Maria Sharapova

Make Way, It’s Wimbledon 2011 Time – Check out These Women to Watch!

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It’s that time of year again: Wimbledon. Sweet, sweet, Wimbledon. We’re rooting for the women this time around, and we definitely have some top favorites that could take it all. If you’re not sure who we’re talking about, don’t worry — we definitely have some heavy hitters for you!

1. Caroline Wozniacki — This star tennis player is from Denmark, and is currently the WTA #1 ranker. When it comes to the Wimbledon 2011 Ladies’ Singles crown, we just don’t feel that Caroline is going to make it. Right now, the grass court exposes a monster Achilles heel: no offense. With both Williams sisters in the running for the crown at Wimbledon, you really can’t get away with having no offense on a grass court.

Even if the Williams sisters weren’t in the running, you still have Jarmilla Gajdosova, who has enough power to light up a subdivision. That’s going to be a problem. She’s up first against Arantxa Parra Santonja, but that’s not going to be a problem. It’s the other lady lions in the den that will give Ms. Wozniacki troubles.

2. Maria Sharapova — Say what you will about Sharapova’s ability to pull in sponsorships, the truth is that this Russian stunner is truly a fierce tennis player. It’s been a while since we’ve seen Sharapova at a grand slam, but that doesn’t mean anything at all. Quarterfinals should be smooth for her, but it’s the semifinals that we think are going to be the toughest for Sharapova in the long run.

3. Li Na — If you’ve missed this Chinese rock star tennis player’s debut, don’t worry — Li Na will dazzle you again. However, she’s got a big challenge — Alla Kudryavtseva is pretty fierce too! However, considering that Li Na snagged the French Open title just a month ago, it’s not like she can’t do great at Wimbledon.

4. Marion Bartoli – Things have been pretty tough for Bartoli — the French tennis star had some tough experiences at the French Open and she’s up against a lot of people that have strengths in the areas where she has weaknesses. Still, she’s got some very good tennis technique that could keep her through at least the quarterfinals.

5. Serena Williams — We have to cover Serena Williams. Grass is one of her best surfaces, even though the credit usually is paid to her sister Venus more often than not. There’s a lot riding on a Wimbledon win — she would become the first woman since Steffi Graf to win three Wimbles in a row — now that’s hot!

The only thing we’re worried about is that she hasn’t done a lot of tournaments since that last Wimbledon win — can she really shake off all that old rust and dirt to take home the crown?

We could go on and on about the women to watch, but we’d rather have you watching the game — what do you think? Which woman is going to walk away with the recognition of getting that sweet Ladies Singles crown? Sound off in the comments, we would love to know what you think!

What Does It Really Take To Play Tennis Well

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If there’s one sport that people don’t get, it’s got to be tennis. A lot of people think that tennis is something that is easy…until they pick up a tennis racket and try to deal with a ball speeding their way at up to 80mph or better. That can be a fast paced challenge that you might not be ready for. Maybe you’re thinking about coaching someone that wants to be a tennis rockstar or you’re a proud parent that hopes their child will develop an itch to play tennis all the way up to becoming a pro. On the other hand, you could be just trying to figure out how to tweak your tennis game so that people look at you with awe at the gym.

Either way, here’s what you need to know about playing tennis well.

First and foremost, it’s really all about practice. You want to make sure that you truly are handling your tennis game from start to finish. This means having a set practice schedule and sticking to it. If you’re playing for fitness, then you obviously will have a less demanding schedule than someone who is practicing their tennis game so that they’ll turn pro one day. It’s all a matter of figuring out what your goals in tennis are and then adapting accordingly. Of course, you don’t have to stay in cone category for the rest of your life. Some people start out just doing tennis as a hobby and they then morph into someone that wants to play more competitively. Even if you don’t want to turn pro, there are tennis championships and competitions that you can enter in. These can also sharpen your skills because you’ll be playing against a wide variety of people. It’s hard to let your tennis game get lazy when you’re up against those types of odds, right?

Right. So practice is a big deal, but would you believe it’s also the equipment that you choose? Now, this is a point that could cause some debate and we’re definitely prepared for that. However, the truth is that you will come to a point where you have to get better equipment. If you’re serious about playing tennis well, you will want a great racket that you can control. You will need to think about both price and material and realize that tennis can get expensive very quickly. Would this be advice that you give to a beginner? Definitely not — when you’re starting out you want to make sure that you play as hard of a tennis  game as you can with the most economical and affordable tennis racket that you can. Otherwise you’re going to end up sinking money into a hobby or sport that you don’t really like.

