Wimbledon 2012 Women's Semifinals Live: Radwanska vs Kerber

>> Thursday, July 5, 2012

A new finalist will be welcomed into the Wimbledon 2012 singles championship match on Saturday as first time Wimbledon semifinalists, world no. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland and no. 8 Angelique Kerber of Germany battle each other in the first of two women's singles semifinals slated today, Thursday afternoon 1pm, at Wimbledon's Centre Court. On Tuesday, Radwanska finally dropped her unwanted tag of being the "only player in the Top 15 without a Grand Slam semifinal" when she scored a tough 75 46 75 victory over Maria Kirilenko. By doing so, Radwanska also put herself in position of attaining the world no. 1 ranking for the first time ever if she wins Wimbledon and current world no. 2 Victoria Azarenka fails to make the finals. Watch the Wimbledon 2012 women's semifinals live online streaming featuring Radwanska vs Kerber here.

Radwanska had been 0-5 in Grand Slam quarterfinals coming in, a three-time quarterfinalist in Australia and a two-time quarterfinalist in Wimbledon. In Kerber, she will be going against the most improved player in the past 12 months. As recently as last August, Kerber was out of the Top 100 - now, not even a year later, she is the World No.8 with two Grand Slam semifinals (she was also a semifinalist at the US Open last year). She also has more match wins than anyone on the WTA - 45 (Azarenka and Radwanska are next with 43). Kerber won a drama-filled all-German quarterfinal last Tuesday against No.15 seed Sabine Lisicki, 63 67(7) 75. Kerber originally led 63 30 and held three match points later in the second set, which Lisicki saved with winners - Lisicki would eventually go up 5-3 in the third set before Kerber put forth her own comeback.

Kerber is aiming to become the first from Germany to reach a Wimbledon singles final since Steffi Graf in 1999. She lost in Wimbledon's first round last year and stood at 100 in the rankings, so her progress to eighth seed has to stand as phenomenal progress especially as she won her first two WTA titles this year at the Paris indoors and in Copenhagen. Radwanska has also made such huge strides this year, rising from eighth to third in the world. The opportunity to reach the top ranking for the first time in her career is also a great incentive for her. Whoever wins their semifinal will be in their first Grand Slam final, and it's sure to bring out the best in both players. Radwanska and Kerber have met four times before and split their four encounters. This is their first meeting with both of them being in the top 10.

RADWANSKA vs KERBER - tied at 2-2

2008 BERLIN CLAY R64 A.Radwanska 6-0 5-3
2010 BEIJING HARD R64 A. Kerber 5-7 7-6(3) 7-5
2011 US OPEN HARD R64 A. Kerber 6-3 4-6 6-3
2011 TOKYO - PAN PACIFIC HARD R32 A.Radwanska 3-6 6-3 6-3

Watch Wimbledon 2012 women's semifinals live online via video streaming featuring Radwanska vs Kerber.

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Wimbledon 2012 Live: Serena vs Azarenka in Women's Semifinals

It's down to the final four in the Wimbledon 2012 women's singles tournament and only one of the four remaining players have ever gone beyond the semifinal stage. But that one player, Serena Williams, the no. 6-seed player is not only the favorite of the remaining four to win the title, she's already proven herself time and again at the Championships by lifting the trophy four times previously - in 2002, 2003, 2009, and 2010. So, when she faces higher ranked world no. 2 Victoria Azarenka on the second match at Centre Court, the fans of women's tennis around the world will be focused on this encounter. Watch the Wimbledon 2012 women's semifinals showdown between Serena and Azarenka live here.

Williams leads Azarenka in their head-to-head series, 7-1. She has won their last five meetings which included three encounters at Grand Slams including a straight set demolition of the Belorussian in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2009. Their most recent encounter this year, at the finals in Madrid, it was the American who emerged as the victor via a 61 63 score. Much as Serena appear to be the heavy favorite for this encounter, she has seemed vulnerable as of late. Serena struggled to get past her third and fourth round opponents although she did look solid in dethroning 2011 champion Petra Kvitova in the quarterfinals. As for Azarenka, she reached the semifinal stage without dropping a set including a fourth round demolition of former world no. 1 Ana Ivanovic with the loss of just one game.

Serena vs Azarenka Head-to-Head

2008 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD R32 S. Williams6-3 6-4
2009 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD R16 S. Williams3-6 4-2
2009 MIAMI HARD F V.Azarenka6-3 6-1
2009 WIMBLEDON GRASS Q S. Williams6-2 6-3
2010 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD Q S. Williams4-6 7-6(4) 6-2
2011 TORONTO HARD S S. Williams6-3 6-3
2011 US OPEN HARD R32 S. Williams6-1 7-6(5)
2012 MADRID CLAY F S. Williams6-1 6-3

Azarenka refuses to be unfazed with her not so impressive record against Serena. "I don't really like to look back in history because every time you step on court it's a new story," she said. "You kind of write your own history every time. Serena is a great champion. It's going to be a tough match, but that's what you expect to have in semi-finals. We've had good matches, we've had bad matches. We'll see." Azarenka will be going into the match knowing that if she wins, she will regain her no. 1 ranking which she lost to Maria Sharapova when the Russian won at the French Open. Earlier this year, she recorded the best start to a tennis season in 15 years when she blitzed to a 26-match winning streak. She hasn't faced Serena at a Grand Slam since she won her first major at the Australian Open.

Even Serena knows that it will be a tough match. "Victoria's playing unbelievable. She's played so well this year," Williams said of the Belarusian. "Already having a Grand Slam under her belt is really great. She did it in such style, so it's not going to be easy if I play against her." Still, her current form in the past 12 months had enabled her to post a perfect 9-0 record against Top 5 players in the past 12 months. Expect an exciting battle between the two, so be sure to watch the Wimbledon 2012 women's semifinal live featuring Serena vs Azarenka on July 5, Thursday afternoon.

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Wimbledon 2012 Men's Quarterfinals Live: Federer, Djokovic, Murray in Action

>> Tuesday, July 3, 2012

It's down to the last eight in the third Grand Slam of the year. Five of the top eight seeds have made it to the Wimbledon 2012 men's singles quarterfinals, and three lower ranked seeds have crashed the party. On July 4, Wednesday afternoon, world no. 1 Novak Djokovic, no. 3 Roger Federer, local favorite and world no. 4 Andy Murray, and world no. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all take on lower ranked opponents as they aim to advance to the semi-finals of the only major played on grass. Watch Wimbledon 2012 men's singles quarterfinals live featuring Federer, Djokovic, Murray, and Tsonga in action here.

Wimbledon 2012 Schedule of Play, Wednesday, July 4
Centre Court
1:00 PM Gentlemen's Singles - Quarterfinals
Roger Federer (SUI)[3] vs Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[26]
David Ferrer (ESP)[7] vs Andy Murray (GBR)[4]

No. 1 Court
1:00 PM Gentlemen's Singles - Quarterfinals
Novak Djokovic (SRB)[1] vs Florian Mayer (GER)[31]
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[5] vs Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER)[27]

First off at the Centre Court is six-time Wimbledon champ Federer who is going for a record tying seventh Wimbledon title. He is slated to meet surprise quaterfinalist in no. 26-seed Mikhail Youzhny. Federer had not been playing up to par, but it is a given that he should win the match-up against the Russian. Federer leads Youzhny 13-0, winning all their previous encounters.

