[rhz]

I thought this is a good idea, to share your previous tournament visits in one thread!!


I found this from the archive..

Acura Classic 2002

My day at the Acura Classic (Sat, July 27th)
I was so excited to go, and the trip was longer than i thought it would be, i drove like 85-95 mph to get there cos i can't wait to be there. First thing i did was bought the ticket and got a pretty decent seat for the stadium(which later on i didn't use at all).

I saw Hantuchova first, she is such a beauty, and yes she is soooo skinny and tall! she needs to bulk up or gain weight a little bit to be much more proportional.

Then i went in and buy the official handbook and the drawsheet.It cost me $5. I saw lots of booths but i didn't see any WTA tour booth, which is a dissapointment to me cos i wanted to get the guide book.

Then i went straight to the show courtsand boom, there i saw Fusai practicing with Nefa De Los Rios, in the other court i saw Sarah Taylor getting ready to play with Stephanie Foretz.

Wynne Prakusya vs Vanessa Henke was my main focus for the day. Wynne arrived a little bit late, and when she arrived she made Henke and the Chair Umpire wait cos she needed to set up her chair and everything.

Henke served first and damn this girl has a huge serve. she won the first game, Wynne did many errors. Henke won that game 40-15 1-0

Wynne holds, and i thought her serve wasn't that bad at all. 1-1

Henke again having adavantage with her huge serves, had 1 ace and made Wynne did some forced errors. 2-1.

Wynne was upset in this game with some line calls and was down quickly 0-40. She quickly turned it around and Deuce all the sudden. But Henke finally broke. I definately saw that Wynne prefers the forehand side a lot, and her backhand is her weaker side. 3-1 Henke

Then Henke holds and broke Wynne it is now 5-1. but Wynne broke back, and in this game, again Wynne was upset with the umpire and the linesman. but thankfully she broke, she holds the next game and 5-3 for Henke

Now Henke is serving for the match. 0-15 , then 15-15 With the help of that huge serve again, this time up the T, Wynne didn't like it, but decided just to have an evil look, cos i think she was sick and tired of complaining and didn't resutled anything.

Then 15-20, 30-30 40-30 set point Henke, then f/h error make it deuce.
Ad Henke, but then Deuce with an overhead winner by Wynne. Then a f/h error by Wynne, set point#3.

And last point of the set, Henke hot a drop shot and it reulted Wynne to make an error. Game , Set Henke 6-3

I got a chance to take a picture with Caroline Vis, and Nathalie Dechy during this set and while waiting for the 2nd set. Dechy looks bigger in person, but she has a pretty face.

By this time in the other court Taylor is leading Foretz 6-3. Taylor has a nice game, big serve, big forehand, and that backhand slice, which remind me of Steffi Graf.

I saw Rita Grande just finished practicing. Ai Sugiyama is going to the practice court. Ai is cuter in person. She is not as small as she appear in TV.

anyway second set Henke breaks first, and hold her serve, and Wynne Holds right after 2-1 Henke. in the 4th game, Henke was down 15-40 and served really well to save the break 30-40. Wynne kept doing that 2 hand backhand slice which i think is a liability for her and suddenly created an error and its now deuce.
But with that forehand of hers she created 2 winners from that wing and it is now 2 games a piece.

Henke broke back and leads 3-2, I just wish that Wynne has a stronger serve. Wynne broke back for 3-3
in the th game, while the players were in the middle of a long rally, a ball from the next court came in. It was from Ashley Harkleroad court's court who has been practicing since i get there. She is not as pretty as i imagined she would be. How come people called her American Anna K??? don't get it!! That ball causes a let, and the audience were pissed.

Wynne did some great backhand down the line winners which is rare for her and henke did too many drop shots, which i dont think quiet usefull, cos Wynne could get it most of the time 4-3 Wynne. Henke was very angry and was shouting so hard in German!!

Wynne Broke an Angry Henke for a 5-3 lead. JAnet Lee has won 6-2 6-2 and i didn't see any of it but it's ok, Wynne is more important. Now Craybas is leading Fusai 3-0.

Wynne Closed the set 6-4.

To be continued!!

 

[rhz]

Part 2

Set 3

Wynne served first 1-0 1-1 2-1 3-1
Henke starts shouting in German again! she is really pissed.

I saw a player seating near me and i didn't recognized who she was, but when i noticed she is wearing prince, i knew whe was Tamarine T. I got a picture with her, and we chatted for a bit. She asked me if i was from Indonesia, and i said yes. then i asked her if she's playing doubles, not in this tournament she said. She also mentioned that she wishes she could come back to Bali next year. She told me Wynne and Angie Widjaja has been playing well lately. Then i wished her luck so she could qualify for the chase. I asked her why she doesn't play doubles that often. She said it would be better for her if she doesn't play, because singles is her main focus.
She is a really nice lady. She said nice to see you. I wished her luck again. I couldn't concentrate on Wynne's match and suddenly it was over. Game, Set and match Wynne Prakusya 3-6 6-4 6-2. Janet Lee came in before the match was over, i took a picture with her as well!

then i took another one with me and Wynne, and she thanked me to have supported her, and asked me to come back tomorrow. I asked her about the doubles draw and she said it's not going to be available yet, because the entry closed tomorrow.