The final ingredient that it takes for you to play your best game of tennis yet is simply time. You can’t expect to be Monica Seles in her glory days just after a week of tennis practice. It can take years — which is why most professional tennis players actually went pro when they were very young. If this is your dream though, all we can tell you is good luck and keep practicing — you’ll get where you want to be eventually!

How to Choose a Woman’s Tennis Racquet

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Ladies, don’t be scared of tennis because you have to choose a racquet. This is the most important piece of equipment in the tennis world aside form the net and the ball, so it pays to make sure that you’re really picking the right racquet for your needs. One of the first things that you need to think about is your budget. If you’re serious about playing a lot of tennis, you will need to invest in a high quality racket.

This doesn’t necessarily mean getting a racket that is very heavy — that’s more for advanced players that can control the weight effortlessly and still create a powerful swing. You will most likely want a racquet that feels light enough to move around but heavy enough to still be able to propel the ball forward down the court.

Believe it or not, the material that makes up your upcoming tennis racquet is going to be absolutely critical. A lot of beginners like graphite rackets, but it’s rather expensive to move in that direction. In addition, it’s not really necessary — you don’t have to have some big powerful graphite racket when you’re still learning about tennis, let alone whether or not you even want to keep playing the sport. There’s nothing wrong with realizing that a sport isn’t for you, and if that’s the phrase that you’re in you don’t want to invest too much money into things.

If you’re new to tennis, you might not realize where the power in the racquet actually comes from. The truth is that it comes from the head size as well as how flexible the frame is. A large tennis racquet can feel clumsy in a woman’s hand, which means that you might want to train with a smaller racquet and then move your way up. The racquet size that you’ll want to look for in tennis stores is generally around 85-95 square inches. This is more than enough space on the racquet to be able to drive the ball while still having proper control and form.

Indeed, form is something that women tennis players need to pay attention to. Although we live in a society that values equality, you will still need to make sure that you really take your time to work on your tennis game with your body’s own strengths and weaknesses. If you assume that you can play just like a man, you may make mistakes in your form that could cripple your game. Men and women’s bodies are made differently, which is why the sport is divided into separate-gender arenas. That’s just the way it is, but it’s really not a bad thing — you get to see how you fare against other women.

Overall, you will need to really take the time to consider a few different tennis racquets before you make your final decision. If you have a chance to walk into a sporting goods store and feel each one that you’re interested in, that’s even better. It’s just a matter of making sure that you spend real time looking at all of your options — that’s the best way to go!

Irena Pavlovic – One Tough Tennis Player!

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What do you get when you look into star tennis player Irena Pavlovic? The total package, of course! She was born September 22nd, 1988 — and yes, that means that this star definitely has a lot of years left on the tennis courts. It’s a good thing too, because she’s definitely on fire right now.

Pavlovic is of Serbian descent and hails from Paris, France. She was moved to Paris at the age of three and definitely considers it home. To date she has won three singles and 13 doubles events under the umbrella of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). This string of victories has given her a World Ranking of 202 — not bad when you think about the other star tennis players she’s up against!

You might wonder where Irena’s star tennis power comes from, and the answer is simple: rigorous training. She trained under Monica Seles as well as Christophe Serriere and Patrick Mouratoglou.

So far, Pavlovic has earned nearly $150,000 in prize money over her career, and she turned pro in 2004. Not terrible when you realize that her star power has also led to some sponsorships and other goodies too.

Speaking of goodies, let’s go back to the victory part — you have to look at her singles career as well. In the ITF, she has three singles wins — two of them on hard courts and just one on a grass court.

She has played more doubles than singles, winning 13 of those matches. At the top of her game, she had a world ranking of 116 — still not bad at all. Even though her ranking has fallen a bit since those days, Irena is still a very powerful tennis player. Pavlovic has even played at the French open, but she lost to Akgul Amanmuradova. Still, even with these losses on her plate, you can tell that Pavlovic will have a great career — just look at her statistics. She’s definitely not perfect, but the potential for increased greatness is definitely there!

One point that makes these tennis bios so worthwhile is that they give would-be female tennis players a bit of inspiration. It can be tough to practice tennis day in and day out and to deal with the natural injuries that follow, but it’s really all worth it in the end. You never know — you really could become as great as Irena Pavlovic in the long run — just keep training hard!

