Stosur finds feet on clay

Form ... Sam Stosur finally wins a clay court match. Source: Andres Kudacki / News Limited

Samantha Stosur has finally enjoyed her first win of the European clay season on her third attempt, with a comfortable 6-2 6-3 win over Taiwan's Hsieh Su-Wei on Monday at the Rome Masters.

Former French Open finalist Stosur was bundled out in her opening matches at both Stuttgart and Madrid before tasting victory in the first round in Rome.

Stosur travelled to Italy to practice immediately after her first round loss to Carla Suarez Navarro in Madrid and the move paid off as the Australian ninth seed served well and her forehand held steady in the windy conditions.

"What I really like here is the surface, the clay courts are very light and the ball gets through the air pretty quickly,'' Stosur said.

"As long as it's not too windy it's great.''

Meanwhile, former Rome Masters champion Venus Williams heads into the French Open in less than a fortnight without a win on European clay after losing 6-3 6-2 to Briton Laura Robson at the Foro Italico.

Five-time Wimbledon winner Williams went down on the back of six double-faults, losing her serve five times.

The Briton now faces a huge task as she takes on the younger Williams sister, Serena, after the American won her second straight title at Madrid with a 12th consecutive defeat of rival Maria Sharapova.

German Sabine Lisicki also reached the second round over American Madison Burdette 6-1 6-2 but sixth seed and Madrid semi-finalist Angelique Kerber of Germany withdrew with an abdominal strain.

China's Peng Shuai beat Romanian Monica Niculescu 4-6 6-3 6-2 while Italian Nastassja Burnett beat 2008 finalist Alize Cornet 6-2 6-2.

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Hurt Stosur calls it quits

Out of action ... Sam Stosur has withdrawn due to injury. Source: GREG WOOD / AFP

Australian Samantha Stosur was forced to withdraw from her Indian Wells quarter-final match against Angelique Kerber due to injury.

The world No.9 had looked in good form at the tournament and was eying her first semi-final in five months.

"The official reason for Sam Stosur's withdrawal is a right calf injury," the tournament said on its Twitter feed.

Stosur had on Wednesday recorded a rare comeback win in the fourth round, rallying from a set down to beat German youngster Mona Barthel 4-6 6-2 6-3.

The last time Stosur progressed past the quarter-finals of a tournament was in Moscow last October where she lost to Caroline Wozniacki in the title match.

Stosur, seeded No.7 in the event, held a 2-0 career record over Kerber who now receives a walkover into the semi-finals.

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Matosevic out, Stosur wins

Marinko Matosevic ... bows out of the Indian Wells Masters tournament. Source: Mark Humphrey / AP

Australia's Marinko Matosevic missed out on a clash with world No.1 Novak Djokovic but Samantha Stosur continued to roll on at the Indian Wells Masters on Tuesday.

Matosevic lost the first set in a tiebreak to Sam Querrey before fighting back to win a second set tiebreak.

But it was not enough as Querrey triumphed over the 27-year-old 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (7-9) 7-5 to set up a fourth-round showdown with Djokovic.

Stosur meanwhile belied her poor record when having lost a first set to claim a win over Germany's Mona Barthel 4-6 6-2 6-3.

Things only get tougher though for the world No.9 when she takes on Angelique Kerber, the fourth seed, in the quarter-finals.

Kerber defeated Spanish qualifier Garbine Muguruza 6-4 7-5 in her fourth round match.

All of the top 10 women's seeds were among the 16 players fighting for quarter-final berths, led by top seed and defending champion Victoria Azarenka and second-seeded Russian Maria Sharapova.

Sharapova started slow but came on strong in a 7-5 6-0 victory over 87th-ranked Spaniard Lara Arruabarrena-Vecino.

She'll play Sara Errani who advanced with a 6-3 6-2 victory over ninth-seeded Marion Bartoli.

Sharapova, who beat Errani at last year's French Open decider, said she expected a close tussle.

"I think one of her biggest keys is her consistency and her ability to make her opponent play,'' Sharapova said of Errani. "She doesn't make many mistakes. You've really got to win the match out there.''

