WTT Washington Kastles

Leander and Vika in Australian Open Finals

Published on January 27, 2011 under World TeamTennis (WTT)
Washington Kastles News Release


Victoria Azarenka hopes the third time in a Grand Slam Doubles Final is the charm when she and Maria Kirilenko play No. 1 seeds Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta in the Australian Open women's doubles final. The match will air live on The Tennis Channel tonight at 11 p.m. Eastern Time.

"Happy to be in the final in dubs! Having a lot fun playing with maria! One more to go! ;)," Vika tweeted following the semifinals.

Azarenka, a member of the 2010 Washington Kastles, fell in women's doubles finals at the 2008 Australian Open with Shahar Peer and the 2009 French Open with Elena Vesnina.

The Belarusian star has also played in three mixed doubles major finals, winning the 2007 US Open with countryman Max Mirnyi and the 2008 French Open with Bob Bryan.

Those experiences should serve her well as their opponents, Dulko and Pennetta, have combined to reach only one Grand Slam final: Pennetta falling in the 2005 US Open women's doubles championship match with Elena Dementieva.

That being said, Dulko and Pennetta are the top seeds for a reason as the hottest women's doubles team on tour. The Italian/Argentinean duo captured seven titles together in 2010, including the year-end WTA Championships.

Vika and Kirilenko are making their Grand Slam debut together but have already teamed for one title, on the hard courts of Cincinnati last August. In the semifinals at that tournament, they defeated Dulko and Pennetta 6-2, 6-1. But that loss was avenged in Kirilenko's hometown of Moscow last October, when the world's #1 team beat Azarenka and Kirilenko 7-6(3), 6-4.

Kirilenko shares a past with each of her opponents in the final, having won the 2005 Tokyo title with Dulko and the 2008 Estoril title with Pennetta.

To reach the championship match, the No. 12 seeds Azarenka and Kirilenko upset No. 2 seeds Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik 6-2, 6-4 in Wednesday's semifinals, while Dulko and Pennetta prevailed over No. 3 seeds Liezel Huber and Nadia Petrova 6-4, 7-5.

Make sure you Like the Kastles fan page on Facebook and follow the team on Twitter (@washkastles) for real time updates on Vika and the rest of the team throughout the remainder of the Australian Open and throughout the offseason!

Leander Aims to Complete Career Doubles Grand Slam

Leander & Mahesh look to cap their career doubles Grand Slams with a win in Australia.

Like his Kastles' teammate Vika, Leander Paes is one win away from a title he's come oh-so-close to capturing in the past. He and countryman Mahesh Bhupathi reached the Australian Open men's doubles final after defeating No. 2 seeds Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-3 in Thursday's semifinals.

The No. 3 seeds from India won the French Open and Wimbledon as a team nearly a decade ago and then, in recent years, the US Open separately. But neither has stood victorious Down Under, which sparked their reunion at this year's Australian Open.

In a tough semifinal match, Bhupathi proved to be a potent force. After Paes was broken to force a first-set tiebreaker, Bhupathi clinched the Indians' second set point by blasting a passing shot between Mirnyi and Nestor.

Paes conceded the only service break of the second set, but found the range on his serve and strokes in the third. He hit a return winner and Bhupathi added two, to break Nestor's serve and take a 4-2 third-set lead.

After Paes and Mirnyi held in successive games, Bhupathi trailed 15-40 on his serve at 5-3. He saved the first break point with a service winner and the second with a second-serve ace out wide, before clinching the win with a half-volley, down-the-line backhand winner.

Paes and Bhupathi lost a heartbreaking five-set final to Jonas Bjorkman and Patrick Rafter at the 1999 Australian Open, and then played their last major together in Melbourne three years later. Following the breakup of the Indian Express, Bob and Mike Bryan defeated the teams of Paes & Martin Damm (2006) and Bhupathi & Mark Knowles (2009) in Australian Open championship matches.

So it's only fitting that the third-seeded Paes and Bhupathi will play the Bryan brothers in the 2011 men's doubles final, airing live on The Tennis Channel Saturday at 5:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

The teams met twice ten years ago, with the top-seeded Bryans winning on grass at the Queen's Club and the Indians winning on clay in Atlanta.

Paes and Cara Black of Zimbabwe were unable to defend their 2010 Australian Open mixed doubles title, falling to Paul Hanley and Yung-Jan Chan 7-6(11), 7-6(5) in a second-round match on Wednesday.

