I say that in jest, actually.  Jie Zheng is playing great tennis, and should feel absolutely ZERO pressure against Serena.  I can definitely see Zheng keeping the match tight, but I cannot see her actually winning the match.  Serena simply has too much confidence on Centre Court, and I think the prospect of playing her sister in the finals gives her a little extra motivation.  Expect Serena in a tight two setter, something like 6-3, 7-5.

One of the Semifinals over on the Men’s side is actually not set.  Because of the rain delays yesterday, Schuettler and Clement have to finish their quarterfinal match today.  The winner, of course, will enjoy a thrashing at the hands of Rafa Nadal.  I know both players have done well to get here, but the most accomplished either has beaten was James Blake (who Schuettler beat in the second round), and Blake has a pretty poor history on grass.  So, while I applaud both of their efforts, and I will hope for a close match, I think either is in for a pretty good throttling at the hands of Nadal. 

The premiere Mens Semifinal match is Federer vs Safin.  While Safin is ranked 75th, by this time it’s apparent to everyone that he is playing like player that was ranked in the top 10 so long (just ask Djokovic) before he was riddled with injuries.  His opponent this time is not Djokovic, it is Federer.  And this is not the Federer that won only four games off Nadal in Paris, this is the Federer that has not dropped a set in five matches here, nor has he lost on grass in his last 65 matches or so.  I think if Safin can get off to a fast start, he will have a fighting chance, otherwise look for Federer to win in straight, or maybe four sets.

Two notes: Serena just took a 4-1, two break lead over Zheng; Clement just won the 4th set tiebreaker to force a fifth and deciding set.

Obviously, losing in the second round is a huge disappointment for Roddick.  However, it should be known his opponent, Janko Tipsaravic is an extremely talented player who did play one of the better matches I’ve ever seen him play yesterday (for those unfamiliar with Tipsaravic, he is perhaps best known for almost beating Federer at this year’s Australian Open).  Blake, on the other hand, has less of an excuse.  Less than a month ago Blake dismantled Scheuttler at the French Open, on Blake’s worst surface, in straight sets.  Then yesterday he completely lost his nerve, and lost yet another five set match at Wimbledon.

Speaking of losing nerve, the most shocking upset yesterday occurred when Maria Sharapova (champion in 2004, and two time semifinalist) lost badly to 154th ranked Alla Kudryavsteva 6-2, 6-4.  Sharapova looked downright terrible most of the match, double faulting 8 times (in 9 service games) and making 22 unforced errors.  Somewhere at the All England Club, Jelena Jankovic and Venus Williams (the two other best contenders on Sharapova’s side of the draw) are smiling.

Finally, Roger Federer cruised into the round of 16 today with yet another straight set victory.  Before people starting claiming the end of Federer’s reign, perhaps they should have stepped back, realized he still made the finals of the French Open, and watched the best player ever most likely win a 6th straight Wimbledon title.

- Once again, a European Grand Slam has not been nice to males from the United States: first round losers include Wayne Odesnik, Donald Young, John Isner, Vince Spadea, Robby Ginepri, Mardy Fish, Kevin Kim, Sam Querry, Bobby Renyolds and potentially James Blake (who just dropped the first set to Christophe Rochus.  Yikes.

- Wimbledon has also not been nice to people who thought Nalbandian might be a dark horse to make a run here, myself included.  Set with a draw in which he should have been able to cruise into a round of 16 clash with Bagdhatis (especially after Karlovic went down in the first round for the 4th straight year), Nalbandian instead lost to young Canadian Frank Dancevic 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.  That being said, two contenders on that side of the draw, Djokovic, Federer, as well as the aforementioned Bagdhatis are not shedding any tears.

- Speaking of Djokovic, he leads off the action on Centre Court tomorrow with a second round matchup against Safin.  What is so intriguing about this match is that I would not be remotely surprised if Safin pulls off the upset, or if Djokovic wins  6-2, 6-1, 6-2 (or a similar score).  That is how talented, and mentally inept, I perceive Safin to be.

- Real quick, who says tennis is not exciting.

