PierreC
05-22-2007, 11:05 PM
Results - Sunday, May 20, 2007
Singles - Final
(3) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) d. (2) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 75 61
Doubles - Final
(7) Dechy/Santangelo (FRA/ITA) d. Garbin/Vinci (ITA/ITA) 64 61
Final Facts:
- Jankovic won her fourth career Tour singles title, having already won at 2004 Budapest (Tier V), 2007 Auckland (Tier IV) and 2007 Charleston (Tier I); she is now 4-5 lifetime in Tour singles finals, after having finished runner-up at Dubai, Birmingham and Seoul in 2005, Los Angeles in 2006 and Sydney earlier this year.
- A No.3-seeded Jankovic did not drop a set in five victories this week, including a 62 61 victory over No.10 seed Dementieva in the quarterfinals, a 61 63 victory over No.14 seed Schnyder in the semifinals and the 75 61 victory over No.2 seed Kuznetsova in the final.
- Jankovic is now tied with Henin for most Tour singles titles so far this year (with three).
- Since hitting the red clay of Rome one year ago, Jankovic has won 81 of 108 singles matches.
- Kuznetsova falls to 8-11 lifetime in Tour singles finals; that includes an 0-4 mark so far in 2007, after additional runner-up finishes at Doha (to Henin), Indian Wells (to Hantuchova) and Berlin (to Ivanovic).
- Kuznetsova was the 11th woman ever to reach back-to-back finals at Berlin and Rome; she was only the second, however, to finish runner-up at both (after Sabatini did the same in 1993).
- Kuznetsova was the third Russian ever to contest the Rome singles final; none of them have ever won the title (Morozova was a runner-up in 1972 and Safina was a runner-up last year).
- Dechy and Santangelo were playing together for the first time; Dechy won her third career Tour doubles title (and first of the year) while Santangelo won her fourth (and third of the year).
Quotes:
Jelena Jankovic, 2007 Internazionali BNL d'Italia singles champion:
"A year ago I almost quit playing tennis here in Rome - it was where everything turned around in my career. It's just amazing how after one year I'm here and holding the trophy. It's just unbelievable what a year does. I'm really thankful for what happened. It made me stronger and I feel I'm more experienced."
Svetlana Kuznetsova, 2007 Internazionali BNL d'Italia singles runner-up:
"It's just about the finals; it's important to get there but it's very bad to lose it. I know I can play much better than I played today. I've proven it in other matches, now I'll just have to prove it in finals. It is something I have to work on, but I'm definitely sure I have the game to do it."
Singles - Final
(3) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) d. (2) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 75 61
Doubles - Final
(7) Dechy/Santangelo (FRA/ITA) d. Garbin/Vinci (ITA/ITA) 64 61
Final Facts:
- Jankovic won her fourth career Tour singles title, having already won at 2004 Budapest (Tier V), 2007 Auckland (Tier IV) and 2007 Charleston (Tier I); she is now 4-5 lifetime in Tour singles finals, after having finished runner-up at Dubai, Birmingham and Seoul in 2005, Los Angeles in 2006 and Sydney earlier this year.
- A No.3-seeded Jankovic did not drop a set in five victories this week, including a 62 61 victory over No.10 seed Dementieva in the quarterfinals, a 61 63 victory over No.14 seed Schnyder in the semifinals and the 75 61 victory over No.2 seed Kuznetsova in the final.
- Jankovic is now tied with Henin for most Tour singles titles so far this year (with three).
- Since hitting the red clay of Rome one year ago, Jankovic has won 81 of 108 singles matches.
- Kuznetsova falls to 8-11 lifetime in Tour singles finals; that includes an 0-4 mark so far in 2007, after additional runner-up finishes at Doha (to Henin), Indian Wells (to Hantuchova) and Berlin (to Ivanovic).
- Kuznetsova was the 11th woman ever to reach back-to-back finals at Berlin and Rome; she was only the second, however, to finish runner-up at both (after Sabatini did the same in 1993).
- Kuznetsova was the third Russian ever to contest the Rome singles final; none of them have ever won the title (Morozova was a runner-up in 1972 and Safina was a runner-up last year).
- Dechy and Santangelo were playing together for the first time; Dechy won her third career Tour doubles title (and first of the year) while Santangelo won her fourth (and third of the year).
Quotes:
Jelena Jankovic, 2007 Internazionali BNL d'Italia singles champion:
"A year ago I almost quit playing tennis here in Rome - it was where everything turned around in my career. It's just amazing how after one year I'm here and holding the trophy. It's just unbelievable what a year does. I'm really thankful for what happened. It made me stronger and I feel I'm more experienced."
Svetlana Kuznetsova, 2007 Internazionali BNL d'Italia singles runner-up:
"It's just about the finals; it's important to get there but it's very bad to lose it. I know I can play much better than I played today. I've proven it in other matches, now I'll just have to prove it in finals. It is something I have to work on, but I'm definitely sure I have the game to do it."