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Dinara Part 2

151K views 999 replies 75 participants last post by  michellej 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
#406 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

Even though Dinara didn't play her best in the QF, I liked how she toughed it out. I also liked that she didn't go crazy after the 2nd serve foot fault unlike you know who... :p :lol:

Dinara's SF match is first on Chatrier tomorrow (Thursday) at 2pm Paris time. (Which means an early morning for me - actual LIVE tennis on TV! :lol:)

In other news, Dinara will remain #1 because of Serena's loss today. (Kuzzy :D) I noticed that those lovely journalists tried to get Serena to say some unkind stuff about the #1 issue again but she didn't take the bait this time.
Q. If Safina wins the title here, will that authenticate her as the world No. 1, do you think?

SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, I already think she's definitely authenticated as the world No. 1. She's there. She has won four tournaments.

Q. She will have won a Slam, so big difference?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I mean, yeah, sure. But she's No. 1 already. I mostly try to focus on me nowadays.
...

Q. Do you see Safina as the favorite at this point in the tournament?

SERENA WILLIAMS: Um, yeah, absolutely. I don't see ‑‑ I don't know if ‑‑ I definitely see her as a favorite, for sure.

http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/interviews/2009-06-03/200906031244046391110.html
 
#407 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

Dina is in the final of RG but her semi final performance was DIRE. I hope she's not too hard on herself in the presser. She's been in every final of every tournaments since being no.1 and this is her 3rd Slam final :bounce:
 
#412 ·
#413 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

Don't bother even thinking Marat will be there - he won't. He is supposed to leave for London on Friday, since he's playing at Queen's Club next week and needs to practice on grass. :p

Dinara was not playing her best (DF's! :help:), but I knew Cibulkova would be a tough match-up. I was a bit surprised she won in straights. I had a good time laughing at Z's reactions to her antics. :lol:

Near the end of the 2nd set of Sveta's match, Dinara came over to the American ESPN outdoor studio and did a brief interview. The only thing she said worth mentioning is that she has had a cold/flu for the past couple days, and she's not taking any real medicine (only tea) so she doesn't fail a doping test. :awww: Her voice sounded hoarse (you can hear it in her official post-match interview) - probably all that yelling during her match didn't help. :p Dinara ended up staying at the outdoor studio to watch the end of the 2nd set. ESPN showed a little clip later of Dinara watching the tiebreak and having this weird, surprised expression on her face that was funny. :lol:
 
#415 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

Don't bother even thinking Marat will be there - he won't. He is supposed to leave for London on Friday, since he's playing at Queen's Club next week and needs to practice on grass. :p

Dinara was not playing her best (DF's! :help:), but I knew Cibulkova would be a tough match-up. I was a bit surprised she won in straights. I had a good time laughing at Z's reactions to her antics. :lol:

Near the end of the 2nd set of Sveta's match, Dinara came over to the American ESPN outdoor studio and did a brief interview. The only thing she said worth mentioning is that she has had a cold/flu for the past couple days, and she's not taking any real medicine (only tea) so she doesn't fail a doping test. :awww: Her voice sounded hoarse (you can hear it in her official post-match interview) - probably all that yelling during her match didn't help. :p Dinara ended up staying at the outdoor studio to watch the end of the 2nd set. ESPN showed a little clip later of Dinara watching the tiebreak and having this weird, surprised expression on her face that was funny. :lol:
us dina fans still tell ourselves he might turn up when there really is no hope :lol:

The match was painful to watch at times with her serve and how tight she was getting, but hilarious with her swearing and sarcasm :lol:

I saw a screencap of her expression and she was getting so into it! :lol: She told the interviewer that she had the flu but she'd be bed-ridden so I think it's just a sore throat etc. :scared:
 
#414 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

Ok, so I was reading the transcript and I saw this:
Q. Soon after you became No. 1, the player you replaced said that she wasthe real No. 1. But yesterday she saidthat you authenticated your position as No. 1.
:speakles:

So I had to check Serena's itw :p
And indeed here is what she said yesterday:

