Tennis News -
At $145K Nordea Nordic Light Open, Stockholm, Sweden

[R2] (6) Sania Mirza (IND,50) l Iveta Benesova (CZE,59) 64 36 36

This was Sania's consecutive 3rd defeat against Benesova, all 3 matches ended in 3 sets loss for Sania ... Again in this match Sania struggled with her serve and managed only 49% first serve percentage ... She committed 6 aces and 8 doubles faults ... In second set Sania tried comeback after down 1-3 breaking Benesova's serve ... But Benesova broke back at 3-all to won 2nd set ... In third Sania lost her serve in 2nd game and that was the only break in third set ... Benesova played solid on her own service game to win match in 2 hrs 5 mins.
------------------------------------------
At $100K Vancouver Challenger, BC, Canada
[R1] (SE) Somdev Devvarman (IND,345) bt (LL) Cecil Mamit (PHI,406) 64 26 76(4)
[R2] (SE) Somdev Devvarman (IND,345) vs Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE,70)

Tough fighting win by Somi after down by break in third set ... Somi showing solid mental toughness and playing with same intensity until end of the match.
Next he is playing against top-seed and Asian No. 1 Yen-Hsun Lu.

Match Report (from Canadian site) - Pretty remarkable that the 23-year-old pulled this one out today. He missed chances to serve out the match at 5-4 and 6-5 (up 40-0!), then was down 4-2 in the tiebreaker. Down 4-3, Devvarman caught a break, perhaps, when a shanked forehand was called out but overruled by the chairwoman. They replayed the point and Devvarman won it to go to 4-4. He hit a beautiful running crosscourt forehand pass, then charged a poor volley from Mamiit and passed again to set up match point. Mamiit's backhand went wide and the run of wins continued.

"The first round is always tough," Devvarman said, "and Cecil played very well. He’s very experienced, very quick and a great counterpuncher. It was a tough match but I’m glad I got through it.

"Maybe I pressed a little too much," he said of the two service games he lost in the third set. "Down 2-4 in the break, basically I just tried to fight through it and stay positive even though things weren't going great and I think that helped me."

Devverman's streak also means he's barely had down time. He said after his grinder-type effort today, though, that fatigue hasn't set in. "I’m feeling pretty good actually. My body feels good. I had two days of rest after my last match [Lexington final] and I’m taking care of my body."

"It obviously feels good," he said of the streak, "but the wins and losses are going to come. I'm realistic about it. It's going to come to an end. It could be tomorrow, it could be the day after that, and it could be next week. But I'm sure I'm going to give my best effort every time."
------------------------------------------
At $50K Vancouver Womens Challenger, BC, Canada

[R1] (3) Sunitha Rao (IND)/ Robin Stephenson (USA) l Maria-Fernanda Alves (BRA)/ Ashley Weinhold (USA) 26 46

So Sunitha's challenge over in this Vancouver Womens Challenger.

Tennis News -
At $2.615M Cincinnati Masters, USA

[R2] (6) Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/ Leander Paes (IND) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO)/ Rogier Wassen (NED) 64 62
[R2] (4) Mahesh Bhupathi (IND)/ Mark Knowles (BAH) bt Tomas Berdych (CZE)/ Radek Stepanek (CZE) W/O

Easy 59 mins win for Lee and Lukas, where they broke opponents service 4 times and lost only single own service game ... They r tuning well with eachother but now mostly they will face their old hurdle of Zimo and Nestor in quarters.

In second week row Hesh and Mark reached quarters without playing match ... Another walkover for them.
------------------------------------------
At $145K Nordea Nordic Light Open, Stockholm, Sweden

[R1] (6) Sania Mirza (IND,50) bt Emilie Loit (FRA,101) 63 62
[R2] (6) Sania Mirza (IND,50) vs Iveta Benesova (CZE,59)

Expected easy victory for Sania but her first service percentage was still worrying ... Now in second round she is facing Czech Benesova.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Football News -
At 2008 AFC Challenge Cup Football Championship, Hyderabad, India

Group A -
Turkmenistan dw Tajikistan 0-0
India bt Afghanistan 1-0

Goal Scored - Climax Lawrence (IND) 90+'

We had poor game ... Definetly LACKLUSTER ... As usual our forwardline was struggling ... Defence was nowhere to see ... Midfielders played good game but undoubtfully hero was Subrato Pal.

We need Steven Dias and Mahesh Gawli playing most part of the match to ignite spark in our performance.

Tennis News -
At $2.615M Cincinnati Masters, USA

[R1] (LL) Rajeev Ram (USA,) l Gilles Simon (FRA,14) 67(5) 46

Rajeev entered as Lucky loser but faced hot player in 2008 US hard court season, Gilles Simon ... Played close match against him.
------------------------------------------
$1.34M ROGERS CUP, Montreal, Canada

[R1] Shikha Uberoi (IND)/ Julie Ditty (USA) l Angela Haynes (USA)/ Liga Dekmeijere (LAT) 16 46

Shikha played doubles in Rogers Cup but lost in first round.
------------------------------------------
At $145K Nordea Nordic Light Open, Stockholm, Sweden

[R1] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Nathalie Dechy (FRA) l Camille Pin (FRA)/ Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) 61 67(2) (7)10

Sania and Dechy had shocking defeat in doubles in super tie-break.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Vancouver Womens Challenger, BC, Canada

[R1] (1) Sunitha Rao (IND,154) l Madison Brengle (USA,279) 64 36 16

Top-seed Sunitha lost her match against Brengle ... As a rhythmic player Sunitha struggled after 2/3 weeks break from the tour.
------------------------------------------
At $10K Romania F14, Oradea

[R1] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,887) l CIUMAC Andrei (MDA,900) 36 57

Tennis News -
At $2.615M Cincinnati Masters, USA

[Q2] (8) Rajeev Ram (USA,204) l (7) Jonas Bjorkman (SWE,188) 26 26

Doubles -
[R1] Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ James Cerretani (USA) l Simon Aspelin (SWE)/ Jamie Murray (GBR) 67(2) 26

So Rohan lost in first round of his Masters debut, in qualifying Rajeev lost at final hurdle.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Vancouver Womens Challenger, BC, Canada

[R1] (1) Sunitha Rao (IND,154) vs Madison Brengle (USA,279)

Doubles -
[R1] (3) Sunitha Rao (IND)/ Robin Stephenson (USA) vs Maria-Fernanda Alves (BRA)/ Ashley Weinhold (USA)

Sunitha is top-seed in singles at Vancouver Womens Challenger.
------------------------------------------
At €30K Graz Challenger, Austria (Red Clay)

[R1] (4) AMRITRAJ Stephen (IND)/ GHOUSE Mustafa (IND) l CIRIC Nikola (SRB)/ TOPIC Josko (CRO) 46 46

Disappointing loss for our 4th seed pair.
------------------------------------------
At $10K Romania F14, Oradea

[R1] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,887) vs CIUMAC Andrei (MDA,900)

Tennis News -
At $145K Nordea Nordic Light Open, Stockholm, Sweden

[R1] (6) Sania Mirza (IND,50) vs Emilie Loit (FRA,101)

Doubles -
[R1] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Nathalie Dechy (FRA) vs Camille Pin (FRA)/ Yanina Wickmayer (BEL)
------------------------------------------
At $100K Vancouver Challenger, BC, Canada

[R1] (SE) Somdev Devvarman (IND,345) vs (LL) Cecil Mamit (PHI,406)

In new ranking Somi jumped by 221 ranking to rank inside top-350.

Golf News -
At Nagashima Shigeo INVITATIONAL SEGA SAMMY Cup 2008 - Final Standing (Japan PGA Tour)

1 Jeev Milkha Singh 67 74 68 66 -13 ￥30,000,000

Jeev won the Nagashima Shigeo Invitational Sega Sammy Cup ... Today he scored 7 birdies and 1 bogey on 12th hole, more importantly scored 3 birdies in last 4 holes to lift title ... Simplay amazing performance by Jeev.

This was Jeev's third win on the Japan Tour ... It was also his second title of the year and the 10th of his career on an international tour recognised by the International Federation of Golf Tours.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Tennis News -
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

Final -
(Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) bt (3) Robert Kendrick (USA,125) 63 63

So with early break Somi won first set ... He broke Robert Kendrick's service twice in the first set ... In second set Somi only broke once to scored easy straight sets victory over his higer ranked opponent.

So with this Somi win his first challenger title which comes in the first challenger tournament he played as an qualifier ... And with his fine run here he also recieved Special Exemption for next week's $100K Vancouver Challenger.

Somdev Devvarman - "This was definitely a most satisfying tournament. It helped that it was nice and hot. I felt (Kendrick) was a little tired after (Saturday). My main goal was to keep the points long and make (Kendrick) work hard for the points he won. I did that pretty well in the first set. Also, I served really well. ... Holding serve every time certainly made it easier."

