Tennis FanHouse

Ana Ivanovic Works With Charities

Elie Seckbach — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: U.S. Open, WTA, WTA Rankings, FanHouse Exclusive

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Ana Ivanovic is on top of the world. She is a star athlete, who was once ranked No. 1 in the world. That's not to mention she has millions of dollars and looks that stops traffic. But life wasn't always that easy.

In this FanHouse video, Ana talks to us about how she used to practice tennis while growing up in a war-torn Belgrade, Serbia (formally part of Yugoslavia). We also hear from Ana about her charity work and what she would rather have, her shoes or her racket.

Check out the video after the jump.

Ana Ivanovic Works With Charities originally appeared on Tennis FanHouse on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is Height a Tennis Advantage? Dominika Cibulková Doesn't Think So

Elie Seckbach — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:50:00 EST

Filed under: U.S. Open, Australian Open, French Open, WTA, FanHouse Exclusive

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Tennis star Dominika Cibulková is an outstanding athlete who was ranked as high as No. 12 in the world. Still, she has no ego in a sport full of self-centered stars. In this exclusive video we ask Dominika about her height disadvantage -- she's only 5-foot-3 -- compared to many much taller players. We also hear who she thinks is the number one tennis player today and who she would like to play her in a movie.

Check out the video after the jump.

Is Height a Tennis Advantage? Dominika Cibulková Doesn't Think So originally appeared on Tennis FanHouse on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:50:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tennis Star Maria Kirilenko Clarifies Relationship with Andre

Elie Seckbach — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: U.S. Open, Australian Open, Davis Cup, WTA, FanHouse Exclusive

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

22-year-old tennis hottie Maria Kirilenko has been ranked as high as No. 18 in the world, but she's getting a lot of attention for her looks instead of her tennis ability. In fact Kirilenko has been on the cover of many magazines and was selected in 2006 to be the face of Adidas. In this video we talk to Maria about her game and her name -- her connection to Utah Jazz star Andrei Kirilenko.

Check out the video after the jump.

Tennis Star Maria Kirilenko Clarifies Relationship with Andre originally appeared on Tennis FanHouse on Sat, 26 Sep 2009 10:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Why You Won't Find Tennis Great Pete Sampras on Twitter

Elie Seckbach — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Grand Slam, U.S. Open, French Open, WTA, WTA Rankings, FanHouse Exclusive

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

During a time when so many top athletes are addicted to Twitter, tennis great Pete Sampras tells us why you'll never find him sending out updates on the social networking site. Also, hear what this former No. 1 ranked player has to say about the state of tennis today, and why the United States is no longer dominating the sport. Sampras, by the way, is second all-time in earnings, making over $43 million as an active player.

Check out the video after the jump.

Why You Won't Find Tennis Great Pete Sampras on Twitter originally appeared on Tennis FanHouse on Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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To Grunt or Not to Grunt, That Is the Question in Women's Tennis

Elie Seckbach — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 17:38:00 EST

Filed under: WTA, FanHouse Exclusive

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

In a time when there is major controversy in baseball involving steroids, women's tennis also has some tension, but with a totally different problem -- grunts. Some hate them, some love them, but everyone has a take on them. We caught up with some players, such as Russian beauty Elena Vesnina as well as Varvara Lepchenko and Tatiana Garbin. We also heard from coaches and fans. What do they think of players who grunt? Does it help or hurt their game? We report, you decide.

Check out the video after the jump.

To Grunt or Not to Grunt, That Is the Question in Women's Tennis originally appeared on Tennis FanHouse on Tue, 18 Aug 2009 17:38:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Top 20 Things About Billie Jean King Cup

Tom Herrera — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 11:19:00 EST

Filed under: FanHouse Exclusive, Billie Jean King Cup

NEW YORK -- FanHouse was all credentialed up for Monday night's BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup. From Bill Clinton's speech, to what Serena's triumph over her sister means moving forward, here's a list of 20 observations from a night of tennis involving Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Serena Williams and Venus Williams at New York's Madison Square Garden.

1. The format for the semifinal matches were one set each, and no tiebreakers (no deuce). So you either got hot early, or you were out. The final match was a traditional best-of-three-sets format, however.

2. In the first match of the night, Venus got a huge response from the New York faithful. And rightfully so; Venus started off slow against Jankovic, but after double-faulting in the 10th game, Venus seemed to wake up and kicked it into a gear that is nearly impossible for anyone other than her sister to keep up with. It was impressive to see.

3. To her credit, Jankovic had a strong showing and was aggressive from the start. She definitely received a warm reception from the audience for her efforts. Jankovic also had an upbeat outlook after her night was done. "Unfortunately the Serbian girls didn't win, but we had fun and that's what's important," she said. (Audio here.)

4. The atmosphere in the Garden is so very different from what one gets at a Knicks game. You could honestly hear a baby crying during a serve. It's just a funny thing to experience in a place that's usually filled with boisterous (and that's putting it mildly) fans.

5. After winning her semifinal match, 6-4, Venus said she changed her approach vs. Jankovic due to the sudden-death format. Venus said there were a couple of shots that she wouldn't have normally taken, but with there being only one set, it really adds pressure, meaning every game counts that much more.

6. Venus also seemed to be having trouble with flash photography during her serves. She stopped mid-toss more than a handful of times during both of her matches.

