Oudini – American teen serves up magic at U.S. Open

Gritting her way through a shaky third set, 17-year-old Melanie Oudin from Marietta, Ga., pulled off her second upset of the Open on Saturday, defeating a more-seasoned and far more-famous opponent — former No. 1 Maria Sharapova. This victory coming just days after stunning No. 4 seed Elena Dementieva.

“I don’t even know what to say right now,” Oudin said, choking back tears in her postmatch interview with Mary Jo Fernandez in Arthur Ashe Stadium. “Thank you so much for cheering for me.” she said to the appreciative crowd of over 37,000 that included her boyfriend and her mom.

Sharapova, who has won the U.S. Open once, usually gets those cheers. But on this day in Queens, the fans were rooting for a new potential queen — the one who stamped the word “Believe” on her shoes and did just that.

Tennis anyone?

If you find yourself all fired up to play tennis watching the U.S. Open, remember that watching elite athletes can be really deceptive.  It may appear as if they hit,  jump and lunge with ease, but tennis is one tough game.

So while Serena Williams, Jelena Jankovic and Maria Sharapova are showing us how it’s done during this week’s  tournament,  here’s  a primer for those who want to learn the basics of the game.

Scoring

• Each women’s tennis match is made up of two to three sets (guys play five sets). To win a set, you must win at least six games.
• The games are scored starting at “love” (or zero). From love, the first point is 15, then 30, then 40, which wins the game.

Scoring the Game

• Before serving the score is announced, with server’s score first. So if you’re serving and you have zero and your opponent has 30, say “love-30.”
• The server gets two tries. The serve must go over the net, land in the opposite service box, and bounce once before the opponent returns it.
• If it doesn’t land in the service box,  a second serve is taken. If the second serve also misses, the point is lost.
• If the serve grazes the net but still lands in the service box, the serve doesn’t count, and the server gets a do- over. This is called a “let.”
• If the serve goes in and the opponent returns it, players continue hitting back and forth until someone hits the ball into the net, hits it out of bounds, or misses a shot. The other person gets the point.
• Whoever is serving continues serving until the score reaches 40.
• If the score is tied at 40 (”40-all”), that is “deuce,” which is  another word for tie. To break the tie, someone must win two points in a row.  If  a server at deuce wins the next point, then it’s  ” ad-in” which means “server’s advantage.” If the opponent wins, it goes back to deuce, and someone again must win by two points in a row. Yes, this could go on forever.
• Once the game is over, the serve switches to the opposing player. After even numbered games  players switch sides of the court.

Scoring a Set

• Before the first serve in each new game,  the score in sets is announced with the server’s score first.
• To complete a set, someone must win six games; the first person to win six games wins the set.
• However, as with “deuce,” players must win a set by at least two games. So, if the score is 6-5, the person with 5 must win by two games. If the score ties at 6-6, a tiebreaker is played.

Scoring the Match

• The match is determined by the best two out of three sets. So whoever wins two sets, wins the match. If each player wins a set,  a third set is played to determine the winner.

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Lingo

Want to know the difference between a drop shot and a foot fault?  You can learn all you need to know to speak tennis here.

And if you’re ready to jump onto the court and play, here are a few tips to help your game.

What to wear

The right kind of shoes are important.  Though running shoes offer a cushioned sole, they don’t offer enough support for the side-to-side movement demanded in tennis.

You may not want to immediately  splurge on a new pair of tennies, but check the regulations at the court where you’ll be playing, since many don’t allow dark-soled shoes that could scuff the court.  If you own a pair of cross trainers, wear those instead of running shoes, as they offer better support.

Warming-up

• Warm up before playing.  Jog for five to ten minutes to get your blood flowing. Your body should feel warm.  Do a few grapevines the length of the court to wake up your coordination.
• Walking lunges are a great way to prepare your legs for tennis. This simultaneously lengthens and activates muscles in your legs, priming them for the court.
• Twisting is the major action of the torso when hitting the ball. A standing twist stretch is easy to do against the fence of the court. Follow with some basic twisting from side to side to lubricate the joints in the back. You can try this with your racquet tucked under your arms, behind your back.
• Warming up your shoulders is also essential. Move your arms as if you’re doing the backstroke, circling your arms overhead slowly at first and building up speed for 20 repetitions. Follow this by clapping your hands in front and in back of your body.

How do you get to centre court?

It’s sometimes hard to hear but there is no substitute for practice.  The more you practice, the easier it is to play well when it counts. Remember to get to the court early so you can prepare your body before you start to play and don’t get discouraged.

