Author: index

Sloane Stephens is another Hope for US in Olympics

Apart from Serena Williams, the other female player whom the American fans have expectations from for an Olympic medal in Tennis is Sloane Stephens and Stephens has started her packing for Rio.


However, some time back the youngster was seriously thinking if she should be preparing to go or not.

Stephens says she has connected the telephone line to the medicos she knows and has spoken in length to each of them about Zika and what possibly it can do to a human being and based on the inputs she has got from the knowledgeable people, she has made the call that that she is going to put on the American shirt in the biggest sporting event.

According to Stephens, WTA, on their part, has also interacted with all the players who are playing Olympics and has made them aware what precautions can be taken to ensure protection against the mosquitoes. She has taken a note of everything and will be taking care of herself properly while being in Rio.

Actually, the main fear for the players regarding Zika is that if it gets into them, it might disable the growth of some of the body parts of their babies they may have in near future, but, Stephens is not planning to have babies in the next three-four years. So, she has no reasons to be that much worried in that regard. Continue reading Sloane Stephens is another Hope for US in Olympics

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, reckons Serena Williams is a class

The former Spanish player, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, reckons Serena Williams is a class above the rest on the tour at the moment.

According to Arantxa, Serena’s game is a combination of power and skill and she has got a huge appetite for success as well. If she remains this hungry and continues to be as fit as she currently is, it’s not going to be easy by any means to displace her from the top of the world rankings.

Arantxa is, however, of the view that the American veteran is not the greatest of all time. Steffi Graff is slightly ahead of her in that regard simply because of the fact that she has been the winner of more number of slams and she has managed to achieve the feat of having all the four slams under her belt during the same season, something which Serena is deprived of so far.

Speaking about Serena the other day, Arantxa said, “Watching Serena closely, you don’t really find any weakness there. She looks far superior to the others around her. There’s a big gap in quality. The way she is going and if she can maintain her fitness, I don’t think anyone would be able to stop her very soon.” Continue reading Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, reckons Serena Williams is a class

Serena Williams has managed to impress the legend Martina Navratilova

Serena Williams has managed to impress the legend Martina Navratilova with her consistency in the recent years.

Navratilova reckons Serena would add one more to her Grand Slam count in two weeks’ time and would step closer to becoming the greatest of all time.

French Open is however the tournament which Serena has been the least dominant in as far as the Grand Slams are concerned.

She has won it only a couple of times which is slightly lesser if compared to what she has done in the other three slams.

Talking about the list of the highest Slam winners, it’s Steffi Graff who is topping that list at the moment, but, she is only three ahead and it can’t be denied that Serena has a real chance of toppling her before she puts her career to an end.

And, Navratilova agrees to that too. Speaking as an analyst at a television channel, the Czech said, “It has never been easy for any player in the world to keep performing up to the same level after crossing the thirties, but, what has helped Serena is that the young players coming through the ranks haven’t shown the kind of skills that you expect from them.”

“However, having said that, you must credit her for maintaining her intensity. As I said, you physically get a little downhill after the thirties. The age starts catching up and it gets tougher and tougher, it does not remain the same ballgame and that’s why, it’s remarkable for Serena to keep winning this way.” Continue reading Serena Williams has managed to impress the legend Martina Navratilova

Serena Williams did not take in the Indian Wells Tennis tournament

Serena Williams did not take part in the Round of 4 of the Indian Wells Tennis tournament yesterday due to her knee sprain.

It was a hugely disappointing thing for the people present there who had bought their tickets only to see the local girl Serena play.

The Williams family has had the history of withdrawing from the middle of this tournament. Venus had done the same over here in 2001 and she had found herself on the receiving hand big time. The crowd had booed her in quite a nasty way.

No such thing happened to Serena though. The crowd was a bit understandable about her situation. There were a few whistles when the World no. 1 walked out of the arena following her announcement of withdrawal, but, most of the people clapped and showed respect for the decision of the American veteran.

According to Serena, she was geared up for this game, but, while going through the training drills, she damaged her knee and in the last few hours, her condition got worse and worse only. She could not even walk; let alone playing such a fierce fixture. Continue reading Serena Williams did not take in the Indian Wells Tennis tournament

Good Performance helps enter Big Tournament

You want to enter a big tournament with good performances on your back because it makes you feel good.

If you get beaten a few times ahead of a major, it can get your confidence down irrespective of the fact that you are a big player.

Even if you are top ranked in the world, the defeats would affect you and you would definitely start having slight doubts about your game and you don’t want to be in that situation when the first Grand Slam of the year is just days away.

Serena Williams, however, is finding herself in such sort of situation at present. She got defeated twice successively in a team competition recently, there in Australia, and she lost in singles both times, not in doubles. Continue reading Good Performance helps enter Big Tournament

Serena Williams to be next Steffi Graff

Patrick Mouratoglou who has been coaching the World no. 2 Serena Williams for quite some time wants the American star to leave Steffi Graff behind and become the leading Grand Slam winner of all time in the female category of professional tennis.

Serena inched a step closer to Graff by winning the American open title on the home soil last month. She had not had a great year before that tournament, but, she was rejuvenated playing at Flushing Meadows and by winning her 18th slam, she was able to draw level with the Czech legend Martina Navratilova.

Serena is still quite a bit away from Graff though. She needs 4 more slams to get to her and 5 more to overtake her. She is not getting any younger now. At 33, she might have passed the best phase of her career. This year, there have already been signs that her body is playing a few tricks. She hasn’t looked the fittest on the court of late.

So, breaking Graff’s record or even equalizing it is not going to be a cake walk for Serena from here onwards. Motivation would also be a big factor. Having already played the game for almost 20 years and having won so much, does she have the hunger to keep going until she gets past Graff? According to Mouratoglou, she absolutely has.

Speaking in an interview, the Frenchman said, “There’s no lack of motivation as far as Serena is concerned. She is very keen to rewrite the history books.”

“To be alright in terms of health and fitness is vital for her, but, she is being taken care of by a fantastic medical group. So, I am that much concerned about it.”

“She will have to get to 23 step by step. She just needs to think about the 19th right now, then the 20th and so on.”