On Five And Still Counting - 網球

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On Five And Still Counting
10/09/2006:

Justine entered a bit of tennis history today being only the 7th player in
women's professional tennis to play in all four major finals of a grand slam
(4x = gs). She would've loved to had made the US OPEN her 6th major title,
and 2nd New York trophy, but Maria played more focused, and concise tennis to
win 6-4 6-4 in this meeting. Congratulations to Sharapova.

Justine started out strong, but as the match went on there was a noticeable
lack of punch in shots, and cat like foot speed. Maria on the other hand was
extremely focused to the point of being muted from her famed noises when
hitting shots. Solid serves from both players, but a bit less consistent for
Justine. It was a match oddly lacking in drama from two players that seem to
attract it in big matches. Respectful of each others tennis skills, the final
was more about concentration. Justine wasn't hitting powerfully as she had
done in the Davenport match, and Maria took speed off her groundstrokes to
keep them in court for rallies. Sharapova won the match with mature
restrained tennis, and Justine lost it being a level below her usual renown
aggressive skills.


Final score 4-6 4-6 to Sharapova

Disappointment is a large part of following tennis. There are two players,
and only one wins. After the joy of seeing Justine make it back to finals
night at Flushing Meadows supporters are surely heartbroken, but this loss is
no tragedy. There is still work to be done.



Next weekend on September 16 and 17 Justine will lead her Belgian team for
Fed Cup glory against Italy. The Belgian, and Italian team rosters have been
released on the official Fed Cup site. Please check your local sports cable
for tv times, and the broadcasting list on the Fed Cup site. And on the week
of November 7, Justine will cap off her 2006 tennis season in the tournament
finale at the WTA championships to be played in Madrid, Spain. The
championships will feature the top 8 players in the world based on this
season's Sony Ericsson race points. The Belgian lioness is currently #1, and
has already officially qualified for the event, while 6 other spots will be
fought for during the Asian hardcourt season starting next week, and the
European indoor leg of the WTA tour.

Allez Justine!

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