- Nothing too major of note on the Women’s side.   A few minor upsets (like Dellacqua over Schnyder and yet another Russian, Dushevina, taking down her compatriot Maria Kirilenko).  One top seed that narrowly avoided a major upset was 4th seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, who barely beat Mathilde Johansson of France 6-3 in the third set.

- As usual, both Serena and Venus Williams were solid in their first round victories.  Typical of them, they did not blow out their opponents as they seem to play their way into the tournament, getting stronger as the fortnight plows ahead.  Seriously, do not be surprised if Richard Williams is watching both his daughters play in the finals.

The Sports Guy actually wrote a full article about tennis, albeit a bit negative, but any press is good press, right?

Apparently, Andy Murray is ready for the pressure at Wimbledon.  I have my doubts.

Sandra Harwitt’s piece on some redemption seeking females at Wimbledon.

Peter Bodo’s thoughts on Nadal’s recent success on grass.

Latest Ad In/Ad Out feature from Jon Wertheim, as well as hit latest mailbag.

Tennis Week interview with Ana Ivanovic, and another one with her fellow Serb, Jelena Jankovic.

It’s been awhile, but Federer could potentially fall from the No.1 spot he has had a firm grasp on for seemingly forever (February 2nd, 2004).

- The weather this year was subpar, to say the least.  However, while spectators might not have enjoyed some of the cloudiness and drizzle, the result was slower courts than normal, and that probably had something to do with Rafael Nadal’s complete dominance over the entire draw.

- Both female finalists, Ivanovic & Safina, did not play their best tennis in the championship match.  Safina was nervous as it was her first Grand Slam final (also she has some of the same genes as Marat Safin, meaning no one knows that kind of player will show up on any given day), and Ivanovic was clearly a bit put off by finally being a favorite in a Slam final.  Even though the skill wasn’t superb, it was still one of the more compelling women’s matches I’d seen in awhile, as you never really felt sure Ivanovic was going to win until the final point.

- Another note on the slow surface - while Rafa most likely would have won regardless of how fast the clay was, I do not think the same can be said for Men’s Doubles Champions Luis Horna and Pablo Cuevas.  They turned the Men’s Doubles world on its head by playing from the baseline as much as possible and just rocketing forehands at their opponents.  It actually rained the entire third set of their match against the Bryan brothers, and in my opinion on a bright sunny day, I don’t think the eventual champions would have survived that match.

- Unfortunately, I was traveling back to Vermont on the day of the Nadal/Federer thrashing, but if the reports about Federer giving up in the third set are true, then shame on him.  He is the number one player in the world, possibly the best of all time - I don’t care if he is playing against some hybrid of Borg and Nadal, put forth your best effort, if not for yourself, for all the fans around the globe watching. 

- The potential long term ramifications for Federer after getting destroyed by Nadal, in my opinion are next to nothing.  It is my guess that if the two face off again at the end of this year’s Wimbledon (as they have done the past two years), Federer will be the only holding the Champion’s Trophy.

- Gael Monfils is perhaps the most athletically gifted player to set foot on a tennis court, ever.  It was a pleasant surprise to see him pull a “Jo Willie Tsonga” and storm through the Men’s draw before falling to Federer.  Here’s to hoping he can stay injury free over the next few years and continue to be a threat on the ATP Tour.

- I struggle with my thoughts on the Williams Sisters.  They can be so frustrating to watch because everyone knows their potential, and sometimes I wish they would re-commit themselves fully to tennis.  On the other hand, if dedicating themselves wholly to tennis will burn them out and have them completely out of the game sooner rather than later, then maybe pacing themselves is the best for everyone.

- Special kudos to 106th ranked American Wayne Odesnik, who has the upset of the tournament thus far. Yesterday, he took down 29th seeded and clay court specialist G. Canas in three straight tiebreakers, in a match that almost lasted four hours.

- Venus Williams is going to have to play far, far better than she did when she outlasted her first round opponent, a relative unknown from Israel, in three grueling sets.

- Jonathan Essyric, a young Frenchman who went down to Andy Murray in the first round in a five setter, will make a name for himself amongst his compatriots, and it will be soon.

- Both Tsonga and Gasquet defaulted before play began, upsetting their hometown crowd, citing various physical injuries. However, methinks Gasquet’s injury is more mental than anything.