Next up in Centre Court is the UK's best hope for a men's champion in Murray. The Scot has reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in the past three years and is faced with good fortune this year as world no. 2 Rafael Nadal was bundled out of the tournament leaving Murray as the top seed remaining in this half of the draw. Still, it won't be easy as Murray is the only one facing a top 10 seed in world no. 7 David Ferrer. It is a rematch of their French Open 2012 quarterfinals where the Spaniard emerged the victor.

Meanwhile, the first match on Court No. 1 belongs to top ranked Djokovic and no. 31-seed Florian Mayer. Djokovic is the defending champion but alas, he needs to reach the finals to ensure that he'll remain at the top of the rankings by next week. Federer has a chance to get back to the world no. 1 ranking if he wins the whole tournament, and that's something Djokovic doesn't want to happen. Expect the Serb to come out firing and advance to the last four in straight sets.

The last quarterfinal is between no. 5-seed Tsonga and another German, world no. 27-seed Philipp Kohlschreiber. The German took Nadal's spot in the draw and has the game to take out the top-ranked Frenchman but Tsonga was a semi-finalist last year and would like to go one step further at Wimbledon. Of the three quarterfinals, this is the most un-predictable but expect Tsonga to come out and edge Kohlschreiber in four tough sets.

Watch Wimbledon 2012 men's singles quarterfinals live online featuring Federer, Djokovic, Murray, and Tsonga through the Live @ Wimbledon website.

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Wimbledon 2012: Serena vs Kvitova Live Online Stream

When the quarterfinals of the women's singles at 2012 Wimbledon starts for the day, all eyes will be focused on the most promising encounter - the Serena Williams vs Petra Kvitova encounter at Centre Court. It is the second match in the main show court and features the last two winners at Wimbledon. The 6th-seeded Serena is the champion in 2009 and 2010, and in two other earlier occasions. Kvitova won her first major last year defeating Maria Sharapova in the final. Watch Serena vs Kvitova in Wimbledon 2012 women's singles quarterfinal live online here.

Serena and Kvitova are two of the three remaining Grand Slam champions left in the draw. The other major champion is this year's Australian Open champ, world no. 2 Victoria Azarenka who will be going against the only unseeded player left in Austria's Tamira Paszek. Azarenka and the world no. 3, Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska, are in the running for the world no. 1 ranking after top-ranked Maria Sharapova lost a straight set shocker to German Sabine Lisicki. Azarenka is in Serena and Kvitova's half of the draw which means that there will be a first time Grand Slam finalist, and a 50% chance of having a first time Grand Slam winner, in this year's Wimbledon.

The day's most important - and fascinating - contest will be that between Williams and Kvitova and the sadness is that one will depart the scene. It is a tough one to call. Serena, four times a champion and twice the runner-up at Wimbledon, has the experience, the background and, at 30, definitely the incentive to hoist the Venus Rosewater Dish one more time, while Kvitova, the hard-hitting left-hander from the quiet Czech town of Fulnek, will understandably want to repeat last year's performance.

Serena has the edge when it comes to previous clashes, having won both. She conceded just three games to Kvitova in the second round of the 2010 Australian Open and then pulled off a much closer victory 7-6, 6-2 in the 2010 Wimbledon semi-finals. But as the sport's Serena-watchers have observed since she fought back from a serious illness and injury lay-off, a degree of uncertainty has crept into that once iron-clad game of hers. Will the errors outweigh the winners? Will the Kvitova howitzer forehand be too much? A great match is in prospect.

Serena Williams' passage to the quarterfinals has certainly not been plain sailing, and with defending champion Petra Kvitova standing in her way next, the journey is unlikely to get any smoother. In her third and fourth round matches, against Zheng Jie and Yaroslava Shvedova, Williams had to summon upon all her reserves of physical and mental energy, scraping by both in three grueling sets.

Kvitova had a scare of her own on Monday; coming from a set and a break down to defeat an inspired Francesca Schiavone. This was in stark contrast to the first three rounds, in which the Czech had barely broken sweat and looked to be approaching the devastating form that took her to last year's title. As one of the few players on tour capable of trading on equal terms with Williams, an on-form Kvitova will believe the match is on her racquet. What makes the encounter all the more intriguing is that Williams is undoubtedly thinking the exact same thing.

The winner for sure will be tennis fans who are excited about this match-up. But, who will show up for the day? Will it be the Serena who won thirteen Grand Slams, or the Kvitova who played fearless tennis in her first major final last year? Watch the Wimbledon 2012 semi-final between Serena and Kvitova live online through the Live @ Wimbledon website.

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Wimbledon 2012: 5 Shocking Results

>> Friday, June 29, 2012

As of Friday, the fifth day of competition, two top 10 seeded players in the Wimbledon 2012 men's singles draw have been eliminated and three top 10 seeded players in the women's singles draw have been beaten as well. This list is a running tab of the 5 biggest upset results in this year's Wimbledon championships. If a future result is a bigger upset, it will be added to this list. For now, here are the five biggest upsets so far:

#1. NADAL, Rafael ESP [2] lost to ROSOL, Lukas CZE 6-7(9) 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4.

This is hands down the shock of the tournament. The 100th ranked Lukas Rosol outclassed one of the men's favorites and two-time champion Rafael Nadal in five scintillating sets. This is the worst Grand Slam result for the world no. 2 since 2005 and it comes at the heels of the Spanish record breaking seven titles at Roland Garros. In tennis, you will definitely never know what to expect. This upset result is similar in shock value to Serena William's first round upset at last month's French Open to an opponent outside the top 100.

#2. STOSUR, Samantha AUS [5] lost to RUS, Arantxa NED 6-2 0-6 6-4

Young Dutch player Arantxa Rus has now pulled off her second biggest shock victory at a Grand Slam. First it was Kim Clijsters at the 2011 French Open; this year it was Sam Stosur who was shocked as Rus claimed a strange three-set victory in a wildly see-sawing encounter on No.1 Court. Not known for her mental strength, the world No. 5 was a first-round loser in the past two years at Wimbledon, a surface that was supposed to suit her aggressive and powerful game. Still, the current US Open champion couldn't find an answer to the 21-year old from the Netherlands and has failed to advance beyond the second round in nine appearances at Wimbledon.

#3. SHARAPOVA, Maria RUS [1] lost to LISICKI, Sabine GER [15] 6-4 6-3

Top ranked Maria Sharapova just won the French Open earlier this month completing a career Grand Slam and was certainly the favorite of many coming into Wimbledon, the site of her first ever Grand Slam win. She also beat German Sabine Lisicki in last year's semifinal, and the German isn't really in the best of form if recent results were to be considered. This result is not that much of an upset if we compare the games of both players, with Lisicki packing a powerful game is she's in the zone. Still, no one would have expected Sharapova to lose before the semi-finals.