Maria Yuryevna Sharapova

Other Tennis Players

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Grand Slam tennis tournament is regarded as the most prestigious tournaments which includes The Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open. These four grand Slam tournaments are held every year at different venues in Australia, France, the United Kingdom and the United States of America respectively. The Grand Slam tennis is now mandatory for every top tennis player and one who wins all four Grand slams in a single year becomes the Grand Slam winner. The winners of these tournaments receive maximum world ranking points, monetary award and a lot of fame.

Maria Yuryevna Kirilenko, born in Moscow on 25 January 1987 is a professional Russian tennis player. She won her first WTA tour title in 2005, junior event at 2002 Canadian Open and 2002 US Open junior tournament. She reached Grand Slam quarterfinal at 2010 Australian Open and is currently ranked World No 26. Like her fellow Maria Sharapova, kirilenko also like to connect athletics with fashion.

Elena Dementieva is a retired Russian professional tennis player known for game and her beauty. She became most popular at the time she won singles gold medal at 2008 Olympic in Beijing. She is the winner of 16 WTA singles titles and reached finals of 2004 French Open and 2004 US Open. Dementieva achieved career high ranking of World NO.3 and ended her career at World ranking NO 9.

Ana Ivanovic, born on November 6, 1987 is Serbian tennis player and is former world No 1. Presently she is ranked World No. 19 on WTA rankings and has won 2008 French Open and runner up in singles at 2007 French Open and 2008 Australian Open. Ivanovic is an offensive baseliner and is known for her aggressive play.  But from negative side, it is said that her loss is because of no confidence in herself and almost no self-belief. However Ana is now confident than ever before as she has rectified these problems.

Anna Sergeyevna Kournikova, born on 7 June 1981 is a Russian professional tennis player and is known for her looks, personal life and celebrity status worldwide. This status of Anna Kournikova has made her one of the best known tennis players worldwide. She has never won WTA title in singles however she has at times been the World No 1 in doubles.

Maria Yuryevna Sharapova, born on April 19, 1987 is a Russian professional tennis player and is former World No 1. Tennis player. She has won 23 WTA singles titles which includes the big ones- 3 Grand Slam singles at 2004 Wimbledon, 2006 US Open and 2008 Australian Open. Maria Sharapova is an aggressive baseliner with depth, power and angles on her forehand and backhand and is one of those few players on WTA who use reverse forehand very often.  She is popular because of her play as well as her beautiful looks.

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Investing In The Game of Tennis Doesn’t Have to be Expensive

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If you’re a lottery fan, be proud — you’re in great company! You might dream about winning big and starting a great tennis hobby that could even lead to the semi-professional leagues. However, do you really need to be rich in order to play tennis? Even though that’s the prevailing stereotype, it’s not true. There are plenty of regular people that cruise Euromillions.com hoping that they’ll win the lottery, but they play tennis within their own limited means. So if you’re thinking about investing in the game of tennis, it actually could be cheaper than you think.

One of the first things that you’re going to have to tackle is where to play. There are plenty of free community centers that now offer a tennis court for you to enjoy. Even if you only have a racquetball court, you can modify the boundaries to suit the game of tennis just fine. You might be in a tighter space, but there are ways to get things done if you really think about them.

In addition, you will also need to think about equipment. This is where most people end up making those costly mistakes that can make tennis so darn expensive! You see, people think that you have to buy new, or that you even have to buy. If you’re really not sure yet whether or not your heart is really into tennis, why not try renting equipment. Once you’re done with your tennis session, the equipment goes back to the sporting goods store. This saves you money because if you find that tennis really isn’t your game, you don’t have to be stuck married to it for the rest of your life. You can move on without guilt, and that’s always refreshing in the long run.

You also don’t have to invest in pricey lessons. Again, if you have a community gym or recreational center, there might be some free lessons being offered. Or there might be some cheap lessons offered by the sporting goods store that just happens to be next to a gym. There are a lot of outlets for tennis now, so more and more people are thinking about getting into the game.

The question here is — do you really want to commit to tennis? You should invest slowly to start with, because if you rush in you might find that this really isn’t something that you want to do. You might want to do something else, and that’s perfectly okay. But don’t wait until you become a millionaire to experience the thrill of tennis — that could be a long time to wait for something wonderful!

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