Robert Kendrick - "I knew I had to serve well. (Devvarman) makes you play a ton of balls. He's one of the most frustrating guys I've played in a long time. He baits you a little bit. If you're not serving well and attacking the ball, you're not going to beat him too many times."
------------------------------------------
At €30K Graz Challenger, Austria (Red Clay)

[Q1] GHOUSE Mustafa (IND,1382) l CIRIC Nikola (SRB,906) 16 26

Doubles -
[R1] (4) AMRITRAJ Stephen (IND)/ GHOUSE Mustafa (IND) vs CIRIC Nikola (SRB)/ TOPIC Josko (CRO)

Mustafa having chance of taking revenge in doubles against Nikola.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Billiards News -
At 2008 World Professional Billiards, Leeds, Great Britain

Final -
Mike Russell bt Geet Sethi 1821-1342 (Mike Russell scored break of 315)

Mike was leading by almost 600 pts after first session ... Very dominating performance by Mike ... In the second session, Geet scored 119 more points, but it was all Mike Russell securing his 9th Professional World Billiards Title.

Tennis News -
At $2.615M Cincinnati Masters, USA

[Q1] Rohan Bopanna (IND,322) l (12) Victor Estrella (DOM,273) 46 46
[Q1] (8) Rajeev Ram (USA,204) bt Wesley Moodie (RSA,330) 62 76(6)

[Q2] (8) Rajeev Ram (USA,204) vs (7) Jonas Bjorkman (SWE,188)

Doubles -
[R1] (4) Mahesh Bhupathi (IND)/ Mark Knowles (BAH) Bye
[R1] (6) Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/ Leander Paes (IND) Bye
[R1] Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ James Cerretani (USA) vs Simon Aspelin (SWE)/ Jamie Murray (GBR)

Rohan is in doubles maindraw with American James Cerretani, they r facing pair of Jamie Murray and Aspelin ... So Rohan is making debute in Masters maindraw
------------------------------------------
At $145K Nordea Nordic Light Open, Stockholm, Sweden

[R1] (6) Sania Mirza (IND,35) vs Emilie Loit (FRA,97)
------------------------------------------
At $600K East West Bank Classic, Los Angeles, CA, USA

[SF] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Bethanie Mattek (USA) l Eva Hrdinova (CZE)/ Vladimira Uhlirova (CZE) 26 1-2 Retd (Bethanie retired)

So nothing to worry with Sania's health.
------------------------------------------
At $2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[SF] (7) Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/ Leander Paes (IND) l (2) Daniel Nestor (CAN)/ Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) 36 67(5)

Again lost match against Nestor and Zimo.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

[SF] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) bt Xavier Malisse (BEL,162) 4-1 Retd
[F] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) vs (3) Robert Kendrick (USA,125)

With well deserve lucky break Somi in the final.
Match report - Devvarman had a tough three-setter with No. 2 seed Bobby Reynolds in the second round, he’s the most rested finalist. He caught a break when Xavier Malisse – already down two service breaks at 4-1 – took a medical time-out. A couple of points later, the veteran who was once No. 19 in the world (August ’02), retired with tightness in his back and glutes. “While I’ll be a little fresher for the final, it’s not good to win this way,” Devvarman said. “But, it was an honor to step on the court with (Malisse), a guy who when he’s playing well is one of the best in the world.”
”To me, it's just tennis. I just try to keep it simple,“ Devvarman said. ”I don't think of the transition (from college to the pros). I'm trying to enjoy my time on the court because I'm playing well. I know it's not going to last forever, but I'm going to try delay it as long as I can.“
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Billiards News -
At 2008 World Professional Billiards, Leeds, Great Britain

Semi-finals -
Mike Russell bt David Causier 1788-1149 (Mike Russell scored breaks of 209, 492, 231, 204)
Geet Sethi bt Chris Shutt 1426-1293

Final -
Mike Russell vs Geet Sethi

Match between Geet Sethi and Chris Shutt was counter attack by counter attack right up to the last 12 minutes, and when Sethi came to the table with the scoreboard recording 1291 points each, his subsequent break of 103 was the deciding factor ... Tomorrow Geet Sethi will be trying to win his 6th Professional World Title, but having big challenge from Mike Russell who is trying for his 9th professional World Title.

Tennis News -
At $2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[QF] (7) Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/ Leander Paes (IND) bt (4) Mahesh Bhupathi (IND)/ Mark Knowles (BAH) 64 36 10(5)
[SF] (7) Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/ Leander Paes (IND) vs (2) Daniel Nestor (CAN)/ Nenad Zimonjic (SRB)

Leander and Lukas scored fighting victory over Mahesh and Mark ... So with this win Lee and Lukas continue with their good form as together they reached in the semifinals or better at their past three tournaments ... Now they r having big challenge of 2nd seed Canadian and Serbian pair of Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic.
------------------------------------------
At $2.615M Cincinnati Masters, USA

[Q1] Rohan Bopanna (IND,322) vs (12) Victor Estrella (DOM,273)
[Q1] (8) Rajeev Ram (USA,204) vs Wesley Moodie (RSA,330)

Rohan again trying to qualify for Masters.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

[QF] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) bt Andrea Stoppini (ITA,249) 76(6) 61
[SF] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) vs Xavier Malisse (BEL,162)

Somi scored another huge victory against in form Italian Andrea Stoppini in straight sets ... Somi was down 1-5 in the first set and from their he turned table on Stoppini ... In tie-break also he was 0-4 down ... So again Buji showed his mental toughness and an ability to adapt as the game progresses to win this match.

Now Somi facing biggest test against seasoned player like Malisse after starting his pro career; Who last week won Moncton Challenger, Canada ... Malisse is former top-20 player, he is coming back from injury but he is definetly world class player.
------------------------------------------
At €30K Medjugorje Challenger, Bosnia-Herzegovina (Red Clay)

[SF] (2) AMRITRAJ Stephen (IND)/ MIDDELKOOP Matwe (NED) l (4) MINAR Jan (CZE)/ SLANAR Martin (AUT) 16 57
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Billiards News -
At 2008 World Professional Billiards, Leeds, Great Britain

Quarter-finals -
Mike Russell bt Sourav Kothari 838-526 (Mike Russell scored breaks of 301, 295)
David Causier bt Devendra Joshi 1547-358 (David Causier scored 495 break)
Chris Shutt bt Peter Gilchrist 965-647 (Chris Shutt scored breaks of 240, 251)
Geet Sethi bt Pankaj Advani 960-713 (Pankaj scored 299 break)

So other than Geet our other players lost in quarter-finals ... Young Sourav Kothari produced good performance against 8 time World Professional Billiards Champion Mike Russell.

And Geet showed his mastery over green defeating Pankaj in entertaining match, where Geet scored many 100+ breaks ... Go Geet we want another World title from u.

Billiards News -
At 2008 World Professional Billiards, Leeds, Great Britain

Group A -
Mike Russell bt Michael Kreuziger 1068-177 (Mike Russell scored 588 break)
Devendra Joshi bt Gary Rogers 720-253
Mike Russell bt Gary Rogers 980-207 (Mike Russell scored breaks of 272, 203)
Devendra Joshi bt Michael Kreuziger 809-241
Michael Kreuziger bt Gary Rogers 370-301
Mike Russell bt Devendra Joshi 741-501 (Mike Russell scored 214 break)

Mike started well defending his title ... Devendra scored 2 good victories to qualify for quarter-final from Group A with Mike.

Group B -
David Causier bt Sourav Kothari 918-302
Sourav Kothari bt Dhruv Sitwala 561-378
David Causier bt Dhruv Sitwala 858-533 (David Causier scored 214 break)
Dhruv Sitwala bt Paul Bennett 534-483
Sourav Kothari bt Paul Bennett 541-488 (Sourav Kothari scored 215 break)
David Causier bt Paul Bennett 706-583 (David Causier scored 273 break)

Sourav Kothari played well enough to win against 2 solid players to qualify for quarter-final with David Causier.

Group C -
Geet Sethi bt Rupesh Shah 671-459
Peter Gilchrist bt Alok Kumar 945-447
Geet Sethi bt Alok Kumar 887-506
Peter Gilchrist bt Rupesh Shah 615-433
Rupesh Shah bt Alok Kumar 744-533
Peter Gilchrist bt Geet Sethi 749-628 (Geet Sethi scored 256 break)

In first 2 matches Geet didn't manage any big break, with his high standard it was struggle ... He scored 200+ break against Peter Gilchrist but lost match against more consistent player ... But this loss bring unwanted match, from Indian point of view, against Group D winner Pankaj.

Group D -
Pankaj Advani bt Ian Williamson 742-308
Ian Williamson bt Mark Hirst 607-154
Pankaj Advani bt Mark Hirst 806-472 (Pankaj scored 256 break)
Chris Shutt bt Mark Hirst 833-392
Chris Shutt bt Ian Williamson 976-405 (Chris Shutt scored 236 break)
Pankaj Advani bt Chris Shutt 750-731

Pankaj played well enough to win matches, importantly against 2005 winner and last year's runner-up Chris Shutt ... Pankaj with Chris qualified for quarter-final.