#4. BERDYCH, Tomas CZE [6] lost to GULBIS, Ernests LAT 7-6(5) 7-6(4) 7-6(4)

Tomas Berdych reached the final of the 2010 Wimbledon but two years later, he crashed in the first round. Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, ranked 87th in the world, pulled off one of the classic first-day victories at Wimbledon with a straight sets victory over the sixth-seeded Czech. Gulbis had not won a Grand Slam match since last year's US Open and his previous best at Wimbledon was to reach the second round in 2008 and 2009. Gulbis, a former promising young player who has a big game has a quarter-finals of the French Open in 2008 as his best achievement.

#5. BARTOLI, Marion FRA [9] lost to LUCIC, Mirjana CRO 6-4 6-3

In 2007, Marion Bartoli reached the final of Wimbledon losing to Venus Williams. This year, she lost to a once promising tennis prodigy who was a 15-year old semi-finalist in 1999. As a wildcard ranked No.134 13 years ago, Mirjana Lucic defeated past top-tenners Monica Seles and Nathalie Tauziat to reach the final four where she was stopped by Steffi Graf in three sets no less. Now 30 and arguably fitter and healthier than at any stage of her tumultuous 15-year career, Lucic used her booming serve and devastating power to full effect during her straight set victory.

Other Notable Upsets:

WOZNIACKI, Caroline DEN [7] lost to PASZEK, Tamira AUT 5-7 7-6(4) 6-4

It is hard to imagine that Caroline Wozniacki was the top seed two Grand Slams ago. After reaching the quarterfinals at the Australian Open early this year, the former world no. 1 has fallen out of the top five and couldn't take advantage of two match points in her first round match against the Austrian Tamira Paszek. In fairness, Paszek came into Wimbledon in fine form winning her first WTA premier title at Eastbourne last Saturday. Still, Wozniacki was the favored player to win with her experience and achievements.

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Wimbledon 2012 TV Schedule by Country

Are you planning to watch Wimbledon 2012 live tennis matches through TV during the middle weekend and the final weekend? Do you want to check the Wimbledon 2012 TV schedule? Well, what better way to plan that than by checking your local broadcaster on who will be playing live Wimbledon matches in your country. Wimbledon was first televised in the 1937 edition, that's 75 years ago. Nowadays, almost 2500 broadcasters are broadcasting Wimbledon. The host broadcaster since 1937 is BBC and last year, there were a almost 13,000 TV broadcast hours of live Wimbledon action, more than half of that in European countries. This year, the countries with the most broadcasters are the United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Australia, Japan and the United States.

Europe Broadcasters

United Kingdom

  • BBC TV
  • BBC Radio
  • BBC International
  • BBC Five Live
  • BBC Sports Xtra
  • BBC Radio 1
  • BBC Online
  • BBC Sport Interactive
  • London Live
  • BBC World Service
  • BBC News/Nations & Regions
  • AELTC World Feed
  • Global Radio
  • Live @Wimbledon
  • David Luddy International
  • Sky News Radio
Albania & Kosovo
  • Supersport
Austria
  • ORF Radio
Belgium
  • VRT
  • VRT Radio
  • VTM (VMMA)
  • RTBF TV
  • RTBF Radio
  • RTL (clt Ufa)
Bulgaria
  • TV+
Cyprus
  • Lumiere TV
Czech  Republic
  • Novasports (ARQ)
  • Czech Radio
Denmark
  • DR Radio
  • TV2
France
  • Canal+
  • RMC
  • RTL
  • Europe 1
  • Radio France
Georgia
  • GMG 
  • Georgia Sport
Germany
  • ARD Radio
  • Journal Euro
  • Sky Deutschland
Greece
  • Nova (Grece & Cyprus)
Hungary
  • Digi Sport
Ireland
  • TG4
Israel
  • Sports Channel (Sport 5)
Italy
  • Sky Italia
Malta
  • Go Multiplus
Netherlands
  • Sport 1
  • NOS TV
  • BNR
Poland
  • Polsat
  • Polish Radio
Portugal
  • Sport TV
  • Digi Sport Romania
Russia
  • NTV Plus
Serbia
  • B92
  • Balkans Sportklub/IKO
Spain
  • Prisa TV (Canal + /Sogecable)
  • Onda Cero
  • Cadena CopeTalk Radio Europe
Sweden
  • TV4 (C More)
  • Sveriges Radio AB/Swedish Radio
Switzerland
  • SRG/SSR TV (includes RTS, RSI, SRF)
  • SRG Radio (includes DRS, SR)
  • Radio Chablais
Turkey
  • Media Eye

REST OF WORLD
Asia
  • Star Sports
  • Beijing TV
  • Guagdong TV
  • Sohu TV
Australia
  • Fox Sports
  • Channel 7
  • Cross Court
  • Australian Broadcasting Corporation
  • Radio 2UE
  • Australian News Network
  • Paul Walsh Media Services
  • 1116 SEN/BAP Communications
Canada
  • TSN Canada
China
  • China Radio International
Fiji
  • Fiji TV
Japan
  • NHK
  • Gaora
  • Wowow
Latin America
  • ESPN Int
Middle East
  • ADMC
South Africa
  • Supersport
  • SAFM
Thailand
  • Quu FM Sport
USA
  • ESPN
  • Tennis Channel
  • ABC Sports Radio
  • KFWB

Don't lose out on the action. Check your local country channel for the latest Wimbledon 2012 TV Schedule.

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Wimbledon 2012 Prize Money: £1.15 Million for Singles Winners

When Novak Djokovic and Petra Kvitova won the Wimbledon men and women's singles titles last year, each champion took home £1,100,000 in prize money. That figure has increased 4.5% this year with the singles champions in Wimbledon 2012 men's and women's draw taking home a record Wimbledon prize money of £1,150,000. A full prize money breakdown for both the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles draw are shown below. Who will win the top prizes in Wimbledon this year?

THE CHAMPIONSHIPS, WIMBLEDON 2012 - PRIZE MONEY

GENTLEMEN'S AND LADIES' SINGLES (in POUNDS, £):

Winner: 1,150,000
Runner-up: 575,000
Semi-Finalists: 287,500
Quarter-Finalists: 145,000
Fourth Round Losers: 75,000
Third Round Losers: 38,875
Second Round Losers: 23,125
First Round Losers: 14,500

TOTAL MAIN DRAW SINGLES (TWO EVENTS) (in POUNDS, £):

GENTLEMEN'S AND LADIES' DOUBLES
Winners (per pair): 260,000
Runners-up: 130,000
Semi-Finalists: 65,000
Quarter-Finalists: 32,500
Third Round Losers: 16,650
Second Round Losers: 9,350
First Round Losers: 5,450

MIXED DOUBLES (in POUNDS, £):
Winners: 92,000
Runners-up: 46,000
Semi-Finalists: 23,000
Quarter-Finalists: 10,500
Third Round Losers: 5,200
Second Round Losers: 2,600
First Round Losers: 1,300

Feel free to comment below on who will win the top Wimbledon 2012 prize money.