Etiquette

Remember that tennis has a reputation for being a very polite sport.  While it’s less stuffy than it used to be, there are many niceties you need to know so be sure to learn the proper etiquette before you start batting the balls over the night.  Here are a couple must-know rules:

• If you arrive while other people are playing, wait until the point is over before passing behind to get to your court.
• If your ball rolls into the adjacent court, don’t run after it. Wait for your neighbor to return the ball when it’s convenient. If a ball rolls onto your court, toss it back to the player it belongs to.
• If you have any doubt about whether a ball is out, make the call in favor of your opponent.
• At the end of the game, shake hands with your opponents.

Game on!

Seeing double: Serena Williams

Sports icon and reigning US Open, Australian and Wimbledon champion Serena Williams joins the list of celebrities who have gotten a life-sized wax figure of themselves. Williams, 27, was smiling as her wax figure was unveiled last week in New York City at Madame Tussauds.

The athlete took part in participating in the design of her wax figure by getting with the Madame Tussauds studio artists who made their way to Paris at the French Open in order to meet the star during the process.

The wax figure is wearing a replica of the Nike outfit which Williams wore during the 2004 U.S. Open. The outfit – one of Williams’ favorites – consists of a cropped black sleeveless top and denim skirt, accessorized by silver hoop earrings, a sparkling silver ring and black socks, sneakers and headband.

Williams’ figure is part of the Tussaud’s new “Sports Zone” – an interactive area dedicated to the love of sports, which is also home to wax figures of sport icons Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova and Florence Griffith Joyner.

On the tennis court, Williams is a legend. She is the reigning U.S. Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon singles champion and has won 22 Grand Slam titles – more than any other active female player – as well as two Olympic gold medals. Outside of tennis, Williams is known for her successful endeavors in film, television, fashion and philanthropy.

Check out this video of the unveiling of the wax figure.

Win a copy of Serena Williams’ new book

Are you a Serena fan? If so, you don’t want to miss the chance to read her new memoir, “On The Line” out in stores on Sept. 1st. And for five lucky Women Talk Sports winners – the book is free!

One of the biggest stars in tennis, Serena Williams has succeeded on and off the court. She’s applied the same strength and determination that helped her to become a champion to successful pursuits in philanthropy, fashion, television and film.

Serena’s 2009 Australia Open championship earned her the #1 world ranking for the third time in her illustrious career – and marked only the latest exclamation point on a life lived well and purposefully.

Her accomplishments have not been without struggle: being derailed by injury, devastated by the tragic shooting of her older sister, and criticized for her unorthodox approach to tennis. Yet somehow, Serena always manages to prevail.

Learn more about this extraordinary athlete by winning a copy of her new book “On The Line.” To get your copy, you must…

• Follow @womentalksports on Twitter
• CLICK HERE to send the tweet that enters you in our contest.

Winners will be randomly drawn from the pool of entrants at midnight PST Monday, August 31st and contacted via Twitter direct message. Only residents of the U.S. and Canada are eligible to win. Please no P.O. boxes.

Good Luck to all!

Tennis players stop traffic in Toronto

Soon after arriving in Toronto for  this week’s Rogers Cup, Ana Ivanovic took part in an impromptu hit with world No.8 Caroline Wozniacki in the middle of the street. The “Street Tennis” event was put on by women’s tennis’ title sponsor Sony Ericsson at Yonge Street, which is the longest in the entire country.

“The Rogers Cup in Toronto is one of my favorite stops during the US Open Series,” said Ana. “I won this event three years ago and it is always nice to be back in Canada.

“I was thrilled to have a chance to participate in the Sony Ericsson “Street Tennis” stunt with Caroline. It is always exciting to be able to bring the sport of tennis to new audiences and we definitely had fun, taking people on the streets of Toronto by a huge surprise.”

Wozniacki, from Denmark, was equally excited about the event. “I was thrilled to have an opportunity to participate in “Street Tennis” with Ana and very impressed with Yonge Street in this beautiful city of Toronto,” she said.

“The court was laid out for us in a record time and playing an impromptu tennis match with Ana was really fun.”

Ana is a veteran when it comes to playing tennis in unusual but spectacular places: earlier this year she hit with Victoria Azarenka on the roof of the Villa Miami hotel in Rome, while last year she faced Elena Dementieva on a desert island in the Arabian Sea in Doha. She was also featured vaulting across rooftops in Sony Ericsson’s memorable “Never Miss A Shot” TV commercial in 2006.

Fila to debut new women’s Tennis Heritage collections at U.S. Open

If you’re a tennis player (or fan), you’ll be happy to know Fila has come out with a new Fall collection — just in time to gear up for the US Open. The collection is called Heritage, with colors that are basic but bold, and a fit that is sporty, yet feminine.