Q. If Safina wins the title here, will that authenticate her as the worldNo. 1, do you think?
SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, I already think she's definitelyauthenticated as the world No. 1. She'sthere. She has won four tournaments.
Q. She will have won a Slam, so big difference?
SERENA WILLIAMS: I mean, yeah, sure. But she's No. 1 already. I mostly try to focus on me nowadays.
[...] Q. Do you see Safina as the favorite at this point in the tournament?
SERENA WILLIAMS: Um, yeah, absolutely. I don't see ‑‑ I don't know if ‑‑ Idefinitely see her as a favorite, for sure.
:eek:
 
#416 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

RG : Russian roulette by Steve Tignor

RG: Russian Roulette
Posted 06/05/2009 @ 1 :57 PM

Ds The TV will not love this match. The great enigma known as the American Public will turn a blind eye. The mythical and much-discussed “casual sports fan” will not tune in. Should we care? From his name, I somehow picture this fan slouching on his sofa in a Megadeth T-shirt on a Saturday morning, grudgingly moving his eyes to follow the ball back and forth over the net, wishing to God that the Indy 500 was on this weekend. (And good for him—Megadeth rocked.)

Even among devotees of the sport, Dinara Safina vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova can hardly be called a clash of the titans. Like it or not, you need to have Venus or Serena (but not Venus and Serena) for that. Instead, happy-go-lucky Kuzzie derailed the hoped-for Battle of the Reals—as in, the battle to see who really deserved to be No. 1, Safina or Serena. But if you’ve been following the women over the last couple of months in Europe, this is the match-up you likely anticipated seeing on the final Saturday in Paris. The two Russians have been the class of the clay-court season. Kuznetsova beat Safina in the Stuttgart final; Safina turned the tables on her in Rome.

In this sense, we have a representative and well-deserved title round, with no one-shot wonders to wonder about. The match also comes with a few subplots of its own. They may be the usual ones we hear about on the women’s tour these days—which player not named Williams has what it takes to win a major; can anyone hold back the jitters and take the tour by the throat?—but that doesn’t make them any less compelling for the moment. Each of these women has a few chokes, duds, and ugly disintegrations in her past, but each has shown a surprising competitive reserve of late.

Safina has reacted to Serena’s No. 1 talk startlingly well. In Rome, where Williams made her comments, Safina showed more upbeat, aggressive energy than I’ve ever seen from her. And in Paris she’s gone even farther, riding out nervous early moments and a lost first set to Victoria Azarenka with her lumbering authority and poise intact. Not that the old Safin blood doesn’t continue to flow through her veins. In the third against Azarenka, she grabbed an early lead but still howled at the sky with useless frustration after losing a relatively inconsequential point. Remind you of anyone?

For Kuzzie, it's been tightness at the wrong moment, and in the wrong match, as well as a lack of cutthroat ambition, that has traditionally been her downfall. Like Safina, she hasn’t completely left her problems behind in Paris. She was up 5-2 in the second-set tiebreaker of her semifinal with Sam Stosur, two points from the match, when started to play safe and lost five straight points. Still, she steadied herself in the third and became more aggressive to close out the last game.

Safina and Kuznetsova two have a long history together. They've played 13 times dating back to 2000; Safina holds an 8-5 to edge, has won five of their last six meetings (all in straight sets), and has beaten Kuz in two of their three finals.

As for the strengths and weaknesses that they'll being to their 14 encounter:

—Kuznetsova is the more natural mover on clay, the better athlete, and the steadier server

Kuz —Kuznetsova is infinitely flakier and possesses one of the worst records in finals of any player in history. Like I said, one thing she has always lacked is vicious ambition.

—Safina is grittier and has made herself the mentally stronger player, for the moment

—Safina is fit and hits a heavier and safer ball without sacrificing too much power, though Kuznetsova can smack winners from anywhere

—After losing two Slam finals in the last year, Safina believes she should have this title, and she’s going to do everything she can to get it while the Williams sisters are away. Kuznetsova still seems to be convincing herself of her own right to the championship, though she has been to the final here before and knows she has the skills to take the final step.