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ATP Men's Tennis Ranking as of June 25, 2012

>> Saturday, June 23, 2012

2012 Eastbourne winner and former world no. 1 Andy Roddick made the biggest jump in rankings within the top 50 this week as he moved eight spots from no. 33 to no. 25 with his first title this year. Fellow American Ryan Harrison moved to a career high ranking of no. 48 by reaching the semi-finals in Eastbourne. Novak Djokovic is the top-ranked player for almost a year now but his current stay at the top is being challenged during the next two weeks as he could lose the no. 1 ranking if world no. 2 Rafael Nadal or world no. 3 Roger Federer wins the title and Djokovic doesn't reach the finals.

ATP Men's Tennis Ranking as of June 25, 2012

Rank, Name & Nationality Points
1 Djokovic, Novak (SRB) 12280
2 Nadal, Rafael (ESP) 10060
3 Federer, Roger (SUI) 9435
4 Murray, Andy (GBR) 6980
5 Ferrer, David (ESP) 5250
6 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA) 5230
7 Berdych, Tomas (CZE) 4685
8 Tipsarevic, Janko (SRB) 3200
9 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG) 3180
10 Isner, John (USA) 2655
11 Almagro, Nicolas (ESP) 2605
12 Fish, Mardy (USA) 2535
13 Simon, Gilles (FRA) 2525
14 Monaco, Juan (ARG) 2115
15 Monfils, Gael (FRA) 1805
16 Verdasco, Fernando (ESP) 1765
17 Lopez, Feliciano (ESP) 1725
18 Cilic, Marin (CRO) 1655
19 Gasquet, Richard (FRA) 1600
20 Nishikori, Kei (JPN) 1600
21 Dolgopolov, Alexandr (UKR) 1585
22 Raonic, Milos (CAN) 1540
23 Granollers, Marcel (ESP) 1530
24 Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI) 1505
25 Roddick, Andy (USA) 1395
26 Seppi, Andreas (ITA) 1390
27 Stepanek, Radek (CZE) 1340
28 Tomic, Bernard (AUS) 1255
29 Mayer, Florian (GER) 1230
30 Kohlschreiber, Philipp (GER) 1220
31 Anderson, Kevin (RSA) 1215
32 Benneteau, Julien (FRA) 1210
33 Youzhny, Mikhail (RUS) 1210
34 Troicki, Viktor (SRB) 1190
35 Melzer, Jurgen (AUT) 1147
36 Andujar, Pablo (ESP) 1115
37 Berlocq, Carlos (ARG) 1050
38 Ferrero, Juan Carlos (ESP) 1035
39 Istomin, Denis (UZB) 1032
40 Nalbandian, David (ARG) 1015
41 Haase, Robin (NED) 1010
42 Baghdatis, Marcos (CYP) 945
43 Ramos, Albert (ESP) 935
44 Nieminen, Jarkko (FIN) 932
45 Giraldo, Santiago (COL) 923
46 Bogomolov Jr., Alex (RUS) 910
47 Davydenko, Nikolay (RUS) 885
48 Harrison, Ryan (USA) 871
49 Kubot, Lukasz (POL) 855
50 Haas, Tommy (GER) 848

The ATP men's tennis ranking as of June 25, 2012 is from the www.atpworldtour.com.

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Eastbourne 2012 Prize Money: Roddick wins €72K for Title

Sixth seed Andy Roddick continued his streak of winning an ATP title every year for the past 12 years when he dismissed reigning AEGON International champion Andreas Seppi 6-3, 6-2 in Eastbourne Saturday. This title winning streak matches Roger Federer’s streak of winning at least one ATP World Tour title in 12 straight seasons. The win was a perfect Wimbledon preparation for the former world no. 1 player and earned him €72,950 in prize money and 250 ranking points. Seppi took home €38,400 as runner-up along with 150 ranking points.

“I wanted to keep alive winning one tournament a year for 12 years. I know three or four people have done that,’ Roddick said. “I need to remind myself of those numbers just to [remember] this is a what-did-you-do-last-week-type sport? So looking back on that, maybe I need to look at those a little bit more and realise that I've done this for a long time pretty well.” The American wild card won 55 per cent of his return points to break Seppi five times. Roddick clinched the trophy on his first championship point to claim victory in 72 minutes. He improved to 2-0 against the third-seeded Seppi.

“I don't remember the last time I got broken twice and won 3 and 2. I felt real good,” said Roddick. “My returns this week were close to as well as I have. I was able to close well. I started off not serving great and then made an adjustment. I think I served 90 per cent in the second set, which is a pretty strong number, especially given the conditions.”

The triumph marks Roddick’s 31st career title, with five of them coming on grass. He is the first American to finish in the winners' circle this season.
Andy Roddick won his first title in over a year when he defeated defending champion Andreas Seppi 6-3, 6-2 on Saturday to win the Eastbourne grasscourt title, a perfectly-timed boost ahead of Wimbledon.

The American, a three-time finalist at the All England Club, is aged 29 and ranked 33rd, has been troubled by injury and illness for the past several seasons but may have turned a corner with his 72-minute confidence-building win over the Italian. He came to the event as a wildcard after losing his sixth match in a row last week in an early Queen's club exit.

Roddick will be seeded 30 at Wimbledon, which starts on Monday, where he starts against Briton Jamie Baker. With the victory, Roddick rises up 8 spots to become world no. 25 when the new rankings are released on Monday, June 25. The losing semifinalists, Ryan Harrison and Steve Darcis, each won €20,805 in prize money and 90 ranking points. Roddick's victory will increase his 2012 prize money beyond $270,000 - he was at 94th place with $172K in earnings prior to the tournament.

2012 ATP Prize Money Leaders (US$)

1. Nadal, Rafael $4,961,419
2 Djokovic, Novak $4,789,340
3 Federer, Roger $3,696,441
4 Ferrer, David $1,627,120
5 Murray, Andy $1,430,310
6 Berdych, Tomas $1,312,471
7 Del Potro, Juan Martin $1,286,353
8 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried $938,374
9 Almagro, Nicolas $915,143
10 Tipsarevic, Janko $895,868
...
91 Mayer, Leonardo $180,152
92 Goffin, David $176,148
93 Roddick, Andy $171,978

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Eastbourne 2012 Prize Money: Paszek wins $107K for Title

Tamira Paszek was the surprise winner at this year's 2012 AEGON International women's singles final when she saved five match points in downing world no. 9 Angelique Kerber to lift her first WTA premier level trophy. Her 57 63 75 victory wrapped up a week of surprises in a tournament where the top three seeded players, all ranked in the top 10, crashed in the first round of competition. Paszek then beat the two remaining seeds (no. 4-seed Marion Bartoli and no. 5-seed Kerber) in back-to-back matches to secure the third WTA title in her career. Paszek earned her biggest paycheck to date taking home the Eastbourne winner's prize money of $107,000 and 470 ranking points.