Quarter-finals -
Mike Russell Vs Sourav Kothari
David Causier Vs Devendra Joshi
Peter Gilchrist Vs Chris Shutt
Pankaj Advani Vs Geet Sethi

Billiards News -
At 2008 World Professional Billiards, Leeds, Great Britain

2008 World Professional Billiards begins at Leeds ... India is having big participation as our 7 players r playing in 16 players competition ... Mike Russell is a defending champion.

Group A -
Mike Russell
Devendra Joshi
Michael Kreuziger
Gary Rogers

Group B -
David Causier
Sourav Kothari
Dhruv Sitwala
Paul Bennett

Group C -
Geet Sethi
Peter Gilchrist
Rupesh Shah
Alok Kumar

Group D -
Pankaj Advani
Chris Shutt
Ian Williamson
Mark Hirst
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Tennis News -
At $600K East West Bank Classic, Los Angeles, CA, USA

[QF] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Bethanie Mattek (USA) bt Elena Vesnina (RUS)/ Vera Zvonareva (RUS) 63 16 10(8)

Sania and Bethanie won first set breaking opponents serve twice ... They didn't face single break point and converted 2 of 4 break points on opponents serve ... But exactly opposite happened in second set ... Sania and Bethanie lost their service thrice to lost second set easily ... Sania and Bethanie kept their cool to win super-tiebreak to move into semis.

Tennis News -
At $2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[R2] (7) DLOUHY Lukas (CZE)/ PAES Leander (IND) bt Roger Federer (SUI)/ Stanisias Wawrinka (SUI) 64 64

[QF] (4) BHUPATHI Mahesh (IND)/ KNOWLES Mark (BAH) vs (7) DLOUHY Lukas (CZE)/ PAES Leander (IND)

Very clinical display by Lee and Lukas against Fedex and Wawrinka in this 59 mins match ... Lee and Lukas saved all 3 break points on their serve but converted 2 break points (1 in each set) in 4 chances to win match in straight sets ... So this win bring much awaited clash (for Indians) between Lee and Hesh in Canadian Masters.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

[R2] Rajeev Ram (USA,204) l (3) Robert Kendrick (USA,125) 64 46 46

Doubles -
[QF] (3) Ryler De Heart (USA)/ Rajeev Ram (USA) l (Q) BASS Stephen (USA)/ PAUL Todd (USA) 67(4) 36

Rajeev couldn't produce Somi's performance against seeded opponent.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Womens Challenger, KY, USA

[QF] UBEROI Neha (USA)/ UBEROI Shikh (IND) l LEE-WATERS Lindsay (USA)/ OUDIN Melanie (USA) 57 36

Uberoi sis struggle continue in doubles also.
------------------------------------------
At $15K Georgia F2 Futures, Tbilisi (clay)

[QF] VARDHAN Vishnu (IND,984) l (4) MOLCHANOV Denys (UKR,515) 16 36

Vishnu's fine run ended in quarters.
------------------------------------------
At $10K Romania F13, Tirgu Mures

[R2] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,887) l MESAROS Kristijan (CRO,866) 26 46

Tennis News -
At $600K East West Bank Classic, Los Angeles, CA, USA

[R2] (16) Sania Mirza (IND,35) l Meng Yuan (CHN,122) 46 36

Sania lost good opportunity of going deep in this Tier-II tournament ... But today's loss blame wasn't only on Sania, it was also on condition on the court ... Sania's match was on the second court, which is at the top of the small hill and that is windiest ... Today Nicole Vaidisova also lost on same court with 46 06 scoreline ... Both players were affected by windy condition, but Sania was doubly affected because she hits the ball harder than Meng and it gets caught in the wind and gets carried out ... Other hand Meng was playing in the zone, she did only 5 UFEs other than 6 DFs.

As per report, Sania played quite well ... On a better day she would have won ... She is still not 100%, and that is expected till the wrist stings go away a bit more ... But importantly the shots are all coming around, and the power is also coming around and becoming more consistent.
------------------------------------------
At $2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[R2] (4) BHUPATHI Mahesh (IND)/ KNOWLES Mark (BAH) bt Andy Roddick (USA)/ Mardy Fish (USA) W/O (Fish - knee injury)

So without playing single match Hesh and Mark r in quarters of Canadian Masters ... Now they r waiting for winner between Lee/ Lukas and Fedex/ Wawrinka match.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

I m speechless ... Simply awesome performance by Buji ... This counts as even bigger then his wins at Keneddy invitational as some pepole may have doubts as that was an exhibition event ... Here he repeated comeback victory against top-100 player, who is in good form these days; speak volume of level of game he is playing and his frightening mental toughness.

Next match is very important to grab SE spot for next challenger to avoid qualifying, so Go Somi STOP stoppini's juggernaut.

[R2] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) bt (2) Bobby Reynolds (USA,92) 67(4) 75 64
[QF] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) vs Andrea Stoppini (ITA,249)

Doubles -
[R1] (3) Ryler De Heart (USA)/ Rajeev Ram (USA) bt (WC) Colt Gaston (USA)/ Scoville Jenkins (USA) 63 61
------------------------------------------
At €30K Medjugorje Challenger, Bosnia-Herzegovina (Red Clay)

[QF] (2) AMRITRAJ Stephen (IND)/ MIDDELKOOP Matwe (NED) bt MACHADO Rui (POR)/ SANCHEZDE LUNA Jose Antonio (ESP) 64 63

Easy victory for Stephen and Matwe to moved into semis.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Womens Challenger, KY, USA

[R1] (Q) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) l (Q) MCHALE Christina (USA,560)
------------------------------------------
At $15K Georgia F2 Futures, Tbilisi (clay)

[R2] VARDHAN Vishnu (IND,984) bt (5) NAM Hyun-Woo (KOR,555) 63 63
[QF] VARDHAN Vishnu (IND,984) vs (4) MOLCHANOV Denys (UKR,515)

Huge win by Vishnu against talented Nam, who always trouble Indian players due to his solid retrieving game.
------------------------------------------
At $10K USA F19, Godfrey, IL

[R1] (2) SIPAEYA Sunil-Kumar (IND,523) l KRAJICEK Austin (USA,965) 67(3) 57

Doubles -
[R1] RUBIN Michael (USA)/ SIPAEYA Sunil-Kumar (IND) l KRAJICEK Austin (USA)/ POLLOCK Conor (USA) 16 46

Disappointing loss, these US trips not favouring Sunil.
------------------------------------------
At $10K Rabat Futures, Morocco (Clay)

[R2] (7) MALOO Parija (IND,736) l (WC) BENNANI Lina (MAR,UNR) 36 64 46

Doubles -
[R1] GOSWAMI Parul (IND)/ MALOO Parija (IND) l MORTELLO Giorgia (ITA)/ VIERIN Vivienne (ITA) 16 26

Parija lost 2nd round match against unranked local player ... In double she and parul lost against Italian pair.
------------------------------------------
At $10K Romania F13, Tirgu Mures

[R1] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,887) bt (WC) LELAS Vinko (CRO,UNR) 63 64
[R2] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,887) vs MESAROS Kristijan (CRO,866)

Doubles -
[R1] GOH Steven (AUS)/ LIBERHAN Tushar (IND) bt GAVRILA Llaurentiu-Ady (ROU)/ MARASIN Alexandru Catalin (ROU) 63 63
[QF] GOH Steven (AUS)/ LIBERHAN Tushar (IND) l (4) ARNABOLDI Andrea (ITA)/ BONDARENKO Vladislav (UKR) 61 36 (8)10

Tushar and Goh won first round doubles but lost in quarters against seeded pair.

Football News -
International Freindlies, Hyderabad

India dw Malayasia 1-1
Goal Scored - Baichung Bhutia (IND) 65' and Indra Putra Mahayuddin (MAS) 75'

Disappointing performance against lowly ranked opponent ... Hopefully they will show better performance in AFC Cup which is starting from 30th July.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Tennis News -
At $600K East West Bank Classic, Los Angeles, CA, USA

[R2] (16) Sania Mirza (IND,35) vs Meng Yuan (CHN,122)

Doubles -
[R1] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Bethanie Mattek (USA) bt Vania King (USA)/ Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) 63 64
[QF] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Bethanie Mattek (USA) vs Elena Vesnina (RUS)/ Vera Zvonareva (RUS)

Serena Williams withdrew from Championship and suddenly Sania's draw is wide open and she is having chance of going deep in the single draw ... But we will go with one match at a time, next Sania meeting Meng Yuan ... Hopefully sania will take care of her.

