for Sony Ericsson Open Title

>> Tuesday, March 20, 2012

03/31 Update: World #4 Agnieszka Radwanska downed #2 Maria Sharapova 7-5, 6-4 to win the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open title at the Miami tennis tournament. The victory is Radwanska’s second title in 2012, after beating Julia Georges at the Dubai tournament. Radwanska becomes the 13th different winner in event history, and the first Polish woman to capture the title. She improved to 26-4 season record, with all four of her defeats coming at the hands of top-ranked Victoria Azarenka. Sharapova drops to a 0-4 final record at Crandon Park, having finished runner-up in 2005, 2006 and 2011. She has not won a tournament in 2012 losing in all three finals she played in.

03/28 Update: The Sony Ericsson Open 2012 women's singles title will be decided by two of the more consistent players this year. World #2 Maria Sharapova and #5-seed Agniezska Radwanska advanced to the singles final with contrasting victories and will be battling for their first ever Miami tennis tournament title. Sharapova downed Caroline Wozniacki 46 62 64 while Radwanska beat Azarenka's quarterfinal conqueror Marion Bartoli 64 62. Radwanska will be aiming for her second title this year after winning in Dubai while Sharapova has still to win a tournament this year losing the Australian Open and Indian Wells finals both to Azarenka. Sharapova has defeated Radwanska in their last six matches, five of which were on hard courts.

Tennis Miami 2012 - 2012 SONY ERICSSON OPEN RESULTS: Women's Singles - Semifinals, Thursday, March 28, 2012
[2] M Sharapova (RUS) d [4] C Wozniacki (DEN) 46 62 64
[5] A Radwanska (POL) d [7] M Bartoli (FRA) 64 62

03/26 Update: The Sony Ericsson Open 2012 women's favorites for the singles title continued to advance with several marquee players reaching the final 8. Four of the top five seeds advanced to the quarterfinal stage led by #1 Victoria Azarenka and #2 Maria Sharapova. #4 Caroline Wozniacki set-up a quarterfinal showdown with #10 Serena Williams who eliminated US Open champion and #6 seed Sam Stosur. #5 seed Agniezska Radwanska will be going against wild card entry Venus Williams for a quarterfinal spot. The Williams sisters are the only players in the quarterfinals not seeded in the top eight.

Tennis Miami 2012 - 2012 SONY ERICSSON OPEN RESULTS: Women's Singles - Fourth Round
[1] V Azarenka (BLR) d [16] D Cibulkova (SVK) 16 76(7) 75
[2] M Sharapova (RUS) d E Makarova (RUS) 64 76(3)
[4] C Wozniacki (DEN) d [23] Y Wickmayer (BEL) 76(6) 60
[5] A Radwanska (POL) d [WC] G Muguruza Blanco (ESP) 63 62
[10] S Williams (USA) d [6] S Stosur (AUS) 75 63
[7] M Bartoli (FRA) d [22] M Kirilenko (RUS) 61 62
[8] N Li (CHN) d [12] S Lisicki (GER) 36 64 62
[WC] V Williams (USA) d [15] A Ivanovic (SRB) 67(4) 62 62

Women's Doubles - Quarterfinals
[WC] G Dulko (ARG) / P Suarez (ARG) d V Dushevina (RUS) / S Peer (ISR) 76(2) 67(3) 10-6

Women's Doubles - Second Round
V King (USA) / M Niculescu (ROU) d [7] Y Shvedova (KAZ) / G Voskoboeva (KAZ) 75 62
A Medina Garrigues (ESP) / F Pennetta (ITA) d J Goerges (GER) / S Stosur (AUS) 67(4) 62 11-9
[WC] A Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) / L Safarova (CZE) d N Llagostera Vives (ESP) / A Parra Santonja (ESP) 61 76(2)

03/24 Update: WTA title favorites Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams and Caroline Wozniacki all advanced into the fourth round of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament while two-time champion Kim Clijsters was eliminated during third round action at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. World #2 Maria Sharapova downed American qualifier Sloane Stephens 64 62 while 5-time champion Serena beat Roberta Vinci 62 61. Also advancing was #4-seed Caroline Wozniacki, a 63 75 victor over Petra Cetkovska while US Open champion and #6 seed Sam Stosur beat Caroline Scheepers 26 75 62. Stosur sets up a fourth round showdown with Serena for a spot in the quarterfinals. It would be the first meeting between the two players after Stosur upset Serena to win her first grand slam title at the US Open in September. Meanwhile, Kim Clijsters lost to top Belgian countrywoman Yanina Wickmayer 64 76(5)

Tennis Miami 2012 - 2012 SONY ERICSSON OPEN RESULTS: Saturday, March 24, 2012

Women's- Singles - Third Round
[2] M Sharapova (RUS) d [Q] S Stephens (USA) 64 62
[4] C Wozniacki (DEN) d [29] P Cetkovska (CZE) 63 75
[6] S Stosur (AUS) d C Scheepers (RSA) 26 75 62
[8] N Li (CHN) d I Benesova (CZE) 75 62
[10] S Williams (USA) d [21] R Vinci (ITA) 62 61
[12] S Lisicki (GER) d [17] S Peng (CHN) 64 75
[23] Y Wickmayer (BEL) d K Clijsters (BEL) 64 76(5)
E Makarova (RUS) d M Barthel (GER) 62 64

Women's Doubles - Second Round
V Dushevina (RUS) / S Peer (ISR) d [8] D Hantuchova (SVK) / A Radwanska (POL) 62 75
[WC] G Dulko (ARG) / P Suarez (ARG) d A Klepac (SLO) / A Rosolska (POL) walkover