Then it's time for me to go around the venue. I saw Meilen Tu (got a pic with her) Paola Suarez practicing with Dechy, Harkleroad, Bradshaw(I didn't know who she was at first) I got pics of me and both of them, then one more with Foretz. and Serra Zanetti too! i think it's her. ( Is she waring Le cox Sportif???) I saw Maggie Maleeva practicing with Sugiyama, Tanasugarn with Tu,
Oh yes i got a pic with Danilidou aswell, she is really big! she's nice!

Saw Iroda aswell.

As far as other matches, Fusai was being demolished 0-6 0-6 she was not playing well today,but Craybas is good! Black and Tatarkova was so close, i could only see a few points, but it shows that both players have great volley abilities from playing a lot of doubles.

Brandi lost to Arn, it's funny Brandi sounds like a whale going out to the surface of the ocean everytime she hits the ball. She lost too bad 1 and 3.

Before i left i saw Capriati practicing with Hantuchova, i wanted to wait for them to finish to get picture, but i was way too tired. I saw Jen's Dad and Brother aswell. Stephen has red eyes. either he just woke up or he has been drinking last night he didn't look fresh at all.

Then it was time for me to go home, i met Tamarine again and she remembered me and smile. She said "Ice Cream huh??" (I was eating ice cream at the moment) Oh yes Tammy looks a lot slimmer in person, cameras do not dso her justice

I had a blast, can't wait to be back tomorrow.I decided to buy my ticket before i left , just incase!!

 

[rhz]

2nd day at Acura Classic (Sunday 28th July)
I arrived at 10 am sharp, i saw Dokic practicing with Capriati. I went straight to see Wynne's match again Craybas on the Stadium court. Beautiful day, but i hat sunshine, i always got a sunburn, even if i use tons of sun block! i'm still looking for a good brand. any sggestions guys???

Anyway, Wynne started really strong, she really goes for the lines and hold her serve 1-0 she ended the 1st game with 92 mph wide serve which is quite good for her with and really opens up the court to set up her trademark forehand winner.

Craybas holds for 1-1, Wynne did 3Backhand errors in this game only , and Wynne always went for the lines to make the game to deuce after 15-40 deficit.

Although Wynne's serves are not hard, but she places them quiet well , i like the one up the t. Her forehand is really incredible, people are surprised that this small oriental girl could have so much power! Many Wows from the audience.

Wynne holds and then broke Jill's serve to lead 3-1
In the 5th game, she started to serve real well up the t, although it was only 89mph for 15-0, then Wynne hit a really brave swinging volley from the back of no mans land to forced an error from craybas. After several other errors from Craybas, Wynne holds for 4-1

Craybas holds 4-2, then a nice service game from Wynne, 94 mph and 95 mphs 5-2 Wynne

next game, Craybas scored 2 aces, with the 2nd ace being a wide 2nd serve. 5-3

then Craybas broke Wynne for 5-4, but Wynne broke back to win the set 6-4. Janet Lee was watching the match with her coach and she left right after the set, she has to be ready for her match right after that match. She then faced Cara Black.

2nd set, 4 break of serve for 2-2
Wynne holdsfor 3-2, then breaks for 4-2. There was a nice point in this game where Wynne really shows that playing doubles really helps her net game.

Then she holds again for 5-2

the next game was fukll of errors from each player, one point at deuce there was a really long rally between 2 players backhand to backhand, and after about 10 shots, Wynne's cross court back hand got stuck in the net . Ad Craybas. then another error from Wynne resulted a game for Jill 5-3 (Wynne did get 1 match point in this game, but she made a backhand error)

The last game was incredible for Wynne, She did an overhead winner form the back of the court. It was really brave IMO regarding the small body. 15-0

forehand return error from Jill 30-0
Wynne serve amazing up the T, error Craybas 40-0
Then the last point set up Wynne to the net, and a clean volley crosscourt winner.

Game Set and Match Wynne Prakusya 6-4 6-3


to be continued...

 

[rhz]

2nd part

After that i decided to check out the practice courts. I got pics of me with Paola Suarez, Ai Sugiyama, Daja Bedanova, MARY PIERCE YEssss!!! an her autograph too!

I met Jelena aswell, she doesn't look very nice, i think she rarely smiles. I asked her autograph but didn't dare to ask for pictures cos she didn't even replied when i say hi or thank you

I got Eleni Danilidou's signature today, she was carrying one of that tennis backpack, and her name was there, complete with her address and phone number, i was going to write it down, maybe some of you freaks would like it but i decided not to, cos it's her privacy! i didn't want to terrorize her or anything

I had pic with Garbin right after her 1st win, she seems really nice. I got Chanda Rubin's autograph but when i asked her for a pic, she answered "later, i need to practice" She's not in a very good mood that day

Amanda C was practicing with Anna Smashnova it was funny it seems like Amanda is playing againts her shadow, cos the 2 players have the same style, the only difference was Anna has 1 handed backhand. Amanda looks pretty, but not as small as i imagined.