In doubles Sania and Bethanie having expected winning start.
------------------------------------------
At €85K San Marino Cepu Open, San Marino, RSM (Red Clay)

[R1] (WC) GHOUSE Mustafa (IND)/ HUTA GALUNG Jesse (NED) l (1) ALLEGRO Yves (SUI)/ TECAU Horia (ROU) 46 46

Somewhat expected loss against top-seed pair.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Womens Challenger, KY, USA

[Q3] (3) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) bt ROLLE Tiya (USA,781) 57 62 75

[R1] (Q) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) vs (Q) MCHALE Christina (USA,560)

Doubles -
[R1] UBEROI Neha (USA)/ UBEROI Shikh (IND) bt (WC) EMERY Merritt (USA)/ WELCHER Tiffany (USA) 61 62

Neha qualified for maindraw with tight win and facing another qualifier ... Also Uberoi sis having easy first round victory in doubles.
------------------------------------------
At $10K Rabat Futures, Morocco (Clay)

[Q1] SRIVASTAVA Dipti (IND,UNR) Bye
[Q1] GAINI Sharani (IND,UNR) Bye
[Q1] (5) BURMAN Shivika (IND,966) Bye

[Q2] SRIVASTAVA Dipti (IND,UNR) bt KHAKIMOVA Natalia (RUS,UNR) 64 63
[Q2] GAINI Sharani (IND,UNR) l NOWE Ine (BEL,UNR) 06 06
[Q2] (5) BURMAN Shivika (IND,966) l LAZAREVA Margarita (RUS,UNR) 36 36

[Q3] SRIVASTAVA Dipti (IND,UNR) l (2) AL NABHANI Fatma (OMA,925) 26 16

Maindraw -
[R1] (4) GOSWAMI Parul (IND,685) l (Q) LAZAREVA Margarita (RUS,UNR) 16 57
[R1] (7) MALOO Parija (IND,736) bt MORTELLO Giorgia (ITA,951) 26 64 64

[R2] (7) MALOO Parija (IND,736) vs (WC) BENNANI Lina (MAR,UNR)

Doubles -
[R1] GOSWAMI Parul (IND)/ MALOO Parija (IND) vs MORTELLO Giorgia (ITA)/ VIERIN Vivienne (ITA)

Some of our girls playing on Moroccan clay ... Parul lost her first round match against Russian qualifier ... But Parija scored good comenback victory over Italian player, who was decent player with career high ranking of #380.
------------------------------------------
At $10K USA F19, Godfrey, IL

[R1] (2) SIPAEYA Sunil-Kumar (IND,523) vs KRAJICEK Austin (USA,965)

Doubles -
[R1] RUBIN Michael (USA)/ SIPAEYA Sunil-Kumar (IND) vs KRAJICEK Austin (USA)/ POLLOCK Conor (USA)
------------------------------------------
At $10K Romania F13, Tirgu Mures

[R1] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,887) vs (WC) LELAS Vinko (CRO,UNR)

Doubles -
[R1] GOH Steven (AUS)/ LIBERHAN Tushar (IND) vs GAVRILA Llaurentiu-Ady (ROU)/ MARASIN Alexandru Catalin (ROU)

Tennis News -
At $600K East West Bank Classic, Los Angeles, CA, USA

[R1] (16) Sania Mirza (IND,35) bt (Q) Eva Hrdinova (CZE,190) 63 64

In first set Sania take 4-0 lead and then lost her serve but then hold to win first set .. In second set Eva broke Sania early in 4th game to lead but Sania fought back to break immediately and then broke Eva's serve in 9th game with help of double fault from Eva ... Then she served out to win match in 68 mins ... In this match Sania was struggling with her serve, her first serve percentage was 48%.

Ok, recieved update from who attended match, Good news is - Sania's ruthless forehand is back ... :)

After coming out from wrist operationn today first time she used her scroching forehands and they were landed correctly with same old pace ... Sania is still struggling with her backhands but sooner than later that will also comeback once Sania start to adjust with her repaired wrist ... Go Sania.
-------------------------------------------------
At $2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[Q2] BOPANNA Rohan (IND,322) l (11) GOLUBEV Andrey (KAZ,155) 67(5) 76(0) 46

Doubles -
[R2] (7) DLOUHY Lukas (CZE)/ PAES Leander (IND) vs Roger Federer (SUI)/ Stanisias Wawrinka (SUI)[R2] (4) BHUPATHI Mahesh (IND)/ KNOWLES Mark (BAH) vs Andy Roddick (USA)/ Mardy Fish (USA)

Rohan lost in 2hrs 18mins match against Golubev, where both players were using their huge services as a weapon ... Bops had 10 aces (3 DFs) and Golubev had 11 aces (3 DFs).

Lee and Lukas having very tricky match against Fedex and Wawrinka, who r preparing for Olympics as a team ... And Hesh/ Mark pair also facing Olympics bound American team in second round ... I only wish our players also consider this to play more together before Olympics.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

[R1] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) bt Jamie Baker (GBR,256) 75 62
[R1] Rajeev Ram (USA,204) bt (Q) Alberto Francis (USA,316) 64 62

[R2] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,566) vs (2) Bobby Reynolds (USA,92)

Doubles -
[R1] Somdev Devvarman (IND)/ Rylan Rizza (USA) l Victor Estrella (DOM)/ Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) 26 63 (6)10

Another solid win for Somi against top-250 type player ... In first set he was down 2-5 but then he won next 5 games to grab first set and in second set lost only 2 games ... In second round he is facing interesting and tough battle against top-100 player, American Bobby Reynolds.

But in doubles Somi's challenge got over in first round.
------------------------------------------
At €30K Medjugorje Challenger, Bosnia-Herzegovina (Red Clay)

[R1] (2) AMRITRAJ Stephen (IND)/ MIDDELKOOP Matwe (NED) bt GEHRKE Geoff (USA)/ NASO Gianluca (ITA) W/O (Right heel injury to Naso)
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Womens Challenger, KY, USA

[Q2] (3) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) bt JONES Mccall (USA,982) 64 63
[Q3] (3) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) vs ROLLE Tiya (USA,781)

Now Neha in final qualifying round.
------------------------------------------
At $15K Georgia F2 Futures, Tbilisi (clay)

[R1] VARDHAN Vishnu (IND,1013) bt (Q) ALEKSEENKO Gleb (UKR,1866) 63 63
[R2] VARDHAN Vishnu (IND,1013) vs (5) NAM Hyun-Woo (KOR,555)

Good to see Vishnu is started to travel different parts of world and playing on clay ... Now in second round he is facing tough cookie Nam of Korea.

Tennis News -
At $600K East West Bank Classic, Los Angeles, CA, USA

[R1] (16) Sania Mirza (IND,35) vs (Q) Eva Hrdinova (CZE,190)

Doubles -
[R1] (2) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Bethanie Mattek (USA) vs Vania King (USA)/ Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS)

Hopefully Sania regain her form, first round is winnable ... If Sania reaches third round then she can face Serena Williams (offcourse if she is injury free) ... In doubles with Bethanie they r 2nd seed.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

[R1] (Q) Somdev Devvarman (IND,565) vs Jamie Baker (GBR,258)
[R1] Rajeev Ram (USA,210) vs (Q) Alberto Francis (USA,326)

Doubles -
[R1] Somdev Devvarman (IND)/ Rylan Rizza (USA) vs Victor Estrella (DOM)/ Santiago Gonzalez (MEX)
[R1] (3) Ryler De Heart (USA)/ Rajeev Ram (USA) vs (WC) Colt Gaston (USA)/ Scoville Jenkins (USA)

Interesting to see how Somi perform at Challenger level.

Tennis News -
At $$2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[Q1] BOPANNA Rohan (IND,279) bt (4) LU Yen-Hsun (TPE,77) 64 64
[Q2] BOPANNA Rohan (IND,279) vs (11) GOLUBEV Andrey (KAZ,156)

Doubles -
[R1] (7) DLOUHY Lukas (CZE)/ PAES Leander (IND) Bye
[R1] (4) BHUPATHI Mahesh (IND)/ KNOWLES Mark (BAH) Bye

Terrific win for Rohan in Masters qualifying against Asia's No. 1 ... So this is Rohan's 2nd win against top 100 player in 2 weeks ... Go Bops now qualify for first Masters tournament with another win.

Hesh and Lee can face eachother in quarters if they wins their respective 2nd round matches.
-------------------------------------------
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[F] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) l (1) Robert Smeets (AUS)/ Adam Feeney (AUS) 36 76 (6)10

Oh, so they lost in super-tiebreak against Smeets and Feeney ... Still creditable performance to reach final ... Now I m crosssing my fingers and hoping that they keep playing doubles together.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Mens Challenger, KY, USA

[Q1] Somdev Devvarman (IND,563) bt (3) Takao Suzuki (JPN,339) 62 26 76(7)
[Q2] Somdev Devvarman (IND,563) bt Marcus Fugate (USA,657) 60 60
[Q3] Somdev Devvarman (IND,563) bt (7) Jose (rubin) Statham (NZL,436) 62 62

After closely fought first round qualifying against seasoned Takao Suzuki, Somi removed his frustration on his next 2 opponents to qualify for maindraw of this challenger ... These days Somdev seems to specilaize in giving opponents bagels.

Somdev played all 3 matches in 25 hrs ... That shows his fitness level.