Women's Doubles - First Round
[WC] A Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) / L Safarova (CZE) d [3] S Mirza (IND) / E Vesnina (RUS) 16 61 11-9
[5] M Kirilenko (RUS) / N Petrova (RUS) d S Hsieh (TPE) / S Peng (CHN) 76(2) 64
[7] Y Shvedova (KAZ) / G Voskoboeva (KAZ) d [WC] D Cibulkova (SVK) / J Jankovic (SRB) 62 76(5)
A Medina Garrigues (ESP) / F Pennetta (ITA) d C Chuang (TPE) / A Kleybanova (RUS) 61 63
V King (USA) / M Niculescu (ROU) d K Date-Krumm (JPN) / S Zhang (CHN) 76(1) 63
E Makarova (RUS) / J Zheng (CHN) d N Grandin (RSA) / V Uhlirova (CZE) 64 62

03/23 Update: For the second straight tournament, reigning Wimbledon champion and world #3 Petra Kvitova is bundled out early in a top tier WTA tournament. Wild card entry and former world #1 Venus Williams dominated Kvitova in the last set to advance to the third round with a 64 46 60 victory. The battle of the defending Wimbledon champion and the 5-time Wimbledon titlist and Florida native was a highly anticipated night match at the early stages of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament. Eventually, it was experience that prevailed with the Venus winning her second match in a row in her first tournament back after pulling out of the US Open in 2011. Other top seeded players advancing included #1 Victoria Azarenka, #5 Agnieszka Radwanska and #7 Marion Bartoli.

Miami 2012 Tennis Results: Friday, March 23, 2012

Singles - Second Round
(1) Victoria Azarenka (BLR) d. Michaella Krajicek (NED) 63 75
(WC) Venus Williams (USA) d. (3) Petra Kvitova (CZE) 64 46 60
(5) Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) d. (Q) Madison Keys (USA) 61 61
(7) Marion Bartoli (FRA) d. Polona Hercog (SLO) 57 62 61
(WC) Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco (ESP) d. (9) Vera Zvonareva (RUS) 64 63
Ksenia Pervak (KAZ) d. (11) Francesca Schiavone (ITA) 64 46 75
(15) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) d. Vania King (USA) 64 75
(16) Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) d. Anna Tatishvili (GEO) 75 61
Zheng Jie (CHN) d. (18) Angelique Kerber (GER) 76(4) 61
(20) Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) d. (Q) Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) 67(4) 62 76(4)
(22) Maria Kirilenko (RUS) d. (WC) Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) 76(1) 63
(24) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) d. Lourdes Domínguez Lino (ESP) 64 26 60
(WC) Heather Watson (GBR) d. (27) Lucie Safarova (CZE) 62 61
(WC) Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) d. (28) Monica Niculescu (ROU) 46 63 64
Sílvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) d. (31) Kaia Kanepi (EST) 75 63
Simona Halep (ROU) d. (32) Nadia Petrova (RUS) 63 62

Doubles - First Round
Goerges/Stosur (GER/AUS) d. (1) Huber/Raymond (USA/USA) 61 64
(WC) Dulko/Suárez (ARG/ARG) d. (2) Peschke/Srebotnik (CZE/SLO) 64 64
(6) Errani/Vinci (ITA/ITA) d. Kops-Jones/Spears (USA/USA) 62 61
Kuznetsova/Zvonareva (RUS/RUS) d. Chan/Erakovic (TPE/NZL) 63 64
Dushevina/Peer (RUS/ISR) d. Govortsova/Rodionova (BLR/AUS) 75 46 106
Llagostera Vives/Parra Santonja (ESP/ESP) d. Gajdosova/Zakopalova (AUS/CZE) 36 64 108
(WC) Groenefeld/Martic (GER/CRO) d. Benesova/Zahlavova Strycova (CZE/CZE) 75 57 1210

03/22 Update: Tournament favorites advanced to the third round of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament by posting victories at the Sony Ericsson Open second round action on Thursday, March 22. All five of the top 10 seeds playing went through with #2 Maria Sharapova, #4 Caroline Wozniacki, #6 Sam Stosur, #8 Li Na and #10 Serena Williams advancing. Sharapova was the only player losing a set amongst the top seeds. Meanwhile, two minor upsets occurred when Mona Barthel upended #13 Jelena Jankovic and former #1 Kim Clijsters beat #14 Julia Goerges, both in straight sets. 5-time Miami champion Serena may meet Clijsters in the quarterfinals and possibly Sharapova in the semifinals.

Miami 2012 Tennis Results: Thursday, March 22, 2012

Singles - Second Round
(2) Maria Sharapova (RUS) d. Shahar Peer (ISR) 46 63 63
(4) Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) d. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) 64 60
(6) Samantha Stosur (AUS) d. (Q) Valeria Savinykh (RUS) 64 60
(8) Li Na (CHN) d. (Q) Melinda Czink (HUN) 75 62
(10) Serena Williams (USA) d. (WC) Zhang Shuai (CHN) 62 63
(12) Sabine Lisicki (GER) d. Sofia Arvidsson (SWE) 63 62
Mona Barthel (GER) d. (13) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) 60 63
Kim Clijsters (BEL) d. (14) Julia Goerges (GER) 62 75
(17) Peng Shuai (CHN) d. (Q) Stéphanie Foretz Gacon (FRA) 61 62
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) d. (19) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) 61 62
(21) Roberta Vinci (ITA) d. Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) 75 61
(23) Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d. Marina Erakovic (NZL) 63 64
Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) d. (25) Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) 16 64 60
Iveta Benesova (CZE) d. (26) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 16 76(7) 76(7)
(29) Petra Cetkovska (CZE) d. Christina McHale (USA) 06 75 61
(Q) Sloane Stephens (USA) d. (30) Sara Errani (ITA) 36 62 75