I talked with Tamarine again for a little bit, while watching Janet Lee vs Black, Lee has this huge serve but too bad, that is her only weapon, if Black could return it, she was like clueless, but she is a good player, just need some guidance from a better coach in my opinion.

I saw Maggie Maleeva again, Meilen Tu, Anne Kremer, Francesca Schiavone,Adriana Serra Zanetti also. I think Adriana and her coach is an item, cos they were holding hands, touching etc. any info???

Got a pic with Alicia Molik, i was kind of confused who she was, but when i heard that Australian accent, i knew she was Molik.

 

[rhz]

part 3....

let see what else did i forget to mention???

Oh yes Ai is a workoholic in my opinion, she practices all the time, she is always in the practice courts, She has this energy of a energizer bunny. Paola Suarez is too, she was always there. her coach is really scary heheheh.

Mary looks really nice. I also saw Alexandra with that Mom of hers. Alex is one huge lady.

Then i saw the whole doubles qualifying Match between MArtina N & Elena Tatarkova vs Schiavone and Serra Zanetti. It was pro set and Navratilova's team won 8-4 i think the score was. People got confused cos they thought the scoreboard was wrong. when it was 7-3, they didn't realize it was a pro set.

It was an incredible match. Navratilova could still compete, her touch is one of the best*(volleys i mean) she could still scored an ace to Serra Zanetti, Tatarkova is also very good doubles player. She could creat the crowd to go Oohhhss and Ahhhsss...

The other side of the net, I like Schiavone a lot, she is shot maker, too bad there were lots of misunderstanding between her and Zanetti or else the match would have been closer. Serra Zanetti hits both side 2 handed, but the backhhand is much more better, she sometime uses one handed forehand aswell. The match ended with Navratilova's winner, returning Schiavone's serve. I wanted to have her signature but martina dissapointed people, she said after my 2nd match i will sign.

2nd doubles Qualifying

Panova and Vento vs Nguyen and i forgot what her name was, she's this african american kid she's a lefty.hey are both about 14-16 year olds something like that , they really surprised me especially their big serves. But lack of experiences made them lose 5-8 not too bad for the first try.

Well that was my report, i had a great time, not as great as the day before though. Hopefully i could comeback in the night sessions during the week cos i can't come during the day session because i need to go to work, but i might miss the night sessions too, because La Costa is 30 miles away from San Diego, and usually traffic is very bad during the rush hour ( Which is just befor Night Session

The End

 

[rhz]

Monday ...

Thank God i skip work today!

I arrived late, because i thought i was going to work, but decided to change my outfit and get ready to go to Carlsbad instead.

Damn, i really hate the tournament parking arrangement. I was charged $8 for the whole day, but if you drive an Acura, you will park for free. Anyway unlike the qualifying days, i could not park near the tennis center. I have to park all the way inside the resort, and what pisses me was that they had to make a little curb from wood, and my car could not cross it, cos my car is too low, there is no way i want to risk my car and get scratches at the bottom. The parking atendee was so stupid, she could not help me at all and i decided to find a parking myself. Then they provided a shuttle which didn't help at all because the stop was way too far from the enterance gate. The bus lady was announcing that no backpacks are allowed, and she was looking at me, then i said to her, this in not a back pack. it is one of those msgr bag type of bag, she was half laughing, i felt like i want to slap her in the face.


I bought my ticket for $20, i forgot to bring my student id, or else i could get a 10% off, 20% with USTA card.

Then i went in and went straight to Wynne's court, Gala Leon Garcia vs Molik was still on, it was the last game of the match and Gala broke Alicia to win the match, forgot the score, but it was easy. Paola Suarez' coach was there and rooting for Gala, i got a picture with Gala, she has braces for her bottom teeth.

I saw Eleni Danilidou ready to play while the match between Dechy and Pisnik was still on, she could not keep her feet on the ground, Eleni could not wait for that match to finish. but it finishes about an hour later, because Dechy turned the match around and won 2 and 0 the next 2 sets.

Anyway, both players arrived late, Paola finally arrived and Wynne entered the court about 10 mins later. I was scared i thought Wynne pulled out or something.

Wynne has tape around her right thigh it was huge tape, i was thinking oh no she's injured.

Tammy was there aswell few minutes later, and damn, i got so much info from her, i sat beside her and she recognized me and said hi! We talked a whole lot about the tour, about Wynne, about her match etc. Janet Lee and her coach was also there few minutes later. I tell you the whole info that i got from Tammy later.

Anyway Wynne started off really bad, and Paola knows her weakness, Paola attacked her backhand all the time and Wynne made lot of mistakes off that wing. She doublefaulted a lot, she was just not in the match. Sorry for not giving much detail as i was busy talking to Tammy. I was the only Indonesian out there i think and i screamed at Wynne so she could calm down and concentrate, she was down 0-5 at that time. Tammy was always telling her "have fun" because that was the key to win, just enjoy your match and have fun. Wynne broke Paola for 1-5, and step by step, slowly but sure, she saved few set points to go 2-5 3-5 4-5 5-5 6-5, she was far more agressive and her forehand was on again, she also could make some aggresive backhands and forced the error from Paola.