With a 2-13 record on the year and five Top 10 players in the draw, Paszek wasn't exactly the favorite for the title at the start of the week. But match by match she started getting better and better, and the talent and toughness were both on full display in the semis as she came from the aforementioned deficit to upset No.4 seed and defending champion Marion Bartoli, 46 75 64. That wasn't Paszek's last great comeback of the week, either. With four straight set wins, Angelique Kerber got up to 40 match wins on the year - the WTA's match win leader in fact, two better than Victoria Azarenka and Agnieszka Radwanska. And the No.5-seeded German looked headed for her 41st win as she built a 5-3 lead in the third set, and even brought up five match points.

But Paszek served them all away - three from 0-40, two more on ad out - and after a few more tight games she won, and lifted her biggest title. Paszek has a first round match at Wimbledon with Caroline Wozniacki. "Caroline's a tough opponent, former World No.1, amazing competitor - she doesn't give you a free point. So from tomorrow I will just try to do my work with Andrei, adapt my game to the courts and atmosphere of a Grand Slam again, and we will see. I will just enjoy every moment and try my best there... We've known each other since we were like 10. I have a picture. We played when we were Under 12 or something like that. On tour she has beaten me once - that was the only time we played, I think. But in juniors many times.

The victory increased Paszek total 2012 prize money to $219,179. That puts her as #54 in the money leaders this week. Kerber earned the runner-up prize money of $57,000, while Bartoli and Klara Zakopalova each took home $30,550 for reaching the semi-finals. World no. 2 Victoria Azarenka is still at the top of the list with $4.6 million prize money this year followed closely by world no. 1 Maria Sharapova who has $4.4 million.

WTA Top Year-to-Date Prize Money Leaders - as of June 25, 2012

1 Azarenka, Victoria BLR $4,633,237
2 Sharapova, Maria RUS $4,369,006
3 Radwanska, Agnieszka POL $2,088,433
4 Errani, Sara ITA $1,901,235
5 Williams, Serena USA $1,294,379
6 Kvitova, Petra CZE $1,058,976
7 Stosur, Samantha AUS $945,530
8 Vinci, Roberta ITA $901,208
9 Kerber, Angelique GER $886,976
10 Li, Na CHN $770,854
...
50 Halep, Simona ROU $249,682
51 Peng, Shuai CHN $248,746
52 Stephens, Sloane USA $224,098
53 Arvidsson, Sofia SWE $220,687
54 Paszek, Tamira AUT $219,179


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Watch Eastbourne 2012 Women's Final Live: Kerber vs Paszek

>> Friday, June 22, 2012

A rising German star and a surprise finalist is set to battle for this year's 2012 AEGON International women's singles crown. World no. 9 Angelique Kerber is vying for her third tournament win this year while Tamira Paszek is hoping to revive a season where she lost in 11 first round matches and won only two matches prior to the start of the tournament. Watch the 2012 Aegon Internation women's final live online here featuring Kerber vs Paszek as both women go for their first ever title in Eastbourne, England. The match will start at 12 noon local time on Saturday, June 23, 2012.

While Kerber is seeded fifth, Paszek is unseeded in a tournament where the top three seeds were all beaten in the first round. World no. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska, world no. 4 and reigning Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, and world no. 7 and former world no. 1 Caroline Wozniacki all lost their opening matches. Kerber advanced to the final with a 60 63 win over Klara Zakopalova while Paszek advanced by rallying past world no. 9 and former Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli to move into her very first Premier final.

Paszek, who was already in her first Premier semifinal, lost the first set then was down 4-0 in the second set and 2-0 in the third but fought back each time, eventually beating the No.9-ranked Frenchwoman in three hours, five minutes. "Early in the second set I had my chances, but with the wind things just weren't working out," Paszek said. "But I just tried to stay there. I knew I was at the same level, and that I just had to wait for my chances again. Chances came... It feels amazing to be in the final. I love Eastbourne. My godparents live here, so for me it already feels like home. It's a pleasure coming back every year."

Paszek already showed signs of her grass court prowess last year, when she made her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at Wimbledon. "We have a pretty green country at home, it's probably that," the Austrian joked. "No - it just suits my game, same as hardcourt. I love fast surfaces. I just enjoy the grass. It's a special atmosphere to come here and have the different shoes, and all in white." Paszek got the third Top 10 win of her career, having beaten Ana Ivanovic at Montréal in 2008 and Francesca Schiavone at Wimbledon last year.

Bartoli needed a strapping on her thigh when she trailed 2-3 in the final set. "It was a nightmare to play in these conditions, honestly," said the 2007 Wimbledon finalist. "My leg got pretty tight and then tired, but I think in two or three days it will be back to normal... I felt I had chances in almost every game and ended up losing them. In these conditions, even if I was leading, you never felt comfortable... I didn't make one ace today, where yesterday I served 10 or 12. It's really levelling when you have those kind of conditions.

Bartoli was disappointed but very gracious towards Paszek. "I lost the match so I can't really say I'm happy about it, but on the other hand I really felt like I tried my hardest and there wasn't much I could have done better," Bartoli said. "And Tamira played really well. She deserved to win. She really fought hard and came back to win the match. Of course I'm disappointed, but I tried my hardest."

As for Kerber, she won her last three matches in straight sets but unlike Paszek who beat two seeded players on her way to the final, Kerber didn't meet a single seeded player. She raced into the final taking the first seven games of her match with Zakopalova and closing the Czech out after a closer second set, 60 63. "I came here a week ago and the plan was to have a lot of matches before Wimbledon, so it feels very good," Kerber said. "I can't get any more matches than this now, so I'll just focus on my last match here and then on Wimbledon... It's my first time reaching a final on grass, and it's a big thing for me."

Kerber's win was also her 40th match win of the year, the first to cross the big 4-0 this year (Victoria Azarenka and Agnieszka Radwanska are next at 38). Kerber and Paszek have an identical 2-1 career record in WTA finals, though Kerber is the only one who has been to a Premier final before (winning Paris [Indoors] this year). The winner will receive $107,000 in prize money and 470 ranking points. The runner-up will take home $57,000 in earnings and 320 ranking points.

Watch 2012 Aegon Internation women's final live online from Eastbourne featuring Kerber vs Paszek at TennisTV.com.

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Watch Eastbourne 2012 Men's Final Live: Roddick vs Seppi

Former world no. 1 Andy Roddick is aiming to continue a streak of 12 consecutive years of winning at least one ATP tour title when he battles defending champion Andreas Seppi in the finals of the 2012 AEGON International in Eastbourne, England. Watch the live online streaming coverage here starting at 1.30 pm local time on Saturday, June 23, 2012. Roddick's best finish in the tournament is a semi-final appearance in 2001 while Seppi won the title on his fourth visit last year. Both players have met just once before in 2008 with Roddick a straight set victor during the 2008 US Open.