Doubles - First Round
Birnerova/Jans-Ignacik (CZE/POL) d. (4) Hlavackova/Hradecka (CZE/CZE) 64 75
(8) Hantuchova/A.Radwanska (SVK/POL) d. Begu/Bratchikova (ROU/RUS) 63 67(5) 103
Klepac/Rosolska (SLO/POL) d. Kudryavtseva/Panova (RUS/RUS) 63 64

03/20 Update: First round action at the Miami 2012 tennis tournament started on Tuesday, March 20 with several first round matches completed - one particular match producing an inspiring victory. Wild card Alisa Kleybanova rallied past Johanna Larsson of Sweden 26 63 62 to advance to the second round. Kleybanova is making her comeback after undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma last summer. She now advances to the second round where she will face fellow Russian and #22-seed Maria Kirilenko.

Two other wildcard entries joined Kleybanova in the next round. Young Heather Watson beat veteran Sorana Cristea in a third set tiebreak 63 36 76(4) to advance while Zhang Shuai also needed three sets to oust Elena Baltacha 67(5) 63 62. Zhang's reward for advancing is a date with Florida native and 13-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams. Also advancing is two-time Grand Slam semifinalist Zheng Jie. Zheng downed Lucie Hradecka to advance in two sets 61 64. Another interesting player advancing is Mona Barthel of Germany. Barthel almost ended world #1's perfect 2012 record when she went the distance before eventually losing in straight sets.

Miami 2012 Tennis Results: Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Singles - First Round
Zheng Jie (CHN) d. Lucie Hradecka (CZE) 61 64
Mona Barthel (GER) d. Greta Arn (HUN) 61 60
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) d. Jelena Dokic (AUS) 61 75
Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) d. Irina-Camelia Begu (ROU) 36 63 60
Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) d. Petra Martic (CRO) 63 62
Marina Erakovic (NZL) d. Mathilde Johansson (FRA) 46 64 64
Simona Halep (ROU) d. Carla Suárez Navarro (ESP) 67(5) 63 63
Anna Tatishvili (GEO) d. Tamira Paszek (AUT) 64 43 ret. (low back injury)
Lourdes Domínguez Lino (ESP) d. (WC) Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) 63 63
(WC) Heather Watson (GBR) d. Sorana Cirstea (ROU) 63 36 76(4)
(WC) Zhang Shuai (CHN) d. Elena Baltacha (GBR) 67(5) 63 62
(WC) Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) d. Johanna Larsson (SWE) 26 63 62



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Miami 2012 Tennis: Can Djokovic and Serena stop Federer and Azarenka?

The Sony Ericsson Open, one of the biggest tennis tournaments outside of the Grand Slams is starting this week in Miami, Florida. The best players in the ATP and WTA tennis tours have made the trek to the Sunshine State to vie for the title. The favorites for the men's title are the usual suspects, the top three tennis players - #1 Novak Djokovic, #2 Rafael Nadal, and #3 Roger Federer. On the women's side, the story of the year is the perfect 23-0 record of world #1 Victoria Azarenka. She will be laying this record down when she tackles on a field that includes #2 Maria Sharapova, two-time champion Kim Clijsters and the Williams sisters who combined to win eight Miami titles over an eleven year period between 1998 and 2011.

Will David Nalbandian duplicate his recent Indian Wells quarterfinal showing at the Miami 2012 tennis tournament? No. The Argentine former Wimbledon finalist reached the quarterfinal of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells by scoring wins over three seeded players including top 10 players Janko Tipsarevic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga before losing to Rafael Nadal. He is again drawn to face Tipsaveric in the second round in Miami if he goes past his first match. Look for Tipsaveric to beat Nalbandian this time around.

How far will Mona Barthel reach? The better question is, who is Mona Barthel? The tall 21-year old German won her first WTA title this year as a qualifier in Hobart Australia and then followed that up with a third round finish at the Australian Open before falling to eventual champion Victoria Azarenka in the third round. She has a 20-6 singles record for this year. At Indian Wells, Barthel proved to be Azarenka's toughest opponent taking the world #1 into a third set tiebreak. She is drawn to meet struggling #13-seed Jelena Jankovic in the second round. Barthel will beat the former #1 and will make it all the way to the fourth round at least, where she will give #2 Maria Sharapova a run for her money.

Which of the lower ranked American ATP players will reach the furthest stage? Up and coming American players Donald Young, Ryan Sweeting and Ryan Harrison along with veterans James Blake and Sam Querrey are hoping to get motivated by the partisan support and advance far in the draw. Alas, Harrison, the most promising of the batch drew Roger Federer as his second round opponent. Based on their opponents, Sam Querrey may make it farthest, with a good chance of toppling Delray Beach champion Kevin Anderson in the second round.

Which young American WTA player will upset a seeded player? At the Indian Wells tournament, young American players Jamie Hampton, Vania King, and Christina McHale all beat seeded and higher ranked opponents to move forward in the draw. In Miami 2012, McHale is drawn to play #29 seed Petra Cetkovska, Sloane Stephens will be going up against #30 Sara Errani, Vania King will play #15 Ana Ivanovic, and qualifier Madison Keys is slotted to go up against #5 Radwanska. While McHale has shown promise in beating Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova at Indian Wells, she will have trouble beating Kvitova's namesake and country woman. Instead, look for Sloane Stephens to provide the American upset for a third round date with #2 Maria Sharapova.