Top-seeded Azarenka also advanced, despite a sore ankle, beating Urszula Radwanska 6-3 6-1.

In the men's Djokovic trailed 4-1 in the opening set but he survived his rocky start to beat Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (7-4) 6-1 to reach the fourth round.

A welter of errors from Djokovic's 21-year-old Bulgarian opponent was the only opportunity the Serbian star needed and he battled back to win in 67 minutes.

Djokovic improved his win-loss record to 15-0 in 2013 and 20-0 since October 31 -- when he lost to Querrey in the Paris Masters.

Eighth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and 17th-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic set up a rematch of their record-breaking London Olympics clash, when Tsonga out-lasted Raonic 6-3 3-6 25-23 in the second round.

The 48-game final set was the longest single set in Olympic history, a record that takes into account all men's and women's matches in both singles and doubles.

Tsonga held off American Mardy Fish 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-0) while Raonic rallied for a 3-6 6-4 6-3 victory over Croatian Marin Cilic.

In all, 12 men's seeds were in third-round action on Tuesday, including world No.3 Andy Murray.

Murray, playing his first tournament since losing to Djokovic in the Australian Open final in January, was due to take on Taiwan's Lu Yen-Hsun.

Lu stunned Murray in the first round at the 2008 Beijing Olympics -- a disappointment Murray made up for with his gold medal performance before adoring British fans at the London Games last year.

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Matosevic out, Stosur wins

Marinko Matosevic ... bows out of the Indian Wells Masters tournament. Source: Mark Humphrey / AP

Australia's Marinko Matosevic missed out on a clash with world No.1 Novak Djokovic but Samantha Stosur continued to roll on at the Indian Wells Masters on Tuesday.

Matosevic lost the first set in a tiebreak to Sam Querrey before fighting back to win a second set tiebreak.

But it was not enough as Querrey triumphed over the 27-year-old 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (7-9) 7-5 to set up a fourth-round showdown with Djokovic.

Stosur meanwhile belied her poor record when having lost a first set to claim a win over Germany's Mona Barthel 4-6 6-2 6-3.

Things only get tougher though for the world No.9 when she takes on Angelique Kerber, the fourth seed, in the quarter-finals.

Kerber defeated Spanish qualifier Garbine Muguruza 6-4 7-5 in her fourth round match.

All of the top 10 women's seeds were among the 16 players fighting for quarter-final berths, led by top seed and defending champion Victoria Azarenka and second-seeded Russian Maria Sharapova.

Sharapova started slow but came on strong in a 7-5 6-0 victory over 87th-ranked Spaniard Lara Arruabarrena-Vecino.

She'll play Sara Errani who advanced with a 6-3 6-2 victory over ninth-seeded Marion Bartoli.

Sharapova, who beat Errani at last year's French Open decider, said she expected a close tussle.

"I think one of her biggest keys is her consistency and her ability to make her opponent play,'' Sharapova said of Errani. "She doesn't make many mistakes. You've really got to win the match out there.''

Top-seeded Azarenka also advanced, despite a sore ankle, beating Urszula Radwanska 6-3 6-1.

In the men's Djokovic trailed 4-1 in the opening set but he survived his rocky start to beat Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (7-4) 6-1 to reach the fourth round.

A welter of errors from Djokovic's 21-year-old Bulgarian opponent was the only opportunity the Serbian star needed and he battled back to win in 67 minutes.

Djokovic improved his win-loss record to 15-0 in 2013 and 20-0 since October 31 -- when he lost to Querrey in the Paris Masters.

Eighth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and 17th-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic set up a rematch of their record-breaking London Olympics clash, when Tsonga out-lasted Raonic 6-3 3-6 25-23 in the second round.

The 48-game final set was the longest single set in Olympic history, a record that takes into account all men's and women's matches in both singles and doubles.

Tsonga held off American Mardy Fish 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-0) while Raonic rallied for a 3-6 6-4 6-3 victory over Croatian Marin Cilic.

In all, 12 men's seeds were in third-round action on Tuesday, including world No.3 Andy Murray.