No. 6 seed Roddick, a wild card entry, is appearing in his first ATP World Tour final since winning his 30th title in Memphis in February 2011 (d. Raonic). The 29-year-old American is attempting to increase his ATP World Tour title streak to 12 consecutive years and match Roger Federer, who has the longest streak among active players. Roddick is 30-20 in career finals and his last grass court title came at the Queen’s Club in London in 2007. Roddick came into Eastbourne losing six consecutive matches (the longest streak of his career) and ranked No. 33 (apart from being No. 34 during this year’s Miami fortnight, his lowest ranking in almost 11 years). But he’s only dropped one set this week, that coming in the quarter-finals on Friday vs. Fabio Fognini. Americans are 0-3 in ATP World Tour finals this year and the last American winner was John Isner in Winston Salem, N.C. last August.

Prior to Eastbourne, Roddick had endured a frustrating couple of months. Sidelined since the U.S. hard court swing with a hamstring injury, he returned to action in late May to lose all three of his round-robin matches in Dusseldorf and then his following two opening matches at Roland Garros and Queen’s Club. Roddick had requested a wild card to play at this ATP World Tour 250 tournament, and benefitted from two retirements - against Sam Querrey in the first round and Steve Darcis in the semi-finals. “Hey, I'll take them how I can get them,” he said with a smile.

No. 3 seed Seppi, who had an opening round bye, has not dropped a set this week. Seppi is making his fourth career ATP World Tour final showing (2-1) and the second of the season. Last month he picked up his second career title in Belgrade (d. Paire). The 28-year-old Italian is putting together the best season of his career. He advanced to a Grand Slam-best fourth round at Roland Garros, losing to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in five sets (after winning first two sets). Afterwards he improved to a career-high No. 24. The winner will take home €71,000 and 250 ranking points, the runner-up earns €37,400 in prize money and 150 ranking points.

Watch the Eastbourne 2012 men's final live online featuring Roddick vs Seppi.

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Wimbledon 2012 Men's Singles Draw: Djokovic, Federer in same Half

World no. 1 Novak Djokovic will try to bounce back after losing a disappointing final at the French Open by defending his Wimbledon title. He is drawn to meet a former world no. 1 in Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain in the first round. Seeded opponents he can meet before the quarterfinals are no. 28-seed Radek Stepanek and no. 15-seed Juan Monaco. He is slated to meet world no. 6 Tomas Berdych in the quarterfinals. Berdych reached the semi-finals last year upsetting Roger Federer. Berdych will be challenged by no. 18-seed Richard Gasquet and no. 12-seed Nicolas Almagro in his section of the draw.

Like in the French Open, six-time Wimbledon champion and world no. 3 Roger Federer is in the same half of the draw as Djokovic. Interestingly, Federer has a chance to rise to the world no. 1 ranking if he wins the title and Serb fails to reach the final. That scenario can certainly happen with a Federer victory over Djokovic in the semi-finals, although it has been almost two years since that has happened. The Swiss has an impressive 59-7 record at The Championships. He is drawn to meet Janko Tipsaveric, the no. 8-seed, in the quarterfinals. That is, if Tipsaveric can beat no. 11-seed American John Isner in the fourth round. Isner's game on grass is especially dangerous as he possesses one of the fastest serves in the men's game.

Seven-time French Open champion and a two-time Wimbledon winner, world no. 2 Rafael Nadal heads the bottom half of the draw. He won Wimbledon in 2008 and 2010 and lost to Djokovic in last year's final surrendering his top ranking to the Serb as well. Nadal may have a potential match-up with no. 27-seed Philipp Kohlschreiber, the German who knocked him off the Halle tournament in grass last week. His potential quarterfinal opponent is world no. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Tsonga has an interesting first round opponent in former Wimbledon champion and former no. 1 player Lleyton Hewitt, a wildcard this year.

Andy Murray leads the other section of the draw in the bottom half. He is scheduled to face no. 7-seed David Ferrer in the quarterfinals, the same pairing that happened in Roland Garros with Ferrer coming out the victor and preventing a top-four semi-final. Murray will be the favorite to reach the semi-finals at Wimbledon though being a much better player on grass that the Spaniard. He has three semi-final showings in the past three years, and if all elements fall into place, Murray should be able to upset Nadal and reach the finals for the first time. He'll be shooting for history, no British male has succeeded at Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936. Murray has a potential 4th round match against no. 16-seed Marin Cilic while Ferrer will most likely battle no. 9-seed Juan Martin del Potro.

Check below for the Wimbledon 2012 Men's Singles Draw.

Top Half, 1st Section: DJOKOVIC, Novak SRB [1] vs BERDYCH, Tomas CZE [6]

DJOKOVIC, Novak SRB [1]
FERRERO, Juan Carlos ESP

HARRISON, Ryan USA
LU, Yen-Hsun TPE

BECKER, Benjamin GER
BLAKE, James USA

STAKHOVSKY, Sergiy UKR
STEPANEK, Radek CZE [28]

GRANOLLERS, Marcel ESP [24]
TROICKI, Viktor SRB

KLIZAN, Martin SVK
CHELA, Juan Ignacio ARG

CHARDY, Jeremy FRA
VOLANDRI, Filippo ITA

MAYER, Leonardo ARG
MONACO, Juan ARG [15]

ALMAGRO, Nicolas ESP [12]
ROCHUS, Olivier BEL

RUFIN, Guillaume FRA (Q)
DARCIS, Steve BEL

BERLOCQ, Carlos ARG
BEMELMANS, Ruben BEL (Q)

KAMKE, Tobias GER
GASQUET, Richard FRA [18]

MAYER, Florian GER [31]
TURSUNOV, Dmitry RUS

PETZSCHNER, Philipp GER
KAVCIC, Blaz SLO

BOLELLI, Simone ITA (Q)
JANOWICZ, Jerzy POL (Q)

GULBIS, Ernests LAT
BERDYCH, Tomas CZE [6]

Top Half, 2nd Section: FEDERER, Roger SUI [3] vs TIPSAREVIC, Janko SRB [8]

FEDERER, Roger SUI [3]
RAMOS, Albert ESP

FOGNINI, Fabio ITA
LLODRA, Michael FRA

MENENDEZ-MACEIRAS, Adrian ESP (Q)
RUSSELL, Michael USA (Q)

MULLER, Gilles LUX
BENNETEAU, Julien FRA [29]

VERDASCO, Fernando ESP [17]
WANG, Jimmy TPE (Q)

ZEMLJA, Grega SLO (W)
GOODALL, Josh GBR (W)

MALISSE, Xavier BEL
MATOSEVIC, Marinko AUS

MATHIEU, Paul-Henri FRA
SIMON, Gilles FRA [13]

ISNER, John USA [11]
FALLA, Alejandro COL

LORENZI, Paolo ITA
MAHUT, Nicolas FRA

ANDREEV, Igor RUS
GOLDING, Oliver GBR (W)

ISTOMIN, Denis UZB
SEPPI, Andreas ITA [23]

YOUZHNY, Mikhail RUS [26]
YOUNG, Donald USA

CERVANTES, Inigo ESP (Q)
CIPOLLA, Flavio ITA

SWEETING, Ryan USA (Q)
STARACE, Potito ITA

NALBANDIAN, David ARG
TIPSAREVIC, Janko SRB [8]