I think this one will be decided by consistency over the long run. Kuznetsova plays a wristy, risky game. With her, every ball could be a winner or a head-scratching, eye-rolling misfire. She’ll take a rip from anywhere, at any time, though she did show a little more restraint in her last two rounds. Consistency, doggedness, a grinder’s mentality—this is what wins on clay, and while Safina is no born dirtballer, she has very slowly incorporated those three virtues into a game that was once most notable for irrational fits of rage. Can Safina manage the anger for two more sets? I’m thinking she can, and I’ll be happy to slouch on my couch Saturday morning and watch her try.
 
#418 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

she looked like she still has a way to go till she'll be able to win a GS final; credit to sveta - played a good match and deserved to win. And she was a graceful winner - was rather composed and modest and had a lovely speech.
 
#419 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

she looked like she still has a way to go till she'll be able to win a GS final; credit to sveta - played a good match and deserved to win. And she was a graceful winner - was rather composed and modest and had a lovely speech.
So true. :worship: and she played very well.

Felt sorry for Dinara. Especially as they showed her before the final and she was smiling and looked/sounded more confident and relax than before her previous GS finals. And Zeljko :)inlove:) was smiling too. I felt so confident :D
But... :awww:

At some point in the second set she was looking at him and saying something. Couldn't hear correctly, but Tatiana Golovin doing comments on French tv said she was asking why she was scared. :awww:

Next time she plays a GS final I hope she won't be #1. It must be already hard for her after several finals lost, thinking she has to justify the ranking must be eve, worse.
 
#423 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

poor girl. like the others, it seemed to be over so quickly... she never looked comfortable out there. I hope she has a good run at wimbledon and works out these nerves.
 
#424 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

I can't help but think if she couldn't win here she may never win a slam, it was just too perfect, the draw, her first week performance, her previous performances against Kuzzy. Just so damn painful and her body language etc in the video presser is so depressing. I hope she bounces back from this.
 
#425 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

so sad
Dinara was all nerves, like a scared little girl
and her serve lately is a disaster, DF and then speed slows massively
unfortunately it runs in the family so it will never go away completely, for her sakes she will have to deal with it somehow, but outside help is needed for sure
 
#426 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

:crying2: I feel so bad for her. You could tell she REALLY wanted to win. Her serve was even worse than normal (where did it go? back to Moscow??? :p) and was missing easy shots. She panicked and it got worse from there. :explode: I'm glad she kept it together for the ceremony. Usually after the ceremony, both the finalists do interviews with the American TV network (and I think some others as well), but Dinara was out of there as soon as the pictures were done. Dina :hug:

But I am very happy for Sveta - she's my 2nd favorite WTA player. I'm glad she finally won the French and she played very well. :D

I hope Dinara mentally recovers from this. She's a great player. She needs to work on her serve, learn not to panic in tough matches, and not rely on her coach for support so much. ;) Maybe someone can pass her Ivan Lendl's phone # - Lendl got to #1 with no GS wins and 2 GS finals. He was 0-4 in GS finals before he won his 1st one. But he did win like 33+ titles and and a couple YEC's when he first became #1... :lol:
 
#427 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

Felt so sorry for Dina watching this match; you feel she wants it too much. I'm happy for Sveta but still.
 
#431 ·
Re: Dinara Part 2: NUMBER ONE!!!!!!!

This is from the cover story in next week's Sports Illustrated (U.S. version). Fed is on the cover and the article is mostly about him, but this part about Dinara was interesting:
Even though this might have been his last, best shot at winning the French, Federer was hardly the most nervous player in Paris. The recently crowned women's No. 1, Dinara Safina, came in desperate to justify her ranking and make up for her two previous collapses in Grand Slam finals. Instead, on the evening before Saturday's dispiriting women's final, the 23-year-old Safina was so overwhelmed by the occasion that she shut herself off from her trusted coach, Zeljko Krajan, and anyone else who tried to get her to relax.

"Straight after the semis, [Safina] was done," Krajan said after Svetlana Kuznetsova, a specialist herself in high-pressure meltdowns, cruised 6--4, 6--2 to claim the title. "She was lost in her head, and it was impossible to get to her. Before the match she could not even [eat] dinner. She had to cry for four hours. Emotionally she just collapsed."

http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1156468/1/index.htm
How sad. :awww: :hug:
 
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