Here is first qualifying round match report -
Speedy Somdev Devvarman of India showed the never-give-up spirit that carried him to the past two NCAA singles titles with a spine-tingling 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 victory over Lexington’s 2000 champ Takao Suzuki of Japan. The former Virginia Cavalier recovered from an early service break in the third set to tie, then held four match points in the tiebreaker before losing five straight and facing match point himself. He fired an ace, then captured the next two points.
“This was my first hard-court match since the NCAAs,” said Devvarman, who has won two Futures level events on clay since. “But, I just try to give the same intensity every match.” He breezed through a second-rounder later and must beat Jose Statham of New Zealand at 10 a.m. today to reach the main event.
------------------------------------------
At €85K San Marino Cepu Open, San Marino, RSM (Red Clay)

[Q1] GHOUSE Mustafa (IND,1373) l SIMONI Marco (ITA,969) 36 75 67(4)

[R1] (WC) GHOUSE Mustafa (IND)/ HUTA GALUNG Jesse (NED) vs (1) ALLEGRO Yves (SUI)/ TECAU Horia (ROU)

Doubles cut at San Marino was high and Mustafa/ Stephen didn't have chance of making that cut ... But Mustafa opted for wildcard with Dutch Jesse Huta Galung and they r facing tough match against top-seed.
------------------------------------------
At €30K Medjugorje Challenger, Bosnia-Herzegovina (Red Clay)

(2) AMRITRAJ Stephen (IND)/ MIDDELKOOP Matwe (NED) vs GEHRKE Geoff (USA)/ NASO Gianluca (ITA)

Mustafa playing in $100K Challenger at San Marino, so here Stephen playing with Dutch partner Middelkoop and they r 2nd seed.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Womens Challenger, KY, USA

[Q1] UBEROI Shikha (IND,760) l FRILLING Kristy (USA,724) 46 46
[Q1] (3) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) bt (WC) STRIPLIN Christy (USA,UNR) 64 64

[Q2] (3) UBEROI Neha (USA,437) vs JONES Mccall (USA,982)

And Shikha lost in first round qualifying.

Motor Sports News -
At GP2 Series Hockenheim Race, Germany - 19th-20th July, 2008


Salute to Karun for his first Sprint Race victory!!!
On Saturday in Feature race Karun finished on 8th place in wet condition ... But in Sprint Race Karun had different plan ... He started from pole, but lost lead to Lucas di Grassi for few minutes but he grabbed lead back overtaking Grassi ... But his biggest challenge came from Andreas Zuber, who was faster than Karun but just could not find a way to make a move due to superb strong and mature race from Karun ... Again congrats to Karun to take a long overdue win in the sprint race and importantly he broke his jinx, his Sunday jinx in great style.

GP2 Series - Karun, a little while between drinks for you but you're a race winner again, here in Hockenheim: how does it feel?
Karun Chandhok - Very good, this time is a little different to Spa last year, because Spa I was just really, really pleased but this time there is a little relief as well because this year I came into it believing we were fast enough, knowing we were fast enough to win races but it didn't happen in Asia, and for a number of reasons I think we got robbed of a few wins there. I was really, really pissed off after Asia, so it's really nice to get one under our belts here: we've had good race pace all season long you know, in Monaco and Silverstone, and we've struggled a little bit in qualifying for a few reasons but yeah, just very pleased. And I'm really pleased for the team as well, to get two drivers to have won a race, so I'm just really pleased and I just love working with these guys: they're the best team I've ever worked with, they're just so good to get along with, and with Bruno as I well because I think we get along better than any other teammates in the pitlane. It's just a great feeling right now.

GP2 Series - Was it the best way to get it done: start from pole and just fight from the front?
Karun - Yeah, but we lost off the line! It was a pressure race you know, it wasn't an easy race: okay, starting from the front but it was a pressure race the whole way because Zuber was quick here all weekend and qualified third, and Bruno is quick as well, but I was quite comfortable and don't think I made any mistakes: I had a second gap to Zuber and just sat there, and the team did a great job to keep me informed of where things stood, where we were quick and where we weren't, and that helped things a lot.

GP2 Series - Was it just a case of managing the race? You didn't set any fastest laps, but you always looked comfortable there...
Karun - We had fastest lap very early on in the race, but I wasn't too fussed to be honest because I just wanted to make sure we looked after the rear tyres: the last thing I wanted was to have a situation like Grosjean had in Silverstone where he destroyed the tyres and then couldn't do anything for the last ten laps. I'd rather have the six points for the win than the one point for fastest lap!

GP2 Series - It has been a bit of a monkey of your back getting the win here: can this help you for the remainder of the season?
Karun - Yeah, we've had pace all season long at places like Silverstone and Istanbul, and in Monaco we had good race pace: it's just nice to get one under the belt as an indication that we can complete the job as well.

Tennis News -
At $$2.615M Rogers Masters, Toronto, Canada

[Q1] BOPANNA Rohan (IND,279) vs (4) LU Yen-Hsun (TPE,77)

Rohan is in Masters qualifying, so his back injury isn't looking serious.
-------------------------------------------
At $75K Aptos Challenger, CA, USA

[QF] Prakash Amritraj (IND,204) l Andrea Stoppini (ITA,307) 76(2) 57 46

Kash lost in mightly close match ... So with this Kash will take a week or two break before coming back on pro-curcuit.
-------------------------------------------
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[SF] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) bt (2) Joshua Goodall (GBR)/ Michael Ryderstedt (SWE) 57 76(2) 10(4)

[F] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) vs (1) Robert Smeets (AUS)/ Adam Feeney (AUS)

Very fighting win by Harsh and Ashutosh against 2nd seed ... Harsh and Ashutosh combination giving fruitful results on challenger level.
------------------------------------------
At $50K Lexington Challenger, KY, USA

[Q1] Somdev Devvarman (IND,563) vs (3) Takao Suzuki (JPN,339)

Somi having seeded opponent in first round, so with win he can open up draw for himself.

Tennis News -

Karan Rastogi will be undergoing back surgery in Australia on July 25th ... Currently he is in Australia with his mother in preparation for the surgery, which is being conducted by the same doctors who fixed Mahesh Bhupathi's back last year ... I wish a speedy recovery from surgery for Karan ... Now the key is to fully physically rehabilitate himself before returning to the pro circuit.
-------------------------------------------
At $525K Indianapolis Tennis Championships

[SF] Rajeev Ram (USA)/ Bobby Reynolds (USA) l Ashley Fisher (AUS)/ Tripp Phillips (USA) 46 67(3)
------------------------------------------
At € 42.5K Rimini Challenger, Italy (Red Clay)

[SF] (4) Stephen Amritraj (IND)/ Mustafa Ghouse (IND) l (1) Leonardo Azzaro (ITA)/ Marco Crugnola (ITA) 46 46

Couldn't repeat last round performane against top-seed.

Hockey News -
At U-21 Junior Asia Cup 2008, Hyderabad

India produced a dramatic fightback to defend the Asia Cup hockey title in a exciting 3-2 victory over South Korea, again drag flicker Diwakar Ram's brilliance to score the match-winner (golden goal) early in the extra time.

The Indians were trailing 0-2 till the 52nd minute ... But Sunil SP and Diwakar Ram scored to tie match for Indians ... Diwakar Ram was the hero for India in this tournament, as he scored goals from penalty corners at very crucial stages in this Asia Cup.

As a finalist South Korea is also qualified for 2009 Junior World Cup with India.

Final
India bt Korea 3-2 (2-2)

Semi-Finals
India bt Pakistan 3-1
South Korea bt Japan 4-2

Group A -
India bt Japan 2-0
India bt Malaysia 3-1
India bt Singapore 6-0
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Tennis News -
At $15K Syria F2 Futures, Damascus

[SF] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) l (8) ARSENOV Danila (RUS,705) 67(7) 63 57

Rohan lost in semis but produced tremendous fights ... Great week for Rohan.

Tennis News -
At $525K Indianapolis Tennis Championships,

[R2] (WC) Rajeev Ram (USA,210) l Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE,77) 16 67(1)

Doubles -
[QF] Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) l Ashley Fisher (AUS)/ Tripp Phillips (USA) 26 0-1 Retd (back injury to Bopanna)
[QF] Rajeev Ram (USA)/ Bobby Reynolds (USA) bt (2) Martin Damm (CZE)/ Pavel Vizner (CZE) 63 76(4)

Hoping for not serious back injury to Rohan ... Rajeev continue to impress in doubles.
-------------------------------------------
At $75K Aptos Challenger, CA, USA

[R2] Prakash Amritraj (IND,204) bt (WC) Phillip Simmonds (USA,667) 64 62
[QF] Prakash Amritraj (IND,204) vs Andrea Stoppini (ITA,307)

Doubles -
[QF] Prakash Amritraj (IND)/ Lester Cook (USA) l Noam Okun (ISR)/ Amir Weintraub (ISR) 76(3) 46 (5)10

Prakash continue his amazing run in singles with another easy victory ... In quarter-final he will face Italian Andrea Stoppini, who defeated Alex Bogdanovic to break his some sort of hot streak from last week's Granby Challenger
-------------------------------------------
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[QF] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) bt Pavel Snobel (CZE)/ Jan Vacek (CZE) 61 61
[QF] Purav Raja (IND)/ Gouichi Motomura (JPN) l (1) Adam Feeney (AUS)/ Robert Smeets (AUS) 64 26 (6)10

[SF] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) vs (2) Joshua Goodall (GBR)/ Michael Ryderstedt (SWE)

Harsh and Ashutosh chemistry working like an oiled machine ... Very easy dominating victory, where it looked all chips falling at correct places as our pair wanted ... They should keep playing together, as both can achieve more in doubles as pair rather pairing with others at challenger level.