Make sure you Like the Kastles fan page on Facebook and follow the team on Twitter (@washkastles) for real time updates on Leander and the rest of the team throughout the remainder of the Australian Open and throughout the offseason!

Stubbsy Retires: Her Career By the Numbers

After walking off Rod Laver Arena following a mixed doubles loss on Monday, Washington Kastles' star Rennae Stubbs posted a photo of her exit on Twitter with the caption: "Sorry we didn't win, but I hope you always enjoyed my efforts !!"

As the tone of her tweet suggested, Stubbs officially announced her retirement from professional tennis on Thursday, though she is scheduled to represent Australia in its first-round Fed Cup tie against Italy February 5-6.

Stubbs is expected to return to Melbourne in 2012 with a microphone in hand, and not a racquet.

The 39-year-old six-time Grand Slam champion did not play a tune-up tournament at the start of the 2011 season. Instead, she has been working at events down under with Australian Open host broadcaster Channel 7, building on the commentary she has done in previous years with The Tennis Channel.

With the exception of the 1997 Australian Open, Stubbs never missed her native Grand Slam after making her major debut in Melbourne in 1988.

She last played the singles event in 2000, falling in the second round of qualifying to No. 1 seed Tathiana Garbin of Italy. Undeterred, Stubbs would sweep the doubles titles that same year. She and long-time teammate Lisa Raymond defeated Martina Hingis and Mary Pierce in the women's doubles final, and then Stubbs captured the mixed doubles title with Jared Palmer over Todd Woodbridge and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario.

Stubbs can count Woodbridge and Sanchez-Vicario as former partners as well. They are among the five Hall of Famers to have teamed with the fiery Aussie in her 26 years as a pro, the others being Mark Woodforde, Gigi Fernandez and Steffi Graf. Stubbs' 2011 Australian Open partners - Francesca Schiavone and Chris Guccione - were the 98th and 99th different players to share her side of the court.

In honor of Stubbs' 23rd appearance at the Australian Open, the Kastles came up with 23 numbers symbolic of Stubbs' staying power.

1 - Career-high doubles ranking, achieved on Aug. 21, 2000

2 - ITF Women's Circuit singles titles, won in 1990 and 1991

3 - Weeks as No. 1 ranked doubles player (w/Lisa Raymond)

5 - Doubles partners in the International Tennis Hall of Fame

6 - Grand Slam doubles titles: 4 women's and 2 mixed

10 - Grand Slam doubles finals: 7 women's and 3 mixed

11 - Fed Cup doubles partners

13 - Consecutive year-end finishes in WTA Top 10 (1998-2010)

14 - Seasons finishing in WTA Top 10 overall (also 1993)

15 - Times qualified for the WTA Tour Championships

16 - Australian Open mixed doubles partners

19 - Australian Open mixed doubles appearances

21 - Current age of her youngest doubles partner, Vania King

23 - Australian Open appearances overall

26 - Seasons as a professional

28 - Fed Cup doubles wins, most among active players

31 - Nations in which she has competed

37 - Mixed doubles partners in her career

40 - Age she is turning on March 26

60 - WTA Tour doubles titles, 12th all-time

62 - Women's doubles partners in her career

64 - Career-high singles ranking, achieved on Oct. 14, 1996

69 - Percent of women's doubles matches won (804-354)

Purchase or Renew Kastles Season Tickets & Boxes!

Looking forward to those warm, memorable summer nights at Kastles Stadium this July So are we. Purchase or renew your Kastles season tickets or boxes now and bring a lifetime of summer memories to the entire family.

As a 2011 season ticket or box holder, you will receive tickets to see all seven Kastles regular season home matches and any playoff matches. This includes several matches featuring marquee tennis stars such as Serena & Venus Williams, who we expect will both be playing again in Washington this year. All season ticket holders are also invited to a special tennis clinic during the 2011 season on Kastles Stadium court led by Kastles head coach and international tennis personality Murphy Jensen.

In addition, box and chairback season ticket holders are invited to all the exclusive Kastles VIP social events throughout the season, including our memorable post-match parties and a pre-season reception that features appearances by Murphy, Kastles players and our marquee tennis stars.

As a season ticket holder, you will have the opportunity to select your exact seats in the premier sections of Kastles Stadium before single match tickets go on sale to the general public, ensuring that you will receive the very best seating for the 2011 season.

To purchase your season tickets or boxes, call the Kastles now at 202-4-TENNIS.

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World TeamTennis Stories from January 27, 2011


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