Paola game is pretty solid, especially the 2 handed backhand. She rarely make mistakes and her volleys are just awesome, of course she's a top doubles player.

Anyway Wynne loosen up a little and Paola holds for 6-6. Paola won the tiebreak 7-3

By then Tammy told me that Wynne is so tired, she has to play so many matches in the last couple of days, she just doesn't have energy anymore. Second set was gone so quickly, Wynne made lots of unforced errors, it looked like her body was there but her mind was not. She kept looking to our direction (Me, Tammy, Janet and Janet's Coach and kept shaking her head (We werelike her little support team) ) So the set was over 0-6. Game Set and Match Paola Suarez 7-6 6-0


Janet and her coach already left, so Wynne approached Tammy and me, she told me that she was so tired, her thigh is aching she almost withdrew, but decided to play. Then a great thing hapened, she asked me if i pay to watch these matches, i said yes. Then Wynne gave me a VIP player guest pass! Wow!! she said, now you could watch for free. She thanked me to support her these last few days. She said she will play doubles either tomorrow or the day after. I took pictures of me, Wynne, and Tammy. Damn i was so excited!!!! with the pass, i can enter player's dining area, i could sit in player's box and free admission !! yess!! thanks Wynne.....

on the other court Eleni Danilidou was demolishing Gagliardi, she is so powerful off the grounds. Wow!! I saw Kim Clijsters she is going to practice with Capriati. It was a kids day today so it was so crowded with kids, they enter for free with adults accompanying them.

Ashley H won the match against Grande in the center court, so its time for Corina Morariu's double match to be played. The audience was just wild, they really love Corina and she is such an inspiration, i got Panova signature and i could sit anywhere i like. I decided to sit on the court level. Those players were so close to me. It was a very fun doubles match, all 4 players played really well! Meghann is the tallest from those 4. Corina haven't lost her touch, her one handed backhand is really nice aswell

Meghann and Chanda won, it was a close three setter, i got Kim's and Meghann's signatures.

I got a picture Amanda Coetzer today. see looked nice, Daniela was so cute, i wish i could kiss her on the spot. She was not wearing any tennis stuff. Just very classy and elegant. She was walking to her hotel room i guess.


I saw Iroda vs MGM a little bit, Iroda has bad temper, she almost hit the lines person intentionally, she hit a ball really hard to the backwall. she mad lots of unforced errors, but MGM was really touygh, she hits hard and clean. I got pics with MGM and Gagliardi aswell.

I saw Anna Smashnova around with her coach she looked kind of confused and looking for something i dont know what, i forgot to take pictures of her.

Last match i saw was Hantuchova/Sugiyama vs Tu/Dechy.

Sugiyama is a really fine doubles player, she poaches really well, Hantuchova is excellent also, no wonder she oculd win GS mixed doubles title. I left when the second set was about 5-4 for Dechy/Tu or something like that.


It was a really fun day, i tried to test some served in my fastest clocked at 99mph. I kknow i could hit harder than that, but there is a long line, i dont want to wait back in line.

I decided to gfo back, cos i was so damn tired (but happy) thank God i miss work today...

 

[rhz]

Tuesday, Day 4 (1st part)

OK here it goes, i decided to go to work, and my boss said for me to take it easy, so i did and went home after lunch ! hehehe...

I arrived about 2 and entered from the back gate, the pass really worked!! i saw jen vs ashley for a little bit, the match is about to finish.. jennifer was all over the court and ashley did won few games and was leading in the second, but jennifer was just too good and more experienced! she won 6-0 6-3. I took a picture with Lori McNeil and met Tammy again and chatted for a little bit, she reminded me that Angie beat Ashley H. in the Roland Garros junior final. This girl has talent, she hits the ball really hard!

Next was the trophy presentation for Morariu, i was so close to her, and got a pic with her, Jennisfer was the one who presented it. Corina was crying and so touched. It's funny both women have comeback from a very difficult moments of their lives, but jennifer told the crowd that what happened to her do not compared to what happened to Corina, even a little bit. I could only get Jennifer's signature.

Rubin and Coetzer was next, and i did a very stupid mistake to watch the show courts instead, that was where my pass was stolen !! i was so mad and angry at my self. how careless i have been! ive been enjoying the sight too much and i didn't even took care of the most precious thing which is the PASS!!

i think i lost it when i was waiting for Iroda/Paola match against Fusai/Vis.! i did get pictures with Iroda, with Anna Smashnova, Meghann Shaughnessy and signatures of Davenport and Navratilova. I also got a pic with Tatarkova, and i accidentaly stepped on her foot! sorry Elena!!

to be continued.....

 

[rhz]

Tuesday 2nd part

by the way Irvin was injured during her match i think she had blisters on her toes. Funny to see Anna Smashnova's style of play. she was way back near the linesman ! if i were her opponent i would hit drop shots to her, because there was no way she could reach it. Irvin capitalized on the 1st set and Smashnova, smashed her racket to the ground. but Anna came back and won the match, she took a bathroom break in the 3rd set and didn't lose anymore games after it.