Also fighting performance by Purav with his Japanese partner against solid Aussie pair.
------------------------------------------
At € 42.5K Rimini Challenger, Italy (Red Clay)

[QF] (4) Stephen Amritraj (IND)/ Mustafa Ghouse (IND) bt Melle Van Gemerden (NED)/ Peter Wessels (NED) 61 64

[SF] (4) Stephen Amritraj (IND)/ Mustafa Ghouse (IND) vs (1) Leonardo Azzaro (ITA)/ Marco Crugnola (ITA)

Good win on clay for Indian pair, but now top-seed local pair in semis.
-------------------------------------------
At $15K Syria F2 Futures, Damascus

[QF] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) bt (6) SITAK Dmitri (RUS,641) 63 61
[SF] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) vs (8) ARSENOV Danila (RUS,705)

Another good easy victory against higher rank player to move into semis ... Go Rohan.
--------------------------------------------
At $10k Romania F12 Futures , Lasi (Clay)

[R1] (4) GOH Steven (AUS)/ LIBERHAN Tushar (IND) bt ERLIC Laurentiu-Antoniu (ROU)/ PALAS Valentin (ROU) W/O
[QF] (4) GOH Steven (AUS)/ LIBERHAN Tushar (IND) l AURADOU Marc (FRA)/ VIGNE Laurent (FRA) 36 64 (3)10

Tennis News -
At $600K Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, USA (Tier II)

[R1] Sania Mirza (IND)/ Anna Chakvetadze (RUS) l Eva Hrdinova (CZE)/ Vladimira Uhlirova (CZE) 36 46

As expected disappointing end for Sania in doubles also.
-------------------------------------------
At $525K Indianapolis Tennis Championships,

[R1] (1) Leander Paes (IND)/ Mmahesh Bhupathi (IND) l (WC) Daniel Nestor (CAN)/ Frederic Niemeyer (CAN) 46 63 (10)12

In a showdown like a medal play-off match at next month's Olympics, Canadians pair saved one match point to defeat Indian Express in Indianapolis in super-tiebreak.

Nestor and Niemeyer held triple match point at 9-6 in the Super Tie-break, but Nestor double faulted TWICE and then Mahesh had an ace to leveled the score at 9-all and then took the 10-9 lead ... But Canadians responded by winning the next three points.
-------------------------------------------
At $75K Aptos Challenger, CA, USA

[R1] Prakash Amritraj (IND,204) bt (1) Amer Delic (USA,144) 64 46 63
[R2] Prakash Amritraj (IND,204) vs (WC) Phillip Simmonds (USA,667)

Doubles -
[R1] Prakash Amritraj (IND)/ Lester Cook (USA) bt Roman Borvanov (USA)/ Artem Sitak (RUS) 63 61
[QF] Prakash Amritraj (IND)/ Lester Cook (USA) vs Noam Okun (ISR)/ Amir Weintraub (ISR)

Yesterday match was stopped at 1 set all due to darkness, but today Prakash came out firing all cylinders to take 5-0 lead ... Then Amer managed to win next 3 games but Kash finished match in next game.

Good easy victory in doubles for Kash and Cook ... Now facing Israeli pair in quarter.
-------------------------------------------
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[R1] Purav Raja (IND)/ Gouichi Motomura (JPN) bt Massimo Dell'Acqua (ITA)/ Enricc Iannuzzi (ITA) 61 64

[QF] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) vs Pavel Snobel (CZE)/ Jan Vacek (CZE)
[QF] Purav Raja (IND)/ Gouichi Motomura (JPN) vs (1) Adam Feeney (AUS)/ Robert Smeets (AUS)

Winning start in doubles for Purav and Motomura but now facing top-seed Australian pair in quarter.
--------------------------------------------
At $10k Romania F12 Futures , Lasi (Clay)

[R1] LIBERHAN Tushar (IND,872) l LAZAR Alexandru-Raul (ROU,859) 26 75 36
--------------------------------------------
At $ 15k Great Britain F10 , Frinton on Sea (Grass)

[QF] (4) SHARAN Divij (IND)/ SADECKY Alexander (SUI) l (WC) BREWER David (GBR)/ CAMPBELL Luke (GBR) 46 46

Tennis News -
At $600K Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, USA (Tier II)

[R1] Sania Mirza (IND,33) l (Q) Anne Keothavong (GBR,82) 67(4) 16

Sania should blamed herself for this loss ... She played self destructing game with numerous unforced errors ... In second set she wasn't looking in the match and played like just sake of completing match .. Poor performance by Sania.
-------------------------------------------
At $525K Indianapolis Tennis Championships,

[R1] (WC) Rajeev Ram (USA,210) bt (6) Fabrice Santoro (FRA,60) 76(6) 64
[R1] Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK,198) l Wayne Odesnik (USA,104) 46 57

[R2] (WC) Rajeev Ram (USA,210) vs Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE,77)

Doubles -
[R1] (1) Leander Paes (IND)/ Mmahesh Bhupathi (IND) vs (WC) Daniel Nestor (CAN)/ Frederic Niemeyer (CAN)
[R1] Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) bt (4) Igor Kunitsyn (RUS)/ Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) 26 75 10(6)
[R1] Rajeev Ram (USA)/ Bobby Reynolds (USA) bt Chris Guccione (AUS)/ Robert Kendrick (USA) 76(5) 46 10(4)

[QF] Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) vs Ashley Fisher (AUS)/ Tripp Phillips (USA)

This was a superb comeback win for Rohan and Aisam ... Kunitsyn and Tursunov were dominating most of the match, including the second set ... They created several opportunities to break in the second set and even had a set point, but Rohan and Aisam hung tough and then earned an opportunity to break at 5-5 ... Then they carried their momentum to score yet another supertiebreaker win.

Rajeev scored quality victory over Santoro, but Aisam lost his singles match.

Lee and Hesh having match against Canadian pair, WR No. 1 Daniel Nestor and Niemeyer ... This will be dress rehearsal match before Olympics, as these both teams r playing in Olympics with same combination.
-------------------------------------------
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[R1] (Q) Purav Raja (IND,892) l (2) Pavel Snobel (CZE,206) 46 46

[R1] (4) Harsh Mankad (IND)/ Ashutosh Singh (IND) bt Pavel Chekhov (RUS)/ Niels Desein (BEL) 63 62

Commendable performance by Harsh to perform well in doubles after that shocking loss in singles.
-------------------------------------------
At $15K Syria F2 Futures, Damascus

[R2] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) bt (Q) ABDULNOUR Marc (SYR,UNR) 61 63
[R2] SINGH Navdeep (IND,839) l (6) SITAK Dmitri (RUS,641) 67(5) 36
[R2] VM Ranjeet (IND,1002) l (8) ARSENOV Danila (RUS,705) 16 26

[QF] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) vs (6) SITAK Dmitri (RUS,641)

Doubles -
[QF] (3) RUCKELSHAUSEN Richard (AUT)/ SINGH Navdeep (IND) l INSAUSTI Jean-Noel (FRA)/ TASSART Antoine (FRA) 67(4) 36
[QF] (2) GAJJAR Rohan (IND)/ VM Ranjeet (IND) l BEIDAS Bassam (LIB)/ COJANU Ioan-Alexandru (ROU) 57 67(2)

So now only Rohan remaing in singles draw.
--------------------------------------------
At $ 15k Great Britain F10 , Frinton on Sea (Grass)

[R1] SHARAN Divij (IND,742) l (4) SEATOR Edward (GBR,503) 62 46 16

Doubles -
[R1] (4) SHARAN Divij (IND)/ SADECKY Alexander (SUI) bt BRADSHAW Timothy (GBR)/ BRASSINGTON Kyle (GBR) 76(3) 64

Tennis News -
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[R1] (PR) Harsh Mankad (IND,577) l (Q) Tomas Cakl (CZE,372) 06 36

Very disappointing performance by Harsh against Cakl.
------------------------------------------
At € 42.5K Rimini Challenger, Italy (Red Clay)

[R1] (4) Stephen Amritraj (IND)/ Mustafa Ghouse (IND) bt (WC) Matteo Trevisan (ITA)/ Walter Trusendi (ITA) 36 61 10(8)

Good start for our pair against local wild card pair on red clay.
-------------------------------------------
At $15K Syria F2 Futures, Damascus

[R1] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) bt (1) GHEDIN Riccardo (ITA,458) 76(4) 62

[R2] GAJJAR Rohan (IND,837) vs (Q) ABDULNOUR Marc (SYR,UNR)
[R2] SINGH Navdeep (IND,839) vs (6) SITAK Dmitri (RUS,641)
[R2] VM Ranjeet (IND,1002) vs (8) ARSENOV Danila (RUS,705)

Doubles -
[R1] MAKHARIA Rahil (IND)/ PC Vignesh (IND) l INSAUSTI Jean-Noel (FRA)/ TASSART Antoine (FRA) 67(5) 75 (7)10
[R1] (2) GAJJAR Rohan (IND)/ VM Ranjeet (IND) bt EMMANUEL Sunday (NGR)/ IDOKO Candy (NGR) 63 61

[QF] (3) RUCKELSHAUSEN Richard (AUT)/ SINGH Navdeep (IND) vs INSAUSTI Jean-Noel (FRA)/ TASSART Antoine (FRA)
[QF] (2) GAJJAR Rohan (IND)/ VM Ranjeet (IND) vs BEIDAS Bassam (LIB)/ COJANU Ioan-Alexandru (ROU)

Superb upset win by Rohan over top-seed and top-500 player ... Hopefully he will build on this win to go deep in the draw.