Murray, playing his first tournament since losing to Djokovic in the Australian Open final in January, was due to take on Taiwan's Lu Yen-Hsun.

Lu stunned Murray in the first round at the 2008 Beijing Olympics -- a disappointment Murray made up for with his gold medal performance before adoring British fans at the London Games last year.

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Hurt Stosur calls it quits

Out of action ... Sam Stosur has withdrawn due to injury. Source: GREG WOOD / AFP

Australian Samantha Stosur was forced to withdraw from her Indian Wells quarter-final match against Angelique Kerber due to injury.

The world No.9 had looked in good form at the tournament and was eying her first semi-final in five months.

"The official reason for Sam Stosur's withdrawal is a right calf injury," the tournament said on its Twitter feed.

Stosur had on Wednesday recorded a rare comeback win in the fourth round, rallying from a set down to beat German youngster Mona Barthel 4-6 6-2 6-3.

The last time Stosur progressed past the quarter-finals of a tournament was in Moscow last October where she lost to Caroline Wozniacki in the title match.

Stosur, seeded No.7 in the event, held a 2-0 career record over Kerber who now receives a walkover into the semi-finals.

View the original article here

Hewitt, Stosur pull off wins

Lleyton Hewitt ... still showing at 32 that he can trouble the big guns. Source: Jeff Chiu / AAP

Lleyton Hewitt scored an impressive three-set win over world No.15 John Isner to reach the third round of the Indian Wells Masters tournament.

In an encounter lasting almost two-and-a-half hours, the veteran Aussie emerged a 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-4 winner over the big-serving American.

The 32-year-old Hewitt will face 18th-seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka for a place in the round of 16. Wawrinka defeated American Wayne Odesnik 3-6 6-2 6-1.

Hewitt, ranked 98th in the world, won the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament in the build-up to the Australian Open in January, but he hadn't previously put together back-to-back wins on the ATP Tour this year.

In a triumphant day for Australia, Samantha Stosur also won through to the third round.

The seventh-seed, who enjoyed a first-round bye, beat young American Madison Keys 6-3 6-4.

Stosur set up a third-round clash with China's No.32 seed Peng Shuai, who downed Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania 6-0 4-6 6-3.

Fourth seed Angelique Kerber defeated Irina-Camelia Begu 6-3 6-2, and Jamie Hampton of the US accounted for 20th seed Su-Wei Hsieh of Taiwan 6-3 6-3.

In the men's draw, 37th-ranked South African Kevin Anderson, who had right elbow surgery in January, stunned fourth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer 3-6 6-4 6-3.

In the third round, Anderson will face Jarkko Nieminen. The 31-year-old Finn ranked 57 in the world upset another seeded Spaniard, 29th-ranked Fernando Verdasco, 6-1 6-0.

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Hurt Stosur calls it quits

Out of action ... Sam Stosur has withdrawn due to injury. Source: GREG WOOD / AFP

Australian Samantha Stosur was forced to withdraw from her Indian Wells quarter-final match against Angelique Kerber due to injury.

The world No.9 had looked in good form at the tournament and was eying her first semi-final in five months.

"The official reason for Sam Stosur's withdrawal is a right calf injury," the tournament said on its Twitter feed.

Stosur had on Wednesday recorded a rare comeback win in the fourth round, rallying from a set down to beat German youngster Mona Barthel 4-6 6-2 6-3.

The last time Stosur progressed past the quarter-finals of a tournament was in Moscow last October where she lost to Caroline Wozniacki in the title match.

Stosur, seeded No.7 in the event, held a 2-0 career record over Kerber who now receives a walkover into the semi-finals.

View the original article here

Matosevic out, Stosur wins

Marinko Matosevic ... bows out of the Indian Wells Masters tournament. Source: Mark Humphrey / AP

Australia's Marinko Matosevic missed out on a clash with world No.1 Novak Djokovic when he lost a torrid third-round battle with American Sam Querry at the Indian Wells Masters.

Matosevic lost the first set in a tiebreak before fighting back to win a second-set tiebreak.

But it was not enough as Querrey triumphed over the 27-year-old Aussie 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (7-9) 7-5 to set up a fourth-round showdown with Djokovic, who was forced to mount a comeback of his own.