Iroda and Paola were playing well too, although both of them would scream and yelled at themselves if they made stupid errors!

I was so pissed about my pass, and decided to go to the security infrtont of the players locker, they said they could not do anything and suggested for me to go to the WTA office inside the hotel, i did just that, and i sneak in to the hotel building and found the press room, they were just about to get ready or just finished interviewing Jennifer Capriati.

I finally found the WTA office and told them what happened, they could only give me a day pass and told me to contact Wynne to ask her for another pass, they ran out of it ( I told them i was Wynne's friend )

I saw Maggie Maleeva by the way, she was talking french to some guy.

I was so down and dissapointed and decided to go home. Now i have to pay again! so much for the excitement of the pass!!!!

Then a miracle happened, i saw Wynne and Janet walking to the parking lot, i ran and approached them, i was beingh a stalker. but what else could i do. The car was just moving ( Janet was driving) i asked Wynen for another pass, i told her it was stolen. She was being so nice, although i could see a face of dissapointment, aface that said "why you wasted that pass" kind of face.

she told me she didnt have it anymore and aksed Janet if she has one, janet said yes. Wynne asked me my name and told me to pick the pass where you buy the ticket. Thank God! Thank you so much Wynne, thanks Janet!!! She said she will deliver the pass herself that night! so i could pick it up tomorrow!

It was embaressing what i just did, when i got to my car i was laughing to my self! where did i got the guts to do that???

to be continued...

 

[rhz]

My Day at the Acura Classic (Tuesday continued...)
I went to a computer shop to kill some time until the night session, and guess who was there aswell, Eleni Danilidou! she was nterested in laptops and pda's i was playing with the sony new pda's, you know the one with camera, and i told eleni, cool huh, she was " is that with camera?" yes i said! she didn't buy anything though, her coasch did! i don't know what! i have developed my 1st roll of my picters in acura, it turned out pretty well! i might show u guys some!

later on i went back to la costa again! i tried to check if wynne had already drop the pass, but she hasn't so i have to buy a ticket, and i was so lucky, this guy offered me a front row ticket for $20 because his wife could not watch. so without further thinkiing i bought it from him! wow! $20 was soooo cheap for a front row ticket!

conchita martinez was driving in the complex ( i think she was with her girlfriend, i'm not sure) cos she was going to play after anna's match. I knew she was coming in the front gate and i waited for her, and i asked her to take a picture with me, her girlfriend took the picture for us! YESS!!!


It was so packed that night, i just could not imagine what a single person could do to attract that many people! elena likhovtseva was practicing, i had to wait for her cos i know she was about to be done, and i got a pic with her! nobody else was there.

I noticed that Maria Vento is always around, she is examining each and every important matches, she is learning i guess. Panova was also around, she looked different with a non tennis outfit. she looked great. She was busy with this Russian family, and keep saying Da! Da! all the time LOL!!!

then i took a sit, it was right on top of Anna's head! She looked really good. She worth every penny to watch. People behind me were betting who was going to win, most of them chose Alex. but they were wrong! Anna was just too much last night! she returned real well, Alex's hard serves were nothing for Anna. There were a lot of interesting rallies, which Anna won most of the time. Anna really has the potential to be one of the best, i just don't know why she is so unpredictable sometimes. if she was playing like that all the time, she could be back in the top 10 again, maybe top 5. Her volleys, dropshots, lobs were incredible!
her forehand is the shaky part, and yes her serves aswell! but she could still hit a 100mph serve! so she has the potential to improve.

Anyway the match was only under 1 hour, it ended 6-0 6-1

capriati, tulyaganova, kim's dad, were in the players box, vento too! panova was also!

I saw Kim in the pro shop, she looked and smelled good! she was wearing a cream colored leather skirt, she looked nice. I asked her for a pic but she said not now! i was so dissapointed!

second match was not as fun, it was kind of boring IMO, people behind me who were drunk by that time i guess was making fun of martinez' serve. her toss was really bad but she did win the 1st set!

I left cos im dead tired. I checked the ticket box again, and YESSSSSSSS.... Wynne has dropped the pass for me! i went home happy!!

The End.....

 

[rhz]

My day at the Acura Classic (Day 5, Wednesday, July 31st)
I entered from the backdoor again today, and make sure i have the pass around my neck. I'm going to take an extra care of this pass. Anyway, Hantuchova is still playing with Sugiyama, i noticed Daniela is taking way too much time in between points, i sat in the players box, where i sat beside denise capriati, kim's coach was also there, then kim's dad aswell. Lindsay mom was there aswell. Daniela eventually were given a point penalty, she wss so pissed. Thbe match went on and on, Sugiyama had a chance to close the match at 5-4 on daniela's serve, but daniela holds and 5-5. sugiyama then holds, then at match point, daniela was given another point penalty and game set and match sugiyama, both players could not believe it, even sugiyama didn't went straight to the net because she didn't think anyhting like that should happen, not at match point, but daniela went to the net and shake ai's hand and even she shaked the chair umpire's hand. The crowd gone wild, and starting to boo the umpire and even the announcer. myskina and tanasugarn was there, and all the coaches and parents that sit near me could not believe it. It was the news of the day! The chair umpire was excorted outside the court, because people are getting really loud and afraid something bad was going to happen to him.