Will John Isner overtake Mardy Fish as the top-ranked American after the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open? Yes. Right now, whoever finishes better in this year's Miami 2012 tennis tournament will emerge as the top-ranked American. Both Isner and Fish have a good chance to reach the quarterfinals where they will meet Nadal and Federer respectively. Isner has played more consistently in recent tournaments and will be America's top dog when this tournament is over.

Who will win the battle of Wimbledon champions between #3 Petra Kvitova and wild card Venus Williams? It is hard to see Kvitova losing to another lower ranked American opponent for the second straight major tournament. However, she will be facing off with a future Hall of Famer with an achievement list that includes being a former #1 player, 5-time Wimbledon champion, and a 3-time Miami champion. The match will most likely be a featured night match and the crowd will most likely spur Venus to a gritty three set victory.

Which players outside the top 10 will make it to the semifinal stage? In the women's singles draw, the Williams sisters are contenders to reach the last four. World #11 Serena will have to beat US Open champion Sam Stosur and potentially the winner of the Kim Clijsters - Caroline Wozniacki fourth round match-up to reach the semis. Venus, currently ranked outside the top 100, may have an easier path as she is in the quadrant of slumping Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova and persistent #5 Agnieszka Radwanska. Venus and Serena have won the Miami tennis tournament three and five times, respectively. On the men's singles draw, #26 Milos Raonic has the potential of beating Andy Murray in the Scot's quadrant of the draw but a motivated Murray will fight like no other to contend in his last tournament before the clay court season begins.

Who will reach the final from the lower half of the draw - Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray? 2009 Miami champion Murray will play unbelievable and inconsistent tennis to oust Nadal but will lose to the winner of the Djokovic-Federer semifinal. There's something in the Miami air that prevents Nadal from winning the title here.

Can Serena Williams stop Victoria Azarenka's perfect season? Azarenka's first significant title was in the 2009 Miami tennis tournament where she beat Serena, then the #1 ranked player and reigning Australian Open champion. Its three years hence and the story of the year so far is Azarenka's winning streak. Both players are in opposite sides of the draw and will not meet until the finals. If that happens, Azarenka would then be riding a 28-match winning streak and will be aiming for her fifth title of the year; a considerable start of the season that not even the accomplished Serena can claim in her resume. Still, Serena has come from months of inactivity and won big tournaments plus she holds a distinct 6-1 advantage in their career head-to-head including straight set wins over Azarenka in last summer's Toronto and US Open tournaments. Then again, Azarenka would be going into such a final with tremendous confidence and will edge out the American for her 13th career title.

Will Novak Djokovic get out of his mini-"slump" and stop the red-hot Roger Federer? For most ATP players, winning a Grand Slam and then reaching the semifinals of the next two tennis tournaments is a success - for world #1 Novak Djokovic, it is a bit of a letdown. Compared to last year where Djokovic won seven straight tournaments to start the year, the Serb was beaten in the semifinal stage in his last two tournaments in Dubai and Indian Wells. Instead, it's Federer's sixth win in eight tournaments which make him the man to beat in the ATP tour at the moment. Federer has already won three titles this year and is aiming for his third Sony Ericsson title after winning in 2005 and 2006. Both players are seeded to meet in a highly anticipated semifinal showdown. Federer has been playing consistently enough to favor him slightly in this match-up, unless Djokovic will yet again save match points and beat Federer. Federer in three sets.

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Watch Djokovic vs Murray in Miami 2012 Finals Live

>> Sunday, March 18, 2012

03/31 Update: Sony Ericsson Open Live online streaming will showcase the women's singles finals on Saturday, March 31 between Maria Sharapova and Agniezska Radwanska. The men's singles final live action between Novak Djokovic and Andy Muray will be shown live on Sunday, April 1. | Tennis action at the Sony Ericsson Open will be shown across the globe through live online streaming via TennisTv.com starting March 24. This exemplary online service allows fans worldwide to keep track of the tennis action live directly from the venue of the matches. Live online streaming and video highlights of the Miami 2012 tennis tournament are also archived and available for viewing in other days.

03/30 Update: Sony Ericsson Open Live online streaming will showcase the men's semifinals live with world #2 Rafael Nadal taking on #4 Andy Murray in the bottom half of the draw. The top half will feature world #1 Novak Djokovic against surprise semifinalist Juan Monaco.

03/26 Update: Sony Ericsson Open Live online streaming will showcase a blockbuster third round match between former #1 players Roger Federer vs Andy Roddick. The ladies featured night match will feature Venus Williams vs Ana Ivanovic.

Miami 2012 Tennis - Monday, March 26, 2012

Monday, March 26, 2012

Stadium (from 11.00hrs)
1. Ekaterina Makarova vs. Maria Sharapova
2. Samantha Stosur vs. Serena Williams (NB 13.00hrs)
3. ATP: Djokovic vs. Troicki
4. ATP: del Potro vs. Cilic
5. ATP: Federer vs. Roddick (NB 19.30hrs)
6. Venus Williams vs. Ana Ivanovic (NB 21.00hrs)

Grandstand (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Anderson vs. Fish
2. ATP: Almagro vs. Verdasco
3. Li Na vs. Sabine Lisicki
4. Victoria Azarenka vs. Dominika Cibulkova (NB 16.30hrs)
5. ATP: Mónaco vs. Monfils

Court 1 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Gasquet vs. Ramos
2. ATP: Bhupathi/Bopanna vs. Granollers/Nadal (NB 13.00hrs)
3. ATP: Benneteau vs. Ferrer
4. Yanina Wickmayer vs. Caroline Wozniacki (NB 16.30hrs)
5. ATP: Fleming/Hutchins vs. Paes/Stepanek