- Nicole Vaidisova should take some time off.  Watching her lose in the first round the other day was painful, because everyone knows her potential is so great, but I think she is starting to buy into people calling her a failure.  She is only 19, she has plenty of time to recover, she just needs to believe in herself again.

- Watching Guga play his final match on Sunday, in obvious pain, only makes me think even more negatively about Henin’s abrupt retirement. Kuerten did not have to subject himself to getting throttled on Court Philippe Chatrier (where he won three French Open titles), but he did anyway, to show appreciation to the fans that supported him throughout his career. Tennis, and tennis fans, are a huge part of who Kuerten is, and he gave tennis something back on Sunday.

- Hopefully the rain will stop and I can post more as the week goes on.

I think Justine is soft because at the age of 25, she doesn’t feel like working hard anymore. She has been playing poorly the first half of 2008, can feel the field catching up to her, and simply doesn’t feel like putting in the effort to stay ahead of the game. Forgive me, I don’t think going out “on top,” is what makes an athlete a champion. I mean, I was top 5 in New England in the 12’s when I could’ve quit - instead I bottomed out when I was riding the bench on my college team, and now I’m the two time defending Jeff Stone Doubles Champion. In all seriousness, just compare Henin to Federer- relatively similar situations - Federer has struggled and been threatened (on surfaces other than clay) for the first time in seemingly forever, but instead of retiring he hired a new coach, stepped up his game and now seems again a threat for the next three grand slams. Anyway, I’m getting angry as I write…so for now here are some links.

Two ESPN articles on Henin, one from Garber, and one from Ford.

List of other early retirees. Sorry Ms. Holdsclaw, while you were a tremendous player at Tennessee, I bet very few sports fans could name what WNBA team you played for, and therefore I don’t think you belong on this list.

Mailbag from Wertheim, who links to his own Henin article within.

Gimelstob has some high praise for Henin.

Today’s results from Hamburg & Rome.

Peter Bodo’s thoughts on Henin.

ESPN considers Pete Sampras to be the greatest living tennis legend.

Amidst controversy, Madrid will be the site for the US vs. Spain Davis Cup Semifinal.

Peter Bodo weighs in on clay court tennis, from Rome.

Looks like the US Open will be moving to ESPN.

Probably in an effort to elevate Tennis’ popularity, ESPN360 is launching online coverage.

Latest mailbag from Jon Wertheim.  And his latest AD In/ AD Out Feature.

This is the first I’ve heard of this…Aussie doubles player Paul Hanley is involved in rape allegations.

In honor of Blake having a nice little run in Rome, here is possibly his best point ever.

What’s even stranger than that? Two American’s have lasted longer than Nadal at a major clay-court event.  Both James Blake and Andy Roddick have made it to the quarterfinals in Rome.  A bit unexpected, given that this is Roddick’s first clay-court event of 2008, and that Blake got destroyed by unknown German Dennis Gremelmyr last week in Barcelona in his first match.  Blake got a bit lucky, as he was scheduled to play Nadal in the quarters, now gets to face Wawrinka (who beat Ferrero today) instead.   Roddick will face the winner of Roberedo/Davydenko.

Now, for perhaps the most shocking tennis news of the week, let’s turn our attention to the WTA.  Justine Henin, in her second match since getting decimated 6-2, 6-0 by Serena Williams at the Sony Ericsson Open, lost to 17th ranked Dinara Safina today, 5-7, 6-3, 6-1.  Truthfully, even though it went three sets, besides a five game stretch in the first set, Henin was thoroughly dominated.   In addition to that upset, Kuznetsova was upended by Alona Bondarenko 6-2 in the third.  With the second slam of the year looming, both of these gals will be looking to regain some confidence next week in Rome.

Great article on Sampras and his personal battles on clay from the SI archives. 

Winning Wimbledon just because a bit more profitable.

Peter Bodo’s thoughts on most recent Djokovic retirement.

Fifteen Years ago today the sportsworld suffered a tragic event.

Bonnie Ford writes on Monte Carlo and beyond…

Bjorn Borg has laid down some big expectations for Nadal.

Tennis Week interview with Max Miryni.

Sampras makes his Outback Tour debut this week, and in doing so will look to defend his Boston title from 2007.