Tennis French Open

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.

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.

EASTBOURNE, England (AP)-French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova lost in the first round of the grass-court tournament at Eastbourne on Tuesday, falling 6-0, 6-3 to Aleksandra Wozniack of Canada.

"It's really tough for me," the second-seeded Kuznetsova said. "I played for two months on clay and I have it almost in my blood.

"On this surface, everything is opposite. For me, it's too much to change in three days."

Rafael Nadal is going to get through this one. This time. He's going to play at Wimbledon in two weeks, going to try to defend one of the greatest moments the sport has had, his victory in the finals last year over Roger Federer.

Doctors have analyzed Nadal's knees, taken pictures, poked and prodded, and have not found torn ligaments or major damage. They found tendinitis. On Tuesday, though, Nadal said he's still not sure he'll be able to play at Wimbledon, but that he's going to London for rest and rehab.

In other words, he's going to play.

By the time he got off his knees, pulled his face out of his hands and reached into his pocket for the ball he would hit it to screaming fans, the tears were already flowing.

Five months ago, Roger Federer's tears were supposed to be the sign of his dismantling. On Sunday, they were about all that is good in tennis: Good guy. Doing things right. Overcoming. And they were also about history, and whether Federer is now the greatest player of all time.

Fans at Roland Garros sounded rather surprised Sunday during the French Open men's final. While Roger Federer was getting ready to receive serve from underdog opponent Robin Soderling, a fan ran onto the clay court.

As security descended on the surface to run the guy down, he tried to put a hat on Federer's head. When security got too close for comfort, the man took off running. While it may have been easy to jump on the court, he found it a bit more difficult to get off it. Video after the jump.

Why am I such a chicken?

That's what Dinara Safina said. This was her crowning moment. And, oh man, did women's tennis need this. It needs a star desperately. And Safina needed a big win desperately, as she is No. 1 without a major title. That's No. 1 with an asterisk.

But here she was in the final of the French Open Saturday, and instead of a grand moment for Safina and for women's tennis, it just turned into something that turned your stomach.

In the end, Safina lost to Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 6-2. And yes, I said that in the right order. The story of the match is that Safina lost, not that Kuznetsova won.

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PARIS (AP) -- Svetlana Kuznetsova conquered her nerves and beat a shaky Dinara Safina to win the French Open.

Showing uncharacteristic calm, Kuznetsova earned her second Grand Slam title Saturday by defeating Safina 6-4, 6-2 in an all-Russian matchup. Jitters have often betrayed Kuznetsova down the stretch in big matches, but she swept the final four games with steady play.

Roger Federer needs Rafael Nadal. History might not care, because if Federer beats Robin Soderling in the final of the French Open Sunday, that will be his 14th major title. He will tie Pete Sampras' record, and will have done something Sampras never did: win the big one on red clay.

Federer can only beat the player standing on the other side of the net. And the tennis world will be buzzing about King Roger, and his crowning, if he wins. But deep down, everyone will feel it: Something will be missing.

Nadal.

PARIS (AP)-Sentimental favorite Roger Federer did not quite follow the script Friday at the French Open. He decided to go for high drama.

Striving to complete a career Grand Slam, Federer came from behind twice in the semifinals to beat big-serving Juan Martin del Potro 3-6, 7-6 (2), 2-6, 6-1, 6-4.

Playing in his fourth consecutive Roland Garros final, Federer will try for his 14th major title to match Pete Sampras' record.