Court 2 (from 11.00hrs)
1. King/Niculescu vs. Shvedova/Voskoboeva
2. Maria Kirilenko vs. Marion Bartoli (NB 12.00hrs)
3. Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco vs. Agnieszka Radwanska
4. Dushevina/Peer vs. Dulko/Suárez

Court 3 (from 12.00hrs)
1. Pavlyuchenkova/Safarova vs. Llagostera Vives/Parra Santonja
2. ATP: Kubot/Tipsarevic vs. González/Lipsky
3. Goerges/Stosur vs. Medina Garrigues/Pennetta (after suitable rest)

03/25 Update: Sunday action from the Sony Ericsson Open 2012 Miami tennis tournament will be broadcast live online with #1 Victoria Azarenka and top 10 American John Isner both featured in the night matches. World #2 Rafael Nadal will be vying for a fourth round spot alongside former women #1 players Venus Williams and Ana Ivanovic.

Miami 2012 Tennis - Sunday, March 25, 2012

Stadium (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Berdych vs. Dimitrov
2. Venus Williams vs. Aleksandra Wozniak (NB 13.00hrs)
3. Daniela Hantuchova vs. Ana Ivanovic (NB 15.00hrs)
4. ATP: Stepanek vs. Nadal
5. Victoria Azarenka vs. Heather Watson (NB 19.30hrs)
6. ATP: Mayer vs. Isner (NB 21.30hrs)

Grandstand (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Dolgopolov vs. Tipsarevic
2. ATP: Simon vs. Melzer
3. ATP: Raonic vs. Murray
4. Sílvia Soler-Espinosa vs. Agnieszka Radwanska
5. ATP: Bryan/Bryan vs. Melo/Mónaco (NB 17.00hrs)

Court 1 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Simona Halep vs. Marion Bartoli
2. Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco vs. Flavia Pennetta
3. ATP: Tsonga vs. Kohlschreiber
4. ATP: Nishikori vs. Rosol
5. ATP: Marach/Peya vs. Mirnyi/Nestor (NB 18.00hrs)

Court 2 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Zheng Jie vs. Dominika Cibulkova
2. ATP: Marrero/Verdasco vs. López/López
3. Ksenia Pervak vs. Maria Kirilenko
4. Makarova/Zheng vs. Birnerova/Jans-Ignacik (after suitable rest)
5. ATP: Qureshi/Rojer vs. Bracciali/Cabal

Court 3 (from 12.00hrs)
1. Errani/Vinci vs. Groenefeld/Martic

03/24 Update: Saturday live action from the Miami 2012 tennis tournament will be broadcast live online with #1 Novak Djokovic and #3 Roger Federer starting their Sony Ericsson campaigns. Women's favorites Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams will also take on lower ranked opponents for a spot in the fourth round.

Miami 2012 Tennis - Order of Play, Saturday, March 24, 2012

Stadium (from 11.00hrs)
1. Roberta Vinci vs. Serena Williams
2. ATP: Müller vs. Roddick (NB 13.00hrs)
3. ATP: Federer vs. Harrison
4. Sloane Stephens vs. Maria Sharapova
5. ATP: Djokovic vs. Baghdatis (NB 20.00hrs)
6. Samantha Stosur vs. Chanelle Scheepers

Grandstand (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Tomic vs. Ferrer
2. ATP: Bubka vs. Monfils
3. Kim Clijsters vs. Yanina Wickmayer
4. ATP: Dancevic vs. Fish
5. ATP: del Potro vs. Karlovic (NB 17.00hrs)

Court 1 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Gasquet vs. Stebe
2. Li Na vs. Iveta Benesova
3. ATP: Anderson vs. Querrey
4. ATP: Almagro vs. Goffin
5. Petra Cetkovska vs. Caroline Wozniacki (NB 18.00hrs)

Court 2 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Peng Shuai vs. Sabine Lisicki
2. ATP: Phau vs. Verdasco
3. ATP: Ramos vs. López
4. ATP: Bryan/Bryan vs. Hanley/Tomic
5. ATP: Anderson/Raonic vs. Llodra/Zimonjic (NB 17.00hrs; after suitable rest)

Court 3 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Mónaco vs. Lu
2. Medina Garrigues/Pennetta vs. Chuang/Kleybanova
3. ATP: Kunitsyn vs. Cilic
4. ATP: Butorac/Soares vs. Mirnyi/Nestor

Court 6 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Fyrstenberg/Matkowski vs. Kubot/Tipsarevic
2. ATP: Bhupathi/Bopanna vs. Melzer/Murray
3. ATP: García-López vs. Troicki
4. Hantuchova/Radwanska vs. Dushevina/Peer

Court 7 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Cibulkova/Jankovic vs. Shvedova/Voskoboeva
2. ATP: Benneteau vs. Becker
3. King/Niculescu vs. Date-Krumm/Zhang
4. Hsieh/Peng vs. Kirilenko/Petrova

Court 8 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Mona Barthel vs. Ekaterina Makarova
2. Mirza/Vesnina vs. Pavlyuchenkova/Safarova
3. Berdych/Dlouhy vs. González/Lipsky
4. Makarova/Zheng vs. Grandin/Uhlirova

Miami 2012 Tennis - Order of Play, Friday, March 23, 2012

Friday, March 23, 2012

Stadium (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Falla vs. Murray
2. Vania King vs. Ana Ivanovic
3. Victoria Azarenka vs. Michaella Krajicek
4. ATP: Davydenko vs. Isner
5. Petra Kvitova vs. Venus Williams (NB 19.30hrs)
6. ATP: Giraldo vs. Nadal