Bottom Half, 1st Section: FERRER, David ESP [7] vs MURRAY, Andy GBR [4]

FERRER, David ESP [7]
BROWN, Dustin GER (Q)

DE SCHEPPER, Kenny FRA (Q)
BACHINGER, Matthias GER

ODESNIK, Wayne USA (L)
PHAU, Bjorn GER

BAKER, Jamie GBR (W)
RODDICK, Andy USA [30]

NISHIKORI, Kei JPN [19]
KUKUSHKIN, Mikhail KAZ

KUZNETSOV, Andrey RUS (Q)
SERRA, Florent FRA (Q)

SOEDA, Go JPN
KUNITSYN, Igor RUS

HAASE, Robin NED
DEL POTRO, Juan Martin ARG [9]

CILIC, Marin CRO [16]
STEBE, Cedrik-Marcel GER

ITO, Tatsuma JPN
KUBOT, Lukasz POL

POSPISIL, Vasek CAN
QUERREY, Sam USA

GIRALDO, Santiago COL
RAONIC, Milos CAN [21]

ANDERSON, Kevin RSA [32]
DIMITROV, Grigor BUL

MONTANES, Albert ESP
BAGHDATIS, Marcos CYP

KARLOVIC, Ivo CRO
SELA, Dudi ISR

DAVYDENKO, Nikolay RUS
MURRAY, Andy GBR [4]

Bottom Half, 2nd Section: TSONGA, Jo-Wilfried FRA [5] vs NADAL, Rafael ESP [2]

TSONGA, Jo-Wilfried FRA [5]
HEWITT, Lleyton AUS (W)

ROGER-VASSELIN, Edouard FRA
GARCIA-LOPEZ, Guillermo ESP

LACKO, Lukas SVK
UNGUR, Adrian ROU

MELZER, Jurgen AUT
WAWRINKA, Stanislas SUI [25]

TOMIC, Bernard AUS [20]
GOFFIN, David BEL (W)

LEVINE, Jesse USA (Q)
BECK, Karol SVK

WARD, James GBR (W)
ANDUJAR, Pablo ESP

RAMIREZ HIDALGO, Ruben ESP
FISH, Mardy USA [10]

LOPEZ, Feliciano ESP [14]
NIEMINEN, Jarkko FIN

BAKER, Brian USA (Q)
MACHADO, Rui POR

EBDEN, Matthew AUS
PAIRE, Benoit FRA

BOGOMOLOV JR., Alex RUS
DOLGOPOLOV, Alexandr UKR [22]

KOHLSCHREIBER, Philipp GER [27]
HAAS, Tommy GER (W)

ZOPP, Jurgen EST (Q)
JAZIRI, Malek TUN

ROSOL, Lukas CZE
DODIG, Ivan CRO

BELLUCCI, Thomaz BRA
NADAL, Rafael ESP [2]

Which of your favorite players will advance in the Wimbledon 2012 men's singles draw? Write your comments below.

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Wimbledon 2012 Women's Singles Draw: Sharapova, Radwanksa in Top Half

World no. 1 Maria Sharapova is aiming for her second straight Grand Slam title, a feat she has not achieved in her career so far. But, the Sharapova will fancy her chances coming back to the major where she won her first Grand Slam at 17. The Wimbledon 2012 women's singles draw was announced last Friday, and Sharapova has a relatively easy draw into the round of 16 where she'll meet big-serving German 15th-seed Sabine Lisicki. Sharapova's possible quarterfinal opponents could be the no. 8-seed Angelique Kerber, or possibly Kim Clijsters who is currently unseeded. Clijsters and 18th-seed Jelena Jankovic will face-off in a first round meeting of former world no. 1 players.

In Sharapova's half of the draw is world no. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska. Radwanska will start against Magdalena Rybarikova in the first round before another potential second round against Venus Williams for the second Grand Slam in a row. Radwanska beat the older Williams in their second round encounter in last month's French Open and would be more challenged to do this in Wimbledon where Venus is a 5-time champion. World no. 5 Samantha Stosur looms to be Radwanska's quarterfinal opponent. Other notable players in this section of the draw include no. 11-seed Na Li, no. 20-seed Nadia Petrova, and no. 17-seed Maria Kirilenko.

The toughest quadrant of the draw features defending champion and no.4-seed Petra Kvitova and no.6-seed Serena Williams. Both players won the last three Wimbledon titles with Kvitova lifting her first major last year and Serena winning in 2009 and 2010. French Open finalist Sara Errani could be a potential fourth round opponent for Serena, while Dominika Cibulkova is Kvitova's highest possible seeded opponent in the fourth round. No. 19-seed Lucie Safarova and former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone, the no. 24-seed are players to watch in this section of the draw.

World no. 2 Victoria Azarenka is at the bottom half of the draw and would look to regain the world no. 1 ranking with her first victory at Wimbledon. Azarenka has a dangerous first round opponent in talented young American Irina Falconi and she could face former world no. 1 Ana Ivanovic, the no. 14-seed in the round of 16. Azarenka's is seeded to meet former world no. 1 Caroline Wozniacki in the quarterfinals. Wozniacki has a potential fourth round match-up with 2007 finalist and no. 9-seed Marion Bartoli. ,

Top Half - 1st Section: Maria Sharapova (1) - Angelique Kerber (8)

SHARAPOVA, Maria RUS [1]
RODIONOVA, Anastasia AUS

DOLONC, Vesna SRB (Q)
PIRONKOVA, Tsvetana BUL

HSIEH, Su-Wei TPE
RAZZANO, Virginie FRA (W)

FORETZ GACON, Stephanie FRA
NICULESCU, Monica ROU [29]

CETKOVSKA, Petra CZE [23]
KING, Vania USA

STEPHENS, Sloane USA
PLISKOVA, Karolina CZE (Q)

JOVANOVSKI, Bojana SRB
DANIILIDOU, Eleni GRE

MARTIC, Petra CRO
LISICKI, Sabine GER [15]

ZVONAREVA, Vera RUS [12]
BARTHEL, Mona GER

GALLOVITS-HALL, Edina ROU
SOLER-ESPINOSA, Silvia ESP

CHANG, Kai-Chen TPE
HLAVACKOVA, Andrea CZE

CLIJSTERS, Kim BEL
JANKOVIC, Jelena SRB [18]

MCHALE, Christina USA [28]
KONTA, Johanna GBR (W)

TSURENKO, Lesia UKR
JOHANSSON, Mathilde FRA

MAKAROVA, Ekaterina RUS
BRIANTI, Alberta ITA

HRADECKA, Lucie CZE
KERBER, Angelique GER [8]

Top Half - 2nd Section: Agnieszka Radwanska (3) - Samantha Stosur (5)

RADWANSKA, Agnieszka POL [3]
RYBARIKOVA, Magdalena SVK

WILLIAMS, Venus USA
VESNINA, Elena RUS

BENESOVA, Iveta CZE
WATSON, Heather GBR

HAMPTON, Jamie Lee USA
HANTUCHOVA, Daniela SVK [27]