Anyway Daniela did a very nice thing to shakehand with the umpire, if i were her i will be so pissed and punch him in the face!!!

I went to the show courts and saw smashnova playing with dementieva. on the other court shaughnessy is facing tu, meghann didn't seem to have any problems against tu. I went to the peractice courts and players are discussing on what happen to Daniela. Stubbs was so funny, she was chatting with Raymond, Prakusya and Lee, she told them if i was here, i'm going to kick his ass!!!

I thanked wynne for the pass, and she said "don't lose it again"
i went back to the stadium and kim was playing with eleni, i was expecting a great match, but eleni was making too many unforced errors. eleni did too many stupid backhand dropshots which didn't work at all. But one of them real well, and she looked at her coach and made this fac.. " see it worked right?" kind of face. eleni had an injury time out at0-4 in the second set she was not in to the match at all. she lost 3-6 1-6. Jennifer and the whole family was watching but decided to leave cos the match is getting too boring. I got a picture with Jen !!! yess!!! with Myskina aswell, with Stubbs and with Mary Pierce again!! yess!! Jelena's mom was there and Vento again and ALison Bradshaw. Vento is always around!

the smashnova vs dementieva match went on and on and on, smashnova was leading in the 3rd set but it ended up with a tiebreak, anna won it 7-2. And she screamed so hard in satisfaction! srebotnik vs bedanova is starting.

Lindsay looked great but i don't really like watching her facial expression, it's the same thing on tv, even worse, she looks disgusted with anything that happen on the court, around the court and everything else. Mikaelian did really good in the first set leadin 3-2 but Lindsay is too strong for her. lindsay started to find her groove back and finished it 6-3 6-0. I didn't get Lindsay's picture, i asked, i know she heard me but she ignored me


Anna K is next, she wears that sunblock again on her face, she looks like a japanese geisha. i stayed for a few games only cos i needed to watch wynne play. I sat besides Janet's coach. She told me she used to play too. but i don't have a clue who she was. I didn't dare to ask. it's impolite. i talked with her about Janet's and Wynne;s schedule, then about Janet is stil an American but represent Chinese Taipei cos she wanted to play fed cup, asian games and other regional competitions.

Wynne and Janet started really well and were leading 4-0, they should have won the 5th game when Wynne's forehand which we all think was good was called out. Lori and Amanda were starting to play better and janet and wynne started to losen up a bit, they lost the set 4-6

They won the second quite comforatbly 6-2. And were leading again 4-2 in the third. Tammy was enetering the court and sat beside us. The match is getting much more interesting and lots of people started to come to the court because Anna K's match already finished. Lori and Amanda won 6-4!!

It was dissapointing, because there were lots of long rallies and points that they should have won, but lori and amanda played better in the more important points.

Wynne cried after the lost, Janet was trying to calm her down, but Wynne cried even harder, she was just too dissapointed. She really wanted to win that one so bad. I felt so sorry for her, i didn't know what to say to her. She left with the golf cart excorted by the tournament official.

Conchita and Panova is finally over with a tierbreak in the third set, damn there were so many close matches today. people are getting back their money. Lots of quality tennis were performed.

I hit a 100mph serve that i tried in the machine. Not too bad, but in my age group the record was 124!

I went to the media room before i left and asked for the 2002 media guide, i told them i was wynne's friend and they gave it to me ! hehehhe..

well sorry not giving lots of details but there were so many things that happened that i might forget. I was too tired to comeback for the night session! i went straight home!

I asked how many percent taken off from the prize money to Janet's coach and she said 30%.

She also said the LA qualifying start Friday, and the tournament official are giving them til saturday if they are still in the San Diego tournament, but if they dont show upo by noon saturday, they have to be replaced or the opponent will win with walkover. so tight schedule for them,

 

[rhz]

Damn, What a Stalker I was

 

[Rtael]

And what horrible English you had.

 

[rhz]

And what horrible English you had.

I know huh! mind my English, it's not my mother's tounge!

 

[Farina Elia Fan]

Great idea!


I will post mine later :bounce:

 

[Agape]

yeah it is a great idea i'll post mine too!

 

[.Andrew.]

Great report!

I;m sure you had a great time!