Grandstand (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Simon vs. Bautista-Agut
2. ATP: Nalbandian vs. Tipsarevic
3. Madison Keys vs. Agnieszka Radwanska
4. Francesca Schiavone vs. Ksenia Pervak
5. ATP: Berdych vs. Mahut (NB 17.00hrs)
6. ATP: Baghdatis/Querrey vs. Paes/Stepanek

Court 1 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Vera Zvonareva vs. Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco
2. ATP: Tsonga vs. Malisse
3. ATP: Stepanek vs. Haas
4. Daniela Hantuchova vs. Kateryna Bondarenko
5. Polona Hercog vs. Marion Bartoli (NB 17.00hrs)

Court 2 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Anna Tatishvili vs. Dominika Cibulkova
2. Alisa Kleybanova vs. Maria Kirilenko
3. ATP: Raonic vs. Clement
4. ATP: Nishikori vs. Lacko
5. ATP: Dimitrov vs. Chela

Court 3 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Angelique Kerber vs. Zheng Jie
2. ATP: Dolgopolov vs. Veic
3. Heather Watson vs. Lucie Safarova
4. Huber/Raymond vs. Goerges/Stosur
5. Dulko/Suárez vs. Peschke/Srebotnik

Court 5 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Haase vs. Melzer
2. ATP: Mayer vs. Dodig
3. ATP: Melo/Monaco vs. Blake/Harrison

Court 6 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Aleksandra Wozniak vs. Monica Niculescu
2. ATP: Gil vs. Kohlschreiber
3. ATP: Fleming/Hutchins vs. Fish/Knowles
4. Chan/Erakovic vs. Kuznetsova/Zvonareva
5. Govortsova/Rodionova vs. Dushevina/Peer

Court 7 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Kaia Kanepi vs. Sílvia Soler-Espinosa
2. Lourdes Domínguez Lino vs. Flavia Pennetta
3. Nadia Petrova vs. Simona Halep
4. ATP: Rosol vs. Granollers
5. Gajdosova/Zakopalova vs. Llagostera Vives/Parra Santonja

Court 8 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Lindstedt/Tecau vs. Marrero/Verdasco
2. ATP: Qureshi/Rojer vs. Andújar/Berlocq
3. Errani/Vinci vs. Kops-Jones/Spears
4. Benesova/Zahlavova Strycova vs. Groenefeld/Martic
5. ATP: López/López vs. Mayer/Troicki

Miami 2012 Tennis - Order of Play, Thursday, March 22, 2012

Stadium (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Harrison vs. Starace
2. Zhang Shuai vs. Serena Williams
3. Shahar Peer vs. Maria Sharapova
4. ATP: Cilic/Karlovic vs. Granollers/Nadal
5. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova vs. Caroline Wozniacki
6. ATP: Querrey vs. Ebden

Grandstand (from 11.00hrs)
1. Jelena Jankovic vs. Mona Barthel
2. Julia Goerges vs. Kim Clijsters
3. ATP: Mayer vs. Baghdatis
4. Samantha Stosur vs. Valeria Savinykh
5. ATP: Goffin vs. Young (NB 17.00hrs)

Court 1 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Kunitsyn vs. Levine
2. Iveta Benesova vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova
3. ATP: Stakhovsky vs. Tomic
4. Li Na vs. Melinda Czink
5. Petra Cetkovska vs. Christina McHale (NB 17.00hrs)

Court 2 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Sofia Arvidsson vs. Sabine Lisicki
2. Chanelle Scheepers vs. Anabel Medina Garrigues
3. ATP: Bubka vs. Gulbis
4. ATP: Phau vs. Berlocq
5. ATP: García-López vs. Ram

Court 3 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Ramos vs. Bolelli
2. ATP: Stebe vs. Cipolla
3. Ekaterina Makarova vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
4. ATP: Bogomolov vs. Müller

Court 6 (from 15.00hrs)
1. ATP: Kubot vs. Karlovic
2. ATP: Becker vs. Rochus
3. ATP: Dolgopolov/Malisse vs. Llodra/Zimonjic
4. ATP: Lu vs. Nieminen
5. ATP: Bracciali/Cabal vs. Cermak/Polasek

Court 7 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Roberta Vinci vs. Tsvetana Pironkova
2. Marina Erakovic vs. Yanina Wickmayer
3. Peng Shuai vs. Stéphanie Foretz Gacon
4. Sara Errani vs. Sloane Stephens (NB 15.30hrs)
5. Kudryavtseva/Panova vs. Klepac/Rosolska

Court 8 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Hantuchova/A.Radwanska vs. Begu/Bratchikova
2. Birnerova/Jans-Ignacik vs. Hlavackova/Hradecka
3. ATP: Mahut/Simon vs. Anderson/Raonic (NB 13.00hrs)
4. ATP: Dancevic vs. Chardy
5. ATP: Marach/Peya vs. Almagro/Bellucci

Miami 2012 Tennis - Order of Play, 03/20

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Stadium (from 11.00hrs)
1. Jarmila Gajdosova vs. Kim Clijsters
2. ATP: Davydenko vs. Blake
3. Venus Williams vs. Kimiko Date-Krumm
4. ATP: Nalbandian vs. Darcis
5. ATP: Mahut vs. González (NB 19.30hrs)
6. Galina Voskoboeva vs. Christina McHale

Grandstand (from 11.00hrs)
1. Gisela Dulko vs. Sofia Arvidsson
2. ATP: Sweeting vs. Lacko
3. ATP: Rufin vs. Haas
4. Vania King vs. Laura Pous-Tio
5. Jamie Hampton vs. Polona Hercog