Tennis News -
At $15K Syria F2 Futures, Damascus

[R1] SINGH Navdeep (IND,839) bt TASSART Antoine (FRA,849) 26 64 63
[R1] VM Ranjeet (IND,1002) bt GODAMANNA Harshana (SRI,922) 36 61 76(4)
[R1] (Q) PC Vignesh (IND,1475) l (5) INSAUSTI Jean-Noel (FRA,630) 16 36

[R2] SINGH Navdeep (IND,839) vs (6) SITAK Dmitri (RUS,641)

Doubles -
[R1] (3) RUCKELSHAUSEN Richard (AUT)/ SINGH Navdeep (IND) bt (WC) AL SAMMAN Hayder (SYR)/ HAFIZ Moafak (SYR) 63 61

Navdeep started with win in singles and doubles ... Ranjeet also scored victory in singles.

Tennis News -
At $385K Campbell's HoF Championship, Newport, USA

[F] (4) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) l Mardy Fish (USA)/ John Isner (USA) 46 67(1)

So Rohan and Aisam r still searching for their first doubles title ... Our pair got 4 break points, one of them was set point at 6-5 in second set, but couldn't convert one, other hand Fish and Isner recieved 4 chances and they converted 1 in the first set ... In second set tie-break American pair dominated with their huge services.

In new ranking, as a finalist at Newport Kash's ranking rise to 204, the best ranking achieve by Indian after Leander ... Bops also back in to top-300 with QF performance in singles ... Somi enter into top-5 Indian singles players with career high ranking #565.

In doubles Bops rise to his career best doubles ranking, #43 ... Aisam also reach near to top 50, #52 ... So with updated new doubles ranking Bops become Asia's No. 3 doubles player ... Ratiwatanas drop to #50 doubles ranking.
-------------------------------------------
At €30K+H Manchester Challenger, Great Britain (Grass)

[Q1] (3) Ashutosh Singh (IND,526) Bye
[Q1] (8) Purav Raja (IND,892) Bye

[Q2] (3) Ashutosh Singh (IND,526) l Jonathan Kinsella (GBR,1185) 46 36
[Q2] (8) Purav Raja (IND,892) bt Alex Johnston (GBR,UNR) 06 26

[Q3] (8) Purav Raja (IND,892) vs (4) Pierrick Ysern (FRA,576)

Surprising loss for Ashutosh in winnable match ... Purav need to win one more match to qualify for maindraw.
-------------------------------------------
At $15K Syria F2 Futures, Damascus

[Q1] KHATTER Aroon (IND,UNR) bt ABDRABUH Ahmed (SYR,UNR) 63 64
[Q1] CHAUKULKAR Tejas (IND,UNR) bt HAFIZ Moafak (SYR,UNR) 62 61
[Q1] MAKHARIA Rahil (IND,UNR) l ABDULNOUR Marc (SYR,UNR) 46 06
[Q1] (6) PC Vignesh (IND,1475) Bye

[Q2] KHATTER Aroon (IND,UNR) l (1) BLAKE Myles (GBR,783) 26 16
[Q2] CHAUKULKAR Tejas (IND,UNR) l (4) MUHAMMAD Ahmad Rabeea (KUW,1420) 36 26
[Q2] (6) PC Vignesh (IND,1475) bt BARAM Nawar (SYR,UNR) 64 63

Rahil lost against local player, who qualified for maindraw ... But disappointing perfroamnce by Rahil.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Swimming News -
At 2nd FINA World Junior Swimming Championship, Monterrey, Mexico

In 100 Meter Freestyle final Virdhawal finished on 7th position clocking 50.70sec ... Not good finish by his own standard, but very creditable performance by him in his first World Junior Swimming Championship.

Congrats Virdhawal for becoming first Indian swimmer to qualify for the final of World Junior Swimming Championship ... He qualified to the final in 3 events, 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle ... Created National records in all 3 events.

Tennis News -
At $385K Campbell's HoF championship, Newport, USA
[F] (WC) Prakash Amritraj (IND, 305) l (2) Fabrice Santoro (FRA,57) 36 57

Prakash Amritraj about Vijay's inputs about final match - "We talked after the match. He told me my strategy was right, but I just needed to be a little more aggressive."

Kash started well with breaking Magician's serve in the first game but then culdn't control the match, in next game Magician broke back and then take crucial break to won first set ... In first set Kash converted 1 bp which he got and other hand Magician converted 2 bps of 4 he got ... In second set Kash was struggling with his serve (his serve % in second set was 41%), but still he managed to hang on in the match ... But in in 11th game at crucial moment Kash recorded double fault to gave break point and Magician obliged to break ... Then he hold serve to won his consecutive titles at Newport ... Kash must be disappointed on lost chances but very creditable performance from him ... Well done Kash.

Lets hope Rohan and Aisam wins their first ATP tour doubles title as a pair.
-------------------------------------------
At $525K Indianapolis Tennis Championships

[Q2] (6) SIPAEYA Sunil Kumar (IND,515) l (3) LEDOVSKIKH Mikhail (RUS,193) 64 36 57

Very close match by Sunil against top 200 player there in terms of points - 98 points to Sunil against 99 by the Russian. Ledovskih just put a bit more pressure on Sunil serve having 12 breakpoints & converting 3 of them. Sunil had 3 breakpoints & converted 1.

Tennis News -
At $385K Campbell's HoF championship, Newport, USA

[SF] (WC) Prakash Amritraj (IND, 305) bt (7) Frank Dancevic (CAN,99) 76(4) 46 63
[F] (WC) Prakash Amritraj (IND, 305) vs (2) Fabrice Santoro (FRA,57)

Doubles -
[SF] (4) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) bt Rik De Voest (RSA)/ Ashley Fisher (AUS) 57 64 11(9)

[F] (4) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) vs Mardy Fish (USA)/ John Isner (USA)

Kash become the first Indian to reach an ATP final since Leander Paes won the 1998 Newport title ... He is also the second wild card in Newport history to reach the title match, joining Mark Philippoussis who won the title in 2006.

If Kash maanges to win title here, then it would be the second time that a son has joined his father as an ATP title winner ... In 2002 in Newport, Taylor Dent won the title and joined his dad Phil as the first father-son duo to have won ATP titles.

Match was tough as Kash managed to convert only 1 bp in 14 chances and he converted 10th match point to win this battle.

And Rohan & Aisam having chance of winnning their first ATP title ... Go guys have a rocking time!
-------------------------------------------
At the Kennedy Funding Invitational, New City, NY

[F] Somdev Devvarman (IND,661) bt (2) Dudi Sela (ISR,76) 62 64

Ladies -
[SF] Sunitha Rao (IND,144) l (1) Victoria Azarenka (BLR,16) 67 46

And Somi won this invitational to cash $40K top prize ... This is definetly THE best start for Somi's pro-career ... Beating back to back top 100 players with such dominating performance against Sela speaks huge volume about Somi's talent.

As per report, yesterday he won because of his superior consistency and court coverage more than anything else. He was an effective counterpuncher and made passing shots when pressed ... His backhand was especially steady throughout the match ... He also anticipated Sela's delicate drop shots well.

Somdev Devvarman - "I've always loved playing the sport, money or no money. I play for the love of the game. I'm trying to take that same perspective out there. I'm just going to try to keep improving every day."

Any plans for the money?
"Just to be smart with it, put it away."

Dudi Sela - "He's very fast and gets to a lot of shots."
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Swimming News -
At 2nd FINA World Junior Swimming Championship, Monterrey, Mexico

Another improvement in his own national record this time in 100 Meter Freestyle, Virdhawal clocked 50.49sec to qualify for the final.

So this is his 3rd final at World Junior Swimming Championship ... Go Virdhawal.

Tennis News -
At $525K Indianapolis Tennis Championships,

[Q1] (6) SIPAEYA Sunil Kumar (IND,515) bt (WC) THOMAS Jim (USA,UNR) 64 62
[Q2] (6) SIPAEYA Sunil Kumar (IND,515) vs (3) LEDOVSKIKH Mikhail (RUS,193)

Good solid overall performance against weak opponent ... Hopefully this win help Sunil to build some sort of momentum to move ahead in his career ... Good luck for Sunil for final qualifying.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Swimming News -
At 2nd FINA World Junior Swimming Championship, Monterrey, Mexico

Today in the morning Virdhawal participated in 100 Meter Freestyle heats ... He qualified for semis with clocking 50.97sec on 7th position.