 

[Agape]

heres mine...its not really a report..more of an account of meeting tati but i'll write a report about the FO and put it in here :yeah:

i met tati last year at wimbledon...i had won tickets in the ballot so we were on court no.1 and Shriekapova was on...at the wimbledon change of ends, they show the scores of other matches...i was daydreaming and i caught a glimpse of golovin's name and court...in a second i was off...i sprinted out my seat and ran out of the stadium to one of the outside courts...i didnt even tell my friend!!the match had only just started and eventually my friend found me....boris becker was doing a signing and richard williams was walking around...at one of the change of ends, i sprinted around the whole complex and got boris' autograph...i then ran back...i wanted to meet tati sooo badly it was unbelievable...she was playing against some spanish or argenitine called Diaz-Oliver or something and the opponents coach kept on shouting out...i wanted to shout at the man and tell him to shut up but i didnt lol...the match was a marathon..9-7 in the third and another of my friends who was a ranked junior player saw me watching and came over and he usually says how crap womens tennis was but he was like shes amazing at the end of the match..her bodyguards ushered her off away from all the fans..yet again, i sprinted and caught up with her just before she was going through some doors...i asked for her autograph and she was like 'sure' so she signed my program and she was like asking me if i play much and i was like yeah and afterwads, i wished her good luck in the next match and she she went in...she was really nice but she took LONG to sign it and that was when she had just come back from injury and was unfit....im gona remember that day 4 ages coz after that i REALLY started to like her, not just because of her tennis but because she was really nice off the court...i was sooo knakerd after that day lol

 

[Ben.]

nice report tumaini :yeah:

here is mine, enjoy this from the archive

Day 1
Got to Melbourne Park at around 6:10pm with my father & decided to go straight to Show Court 2 to watch Nadia Petrova play against Tamarine (Tanasugarn). Good crowd there with a few fans cheering for Tammy amongst them which was good to see. When I took my seat amongst the spectators, Nadia was leading by a set & 5-2 in the 2nd set. As soon as the 1st ball was struck from Nadia’s serve to begin the game I was just amazed at how players hit the ball when you’re seeing it up close compared to watching it on the TV. Both Nadia & Tammy were hitting the ball pretty well in a series of fierce contested rallies which in the end Nadia came out the victor & just had a little too much firepower for Tammy. Throughout that match I yelled out once “Go Nadia” which took some guts to do it

After seeing Nadia play I had a look at the match update center to see which matches were in progress & which ones had been completed. Then I went for a wonder around the grounds passing many of the outside courts with several matches in progress. As I wondered around the grounds I spotted Janette Husarova on Court 8 practicing with her coach & hitting partner. After she had finished her practice session there was a match to take on that court next which was Michaella Krajicek against Anne Kremer. Lots of Misa fans in the stands & wondered if Sarah (a.k.a. Dutchie Girl) would be amongst them Wonder if Sarah will be reading this Watched Misa & Anne contesting the 1st game of the match along with the warm up & to me from the onset it looked like Anne would be the one who would prove to be a thorn in Misa & how right I was since she prevailed in the end. I didn’t see the whole match though since I wanted to get to Rod Laver Arena early to see the night session matches that were due to take place.

Rod Laver Arena is one of the best sporting arenas in the world, FACT! Anywhere you sit you’ll be guaranteed a great view of the matches. First up on the night session was Serena Williams against Mara Santangelo. The 1st 4 games of the match were pretty even before Serena took absolute control from there & just left Mara helpless to win the match. Serena hitting her groundstrokes & serves clocking at 180-190 kph was just great to watch as well as hitting some nice volleys. Then it was Marat Safin up against Benjamin Becker on Rod Laver Arena & it turned to be a long five setter that didn’t finish until about 1am which I didn’t get to sleep until about 2am. Heaps & heaps of spectators were cheering for Safin & Becker which was just great to see. The speed of the ball of the male players is just spellbinding especially their serves clocking at 200kph & over. And yes I did see Safin get angry & slamming his racquet to the ground at one point of the match with several oooohhh’s & arrrrrrrrh’s from the spectators. He got a warning for racquet violation from the umpire but however he still won the match which didn’t really matter at all & when he was interviewed on the court his personality shone which was great to see. Such a character he is Safin

Day 2
Got to the venue at 10:50am & went straight to Rod Laver Arena for the Day Session Matches that were due to take place. First up was Maria Sharapova against Camille Pin & boy was it hot, but luckily I was under the shade though so that didn’t cause too many problems. The match had a lot of ups & downs for both players but I felt that Maria was making way too many unforced errors which kind of let Camille back into the match at times, but Camille did well to get the ball back in play & hit some great shots to keep Maria on the back foot. Then when Maria was down 7-6 after she led 5-0 in the final set & with Camille serving for the match I knew it wasn’t gonna be over & I was absolutely right Maria came back with her fighting spirit that she possesses & won the final set 9-7. Plus her grunting is much louder when you’re in the arena than what you can see & hear on the TV, FACT. Once that match was finished the roof on the arena had to be closed due to extreme heat & it took about half an hour for it to close which is incredibly slow. Then Nadal’s match began & he won as usual. Then the next match was the one that I had been waiting for; Kim Clijsters (my fav) against Vasilisa Bardina. Kim absolutely crushed Vasilisa with her heavy groundstrokes along with some deft drop shots. Watching Kim play live up close was the highlight of my 4 days at the Australian Open. She is truly a friendly bubbly person with a good sense of humor when she was interviewed on court after her match. Kim is a great person, FACT!