Court 1 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Bellucci vs. Gil
2. Shahar Peer vs. Alizé Cornet
3. ATP: Roger-Vasselin vs. Malisse
4. Magdalena Rybarikova vs. Madison Keys
5. Anastasiya Yakimova vs. Ksenia Pervak

Court 2 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Haase vs. Matosevic
2. ATP: Andújar vs. Giraldo
3. ATP: Veic vs. Kudla
4. Aleksandra Wozniak vs. Eleni Daniilidou
5. Ayumi Morita vs. Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco

Court 3 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Falla vs. Istomin
2. Olivia Rogowska vs. Stéphanie Foretz Gacon
3. Pauline Parmentier vs. Sloane Stephens

Court 6 (from 15.00hrs)
1. ATP: Sela vs. Clément
2. ATP: Petzschner vs. Dodig

Court 7 (from 11.00hrs)
1. ATP: Dimitrov vs. Kukushkin
2. ATP: Llodra vs. Rosol
3. Alberta Brianti vs. Melinda Czink
4. ATP: Bautista-Agut vs. Seppi
5. Urszula Radwanska vs. Kateryna Bondarenko

Court 8 (from 11.00hrs)
1. Elena Vesnina vs. Iveta Benesova
2. Vera Dushevina vs. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova
3. Klara Zakopalova vs. Valeria Savinykh
4. Eva Birnerova vs. Michaella Krajicek
5. Misaki Doi vs. Sílvia Soler-Espinosa

As the tournament is a combined men's and women's event, top tennis stars from both the ATP and WTA tours are featured in live online tennis matches. Favorites for the men's singles title are Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray. The women's favorites include Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, Petra Kvitova, and Serena Williams.

Miami 2012 tennis live online coverage starts from SUNDAY, MARCH 25 to SATURDAY, MARCH 31 and it will be covering second round action until the men's and women's singles finals. Defending champions for the event are #1 players Djokovic and Azarenka. The 2012 Sony Ericsson Open men’s and women’s player fields will feature the top 78 ranked men and the 76 top ranked women in the world of tennis. The world’s best tennis players will be contending for one of tennis most prestigious titles at Crandon Park, March 19-April 1. Tickets to the Miami 2012 tennis tournament are currently available for purchase by phone (305-442-3367) or online at the tournament website - www.sonyericssonopen.com.

Seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams, a native of Miami, will plays early in the tournament. She is granted one of the wildcard entries after falling out of the top 100 in the women's rankings due to inactivity. Another wildcard entry, Alisa Kleybanova, is also in the women's field after battling with cancer. Defending Champion Victoria Azarenka will be No. 1 seed in the women's singles draw. World #1 Novak Djokovic will start his campaign by playing on Saturday, March 24 during the evening session.

Miami 2012 Tennis - WTA tournament profile

Tier: Premier
Prize Money: $4,828,050
Surface: Hard/Outdoors
Tournament Director: Adam Barrett

Miami 2012 Tennis - ATP tournament profile

Name: Sony Ericsson Open
Category: ATP World Tour Masters 1000
Place: Miami, U.S.A.
Date: 21.03.2012-01.04.2012
Draw Size: S-96 D-32
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $ 3,973,050
Total Financial Commitment: $ 4,828,050
Ticket Hotline: +1-800-725-5472

Watch Miami 2012 Tennis Live Online Streaming at TennisTv.com.

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Miami 2012 Tennis Live Online Coverage, TV and Event Schedule

Miami 2012 tennis takes center stage in the world of tennis as worldwide focus shifts to one of the biggest tennis tournaments of the year. Known as the Sony Ericsson Open, it features participation from the best tennis players in the ATP and WTA tennis tour. Miami 2012 tennis live action is broadcast through online streaming and through Tennis Channel, ESPN2 and CBS Sports. Click the following link on information regarding watching Miami 2012 tennis live online. The defending champions are both #1 players - Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka.

Television and live online coverage for the Miami 2012 tennis action starts on the weekend of March 24 with Tennis Channel covering live matches from 11am to 11.30pm from March 24 to March 27. After that, ESPN2 will broadcast live tennis action from 1pm to 5pm; and then 7pm – 11pm. CBS Sports will show the last weekend matches on March 31 and April 1 which feature the men’s semifinals and men’s and women’s singles finals.
The Sony Ericsson Open has been, through the years, a favorite of both fans and players alike. A record volume of visitors numbering more than 310,000 visited the tennis center in Crandon Park, Miami in 2011. ATP players have selected this tennis tournament as the best ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament for six years – from 2002 to 2006, and also in 2008.

Miami 2012 Tennis: Television and Live Online Coverage Schedule:

Tennis Channel Times Broadcast
Saturday, March 24 11 am - 12 am Live
Sunday, March 25 11 am - 11:30 pm Live
Monday, March 26 11 am - 11:30 pm Live
Tuesday, March 27 11 am - 11:30 pm Live

Miami 2012 Tennis: ESPN2 Times Broadcast

Wednesday, March 28 1 pm - 5 pm; 7 pm - 11 pm Live
Thursday, March 29 1 pm - 5 pm; 7 pm - 11 pm Live
Friday, March 30 1 pm - 5 pm; 7 pm - 11 pm Live

Miami 2012 Tennis: CBS Sports Times Broadcast

Saturday, March 31 12:30 pm Live
Sunday, April 1 1 pm Live

Miami 2012 Tennis: Special Activities Schedule


1. Sony Ericsson Open Night – Friday, March 23 at 7pm, Mary Brickell Village, Miami: The event celebrates the start of the Sony Ericsson Open with music and autograph signing. It is free and open to the public.