Swimming News -
At 2nd FINA World Junior Swimming Championship, Monterrey, Mexico

In 50 Meter Freestyle, Virdhawal Khade finished on 5th position in the final with timing of 22.95sec ... If he was able to manage his semis timing then he had chace of winning bronze as Italian swimmer clocked 22.70sec to win it ... But still creditable performance by him to reached final.

But in 50 Meter Butterfly, surprisingly Virdhawal's challenge got over in heats .. He clocked 25.83sec which was well below his personal best 24.91sec.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tennis News -
At the Kennedy Funding Invitational, New City, NY

[SF] Somdev Devvarman (IND,661) bt (1) Sam Querrey (USA,44) 62 16 75

Superb win by Somdev against (Sam Querrey) the best player he has probably played yet ... His opponent was a 21-year-old the next great hope of American tennis ranked #44 in the world, and a man who has beaten Moya and Gasquet on the clay of Monte Carlo Masters this year.

Querrey won the ATP tour event in Las Vegas this year, beating Grosjean (FRA, 50), Kiefer (GER, 48), Canas (ARG, 20) and Kevin Anderson (in the final) ... He made R3 of the Australian Open (losing to Djokovic, after beating Tursunov and Oliver Rochus) and also the SF in Delray Beach.

Dudi Sela should indeed be a tough test for Buji in the final, he is the type of solid, counter-puncher and consistent player like Somdev.

[F] Somdev Devvarman (IND,661) vs (2) Dudi Sela (ISR,76)

Ladies -
[QF] Sunitha Rao (IND,144) bt Katie Goepel (USA,UNR) 61, 63
[SF] Sunitha Rao (IND,144) vs (1) Victoria Azarenka (BLR,16)

Somdev Devvarman - "I just enjoy playing here. I haven't really figured out why. I'm just rolling with it, and I hope for another good match (today). I'm definitely feeling good and playing well, and I just keep on going with it."

About match -
"I decided I might as well go for it before he does. He likes to play the same way. I just went for it, got a little lucky, and things went my way, fortunately. He played a very good second set, but at the same time, I felt like I made quite a few errors, and that's how it goes at this level," Devvarman said. "A couple bad shots and you're down 6-1."

Match report from lohud.com -
Somdev Devvarman isn't sure what the reason is. But when the recent Virginia graduate comes to the Kennedy Funding Invitational, he treats top professionals the same way he did college opponents en route to winning the last two NCAA titles.

For the second straight year, the unseeded Devvarman has made a surprising run to the final. Last year, he defeated former top-80 players Ricardo Mello, Robert Kendrick and Justin Gimelstob before losing to Michael Russell. Last night his semifinal victim was 6-foot-6 Californian Sam Querrey, currently the 44th-ranked player in the world.

The native of India didn't face a break point in the third set and showed off an aggressive return game to win the match. Jumping up to meet Querrey's second serves, Devvarman broke at love to claim a spot in the $40,000 final.

Devvarman is 13-0 as a professional, having won Futures tournaments in Rochester and Pittsburgh earlier this summer. He is guaranteed at least $20,000 for reaching the final here.

He looked good early, winning the final five games of the first set, but Querrey responded by winning six straight games to take the second set.
--------------------------------------------------------
At $385K Campbell's HoF championship, Newport, USA

[QF] (WC) Prakash Amritraj (IND)/ Gilles Muller (LUX) l Rik De Voest (RSA)/ Ashley Fisher (AUS) 46 26

[SF] (4) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) vs Rik De Voest (RSA)/ Ashley Fisher (AUS)

Prkash and Muller lost their doubles match and miss the chance of meeting Rohana and Aisam in semis.
--------------------------------------------------------
At $15K Syria F1 Futures, Damascus

[F] (4) RUCKELSHAUSEN Richard (AUT)/ SINGH Navdeep (IND) bt (3) GAJJAR Rohan (IND)/ SOMOGYI Alexander (SVK) 63 75

Navdeep won doubles title at Syria F1 with Ruckelshausen beating Rohan and Somogyi.
--------------------------------------------------------
At $50K Allentown Womens Challenger, PA, USA

[SF] UBEROI Neha (USA)/ DABROWSKI Gabriela (CAN) l (4) GULLICKSON Carly (USA)/ KRIZ Nicole (AUS) 57 36
--------------------------------------------------------
At $15K Great Britain F9 Futures, Felixstowe

[QF] RAJA Purav (IND)/ SHARAN Divij (IND) l (ALT) CORRIE Edward (GBR)/ WIRE Richard (GBR) 67(7) 26
[QF] (3) MANKAD Harsh (IND)/ SINGH Ashutosh (IND) l KADIR Sadik (AUS)/ LA PORTE Shane (USA) 46 46

Swimming News -
At 2nd FINA World Junior Swimming Championship, Monterrey, Mexico

Virdhawal Khade continued to impress with his improvement in timing ... As we all know he was training in US before ongoing 2nd FINA World Junior Swimming Championship, Monterrey 2008.

And check his immediate improvement in timing at World Junior Swimming Championship; he created national record in all events he participated until now.

In 4x100 Meter Freestyle Relay Indian team finished on 17th place but Virdhawal was minimum 2.5sec (max 4.5sec) faster than his other 3 team-mates ... Only 5 other swimmers swam faster than him ... He completed his 100m freestyle in new National Record of 50.64sec ... Previous record of 50.66sec he created in the 51st MILO/PRAM Malaysia Invitation Open at Kuala Lumpur in May 2008.

In 200 Meter Freestyle he created history becoming first Indian swimmer to reach final of World Junior Swimming Championship ... In heats his timing was 1:51.31sec, that was new National Record ... His previous record was 1:51.65sec previously created in the 51st MILO/PRAM Malaysia Invitation Open at Kuala Lumpur in May 2008 ... But in the final he improved his timing almost by a second to create new National Record of 1:50.35sec to finished on respectable 6th position.

In 50 Meter Freestyle, nobody reached near of Sebastian Xavier's 22.89 sec national record in last 10 yrs which he created at 1998 Bangalore nationals ... Only Ankur Poseria managed to dip under 23 secs mark with 22.99sec which he clocked at the 2008 Post NCAA Men's Long Course Invitational ... But Virdhawal had different plan altogether ... :-)

In heats he clocked 23.54sec, well below his personal best 23.03sec, to qualify for semis ... And in semis he created history breaking Sebastian Xavier's 10 yrs old record, he clocked 22.69sec to better Xavier's record by 0.2sec ... I think this is phenomenal feat to improve own timing by 0.34sec in 2 months time in 50m event … With that he qualified for his second final at World Junior Swimming Championship and his timing is 2nd best in the final 8 swimmers ... It would be icing on the cake if Virdhawal manages to win medal in this event.

Another interesting to note, his 22.69sec in 50m freestyle is equal to 2008 best time by Asian (if I m not mistaken) ... Japan's Masayuki Kishida clocked same 22.69sec at the Japanese national swimming championships.

Tennis News -
At the Kennedy Funding Invitational, New City, NY

[QF] Somdev Devvarman (IND,661) bt (4) Robert Kendrick (USA,120) 76(5) 75
[SF] Somdev Devvarman (IND,661) vs (1) Sam Querrey (USA,44)

Last year he defeated Kendrick in 3 sets but this time he defeated in closely fought 2 sets ... But now big challenge against talented top-50 Sam Querrey in the semis.

Somdev Devvarman - "Every win gives you confidence. I'd like to start playing a little better right now but I'm going to take it one match at a time. I'm glad I got to this point and I'm looking forward to a good match tomorrow."

Detail reporting by lohud.com -
It says a lot about Robert Kendrick's serves that even agile Somdev Devvarman couldn't return many of them. That he returned just enough says something about Devvarman.

The 23-year old Indian rookie broke Kendrick's monster serve in a marathon 11th game of their second set, effectively clinching a quarterfinal victory yesterday. It was a tour-de-force showing by the newly minted professional, who was making a repeat appearance at the Kennedy Funding Invitational.

If his battle with the 6-3, 190-pound Kendrick is any indication, rising star Devvarman should give him a challenge. Devvarman won the first set on a tiebreaker, 7-6 (5). Yet that tiebreak wasn't to be his most challenging sequence. The two men traded games in the second set. Kendrick piled up points quickly when he had serve. Devvarman won his serves, too, but usually through attrition.

"He was serving big on break points, and I felt I didn't take a couple chances I should have taken earlier," he said. "I was lucky to get back in the game. That does not happen very often."

With the second set tied 5-5 and Kendrick serving, the two fought desperately back and forth. Both knew how critical that 11th game was. After five deuces and 18 points, Devvarman prevailed.

"Good game," said Kendrick, before launching a ball over the fence and a neighboring swimming pool. He went down without a point in the following game, giving Devvarman a 7-5 win.