Djokovic trailed 4-1 in the opening set but he survived his rocky start to beat Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (7-4) 6-1 and reach the fourth round.

A clutch of errors from Djokovic's 21-year-old Bulgarian opponent was the only opportunity the Serbian star needed and he battled back to win in 67 minutes.

Djokovic improved his win-loss recorfd to 15-0 in 2013 and 20-0 since October 31, when he lost to Querrey at the Paris Masters.

Eighth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and 17th-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic set up a rematch of their record-breaking London Olympics clash, when Tsonga out-lasted Raonic 6-3 3-6 25-23 in the second round.

The 48-game final set was the longest single set in Olympic history, a record that takes into account all men's and women's matches in both singles and doubles.

Tsonga held off American Mardy Fish 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-0) while Raonic rallied for a 3-6 6-4 6-3 victory over Croatian Marin Cilic.

View the original article here

Hewitt, Stosur pull off wins

Lleyton Hewitt ... still showing at 32 that he can trouble the big guns. Source: Jeff Chiu / AAP

Lleyton Hewitt scored an impressive three-set win over world No.15 John Isner to reach the third round of the Indian Wells Masters tournament.

In an encounter lasting almost two-and-a-half hours, the veteran Aussie emerged a 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-4 winner over the big-serving American.

The 32-year-old Hewitt will face 18th-seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka for a place in the round of 16. Wawrinka defeated American Wayne Odesnik 3-6 6-2 6-1.

Hewitt, ranked 98th in the world, won the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament in the build-up to the Australian Open in January, but he hadn't previously put together back-to-back wins on the ATP Tour this year.

In a triumphant day for Australia, Samantha Stosur also won through to the third round.

The seventh-seed, who enjoyed a first-round bye, beat young American Madison Keys 6-3 6-4.

Stosur set up a third-round clash with China's No.32 seed Peng Shuai, who downed Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania 6-0 4-6 6-3.

Fourth seed Angelique Kerber defeated Irina-Camelia Begu 6-3 6-2, and Jamie Hampton of the US accounted for 20th seed Su-Wei Hsieh of Taiwan 6-3 6-3.

In the men's draw, 37th-ranked South African Kevin Anderson, who had right elbow surgery in January, stunned fourth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer 3-6 6-4 6-3.

In the third round, Anderson will face Jarkko Nieminen. The 31-year-old Finn ranked 57 in the world upset another seeded Spaniard, 29th-ranked Fernando Verdasco, 6-1 6-0.

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Stosur reaches quarters in Dubai

All smiles ... Aussie Sam Stosur advances to the quarter-finals at the Dubai Open. Source: News Limited

Defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska and Australia's Samantha Stosur led a parade of top seeds into thec quarter-finals on a Wednesday overshadowed by the abrupt withdrawal of Serena Williams with a back injury.

Williams, who became the oldest top-ranked woman on Monday, said she's had a sore back and ankle since the Australian Open, though she still reached the final in Doha last weekend.

Her departure, announced 45 minutes before she was due to face 11th-ranked Marion Bartoli, came a day after second-ranked Victoria Azarenka, who beat Williams in the Doha final, withdrew with a right foot bone bruise.

"I've just had some back problems the past couple weeks. It didn't get better," Williams said.

"I thought it would get better as the week went on, but it didn't. I don't want to keep pushing it and make it worse."

Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki joined Radwanska in the quarters, brushing aside an error-prone Zheng Jie of China 6-1 6-0.

Former US Open champion Stosur got the better of Hseih Su-wei 6-4 6-0.

Former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova also got past former No.1 Ana Ivanovic 7-5 7-6 (7-1).

The only upset on the day was fourth-seeded Angelique Kerber, who racked up 10 double faults in falling to

Roberta Vinci of Italy 5-7 6-1. It was the latest disappointment for the German, who crashed out of the Qatar Open in the round of 32.

Radwanska had a tougher-than-expected test in winning 7-5 6-3 against 18-year-old wild card Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan.

