DUBAI, 27 February 2008 — The minor drought is over for Anna Chakvetadze.
The sixth-seeded Russian advanced to the second round of the Dubai Tennis Championships yesterday with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 victory over Polish qualifier Agnieszka Radwanska.
Indian top seed Sania Mirza also advanced with a 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 victory over her Russian rival Vera Dushevina.
Chakvetadze had been in slump since capturing her seventh career title earlier this month in Paris. Following that win, the 20-year-old received first round byes in both Antwerp and Doha, but promptly lost in the second round to Sofia Arvidsson and Na Li, respectively. The world No. 6 also had some problems against Radwanska, double faulting 11 times, including five during her second set loss. Things don’t get easier for Chakvetadze, who next faces countrywoman Dinara Safina, a winner Monday. The 15th-ranked Safina has won three of four meetings in the all-time series, including their most recent encounter in Moscow last season. The tournament took a hit earlier yesterday when fifth-seeded Maria Sharapova withdrew due to a viral illness.
The reigning Australian Open champion, who claimed her second WTA title of the season on Sunday in Doha, was replaced by Japan’s Akiko Morigami, who seized the opportunity with a 6-1, 6-4 upset of Hungary’s Agnes Szavay.
Sania, India’s first female sports celebrity, admitted that she reached a point recently when she wondered whether it was any longer worth going through what she endured.
Sania, a Muslim, has been criticized by religious groups for wearing short skirts while competing, found it necessary to apologize for filming an advertisement near an historic mosque, and is also apparently being taken to court for alleged disrespect after photographs showed her bare feet resting near the Indian flag.
“There are times when you are low and lonely, and that’s when your family come into play,” she said, agreeing with a questioner who asked if there was a price to pay for her celebrity.
Also asked if she had considered quitting after the flag controversy, she said: “That was one of my passing thoughts.
“I thought was it worth it to go through all this. But here in Dubai I am winning and that’s more important than what happened two-and-a-half months ago,” she said, referring to victory in her opening match against Dushevina, a Russian qualifier. Sania was asked to compare her situation with how the Indian cricketers cope, some of whom she knows.
“We all have our set of pressures and expectations to deal with,” she answered.
“But it’s at a very different level.
“At the end of the day there are eleven of them in the Indian cricket team. Eleven take the loss and eleven take the victory.
“I don’t know how many people have gone through the controversies I have, even in the cricket team.
“We are from a country where we have not had a woman play tennis at this level and become as big a celebrity as I have been.
“I am still dealing with things at a very different level. I put my foot up because I am cramping and a lawsuit follows — I don’t think it happens in many countries.
“Maybe it will take ten years to get used to it.”
Two well-known names went out. Marion Bartoli, the No. 7 seed from France, fell at the first hurdle for the second week in a row, and Nadia Petrova, the former world No. 3 both continued their disappointing runs of form.
Bartoli, who has suffered from illness and injury and has still only won three matches this year, looked as though she was going to turn things around when she pinched the second set from Francesca Schiavione, the Italian No. 1.
But after dropping serve in the fourth game of the final set, Bartoli’s resistance ended rather suddenly and she fell away to a 6-1, 6-7 (5-7), 6-1 defeat. Petrova, who lost in the first round for the fifth time in six tournaments this year, seemed devoid of all confidence as she gained only three games from Katarina Srebotnik, a qualifier from Slovenia.
Afterward Petrova, who was touted as a front-runner for the French Open title only a couple of years ago, said that she might take a break from the game to recharge her batteries. But another French player who has been struggling, Amelie Mauresmo, down at world No. 29, scored only her tenth victory since losing her Wimbledon title nearly eight months ago. The former world No. 1 won 7-6 (11-9), 6-2 over Anabel Madinah Garrigues, avenging a loss over the Spaniard in their previous meeting, and earning a meeting with Japan’s Akiko Morigamo.