The brand’s design team dipped into the archives for inspiration to create the new line combining signature Italian styling with state of the art performance fabrications.

You may have seen a few pieces from the new collection on Fila athletes competing in U.S. Open Series. Kim Clijsters began her comeback to professional tennis wearing Fila apparel and footwear. Clijsters, 26, returned to professional tennis this week after a two-year retirement wearing a Fila skort (pictured).

The centerpiece of the collection, the Heritage dress includes a feminine mesh ruffle at the cap sleeve and bottom hem. The draw-cord at the bottom hem allows the wearer to “customize” the look by either cinching the skirt or keeping an a-line shape. Fully utilizing the excellent draping qualities of the fabrication, the line melds old with new with a feminine twist. The collection’s cami-tank is a favorite of Anna Chakvetadze.

The full 2009 Tennis Heritage Collection will unveil August 31 at the U.S. Open on Chakvetadze  and Agi Szavay.

In a clear contrast to more flashy contemporary lines, the Heritage Collection uses old school red, white and blue solids accented by bold, contrasting stripes with several pieces featuring flag-like diagonal stripes, a nod to Fila’s design cues and players from the early 70’s.  Of course the color theme is  also very apple pie and U.S.A.

Each Heritage piece is adorned with the embroidered F-box Heritage patch logo to clearly define the special line. The fabrics are all performance — no throw back to the 70s there.

And the new Fila Alpha shoe coordinates beautifully.

Find the latest looks online at Fila

Adecco sponsors tennis champion Kim Clijsters comeback

The comeback from a two-year retirement of tennis star Kim Clijsters has been boosted by the signing of a sponsorship deal with human resources company Adecco.

The 26-year-old Belgian left professional tennis in 2007 to start a family and in February 2008 she gave birth to daughter Jada. During her first career, Clijsters ranked for a total of 16 weeks as the No. 1 tennis player in the world, won 34 WTA singles titles and 11 WTA doubles titles. Her first official WTA Tour comeback tournament will be Cincinnati (USA), starting on August 10, followed by Toronto (CAN) on August 17 and the US Open in New York, which begins August 30.

“We are delighted to sponsor the comeback of such a great personality as Kim Clijsters,” said Patrick De Maeseneire, chief executive of the Adecco Group. “The support of athletes around the world has a long-lasting tradition at Adecco. It embodies our values of helping passionate people to achieve their aims in the world of work and life.”

“I am very excited about starting this partnership with Adecco as I return to competition and start my second professional career,” said Kim Clijsters. “Teaming up with Adecco, a world leader in Human Resources, gives me confidence in taking up the challenge of combining my career with my family life. I feel it is important to partner with a brand which understands people’s motivations, one that gives them the best advice and support to achieve a better working life.”

Adecco also supports the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee Athlete Career Programme.

If the comeback doesn’t work out, maybe Adecco can help Clijsters get a job.

Zheng Jie and Jelena Jankovic star in ANTA TV commercial

Tennis stars Zheng Jie and Jelena Jankovic appear in a new TV commercial for the Chinese brand of ANTA, which they have been promoting this year.

Style meets performance at U.S. Open

Danish tennis sensation Caroline Wozniacki will represent the new fall/winter 2009 adidas by Stella McCartney tennis range at the U.S. Open at Flushing Meadows.

Currently ranked No. 9 on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, Caroline has been selected to become the exclusive new face of the tennis line and will be playing in apparel and footwear from the distinctive sport performance collection at all upcoming tournaments starting with the U.S. Open.

Pretty Hot: Key silhouettes in the Tennis collection are inspired by college cheerleaders, featuring vibrant eighties inspired skirts combined with feminine rouching and gathering as well as elegant draped sleeves giving a sophisticated playful feel and an unexpected twist on and off the tennis court. The collection also includes adidas CLIMALITE® technology plus footwear including the Skynde shoe which features Barricade V tooling and technology.

Since 2007 Caroline Wozniacki has been part of the adidas Player Development Program, a service that helps nurture young tennis talent through a unique mix of advice and support, giving an extra helping hand towards building a successful career. Together with the player’s own coaching team, the adidas Player Development Program strives to complement with additional training services, advice and motivation.

The U.S. Open will take place August 31st – September 13th where Serena Williams will defend her title.

Video: It Must Be Love

In anticipation of the 2009 Olympus US Open Series and the 2009 US Open, meet some of the world’s top tennis players, including Venus Williams, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic talking about their lives and their loves.

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