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Stosur fluffs lines yet again

Samantha Stosur ... couldn't convert match point in Czech Republic. Source: RADEK MICA / AAP

It happened again. Sam Stosur's inability to close out matches has reached plague proportions after she blew a match point while leading world No.8 Petra Kvitova in Australia's Fed Cup quarter-final against the Czech Republic.

Stosur was leading 6-2 5-4 and was one point from victory when Kvitova drove a fast, deep second serve at the her and she couldn't get it back in court.

Kvitova then served her way out of trouble before a Stosur double fault helped the Czech secure the second-set tiebreak and roll on to take the match.

The capitulation follows Stosur's struggles the day one against Lucie Safarova, who took full advantage of a Stosur double-fault while facing a set point against the Aussie.

Stosur described the result as one of the best matches she's played in months, which says plenty.

Team captain Alicia Molik put on a brave face despite the defeat, saying the Aussies can retain a top-eight position.

"The result I don't think is a true reflection. We didn't win a match here against the Czech team, but gosh we could have ... we were right there,'' she said.

"We had the opportunity to win. But (the Czechs) bring their best tennis and you can see their team unity, I think that plays a part as well.''

The Czechs won the tie 4-0, meaning they progress to the semi-finals while Australia will face a playoff in April to remain in the world's top eight nations.

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Stosur reaches quarters in Dubai

All smiles ... Aussie Sam Stosur advances to the quarter-finals at the Dubai Open. Source: News Limited

Defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska and Australia's Samantha Stosur led a parade of top seeds into thec quarter-finals on a Wednesday overshadowed by the abrupt withdrawal of Serena Williams with a back injury.

Williams, who became the oldest top-ranked woman on Monday, said she's had a sore back and ankle since the Australian Open, though she still reached the final in Doha last weekend.

Her departure, announced 45 minutes before she was due to face 11th-ranked Marion Bartoli, came a day after second-ranked Victoria Azarenka, who beat Williams in the Doha final, withdrew with a right foot bone bruise.

"I've just had some back problems the past couple weeks. It didn't get better," Williams said.

"I thought it would get better as the week went on, but it didn't. I don't want to keep pushing it and make it worse."

Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki joined Radwanska in the quarters, brushing aside an error-prone Zheng Jie of China 6-1 6-0.

Former US Open champion Stosur got the better of Hseih Su-wei 6-4 6-0.

Former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova also got past former No.1 Ana Ivanovic 7-5 7-6 (7-1).

The only upset on the day was fourth-seeded Angelique Kerber, who racked up 10 double faults in falling to

Roberta Vinci of Italy 5-7 6-1. It was the latest disappointment for the German, who crashed out of the Qatar Open in the round of 32.

Radwanska had a tougher-than-expected test in winning 7-5 6-3 against 18-year-old wild card Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan.

View the original article here

Stosur fluffs lines yet again

Samantha Stosur ... couldn't convert match point in Czech Republic. Source: RADEK MICA / AAP

It happened again. Sam Stosur's inability to close out matches has reached plague proportions after she blew a match point while leading world No.8 Petra Kvitova in Australia's Fed Cup quarter-final against the Czech Republic.

Stosur was leading 6-2 5-4 and was one point from victory when Kvitova drove a fast, deep second serve at the her and she couldn't get it back in court.

Kvitova then served her way out of trouble before a Stosur double fault helped the Czech secure the second-set tiebreak and roll on to take the match.

The capitulation follows Stosur's struggles the day one against Lucie Safarova, who took full advantage of a Stosur double-fault while facing a set point against the Aussie.

Stosur described the result as one of the best matches she's played in months, which says plenty.

Team captain Alicia Molik put on a brave face despite the defeat, saying the Aussies can retain a top-eight position.

"The result I don't think is a true reflection. We didn't win a match here against the Czech team, but gosh we could have ... we were right there,'' she said.

"We had the opportunity to win. But (the Czechs) bring their best tennis and you can see their team unity, I think that plays a part as well.''

The Czechs won the tie 4-0, meaning they progress to the semi-finals while Australia will face a playoff in April to remain in the world's top eight nations.

View the original article here