PETROVA, Nadia RUS [20]
CAMERIN, Maria Elena ITA (Q)

BABOS, Timea HUN
OUDIN, Melanie USA (W)

TANASUGARN, Tamarine THA
TATISHVILI, Anna GEO

GIORGI, Camila ITA (Q)
PENNETTA, Flavia ITA [16]

LI, Na CHN [11]
PERVAK, Ksenia KAZ

CIRSTEA, Sorana ROU
PARMENTIER, Pauline FRA

BROADY, Naomi GBR (W)
DOMINGUEZ LINO, Lourdes ESP

CADANTU, Alexandra ROU
KIRILENKO, Maria RUS [17]

PENG, Shuai CHN [30]
ZANIEWSKA, Sandra POL (Q)

GAJDOSOVA, Jarmila AUS
MORITA, Ayumi JPN

RUS, Arantxa NED
DOI, Misaki JPN (L)

SUAREZ NAVARRO, Carla ESP
STOSUR, Samantha AUS [5]

Bottom Half - 1st Section: Petra Kvitova (4) - Serena Williams (6)

WILLIAMS, Serena USA [6]
ZAHLAVOVA STRYCOVA, Barbora CZE

LARSSON, Johanna SWE
CZINK, Melinda HUN (Q)

DUSHEVINA, Vera RUS
WOZNIAK, Aleksandra CAN

DUBOIS, Stephanie CAN
ZHENG, Jie CHN [25]

SAFAROVA, Lucie CZE [19]
BERTENS, Kiki NED

SCHEEPERS, Chanelle RSA
SHVEDOVA, Yaroslava KAZ (W)

POUS-TIO, Laura ESP
KEOTHAVONG, Anne GBR

VANDEWEGHE, Coco USA (Q)
ERRANI, Sara ITA [10]

CIBULKOVA, Dominika SVK [13]
ZAKOPALOVA, Klara CZE

GOVORTSOVA, Olga BLR
BECK, Annika GER (Q)

HERCOG, Polona SLO
PLISKOVA, Kristyna CZE (Q)

ROBSON, Laura GBR (W)
SCHIAVONE, Francesca ITA [24]

PAVLYUCHENKOVA, Anastasia RUS [31]
ARVIDSSON, Sofia SWE

MAYR-ACHLEITNER, Patricia AUT
LEPCHENKO, Varvara USA

BALTACHA, Elena GBR
KNAPP, Karin ITA

AMANMURADOVA, Akgul UZB
KVITOVA, Petra CZE [4]

Bottom Half - 2nd Section: Victoria Azarenka (2) - Caroline Wozniacki (7)

WOZNIACKI, Caroline DEN [7]
PASZEK, Tamira AUT

CORNET, Alize FRA
BRATCHIKOVA, Nina RUS

ARN, Greta HUN
VOSKOBOEVA, Galina KAZ

WICKMAYER, Yanina BEL
KUZNETSOVA, Svetlana RUS [32]

VINCI, Roberta ITA [21]
BARTY, Ashleigh AUS (W)

RADWANSKA, Urszula POL
ERAKOVIC, Marina NZL

LUCIC, Mirjana CRO (Q)
PANOVA, Alexandra RUS

DELLACQUA, Casey AUS
BARTOLI, Marion FRA [9]

IVANOVIC, Ana SRB [14]
MARTINEZ SANCHEZ, Maria Jose ESP

DATE-KRUMM, Kimiko JPN
BONDARENKO, Kateryna UKR

YAKIMOVA, Anastasiya BLR
MINELLA, Mandy LUX

PEER, Shahar ISR
GOERGES, Julia GER [22]

MEDINA GARRIGUES, Anabel ESP [26]
HALEP, Simona ROU

CEPELOVA, Jana SVK (Q)
MLADENOVIC, Kristina FRA (Q)

BEGU, Irina-Camelia ROU
OPRANDI, Romina SUI

FALCONI, Irina USA
AZARENKA, Victoria BLR [2]

Who are your favorites to advance in the Wimbledon 2012 Women's Singles Draw? Write your comments below.

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Sharapova, Errani French Open 2012 Prize Money Earnings

>> Saturday, June 9, 2012

Who will win the top prize of €1,250,000 for winning the French Open 2012 women's singles championship? Both titlists, Maria Sharapova and Sara Errani, are in the top five prize money earners this year. Sharapova is currently second behind world no. 1 Victoria Azarenka and even a win on Saturday will not be enough for her to overtake Azarenka in the prize money rankings. Errani is no. 5 on the list but can jump as high as no. 3 with a win. Errani already won the Roland-Garros 2012 doubles title and will split the €340,000 top prize with her partner. The losing finalist will take home a check of €625,000. The other semi-finalists, Petra Kvitova and Samantha Stosur earned €310,000 each.

WTA - 2012 Year to Date Prize Money Earners - Top 10
As of: May 28, 2012

1 Azarenka, Victoria BLR $4,525,146
2 Sharapova, Maria RUS $2,680,090
3 Radwanska, Agnieszka POL $2,012,323
4 Williams, Serena USA $1,267,640
5 Errani, Sara ITA $819,759
6 Wozniacki, Caroline DEN $682,324
7 Li, Na CHN $662,763
8 Kvitova, Petra CZE $635,625
9 Vinci, Roberta ITA $631,070
10 Kerber, Angelique GER $612,443

In the career prize money earners list, Sharapova has a chance to overtake no. 8 Martina Hingis and no. 7 Justine Henin if she wins the title. She currently stands at no. 9 with $19 million. By reaching the final, she already reached the $20 million milestone. Errani, on the other hand, will certainly break into the top 100 career prize money earners list, even if she loses the final. She is currently in no. 105 position with $2.5 million prize money.

WTA - 2012 Career Prize Money Earners
As of: May 28, 2012

1 WILLIAMS, SERENA USA 36,019,574
2 WILLIAMS, VENUS USA 28,053,366
3 CLIJSTERS, KIM BEL 24,271,348
4 DAVENPORT, LINDSAY USA 22,166,338
5 GRAF, STEFFI GER 21,895,277
6 NAVRATILOVA, MARTINA USA 21,626,089
7 HENIN, JUSTINE BEL 20,863,335
8 HINGIS, MARTINA SUI 20,130,657
9 SHARAPOVA, MARIA RUS 19,323,417
10 SANCHEZ-VICARIO, ARANTXA ESP 16,942,640
...
101 PAVLYUCHENKOVA, ANASTASIA RUS 2,545,570
102 MIRZA, SANIA IND 2,508,222
103 DUSHEVINA, VERA RUS 2,502,806
104 PETKOVIC, ANDREA GER 2,496,528
105 ERRANI, SARA ITA 2,488,393
106 CRAYBAS, JILL USA 2,436,726
107 PRATT, NICOLE AUS 2,404,547
108 SHVEDOVA, YAROSLAVA KAZ 2,335,207
109 MATTEK-SANDS, BETHANIE USA 2,285,078
110 SMASHNOVA, ANNA ISR 2,274,431

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