It took five sets, but Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer in the men’s singles at the 2009 Australian Open. This was the longest match in the tournament’s history, taking 4 hours and 23 minutes. WOW! Nadal won with 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-2.
This victory for Nadal keeps the Grand Slam record safe for now. Federer had a chance to tie Pete Sampras’s 14 Grand Slam title, but it just didn’t happen on Sunday.
Federer wanted this title so bad and he couldn’t hold back the tears saying, “Maybe I’ll try later. God, it’s killing me.” He came back to …read more

Serena Williams has done it again! She has won her 10th Grand Slam title by dominating the court against Darina Safina on Saturday at the 2009 Australian Open.
She took the match 6-0, 6-3 and is now ranked No. 1. and it only took her 60 minutes. Serena looked fantastic on the court, as opposed to Safina who seemed to be struggling. In the first game, Safina double faulted 3 times including on a break point.
After the match, Safina joked by saying,“I was just a ballboy on the court today”.
Not only does Serena take away the No. 1 ranking, but …read more

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It’s time to take a vote! Which man and woman do you believe will win the Grand Slam title at the 2009 Australian Open?
In the men’s corner, it’s Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. In the women’s corner it’s Serena Williams and Dinara Safina. Who’s going to come out on top? Give me your pick in the polls below!
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{democracy:4}

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{democracy:5}

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As mentioned here, retired tennis star Pete Sampras currently holds the record with 14 Grand Slam titles. On Saturday, January 31st, Roger Federer has the chance to tie that record. If Federer wins the 2009 Australian Open final, that will give him his 14 titles.
Sampras thinks that not only will Federer tie his record, but he’ll break it with as many as 18 or 19 titles.
“I really thought that 14 would be a number that would be very tough to tie and break,” Sampras tells the AP, “but Roger just came along and dominated the …read more

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Both Andy Roddick and Roger Federer played great tennis, but when Federer plays full-strength like he did this time, beating him is hard to do. The match was won by Federer with a 6-2, 7-5, 7-5 match.
This means that Federer has reached his 18th Grand Slam final and is going for that record of 14 titles. Pete Sampras holds the current record and now Federer has a chance to tie him.
Who will he play? Rafael Nadal. The media and fans have been murmuring in the past that Roger Federer is fading. Um, I don’t think so! …read more

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Well, Roger Federrer should be a happy guy. Andy Roddick has moved on to the semifinals after Novak Djokovic had to withdraw because of the extreme heat. Which means Federrer and Roddick will face off.
Federrer actually enjoys playing Roddick and has quite the rivalry with Djokovic. If he could have picked who to play, I am sure it would have been Roddick.
After winning his match against Djokovic, Roddick said, “It’s rewarding to come out on a day like today, when it’s pretty hot, and feel pretty good. That’s what you do the work for.”
Here are some …read more

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Jelena Dokic had a good few rounds at the 2009 Australian Open, but her time is up. Dinara Safina defeated Dokic 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.
“It’s a little bit disappointing,” Dokic said. “I had some chances, even in that third set, and couldn’t hold my serve.”
Safina, who was very entertaining as always during the match, had a few good things to say about Dokic.
“She hits the ball great. She moves good. She serves good,” said Safina. “She’s a very solid player. … I mean, she beat Wozniacki; the girl is No. 11 in the world.”
I would …read more

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The heat wave going on in Melbourne, Australia right now is just brutal. This is the worst one they have had in 100 years.
The extreme heat is affecting players left and right. Novak Djokovic had to pull out of his quarter-final with Andy Roddick after feeling sick. He spent two and a half hours in temperatures rising up to 95 degrees F (35 C).
Belarus’s Victoria Azarenka also had to pull out of a match against American Serena Williams. She was ill, in tears and staggering around before she finally decided to throw in the towel. …read more

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Marion Bartoli managed to defeat top seeded Jelena Jankovic, bringing on one of the biggest upsets of the 2009 Australian Open. She won the match in two straight sets, 6-1, 6-4, and is headed to the quarterfinals.
Jankovic’s performance just wasn’t up to par with Bartoli’s. She only won 56% of the points on her first serve, compared to Bartoli’s 81%.
In the quarterfinals, she played Russia’s Vera Zvonareva and defeated in just 69 minutes, 6-3, 6-0. Zvonareva performed flawlessly and is known as a “ball machine”.
Bartoli admitted that she was outplayed.

(Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates defeating Amer Delic of the US during the men’s singles tennis match on the fifth day of the Australian Open in Melbourne on January 23, 2009.)
On Friday, January 23rd, Serbian and Croation fans got into it after Serbian Novak Djokovic’s win over Bosnian-born Amer Delic, who now represents the US, at the 2009 Australian Open.
The fans started hurling chairs at each other and injured an innocent bystander. The woman was hit in the head with a chair. As a result of the incident, two men were arrested and about 30 spectators were ejected from …read more