7. In the Ivanovic-Serena semifinal match, Ivanovic went to the net early, which seemed to take Serena out of her comfort zone a little bit. But Serena's service game and power proved to be just a little too much for Ivanovic. Here's what Ivanovic said after falling to Serena: "Everything was happening too fast, especially with knowing scoring. I had so many breakaway chances today with Serena, her first serve was unbelievable. I think the big difference today was her first serve."

8. After Serena beat Ivanovic, she said, "It doesn't get better than playing in New York." And then she promised the crowd a great final match between her and her sister.

9. All the players lobbed signed tennis balls up to the crowd after their semifinal matches. It looked a lot easier, and far more efficient, than the T-shirts they normally shoot out of air cannons during Knicks games.

10. Some of the players mispronounced the sponsor's name during their post-match interviews. It's "pair-ee-bah" not "pair-ee-boss". Oh, the horror.

11. HBO On-Camera Wardrobe Note: John McEnroe wore black patent leather dress shoes with his suit. Mary Carillo? Yellow sneakers and a suit. Just sayin'.

12. After both semifinal matches were done, Bill Clinton honored Billie Jean King. The ovation for Clinton was twice as loud as that for King or any of the players. As Clinton took the podium, there was plenty of hooting, hollering and camera flashes.

13. A few choice Clinton quotes about King: "She probably has done more than any woman in the world to empower women, and to educate men." ... "If you have the heart of a champion, if you have the heart of Billie Jean King, you can prevail." Based on the crowd's response, Clinton aced his appearance.

14. Both sisters were very open all week during interviews about how they wanted an all-Williams final. Much to the crowd's delight, they got their wish. Serena and Venus took the floor for their final match to enthusiastic applause from the crowd.

15. In the ninth game of the first set, which dragged on to an unbelievable nine deuces, one fan said (to much laughter): "Come on Venus, finish this. Let's go home." And then, as if on cue, with play flagging, the sisters delievered one of the best points of the night. Venus capped it with a baseline winner that left Serena doing a split. It was some impressive tennis, to say the least.

16. While play in the Venus-Serena match was uneven, it can't be said that both sisters weren't putting forth strong efforts. Both were visibly into the match -- with Venus grunting and Serena yelling at herself after missed shots -- and after a tremendous rally in the eighth game, Serena took a scary tumble while trying to track down a great shot by Venus. They might not have been consistent, but both sisters were giving it their all.

17. Serena wound up topping Venus, 6-4, 6-3. Coming into the match, Venus and Serena had met 19 times, with Venus leading the series, 10-9. But after Serena's win Monday night, it's now flush at 10-10.

18. Venus Williams after losing to her sister: "I wish I could have won, but there's always next year ... hopefully this is the first of many, that's what we would like."

19. There seemed to be an awkward hush when Serena was awarded her $400,000 novelty check after beating Venus in the final. For all of Clinton's talk earlier in the night about how tough things are in the U.S., it was strange to see a player play a few hours of tennis and then walk away with that much money.

20. But it's also worth mentioning that the Dreams Vaccines Foundation was presented with a $50,000 check, which is yet another example of Billie Jean's social activism. All in all, a slightly uneven, yet pretty enjoyable, night of tennis in New York City.

FanHouse's Randy Kim also contributed to this story.

Billie Jean King Cup

Serena Williams is introduced for the championship match against Venus Williams at the Billie Jean King Cup tennis exhibition Monday, March 2, 2009, at Madison Square Garden in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

NEW YORK - MARCH 02: Serena Williams accepts the Billie Jean King Cup from Billie Jean King after defeating sister Venus Williams in the Final during the BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean Cup at Madison Square Garden on March 2, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Serena Williams;Billie Jean King

Getty Images

Serena Williams (L) and her sister Venus clap before Serena is presented with the Billie Jean King Cup after she beat her sister in the final of the BNP Paribas Showdown tennis match at Madison Square Garden in New York March 2, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES)

Reuters

Serena Williams holds up the Billie Jean King cup after she beat her sister Venus to win the BNP Paribas Showdown tennis match at Madison Square Garden in New York March 2, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES)

Reuters

Serena Williams (R) holds the Billie Jean King cup presented by Billie Jean King (C) after she beat her sister Venus, holding the consolation trophy, to win the BNP Paribas Showdown tennis match at Madison Square Garden in New York March 2, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES)

Reuters

Serena Williams gets a kiss from Billie Jean King (R) as she is presented the Billie Jean King Cup after beating her sister Venus to win the BNP Paribas Showdown tennis match at Madison Square Garden in New York March 2, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES)

Reuters

Serena Williams holds up the Billie Jean King cup presented by Billie Jean King (R), after she beat her sister Venus to win the BNP Paribas Showdown tennis match at Madison Square Garden in New York March 2, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES)

Reuters

Venus Williams, left, and Serena Williams, right, pose for a photo with Billie Jean King after Serena beat her sister 6-4, 6-3 in the championship match of the Billie Jean King Cup tennis exhibition Monday, March 2, 2009 at Madison Square Garden in New York. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)

Serena Williams holds up the championship trophy after beating Venus Williams 6-4, 6-3 in the Billie Jean King Cup tennis exhibition Monday, March 2, 2009, at Madison Square Garden in New York. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)

Top 20 Things About Billie Jean King Cup originally appeared on Tennis FanHouse on Tue, 03 Mar 2009 11:19:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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