2. Sony Ericsson Open Draw Ceremony – Monday, March 19, Starting at 11:30am: This event covers the creation of the singles and doubles draw for the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open for both ATP and WTA. It would also be a good opportunity for fans to catch live action during the tournament’s qualifying rounds.

3. Lindt Kids Day – Tuesday, March 20, 10:00am-4:30pm, Grandstand: This even hosts kids ages from seven to twelve from Miami-Dade and Broward County Public Schools. Activities begin at 9:45am at the Grandstand Court. Lunch is NOT included and anyone attending Kids Day is encouraged to bring bag lunches. If you would like to inquire about attending Kids Day, please contact the Ticket Office at 305.442.3367.

TennisTv.com will start broadcasting Miami 2012 tennis live action starting on 25 Mar 2012 to 31 Mar 2012 | Up to 12 live matches. Worldwide live online coverage is also available 24 Mar 2012 to 1 Apr 2012 | Up to 41 live matches with blackout in the United States during the men’s and women’s finals.

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Indian Wells 2012 Men's Final Live: Federer vs Isner Match Highlights

The highlights of the Indian Wells 2012 men's final match between #3 Roger Federer and #11 John Isner is available here. | Finals Preview: Federer will be gunning for a record fourth Indian Wells title while Isner will be seeking his first ever ATP World Tour Masters 1000. Isner continued to prove himself as a player to watch in the men's tour as he beat defending champion and world #1 Novak Djokovic 7-6(7), 3-6, 7-6(5) on Saturday to reach his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final. The win will enable the American to reach the world's top 10 for the first time. If he beats Federer for the title, he will reach a career high ranking of #8 making him the highest ranked American player.

Djokovic on Isner: "With that serve and with that forehand he's got the ability to be a Top 10 player... He had that already a couple years back. It's just a matter of really trusting your instincts and your strokes and your quality. I think it all came together for him now, and he's deservedly in the Top 10 now."

In the other semifinal, the hugely anticipated Rafael Nadal-Roger Federer showdown ended with a convincing 6-3, 6-4 victory for Federer. The Swiss legend has now reached his fourth final in Indian Wells. He won the tournament three consecutive tournament times from 2004-06, and will now be vying to tie Nadal’s record of 19 Masters 1000 titles.

Federer on the win: "Very happy that a tough week like this gives me an opportunity to win the tournament... Really it's unbelievable that I never thought I would come so far. It's been a great week so far, and it's another opportunity tomorrow to make it even more special. Obviously conditions were tough today, and against one of my greatest rivals, it's always nice if you come out on top, so I'm very, very happy."

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Isner shocks Djokovic, Advances to Indian Wells 2012 Final

>> Saturday, March 17, 2012

American #11-seed John Isner shocks world #1 and defending champion Novak Djokovic to reach the finals of the BNP Paribas Open at the 2012 Indian Wells tennis tournament. Isner won both the first and third set tiebreaks 76(7) 36 76(5) to advance to his first ever Indian Wells final and first ATP tour final of the year. He now awaits the winner of the other semifinal between #2 Rafael Nadal and #3 Roger Federer. Djokovic has now lost in 2 consecutive semi-finals in tournaments where he is the defending champion. He also lost his semi-final against Andy Murray in Dubai last February. Despite the loss, Djokovic will remain as world #1 while Isner now moves into the world's top 10 for the first time in his career. Isner will also be playing in the men's doubles final later in the day.

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Watch Federer vs Nadal Live Online at the Indian Wells 2012 Semifinals

It will be the first time ever that two-time champion and last year's finalist Rafael Nadal will meet three-time champion Roger Federer in singles action at Indian Wells, but it will be their 28th career meeting overall. Watch the Federer vs Nadal live online stream from Indian Wells 2012 here. Nadal holds an 18-9 advantage in their career head-to-head, and a 4-2 advantage in their last six meetings including a five set victory at the Australian Open 2012 in Melbourne this year. Nadal and Federer both advanced to the semi-finals by beating tough Argentine opponents in contrasting fashion in Friday's live action from Stadium 1.

World # Federer was impressive in his 6-3, 6-2 victory of Juan Martin del Potro. The top Swiss player advances to the semi-finals stage for the seventh time in the last nine years. He will be looking to return to the final for the first time since 2006 when he claimed the last of his three consecutive titles in the event. Federer has now won 11 of the 13 matches he has played against del Potro including four meeting this year. He has now won 13 straight matches and he joins Nicolas Almagro as the only other ATP player this year with 20 wins.

World #2 Rafael Nadal battled past Argentine David Nalbandian 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 on Friday afternoon to reach the semifinals. He lost his first set of the tournament in the first set and came to within two points of defeat in the second set before rallying past the former Wimbledon finalist. Nalbandian double-faulted in the 11th game of the second set and Nadal wasted no time in serving out the set. The Spaniard now leads Nalbandian 4-2 and has won their last four matches. Nadal has now reached the Indian Wells semi-finals for a record seventh straight time. He won the title in 2007 and ’09, and finished runner-up to Novak Djokovic last year.

Nadal on playing Roger Federer: "They’re always special matches, especially because they’re always are in very important matches for both of us... That always makes the match very special. But even if it's not the final, being in the semi-finals is an important match... Playing against Roger always means a little bit more than against the rest of the opponents because I am playing probably against the best of the history, and because I played probably the most important matches of my career against him and probably him against me. That's why it makes the match a little bit more special than the rest."


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