Day 3
Got to the venue really early at around 10:10am & since I had a ground pass I decided to go to Vodafone Arena for the Day Session Matches that were due to take place. I quickly got front seats since I had the chance to get some autographs off several big names that would walk out in front of you when they were being introduced to the crowd (didn’t get any autographs in Rod Laver Arena since you have to be at the front & unfortunately I wasn’t able to get any off Kim. Ah well but I did get plenty). Since I got to Vodafone so early I was lucky enough to watch Nadia practice with her coach. Alongside her was Anne Kremer practicing with her hitting partner as well too. Once she had finished her practice session she signed autographs & she signed my mini jumbo Australian Open tennis ball! My 1st autograph! First up for the day session matches was Novak Djokovic against Feliciano Lopez & sitting up the front watching both of them hit the ball fiercely was incredible. Novak won in the end & I got his autograph. Then it was Nadia against Gisela Dulko & Nadia just flattened her. Then it was Serena against Anne & it was the 2nd time I seen her play up close which is even better. I could see her mother & entourage in the stands giving her words of encouragement since they weren’t that far away from me. Serena won of course & I also got her autograph

Then I went for a wonder around the grounds & decided to go to Court 13 to see Elena Bovina & Alla Kudryavtseva against Corina Morariu & Rennae Stubbs contesting their Doubles Match. After a point in the match which was lost by Corina & Rennae, Rennae went straight up to the Chair umpire & got extremely angry with her saying that the 1st serve of Bovina’s was a let & just argued with the umpire for about 5 minutes. But Rennae was given no joy & when she and Corina sat down in the changeover I could Rennae muttering swear words under breath saying “Fuckin chair umpire saying that it wasn’t a let etc” since I was sitting right behind her! Plus she wanted bananas & when the ball kid give them to her she did not even say thanks! But Elena & Alla won in the end which was good. I decided to walk up to Elena & ask for her autograph but just when she was about to walk pass me I just froze because I thought “what is she gonna think when I come up to ask for her autograph” & it was too late. I was kicking myself after for not getting her autograph Then I walked past Court 9 & who should I see on that court practicing but none other than Amelie Mauresmo with her coach, fitness trainer & some other guy who was collecting balls. It was just wonderful to watch Amelie practice up close & see her hit her repertoire of shots from groundstrokes to serves to volleys. I missed getting her autograph though since their was so many people wanting one off her as well too pushing me out of the way Ah well, at least I got plenty in the end.

Then I went to watch a match on Showcourt 2 for a bit & then went to Rod Laver Arena for the night session matches. First up was Amelie against Olga Poutchkova & Amelie won of course. Then it was Gael Monfils & Marcos Baghdatis which was 4 setter but finished at half past midnight which meant I had another late night AGAIN! The atmosphere in the arena for that match was pretty loud & many of those Greek-Cypriot Melbourne Fans cheering for Marcos were cheering on every single point he won which was actually extremely rude & annoying plus they were not respecting the tennis etiquette (the match was like the Kim-Jelena Sydney Final). Many of them just wanted to make noise & get attention but Gael won in the end & that shut em up (a lot of people were cheering for Gael as well too just to stop those stupid Marcos fans from cheering & catcalling).

Day 4
I got to the venue at around 10:20 am & I went for a wonder around the grounds to see if any players were practicing. First up I watched Li Na practicing with her coach & with Tian Tian Sun, and then I watched Dinara Safina practicing with her coach. Then I watched Sam Stosur practicing with her coach Nicole Bradtke & I could hear her talking to her & a bunch of other Aussie players about stuff etc. Then she signed autographs for her fans waiting for her including me & I did have to push & shove (had no choice). I said thanks to her & she said to me very heartedly “No probs” Last but not least I watched Nicole Vaidisova practicing with Emma Laine with Nicole’s stepfather/coach collecting balls. Then she signed autographs, including mine after her practice session & I said to her good luck for the rest of the tournament & she replied back sweetly “Thank you”

I went to Rod Laver Arena after to see Kim play her 2nd Round match & she won of course. That would be the last time I have seen Kim play a match live up close & I cheered for her & I yelled out “Go Kim” which took some courage to do (did it in her 1st Round match also). Then I watched a bit of James Blake’s match & then decided to leave to go to Showcourt 2 to watch Daniela Hantuchova play against Emilie Loit. I was sitting behind Dani’s coach & could hear him whispering words of encouragement to her. Of course she struggled & a lot of the games that went to deuce & I couldn’t believe that I was watching this match in searing heat. In the end Dani won & she looked towards her coach and her fans (including me) in my direction pumping her fist after she won.

Then I went to watch Ana Ivanovic play against Agnieszka Radwanska on Margaret Court Arena. Both of them displayed some great tennis on the court & in the end Ana was just too strong for Aga winning in 3 sets, plus I got Ana’s autograph which was just fantastic Then I went for another wonder around the grounds & watched a doubles match which was Mauresmo & Bremond against Benesova & Zahlalova Strycova. I only watched a bit of it since I had to get on the bus to the airport for my flight home on time.

 

[.Andrew.]

Wow, brilliant report and great read bg017!

I'm sure you ecstatic(sp?) to meet Kim.

 

[alexia1huff]

wow this is a great thread, extremely detailed!!!