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American beats Jankovic in three sets
Published on Sunday, Apr 06, 2008
From Beacon Journal wire services
It took a long time on a hot day for American Serena Williams to claim her fifth Key Biscayne title in Key Biscayne, Fla. She blew a big lead, battled jitters, threw a tantrum and finally finished off Jelena Jankovic of Serbia 6-1, 5-7, 6-3 to win the Sony Ericsson Open.
The elusive victory tested Williams' temper in the 85-degree sunshine. She broke her racket and screamed at herself before putting away an overhead slam on her eighth championship point.
''I thought I had like 15 match points. I'm glad to know it wasn't,'' Williams said. ''I got tight. I guess you can classify that as nervous. . . . It's me just feeling like, 'I'm almost there. I would hate to lose this match after being up so much.' ''
She arrived trimmer at Key Biscayne, thanks to a recent rigorous training regimen, and needed to be in peak condition in the 21/2-hour final. Both players held up well in the heat, and some of their best rallies — one lasting 26 shots — came in the final few games. But Williams also battled a bad case of butterflies down the stretch.
''Serena really had trouble closing out the match,'' Jankovic said. ''She looked so nervous out there. I could never believe that a girl who has won so many Grand Slams, so many tournaments, could be that nervous closing out the match. It felt like it was her first time to win that tournament.''
Instead, Williams won for the second year in a row and matched Steffi Graf's record of five women's titles at Key Biscayne.
Graf's husband, Andre Agassi, holds the men's record with six titles. Bidding for the men's championship today will be Rafael Nadal and Nikolay Davydenko.
Despite Williams' success at Key Biscayne and elsewhere, she has long been criticized for devoting too much time and energy to such interests as acting and fashion design. But tennis is now the No. 1 priority, she said.
''I wasn't making as much money, so I've got to go back to the bread and butter,'' she said with a laugh. ''I feel like all I want to do is play tennis.''
She's 14-1 this year, with her only loss to Jankovic in the quarterfinals at the Australian Open.
Colleges: Parker, Auriemma honored
• Junior Candace Parker, who averaged 21.6 points and 8.3 rebounds to lead Tennessee this season, was voted Player of the Year in women's college basketball by the Associated Press. Geno Auriemma of Connecticut was the Coach of the Year, the fifth time he won the award. Parker received 40 votes from the 50-member national media panel that selects the weekly Top 25. Maya Moore of Connecticut was second with five votes. Parker will graduate in May and not return for her last year of eligibility. She most likely will be the first pick by the Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA Draft. Auriemma received 13 votes, followed by North Carolina's Sylvia Hatchell with 11.
• Louisville sophomore forward Earl Clark will skip his final two seasons and enter the NBA Draft. Clark averaged 11.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots for the Cardinals. Clark had said earlier in the season that he would return for his junior year, but changed his mind after the team's tournament run.
• Arizona freshman guard Jerryd Bayless has decided to enter the NBA Draft, athletic department spokesman Tom Duddleston confirmed. Bayless has been projected as a lottery pick. He averaged a team-high 19.7 points.
• Mike Montgomery agreed to a six-year contract at California nearly four years after he left Stanford for a dismal stint with the Golden State Warriors. Montgomery won 393 games and four Pac-10 titles in his 18 years at Stanford. Montgomery replaces Ben Braun, who was fired last week after 12 mostly unsuccessful years at Cal, including a ninth-place finish in the Pac-10 this season.
Other: Tale of Ekati wins Wood
• Tale of Ekati caught a tiring War Pass in the final strides for a half-length victory in the $750,000 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct in New York. The loss was the second straight for the one-time Derby favorite, but it might still be good enough to earn the 2-year-old champion a trip to Churchill Downs on May 3. Tale of Ekati, though, is on his way after a thrilling stretch run under Edgar Prado. While War Pass tried to hold on, Tale of Ekati took the lead about six jumps from the finish and gave trainer Barclay Tagg a leading Derby contender. Court Vision finished third, 11/4 lengths behind War Pass.
• Gymnastics world champion Diego Hypolito was undergoing tests to see if he has become ill from the outbreak of dengue fever sweeping Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He has been hospitalized since Thursday, when he started showing symptoms associated with dengue — high fever, headaches and joint pains. His spokeswoman, Marlene Mattos, said the first tests were inconclusive, with the second round expected to be done next week. Hypolito won the floor exercise at the 2007 world championships, making him a favorite for the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics.
• Felix Sturm stopped Jamie Pittman of Australia in the seventh round in a one-sided defense of his WBA middleweight title in Duesseldorf, Germany. The German (29-2-1, 13 knockouts) dropped Pittman (16-1, 7 knockouts) for the third time 36 seconds into the round, battering him with a flurry of punches until referee Russell Mora stepped in and ended the voluntary defense.
From Beacon Journal wire services
Get the full article here.
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